Zhuang Xiao sat in the upstairs study for quite a while, thinking about going home to film.
When he came downstairs, he merged once more into the deafening music that could temporarily swallow sorrow and trouble, into the smoke that blurred the eyes. He leaned against a wall and smoked a cigarette.
A powerful body in a tight T-shirt pressed up behind him, one iron arm locking around him. Somebody roughhoused with him. "Hey, where’d you disappear to? What are you thinking about?"
Zhuang Xiao drove an elbow into the space between the man’s collarbones, broke free, and smoothly followed with a move of "Lean on the Horse, Ask the Way" into the abdomen. The cigarette stayed between his lips while the old bastard bent over howling and retreated. "Ow, asshole! Fine, fine, I surrender…"
This was the host of the midnight party, Jason Banner, undisputed male lead of Knights of the Distant Stars and a major star. The man wore a cool prison-cut hairstyle, his T-shirt straining around a body knotted with muscle. He threw an arm around Zhuang Xiao. "Darling, I know you’re free now. Why don’t you just stay here starting today? Live with me for a while. It’ll be lively and keep you from getting bored!"
Lively was fucking right. Every few nights there was drinking and partying until dawn, sometimes with a private plane bringing whole groups of dancers over from Vegas for entertainment. This was Jason Banner’s mansion in the hills outside Santa Barbara, around two hours north of Los Angeles. Roughly half of Hollywood seemed to own property there.
A blonde came stumbling out from around the restroom and crashed directly into Zhuang Xiao, then simply leaned against him, posture anything but graceful, eyes unfocused and mind hazy, all four limbs swaying.
Zhuang Xiao pushed her away, unable to stand the choking smell of alcohol mixed with marijuana.
His tastes still leaned domestic. He had absolutely no sexual interest in Western women.
This was not the life he enjoyed. He came out to socialize and relieve boredom once in a while so he would not grow mold.
Jason laughed. "What were you doing just now? Messing around with some girl in the bathroom, thinking I wouldn’t know?"
Zhuang Xiao shot back, "That was you."
Jason said, "Seriously, old buddy, I’ve actually been thinking about this. My old head of security got into trouble, went to prison, and fucked off. I don’t have anybody reliable around me now. Can’t hire the right person… I want to hire you."
Zhuang Xiao looked at him coldly. "Are you fucking joking?"
"I’m not fucking joking." Jason was tipsy, but his eyes were clear and direct. "I can’t have you hanging around here for nothing either. The pay will absolutely be good. It’ll carry you easily through this stretch when you aren’t filming, and we can hang around together. We’re brothers, aren’t we?"
Zhuang Xiao turned his face away, a quiet refusal.
There was actually nothing strange about it. Bodyguards around major stars included former world boxing champions and European sanda champions. It was a job, a path, and paid well enough. The only question was whether you could lower your face enough to take it…
"Fuck, man. You’re single and bored. I’m fucking single and bored too, and I’ve still got three little bastards to raise!" Jason clapped him on the shoulder. "If a guy isn’t skilled enough, I won’t hire him, he’s useless. If he’s too skilled, I worry the bastard isn’t trustworthy and spend all day watching my back, afraid he’ll pull the same shit as the last son of a bitch, kidnap my whole litter, then kill me… You, A-Xiao. I trust you."
"Why don’t you find another wife?" The two sat together on a long sofa. Zhuang Xiao asked.
"Original wife was still the best…" Jason laughed with a hazy look. "At least she’s the little bastards’ mother. Nobody else feels right."
"Then get the kids’ mother back," Zhuang Xiao said.
"Yeah, should bring her back. I’ve already begged her to reconcile twice. Fuck it, I’ll beg a third time…" Jason complained.
"I’m going home next week," Zhuang Xiao told him.
"You really are going back?" Jason stared at him with reddened eyes.
"Mm. Going back to shoot a movie. A friend introduced the role," Zhuang Xiao said.
Jason watched him a while, reluctant. "A-Xiao, if you go back there and things make you unhappy, if it doesn’t work out, come back. Stay with me. I’ll keep the head-of-security job open for you."
"Fuck off. Save it… You’d be better off hiring more nannies!" Zhuang Xiao snorted. "I’ve decided. I’m going back to shoot this one movie."
