The Most Popular Comedian

Advertisement

Rong Yuheng’s passionate and intense performance came to an end. He lowered his head and noticed that his warm feeder’s expression was off.

Rong Yuheng restrained his emotions, slowly leaned over, and peered out, asking, “What’s wrong?” Then he looked back at the projection screen and suddenly realized, “Oh, I was blocking your view of the movie.”

Wen Zhecheng was almost out of patience. He added another mark in his notebook about Rong Yuheng and sighed, pulling him back to sit beside him.

“It’s alright. If you want to take off your ‘vest,’ how do you take it off?”

A character transformation was like a risky chess move, unlike in novels or TV shows where people enjoy seeing a poor person become wealthy overnight. In reality, emotional factors had to be considered, and not everyone may accept it.

Rong Yuheng totally got that. “Yeah, let’s just go with the flow. People are more cool with stuff when they figure it out on their own.”

Wen Zhecheng nodded. “Alright, I’ll help you take it off.”

Peeling it off bit by bit, until it was all clean in the end.

—

The big white goose returned to its nest on its own by noon. Wen Zhecheng was cooking in the kitchen, while Rong Yuheng followed him around like a little tail, holding a spice box and looking around.

He hadn’t learned how to cook Chinese cuisine, so he couldn’t be of much help. He didn’t want to just sit there, so he played the role of a tool for passing ingredients. Fortunately, Wen Zhecheng didn’t mind, and even praised him occasionally.

“Being able to distinguish between salt and sugar, my hamster is really smart!”

Advertisement

If Wen Zhecheng’s tone hadn’t been sincere, his eyes containing a gentle light, Rong Yuheng would have almost thought that he was being sarcastic.

Wen Zhongyun, who had returned to the nest, gradually appeared at the kitchen door once more. “It smells so good…”

Rong Yuheng immediately cast aside his baseless suspicions about Wen Zhecheng and turned joyfully. “Uncle, I’m here to disturb you again, hehe!”

Wen Zhongyun chuckled, “Welcome, welcome, kha kha khha~”

Amidst the lively atmosphere of geese flying and hamsters hopping, Wen Zhecheng’s three meat dishes were finally ready: stir-fried pork with bamboo shoots, shredded pork with green peppers, and four-happiness meatballs. He also prepared a vegetarian stir-fried radish to ensure a balanced diet. The four dishes were placed on the table, and the bone soup was still simmering in the pot.

The table was filled with hot dishes. As the weather cooled down, steam rose from the table, and Rong Yuheng sat at the table, holding a bowl of white rice, feeling warm and content.

Wen Zhongyun turned his head and called to Wen Zhecheng, who was serving the soup in the kitchen, “Er Zhe! Come and eat!”

Wen Zhecheng responded and brought out the soup. He looked at Rong Yuheng and felt an inexplicable satisfaction, so he smiled.

Advertisement

Wen Zhecheng’s smile was so warm that Rong Yuheng couldn’t help but think for a moment that he should call out, “Da Lang (Elder Brother), come drink the soup…”

Shaking his head vigorously, Rong Yuheng dispelled these random images. He turned to Wen Zhongyun and asked, “Is it usually Teacher Wen who cooks at home?”

Wen Zhongyun replied, “When he’s at home, he cooks. When he’s not, I order takeout. A few years ago, Zhecheng was busy filming and only came home for a little over a month in a year. I made him take a break this year, so it’s been better.”

Wen Zhecheng handed a bowl of soup to Wen Zhongyun and set it aside. “I’ll try to take on fewer roles in the future and choose good ones, so I can spend more time with you all.”

Rong Yuheng listened, and at first, he didn’t catch on. It wasn’t until Wen Zhecheng also brought him a bowl of soup that he belatedly realized the flavor of that “you all” in his words.

Wen Zhecheng asked him, “Is it to your liking? What dishes do you enjoy? I’ll make them for you next time.”

Rong Yuheng was already digging into his food and said, “It’s delicious, delicious. It’s perfect as it is!”

Wen Zhongyun watched him eat and felt pleased. Before, it was just him and Wen Zhecheng eating together, and with the latter being reserved, meals always felt a bit chilly.

