Chapter 52
Light Rain Cleanses the Years（07）
Chapter 52
Mu He knew where he was taking her, her voice trembling with nervousness: “I-I can’t.”
“It’s okay,” Huo Siheng’s lips gradually pressed against her ear, his voice hoarse, “I’ll teach you.”
Sparks flew. Mu He was completely certain that the air had caught fire. Her whole body radiated astonishing heat, especially… the hand he was holding.
It was an exceptionally long teaching process.
They climbed over gullies, crossed through jungles, and reached the seaside. The crashing waves surged relentlessly, and Mu He’s heart pounded in rhythm with the waves. Every time she lost her sense of direction, he would gently yet firmly bring her back.
After who knows how long, the waves reached their highest point, a flash of white appeared, then the tide slowly receded. Mu He’s whole body felt melted, her hands almost numb. She opened her eyes slightly and saw his taut, long neck and the rising Adam’s apple—a sight more captivating than anything in the world, a view only she could appreciate.
Huo Siheng’s breathing was somewhat uneven. Her hair at the temples, damp with sweat, was fluttering. He grabbed some tissues and meticulously wiped her hands clean. Mu He felt embarrassed and weak, unable to summon even a hint of strength to tap his chest.
The tissues didn’t land in the trash but fell on the floor. Huo Siheng had no time to care and held her again, chuckling softly: “Your learning ability needs improvement. Barely passing.”
Hmph, typical—getting something for free and still acting coy.
Mu He blurted out without thinking: “Obviously, the teacher doesn’t know how to teach.”
Hmm?
What did she just say?
Huo Siheng pressed his thin lips together but smiled silently. His hand slid down her soft arm, finding hers. Mu He instinctively tried to pull back, her wrist lightly pinched by him. Afraid of being taken for another lesson, she leaned in and gave him a goodnight kiss, pouting: “So tired, stop teasing.”
Huo Siheng was just playing with her. He released her wrist and intertwined their fingers: “Sleep.”
The physical and mental exertion before sleep was truly more exhausting than filming for half a month straight. Mu He adjusted into a comfortable position and closed her eyes, quickly overcome by sleepiness.
Huo Siheng kissed the corner of her eye: “Good night.”
The next day, the sky faintly brightened with the first light. Mu He woke up, her mind gradually clearing. She recalled the indescribable events of the previous night, blushing. Lifting her hand, it ached as if it weren’t hers. Was this aftereffect too severe?
And that was just with hands—if he had gone further, would she… not even be able to get out of bed?
Stop thinking about it, Mu Yangyang!
Mu He quietly got out of bed, went to the bathroom to wash up, and when she came out, he was still asleep, lying on his side with the sheet draped around his waist. His sleepwear was lightly creased, giving a warm, gentle, harmless impression. Who could have imagined that a few hours ago, he had done something naughty with her?
Mu He quietly closed the door and went out. After a simple breakfast, the driver had arrived. She picked up her bag and went downstairs. Yawning endlessly, Tan Mian waved at her: “Yangyang, morning.”
Mu He smiled: “Morning.”
The black van slowly drove out of Golden Moon Bay.
“Yangyang,” Tan Mian rubbed her eyes and spoke about last night’s massive origami crane fan support causing a sensation online in both 2D and 3D communities, “the fan club president doesn’t know which fan it was. The Xingyu PR department contacted Gemini Tower and Sun Moon Building staff, but guess what? All replies were ‘unable to disclose.’”
“So, they plan to do a good deed anonymously?”
Tan Mian concluded: “This is definitely a true fan!”
She fantasized again: “Yangyang, could it be that they have a secret crush on you?”
Otherwise, it made no sense—they really spent real money.
Mu He joked along: “Of course it’s possible. After all, I’m this beautiful.”
“Exactly! Last night, both City A and South City were conquered by Teacher Mu’s beauty. The Weibo buzz remained high. Before you left, your fan count increased by five million overnight, like riding a little rocket. The official account for Fairy Tale Romance even reposted it, saying ‘Come grab some free heat, haha!’”
Mu He asked: “Did the company buy me this heat?”
“They wanted to,” Tan Mian shrugged regretfully, “but there was no chance. The fan support was massive, the momentum huge. The first episode aired and #MuHeLongNyuXiyin# trended instantly—unstoppable.”
Every advantage has a disadvantage. Too much trending can annoy people; a big tree attracts wind. No matter how sweet, exposure must be controlled. You can’t eat an entire feast at once.
Tan Mian said: “Xi Jie is probably trying to remove the trending posts.”
She guessed right. After nine o’clock, content related to Mu He gradually lost heat and quietly disappeared from trending. The Zhongli Fei Qihao team did the same. Meanwhile, Yuan Xin’er, silent all night, suddenly shot to first place.
Tan Mian commented: Hidden achievements and fame.
Mu He, successful but retired, faced her first challenge since joining the set. Director Tang, holding a megaphone, shouted at her with furrowed brows: “Mu He, didn’t you eat breakfast? How are you holding the gun so weakly?!”
Mu He cursed him eighteen times in her mind. Her hands were sore and fatigued!
This scene happened to be Bai Xiaoxiao fighting with a gun in an alley. Although it was a prop, it had some weight. Bai Xiaoxiao was left-handed, while Mu He was right-handed, so she needed to adjust.
“All departments ready, Action!”
Director Tang shouted until his throat burned. Someone handed him a bottle of herbal tea; he thought it was his assistant, grabbed it, opened it, and gulped it down. Turning to find a trash can, he was shocked: “General Manager Ding, it’s you?”
Was General Manager Ding coming too often?
Ding Wu looked away from the monitor: “It’s hot. Drink some tea to cool off.”
The implied meaning: Don’t be so harsh with my daughter.
