MFMBSA 58

Chapter 58 – Confidence

 

Qi Xi and Cheng Shu agreed to meet at a coffee shop on the commercial street. When he went downstairs, his driver was still waiting for him in the garage, so he asked the driver to take him there.

 

Cheng Shu and Bai Peiyong arrived first and chose a window seat to wait for him. This was his first time facing such an occasion, and he was alone. When he saw Bai Peiyong waving at him, he immediately became nervous and subconsciously wanted to escape.

 

“You’re going to scare him away!”

 

Cheng Shu cursed in a low voice at Bai Peiyong, who was about to spread his feathers like a peacock, and stood up and said to Qi Xi from a distance: “Qi Xi, here.”

 

Qi Xi thought about Fu Yanchuan then walked over and told him that Bai Peiyong was also there because Bai Peiyong was an investor in the animation, but he still didn’t like Bai Peiyong very much.

 

When he reached the table, he bowed to Cheng Shu and said, “Hello, nice to meet you.”

 

Cheng Shu wanted to laugh when he heard such a stiff greeting, but he held it back. “Don’t be nervous. Although our age differences may not make it appropriate, just treat us as friends. What would you like to drink?”

 

Qi Xi nodded. He sat on the other side of the booth, clenched his hands on the table and replied: “Milk tea.”

 

Cheng Shu meant to let Qi Xi order by himself, but Qi Xi didn’t move after he told him. He had no choice but to look at the menu. “It seems that there is no milk tea here. How about brown sugar latte? It should be a bit like milk tea, but I haven’t had it either.”

 

Qi Xi nodded again. Cheng Shu inexplicably felt like he was taking care of a child. He placed the order on his phone before looking at him formally.

 

Qi Xi happened to look at him, and asked him with an expression as if he was ready to die, “Before we talk, should we first agree on the terms?”

 

This was the first time Cheng Shu heard such an opening statement, and he was at a loss for words. He curiously asked Qi Xi, “What are your conditions?”

 

Qi Xi actually didn’t know what conditions to negotiate, but he remembered some of what Fu Yanchuan said to him in bits and pieces, and to sum it up, he didn’t want to suffer any loss.

 

He imitated Fu Yanchuan and answered with his neck stiffened: “It’s about where the animation will be made, when it shall be finished, how I should draw it, how I should be compensated for it, and who will be responsible if any problems arise. All of these need to be made clear first.”

 

Bai Peiyong pretended to drink coffee to cover it up, but he couldn’t help laughing.

 

Cheng Shu glanced at him and said, “This does need to be made clear, but the project team is still being formed, so I can’t tell you exactly when it will be completed. As for the location, I have an office, but of course you don’t have to draw in the office if you need to. As for payment, we can discuss it when we sign the contract.”

 

“oh.”

 

Qi Xi replied with one word and then fell silent. He didn’t know whether what Cheng Shu said was wrong or not, so he didn’t know how to respond.

 

At this point, Cheng Shu began to understand what Bai Peiyong meant when he said that Qi Xi was not confident. However, from his perspective, he felt that Qi Xi was pure, something even rarer than artistic talent. In other words, he was not contaminated by the secular world.

 

The existence of such people is actually very contradictory to this society because human beings are social creatures. When people live together, they are inevitably involved in various interests and no one can completely escape from it.

 

This is not necessarily a good thing nor is it necessarily a bad thing. The difference lies in whether there is someone who can protect him from being so pure forever.

 

Thinking of this, Cheng Shu said to Qi Xi with extra patience: “Do you know what animation is made of?”

 

“Do you mean to draw every movement? I’ve drawn them for fun when I was bored. Do you want to see them?”

 

Qi Xi finally managed to reply, and he breathed a sigh of relief. He quickly took out his sketchbook from his schoolbag, the one in the corner.

 

Cheng Shu took the sketchbook and opened it and he understood. He quickly turned over a corner of the book, and the little man drawn there began to move. Although it was a sketch, the lines of the background of the action were very smooth, and there was a kind of tension that seemed to jump out.

