Upon hearing this, Ji Anxi knew that Chen Siku was going to take her as a student. So, at Cheng Minxin's prompting, she bowed to Chen Siku and said, "Teacher Chen, I hope you will take good care of me in the future."
After taking on this student, Chen Siku left Genesis Company without any further issues.
"You—" Cheng Minxin wanted to say something, but didn't continue. "Anyway, it's none of your business now. You should go back and rest!" Well, it's too early to say some things now. Let's hone her acting skills first and talk about it later.
"Going back already?" Ji Anxi hadn't even seen the person she wanted to see yet, how could she bear to go back like this? "Now that I've signed the contract, I'm considered a member of this company, don't I need to go and meet people?"
Cheng Minxin found this quite amusing. Where was she? This was the entertainment industry! Could it be that this young lady had come to visit friends in the entertainment circle? But she couldn't be too direct, so she could only say, "Not today, they're all busy. There will be plenty of opportunities later."
"Alright then!" Ji Anxi left not particularly happy because she couldn't see the person she wanted to see.
Cheng Minxin frowned at her. What was going on? She felt there was some regret in this young lady's tone. Was she trying to see someone? She shook her head, then thought she was overthinking it. She was probably just an innocent young lady who wanted to survive in this circle. But in today's circle, connections could determine everything. It could be said that she already had one foot in Rome.
Chapter 55: Could it be that we've run into a shady shop?
With a few days left before the exam, Zhou Paihuai couldn't stay in the hotel all the time, so she would take walks around the hotel whenever she had free time. Although she was already semi-retired from the entertainment industry and didn't think anyone would recognize her, she still wore a mask and hat every time she went out, just to be on the safe side.
Fortunately, City B is not as hot as City A, so Zhou Paihuai's attire won't attract too much attention.
The original owner's memories of City B were basically limited to the orphanage. Even if she had other memories, she wouldn't have recorded them in her diary, so Zhou Paihuai didn't know what was good to eat in City B. Relying on a mobile phone, she searched and walked forward until she finally found a decent restaurant. It was not crowded, spacious, and had a good atmosphere; it was as if it had been opened just for her.
Having already walked five miles, Zhou Paihuai was so excited she almost cried. If she couldn't find the place, she'd rather skip dinner and go back the way she came. Once inside, she ordered her favorite dishes and sat down to wait quietly. Bored, she even took out her phone and played a game.
When the game ended, Zhou Paihuai's senses kicked in, and she realized that something was off. She looked up and saw that there was another person sitting at the table in the corner she had found.
"Young lady, do you mind if this old woman shares a table with you?" The moment she looked up, the man actually took the initiative to talk to her.
Sharing a table? There are hardly any people in this restaurant, why would they need to share a table? Zhou Paihuai was about to retort when she looked around and found that the restaurant was packed with people. She was now seriously doubting herself. Had she really just been playing a game and hadn't time-traveled? Could someone tell her when this restaurant became so popular that every other room was full?
"Little girl?" The old lady asked again when she didn't answer for a while.
Zhou Paihuai nodded awkwardly, smiled at the old lady to express her agreement, but didn't say anything. She really didn't want to talk to strangers; with so many people around, she didn't know if it was too late to run away.
"Where are you from, little girl?" The old lady seemed oblivious to her perfunctory attitude and continued to talk to her, as if she were forcing her to speak.
"..." Zhou Paihuai had absolutely no intention of answering the question. Strictly speaking, she wasn't even a person from this time and space, and she didn't want to speak. But seeing how insistent the old woman was, she pointed to her ear, then to her mouth, waved her hand, and simply pretended to be mute. The old woman couldn't very well force a mute person to speak.
The old lady naturally understood her gesture. Upon realizing she "couldn't speak," a deep regret filled her eyes, and she murmured, "What a pity for such a beautiful girl..."
Although the old woman gave up on talking to her, she kept staring at her with a kind yet regretful gaze, making Zhou Hei Pai feel uneasy. In the end, she only ate a few bites before fleeing. Once outside the restaurant, she calmed her nerves, still feeling like she had just encountered a shady establishment—it was really strange.
