CH 15

Chapter 15

“I won’t be coming to work for a while.” Ruan Jiangjiu continued the phone call while casually flipping through a cookbook – a proper canary, of course, should be dedicated to the job, and learn a few more dishes to please their owner.

“Yo, you finally learned how hard it is?” Qu Xueying laughed and teased him over the phone: “You now know how difficult it is for us normal folks that have to work.”

Ruan Jiangjiu’s well-defined fingers casually turned over a page and remarked, “I just want to experience something else first.”

Qu Xueying chuckles and paused: “For example?”

Ruan Jiangjiu leisurely picked up a pen and circled a dish, then casually said, “A canary being kept by a golden master.”

Qu Xueying was silenced for several seconds, but finally spoke with difficulty: “This… is also a role requirement?”

Ruan Jiangjiu thought back to the script and said without hesitation, “It counts.” Although it doesn’t match his current situation, the script does involve a related plot.

Qu Xueying huffed, took a deep breath, and asked, “So, where are you now?”

Ruan Jiangjiu looked up at the gorgeous crystal chandelier and said, “In the golden master’s river-view villa.” Early that next morning, Lu Bai had sent him here, saying that it was a coming-of-age gift from Master Lu.

Qu Xueying felt like he was having a dream, waking up to the fact that his cousin, who couldn’t have been more golden since he was a child, actually had a golden master. After giving himself a moment to do countless mental reinforcements, “Then your golden master…” Originally, he wanted to ask who the hell is so powerful, but Ruan Jiangjiu directly interrupted him, saying: “The golden master went to see his mother. I want to prepare dinner in advance.”

Qu Xueying: “…” 

Qu Xueying blankly stared at the phone that had been abruptly hung up and fell into a state of subtle skepticism about life.

As soon as he hung up the phone, a few messages came in. Some new ideas about the characters from Director Zhou, and a message from Bo Yangzhi, asking him to go to the film’s official announcement blog – his social accounts are always taken care of by himself.

The first thing he did was to find the official announcement blog and see the photos of the chosen actors. It seems that although he didn’t go through him, Qin Gu still managed to get the role for the young man named Xiao Yang in such a short time.

This was originally Qin Gu’s business, but now it has even less to do with him.

Ruan Jiangjiu reposted the official announcement and withdrew from the official blog page. Whenhe was about to exit the app entirely, he suddenly saw a trending article.

The photos of him and Lu Bai circulating on the Internet have long been deleted by the Lu family, and this hot article is a marketing account apologizing for it.

Lu Bai had been rudely raked over the hot coals of the internet, of course, the Lu family would not rest peacefully. Lu Zhi had sent lawyers’ letters to the most popular of the marketing accounts and did a lot more things behind the scenes. Those marketing accounts had not expected that the Lu family would go to such lengths for the sake of their notorious offspring, and they were really scared and quickly apologized, but Lu Zhi did not show any mercy. The blog is still full of netizens discussing the secret affairs of the rich and famous family, discussing the so-called black material of Lu Bai that had been dug up over the past few days. A few comments questioning whether one should not dredge up the privacy of an ordinary person were quickly suppressed and then disappeared.

Looking at it, Ruan Jiangjiu’s brow creased slightly. He felt that the words used to describe the teenager were a bit harsh.

Lu Bai has already been exposed to the public, even if the Lu family had the contacts and means, it is impossible to block everyone’s mouth. Ruan Jiangjiu quit the app and lowered his eyes. While he usually does not have that kind of exposure himself, he has spent many years in the entertainment industry. So he knows that if you want to cover up a piece of news with maximum efficiency, the best way is to put out another piece of news that will attract the public’s attention.

