Chapter 44

With the satellite signal connection, the live stream was particularly smooth, and the video was not choppy at all.

As Su Rui collapsed and screamed, the playback continued, and his voice kept playing: ‘Since I asked for money, once I get the money, I won’t bother Huo Yan anymore…’

The forgotten fear resurfaced, and Su Rui’s expression became dazed: “Stop it… stop playing…”

He covered his face in a breakdown, not even daring to look at the comments on the tablet screen: “Huo Yan, can you stop playing it!”

He had clearly instructed Duan Haoyan.

“Duan Haoyan, didn’t you promise me not to bring this up again?

Why is Huo Yan suddenly playing the recording?

Su Rui had finally found someone willing to accept him, and everything was slowly getting better. Why couldn’t Duan Haoyan just hold his temper and not pick a fight with Ye Leyao?

The emotional breakdown happened in an instant, and at this moment, Su Rui had even forgotten that it was he who had instigated Duan Haoyan to pick a fight with Ye Leyao.

Su Rui never expected this boomerang to hit him squarely in the face.

The live recording continued. Su Rui couldn’t bear to listen any longer. With a loud bang, he threw the tablet forcefully, but perhaps due to the excellent quality of the tablet, the recording continued to play.

He heard Mama Huo ask, ‘So, if I give you the money, you won’t appear in front of us again?’

He heard his own voice respond without hesitation, ‘Of course, but please indicate it as a voluntary gift…’

“Shut up! Stop talking! Don’t continue!”

Su Rui’s eyes were red. He quickly stepped forward, picked up the tablet, and smashed it heavily on the ground again.

Picking it up and smashing it down repeatedly until the screen shattered and it could no longer make a sound, Su Rui finally felt some relief. He knelt on the ground, breathing heavily, with a self-deceptive smile.

However, breaking the tablet couldn’t stop the live broadcast.

At the filming site.

The grasslands were quiet at night, and at this moment, even the previously whispering staff held their breath, afraid to miss a single crucial detail.

Huo Yan, being considerate, worried that the guests on site couldn’t hear clearly, so he turned the speaker volume on his phone to the maximum.

To ensure the live stream viewers could hear clearly as well, he even took off his recording microphone and brought it close to the phone speaker.

The clear conversation between Mama Huo and Su Rui continued, until everyone heard Huo Yan’s voice, full of disappointment and grievance—

‘Five million? You were with me just for a mere five million? Is that all my feelings for you are worth?!’

Even today, Ye Leyao couldn’t help but laugh when he heard this. In a voice he thought was very low but could actually be heard by all the guests, he said to Qin Yao, “Hey, originally Mama Huo had prepared ten million, but Su Rui himself only asked for five million.”

Qin Yao laughed.

That was indeed shortsighted.

The guests all turned to look at Duan Haoyan.

Duan Haoyan shook his head, muttering, “Impossible…”

Ye Leyao didn’t explain but just smiled and said, “It’s okay, Brother Duan, just keep listening.”

[Anyway, the later conversation is even more explosive. If you still don’t believe it then, there’s nothing I can do.]

The corners of Huo Yan’s mouth slowly curved up.

Yes, there was no need to argue with Duan Haoyan now.

With the evidence presented, there was no need for them to explain anything further.

At this point, Duan Haoyan had no mood to listen any longer.

He was too familiar with Su Rui’s voice and tone. From the first sentence he heard Su Rui say, Duan Haoyan was already certain it was Su Rui’s voice, not some artificial AI synthesis. It was precisely because of this that he found it hard to accept and wanted to escape the more he listened.

Duan Haoyan kept telling himself in his mind that this recording was just Huo Yan’s preparation to exonerate himself.

Huo Yan dared to abandon Su Rui and dared to mention it in front of so many guests and viewers because he was prepared!

Gradually, Duan Haoyan even convinced himself.

Then, he heard Ye Leyao suddenly say, “By the way, I remember Mama Huo already had this recording notarized, right?”

Huo Yan nodded.

Duan Haoyan’s pupils shrank sharply, and his heart felt like it was being tightly grasped by claws, causing him so much pain he almost couldn’t breathe.

Notarized evidence preservation is a way to keep evidence with legal effect.

In other words, this recording, verified by judicial authorities, was absolutely impossible to fake.

