“Elder brother!”

When the two siblings Shen Yan and Shen Yu entered Shen Chen’s room, Shen Chen was watching a video on his laptop——it was the video of the Shen family making a scene at the headquarters of FlyNews.

There was no sound in the quiet room. Only Shen Yan’s sharp, high and mean voice came from the laptop. Shen Yan’s ears went red, and she hugged Shen Yu more and more nervously.

You c an fi nd t he la te st cha pte rs at ( th e bl mu se . c o m )

Shen Yu blinked and called again: “Elder brother.”

Shen Chen looked up, hitting the spacebar with a slender index finger, and paused the video.

“I’m very curious.” Shen Chen sat on the leather swivel chair behind the desk, folded his hands on the tabletop, and asked in a deep voice, “You hate Tao Mu?”

Shen Yan panicked and quickly explained: “He hated us first. Xiao Yu is so good to him, and wants to make friends with him so much. But he doesn’t know to appreciate this at all. Isn’t this kind of person hateful?”

“What you mean is that you scolded and made things difficult for the CEO of an Internet media company in public, to the extent that you even forgot your own manners and bearing just, because this person did not know to appreciate your little brother and become friends with him?” Shen Chen raised his eyebrows, and his dark eyes stared at Shen Yan, seemingly able to see through her.

Shen Yan suddenly fell silent.

Shen Chen continued: “You must always remember that you are not only Shen Yan, but also the eldest miss of the Shen family. Your every move in public represents the Shen Group. Don’t let the Shen family be ashamed because of you.”

Shen Yan lowered her head and said nothing.

Shen Yu also swallowed his saliva, took a step forward, and carefully explained: “Brother, don’t blame sister, okay? Sister is also just looking out for me.”

“So, Xiao Yu, you think, because Tao Mu refuses to be your friend, he deserve be treated like this?” When facing Shen Yu, Shen Chen seemed to be more patient. The original solemn and deep voice became softened.

“I don’t think that.” Shen Yu flushed, ashamed and anxious, defending himself: “I didn’t want it to be like this. I don’t know why things developed like this. Brother, I really and sincerely want to be friends with Tao Mu. But he always ignores me.”

Shen Chen hooked up the corners of his mouth at a miniscule degree, and the original cold features became a little softer. He patiently persuaded: “Tao Mu is different from the friends you made before. Tao Mu is a very capable young talent. He has his own career and has his own work to do. So he is very, very busy. Just like elder brother, I have to focus more on the company’s business. If you always treat him as one of your classmates and playmates, you will naturally not get what you want.”

Shen Yu was befuddled.

Shen Chen smiled slightly. He discovered early on that his younger brother had an extraordinary ability to attract talented and capable men. So he was also keen to see his brother make friends with some young talents. So long as their friendship was beneficial to the Shen Group’s future.

“It’s like with elder brother being very busy at work. Would you ask elder brother to go shopping with you? If elder brother doesn’t agree, will you think that elder brother doesn’t like you, and you will complain to others that elder brother is not good to you?”

Shen Yu immediately shook his head and said, “No. I know that elder brother works very hard. You don’t usually play with us not because you don’t like us. It’s just that you are too busy at work.”

“Yes.” Shen Chen touched Shen Yu’s head for encouragement, and warmly praised: “Xiao Yu is right. So you see, the Tao Mu you want to make friends with is actually the same kind of person as elder brother. Compared to playing with friends, we are more willing to devote our energy to work.”

“Because of your impulsive actions, you have caused a lot of trouble for Tao Mu and his FlyNews. After that, you also ignored Tao Mu’s emotions and asked him to forgive Yao Wenxiao, the culprit who had brought so much harm to him. Elder brother asks you, if you were in his place, and someone inexplicably disliked you and bullied you with the backing of a strong family background only to be found out by us and about to be punished by us. But then he ran to you and begged you to forgive him. Will you forgive him?”

“I will!” Shen Yu nodded naturally, and said innocently: “With dad and mom, elder brother and sister to protect me, he will definitely not hurt me. Since I am not injured, then if he apologizes to me, as long as he sincerely apologizes, of course I will forgive him.”

Shen Chen: “…..”

Although every time he tried to reason with his little brother, he would feel that Shen Yu’s brain circuit was quite unfathomable. Shen Chen still took a deep breath and asked patiently, “What if the other party is not sincerely apologizing to you?”

Shen Yu was instantly dumbfounded: “Since he is not sincere, why does he apologize?”

Shen Chen: “…..”

Shen Chen pressed the bridge of his nose weakly: “Maybe the other party made the apology due to the situation, afraid that father and I will avenge you and will hurt his interests. So he has to apologize to you, and when the matter passes, he will continue to retaliate against you.”

“I’m not afraid.” Shen Yu blinked: “Elder brother, mom, dad and sister will protect me.”

Shen Chen: “…..” He decided to abandon this question.

“In any case, because of your and Shen Yan’s actions, it has caused a lot of trouble for Tao Mu and FlyNews. Elder brother hopes that you can sincerely apologize to him and win his forgiveness. Can you?”

Not waiting for Shen Chen to finish, Shen Yu nodded immediately: “I am willing, I have always wanted to apologize to Tao Mu. But he always ignores me.”

“Okay, our Xiao Yu is really a good boy.” Shen Chen touched Shen Yu’s head as a sign of encouragement.

When facing Shen Yan, Shen Chen’s attitude was much simpler and crude. He had his secretary hand over his secondary card to Shen Yan, and said straightforwardly: “Go and apologize to Tao Mu. You can swipe my secondary card as you like.”

“Elder brother!” Shen Yan frowned, “Why do you have such a high opinion of Tao Mu? He is just an orphan with no father, no mother and no background. As the eldest miss of the Shen family, why should I apologize to him? “

“Because he was able to create FlyNews at such a young age. Because he is now a business partner recognized by Li Xiaoheng.” Shen Chen looked at his sister with cold eyes: “I am very optimistic about this person. So I don’t want our Shen family to have unfriendly relations with Tao Mu because of such a little thing. You better not make trouble for me.”

“No! I don’t agree!” Shen Yan shouted shrilly: “Elder brother, you can make friends with anyone, but you can’t with this Tao Mu.”

Shen Chen’s eyes depened: “Are you ordering me?”

Shen Yan suddenly woke up and shook her head quickly: “No. Elder brother, I just——”

“You seem to care a lot about this person?” His slender fingers tapped the table slowly, and Shen Chen thoughtfully looked at his sister: “Why?”

Shen Yan startled: “There is no reason. I just think this person is very annoying, and seems to have an inexplicable hostility towards our Shen family. Before in H Town, Xiao Yu finally convinced Wen Shijin to sign him after much effort, yet he didn’t agree. It was a waste of Xiao Yu’s painstaking effort. After that, we accompanied Xiao Yu to Beijing to find him, and he acted the same cold and indifferent way. He just doesn’t hold any regard for the Shen family at all. And our Shen family have no need to flatter him either.”

“Your words are too serious.” Shen Chen disagreed with Shen Yan’s statement. In his opinion, Tao Mu was a rare shrewd person. He knew what he wanted, and knew which direction to go in.

Such people naturally had great perseverance. It couldn’t be changed by just a few words. Naturally, this kind of person would also not be subordinate to others.

He refused to agree to Shen Yu’s solicitation to join Shen Yu Film and Television Company, which was something that was in accordance to Shen Chen’s judgement of him.

“Stop talking nonsense.” Shen Chen looked at the time and made a final conclusion: “Come over here and apologize.”

“Huh?” The two siblings looked at each other, not knowing what Shen Chen meant.

* * * * * *

At 7 o’clock in the evening, in the Tianshui Pavilion of Yushan Manor.

Tao Mu pushed open the door and found that Shen Chen was the only person seated in the elegantly decorated private box. A girl wearing a silk robe sat in the corner and played the guqin. High mountains and flowing water, the melodious sound of the stringed instrument meandered in the room.

Shen Chen, who was drinking tea, paused slightly before standing up and smiling gracefully: “Mr. Tao, hello. When we first met in Town H, I saw that Mr. Tao was not an ordinary person. Seeing you today, Mr. Tao is indeed really extraordinary.”

Tao Mu’s face was calm and he went straight to the point: “I wonder what Mr. Shen asked to meet me for?”

Shen Chen smiled and said, “Of course I am here to make amends for you.”

As Shen Chen said, he pushed the U disk that had been prepared a while ago to Tao Mu.

Tao Mu was taken aback.

Shen Chen smiled and said: “I know that Mr. Tao is busy with your business, and may not want to see my immature siblings. So I simply asked them to record a video to apologize to you. You can put this video on FlyNews and let all netizens know that the Shen family’s apology is sincere. Of course, if Mr. Tao allows, I also want to hold a press conference in the name of the Shen Group and have Shen Yan and Shen Yu publicly apologize to you in front of the media and reporters.”

Tao Mu frowned: “It’s not necessary. Mr. Shen only needs to manage your younger siblings well and have them stop bothering me.”

Shen Chen chuckled and said, “I think there should be a press conference. After all, my younger sister and brother made a lot of complaints about you during the reporter’s interview, which caused misunderstandings among netizens, and brought a lot of trouble to Mr. Tao and Feixun. Now asking them to hold a press conference, and even post a public apology in the newspaper, is also something that is well deserved.”

“No need,” Tao Mu said lightly and then pointed out meaningfully: “I’m not a stingy person. As long as your younger brother and sister stop pestering me, I am willing to keep a peace with the Shen family where both sides mind their own business.”

Shen Chen smiled slightly, and did not answer Tao Mu’s words directly. Instead he switched the topic, “Sheng’an Group is a leading company in the food industry in Shanghai. Chairman Yao, the founder of Sheng’an Group, moved from Beijing to Shanghai 30 years ago. I imagine Mr. Tao also knows the reasons behind this very well so I won’t bother going into the details. It’s better to talk about the interesting things Chairman Yao did after he arrived in Shanghai.”

Shen Chen did not bother with small talk anymore. He directly explained how after Yao Sheng’an arrived in Shanghai he established the Sheng’an Group from scratch. During the period, there were many business secrets involving how Chairman Yao dealt with competitors.

“…..Yao Wenxiao is the grandson of Chairman Yao and his favorite. As he was raised by him since he was a child, his temperament somewhat takes after Chairman Yao.” Narrow-minded, paranoid and jealous, as well as vengeful. It was a pity that his methods were much lacking when compared with his grandfather, making him belong to the category of those who aimed too high but without the talent to carry out his ambitions.

“If Mr. Tao is determined to fight against the Sheng’an Group, you should be more careful.” Shen Chen spent a lot of words explaining Yao Sheng’an’s style and methods to Tao Mu.

Tao Mu listened carefully, and finally asked, “Why is Mr. Shen telling me this?”

Shen Chen chuckled again: “I said it before. I want to make amends for my younger brother and sister, and I also want to make friends with Mr. Tao. Whether it’s apologizing or making friends, there must be some sincerity.”

Tao Mu asked in a deep voice: “The Shen Group also wants to deal with the Sheng’an Group?”

Shen Chen shook his head and said regretfully: “The Shen family and the Yao family had at least bren family friends for so many years. Even if I dislike Chairman Yao’s behavior, I will not betray my allies. I just worry that Mr. Tao’s youthfulness and insistence on taking revenge will lead you to fall into Yao Shengan’s calculations.”

After a pause, Shen Chen smiled again: “However, perhaps this is just overthinking on my part. After all, Mr. Tao is the business partner of Xiaoheng Capital. Everyone knows Li Xiaoheng’s trading skills in the financial market. With such a powerful partner, a mere Sheng’an Group that is only engaged in catering will naturally not be a difficult opponent.”

“Mr. Shen thinks too much.” Tao Mu lowered his eyes slightly, and said calmly, “How big is the Sheng’an Group and how small is FlyNews. I naturally dare not hit the rocks with an egg. As long as Chairman Yao doesn’t take it too far, I still hope to shake hands with the Sheng’an Group.”

Shen Chen raised an eyebrow and immediately smiled: “I really didn’t expect Mr. Tao to have such magnanimity at such a young age. I thought you would not be able to surget over what happened back then.”

