ADTCP Ch49

Though he grumbled inwardly, when Tao Zhen caught sight of his reflection in the car window, he realized the corners of his lips had curled up at some point.

The man leaning warmly against his back was hot to the touch, and Tao Zhen’s heart was just as warm. The anxiety and restlessness of the past few days had completely vanished.

A kissing fiend? Fine, let him be a kissing fiend.

After all, Tao Zhen liked kissing Zhu Wensheng too.

Since they had already decided to sleep at Tao Zhen’s place, moving clothes and daily necessities was inevitable. They stopped by Tao Zhen’s house first, dropped off Zhu Wensheng’s things from Manchester, then headed to the Light Club.

Because Zhu Wensheng’s arm hadn’t fully healed, Tao Zhen wanted to go upstairs and help him pack, but renovations were in full swing, construction debris everywhere, dust flying. Zhu Wensheng coaxed him to wait outside like he was a child.

“Fine…”

Knowing he wasn’t familiar with Zhu Wensheng’s dorm anyway and couldn’t help much, Tao Zhen didn’t insist. “Just grab the things you like. I’ll buy you new clothes later. Daily supplies we can pick up at the supermarket.”

Zhu Wensheng nodded, packed a single suitcase, and came back down in twenty minutes.
Tao Zhen tried to take the suitcase from him but was gently dodged. Even with his arm injury, Zhu Wensheng carried it with ease, tossed it into the trunk, brushed the dust off, and joined him in the car.

They drove to the nearest supermarket, parked, and went upstairs.

The last time they’d gone to the store together was around New Year, when it had been packed shoulder-to-shoulder, and afterward they’d faced Tao Jun, who had just met Zhu Wensheng for the first time. Hardly an enjoyable shopping trip.

This time, they could take it slow. With a cart at the entrance, they strolled in, browsing shelves lined with goods.

Warm yellow lights spilled gently from above, faint music hummed around them. A newlywed couple passed by, speaking softly.

“We’re almost out of toilet paper, should we buy more?”

“Okay, let’s get this brand… Oh, and the fruit in the fridge is gone.”
“Then let’s buy some more. How about grabbing chips too?”

The ordinary couple walked off, their mundane chatter fading. Their faces were nothing remarkable, just any two people in the crowd.

Yet Zhu Wensheng’s eyes lingered on their backs until his fingers were tugged. He turned instinctively.

The blond boy grinned, tugging his hand playfully. “Ah-Sheng, what are you spacing out for?”
“We need toothbrushes, cups, towels, slippers, hangers… and food to stock the fridge, or we’ll have nothing to eat.”

“Oh! The shower gel at home is almost out too. Don’t let me forget…”

Zhu Wensheng came back to himself, squeezed Tao Zhen’s hand, his gaze soft. A heat surged in his chest. “…Okay.”

After a pause, he added: “I won’t forget.”

Just like any ordinary couple, they pushed their cart through the aisles, filled it with supplies and food, and finally reached the self-checkout.

Zhu Wensheng scanned items one by one, while Tao Zhen bagged them. But when his eyes strayed to the side shelf, he froze.

There were none of those at home.

That night, who knew whether it had run out or if Zhu Wensheng just hadn’t bothered, but they hadn’t used one. The cleanup was troublesome enough. For convenience, it would be better to buy some.

Still, grabbing that item, especially with Zhu Wensheng beside him, felt unbearably embarrassing. Like a silent suggestion.

Tao Zhen’s ears burned. He darted a glance at Zhu Wensheng, swallowed hard, and hurriedly grabbed a box.

When Zhu Wensheng turned to pick something up, Tao Zhen sneakily scanned the barcode and tossed it into the bag, hiding it at the very bottom.

His heart thudded wildly, his neck and cheeks heating up. He fanned himself with a hand, stealing another glance,
Zhu Wensheng showed no reaction, calmly finishing checkout. Relieved, Tao Zhen chirped, “Okay, I’ll pay- ”

But Zhu Wensheng interrupted: “Wait.”

Tao Zhen stiffened, tongue darting nervously over his lips. “W-what is it?”

The man didn’t answer. His dark gaze swept over Tao Zhen, then dropped to the bag, as if he knew everything. Tao Zhen held his breath, heart in his throat. But instead of exposing him, Zhu Wensheng simply scanned his own at the terminal: “I’ll pay.”

Ding-dong. Payment successful.

