FLME Ch38

With the help of Xiao Zhou and Xiao Zhong, Yu Wen quickly packed his things and set off for his mansion—rumor has it, there’s even a private pool and gym!

Chu Han and Xi Su had moved in two days earlier. Chu Han had a schedule today and wasn’t home, so the villa was quiet. Yu Wen walked into the living room, and the smile on his face instantly vanished.

The living room was a massive garbage dump.

Clothes and dirty socks were casually thrown on the sofa; the coffee table was a mess with four or five empty chip bags strewn across it; dried stains and footprints covered the floor; and there were leftover takeout boxes on the dining table. The kitchen, too, looked like it had been bombed—utterly chaotic…

Dragging his suitcase, Yu Wen headed for the door.

He bumped into Xie Heyu, who had just parked and was walking in. “Where are you going?”

Yu Wen’s expression was serious. “There’s no place like home, even if it doesn’t have a pool or a gym. I think I prefer my little apartment.”

Xie Heyu glanced inside, his brow twitching at the sight of the mess.

That shouldn’t be—Xie Jiamao said a cleaning lady would come every other day.

Could it be that just one day… resulted in this chaos?

“The other place has already been rented out…” Xie Heyu grabbed the brim of Yu Wen’s hat, his gaze lingering on the disaster before him, frowning slightly. “I’ll help you clean up first.”

Yu Wen resigned himself to setting down his suitcase, grabbed a feather duster, looked around, and didn’t know where to start. Eventually, he wandered into the kitchen and casually opened the refrigerator.

“……”

One glance was enough to make him feel mentally attacked.

With a cold face, he closed the fridge and stopped Xie, who was still cleaning up trash. He gently said, “We should leave the mess to the ones who made it. Let’s wait for the other two residents to gather here. I’ll make sure to teach them a thing or two about public hygiene…”

Xie Heyu sorted the food waste into different bags. “I’ll just take care of this quickly…”

“Stop!”

Xie Heyu promptly halted his actions, standing straighter than ever before.

He looked at Yu Wen a bit delayed, his expression blank and dumbfounded, as if he’d been suddenly scolded.

Yu Wen spoke earnestly: “You can clean it up this time, but can you do it for a lifetime? Your hard work only encourages the spread of these bad habits in society…”

“In a civilized society, public hygiene is everyone’s responsibility.” He pointed at the scattered mess with the feather duster. “Today, I’m going to teach Chu Han and Xi Su this lesson.”

Xi Su had fewer appearances recently; his illegitimate child scandal had yet to blow over. Although it wasn’t a moral stain, his presence online still stirred discussions. Xie Jiamao advised him to reduce his exposure temporarily, focusing on projects and shows with longer timelines. By the time they aired, the audience would likely have forgotten about these trivial matters.

After all, quality work speaks louder than anything else.

Xi Su thought the boss made sense, after all, the boss was a person who owned property in a billion-dollar residential area—a true visionary.

With fewer commitments, self-discipline had slackened. Last night, he played video games until five in the morning, slept until the afternoon, and then got up to find something to eat. Xi Su shuffled downstairs in slippers and noticed that the curtains in the living room were drawn, with only a faint light seeping in from the foyer, leaving the entire room in a hazy darkness.

“Did I close the curtains last night? That doesn’t seem right, I was too lazy to do that…” he muttered, about to walk toward the window when suddenly a voice rang out, eerie and ghostly, like a judge coming to claim his life.

“Surname Xi, do you realize your crime?”

“Ahhh, what the hell! What kind of demon is causing trouble here?!”

A head slowly emerged from behind the sofa, the flashlight’s pale light illuminating a familiar, exquisite face. If Xi Su didn’t know that face so well, he might have thought it was a ghost coming to take his life.

Yu Wen held the flashlight to his own face and pulled out a smelly sock from the corner of the sofa, his expression cold. “Tell me, is this yours?”

Xi Su panted heavily, staring at Yu Wen, his expression gradually turning to one of horror. “Yu Wen, did you die… during the survival show?”

