Chapter 37 - Come Home With Me
"Hey, have you learned martial arts before? You jumped over that wall so easily, that's amazing! Where did you learn your Kung Fu?" Waylon also studied martial arts before his art exams and was naturally more interested in Rong Qiuchen's extraordinary martial arts skills.
Just then, Amélie rushed over with two security guards.
"What's your name, young man, and what are you doing on our film set? Are you a snapper or a paparazzi or something?" Amélie's first concern was the reputation of Dragon Dreams. What if this guy was some crazy fan who had fallen off somewhere while doing a secret photo shoot and injured himself? If word got out, whether it was a plot leak or a safety issue, it would be detrimental to the company.
"Should we call an ambulance to take him to the hospital for a check-up?" Stephen was still in a state of shock as he remembered the icy cold temperature of the boy's forehead.
"Not yet, the kid seems to be a bit mentally unstable. I've spoken to him before and he won't tell me his real name or mention who his family is or what school he goes to. Let's not scare him and let him calm down first." Seeing Rong Qiuchen leaning over him, clutching his hand tightly, with that frightened and anxious look on his face that no one could fake even if they wanted to, Yuan Ge didn't know whether to laugh or cry, and just added, "By the way, he also has a strange habit. Whenever he sees me, he either runs away or treats me like a charging station." .
"What is a charging station?" The boy who called himself Rong Qiuchen finally spoke up.
"You grabbed my hand and then regained consciousness after a while, am I not your charging station?" Seeing Qiuchen's eyes gradually regain focus and light up again, obviously recovering some, Yuan Ge was relieved and he wasn't as worried as before. With two guards standing by, maybe he wouldn't get away so easily this time.
Just then, Chestnut trotted back from the congee bar with a flask of hot congee and a jar of pickles. The boy was too weak to sit up properly and he wouldn't let go of Yuan Ge's hand, so without thinking, Chestnut picked up a spoon and fed him the congee herself. He smiled gratefully at Chestnut's kindness and ate the congee with her helping hand. He seemed to enjoy the pickles quite a lot, and after finishing the flask of congee, he finally looked a little alive again.
"Which school are you from? Last time you showed up from nowhere at our funeral scene, even our director said it was well acted! … Here, look here …" Stephen took out his phone and quickly took a picture of Rong Qiuchen, then used the Silverfox search engine's picture comparison function to search the internet, but had no luck. He also posted on the campus websites of several famous universities in the capital, but unfortunately no one replied that they knew this person, instead, a bunch of nymphomaniac girls came to ask which faculty this handsome guy came from.
"Director Jiang, Director Yuan, I think this kid is the thief we've been trying to catch these days, so why don't you let us take him to the police station." The two guards were eager to get rid of this troublemaker straight away. The recent theft had added a lot of work to their plate, causing them to do extra patrols and inventory checks. They felt vindicated and a little angry to see Rong Qiuchen in a costume from the film crew. They didn't want to waste their breath, just wanted to take him to the police station and be done and over with.
"Let's not rush into this. What if he's a college student? Taking him to the police will have an impact on his school and personal records. And …" Yuan Ge looked at Rong Qiuchen - although his delicate little face was rather dirty, it couldn't hide his handsomeness, and he looked a little odd and confused in Rong Qing's costume. If he was really taken to the police station and locked up with all sorts of dubious characters, it was likely to cause more trouble.
"Director, why don't you let him come home with me. We're about the same age and I'll ask him if he's run away from home or if he's lost his memory." Stephen had always been a warm-hearted kid, and as a Beijing local, he was one of the people in the crew who loved to take care of things, even though he was only a budding actor.
"Or he could come back with me. A couple of my flatmates are NATA students, so they might recognise him." Waylon also volunteered, clearly feeling sympathetic to the confused little brother.
"Director, you can let him stay with us for now. He can stay in my room above the congee bar. I could go back to the chestnut stall for a few days. I've worked for that boss for so many years that it shouldn't be a problem for me to go back and stay there once in a while." Chestnut was genuinely concerned about Rong Qiuchen and worried that he would continue to sleep rough in his thin clothes, so she was even willing to give up her temporary accommodation.
Amélie was pleased that the three young actors were such kind and warm-hearted people, however, after checking the time, she vetoed their suggestions, "It's too late today, you three should go with your brother Jinghai to the photo shoot now. Tomorrow it's King Guan's audition, you can't afford to be distracted before this tough battle."
Yuan Ge nodded, helped Rong Qiuchen up from the ground and said to the crowd, "Since I am the director of this crew, I am still the most responsible for the affairs here. Everyone please go home and focus on preparing for tomorrow's audition. As to him … it's better for me to take him home for proper questioning."
Amélie looked at Rong Qiuchen holding Yuan Ge's hand tightly, refusing to let go at all, and sighed, ''It seems he only trusts you at the moment. I think this is the best arrangement for now. You take him home and I'll go to the nearby hospital and police station after work and ask if any patients are missing or if anyone has reported a missing person's case. Yuan Ge, thank you for taking care of him tonight. You go home early and get some rest. And don't forget to come over first thing in the morning. Fat Chow has been going on and on about making sure you lead the team for tomorrow's audition."