After waiting until the next afternoon, Tao Mu, who received another call from brother Yao, approached Zhang Hanya’s uncle, Zhang Delu. He was also the most troublemaking and scheming male family member in the Zhang family.

“…..This address is your house number, right!” In front of Zhang Delu, Tao Mu rattled off an address number, and asked: “I heard that you gamble and owe a lot of usury. I say, you are quite daring, even daring to owe debts to brother Dong. Don’t you know that brother Dong has the most cruel and darkest methods to deal with debtees?”

Zhang Delu hadn’t thought that after just a few days, all of his dealings would be found out by Tao Mu. Instantly he was surprised and scared: “What, what do you mean by this?”

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

“I don’t mean anything.” Tao Mu sneered: “I just want to say that I don’t care about your family’s affairs. But you can’t mess up my affairs.”

“I also know that your family does not have it easy. None of the family members have a serious job. The men in the family are not only incapable but also gamble and borrow usury. For so many years, you have relied on women and work odd jobs outside to support the family. It is very sad actually. By the way, I sent someone to visit your house yesterday. Bought some fruit and canned foods for the old ladies, and bought some snacks and toy cars for the children. Your wife told you about it, right?”

Zhang Delu’s heart once again jumped. Tao Mu spoke nicely, but he found out the address of their home without a problem, and sent a bald headed man with tattoos and gold chains to deliver fruit to their home. The words he spoke were also very unclear and ambiguous. The underlying meaning and threat in all of this was very obvious.

Since Zhang Delu was a person who gambled outside and owed usury, he could naturally figure out the truth here.

People like him, with soft bones, could do anything for money. But it was precisely his kind of people who were best at knowing when to take danger seriously. Knowing who could provoke and who he could never provoke. To put it in an ugly way, he would bully the weak and fear the strong.

At present, in his eyes, Tao Mu was one of the difficult and hard fellows, someone who he must never provoke.

“What, what do you want to do?” Zhang Delu looked at Tao Mu with shifty eyes, and said, “I, I say, you want to be a big star. You’d better not be foolish.”

“As long as you don’t get in my way.” Tao Mu glanced at Zhang Delu expressionlessly, and suddenly chuckled, “Mr. Zhang is a smart man. I know what you want, isn’t it just the medical expenses! I can give you a satisfactory solution to the matter. But you must guarantee that there will be no next time. If you dare to trouble the crew or the Yun family in the future, don’t blame me for not saying the ugly things upfront.”

Zhang Delu’s heart felt like it was riding a roller coaster. He was curious about Tao Mu’s idea and also afraid that Tao Mu would settle accounts afterwards: “What do you want?”

Tao Mu snorted. He ignored Zhang Delu. The best way to deal with this kind of person was not to give a slap and then a sweet jujube, but to give a sweet jujube and then severely break his legs. That way he would know how it hurts and know to be afraid. In this way, he wouldn’t be thinking about that sweet jujube anymore, haunting you from time to time for more sweets and nauseating you.

Tao Mu left Zhang Delu aside, and first went back to the shooting location of “Faraway Jianghu” to visit the set and everyone. As soon as he entered the crew, he apologized to everyone——he brought some of the most famous popular snacks in H town, and handed them out one by one. Then, taking advantage of the filming break, he went into the director’s lounge with Cheng Baodong and a few bigwigs to discuss donations.

——After all, the Zhang family had brought the matter to the media. Whether they liked it or not, if they didn’t give an explanation, this matter would likely not blow over.

“In fact, we should think about it from another angle. Just spending a couple hundred thousand yuan donations could create a social hotspot for “Faraway Jianghu” which might be more effective than that of you deliberately spending money to buy ads for marketing, right?” And this kind of social hotspot came with discussions and debates that could last for a very long time. No matter how much time had passed, so long as it was mentioned, there would always be people discussing it.

The group of bigwigs looked at each other and didn’t speak. Cheng Baodong sneered and unceremoniously retorted: “Easy for you to say. Creating a social hotspot. Do you think that the mainstream media is yours? You can create it just because you want to?”

One couldn’t quibble on minor matters when you talk to people like Cheng Baodong and instead grasp the main point of the topic and keep plowing on directly so as not to be disrupted by his deliberately antagonistic words. If he was actually distracted by his annoying words then it would be over. Who knew what year they would be able to bring the topic back to the main point.

Therefore, Tao Mu ignored Cheng Baodong’s aggressiveness and patiently analyzed: “MLM, abduction, women’s rights, and doctor-patient relationships, no matter when, these are the most important topics of the country and the people. Especially the two in the middle. We can start from the topic of human traffickers and women’s rights, and bribe some media to follow the case. Start some topics on the Internet, such as the crime of abduction and rape, and the different sentencing methods for domestic violence crimes in marriage, and discuss why some crimes of abduction and rape have the same sentences given to crimes of domestic violence in marriage.”

“You can also ask a reporter to break the news that after arriving at the hospital, the Zhang family insisted that the police and the hospital should not have performed operations without their ‘permission’, using this as an excuse to force the hospital to be responsible for them. We can discuss the matter or diverge our thinking. Let the netizens discuss the relationship between doctors and patients, as well as the so-called “the world is made up of parents” and “my oddity of parents”. Of course, the crew of “Faraway Jianghu” as a direct participant in this case, expresses deep sympathy and regret for Zhang Hanya’s experience and also couldn’t bear for the police and the hospital to face any difficulties that would chill everyone’s heart to save the wounded. So, the crew is willing to organize donations and be responsible for little Hanya’s medical expenses but also appeal to little Hanya’s relatives to take the overall situation seriously and not be petty by hurting the hearts of the police and doctors for one’s own profit——after all, we can’t let the hero shed tears on top of the blood and sweat! I can make a statement first, I am willing to donate the 100,000 yuan I got from the crew. The money is not much, just a little bit of sincerity.”

Did Tao Mu care about money? Of course he cared. But Tao Mu cared more about what could be done with money than just money itself!

When everyone heard Tao Mu’s idea that he put forward in such a simple and light attitude, they couldn’t help but be shocked. Tao Mu’s actions made it clear he planned to ruin the Zhang family. The phrase “we can’t let the hero shed tears on top of the blood and sweat” directly put the Zhang family in the position of an ungrateful villain.

When the news media printed these articles, it was likely that everyone in the Zhang family would not be able to hold their heads up in front of their relatives and friends. What’s more important was that Tao Mu’s wave of momentum would definitely not stop until it turned this matter into a social hotspot. And this case had not been officially closed yet. When the case was over, the crew could also take advantage of the situation and incite another wave of discussion.

And another significant point was that this type of case, coupled with Tao Mu’s hype style, would have the whole country discussing societal matters. And it was not a one time thing, but even in the future——so long as there was a need, it could be pulled out again at any time, setting off a frenzy of discussion once again.

Everytime the topic was brought up, the Zhang family would once again be pulled out by various media to point fingers at. For the Zhang family, after putting such a hat on, it would be difficult to pull the hat off.

Too ruthless!

Tao Mu turned a blind eye to the bigwigs’ scrutiny, and smiled as he continued to advise these bigwigs: “Finally, we can also stand from the perspective of the crew and the industry and persuade those young people who are young and have never been involved in society to not just go to unfamiliar places to visit celebrities. Emphasize the danger and uncertainty of this behavior, then register an official account on Weibo where you can post these safety tips, and inspire the public’s good feelings.”

“Don’t those media reporters surrounding the crew want interviews? I think that everyone can also talk about your attitudes during the interview. For example, if there is no business, there is no harm. Discuss this from the perspective of equality and even feminism. You can also start from the doctor-patient relationship and the doctor’s trouble. Director Cheng is the director, so he can take advantage of this incident to make a few movies with similar themes. If done well, maybe you can even get an award!”

Cheng Baodong’s face changed and changed again. Looking at Tao Mu, he didn’t speak for a long time.

The other bigwigs also had lingering fears.

——Tao Mu’s method was too ruthless. It was like a wolf cub who had always hidden its fangs finally stretched out sharp claws. Before that, although these bigwigs talked about the child being too scheming and manipulative, they didn’t feel much realistically. At most, it was just echoing others. It was a kind of condescending evaluation, added with a little sympathy for the weak. After all, Tao Mu, a kid who just graduated from high school, was not even an official actor. In front of the big names who had long been established in the entertainment circle, he posed no significance or deterrent at all.

But now, everyone was deeply aware of Tao Mu’s scheming and ruthless methods——today his methods were used to deal with the hooligans that were the Zhang family. But tomorrow, it could be used against anyone in this room.

The main point was that even though everyone was more famous and influential than Tao Mu, if they really ran into this kind of thing, it was likely they wouldn’t be able to hold up against the onslaught of attacks. They would absolutely not be able to escape without losing a layer of skin.

And on top of that, Tao Mu spent at most one and a half days to come up with such a method. With a flicker of an eye, he came up with an idea, and a very vicious and ruthless one that could ruin any person.

How could this child be so ruthless at such a young age. Then, when he came into contact with them, was he also holding back so many bad thoughts?

Tao Mu noticed a change in the mentality of these people. But he didn’t care about it.

He had already anticipated this kind of reaction when he came to visit the set today to apologize and give everyone his idea.

He did it intentionally.

From childhood to adulthood, Tao Mu had deeply realized a truth. That was, in the process of interacting with people, you couldn’t just show your weakness. You had to show off your claws when necessary to increase your weight in the eyes of others. This way, when you asked someone to do something, they wouldn’t be negligent and perfunctory just because they thought they could treat you lightly and get away with it. This way it would not delay things.

Just like today, Tao Mu used the matter of the Zhang family to deliberately set up a trap. But this group of celebrities and big directors who had been roasted on the fire by the Zhang family and the media reporters had no choice but to jump into his trap——to say something ugly, those who jumped into the turmoil of the entertainment circle were either in it for fame or profit. Maybe there were some people who didn’t admire fame and wealth, but Tao Mu hadn’t met one so far.

He got along with these people for a month, and he had already figured out the nature of these people. They were not necessarily bad, but they did took pride and showed arrogance in their reputation and status, liked to listen to flattery, wanted to become famous, wanted to make money, and especially wanted to be treated like royalty——it could be said that those Tao Mu deliberately made friends with were actually the batch of people that were relatively easy to coax.

They were motive driven, but their scheming skills were not as dark as the financial and business circle. Even when angered, there were only so many retaliatory methods they could use to enact revenge. It would not hurt or itch or injure him badly, so in other words, simply too easy to handle.

Just like now——Tao Mu spoke his plan and pointed out the ready-made heat and popularity attached to it. Add to the fact that the Zhang family and media reporters were practically offering themselves, so long as these people didn’t want any more trouble, they had no choice but to pinch their nose and carry out the plan.

Seeing that the faces of these people flickered with many emotions only to finally make up their minds, Tao Mu knew that this matter was basically decided.

Speaking of, the reason why he revealed these arrangements straightforwardly was because he was not afraid that this group of people would back out at the last minute. After all, no one could read other people’s hearts. After listening to Tao Mu’s words, these bigwigs had to weigh the matter in their minds——if they quit this plan now, would those who were willing to rub the heat and increase their popularity hold grudges against them? Think that they were just acting pretentious? Would they worry that they would speak out about these arrangements and ruin such a good marketing plan?

When the time came, they not only wouldn’t be able to make clear their upright stance but also receive many suspicions aimed at them. How many of those who succeed in the entertainment industry were pure and kind virgin marys?

One step forward was a sweet jujube, and one step backward was a big stick. No one would want to put himself in a bad spot just for a bunch of irrelevant hooligans. Many times, circles were formed in this way——not because you had lofty ideals and common ambitions, but because a large group had done something that was not so upright and not easy to reveal to others.

For example, using the Zhang family as a stepping stone to promote the popularity of the entire crew of “Faraway Jianghu”.

Tao Mu smiled and watched as this group of bigwigs quickly settled their internal struggles, and began to seriously discuss how to improve the plan.

While discussing, this group of bigwigs also observed Tao Mu secretly. Tch, now he didn’t say anything and instead pretended to be a big clove of garlic——was it because he was coming up with something bad in his heart, wondering how to plot against them?

This was a misunderstanding of Tao Mu.

After being reborn, Tao Mu did indeed have a lot of celebrity black material on hand. Including that of these few people in front of him: for example, a certain big director and the financial and props department of the crew had teamed up together to cheat investors’ of their money; for example, a certain old veteran actor who would often show his image of a good husband who loved his family to the public was actually keeping a young and beautiful dancer outside; another example was that the biggest bigwig in this room, a certain female celebrity, was actually the mistress of a certain business tycoon…..

But Tao Mu really never thought about using these black materials. He just habitually memorized this kind of stuff. After all, this kind of thing was similar to a spare tire, maybe one day it could be used.

***

It must be said that while these bigwigs appear hesitant and conflicted on the surface, they were actually faster than anyone when implementing the plan.

On the second day after Tao Mu gave everyone his advice, Cheng Baodong held a temporary press conference with the A-list celebrities and the main actors of the whole crew. At the press conference, it was solemnly announced that in order to support the police’s abduction operations, the “Faraway Jianghu” crew would donate 1 million yuan to set up a charity relief fund specifically to help pitiful women who had been abducted by human traffickers and violently assaulted to pay for their medical expenses. In addition, one-tenth of the box office money of the movie would be injected into this charity relief fund after the release of “Faraway Jianghu”.

And the first person to receive this charity relief fund’s donation was a young girl who had been cheated into an MLM den and had almost been abducted by human traffickers, but was rescued by the police at the critical moment to receive timely treatment. However, the family members blatantly accused the police and the hospital that the hospital’s surgery procedure was wrong because they could not afford the medical expenses. As for Zhang XX, who knelt down and begged for donations at the entrance of the Studio City——the money would be paid directly to the account of the H Studio City Group Hospital, resolutely not letting the heroes shed tears on top of blood and sweat.

After the press conference was over, a group of media that had been well-prepared for a long time began to publish various articles that called people to pay attention to anti-trafficking actions, pay attention to relevant laws and regulations, pay attention to women’s rights and equality, and even pay attention to the relationship between doctors and patients. There were various reports but there was only one that was not included. Tao Mu used the law that protected the victims and strictly prohibited the media from exposing the specific information of Zhang Hanya and other victims. Of course, he couldn’t speak in front of the media in his capacity. These suggestions were all conveyed to everyone through Cheng Baodong’s mouth.

——Presumably, no one wanted to see reports that “media violence caused the victim to be exposed to harm a second time, and public opinion had persecuted the victims”.

After the storm of public opinion in his last life, Tao Mu knew better than anyone how to use news media for positive propaganda, and knew how to counter these media. So he was not afraid of saying ugly words upfront. But what surprised him was that the news media were very conscientious——not mentioning the social section, even the weekly newspapers’ gossip sections were not so wicked as to expose the victim’s information to attract attention.

It seemed that the current weekly paper media——especially the news media on the social page, still maintained the professional ethics and professionalism of the media people, insisting that news reports must be true and effective and must be a positive mouthpiece. It was completely not like later years of self-media who used the headlines to attract attention, turning news reports into an 8pm soap opera, full of twists and made up information.

Tao Mu had clear grudges and grievances. He wanted to teach the Zhang family a lesson as well as establish his own speaking power. He dared not say that innocent people would absolutely not be involved, but within his ability, he was still willing to protect the privacy of innocent people. After all, Zhang Hanya, the young girl, was truly unlucky and pitiful.

——The Zhang family had been making a fuss for a long time, but not only did they fail to get any real compensation, they even managed to ruin their family’s reputation. The relatives of the family who were still in Beijing would be pointed out by the neighbors as soon as they went out, and there was no face left for the whole family.

However, in Tao Mu’s words, the Zhang family got what they wanted——didn’t they just want to solve the problem of medical expenses. He had helped them solve it now so the Zhang family should be grateful.

After such an incident, Zhang Delu could be considered to have a deep understanding of Tao Mu’s methods. On the one hand, he was afraid of the big bald guy with the golden chain that had visited their home. On the other hand, he was discouraged and felt that it would be difficult to win against Tao Mu with his family’s IQ and methods.

Considering these two points, the Zhang family did not continue to cause trouble. They didn’t even mention that the Yun family should be responsible for Zhang Hanya for the rest of her life. Just stopped completely in their troublemaking. Fortunately, Zhang Hanya quickly woke up, and after a few days of observation in the hospital, she didn’t have any side effects. The Zhang family quietly discharged themselves from the hospital and returned to the capital in a pathetic manner.

But these were all afterword.

Before Tao Mu left, in order to thank Gou Rixin and delinquent girl, as well as their good brothers, he made a table of food in sister Ping’s restaurant and invited everyone over for a drink. It could be considered an official farewell.

There was absolutely nothing to criticize about Tao Mu’s cooking skills. He tinkered in the kitchen all morning, and made twenty dishes. Considering that this group of people were from all over China, Tao Mu’s table also included eight major cuisines from eight regions, from Gou Rixin and Qin Miaoru’s favorite fried pork in scoop, pork backbone, white meat and blood sausage, to Da Mao and Xiao Pang’s favorite lamb spine hot pot, four happiness meatballs, longevity pork shoulder, stir-fried pig kidneys, to the local dishes of fried stuffed bean curd paste, sauteed shrimps and eel, steamed pork with lotus leaf, and Da Luo’s personal order that he had never eaten in his life, Buddha’s Temptation. He also made a dish of braised prawn and a dish of fried golden prawns——as Tao Mu had a certain habit when eating shrimps. He didn’t like to peel them. So he made two shrimp dishes. Those who were willing to peel them would eat braised prawns, and those who were too lazy would eat fried golden prawns.

