`Chapter 8

Chapter 8

“Ding——”

The elevator doors slowly closed, and the cabin ascended smoothly, bringing a slight feeling of weightlessness.

Zhuang Wanyan swiped her card and unobtrusively observed the other person through the reflective mirror.

Shi Yin held a huge pile of gift boxes, her whole body nearly pressed against the elevator wall, only the top of her fuzzy hair visible. The things in her arms were clearly heavy; her weight shifted from her left foot to her right and back again, her slender elbows struggling to support themselves on the handrail.

“You don’t have to hold it the whole time. Put it on the floor,” Zhuang Wanyan reminded her.

Shi Yin poked half her face out from the gaps between the packages and obediently said, “Oh.”

Zhuang Wanyan sighed inwardly—it’s a not-so-bright one. No, more accurately, a very unlucky one. Thinking about what she was about to do, she pursed her lips, emotions surging in her eyes. One couldn’t blame her for being ruthless; blame lay with Shi Yin being from Feng Yang’s group, and just by chance, appearing at that exact moment outside the restroom.

Zhuang Wanyan’s thoughts were in a mess, but Shi Yin seemed completely oblivious. She pointed at a gift bag on the floor and exclaimed in wide-eyed amazement, “Wow, Sister Yan! Is this the new G brand phone case? The one you endorsed? So fancy!”

She was talking about a pink gradient shell-patterned phone case, with fine pink rhinestones lining the edges, sparkling blindingly, paired with a thick matching neck strap. Extremely high aesthetic value, it looked expensive.

“You like it?” Seeing Shi Yin’s eyes practically glued to it, Zhuang Wanyan generously waved her hand. “It’s yours.”

“…Sister Yan, you’re so kind.” Shi Yin’s peach-blossom-shaped eyes curved, her expression radiating genuine joy.

Zhuang Wanyan was completely unaware. In reality, from the moment she invited Shi Yin into the car, her personal like/dislike meter had been like a roller coaster—from 0 to -1, -2, -3, and after saying “It’s yours,” it instantly dropped to -4.

Faced with Shi Yin’s unshadowed, purely grateful smile, Zhuang Wanyan felt a pang of guilt and almost instinctively looked away. She stared down at the darkened phone screen, inexplicably uneasy.

“Ding dong——”

The elevator stopped steadily on the 27th floor. True to a high-end hotel, as soon as the doors opened, a soft, elegant fragrance wafted out, and the corridor was carpeted thickly.

“I’m going to smoke a cigarette.”

Shi Yin was using her foot to block the elevator door, struggling with the bags. Zhuang Wanyan tapped her arm and pointed at the Cigar Bar sign on the wall: “Move everything inside and organize it by category.”

She handed over a black-and-gold key card.

Shi Yin froze for a moment, hesitating: “Sister Yan, should I wait here for you?”

“Wait for what!” Zhuang Wanyan’s tone was firm, exuding unquestionable coldness. “People will think you’re setting up a stall—hurry up and move it!”

“But…” Shi Yin looked troubled, murmuring quietly, “This… isn’t very convenient, is it?”

Zhuang Wanyan frowned, impatiently asking: “What’s inconvenient about it?”

Shi Yin shifted her gaze elsewhere, trying to clarify: “Little Xu is in the room, right? It’s not very convenient for me to go in alone.”

“Oh? You have ideas?” Zhuang Wanyan toyed with the electronic cigarette’s casing.

“No! I don’t!” Shi Yin shook her head rapidly, her ponytail whipping behind her, her tone trembling with urgency.

Zhuang Wanyan smiled and spoke slowly: “Then there’s nothing inconvenient. Xu Wei and his friends are discussing business. He’s not the only one in the room…” She paused, thinking of something, a trace of melancholy rising in her eyes. “Besides, I have no hobby of sending people to my boyfriend’s bed.”

“Then can I go home after putting the things down?” Shi Yin asked nervously.

“As you wish.” Zhuang Wanyan replied casually. Her graceful figure disappeared into the depth of the corridor, like a wandering beauty snake.

