episode 14
The next day, at the villa, in the morning.
The sun was shining brightly; it was a rare and beautiful day.
Flowers and branches swayed in the breeze, tirelessly releasing their expensive natural fragrances throughout the villa. Mu Xianglu, who always wore a gray, knee-length long-sleeved dress regardless of the weather, stood in the villa's courtyard, holding a densely packed booklet, talking to a male servant who was clearly not very interested.
He Xun, who was sweeping dust from the window cracks on the third floor with a feather duster, immediately deduced from the color of the notebook that Mu Xianglu was arranging a shopping task for the villa every two weeks.
The other party looked somewhat embarrassed.
Don't want to go?
Okay, he'll go.
He Xun, who had just been planning what excuse to go out, had a flicker in his eyes. He threw down the feather duster and strode downstairs, fluttering like a butterfly to the two of them: "Are you going shopping? Let me go, Aunt Mu."
The two of them turned their heads at the same time.
Upon seeing that the visitor was He Xun, the male servant's previously listless eyes lit up, and he had the impression that "as expected of my brother Xun, he is truly a savior of suffering."
He Xun's lips curled up slightly, and he winked at Mu Xianglu with his back turned.
The male servant, as if struck by a sudden inspiration, turned to Mu Xianglu with a mournful face and said, "Then let Brother Xun go, Aunt Mu. I really have to ask for leave today. I haven't seen my girlfriend for months, and if I don't go see her today, she's going to break up with me!!"
Mu Xianglu ignored his wailing, pushed up her gold-rimmed glasses with her index finger, and glanced at He Xun sideways, asking, "Are you going?"
"Yes, I'll go. His girlfriend video-called him and yelled at him last night. I can testify to that."
"Oh?" Mu Xianglu's sharp eyes turned to look at her again.
The male servant standing nearby immediately nodded vigorously.
Seeing that Mu Xianglu still wouldn't budge, He Xun sighed and took a few steps forward, lowering his voice to say to Mu Xianglu, "This way I can also buy some toiletries while I'm at it. Could you do me a favor? To be honest, I'm really short on cash lately."
Usually, there's always some money left over after shopping, a fact well known to everyone, including Mo Shilin. But if the water is too clear, there will be no fish. Mo Shilin doesn't intend to interfere, and Mu Xianglu naturally won't insist on getting the extra money back. She'll turn a blind eye and consider it a small perk for the errand runner.
He Xun said this on purpose to show that he took on the job not because he was a selfless Lei Feng, but because he had ulterior motives.
Sometimes, this down-to-earth selfishness can put the leader at ease and also solve the urgent problem for the male servant colleague. Why not do it?
Although Mu Xianglu was strict, she wasn't stupid. She had no reason to refuse something that was clearly meant to build her popularity.
After He Xun finished speaking, she nodded in agreement. Besides, she had always admired He Xun's way of doing things—smart, tactful, and composed. If the other person were a girl, she would really like to groom her as her successor.
pity.
It's a man.
Men are just not as strong as women.
After handing the booklet to He Xun, Mu Xianglu felt much better: "That's good, I trust you to do things."
Finally, he put on a cold face and added, "This is a one-time exception."
—But her good mood lasted less than ten minutes before Mo Shilin, who had come downstairs for breakfast, questioned her about He Xun's whereabouts.
"I went to buy supplies," Mu Xianglu told the truth.
Mo Shilin slowly and methodically cut the fried eggs on the plate, raising an eyebrow as he asked, "Purchasing? We don't have a designated person to go?"
With Mu Xianglu around, he rarely cared about these household chores.
"Never."
"Then let's choose someone fixed, but don't choose He Xun." This was the first time Mo Shilin had made arrangements for household chores. He put down his knife and fork, picked up the roster, and casually pointed to a name. "Him it is. Thank you, Aunt Mu."
Mu Xianglu agreed verbally, but she had no idea what her young master was up to. Logically speaking, someone as smart as He Xun should be put to good use.
She rarely had such doubts. Could it be that he was interested in her and felt sorry for her, not wanting her to run errands in all kinds of weather? But then she thought it was impossible. No matter how much she couldn't figure out Mo Shilin's feelings, she had watched him grow up.
He's not that kind of person.
Putting aside everything else, just consider his time as student council president in middle school. All the children, parents, and teachers in the villa area knew that Mo Shilin was a famously impartial person. Whether it was work arrangements or interpersonal interactions, he never let anyone find out that he was biased. He was always polite to everyone. He would not tear up or throw away love letters from boys and girls, but would politely accept them and then politely decline them on the messaging app. At such a young age, he was already able to remain unmoved by even an annoying nanny.
