Atlas Studios

  Atlas Studios

  His father’s mood always seemed to take a turn for the worse whenever the Lunar New Year came around. He would return home all wasted, then drag him off his bed, and hit him with a belt or a hanger until he was all bloody.

  ‘B*stard! You little b*st*rd!

  ‘You mother and son are equally despicable! Isn’t it enough that your mom landed me into this state? Are you trying to do me in, too?!

  ‘You’re delighted to see me in this state, huh? Happy now?! I’ll beat you to death! I’ll beat you to death, you b*st*rd!’


  He could seemingly hear his father’s voice echoing in his head and see that savaged yet twisted face of his before him.

  Snapping back from his recollection, the actor looked up and, once more, felt himself being enveloped in warmth that he had not felt in a very long time. A smile broke out on his face as he lifted the glass in his hand. “Thank you all for the invitation and warm welcome! I’d like to propose a toast to those present here!”


  He had none of that arrogant yet domineering streak of his whenever he was with the production team. Instead, like a humble and polite gentleman, he was on his best behavior tonight, much to Yun Shishi’s surprise.

  She secretly suspected that this was his true nature—innocent and pure without any pretense.

  By the end of the reunion dinner, Gong Jie could feel the alcohol he had drunk rushing to his head. Despite this, he was only feeling slightly buzzed.

  As it turned out, his brother-in-law was more capable in holding his alcohol than he was. What was truly astonishing, however, was Hua Jin’s unexpected alcohol tolerance.

  The amount of wine the actor had imbibed was by no means little. Under Gong Jie’s pressure, he had drunk at least one catty of white wine, yet he was unaffected by all that alcohol.

  She was startled to see this.

  Her husband, too, had drunk just as much and appeared to be equally sober as before. It was as though what he had drunk was just plain water.

  Done with the reunion dinner, the family was all set to go to the riverside and release fireworks there when Yun Yecheng announced that he would stay at home to look after his brother, instead.

  It was cold outside now.

  While there was a bit of warm sunlight in the day to help cope with the cold weather, the wind only felt biting once night fell. Yun Yehou’s legs would act up to a slightly unbearable state whenever the temperature dipped too low, so there was no way he could go out with them and light the fireworks. His older brother had, thus, decided to stay at home and accompany him instead.

  Not wanting to force them against their wishes, Yun Shishi left the elders at home and drove the rest to the riverside.

  It was already half past eleven at night by the time the six arrived there.

  Many had come to the riverside; while most were there to release fireworks, others specifically made the trip down to watch the upcoming spectacle.

  The cities had tight restrictions on releasing fireworks and igniting firecrackers, so whenever it was New Year’s Eve, people would gather at the riverside where the restrictions were lax. With no major fire hazards around and a river nearby, the authorities would basically just turn a blind eye to them.

  Yun Shishi had bought many fireworks, plenty of which were extravagant with their artistic displays. After her husband and her brother had positioned the fireworks, all that was left was the new year countdown, and they would set off the fireworks on the dot at midnight.

  Before that, though, some warm-up activities were needed, of course!

  She had also purchased several sparklers, which were used for aesthetic and playing purposes.

  Her older son, who had never played with sparklers before, got so excited that he followed her around, clamoring for one.

  She, thus, gave him a sparkler, but he stared dumbly at the item upon receiving it, not knowing how to light it up.

  His brother muttered, “Have you never played with a sparkler before, dummy?”


  “Nope,” answered the aggrieved older twin. “This is my first time!”


  The chuckling woman walked over, squatted in front, and gently taught him how to light up one. “Hold the sparkler by its end like this…… Yes, that’s the way to hold it. Don’t point its head at yourself!”


  “Okay……”


  “See this tiny wire here? Just light it up……”