Before Ye Leyao said this, Duan Haoyan could still deceive himself, thinking that this recording was just Huo Yan’s way of whitewashing himself.

But now, Duan Haoyan had no choice but to face reality—

Duan Haoyan desperately wanted to cover his ears to stop listening, but the speaker volume on Huo Yan’s phone was too high, and the scene was too quiet. Even if he covered his ears, Su Rui’s voice still penetrated the open grassland.

Every sentence of their conversation Duan Haoyan could understand, but he didn’t dare to think deeply about the meaning when combined.

Because Duan Haoyan knew that once he thought deeply, there would be no going back for him and Su Rui.

Until Duan Haoyan heard Mama Huo ask Su Rui to do an amniocentesis.

Then came a long silence.

The silence lasted so long that Duan Haoyan thought the recording had ended when suddenly, he heard Su Rui’s aggrieved voice in the phone—

‘Brother Yan, do you actually suspect me?’

Upon hearing this, Song Zhehan couldn’t hold back any longer, even forgetting his persona, and directly laughed out loud, “Isn’t it just a DNA test? How did it become about trust? He’s even more unreasonable than my mom.”

Li Siyuan chimed in, “He already asked for five million, and he still feels wronged about a paternity test?” Shaking his head, he looked at Huo Yan, “You and your family are just too nice. If it were me—”

Li Siyuan didn’t finish his sentence, but the meaning was clear.

Ye Leyao burst into laughter.

[You two should talk more! I love hearing it!]

The last trace of color drained from Duan Haoyan’s face. He looked pale and dazed, staring blankly at the phone in Huo Yan’s hand.

At this moment, he clearly heard something shatter and break apart heavily in his mind. His brain went blank for a long time, only hearing the occasional crackling of the fire in the barbecue grill in front of him.

Why didn’t Su Rui do the DNA test?

If he had done it, the Huo family would have given him a full five million…

Duan Haoyan’s expression was almost one of despair.

The final conversation ended with Su Rui’s prolonged silence.

Huo Yan put away his phone and looked up at the already exhausted Duan Haoyan, asking word by word, “Do you believe it now? Su Rui himself doesn’t even dare to admit the child is mine.”

Duan Haoyan’s lips moved, his eyes somewhat vacant. After a long time, he finally uttered in a faint voice, “I… I want to call Su Rui…”

[Still thinking of calling Su Rui!]

Ye Leyao sighed helplessly:

[As expected, Duan Haoyan is an even worse lovesick fool than my second brother. But even if you want to call, you can’t reach him now. Otherwise, why do you think Su Rui hasn’t called you?]

Huo Yan’s eyes flashed with a smile, then he directly asked, “What do you want to ask him? Do you hope for a confrontation between the three of us?”

Duan Haoyan said hoarsely, “I just want to hear Su Rui explain to me personally…”

Song Zhehan couldn’t resist his curiosity and interrupted Duan Haoyan, “I just have one question: has Su Rui ever asked you for money?”

[As expected of you, Gou Shi! This question hits the soul!]

Ye Leyao looked at Duan Haoyan excitedly.

Sure enough, Duan Haoyan’s body trembled violently, and the next second, his hand shook, and his phone fell directly onto the grass.

Song Zhehan instantly understood, revealing a meaningful smile.

Ye Leyao sighed repeatedly:

[Judging by Duan Haoyan’s reaction, he must have given quite a lot, right?]

Huo Yan sighed silently.

It seemed like that was the case.

He might have even spent more than I did?

Huo Yan couldn’t help but chuckle.

At this moment, Duan Haoyan’s mind was in chaos. Although the night on the grassland was cool, he was sweating profusely. He couldn’t help but recall the bits and pieces of his time with Su Rui.

After working with Su Rui for the first time two years ago, Duan Haoyan had fallen for him.

But at that time, Su Rui had a boyfriend, so Duan Haoyan didn’t disturb him much, only silently paying attention to his situation.

Despite this, they hadn’t really lost contact. Occasionally, Duan Haoyan would send Su Rui some blessing messages, and Su Rui would always reply instantly. They would chat intermittently, and over two years, they had become friends.

Duan Haoyan had originally prepared to give up on this affection, but to his surprise, over half a month ago, Su Rui suddenly called him late one night, crying.

