Chapter 79 “When two men are of one mind, they can cut through metal.”

Ever since Zhou Jingan showed up in person at the Cheng family's birthday party that night and supported the two young people with an absolutely strong attitude, the Cheng family has been completely quiet.

There were no more untimely calls, and no pressure of any kind, as if all the previous turmoil had been just an illusion.

Chu Yi enjoyed the quiet time and devoted himself to his work in the hospital and his daily life with Zhou Ai.

Zhou Ai acted as if nothing had happened and continued to rush around various cities, rushing to attend to announcements that seemed to never end.

However, the level of intimacy between the two of them directly rose to a new level.

Whenever she had a spare moment, even just five minutes, Zhou Ai would always dial Chu Yi's video call. It was so good that even her experienced agent, Xu Yang, was often shocked, privately complaining that the two were the reincarnation of conjoined twins, their loveliness was outrageous.

At this moment, in a studio, Zhou Ai, who had just finished shooting a set of advertising blockbusters, was wearing a face full of exquisite makeup and styling, and couldn't wait to curl up on the sofa in the lounge and make a video call.

His look today was striking: his dark hair was neatly pulled back with gel, revealing a full, smooth forehead that perfectly showcased his three-dimensional features and smooth facial lines, less of his usual casualness and more of a sharp, handsome look. He wore a white silk shirt for the photoshoot, the top two buttons casually undone, revealing delicate collarbone and a sliver of skin.

However, if one moves the gaze further downwards, onto the left side of the shirt-wrapped chest, approximately at the fifth intercostal space, a clear, ambiguous lip print is faintly visible through the thin white shirt fabric.

That was the "exclusive mark" left by Chu Yi before he went out this morning because he was pestered by him.

As soon as the video was connected, the screen revealed half of Chu Yi's profile, dressed in a white coat and seemingly resting in his office, when Zhou Ai transformed into a "humanoid summoned beast," spewing all sorts of affectionate names like they were free, his voice so sticky it could be drawn:

"Baby~Baby~Do you see me?"

"My dear~ I missed you so much today..."

"Good boy, have you eaten yet? Are you tired?"

He smiled at the phone screen so hard that his teeth were showing. His peach blossom eyes, which were so electric in front of the camera, now curved into crescents, filled with undisguised longing and love. His whole body seemed to be emitting pink bubbles.

Xu Yang and the photographer were holding a tablet computer and whispering about the details of the next set of photos.

The photographer was attracted by the sudden movement of Zhou Ai, which was completely different from the cold and aloof image of the Gu King in the previous shooting. He couldn't help but look up and looked over with a shocked expression.

Zhou Ai was showing off in front of the phone camera in all kinds of "flashy" ways, looking like a dog licker...

Xu Yang followed the photographer's gaze and instantly understood what had happened.

The corners of his mouth twitched, and a helpless expression of "here we go again" appeared on his face. He closed his eyes painfully, took a deep breath, and resisted the urge to pack up and throw this embarrassing guy out.

Turning to the equally bewildered photographer, he gave a professional, slightly awkward yet polite smile and explained in a low voice, "Ahem... you'll get used to it, you'll get used to it."

After saying that, he silently moved the tablet towards himself, trying to use his body to block the source of the sour smell of love that was madly emitting from the other side, tears streaming down his face: This artist of his is completely hopeless, he is in the late stage of love brain, even Hua Tuo can't save him!

Although there was no official announcement, Zhou Ai and Chu Yi's relationship had long been an unspoken "semi-public" relationship within the circle and the hospital.

In the entertainment industry, all the teams and artists who have worked with Zhou Ai are impressed by the huge contrast between his professionalism and seriousness when working and his instant transformation into a "clingy person" when resting.

As soon as the director yells "Cut" or during a break in filming, people can often see Zhou Ai, who was full of charisma and had a distant look just now, quickly finding a corner, holding his phone, lowering his voice, and chattering to the person on the other side of the screen.

"What did you have for lunch? Did you drink your soup nicely?"

"I'm almost done here, I should be able to get back in the evening."

"Yeah, I miss you..."