Such a person is unlikely to suddenly undergo a drastic change in temperament.
He must have had other intentions.
However, He Xun is not a stupid person. It is hard to say whether it is a good thing or a bad thing for these two shrewd people to come together.
Mu Xianglu was vaguely worried.
"Aunt Mu, I just remembered, this purchasing is done every two weeks, right?" Mo Shilin opened his phone and brought it up seemingly casually.
Mu Xianglu snapped out of her daze: "Yes."
"There should always be some money left over, right?"
"Yes."
"Now that we've chosen a fixed group, Aunt Mu, could you please re-plan the finances? Also—"
Mo Shilin smiled politely and, seeing Mu Xianglu's increasingly apprehensive gaze, said, "I think the person who was in the monitoring room yesterday didn't seem to be feeling well. Let's give him more medical expenses so he can go home and rest properly."
*
Because fresh produce and fruit are imported goods that need to be ordered in advance, and Mo Shilin's family is not the only one who has made orders, He Xun went to the designated purchasing location to queue up after leaving the villa and discussed the pickup time with the person in charge.
He could then use those few hours while waiting for the goods to arrive at his own discretion.
Although he didn't quite understand why the wealthy families in the novels didn't let the sellers deliver the goods to their door, it still provided him with some convenience.
...Could it be because they don't trust outsiders to deliver the goods?
While pondering the situation, He Xun skillfully steered the truck to a parking space where it wouldn't get in the way, then pulled the handbrake, got out, and left.
After walking two blocks, he put on his baseball cap, found an inconspicuous little coffee shop, ordered a drink, sat by the window, and took out his tablet.
The reason he gave for asking to go out to buy things was a lie he made up with Aunt Mu, but it was true that he hadn't saved much money since he transmigrated into the book. He even went out of his way to find a second-hand mobile phone store to avoid leaving any traces of his online purchase.
He turned on the tablet and, thanks to his professional experience, easily found Ding Xiabing's public schedule information online.
"Morning: Post-Wedding Romance - Web Series - Outdoor Filming Location: Maple Leaf Park, Nanning Street, S City"
He Xun was already very skilled at this kind of information gathering, but he still felt a moment of disorientation when he saw the other party's detailed itinerary information, which was almost chilling.
In the age of internet information, human privacy is exposed to the light of day. Ordinary people can be easily cyberbullied and exposed, while public figures have nowhere to hide even if you dig three feet into the ground.
However, while he lamented the current state of privacy breaches, he rarely spoke out in defense of these public figures. Since these people have chosen this profession and earn wages thousands of times higher than the average working person, they must bear the corresponding responsibilities and risks.
No problem.
After noting down the address, He Xun finished the watermelon juice he had just ordered and boarded the bus as soon as he left.
Firstly, to save money, and secondly, to familiarize himself with the urban planning and streets of S City.
Especially those secluded corners and hidden places where people can easily hide.
...Twenty minutes later.
"Next stop: Nanning Street, Fenghe Park. Passengers alighting from the rear door, please be careful when opening the door, and please proceed with caution. Next stop..."
As the mechanical female voice broadcast into his ears, He Xun rubbed his sore eyes, packed up the notebook he had been using to draw lines on his lap, and stepped off the bus with a frown.
Reading or drawing in a car can easily cause dizziness and nausea.
There are clearly more convenient electronic maps available, but he just doesn't want to use them.
A meticulous journalist colleague once said that his attitude towards similar matters was like that of someone who had traveled from the 80s or 90s, with a kind of inexplicable stubbornness.
When he heard this, he simply smiled calmly.
Even he himself couldn't explain what he was after.
Perhaps he prefers what is within reach to what is elusive electronic devices, and that is precisely what can soothe his heart, which is often adrift and restless.
*
The filming locations for web dramas are not very standardized, at least not for the one starring Ding Xiabing.
In a secluded corner of Maple Leaf Park, where it's unclear whether the park has been registered with the government, several rudimentary video cameras and round lighting panels were set up.
It was probably during a break in filming, and there were scattered crew members, some squatting and some sitting, but the director was nowhere to be found.
The stagehand, holding a paper tube, was single-handedly shooing away the elderly folks and the drooling kids sucking their fingers as they pointed and chattered away the onlookers.
"Can't you see they're filming here? Get out of the way! Stop blocking the way! Still filming! Still filming! I'm talking to you!"
