Chapter 67 Collusion Xie Ran didn't know how these two people colluded with each other...
It was already past ten in the evening when they got home. It was too late so Xie Ran did not invite him to sit at home. He just said when he got off the car: "Thank you for today. I will treat you to dinner another day."
Xia Shi replied: "Tomorrow."
Xie Ran didn't understand: "What tomorrow?"
Xia Shi smiled: "Aren't you going to treat me to a meal?"
Xie Ran understood. He didn’t want to postpone the meal to another day. He wanted to have the meal tomorrow.
Xie Ran thought to himself that this person was very efficient and didn't give others any chance to regret. What if he meets someone who is just being polite to him, wouldn’t he be dumbfounded?
Fortunately, she sincerely wanted to invite him, so she agreed.
I originally wanted to meet him at home for convenience and ease, but I was afraid that he would ask about Gao Luo and why she was not at home, so in order to avoid unnecessary trouble, I made the meeting outside.
You can't just find a random restaurant to deal with it, because others have spared no effort to help her, so you must also show sincerity.
She called Wen Yanju in the evening with the mentality of giving it a try, and unexpectedly she was actually able to book a table, still in Chunxi Hall.
The next day at noon, Xia Shi drove to pick her up. When we arrived at the restaurant, we entered the private room as if we were familiar with the place. Today's flower arrangement has a new theme, called Autumn Sequence. The overall color is warm yellow and white, such as dancing orchids, green heart sunflowers, calla lilies, etc. The background is acacia, with blue and purple swallowtails and some unnamed flowers interspersed as embellishments.
Since "Xie Ran" was not that familiar with Xia Shi, she was cautious and did not take the initiative to start a conversation from the moment she left home to the time she sat down to eat in the restaurant. Xia Shi was the one talking throughout the whole process, and she responded according to his topics.
Xie Ran felt that Xia Shi was a super vvVIP member of this restaurant because he could describe the restaurant's specialties, seasonal dishes, and the styles of other private rooms in great detail. Then we talked about Spring Creek Hall and introduced her to the themes and flower varieties of different seasons.
Xie Ran listened carefully, and when he heard the part about flowers, he subconsciously added: "The 'butterfly' theme last time was also beautiful. There was a kind of green gladiolus in it, and the color was like matcha ice cream."
Xia Shi looked at her and said, "I think we've only decorated the butterfly theme once this year."
Xie Ran was stunned. She looked at the waitress, seeking confirmation with her eyes.
The waiter smiled and nodded, "Yes, our restaurant has been decorated once this year."
Xie Ran was embarrassed. She pretended to drink water from the cup, thinking while drinking, and then said: "I haven't seen it. Luo told me when she got home."
Xia Shi said "Oh" meaningfully and asked, "What else did Luo tell you?"
Xie Ran hesitated and said, "She said the food that day was delicious, and then she met other guests on the variety show."
Xia Shi nodded slowly, thoughtfully: "Do you usually chat a lot?"
Xie Ran gave a universal answer: "It's OK."
"Did you mention me?" Xia Shi mentioned himself casually.
Xie Ran nodded immediately: "Yes, I often mentioned you to me, saying that you are a very good person and take good care of her, so I thought of asking you for help this time!"
This answer justified his occasional "familiar" behavior towards him, and Xie Ran felt that he was very smart.
"According to the relationship between elders, Luo calls me cousin, so it is my duty to take care of her. Helping you is even more my duty. After all, apart from that relationship, we are still friends, right?" Xia Shi looked at the person opposite him expectantly.
Xie Ran heard this and returned his gaze. She raised her lips and smiled: "Of course! We are good friends! We have been playing together since we were young!"
Xie Ran's smile was bright, but she felt uneasy inside, because the other person remembered things from his childhood, but she didn't. She prayed that Xia Shi would not reminisce with her, otherwise she would be exposed.
What you fear will come true. Xia Shi asked her the next question: "Do you remember the gift you gave me when we were little?"
Xie Ran observed Xia Shi carefully, and when he saw a very thin chain around his neck, he finally remembered.
Like finally finding the answer to an open-book exam, Xie Ran happily said, "What I remember is a pearl ring!"
She was happy for only a second, and the next moment she heard Xia Shi continue to ask: "Then do you remember what you told me?"
Xie Ran was stunned, his eyes began to evade and wander, and finally he could not help but whisper: "I don't remember."
In order to save her image and appear less "heartless", she actively asked Xia Shi: "What did I say?"
Xia Shi had a smile on his face, and said bitterly and helplessly: "I'll tell you later."
Xie Ran was puzzled: "Why later?"
Xia Shi said: "It's not appropriate now."
Xie Ran still didn’t understand. What he could say when he was a child would be inappropriate now. However, since the other party didn't want to say it for the time being, she didn't ask any more questions.
After the meal, Xie Ran wanted to pay the bill, but the waiter told him that he didn't need to pay, and glanced at Xia Shi while speaking.
Xie Ran asked Xia Shi: "Is it registered under your name?"
Xia Shi replied: "About the same."
Before leaving the restaurant, the florist hired by the restaurant brought Xie Ran a hand-made bouquet. It was the same "butterfly" themed bouquet from last time, with two green gladioli added to it.
Xie Ran thought to himself that Xia Shi was indeed a senior member. Ordinary diners probably could not enjoy such treatment.
After leaving the restaurant, Xie Ran insisted on transferring the money to Xia Shi: "I'm treating you to dinner today, so I have to pay."
