After Li Shu joined the crew, preparations for Wei Yangyun’s new album were also in full swing. In addition to the original MV, he also sang a new song with Li Shu. This song was temporarily added to the album as a small bonus.
Before the album was released, Wei Yangyun posted a short audio clip on Weibo without tagging anyone. He asked everyone to guess who he collaborated with, saying there would be rewards for guessing correctly. Fans kept guessing, but none guessed right.
Wei Yangyun was so ecstatic that he called Li Shu, saying he wanted to share the joy with his friend.
Then the next day, a line was found damaged.
Li Shu was not injured, but such an incident happened on set, and filming had to be temporarily halted. The director gave the cast a day off but didn’t allow anyone to leave. This incident was clearly deliberate and perpetrated by someone on the set.
As the direct victim, the director called Li Shu alone and asked, “Li Shu, how do you see today’s events?”
“There are two possibilities, either it’s aimed at me, or it’s aimed at the crew.” Li Shu played with the jade flute in his hand, his fingertips fairer than the jade flute itself. His gaze was unfathomably and cold as he stared ahead.
It was as if the white-robed swordsman from the drama was standing there. His thoughts were profound, his heart only holding his own sword. Who could imagine that beneath this deceitful exterior lay a soul so paranoid and crazy?
The director took out a cigarette and held it in his mouth, but knowing that Li Shu didn’t smoke, he didn’t light it. “I’ve been leading this crew for so many years, and this is the first time encountering such a situation. Rest assured, no matter what the other party’s intention is, I will give you an explanation.”
Having worked in this industry for many years, he had long developed keen insight. It was quite a coincidence that the marks appeared on Li Shu’s wire. Li Shu had a good temper, and during this time, he hadn’t made any enemies. Excluding the possibility of personal vendettas, only two possibilities remained: either the other party wanted to deal with the crew, or they wanted to de Li Shu.
The likelihood of the other party targeting Li Shu was high. He heard that that person had been making a lot of big moves in the Mo family recently, and Li Shu’s relationship with that person wasn’t a secret. Those with ulterior motives could easily find out about it and, unable to retaliate against that person directly, could only target Li Shu, a soft spot.
However, targeting Li Shu wasn’t easy either. Li Shu had bodyguards specially sent by Mo Yan to protect him, and the crew was also strictly manager. Those people had no choice but to brine the crew and use such underhanded tactics.
The director said he would give Li Shu an explanation. Soon, a staff member in a dull gray uniform was called to Li Shu’s lounge.
“Speak up, Xiao Wu, why did you do this?” The director’s face looked very unpleasant. Although he had already anticipated that someone on the set was responsible for this incident, when he actually confronted the person, he still felt a chill.
Most of the people on the crew had been with him for many years, and usually, he turned a blind eye to their small actions. But he didn’t expect that someone would be so bold as to damage the wire. Falling from such a height could be fatal. Didn’t they know that?
But how was that possible? Could years of friendship not withstand even a slight temptation from the outside world?
“I just couldn’t stand him and wanted to teach him a lesson, he’s just a newcomer who bought his way into the crew, why does everyone have to cater to him?” The man called Xiao Wu raised his head to look at Li Shu, his eyes bloodshot.
“That’s not the truth, Xiao Wu. You’ve been with me for a long time, I know what you are thinking. Don’t try to dismiss me with such a flimsy reason. Tell me, who ordered this?” The director seemed calm on the surface, but deep down, he was burning with anger.
“No one ordered me,” Xiao Wu frowned and stubbornly refused to admit. “There’s no other reason, I just couldn’t stand him.”
“Xiao Wu!” The director couldn’t help raising his voice. “Do you think we’re all fools? Just because you can’t stand someone, you want to take someone’s life? Do you think I’ll believe that?”
“Is it Tong Hua?” Li Shu, who had been sitting calmly on the other side, suddenly spoke up.
Xiao Wu looked up in surprise and glanced in Li Shu’s direction. Li Shu was sitting on the sofa, wearing a simple sweatshirt and trousers, his hair looking fluffy. He looked calm, devoid of any intimidating aura. But under those seemingly calm eyes, Xiao Wu couldn’t help but shiver.
Those eyes were quiet and clear, as if they could see through a person’s soul, exposing all their little thoughts to scrutiny.
Xiao Wu swallowed hard, feeling a cold sweat trickling down his back. He wanted to argue back, but under the inexplicable pressure, he couldn’t utter a single word.
His appearance already spoke volumes. The director looked at him, sighed disappointedly, and couldn’t help but wonder, did Tong Hua and Li Shu have some sort of grudge?
There wasn’t much animosity between Tong Hua and Li Shu. They only had direct contact after entering the crew. Besides occasional scenes together, they hadn’t interacted otherwise. Moreover, they hadn’t had any conflicts during this time. On the contrary, Tong Hua had always admired Li Shu, a junior.