It's not that Zhou is being overly sensitive, it's just that this restaurant is really strange. It's not impossible for so many people to come at mealtimes, but for so many people to come and be so quiet, as if these people are just tools for eating, is not normal. Also, that old lady looks really old; it's indeed rare to see someone of that age eating alone.
Zhou left the place with lingering fear. She didn't know that after she left, the old woman's kind face turned into a ferocious expression, nor did she know that the people who filled the restaurant almost instantly were all people who had come with the old woman.
“Miss, there is indeed something wrong with the person, but it’s not a good time to take action now.”
... ...
Ji Anxi had been signed with Genesis Entertainment for a long time, but she had never seen Zhou Paihuai at the company. The two of them communicated daily by phone, so it was safe to rule out the possibility that Zhou Paihuai was secretly filming. So the question was, where was this grown woman?
She was so distracted while following Cheng Minxin that Cheng Minxin naturally noticed her problem.
Who are you looking for?
Since the person she was looking for was nowhere to be found, Ji Anxi was naturally not going to be foolish enough to admit that she was looking for someone. She stubbornly said, "I'm not looking for anyone. I don't know anyone here except you."
Cheng Minxin would be a fool to believe her, but Ji Anxi's status was special, so she didn't want to argue with her. She said, "I'll have you working with me these next few days mainly to familiarize yourself with the company and the environment. I've arranged an assistant for you; the assistant will be with you from now on. As for where you'll be staying..."
"I have a place to stay!"
"That's good!" It just so happens that Cheng Minxin hadn't arranged accommodation for her yet. After all, the company's resources were limited, and arranging a safe place to stay wasn't easy. Anyway, Miss Ji certainly wouldn't lack housing in City A. "I picked out a few scripts a couple of days ago, and there are a few roles that suit you. I'll have Mumu send them to you. If there are no problems, you can join the crew!" Mumu's surname was Lin, and she had chosen the stage name Mumu. She was the assistant Cheng Minxin had found for her.
"Joining the crew? So soon?" Ji Anxi was still listening to her agent's arrangements when she unexpectedly found herself joining the crew. This... this... isn't this a bit too fast?
Cheng Minxin could tell what she was thinking just by looking at her, and said, "Actually, it's not that fast. If you weren't surnamed Ji, you would definitely have to film some role first before you could sign a contract with Genesis."
"The fact that my surname is Ji..." Ji Anxi stammered. Actually, what she really wanted to talk about was her family background, whether anyone knew about it. Although there was an element of impulsiveness in her initial desire to enter the entertainment industry, it was mostly out of genuine concern. Apart from wanting to be in the same company as Zhou Hei Pai, which is why she asked her older brother to help her sign with Genesis, she still wanted to walk the rest of the road on her own and see how far she could go.
"Don't worry, not many people in the company know about your background. Even your assistant, Mumu, doesn't know anything about you. The roles I've arranged for you are just to give you some exposure, not to put you in the lead role out of nowhere!"
Ji Anxi immediately felt relieved, and her attitude towards Cheng Minxin improved considerably: "That's good, thank you!"
"No need to thank me, I'm your manager, I'll naturally arrange all of this for you. If you don't mind, you can call me Sister Cheng!"
“Okay, Sister Cheng!” Ji Anxi readily agreed.
After watching Sister Cheng leave, Ji Anxi took out her phone and started sending messages to Zhou Paihuai: "What have you been busy with lately? I haven't seen you log in to play games!"
The reply came quickly: "Who said that? I just played a game. If you want to play, log in now!"
"Never mind, I was just asking, I didn't really want to play!"
It's broad daylight, and Zhou Paihuai can still play games freely, which means she's not filming or in the game. So where is she? Could it be true, as the rumors circulating online, that she's been blacklisted? That shouldn't be the case. Even if she's naturally optimistic, being blacklisted during the peak of her career and having her role replaced wouldn't make her feel so good.
While Ji Anxi was struggling with her decision, she suddenly noticed a familiar figure entering the company. Her eyes lit up, and she had an idea.
Chapter 56 Kidnapping
Tang Xiaole, who was walking on the road, suddenly felt a tingling sensation in her back. The next second, she bumped into someone and was splashed with water.
