Chapter 24
In her spare time, Zhuang Yazhi also arranged a series of benefits for the group's employees, inviting top celebrity John to visit the group's offices.
"Help! It's John! He's a hundred times more handsome in person than on TV."
"His skin is so fair, and he smells so good."
During the gift-giving phase, everyone rushed forward, causing the on-site security system to crash.
"John's new drama 'Wind Returns to Snow' is about to be released, everyone must support it when it airs!"
"Absolutely! I love you to death, John."
"I want to open an SVIP account for you."
The enthusiastic fans at the scene screamed uncontrollably, and the noise echoed throughout the entire building.
John had barely arrived when the news spread and quickly became a trending topic.
"Oh my god, John is actually at the Zhuang family's place. I really want to go in too."
"I really want to receive the milk tea personally from John; it sounds so delicious."
A burst of chatter and laughter came from nearby, which Cai Siyue and Shen Qianli happened to hear as they passed by in the mall.
Cai Siyue took out her phone and quickly checked the trending topics. "John is actually at the Zhuang family. I really want to go back and see him."
Shen Qianli was annoyed by John's presence at Zhuang's, but it was at this moment that she noticed Cai Siyue seemed to have a special liking for John, and she couldn't resist the trending news.
"It seems Siyue really likes John."
Cai Siyue laughed heartily: "It's alright, I've only liked it for three or four years."
"Oh? Is that so?" Shen Qianli raised an eyebrow.
"I've liked John since his debut, so you've been a fan for a long time."
She hasn't explicitly stated their mother-daughter relationship yet; they're just interacting as superior and subordinate.
Seeing how much Cai Siyue liked John, Shen Qianli felt that this might be a good starting point to find an opportunity for them to recognize each other.
To make it easier for everyone to watch the performance, Zhuang Yazhi specially arranged the performance venue in the large square downstairs from the company. Fans packed the entire event site, three layers deep.
The performance didn't start until late at night. Dazzling lights, confetti raining down, and enthusiastic cheers solemnly invited John onto the stage. The sound of a guitar immediately opened the curtain on the performance.
She has a steady stage presence, excels in both singing and dancing, and is especially known for her distinctive dolphin-like high notes, which are melodious and inject soul into any stage performance the moment she opens her mouth.
He was born for the stage, radiating charm and brilliance.
While enjoying the stage, they brought an ultimate performance feast to the audience, one song after another, and even when they were drenched in sweat, they still wanted more.
"Thank you, thank you all for coming to my performance tonight."
After feeling the enthusiastic cheers and shouts from the audience, which came in waves like a thousand sails, John was moved to tears because he felt loved.
A sea of orange lights formed by glow sticks, and his favorite little orange was displayed on the big screen; all the careful preparations showed how much importance he attached to it.
Zhuang Yazhi sat in the front row. She could clearly see glistening tears falling from John's profile. She silently applauded his hard work in the performance.
The performance was coming to an end, but the fans in the audience were reluctant to part and asked for an encore.
Zhuang Yazhi stood up and looked around the room. She immediately spotted Shen Qianli sitting in the front row, arrogant and haughty, with Cai Siyue excitedly waving a light stick next to her.
As the event organizer, Zhuang Yazhi's task today is to make the employees happy and do her best to fulfill their wishes.
"John, what do you think?"
John was moved by the cheers from the fans below the stage and politely replied, "Thank you, Mr. Zhuang, for giving me this opportunity. I would also like to sing another song with the fans."
"No, what gives her the right?"
Everyone was satisfied, except for Shen Qianli, who was furious.
She couldn't bear to see John so humble and subservient to Zhuang Yazhi, begging for a chance to perform; it was too lowly.
The entire audience cheered and sang along, but Shen Qianli remained silent, gritting her teeth and sulking on her chair.
After the performance, Shen Qianli waited for John backstage. When he arrived, she quickly pulled him to a secluded corner and began to scold him angrily.
“I told you long ago not to enter the entertainment industry. You have to lower yourself to sing and dance on stage to make others happy, and you have to beg people to give you a chance to perform. You are my son, Shen Qianli’s son. How can you live such a humble life?”
John wanted to share his joy after the performance with his mother, but before he could utter a single word, he was met with a barrage of scolding.
“I love the stage, I love performing, I love standing in front of the camera. I’ve told you so many times, why won’t you listen?” John roared hoarsely, this was the first time he had lost his temper.
The joy and tears he shed on stage turned into sorrow at that moment, and what broke his heart the most was the lack of understanding.
Shen Qianli looked puzzled: "What's so special about that lousy stage? Your father and I are just starting out and urgently need people to come back and help. You're not young anymore, so stop singing and dancing outside all day. You should come back and learn how to manage the company. This company will be yours in the future, so you need to pay more attention to it."
From screaming at the top of his lungs to breaking down in tears, and now to utter bewilderment, John's emotions have become as stagnant as a puppet on a string.
He didn't want to argue anymore, but the frustration in his heart lingered and he couldn't let it go.
“I was twelve years old when I first went on stage. That night, you beat me up and said that my identity was not suitable for appearing in front of the camera.”