“After all, it’s an old thing that happened decades ago. Time has changed, and you have to look forward.” Tao Mu responded indifferently.

Shen Chen chuckled lightly. Of course he understood that with Tao Mu’s shrewdness and scheming, not to mention such a significant matter as the destruction of the Sheng’an Group. It was absolutely impossible for him to speak truthfully with him just after a few words from him. Shen Chen was not in a hurry. As the saying went, one couldn’t eat hot tofu if one was impatient. Even the prey being fought over by the two tigers were not in a hurry so naturally he was even more patient as a hunter who sat on the mountain watching the tigers fight.

He didn’t believe that even if Tao Mu could remain composed, that the other side with the guilty conscience would be able to remain composed. Would they really be naive enough to believe that the bad things they did could be treated as if it didn’t happen?

You c an fi nd t he la te st cha pte rs at ( th e bl mu se . c o m )

* * * * * *

At the same time that Shen Yu invited Tao Mu to dinner, Yao Shengan, who had just arrived in Beijing, sat on the sofa in his grandson’s hotel room and slowly read all the information about Tao Mu that Yao Wenxiao hired private detectives to investigate.

When he turned to a photo of Tao Mu eating at Song Ji, he saw a familiar face in the photo, and Yao Shengan’s pupils dilated suddenly. Those old things that had long been accumulating dust in the depths of his memory, came to the forefront again unexpectedly.

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As Liu Yao spoke, he smiled at the uncomfortable looking guests in the private room, raised his eyebrows and asked, “Everyone, there is no issue with what I said, right?”

“No. No. Mr. Liu’s words are particularly true. Right you are. We are here to seek reconciliation.” One of the editors, who had a particularly serious case of receding hairline, replied with an ingratiating smile.

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Liu Yao snorted and stretched out his hand to greet Tao Mu to sit down next to him. As if offering treasures, he took out a set of car keys from his pocket and pushed them in front of Tao Mu: “Aren’t you learning to drive. I have discussed with your Xiao Qi Dad, and I will just buy you a car. If I have something to do and can’t drive over to pick you up, it will save you the trouble of having to commute between school and Houhai.”

Tao Mu recognized that it was the keys to a Porsche car at a glance and frowned. He was about to refuse——

Meng Qi said, “This is what I and your Yao Dad want. If you want to really treat us as dads, just accept it. How can the son refuse a gift from the dad to his son?”

“Yes, yes. Don’t the ancients say that one should not refuse the gift of an elder. If you really treat us as your dads, you can’t refuse.” Liu Yao echoed Meng Qi’s words next to him. Anxiously, he put the car keys directly into Tao Mu’s hand.

“You don’t have to feel apologetic about the money for the two of us. Thanks to you, I and your Xiao Qi Dad will soon be able to make up for this bit of money.” Liu Yao said, eyes slanting towards the dozen or so editors next to them, saying with a half-smile: “Everyone, is that right?”

“Yes, yes.” What else could the editors-in-chief say, they could only agree with smiles.

“Fine then. You are all refined civilized people, and we are not here to be pretentious. Let’s talk, what kind of truce do you want.” Liu Yao leaned on the back of the sofa with his legs propped up. The cigar holder used to put on airs during business meetings was held between his index finger and middle finger, though there was no intention to ignite it.

Even so, the dozen or so editors were still scared by this intimidating gangster aura, looking at each other and unable to speak.

When they were lured by Yao Wenxiao and took the bribe money to slander Tao Mu and Night, they didn’t expect Liu Yao to be so difficult. Actually already having sent someone to keep watch on Yao Wenxiao a long time ago and gathered evidence on Yao Wenxiao’s bribery to them. Moreover, he also even managed to hire Beijing’s best lawyer who specialized in financial compensation to sue them from the perspective of infringement and illegal gains.

——How many gossip weekly entertainment newspapers were there in the circle, and who among them did not make money by reporting celebrity rumors and celebrity scandals? The celebrities themselves and the reporters also have a complementary relationship. Celebrities relied on reporters to gain attention to increase their popularity, while newspapers and magazines relied on reporting on celebrity news to increase sales and increase advertising costs. Therefore, under normal circumstances, celebrities dared not fall out with the media, for fear that the media would block and blacklist them out of anger. In the past, even if there were celebrities who became angered, they would only accuse them of violating the celebrity’s privacy and damaging the celebrity’s reputation. Even if the lawsuit was won, their magazine would just issue an apology and that was it. Anyway, the news media had always had the power to “report the facts.” Even if the celebrity was angry, there was nothing they could do about it. So the media was never delayed in making money and making gimmicks.

But it just happened that Tao Mu was different from others. First, the fact that more than a dozen media outlets accepted bribes to discredit Tao Mu was found, and more than a dozen media outlets were charged with accepting bribes for malicious dissemination of rumors and unfair competition. He also accurately counted how many times the dozen newspapers and magazines were tracking and reporting the false news about “Tao Mu Selling His Body”. Compared with the usual sales and advertising expenses, each newspaper and magazine that directly published and disseminated Tao Mu’s portrait illegally, infringed on Night and FlyNews’ trademark and reputation rights, illegally obtained huge commercial profits, and thus were brought to court by Tao Mu. In addition, one must not forget to calculate the huge losses suffered by FlyNews and Bullet Screen Network, as well as the National School Beauty And Hunk Selection Contest because of these false reports.

Because it involved multiple crimes such as unfair competition and illegal publishing, if Tao Mu’s lawsuit was really won, they would not only face huge compensation, but even go to jail.

The situation was already so critical. The other was the knife and I am the fish, so what else was there to say.

“We are willing to publish a public apology, and have it stick to the top for a month or half a year.” It was the receding hairline guy who spoke first.

It must be said that most people love to think of beautiful things when they are ugly.

Liu Yao sneered, and said unceremoniously: “I know that you refined and civilized people have a problem, thinking that your mouths and pens are very valuable. But in my opinion, your shabby newspapers are really not even worth 130 million.”

“How about, I’ll just call Lawyer Zhou. And you can talk about it with him yourself?”

One hundred and thirty million was what Liu Yao hired the black-hearted lawyer to propose to the court the total compensation that these dozen media outlets owed to Tao Mu, FlyNews and Night. Considering that Liu Yao let him earn a million before, and that the lawyer would get a 10% share for every lawsuit won. So long as the lawsuit was won, the lawyer would easily receive 14 million. This couldn’t be a better deal at all.

So right now, it was not Night and Tao Mu himself who most looked forward to winning the lawsuit, but this certain vicious and merciless lawyer.

Of course, all the editors-in-chief here also understood this. So hearing this, he shook his head and waved his hands quickly, and said in horror: “No, no, no, no need. We are very sincere, we are very sincere. It’s just——”

The receding hairline guy had a bitter face and wished to cry: “We really can’t afford 130 million. Didn’t you buy a magazine before, Boss Liu? You should know that our magazine doesn’t make money. Everyone is busy everyday but it’s just enough for food and clothing. We can’t even muster up 13 million, let alone 130 million!”

Liu Yao snorted coldly. These words he had no doubt about. At the beginning, when he bought a magazine that was on the verge of bankruptcy, it cost only half a million. And this included two months’ rent. But he couldn’t just let go of these dozens of media outlets that spread rumors so easily. He was not here to do charity.

Since they dared to provoke him and bullied their little pup, they must have the consciousness of going to jail.

Liu Yao said to Tao Mu: “What do you think should be done?”

Before Tao Mu could speak, Meng Qi added unhurriedly: “FlyNews has such a good momentum of development that FlyNews Entertainment should also be expanded. Haven’t you been worrying about the shortage of manpower recently. Just merge these dozens of newspapers and magazines into FlyNews Entertainment. We’ll just lose out a little bit. Who let them be too poor and can’t afford 130 million yuan!”

The editors-in-chief of more than a dozen media outlets looked at Meng Qi in fright. They didn’t expect that this gentle looking man who always smiled so warmly like the spring breeze was the one with the blackest heart.

To annex more than a dozen newspapers and magazines in one go, this was asking for their lives.

Before more than a dozen editors-in-chief had time to speak, they heard Meng Qi casually say: “We will just be a little bit aggrieved, and save them from prison.”

Editors-in-chief: “…..” Alrighty, the other was already the knife while I am the fish, so what more could be said? Nothing!

Thinking about it the other way around. Their dozens of newspapers and magazines were originally third-rate gossip weekly magazines in the industry. If not, they would not have been bribed by Yao Wenxiao’s pittance and committed such a ‘clever’ thing in the first place.

Look at Weibo for example, and the other first-rate newspapers and magazines backed by big capital. No one had taken Yao Wenxiao’s work. They knew that Tao Mu and FlyNews were not common, so they just didn’t bother to dip their toes in this muddy water.

Now that the development momentum of FlyNews was so good, even the development of FlyNews Entertainment was soaring. Maybe their futures would be more promising after these dozens of newspapers and magazines were merged into FlyNews Entertainment.

The dozen editors-in-chief looked at each other depressedly for a while, comforting themselves.

Tao Mu frowned. Before he came, he did not expect that Yao Dad and Xiao Qi Dad had planned this way. But if FlyNews Entertainment annexed these dozen or so newspapers, what would happen to the losses of Night? There were so many people in Night, it was not right to just let them be scolded for so many days for no reason.

Liu Yao chuckled: “You don’t understand this? These dozen newspapers have spread rumors for so many days, and even facilitated the discussions among netizens for so many days. Now the name of Night is practically known to everyone, at least in the area around Beijing. There is no club hotter than us. You may not know this, but after Night became famous, many netizens and your little fans have come here out of curiosity. There are more than ten chain bars under my hand, and the business is incredibly booming now. Especially the club here in Houhai which is full every night. With such good publicity momentum, if we were to spend money to advertise, it would have taken tens of millions.”

Tao Mu was dumbfounded. It could actually be understood in such a way.

“Why not?” Liu Yao rubbed Tao Mu’s hair and replied naturally: “We are dad and son, already a family of three, so don’t you keep on quibbling with me. As your dad, how can what I do for my son be called a loss?” A father’s love was a high as a mountain.

“Besides, doesn’t your Xiao Qi Dad have shares in your FlyNews Entertainment. It’s all from our own family, so what are you doing delineating it so clearly.”

Tao Mu looked at the happy appearance of his Yao Dad and smiled. His phone then suddenly rang.

Tao Mu took out his mobile phone and looked at it, and was momentarily stunned before he subconsciously rejected it. Two seconds later, the phone rang again.

“What’s wrong?” Meng Qi asked, “Whose phone number?”

The name “Shen Chen” was about to blurt out subconsciously. Fortunately, at the critical juncture, Tao Mu suddenly realized that he had already been reborn.

How could a stranger who was reborn back ten years ago and had no relationship with the Shen family know Shen Chen’s mobile phone number?

“I don’t know. Unfamiliar call.” Tao Mu directly blocked it: “It may be an intermediary or some harassing call.”

“That’s also possible.” Meng Qi said, pulling out dozens of acquisition contracts that were already prepared from under the coffee table. First handing it to Tao Mu: “Look at what other terms need to be added.”

These dozens of contracts were also drawn up by Liu Yao, who asked the ruthless lawyer Zhou. Although he was greedy for the 13 million yuan in the lawsuit, Lawyer Zhou also understood that with the background of these dozen newspapers, they definitely wouldn’t be able to come up with so much money. So his main target was Yao Wenxiao’s Yuxiao Media. These dozens of newspapers and magazines were just appetizers.

Based on the professionalism of a first-class lawyer in Beijing, the acquisition contract he drafted naturally fully took into account the rights and interests of FlyNews Entertainment, and Tao Mu had no need to modify it at all.

Meng Qi smiled, and then pushed the contracts to the dozen editors-in-chief: “When you have finished thinking about it, you can sign it.”

Editors-in-chief: “…..”

During this period, Tao Mu’s cell phone kept ringing. The phone number was changed from Shen Chen’s number to father Shen’s, and finally to the two secretaries and assistants. There was a sense of “I will not give up unless you answer the phone.”