*
Several days later, on the eve of filming for Dragon Battles Heaven’s Pass, the production began building publicity in advance. The airport erupted, fans flooding the arrivals hall.
Somehow the itinerary had leaked ahead of time. Then again, there was no need to leak it deliberately. The opening ceremony was only two days away, and long-lens cameras camped at the airport every day. Fan groups arrived fully equipped and tightly organized. Some served as lookouts, some handled communication, some guarded corners and intersections, and others livestreamed the entire scene. Light boards, flowers, and plush toys filled both sides of the international arrivals exit, so packed that they incidentally welcomed every traveler who arrived that morning.
Zhuang-family fans held the main position. Zhuang-Pei and Pei-Zhuang CP fans stood neatly on both flanks alongside original-novel fans, looking like one harmonious happy family.
A few furtive people had only just raised a "Yun Zhong × Zhu Yixuan" sign before the people beside them squeezed them out of frame, nearly pushing them down the stairs…
The original IP had been a hugely popular danmei novel about Ming-dynasty court and jianghu grudges. Naturally, once adapted into a film script, the original romance had been castrated, leaving only the faint clean-water fragrance of ambiguous affection. In the livestream, those few people pushed out of frame cried, "No justice! The original official couple is obviously Hero Yun and Zhu Yixuan! Xuan is the legitimate shou! Eunuch fans forcibly breaking the canon couple, have you no shame?!"
"Feminine-boy fans, please leave on your own. Wuxia doesn’t need a sissy shou!"
"Shameless eunuch faction! A homewrecker with no dick!"
"Your sissy only has a face left! Even if your fave has a dick, it’s wasted!!"
"…"
All of that was nonsense outside the production. Actors themselves did not pay much attention to chaotic talk off set and did not waste energy getting tangled in it.
Zhuang Xiao paid even less attention. He swept quickly over the roaring crowd and bright star-colored signs.
It had been a very long time since he had seen anything like this. At Los Angeles airport, nobody had the time or enthusiasm to skip class or work, stand there for him, hold light boards, and sincerely welcome him to this place…
"Latte, tall."
"Of course, one moment."
The barista at Starbucks spoke in a mosquito-soft voice, face cool, fingers clacking efficiently over the register. The customer ordering a tall latte took out several RMB bills and hesitated, clearly unfamiliar with the local price of a tall and the denominations of the notes. He had not even immediately reached for mobile payment.
"Give me this one and this one. That’s enough… Here, this is your change." The girl pulled the bills from the customer’s hand, eyes unconsciously noticing the hard knuckles and faint veins on the exposed forearm.
"Please wait over there."
She looked up again. Familiar handsome profile. The black T-shirt collar sat high, not even showing extra collarbone, but that chest outline could only belong to one person.
Her eyes traveled higher, searching for face, eyes, hairstyle, that devastating braid…
The barista knocked over a stack of change with a clatter. The sound was loud. "Ah!"
Stars were common at airports. After "red-carpet stars," there was even a newer term, "airport stars," people with no other talent who specialized in turning airport travel into a daily runway, saving themselves the price of Cannes red-carpet admission.
The Starbucks staff stood behind the counter bored every day and had trained themselves to recognize celebrities by the visible fragments beneath designer sunglasses and masks. Their eyes automatically tracked anyone wearing sunglasses and a mask in broad daylight, and they were almost never wrong. They were so accustomed to it that they had never expected someone to come out without protective camouflage.
The coffee machine gave a bang. The excited barista hit the machine behind her and looked ready to jump over the counter.
Zhuang Xiao signaled with his eyes. "I still want the coffee."
The girl making drinks automatically held out a cup, then realized what she had handed over was fresh milk foam straight from the machine. Her hands had completely lost their rhythm.
Zhuang Xiao smiled once, voice deep. "Don’t burn yourself."
Then came the queue for photos and autographs. The little shop felt like its roof was about to boil off… Zhuang Xiao did not refuse and did not say much. He took a stack of paper cups from the counter and signed quickly, head lowered as he finished one after another, then stacked them neatly again and set them back down. Several large bills sat underneath the cups.
Before leaving, he told the stunned baristas behind the counter, "Drinks for everyone working here are on me. I’m going."
The whole shop nearly fainted.
"No, no, I only want the cup. I don’t need the drink!"