What the hell! Why did you die and come after me?! Go find the show to sue! Wait… sue for ghost money!

With a click, another flashlight flicked on.

Xie Heyu’s pupils were especially deep under the flashlight’s beam, dark and cold, sending chills down one’s spine.

He said, “You’re the one who’s dead.”

Yu Wen clicked his tongue, complaining:

“Teacher Xie, it’s not your turn to make an entrance yet.”

With another click, Xie Heyu turned off his flashlight again.

Xi Su stood there dumbfounded for a full two minutes, during which he completely missed Yu Wen’s interrogation. After two minutes, he finally blurted out angrily, “Are you two crazy?!”

“Who’s crazy?” Yu Wen poked the stinky sock in his face with the feather duster and repeated, “Who’s crazy?”

The curtains were thrown open, and Xi Su knelt on a soft cushion, looking pitiful, instinctively wanting to retort. But when he glanced up, he saw Xie Heyu standing behind Yu Wen with his hands in his pockets, like a human-shaped ice sculpture. That cold gaze swept over him, and Xi Su instantly didn’t dare to speak.

Xie Heyu was Xie Jiamao’s nephew. Xie Jiamao was the owner of this villa and also their boss. If he offended Xie Heyu, he would be kicked out of the villa by Xie Jiamao, then kicked out of the company, then he wouldn’t be able to survive in the entertainment industry, and then he’d have to open a barbecue shop. If the barbecue shop failed, he’d have to pick up trash on the street…

In just thirty seconds, Xi Su seemed to see his tragic future as a trash picker.

So he nodded his head obediently and said, “I am crazy.”

Yu Wen: “What’s wrong with you?”

Xi Su: “…Sloppy.”

Yu Wen: “How do you cure it?”

Xi Su: “By being diligent, loving cleanliness, tidying up, and putting things back in their place…”

Yu Wen nodded in satisfaction.

Xi Su held back, but he couldn’t resist asking, “Why am I the only one being scolded? Chu Han was involved too…”

Yu Wen showed a sinister smile.

“Do you think he’ll escape?”

–

At nine o’clock in the evening, Chu Han returned from his schedule, driven back to the villa by the company’s new assistant.

The assistant said, “Mr. Chu, there aren’t any other activities recently, so you can take a good rest at home. Please call if you need anything.”

This was the first time Chu Han experienced the feeling of having an assistant take care of everything. After a week, he had gone from feeling overwhelmed to handling it with ease. He smiled and said, “You’ve worked hard lately, so you should also take a good rest.”

The assistant drove the car into the basement and then left.

Chu Han entered the house by pressing the code, only to find the hall pitch black, with all the lights turned off.

He frowned and, after fumbling to turn on the entryway light, began walking inside when suddenly a voice rang out from directly above him.

“Mr. Chu, do you realize your mistake?”

Chu Han thought it was Xi Su playing a prank and didn’t take it seriously. “Are you bored or something?”

Before he could finish speaking, a face turned towards him from the dimly lit sofa, with blue hair that was striking even in the darkness.

Xi Su said slowly, “Are you talking to me?”

Chu Han stopped in his tracks, becoming cautious.

“If you’re here, then who was talking upstairs?”

“Upstairs?” Xi Su slowly shifted his gaze upwards. “There’s no one up there.”

Chu Han glanced up, seeing the empty space by the railing with not a single light on.

He hesitated and asked, “Did you just… hear someone talking?”

Xi Su stared at him for a long time, then slowly broke into an exaggerated, grotesque grin, like a clown in a horror movie.

“Talking… I didn’t… hear anything.”

Chu Han gasped in shock!

Damn it! Is this villa haunted?!

He turned and ran!

Xie Heyu was suddenly standing at the entrance to the living room, his hand on the wall, and abruptly turned on the main light switch.

The prank was over.

“Hahahahaha, Mr. Chu, you actually get scared…” Xi Su leaned back on the sofa, laughing uncontrollably, “You’re usually so calm; I thought you weren’t afraid of ghosts. Hahaha…”

With the lights fully on, the villa was as bright as day. The blue-haired culprit showed no guilt, laughing openly at Chu Han’s moment of weakness.

