"Look, look! This was once a big star! A musical prodigy! And now he's rummaging through the trash, hahaha... Gu Chen, don't hide, show your face!"

In the dead end on the left side of the alley, there were rows of garbage cans, emitting a nauseating stench.

Our chosen one, Gu Chen, was rummaging through one of the trash cans haphazardly.

A person next to him was holding a camera and taking pictures of his face. Gu Chen raised his hand to cover his face.

"You guys go over there and pull his arms away!"

The person in charge of taking photos instructed several men around him.

"Gu Chen, don't blame us. Blame yourself for offending President Chen. Why didn't you just honestly make films and pay back the money? What are you pretending to be so high and mighty for? Do you really think you're still the musical prodigy you were a year ago?"

"Get out! Let go!" Gu Chen struggled desperately.

But he was just a twenty-year-old youth. Even though he was strong and used to work out regularly, he had never practiced Sanda or anything like that. In a fight against four opponents wielding sticks, he was no match for them.

They hit him with a stick, stripped him naked while he was dazed, pinned him to the ground, and frantically took photos from all angles.

"Wow! You've maintained such a great figure after a year. What? Are you thinking of making a comeback as an idol?"

The other person looked at his beautifully sculpted eight-pack abs and V-shaped torso with a hint of jealousy in their eyes. "No wonder President Chen wanted you to film calcium supplements. With that face and that physique, you'd be a superstar if you ever got this!"

"Hey guys, flip him over, pull down his underwear, and show his anus!" the photographer called out.

Upon hearing this, Gu Chen's pupils exploded, and with an unknown strength, he broke free from the four people's grasp and crashed into the person taking the photo.

Caught off guard, the man dropped his camera to the ground, shouting, "My camera!"

"Fuck your mother, you little brat!"

Enraged to see his tools of the trade destroyed, the man kicked Gu Chen in the chest, knocking him to the ground.

"What are you standing there for? Beat him to death!"

The man angrily ordered the other four men to act, while he rolled up his sleeves, ready to fight as well. But as soon as he raised his arm, someone grabbed him from behind and dislocated his shoulder.

"Ah—" the man let out a shrill scream.

"Who do you want to beat to death?"

Zhang Yun kicked away the exhausted paparazzi and looked coldly at the other four.

Having been in power for many years, even though his memory is gone, Zhang Yun still retains the noble and majestic air of a ruler (commonly known as the aura of a king) because his abilities are preserved.

The four were intimidated by his imposing presence, and for a moment none of them dared to move.

It wasn't until the leader on the ground screamed and told them to attack that the four of them reacted and rushed over to beat Zhang Yun.

Would Zhang Yun be afraid of them?

In the previous world, he first trained in the army for many years, and later became emperor, and he continued to practice martial arts.

While his martial arts skills might not be considered top-tier in the world, he was certainly at the level of a first-rate master.

You only need one hand to take care of these few oddballs.

After quickly dealing with the four men, Zhang Yun walked up to Gu Chen and pulled him aside, asking, "Are you alright?"

"Don't touch me!" Gu Chen flung his arm away, her body trembling as she curled up into a ball.

"..."

To be honest, Zhang Yun felt a little amused.

The chosen one, the protagonist of a wish-fulfillment novel, is now cowering and trembling like a little girl who has been nearly raped.

He had never seen anything like it before.

After hesitating for 0.5 seconds, Zhang Yun took off her coat and put it over Gu Chen's head.

She softened her voice and asked him, "Can you stand up by yourself?"

Seemingly soothed by the lingering scent on his clothes, Gu Chen stopped trembling, shakily put on the coat, and barely managed to stand up, supporting himself on the ground.

But as soon as he stood up, he swayed and fell forward.

Zhang Yun quickly stepped forward and caught his falling body.

"Tsk~ So proactive, throwing herself into my arms!"

He chuckled and joked, then picked up Gu Chen, who had fallen into a coma.

Just as I was about to leave, something suddenly occurred to me.

"System, what was Gu Chen looking for in the garbage dump earlier?"

System: "The necklace, left to him by his deceased mother, was taken away as a prank and thrown into the trash can."

Hmm, that sounds like something the main character would do.

Do you know where it is?

"Of course, I can access all the surveillance footage in this world; there's nothing I can't do without you..."

"Stop talking nonsense."

"...in the second trash can from the left, in the top black trash bag." ╭(╯^╰)╮

Zhang Yun let Gu Chen lean against him, reached out from both sides of his neck, untied the trash bag the system had mentioned, found the necklace, and then picked up Gu Chen and left.

Of course, before leaving, he didn't forget to take the film from the camera on the ground and, in revenge, stomped on it until it was smashed. (Camera: I should have just left it at the factory.)

The system assigned Zhang Yun an apartment in an old residential complex, on the fourth floor, without an elevator.