"I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry, are you alright?" Ji Anxi, the culprit, looked completely innocent, as if she hadn't done it on purpose.
Unfortunately, Tang Xiaole had always followed Zhou around and rarely saw any superb acting skills. Now, of course, she couldn't recognize Ji Anxi's terrible acting skills. She thought it was an accident and, seeing that Ji Anxi was a stranger, replied, "It's okay, it's okay. You're a new artist in the company, right? I don't think I've seen you before."
Ji Anxi nodded and said, "Yes, I haven't been here long, and this is the first time I've met you. Are you also an artist in the company?"
"No, I'm an artist's assistant. If I were an artist, you would definitely recognize me." Tang Xiaole introduced herself while wiping the water off her clothes with the wet wipes the woman handed her.
Ji Anxi had been waiting for her to say this, and upon hearing it, she immediately asked, "So, which senior are you following?"
"..." Ji Anxi waited as long as Tang Xiaole remained silent, waiting for her to say that name so that she could take the opportunity to ask Zhou Paihuai what he had been doing all this time.
"Zheng Xinyu!"
"She's currently..." Before Tang Xiaole could finish speaking, Ji Anxi blurted out her question, but unfortunately, she suddenly realized something was amiss. Zheng Xinyu? How could it be Zheng Xinyu? Tang Xiaole had always been Zhou Paihuai's assistant, so how did she become someone else's assistant now?
Seeing that she stopped halfway through her sentence, Tang Xiaole asked again, "What's wrong?"
"N-nothing..." Ji Anxi's voice was several octaves lower, completely unlike her previous energetic self. Instead, she seemed to have suffered a huge blow. She stuffed the whole pack of wet wipes into Tang Xiaole's arms and said, "I'm so sorry about earlier. I suddenly remembered I have something to do, so I'll have to go now!"
This is clearly not something else, it's clearly a person who has something going on! Tang Xiaole thought to herself, but since she wasn't very familiar with the person, she didn't say anything and walked towards Zheng Xinyu's office area.
After leaving the company, Ji Anxi didn't rush home. Instead, she found a secluded spot and started calling Zhou Paihuai. She suspected that Zhou Paihuai had secretly terminated her contract with Genesis, otherwise, it was impossible for the entire company to be unable to find her. If she really had secretly terminated her contract with Genesis, then why was she even here signing a contract? Was she just playing around?
However, no one answered the phone when Ji Anxi called Zhou Paihuai. It wasn't until the system notification sounded that she realized the call had been disconnected. Others might not know Zhou Paihuai, but Ji Anxi knew very well that he was a severe internet addict at heart; unless he was asleep, his phone was practically glued to his hand. But it was broad daylight, and there was no way she could possibly be sleeping.
So where did Zhou Paihuai go? In just a few minutes, Ji Anxi had already conjured up a whole host of terrifying scenarios, wondering if something had really happened to Zhou Paihuai. If the two of them had maintained contact, Ji Anxi certainly wouldn't have thought so much, but these past few days she had been busy with the contract signing with Genesis and wanted to give her a surprise, so she hadn't taken the initiative to contact her. What was even stranger was that Zhou Paihuai hadn't taken the initiative to contact her either.
… …
While Ji Anxi was scaring herself, Zhou Paihuai was taking an exam. Although the exam wasn't difficult, she absolutely couldn't bring her phone. It wasn't until the exam was over and she left the exam hall that she realized Ji Anxi had called her.
Xiao Heifan rarely calls her, so if she does, it might be something urgent. She thought about calling Ji Anxi back, but before she could make the call, her phone ran out of battery and shut down.
"..." Zhou looked at her crappy phone speechlessly. She had just bought it not long ago, but she didn't expect that the battery level would drop to five percent and it would be completely empty. She would definitely give it a bad review after she got back and charged it.
Regardless, her immediate priority was to get back to the hotel to charge her phone. She had taken a taxi this morning, but now her phone was dead and she had no money. Taking another taxi was out of the question, and walking back the way she came might take an hour or two. She remembered looking at the map earlier and noting that there was a small path leading directly to her hotel from behind the school. To save time, she decided to take that path.
