Chapter 30

The scene was chaotic at that moment.

On one side was Mr. Hu, lying in the coffin, muttering, "I'm dreaming, I'm dreaming." On the other side was Hu Tu, who had collapsed next to the coffin and had completely fainted. As for Mrs. Hu, looking at her husband who had come back to life and then at her unconscious son, she didn't know who to take care of first.

The scene was more than just chaotic.

Finally, after everyone's explanation, Mr. Hu, who still thought he was dreaming, accepted the fact that he had been buried in a grave. He clapped his hands and said, "I knew it! Why was it still dark all day? And why didn't I hear the rooster crowing at Old Liu's house next door? It turns out it's because I was buried!"

Others: That's true, but how come it sounds so ridiculous coming from you?

Mr. Hu continued, "I woke up in the middle of the night yesterday and wondered why I was in a big box. I thought someone was playing a prank on me, so I called Hu Tu and the others to come and rescue me. Hu Tu slammed the phone down on me, which made me so angry that I almost fainted!"

Upon hearing this, the firefighter standing nearby hesitated, as if he wanted to say something but couldn't: "Perhaps, maybe you didn't faint from anger, but rather from the lack of oxygen in the coffin, and your emotional state caused you to faint?"

Hu Tu, who had just slowly come to his senses, heard his father's words and said with some grievance, "How can you blame me? Do you know how scary that situation was? Receiving a call from someone who was already dead in the middle of the night, I thought I was possessed by a ghost."

Who would have thought that the person buried in the grave was still alive and could even call him? He couldn't sleep for the rest of the night.

“If I hadn’t consulted a fortune teller, I would have really thought I was being haunted by a ghost!” Hu Tu added, “But after I found out you might not be dead, I called Mom and asked her to find someone to dig up your grave, but Mom didn’t believe me.”

Not only did they not send a letter, they also joined the villagers in stopping the firefighters he had called for help.

Mrs. Hu gave a dry laugh and said, "I thought I had been scammed. The government tells us every day to be careful of scams. Your father is buried in his grave, how was I supposed to know he was still alive?"

Even the villagers, who meant well but ended up doing the wrong thing, couldn't help but nod in agreement: "...They were the same. How could they have known that something like the dead coming back to life could actually happen? When they saw people digging up graves, they naturally had to stop them."

"Fortunately, no one was hurt in the end," the police officer said, trying to smooth things over.

However, just to be on the safe side, everyone hurriedly took Mr. Hu to the hospital for a check-up. After all, he had not only been knocked unconscious, but had also been in the coffin for so long, and no one could guarantee that there were no problems with him.

By the time they arrived at the hospital, it was getting dark, and the vast expanse of red clouds on the horizon looked like a wildfire, extremely dazzling and beautiful.

Xu Gui didn't like the smell of the hospital, not just the disinfectant, but also the various unfortunate and sad smells floating in the air.

She walked to the hospital window for some fresh air, slightly raised her head, closed her eyes, and frowned slightly, as if she were enduring something.

She had a delicate nose and full lips. The setting sun cast a soft glow on her cheeks, as if shrouding her fair face in a gentle halo. With her eyes closed, light seemed to dance on her thick, curled eyelashes.

She stood there, like a beautifully rendered oil painting framed in rich ink, appearing exceptionally vivid and vibrant.

[Click!]

The sound of filming came from the air, which not only startled Xu Gui, but also woke up the viewers in the live broadcast room.

Xu Gui opened his eyes and turned his head, just in time to meet the gaze of the girl holding a phone with an awkward expression.

"I... I just thought that scene was so beautiful," the girl said shyly, then explained, "I'm an art student, and the composition and atmosphere of that scene were just amazing, so I couldn't help myself."

She held her phone tightly: "If you mind, I'll delete it?" She said she deleted it, but her tone was full of reluctance.

Xu Gui walked over: "Can I see that photo?"

The girl nodded, opened the photo album to show Xu Gui the photo, and said, "Really, that scene was so beautiful just now, so I couldn't help myself. I'm sorry... I won't do it again next time."

The girl couldn't help but clench her fist as she spoke, feeling somewhat embarrassed.

After looking at the photos, Xu Gui said, "You took very good photos."

Upon hearing this, the girl's eyes lit up. A little embarrassed but also excited, she asked, "Really? Really?"

"Yes, it looks great, and you took such a beautiful picture of me." Xu Gui nodded, cupping her face and saying happily, "I look like I'm glowing in this photo, you're amazing."

