Lin Fanxing’s fingers were hot, just like the rest of his body.
Warm.
But at the same time, it was a kind of warmth Qin Xin had never been familiar with.
He immediately leaned back slightly, warily guessing what that gesture meant. For the Qin Xin of the past, physical contact had only ever served one purpose: to trigger pain and sensitivity. His mother used touch to teach him what pain was, while his father taught him how to perform it, how to display suffering without a trace of acting.
But Lin Fanxing’s touch didn’t bring pain. Lin Fanxing was good to him.
Qin Xin looked at those not-so-clean fingers of his, still stained with a bit of dirt. But his hands were beautiful, like someone who had trained in piano since childhood. Even though Qin Xin knew Lin Fanxing couldn’t play any instrument at all, and his greatest musical talent was whistling like a street punk, he still thought so anyway.
When Fanxing touched his lips, Qin Xin visibly flinched. His brain short-circuited for a moment, and he thought of the “monkey experiment.” Once, scientists took a baby monkey away from its mother, then replaced the mother with a fake one made of steel and cotton, trying to observe whether the baby monkey would abandon the fake surrogate and go toward food. However, the result was shocking. The still-immature baby monkey would rather curl up against the fake mother than eat the food provided by humans. It gave up survival just to exchange it for contact with its kind.
For the first time experiencing benevolent touch, Qin Xin suddenly understood that choice. So this was necessary.
Real physical closeness… didn’t hurt.
“Hey, how old are you anyway?” Lin Fanxing said, still casually touching him. “Don’t be scared. I’m just naturally familiar with people, and my hands are a bit restless. I’m curious what you look like.”
It really was just being handsy. Meeting a stranger, and Lin Fanxing could already fall asleep on him without hesitation, then wake up and still refuse to leave his bed. He didn’t feel the stranger’s stiffness at all, only assumed the young man was still half-asleep, and boldly continued touching him, determined to map out his facial features.
“Are you underage?” Lin Fanxing asked skeptically. “When I was in high school, I wasn’t as skinny as you. I have a younger brother, but even he’s stronger than you.”
Qin Xin couldn’t speak for a moment, then answered quietly: “I’m an adult.”
Younger brother… that must be Lin Fan Xing.
Qin Xin didn’t want to think about that person. If he ever had the chance, he would want to personally strangle him. Because of him, in the previous life, his Fanxing was insulted and cursed at right before his death.
“Don’t worry about your brother. Worry about yourself first,” Qin Xin couldn’t help but say.
Only now did his voice sound truly real. Since childhood, Qin Xin had been trained in broadcast diction and acting lines; he knew exactly how to control his vocal cords and produce pleasing tones in front of an audience. He also knew what kind of “young voice” audiences loved: clear, youthful, energetic, and full of life.
Sometimes, he could even manipulate airflow in his throat to create a slightly broken tone from “too much excitement,” earning laughter from fans who called him young, simple, and naturally talented.
But only he knew his real voice wasn’t like that at all. It sounded like a rainy alley: damp, gloomy, and restrained.
Huh.
And yet, this voice… did he hear it somewhere before?
Lin Fanxing became suspicious again, asking, “Then what do you do? Are you an actor?”
What?! He actually noticed!
Qin Xin leaned back a little again. “Why… do you ask that?”
“Because I feel like your voice sounds familiar, but I can’t remember where I heard it. Maybe I’m mistaken…” Lin Fanxing thought about it and decided it was probably a coincidence. Actors weren’t exactly everywhere on the street.
His hand had already reached the stranger’s ear, a thin, sharp cartilage. It felt like a pair of very rebellious ears. Although Lin Fanxing didn’t know face-reading, he had seen enough of the world to develop his own “data-driven intuition.” People with ears like that… were stubborn by nature. Difficult to control, rebellious, and willful. No matter how well they hide it, they’ll eventually slip up.