Chu Han stood still for a moment, then slowly clenched his fists.

He grabbed a soft cushion and charged forward, gritting his teeth, “Are you crazy? Are you crazy?! How childish—”

Xi Su surrendered under the onslaught. “It wasn’t me; it was Yu Wen…”

“Chu Han!” The subject of the conversation shouted from the second floor. Yu Wen ran out, slippers clapping loudly, his face angry. “Is the pile of clothes in the bathroom bucket yours?”

Chu Han denied it outright, “No…”

Yu Wen said, “It is yours! I’ve seen you wear it before; it’s been soaking in the water so long it’s stinking!”

He had even worried about wrongly accusing Chu Han, considering Chu Han seemed more reliable than Xi Su, so he had gone upstairs to check the condition of the second floor.

But it turned out neither of them was any better!

Chu Han was stunned for a moment, then asked in confusion, “But the cleaner will come tomorrow, so won’t soaking it make it easier to wash?”

Yu Wen, like a battle-hardened elder, was struck dumb by the irresponsible comment, clutching his chest as he staggered back three steps.

After calming down, he spoke evenly.

Teacher Yu picked up a feather duster and stood on the second floor, gazing coldly and mercilessly at the two culprits below.

“The cleaner has quit. I just called Xie Jiamao. The boss said the cleaner resigned because she couldn’t handle the workload.”

Xie Heyu raised an eyebrow.

Driving away a cleaner—these two must be quite something.

“The boss is currently searching the job market for a replacement, which is estimated to take a week. During this week, there will be no cleaner, and we will have to maintain the basic cleanliness of the villa ourselves.”

“What?!” Xi Su wailed first. “Me, clean?! Do I look like I’m capable of that?”

Chu Han was dazed for a couple of seconds. “But I cleaned before, so why is the workload so large…”

“During this week, Comrade Yu will teach you what it means to build a harmonious society and a clean home…” Yu Wen spread his arms, a strange expression of divine and grotesque mix appearing on his face.

After delivering his speech, he smiled at the two culprits downstairs.

“If you can’t learn to turn over a new leaf this week, then you can both roll out onto the streets and become volunteers… picking up trash.”

Xi Su slowly turned his head, and as soon as he met Yu Wen’s gaze, he shuddered.

Oh god, my colleague suddenly became so terrifying, what do I do? Urgent.

Chu Han also shivered slightly, muttering, “Has he been possessed by the god of cleanliness…”

So picky.

The house is already pretty clean.

–

“Teacher Yu, do you really have to throw away this bowl of spicy hotpot? It looks fine…”

Yu Wen: “…It’s moldy, didn’t you see?”

“Why can’t clothes be soaked in water for a day? My sleeve has oil on it, soaking it longer should make it cleaner, right?”

Yu Wen: “The detergent package recommends soaking for thirty minutes. Who authorized you to multiply that by forty-eight?”

Yu Wen couldn’t stand the mess for even a moment longer. It wasn’t a good time for a thorough cleaning, but at least the garbage had to be dealt with.

He directed Xi Su and Chu Han to sort the kitchen waste and take it out in trips, using up a whole roll of plastic bags in the process.

Then, he made them each claim their clothes, sorting them and stuffing them into the washing machine.

After washing and hanging up the clothes, it was already midnight.

Chu Han and Xi Su collapsed on the sofa like two exhausted, lifeless fish. But apparently, it wasn’t over yet because Yu Wen dragged a small chair and sat in front of them.

Xie Heyu stood behind him, holding a wooden clothes rod, tapping it lightly on the ground, making it sound like a courtroom.

With a stern face, Yu Wen looked like a strict judge.

The judge spoke, “Sit up straight!”

The fear of being controlled hadn’t passed, so Chu Han and Xi Su both jolted and reflexively sat up straight.