The tone of voice so gentle that water could drip out, and the unconcealed sweet smile on the face, often made a group of people in the circle who were used to the ups and downs of life feel embarrassed, and they all sighed privately: It turns out that when the top stars talk about love, they are no different from ordinary people, or even more disgusting.

In the hospital where Chu Yi works, this "semi-publicity" appears more concrete and vivid.

The first time it caused a small sensation was one late autumn evening.

Chu Yi had just finished a long emergency surgery and had just walked out of the inpatient building when he shivered slightly in the cold wind.

A low-profile black SUV silently slid in front of him. The window rolled down, revealing Zhou Ai's handsome face, which was still handsome even with the mask and baseball cap.

He was holding a thick and soft cashmere cardigan that he had obviously prepared in advance, and his tone was a little distressed: "Put it on quickly, it's warm in the car."

Chu Yi was stunned for a moment, obviously not expecting him to come, but a smile involuntarily colored the corners of his eyes and eyebrows, and he obediently took the clothes and put them on. Zhou Ai even leaned over and carefully helped him to tidy up his slightly messy hair.

This scene happened to be seen by several colleagues who were leaving work. Although Zhou Ai was disguised tightly, his unique temperament and iconic eyebrows and eyes made him instantly recognizable.

The news spread quickly within the hospital—that superstar Zhou Ai had actually come to pick up Dr. Chu from work! She had even thoughtfully brought some clothes!

Later, such scenes became more and more frequent.

Sometimes, Zhou Ai would arrive early and without being urged, he would just park his car in the temporary parking space opposite the hospital and wait quietly.

He usually wears headphones, as if listening to a demo, or looks down at his tablet, but his eyes always glance towards the hospital exit from time to time.

Once he saw that familiar figure appear, his whole body seemed to be lit up instantly, his eyes immediately focused, he quickly unlocked the car door, and sometimes he couldn't help but get out of the car to greet him.

Once, it was drizzling, and Chu Yi was delayed for half an hour by an emergency patient. When he hurried out, he saw Zhou Ai, holding a long-handled black umbrella, waiting by the car, her trouser legs and shoulders slightly wet from the incoming rain.

Seeing him, Zhou Ai immediately stepped forward quickly, tilted most of the umbrella towards him, naturally took the bag from his hand, and supported his back with his other hand to escort him to the co-pilot seat.

He walked back to the driver's seat, and the first thing he did after getting in the car was to take a tissue, not to wipe himself, but to wipe the tiny water droplets on Chu Yi's forehead.

Another time, Zhou Ai, seemingly fresh from a fashion event, was standing at the hospital entrance, waiting, seemingly out of place, wearing a three-piece suit from a high-end designer, casually layered with a long down jacket. His overly flashy attire and impressive height drew the attention of those entering and leaving.

Zhou Ai himself didn't care at all. He just kept his head down and typed, as if reporting his location to Chu Yi.

Until Chu Yi came out, seeing him dressed up to take over, he couldn't help but hold his forehead and laugh. Zhou Ai raised his eyebrows proudly, leaned over and whispered: "How about giving Doctor Chu some face?"

Colleagues in the hospital went from being surprised and curious at first to getting used to it later, and even started to secretly "eat sugar".

The young nurses would inform each other: "Doctor Chu's boyfriend is here again today, he's waiting downstairs!"

When the aunt at the information desk saw Zhou Ai, she would smile knowingly and no longer be as nervous as she was at the beginning about whether to find the security guard.

Even the department director once said to Chu Yi with a smile when they met after get off work: "Xiao Chu, don't let them wait too long. It's cold."

When faced with jokes from his colleagues, Chu Yi usually just smiled faintly and didn't say much. He was still himself, the professional, calm, and even somewhat aloof Dr. Chu, but the occasional blush on his ears revealed his mood.

————

After experiencing the public opinion storm caused by the first broadcast and a period of relative calm, the second episode of "Heart to the Distant Mountains" was finally released amidst the attention of the public, especially the anticipation of fans of the "Love CP".