Tao Mu had no choice, he really resented that the current smartphones did not have a blacklist system, otherwise he would be able to block all unfamiliar numbers outside the phone book. But now, Tao Mu, who didn’t want to shut down his phone, had to answer the call.

“Hello, Mr. Tao. I am Shen Chen, Shen Yu’s elder brother. We have met before. I am deeply sorry for what happened recently. Shen Yu is the youngest son of the Shen family, and Shen Yan is the only daughter in our family and so they have been spoiled since childhood. I want to apologize face to face for the trouble caused to you.” Shen Chen never talked nonsense and was always straight to the point.

“No need.” Tao Mu was in a good mood now, and did not want to pay attention to the Shen family: “As long as they don’t come again and——”

“Do you want to deal with the Sheng’an Group?” Before Tao Mu finished speaking, Shen Chen spoke again.

“What?” Tao Mu was caught off guard and couldn’t help repeating qhat the other said.

“I know that you have a very close relationship with Mr. Song. I also know that Yao Shengan has an old grudge with Song Ji. I made a private guess, based on Mr. Tao’s disposition, you might not mind suffering wrongs yourself, but you will never let the people around you be wronged.” Shen Chen said, praising Tao Mu a little: “I admire Mr. Tao’s personality. I wonder if Mr. Tao is willing to make a friend in me.”

Tao Mu’s heart sank. He didn’t know what Shen Chen meant by his words.

“Fine.” After pondering for a moment, Tao Mu said in a deep voice: “It is an honor for me to befriend a talent like CEO Shen.”

“I booked a private room in the Imperial Restaurant, and I welcome your arrival tonight.” Shen Chen said with a smile.

Father Shen looked at his eldest son who just hung up the phone, frowned and asked, “Do you really want to join forces with surnamed Tao to deal with the Sheng’an Group? Is it possible?”

Shen Chen smiled slightly: “Of course it’s impossible with just Tao Mu and FlyNews. But Father, don’t forget. Tao Mu is also Li Xiaoheng’s business partner. Xiaoheng Capital is shorting oil in the international market. The situation is so tense, but Li Xiaoheng can still take time from his busy schedule to be concerned about Tao Mu being discredited by more than a dozen gossip magazines. He even specially accepted media interviews to help Tao Mu clarify. It can be seen that Li Xiaoheng values ​​his business partner very much. If Tao Mu asked Li Xiaoheng to unite with Xiaoheng Capital and even the Li family to attack the Sheng’an Group, do you think Li Xiaoheng would refuse?”

Father Shen pondered for a long while, and sighed: “The Shen family and Yao family are family friends. Before, when the Shen Group had a problem with our funds, most of it was borrowed from the Sheng’an Group. Our two families can also be considered to tacitly be in agreement.”

“We are family friends and business partners. But it may not be the case any more in the future.” Shen Chen sat on the leather sofa in the hotel room, leaning forward slightly, pouring a cup of Longjing tea, and handing it to father Shen. But there was a cold arc of indifference to his smile: “Yao Shengan, is a sly, treacherous and calculating old fox who has deep and sharp vision. He is now eyeing the real estate industry and is trying his best to get the Sheng’an Group into the Shanghai city housing market. The land in the Pudong New Area before, if it weren’t for Yao Shengan’s own desire to own it, even if the two tigers compete, we might not have lost to the Luo Group.”

“Father, the foundation industry of Sheng’an Group is catering. Their cash flow is already more abundant than that of the Shen Group’s. With Yao Shengan’s vision, if he really wants to enter the real estate industry, will the Shen Group really have the confidence to beat the Sheng’an Group in the bidding field at that time?”

“Shanghai City is too small. One mountain cannot accommodate two tigers. Since the Shen Group can guarantee the dominance of one family, why should we tolerate two tigers competing?”

Hearing what his son said, father Shen fell silent. After a long while: “That said. But can you guarantee that surnamed Tao will be reliable? Will he tell Yao Shengan your thoughts and sit on the mountain and watch the tigers fight instead?”

“What can he tell Yao Shengan? Tell him I admire him for provoking the behemoth that is the Sheng’an Group?” Shen Chen chuckled, “Father, don’t worry. Since Tao Mu can create FlyNews in such a short time, as well as make Li Xiaoheng treat him with trust and respect, he is a smart man. Since he is a smart man, he will not do stupid things.”

“But he has such an unpleasant relationship with Yan’er and Yu’er——”

Shen Chen waved his hand: “It’s just children having a temper. It’ll be fine when misunderstandings clear up.”

“Because they are all children, it’s not easy to persuade them. Otherwise, where did the saying that young people have an energetic temper come from.” Father Shen gave a wry smile and suddenly said: “Yan’er and Yu’er were spoiled by me and your mother. In everything they only know to follow their own temper and never consider the overall situation. I’m afraid that you won’t be able to have much help in the future. Do you blame me? “

Shen Chen smiled slightly, and poured another cup of tea for father Shen: “Father has no need to worry. Didn’t we agree? It is enough just for the eldest son of the Shen family to preside over the overall situation. Let Yan’er and Xiao Yu accompany you two elders. They can also help me show more filial respect to you and mom.”

“That’s true.” Father Shen smiled and looked at his handsome and steady eldest son. He felt gratified: “I am satisfied with having such an excellent son like you. Our family really doesn’t need Yan’er and Yu’er to worry too much about company affairs. If the two younger ones are like you and put their minds on the company every day, your mother and I will be lonely.”

Shen Chen smiled slightly and offered tea again: “It’s all this son’s fault for not being unfilial.”

Father Shen took the tea and sighed silently. His son has matured, and being too talented could also be a headache. As a father, he had to comfort himself from time to time. Fortunately, there was only one headache for him in their family. It was better to have only one branch of the tree thriving than brotherly strife.

“If you want to get rid of the grievances between Tao Mu and the Shen family, Yan’er and Yu’er must make amends personally. Yu’er is easy to convince, he has always been soft-tempered and obedient. It’s just that Yan’er is too proud, I’m afraid she won’t lower her head.” As father Shen spoke, he also felt a headache again. He just said that there was only one headache in their family, only to slap himself in the face right now. Fortunately——

“Yan’er is most afraid of you as the elder brother. So this matter will be left to you to talk to her about.” Father Shen shook his hand and handed the problem to his son directly. He stood up and said, “I’m going to see your mother. You say, children fighting among themselves is understandable, but why did she join in the nonsense as well.”

Shen Chen got up and saw his father out of the hotel room. When he watched his father enter his mother’s room, he said lowly to his confidant and secretary, “Call the eldest miss and Yu’er over.”

You c an fi nd t he la te st cha pte rs at ( th e bl mu se . c o m )

Shen Yan, who had been waiting in her room nervously, trembled when she heard the knock on the door. She hugged Shen Yu and said, “Xiao Yu, elder brother, he pampers you the most. If he scolds me later, you must help me.”

“En.” Shen Yu nodded vigorously, and held Shen Yan’s hand: “Sister, don’t worry. I definitely won’t let elder brother scold you.”

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“Brother Mu, you are too much! Not even telling us about such a big thing in advance, we also really want to drink your celebratory wine——”

Before Xiao Pang finished his words, his round head was knocked hard with Tao Mu’s knuckles, and he immediately changed his tone and said, “I mean, we also want to see with our own eyes how you served the wine to recognize dad and grandpa.”

You c an fi nd t he la te st cha pte rs at ( th e bl mu se . c o m )

“Didn’t you see it now.” Tao Mu looked at his thievishly smiling childhood friend, and explained with some helplessness: “I was a little dazed before, and I didn’t think to notify everyone.” Besides, there was no way to notify this kind of thing. Send an invitation to tell everyone that he was going to recognize a dad? It felt rather weird.

Da Mao put his arms around Tao Mu’s shoulders with emotion: “I know, we won’t blame you.”

The two of them grew up with Tao Mu. Of course they knew that although Tao Mu didn’t say anything, he always envied those who had parents and family. So they could also understand how shocking for Tao Mu this event was. It was impossible for Tao Mu to not tell them on purpose. It could only be said that there had been too many things happening recently. Even the attentive brother Mu, who was always good at socializing, would inevitably have some omissions.

“By the way, during the media interview, Shen Yu cried and said that you were cruel and unrelenting. Shen Yu’s sister also scolded the employees of FlyNews for being rude and insulting people. What are you going to do?” Da Mao comforted Tao Mu and then brought up business: “Shen Yu’s fans are now scolding you for ungratefulness. Especially the fans who liked both you and Shen Yu, they have a particularly fierce attitude.”

Xiao Pang frowned, and said with a complicated expression: “I didn’t expect Shen Yu to be this kind of person. When we were in H Town, I thought he was quite good. His family background was that big, but his personality was still quite good in spite of it, not at all showing any arrogance and airs of the rich and affluent. He could also have fun with the crew and group extras with a friendly attitude, often treating the crew to eat delicious food. Why did he become like this now?”

The little prince who had gone from being naive and ignorant of worldly matters to suddenly a person with a prince syndrome who didn’t understand people’s feelings and even caused trouble to others. This gap in expectations was so big that Xiao Pang, who was a passerby fan of Shen Yu’s, couldn’t stand it at all.

Especially as the person who was troubled by Shen Yu was their brother Mu. If it was not for the fact that everyone was acquainted with each other at one point, Xiao Pang really wanted to turn into an antifan.

Tao Mu didn’t care about it himself: “Don’t worry about him. FlyNews will deal with it.”

Tao Mu deliberately suppressed FlyNews to not respond. He just wanted to let the matter ferment, and when the fermenting led to the point where the whole Internet was aware of this, when everyone had negative feelings about him and FlyNews, then he would show evidence to reverse the situation——didn’t those people want to stir up hype, borrowing Internet public opinion to persecute him? He was a man who had been reborn with knowledge of ten years into the future and had experienced all kinds of Internet slander. So would he still be afraid of this little turmoil stirred up with poor methods?

Tao Mu had been suppressing this matter for a week, and only when the social, financial, and Internet technology sectors began to discuss the matter, did he let FlyNews upload the monitoring video of that day to the Internet. In conjunction with the video recorded quietly by some employees on their smartphones, the truth of the matter was immediately revealed to the public.

All the netizens who believed in the words of the Shen family and criticized Tao Mu and FlyNews all over the Internet immediately exploded. They felt that they had been taken advantage of and used by the Shen family. The feelings of anger and embarrassment caused them to immediately forget how vicious they were when scolding and cursing Tao Mu and FlyNews.

“It’s all their fault. It’s disgusting that they used the trust of netizens.”

“Obviously they went to FlyNews to make trouble for no reason, and now they are actually pouring the dirty water on others. I was actually even a fan of Shen Yu before, and I felt that Shen Yan, as the eldest miss of the Shen Group, would definitely not lie. Thinking about it now, I’m too naive.”

“The Shen family must definitely not be as good as they appear if they could raise such a pair of siblings who are full of lies!”

Fans and netizens who had been supporting Tao Mu and FlyNews were exuberant. Speaking of, when Tao Mu and FlyNews let netizens scold and curse at them without a response in return, they also couldn’t help feeling guilty when they argued with others. But it was all right now, the facts were all in the evidence, so let’s see what those antis had to say to that.

“Like I said, our Mu Mu is not such a vulgar and rude person.”

“FlyNews itself is an Internet media company. It must pay special attention to the company’s image. If it is really like what the eldest miss of the Shen family said, that they just wanted to talk to Mr. Tao and didn’t do anything else, why would FlyNews call the police to chase them out? And the police also cooperated with FlyNews to chase them out? Now look, the Shen family and surnamed Yao started scolding and yelling as soon as they entered the door, so unreasonably making trouble and delaying people’s normal work, what else could they do if they don’t call the police? Just let them cause a scene in the company? They want to set up a stage to put on a show, but FlyNews is not a stage!”

“Before, there were actually even people who doubted the credibility of the police. They thought that the police and FlyNews were working together to bully people? Now stand up and see if your face hurts? Your noble, elegant and well-bred Shen family have violated the law and order regulations. FlyNews just called the police to invite them out politely. It’s already quite good manners already. If it were me, and someone dared to make such a fuss in my store, if I don’t directly beat you the fuck out of my store then I will take your fucking surname!”