Then he made a dish of steamed fish, cold pork knuckle in jelly, and a dish of braised sea cucumber. The cold dishes were marinated carrot, cucumber, and rice noodle salad and century egg tofu. The soup was west lake carp with vinegar sauce. The dessert was Suzhou style little diamond cakes made in the shapes of the Chinese zodiac signs with glutinous rice flour, jujube paste, and red bean paste. The craftsmanship was exquisite and beautiful, and the texture was soft and smooth, aroma fragrant and sweet. This master-level full course meal immediately shocked this bunch of rough guys and girls.

When the diamond cakes arrived at the table, no one dared to stretch out their chopsticks. The large group of people held up their mobile phones and took pictures of the cakes. Their eyes when looking at Tao Mu were full of admiration for the master.

“Damn, brother Mu, your cooking skills are too extraordinary! You have to have learned from an imperial chef, right?” Qin Miaoru’s bald underling bit his chopsticks and swallowed his saliva, “Say, you are so handsome and plan to be a star in the entertainment industry. It’s such a waste to have such good cooking skills. How about it, let’s discuss something. Does the master who taught you how to cook still accept apprentices? What do you think of me going to learn from a master?”

“Okay! I’ll help you ask questions later. If our old man wants to accept apprentices, you can come and take his test. After the test, you can be my junior brother. But let me say the ugly words upfront, our family’s learning methods are very strict. Training is all year round and you must be ready to provide for the master’s retirement life. One day as your teacher means a lifetime as your father, understand? It’s not as simple as paying money to learn skills like in the West.” Tao Mu thought the bald-headed underling was joking, so he also replied jokingly.

“So it’s like this!” The bald underling slapped his head: “As long as I can learn craftsmanship, let alone retirement, I can directly recognize him as my godfather!”

This caused a lot of laughter at the dinner table.

Qin Miaoru irritably knuckled the bald head of her underling: “Let’s eat! So many delicious foods can’t even stop your mouth. Just look at you, big and muscular, yet you want to recognize a godfather? Why don’t you see if godfather would even want to recognize you?”

This was just too mean. This group of people was once again overtaken by laughter even before the last wave of laughter had died.

Tao Mu held back his smile, poured a large glass of beer, and toasted everyone: “Come, I will toast everyone a glass first. Thank you all for taking care of me during this time. I am very grateful. We should also keep in touch. Give me a call if there’s anything, and I won’t refuse if I can help.”

Tao Mu also noticed that these people here, regardless of their future successes and encounters, were actually all good people. They were straightforward enough, righteous enough.

Tao Mu was used to seeing people who used each other and chased after profits. Now, it was not easy to get acquainted with a group of friends who were loyal to each other. Therefore, he was also willing to give everyone a chance to make a deeper friendship: “When I return to Beijing and change my phone number, I will send a group text message to everyone. Please pay attention, don’t block my text message as spam.”

Everyone responded loudly: “That won’t be possible. Absolutely not. We must hug tight onto the golden thighs of Mr. Future Superstar.”

Tao Mu looked at Gou Rixin. He was most worried about this big dog. He didn’t know when that incident happened in his last life. Tao Mu estimated that it would be in a matter of months: “Call me if there’s anything. Also, pay more attention when working. As martial arts body doubles, if something happens, it will be a major thing. Be careful.”

“Don’t worry.” Gou Rixin waved his hand and touched his glass of beer to Tao Mu’s: “I will. Besides, don’t I have accident insurance covered by you. If something does happen, there will be protection.”

Speaking of this, Tao Mu thought of another thing: “Why don’t I see sister-in-law?”

Gou Rixin’s smile faded, and he waved his hand and said, “Let’s not mention her.”

Tao Mu blinked, and advised subtly: “Okay. I can’t say much about your house affairs. But there is one thing, if you really decide to cut it off, some things must be dealt with clearly. And it must be dealt with as soon as possible.”

Tao Mu was talking about insurance beneficiaries. Gou Rixin insisted on filling in Yu Mei’s name in the beneficiary’s column. Tao Mu didn’t think it was very reliable, but he couldn’t say much. Now he was sincerely worried about Gou Rixin, so he said something more.

Gou Rixin also understood Tao Mu’s sincerity, and patted the little brother on the shoulder without speaking.

Both guests and hosts enjoyed this meal.

On the second day, Tao Mu took Da Mao and Xiao Pang to buy a lot of local specialties. Then they bought a plane ticket for 10 o’clock the next morning to return to Beijing with the Yun family. In the hotel room at night, Tao Mu seriously told Da Mao and Xiao Pang: “Don’t just reveal whatever when you go back. When brother Yao and brother Xiao Qi ask about H Town, you can say whatever, but that thing with Luo Yang. Don’t mention it.”

The Luo family had a big business and large influence, so Tao Mu didn’t want brother Yao to provoke the Luo family even if it’s to help him get revenge. Besides, he was not a kid anymore, he could get his own revenge. It was just someone like Luo Yang, he really didn’t worry about it. Just like what happened with the Zhang family, if it wasn’t for Tao Mu wanting to take the opportunity to admit his wrongs and apologize to brother Yao and the others, he wouldn’t have needed to make that phone call.

Da Mao and Xiao Pang disagreed: “How can this work? Luo Yang bullied you like that. If brother Yao asks——”

“You are not allowed to say even if asked.” Tao Mu said sternly, “I tell you, I am not discussing this with you, but solemnly telling you. If brother Yao listened to both of you and provoked the Luo family and got in trouble, don’t blame me for turning my face.” (TN: turning face=fall out with someone, become hostile)

Da Mao and Xiao Pang’s hearts tightened. It was rare to see Tao Mu’s solemn appearance, so they immediately gave in: “If you say not to, then we won’t say anything. Why act so scary.”

Tao Mu snorted, stretched out his hand and rubbed the heads of both Da Mao and Xiao Pang, and reminded again: “Don’t say anything, or I will really turn my face.”

Seeing Tao Mu was for real, Da Mao and Xiao Pang instantly stopped any thoughts of saying anything. When they checked out from the hotel the next day, they still looked wilted. Everyone in the Yun family noticed this and became curious: “What’s wrong?”

“Having spent the past two months in H Town, they really will miss it!” Tao Mu’s lie came easily out of his mouth, without having to think about it seriously.

Everyone in the Yun family didn’t realize that there was anything wrong, and Yun Duo laughed and teased them: “I didn’t expect you two macho men to be this sentimental.”

Da Mao and Xiao Pang glanced at the clouds: As if a little girl like you know a fart!

They called two cars from the hotel and made their way to the airport. Tao Mu bought a lot of souvenirs. In order to save money, he fiddled with the express delivery in the hotel the night before. Listening to the Olympics as well as watching the turmoil in the international futures market. After pulling an all-nighter, his eyes now looked like rabbit eyes.

When he got on the plane, he immediately closed his eyes and calmed his mind. While gathering sleepiness, he thought about what he had gained from staying in H Town for the past two months.

He got acquainted with a group of directors and actors in the circle; through the Zhang family matter, his path into the Beijing circle was considered smooth; and also he got to know the “poor commoner friends” such as Gou Rixin and Qin Miaoru.

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

And the last was…..Tao Mu turned his head and glanced at Yun Yi classmate who was sitting next to him, and then looked at the floating clouds outside the window with a melancholy heart——he managed to hug onto a barely there semi-golden thigh.

The plane left behind white lines in the blue sky. Tao Mu looked at the clouds outside through the small window, feeling very happy.

Beijing, I am back.

Dean Tao, the old man, brother Yao, brother Xiao Qi, Xiao Yuan, and all those who had showed him kindness…..Tao Mu, was returning home.

TN: bonus chapter coming up!

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Tao Mu and the crowd looked on in fear, worried that Wu Xiaoxuan’s parents would also scream and cry in front of them. Fortunately, the heavens would not cut off all paths——oddities like the Zhang family were relatively rare.

Wu Xiaoxuan’s parents looked at their daughter in the intensive care unit. Although they were also very sad, there was none of the unreasonable behavior the Zhang family had displayed, practically hooligans eager to sell their daughter at a good price.

Although the old couple had tears in their eyes and could barely keep themselves together, two pairs of rough hands held Tao Mu’s hands in gratitude: “Thank you, lad, and thank you all. If it weren’t for your help, my daughter might not be able to come back. Us old couple only gave birth to this one daughter, if something happened to her…..”

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

Wu Xiaoxuan’s mother wiped another tear with her backhand. Sniffing her nose, she said: “Thank you, thank you, the police, thank you, doctor, thank you…..”

Wu Xiaoxuan’s parents were probably the most representative group of ordinary people in the ’40s and ’50s group. When they were young, they took over the work from their parents. Later, when they met with the tide of worker lay-offs, the couple were both laid off. They then set up a pancake stall near home to sell pancakes. Later, the pancake stall became a snack bar, and the old couple relied on this snack bar to feed their family of three. They had worked hard and honestly for their whole lives. The farthest place they had traveled to was Tongzhou, and the most beautiful scenery they had seen was the Great Wall. They had never left their familiar neighborhood in Beijing in their entire lives.

This time, upon receiving the call from the police in H Town, Wu Xiaoxuan’s parents were completely stunned. The couple closed the small restaurant in a daze, and got on the train to H Town. When they got off the train, they almost even got lost. They carried their luggage and found the police patrolling outside the train station to ask the police to take them to the police station. As soon as they entered the police station, they wanted to kneel to the police but were stopped by Officer Yao and the others. They were then taken to the hospital. When they got to the hospital, they once again wanted to kneel down to the doctor. Now that they saw Tao Mu and the others, although they did not kneel down, their simple and humble language was enough to bring a sting to one’s nose.

It was really unbearable to watch and listen to.

“Auntie, don’t worry. The doctors said that the operation was very successful. Let’s just wait for the child to wake up at night and it’ll all be fine.” Qin Miaoru, who had been standing by and watching the show, nudged Wu Xiaoxuan’s mother with her shoulder to comfort her. Then she took one of the three containers of pork rib soup that she had made by herself and handed it to mother Wu: “You come from a place as far away as the capital, and must not have eaten the whole way, right? I have ready-made pork rib soup. Originally it was to be given to the three girls. You drink it first, and I’ll make another for them when I get back.”

“Thank you, good girl.” Wu Xiaoxuan’s mother saw Qin Miaoru’s delinquent appearance and at first she dared not speak. Qin Miaoru forcibly stuffed the thermos container into mother Wu’s arms, and helped them sit down on the plastic row chair next to the corridor.

A group of tall and sturdy northern men followed behind Qin Miaoru and helped mother Wu and father Wu put their luggage on the side.

Zhang Hanya’s family were a little bit timid at first when they saw such a bunch of big and fierce looking men. Later, when they saw that these people seemed to be very nice people, they became arrogant again.

“Old sister, don’t listen to them fooling you. If it wasn’t for that damn girl, Yun Duo, how could our obedient daughters come to such a faraway place? The way I see it, their family is solely responsible for this. Our family’s medical expenses, any other nursing expenses, and mental damage expenses must be reimbursed by their family.”

——Where did the mental damage fee come from? The crowd was quite displeased, and Gou Rixin frowned. Just as he was about to speak, they heard Zhang Hanya’s mother continue to say: “There is also the operation. As parents we didn’t even sign at all. But this hospital performed the operation without saying a word. Say, what if the operation was done wrong? What if our child can’t wake up? Who is responsible for this? I have heard that operations without family signatures are major medical accidents!”

It would seem they were trying to recruit allies!

Everyone felt both angered and amused. Officer Yao couldn’t help but speak: “I say Auntie, the hospital operation was signed by the police. The matter is urgent, we really couldn’t wait that long. Only expedient——”

“Expedient or not expedient, we don’t understand. We just know that no one asked us!” Zhang Hanya’s uncle shrank behind his sister who weighed 200 kilograms, and looked at the police with shifty eyes, and muttered: ” You signed it, you are responsible. A perfectly fine person at home, but now suddenly can’t wake up here. How is the operation successful if she hasn’t even woken up? What if she really does become a vegetative person, what will happen in the future? Where will we go to find justice.”

“There is also the medical expenses! Didn’t you catch the bad guys? Now that they are caught, can you make them pay? Anyway, they made the children like this. They should be obligated to treat our children!”

Officer Yao stopped talking. What could he say, their police did catch the suspects, but making the suspects pay compensation was obviously not something they could guarantee.

“I say Auntie, aren’t you being unreasonable? The police uncle rescued your girl from the MLM den, and sent her to the hospital and saved her in time. You don’t even say thank you, but instead are full of complaints. So, now according to you it was wrong of us to save your child?” Da Mao couldn’t listen anymore and couldn’t help but say, “Is there anyone like you? You are really embarrassing us people of the capital.”

“Ai, kid, how is that any way to talk! Did your parents teach you to talk to your elders like this?”

Da Mao sneered, his violent temper flaring: “My dad never taught me this. He told me that if I run into people who deserve a beating I don’t need to restrain myself. Some people just like to take a mile when given an inch and they don’t deserve to be bothered with!”

“Hey, I say you little kid——” Zhang Hanya’s uncle rolled up his sleeves, but when he saw Gou Rixin’s group of buddies standing quietly behind Da Mao, he instantly wilted.

Zhang Hanya’s mother and aunt suddenly howled again: “My poor girl! Why are you so unlucky! Why give up the good days and insist on coming to this H town! Now you are lying on the hospital bed, barely alive, how will your mother live for the rest of her life! We should just die together!”

Everyone in the Yun family looked at each other. Yun Xingjian, a senior intellectual and the most prestigious heart surgeon at Beijing No.1 People’s Hospital, had seen family members of patients like the Zhang family several times while working in the hospital. So when it came down to it, he actually had a good understanding of what the Zhang family wanted.

“How about this. We’ll pay for the child’s medical expenses. Not only Hanya’s, but Xiaoxuan’s, we’ll also pay. But there is one thing that we as parents must make clear. When the three children originally planned to come to H Town, it was a decision made together. It’s not that Yun Duo instigated them and forced them to come. As elders, it’s not right for you to say this.”

“How can this be good? How can we make your family pay for it…..” When Wu Xiaoxuan’s parents heard Yun Xingjian’s words, the first reaction was to refuse. Although their family was not as well-off as the Yun family, when Wu Xiaoxuan’s parents came to H Town this time they had brought all their savings. Besides, as Yun Xingjian said, the three children coming to H Town for a trip was something they agreed on together. Yun Duo had also suffered. As parents, how could they have the face to let the Yun family pay for all the medical expenses.

“——What if the child has any side effects in the future?” It was completely different from Wu Xiaoxuan’s parents’ reaction. Zhang Hanya’s mother’s conditioned reflex was to ask: “Didn’t you hear the doctor! Our Hanya is injured in the head, and it is likely there will be side effects in the future. What if the child wakes up and becomes retarded, or has other side effects? The child is only 18 years old this year, and her life has just begun! Shouldn’t you also be responsible for the rest of our child’s life?”

“You’re too shameless!” Qin Miaoru couldn’t stand it anymore: “I say, you are clearly just wanting to extort people, right?”

“What’s it got to do with you?” Zhang Hanya’s mother looked at Qin Miaoru, whose hair was dyed in colorful colors and had on fiendish makeup (smokey eye makeup). She wore a small black tank top that showed off the waist and had a skull print. The short skirt underneath barely reached over the base of her thighs. And in this summer heat, she also had on leather boots that reached the calf. In addition, she was also followed by a group of big muscular men——with just a glance they judged her to not be a good woman.

Mother Zhang didn’t like this kind of girl, but she didn’t dare to provoke her: “You are still young. How can you know what it’s like for us mothers, we’re just thinking for the sake of our children!”

Qin Miaoru sneered, what for the sake of your child! More like for the sake of money!

Their eyes only saw money!

Tao Mu had been watching for a long time and had basically figured out the Zhang family’s temperament. But he still didn’t speak. The main reason was that he didn’t want to deal with such hooligans.

But Tao Mu didn’t expect that while he didn’t want to provoke hooligans, the hooligans took the initiative to provoke him——well, not him specifically, but the crew of “Faraway Jianghu”.

It must be said that this Zhang family was truly made up of hooligans! Don’t know where they found out about Tao Mu asking the group of bigwigs from the “Faraway Jianghu” crew to help find and save the three girls. The family went to the entrance of the Studio City in H Town, kneeled under a banner, and called for the celebrities of the “Faraway Jianghu” crew to donate money to help their daughter’s medical expenses.

This completely set off a hornet’s nest. Just how many gossip paparazzi were guarding the entrance of Studio City every day to look for news? After so many days, they couldn’t even touch on even a cheating scandal and now there was even more eye-popping news in front of them. The large group of paparazzi reporters who had been waiting for a salary increase instantly went crazy. The paparazzi divided into two groups, one wave went up to interview the Zhang family, and one wave swarmed into the crew of “Faraway Jianghu”. And the first thing they did was to let loose a fire of camera flashes and interview questions.