Yu Wen pointed at Chu Han: “First, clothes can’t be soaked in water for more than thirty minutes; second, dirty clothes should be placed in the laundry basket, not thrown around, and clean clothes should be hung up; third, stay out of the kitchen and don’t try to improve your cooking skills.”

The kitchen became a disaster zone because Chu Han impulsively decided to add a fried egg to his snail noodles.

Chu Han was puzzled, “But didn’t you say labor is glorious? How can I labor if I don’t go into the kitchen?”

Yu Wen paused. “Teacher Chu, do you know you have a special constitution?”

Chu Han: “Huh?”

Yu Wen: “You’re a natural explosion body, and you shouldn’t go near any place with an open flame, or it could cause an explosion. Although you have exceptional talent in cooking, for your safety, I still don’t recommend you go back into the kitchen.”

Xi Su: “…”

Xie Heyu: “…”

Chu Han was dumbfounded, frowning in thought for a while before asking, “How do you know I have this, uh, explosion body?”

Yu Wen said mysteriously, “I’ve always had sharp eyes and can spot hidden talents. I’ve confirmed your explosive constitution two or three times, and I’m officially confirming it today—there’s no mistake.”

“…Okay.” Chu Han hesitated for a while, then accepted this explanation, regretting, “I actually enjoy going into the kitchen. I feel like I’m improving every time. I think I could have made that fried egg today.”

Xi Su looked at him with a shocked expression as if he were an idiot. “No way, man, you really—”

You really believe that?!

“Shut up!” Yu Wen snapped.

He wasn’t nearly as polite to Xi Su. “Finish your takeout and throw the box away; at most, keep it for a day. Moldy food should not be eaten. Rotten fruit should not be put back in the fridge—it won’t revive. Put things back where they belong after use. If you can’t finish the chips, either seal them up or throw them out. Don’t leave chip crumbs on the floor; hold a trash can under you while eating…”

Xie Su was stunned by the long lecture.

He felt like Sun Wukong being recited scriptures, his head throbbing, and he quickly sought outside help, “Teacher Xie, Teacher Xie… Is what he’s saying even human language? We’re all in the same company… Please save me!”

Yu Wen: “Ha, and you dare to claim injustice?” He turned his head and looked at Xie Heyu, “Teacher Xie! Tell me! Who is in the right?!”

Xie Heyu lightly tapped the floor with the clothes drying rod, “You.”

Xie Su: “…”

Yu Wen: “If you can’t even manage basic personal hygiene, how can you be an artist?! How can you become the dream of thousands of young girls?! How can you be a role model for humanity?!”

Before Xie Su could say a word, Yu Wen interrupted, “Teacher Xie, am I right?!”

Xie Heyu: “Golden words of wisdom.”

Yu Wen: “I’m not asking you to be spotless, but at least don’t affect others! Look at this environment! How is Teacher Chu supposed to rest properly after working all day?! If Teacher Chu doesn’t rest well, the company won’t have any income. If the company has no income, it will go bankrupt! Teacher Xie, am I right?”

Xie Heyu: “Insightful and keen observation.”

“Teacher Chu, am I right?!”

Chu Han, who was inexplicably dragged into the conversation, thought for a moment and then solemnly nodded.

After all, he’s the Explosion Saint Physique, and he needs to be extremely careful. In too messy of an environment, he might accidentally explode.

Xie Su watched him nod, and his vision went black.

“Three esteemed teachers—”

Why is this company forming cliques?!

–

Early the next morning, Yu Wen woke up refreshed. Although he wanted to drag the other two out of bed to do a big cleanup, he thought about how Teacher Chu had been working hard recently. Kind-hearted Yu Wen decided to let him off the hook and postponed the cleanup plan for a day.

The villa had six floors, two underground and four above ground. Xie Su had the entire master bedroom on the third floor to himself—don’t ask, the answer is that he won it by playing rock-paper-scissors with Chu Han before Yu Wen moved in.

Yu Wen and Chu Han both lived on the second floor. After changing into workout clothes, Yu Wen passed by Chu Han’s room on his way downstairs for a jog. Even through the door, he could hear Teacher Chu’s snores, indicating he was truly exhausted.

