As the car approached the production crew's location, Xia Lan suddenly exclaimed in surprise, "Oh dear, I forgot to tell Fan Weiwei. Should we ask the production crew to arrange a driver to pick him up? But he's a grown man, so he shouldn't run into any trouble. I don't think we need to tell the production crew, right? He has a phone and his own brain; he'll definitely find a way to get back on his own. What do you think, Teacher Gu?"
"Um."
Gu Yueyue nodded in agreement with her statement.
Only then could Xia Lan be certain that Fan Weiwei must have upset Teacher Gu while she was in the restroom at the restaurant. Otherwise, based on her understanding of her idol, Teacher Gu would not have left the table early without reason, much less have agreed to her suggestion that was detrimental to the safety of her colleagues.
Xia Lan silently made a mental note about Fan Weiwei.
Xia Lan only made a note of it, but Xu Yi had already mentally torn Fan Weiwei to pieces.
She sat there waiting for Zhang Ya to return.
Zhang Ya returned excitedly and shared with Xu Yi that she had just run into her mentor, Xia Lan, at the sink.
Zhang Ya: "I bet the mentors are having dinner here! Our Yueyue is definitely here too!"
"It's my Yueyue." Xu Yi silently refuted her.
While Zhang Ya was engrossed in her conversation, Xu Yi suddenly asked her, "Is it no longer okay to kill people now?"
"?" Zhang Ya was taken aback by her question and asked nervously, "Who upset you?"
"Hmm. Someone offended my fiancée. If I were to kill him, wouldn't that be justified?"
"Are you serious?" Zhang Ya initially thought she was joking, but Xu Yi's words, spoken through gritted teeth, didn't sound like a joke at all.
Ignoring the pangs of sadness in her heart, Zhang Ya firmly pressed down on the woman's hand resting on her lap. "Calm down! Murder is against the law!"
"I understand." Xu Yi calmed the natal sword within her body, obediently sat down in her seat, and freed her wrist from Zhang Ya's grasp.
Zhang Ya realized her hand was empty. She belatedly remembered something, and a sour feeling welled up inside her. She asked her resentfully, "When did you find your fiancée?"
"Yesterday." Xu Yi was in a bad mood and spoke concisely.
"Who is your fiancée? What does she do? Is it convenient for you to tell me?"
Xu Yi didn't have the concept of keeping this a secret. Her marriage to Miss Gu was approved by the Heavenly Dao, a glory that many Daoist couples dreamed of. It wasn't something shameful, so there was no need to hide it.
Xu Yi slowly lowered her head, twisting the hem of her shirt with her fingers, a blush gradually rising on her face, and her tone of voice became lighter than usual.
"It's Gu Yueyue."
"..." Help! How could you say such perfunctory things to me with such a shy look?
Zhang Ya began to doubt whether Xu Yi actually had a fiancée.
"You don't believe me?" Xu Yi didn't wait for Zhang Ya's reaction. She looked up at Zhang Ya and saw that strange expression on her face.
Zhang Ya waved her hand, "It's not that I don't believe you. It's just that your answer is too ridiculous."
"She is my fiancée." Xu Yi sat up straight, his tone becoming more serious.
Zhang Ya responded perfunctorily with a smile, "Oh dear, what a coincidence! Your fiancée and my wife are the same person."
"..."
Xu Yi calmed down the natal sword within her body and told herself that times had changed, this wife was not the same as that wife, and she could not get angry, as murder was against the law.
"Wait a minute, if what you're saying is true, then... Yueyue was offended?" Zhang Ya asked her belatedly.
Xu Yi nodded slightly and told Zhang Ya about the conversation she had overheard in the next private room.
"Damn it!" Zhang Ya couldn't sit still after hearing that. Holding chopsticks in one hand and a spoon in the other, she looked as if she had already picked up a cleaver or a big club. "This guy surnamed Fan is too shameless. I'm going to kill him!"
"Calm down! Murder is illegal." Xu Yi pressed her back down into her seat.
Zhang Ya was so angry her teeth itched. She tried to sit up, but Xu Yi pressed her down again. She said fiercely, "How am I supposed to stay calm! I have to kill him!"