Even though he was in excellent physical condition, he was still panting heavily after carrying Gu Chen all the way home.

This brat is quite heavy!

Upon arriving home, Zhang Yun turned on the lights, placed the person on the sofa, and then went back to change his shoes.

On the way back, the system had already checked for him.

Gu Chen fainted because he had just bumped his head on someone and was already a little dizzy. Then he suddenly stood up, which caused insufficient blood supply. It's nothing serious, and he'll wake up after a rest.

Zhang Yun changed into slippers, went into the bathroom, and filled the bathtub with water.

Gu Chen had just collapsed in the garbage dump and smelled terrible; he needed to wash himself clean.

Zhang Yun filled the bathtub with water, tested the water temperature with her hand, and then went out to undress Gu Chen.

Yes, as expected of the protagonist, all his stats exceed expectations.

He was very satisfied.

After admiring him for a few seconds, Zhang Yun helped up the still unconscious Gu Chen, took him to the bathroom, and threw him into the bathtub where the water temperature was just right.

Gu Chen woke up.

Upon realizing he was naked in the bathtub, his expression changed, and he quickly looked around for a security camera.

Then, he saw the incredibly handsome boy standing next to the bathtub.

Gu Chen was suddenly stunned.

"It's good that you're awake. Go wash yourself." Zhang Yun placed the towel, shower gel, and other items next to the bathtub with a normal expression.

“I went out. Your clothes were all torn and I threw them away. I prepared some new pajamas for you. They might be a little small, but they are the largest size I have. You can wear them for now.”

After Zhang Yun finished speaking, he left the bathroom.

After the bathroom door was closed, Gu Chen's uneasy mood gradually calmed down.

But he was still worried, so he got up, wrapped a towel around his lower body, and searched the bathroom. Only after confirming that there were no cameras did he finally breathe a sigh of relief.

Instead of staying in the bathtub, Gu Chen turned on the shower and took a cold shower. He dried himself off, changed into the pajamas Zhang Yun had placed on the rack, and then came out.

Zhang Yun had already taken another shower in the bathroom of her bedroom and changed into her pajamas.

When Gu Chen came out, he saw him sitting on the sofa watching TV.

Although he had already remembered what happened before he lost consciousness, Gu Chen still cautiously surveyed the room to make sure there were no hidden cameras.

"Don't be so nervous, I won't take pictures of you secretly."

Zhang Yun was both amused and exasperated by his actions. "Sit down."

Upon hearing this, Gu Chen walked over and sat on the sofa to his right.

"Let me introduce myself, my name is Zhang Yun."

Zhang Yun poured him a glass of hot milk. "I just moved back in. There's nothing in the house. Please excuse me."

"No, thank you. My name is Gu Chen." Gu Chen took the hot milk and drank it all in one gulp.

The empty stomach was filled with a warm current, giving one the illusion of being reborn.

Setting down his cup, Gu Chen noticed Zhang Yun staring at him and leaned back warily. "What's wrong?"

"you……"

Zhang Yun paused for a moment before saying, "Could you please dry your hair first? It's uncomfortable to watch water dripping down like this, and this sofa is genuine leather, with water dripping all over it."

Gu Chen: "..."

Gu Chen returned to the bathroom with a dark expression on his face.

In the living room, the system was criticizing and educating Zhang Yun.

"Host, look at your attitude! Is that how you talk to the protagonist? Huh?"

"How can you dislike the main character? Or is it because of this damn sofa that you're disliking the main character?"

"Don't you have any basic manners as a simp?"

"In your heart, a hundred leather sofas are worth less than a single drop of water on the protagonist's hair! Have you forgotten who you got to where you are today because of..."

"Stop! Stop! I was wrong!"

Zhang Yun quickly surrendered, "I was just trying to get him to dry his hair, otherwise it's uncomfortable and he'd easily catch a cold if his hair was dripping wet."

"Of course, as a simp, I'd love to personally dry every drop of water from his hair, but he has to accept it!"

"Can't you see he's like a frightened kitten right now? I have to lick him gradually. If I start by licking him mindlessly, it'll give people the impression that I have ulterior motives. Wasn't that the case last time..."

Zhang Yun suddenly stopped speaking.

Last time?

Zhang Yun frowned.

Last time what? What last time?

"Don't think about it anymore, your memory of last time has been erased."

The system interrupted his thoughts, "I just did some calculations and I think you're right. I was impulsive. I'm sorry, I apologize."

Zhang Yun's pupils dilated.

"What's with that expression? Can't the system apologize? I feel like you're insulting my source code!"

"Cough..." Zhang Yun almost laughed out loud, but Gu Chen had already come out at this moment, and the two of them tacitly stopped talking.

This time, Gu Chen not only dried his hair but also blew it dry.

His bangs are parted in a 3/7 ratio, which makes him look kind of handsome.