 

He originally thought that Qi Xi might not be suited to drawing animations, but now he feels like he has found a treasure and is amazed at Qi Xi’s talent.

 

Qi Xi thought that his painting was not good enough, and looked at Cheng Shu nervously and asked, “Is it not good enough?”

 

Cheng Shu closed the sketchbook with his hands and returned it to Qi Xi, saying carefully: “Mr. Qi Xi, please be sure to join our project. I promise to tailor a story for you that best suits your style of painting.”

 

Fu Yanchuan received a call from the driver who was taking Qi Xi to the office. He did not deliberately try to control where Qi Xi was going, but still asked the driver to call and tell him if Qi Xi went to someplace he didn’t often go to, or met someone he didn’t know.

 

The driver said, “One of the people he met had harassed him at school before. His last name seemed to be Bai.”

 

Fu Yanchuan hung up the phone and went to find Qi Xi with his unfinished work. Along the way, he focused on the things in his hands until the car arrived outside the coffee shop. Then he put it down temporarily and got out to go in.

 

As he walked into the coffee shop, he saw Qi Xi, but Qi Xi had his back to him and did not notice him coming. When he approached, he suddenly stopped and looked at Qi Xi quietly.

 

Qi Xi was chatting with the person opposite him. He was very interested in the topic and his eyes were shining brightly.

 

He paused for a moment and decided not to disturb Qi Xi. He turned around and sat behind Qi Xi, listening to what Qi Xi was saying through the back of the booth. When he heard the word “animation”, he understood why Qi Xi suddenly mentioned that he wanted to make animation at noon.

 

Finally, Qi Xi was completely convinced and blurted out, “Director Cheng, I want to join, even if I don’t get paid–“

 

“Qi Xi.”

 

Fu Yanchuan stood up and interrupted Qi Xi. He didn’t care how much Qi Xi got paid, but he didn’t want Qi Xi to humble himself so much. He hoped that Qi Xi could understand how much he deserved others to bow down to him.

 

“Brother Yan, why are you here?”

 

Qi Xi was surprised to see Fu Yanchuan. Fu Yanchuan turned around and sat next to him naturally and shook his head.

 

Cheng Shu was also surprised. He was no stranger to Fu Yanchuan, or in other words, everyone who had anything to do with business knew Fu Yanchuan. But he did not expect Fu Yanchuan to appear so suddenly, and he did not know when he came. Judging from Qi Xi’s expression, he did not seem to know that Fu Yanchuan was here.

 

He took a deep breath and greeted, “Hello, Mr. Fu.”

 

Fu Yanchuan didn’t look at Cheng Shu. He stared at Qi Xi and asked, “Are you so happy?”

 

“Well, Brother Yan, I want to make animations with Director Cheng.”

 

Qi Xi pointed to Cheng Shu and said, “This is Director Cheng.”

 

Fu Yanchuan finally looked at Cheng Shu, and Cheng Shu quickly took the opportunity to speak, “Mr. Fu, hello. My name is Cheng Shu. I don’t know if you have heard of “The God of Depth”, which is the work I directed and has received good reviews.”

 

Qi Xi explained, “‘The Deep God’ is an animation that tells the story of a wolf living in the deep forest and a little girl who lost her family. It’s very touching.”

 

Fu Yanchuan had never watched an animation, and had hardly even watched a movie. He naturally shook the hand that Qi Xi extended to him. With his other hand, he searched for “The God of Depth” on his phone, took a quick look at the reviews and style, and said to Cheng Shu, “Give me your project book and the cooperation contract. I’ll give you a reply after I read them.”

 

Cheng Shu understood Fu Yanchuan’s intention. Bai Peiyong had told him before coming here that if Fu Yanchuan disagreed, he would not be able to invite Qi Xi. But Bai Peiyong said that Qi Xi was Fu Yanchuan’s younger brother, but he thought that the two of them were obviously not brothers.