Although she doesn't know how to take photos or what composition is, she knows how to appreciate things. She finds this photo very beautiful and pleasing.

Xu Guimei thought to herself with delight: I look so good in this photo! I'm practically the most handsome turtle ever.

The girl was flattered by the compliment and asked cautiously, "Then can I not delete this photo? I really want to keep it..." She looked at Xu Gui expectantly.

Xu Gui readily agreed, saying, "Sure, but I have one condition!"

Her expression was somewhat serious, which startled the girl, who asked nervously, "What are your requirements?"

Xu Gui smiled suddenly and said, "Then, can you send me this photo? You took such a beautiful picture, I'd like to keep one as a souvenir."

Upon hearing this, the girl's face lit up with joy. She quickly opened her phone and exchanged contact information with Xu Gui, then sent him the photo.

The photographer cleverly positioned the lens against Xu Gui's phone screen, instantly revealing the photo to everyone in the live stream who had been eagerly anticipating it. The live stream immediately filled with gasps of amazement.

Wow, this girl is amazing! The composition of this photo is perfect! If she didn't go to school, she could make a living by taking photos for others.

【!! I want this photo too! Can you post it online so I can download it? I want to use it as my screensaver. This photo is really beautiful; this girl is definitely an art student!】

Look at what others have taken, and then look at what I have taken. They're all of Nuwa's creations, so why do other people's photos look so much better?

[That's why it's said that others are Nuwa's graduation project, while you are just mud splatters that Nuwa threw out. There's some truth to that.]

[I've reported the personal attacks mentioned earlier!]

...

Netizens have sharp eyes; they can see that the photo the girl took already has the potential to become a "masterpiece".

What is a "divine photo"? It's a photo that goes viral and becomes incredibly popular. It's a photo that resonates with everyone, regardless of whether they're a fan or not. There was an ordinary person who went viral with a "divine photo" and became incredibly popular online.

Later, this person entered the entertainment industry, became a star, and then enjoyed a smooth career with soaring fame.

Oh, Xu Gui knows this person too. She is Tang Xu, one of the most popular young actresses right now. Because of this "divine picture", Tang Xu has become the white moonlight of many people. Even many people who are not her fans have developed a good impression of her because of this picture.

That's what makes the "divine image" so amazing.

The photo taken by this girl is already considered a "divine image." If it were posted online, it would definitely cause a small sensation.

However, despite being able to take such a photo, the girl doesn't seem very confident. Judging from her clothes and phone, her family shouldn't be struggling financially, but she exudes a shy and insecure aura.

That's strange.

*

Looking at the photos sent to his phone, Xu Gui naturally set them as his screensaver. Many people might think that setting their own photos as screensavers is a bit narcissistic and embarrassing, but Xu Gui didn't think so.

"I'm so beautiful, of course I want to look at myself every day!" she thought happily.

"...Do you really like drawing?" she asked the girl casually.

The girl nodded vigorously, but then her expression turned somewhat disappointed. She said, "But my parents don't like me drawing. They say drawing has no future and that I should focus more on my studies at this stage... Anyway, they get very excited every time they see me drawing, so I can only draw secretly, otherwise my mom will tear up my sketchbook again if she sees it."

Xu Gui paused for a moment, then asked, "How old are you?"

The girl sniffed and obediently replied, "I'm sixteen years old and in my first year of high school."

First year of high school...

Xu Gui was somewhat surprised to see her petite figure—she had thought the other person was a junior high school student.

Perhaps it was Xu Gui's praise that made the girl happy, because she couldn't help but share her drawing with Xu Gui on her phone.

"This one, this one is what I painted last year, and this one is what I painted this year... I didn't paint as well as I did last year, but I didn't paint much this year..." the girl muttered to herself, her face seemingly glowing as she talked about her paintings.

"Lingling? Zhao Lingling!"

Suddenly, a somewhat hurried voice rang out, and immediately, a figure rushed over. A middle-aged woman who looked somewhat like the girl looked at her with a stern face and said:

"Zhao Lingling, why are you still here? Didn't I tell you to go back? Don't forget, you still have homework to do, not only from school, but also from your tutor... Your grades have dropped so much, how can you not work hard?"

The woman rattled off a sentence, then continued, "After you finish your homework, you still have to practice the piano... I'm telling you, after you finish practicing the piano, go to sleep. Don't even think about secretly drawing those pictures behind my back again, understand?"

The girl, Zhao Lingling, trembled slightly. She nodded and whispered, "I understand."