Cheng Baodong and his crew were also going crazy.

——With this kind of thing, if there was communication well in advance, and both parties were willing, then there would be no problem at all. After all, after celebrities donated money, they could even buy a notice to praise themselves. It was a beneficial situation to both sides. But the key was that this family just knelt at the entrance of Studio City without saying anything and acting quite unreasonably. Anyone who encountered this kind of situation would feel disgusted.

Cheng Baodong and the others had just been talking about what a good child Tao Mu was a second ago. Saying that he looked rather cold and indifferent, but was actually warmhearted and kind! And in such a short time, he had managed to rescue the girls from the MLM den. In any case, he was not an ordinary boy at all. But then in the next second, the Zhang family made such a scene that was equivalent to roasting everyone in the crew on the spit.

The angry Cheng Baodong instantly yelled: “Didn’t I say that Tao Mu is not a good kid. Making such a big problem for us for no reason. And he just patted his butt and left!”

The bigwigs did not agree with Cheng Baodong’s apparent irritability and words uttered in his anger. But there was indeed a bit of discomfort in their hearts. After all, no one liked the taste of being forced and threatened morally. Especially public figures like them——either they keep up their appearances despite not affording to, or keep a hold on their wallets and would rather die than yield. No matter how they chose, it was simply a disaster.

Fortunately, Tao Mu did not pat his butt and leave. Aside from the fact that he was not this kind of person at all, he wouldn’t let his connections with these bigwigs become broken because of hooligans like the Zhang family. In terms of impression points, once it was lost, it was difficult to make up for it again.

Tao Mu had been in the crew for so many days, going through much hardship as he swallowed his anger and showed off his skills. He finally got the recognition he wanted from these people so how could he tolerate the Zhang family, these irrelevant bastards, flushing his plans down the toilet.

A person like Tao Mu, he might not care whether you disliked him or humiliated him to his face, but if you dared to block his way, then sorry.

After thinking about it carefully, Tao Mu finally called the number stored on his phone that he had always wanted to call but was too embarrassed to call.

“Brother Yao, do you remember me? I’m Xiao Mu!”

“You kid actually still remembers me! Running so far away without saying a word, and taking several months before remembering to call this brother. I can tell, you kid must have an ulterior motive, after all one doesn’t visit the temple without a cause!” From the other end came an authentic Beijing accent. Liu Yao, Tao Mu’s boss when he was working in a nightclub, laughed and cursed: “Let’s talk. What do you need this brother for?”

“No wonder they say that you are the Buddha, us monkey cubs, no matter how much we run around, we just can’t find our way out of your palm.” Tao Mu chuckled twice: “There is indeed something I need you to help me with…..”

“You kiddo!” Listening to Tao Mu’s words, Liu Yao couldn’t help frowning: “You are actually asking your brother to help you scare a bunch of uncles and aunts. If it spreads out, what face will your brother Yao still have?!”

“I don’t need you to scare them.” Tao Mu said with a smile: “You can help me find out their home addresses. Then send someone to give them some fruit baskets. I will talk to them for the rest.”

“If that doesn’t count as scaring what does. You can just pretend, kid!” Liu Yao sneered, “All right. Who let you be my little brother? I’ll take care of this. When you come back, shouldn’t you make a table of food to thank your brother, I, for helping with such a mess at the risk of losing face?”

“That’s a must. Thank you, brother Yao, I will definitely make a full table for you and treat you to a drink when I go back. By the way, how is brother Xiao Qi?” Tao Mu tentatively asked about Liu Yao’s partner, the popular male escort in the nightclub who had given Tao Mu a lot of advice.

“Your brother Xiao Qi is the same as always! Still so popular with thousands of wealthy women, and some people still call him and send text messages every day even though he no longer works as an escort! Asking him out for tea and a chat. He’s out again now!” Liu Yao still felt rather sour about this as he said, “I say, when you come back, you can just directly hang your card up in the store! With just your face and figure, and having inherited your brother Xiao Qi’s skills, as long as you stand at the store, it is likely that that group of people will not care about your brother Xiao Qi anymore.”

“That’s not going to work. I want to be a superstar, and this kind of dark history is not allowed!” Tao Mu smiled and joked around with his brother Yao, and the two chatted a few more before hanging up the phone.

Coincidentally, as soon as Liu Yao disconnected the phone, Meng Qi walked in. Seeing his old gong sitting on the sofa, holding his mobile phone with a dark face and staring at the TV murderously, he couldn’t help asking: “What’s the matter? Who provoked you this time?”

“Just now Xiao Mu called me.” Liu Yao’s eyes watched the TV gloomily: “This kid, he must have been bullied outside. Couldn’t hold it anymore. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have called me.”

As Tao Mu said on the phone, he was to be a big superstar in the future, and he must not have a dark history. So from the day he walked out of “Night”, Tao Mu didn’t plan to contact anyone in the store.

Tao Mu didn’t mention this matter directly, but everyone knew it well. Therefore, since the day Tao Mu left Night, whether it was Liu Yao or anyone else in the club, they never called Tao Mu or sent a message again.

Not even on Tao Mu’s birthday. They were afraid that Tao Mu would misunderstand that the people in the club were trying to latch on and not let go.

But now, Tao Mu took the initiative to contact them. Usually such a stubborn child, just how much did he suffer for him to admit his wrongs and call them without a care about his pride.

Meng Qi was taken aback for a moment, and then smiled: “In any case. It’s the kid we watched grow up. If he was really bullied outside you can’t leave this alone. I know Xiao Mu, he may have a little temper but he is a good boy.”

“Nonsense! How can I not care about our child!”

Tao Mu was only in his first year of high school when he came to work at Night. At that time he was not even sixteen. The child was devilishly beautiful, had the sweetest mouth, and was very clever, coaxing and winning over everyone in the club. From the bartender to the singer-in-residence to the young masters, how many people had been fooled by this little brat into departing their unique skills to him.

Liu Yao felt distress for the child and was also afraid that something might happen, so he hid him and kept Tao Mu from working at the front of the club. He was afraid that some powerful customer would target the boy when he wasn’t keeping an eye on him. The two had a twenty year age gap between them so although Tao Mu called him brother, he actually saw and treated Tao Mu as his son. After all, it was impossible for him and Meng Qi to have children of their own in this life! When Tao Mu left Night with a decisive attitude, Liu Yao really had his heart broken. When he got drunk, he sent a ruthless message to Tao Mu: “Damn you, Grandpa Liu, I, have been hanging out in jianghu for so many years. What people haven’t I come across. You are ashamed of us so much but we don’t care much for you either. From now on, we will go our own ways. I will see just what kind of success you’ll achieve!”

But when Tao Mu made the phone call, Liu Yao himself immediately softened into a pile of goo even before Tao Mu had said a few soft words. After all, he was the child they had watched grow up, and even if he had made mistakes or did something wrong, then the beating and scolding should be done by them and not letting outsiders bully him instead!

“Fuck, doing a good deed can even lead to being extorted. If this gets out, this will lose my face. Can just anyone on the street bully the little brother of Liu Yao?” Liu Yao’s eyes were red, and he immediately made a few calls to the people below. After hanging up he continued to spaz out with Meng Qi: “Say, Xiao Mu will be back soon. Where will he live? How about we have him live in your house in the Dongcheng District for now. It’ll save him from having nowhere to go on weekends.”

Before graduating from high school, Tao Mu had been living in the staff dormitory of Night. But now Tao Mu was admitted to college, and a film school that specializes in celebrities to boot, it was no longer appropriate to live with that group of people.

Meng Qi looked at Liu Yao with amusement and couldn’t help poking fun: “Ai, I remember that someone had said that everyone should just never see each other again, right?”

“Isn’t that all just angry talk!” Liu Yao waved his hand seriously, blushing down to his neck but his mouth was grinning wide enough to reach his ears. He pretended to be cool: “Now, the child takes the initiative to admit his wrongs to us. We are grown men in our forties, how can we still argue with a little kid?”

Meng Qi chuckled: “Then you’ll accompany me to clean up my house tomorrow. It has been a long time since anyone has been living in it. Besides, some furniture should be changed. Let’s also install a computer. Also, we shouldn’t say to Xiao Mu that he can directly live in it, just say that it was rented to him. Just in case the child can’t get over his pride.”

Liu Yao snorted: “You think too much.”

On the other side, after Tao Mu hung up the phone he squatted down against the wall and buried his head in his knees. After a long time, he suddenly slapped himself.

“Tao Mu, you are a bastard!”

Liu Yao and Meng Qi were scars that Tao Mu couldn’t even touch. These two people were ironclad evidence of Tao Mu’s heartlessness and selfishness.

In his previous life, Tao Mu felt that the people of Night did not have very proper or presentable backgrounds and didn’t want to get involved with these people anymore. Due to Liu Yao’s influence, Tao Mu didn’t dare to say anything before leaving Beijing, but his attitude was very clear.

What kind of person was Liu Yao? Although he was older now and began doing proper business, when he was young he was definitely not lacking in any fooling around. How could he fail to see through Tao Mu’s thoughts? So after Tao Mu left Night, Liu Yao did indeed cut out any thoughts of ​​continuing to communicate. Moreover, boss Liu not only cut out the thoughts himself, but also restrained anyone in the club from contacting Tao Mu as well.

Later Tao Mu returned to the Shen family and became the young master of the Shen family and the two groups of people would definitely not have any exchanges.

But when Tao Mu offended Shen Yu and was kicked out of the Shen house, then shut out of the entertainment circle by Shen Yu’s admirers, Liu Yao took the initiative to teach a lesson to the media and marketing accounts headquartered in Beijing one by one. With strong arm tactics, he had these marketing accounts withdraw all of the articles on Tao Mu’s dark history. He also had these media and marketing accounts publicly apologize to Tao Mu on the Internet. Of course, boss Liu’s methods were definitely not so legal. So in the end, this incident became one of Tao Mu’s weaknesses, evidence that led to Tao Mu being blacklisted by those above.

However, what made Tao Mu feel guilty the most was that Liu Yao was targeted by Shen Yu’s admirers for helping him. That group of people joined hands to cause trouble for brother Yao’s businesses. After all, nightclubs were a kind of business that couldn’t hold up in an investigation. Finally, Liu Yao was forced by these people to leave Beijing and had to take Meng Qi to hide in Meng Qi’s hometown. His many years spent on his career went up in smoke just like that.

Even so, the two met Tao Mu before they left, and they told Tao Mu not to think too much about it.

“I haven’t wanted to work here for a long time. It’s good to go back to our hometown. Our hometown is beautiful with beautiful scenery of mountains and rivers. Your brother Xiao Qi and I will contract a large area in the village to build an orchard, and then build a farmhouse. Isn’t it in style now for city folks to reach back to nature. Well, your brother Xiao Qi and I are also going to follow the trend!”

“When you have time, bring Zhuo Yan and come over to play. Your brother Xiao Qi and I will definitely be the best hosts.”

But later, Zhuo Yan, who he trusted and relied on the most, also betrayed him! Tao Mu just wanted to jump off a building and in the end never had the chance to visit brother Xiao Qi’s hometown.

Actually, thinking about it carefully, Tao Mu was sorry to many people in his previous life.

In this life, he wanted to find back all those who had treated him well. And then treat them most preciously, placing them in the place closest to his heart, carefully guarding them so that no one would hurt them again.

The others were pretty easy to handle, so it was mainly the “Night” group. He was ignorant at the time and his attitude had hurt many people. Brother Yao and brother Xiao Qi were also too smart. Tao Mu didn’t know how to reconnect with these people, but he didn’t expect that the Zhang family would give him this opportunity.

Like this it was not bad.

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

He took the initiative to call and took the initiative to admit to his wrongs. He appeared miserable and pitiful. Even if brother Yao and brother Xiao Qi were angry with him, they wouldn’t be able to bear seeing him being bullied. They hadn’t been able to bear it in the previous life in that kind of situation so they must definitely be even more reluctant now.

So you see, Tao Mu also had people who loved him.

Tao Mu wiped his eyes, feeling that the air in H Town was really bad, choking him up!

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“Duo Duo, are you okay?”

In the H Studios Group Hospital, the Yun family, who was notified by Tao Mu and the police, rushed over that night and swarmed into the ward.

“Dad, mom, brother…..” Yun Duo collapsed as soon as she saw her family, and threw herself into mother Yun’s arms, crying furiously: “It scared me to death. I thought I would never see you all again in this life.”

“Oh, my child, hurry up and let mama take a look. Where does it hurt? Ah?” The Yun family also couldn’t hold back when they saw their little girl with a bruised and swollen face. Mother Yun hugged her daughter in distress, her nose stinging as she also began to tear up.

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

“It hurts, my whole body hurts. I was almost beaten to death by them.” Yun Duo hugged mother Yun’s neck and didn’t let go. Recalling the scene of those people beating her, she shuddered, and deep fear flashed in those big eyes: “Mom, dad, brother, I miss you so much.”

“Oh child!” Yun Xingjian’s eyes also felt hot, feeling both distressed for his daughter and angry that she was not obedient: “We told you not to run around or randomly meet friends who you don’t know anything about on the Internet. You just don’t listen, clamoring to travel to H Town to visit celebrities and be a group extra. You say, why do you make us worry so much? If something really happened to you, how can we live?”

Yun Duo cried aggrievedly: “I’m already like this yet you are still fierce to me. Are you my parents or not!”

Mother Yun hugged her daughter tighter in distress and scolded her husband: “Daughter is right. This kind of thing is clearly the fault of the bad people. Why are you lecturing at my daughter? How much has our daughter already suffered? As her father, aren’t you distressed?”

All of Yun Xingjian’s lecturing words were scolded back by his daughter and wife. He sighed and walked to the edge of the hospital bed, and reached out his hand to touch Yun Duo’s head: “You are right, it’s because the bad people are too evil.”

Following behind the elder Yun couple, the young man with a gentle temperament and handsome appearance suddenly thought of something. He turned to look at Tao Mu and the other two who were also standing silently in the ward and stretched out his hand, smiling: “It was you who saved my sister. I am Yun Yi, Yun Duo’s brother. I really want to thank you this time, otherwise our Yun family…..”

Yun Yi didn’t go any further, but held Tao Mu’s right hand tightly. Tao Mu said with a smile: “This kind of thing, no matter who encountered it, they would also help.”

“——That’s not true!” Yun Duo interrupted Tao Mu, still in mother Yun’s arms. Her eyes were shining as she looked at Tao Mu, the expression on her face showing very obvious adoration and admiration: “You all don’t know how dangerous things were that day. When we were tricked into the van by those bad guys, we noticed something was wrong. Those men would touch us and when we protested they slapped us and almost knocked us out. Xiaoxuan wanted to call the police but they found out when it was just dialed out. Then they snatched our cell phones away.”

“They dragged us to a very remote courtyard house. There were a lot of people in it who seemed to be their accomplices. Those men wanted to bully us. When Hanya resisted, they pushed her against the wall. Blood was everywhere and she instantly fainted. Those people were also frightened and said that they would send Hanya to a black clinic to avoid a death on their hands. But Xu Jiao disagreed. When they argued, I took the opportunity to grab a phone and just texted a word before they found out and rushed to grab ut back. They also hit me. Fortunately, I sent the message——”

When Yun Duo got to this part of the events, she looked at Tao Mu with gratitude again: “Fortunately, Tao Mu didn’t treat my distress message as a prank. He immediately called the police. You don’t know; that Xu Jiao is truly evil. She saw that we resisted fiercely and was annoyed at the trouble so she found a human trafficker and wanted to sell us into some remote mountain village. I was so in despair at the time and thought we would definitely be done for.” If they were really sold to some remote mountain place, how would the girls run? It was likely they would die in the mountains.

Fortunately, at the most critical moment, Tao Mu came with the police.

There was no doubt that in the hearts of these young girls, that was the most romantic hero saving the beauty scene. It really moved the girls and caused them to feel very emotional.

The Yun parents were really shocked and scared when they heard this. Mother Yun subconsciously hugged her daughter even tighter while Yun Xingjian walked in front of Tao Mu and held Tao Mu’s hand gratefully: “Child, thank you, thank you. Thank you for saving my daughter——you not only saved my daughter but also saved our family.”

Tao Mu smiled and said, “It was all my friends in H Town who helped. If it weren’t for them, I wouldn’t be able to find the suspect’s den.” Especially Gou Rixin and Qin Miaoru——Qin Miaoru was the delinquent girl. Tao Mu and the others were all surprised when they knew the real name of delinquent girl. They really didn’t expect that the “Big Sister With A Knife” would have such a graceful and beautiful name.

“We must thank you all. You are all good children. But uncle must thank you the most for your attentiveness. If you didn’t directly call the police when you received the messsge for help, and even mobilized so many friends to help find the girls, I can’t even imagine the consequences.” Yun Xingjian became more afraid as he thought about it. In this matter, if there was even a little misstep in any link in the chain of events, he was afraid they would never see their baby girl again.

Yun Yi also had a lingering fear when he heard this but he was also a little puzzled and asked his sister: “Why would you think of sending a message to Mr. Tao for help?” Instead of sending it to her family?