The elderly folks, who have been running the market and the market for decades, are no pushovers either. They pointed at the stage manager and berated him, saying, "Hey, can't we even watch? Isn't the point of filming for people to see?"
"Exactly, this is a public place, why can't we look?"
"And who are you, you little brat? Making a scene in our park!"
"......"
The stagehand, spitting all over his face, was defeated and sheepishly slunk back with his tail between his legs.
He bumped into a tall, young man, and got excited. Just as he was about to lash out, the man suddenly handed him a large cup of milk tea filled with coconut jelly, red beans, and Oreo cookie crumbs.
"Brother, you've worked hard."
He Xun's eyes, hidden beneath the brim of his hat, were brimming with smiles.
You can't hit someone who's smiling, so the stagehand's temper immediately died down. He pretended to be reserved, took the milk tea, puffed out his cheeks, and took a big gulp.
"Brother, I'm Ding's new assistant. Sorry I'm late on my first day." He Xun said this naturally. "Unexpectedly, it turned out to be a blessing in disguise. I saw you arguing with those people all by yourself. You worked so hard. We newbies should learn from you."
The stagehand smiled restrainedly, clearly accepting the flattery, and looked at the young man in front of him with satisfaction, who seemed quite adept at handling things.
Wearing a dark gray hoodie and black sweatpants, she was tall and slender, with a baseball cap on her head and the lower half of her face covered by a mask, revealing only a pair of beautiful, sparkling black eyes.
He glanced at the work badge hanging around He Xun's neck, which read "Liu Xiaojun" in the name column, and thought to himself, "How come such a handsome guy has such a down-to-earth name?"
It's not that people are swayed by the "masked handsome guy effect"; anyone with eyes can tell just by looking at He Xun's eyebrows and eyes that he's a genuinely handsome man.
For someone who is good-looking, the production assistant has even less of a temper. After all, he knows very well that in the entertainment industry, as long as you have a face, the chances of becoming famous are very high. If you happen to be noticed by a big investor one day, you'll be a god.
What's more, the other party is quite adept at handling things.
"Being late once or twice is fine. Everyone's like this at first. You'll get used to it." The stage manager patted He Xun's shoulder affectionately, his attitude a complete 180-degree turn from when he first met He Xun. He pointed to a spot not far away with an almost amiable expression, "Your Brother Ding is over there."
Before He Xun could even politely thank him, the production assistant suddenly turned around and yelled at the female fans who were visiting the set and were not very popular with the actresses: "Are you filming your mother?!"
The little girls were startled, and the actress also clutched the teddy bear she had just received, somewhat embarrassed.
Idiot.
He Xun gave a concise evaluation, put his hands in his pockets, and walked towards Ding Xiabing.
The area where Ding Xiabing was located was noticeably quieter, clearly a quiet spot specially set up by the production crew for the male lead, who was quite popular.
From afar, He Xun saw Ding Xiabing, who was dressed in a white suit and had exquisite makeup, sitting alone on a black folding chair under a large parasol, staring blankly at the script.
His original plan was to sneak into the nanny van to find Ding Xiabing, which would be more discreet.
Unexpectedly, Ding Xiabing, the top male lead in web dramas, didn't even have a nanny car. He thought to himself, how could someone like Mo Wenjin become a sugar daddy? No wonder his nephew Mo Shilin looked down on him. He couldn't even do the superficial work and couldn't keep his subordinates in line. How could he talk about doing great things?
...one minute later.
He Xun put his hands in his pockets, glanced at Ding Xiabing, and decided to kidnap her.
...another minute passed.
He Xun successfully abducted Ding Xiabing to a secluded corner of an alley.
When He Xun covered Ding Xiabing's mouth and nose, a hint of emotion finally appeared on her face, which had been as still as a stagnant pool for years.
“Mr. Ding.” He Xun removed his mask with one hand and lowered his voice, “Don’t call me that, it’s me.”
"I won't hurt you, understand?"
His originally clear voice was now calm and steady, his eyes were firm, and he seemed to have an innate ability to reassure people.
As soon as she finished speaking, Ding Xiabing's body relaxed, but her eyes were still filled with disbelief.
After He Xun released her, Ding Xiabing coughed twice and immediately asked in a hoarse voice in astonishment, "You...you're an illegitimate child?"
As she spoke, she glanced at He Xun's work ID on his chest: "Where did you get your work ID from?"
"That's not the main reason I came to see you today."
He Xun deftly pulled a transparent syringe from his hoodie pocket, looked at Ding Xiabing with a half-smile, and said sharply, "I came to see you today because of your use of banned drugs."
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