As she reached the entrance to the alleyway, just as she was about to plunge in, Zhou Paihuai suddenly felt a chill. She subconsciously looked behind her and saw nothing amiss except for a few fallen leaves in the cool breeze. However, she still felt uneasy. Perhaps she should avoid this path.
Just as Zhou was about to back down, she suddenly felt a sharp pain in the back of her neck, her vision went black, and she collapsed to the ground.
After an unknown amount of time, Zhou Paihuai gradually woke up. Before she even opened her eyes, she found that her eyes were covered and her hands were tightly bound.
Zhou Paihuai was speechless. She didn't know what kind of incredible "luck" she had. Being forced to come to a strange world and become another person was bad enough, but to be kidnapped while walking on the street was even worse.
"It seems like the person has woken up!"
There was someone speaking in my ear, clearly using a voice changer; these kidnappers are quite clever.
"Why did you kidnap me?" Zhou Paihuai asked directly after being discovered to be awake.
Since these kidnappers can use a voice changer, it means they don't want to kill her. Otherwise, they could just kill her directly. There's no need to go through the trouble of blindfolding her or worrying that she might identify them in the future.
“… …” She opened her mouth to speak, but the kidnappers all fell silent as if they had become mute.
Zhou Paihuai had only spoken these words with great courage, hoping to receive a response, but to her surprise, no one paid any attention to her. It was impossible for her to speak again; she could only move her body with difficulty, leaning her back against something that looked like a box to make herself more comfortable.
The kidnappers were certain she couldn't escape, so they didn't pay much attention to her movements. After a long time, Zhou Paihuai finally heard voices again, but the kidnappers still didn't speak to her.
How much do you want?
"Okay, I understand!"
As expected, they still wanted money. Zhou Paihuai only heard these few words and felt that his guess was correct. But he didn't know how much they wanted. If they asked for too much, he definitely couldn't afford it. If he angered them, he might be killed on the spot.
"Let's do it!" Before Zhou could figure out how to negotiate with these desperate criminals, he heard the kidnappers start giving orders.
"?" What? Why are they going to attack again? They haven't even said how much the ransom is, and they're already so sure I can't afford it, so I'm willing to pay with my life? "I..." Zhou Paihuai had only managed to utter one syllable when he was hit again and passed out once more.
After confirming that she was unconscious, the kidnappers removed the blindfold from her eyes.
"Boss, how much did they say they wanted?"
The man referred to as the "boss" took out a 400cc syringe from the medical kit and said, "They said to just draw this much, then give her some medicine and make her forget about it."
"Boss, since they're so worried over there, why don't we just take the person—?" The kidnapper made a throat-slitting gesture; he had a lot of lives on his hands.
"What do you know? She's a celebrity, not an ordinary person. If she just disappears like that, someone will definitely investigate. If they trace it back to us, won't all the brothers be going to their deaths?"
"Yes, yes, you're so thoughtful, boss! How much of that medicine should we give? The side effects of that medicine are quite severe; what if we accidentally give it to someone who's mentally impaired?"
"What are you afraid of? That drug itself has hallucinogenic effects. If any problems arise, the news will only say that she overdosed on hallucinogens. What does that have to do with us?"
Chapter 57 The Pinhole
When Zhou woke up again, he was still at the entrance of the alley near the examination hall, but it was already dark.
What did those kidnappers take her for? And now they've released her? Did they kidnap the wrong person? Suddenly, Zhou Paihuai felt a gaze fixed on her. She looked in that direction and saw several elderly men playing chess.
When they saw that Zhou Paihuai had woken up, they said, "Little girl, you're finally awake! You've been lying here all afternoon. We were afraid something might happen to you, so we didn't dare to move you!"
All afternoon? How could that be? She finished her exams at noon, and was knocked unconscious and kidnapped as soon as she arrived here. Even if those people brought her back quickly, they couldn't possibly stay here indefinitely. Besides, the way these people appeared was too bizarre. Before, there wasn't a soul in sight, not even a ghost.
Just as Zhou was about to tell her about being kidnapped, he suddenly felt that one of the old men playing mahjong had a very familiar face, as if he had seen him somewhere before.