When Tong Hua was called to the lounge, he knew he had been exposed. It was the director’s trusted staff and one of Li Shu’s bodyguards who came to fetch him, so Tong Hua didn’t attempt to resist.
“You really knew,” Tong Hua said to Li Shu as soon he entered the room.
He was calm, not pretentiously calm, but genuinely calm after realizing something. Since he had done this, he had to bear the consequences. The momentary eye contact on set made him realize that Li Shu had already suspected him.
“It was me who did it. I have nothing to defend, whether you handle it privately or publicly is up to you.”
His attitude amused Li Shu. “You committed the mistake, yet you seem indifferent. So, tell me, what happens if it’s handled privately or publicly?”
Tong Hua had already broken the pot, so he said, “I’ll leave it to you to decide how to settle it privately, and as for going public… If no one is harmed, there probably won’t be severe punishment.”
Indeed, if Li Shu hadn’t discovered the problem beforehand and been injured, Tong Hua would have faced appropriate consequences. But since Li Shu was unharmed, if he reported the incident, Tong Hua wouldn’t suffer any substantial loss.
“I know you have someone backing you, so you’re not worried about what I might do. But what if that person can’t protect themselves?” Li Shu casually played with his fingers, but what he said made Tong Hua’s expression change.
Li Shu continued, “When I first joined the crew, you didn’t have any ill intentions towards me. I could feel it. But at some point, you started avoiding me intentionally or unintentionally. Something must have happened, for example someone approached you and promised something. Am I wrong?”
No, Li Shu was right and Tong Hua couldn’t maintain his composure anymore. He was indeed confident. The person who contacted him said that he would keep him safe, that there was a way to clean up the mess and secure a bright future for himself.
He couldn’t help but feel tempted. He had been in the entertainment industry for years. He had played small roles and even played dead, but he had few noteworthy roles. He watched people who entered the industry later surpass him and felt anxious.
No one enters the entertainment industry without aspirations for fame, and he was no exception. Pretending not to care deceived everyone but himself. He dreamt of becoming a household name one day.
When an opportunity presented itself, even if it went against his principles, he seized it. He wasn’t young anymore, and he didn’t have much time to waste.
“You really know everything,” Tong Hua’s confidence faltered. “That person said you were easy to deal with. It seems they underestimated you.”
He wasn’t foolish enough to ask Li Shu why he didn’t stop it beforehand. Whatever the reason was, it didn’t matter anymore.
“I don’t know the identity of the person who contacted me. It should be related to the changes in the Mo family this time. You should be careful of them…”
“Don’t worry about these matters!” The door to the lounge was forcefully pushed open, and a man in a sharp suit, flanked by bodyguards, strode in.
The newcomer was Mo Yanzhi, who rushed over after hearing the news.
He had just finished a meeting, and had no time to change out of his clothes. He looked very domineering.
Without even glancing at the others in the room, Mo Yanzhi walked straight to Li Shu, pulling him up from the chair. After a quick inspection to ensure he wasn’t injured, he relaxed his expression.
Only after seeing the young man unharmed could he truly let go of his worry.
“I’m fine,” Li Shu reassured him softly.
Only then did Mo Yanzhi turn his gaze to the others in the lounge.
The bodyguards were outside, and inside were only the few people directly involved in this matter. Under Mo Yanzhi’s gaze, Xiao Wu and Tong Hua felt uneasy.
“Is this matter related to them?” Mo Yanzhi asked coldly.
“Yes,” Seeing that Li Shu had lowered his head and showed no intention of answering, the director wiped the sweat off his forehead and quickly answered the question of the sponsor, “this is Xiao Wu, a staff member of the crew. The wire was damaged by him, and this is Mr. Tong Hua, an actor in the drama. Um, he was the instigator of this incident.”
“Is that so?”
The three words carried immense pressure on everyone present.
“I entrust people to you, and this is how you watch over them for me?”
Mo Yanzhi’s mood was sour, and he didn’t bother to conceal his aura. Under his gaze, the director trembled.
“It’s not easy to prevent such things,” Li Shu pulled on Mo Yanzhi’s sleeve, rescuing the director from his death stare.
Mo Yanzhi also knew this. If it weren’t for Li Shu’s alertness, this incident might have been unavoidable, and the injuries would have been more serious. It was precisely because of this that Mo Yanzhi was so angry, angry at what those people had done, angry at himself, angry at the feeling that this kind of thing was out of control.
Once again, Li Shu was harmed because of him. Although Li Shu didn’t suffer any substantial harm, if it weren’t for him, he wouldn’t have faced these things repeatedly.
“You can’t blame the director for this matter,” Li Shu pulled the person to sit next to him, handing him the glass of water on the glass coffee table, “How are things on your side?”
“Don’t worry, they won’t have the ability to jump around soon.” After drinking all the water in the glass, Mo Yanzhi felt slightly less annoyed.
That was the cup Li Shu had just drunk from… The director opened his mouth, looking at the visibly relieved boss, and silently swallowed the words at the tip of his tongue.
Forget it, as long as the boss is happy.