"I thought you were worried that I would be bullied by people in the industry."
"But I later found out that you were afraid others would find out that I was your illegitimate son, President Shen Qianli."
“This identity makes me feel ashamed. I feel like a rat in the gutter, unable to see the light of day.”
The more this happened, the more he longed for the stage and the camera. Gradually, this became a crazy obsession in his heart, taking root and sprouting in his heart, and at the same time, it became a thorn.
He tried to use the identity of artist John to cover up the mark of his illegitimate child. Every late night of hard practice and every performance on stage was for the purpose of stepping onto a bigger stage and getting more dazzling spotlights and cameras to illuminate that rat in the gutter.
John wanted to tell the mouse: You can be in the light, you don't have to hide, go live the life you want.
“But it’s so strange.” John’s heart ached so much he could hardly breathe.
"I have already earned the opportunity to appear on the big screen through my own efforts, but now you want to bring me into the public eye in broad daylight and ask me to take over the company."
John found it ironic: "What, you're so confident that you let me show up, have you already taken over all the assets of the bookmaker?"
A barrage of rebuttals and questions left Shen Qianli speechless. Feeling wronged, she slapped John hard across the face in a fit of anger, her eyes reddening and her hands trembling uncontrollably: "I've done so much for you, how can you say such things to me?"
"Do you know how hard it is for a woman like me to make it in the business world? I have no one to rely on and no background. The only resources I have are given to me by the Shen family. If it weren't for your future, do you think I would be willing to live such a hard life?"
Feeling misunderstood and distrusted, Shen Qianli felt a sharp pain in her heart, couldn't breathe, and collapsed backward as her vision went black.
"Mom," John hurriedly tried to help her up, but Shen Qianli angrily pushed him away.
"Get out of my way, I don't have a son like you." The once proud and arrogant Shen Qianli was utterly defeated at this moment. She staggered away, but as she turned around, she bumped right into Cai Siyue, who was standing at the entrance.
The light stick in her hand fell to the ground, and she wept in despair. Before today, she had always thought that she was Shen Qianli's only one.
"Is he your illegitimate child?"
"And what about me? An illegitimate child?"
They are both equally shameful.
With tears welling up in her eyes, Zeiss was overwhelmed by pain and hatred, feeling like a clown in front of John.
"But why you of all people?"
Do you know how much I like you?
With that final question, Cai Siyue broke down in tears, lost her balance, staggered, and ran away quickly.
“Siyue.” Shen Qianli was completely stunned. She never expected that Cai Siyue already knew about their mother-daughter relationship. For the past two weeks, she had been foolishly hiding it, afraid of being exposed.
But she wasn't the only one feeling lost.
John turned around and examined his mother closely, his eyes filled with disappointment: "There's still one mouse."
He gave a half-smile, a self-deprecating tone that was more intense than his hatred.
“That’s not how it is…” Shen Qianli wanted to explain, but she couldn’t find the words.
"I don't know, I ...."
She was completely devastated, stomping her feet and frantically pulling at her hair.
She just wanted to accompany Cai Siyue to see her son's performance, and she didn't know how things turned out this way.
John closed his eyes, trying to hold back the bitter tears, but no matter what he did, his eyes remained sore and he felt dizzy.
He leaned against the wall for support as he left, looking towards the exit ahead. The light grew dimmer and dimmer, just like the grayness of his inner world.
On the front stage, everyone had left, except for Zhuang Yazhi, who remained seated.
The huge hall was silent, but if you listened carefully, you could faintly hear crying coming from afar.
After a long wait, she finally saw someone come out.
Shen Qianli was in a terrible state, tears ruining her makeup. She walked around listlessly and without spirit, her breath carrying a sense of death.
The light shone on Zhuang Yazhi's face, revealing her fair skin with a rosy glow, and her smile was captivating.
"It's you." Only now did Shen Qianli realize that she had been set up and manipulated, which caused conflict between her and her two children.
The noble and elegant image of a mother that she had worked so hard to maintain was completely lost tonight.
Zhuang Yazhi's bright eyes were like shimmering water, and the disheveled appearance of the person in front of her was quite a sight to behold, as exciting as watching a play.
"Can't even handle it already?" He scoffed, mocking her for being both amusing and cowardly.
Shen Qianli was even more ruthless in her previous life.
She drove her mother to her death and then burned down the Su family compound.
This is a serious matter that needs to be addressed.
"Why, why, why?" Shen Qianli rushed forward like a madwoman to question him, but before she could get close, she was restrained by a strong arm and staggered back several steps.
Shen Yiheng coldly reminded her, "Auntie, you've lost your composure."
As powerful as he was, his arrogant demeanor spread with his cool and indifferent gaze, intimidating and deterring Shen Qianli from stepping forward.
Despite her resentment, Shen Qianli was under pressure and dared not step forward. She glared at Zhuang Yazhi with a resentful look, muttering, "You brat, just you wait, I won't let you get away with this."
"Fine." Zhuang Yazhi chuckled sarcastically in a low voice. She wanted to see how Shen Qianli would not let her off the hook.
After waiting for so long, the moment of revealing the cards has finally arrived, and she can't wait any longer.
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