This was the main reason Yu Wen decided to let him off the hook.

The gym was on the first basement floor, and Chu Han and Xie Su hadn’t messed with it, so it remained as clean and bright as when the cleaning lady left.

Yu Wen walked to the treadmill, confidently chose the incline, and pressed start.

Fifteen minutes later, he felt somewhat exhausted and pressed pause.

One of the basic skills of an actor is lung capacity, and an effective way to improve lung capacity is through aerobic exercise, such as brisk walking, climbing hills, swimming…

Yu Wen stared at the treadmill for half a minute and optimistically thought, forget it, let’s go swimming.

If this path doesn’t work, he’ll just choose another one!

Standing by the pool, Yu Wen fell into deep thought.

He… doesn’t know how to swim.

Should he hire a swimming coach?

But it would take some time to find one.

What about today’s workout?

Yu Wen hesitated for a while and then cheerfully thought, forget it, fifteen minutes is already great.

Nothing in this world is difficult, as long as you’re willing to give up!

He walked back to the living room with a dry towel that had no sweat on it. To his surprise, Xie Su was already up and playing on his phone in the living room.

As soon as Yu Wen entered the room, Xie Su guiltily turned off his phone screen.

“You… you went out?…” he awkwardly greeted.

Yu Wen: “Mm, did you have breakfast? I’m heading out for breakfast. Want me to bring you something?”

“No need.” Xie Su, still holding a grudge from being “oppressed” last night, quickly reverted to his cold demeanor after a brief moment of guilt. He coolly said, “I’m not used to eating breakfast.”

Tch.

Don’t eat, then.

Yu Wen pouted, feeling no pressure at all, and headed upstairs.

Once Yu Wen was upstairs, Xie Su finally reopened his phone.

The screen was playing the trailer for Yu Wen’s new drama “Legend of the Immortal Sect”. It was scheduled to premiere in three days, with the trailer being released this morning at 9 AM. Last night, the production team and platform had started building hype, landing a few low-ranking trending topics. Xie Su, who was used to staying up late, noticed it by chance.

After being “oppressed” by Yu Wen, he stared at the trending topic with malicious intent and decided to play the role of Yu Wen’s one-day anti-fan. He was determined to scrutinize every detail with a magnifying glass and criticize Yu Wen’s acting, emotions, lines, and state—completely tearing him apart!

Hahaha! Yu Wen! Prepare to face my sudden and fierce revenge!

Xie Su looked around to ensure no one was nearby, then, with a determined smile, clicked on the less-than-three-minute video.

The first trailer was the fun version.

The perspective started with the male lead Pu Yangxi sneaking into Yunxiao Mountain. The male lead, played by Jian Heng, pretended to be a farmer chased by bandits, stumbling into the dense forest on the outskirts of Yunxiao Mountain, where he bumped into Chu Zhiyao, played by Yu Wen.

The young man stood high on a branch, bathed in dappled sunlight, with a high ponytail and a smile on his lips.

He said, “Who are you?”

The male lead was momentarily stunned, then quickly reported the identity he had fabricated.

With a snap of his fingers, a long sword flew out from behind the young man. He casually made a gesture, and the sword wind slashed through the sleeves of each bandit.

“Get lost.”

His voice was calm, but it resonated through the forest.

This was Yu Wen’s first scene in the trailer.

Then the male lead, using his tragic backstory, successfully gained the trust of the others, only to face repeated setbacks while gathering information, losing all his martial arts skills.

Yu Wen’s second scene was a wink.

“You can go anywhere on this vast Yunxiao Mountain, but there’s one place you must not go.” The background was a dining hall, where Chu Zhiyao spoke mysteriously, naturally piquing the male lead’s interest.

Under Pu Yangxi’s persistent questioning, he laughed heartily and slyly winked, “It’s Senior Sister’s peach orchard!”

The young man was full of spirit, as beautiful as white jade, free-spirited and lively.

In the trailer, Yu Wen had only these two scenes, but with just these two, his presence was overwhelmingly strong.