Qin Xin’s ears were already completely flushed red, and even his neck had turned the same color. He unconsciously tilted his head toward Lin Fanxing’s hand, but his eyes were wide open, refusing to miss even a single second of that contact.
“Let me tell you a secret. I’m actually an actor,” Lin Fanxing guessed that he might have already recognized him; otherwise, why would he keep staying silent? “But I’m still a nobody right now, a total nobody in the industry. You can still find me online, though. My name is Lin Fanxing.”
“Oh.” Qin Xin felt a sharp pain in his chest, thinking of his tragic ending in his previous life. “Your job… isn’t easy.”
“Exactly! It’s so hard to make it!” Lin Fanxing said bitterly. “Who can just shoot to fame overnight? Everyone struggles and claws their way up. Of course, there are also those resource-backed people who debut already ‘in Rome,’ born with everything arranged for them, the true favored ones of heaven.”
Qin Xin observed Lin Fanxing’s nose and lips, his heart stirring again. Lin Fanxing was very beautiful, but the industry was just that cruel; beauty and effort didn’t guarantee survival until the end.
“Who?” he followed Lin Fanxing’s words, trying to keep the conversation going. Qin Xin had never imagined he would actually meet the real Lin Fanxing, and he hadn’t expected his personality to be so easy to talk to. In the past, they only crossed paths occasionally, when Qin Xin was already a young Best Actor, and they were destined to just pass each other by.
Countless times, Qin Xin had cast a shy glance toward the 18th-tier Lin Fanxing, but Lin Fanxing had always been scrolling on his phone, never once meeting his eyes.
Now, Qin Xin watched him with almost desperate hunger, wishing he could just tie Lin Fanxing to his side and spend twenty hours a day watching him. He suddenly realized that Lin Fanxing’s face was slightly different from the photos he had secretly saved. The official stills were overly retouched, polished to an unnatural perfection, erasing many of his more adorable details. Messy, unruly, and wild eyebrows. Double eyelids that were flatter at the front and slightly lifted at the ends in a lively arc. Looking closer, you could even see that the left eyelid was a little wider than the right. His nose wasn’t as sharp as in edited photos either, but more rounded, and there was a faint mole hidden on the side of his nostril, very light in color.
Above his lips was a layer of even lighter soft hair, like newborn animal fuzz. Qin Xin stared without blinking, greedily absorbing every new discovery, so absorbed that he completely missed the string of names Lin Fanxing was listing…
Until he heard his own name.
“…And then there’s Qin Xin. You’ve heard of him, right? The youngest Best Actor. He won international awards years ago,” Lin Fanxing calculated. “At this point, he would’ve already been a Best Actor for six years. His mother is a stunning actress, his father a famous director who led major productions. Even his grandfather helped found the Film Association. With a background like that, what could he possibly be missing?”
As he spoke, Lin Fanxing’s smile gradually cooled. Indeed. With that kind of starting point, what could he possibly be missing?
Was it someone to toy with at will? A fan willing to worship him obsessively? A fool ready to hand over his heart just to have it trampled?
“You… don’t like him?” Qin Xin was too sensitive, and he immediately caught the shift in Lin Fanxing’s micro-expression.
“Yes. I hate him. I really hate him,” Lin Fanxing gave a bitter smile again. Life really was ridiculous; he had been played by Qin Xin in his past life until he was worse than garbage, and now just hearing his name again… it still hurt. Still made his chest ache. Still made him want to go mad and demand an answer from the past.
People really were ridiculous.
But Lin Fanxing forced himself not to fall into that trap again, only shaking his head. “I really hate him…”
The moment he finished speaking, blurry shapes appeared in his vision. Light began pressing into his sight, as if the entire world was turning its lights back on for him.
Excited, he sat up abruptly. “Wait… I think I can see again… it feels like it’s getting better!”