The key card showed room 2708. Shi Yin found the corresponding door number but did not enter immediately.

To survive in this circle, if one had no sense at all, one wouldn’t even realize when being trapped. At this moment, Shi Yin was certain that Zhuang Wanyan intended to trap her. How exactly? She hadn’t figured it out yet. After some probing, she knew at least that the top star did not plan to “gift” her to Xu Wei as a birthday present.

Shi Yin had a vague premonition: Zhuang Wanyan wanted to deal with Feng Yang. The interactions among Zhuang Wanyan, her manager Aken, and Xu Wei were all strange. Pulling Shi Yin into this wasn’t necessarily personal; it seemed more like setting up a game. She might only need a chess piece—or a fuse to ignite the situation.

This was also why Shi Yin, sensing something was wrong, didn’t immediately turn around at the hotel entrance—because she wanted to be involved too!

Shi Yin sighed inwardly. Top star, why didn’t you say so earlier? We could have teamed up! Of course, a proud top star would never collaborate with a small-time like her. So she had to fish in muddy waters, hoping to catch a tiny slip from Yang Tianming.

—Xiaofu, we mother and daughter are being schemed against!

Shi Yin’s heart screamed, but her hands moved efficiently. She quickly removed the phone case and secured it, adjusted the strap length so it hung at chest level, unlocked the phone, opened the camera, set it to screen-off recording, clicked start, flipped the camera outward, confirmed everything, and locked the screen to prevent accidental touches.

This behavior counted as covert recording. Shi Yin, having consulted many lawyers, knew: covert recording is unethical, not advisable, and the footage couldn’t be used as evidence.

But justice didn’t matter here. Protecting herself did.

Shi Yin clenched her fists, silently cheering herself on, then swiped the card and opened the door in one smooth motion.

Room 2708 was a suite. Entering, there was a small foyer, and muffled sounds of people laughing, shouting, and music came from the obscured living room.

Shi Yin quietly secured the door, quick-stepped forward, and almost collided with someone turning out from the open kitchen.

But it wasn’t Xu Wei—it was a young man, exuding the casual style of a wealthy playboy, holding a bottle of Saint Perro in his hand. He blocked Shi Yin, eyes wary: “Who are you? How did you get in here?”

Shi Yin glanced at the living room and saw a group of men and women entwined, intimate in posture, engaged in indecent behavior. The table was filled with foreign liquor, beer, red wine, and takeout—spicy crayfish, fried chicken, sauced seafood, and barbecue. Some looked drunk with dazed eyes, others laughing uncontrollably. Shi Yin’s sharp eyes even spotted two of Feng Yang’s junior actors.

What was going on?

Shi Yin was stunned. Didn’t they party enough at “Mildly Drunk” KTV? Now running a silver-party in a hotel suite?

The shock lasted only a moment. Shi Yin snapped back to reality and pointed at the pile of gift boxes stacked outside the door: “Sister Yan… Zhuang Wanyan asked me to put these inside.”

The playboy didn’t move his feet, tilted his head, and called out: “Xu Wei! Come over here!”

Shi Yin ignored him, diligently moving the gifts in like a hamster, one by one from outside into the room. The young man stood with his arms crossed, completely unwilling to help.

Xu Wei shuffled in from the balcony in slippers, sending the people in the living room into the bedroom.

“Xu Wei, this your person?” the playboy asked, pointing at Shi Yin.

Shi Yin was bending down to organize the gift boxes when a bottle rolled out from the mess of takeout bags. She paused and picked it up—it was empty, very light, with a straw-cap on top, looking like an oversized thermos.

Her eyelids twitched, and goosebumps rose along her arms. She scanned the bar; both men hadn’t noticed. She quickly bent down to peek under the sofa. Sure enough, there were several colorful bottles and deflated balloons. Shi Yin aimed her phone camera at the sofa legs and panned from left to right for four to five seconds.

A hoarse voice suddenly sounded from behind her neck: “What are you doing?”

Shi Yin was startled, hair standing on end, scalp tingling. Using the motion of turning, she nudged the exposed bottles under the sofa. Luckily, the carpet muffled any noise.