On the other end, Su Rui confided in Duan Haoyan about his recent experiences, saying he had been abandoned by Huo Yan, forsaken by his company, and had nowhere to go now.

Upon hearing this, Duan Haoyan’s anger surged, and he even wanted to expose Huo Yan as a scumbag.

But Su Rui stopped him, saying that he still had feelings for Huo Yan and didn’t want to make things ugly with him.

Duan Haoyan then suggested that Su Rui have an abortion, but Su Rui refused again.

Until Duan Haoyan proposed letting Su Rui stay at his place and offered to pay his breach of contract penalty…

In fact, just before leaving for the shoot today, Duan Haoyan had transferred a large sum of money to Su Rui.

All the clues lined up, and the truth was laid bare; Duan Haoyan had no choice but to believe it.

Suddenly, Duan Haoyan felt his vision go black.

“Hey, are you alright?” Zhou Zijian quickly reached out to support him.

Li Siyuan said, “Looks like he’s quite shocked…”

Then he looked to Song Zhehan for confirmation, “What do you think?”

Only then did Song Zhehan seem to remember his persona. He quickly put on a worried expression, stood up, and walked towards Duan Haoyan, “Brother Duan, my condolences!”

Ye Leyao: “?”

[Hahahahahaha——really, Song Zhehan, is this how you comfort someone?!]

Qin Yao couldn’t hold back his laughter, his face full of smiles.

Li Siyuan, initially dissatisfied with Song Zhehan’s act, also couldn’t help but laugh at this sentence.

Unfortunately.

Human grief is not universal.

While the other guests laughed happily, only the disheartened Duan Haoyan crouched down, picked up his phone, and stared blankly at the single bar of signal.

At this moment, he was no longer the arrogant man he was at noon. With his head drooping, he finally asked Huo Yan, “Su Rui…he…” and then, choking up, “the child, do you know whose it is?”

[Still asking about the child? It’s clear you really want to be a stepdad.]

Looking at Duan Haoyan’s disheartened appearance, Huo Yan couldn’t help but recall his own past. Just as he was about to say some comforting words, he heard Ye Leyao’s cheerful voice—

[Hahahahaha, but Duan Haoyan’s devastated look is exactly like my second brother back then!]

Huo Yan: ‘…’

Huo Yan felt a twinge of annoyance and could no longer speak the comforting words, leaving only a faint, “Who knows? Anyway, it’s definitely not mine, and not yours either. He’s been pregnant for almost five months; I’ve only been with him for two months.”

Duan Haoyan couldn’t hold back anymore. He had accompanied Su Rui to the hospital for a prenatal check-up, and the child was indeed almost five months old.

His emotions completely broke down, “Is that so… sob…”

Ye Leyao’s eyes widened instantly:

[No way, no way, is Duan Haoyan really crying out of anger?]

Ye Leyao hurriedly stood up in a gossip-like manner and walked towards Duan Haoyan.

The other guests gathered around.

“Out with the old, in with the new,” Wen Xiangyue comforted.

Zhou Zijian said, “It’s better to see his true colors early.”

Liu Yan: “Yeah, look on the bright side!”

Lu Bo thought for a moment, “If Brother Duan doesn’t mind, I can introduce someone to you.”

Ye Leyao immediately turned his head to look at Lu Bo.

[You don’t think I can’t see what you’re thinking, do you? You’re probably thinking about introducing yourself to Duan Haoyan, right?!]

Li Siyuan felt uncomfortable hearing what Lu Bo said and spoke bluntly, “Even if we’re looking for someone, we should find someone better in the future. Lu Bo is definitely not a good match.”

Lu Bo’s face instantly became quite colorful: “Li Siyuan, what do you mean by that?”

“Nothing at all?” Li Siyuan looked innocent, “I just see you as an unsuitable match, so I used you as an example.”

Lu Bo: “…”

Lu Bo was furious!

What does it mean he’s not a good match!

But right now, Lu Bo hadn’t publicly revealed his true self, so he could only grit his teeth and explain, “I’m not into men either…”

Song Zhehan’s gaze shifted over.

[Are you really not?]

Ye Leyao also turned his head with curiosity.

Lu Bo fell silent and quickly changed the subject, “Forget it, let’s comfort Brother Duan first…”

Ye Leyao, on the other hand, was amused.

[Hahahaha, aren’t you changing the subject a bit too fast!]