“Because I only thought of Tao Mu’s phone number at the time!” Probably because she had recited it so many times in the past few days, she developed a conditioned reflex. As soon as she picked up the phone, she only thought of Tao Mu’s phone number.

“Furthermore, even if I send it to you, you wouldn’t be able to rush to H Town right away. Tao Mu is different. On the first day we came here, he reminded us not to trust others casually, and not to enter hotels and inns for interviews. Wang Ye and Pang Yue know a lot of people in H Town, and I felt that if I sent it to Tao Mu, they might think that it was a message from us.” Yun Duo said with a serious face. But mainly because Tao Mu gave them a very good impression that night. He was handsome, attentive and considerate. He was a guy who could give girls a sense of security.

It was probably because of this that Yun Duo sent the text message to Tao Mu without thinking. At the time, even if there was only one percent chance, it might still be able to save their lives. Sure enough, Yun Duo made the right bet.

Everyone in the Yun family looked at each other, and felt even more fortunate. It was as if they had a new lease on life.

Mother Yun couldn’t help complaining: “Since you were already warned, why did you not listen! Say, if you were obedient and willing to listen to advice, how would such a thing happen? Suffering such a calamity!”

“Aiya, mom, don’t say anymore. We didn’t think so much at the time. That Xu Jiao was also someone we met in H Town the first day we arrived. She lives next door to us, and she has been showing us around these days. And even took us to visit the celebrities. We didn’t expect her to be so evil…..”

Yun Duo pressed closer into mother Yun’s arms. There was also something she was embarrassed to say. They met Da Mao and Xiao Pang on the Internet, and only met them for a few days. But they had spent more time with Xu Jiao than with Tao Mu and the others. Besides, Xu Jiao was a girl so naturally she was more likely to inspire trust from them than a boy. So when Xu Jiao made promises they all believed it.

Thinking about it now, it was likely that Xu Jiao had targeted them on the first day they came to H Town.

Yun Duo couldn’t help shivering when she thought of this. She buried her head in mother Yun’s arms and stopped talking.

Upon seeing this, the Yun family couldn’t bear to criticize their precious daughter.

Da Mao and Xiao Pang also consoled, “Don’t worry, uncle Yun and aunt Yun. As the old saying goes, after escaping from a calamity, you will definitely have good fortune. After this, all sorrows will turn to joy and Yun Duo’s path will be smooth and safe.”

“Ai, ai,” Mother Yun looked gratefully at Tao Mu and the other two, and suddenly thought of something: “Why are you still standing, sit down quickly. By the way, have all the bad people been caught? What did the police say?”

“Xu Jiao and those people were caught. But they are still trying to catch the traffickers it seems. In fact, we don’t know the details. The police uncle said that the case is still in the process of being investigated, so it is not convenient to disclose it to us.” Da Mao answered obediently and then asked: “Right, uncle Yun and aunt Yun, do you know when Zhang Hanya and Wu Xiaoxuan’s family can come over?”

“We really don’t know this. We hurried over as soon as we received the call.” Mother Yun said and then turned her head to look at her daughter: “By the way, where are your two classmates? Which ward are they staying in? They must also be extremely frightened?”

Hearing what mother Yun said, everyone’s expression became gloomy. Yun Duo couldn’t help crying again: “Hanya and Xiaoxuan are still in the intensive care unit. They were injured too badly. The doctor said that Hanya had lost too much blood and the blood supply to the brain was insufficient, and now she is unconscious. Xiaoxuan’s spleen has a rupture. Mom, I’m scared…..”

“Don’t be afraid. Don’t be afraid.” Mother Yun clasped her daughter tightly and rubbed Yun Duo’s long hair: “After escaping a calamity, you will definitely have good fortune. You will all be fine.”

Yun Yi thought of another thing. When Tao Mu went out to make a call, he followed.

Tao Mu called Officer Yao to notify Officer Yao that Yun Duo’s family had arrived. It was likely that the police station would also send someone over to communicate with the victim’s family.

After putting down the phone, Tao Mu thought for a while, and then called the group of bigwigs from “Faraway Jianghu” one by one to report the latest situation of the three girls. Although when Yun Duo and the others were rescued, Tao Mu had already reported their safety to the bigwigs. But courtesy was never too much and Tao Mu believed that since he originally asked the bigwigs for help, he was obliged to report the latest situation at this moment. After all, they were also very worried about the girls’ safety, and he couldn’t just assume that everything hadn’t happened once things were over and completely forget the bigwigs.

Yun Yi stood quietly behind Tao Mu and waited until Tao Mu finished the last phone call, before smiling and saying, “Did Mr. Tao just call those celebrities?”

Tao Mu turned his head and smiled and said, “Yes. I received a message from Yun Duo for help at the closing banquet last night, and the director and actors of “Faraway Jianghu” happened to be there. Hearing this, everyone was very concerned and immediately called friends who were still in H Town to help out as well. Director Cheng even called the management of H Studio City and asked them to cooperate and help. Later, when the police successfully rescued the girls, I also called and told them. Everyone is also very concerned about your sister and the other two girls.”

Yun Yi found that Tao Mu’s speech was very interesting. It was very proper and did not leave any cracks behind. There was none of the jumping all over the place usually from youths his age. It was as if he had been specially trained in his speech.

Yun Yi smiled and said, “They are all good people.”

After a pause, Yun Yi asked again: “About Yun Duo and the others’ medical expenses…..”

“Oh.” Tao Mu suddenly said with a smile: “They were sent over by the police station. At that time, the situation was urgent and they went directly to the operating room. The medical expenses were all advanced by the hospital, and the consent forms were signed by the police uncle. “

“Thank you so much.” Yun Yi looked at Tao Mu and asked, “Don’t know what Mr. Tao does?”

“I am a student of Beijing Film. Like Yun Duo and the others, I am also a recent high school graduate. I came to H Town to experience life and will be reporting to school on the 26th. So brother Yun should not call me Mr. Tao, just call me Tao Mu.” Tao Mu paused, and then smiled: “But don’t think I am just learning acting, I am actually very interested in IT programming. Don’t know when I might have the opportunity to learn from big brother Yun?”

“Huh?” Yun Yi was at a loss for a moment: “But I am a medical student. If Mr. Tao talks to me about clinical surgery, I can answer any questions. But IT programming…..”

“Huh?” Not only Yun Yi, Tao Mu was also confused now.

An IT bigshot not knowing programming? Who could tell him how Yun Yi managed to create Skynet Technology and become China’s richest man in one fell swoop ten years later?

***

After very careful and subtle inquiries, Tao Mu finally concluded that Yun Yi really didn’t understand IT programming and was not joking with him.

As for how Yun Yi, in his previous life, transformed from a high-achieving medical student who was determined to follow in his father’s footsteps, into the richest man in China who rapidly rose along with Internet technology, Tao Mu was also befuddled.

To be honest, he had been completely obsessed with Shen Yu in his previous life, and he didn’t care much about people and things other than the Shen family and Shen Yu. Aside from the fame that came with the title China’s richest man, knowing about Yun Yi was mainly because of Luo Yang. He had come out to his family for Shen Yu in his previous life but vexed his father into a heart attack. They had wanted to ask Yun Xingjian, a cardiologist at the Beijing No.1 People’s Hospital, to perform the operation on Mr. Luo.

But Yun Xingjian and his wife had been hit hard by the tragic death of their only daughter and had immigrated to M country in the second half of 2008. At that time, Yun Yi, who was only 20 years old, left China together with them. What Tao Mu didn’t know was that after Yun Yi immigrated to M country, he gave up the medical profession that he originally planned to dedicate his lifetime, and instead applied for Stanford to study computer science. It took him two years to write the Skynet system, after which he then returned to China with the support of Xiaoheng Capital. They jointly implemented the “Skynet Project” with the government, which promoted installing surveillance cameras in various provinces and cities in China in one fell swoop. In addition, it also designed a “facial recognition system” for the public security department, which greatly reduced the time the police needed to identify suspects.

Because of Mr. Luo’s heart disease, the Luo family had asked many people to connect them with Yun Yi, hoping that Mr. Yun could return to China and perform the heart surgery for Mr. Luo. Among them was Li Xiaoheng, Yun Yi’s most important business partner. But Yun Yi refused directly——Yun Xingjian had developed Alzheimer’s disease after learning of his daughter’s tragic death. He couldn’t even recognize Yun Yi and mother Yun, let alone be competent enough to perform heart surgery.

The once leading surgeon of China’s cardiac surgery could no longer hold a scalpel.

The Luo family really had no other choice but to spend a lot of money to hire an internationally renowned cardiologist to perform surgery on Mr. Luo. But, the operation failed, and Mr. Luo never woke up again. And Luo Yang was also driven out of the Luo house by his sister because of his actions that indirectly led to the death of his father.

But in this life, due to Tao Mu’s timely rescue of Yun Duo and the other two girls, Yun Yi no longer had any motivation to create the Skynet technology. It was likely that he would continue to study medicine, follow in his father’s footsteps, and become a top cardiologist in the world.

Tao Mu: “….” The grief and anger that couldn’t be vented even by letting out a roar to the sky!

“Aren’t you interested in IT programming at all?” Tao Mu still didn’t give up, looking at Yun Yi eagerly, trying to persuade the future richest man in China to “abandon the dark and turn to the light” by abandoning medicine and going into business: “Would you like to try to learn programming? Maybe you’ll be surprised to find that programming is actually your life’s favorite pursuit!”

Yun Yi laughed out loud: “Xiao Mu, you are too humorous. I really don’t know anything about programming. If you are really interested in this field, I can help introduce you to my classmates in the computer department who can also teach you.”

No, I don’t want students who could program! I want the future richest man in China!!!

Tao Mu was so sad that he felt he was about to die on the spot! It was like he had walked into a mountain full of gold and silver treasures, but all the treasures were covered by an invisible glass cover. It was visible but intangible!

Tao Mu felt that he might also have a heart attack! Wasn’t it just seizing the opportunity to hug a golden thigh? Why was it so hard!

Tao Mu bumped the wall with his head, so depressed that mushrooms began growing in his shadow.

Yun Yi looked at Tao Mu’s anguished appearance, practically wishing to thump his own chest. Although he didn’t know what this child was upset about, he felt that the other was more and more fun.

“You——” Just as Yun Yi spoke, he was interrupted by a loud noise at the end of the corridor.

“Hanya, where are you Hanya? My dear baby girl, where is my precious daughter? Quick, let mama see, what happened?”

Yun Yi and Tao Mu looked at each other and walked in the direction where the voice came from.

In front of the elevator, two uniformed nurses supported a middle-aged woman with curled hair, flower patterned shirt and black gauze trousers. Next to them were three to five uncles and aunts who looked either like skinny monkeys or had fat bodies. All were shouting, “My poor niece! Only 18 years old, my niece hasn’t even gone to college yet!”

“My poor niece! If something really happens, how can auntie explain to your old father who died early…..”

This scene was a bit scary. Tao Mu stopped in his tracks immediately and stepped back quietly.

The people who were fortunate enough to be in the same elevator with Zhang Hanya’s family and witness the noisy crying throughout the whole process, were Gou Rixin and Qin Miaoru as well as their buddies who just happened to come visit the patients at the same time.

Qin Miaoru held a thermos container in one hand and another tucked in her arms. She followed behind with an expression of one watching a show. After seeing Tao Mu, she waved happily. Before Tao Mu had time to respond, Zhang Hanya’s mother howled: “My daughter, my daughter who is only 18 years old~. Why is your life so bitter, just accompanying your classmates out to play and yet meeting such a disaster. Those goddamn human traffickers, just why won’t they be struck by lightning…..”

“Auntie, are you Zhang Hanya’s mother?” Yun Yi stepped forward with a little shock and introduced himself: “I am Yun Yi. Yun Duo’s——”

“Are you Yun Duo’s family? Where are your parents?” Before Yun Yi finished speaking, he was interrupted by Zhang Hanya’s aunts and uncles. “It’s all because your girl doesn’t learn well at a young age. Insisting on coming here, now something bad happens, right? You say, shouldn’t your family be responsible for this matter?”

What and what?

Tao Mu was stunned. Yun Yi, who was only twenty years old and had even less experience than Tao Mu, never having met such people before so he was also immediately dumbstruck.

At this moment, Mr. and Mrs. Yun Xingjian, who heard noises in the ward, as well as Da Mao and Xiao Pang, also came out.

“You are Zhang Hanya’s mother, right?” Xiao Pang classmate, who grew up in the alley since childhood, was very familiar with this kind of unreasonable and shrewish older woman because of his own family background. He smiled and went forward to explain the situation: “Zhang Hanya hit her head on the wall, lost too much blood and lacked oxygen in the brain. After the operation, she was sent to the intensive care unit——”

Before he finished speaking, he was interrupted by an ear-piercing cry: “My poor girl! How unlucky you are! Being admitted to the intensive care unit at such a young age. How will mama live!”

The two young nurses toughened their skin and persuaded: “Auntie, this is the hospital, please don’t make a noise——”

Before the words were finished, Zhang Hanya’s mother cried louder. She also began to thump at her chest, crying at the top of her lungs. She just lacked rolling on the floor to complete the picture.

The middle-aged uncle who looked like a skinny monkey rushed up to support Zhang Hanya’s mother: “Sister, don’t be like this. This family must still rely on you! Say, we have no money and no power, just why are we so unlucky to encounter such a thing…..”

Xiao Pang toughened his skin and stepped forward, supporting the middle-aged lady who almost collapsed to the ground: “Auntie, should I bring you over there first?”

“My daughter, my Xiao Ya…..” Zhang Hanya’s mother was helped by Da Mao and Xiao Pang to the intensive care unit. Looking at the daughter who was lying unconscious on the hospital bed and still attached to an oxygen mask, mother Zhang cried and knelt on the ground, all the while beating her chest: “What can I do? I just have this one daughter. If anything happens to her, how will I live! Those goddamn bastards, they should go die! Doctor, you must save our Xiao Ya, I will kowtow for you…..”

“Auntie, don’t be like this——” The young doctor who was about to tell Zhang Hanya’s mother about her daughter’s condition was startled. He quickly helped Zhang Hanya’s mother up: “Your daughter had a successful operation, and her current lethargy is caused by excessive blood loss and long-term hypoxia in the brain. If she can wake up before twelve o’clock tonight, there should be no major problem…..” But if she can’t wake up, he was afraid there would be a risk of becoming a vegetative person.

Zhang Hanya’s mother collapsed again when she heard this: “Oh my God! How could this happen! What the hell did our old Zhang family do! Why must those goddamn human traffickers harm people like this…..”

Mother Zhang’s cries echoed penetratingly throughout the corridor. Zhang Hanya’s aunts and uncles also surrounded him, “Wasn’t the operation successful? Why can’t she wake up if it’s successful? I heard that the operation needs to be signed by family members. None of us came. How did your hospital perform the operation? Who signed it? Ah? Can he afford the responsibility?”

“I tell you, if my niece can’t wake up, I will not let your hospital go!”

“That’s right, if my daughter can’t wake up, we will not pay for the medical expenses! Your hospital must be responsible to the end!”

“…..Or your family should pay for it!” The Zhang family turned to the Yun family: “If it wasn’t for your daughter insisting on coming to H town, my daughter would still be fine at home. Now she is unconscious and unable to wake up. The doctor said she might not ever wake up. You, the Yun family, must be responsible!”

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

Tao Mu and the others, who had been following behind, were stunned. Qin Miaoru, who was holding the thermos, came up quietly and whispered to Tao Mu: “Watch. This family, they are no simple folks.”

While they were talking, they heard another sound in the corridor. Officer Yao and another policeman who received Tao Mu’s notice rushed over, followed by Wu Xiaoxuan’s parents.

Tao Mu and everyone’s heart jumped, for fear that Wu Xiaoxuan’s parents would also cause a stink.

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Seeing Tao Mu holding the phone in his hand without moving for a long time, Wang Boyuan, who had been watching Tao Mu secretly, couldn’t help asking, “What’s wrong?”

“It’s nothing, I just received a text message.” Tao Mu was uncertain whether someone was joking with him, or they really wanted to ask for help. After looking at the call display, the phone number showed that it was also from Town H. Tao Mu thought for a bit and then dialed the phone number back.

It rang twice and was hung up. It was completely turned off the second time he called.

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

Tao Mu’s heart felt heavy so he stood up with his mobile phone: “I’ll go out and make a call.”

While walking, he quickly scrolled through his personal connections in H Town. With a flash of insight, he found the phone numbers of the three girls he met last week and called them one by one. All of them had their phones turned off.

“No way.” Tao Mu muttered to himself and then dialed Da Mao’s phone: “Have you seen Yun Duo, Wu Xiaoxuan and Zhang Hanya these days?”

Da Mao was taken aback for a moment: “Who?”

Tao Mu: “…..” He had no words to describe his childhood friend.

“It’s the three girls we ate dinner with last week.” Tao Mu said quickly: “I just received a distressed text message from an unfamiliar phone. The phone number is also from H Town. I called it but no one answered. The second time they completely turned off the phone. I called the three of them again, but none of them could be reached. There wouldn’t be any trouble, right?”