"Hot drinks will ruin the cup. Cold only, cold only!"
"I can’t bear to drink it. I’m crying. I’m so moved. He smiles so gently!"
"Oh my god, that pen was mine, mine, I want it!"
*
Zhuang Xiao went down the escalator without heading toward baggage claim. Once again he had no luggage, just a backpack and black clothes. His team had gone ahead with the bulk bags and were already outside drawing reporters away.
One glance toward the exits was enough. The huge turnout inevitably warmed something in his chest.
Whether Jiahuang or the publicity company had arranged it, somebody had rented a corner of the airport hall and staged something like an anime convention. Beautiful cosplayers wore costumes representing male and female characters from Zhuang Xiao’s classic wuxia films, drifting through the area like a crowd of Minions at a plaza, taking pictures with fans and making the place incredibly lively.
There were also countless light boards and glowing cheer sticks.
They had put real thought into it…
Zhuang Xiao quietly left through a special foreign-guest passage to the side. There were too many people ahead. He could not get through…
The airport could not allow complete disorder. Security came out in force and began reorganizing fan lines. Someone screamed, people shoved, a light board hit the floor…
Departures and arrivals sat on different levels, connected by a broad staircase with escalators on either side. Many fans occupied the stairs, anxiously looking in both directions. Meanwhile travelers from above needed to come down with large suitcases. The stairway jammed until nobody could move.
A suitcase rolled down the stairs and struck someone. Ah! A girl screamed and the staircase erupted into chaos.
On the ground floor, in the surging crowd, everybody was fighting for position and nobody noticed someone appear. Then a voice suddenly spoke.
"Upstairs, stop pushing. Everyone upstairs, stop!
"Back up. Those people upstairs, please step back. Yes, don’t step forward. Back."
The voice was not loud but carried enough force that everyone heard it. They turned together, then stared in shock.
The travelers urgently trying to force their way through the second-floor stair entrance froze at the command and instinctively stepped backward onto the upper landing, giving the girl who had fallen room to get up before anyone could trample her.
Airport security turned around in surprise too…
"Good. Everybody come down. Don’t crowd the stairs and block other people." The speaker raised a hand and gestured for space to be cleared.
Only two feet away stood two girls holding light boards. They turned, looked, and fell into stunned silence. Dramatic bear hugs or wolf-like tackles were impossible when someone was genuinely too excited to move.
A shoulder bag and water bottle fell from someone’s hands with a string of clatters.
Zhuang Xiao bent quickly, caught the bottle just before it hit the floor, returned it, and immediately withdrew. If he did not run now, he really would not get away…
He moved to another escalator. Just before it carried him all the way to the bottom and into encirclement, he planted a hand on the railing, vaulted over it, dropped through the air to the floor, turned, lowered his head, and strode away, leaving only the back of a man with a backpack among the crowd…
He pulled out his phone to contact the assistant who was picking him up. At that moment, the phone rang too.
Zhuang Xiao looked at the caller ID and felt, in fact, a little expectant. The other man should contact him, shouldn’t he?
The greeting came from Mr. Pei. "Hey, you’re still inside?"
Zhuang Xiao answered, "Mm. Haven’t gotten out yet."
Pei Yan laughed. "Trapped, huh?"
Zhuang Xiao snorted. "I’ll find some back exit and circle around."
"You don’t even know this airport that well anymore, do you? Don’t wander around. You’ll end up on the runway and that’ll be hilarious." Pei Yan said, "I know it. I’m through this airport all the time!
"Listen and I’ll give you directions. Go up those stairs. Don’t go downstairs, come up… I’m telling you, all the reporters blocking you are lined up by Arrivals. Come over to Departures and go out the little door beside the men’s room at the far end…
"My assistant’s driving. You’ve seen him several times, so you recognize his face, right?
"He’s in a dark-gray seven-seat Mercedes, plate ending in 66. He’s waiting by the Departures curb. Don’t rush. We’ll wait for you."
*
Pei Yan gave directions with frightening accuracy, practically as though he had opened a surveillance feed. He knew where every airport corridor turned and what sign hung overhead.
Zhuang Xiao hurried through the place with the phone at his ear and suddenly threw out a term. "You’re one of those ‘airport stars’ too, aren’t you? You come here every day?"