As he thought of this, Ruan Jiangjiu lifted his eyebrows and dialed Bo Yangzhi’s phone number.

~~~~~

A certain Western-style restaurant.

“Xiao Bai,” Ming Yan was wearing elegant light makeup on her face, but there was barely concealed worry in her eyes as she carefully asked, “How have you been lately?” She regretted the words as soon as they were spoken, all kinds of rumors were buzzing around outside these past two days, how could her son be fine?

She was the mother of this child, but she couldn’t get to his side when something happened to him.

“Mom, don’t worry.” Lu Bai smiled softly, covering the woman’s hand: “Dad and the others have already solved it. I’ve been doing well these days.” After a short pause, he directed the conversation to something else, “There’s less than half a month left, right? I’m looking forward to mom’s painting exhibition.”

Ming Yan’s nose was sore, but a smile emerged on her face as she flipped her hand to hold her son’s in return, “That’s good. Mom is also looking forward to your visit.” After a pause, she was about to ask something else when a voice suddenly sounded.

“Auntie Ming, long time no see.” Xiao Yang was wearing a nice suit, but still had some childishness on his face, which made people feel favorable at first glance. He showed an appropriate amount of surprise as he said, “And Xiao Bai as well, what a coincidence.” He looked back at Ming Yan, a gentle smile on his face, “Auntie Ming, my mother misses you very much.”

Ming Yan was shocked when she finally recognized who he was. Her face turned cold. She elegantly took a sip of her wine as she indifferently asked, “Is that so?”

“Of course,” Xiao Yang was not angry by her polite alienation, “My mother always says that the kindness that Auntie Ming has shown to us, we can never forget in our lifetime.”

Ming Yan faintly smiled, the curve of her mouth carried a trace of sarcasm. She was raised to adhere to a certain level of propriety and not say anything more unpleasant, not to mention her son was also here. She looked at Lu Bai and her eyes instantly became softer. She handed over a card and said, “Xiao Bai, go to the front desk and settle the bill.”

Lu Bai nodded and took the card, and left. Now that there was no plot involved, he didn’t really want to see Xiao Yang.

When Lu Bai’s figure disappeared, Ming Yan’s face completely chilled as she looked expressionlessly at the seemingly harmless youth in front of her, “Stay away from my son.” They could just as easily have called the waiter over to settle the bill, but she didn’t want her son to see her in this state of unseemliness.

Xiao Yang smiled brightly, still so gentle and harmless, as he suddenly took Lu Bai’s seat and narrowed his eyes at Ming Yan, “Auntie still has such a deep misunderstanding of us mother and son.”

At the front desk, Lu Bai had settled the bill and was about to go back. When he turned around, he bumped into the cloudy face of Qin Gu.

Lu Bai: “…”

Lu Bai’s eyebrows twitched. He should have expected it; wherever Xiao Yang is, Qin Gu will most likely also be around. After all, Xiao Yang just returned to Jinghai, Qin Gu cannot let his valued little brother blindly wander in this unfamiliar place.

However, during these non-plot times, he really does not want to put on a show.

So, Lu Bai showed a rather perfunctory smile and blinked his eyes: “Brother Qin!”

The coldness on Qin Gu’s face intensified, as he sneered, “You’ve just made such a big mess, but you’re still so carefree.”

Lu Bai’s eyes rolled: “Oh.”

Qin Gu let slip some blatant sarcasm on his face, and his heart inexorably rose with some irritation: “Since you have already raised someone, don’t come back to haunt me. It is too dirty for my tastes.” He shocked himself by saying such heavy words, but they could not be retracted.

Lu Bai hung his eyes. That’s not possible, the plot has to continue moving.

“And also,” Qin Gu felt that he should not say more, but what the young man has done in the past was like a fire burning his heart. The feeling was a little strange, he could not identify, but still the words came tumbling out of him: “Lu Bai, you have so much more than Xiao Yang. Even though you do not deserve it. He is very simplistic, from now on stay away from him. If you ever strike out at him again, I will not show any mercy.”

Not knowing what he had just jabbed, the mask-like fake smile on the corners of Lu Bai’s mouth faded, he raised his head, looking directly into the frigid eyes of Qin Gu, and spoke one word at a time: “Worthy. Or unworthy. It is not for you to say. Nor does it have anything to do with you.” Then he turned and strode away – at any rate, any plot of Qin Gu and Xiao Yang’s be damned.

In this world, his family is his bottom line.

When Qin Gu had met the teenager’s stare for a split second his pupils contracted, and by the time he reacted, Lu Bai had disappeared. However, his heart’s jarring heaviness was unable to clear up no matter what, a feeling so strange that he was bewildered.

When he returned to his seat, Xiao Yang had already disappeared. Lu Bai handed his mother back her card, “Mom, let’s go.”

Ming Yan smiled up at him: “Okay.”

After taking Ming Yan back to her gallery, Lu Bai was on his way out when Ming Yan casually asked, “Where are you going this afternoon?”

Lu Bai blinked: “Going to find Second Uncle.”

Ming Yan simply assumed that it was because of that incident. She gently rubbed her son’s cheek and nodded her head. After Lu Bai left, she picked up the phone – although she has been abroad for many years, she also has some contacts in Jinghai, she should at least do something for her son.

~~~~~

“Say that again?” Lu Zhi twitched the corners of his mouth, his face as black as the bottom of a pot.

Lu Bai sat on the sofa and blinked, and repeated quite seriously as requested: “Second Uncle, how do you support people?” After a pause, he added: “Although he is an ordinary person with no background, I assure you, he is particularly good-looking. Second Uncle, I want to make him a big star. It’s just…”

“Just what?” Lu Zhi’s eye twitched violently.

Lu Bai then blurted, “It’s that he and Qu Xueyu look a bit alike.” They say that the entertainment industry is very taboo about this, and he is afraid that his Xiao Ruan will be torn apart by Qu Xueyu’s fans as soon as he debuts, and will be branded as a copycat.

Lu Zhi: “…”

Lu Zhi’s handsome face contorted itself ugly for the first time. He regarded his nephew, and took a deep breath: “Is he the canary you’re raising?”

Lu Bai froze before simply nodding: “So Second Uncle, you have to cover him with me.”

Lu Zhi looked at the resolute face of his nephew, the corners of his mouth unable to stop twitching, but finally sighed while saying, “All right, all right, all right. I’ll teach you how to raise, okay?” As long as his nephew was having fun. There was also the small matter of the little canary holding his nephew… Well, it’s easier to beat him if he really enters the entertainment circle. He didn’t know how his nephew hid him, but he still couldn’t dig him out after all these days.

When Lu Bai finally heard Lu Zhi agree, his eyes brightened.

———-

Edit: Krone

Proof: Mao