After finishing talking about her daughter, the middle-aged woman finally turned her attention to Xu Gui. She glanced at Xu Gui sideways and said rather rudely, "I don't know how you know our Lingling, but Lingling is currently in the most important stage of high school and really doesn't have time to associate with you. I hope you won't disturb her studies!"

"Mom, what did you say? I just met this woman." Zhao Lingling was so anxious she was almost crying.

Xu Gui felt fortunate that she was a girl; if she were a boy, the middle-aged woman's tone would probably have been even more unpleasant.

Xu Gui was amused by her own thoughts. She looked at Zhao Lingling, who was about to cry because her mother had been too harsh on her, and didn't bother to argue with the middle-aged woman. She just nodded indifferently.

"It's getting late, shouldn't we head back?" she asked, turning to the cameraman.

The cameraman nodded: "It's time to go back."

It will be a three-hour drive back, and by the time we get back to City A, it will be dark.

The two ignored the mother and daughter. Although Zhao Lingling was cute and had a likable personality, her mother seemed difficult to deal with, so it was best to avoid contact with her.

As Zhao Lingling watched the two leave, she was truly about to cry, tears streaming down her face.

Seeing her like this, Zhao's mother said sternly, "Why are you crying? I'm doing this all for your own good. Who are they? Don't think I didn't see them. They were carrying a camera; they're definitely people who film shady things online... If you associate with them, they'll lead you astray..."

The two voices came from behind him, neither too close nor too far. Xu Gui took two steps, then stopped again.

She turned her head, cleared her throat, and said, "Madam, I think I still need to explain to you that we're not filming anything inappropriate. You may not know, but I'm a celebrity, and we're filming a TV show!"

"Do you know '360 Trades'? You can find it by searching online. It's the hottest program right now."

"Oh, right, there's one more thing." Xu Gui smiled at the other person, "Being a celebrity is mainly my side job. My main job is fortune telling. If you ever feel lost, ma'am, you can come find me. My fortune telling address is under the overpass in XX City A. I'll give you a 9.9% discount then."

Zhao's mother wasn't stupid; she immediately sensed the provocation and hostility in Xu Gui's words, and her expression turned rather unpleasant.

After Xu Gui and the others left, she immediately turned to her daughter and scolded her, "Look at the kind of friends you've been making all day! They don't know any manners at all... You've become bad because you always hang out with people like this, which is why your grades are getting worse and worse!"

Zhao Lingling cried, "They didn't want to be friends with me. I just met them..." She didn't even have a chance to be friends with them.

Xu Gui and the others had already gone far away, and the conversation between the Zhao mother and daughter could no longer reach their ears. She and the paparazzi went to find two police officers, and after telling Hu Tu and his mother, they prepared to return to City A.

"Oh dear, how could I accept this!" Mrs. Hu said. "I was planning to treat you to a meal. Why don't you stay here tonight and have a meal with us tomorrow before you leave?"

Leaving aside Xu Gui and his group, the two police officers naturally refused repeatedly, which saved Xu Gui and his group the trouble of refusing.

When he returned, it was already late, so Xu Gui turned off the live stream.

The car was dimly lit. She sat in the back seat and began to doze off as the car drove on, until she was woken up by a startled exclamation from someone filming her.

"Teacher Xu, you're trending on social media!" the paparazzi shouted.

Xu Gui was startled awake and fully roused. After yawning, she asked nonchalantly, "What trending topic? Is it because of Mr. Hu's family?"

The Hu family's situation is indeed quite strange. Who would have thought that someone buried in a grave would still be alive? If it can be made into a trending topic, then it doesn't seem so surprising.

However, to Xu Gui's surprise, the paparazzi denied it, saying, "It's not about the Hu family, it's about fishing."

A question mark slowly appeared on Xu Gui's forehead.

The person filming her held up their phone screen to show her, saying, "Remember that old fisherman from this morning? According to your calculations, he caught a suitcase at that spot, and the suitcase contained a corpse..."

Xu Gui was surprised: "So what we fished up was a corpse? Then the old man won his bet?"

The person filming: ...Teacher Xu, isn't your focus a bit off? Is this about winning or losing the bet?

The photographer, looking somewhat weary, said, "The problem now is that the old man mentioned you when the police questioned him. You might have to go to the Criminal Investigation Division to cooperate with the police investigation when you return to City A."

Xu Gui didn't care. She was upright and honest, and was just cooperating with the investigation. She would cooperate fully.