Xu Wei stood behind her, looming, repeating in a chilling tone: “What are you doing?”

Shi Yin forced calm: “I’m organizing Sister Yan’s gifts—brand gifts and fan gifts.”

Xu Wei remained unmoved, eyes dark and piercing: “You’re not her assistant; I haven’t seen you before.”

Shi Yin’s heart sank. Xu Wei remembered Zhuang Wanyan’s assistant’s name? This young master wasn’t a fool!

She didn’t hesitate and sold Zhuang Wanyan out, speaking truthfully: “I’m her colleague. I was also at ‘Mildly Drunk’ tonight. Then it rained, and Sister Yan said she’d send me home. At the hotel downstairs, she asked me to help move the things. The room card is hers. She went to the Cigar Bar to smoke, so I’m just putting her things in the room…”

Xu Wei didn’t speak. A deathly silence spread through the living room.

Shi Yin’s heart raced. She quickly glanced at the door—it was still open.

“Little Xu, the things are put away. I’ll leave first; you guys enjoy…”

Before she finished, a sudden phone ringtone rang. Shi Yin jumped. The playboy on the sofa lazily answered, saying “Mm-hmm” perfunctorily. Then his tone shot up sharply: “What?!”

Now!

Before they could react, Shi Yin sprang up from the floor. She had been squatting too long; her vision momentarily blacked out. She ignored everything, relying on memory to dash toward the door. Her toes hit the bar counter painfully, tears welling but she didn’t dare make a sound.

Reaching the corridor, she shut the door behind her and heard the playboy’s panicked voice: “…The police are here! Who the hell called them? I’ll kill him!”

Shi Yin’s heart chilled again. She sprinted to the elevator at full speed, slamming the close button. Her heart raced wildly.

Xu Wei throwing a silver-party! Xu Wei gathering people to use laughing gas! Someone called the cops! Someone’s out to get Xu Wei! Where’s Zhuang Wanyan?! Could she have done this?! Her thoughts collided chaotically, nearly overloading her brain.

Shi Yin took several deep breaths, forcing herself to calm down. She picked up her phone, stopped recording, clicked save, brain working rapidly. She activated automatic backup and, still uneasy, uploaded the footage to the cloud separately.

When everything was done, Shi Yin anxiously looked at the floor indicator, each second unbearably long.

No matter if Xu Wei could process things, she definitely wasn’t the one who called the cops. Staying in the room wasn’t the best option; she didn’t want to end up in the social news. Better to run first, explain at the police station later—as an anonymous bystander, not “Shi someone.”

~

In room 2708, the playboy’s eyes were bloodshot. He kicked the sofa hard: “What do we do now?!”

Xu Wei grabbed his coat and phone, coldly: “Get out first. Tell Binzi to drive the car to the back door.”

“Okay,” the playboy replied, pointing to the bedroom. “And these people? Ignore them? What if they talk nonsense?”

Xu Wei didn’t answer.

He stared at his phone, flipped it over, and fixed his gaze on the camera for a long moment: “That woman just now—did she use her phone after coming in?”

“Ah?” The playboy froze for a moment, struggling to recall. “No… I don’t think so. How would she have time to call the police?”

“She didn’t call the police…” Xu Wei suddenly lifted his head, eyes surging with rage. “She damn well recorded all of us!”

~

Relief washed over Shi Yin when the bright hotel lobby came into view.

She quickly slipped through the revolving door, almost simultaneously, several burly men in black T-shirts pressed in from both sides, squeezing into the compartments in front and behind her. Through the thin glass, one side waited to exit, the other to enter. Instinctively, Shi Yin lifted her eyes and happened to meet the gaze of one of the men.

The man’s eyes were like cold probes, slowly descending, finally locking on the overly conspicuous phone case on her chest.

Damn it!

Shi Yin’s heart tightened. She immediately turned her face away and pushed the sluggish glass door with all her might, cursing that it wasn’t spinning fast enough. Faster!