“Huh?” Da Mao was taken aback: “No. Didn’t they say that they are going to visit the set today?”

“Which crew? Whose set? You guys go ask around. They’re all girls, so it’s best to make sure they’re fine.” If something really did go wrong…..

Tao Mu didn’t say any further. Da Mao and Xiao Pang were also extremely scared. The key point was that they were not too familiar with those three girls. They just had a meal that night. Actually, those three girls wanted to know Tao Mu but unfortunately Tao Mu was too busy and difficult to meet up with. Da Mao and Xiao Pang wanted to become friendly with those girls, but they complained that it would not be fun for the two of them to be following them around, insisting on “exploring jianghu” by themselves.

Da Mao and Xiao Pang were also not shameless enough to insist on following. Besides, they had to pick up newcomers to H Studio City every day and help them rent a house as well as apply for temporary residence permits and acting licenses. There was just no time and energy at all.

As everyone was from Beijing, Da Mao and Xiao Pang only agreed with the three girls to return to Beijing together on the 24th.

Also, this morning, the girl named Yun Duo called Da Mao and said that she would be joining a fan group to visit a popular male celebrity. She called Da Mao to find out the address of the crew. Da Mao and Xiao Pang felt that nothing would happen if a large group of people went together, so he didn’t ask carefully. But now, Tao Mu received such a call for help at the dinner table.

“It’s not necessarily the three of them, right?” Xiao Pang still felt disbelief. How could it be this coincidental: “Could it be someone pranking you?”

“It’s not impossible.” Tao Mu frowned, “But since the text was sent to me, I’d rather believe it just in case.” The key was that of the people who had Tao Mu’s phone number and also happened to be in H Town, except for those three girls, Tao Mu couldn’t think of anyone else who would send this kind of text message.

“Whether it’s a prank or not, you guys find a way to find those three girls. It’s best if they turned out to be fine.” Tao Mu frowned as he reminded them.

Da Mao and Xiao Pang nodded repeatedly. After hanging up the phone, they ran to the hotel where the three girls were staying. But after asking the front desk, the result was that none of the three girls had come back. They then called various places again. But where would they even go to look so late in the evening? Despite the small size of H town, just the temporary population was tens of millions. And there were all sorts of characters around. Those three girls, what if they were really targeted by bad guys?

“Don’t tell me something happened!” Da Mao had a forehead full of wrinkles. He then called Tao Mu: “What should we do? We can’t find them! Should we call the police?”

It hadn’t been more than twenty-four hours since they had disappeared. Besides, Tao Mu just received an unclear text message. Could the police even file a case?

Tao Mu was also uncertain. But he couldn’t sit still at the dinner table anymore. He repeatedly apologized for leaving early. The crowd of bigwigs also noticed that something was wrong. Guo Yaning asked what was wrong so Tao Mu relayed the matter. Everyone also became serious.

After all, they were three young girls in their best years. This group of adults also didn’t want to see something happen to children.

“I’ll also help ask around.” Guo Yaning picked up her phone and called her old acquaintances who were still filming in H Town one by one, asking everyone to help find the girls.

Tao Mu had an idea and called Da Mao again and asked him if he had pictures of the three girls.

Da Mao and Xiao Pang did take a group photo on the day they went to pick up the girls. Hearing Tao Mu’s question, he quickly sent the photo over.

Tao Mu forwarded the photos to the bigwigs one by one, and the bigwigs forwarded the picture to their respective acquaintances.

At this moment, Tao Mu personally experienced the inconvenience of not having a Wechat group or Wechat friend circle.

Like lightning, Tao Mu’s thoughts flashed through his mind, but was immediately overwhelmed by his anxiousness to find the girls.

Cheng Baodong also called the management of H Studio City and asked them to help find the girls.

Tao Mu saw that he couldn’t help here, so he ran to the police station to meet Da Mao and Xiao Pang.

The reality was as Tao Mu expected. The report information they provided was too vague, and the police station simply couldn’t open the case. But the incident involved three girls, so the police also took it seriously. They promised to let them have a look at the monitor cameras.

Da Mao immediately reported the location of the crew where the three girls were going to visit the set.

Tao Mu followed the two policemen and squatted in front of the monitor and watched for a long time, long enough their eyes became bloodshot. Finally, they saw traces of the three girls on one of the screens.

“It’s them!” Da Mao excitedly pointed his finger at the screen: “Mr. Policeman, it’s them!”

The policeman quickly paused the video and enlarged it. In the video, the three girls followed a group of other young girls into the Studio City. After more than an hour, the large group of people came out and stood for a while to say goodbye to each other. Then they either took a taxi or took an electric tricycle and left.

The three girls and a fourth girl in a white T-shirt and short tight skirt got on an electric tricycle together. The tricycle was the kind that was a very common blue painted electric vehicle. The camera pixel resolution was not high so it barely recorded the profile of the girl in the short tight skirt and the driver. The police uncle zoomed in on the stop-frame photo of the video for identification. Tao Mu also took a photo of it with his mobile phone and sent it to Gou Rixin, who as a local would be able to help. Then the video continued, the electric vehicle traveling all the way south along the street, turned left at the intersection, and finally entered an alley where the camera would not be able to track.

——China in 2008 did not have cameras everywhere like in the later years. Especially in small places like H Town where only main roads and important places had cameras installed. Anywhere else would not be tracked.

Tao Mu told the police the phone number that  sent the message for help. The police checked it and found that it was just an anonymous phone card.

The matter had reached a deadlock so far. Fortunately, Tao Mu immediately received a call from Gou Rixin: “Why are you looking for Qi Laosan? Did he provoke you?”

Tao Mu’s heart jumped: “Brother Gou knows this person?”

Gou Rixin: “Sure. We drank together before. A very loyal and righteous person. What’s wrong?”

Tao Mu explained briefly and concisely about the SOS message he received: “I’m not looking for that tricycle driver, I want to find those girls riding inside.”

“I will call Qi Laosan right away. You wait a bit.” Gou Rixin didn’t make small talk, and within two minutes of putting down the phone, he returned the call. During this period, Tao Mu also sent Gou Rixin the group picture of the three girls with Da Mao and Xiao Pang.

“Qi Laosan said that they got off in the middle section of Wansheng North Road. Listening to their conversation, it seems that they were heading to a crew to interview as group extras.”

“Interviewing group extras in an alley?” Tao Mu raised his eyebrows. Wasn’t this nonsense.

“I heard that it was at some hotel or inn or something.” Gou Rixin said: “I asked Qi Laosan to come over. Let’s go to Wansheng North Road to look around. If we really can’t find them then we’ll think of another plan.”

There was no other way!

Tao Mu and the three rushed to Wansheng North Road after they left the police station. Before leaving, the police uncle who helped them look at the monitors and check the mobile phone numbers also gave Tao Mu his personal contact information: “If you find any clues, please contact us in time.”

The police were also investigating the identity of the girl who was with Yun Duo and the other two. But there were too many floating populations in H Town, which made it difficult to investigate.

Tao Mu nodded. Suddenly he remembered something and called Gou Rixin again: “Can you think of a way to find out that woman’s information through your group extra connections?”

Because H Studio City had attracted a large number of migrants to come over to work as group extras, coupled with the fact that H Town was increasingly dependent on the tourism industry, the population management of H Town was not strict. If the woman was not a local, and she had not used her ID card to apply for a temporary residence or acting license, the police might not be able to find out the woman’s true identity in the system. After all, H Town had always had extras with the habit of using other people’s acting licenses to muddle their way through——especially during the times every year when the Actor Union ceased to issue acting licenses.

However, this woman hung out in H Town all day long, and someone would definitely recognize her face. Gou Rixin was one of the older group extras leaders in H Town, with a wide network of contacts and was quite familiar with the area. Tao Mu felt that if someone could find out this woman’s information faster than the police, it would be the ones like Gou Rixin who were the local guys.

Human life was at stake so Gou Rixin agreed easily: “Okay. I will immediately send that photo to all the group extras and ask everyone to help.”

After putting down the phone, Tao Mu took a taxi to the middle section of Wansheng North Road. Gou Rixin had already arrived with a group of martial arts brothers and Qi Laosan to the intersection of the alley where the girls disappeared.

Gou Rixin’s face was very ugly. When he saw Tao Mu, he immediately said, “Things are not so good. Someone in our group recognizes the woman. Da Hei, you explain.”

Gou Rixin stretched out his hand to beckon a darkly tanned and thin boy. The boy spoke Mandarin with a thick southern accent and said, “I know this woman. Her name is Xu Jiao. She has been in H Town for more than a year. She was originally a group extra. Later, somehow, she fell in with a bunch of riffraff and started to do MLM.”

Tao Mu’s heart jumped, Da Mao and Xiao Pang immediately asked: “You mean Yun Duo and the others were deceived into MLM?”

“Not only.” Gou Rixin shook his head: “I’ve heard of those people. Their background is very complicated. It’s not just MLM, they also seem to be pimping at nightclubs, and even have some connection with human traffickers.” Anyway, what could be related to girls was only that kind of shitty stuff. And that group of people could be considered to have their fingers in all of it.

Tao Mu’s heart trembled, and he quickly called the police uncle.

When the police received the call, they took it seriously and immediately opened a case for investigation. They also sent some officers to join Tao Mu.

Gou Rixin had always been enthusiastic about helping out against injustices and was even more anxious than Tao Mu: “Don’t wait. We’re a big group of people so nothing will happen. Let’s go in first.”

Group extra leader Gou felt that with the large number of people on their side, there was nothing to be afraid at all. The martial arts brothers who came with him were also eager. Men, who among them didn’t have fantasies of being a hero at least once.

At this moment, it had been almost three hours since Tao Mu received the text for help. Tao Mu was also worried about the three girls, but he was even more worried that a large group of people just going in like this would inadvertently alert the enemy.

Gou Rixin disagreed: “If they are well-informed, then they should have already run away when our group goes over. Besides, I posted the photo to our chatroom. I can’t promise that someone wouldn’t tell them about it. If we wait longer, it will no longer be a case of alerting the enemy but a dead loss.”

Tao Mu felt that Gou Rixin’s words also made sense.

Upon seeing this, Gou Rixin waved his big hand and immediately went into the alley with a large group of brothers following. Qi Laosan, who had driven Yun Duo and the others before, led the way through the twisty alley, finally stopping in front of a inn called “Longmen Inn”.

Da Mao raised his head and glanced at the name of the hotel, and couldn’t help but to say with feeling: “The name is very domineering!”

Big brother Gou led his large group of brothers into the inn, took out his mobile phone and asked the front desk: “Have you seen these three girls?”

The girl in delinquent dress, who was sitting at the front desk and fixing her makeup, glanced at Gou Rixin: “I didn’t pay attention. Us innkeepers, how do you expect us to keep track of the comings and goings of so many people? You planning to book a room or not, if yes then get out your ID card. If not then go away. Bringing so many people over, who you trying to scare?”

“Hey, I say, why is a little girl like you talking so tough! Let me tell you, this is about a human life, you know? We now suspect that these three girls have been tricked into MLM schemes. Can’t you cooperate with us?”

“What do you mean, you saying my hotel is a den of thieves?” The delinquent girl smacked the small mirror she had been using for makeup on the marble desk, and then rolled up the sleeves on her arms: “You fellas come out now! Someone’s here to make trouble!”

Before her words even fell, seven or eight tall sturdy men had already rushed out immediately.

The group of martial arts brothers brought by Gou Rixin also stepped forward. Gou Rixin’s eyelids jumped and blocked the guys: “Who is looking for trouble? I’m looking for someone! I say, little girl, if you don’t want to help then can you at least not make trouble? This is really a matter of life and death. If you aren’t part of them, then you should help us. These are three lives we’re talking about!”

The delinquent girl rolled her eyes: “You the police? Take out your ID and let me have a look!”

“No.” Gou Rixin explained patiently: “These three people are my friends. They came from out of town to travel and experience life. But who knew that in just a few days they became targets for bad guys. This woman——”

Gou Rixin pointed to Xu Jiao in the photo: “She is not a good person. She engages in MLM schemes, pimps in nightclubs, and has something to do with human traffickers. You see, these three little girls are about the same age as you. The way I see it, little sister, you are also a righteous person and wouldn’t stand by and let something bad happen to them, right?”

“Is it my fault if something bad happens to them?” Delinquent girl rolled her eyes and sneered: “If they are missing, then you should go to the police, why are you at our inn? Sorry, we don’t have this obligation! Besides, with you bringing this large group of people here, people who don’t know better would think my inn is a den of thieves. How will I do business in the future?”

“No, wait. Why are you so stubborn——”

Tao Mu could no longer continue to listen to these two people wasting time. He squeezed over to interrupt the two: “Hello, can you help us check. These girls have been missing for several hours. We have also called the police, and the police are also on their way here. But the time is urgent, and we are indeed very worried about the safety of the girls.”

“Oh my god!” The delinquent girl looked at Tao Mu and then closed her eyes and covered her chest as she took a big step back: “Don’t smile anymore. With such a handsome smile, it’s making me go dizzy. These guys, knowing force won’t do it so you are now using a honey trap!”

Tao Mu: “…..”

Tao Mu took a deep breath: “Then can you check for us——”

“Check! Check! Check! I’ll check it for you right away!” The delinquent girl said, craning her neck and shouting: “Lao San! Come down and take a look. Have you seen these girls when you were on duty in the afternoon?”

Soon the sound of kicking and stomping came from the stairs, and then a bald man dressed in old man clothes and flip flops walked downstairs: “Hah?”

“These girls!” The delinquent girl took Gou Rixin’s cell phone and threw it to the bald man: “Have you seen them when you were on duty in the afternoon?”

The bald-headed guy glanced at it: “Sure did! They came with a woman and said it’s to interview for a special role. Isn’t this nonsense? What crew would live in our shabby place. I told them this but they didn’t believe me. The woman with them also glared at me real fierce, say——”

Everyone’s eyes lit up when they heard this, and Tao Mu asked, “Where are they now?”

“They left!” Baldy scratched his neck: “They went up and only stayed barely long enough to fart before leaving. A large group of people left together. Driving on a small and shabby minivan——”

Gou Rixin hurriedly asked: “Is there a license plate number?”

He glanced at Gou Rixin: “Big brother, do you think my eyes have long hooks? That I can be able to take a look at other people’s license plates while sitting behind the bar?”

These words were shockingly right——

Tao Mu took a deep breath: “I saw a camera at the door…..”

“It doesn’t work.” The delinquent girl shook her head: “The camera was broken long ago. We just leave it up there to scare people.”

Everyone felt disappointed when they heard this. Tao Mu was about to say more but was interrupted by the ringing of his phone.

Tao Mu answered the phone: “Officer Yao? We are at the Longmen Inn….. We still didn’t find them. We heard they came to audition, and then left with a group of people. They drove away in a minivan….. Okay, I’ll meet you at the door.”

Tao Mu put down the phone: “Officer Yao and the other police came. I’ll go to the door to greet them.”

Da Mao and Xiao Pang immediately said, “We’ll go with you.”

Then they complained furiously: “Say, are those three girls stupid or what. We already told them that this place is very chaotic and that they shouldn’t trust others or follow others so easily. Why didn’t they listen…..”

“So you don’t really know them?” The delinquent girl understood it now. Looking at Tao Mu’s handsome face, she couldn’t help but comfort: “Then don’t be too anxious. If a person is too stupid even the gods won’t be able to save them. But handsome guy, you are not only handsome, but also have such a good heart. Are you a celebrity, handsome guy? What films are you in, how come I don’t have any impression~?”

Tao Mu didn’t have the time to pay attention to being hit on by a girl at this moment. He walked out of the inn in the direction of the alley with his mobile phone, and greeted Officer Yao’s police car within a few minutes.

Officer Yao rolled down the car window and let Tao Mu get into the car. Tao Mu explained what happened in the inn, and finally said, “We only found out that they were taken away by a minivan. There is no license plate number.”

Officer Yao’s eyebrows were also frowning deeply. The police first got an official statement from the inn again, and it was basically the same as what Tao Mu said. They then called back to the police station to request more police to go search the streets——but again, H town had too many people with many floating populations and the police force was also limited. Fortunately, Gou Rixin took his martial arts brothers to inquire around, and the police also called all the well known group extras leaders in H Town to help as well.

Even Qi Laoan called his fellow tricycle drivers. Those photos were practically sent flying all over the place as they asked for any news.

In the end, it was the delinquent girl from the Longmen Inn that was the first to get the news——the bald guy who had seen Xu Jiao asked around, and finally found out from a drinking buddy where Xu Jiao’s rental apartment was as well as a courtyard house rented in the suburbs she frequented.

After receiving the news, the police immediately dispatched officers over. Tao Mu and Gou Rixin followed. Considering that they didn’t have any idea on the exact numbers in the MLM group and the human trafficking group, they were also willing to let Gou Rixin’s martial arts group extras to come along. Delinquent girl and her brothers were direct informants so they must also follow. During the ride, delinquent girl insisted on being in the same car as Tao Mu where she then asked for Tao Mu’s contact information straightforwardly: “I tell you that I am doing this because of you. If it were anyone else I wouldn’t bother at all!”