But Ye Leyao was genuinely happy; it had been a long time since he had seen such a wonderful scene!

Duan Haoyan was really hurt; he couldn’t believe Su Rui approached him just for money, and tears began to fall one by one.

[This look, he’s crying even worse than my second brother!]

Huo Yan: “…”

He didn’t cry back then!

He was just a bit down!

Huo Yan couldn’t stand it anymore and lifted Duan Haoyan up: “Why are you crying? I didn’t cry back then!”

(Really?]

Ye Leyao looked suspicious.

Huo Yan gritted his teeth, “I got through it, so you can definitely get through it too!”

Duan Haoyan: “I… boo hoo hoo…”

He cried even louder.

Ye Leyao couldn’t hold it in and covered his face, starting to laugh.

The other guests couldn’t hold back either; while they felt a bit sorry for Duan Haoyan, they also wanted to laugh.

In short, the recording scene ended with only Duan Haoyan being hurt.

Ye Leyao glanced at the live broadcast camera not far away, and his mouth curved upwards again.

[Everything that just happened must have been a nightmare for Su Rui, right?]

[Watching himself get exposed with no way to stop it, heh heh.]

Ye Leyao suddenly became curious about the current state of the bullet comments, but unfortunately, his phone had no signal at all!

At this moment, the live broadcast room was indeed as exciting as Ye Leyao imagined.

Modern netizens are not easily swayed.

So, as soon as they noticed Ye Leyao’s mysterious smile, they automatically ignored the comments from Su Rui’s fans.

Ye Leyao didn’t disappoint everyone; soon, the netizens heard the brilliant line “looking for dads for the child everywhere.”

The bullet comments were stunned.

—”According to Ye Leyao, the child isn’t Huo Yan’s?”

—”So, if it’s not Huo Yan’s child, what kind of abandonment is this? Isn’t it just a normal breakup?”

Before the bullet comments could start discussing, they soon heard Ye Leyao say “play the recording,” and the netizens instantly became excited:

—“So there really is a twist?”

Some didn’t believe it:

—”I’d like to see what kind of twist could save Huo Yan, so funny—”

The netizens who wanted to bash Huo Yan hadn’t even finished typing their words when they heard Su Rui’s forceful “five million.”

The bullet comments fell silent for a moment, then were instantly filled with question marks.

—”Isn’t this Su Rui’s voice?”

—”I’ve watched a show dubbed by Su Rui before, it’s definitely his voice!”

—”Wait? Didn’t they say Su Rui was abandoned by Huo Yan? If he was abandoned, how could he ask for five million?”

—”Wait—Ye Leyao, what do you mean by your family originally prepared ten million?!”

—”Damn, so Su Rui wasn’t satisfied with five million?”

—”No? Why do you all believe this? What if the recording is synthesized…”

Before the netizens could finish doubting, as if Ye Leyao had guessed their thoughts, he directly pointed out that the recording had been notarized.

At this point, the bullet comments’ direction completely changed.

Netizens felt sorry for Huo Yan while enjoying the drama.

—”I can’t take it, Huo Yan’s fans are crying directly. So, our male god was cheated out of money and feelings?”

—”No, where does Su Rui get the nerve? He doesn’t even dare to do a DNA test, how does he have the gall to ask Huo Yan for five million?”

—”Does he think Huo Yan looks particularly gullible?”

The reversal happened so quickly that Huo Yan’s fans had started pretending to be dead, and some fans with weak tolerance were already breaking down. But now you’re telling them that Huo Yan was the one who got cheated out of money and feelings?

Huo Yan had been working diligently in the industry for many years, without any scandals. As soon as something broke out, before the truth was clear, Su Rui’s fans started attacking him.

Now that the truth was out, Huo Yan’s fans felt both heartbroken and amused.

How dare Su Rui and his fans?

—”Where are Su Rui’s fans? Come out and apologize quickly!”

—”I can’t take it, my boy has never been so wronged. If you fans don’t apologize today, this won’t be over!”

—”And we haven’t seen your idol for so long because of Huo Yan~~~ I think it’s because he didn’t dare to come out with a big belly?!”

The netizens were instantly amused.

—“Don’t say, it might really be the case.”

—”Showing at four months! It should be the same for men, right?”

—”Didn’t Su Rui just drop a variety show recently? Looks like this is the reason.”