“It’s really ruining the image. I didn’t expect these wealthy children from affluent families to act like shrews in private.”

Fans of Shen Yu, who were still jumping around on the Internet questioning Tao Mu’s ungratefulness and hurting their Yu Yu, immediately panicked. All of them were like headless chickens, running around and pulling any netizen they could to explain repeatedly——

“Our little prince is not that kind of unreasonable person. He is too soft-hearted and too kind. When Yao Wenxiao bribed the media outlets to slander Tao Mu, no one came forward, but our little prince was the first to stand up for Tao Mu. Now it must also because he feels that Yao Wenxiao is too pitiful. After all, it is his childhood friend who has played with him since they were children. Now that his childhood friend is in trouble, so what if Shen Yu plea for him as a friend?”

“Shen Yu never said radical things from beginning to end, okay? What he complained to the media was that he was just disappointed Tao Mu did not agree to his plea. This kind of emotion is too normal, okay? If you are looking forward to something, only for it not to happen, can’t people even be allowed to feel disappointed?”

“In fact, I think Shen Yu is a good person with a true temperament and treats others very sincerely. No matter what others think, anyway, if I have such a friend who will be the first to help me when I am in trouble, even if he is unable to solve the problem for me he still tried his best to help me find a solution, and even put down his dignity to beg for me. I would be crazily moved, okay?”

“You Shen Yu fans are really a perfect example of fans taking after idols. You feel very impressed and touched by yourselves, don’t you? I just want to ask, what even did your Shen Yu do? Yao Wenxiao did such a dirty thing. If Shen Yu really treats Tao Mu as a friend, he shouldn’t have made a scene in front of Tao Mu just to intercede for Yao Wenxiao, not to mention complaining to the media that Tao Mu is making such a small matter into a big thing. I just want to ask, Yao Wenxiao secretly instigated so many media to join forces to discredit Tao Mu and let Tao Mu be scolded by unsuspecting netizens. After so many days, even the relatives and friends around him were personally attacked and cyberbullied. Even the contestants of the National School Beauty and Hunk Selection Competition were implicated and had to drop out. FlyNews lost tens of millions as a result. Towards such a big matter, Shen Yu thought he could just get a pass by apologizing for Yao Wenxiao? Fuck that. Does your Shen Yu really regard himself as the emperor, and that his words are worth a thousand pounds of gold? That a casual apology can offset other people’s ten million as well as the abuse and humiliation suffered by so many people?”

“And those people who say they would like Shen Yu to be friends with them. Then I will burn incense and worship Buddha so that you may hurry up and find such a friend. When you are hurt, he doesn’t know to comfort you. Apart from causing trouble and making enemies around you, he will even shamelessly run to you just to plea for your enemy when you finally manage to come out on top. And if you don’t agree with him then they will run around crying everywhere, making it as if you had done something terrible to him. Our Tao Mu doesn’t have such a big heart, and really can’t afford this kind of friend.”

“It’s all you people saying this by yourselves. The way I see it, Shen Yu doesn’t treat Tao Mu as a friend at all, does he? When Tao Mu was slandered, he stood up and said those words that weren’t even a fart’s use at all. And it even made Wang Boyuan and Yan Sheng fans become disgusted with Tao Mu. Up to now, these two fans still ridicule Tao Mu. Actually, what does Tao Mu have to do with these two actors? Isn’t it all caused by Shen Yu? Did Tao Mu himself say that his acting skills are better than Yan Sheng’s and Wang Boyuan’s? No, right? He was already being slandered by the entire Internet, and Shen Yu only added to the mess for him. It’s simply like being attacked by enemies on all sides, alright? After catching Yao Wenxiao and the dozens of media outlets, Tao Mu took them to court. Seeing that things are bad, he then ran over to intercede for Yao Wenxiao. Tao Mu disagreed so he made such an outburst and commotion, No wonder Shen Yu and his fans always complained that Tao Mu was cold and indifferent to him and did not regard him as a friend. If I am Tao Mu, I would also not admit that I have such a friend, okay? How can this be a friend? This is clearly a backstabbing bitch, alright? From my point of view, Shen Yu and Yao Wenxiao are the true friends here, while he and Tao Mu just have a plastic brotherhood, yeah?”

“The comment from upstairs suddenly reminded me that the word plastic brotherhood was also spoken by Tao Mu. Say, when he invented the phrase, could he be thinking about him and Shen Yu?”

“I think the analysis from upstairs is very right. The relationship between Shen Yu and Tao Mu is not at all friends. And wasn’t there a talented fellow who made the analysis that Yao Wenxiao and Shen Yu joined forces to target Tao Mu? I didn’t believe it before. Looking at Shen Yu’s reaction now, maybe the two of them really thought to do something like this. Otherwise, Shen Yu wouldn’t hate Tao Mu so much, right?”

“Upstairs +1”

“Upstairs upstairs +1”

“Seconded!”

With a loud “bang”, Yao Wenxiao furiously threw the laptop on the table against the wall. The exquisite laptop broke into two at once, and fine fragments scattered all around.

Yao Wenxiao looked at Shen Yu, who was startled by his actions, with a regretful look, and said with pain: “I’m sorry Xiao Yu, it’s all my fault. It’s all my fault. I didn’t expect Tao Mu to be so cruel. He actually had the heart to hurt you.”

“It’s not your fault.” Mother Shen hugged her precious son in her arms: “It’s Tao Mu who has a heart of iron and stone, and doesn’t care about Xiao Yu at all. How can you be blamed?”

“That’s right. This Tao Mu is really too much.” Shen Yan wrinkled a pair of extremely delicately trimmed eyebrows, and the hostility between her eyebrows made her look a little bit more bitter and mean: “I really don’t know how our Xiao Yu offended him. That he would rather offend the Shen family than let you go.”

Shen Yan said, and then asked Yao Wenxiao with concern: “How is your lawsuit?”

A trace of discomfort flashed across Yao Wenxiao’s face: “This is Beijing, not Shanghai. I’m not familiar with those from the public security, prosecution, and legal departments. Besides, this matter has become so big. I was caught by that nightclub owner for bribing the media outlets. There is a gathering of evidence against me, and FlyNews is now the most influential social platform. Those people are scrupulous about public opinion and are not willing to help.”

Shen Yan’s face turned dark, and she viciously scolded: “This Tao Mu is really cruel. I don’t know what kind of hatred he has with our family. For such a small matter, does he really want to force us to death or what?”

“He won’t be able to ruin me.” A bit of resentment appeared on Yao Wenxiao’s face: “I already called my grandfather. He promised to go to Beijing personally to help me solve this matter. It’s not a big deal, at most I’ll be fined some money, and nothing too serious will happen.”

“However,” Yao Wenxiao said viciously when thinking of Tao Mu: “Our debt will be settled. He caused me such embarrassment, I will never spare him. I don’t believe that there is no black material on him. In this life, I will fight him to the end!”

The mother and daughter of the Shen family felt particularly relieved when they heard these words. Shen Yu didn’t notice Yao Wenxiao’s harsh words. He was curled up in mother Shen’s arms with tearful eyes, like an abandoned kitten, looking so pitiful, even his little paws were curled in: “Mom, sister, say, is Tao Mu really angry with me? Will he still be friends with me in the future?”

“My baby.” Mother Shen was very distressed when she saw Shen Yu’s tears. She quickly wiped his tears gently, wrapped her arms around him and coaxed softly: “That Tao Mu treats my baby so cruelly, our baby should not make friends with him. This kind of manipulative and calculating person is too ruthless and vicious. Mom will be very worried about you making friends with him.”

“But——” Shen Yu bit his lower lip unwillingly: “I want to make friends with him.”

“You want to make friends with him, but he doesn’t take you seriously at all.” Yao Wenxiao snorted coldly, feeling jealous and distressed: “Look at the Internet, because of his actions, everyone is scolding you. Originally, among the contestants in the National School Beauty And Hunk Competition, your popularity was the highest. Now no one votes for you except your fans. The way I see it, he did it on purpose. It will be the National School Beauty And Hunk Competition finals soon. But at this juncture, he put your black material on the Internet, it is just to prevent you from winning the competition.”

Shen Yu lips pouted, wanting to cry even more.

Shen Yan snorted coldly: “If you won’t win, then you won’t win. We don’t care at all. In my opinion, we can simply just drop out and go back to Shanghai. When we return to Shanghai, we can hold a contest show by ourselves. My little brother is so cute, you will definitely win.”

“That’s right!” Shen Yan’s proposal immediately resonated with Yao Wenxiao and mother Shen.

Wen Shijin, who had been standing on the side and had said nothing the whole time, frowned fiercely: “We should not be so impulsive when doing things.”

Before he finished speaking, the three of them glared at him: “Wen Shijin, what do you mean by that, do you want my little brother to suffer for such an inexplicable and dumb contest?”

“I didn’t mean that. I just want to say, if you still want Shen Yu to restore his image of the little prince in the eyes of netizens. Don’t do any willful things anymore.” Wen Shijin tiredly rubbed the bridge of his nose, faintly feeling some regret.

At the beginning, he accepted Chairman Shen’s proposal and joined Lingyu Film and Television Company with his team. Originally, he was attracted by the offer because of the Shen Group’s capital, and Shen Yu also seemed to be a genius that could be cultivated. Moreover, he had been in contact with Shen Yu and knew that Shen Yu’s character was soft, naive and kind, and he did not have the arrogance and airs of those rich second generations at all. But looking at it now, it was not necessarily a good thing to have no temper at all.

Mrs. Shen, Miss Shen, and Shen Yu’s childhood friend/classmate were really getting in the way.

Wen Shijin glanced at Yao Wenxiao subtly, and then mentioned the chairman and Shen Chen directly: “I have already talked with Chairman Shen and CEO Shen. They will arrive in Beijing soon. Before that, everything in regards to Shen Yu, I will have it arranged. If madam and the eldest miss do not believe me, you can call Chairman Shen.”

The Shen family’s mother and daughter were taken aback when they heard these words, and the original arrogance seemed to be extinguished by ice water. Shen Yan replied: “Mr. Wen is too serious. How could we not believe you. Whatever you want Shen Yu to do, we will just listen to you.”

Shen Yu’s eyes lit up, and he looked up at Wen Shijin hopefully, “Dad and brother are coming over?”

“En.” Wen Shijin nodded. Before he had time to speak, Yao Wenxiao asked very excitedly: “Are uncle and brother Shen coming with my grandfather?”

Wen Shijin nodded again.

“That’s great!” Yao Wenxiao was so excited that he punched a fist into his palm: “With the help of uncle and brother Shen, and my grandfather, that bastard Tao Mu will definitely be finished.”

——It might not actually be such a good thing!

Wen Shijin thought of Chairman Shen and Mr. Shen’s entrustment to him, and couldn’t help but glance at Yao Wenxiao with pity.

On the other side, Tao Mu was called to over to Night by Liu Yao again.

“Yao Dad, is there something you wanted to see me for?” Tao Mu pushed open the door of Night, and found that the Night employees were all looking at him with grins.

Since Liu Yao and Meng Qi formally went through the formalities for adopting Tao Mu, the attitude of the entire Night staff towards Tao Mu had changed drastically——there was no more grudge against Tao Mu about leaving Night before, and they treated Tao Mu even better and with more ease than before.

“Xiao Mu, I am going to register a big V account on FlyNews. You help me add a V~” Little Zero said with a smile: “Don’t worry, I will definitely not solicit customers on FlyNews and get you discredited. I am going to open a beauty tutorial account on FlyNews, just like you said, and teach people makeup.”

With every step Tao Mu’s FlyNews had taken up to the present, just how difficult and how much hard work was put in? As Tao Mu’s friends and family, they would not discredit Tao Mu.

The corner of Tao Mu’s lips hooked up and he nodded immediately: “Okay. I’ll add V to your account when I go back.”

After a pause, he said, “Don’t worry. I’ll keep an eye on it in the background and help you filter the comments.” If it was too unsightly, he’ll just delete the banned words directly.