"Fuck…" Pei Yan complained. "I’m helping you and you still dare say that?!"
Zhuang Xiao laughed into the phone.
Pei Yan added, "I never take side passages at the airport. I walk the main road openly and let people stare and take pictures."
Zhuang Xiao asked back, "Which main road are you on right now?"
Pei Yan laughed. "Right now… maybe right now isn’t a good time to show my face, hahaha. I’m hiding…"
Zhuang Xiao reached the Departures platform, followed the roadside, spotted the target car immediately, got in, and disappeared.
Crouched in the third row was Mr. Pei wearing a baseball cap and large mask. Pei Yan pulled the mask down and grinned at him…
The support army reacted several beats too late. By the time they woke up, the man was gone. Fans could not outrun a great hero who practically flew over walls. On the livestream, many fans cried with excitement while the comments filled with things like:
"A-Xiao is invincibly handsome and overflowing with gentleness! Combat skill 10,000 points, boyfriend power MAX! How can a person be this perfect!!"
"A man who could lightly pinch you with two fingers, throw you from the first floor to the third and then down into the basement, speaks to you so gently, never loses his temper, bends down and catches the water bottle you’re about to drop. How can somebody be this warm!!"
"Yes, I’m that seductive water bottle. Xiao-ge, hold me tight, don’t let go, don’t give me back, take me home, yeah!"
*
After getting into Pei Yan’s car, Zhuang Xiao casually texted his agent: 【I’m in a car. Everybody can leave.】
Fatty Bao was completely confused: 【I’m at the Arrivals curb. What car did you get into?】
Zhuang Xiao: 【Old Pei’s. You can go too.】
Fatty Bao threw back a string of deeply meaningful and indescribable emojis, including nose-picking, sweat, dog head, confusion, and hands spread helplessly.
Zhuang Xiao sent Fatty Bao a very cool Ultraman in return.
What the hell?! Fatty Bao decided there had to be a fake Zhuang Xiao behind this screen. That was not this man.
Pei Yan, hidden in the third row, lightly tapped Zhuang Xiao on the shoulder. "Hey? That Nine Provinces Star Chart interview later, the time and place are fixed. They’re borrowing Beijing TV’s studio."
Zhuang Xiao was sitting in the second row. "Right."
Pei Yan thought about it. "Seems like the two of us…"
Assistant A, driving, finished it for them. "Seems like you two gentlemen probably shouldn’t arrive together directly like this, right?"
Fuck… Riding together from the airport straight to record an interview…
Pei Yan wore an expression of total innocence. "Oh… right. Maybe we shouldn’t go together."
Zhuang Xiao: "Then want to dump me on the roadside again?"
Pei Yan: "Don’t. This place is the middle of nowhere. I picked you up, so I’m responsible for you."
Zhuang Xiao: "Why the hell did I get in your car?"
Pei Yan cursed him. "You really break my heart! I’ll dump you at the curb! I’m telling you, you can’t get a taxi on this airport road. You planning to find a shared yellow bike and ride home?!"
Zhuang Xiao laughed.
Pei Yan leaned toward Zhuang Xiao’s shoulder and whispered, "I’ll give you a place. There’s a subway station two streets from the TV building. Have your Fatty wait there in his car. We’ll drop you off…"
Like another espionage drama. The road was thrilling, and both men were in an excellent mood.
"See you in the studio in half an hour." As Zhuang Xiao got out, Pei Yan stuck his head forward from the rear seat and spoke.
Zhuang Xiao pulled a finely packaged tube-like object from his backpack, heavy enough to resemble a small cannon barrel. It was basically the only thing giving the bag weight.
Obviously a bottle of wine, and from the packaging it was not cheap. Pei Yan looked surprised but accepted Zhuang Xiao’s gift without hesitation. "You can’t carry alcohol through security, can you?"
"There are some red wines in checked luggage too. Youhui asked me to bring them to you. I bought this bottle at duty-free when I saw it. There’s only one Canadian icewine shop there," Zhuang Xiao said.
Icewine generally did not have a high alcohol content, but it was very, very sweet.
Pei Yan was already drunk, intoxicated by that pair of quietly shining eyes. Smiling, he asked, "You calculated that I’d pick you up and you’d get into my car?"
Zhuang Xiao nodded. "Yeah."
*