If the first episode is the prologue to the first encounter and ambiguity, then the second episode is simply a combination of the "New Year's Eve dinner" and "roller coaster" experience for CP fans.

The editing of the second episode clearly understood the secrets of traffic, and magnified Zhou Ai's thoughts, which were originally hidden, to the extreme using camera language and post-production fancy words.

"Auto-tracking" camera: In the picture, whether Chu Yi is treating villagers or discussing the medicine list with Dr. Li, the camera can always accurately cut to Zhou Ai——

Whether he was leaning or standing, his gaze was always fixed on Chu Yi, like a GPS. Later, a "target-locked" effect was added to Zhou Ai's eyes, with the caption: "I only have eyes for you."

"Double standard" scene: When other guests were out of breath because of the difficult mountain road, Zhou Ai had a look of "it has nothing to do with me" on his face; but when Chu Yi stood up and swayed slightly because he had been squatting for a long time, Zhou Ai reached out and supported his arm almost instantly, so fast that it was blurry.

The comments were instantly flooded with comments like "He's so anxious! He's so anxious!" and "Is this reaction speed real?"

Preference for "convenience": The guests helped to carry the supplies. Zhou Ai was carrying things in her own hands, but she was still able to "convenience" take the slightly heavy-looking box from Chu Yi's hand. Her movements were as natural as breathing.

Barrage: [“By the way”] [I believed your lies! ].

What made CP fans even more excited was that the second episode seemed to capture more moments when Chu Yi "lost his power", making fans exclaim "Dr. Chu is not completely indifferent!"

At night, everyone was organizing their notes, but Chu Yi took his thermos cup, walked over to Zhou Ai who was sitting in the corner, handed him the cup, and whispered something (which lip-reading expert fans interpreted as "drink some hot water").

The instant Zhou Ai's eyes lit up when he took the cup was replayed three times in slow motion.

Barrage: [He gave him hot water! Rounded up to...!] [Doctor Chu, where's your professional composure?!]

In a long shot, Zhou Ai whispered something into Chu Yi's ear, and Chu Yi's previously tense profile softened, even giving him a barely perceptible smile. Although he quickly regained his composure, this fleeting smile was circulated wildly by fans as a GIF, dubbed "The Moment the Iceberg Melts."

The broadcast of the second episode almost completely reversed some passers-by's previous doubts about "hype".

On the hot search list, terms such as #周艾的眼丝颜#, #楚义双标现场#, and #愛意CP是真实# dominated the top spots.

Passerby's opinion: "I used to think it was a script, but now... if this were a performance, Zhou Ai deserves a Best Actor award, and Chu Yi could be directly nominated for an Oscar."

CP fans reveled: "Help! This is simply a documentary about a young couple's public love affair?!", "The production team is so understanding! I'm dying!", "I declare that this CP of love is locked, and I've swallowed the key!"

Fans of the show are struggling: Some of them are still emphasizing that "it's just a good relationship between colleagues" and "the program editing effect", but under such intensive bombardment of "sweet points", their voices seem to be getting weaker and weaker.

Looking at the trending searches that were once again trending, Xu Yang had learned to face it calmly.

The two parties at this moment——

Zhou Ai was curled up on the sofa, happily using his small account (Chu Yi Sanshen Wuming whispered: Brother Zhou always used the big account before) to watch video clips of CP fans, and from time to time he would like the comments praising his "affectionate" and "boyfriend power MAX"

Chu Yi was once again surrounded by ambiguous glances from his colleagues. Even the director couldn't help but tease him during his ward rounds: "Doctor Chu, the show is going well. Keep up the good work. It's also a good publicity for our hospital."

Chu Yi: “…”

He lowered his head and rubbed his eyebrows, his ears slightly red. He decided to go back tonight and have a "good talk" with Zhou Ai about the issue of restraint.

Although, he knew in his heart that there was a high probability that no results would be achieved through negotiation.

The second episode of "Heart to the Distant Mountains" once again proved its "phenomenal" popularity amid the carnival of "I hit it", and also presented the relationship between Zhou Ai and Chu Yi more clearly to everyone.