"Teacher Xu, are you still having bad luck lately?" the paparazzi said. "Look, you've been to the police station three times in two days now, you've had contact with the police almost three times."

Oh, no, if we add the matter of Mr. Ang Lee's family, then it would be his fourth time in prison.

The photographer suggested, "Why don't you go to the temple and pray?"

Xu Gui replied, "This isn't bad luck, it's actually very good luck. Look at everything I do, isn't it all good? This is accumulating good karma, it's clearly a good thing."

Follow-up filming: Is it possible to interpret it this way?

The photographer couldn't help but start thinking.

Xu Gui glanced at the trending topics, then closed her eyes, uninterested, and soon fell asleep again.

She slept soundly the whole way, completely unconscious. When they got back to the hotel where they were resting, she didn't even know how she got back to her room. She just collapsed onto the bed and fell asleep.

Anyway, when she woke up the next day, she found herself in a hotel bed, still wearing the clothes she had worn the day before.

Xu Gui glanced at the time and found that a person claiming to be her "agent" had called her more than a dozen times. However, because Xu Gui was asleep and preferred to keep her phone on silent mode, she didn't answer any of the calls.

Xu Gui saw it, glanced at it, and had no intention of calling back. He simply plugged his almost dead phone into the charger and went to take a shower.

She filled the bathtub with water and soaked in it—she could tell the bathtub was very clean, otherwise she wouldn't have taken a bath there. It's said that the rooms they were going to stay in were thoroughly disinfected with disinfectant before the show started filming.

Ever since a celebrity had a hygiene issue on a variety show, Hunan TV has been paying close attention to this matter.

After taking a bath, she came out and sat on the edge of the bed to do a thorough skincare routine, applying a fragrant lotion that smelled sweet and pleasant, like a children's cream.

After wiping, Xu Gui felt as if he had turned into an orange with its peel removed, smelling delicious.

She brought her hand to her nose and smelled it, thinking it smelled delicious... Hmm, she was a little hungry and wanted to eat an orange.

To avoid biting herself, she decided to get up and have breakfast first. She woke up early today, and after taking a bath and doing her skincare routine, it was only a little past eight o'clock. She ran downstairs and then went to the hotel's kitchen as if she knew the way well.

Non-staff members are not allowed to enter the hotel kitchen, so Xu Gui did not go in. Instead, he stood at a distance outside, peeking inside.

The old woman had just come out when she saw her like this, and her lips twitched involuntarily.

Xu Gui was pleased to see her and waved at her, saying, "Auntie!"

The old woman came over, and Xu Gui looked at her expectantly, saying, "Auntie, I'm hungry. Is there any breakfast today?"

The old woman glanced at her, said "Wait a minute," and turned to go into the kitchen. A little while later, she came out of the kitchen with a breakfast: a bowl of fresh pork wontons with thin wrappers and lots of meat, mixed with a few pieces of corn and pork.

Xu Gui looked at her with bright eyes, showering her with compliments, his voice sticky and sweet, almost like a sticky little rice cake.

The old lady thought she had gotten used to Xu Gui's clinginess and that her heart had long since turned to stone. However, the reality was... she brought Xu Gui another plate of fruit as dessert.

While Xu Gui was having breakfast, the old woman sat opposite her and casually asked, "Why didn't you come for dinner last night?"

Xu Gui said, "I went to City B yesterday. I was so tired when I got back that I fell asleep without even taking a shower. I didn't eat dinner at all, so I was so hungry when I woke up this morning... Auntie, did you make these wontons? They're so delicious! This one is corn and pork, the corn is so tender and sweet!"

The old woman said expressionlessly, "If you like it, eat more. If you're not full, I'll cook more."

"Auntie, you're the best to me. I like you so much." Xu Guimei finished a bowl of wontons and ate some fruit, filling herself up completely.

The older woman had also watched her live stream and couldn't help but ask her, "The elimination rounds are already down to the second to last day. Are you confident about making it into the top 30?"

Xu Gui still said the same thing: "I can feel it. My luck has been very good lately. I think I can definitely get into the top 30... Don't worry, my luck is in my hands!"

When she said that, the old woman nodded, as if she believed her, but whether she truly believed it or not, only she knew.

*

After finishing breakfast, Xu Gui prepared to go back to her room to change her clothes. On the way, she noticed that her "agent" was calling her again. She glanced at her phone and answered.

"...I called you so many times yesterday, why didn't you answer? Do you even consider me your manager anymore?!" The moment the call connected, the other end of the line was full of accusations, and the tone was extremely rude.