As the door finally ushered her body out of the hotel, the wet, hot wind and rain slammed against her, accompanied by noise. Huge raindrops pelted down, blurring her vision instantly.

“Don’t run! Stop!” the men shouted viciously from behind.

Only an idiot would stop! Shi Yin bolted.

At the critical moment, a “ding” sounded in her mind—a system alert. Xiao Assistant, offline all day, finally delivered a mission.

【Optional Side Quest A: Turn the Palm to Cloud】

【Mission Objective: Seek help from the owner of car A88688 in the open-air parking lot to resolve the covert recording crisis】

【Mission Reward: Zhuang Wanyan’s gossip (purple) x1, Basic Sanda skill】

【Optional Side Quest B: Turn the Palm to Rain】

【Mission Objective: Seek help from police car M9C33N in the underground parking lot to resolve the covert recording crisis】

【Mission Reward: Xu Wei’s gossip (purple) x1, Minghu Police Station favor +5】

Shi Yin’s mind raced. Both side quests could resolve the current trouble, differing only in target and reward. However… she remembered the law lecture at school: using laughing gas currently only incurs administrative punishment. Even if Xu Wei was caught, a few days of detention and he would be released—and he would definitely seek revenge. As a target in the entertainment circle, Shi Yin would be the first victim.

The police couldn’t protect her forever. If she didn’t take action against Xu Wei now, she could die!

She gritted her teeth, her gaze instinctively drifting to Side Quest A.

She thought of Li Yun, that righteous and stern man, like an ice-clear jade vessel. Someone of his standing wouldn’t tolerate wrongdoing, right? Hmm, Li Yun seemed to have a good temper. Since Xiao Assistant issued the mission, it must be feasible. Fine, she’d take the risk—betting that Li Yun was a man who would do the right thing. Let the celestial dragons handle celestial dragons!

Shi Yin charged decisively into the rain, sprinting toward the open-air parking lot.

At the same time, a low-profile black MPV slowly drove up the slope. The driver’s eyes were fully focused on the road. Rounding a corner, the hotel entrance came into view. Suddenly, through the sway of the wipers, a large crowd appeared out of nowhere!

The girl in front ran in panic. Something tripped her; her left foot slipped on the wet step, and her thin body instantly lost balance, heading straight toward the car’s hood.

“Screeech—”

The harsh emergency brakes pierced the rain, tires gripping the ground, dragging two long water streaks.

“Bang!”

Followed by the dull thud of a human body hitting the ground.

The driver frowned, immediately getting out and circling to the front.

The girl sat on the ground, arms and knees scraped with large patches of raw skin, the blood stark against the rain. Dazed, she hugged her legs, soaked and bedraggled, looking pitiable.

Yet the driver didn’t immediately help her up, silently standing aside, eyes alert.

The MPV’s door had silently slid open.

Shi Yin slowly lifted her head. The first thing she saw was a dark gray thin blanket draped over the knees, and a hand resting on it—defined knuckles, pale skin, veins slightly raised in faint cyan.

Inside the car sat a man wearing the plainest black T-shirt, with ordinary short hair. At first glance, he looked like a completely ordinary car owner, unrelated to any mission.

By appearance alone, he wasn’t striking. His cheeks were too gaunt, face too pale, revealing the weakness of long-term illness. Yet his bone structure was excellent, facial features sharp, pupils deep black, brow bones prominent—a classic brow-over-eye look. Normally, such a face would give a strong sense of pressure, but his eyes were astonishingly calm, completely still.

Shi Yin’s eyes glistened with tears, black hair disheveled, face white as paper, like a fragile glass doll ready to shatter at any moment.

——Actually, she really felt like she was about to break.

Shi Yin stared blankly at the top of the man’s head, where a glaringly unfamiliar name hung.

【Li Xuan】

Who am I? Where am I? What am I supposed to do?

This is bad! Who is this?!

Author’s note:

This is the male lead, wow.

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Here’s the real author’s note:

Don’t ostracize me, wow! [Crying] Recently JJ is running an event, welcome to check in, click paws and throw flowers, please leave me comments! Please water me with nutrients! (Rolling) (Rolling)