 

However, he couldn’t ask such a question, so he could only agree: “That’s no problem. I invite Qi Xi very sincerely. We can discuss the details slowly.”

 

Fu Yanchuan calmly took out a business card and pushed it across the table, “Contact me when you’re ready.”

 

After he said that, he glanced at Bai Peiyong, then pulled Qi Xi up. He held his hand and left.

 

Cheng Shu picked up the business card on the table. This was probably something that many people would not be able to get despite great difficulty. He couldn’t help but look at Fu Yanchuan and Qi Xi, and saw that Fu Yanchuan held Qi Xi’s hand and then put his arm around Qi Xi’s waist after they went out.

 

Adults understood what the relationship was without having to think about it. For a moment, he felt regretful that Qi Xi’s purity could only be maintained for a few years with someone like Fu Yanchuan. By then, Qi Xi might never be able to paint works like the current ones again.

 

Bai Peiyong said more bluntly: “So this is their relationship? No wonder he looked at me as if he wanted to kill me.”

 

Qi Xi was pushed into the car by Fu Yanchuan, but he still wanted to get out and find Cheng Shu. He felt that this was his chance to become outstanding. When he thought about the day when the animation he drew would be released nationwide, he felt that he was so awesome.

 

But Fu Yanchuan was so fierce just now and took him away by force. What should he do if Director Cheng gets angry and doesn’t want him anymore?

 

“It’s okay, he’ll come.”

 

Fu Yanchuan held down Qi Xi, who was trying to get out, closed the car door, and the driver drove out.

 

Qi Xi was still holding his unfinished coffee, staring at Fu Yanchuan anxiously and asking, “Really? But you were so fierce just now.”

 

“Xixi, believe in yourself. He is begging you now, so you can be a little proud.”

 

Qi Xi suddenly smiled, and with stars in his eyes he leaned towards Fu Yanchuan, “Brother Yan, why do you trust me so much?”

 

“Because you are excellent and worthy of others’ trust.”

 

“Don’t praise me like that. I feel embarrassed.”

 

Qi Xi blushed and shrank to the other side of the seat. He took two sips of coffee then turned his head and found Fu Yanchuan staring at him.

 

He retracted his gaze and took two more sips of coffee. Fu Yanchuan was still staring at him, so he stared back, “Stop staring at me!”

 

Fu Yanchuan still didn’t turn his eyes away. He asked again: “What are you looking at? Is there anything on my face?”

 

“I’m watching my Xixi, he’s getting better and better.”

 

Qi Xi was a little overwhelmed by the praise and became really proud of himself. He bumped into Fu Yanchuan and said, “I also think I was great today. Director Cheng sent me a private message, so I came to see him. He told me a lot about making animations, which I found very interesting. I hope that one day the animations I draw can be shown all over the world!”

 

It was the first time that Fu Yanchuan saw Qi Xi’s eyes like this, and asked him, “Do you like it so much?”

 

“Yeah! I loved watching anime when I was a kid, and later I also liked reading comics, but I never thought that I could do it.”

 

Qi Xi then became worried again, “Will Director Cheng really come to see me again?”

 

“Of course, because you are unique and he can’t find another one like you.”

 

After Fu Yanchuan finished speaking, Qi Xi suddenly leaned into his arms and pressed himself against his neck before asking, “Do you like me a little more?”

 

He lowered his eyes and his gaze met Qi Xi’s. Qi Xi had asked him this question many times during this period, but this time, Qi Xi finally asked it less cautiously and with a little complacent confidence.

 

He couldn’t help but put his lips to Qi Xi’s. Fu Yanchuab bit his bottom lip lightly and said, “Yes.”

 

Qi Xi immediately hid his face in the crook of his neck, “You are so annoying, the driver is watching in front.”

 

The driver, who didn’t even dare to glance sideways, trembled.