“No need.” Little Zero waved his hand indifferently: “Didn’t your FlyNews say that you want to defend the right of every netizen to speak. Why do you have to make an exception for me. Besides, I am not afraid, if they dare to come at me, then I’ll dare to scold them one by one. This lady has been in jianghu for so many years, and I’m not afraid of this. Let them curse and scold. The more they scold me, the more popular I will become, and the more they scold me, the happier I am. This lady can make my C-position debut with their scolding as stepping stones. They will be the ones feeling annoyed in the end.”

Little Zero announced proudly, and then looked at Tao Mu with a bit of shyness: “Just…..don’t feel that I am embarrassing you.”

“How could I.” Tao Mu smiled warmly and softly coaxed them: “I’m still waiting for your esteemed highness’s C-position debut and then come and be my chief makeup artist.”

Little Zero’s eyes lit up. The other people in Night who hadn’t made a sound spoke up one after another: “If you are really not afraid, then we will really sign up for FlyNews V accounts?”

Fearing that it would have a bad influence on Tao Mu before, the Night group did not dare to talk back online. All V accounts closed their comment sections, and some people found it troublesome and even cancelled their accounts. There were no such scenes as a gang of people soliciting customers online that Meng Qi painted earlier.

Tao Mu knew why these people were so restrained. It was because they were afraid that if Night jumped around too happily online, making those netizens feel more resentful and rejecting, it would in turn affect their views on FlyNews and Tao Mu.

Some employees felt aggrieved and scolded Tao Mu secretly for implicating everyone. The resentment had them feeling that if it weren’t for Tao Mu, they would still be happily making money and playing in Night, instead of being hung up on the Internet to be abused and cyberbullied. Why did they have to care about Tao Mu’s image and can’t scold back?

But after Liu Yao and Meng Qi formally went through the formalities for adopting Tao Mu. Everyone suddenly remembered that Tao Mu was just a little thing when he first came to Night, tagging behind everyone all day like a puppy, calling them big brothers and big sisters.

He could also be regarded as a troublesome but cute kid who grew up under their eyes. How could they quibble about such things so much?

This group of people immediately got over it. Anyway, they had been scolded by others their entire lives. Scolded by family members, scolded by customers, scolded by pretentious strangers who had never even known them personally. After all, if they liked the same sex, then that meant they were willingly depraved, and those who worked as MBs deserved to be treated as inferior. Even without Tao Mu, their image in the eyes of others was not that good anyway.

But Tao Mu didn’t think so. He didn’t think that the people in Night were bad people who were willingly depraved. He only knew that when he had no father, no mother, and no money, it was the Night people who gave him designer clothes and taught him to sing and blend drinks. Every year they would also throw a party collectively to celebrate his birthday and buy him all kinds of high-end luxury goods as gifts.

Even if they were all rolling in the filthy mud, they knew to hug each other to keep warm during the cold winter. Those who stood on the shore watching with cold eyes were clean. But none of them gave Tao Mu a helping hand.

Tao Mu made enough mistakes in his previous life. So how could he hurt the people around him for the sake of others in this life? Some injuries were a little painful, and he knew that after having suffered them, so there was no need to have others suffer it too.

Especially those who cared about him.

Liu Yao and Meng Qi leaned on the railing of the second floor and watched as Tao Mu chatted with the Night gang. After a while, Liu Yao shouted, “Xiao Mu, come up. There is business.”

You c an fi nd t he la te st cha pte rs at ( th e bl mu se . c o m )

Tao Mu went upstairs with a smile. As soon as he entered the private room, he was surprised to find that there were dozens of strangers with ingratiating expressions sitting inside.

Liu Yao and Meng Qi then came in and said casually: “Let me introduce. These are the head editors of the dozen or so newspapers and magazines who joined hands to discredit you. They came here this time to ask for a truce.”

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The meal lasted until more than nine o’clock in the evening, and everyone was drunk. Especially Song Daozhen——Tao Mu had known the old man for so many years and had never seen him drink more than two cups. But he also became drunk with the rest today and when everyone helped him to lie down in his room, his mouth was still drunkenly muttering something. Tao Mu faintly heard the old man say “Little Wen’er”.

You c an fi nd t he la te st cha pte rs at ( th e bl mu se . c o m )

Dean Tao took off the clothes and shoes for old man Song, helped him to lie on his side, and added warm water to a towel used to wipe his face and hands. After everything was finished, she took the dirty clothes that old man Song had taken off, and dragged Tao Mu out of the room.

The color of the moon was like water, and the breeze was refreshing. Moonlight poured down from the old locust tree, like a thin layer of gauze, covering the quiet courtyard. The people who were drunk had already gone to the wing rooms to lay down to sleep.

Dean Tao put the clothes that old man Song had taken off into a enamel washbasin that had chipped paint, and put it under the faucet. While washing, she said: “The little Wen’er that old man Song mentioned was his son who died early. His name was Song Yunwen. He usually never talks about the past, but today he is drunk, and likely more emotional.”

Tao Mu’s heart softened and couldn’t help asking: “Then the old man hasn’t thought about building a new family for so many years?”

Dean Tao was silent for a while, and the movements of her hands also slowed. After a long period of time, she said lightly, “No. It’s probably because the past hurts too much. He kept saying that the fortune teller told him he was born under a murderous and unlucky star, killing his wife and his son, and that if he marries a wife and has children it will only bring harm to others and himself, therefore he should be alone all his life.”

“Can fortune tellers be taken seriously?” Tao Mu was someone who was reborn, and most disbelieved in fate. Hearing these words, he was very disapproving: “One’s life depends on how we live it. I don’t believe in fate. From now on, I will be the grandson of the old man, and I will stay with him for the rest of my life, support him in his retirement.”

After a pause, Tao Mu also said to dean Tao: “Dean, in my heart you are my grandmother. I will also support you in your retirement in the future.”

Tao Mu spoke this from the bottom of his heart. But he didn’t expect dean Tao to suddenly become angry, giving him a glare and scolding lowly, “What nonsense!”

Tao Mu was taken aback and watched dean Tao holding the enamel washbasin and walking under the grape rack to dry the clothes. The moonlight shone on half of her face and the outline of dean Tao could faintly be distinguished, revealing a mixture of sadness and joy.

Tao Mu scratched his head stupidly, and his brain, which had always been running fast, became more and more sluggish under the erosion of alcohol. He still didn’t manage to understand why dean Tao was suddenly angry at him.

Tao Mu, who couldn’t understand it, went into the west side room by himself——the Song family’s courtyard residence was the old-fashioned three-entry house. The front was changed by Song Daozhen to open the Song Ji restaurant. Further inside was the main courtyard. Old man Song lived in the main room by himself, and the side rooms on both sides were locked with big brass locks, and ordinarily no one was allowed in. Behind it was a back room, which was used to house the two workers in the restaurant. Later, the two workers got married and both moved out. Old man Song now used the back room as a warehouse utility room.

In the spacious and empty courtyard, Tao Mu had his own room, the west side room. It had been renovated according to Tao Mu’s preferences with air-conditioning, TV, and computer all available. Even the thickness of the bed was according to Tao Mu’s preference. The quilt was aired out every day, and it still smelled of the sunshine. Tao Mu felt drowsy as soon as he lay down, and quickly fell asleep in a short while.

Then in a hazy state, he dreamt of what happened when he was a child——

When Tao Mu was five years old, he broke into Song Ji’s back kitchen, hugged the old man Song’s leg and raised his head to call him grandpa. He had adorable looks, a sweet mouth, and was a tiny little thing. He begged old man Song with a childish voice to let him do some miscellaneous work for meals in Song Ji. He said that the meals at the orphanage were not good at all while the aroma of Song Ji’s food could even be smelled across the street: “Grandpa, your cooking is so fragrant, you must be very capable. I want to learn from you. I will work for you. I don’t want money, you can just give me a bite of food.”

What could a five-year-old kid do? Old man Song had a solitary temperament, and he was the most impatient of screaming troublemaking children that could be seen running up and down the alley. But Tao Mu was like a small fluffy ball, soft and white. When he hugged old man Song’s leg, old man Song could clearly feel that the child’s body temperature was higher than that of adults. He looked down at Tao Mu and saw that Tao Mu’s large doe-like eyes were full of him.

The old man Song felt his heart soften all at once. He thought of his son. When he was sent to work in the countryside, his wife couldn’t bear hardship, and abandoned his old mother and their child to remarry. His son had been wandering the streets since he was a child. Meals were inconsistent and was often hungry, perhaps just like Tao Mu. If someone was willing to stretch out a helping hand to his son at that time, maybe his son would not learn bad habits, and he would not be shot during the crackdown.

That was how Tao Mu stayed in Song Ji. He was too young to do heavy work so he just stayed in the back kitchen to help wash the dishes and vegetables. The old man Song taught Tao Mu to cook in his free time, from peeling potatoes and cutting potato shreds to decorative carving and preparing meals. Tao Mu learned from old man Song for seven or eight years. Training during the winters and the summers, such that there were layers of calluses on his hands, and faint scars on his fingers, but he had never complained of tiredness or bitterness.

So old man Song regarded Tao Mu as a direct disciple. In the times when the old man Song learned to cook, custom emphasized that a teacher for a day meant a father for life. When the master accepted an apprentice, he not only had to teach the apprentice the craftsmanship, but he also had to worry about the future for the apprentice, and even had to be concerned with important matters such as marriage. It was practically the same as a father and son relationship.

The old man Song also refurbished the side room to the west of the main room for Tao Mu, so that it was more convenient for Tao Mu to just rest there after finishing his homework and practicing the basic skills of knives every night. He didn’t have to go back and forth to the orphanage anymore. Tao Mu lived in the courtyard residence at the age of six until he entered junior high school at the age of twelve when some classmates began to joke that Tao Mu always smelled of ginger, garlic, and oil which was not very cool at all.

There were too many people who ridiculed him, so Tao Mu gradually didn’t want to work at Song Ji anymore. Instead he went to work in a western restaurant outside the alley because wearing a vest shirt looked more cool and fashionable than a gua (TN: Chinese-style unlined garment) and cloth shoes. Later, Tao Mu worked various “fashionable” odd jobs one after another. He was good-looking, sweet-mouthed, and easily attracted customers wherever he worked. So even if he was younger, everyone loved to hire him.

Tao Mu went to school during the day and worked at night, specifically looking for a place with staff dormitories. After work, he would sleep the night in the staff dormitory. He was a very stubborn person. Since he was not working in Song Ji anymore, he insisted on not mooching off at the courtyard residence of the Song family. But he would still go to Song Ji every weekend, taking all kinds of delicious Western food from his part-time jobs to see old man Song.

Old man Song scolded him every time he saw him, complaining that he was being ignorant and not doing proper work. So gradually, Tao Mu didn’t even like going to Song Ji anymore. Whenever he bought something new, he would just leave it with dean Tao and ask dean Tao to help him send it over to Song Ji.

By the summer vacation of his third year in middle school, Tao Mu went to work at Night by chance. The staff dormitory at Night was a high-end apartment that Liu Yao bought for investment. Too lazy to rent it out, he simply used it to house his employees. The decoration was luxurious and the location was also good, and there was a large floor-to-ceiling window in the living room. Standing in front of the floor-to-ceiling windows, one could practically see most of the city of Beijing. That was the best place Tao Mu had lived in since childhood. And the people in the shop were very fashionable. Whether it was a resident singer or the male hosts and MBs, each one looked better than the next and each one was richer than the next, wearing and using only famous brands.

These people were also good to Tao Mu. Knowing that Tao Mu was an orphan, they would give Tao Mu their outdated designer clothes that they didn’t like to wear, taught Tao Mu to sing, taught Tao Mu to mix drinks, taught Tao Mu how to use make up, and some even taught Tao Mu how to seduce rich women. However, after letting this be known by the boss, this certain male host was given a good beating.