This was the second good thing after his rebirth. His blindness really had been a leftover consequence from his past life. Lin Fanxing sat at the edge of the sofa, not daring to breathe, afraid of disturbing his recovering vision. The brightness kept increasing, and gradually he could make out the window light, the floral curtains, and…
The person lying on the sofa… the stranger…
…With a black helmet on?!
At some point, the boy had put the helmet back on, leaning against the sofa backrest with a blanket covering everything below the waist, an indescribably strange sight. Lin Fanxing squinted at him for more than ten seconds. Finally, as his vision fully recovered and everything became crystal clear, he said in heartfelt admiration: “Ge… you’re really pale.”
The pale-faced Qin Xin desperately suppressed his rapid breathing, unwilling to admit how flustered he had just been. The moment Lin Fanxing said he hated him, his vision suddenly returned, and the “genius Best Actor” in a panic immediately stretched out his arm and grabbed the helmet from the coffee table, putting it back on his head at the very last second.
At this point, the helmet might as well become his true form, right?!
Better not show that face. It had taken so much effort for Lin Fanxing to be willing to touch him… If he found out his real identity, Qin Xin couldn’t even imagine how there could still be any chance of reconciliation.
But… why did Fanxing hate him so much? Had he heard some negative rumors or false news about him from others? They had barely even had any direct contact.
“Why did you put it back on again?!” Lin Fanxing poked his ribs and asked.
Sigh.
Still so handsy, just like in his past life. Lin Fanxing sat cross-legged in front of him, his shadow falling over the helmet’s surface as if he were talking to himself.
“It’s more casual with it on. I like it,” Qin Xin lied through his teeth.
“Alright then… casual it is,” Lin Fanxing didn’t press further. His first day after rebirth had gone smoothly, but now there were still things to deal with. But before he could say more, Qin Xin took the initiative., asking, “What are your plans going forward?”
“First, I’m going to find my younger brother,” Lin Fanxing said honestly.
Find his younger brother first… then beat him until even their parents wouldn’t recognize him! Then take him to beat their parents too, until not even Lin Fanxing would recognize them! To put it plainly, in this life, he didn’t want the family affection he never had before; no one would get to stand on moral high ground and point fingers at him again.
Fate had given him a second chance. He was going to live freely, recklessly, and happily, enjoying life.
“…”
Again with the younger brother. What was so great about that Fan Xing, anyway?!
After a moment, Qin Xin asked, “Do you have any money on you?”
“No,” Lin Fanxing scratched his knee. “And… I have a small request. Um…, Ge, can you go back and help me find my phone?”
“Yes,” Qin Xin agreed. “But I have conditions.”
“How much?” Lin Fanxing straightened up. “Just name the price. I’ll pay you back for sure.”
“You’re going to stay here and not wander around. I’ll go with you to find your brother, but you’ll come with me to the hospital for a check-up. I’ll cover your living expenses for now, and I’ll have food and essentials delivered every day. You’re not allowed to go out,” Qin Xin said, but… The only thing in that list that wasn’t entirely sincere was the “finding your brother” part.
“Fine,” Lin Fanxing agreed without hesitation; he wasn’t stupid. This kind of life, where everything was served to him…
Had finally fallen into his lap, ah!
“Rest now. I need to leave for a while,” Qin Xin said. It was already daytime, and he had to go home. Lin Fanxing had his own matters, and Qin Xin also had his own mess to deal with.
In his past life, he had lived in confusion. This time, there were far too many things Qin Xin needed to clarify, most importantly… he had to find out whose son he actually was.
It was definitely not Qin Guangze’s. His biological father must be someone else.
“Sure, go take care of your things. I won’t wander off,” Lin Fanxing said eagerly, raising a hand in oath. “Great kindness, beyond repayment. I will definitely repay you in the future!”
“Good,” the stranger with his stupid helmet nodded twice.
“I’ll wait for that future.”
T.N: If you like his novel, you can read up to chapter 17 on my Patreon, with new updates coming every week!
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