Tao Mu had no choice but to tell delinquent girl his mobile phone number in H Town. Delinquent girl carefully saved the phone number and went even further: “Do you have Weibo? Let’s friend each other?”

Before Tao Mu could speak, delinquent girl spoke again: “Wait a moment, let me change my Weibo name first.”

Da Mao and Xiao Pang secretly glanced at delinquent girl’s phone from the corner of their eyes, and found that her original Weibo name was “Big Sister with a Knife” and her Weibo profile picture was an imposing Siberian tiger. Not long, she changed the Weibo name to “Gentle Little White Rabbit”, and the Weibo profile picture was also replaced with a red-eyed white rabbit.

Da Mao and Xiao Pang: “…..”

Several police cars and dozens of vans whizzed past in the dark. They entered the village that the informant mentioned, and finally stopped in front of a very remote courtyard house at the end of the village. When Tao Mu got out of the car, he heard a loud noise come from inside——the MLM group was indeed hiding in the courtyard house. When the police arrived, it happened that Xu Jiao was discussing business with a certain human trafficker, wanting to transfer away all the disobedient girls, and was not expecting to be caught by the police redhanded——now, not only was the MLM den taken out, but also turned up even more dirt in the form of a human trafficking gang hiding in H Town who carried out their operations under the guise of recruiting for crews to deceive young girls. They managed to rescue a group of victims who had been deeply trapped by this MLM den.

There was good news, as well as bad news.

——The three girls had struggled too fiercely when they learned that they were deceived. When struggling, one of the girls had been slapped by a suspect, the force of which knocked her head against a wall and she was now bleeding and unconscious.

The suspect was also afraid of a death occurring, and wanted to send the injured girl to a black clinic for treatment. The others disagreed, for fear that something might happen again. As the two groups quarreled, Yun Duo managed to grab the phone of one of the suspects and sent Tao Mu a message for help. The reason why she didn’t call the police directly was because she was worried that there was no time.

Sure enough, Yun Duo was discovered just after she picked up the phone and typed the word. Fortunately, she had pressed the send button in time during the scramble——and fortunately, Tao Mu’s face was so handsome that the three girls memorized Tao Mu’s phone number as soon as they got it. And also fortunately, Tao Mu didn’t treat it as a prank after receiving the text message, and really did call the police and rescued them.

When Tao Mu and the others rushed to the scene, they saw a group of injured girls and other victims.

Yun Duo was bruised all over her body from being beaten up by those people. The conditions of the remaining two girls were not very good either. But fortunately, nothing else happened——the three of them had made so much trouble that the suspects were worried about something going wrong so they were only anxious to just sell the three girls to some remote place as soon as possible. In addition, one of the girls was bloody all over and appeared to be in danger of dying at any time. The bunch of scumbags were worried about a death on their hands and had no energy or thoughts of raping the girls…..

“Tao Mu wu wu wu…..” Yun Duo collapsed at her first sight of Tao Mu: “I want to go home. I want to go home wu wu wu…..I’m scared to death…..”

Tao Mu stretched out his hand and patted the girl’s back. He listened to the sound of the ambulance coming in and said, “It’s okay. It’s okay. The police uncles rescued you. Let’s go to the hospital. By the way, do you remember your family’s phone number? You can use my cell phone to call them and ask them to come and pick you up.”

“En!” The girl nodded, still holding Tao Mu and not letting go: “My dad’s name is Yun Xingjian, and our phone number is…..”

Tao Mu paused while holding the phone, and looked at Yun Duo with a slightly weird look: “Yun Xingjian? Is that the surgeon Yun Xingjian of Beijing No. 1 People’s Hospital?”

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

Yun Duo looked at Tao Mu in shock, “Do you know my dad?”

Tao Mu had a weird look on his face: “Do you have a brother named Yun Yi?”

“Ang~” Yun Duo became more and more dazed: “Do you also know my brother?”

Nonsense! Tao Mu privately thought: Who didn’t know the man who created Skynet Technology, the richest man in China?

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Prev

After having his directing skills “discussed” by Tao Mu in a manner of concealing needles in silk (TN: idiom for hidden barbs), Cheng Baodong lost any desire to continue talking. He waved his hand to signal Tao Mu to return to the set to continue shooting.

Shen Yu and the others sat silently and obediently behind Cheng Baodong, watching Tao Mu filming his scenes. At noon, they also stayed to have lunch with the crew. After confirming again and again that Tao Mu would not go with them to sing karaoke or clubbing with them, Shen Yu and the others left disappointed.

After finishing work in the evening, Tao Mu returned to the rental house with his two childhood friends. For dinner, they just ordered a few dishes at sister Ping’s small restaurant. Halfway through the meal, Da Mao’s phone rang——it was a call from the girls they had met on Weibo.

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

“What, you have already arrived in H Town?” Da Mao put down his chopsticks, feeling a little surprised: “Why are you here so late?”

Don’t know what was said on the other end of the phone, but Da Mao replied helplessly: “Fine. You guys first take a taxi to the entrance of the Studio City. I’ll be there to pick you guys up.”

After putting down the phone, Da Mao explained to Tao Mu: “Didn’t we recently begin to post some entertainment gossip and H Studio City’s news on Tieba and Weibo. Many netizens got curious, and some people want to come and experience it during the summer vacation. The phone call I just received was from our fans. They are a couple of girls who had also just graduated from high school. They wanted to visit H Town before the beginning of school, and also visit the film sets of their idols. But, the plane was delayed and when they arrived at H Town it was already dark. The girls are a little scared and want me to pick them up.”

Xiao Pang added proudly: “We are more or less celebrities in the circle now. Everyone believes in us~”

Tao Mu nodded: “Then you go ahead. I’ll be upstairs resting first.”

“En!” Da Mao and Xiao Pang stood up and smiled ingratiatingly at Tao Mu: “You have a good rest, we’ll bring back some late night snacks.”

“Then come back with two pounds of spicy crawfish.” Tao Mu did not bother being courteous and ordered the dish. After the two had left, he went upstairs.

Though he said it was to rest, what he really did was actually lying on the bed after taking a shower, watching the Olympics while betting on the periphery and paying attention to the international oil futures market. In addition, he would also read some informational books related to financial regulations from time to time. After a while of multitasking, sleepiness hit Tao Mu and he fell asleep on the bed like that.

When Da Mao and Xiao Pang came back, what they saw was Tao Mu in bed with books and laptop surrounding him.

The two knew that Tao Mu had been very tired recently, so they didn’t want to wake him up. On tiptoes, they turned off the computer, put away the books, and put the freshly cooked spicy crawfish into the fridge. They didn’t even dare to take a bath and just took off their clothes and turned off the lights before going to sleep.

When Tao Mu woke up it was already the next morning. He hadn’t expected that he could sleep so soundly this time. For fear of the noise outside waking Tao Mu, Da Mao and Xiao Pang had closed the window tightly. There was only one electric fan and it was currently blowing slowly at the foot of Tao Mu’s bed so Tao Mu didn’t feel the heat either. In contrast, Da Mao and Xiao Pang had broken out into a sweat while sleeping and had awakened in the middle of the night from the heat.

“You’re awake!” Hearing Tao Mu’s movement, Da Mao and Xiao Pang, who were lying on their beds turned their heads and smiled, “What do you want to eat for breakfast, I will ask brother Feng to bring it up.”

“Soy milk fritters!” Tao Mu said. After seeing a cold bowl of mochi in the kitchen, he asked casually: “What time did you come back yesterday? Why didn’t you wake me up?”

“Why wake you. You finally fell into a deep sleep.” Da Mao disagreed. “By the way, we are going to take a few sisters to apply for acting licenses today. Let’s have a meal together tonight?”

Xiao Pang also winked at Tao Mu: “The three girls are all very pretty.”

Tao Mu frowned: “I don’t want to go.”

“Don’t!” Da Mao was anxious: “We already boasted to those girls, saying that our brother is handsome enough to break the skies. They are all waiting to see you!”

Xiao Pang flipped his hair and made a pose on the side: “Mu Mu gege, give us some face, let’s go~ Muah~~”

Tao Mu was disgusted enough: “Don’t use the ugly trap with me (TN: like honey trap, but instead of using beauty to get what you want you try to disgust others enough to get your way hence ‘ugly trap’ XD)! I won’t go!” He would rather stay in the rental house to watch the Olympics when he had that time.

“You have to. Let me tell you, these little sisters are truly really cute.” Xiao Pang sat directly on Tao Mu with all of his heavy weight and patiently persuaded: “I think you should also get in touch with people your own age. Mingling with that crowd of old fritters from the crew everyday, aren’t you feeling suffocated.”

“Go! Go! It’s just one meal. Then we’ll go home. If you want to watch the Olympics, you can watch the Olympics, and if you want to watch oil futures, you can watch oil futures. We’ll help you wash your feet and give you a massage. Okay?” Da Mao wheedled: “Anyway, you have to eat dinner, don’t you? It’s still eating no matter the location? And with pretty sisters to accompany you the food will be even tastier~”

Tao Mu was nagged by Da Mao and Xiao Pang so much he had no choice but to agree.

With excitement, Da Mao and Xiao Pang ran downstairs and borrowed the electric tricycle used by sister Ping to buy ingredients for the restaurant. After breakfast, they carried Tao Mu to the entrance of the Studio City.

Tao Mu knew that the two were trying to make up for yesterday’s mistakes, and couldn’t help but smile.

When Tao Mu arrived at the crew, he happened to see Wang Boyuan also stepping out of his nanny van. This inevitably caused Tao Mu to feel a little strange. Because according to today’s filming schedule, Wang Boyuan’s first scene was at ten o’clock in the morning but it was not even seven o’clock yet. Wang Boyuan seemed to have arrived a little too early.

Tao Mu nodded at Wang Boyuan and said hello: “Senior brother, morning.”

“Good morning.” Wang Boyuan looked at Tao Mu thoughtfully.

Honestly speaking, he didn’t sleep well last night. Wang Boyuan developed a vague impulse deep in his heart after hearing Da Mao and Xiao Pang’s words yesterday, and wanted to ask Tao Mu to help him.

In fact, he wanted to follow Da Mao and Xiao Pang’s topic and speak some more about it yesterday, but Tao Mu changed the topic before he could. The chance was fleeting, and he was too embarrassed to ask Tao Mu to help him in stocks afterwards. After all, the two of them hadn’t reached that point of friendship yet, and it might make it difficult for Tao Mu if he made such a request as it was a matter of money.

Besides, he also understood Tao Mu’s concerns. Indeed, if this kind of thing led to profits, then everyone would naturally be happy. But if money was lost, Wang Boyuan couldn’t guarantee that he would not take his anger out on Tao Mu. After all, in the past six months, Wang Boyuan had already lost a lot in the stock market, and he couldn’t afford to mess around anymore.

——Fortunately, Tao Mu steered them away from the topic in time.

Thinking of this, Wang Boyuan couldn’t help but look at Tao Mu again and started thinking about another thing. He wondered whether or not Tao Mu’s talent in the stock market was the real deal.

It was necessary to say that Wang Boyuan didn’t have much skills in financial stock trading, so he naturally relied on stockbrokers to do it for him. Every time he bought in and sold out, the most important thing was naturally to take the advice of stock brokers. Of course, sometimes there would even be a little bit of “inside news”. But it’s a pity that the domestic market had been extremely chaotic in the past six months, and the stockbrokers were also not sure about the situation, ending up losing Wang Boyuan’s savings over these many years.

Because of this Wang Boyuan couldn’t help but fantasize. If he had replaced his stockbrokers with Tao Mu as his investment advisor, he would not only not lose the tens of millions in the stock market, but he might even earn back seven or eight times more….. 

At that time, don’t even mention introducing a few roles for Tao Mu or take care of him in the entertainment circle. He would even be willing to give Tao Mu a big red envelope!

As Wang Boyuan’s thoughts wondered, he suddenly came back to himself. Immediately he smiled bitterly, he had really gone crazy from losing money. He didn’t know Tao Mu at all a few months ago. No matter how talented Tao Mu was in stocks, what did it have to do with him!

Tao Mu looked at Wang Boyuan’s face that seemed like a color palette, expression shifting like the colors of the rainbow. It did not seem like he was thinking over a character’s emotions.

“Senior brother?” Tao Mu interrupted Wang Boyuan’s fantasies and pointed to the direction of the public dressing room: “If there isn’t anything, then I’m going to get my makeup applied.”

“Ah? Oh!” Wang Boyuan came back to his senses with a sad smile: “Go ahead.”

Tao Mu: “…..”

——Although Tao Mu was one of the first to arrive at the crew every day, his scenes were not connected. Often he would have a few scenes in the morning and then a few in the middle of the night. The rest of the time was spent in the long waiting process. Because the best time slots must be reserved for the bigwigs and old veteran actors.

This was still the case today.

After filming the first scene in the morning, Tao Mu waited on the set with makeup, silently observing the scene with Wang Boyuan and Guo Yaning. The cameraman in charge of the second lens suddenly felt pain in his abdomen.

He looked around, but he didn’t find his assistant. He finally turned his attention to Tao Mu who was observing the set seriously, and whispered, “Tao Mu? Tao Mu?”

“Huh?” Tao Mu turned his head and raised his eyebrows at the cameraman.

“Do you know how to use this?” The camera guy asked quietly while carrying the camera. Probably because Tao Mu showed professional proficiency in various functions of various departments during his time in the crew, and every time he was able to help on point. Even if Tao Mu had never shown his photography skills, the cameraman still had a blind trust in Tao Mu.

“My stomach hurts and I can’t hold it anymore. Can you help me hold up for a while?”

While the actors on the set were NG-ed again, the cameraman clutched his stomach and begged Tao Mu: “Five minutes, help me hold up for five minutes. I will definitely come back.”

The camera guy was also out of solutions. The crew originally had a dozen videographers, most of whom performed their own duties, and a small part of them acted as assistants to help on rotation. But incidentally, he just couldn’t find any of them right now. Besides, diarrhea didn’t wait for people——as a grown man it was not like he could do the number 2 in his pants. As a result, he could only temporarily catch an idler and hope for the best.

Tao Mu glanced at the camera guy whose stomach hurt so much that he was sweating profusely, and smiled lightly: “All right. Five minutes.”

“Thank you! Thank you so much!” The cameraman handed the camera to Tao Mu, reached for a roll of paper, and hurriedly ran towards the bathroom.

Tao Mu aimed the camera at the heroine, and only waited for the clapper-loader to call “Action”, before zooming the camera slowly in.

Cheng Baodong, who was sitting in front of the monitor, let out a “Huh” and couldn’t help but straighten up.

In the screen of the monitor, a beam of sunlight struck down diagonally from above, and it happened to fall on the head of the heroine Guo Yaning. Guo Yaning, who was dressed up in ancient costume, stood in front of the camera with the bright sunshine pouring down her silhouette, making her silhouette softer and more delicate. Even the hair accessories on her head appeared cuter.

The tall Wang Boyuan stood beside Guo Yaning in a green robe, bowing his head slightly as he said lines. In order to cater to Wang Boyuan’s actions, Guo Yaning also looked over with a smile on her face.

Bright sunshine poured down over the two people, and encircled the two in the same frame under a halo of light. The lens suddenly seemed to have been applied with a filter effect. Not only did it set off the beauty of the two of them, but also emphasized the strong affection from the man and the shy and gentleness from the woman. One appeared romantic and suave, while the other was gentle and charming. The scene was so beautiful it could be used as a publicity poster.

This was not Lao Er’s photography style!

Cheng Baodong subconsciously looked in the direction of the second camera, and at a glance he saw Tao Mu, who was holding the long lens alone.

“Why are you?” Cheng Baodong was surprised and curious: “You actually know photography?”

Wang Boyuan and Guo Yaning looked at each other and walked to the monitor to watch the playback.

After seeing it, Guo Yaning’s eyes lit up immediately: “Tao Mu, not bad, you can actually make me look so beautiful. What can’t you not do?”

Tao Mu smiled humbly: “Sister Ning is very beautiful so naturally you will look good no matter how the camera is shot.”

“Yeah, right.” Guo Yaning smiled and gave Tao Mu an eyeroll: “You only know to say nice words to make me feel good. I have been filming for so many years, and there were only a handful of photographers who could make me appear so beautiful with their cameras.”

And the most important thing was that Guo Yaning had a kind of unique charm that couldn’t be found elsewhere except in Tao Mu’s lens. Passionate and affectionate, charming and gentle, every move spoke of her joy or anger. The most important thing was that Guo Yaning, who was nearly 30 years old, looked like she was in her twenties in the camera. A twenty year old who was in her prime and with magnificent beauty.

Guo Yaning admired her own beauty again, and reached out to elbow Cheng Baodong: “Give me a copy of this video, I want to keep it for collection.”

After finishing speaking, she looked at Tao Mu and praised with admiration: “Yesterday you managed to leave director Cheng speechless when discussing his directorial skills, and today you showed us impressive photography skills. I think you are very interested in directing films? Why did you sign up for the acting program in the first place?”

Tao Mu smiled humbly: “Because I was born too handsome.”

“That’s true.” Guo Yaning nodded, and echoed with sincere feeling: “You are this handsome, it would be a shame not to show your face in front of the camera.”