Xu Gui pouted unhappily, pressed the hang-up button, and hung up the phone immediately.

Two seconds later, the phone screen lit up again, with the words "Agent" prominently displayed. This time, Xu Gui didn't refuse and answered again. However, when she heard the other end's voice was still rude, she chose to hang up the phone once more.

—If someone is in front of you, you can't very well ask them to leave, but if you make a phone call, can't she just hang up?

This happened twice, and when she answered the phone for the third time, the person on the other end finally fell silent.

"Hoo!" She heard the other person take a few deep breaths, and after several seconds of silence, the other person finally spoke.

"Xu Gui, do you still remember that I am your manager?" The manager tried to remain calm, but couldn't hide the gritted teeth in his voice.

Xu Gui replied, "Of course I know you're my agent, otherwise I wouldn't answer a stranger's call! I'm very good at preventing scams." But I couldn't stop you, this "scammer."

broker:"……"

Xu Gui asked, "What do you want to talk to me about?"

When she asked this, the agent finally remembered the important matter and said, "Why didn't you do what I asked you to do last time?"

Xu Gui: "What happened last time? I don't remember."

"Don't try to fool me!" the manager said in a low voice. "Do you know how angry Qiu Nai and the others are? Tang Xu is the eldest daughter of the Tang family. If you offend them, do you still want to work in the entertainment industry?"

Xu Gui said sincerely, "Actually, I think it's pretty good for me to set up a fortune-telling stall. And now I've discovered that I can also tell fortunes online. Then I can tell fortunes both at the stall and online, and earn money from both in one day!"

She is now very confident: "I've already figured it out. At this rate, I'll be able to earn 800,000 very soon!"

Agent: "...Do you think I'm here to hear your get-rich-quick schemes?"

He seemed to have a headache, and said earnestly, "Xu Gui, as long as you listen to me, are you still afraid of not making money? As long as you do as I say, I can guarantee you that you'll be making money even while sitting down!"

"Just listen to me and cooperate with Qiu Nai and Tang Xu. I'm your manager, would I ever harm you?"

Xu Gui listened to his words and said casually, "I don't know if you will harm me, but I do know that you don't have any good intentions towards me."

The agent gritted his teeth: "Xu Gui, let me tell you, don't push your luck. If you piss me off, I guarantee you won't be able to survive in the entertainment industry. You'll become a rat that everyone hates. Do you believe me?"

“Of course I believe you can do it,” Xu Gui said, then added, “But do you believe I can make you a pariah first?”

She kindly reminded me, "Haven't you watched my recent live streams? I think if you had, you wouldn't have this thought anymore. Is it possible that I'm not the ant you imagine me to be, someone you can just manipulate at will, and that you're not the kind of person who can take whatever you want from me?"

The agent couldn't help but scoff upon hearing this. He said calmly, "Xu Gui, do you have some kind of misunderstanding about yourself? You're an orphan who grew up in an orphanage. Do you think I don't know what you're capable of?"

"Fortune telling? Pshaw, if you could really tell fortunes, why did you sign with our company and end up in my hands?"

He sighed, "Since you can tell fortunes, have you ever told your own? Since you're an artist under my management, it means that God is telling you to accept your fate."

Xu Gui: ...I think you're talking nonsense.

As the saying goes, "If you don't see eye to eye, even half a sentence is too much."

She glanced at her phone, chose to hang up the call immediately, and also blacklisted the guy called "Agent," preventing him from receiving her calls.

At this moment, in an office at Xinghai Entertainment, listening to the busy tone on his phone, the man who had been calm and confident suddenly found his expression faltering.

"Xu Gui!!!"

An angry voice came from the office.

Meanwhile, Xu Gui was thinking about how to change his agent.

That's right, she wants to change her agent, but this matter needs to be considered carefully. After all, she is currently participating in a program and cannot contact other people in the company, so this matter can only be postponed for the time being.

However, because she was filming a show and working, her agent couldn't do anything to her or use the contract to control her, so she had plenty of time to change agents.

Xu Gui murmured, "Take it slow..."

Now, she was preparing for today's filming. However, Xu Gui did not expect that when she arrived at her stall, she found that there were quite a few people gathered around her.

Xu Gui: ?

The old man who arrived earlier than her every day saw her, handed her a box of pastries, and said, "You're really something, aren't you? See, all these people are here to see you."

Xu Gui: ? ?

Looking for her?! She's famous?