But Night’s reputation was not very good. Someone saw him working at Night, and went back to gossip in front of old man Song. Old man Song angrily came and made a scene with his broomstick, insisting on taking Tao Mu back. That day also happened to be Tao Mu’s birthday. Everyone in Night had held a birthday party for Tao Mu. The boss Liu Yao even opened a bottle of wine, most of which was drunk by Tao Mu. When old man Song came over, Tao Mu was already drunk.

He very impatiently pulled away from old man Song, and told the old man to go back wherever he came from, and to not obstruct him in making money. He also said that old man Song was not anyone to him, and so he was not qualified to boss him around. He, Tao Mu, was an orphan with no father or mother, and even his parents didn’t want him. No one could control what he liked to do.

Old man Song slapped him severely that night, and walked away tremblingly. When he got home, he threw away all the dishes he had made that whole day, dumping them all into the trash along with Tao Mu’s favorite birthday peach.

Tao Mu only found out afterwards. He toughened his skin and went to apologize to old man Song. After saying many good things, old man Song was finally coaxed. But when old man Song told him to leave Night, Tao Mu was not happy. The two quarreled again, and Tao Mu ran back to Night in an unhappy mood. Then he went to apologize to Liu Yao for old man Song almost smashing Night the other day.

Tao Mu felt that the one who treated him best in Night was the boss Liu Yao and his wife Meng Qi. To curry favor with everyone, Tao Mu would often cook for everyone. He was only 14-15 years old at that time, and because he was good-looking and could talk, he made more money from selling alcohol than others. He helped the resident singer Kevin sing on his behalf, and he could collect seven to eighty thousand in tips for one night. All the girls at the bar would gather around to see him. But sometimes bad things happened. For example, when a drunk guest slapped him in a fit of anger; when he was slapped with a pile of money on the face in order to force him to accompany in drinking, a thousand yuan for one drink; and when he was bothered by a persistent customer who wanted to keep him. He had met all kinds of people.

Later, Liu Yao pushed him to go work in the back kitchen with the cooking, and prevented him from going out to deal with customers. Tao Mu had worked in Song Ji and western restaurants, and could do everything. And the customers especially recognized his craftsmanship. Brother Yao even dared to sell a plate of egg fried rice for 78 yuan. But Tao Mu didn’t like being in the back kitchen, so Liu Yao and Meng Qi coaxed him and were willing to give him a dividend. 50% of the 78 yuan that a plate of egg fried rice sold for. 30% of the 66 yuan a plate of sweet fermented riceballs sold for.

Tao Mu’s wallet swelled up all at once. But he learned how to spend money lavishly from the people at Night, and he was also one for enjoyment, so even if he made more money, not much was saved. Moreover, he also used the money to remodel the electric circuit of old man Song’s courtyard house. Buying old man Song a new LCD TV, refrigerator and air conditioner, and the latrine was also changed to a flushing toilet. Old man Song complained that he was being wasteful just because he had some money, so he fooled old man Song, saying that he would have to live here too when he came back later, and that he wouldn’t like to come back if the place was old and broken down.

At this, old man Song stopped complaining. As a result, the courtyard residence was remodeled but he never went back to live in it. After all, even after the remodeling, the courtyard residence was still just such an old shabby courtyard residence that could not compare in comfort to a high-end apartment.

Later at Night, he also met a few models who often came clubbing. Those little models played well with him, so they urged him into becoming a model and dressing up for those online clothing businesses. Tao Mu looked good and he was a natural clothes hanger. Whatever he wore, he could wear out his own style. Those online businesses also liked to use him as a model. It was a pity that Tao Mu did not go at a good time, it being winter at the time. In the winter in an unheated studio, he had to be shirtless while having his pictures taken so after the photoshoot which lasted for several hours, Tao Mu came down with a cold and got a fever when he went home. The few thousand yuan earned all went into buying medicine.

When Meng Qi was taking care of him, he also lectured him as well, calling him stupid for not being willing to enjoy his blessings. Was it not good to stay in the kitchen at Night every day, he didn’t even have to cook many dishes in a whole night. It was so much better making good money this easily than going out in the bitter winter and getting a cold.

Tao Mu was pretty innocent at that time. He didn’t pick up on Meng Qi and Liu Yao’s worries that the modeling circle was too messy and that a child like him would learn bad things if not under their noses. This was why they didn’t want him to play too closely with those models.

Tao Mu also felt that being a model was indeed really hard and not fun at all. So when that group of models called him again, he refused and did not go again. But Tao Mu had become interested in taking pictures. He went to the photographer who took pictures of him, and had him teach him to take pictures. After learning all he could, he then worked part-time in the photographer’s studio. The photographer was actually quite famous in the industry and occasionally picked up gigs photographing celebrity posters. He asked Tao Mu to be his assistant, and from him Tao Mu came in touch with the film and television circles.

At that time, it was Tao Mu’s third year in high school. He originally wanted to work directly without going to college after graduating from high school. In any case, he thought going to university might not let him earn as much as he did now. But, the photographer and the assistant at the advertising agency suggested Tao Mu to apply for a film and television school. They also said that Tao Mu was so good-looking and so smart, so long as he graduated from a professional school, he would definitely be a big star.

So Tao Mu was convinced by these people to apply for the art exam, passing both Beijing Film and Yan Film. In the end, he reported to Beijing Film——because old man Song didn’t agree with him being an actor, feeling that this was something particularly unreliable. Later, after asking around, he found out that after the students of Beijing Film Academy graduated, they would be able to become a drama actor at worst, and they were also arranged to have a permanent job post with insurance. Which was better than Yan Film where if graduates couldn’t find acting roles they would have to switch careers or go be an extra.

Tao Mu got a headache from arguing with old man Song, so when finally seeing old man Song softening on the matter, he didn’t bother to think about whether Beijing Film was right for him and just applied for Beijing Film directly.

Later, he went to H Town, where it was as if he had lived a whole lifetime, and then returned to Beijing. Where he then recognized two dads and a grandfather. Thinking about those old things from the past again, it was as if a layer of filter was added to them. He didn’t feel bitter at all. A heart that was always drifting like duckweed now settled firmly on the ground, as if a big tree had taken root, slowly germinating, stretching up and out freely and unrestrainedly.

The quiet moonlight passed through the window and quietly crawled into the western side room.

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Tao Mu unfurrowed his eyebrows in his sleep, and the corners of his lips curled upwards like the last quarter moon hanging high in the sky.

A teardrop quietly slipped from the corner of his eyes, disappearing after landing on the pillow.

Tao Mu dreamt as he slept deeply. In the dream, there was old man Song, his Yao Dad and Xiao Qi Dad, and also dean Tao…..

They were all his family.

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China’s adoption procedures were actually very troublesome. However, the conditions for adopting orphans, disabled children, or abandoned infants and children raised by social welfare institutions whose biological parents could not be found, also happened to be very liberal. The adopter was only required to be at least 30 years old. Liu Yao was thirty-nine years old this year, and Meng Qi was three years younger than him, so both of them met the age requirements for adopters. Moreover, the two of them were a married same sex couple and would not have children in the future.

You c an fi nd t he la te st cha pte rs at ( th e bl mu se . c o m )

The most important thing was that the adoptee Tao Mu had already reached the age of eighteen. According to the law, he was already a person with full capacity for civil conduct, and independently enjoyed civil rights and the undertaking of civil obligations. This meant that even if Liu Yao adopted Tao Mu, the two parties would not have any moral and legal risks due to the adopter’s sexual orientation.

So in order to go through the adoption procedures, only the agreement of both parties was needed in order to submit an adoption application to the orphanage, and then go to the adoption registration office to go through the relevant registration procedures, and finally make a stop at the local police station to register for a permanent household registration.

It was much simpler than adopting a child under 14 years old.

But even so it still took a full week for the three of them to go through all the procedures.

On the day the new household registration book was issued, Tao Mu was in a silly and happy state for a long time as he held the freshly minted household registration book. Slender fingers flipped back and forth between the front page and the page marked with all family members, and from time to time they would turn to a separate page with his own information listed on it. It stated the name Tao Mu, gender male, and his relationship with the head of the household…..

A thin book of about 143 mm long and 105 mm wide, was fumbled repeatedly by Tao Mu, almost even tearing it apart.

Tao Mu did not have his own household registration book. The children who grew up in the orphanage had only their own ID cards, but no household registration books. The household register of all orphans was registered on the collective household register of the orphanage. It was like a university student could put his household register under the university they attended.

Tao Mu did not move his household register when he returned to the Shen family in his last life. Don’t know if the original book’s plot halo was overly Mary Sue and made everyone ignore this, or for some other reason. Anyway, the Shen family didn’t mention ever transferring his household register. Tao Mu himself mentioned it once only to be ridiculed by Shen Yan who said that he “just returned to the Shen family and couldn’t wait to determine the separation of the family property without even recognizing the faces of everyone in the family yet” and that he “looked forward to the early death of his parents”. After that, this matter ceased to be brought up, and even until Tao Mu was later driven out of the Shen family, Tao Mu’s name was still never listed on the Shen family’s household registration book.

Until his death in his last life, he still had the extravagant hope that he could return to the Shen family again and be accepted by the Shen family. Therefore, even if he was kicked out by the Shen family, he never thought about setting up a separate household registration book. Even if he later bought his own property and villa in Shanghai, his household register was still linked to the collective household register of Shanghai University. Even if he had graduated, the school did not urge him to move his register out of the university’s collective one. Don’t know if that was the effect of the plot halo, making everyone forget about this, or because of other reasons.

It was worth mentioning that when Tao Mu drove Shen Yu out of the Shen family in his previous life, he did not propose to move Shen Yu’s household register from the Shen family. So until his death, Shen Yu’s household register remained with the Shen family. It was funny to think about it now. As the biological son of the Shen family, he wasn’t even worth a household register. But the cuckoo who occupied the nest overtly and without making any secret of it stayed on the Shen family’s household register and even the Shen family genealogical record.

It was no wonder that when Tao Mu made things difficult for Shen Yu, the old friends of the Shen family all stood forward to stop him. He had believed that it was because Shen Yu’s charm was indeed great, but now that he thought about it, it was clear that the attitude of the Shen family was too obvious, and everyone was happy to do such a simple favor for the Shen family.

After reliving his life, Tao Mu spent 30 to 40 years and finally got his own household registration book. When he went onto the household register, Liu Yao carefully asked him if he wanted to change his surname or something——Liu Yao didn’t mean anything else. He just wanted to tell Tao Mu that no matter what the surname of their little pup was, he still regarded Tao Mu as his son and in the future, Tao Mu was responsible for his retirement support. He would also hand over all the family property to Meng Qi and Tao Mu to inherit——it was to be a formal, legally recognized family relationship.

But after thinking about it for several days, Tao Mu decided not to change his surname. He was Tao Mu, neither Shen Mu nor Liu Mu. He was just himself. From now on, he would never hurt himself because of those people who didn’t even care about him.

Since he didn’t manage to live with a clear head in his previous life, he would relive it again in this life. An upright man changed neither his name nor surname. He wanted to use the name Tao Mu and relive his life with a clear head.

Liu Yao and Meng Qi recognized Tao Mu the person as their son, and did not pay much attention to Tao Mu’s name. Whether Tao Mu was Liu Mu or not, so long as it was his person then it was alright. So they did not waste any more time, and simply and directly put his name on the household registration book. From the police station, Liu Yao drove his Grand Cherokee, the co-pilot sitting Meng Qi as usual, and their freshly baked precious son in the backseat. The family of three drove straight to Song Ji.

Old man Song personally cooked, and almost didn’t make a full banquet table. There were nearly thirty dishes in a dazzling array, all of which Tao Mu liked to eat. Dean Tao, Feng Yuan, and the two workers in the restaurant helped out in the kitchen. Qin Miaoru and her brothers also helped.

——When Qin Miaoru came to Beijing, Tao Mu specially took them to Song Ji for a welcome reception. At that time, Qin Miaoru had taken a fancy to Houhai and felt that this place was full of the bustle of human life and friendly atmosphere. Even the cries of hawkers out on the streets and alleys heard every morning were particularly interesting. So she slapped her thigh and began to look around in Houhai, finally renting a three-story shop on the street two alleys away from Song Ji to open an Internet cafe. The business was also quite booming.