Cheng Baodong grunted in an unconvinced manner. But there was no way for him to refute it.

When the cameraman came out of the bathroom, he saw that the large group of people were not filming their scenes but gathered around the monitor. Tao Mu, who was supposed to be in charge of the camera instead of him, was also surrounded in the middle, and was currently being asked questions by the crowd.

The camera guy’s heart jumped and he ran over quickly: “What’s wrong? What’s wrong? I just couldn’t stand the stomachache, so I asked Tao Mu to help me for a while. Don’t blame Tao Mu, director Cheng, it’s all my fault——I truly couldn’t hold back anymore.”

Cheng Baodong sneered: “Don’t tell me! If it wasn’t for your stomachache, we still wouldn’t know that someone had such a side to them. I think you should move over as the second camera. Guo Yaning even said that Tao Mu’s shots are much better than yours.”

“This is a fact, alright!” Guo Yaning gave Cheng Baodong an eyeroll, completely unintimidated by the other: “Tao Mu photographed me very beautifully. It just happens that I will be releasing an album in the second half of the year, and I plan to have Xiao Mu help me shoot a beautiful MV. “

Cheng Baodong chuckled contemptuously: “You mean that album that you use your face to sing?”

“You don’t have to point it out!” Guo Yaning glared at Cheng Baodong viciously. She just happened to be tone deaf. Who said that an actor who was tone deaf couldn’t make an album? Was it against the law?

Cheng Baodong continued to hehe, but he didn’t dare to stroke the tiger’s beard anymore.

Because of Tao Mu’s inadvertent reveal of his photography skills, he instantly conquered the biggest bigwig on the set, the heroine of the crew. Guo Yaning now often came up next to Tao Mu when she was not busy, and asked Tao Mu tips on how to take her pictures so beautifully.

——In fact, it was not only Guo Yaning, but most of the crew members were also very curious about this matter. Tao Mu didn’t hide his knowledge. He revealed everything from lighting, composition, proportions to physics. But in the end, this kind of skill still relied on talent——even though it was just taking pictures and videos in the same way as other cameramen and photographers, Tao Mu had the ability to capture the most beautiful and emotion filled shots of the actors. People who did not have the talent would naturally be lacking in comparison.

“We can only say that Xiao Mu, you were born to eat this bowl of rice!”

At the end of the consultation, the group of bigwig cameramen and photographers could not help but feel impressed. Fortunately, with Tao Mu’s good looks, he would never grab this bowl of rice from them. Although these professional cameramen and photographers were envious, they were not jealous.

After getting off work at night, Da Mao and Xiao Pang drove the electric tricycle of sister Ping’s to guard outside the Studio City.

Tao Mu couldn’t stand these two guys’ attentiveness: “Isn’t it just a meal. I already agreed. You don’t have to come and pick me up?”

“Brother Mu, you have it so rough from filming, how can we bear to let you walk all the way back. It’s better to sit. Just feel the breeze blow, look at the scenery and we will be there in five minutes.” Da Mao and Xiao Pang said, specially patting the wooden chair taken from sister Ping’s restaurant that was now placed on the electric tricycle: “Brother Mu, sit!”

It only took ten minutes to walk!

Tao Mu sighed helplessly, and stepped onto it with his long legs.

Guo Yaning, who was sitting in her nanny car and was about to return to the hotel, asked the driver to stop the car. She pulled down the window and smiled, “What is this for?”

Tao Mu explained with a smile: “My classmates are here to pick me up.”

When Da Mao and Xiao Pang saw Guo Yaning, they couldn’t help recalling their shameful and brainless behavior bragging about Tao Mu yesterday. They blushed and shouted, “Hello, sister Ning.”

“You guys really know to have fun.” Guo Yaning smiled and commented: “Get in the car, I will send you back.”

“No, no. We live very close, and it only takes five minutes.” Da Mao and Xiao Pang quickly refused: “Moreover, there are a lot of paparazzi in H Studio. It would be bad if we were photographed.”

“You think quite a lot.” Guo Yaning chuckled: “Okay. I’ll invite you to dinner another day.”

The last remark was for Tao Mu. It seemed that Tao Mu’s photography skills really impressed Guo Yaning.

After the nanny car left, Da Mao and Xiao Pang asked suspiciously: “Brother Mu, what did you do today? Why do I feel that Guo Yaning’s attitude toward you has changed drastically?”

Yesterday, when they were visiting the set, her attitude was just lukewarm at best. How come now she was acting like an old friend today?

“I helped the camera guy who had diarrhea to shoot some scenes for a while.” Tao Mu replied lightly.

Da Mao and Xiao Pang oh-ed in sudden realization——they knew about Tao Mu’s photography skills. When working in a photography studio, many young girls were charmed by Tao Mu because of this. It’s a pity that their brother Mu was a late bloomer and was not interested in the girls who tried to hit on him.

“If you knew this trick worked so well, you should show this hand earlier, brother Mu. I guarantee those female stars will be charmed by you.”

Tao Mu chuckled lightly. The crew was strictly hierarchical and some things could not be easily touched. For example, neither the director’s chair nor the camera could be moved casually by others. Besides, Tao Mu didn’t think that he would be able to hold the golden thigh just by taking two photos for someone. Instead of holding someone’s golding thigh, he was more interested in becoming the golden thigh.

“Didn’t you plan to meet the girls for dinner? Coming to pick me up at this time, is it okay?”

Da Mao and Xiao Pang didn’t realize that Tao Mu was deliberately changing the subject, and said with smiles: “We’ve already taken them over. They are waiting at sister Ping’s small restaurant.”

While talking, the electric tricycle had already arrived at the door of the restaurant. Da Mao locked the vehicle, and the three of them pushed open the door of the small restaurant. At a glance, Tao Mu saw three girls sitting at a round table by the window, and sister Ping was holding the menu and chatting with them.

“So you’re Tao Mu?” Seeing the three people enter, the girls immediately stood up, their eyes stuck to Tao Mu’s face subconsciously. One of the girls had on a white T-shirt, blue denim shorts and hair done in ponytails. She looked at Tao Mu in delighted surprise, holding her face in her hands and screaming quietly, “So handsome!”

The other two girls were also speechless by Tao Mu’s handsome appearance. Standing together, they elbowed and tugged at each other, faces flushed like three little quails in the beginnings of love.

Tao Mu had been handsome as a child and only got better looking as he grew older so he was long accustomed to the reaction of girls of his age. Da Mao and Xiao Pang looked at each other sadly: “Let’s have some introductions. This is our brother Tao Mu. Tao Mu, this is Yun Duo, Wu Xiaoxuan, and Zhang Hanya. They are all from Beijing No. 4 Middle School, and they have also just graduated from high school.”

The girls greeted Tao Mu with bright eyes and waved their hands to say hello.

Tao Mu smiled and said, “You’ve been waiting for a long time. Let’s sit down and eat first.”

Everyone was of the same age, so naturally they had much to talk about. Besides, Tao Mu was so handsome, even if there was no conversation, the girls would keep looking for topics.

Tao Mu did not have the habit of acting cold at gatherings. He patiently informed them of some of the unspoken rules that must be paid attention to while hanging out in H Studio City, especially as group extras.

“…..Generally, group extras are recruited in the place opposite the Qianhao Hotel and the service department. Some crews will also conduct interviews in the hotel. However, you are all girls, and you should try to avoid these kinds of messy venues. If you are truly interested in experiencing life as group extras, you can get up at four o’clock in the morning and stand downstairs. It’s easier to find scenes for female group extras. Especially as you are all such beautiful and lovely girls.”

The three beautiful and lovely girls were struck dizzy by Tao Mu’s praise. They nodded their heads like little chicks pecking grain. At the end of the dinner, they exchanged contact information with Tao Mu.

Tao Mu did not refuse, thinking that he would only stay in H Town for at most one week and when he returned to Beijing he would change his number.

After sending the three girls back to the hotel, Da Mao and Xiao Pang, who had been ignored by the girls the whole meal and instead served as important props for the human flesh background, both looked at Tao Mu with melancholy looks.

Tao Mu also replied with an innocent look: “I said I didn’t want to come——”

Da Mao and Xiao Pang let out sarcastic chuckles in unison. However, after returning to the rental house, they still kept their promise and helped Tao Mu wash his feet and gave Tao Mu a full body massage. It was just that they used extra strength when massaging, causing Tao Mu to feel both pain and comfort.

By their last week in H Town, Tao Mu was like a fish in the water in the crew of “Faraway Jianghu”.

On the one hand it was because both his acting skills and people skills were exemplary as well as the fact that the big celebrities and old veteran actors were happy to support newcomers; on the other hand it was because his photography skills and PS skills were impressive enough. Many female actresses especially appreciated Tao Mu——that’s right, after showing off his superb photography skills, Tao Mu also took the opportunity to show off his same superb photoshop skills and immediately conquered the female actresses in the crew.

In addition, Wang Boyuan had also kept thinking about Tao Mu’s stock trading skills. During the filming, he could not help but observe Tao Mu and talk with Tao Mu, trying to understand Tao Mu’s personality through conversation and other methods——not as a potential newcomer worthy of support, but as a cooperator of equal status when it came to money exchanges.——To put it bluntly, he was looking for an investment consultant.

Because of this intention, Wang Boyuan’s attitude naturally changed when he talked with Tao Mu.

What kind of person was Tao Mu? Growing up in an orphanage from a young age, he was used to observing words and feelings to figure out people’s hearts. He originally had intentions to make friends with Cheng Baodong and Wang Boyuan. Now that Wang Boyuan voluntarily approached by himself, he would certainly seize the opportunity.

——Although there was no mention of the sensitive topic of whether to serve as an investment consultant, Tao Mu still subtly inserted his analysis and views on the domestic stock market while chatting with Wang Boyuan.

Due to the deep waters in the domestic stock market, Tao Mu actually did not recommend that Wang Boyuan continue to play in the stock market at this juncture——he himself also prepared to withdraw all his funds from the stock market before the end of the Olympic Games. In segments, he planned to invest the money in peripheral platforms, and after earning his first start-up capital, he would then switch to international futures.

However, after putting his view out there, Tao Mu also recommended a few stocks to Wang Boyuan, allowing Wang Boyuan to enjoy the pleasure and satisfaction of watching his stocks rise while the overall market plummeted. Of the tens of millions that were lost only one million was returned. Although he was still in a state of monetary loss, Wang Boyuan still felt strangely satisfied.

The other old veteran actors in the crew who had been secretly paying attention to Tao Mu also rode on Tao Mu’s coattails and managed to get themselves bonuses, making some pocket money that was without worries.

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It was also for this reason that Tao Mu, who had become more and more valued and welcomed by everyone, received the treatment of a solo banquet and a farewell banquet on the day of his last scene. This wave of feedback was enough for Tao Mu to understand——these contacts and connections that he had been scheming for were estimated to be solid.

Sure enough, at the farewell banquet, the bigwigs and old veteran actors took the initiative to exchange contact information while drinking. While coaxing people with sweet words, Tao Mu’s fingers flew as he added phone numbers.

Just when he was so busy he could barely spare any extra energy, a text message came in with a ding.

The sender was an unknown number. The information was only one word——

“Help!”

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“If director Cheng isn’t busy filming, I’ll go to the bathroom first!” Tao Mu suddenly said, reaching out and beckoning the two currently feeling annoyed with themselves for bungling things up. He said, “You two come with me.”

Long Tianao raised his paws with a smile and siddled over with an ingratiating smile: “Me too——”

Before he finished speaking however, he was completely frozen in place by Tao Mu’s expressionless look. He didn’t dare to finish speaking, so he could only watch Tao Mu take the two childhood friends to the bathroom.

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Cheng Baodong felt that he once again missed what had set Tao Mu off, so he looked around with bewilderment, “What’s the situation?”

No one responded. Only Wang Boyuan looked thoughtfully at Tao Mu’s back. He found that this child was very interesting, extremely clear on what was public and private and never ambiguous about the line in between. He also seemed to have a protective streak.

This was not in line with the slick and sophisticated manners he had always displayed.

…………..

“I say, what’s the matter with you two?” Under the guise of taking a bathroom break, Tao Mu dragged Da Mao and Xiao Pang into the bathroom. He raised his foot and kicked all the partition doors, confirming that there was no one inside before he asked them.

Da Mao and Xiao Pang seemed like two big dogs drenched by torrential rain. They glanced at each other dejectedly, and said with disappointed expressions: “We just want to help you.”

One was very tall and one was very wide, but at that moment both were trying to shrink themselves into a ball in the corner. Tao Mu felt both annoyed and amused.

“How do you want to help me?” Tao Mu raised his eyebrows and asked.

“Didn’t you say it before! Because your capital value is not high, those people don’t have any regard for you. The two of us discussed it and felt that this was indeed the case. So we thought of such a way——aren’t you particularly good in stock trading? If you can help those big celebrities and directors to make money in stock trading, they will definitely treat you well!”

Da Mao sniffled and confessed dejectedly: “I checked it all on the Internet. Wang Boyuan also likes stocks, but he was not lucky. This time the market fell, he lost tens of millions. Many entertainment media are reporting this matter. So we thought, if you can help him in the stock market, as an A-list superstar he can definitely look after you!”

What wishful thinking. Tao Mu chuckled, “What if I lost him money?”

Da Mao and Xiao Pang were full of confidence: “How can that be, brother Mu, you are such a genius and you have such a precise eye, you will definitely not lose it.”

“Do you think that the stock market was opened by our family?” Tao Mu looked at the two childhood friends. They both had kind intentions, but things weren’t done like this: “Have you two thought about it, what if I lose money for these bigshots in stock trading? Even if they can’t kill me, wouldn’t it be easy to join forces to ruin me in order to relieve their anger?”

There was actually such a possibility?

Da Mao and Xiao Pang were horrified and shocked. They finally realized the danger: “No way?”

They only felt that they had acted too hastily, which might affect the views of these big celebrities towards Tao Mu. They never thought that Tao Mu would lose money.

This kind of blind trust in Tao Mu was seriously…..who gave them such courage?!

“Why not?” Tao Mu snorted softly, but it wasn’t to scare the two of them.

The so-called money could shake one’s will. In the past and present life, Tao Mu knew very well how money, especially a huge amount of money, could push a person to the brink. There was a popular phrase in later years called “the rich can be willful”, and that was absolutely true. However, Tao Mu had lived for two lifetimes, and he had a deeper understanding of the phrase “the poor can only resign to fate”.

Before Wang Boyuan became a star, he was just from an ordinary family background. The savings of half his entire life were all lost in the stock market overnight, and directly transformed him from a state of “the rich can be willful” to “the poor can only resign to fate” without even a transitional period. To say that Wang Boyuan could still remain as calm as ever, he was afraid that even ghosts would not believe it.

At this critical point, Wang Boyuan would definitely be more sensitive on the issue of money. But it just so happened that Da Mao and Xiao Pang rushed right into it. Therefore, Wang Boyuan guessing that Da Mao and Xiao Pang were instigated by others, and then suspecting Tao Mu to have ulterior motives was very understandable.

It was precisely because of this that, although Tao Mu was very confident in himself, he did not want to provoke Wang Boyuan at this time——he wasn’t worried about anything else, but simply felt that him acting too eager would not reflect well on him.

In other words, even if Tao Mu was determined to use the method of stock investment to win over Wang Boyuan, it must be Wang Boyuan’s initiative and he could only reluctantly agree with it after careful consideration. Rather than the hasty self-recommendation that Da Mao and Xiao Pang made——

Of course, that Da Mao and Xiao Pang could think of opening up the situation from this area and helping Tao Mu to expand his social circle was a good starting point. But sometimes, good intentions might not be able to get things done, and more often, impatience lead to failure.

——After being reborn, with his gold finger Tao Mu only needed to take things steady. In fact, the start-up capital was already in front of his eyes. After waiting for another year and a half, Tao Mu was even confident that he could rake in hundreds of millions of capital for himself when operating in the negative global market situation. Although this money was still not a big deal to those wealthy groups and conglomerate business families. But it was enough for Tao Mu to build his own entertainment empire.

With such good prerequisites in hand, Tao Mu naturally didn’t have to rush to please anyone. Therefore, in the matter of accumulating contacts and forming a network to mingle into the Beijing circle, he had always maintained the basic method of “just becoming a familiar face”——keep it steady and gradual, tepid and lukewarm, while occasionally making his existence known from time to time. And on the way, he could also observe the personalities of these experienced and slick foxes of the Beijing circle. Just as Li Xiaoheng once observed him, Tao Mu also needed time to observe these bigshots from Beijing in order to determine who he could have a deeper friendship with and who he should only keep it business. Tao Mu naturally had different means to treat different people.

Speaking of, this kind of observer attitude was what Tao Mu learned from that very popular male escort. That person once told Tao Mu that everyone saw different scenery when facing a low period or a high period in their lives. The so-called various walks of life meant that different people would display different attitudes when facing a strong group and a disadvantaged group.

Before his rebirth, Tao Mu didn’t understand the usefulness of such observations. Of course, he didn’t have the mood to settle his mind and look at the world with an outsider’s eyes. After rebirth, Tao Mu found that this kind of bystander’s perspective was very interesting——not mentioning that these observation processes could ultimately be applied to acting. But in terms of observation results, it was enough for Tao Mu to be able to know how to artfully deal with people.