—”Hehe, male god turned into male mom, you Su Rui fans are really enjoying it!”

The bullet comments burst into laughter.

—”Sharp or not! I’m just asking if your words are sharp or not!”

—”Hey? Why are Su Rui’s fans not saying anything? Do they not like ‘Male Mom’?”@@novelbin@@

—”Help, I’m laughing so hard I could cry! Can we stop talking about ‘Male Mom’?”

Unfortunately, modern netizens love to be rebellious; they not only mention it but also take the topic to Weibo.

During the confrontation between Huo Yan and Duan Haoyan, a large number of viewers and netizens flooded into the live broadcast room, including many marketing accounts.

Even before the live recording finished playing, the marketing accounts had already edited the video.

As soon as the live broadcast ended, dozens of marketing accounts simultaneously posted videos.

Huo Yan’s fan base was already strong, and this afternoon it was revealed that Ye Leyao is his brother. Their names hadn’t even left the hot search when new gossip emerged, causing the hot search to explode.

Curious netizens clicked in excitedly and then started howling.

—”Aaaahh, do the guests on ‘Let’s Eat Melons Together’ have it this good? They can eat melons on the spot!”

—”Great, great, it’s ‘Let’s Eat Melons Together’ again! If it were any other variety show, there wouldn’t be this kind of effect, right?”

—”Case solved, Ye Leyao is indeed the Melon King! It seems like there’s no gossip he doesn’t know, he even knows the gossip about his own second brother!”

—”A short video shocked me several times, so Su Rui really is a ‘Male Mom’?”

—”I’m not curious about that, I just want to know, whose child is in Su Rui’s belly?”

—”I know, it’s definitely not Huo Yan’s!”

—”I know too, it’s definitely not Duan Haoyan’s!”

—”Can you netizens stop stating the obvious?”

The netizens burst into even more laughter.

Who cares whose it is!

It’s not like it’s the netizens’!

As long as the melon-eaters get their fill of gossip, they’re happy.

It really was an enjoyable melon-eating journey!

The same thoughts were shared by Mama Huo and Papa Huo at the old Huo residence.

They didn’t expect Huo Yan to choose to confront Duan Haoyan directly on the show.

But it was good this way, resolving issues with Duan Haoyan early on would prevent future conflicts with Ye Leyao and Huo Yan during the show’s recording.

As for Su Rui—

This was entirely his own doing.

Papa and Mama Huo didn’t expect Su Rui could deceive two people in a row.

Now that the recording was exposed, at least Su Rui wouldn’t be able to deceive anyone with his belly anymore, right?

Weibo was lively all night; netizens were either discussing whose child it was or discussing ‘Male Mom,’ and comparing Huo Yan and Duan Haoyan to see who was more miserable.

In the end, netizens unanimously agreed: Duan Haoyan was the most miserable!

Although Huo Yan probably spent money on Su Rui, he saw through Su Rui’s true nature early on!

Unlike Duan Haoyan, who probably even accompanied Su Rui for prenatal checkups?

Otherwise, why would he break down when asked about the child?

While the online world was bustling, the filming location on the grassland had quieted down.

After Duan Haoyan broke down, it wasn’t long before he went to the director’s team to ask for a satellite phone.

Once he left, there was no more gossip to eat, so the other guests naturally dispersed.

Ye Leyao helped everyone clean up the tableware, but ended up getting oil all over himself.

Huo Yan looked on helplessly: “You go take a shower, I’ll clean up.”

Ye Leyao grinned and didn’t refuse: “Then I’ll trouble you, Second Brother!”

After speaking, he went back to the tent to get his clothes.

For the convenience of the guests’ camping, the production team had specially set up a mobile restroom and shower room not far from the filming site, and the water they used for eating was also fetched from there.

After showering, Ye Leyao unexpectedly saw Lu Bo standing in the distance.

Lu Bo seemed to be on the phone, and since they were a bit far apart, Ye Leyao had no habit of eavesdropping, so he took his clothes and prepared to go back to the tent.

Just then, Lu Bo’s voice suddenly rose: “I really didn’t cheat, what do I have to say for you to believe me?!”

Ye Leyao paused, looking excited.

[Cheating? No way, no way, is Lu Bo’s spouse about to start hammering him?!]

[One piece of gossip after another, this is so exciting!]