Seeing how persistent and serious she was, Xia Shi smiled at her and said, "How about tonight? You can treat me to dinner tonight."
"In the evening?" Xie Ran muttered. Are we still going to have dinner together in the evening?
"Well, I have two tickets for the art exhibition here, do you want to go and see it?"
Xia Shi suggested taking her to an art exhibition. Since he was a painter that Xie Ran was interested in, he agreed. After the art exhibition, we went to the movies and then had dinner together.
But it was still Xia Shi who paid. He said, "I'll ask him next time."
Next time and next time, Xie Ran felt that she would not be able to pay back the meal.
At around eight o'clock in the evening, Xia Shi sent Xie Ran home.
Xie Yanzhi just came back from get off work and invited Xia Shi to come in for a cup of tea.
Before going to bed at night, Xie Yanzhi called Gao Chengsheng who was on a business trip and whispered, "Your daughter has been out on a date with Xiaoxia for two consecutive days. It seems something is going on!"
Gao Chengsheng thought, that’s impossible? They are totally unfamiliar with each other!
The old father was so worried that he couldn't sleep for half the night. The next day, he asked Xie Yanzhi to ask around and found out that Xie Ran didn't have that tendency, so he felt a little relieved.
*
More than half a month has passed since the day I met Song Rui.
During this period, Gao Luo and Gao Shule filmed the seventh episode of "Wonderful Holiday" together. After the filming was completed, the director announced something: Director Wan Qiu had watched all the vlogs in the previous episode and then selected his favorite actors.
Ning Heng kept it a secret and said that the director would contact the artist himself.
That night, Gao Shule received an invitation from Wan Qiu.
The reason why Gao Shule was chosen was that the videos she shot were the only ones that made Wan Qiu feel that she was a person living in that small town, unlike the other guests who just looked like tourists on a tour.
The video records the daily life of Gao Shule and Gao Luo. For example, she would sing on the stage in the teahouse and discuss local music with the pipa master; she would collect osmanthus flowers blown down by the wind and dry them in the oven to make desserts for Gao Luo; she would lie on the windowsill with Gao Luo to bask in the sun and enjoy the breeze under the shade of the trees.
The video content is warm and substantial, and the tone is down-to-earth and deeply rooted in life. Gao Shule's face looks distant and indifferent when static, but very story-telling and eye-catching when moving. She is the actor Wan Qiu wants to find.
After Gao Shule was selected, her fans studied the relevant rules of the fan circle overnight and prepared to be promoted to a higher level - there is no doubt about that.
*
For more than half a month, there was no movement from Song Rui. Xie Ran felt that he should turn over a new leaf and be willing to be a man who keeps his promises.
However, the next day after she came to this conclusion, someone broke the news online that "Xie Ran is Gao Chengsheng's illegitimate daughter."
Such a hot topic became a hot search as soon as it was released.
Fortunately, Xie Ran had made preparations in advance.
She reported the case to the public security organ immediately and then went for a paternity test. It follows the judicial appraisal process, which is rigorous, authoritative and convincing. However, the judicial process takes longer than private appraisal and the time required to produce results is approximately five to seven working days.
While waiting for the results, Xie Ran dealt with Song Rui first.
When the police came to his door, Song Rui was lying at home leisurely browsing Weibo. When he saw the police, he was not nervous. He thought that Xie Ran had made a false report and guessed that he had leaked the information, but in fact he had no evidence at all. Then the police showed him the agreement and said he was involved in extortion and needed to be taken away for investigation.
Xie Ran thought that the news on the Internet was also posted by Song Rui, and planned to add another charge of insult and defamation to him. However, the police investigated and used the digital certificate to retrieve the registration information of the Weibo account. They then followed the clues and found the buyer and user of the account. They discovered that the person who spread the rumors was not Song Rui, but another person, Wen Cheng.
Xie Ran didn’t know how these two people could get together. They obviously didn’t know each other. Could it be that people who do evil things have the ability to attract each other?
The police interrogated Song Rui and asked him if he knew Wen Cheng. Song Rui was worried that his leak would be discovered, so he could only deny it.
*
The news that "Xie Ran is Gao Chengsheng's illegitimate daughter" was indeed revealed to Wen Cheng by Song Rui. Because he didn't want to do it himself and was afraid of being sued by Xie Ran, he found a scapegoat.
After Gao Luo's background was made public, all netizens could see that Wen Cheng would be softly banned from the industry. Wen Cheng must be holding a grudge against Gao Chengsheng and wants to take revenge.
If the fact that Gao Chengsheng has an illegitimate daughter is exposed, he will definitely be caught up in a moral storm and will be criticized by the public.
As one of the world's giants, the CEO of a listed company was exposed for having an illegitimate daughter, i.e., for having an extramarital affair. Such immoral behavior will cause a crisis of trust in the company among the public, and the company's image, position in the industry, and even its stock price will be affected. In order to reduce losses, the company will most likely fire or suspend the employee.
Song Rui guessed that if Wen Cheng knew Xie Ran's background, he would be eager to publish it.
It feels so good to let others take the lead in doing bad things while you hide behind them. If it weren't for the fact that he needed to rest due to his "disfigurement", he would have contacted Wen Cheng immediately -
The beating Xia Shi received from Song Rui made his entire face swollen like a pig's head, even his lips were turned outward, and he would leak when eating or drinking. He has always attached great importance to his image. During that period, he didn't dare to go out, and of course he didn't dare to see anyone. After resting for more than half a month, my face gradually recovered.
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