“If you find it delicious, come often. Let Zhecheng cook for you. Ah, but there’s just one thing—we’re all men here, so I’m afraid you might find it dull.”

Rong Yuheng, munching on a meatball, said, “No, it’s the same at my house.”

Advertisement

Wen Zhongyun and Wen Zhecheng both froze at the same time.

Wen Zhecheng even slowed down his breath… Is it the same at Rong Yuheng’s home too?

Rong Yuheng was eating, but when he saw the two men’s lack of response, he looked up and met their two complex and pitying gazes.

A meatball got stuck in Rong Yuheng’s throat. After thinking for a moment, he explained, “There’s only my dad and older brother at home now. My mom is in sky.”

*Clang!* Wen Zhongyun’s chopsticks made a slight noise as they tapped against the edge of the bowl. He moved his throat, about to offer comfort, but before he could, he saw Rong Yuheng took out his phone with excitement.

“I’ll show you what my mom looks like up in the sky!”

Both the father and son from the Wen family inhaled sharply: Can that even be seen?

Rong Yuheng opened his friend circle, squeezed between Wen Zhongyun and Wen Zhecheng, and said with enthusiasm, “Look, isn’t she amazing?”

On the phone screen was a windblown figure sitting on a hot air balloon, with a blissful expression so fuzzy it was hard to make out.

Wen Zhongyun and his son: …

Indeed, she’s up in the sky.

Rong Yuheng was oblivious to their silence and continued with enthusiasm, “My mom is traveling around the world!”

…

After a while, Wen Zhecheng managed to squeeze out a word of praise, “Impressive…”

Rong Yuheng responded, “That’s right!”

Advertisement

Wen Zhecheng made a sound of agreement and asked, “How did your aunt think of traveling the world?”

Putting away his phone and returning to his seat, Rong Yuheng said, “My mom wanted to build an automatic swing powered by wind energy in the garden. My dad disagreed, and they had a fight. My dad said, since you’re so capable, why not go up to the sky? So, my mom went to the sky.”

…This whole story was full of holes. Even someone as talkative as Wen Zhongyun fell into silence, unsure how to respond.

After a moment of silence, Wen Zhecheng couldn’t help but break it, “If your aunt goes out alone, can your uncle rest assured?”

Hearing this, Rong Yuheng’s action of eating a meatball paused for a moment. Then, he pouted, “He won’t… hmph.”

Trying to sound calm and light, he continued, “After their fight, they got divorced. My dad can’t control my mom.”

Divorce.

Wen Zhecheng didn’t know why, but he suddenly thought of the video from the audition—Rong Yuheng mentioned he had been in college but came back due to family matters.

It was probably because of his parents’ divorce.

Wen Zhecheng didn’t believe that a quarrel, like the playful one they just had, could lead to the end of a marriage. There were many reasons for two people to separate, and he knew Rong Yuheng had just mentioned the simplest one.

Feeling uncomfortable, Wen Zhecheng wanted to hold Rong Yuheng and comfort him, as if he could soothe away all the negativity and help him digest the pain.

Wen Zhongyun kicked Wen Zhecheng under the table, his gaze accusing: See, you stepped on a landmine. Hurry up and coax him.

Wen Zhecheng immediately reached out to tousle Rong Yuheng’s hair, attempting to smooth over the wounds in his heart.

Before he could tousle it a couple of times, Rong Yuheng lifted his head. His gaze showed no suppressed pain or fragile pretense. Instead, there was only a hint of hesitation.

“Do you mind washing your hands first…? You just scooped soup, and your fingers might get oily and touch my fur.”

Wen Zhecheng’s hand froze. “…Sorry, I didn’t think of that.”

…

After finishing lunch, Wen Zhecheng put Rong the hamster back in its nest and took him to see his bookshelf.

His bookshelf was filled with trophies, limited edition records, and some opera DVDs. Rong Yuheng flipped through them and found some that belonged to Wen Zhongyun.

“Uncle is truly a precious senior artist.”

“Artists from that era had it tough,” Wen Zhecheng said. “They took step by step to achieve what they did. Back then, it was called the art world, and it’s different from the entertainment industry now.”

Rong Yuheng nodded. He was about to take out a DVD to listen to when he felt his phone vibrate.