Moreover, Qin Miaoru and the others were quite a crowd, and they were also passionate and lively. Knowing the relationship between Tao Mu and dean Tao and old man Song, they liked to run over here when they had nothing else to do. Especially as it was October, when every household began to pickle cabbages, potatoes, radishes, and sauerkraut. Qin Miaoru had her burly brothers come to the orphanage and Song Ji to help out. Occasionally, they would also stay the night in the courtyard houses of Song Ji when it got too late. There were many rooms in the old man’s house anyway.

Later, the group of people simply connected the network cable to the old man’s courtyard residence, and even forced him to learn how to play games online. They also found him a few online chess games saying that “When you can’t find a chess friend, just play two games with netizens, lest you become bored.” If the old man didn’t like it, they would persist like sticky candy until the old man accepted these new things.

Old man Song was so annoyed that he wanted to raise the broomstick and beat this group of people out.

When Tao Mu was smeared by a dozen media outlets bought by Yao Wenxiao, the old man just learned how to type in Pinyin. Seeing someone scolding their little pup on the Internet, he registered a FlyNews account in anger overnight, and used his one-finger typing speed to launch a verbal battle against the other. After the other party already typed out a hundred sentences, he could barely finish a single sentence. This vexed the old man so much he began to curse in Beijing dialect. It truly let Qin Miaoru and gang experience the essence of Beijing style cursing.

Qin Miaoru immediately directed her group of brothers and the netizens who came to the Internet cafe, according to the favorable discount of helping to scold for an hour earning them another hour for free playing. Using the old man’s style of scolding, they fought the antis online for three days and three nights. Soon their Internet cafe even became famous after the scolding battle!

With such a comrade-in-arms-like friendship, the old man’s attitude towards Qin Miaoru and gang also eased a lot. The lonely old man finally got used to these noisy damn kids. He even shut down Song Ji for a few days and found a construction team to redecorate several wing rooms in the courtyard residence. Not only was the network cables connected, air conditioning and heating was also installed. The doors and windows, tables and chairs that the old man refused to repair despite them lacking arms and legs were now all repaired. The windows were replaced with new glass, and dim old light bulbs were replaced with new ones and covered with lampshades. Finally, with a cold face, he rented out a few wing rooms to Qin Miaoru and the gang——lest this bunch of young men and one girl could only squeeze into the private rooms of the Internet cafe to sleep. It really was not a proper way to live.

So when Tao Mu came back to the courtyard residence, he was pleasantly surprised to find that the courtyard was more livelier than before. In the formerly empty front yard, which made people feel empty when seeing it, there were all kinds of messy things lying about, all of which Qin Miaoru and the others had brought from the Internet cafe, and had not had time to arrange. The autumn sun poured down from the cracks between the branches of the lush old locust tree, and the whole yard was golden and warm, the whole place feeling more lived in than before.

He hooked up the corners of his mouth and gave Qin Miaoru a particularly pleased look——it was really worth it for him to pull Qin Miaoru from H Town to Song Ji. Sure enough, their old man liked this bunch of rough-and-ready, coarse types who were more likely to follow the code of righteousness than those clever “proper” folks.

While everyone was not paying attention, Qin Miaoru approached Tao Mu and lowered her voice: “My internet cafe opened for a month and earned more than 100,000 yuan. The money you lent me to open the internet cafe, should I pay back some of it first?”

“No.” Tao Mu waved his hand quietly. He originally brought Qin Miaoru and gang out of H Town, on the one hand, because he valued Zhang Fei’s talent, and on the other hand, he valued Qin Miaoru’s character and integrity. Of course Tao Mu also knew that it was difficult to make a living in the capital. So as soon as Qin Miaoru arrived in Beijing, Tao Mu lent one million yuan to Qin Miaoru. No matter what business Qin Miaoru wanted to do in the future, there would always be a million yuan to rely on: “I am not in a hurry to spend money. Your Internet cafe has just opened and needs working capital, lest something happens and you don’t have the funds to solve it.”

“By the way, you opened the Internet cafe in Houhai, right. Have you taken care of all official procedures and everything?” Tao Mu asked again. The business of operating an Internet cafe was not the same as other businesses, and one must understand what needed to be taken care of.

“Don’t worry.” Qin Miaoru smiled and patted Tao Mu on the shoulder: “Brother Yao helped us very much. With him, things are much easier. It’s easier than when I first went to H Town.”

Tao Mu knew Liu Yao’s abilities and connections so he nodded immediately, and suddenly realized: “You can’t call him brother Yao now.”

“Huh?” Qin Miaoru was confused, and then she reacted instantly, and said with a mischievous smile: “Then I will change it to uncle Yao in the future?”

Tao Mu smiled and gave Qin Miaoru a “you got it” look, and then entered the room.

“What are you whispering outside? The food is getting cold.” The old man glared at Tao Mu with an annoyed look: “Not even active when eating, hurry up and wash your hands.”

“Ai~” Tao Mu answered in a happy tone, and ran off to wash his hands. When he came back, he personally poured wine for the old man, dean Tao, Liu Yao and Meng Qi. When he attempted to pour it for Feng Yuan, Feng Yuan took the wine bottle. The child first poured a glass for Tao Mu, and then one by one he poured down the table until everyone’s wine glasses were full.

Liu Yao raised his glass with a flushed and happy face: “Today is a day of great joy for our family of three. Thank you, old man, for taking care of this meal for us. You have worked so hard. I also thank everyone for helping us. I represent our family of three to make a toast to everyone.”

Everyone toasted and drank together with smiles. It was just that when drinking, the old man sighed a little: “I wanted to adopt this stinky boy early on. At that time, he was still small, and because of the previous incident, he refused to be adopted. Saying that he didn’t want to be abandoned by adoptive parents again. So I never mentioned it again. It seems that we have no father and son fate.”

The old man’s remarks were full of bitterness. Immediately the table full of festive people quieted down. Everyone looked at each other, and dean Tao couldn’t help but console: “Don’t think like this. We all know this child, Tao Mu, is kind and righteous. Even if you are not recognized as a father by him, he will not forget your kindness to him.”

Old man Song sighed silently. Of course he knew Tao Mu’s disposition. But without this level of relationship, it was still lacking something after all. Maybe like a fortune teller said earlier in his life, he was fated to be lonely and bring misfortune to everyone close to him, killing his wife and son and destined to die alone.

Tao Mu couldn’t bear it anymore. He picked up the bottle and poured a glass of wine. He walked to the old man and then bent his knees and knelt down suddenly: “Old man, I know you are very good to me. I, Tao Mu, was an ungrateful wretch before. But not anymore. If you believe me, I will treat you as my grandfather, my dear grandfather from now on. I will definitely support you in the future and provide for you in old age.”

After finishing talking, before Song Daozhen could react, he kowtowed three times, knocking his forehead to the floor.

Song Daozhen was stunned. After being frozen for a long time, trembling hands took the wine glass in Tao Mu’s hand, and before it was even brought to his mouth, practically half of the wine in the shaking glass was spilled out. The old man’s eyes reddened, and tears fell into the wine glass. The old man drank the wine mixed with tears in one gulp.

“Good! Good!” Song Daozhen clenched the wine glass with one hand and patted his thigh fiercely, unable to say another word.

This time it was Liu Yao sitting on the sidelines who felt conflicted. The nearly forty-year-old big man looked at his freshly baked precious son with melancholy. His precious son hadn’t even called him dad yet, but he first recognized a grandfather for himself.

However, they all knew the relationship between Song Daozhen and Tao Mu. So even if he was jealous, he was unable to voice it. Coupled with the fact that both Liu Yao and his wife also knew about Song Daozhen’s past, it was inevitable to feel slightly sad when seeing the old man holding back tears at this moment.

It was not easy to be alone for so many years.

Liu Yao and Meng Qi sighed, and saw Tao Mu pouring two more glasses of wine and kneeling before them. Before he even spoke, Tao Mu himself could not help but flush red. Even after a few days of mental preparation, this kind of change was still embarrassing.

Tao Mu took a deep breath and shouted, “Dad, have a drink.”

Liu Yao froze immediately and then let out a shiver. It was Meng Qi who reacted first, took the glass of wine that Tao Mu poured Liu Yao, drank it contentedly, and responded loudly, “Ai, my good son.”

As he spoke, he took out the red envelope that he had prepared for a long time from his pocket——Meng Qi thought at the time that if Tao Mu called him dad, it would be a name-changing fee. If he was too embarrassed to change the way he called them, it would be just a normal red envelope. In any case, there must be such a ceremony anyway. After all, for such a festive event as recognizing a son, there must be a red envelope.

Liu Yao didn’t react until Meng Qi finished up all the wine. He glanced aggrievedly at Meng Qi——only for Meng Qi to look back with a smile. He instantly rubbed his nose and remained silent.

Alright then. I am the head of the household on the household registration book, while you are the head of our family. It makes sense to toast you first.

Liu Yao comforted himself, stretched out his hand to take the wine glass that Tao Mu handed him and drank it. He then gave Tao Mu a red envelope as well.

When everyone saw this, they clapped their hands with a sense of ceremony. Dean Tao looked at the happy family of three, and joked with Song Daozhen, who was holding his tears and emotions back: “You see how suitable you are. Earlier, if you adopted Xiao Mu, you could only adopt one son. Now how good it is, you even have two sons along with a grandson. There are three generations of family members you have here. I hope that the fourth generation will come along soon.”

Liu Yao, who had just taken a gulp of the wine, had not even had time to be thankful that he had become a father: “…..”

Meng Qi, who also became a new father: “…..”

You c an fi nd t he la te st cha pte rs at ( th e bl mu se . c o m )

Only Tao Mu rubbed his nose with a guilty conscience and lowered his head.

There should be no problem with three generations of family members. But it was difficult to speak of a fourth generation——

After all, he was not going to be having any children in this life_(:з)∠)_

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The police arrived very quickly. FlyNews Entertainment’s reporters also ran up carrying their cameras, seeming to wordlessly say that we will expose you if you continue to make trouble. In the presence of so many people, mother Shen and Yao Wenxiao didn’t want to turn the situation into an even uglier one, so they forced the resentful Shen Yan and the aggrieved Shen Yu, who appeared as if he had been wronged terribly, to leave.

A group of FlyNews employees surrounded Tao Mu: “Mr. Tao, are you alright?”

“Mr. Tao, are you okay?”

You c an fi nd t he la te st cha pte rs at ( th e bl mu se . c o m )

“Mr. Tao, if you encounter this kind of person again, you should directly report to the police. We normal people have no way to communicate with them. We’d be at a disadvantage.”

The big fellas in the security department also looked frustrated: “Next time they dare to come and make trouble, can we just throw them out? They are also trespassing into the private sector without permission, right? Making trouble in our territory, it’s too arrogant!”

They really didn’t understand why Tao Mu made repeated orders not to let them do it. If this was Night, absolutely no one dared to be so arrogant.

Tao Mu rubbed his temples tiredly: “Thank you everyone. I’m fine. Everyone, you can all go back to work.”

Yun Yi, who had been keeping watch over the National School Beauty And Hunk Selection Competition, also heard of this and came over from the shooting location next door: “How are you, are you alright?”

“I’m fine.” Tao Mu had already become used to the outrageous style of the Shen family and Shen Yu, as well as Shen Yu’s admirers, back in his previous life. Although he was a little tired at the moment, he was not all that affected.

He quickly brushed it off.

Upon seeing this, Yun Yi smiled and said, “As expected of someone who wants to be an actor, your psychological endurance is good.”

Tao Mu smiled bitterly: “Big brother Yun, don’t tease me. By the way, the recording of the show is going well, right?”

Because Yao Wenxiao bribed the media to discredit him, it even implicated FlyNews and the National School Beauty And Hunk Selection Competition. Although he and Night dispelled the rumors in a timely manner, there were some things that could not pass so easily just because the rumors were dispelled.

“Everything is going well. It’s just the contestants…..” Yun Yi paused slightly, and said, “Some contestants felt very guilty that they had wronged you. At that time, when you were under attack they didn’t stand up to speak for you and even insisted on forfeiting the show. They feel quite embarrassed and want to apologize to you.”