In this way, after Tao Mu’s capital and reputation have accumulated, he could target different groups of people, or take the initiative, or wait for those who wanted to make money to come knocking at his door. Then with the lure of favor and profit he could sort these contacts out and then use them as a stepping stone to further gain contact with the most powerful distributors and producers in the film and television industry. After he established his own network of connections, many things would become easy——whether it was investing in some good projects that laymen might not be able to access even with money, or making movies and TV series by himself, at least in terms of distribution and scheduling he would not be constrained by others.

People could be lured by the pursuit of profit. From this perspective, Tao Mu felt that there was nothing wrong with his two childhood friends’ thinking. It was just that their methods were not enough——in Tao Mu’s view, whether it was money or talent, it should be spent where it would be put to the best use. Blindly showing off wealth was certainly eye-catching, but it was too wasteful. It was better to do things subtly, gradually and silently. From there, many things would naturally follow like trickles of water flowing until it formed a canal.

To make it clearer. The so-called wealth could shake one’s will, since Tao Mu was a god of wealth who could help people make money, then he didn’t need to shamelessly offer himself——since it was to give money to people, then he should at least stand upon his dignity. Only when those who wanted to make money voluntarily come to his door, lower their posture and plead with him, could he slowly establish his status and influence in everyone’s minds.

This was also what junior high politics class spoke of, that economic foundation determined the superstructure.

When these words were told to the two, Da Mao and Xiao Pang finally realized. The two showed a thumbs up at Tao Mu, both with a face full of flattery, “You are really cunning.”

“Do you know how to talk! What cunning, this is resourcefulness! Resourceful, understand!” Tao Mu couldn’t help but pet the two dog heads: “So you two don’t have to worry. Since it is the economic foundation that determines the superstructure, no matter what you two say or do, as long as it is profitable and a win-win situation is guaranteed, it will be a good result in the end.”

So there was no need to worry about bungling things up.

Da Mao and Xiao Pang were once again enlightened. Then they said sheepishly: “Although it is like that. But we are still worried that our actions will make those people think about you badly…..”

Tao Mu snorted. So it was said that young people were too naive. What did the opinions of others matter? If you had the strength, people who had opinions about you would just have to hold it all back. If you were completely incapable, even if you had an extremely good personality, you would still be trampled under others’ feet.

The world admired the strong and pitied the weak. Just how respectful they were to the strong meant just how unscrupulous they would be to the weak. This was human nature. Da Mao and Xiao Pang didn’t understand now, but they would gradually understand later.

“Okay. Let’s go if there is nothing else. If we stay longer others will think we all have kidney problems!”

Seeing that Tao Mu really didn’t care much about this kind of thing, Da Mao and Xiao Pang, who had always trusted their brother Mu, also felt relieved. Da Mao scratched his chin, finally back in a mood to joke around: “You mean frequent urination, urinary urgency, and urine like rainwater?”

“What is that! Our state is obviously waiting to finish urinating!” Before Xiao Pang finished speaking, Tao Mu had already slapped his round head.

“Piss off, does it take you 20 minutes to finish peeing? Is this peeing the Yellow River?”

“Why is it the Yellow River?” Da Mao was confused when he heard the words, and then suddenly he realized, “Is it because the urine is yellow?”

Who wants to listen to you explain this! Tao Mu was speechless and pretended to kick the two out of the bathroom.

They were laughing and joking as they went back to the set. Mu Huating, who finally caught the opportunity, walked up to Tao Mu: “Tao Mu, brother Zhao wanted me to say a few words to you.”

Mu Huating had actually been following behind Tao Mu for a long time. It was just that Tao Mu’s aura was too strong just now, appearing somewhat dignified and intimidating. Even an arrogant and domineering hedonistic son of wealthy parents like Long Tianao didn’t dare to approach. Mu Huating also didn’t dare to follow too closely, just hovering a far distance outside the bathroom in a spot that wouldn’t let him hear the conversation between Tao Mu and his friends while also being close enough to catch any movement.

“I was keeping watch for you and no one went to the bathroom.” Mu Huating tried to awkwardly appease the other and then he hurriedly repeated what Zhao Keping had ordered him to: “Brother Zhao asked me to apologize to you on his behalf.”

According to Zhao Keping’s thoughts, he originally planned to leave Tao Mu high and dry for a few days after he was kicked out of The Legend of Heroes and wait for Tao Mu to come forward voluntarily after he could no longer take the huge gap from before and after. He would then give him a better audition opportunity than “The Legend of Heroes”. Zhao Keping was already familiar with this way of giving a slap and then handing over a sweet date——every artist under him had experienced the same thing.

However, he did not expect that bastard Ning Yuan to sow discord right after Tao Mu came out of “The Legend of Heroes.” Before Zhao Keping could come up with a countermeasure, Tao Mu had already entered the crew “Faraway Jianghu” under the introduction of Gou Rixin.

This series of events was so fast that Zhao Keping was left somewhat at a loss. On top of that, one of Zhao Keping’s artists provoked the TV station when he was shooting a variety show by acting like bigshot and in response the angry TV station leader planned to have all the media shut him out. Zhao Keping had to rush out to do damage control. This managed to delay him for another week.

After Zhao Keping settled these matters and returned to H Town, he didn’t know whether Tao Mu’s anger had cooled, so he asked Mu Huating, the only artist under him who had an interaction with Tao Mu, to see Tao Mu and get a hint of the situation.

Mu Huating actually didn’t like Tao Mu very much, especially after he was deliberately suppressed by Tao Mu in acting. Mu Huating always had the illusion that Tao Mu would violently hurt him at any time. But he didn’t dare to disobey Zhao Keping’s words——Wan Meihong was right. After Mu Huating was assigned to Zhao Keping by the company, over these years he was often trained by Zhao Keping. His original stubborn and mulish temper had long been smoothed out.

It was precisely because of this that even if Mu Huating was very intimidated by Tao Mu, he would still bite the bullet and come over on the orders of Zhao Keping,

“Brother Zhao said he wanted to invite you to dinner and have a good chat. He said that it was wrong of him to sit by and watch indifferently when you were kicked out of the crew of “The Legend of Heroes”. And especially since he also accepted your ten thousand yuan so now he wants to return this ten thousand yuan to you.”

Although he said that, what Zhao Keping really wanted was just an excuse to meet up with Tao Mu.

Tao Mu did not comment on this. But he really didn’t have time to deal with Zhao Keping now. Although Cheng Baodong don’t speak human words, one thing he said was right. Tao Mu was indeed a profit-seeking person. His energy and time would only be spent on people or things that he felt were worthwhile. But now, Tao Mu’s energy was focused on the people in the Beijing circle and the betting on the Olympics. In addition, he also had to take time to pay attention to the international futures market. There was no extra energy to deal with Zhao Keping’s emotions and pretend politeness with the other man.

“I can’t do it recently, I don’t have time. You go back and tell brother Zhao, I don’t care about the “Legend of Heroes”, and he doesn’t need to care either. I can understand and if there is a chance in the future, everyone can still cooperate.” Tao Mu dismissed Mu Huating with a few words.

Mu Huating looked at Tao Mu sheepishly, wanting to say something but in the end he didn’t say anything. He left early——after all, his original motive for following Shen Yu and the others over to the crew of “Faraway Jianghu” was not for visiting the crew.

On the other side, Zhao Keping, who received the call from Mu Huating, also sighed silently.

In fact, Zhao Keping had already begun to regret it when he saw Tao Mu’s remarkable composure when he was kicked out of the cast of “The Legend of Heroes”.

Tao Mu’s actions and manners were very different from the normal 18-year-old in Zhao Keping’s impression. He was neither youthfully impulsive nor frivolous and prideful. He was able to keep in mind the maximization of benefits despite facing such extreme injustices, and in the end managed to gain more than 100,000 yuan in compensation from Zhao Xin. Possessing this kind of scheming and methods meant that Tao Mu would be completely aware of his inaction on this matter.

Although there was nothing wrong with inaction, the key lay in Tao Mu’s maturity. Could he tolerate this after knowing his inaction?

Zhao Keping looked at others from his own perspective and felt that Tao Mu might not care about this. Because Zhao Keping maintained his belief that Tao Mu was the same kind of person as him. Self-seeking and ambitious, and most importantly, equally unscrupulous when achieving a goal. Compared to the methods, they were people who valued results more.

But judging from the information provided by Mu Huating, Tao Mu was actually so talented in stocks?

Zhao Keping was finally discouraged after he repeatedly confirmed this with Mu Huating. Because he knew very well that with Tao Mu’s profiteering personality, he really didn’t need to make false claims with him. So long as he could maintain his investment genius image as well as make some achievements in the stock market. Then with Tao Mu’s superb skills in making connections and gaining people’s hearts, he would soon be able to tie the interests of these people with his own interests. Then he would be able to take a step further with his personal connections. At that time he would never be at a disadvantage in the entertainment circle.

So Tao Mu really didn’t need to find a “partnership of the strong” with Zhao Keping. He alone could complete the transformation from a newcomer with no background to “I am the bankroller”.

And Zhao Keping, who claimed to be shrewd all his life, actually let such a genius slip out of his fingers. Whenever he thought of this, Zhao Keping would feel extremely upset. For the first time, he resented his own habit of manipulating other people.

Tao Mu naturally didn’t know Zhao Keping’s chagrin. When he returned to the set from the bathroom with two suddenly enlightened students, he found that the people who came to visit the set were all sitting behind Cheng Baodong on small stools, one by one they sat obediently in a row like kindergarten children waiting for their share of snacks——as for Cheng Baodong, he sat in the director’s chair in front of the monitor, watching the two acting masters Wang Boyuan and Guo Yaning pit their acting chops against each other.

Noting Tao Mu’s return, Cheng Baodong glanced at Tao Mu and unsurprisingly mocked: “Actually having kidney problems at such a young age and taking so long in the bathroom? Would you like me to introduce a few health supplements for you?”

Tao Mu laughed: “If director Cheng has any useful tonics, you can introduce them to me. It just so happens that our old man’s kidney is not very good so he always has to get up at night.”

Cheng Baodong questioned: “Aren’t you an orphan?” Where did the old man come from?

Then he immediately reacted. Furiously he exclaimed: “Who said I use this. My kidney is better than ever. Seven climaxes a night, got it!”

The loud roar was picked up directly by the live microphone and Wang Boyuan and Guo Yaning, who were speaking lines to each other, had to stop. In exasperation they looked in director Cheng’s direction.

Director Cheng’s face blushed and he said quickly, “Cut. Start over.”

He then turned his anger on Tao Mu: “Don’t talk to me all the time, there is a live microphone on, don’t you know.”

Tao Mu smiled and remained silent.

Director Cheng snorted and continued to stare at the hero and heroine.

Half an hour later, the speaking scene between the hero and heroine finally passed. Next, it was time for Tao Mu and the heroine’s body double to shoot the action part. Cheng Baodong didn’t say a word, turning his head to look at Tao Mu. Tao Mu walked into the set with a calm expression, and was immediately surrounded by the props group.

A large group of people surrounded Tao Mu and helped him dress in the wire suit. The stunt coordinator also took a storyboard to explain to Tao Mu about the scene. The young girl who served as a body double for Guo Yaning smiled and stood next to Tao Mu. Suddenly she thought of something and said with a smile, “Later just do it in a comfortable way, it doesn’t matter to me.”

Tao Mu had no idea how to respond to such misleading words. The prop masters who dressed Tao Mu in the wire suit laughed and joked: “The treatment of handsome guys is different.”

The young female body double blushed and said nothing. Wang Boyuan stood behind director Cheng looking at the monitor. He was thinking about Tao Mu’s huge profits in the stock market.

Cheng Baodong looked weirdly at his old partner who was rarely silent. He frowned and asked, “What are you thinking about, so deeply?”

“Nothing.” Wang Boyuan came back to himself and continued to stare at Tao Mu’s figure in the monitor in a daze.

Tao Mu was well-known among all the crews for his smooth and flowing martial arts movements that were handsome enough to break the sky. After the arrangement problem of the 100+ extras was solved, Tao Mu’s action scene was finished on the first take. His positioning and movements were so precise and beautiful that Cheng Baodong even got an illusion——that Tao Mu’s acting skills were seemingly even better than Wang Boyuan.

But how was this possible?

Wang Boyuan was an older actor who just won the Golden Crow Award, and Tao Mu was just a pure rookie without any professional training. No matter how talented he was, it should not reach such terrifying heights. Unless——

Cheng Baodong pondered for a long time, and couldn’t help but call Tao Mu over while the extras got NG-ed again, and revisited the old story: “I say, you really don’t know Yan Sheng?”

Tao Mu had no expression on his face: “I don’t know him.”

Shen Yu, who had been following Tao Mu’s movements, immediately answered: “Are you talking about the actor Yan Sheng? He’s my idol.”

“Yes, that’s him.” Cheng Baodong, who had always been a tyrant on the set, showed a rare kindly expression towards Shen Yu: “I think Tao Mu’s acting style is very similar to Yan Sheng.”

Cheng Baodong spoke while staring at Tao Mu out of the corner of his eyes. Despite knowing that Tao Mu hated other people mentioning Yan Sheng, he still asked questions again and again. On an index for being worthy of a beating, he rated ten stars. It was to get revenge on Tao Mu for framing him for “having a deficient kidney”.

Of course, apart from that, Cheng Baodong was also really curious.

Tao Mu frowned. He knew what Cheng Baodong was curious about, but he couldn’t say that the reason why his acting style was like Yan Sheng was because he had been suppressed by the f**ker for seven/eight years in his previous life. Whatever film he took the f**ker would also join in the same crew. And during filming, the f**ker would do nothing but suppress him with all his acting skills. And even had the nerve to say that he was doing it to get revenge for Shen Yu——  

Tao Mu would always feel angry whenever he thought of these incidents. It must be said, that he could hone his acting skills to the point of perfection in his previous life was all with the “help” of that f**ker. If it wasn’t for Yan Sheng bullying him too much, Tao Mu wouldn’t have polished his acting skills like a madman——shutting himself up in a dark room, imitating Yan Sheng’s scenes in front of the mirror, and trying his best to defeat Yan Sheng in his own game. In the end, he did defeat Yan Sheng in the pursuit of the Golden Crow Award.

Unfortunately, that was also the last highlight in his acting career. Because Tao Mu cursed at Yan Sheng, calling him Shen Yu’s footlicker at the awards ceremony as well as cursed at Shen Yu, calling him a shameless cuckoo who occupied the nest. This directly angered the fans of both as well as Shen Yu’s admirers. After the award ceremony, Tao Mu was driven out of the entertainment circle by Shen Yu’s admirers. With Yan Sheng leading, they retaliated by buying online marketing accounts and major media, continuously spreading Tao Mu’s black history on the Internet. Tao Mu naturally wouldn’t just roll over and take it. The two sides fought viciously and other forces also took the opportunity to fish in troubled waters (TN: take advantage of a crisis for personal gain). The melee of these several parties stirred up the smog in the entertainment industry, and eventually led to the CFA (China Film Administration) to directly ban a group of artists and marketing accounts who had black history. Tao Mu was among them.

Tao Mu really didn’t want to bring up such a deep hatred. Of course there was also no way to explain it. But it just so happened that Cheng Baodong kept trying to get to the bottom of it several times. Faced with such an oversized delinquent kid who he couldn’t even beat or scold, even someone as calm as Tao Mu would become a little impatient.

“Director Cheng!” Tao Mu said suddenly, his expression solemn and serious, with some newcomers’ anxiety and shyness thrown in: “Having been in the crew these days, it is thanks to your careful guidance that I now have some simple understanding of filming. If you don’t mind, I want to tell you my thoughts.”

“Oh?” Cheng Baodong became interested, and looked at Tao Mu with a half-smile: “Then tell me.” He wanted to see what truths and insights Tao Mu, a high school student who had just graduated, could tell.

“Fine.” Tao Mu nodded. Combining his own reflections after watching “Faraway Jianghu” in his previous life, as well as professional film reviews written by major film weekly magazines and authoritative film critics, he talked about two-thirds of the film’s failure in directing——the remaining third being the parts that Cheng Baodong hadn’t started shooting yet. His attitude was tactful but words sharp, which was very in line with Tao Mu’s consistent style of being gentle and humble but striving for perfection.

Although he had always said he was optimistic about Tao Mu’s acting skills, Cheng Baodong actually didn’t take Tao Mu too seriously. But now he only felt his face heat up and heard a continuous “pa pa pa” sound of slaps to his face.

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

He looked at Tao Mu for a long while and finally said in suppressed anger: “Okay, I really didn’t see it, you are actually a wise person who doesn’t show off!”

Damn, acting like a little white rabbit all the time, but when angered, rather than biting he just “discuss” your various mistakes at work. The attitude was sincere and his critique reasonable, causing you to become angry but feel embarrassed to express your anger——as expressing it would have him labelled as unreasonable and deliberately confrontational.

Tao Mu smiled slightly, looking at director Cheng as he said in an even more sincere and humble tone: “It is director Cheng who taught me well.”

Cheng Baodong: “…..” I didn’t, I haven’t! 

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