Tao Zhen’s heart dropped, still hammering. He was too shaken to even squabble over who paid like usual, and carried the bags out awkwardly. Back home, he snuck the box into his bedside drawer when Zhu Wensheng wasn’t looking, finally breathing easier before helping unpack.

The once-empty home now filled with signs of two people: big shoes by the door, a second set of toiletries in the bathroom, two sets of dishes at the table.

Compared to seeing each other only occasionally before, sharing his private space now felt solid, like truly being in a relationship.

But before he could savor it, his phone rang, Assistant Xiaoyu asking if he was streaming that afternoon.

He smacked his forehead, he’d forgotten. After telling Zhu Wensheng, he rushed to his room and set up his computer.

“Sorry, everyone, something came up at home today, so I’m late. My apologies…”

The moment he went live, thousands poured in. He handed out digital red packets, reading the scrolling comments: “Did something happen? …Hehe.”

He couldn’t hold back a smile. “Mhm, something good.”

The chat instantly erupted:

【MintMilkTea_OffShelf: ??? Something’s off! Spill it, what’s so good?】

【TrueShutterLove: I bet it’s about meeting the photographer. Why else are your lips red?】

Startled, Tao Zhen touched his lips. Instantly, the chat exploded.

【TrueShutterLove: Knew it! I was right!!】

【ZhenIsBest: Tell us! Tell us!!】

Only then did Tao Zhen realize he’d walked into a trap. Zhu Wensheng had kissed him hard, but by now his lips had long healed.

Blushing, he brushed off the topic and continued streaming as usual. The shippers, disappointed but playful, quieted down and began requesting songs.

Singing always took energy, but since he rarely streamed these days, fans begged him to keep going. Hours passed.

By the time dusk fell, he’d been sitting for several hours. Finishing a song, he felt his stomach growl. He was about to pause the stream to grab food when, knock, knock, someone tapped the door.

Tao Zhen turned. Zhu Wensheng stood there with a steaming bowl of noodle soup.

He blinked, startled, then remembered, he didn’t live alone anymore. His lips curled. “You made this for me?”

Those few words, and the sharp-eared viewers instantly caught on.

【It’s here!! The spouse is here!!】

【Who made it? Show us!!】

【Ohhh~ so this is the good thing~】

“Mm. Noodles are quick.”
Seeing Tao Zhen didn’t refuse, Zhu Wensheng came in, set the bowl on a side table.

Tao Zhen’s eyes curved, voice honey-sweet: “Wow, it smells amazing! Thank you, Ah-Sheng, you’re the best.”

A faint smile flickered in Zhu Wensheng’s dark eyes.

He said nothing, just sat quietly off-camera, waiting to clean up afterward.

Tao Zhen, truly starving, nearly drooled at the scent. But before taking a bite, he straightened toward Zhu Wensheng:
“Here, you take the first bite!”

The blond boy’s eyes shone, his cheerful voice softened into something sweet, almost coy.

Zhu Wensheng felt a spark of electricity jolt through him, his fingers tightening. He almost leaned in, until he noticed the camera.

Remembering that Tao Zhen didn’t seem to want others to know he was here, Zhu Wensheng silently sat back down, only murmuring, “It’s fine, there’s more in the kitchen.”

But Tao Zhen puffed up his cheeks in disapproval.

He instinctively tried to wheel his chair over, but the caster suddenly jammed, and he lurched forward, nearly spilling the bowl in his hands. “Uwah!”

The livestream chat froze. Viewers winced, already bracing for a messy disaster, but the next moment everything flipped:

A tall, striking young man suddenly appeared on camera. Moving fast, he reached out with veined forearms taut under a black sweater, one hand catching the bowl, the other wrapping around Tao Zhen’s waist.

He picked Tao Zhen up with one arm.

Though Tao Zhen was over 170 cm, he looked small, curled up against the man’s chest.

Still shaken, Tao Zhen clutched his neck, cheek pressed against firm muscle, soft skin peeking out. Frowning in regret, he whispered, “Sorry… I was so stupid just now…”

The soup had splashed, but only onto the table edge and floor.

Zhu Wensheng didn’t accept the apology. His voice was low and magnetic: “Not stupid. Did you burn your hand?”

In his arms, Tao Zhen shook his head obediently. “…No.”

Zhu Wensheng hummed softly, then reflexively lowered his head and kissed him, just a quick “smack” on the lips.