“It’s not their fault.” Tao Mu waved his hand and understood it very clearly: “Everyone originally didn’t know each other well, and we just met together and had the opportunity to work together for a period of time. They neither knew who I am, nor do they know my past. So naturally there is no need to explain anything to me.”

Tao Mu believed that he was not broad-minded, but he was also not a person who liked to quibble over insignificant matters. At best, he had only seen those contestants a handful of times and had a few work related meals. He had no position to ask those people to believe in him, and naturally there was no need for those people to do so. People naturally seek advantages and avoid disadvantages. Everyone was just colleagues, not a relative or friend. So long as they could cooperate with each other in work, there was really no need to demand something like loyalty.

Besides, everyone who Tao Mu really cared about all stepped forward. Liu Yao, Meng Qi, Dean Tao, old man Song, Da Mao, Xiao Pang, Feng Yuan, and even the three roommates in dorm 301 trusted him unconditionally, trying their best to clarify the rumors for him and help him get out of the predicament. Friends like Gou Rixin and Qin Miaoru also called to express concern and care for him. Many of the students of the 2008 Beijing Film class spoke for him on FlyNews. Yun Yi also tried his best to stand up for him and stabilize the overall situation, even delaying classes and his internship at the hospital. Even Long Tianao, that dunce, also went on FlyNews to scold the unscrupulous media and stood on his side. He even arranged for Summer Star Entertainment’s artists to speak for him when being interviewed by the media. He almost even held a press conference.

Li Xiaoheng, who was far away in Country M, also called to ask him if he needed help, and directly mentioned that he was his business partner in an interview for a financial magazine, mentioning his gratefulness for his advice in the futures market.

Although due to time difference and geographical relations, the interview did not cause any sensation in China yet. But Tao Mu was still very moved.

So long as the people around him believed and supported him, Tao Mu didn’t really care what outsiders thought.

What was more, after this incident broke out, many business partners and potential business partners who had exchanges of interests with Tao Mu also stepped up to help him. For example, Luo Xi and Luo Yang, the crew of “Gun King”, who had worked happily with FlyNews Entertainment before, and Chairman Luo, who rarely give interviews to reporters. He actually made a rare log in to his FlyNews account and reprimanded the unscrupulous media for ignoring facts for sales and accused them for wantonly discrediting young and talented entrepreneurs. He also pointed out that some media companies did not know how to improve their own strength, and instead only knew bad behavior such as manipulating behind the scenes and doing unfair business competition.

Gao Yonghuai, the CEO of Weibo, directly criticized the unscrupulous media for disregarding the facts and spreading rumors on his Weibo account, and announced that this greatly embarrassed the rest of the media industry.

It was worth mentioning that Wang Boyuan and Yan Sheng, who were constantly @ by netizens and fans: one said that Tao Mu’s acting skills were really great in a reporter’s interview, and it really delighted him; and the other modestly expressed during a media interview that he look forward to the opportunity to cooperate with Tao Mu. Guo Yaning, the heroine of “Faraway Jianghu” who was not @, also took the initiative to speak out, saying that Tao Mu’s acting skills were indeed not lacking when compared to Wang Boyuan’s, and that during a few times when she acted a scene with Tao Mu she was actually pulled into the scene by him. She also added that Tao Mu’s photography skills were actually better than his acting skills. Then through the media, she asked Tao Mu if he still remembered his promise to help her shoot an MV…..

Before everything even became clear, Guo Yaning’s open statement caused a shock in the entertainment industry. Therefore, some gossip media speculated whether the reason Guo Yaning was so strongly supportive of Tao Mu, who was quite a lot younger than her, was because there was an inappropriate deal between them. All kinds of foul language came forth, and they really casted a shadow on Guo Yaning’s image.

No matter what motive Guo Yaning had, Tao Mu still appreciated that she was able to stand up and speak for him at that time. So after seeing Guo Yaning’s interview, he immediately called to express his gratitude. Guo Yaning replied on the phone that he was welcome. She admitted that the reason she stood up for him was because she was optimistic about Tao Mu, and also to get a wave of attention for herself. On a side note, she also reminded Tao Mu not to forget to help her shoot the MV.

“If you are a man, then don’t go back on your lose word.”

Tao Mu took this matter to heart. So after discussing with Yun Yi about the recording plan for the finals of the “National School Beauty and Hunk Selection Competition”, even if he was still very busy, Tao Mu put aside his business and rushed to Guo Yaning’s studio to thank her in person and discuss the specific matters of shooting the MV.

Guo Yaning wore an evening dress with a bright red and long skirt, as if she was ready to walk the red carpet. In fact, she was indeed about to attend a charity reception. After seeing Tao Mu, she also invited: “I happen to be missing a male companion. Would you like to go with me?”

“No thanks.” Tao Mu smiled bitterly and said frankly: “I have been wrapped in trouble recently and don’t want to show up in public.”

Guo Yaning smiled, pointed her slender finger to Tao Mu, and said to her agent: “This is the talented actor and photographer I told you about. Now it seems that he is also a talented entrepreneur.”

Guo Yaning’s agent was a woman in her forties, with a normal appearance but a very queen-like aura. She wore a classic OL suit with wavy curly hair falling down her shoulders. She particularly appeared like a dominant career woman in the workplace.

“Hello, Mr. Tao.” She took the initiative to reach out a hand to Tao Mu, smiling as she greeted: “I often hear Ya Ning mention you, and your name travels like thunder. Seeing you today, you are indeed young and promising, with an extraordinary bearing.”

“You praise me too much.” Tao Mu said modestly with a humble smile: “I should say sorry for causing such big troubles to Teacher Guo.”

“Only the mediocre do not inspire jealousy. Has anyone in the entertainment industry not been criticized? If one day, Ya Ning did not invoke any interest no matter what she did, then I really would have a headache.” Guo Yaning’s agent was very open-minded. In fact, she had been with Guo Yaning for so many years, promoting Guo Yaning from an unknown little actor to an A-list actress. During that period, Guo Yaning had experienced quite a lot of scolding from the public. If you really take it to heart, how could you make it through your days?

Speaking of this, Guo Yaning’s agent consoled Tao Mu: “Mr. Tao doesn’t have to worry too much, let alone get angry. I think this is a good opportunity for the public to get to know you better. You can also take advantage of this situation to promote FlyNews. In fact, in the entertainment industry, publicizing contentious news is also a way of stirring hype. There are many celebrities who even deliberately flash some flesh while out in public in order to get attention. Compared with these people, your black material is really not all that shocking. What’s more, those black materials are not even real.”

Tao Mu smiled when he heard these words: “Thank you for your nice words. After hearing what you said, I suddenly feel much better.”

Guo Yaning glanced at her agent with a smile, and then at Tao Mu: “Sister Xuan is just happy to see a talent. Would you like to think about it and let sister Xuan be your agent?”

Tao Mu smiled warmly: “Thank you for your kindness, sister Xuan. I’m temporarily mired in mundane affairs, and Beijing Film has school rules that I must follow so I will not be going to join a talent agency or studio within two years.”

Guo Yaning smiled slightly: “Yes, with your current status and ability, you can set up your own studio when you are filming in the future. There is no need to sign with someone else.”

Guo Yaning was also a very clearheaded person, so this topic was stopped there. Instead, the two began to talk about shooting the MV. Guo Yaning told Tao Mu the style and feeling she wanted: “I just like your lens language. I think I am very beautiful under your lens, and possess a special style and aura. As you know, I’m not a professional singer. In director Cheng’s words, I just sing with my face. So my requirements for the MV are quite high. You can see how you plan to shoot it. If you need anything, just mention it, I will cooperate with you on everything.”

Tao Mu looked at the script for shooting the MV provided by Guo Yaning, and went to the recording studio to listen to Guo Yaning’s songs in person, and finally said: “Let me go back and think about it, and I will give you an answer in three days.”

“Okay.” Guo Yaning paused and said with a smile: “Actually, I am not in a hurry. My new album will be released on Valentine’s Day next year, so you have a few months of shooting time. The reason why I called you here so early is because I want to catch some of your current heat. If you don’t mind, can I let my studio make an announcement of this first?”

Tao Mu laughed, he liked Guo Yaning’s straightforward style: “No problem.”

Guo Yaning was able to stand up and speak for Tao Mu when he was smeared by more than a dozen media, which was a great personal risk. Tao Mu would not refuse Guo Yaning’s request even if just to pay back the favor. Besides, Guo Yaning’s studio issuing a cooperation announcement at this time was also advantageous for him.

Coming out of Guo Yaning’s studio, Tao Mu once again received a call from Meng Qi: “Did Shen Yu go to FlyNews to make trouble today?”

Brother Xiao Qi’s voice sounded very exasperated on the phone: “Shen Yu just accepted an interview. He cried to the reporter during the interview, saying that you are very cruel and cold, and that your refusal to accept his apology made him very sad. His sister also said that the employees of FlyNews were extremely violent, accusing them of bullying women and children in large numbers, and even calling the police to throw them out of FlyNews headquarters. Now this newspaper reporter contacted me and asked if I wanted to suppress this interview?”

Tao Mu rubbed his temples, feeling a headache coming on: “Forget it. Don’t pay attention to him. He can just say whatever he likes.” This kind of person, the more you care about him, the more energetic he gets. Anyway, he was not a person who could be reasoned with. So long as Shen Yu’s halo couldn’t affect him, Tao Mu really didn’t want to bother having any contact with this group of people.

Whether they liked to throw dirty water or curse and scold, they could go right ahead. Anyway, it was not as if he hadn’t been smeared or scolded before.

“Okay, I’ll listen to you.” On the phone, Meng Qi didn’t quibble over this. But then the tone of the conversation changed, and he said very solemnly: “Xiao Mu, come over now. Liu Yao and I have very important things to discuss with you.”

Tao Mu’s heart sank and he couldn’t think of what his brother Yao and brother Xiao Qi were going to say to him. He hurriedly had the driver drive to Liu Yao’s house at the fastest speed.

Tao Mu panted from climbing up the stairs in a rush, and when he entered the door, he saw Liu Yao sitting on the sofa in the living room with a fierce expression on his face. The coffee table, which had always been messy and covered with fruits and cups of chrysanthemum wolfberry tea, was now very clean. Only an adoption application was placed on it. Liu Yao stared at the adoption application form murderously as if he was facing a major enemy, holding his breath and concentrating on his dantian. (TN: dantian=point two inches below the navel where one’s qi resides)

Meng Qi, who had always been able to keep his cool in front of people and never exposed too much personal emotions, also rubbed his hands very nervously. The magnetic and gentle voice was stretched taut with nerves like a bowstring: “Tao Mu, your brother Yao and I want to formally propose to adopt you from the orphanage. Do you think it’s okay?”

Tao Mu was stunned.

Before Tao Mu could speak, Liu Yao suddenly said stiffly: “This time, the bastard surnamed Yao bought more than a dozen media to discredit you. Even if we responded in time and took the bastards to court, some people still say things about you working at Night. Those motherfuckers even dare to spread rumors, that I——” Am keeping you!

“So I discussed with your brother Meng Qi. Anyway, for so many years, we have seen you as a son. So how about formalizing the relationship this time. As you know,I and your brother Xiao Qi are gay. In this life we will definitely not have a second child, so we will never abandon you like your first adoptive parents did when they had their own child——”

“Liu Yao, what are you talking about!” Meng Qi raised his voice, interrupting Liu Yao’s blurted out words.

You c an fi nd t he la te st cha pte rs at ( th e bl mu se . c o m )

He turned his head to look at Tao Mu, who was completely stunned, and his expression gentled as he said patiently: “In short, it can be regarded as a stopgap measure. No matter what suspicions the outside world has about you or Night, as long as our family’s adoption relationship is officially determined, if they dare to talk nonsense, we will take the official adoption forms and sue them one by one. We will definitely not let you feel wronged at all.”

Tao Mu clenched his teeth and squeezed his fists, feeling his eyes stinging. Soon big teardrops began to fall despite himself.

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