Different from Zhou Ai’s casual and even a bit “nonsense” promotional style, Chu Yi always kept in mind the original intention of participating in “Heart to the Distant Mountains”.

His Weibo account has become the most solid and professional footnote to the program's public welfare nature. He doesn't update frequently, but every time he speaks out, it carries weight.

Sometimes he would repost clips from the official Weibo account of the program, and the accompanying text was not a simple reflection, but an in-depth and easy-to-understand popular science article on a specific disease involved in the film, listing preventive measures and key points of basic diagnosis and treatment. The text was rigorous and well-organized.

Sometimes Chu Yi would seriously spend time writing long articles of thousands of words. There was no sensationalism in the articles, only calm observations and data.

Compile a list of medicines in short supply, analyze the relationship between local high-incidence chronic diseases and living habits and drinking water conditions, reveal the medical difficulties faced by left-behind elderly and children, and even put forward practical and phased improvement suggestions.

His writing is as precise as a scalpel, cutting through the flashy appearance and pointing directly to the core pain point of the lack of medical resources in rural areas.

These Weibo posts are like a quiet and powerful stream on social media that is filled with entertainment information.

And every time, no matter whether the content released by Chu Yi was short or long, popular science or appeal, the first person to forward and like it was always Zhou Ai.

His forwarding messages are often simple:

"Support Dr. Chu."

“It’s worth paying attention to.”

"[Heart]"

The words are concise and to the point, but they carry unquestionable support.

What caused even more public outcry was that shortly after Zhou Ai forwarded the message, the charitable foundation under the Zhou Group quickly followed up and issued an official announcement, announcing that it would donate medical equipment and medicines worth tens of millions of yuan to the areas mentioned in the program or similar impoverished mountainous areas, or help build standardized rural health stations.

The huge amount of donations, the speed of action and the precision of the targets have always attracted widespread coverage.

When it happened for the first time, netizens were still amazed:

[Holy crap! This is a big deal from the Zhou family!]

[Is this the appeal of a top star? Love it!]

After the second and third incidents, the tone of the comments section began to change subtly and joyfully:

[Understood. Doctor Chu writes the medical records (research report), and Master Zhou approves the notes (pays the money).]

What kind of ancient and modern story is this about "the wife offers advice, the husband allocates funds"?

Dr. Chu: Identified the problem and wrote a plan. Zhou Ai: Shared the plan, @ZhouGroup. Zhou Group: Send the money! One-stop service achieved!

[Zhou's spending so much money... why does it feel like I'm paying a "bride price"? (bushi)]

[Is this the legendary... 'Pampering Wife for Charity'?]

Even the financial media began to joke, "The Zhou Group's recent philanthropic direction seems to be completely following the progress of the program 'Heart to the Mountains' and the research report of a certain flying doctor."

Xu Yang looked at this completely unexpected development, and his initial astonishment turned into numbness and even a little bit of laughter.

He had to admit that Zhou Ai, in an extremely willful and high-profile manner, had indeed drawn the public's attention to rural medical issues and brought real and great help.

This was far more effective than any positive publicity he had previously orchestrated.

Chu Yi's "conditioned reflex" support for Zhou Ai and the Zhou Group, from initial surprise to subsequent helplessness, eventually turned into an indescribable warmth in his heart.

He knew that Zhou Ai was supporting his ideals and protecting what he wanted to protect in his own way, clumsily but with great determination.

Once, Chu Yi finished a long article late at night about the nutrition and health of children in mountainous areas. After publishing it, he sent a private message to Zhou Ai, saying, "You don't have to do this every time."

Zhou Ai replied almost immediately: "Yes."

After a few seconds, another message came:

"You light the way, and I'll build the bridge."

"My dear, does this count as... a husband and wife of one mind can accomplish anything?"

Chu Yi looked at the words on the screen and smiled slowly at the phone.

The uproar of public opinion may pass, and the popularity of variety shows will eventually cool, but the kindness and actions that arise from one person are truly changing the lives of many distant strangers.

From a public and private perspective, and in terms of emotion and reason, this is a million times better than he had initially expected.