It all happened in a flash.

When Tao Zhen jumped from his embrace, he realized the camera had caught everything. The chat was going wild, scrolling faster than the eye could follow, with gift notifications flooding in nonstop.

【AAAAAAAHHH!!! My god!! Nobody told me the cameraman was this handsome! He and Zhenbao are perfect together!!】

【I can’t take it, I’m gonna faint. Does anyone else get the “height/size difference” kink? They’re the ideal couple for it…】

【Hello, yes, please act it out for me, thank you!】

Tao Zhen: “……”

What kind of comments were these?!

Absolutely shameless!

He glared, face reddening, just about to argue back, when suddenly the screen turned solid blue-purple. A notice popped up:
【This livestream has been temporarily suspended for violating platform rules】

Silence fell. Tao Zhen almost fainted.

His face was as red as a tomato, on the verge of tears. Even calm, steady Zhu Wensheng looked startled, staring at the message before muttering, “…Sorry.”

If he hadn’t lost control, maybe the fans wouldn’t have written those things.
Maybe Tao Zhen’s stream wouldn’t have been shut down.

After a long pause, Tao Zhen forced a stiff smile.
“…It’s okay. It’s not your fault.”

Still, he thought, Zhu Wensheng really was a kissing fiend.

Their eyes met briefly, then flicked away. Whatever they did in private was one thing, but hearing it from outsiders was something else entirely.

Zhu Wensheng fetched a cloth to wipe up the spilled soup. Tao Zhen just kept eating noodles, head lowered. The atmosphere was awkward but strangely peaceful.

A phone call broke it.

Tao Zhen set down his chopsticks, staring at the caller ID, Assistant Xiaoyu. He hesitated, already bracing for the girl’s meltdown as a stream mod. Gritting his teeth, he answered first with an apology: “Sorry, Xiaoyu! I didn’t know the stream would get suspended, I, ”

“AAAAAHHH! Tao Zhen-Ge, have you checked the app?!”
Xiaoyu shrieked, her laugh almost manic. “Your clip is everywhere, it just hit the trending list!!”

“……” Tao Zhen blinked. “Huh?”

He hurriedly opened the screenshot she sent. Sure enough, there it was: his tag #StreamerZhenIsBest# and, unbelievably, his CP tag with Zhu Wensheng, #TrueCaptureLove#.
He reread it several times in disbelief, then searched himself, only to confirm it. He was trending.

The short clip of him and Zhu Wensheng had been cut, spreading like wildfire in CP circles. The girls gushed about the size difference, the equally stunning looks, the natural atmosphere of that moment.

That final quick kiss had even been gif’d, showing up in every “TrueCaptureLove” post.

In the comments, fans had even coordinated a slogan:

【We have the money. Where’s the next chapter?】

【My CP is living together, what about yours?】

“……”

Tao Zhen clutched his phone, face burning red, as if it were a live grenade about to blow. “W-why are they like this?!”

He glanced up at Zhu Wensheng, who also seemed shaken, eyes locked on the usernames of the fans fueling it all. In a low, unreadable voice, he echoed: “Yeah. Why are they like this?”

Tao Zhen froze, realizing something.

For Zhu Wensheng, a straight man, this kind of shock might be even stronger than for himself… Was he planning to report every single account?

Embarrassing as it was, Tao Zhen didn’t want to. These fans had supported him from the start, and he didn’t want them punished. After all, he and Zhu Wensheng were real. So let them say what they wanted, he wasn’t losing anything.

Thinking this, Tao Zhen quickly calmed down, even trying to persuade Zhu Wensheng: “It’s… really not a big deal. They mean well. Look- ”

Outside the CP tag, his personal tag was also climbing fast, from #41 to #20 in minutes. Fans were recommending him to curious newcomers, even re-uploading his old viral singing videos. Likes were skyrocketing.

Leaning only on CP hype wasn’t ideal, it risked backlash, but Tao Zhen already had over a million followers and plenty of talent. Some skeptics shut up immediately after hearing the French song he’d sung live.

In short, even though the stream got suspended, Tao Zhen’s buzz today far exceeded the past, whenever he opened the dashboard, he could see his follower count shooting upward.

“Mm, true,” Zhu Wensheng agreed. His gaze stayed on the screen for a long moment. Then, as if remembering something, he asked softly, “So… do you still want me on camera later?”