Opening it, he saw a message from Zhou Shubai.

It was a message he sent yesterday after recording the program. Zhou Shubai was probably busy, as he only replied now.

[Zhou Shubai]: Little Rong! This young master is filming. I’ve just seen your message now.

Wen Zhecheng turned to look at Rong Yuheng. “Got work?”

Rong Yuheng shook his head, “It’s Shubai ge. We haven’t seen each other in a long time. I said I’d visit him sometime.”

【Rong Yuheng】: Where are you filming? Do you have time to have a meal together? Miss you so much!

【Zhou Shubai】: In City N. Are you coming to visit me on set?

【Rong Yuheng】: I happen to be free the day after tomorrow. I’ll come see you [Cat peeking out.jpg].

【Zhou Shubai】: Come quickly! I’ll have my brother treat you to a meal.

… Rong Yuheng’s movements paused for a moment.

【Rong Yuheng】: Your brother? Is he also visiting you on set?

【Zhou Shubai】: No, he auditioned and got the role of the fifth male lead, so we’re filming together on the same set.

Rong Yuheng furrowed his eyebrows: Subway, old man, look at your phone.

【Rong Yuheng】: So, what role are you playing now?

【Zhou Shubai】: Second male lead.

Rong Yuheng: …

He felt like Qu Jianlun was more like Zhou Shubai’s launching pad to fame.

Wen Zhecheng noticed that Rong Yuheng’s expression wasn’t right and couldn’t help but ask, “What’s wrong?”

Rong Yuheng closed his phone and pressed his temple, “It’s nothing… Can you play a record for me? I want to soothe my frazzled nerves.”

Wen Zhecheng responded with great tenderness, “Of course.”

…

Because he would be visiting City N the next day, Rong Yuheng didn’t stay overnight at Wen Zhecheng’s place tonight. This time, Wen Zhecheng gave him a scarf to take with him, saying it was brought back from Country F and had never been used.

The off-white scarf was warm and soft, and Rong Yuheng was almost burying his entire face in it, looking very adorable.

Wen Zhecheng was very satisfied. He finally understood the joy that girls found in playing dress-up games.

“It suits you, looks great on you,” he praised.

Holding the scarf to his face, Rong Yuheng poked his head out, “That’s because my feeder has good taste.”

Wen Zhecheng’s gaze lingered on his bright eyes for two seconds, “I think so too.”

Well, that’s why I’ve taken a liking to you.

As Wen Zhecheng’s car arrived back at the apartment building, Rong Yuheng didn’t immediately get out of the car. He held onto the large scarf around his neck, lost in thought… Every time he came to Wen Zhecheng’s place, he ended up eating and leaving wrapped up, like having feathers plucked from a goose.

Thinking about this, Rong Yuheng turned to glance at Wen Zhecheng.

The sky had already darkened, and the view outside the car window was shrouded in darkness, pitch black. One of Wen Zhecheng’s hands rested on the steering wheel. With broad shoulders and a sturdy build, he unbuttoned the top button of his collar, revealing the movement of his Adam’s apple sliding up and down.

There was a mature man’s masculine allure emanating from him.

Rong Yuheng looked at him for a moment and thought, why not buy Wen Zhecheng a tie next time? It would look great tied just below his Adam’s apple.

“What are you thinking?” Wen Zhecheng suddenly asked. The car was quiet, with only the reading light above them casting a warm, orange glow.

Rong Yuheng snapped out of his reverie and saw Wen Zhecheng leaning a bit closer. His voice was low as he asked, “Are you reluctant to part with me?”

Rong Yuheng’s heart skipped a beat, and he withdrew slightly, touching his chest as he answered honestly, “A bit, after all, I’m a clingy hamster.”

Wen Zhecheng chuckled and reached out to tousle his hair, “Whenever you want to meet, just send me a message. I’ll come pick you up.”

Rong Yuheng’s back tingled as he was tousled, “Aren’t you busy?”

Wen Zhecheng took the opportunity to spread his tail feathers a bit and shook them twice, “I’m taking care of the household.”

Author’s Note: Rong the hamster: I think I got electrocuted…!

Wen the peacock raised his head and took a confident stride, fanning his tail feathers: Wind power generation is within my capabilities too.