"You..." they both said at the same time.

"You go first."

Gu Chen spoke up quickly, successfully avoiding another melodramatic scene where everyone said "you go first."

Zhang Yun didn't stand on ceremony and pushed the roll of film on the coffee table over. "This is that person's camera film. Also, you were looking for this, right? I saw it fall on the floor and picked it up."

As she spoke, Zhang Yun took out a small jewelry box from the side, opened it, and pushed it over.

The box contained the necklace that Gu Chen was looking for.

Looking at the silver necklace, Gu Chen was suddenly overcome with emotion.

He took a deep breath, looked at the boy in front of him who looked younger than him but gave him an extraordinary sense of security, and sincerely said, "Thank you."

"Don't mention it," Zhang Yun smiled at him.

This was the first time he had smiled at Gu Chen that night. Before, Zhang Yun hadn't dared to smile for fear of upsetting him.

Zhang Yun was already beautiful, but she became even more beautiful when she smiled. Her smile was warm and sunny, giving people a healing feeling like an angel.

Seeing that smile, Gu Chen felt much of the gloom in his heart dissipate.

A spark of inspiration struck him; for the first time since his release from prison, Gu Chen felt the urge to write a song.

These aren't songs written like assembly line productions, simply to make a living and pay off debts; they are songs infused with emotion and heartfelt sentiment.

A brand new melody emerged in his mind, a gentle and healing chord, carrying longing and expectation for a better future.

Gu Chen couldn't remember the last time he felt this way. Since his release from prison, he had lived in darkness every day, corroded by hatred, and each day felt like an eternity.

"What's wrong?" Zhang Yun noticed him staring at her and raised her hand to touch her face. "Is there something on my face?"

"N-nothing." Gu Chen suddenly blushed and looked away.

So you're captivated by my charm?

Zhang Yun chuckled inwardly; he had always been very confident in his appearance.

It seems this strategy is even easier than the last one...

Huh? Why is it the same as last time?

Shaking off the random thoughts in her mind, Zhang Yun said, "Gu Chen, senior Gu, we're actually alumni. I also applied to Haitian Art School and am a freshman in the acting department this year. Moreover, I applied for it because of you, but unfortunately, you were gone just as I got in."

Gu Chen blinked, carefully considering the implications of those words, and finally his gaze sharpened: "You knew about me all along?"

“Of course, I’m a big fan of yours,” Zhang Yun said.

This was an excuse he had already prepared when he planned to approach Gu Chen. Before Gu Chen could have any negative thoughts about him, Zhang Yun explained:

"I've liked you ever since you posted your first original song, 'Little South Town,' on social media when you were sixteen, but you were still in school then and rarely released any new works..."

“I listened to every song of yours and read every post you made until you debuted as part of a group when you were eighteen.”

"Your favorite sport is basketball, you like eating Kiss desserts, you don't like wearing sunglasses, and you like to compose music in the key of G..."

"You went to Haitan University after graduation, and Haitan University became my goal in high school. After you signed with Huayu Entertainment, I thought that I must go to Huayu Entertainment when I debut in the future..."

A virtual panel, visible only to Zhang Yun, floated in front of him, displaying all the information from Gu Chen's personal account retrieved by the system.

Even the messages he had deleted long ago were perfectly restored, with details down to every punctuation mark and emoji.

"Stop talking!"

Gu Chen suddenly interrupted him, tears streaming down her face.

He thought about the dark and miserable state of himself that had been going on for the past year or so.

He doesn't deserve to be liked by the person in front of him who is so radiant!

They don't deserve such precious feelings!

Gu Chen raised a hand to cover his tear-streaked face.

That face, which was clearly very masculine, now looked fragile and beautiful.

Zhang Yun walked over, squatted down in front of him, and took his hand that was resting on his lap.

“Brother Chen, although there is no evidence, I believe that the plagiarism is false, and there was a reason for hitting someone. I am very sad that I was unable to find you, help you, and accompany you through the difficulties when you were most vulnerable.”

"But, Brother Chen..."

Zhang Yun took his hand, placed it on her face, and tilted her head to meet his gaze.

"No matter what you become, you will always be the brightest star in my heart."

Gu Chen lowered his eyes, and Zhang Yun's bright eyes were filled with his image.

His already fragile mental defenses suddenly collapsed.

"You are the one who..."

He spoke in a trembling voice, cupped his face, and brought his lips closer, as if he wanted to kiss him, but was too ashamed to actually kiss him.

Their lips lingered at an ambiguous distance. Gu Chen's eyes were red, and his hoarse voice trembled with emotion as he said, "You are the star."

The most beautiful stars in the world.

Zhang Yun was stunned.

It felt like someone had touched the softest part of my heart.

He suddenly raised his head and kissed Gu Chen's slightly pale lips.