Director Tang wiped sweat from his forehead: “Thank you, General Manager. It’s really hot today.”
Ding Wu suggested: “Filming winter scenes in summer is hard on the actors. Can we install air conditioning on set?”
Director Tang smiled: “You’re the investor, of course, your word is final.”
“General Manager, you’re too considerate.”
Outside, the sun was scorching. Inside, wearing thick jackets, sweat ruined makeup. Actors struggled, and he felt it too. Air conditioning would indeed help.
“Then it’s settled.”
After filming the gunfight scene, Mu He felt like she had been pulled out of water. Tan Mian rushed over with a small fan and bottled water. She took a few sips and felt slightly refreshed in the weak breeze. Tan Mian helped wipe her sweat: “Yangyang, General Manager Ding is installing AC on set.”
“The trucks have delivered the units—about a hundred. The technicians are installing them.”
It’s rare to encounter such a considerate, humble investor these days. No wonder he’s the richest man; he has a broad vision.
Mu He rubbed her left hand. Actually, she thought General Manager Ding was quite nice. Mainly, his gaze was clean and gentle, with no weird thoughts. Being around him felt easy.
Noticing his attention, Mu He politely nodded and smiled as a greeting.
Ding Wu was about to speak to her but was called away by the producer. When he turned back, she had vanished.
During lunch break, all the AC units were installed. Extras were overjoyed. Every place with AC in North City resonated with happy laughter.
Mu He lay on her dorm bed, typing a complaint: “This morning, I was scolded by the director for holding the gun weakly. It’s all your fault.”
Xi Heng: “Just practice a few more times.”
Mu He: “!”
“I messed up many takes!”
Xi Heng: “I meant with a real gun.”
Mu He: “?”
When did she have the chance to handle a real gun?
Wait, a real gun?
He meant the one she held last night?
“Practice… several… more… times?”
!
Her entire face flushed crimson: “You’re shameless!”
Xi Heng: “?”
“Are you thinking the wrong thing?”
Mu He put down her phone, her right hand clenched into a fist and waved in the air. He was a Sino-Russian mix, more skilled at wordplay than she was. She refused to believe he didn’t mean that way.
“What do you mean by ‘real gun’?”
“Literally.”
Mu He: “[Manually, goodbye]”
Xi Heng: “Manually?”
Mu He: “Goodbye!”
She logged into her small Weibo account, cropped out the personal info from the chat page: “Daily life of being teased by my boyfriend [image]”
She casually clicked into the trending page. Yuan Xin’er fell from first place, replaced by the premiere announcement of Fairy Tale Romance. Daily ratings broke 2, and online total views surpassed a hundred million. The summer season was already competitive, and with the overall market sluggish, even big-name directors and productions with top-tier stars repeatedly flopped. This data was very ideal.
Fairy Tale Romance aired ten episodes a week, trending almost daily. Ratings steadily rose, and online views climbed. The theme song was popular everywhere—from streets and malls to plazas—even toddlers could hum a few lines. The lead actors’ popularity soared. Zheng Youyou and Dai Ningxin also regained fame, and their workload increased dramatically.
Zhongli Fei Qihao and Yuan Xin’er had established fan bases, gaining momentum in turns. Yet Mu He’s rise was the most explosive—both beauty and acting online, her role as Xiyin beloved by audiences, rapidly earning their favor. Her name alone became a trending topic.
Reporters tried every effort to interview Mu He but were blocked by North City security.
These days, Ye Xi’s phone almost exploded with messages: scripts, variety show invitations, ad endorsements, magazine interviews—a flood of offers left her with barely time to drink water.
Xingyu specially held a manager meeting to discuss Mu He’s future development plan.
Despite Mu He’s massive online fame, she didn’t take on extra work. She followed her usual rhythm: filming seriously by day, spending time with her boyfriend at night—living a fulfilling, sweet life.
By the twenty-fifth episode of Fairy Tale Romance, Qingli Emperor’s life was in danger. Xiyin confronted the culprit Lin Churen, and they erupted into a fight. Lin Churen pulled out the conch Xiyin had given the emperor as a token, provoking her. In anger, she slapped Lin Churen.
The audience cheered in unison: “Well slapped!”
“Finally satisfying! I’ve hated Lin Churen from the start—acting innocent and pitiful, yet being hypocritical, stupid, and cruel. She deserves a lesson in how to behave!”
#MuHeSlaps# quickly trended, and netizens even made memes with the caption: “What are you looking at? You’re the one who got slapped.”
“Have you noticed that whenever Yuan Xin’er has a scene with Mu He, she’s always the suppressed one?
And I’m not talking about the characters.”
“Anyone with eyes can see whose acting is better.”
“She’s been nominated for Best Actress before. As the lead, being beaten by a rookie supporting actress? I feel embarrassed for her.”
Yuan Xin’er, attending an event in another city, saw this trending post. She was furious. She got slapped, yet the tag on the trending post was Mu He?
Why?
!
Wasn’t it just stepping on her skirt at the press conference? She didn’t fall. Was it necessary to hold a grudge until now?
And hiring online shills to awkwardly praise her acting—shameless!
Did she really think Yuan Xin’er was easy to bully?
!
Seeing her idol’s popularity used to gain heat, Xin Guang naturally couldn’t sit still—praising Yuan Xin’er while attacking Mu He. Qianzhizhe wasn’t passive either; their fans engaged in an online war of words.
Soon, under the restraint of fan club president Yang Le Duo, Qianzhizhe withdrew from the dispute.
Xin Guang became the main force in the comments, refining a strong central idea. Acting aside, there was one thing Mu He couldn’t match—they graduated from prestigious foreign universities! As for Mu He…
Rumors spread, and a Weibo topic #MuHeVocationalSchoolEducation# appeared.
Mu He: How does she not know she graduated from a vocational school?