“In a society governed by the rule of law, let’s find a legal way to punish him. Do you have any good ideas?” Xu Yi doesn’t know much about this world yet, only that she can’t kill people indiscriminately. Of course, she has never killed innocent people before. Most of the people who died by her sword were evil demons who did evil. If a demon had a slightly better heart and had never done evil, she would consider leaving him a chance to live.
"An illegal way?" Zhang Ya began to think, which forced her to calm down.
Xu Yi poured herself a cup of tea, but couldn't taste anything particularly delicious; she just didn't want to bother Zhang Ya.
"No matter what he does, it's illegal! I can't even put him in a sack and beat him up! Damn it, I'm getting angrier and angrier, what should I do?" Zhang Ya was so angry that she blurted out, "If only God could take him away."
“That’s still early. He probably has seventeen years left to live.” Xu Yi casually said the truth, but it drew Zhang Ya’s attention. “You would actually say such a curse.”
Zhang Ya pondered for a while, and finally said dejectedly, "No. Ever since I told my dad that I wanted to work in the entertainment industry, I've angered him. As long as it's related to the entertainment industry, my dad won't care about me."
"Otherwise, I'll have someone steal his endorsements, snatch his film and television resources, buy him trending topics every day to praise him to death."
After Zhang Ya finished speaking, she cautiously glanced at Xu Yi, wanting to see if Xu Yi would be frightened by her dark thoughts, or if Xu Yi would be surprised by her extraordinary family background.
As a result, Xu Yi remained calm and composed, as if he hadn't heard her words at all.
After the two finished their meal, they parted ways. After returning home, Zhang Ya contacted several of Gu Yueyue's biggest fans and briefly explained the situation to prevent them from being unsure how to defend their idol should any online reactions arise.
The next opponent became Fan Weiwei, and her 'Little White Dove' fans were on high alert.
At the audition for the Star Idol Base, one seat was missing on the judges' panel because Fan Weiwei hadn't arrived yet. Liu Dai was both angry and anxious; he even had blisters on his lips.
It was almost 2 p.m. when Fan Weiwei finally rushed back, covered in sweat and looking disheveled.
As soon as he entered, he yelled at Xia Lan, "Why didn't you tell me when you left?"
"Are you my manager or my assistant? Do I need to report to you where I go?" Xia Lan blew a bubble from her chewing gum, which popped with a 'pop'. She chewed the gum and, with Fan Weiwei glaring at her angrily, added, "Are you my good son? Well, I'm so sorry, Mom forgot to take you with her when she left."
Even those nearby couldn't help but laugh out loud, even while covering their mouths.
Fan Weiwei had never suffered such humiliation before. Just yesterday, he lost face in front of the live broadcast because of Gu Yueyue, and this afternoon he had a falling out with Gu Yueyue again. Just now, when he was taking a taxi, he was spotted by fans while waiting for the car outside. He had no assistant or bodyguard with him, and it took him a lot of effort to get away. Now he is being targeted by Xia Lan here.
His fists were clenched, and he charged straight at Xia Lan.
Gu Yueyue quickly shielded Xia Lan behind her, then smiled at the live broadcast camera and said, "Good afternoon, viewers. Welcome to the live broadcast of the Star Idol Project. I am your mentor, Gu Yueyue."
Fan Weiwei then realized that it was exactly 2 o'clock, and the live broadcast started on time.
After he took his seat, the atmosphere became increasingly tense, a situation that continued until the end of the audition.
Rumors about discord among the four mentors are rampant online.
After finishing her work in the afternoon and turning off the live stream, Fan Weiwei wanted to confront Xia Lan, but was stopped by the crowd. In the end, she said a few harsh words and left with her assistant.
After watching the commotion for a while, Yuan Beidu finally rushed to his next work location under the urging of his agent.
On the contrary, Xia Lan asked Gu Yueyue with some confusion.
"It would have been better if he had just beaten me up in the morning. He was live-streaming anyway, and he hit me in front of everyone. It will be hard for him to clear his name afterward."
Looking at Xia Lan's innocent and puzzled expression, Gu Yueyue felt even more that this little girl was too naive.
"Who is Teacher Liu in the industry? He puts up with Fan Weiwei a lot, so Fan Weiwei's backing must be quite powerful. Even if he hit you in public, it's not certain who's right and who's wrong afterwards. Besides, this was originally a matter between him and me, and I can't let you bear the consequences for me."
