ebookland Chapter 704: Is a star without scandals still called a star?
Chapter 704: Is a star without scandals still called a star?
After seeing off Chen's father and mother, Lin Bufan and Chen Nanxing stood side by side in front of the glass door of the arrival hall, looking at the planes taking off and landing outside the window, and were silent for a moment.
"What are your plans next?" Lin Bufan turned his head to look at the rosy-cheeked Chen Nanxing beside him. The sunlight filtered through the glass, casting a soft glow on her face. Her eyes, once dimmed by illness, now shone with a startling brightness.
Chen Nanxing didn't answer immediately. She tilted her head slightly, her gaze seemingly piercing the airport's dome and looking far into the distance. After a long pause, she spoke softly, her voice filled with a sense of relief and clarity, a voice that had survived a catastrophe.
"Yunnan! I want to go to Yunnan." Chen Nanxing turned his head and looked at Lin Bufan, his eyes clear and firm: "Hongdou and I... made an appointment a long time ago to go to Yunnan together. Let's go see Cangshan Mountain and Erhai Lake, walk along the stone pavement of the ancient town, and stare blankly on the terrace of the inn, thinking about nothing, just staying there.
But you know what? This promise gets delayed year after year. I always say I'll finish this project, save up enough vacation time, or wait for the next suitable opportunity...but what happens? Projects keep coming one after another, vacation time is never enough, and the right opportunity always seems to be tomorrow.
Chen Nanxing's tone gradually took on a touch of emotion, as if he had opened up. "During this illness, lying in bed, staring at the ceiling, I finally figured it out. Jobs, promotions, pay raises... all that hard work, all that striving, but in the end, what's the point? When the doctor diagnosed me with advanced pancreatic cancer, I felt like the world had collapsed. That's when I realized I'd saved up so much vacation time but didn't use it, so many places I'd wanted to visit but hadn't, and so many... simple, pure joys I hadn't had the chance to experience."
Chen Nanxing paused, his gaze once again fixed on the vast sky outside the window, his tone becoming incredibly serious: "Life is truly too short, and there are too many unexpected events. So, we can't wait any longer. If you want to do something, do it immediately; if you want to go somewhere, set off immediately. Only happiness and experiences belong to you. Otherwise... if you suddenly pass away one day, wouldn't that be a huge loss?"
As Chen Nanxing spoke, he started laughing. His smile was bright and contagious, as if he had left all the gloom behind.
Lin Bufan looked at the light that was rekindled in her eyes. It was the desire for life, the yearning for freedom, and the open-mindedness after breaking free from the shackles.
After Chen Nanxing finished speaking, he turned to look at Lin Bufan, his eyes sparkling. "So, I plan to leave in a few days. Great Doctor Lin, are you interested in... coming with us to relax?"
Upon hearing this, Lin Bufan straightened his back immediately, put on a serious expression, and pointed his finger in the air: "Go! Of course you have to go! Don't forget, I'm your attending physician and I'm fully responsible for your health. What if you go there and get altitude sickness, or you suddenly get cravings and eat something you shouldn't, and your condition relapses? I'm too far away from Kyoto to help, and that would ruin my reputation as 'Divine Doctor Lin'? I, Lin Bufan, would never do such a self-destructive thing!"
Seeing him talking nonsense in a serious manner, Chen Nanxing couldn't help but burst out laughing, his eyebrows curved into beautiful crescents. "Yes, yes, Great Doctor Lin is very thoughtful! Then... I will be waiting for you to come?"
"Of course!" Lin Bufan raised his chin proudly, then moved closer, lowered his voice, and said mysteriously, "And let me tell you, I know Yunnan very well! I know which inn's terrace has the best view of Erhai Lake, which alley has the most authentic mushroom hotpot, and how to avoid the tourists and find a truly quiet place! With an experienced guide like me, I guarantee that your travel experience will be the best!"
Chen Nanxing smiled even more happily. The sunlight shone on her face, and even the fine hairs were clearly visible. It was full of vitality and energy. "Then it's settled! I'll discuss the specific itinerary with Hongdou when I get back, and let you know when I've booked the tickets!"
Lin Bufan looked at the anticipation flashing in Chen Nanxing's eyes and nodded with a smile: "Okay, I'll wait for your notification."
The two of them walked out of the brightly lit arrival hall of the airport. The sunlight outside was a bit dazzling. Chen Nanxing subconsciously leaned closer to Lin Bufan, his brows slightly furrowed, and his eyes swept over the bustling crowd around them with a bit of uncertainty.