“…”

The blond boy looked like he’d been struck by lightning. He let out two awkward laughs, tapped
his phone off with a “snap,” and in his head two tiny versions of himself started brawling.

Luckily, Zhu Wensheng had only asked in passing and didn’t press for an answer. He quickly finished tidying the dining table and told Tao Zhen to go wash up.

The night had been chaotic, and before they knew it, it was late. Tomorrow was Monday, an 8 a.m. class. Tao Zhen steadied himself and shelved the matter for now, hurrying into the bathroom.

Fatigue washed over him. By the time Zhu Wensheng came in, he was already curled beneath the quilt, fluffy blond hair draped over his brows, his sleeping face peaceful and boyish.

Zhu Wensheng padded over quietly, gazed at him for a long time, then pressed a kiss to his forehead.

***

Night deepened.

Most people slept, but a small portion stayed online, blowing bubbles like fish and sending ripples into the corners of the web.

The #DoctorZhen# tag, flattened earlier by the overwhelming vibes of #TrueCaptureLove, had been
nearly deserted. Now it flared up one last time because of the new clip from Tao Zhen’s stream. Not cheerful like the CP tag, but… a wake for Dr. Zhen.

Never mind Zhen-is-Best, turns out the streamer and the “cameraman” are an actual couple. The ones forcing a random ship had been stubborn from the start.

But what about DoctorSeven? He’d always marketed himself as single.
He’d disappeared for family reasons for a while; when he came back recently, he not only changed his content style but also announced he’d had a girlfriend for a long time…

Fans could accept you have a girlfriend, but not that you kept a singles persona while dating. They lost their tempers and “whipped the corpse” under Doctor Seven’s videos again.

Refreshing those comments, they fell under Qiqi’s eyes.

Qiqi sighed and rubbed his brow, a little helpless. He knew this was on him and had no excuse, so he forced the mood down and looked for a distraction.
Inevitably, he came across the “Zhen-is-Best stream clip” everyone was talking about.

He hadn’t been online much because of family matters and didn’t even know Tao Zhen had started streaming. Now his finger paused, curiosity won out, and he clicked in, watching, muttering “damn” under his breath.

He was about to tease Tao Zhen with a joking message when his phone buzzed.

[Xiang Yan]: Old Qi, you there?

Qiqi hesitated. Since he’d refused to give Tao Zhen’s contact to Xiang Yan last time, Xiang had been a bit miffed. They weren’t that close to begin with, and a rift had formed; they hadn’t spoken in a while.

So why reach out in the middle of the night?

After a moment’s thought, Qiqi replied: [Here. What’s up?]

[Xiang Yan]: Sigh, just wanted to say, you were right about telling me not to chase after Tao Zhen. I was out of my mind then and didn’t listen. I’m sorry.

Ah, so it was about that.

Qiqi raised a brow. Xiang must have seen the clip from Tao Zhen’s stream and realized how dumb it was to insist on pursuing someone and trying to be the “other man,” hence the late-night confession.

Qiqi couldn’t help a wry smile: [Eh, I’m fine. No need to apologize to me. If you really feel bad, tell Tao Zhen. He’s genuinely nice, he won’t hold it against you.]

[Xiang Yan]: Yeah… I did talk to him back then. He said he didn’t mind and even refunded my “Carnival” gifts.
[Xiang Yan]: But him not minding doesn’t mean his boyfriend doesn’t! Turns out his boyfriend is the Era Z boss, the young master of the Zhu family! I felt the sky collapse. Thank god I didn’t actually try to steal him; otherwise I’d be dead meat.

Qiqi blinked, bewildered: [Wait, hold on. You’re saying Tao Zhen’s boyfriend is my boss, the Zhu family’s heir? The crown prince?]

[Xiang Yan]: Yep. If you don’t believe me, search this. [image]

[Xiang Yan]: And let me tell you…

Qiqi swallowed and pulled up the recording from the day Tao Zhen first streamed.

Sure enough, after “Sunflower” sent a Carnival and requested Let’s Get Married, the crown prince appeared, silently dropped 150,000 for Tao Zhen, and requested a song no one else recognized but the boy loved…

In his mind, the regal, devastatingly handsome “cameraman’s” face and build overlapped with that fleeting glimpse of the “crown prince” from that day…

Qiqi closed his eyes.

Could it be that Tao Zhen’s boyfriend really is the crown prince?