Looking at her bewildered eyes, Gu Yueyue was reminded of herself ten years ago. Back then, she had just entered the industry and had a lot of goodwill towards others, but she suffered too many losses later.
"No matter what, you must protect yourself first, okay?"
As Xia Lan was being watched by her idol, a fire burned brighter and brighter in her heart. Finally, blushing, she nodded heavily.
“I understand! Then you need to take good care of yourself. If he causes you trouble again, just tell me.” Xia Lan thought for a moment and added, “Anyway, we have about the same number of fans. If we really fight, it’s hard to say who will win.”
Gu Yueyue smiled but didn't say anything.
For her, fans should be a reason to fight, not a tool to be used in battle. However, this is her opinion, and there's no need to impose it on others.
But Gu Yueyue was genuinely grateful for the girl's enthusiastic help.
"Thank you." Gu Yueyue had already raised her hand, wanting to pat her head, but considering that this was not her little fan, but a very famous and talented singer, she quietly put her slightly raised hand behind her back.
Xia Lan was still excited about helping her idol today and even receiving a thank you from him, completely unaware that she had missed out on a head pat.
On her way back, Gu Yueyue was asked by Xiao Ye what had happened at noon that day.
"I'll tell you later, I need to make a call first." Gu Yueyue called an old friend, a singer who became famous at a young age and was even more famous than Xia Lan.
After her debut, Xia Lan was known as the "Golden Voice Little Queen" of the Chinese music scene. The reason for adding the word "little" to her name is because there was this great god in front of her.
After the call connected, the two exchanged a few teasing remarks before Gu Yueyue explained her purpose.
After hanging up the phone, Ono forgot the question he wanted to ask and pressed her again about the matter at hand.
"Sis, how did you arrange this meeting with Xia Lan?"
Gu Yueyue didn't put her phone away; instead, she dialed another number.
Gu Yueyue said to Xiao Ye, "When I see outstanding newcomers, I just want to lend them a hand. I also owe a lot to someone who was willing to help me back then, otherwise I wouldn't be where I am today."
The call was quickly answered; it was from one of her former teammates in the girl group, another Chinese person besides her in the seven-member group.
"Sister? Why did you think of calling me? Get to the point, I'm a bit busy here. We can talk about small talk after I get back to China."
Gu Yueyue understood her temperament, so she skipped the greetings and didn't beat around the bush with her.
"Walking Towards the Sun, would it be convenient to invite Fan Weiwei for the next episode of your variety show, 'Walking Towards the Sun'?"
"Oh? What's wrong? You've got your eye on him? Want to get on his good side? Sister, you have terrible taste. Why don't you try being a woman? I think I'm better than him, really, I'll definitely make you feel better."
"..." Gu Yueyue wanted to hang up the phone as soon as she heard her speak. This was also the reason why, even though they had a good relationship, they were unwilling to contact each other much after leaving the group.
"Alright, alright, I'm not joking with you anymore. Just tell me."
Gu Yueyue: "It's the same thing you just told me. He also said the same thing to me at noon today."
The call seemed to have landed in a morgue; there was a deathly silence for a few seconds before the other end finally uttered, "Damn it. Wait until I get revenge for you."
Ono laughed and said, "Sis, it's really rare to see you like this."
She always knew that her boss was not a kind person, much less a naive girl to be bullied.
Gu Yueyue's face flushed slightly. She said softly, "I've been in a bit of a difficult situation lately, but not everyone can come and kick me while I'm down."
Ono nodded in agreement, hummed a cheerful tune, opened the car window, and headed home into the evening breeze.
Gu Yueyue leaned against the car and closed her eyes to rest, enjoying the peaceful journey.
Xu Yi, who was sitting next to Gu Yueyue in her soul form, changed her expression repeatedly before finally floating back with complicated emotions.
She forgot that Miss Gu was able to single-handedly destroy three demon cities, a woman who could make demons tremble with fear. Even now, after her reincarnation, she seems like a parasitic plant that needs something to rely on to survive, but the nature of a parasitic plant is to strangle its host and cause it to wither.
A note from the author:
Thank you to all the little angels who voted for me or watered my plants with nutrient solution between 13:40:08 on December 14, 2021 and 15:17:02 on December 16, 2021!
Thank you to the little angels who watered the nutrient solution: May's Zhimingya (10 bottles); Tang (2 bottles);
Thank you so much for your support! I will continue to work hard!