"Afan," she gently pulled Lin Bufan's sleeve, her voice lowered a little, with a hint of hesitation: "Do you feel... as if someone is always watching us?"
Lin Bufan was casually observing the planes taking off and landing in the distance. He didn't even turn his head when he heard this. His tone was as calm as if he was discussing the weather: "It's not that it seems, it's that there are paparazzi watching us all the time."
"Paparazzi?" Chen Nanxing stopped abruptly, her face filled with astonishment and disbelief. She looked around blankly in the direction of Lin Bufan's gaze, only to see hurried passengers. "Where are they?"
Lin Bufan then turned his head, a familiar smile appearing at the corner of his mouth. He casually raised his hand and seemingly unintentionally pointed at a few ordinary-dressed people standing scattered not far away - a young man who was "playing with his mobile phone" with his head down, but the camera of his mobile phone was subtly facing them; a middle-aged man was leaning against a pillar "reading a newspaper", with the reflection of the camera lens visible on the edge of the newspaper; and a girl was sitting on a lounge chair "chatting", the small camera in her hand was almost integrated with her bag.
"Look," Lin Bufan's voice remained calm. "The one in the grey jacket, the one with the black handbag, and the girl in the denim jacket on the chair over there... the camera hasn't left us since we came out."
Chen Nanxing looked carefully in the direction he pointed. After being prompted, she vaguely noticed the unnatural stiffness in their postures and the vague focus of their gazes. Her eyes widened in surprise. "Always? When did they start doing this?"
"They've been here since the day you were discharged. They've been here during your outings these past few days." Lin Bufan put his hands in his pockets and walked forward calmly, as if he was talking about something trivial that had nothing to do with him. "Or rather, they'd already sneaked into the hospital and started filming you before you were even discharged. How come you've been online every day in the hospital, and you haven't seen any related candid photos or gossip?"
Chen Nanxing was even more bewildered. Although she had access to the internet during her later years in the hospital, she'd been focused on her condition, planning her trip to Yunnan, or binge-watching TV series, and hadn't paid any attention to these things. She hurried to catch up with Lin Bufan, her tone tinged with confusion and a hint of dissatisfaction: "Since you know everything, you... you just don't care? Just let them follow and film us like this?"
"Care?" Lin Bufan chuckled as if he had heard something interesting. He turned to look at her, his eyes a little teasing, yet also a bit self-righteous. "Why should I care? Is a star without scandals still a star? Since I've chosen to be a superstar, this little bit of attention is the price I have to pay. It's standard for living under the aura of a superstar, understand? Besides, if they want to film it, then let them film it. It won't cost me anything, and it can help me maintain my popularity and save me publicity costs."
Chen Nanxing looked at his carefree demeanor and didn't know how to react for a moment. After a long pause, he managed to utter, "Well... you're really quite open-minded."
"Of course!" Lin Bufan raised his eyebrows proudly, casually put his arm around Chen Nanxing's shoulders, and led her towards the parking lot, completely ignoring the paparazzi behind them who were quickly adjusting their angles and the almost unbearable sound of shutter clicks. "Come on, I'll take you back. Let them take a few more pictures. Maybe tomorrow's entertainment section headline will be 'Lin Bufan secretly meets with his mysterious recovered girlfriend, their sweet journey at the airport suggests good things are coming'. Then you'll be really famous!"
When Chen Nanxing heard the words "good things are coming soon", she felt as if she had been burned. She suddenly broke free from Lin Bufan's arms, waving her hands repeatedly with panic on her face: "No, no, no! Don't talk nonsense! Who told you good things are coming soon! I don't want to be on the entertainment headlines!"
She subconsciously took two steps to the side, deliberately keeping a distance from Lin Bufan, and glanced around vigilantly, as if those hidden cameras would pounce on her at any time.
Looking at Chen Nanxing's face as if he was facing a great enemy, Lin Bufan deliberately sighed and spread his hands, saying: "It's over, it's over. I have already thought of the headline for tomorrow's headlines for them - 'Shocking! Lin Bufan was ruthlessly pushed away by his girlfriend at the airport, looking lonely, and suspected of a breakup in their relationship.'" As he spoke, he made a hurt expression like Xizi holding her heart, and his eyes looked lonely as if he had lost a hundred yuan.
Looking at Lin Bufan's pretentious look, Chen Nanxing felt as if a black line was drooping on his forehead, and rolled his eyes speechlessly!
The two of them quickly arrived at where they had parked their car before. As soon as Lin Bufan took out his car keys, his cell phone rang, and the word "Dad" appeared on the screen.
"Hello, Dad, what's wrong?" Lin Bufan answered the phone while unlocking the car door.
Father Lin's aggrieved voice came from the other end of the phone: "Xiao Fan, I want to divorce your mother, and I will follow you from now on!"
Lin Bufan slapped his forehead, his face filled with helplessness and speechlessness. He opened the car door and got in the driver's seat, sighing deeply: "Tell me, what's going on this time?"
"Xiao Fan, please judge the situation!" Lin's father's voice suddenly became excited. "Is your mother decent? She actually looked at the handsome guy instead of me! Last night when we were watching TV, she was laughing so hard at the handsome young star on TV, saying that the boy was so handsome. I was sitting right next to her, and she actually looked at other men! How can I put my face down like this?"
Lin Bufan rubbed his temples, feeling a headache: "So you're getting a divorce because of this?"
"Of course not!" Father Lin said confidently, "Although your mother is heartless and ungrateful, I'm not that stingy. I've tried my best! In order to make your mother look at me more often, I've been insisting on using the reversing clock that Zhenzhen sent me! Tell me honestly, have I become much younger recently?"
Lin Bufan thought back to the last time he video-called his parents and had to admit that his father did look refreshed, even with fewer gray hairs. "And then?"
“And then it’s gone!”
Lin Bufan raised his eyebrows, suddenly realizing something: "So you called me this time to turn back the clock, right?"
There was silence on the other end of the phone for a while, and then Lin's father's slightly guilty voice came: "You're not entirely wrong..."
"Dad," Lin Bufan shook his head helplessly, "I think what Zhenzhen sent you should be enough for you. And now you called me but didn't call Zhenzhen, so it's not that you don't have enough, but that you asked for it from someone else, right?"
Father Lin was silent for a while, then hesitantly said, "Well... your Uncle Zhang came to visit us a few days ago. Seeing that I was using this product and it was working well, he... took two bottles. Then your Aunt Wang came to visit and said she wanted to try it, so I..."
"Alright, alright, alright. So you used all the stuff Zhenzhen sent you to build relationships with your neighbors, right?" Lin Bufan started the car and said to the phone, "Well, I'll tell Zhenzhen later and ask her to send you some more. But Dad, let's make it clear, although this stuff is our own, it didn't just come out of nowhere. You can't give it away so lavishly anymore!"
Father Lin immediately beamed on the other end of the phone, repeatedly assuring, "Okay, okay! Definitely! I knew my son was the most reliable! Go ahead and do your thing. I'll go peel an apple for your mom!"
After hanging up the phone, Lin Bufan shook his head helplessly. His parents were in good health and young in mind. Occasionally, they had some harmless little disagreements like this, which was a kind of fun in life. It would be even better if they could use the things they learned from him on themselves!
Chen Nanxing, who accidentally overheard Lin Bufan's conversation, said somewhat awkwardly, "You...you and uncle, get along...quite well, ha."
Lin Bufan held the steering wheel with one hand and rubbed his brow with the other. His tone was filled with a mixture of anger and amusement. "That's fine, provided he doesn't use all the 'skills' he learned from me on me."
"Learned it from you?" Chen Nanxing's eyes widened slightly in surprise.
Lin Bufan shrugged, with an expression of "what else?" "What do you think? Without my guidance, how could he have achieved what he has now!"
Chen Nanxing imagined the scene of the young Lin Bufan giving orders to his older father Lin, and couldn't help but burst out laughing. The embarrassment just now instantly dissipated a lot.
The car drove smoothly and soon approached the city center. Chen Nanxing pointed to the intersection ahead and said, "Hey, just stop right there."
Lin Bufan turned on the turn signal and slowly pulled over: "Don't you want me to go with you?"
"No need, I'm just going to the hotel to handle some paperwork. I took a long vacation due to illness, and now I'm going on a trip, so I have to say hello to my boss and make arrangements for the rest of my vacation." Chen Nanxing pushed open the car door, turned around and smiled at Lin Bufan: "You go about your business, no need to wait for me. I'll take a taxi directly to Hongdou's place after I finish here. We still have to discuss the itinerary for Yunnan."
Lin Bufan nodded: "Okay, then call me anytime if you have anything."
"I got it!" Chen Nanxing closed the car door, waved at him through the window, turned around and walked into the hotel gate.
Lin Bufan watched her back disappear behind the revolving door before he started the car again and merged into the traffic flow.