“Not really, I haven’t figured it out yet,” Zhao Muqing said, deliberately trying to build suspense. “Just wait.”
“Alright.” Shen Guanzhi curved the corners of his lips. Zhao Muqing said nothing more, concentrating on cutting the steak on his plate. Confirming that Shen Guanzhi had no intention of stopping him, he immediately devoured a large portion of the food on the table without any restraint.
“You’ll never break that habit.” Shen Guanzhi stopped what he was doing and frowned. “Wipe your mouth.”
Zhao Muqing instinctively wiped his mouth straight with the back of his hand. “Well? Is it clean?”
Shen Guanzhi originally wanted to remind him to use a napkin, but suddenly, as if driven by some inexplicable impulse, he raised his own hand and pressed it against Zhao Muqing’s lips. “There.”
Zhao Muqing smiled sheepishly, feeling like a little toddler who still needs someone else to wipe his face.
After filling his stomach, they got back into the car. Shen Guanzhi was busy operating his phone, communicating with someone, and didn’t seem in a hurry to drive off. If Zhao Muqing hadn’t later caught wind of some gossip from Li Shuqiao, he wouldn’t have put two and two together to realize that Shen Guanzhi was spreading news about the previous project manager.
That manager had also signed several models under his wing. According to Li Shuqiao, one of them was a very famous domestic figure who wanted to terminate his contract with the company but was unable to do so. Shen Guanzhi had intentions of signing him, and leaking the company’s current state to the outside world was likely done precisely for that purpose.
Zhao Muqing had visited the exhibition himself; in reality, while there were quite a few onlookers just watching the commotion, it was unlikely that the manager would successfully secure the sponsorship he wanted.
His poster was plastered right on the most conspicuous outer wall, and most people simply glanced at it and walked past, occasionally running into a few who snapped a photo with their phones. Zhao Muqing had initially thought he had gained some fans, but when he checked Weibo a week later, the public’s consensus was that he looked like a decent enough human being on the outside.
Zhao Muqing: “He is quite glad he had worn a mask and a hat when he went, otherwise, he wouldn’t have known if someone might hurl eggs at his face on the spot.”
He lowered the brim of his hat, wove through the crowd, and stood right in front of his own poster, only to find that Shen Guanzhi was actually there too. Zhao Muqing deliberately softened his footsteps, wanting to give the other person a scare, but the man turned his head first. “It really is you.”
“How did you know?” Zhao Muqing tugged at his mask. “I thought nobody could tell.”
“Your shadow.” Shen Guanzhi pointed at the wall, indicating the shadow cast by Zhao Muqing. “No need to guess. I knew it was you.”
Fine. It seemed that in Shen Guanzhi’s eyes, he was just someone fond of pulling such tedious little stunts. Zhao Muqing originally wanted to ask why Shen Guanzhi had specifically come here, but before the words could leave his mouth, his attention was caught by a figure darting out from nearby.
“Shen Guanzhi,” the newcomer muttered, wearing a mask as he grabbed Shen Guanzhi by the collar. “Sooner or later, I’ll make you pay.”
Shen Guanzhi shoved him away with a single push. “A loser who can barely even manage to scrape by on borrowed time, what gives you the right?”
“Even if it’s not me, someone’s going to deal with you sooner or later.” Realizing he had the short end of the stick, the man spat out a final, toothless threat before vanishing quickly around a corner.
Even with the mask on, Zhao Muqing could easily guess that the person was none other than the former project manager. He sidled up to Shen Guanzhi and tugged on his sleeve. “Are you alright?”
“It’s nothing.” Shen Guanzhi walked off toward the other side of the street on his own. “Let’s head back.”
Zhao Muqing didn’t follow. He didn’t plan on heading back just yet, choosing instead to wander around the exhibition for a bit before strolling along the street. Eventually, he accidentally passed by the downtown theater and noticed a promotional poster for a recently showing ballet posted right by the entrance.
He couldn’t help slowing his pace. Thanks to his academy connections back in the day, Zhao Muqing had managed to secure an internship at a local theater, playing a minor role in a ballet production.
Since he happened to be right at the entrance anyway, Zhao Muqing simply walked inside and bought a ticket offline for two o’clock the following afternoon.
He arrived twenty minutes early on the day of the show. Perhaps because he had bought the ticket early, the viewing angle from his seat was quite decent. Right in front of him were two young women who seemed very close, chattering away nonstop before the curtain rose.
Unluckily, the girls kept whispering to each other even after the show started.
Irritated by the incessant rustling noise, Zhao Muqing was about to lean forward and offer a quiet reminder when he inadvertently caught a glimpse of the screen on one of the girls’ phones.
“You like this performer too, right?” the girl whispered, trying her best to suppress her excitement. “I’ve been following her for a while now. Someone sent me a video of one of her past performances, she didn’t have much screen time, but she really pops.”
“Seriously, she danced so well back then. Who’s the female lead? She’s gorgeous.”
“This is a really old video. The female lead was super popular back then, but apparently, she quit the stage later just to get married. Such a shame.”
At a single glance, Zhao Muqing spotted the female lead on the phone screen. Although he had only ever seen the memorial photograph of Shen Guanzhi’s mother at the cemetery, he instantly recognized her as the exact same person.
Good eyesight and a talent for recognizing faces were one reason; the striking, standout beauty of Shen Guanzhi’s mother was another. No wonder her son turned out with such extraordinary looks as well.
After the ballet ended, Zhao Muqing hurried to catch up with the two girls, first apologizing for inadvertently catching a glimpse of their screen, and then asking if they could share a copy of the video with him.
He added the girl on WeChat, received the video, and even sent her a small red envelope as a token of thanks.
He had been pondering what sort of gratitude gift to prepare for Shen Guanzhi, and never expected that simply watching a dance production would yield such a rewarding harvest.
Over the weekend, while Shen Guanzhi was at the villa, Zhao Muqing decided to venture up to the third floor to look for him, finding him in the study seemingly in the middle of a video conference.
Shen Guanzhi swept a sidelong glance at his direction, putting on an indifferent facade before wrapping up the meeting shortly after. “Something the matter?”
“Yeah. Didn’t you say you were looking forward to my thank-you gift earlier? Well, I brought it for you.” Zhao Muqing hurried over to Shen Guanzhi’s side.
Shen Guanzhi stared at him in silence, apparently waiting for him to make a move.
Zhao Muqing produced a small optical disc from behind his back, complete with custom-designed packaging. He took the disc out of its case and loaded it directly into Shen Guanzhi’s computer to play without a shred of ceremony.
Excerpts from the ballet began playing on the computer screen. Zhao Muqing observed Shen Guanzhi’s expression; the man showed zero intention of looking away from the screen, watching with rapt attention.
“The original footage was super blurry, so I specifically had someone sharpen the clarity. It looks like this is about as good as it gets, though.”
“It’s already plenty good,” Shen Guanzhi said, sounding deeply moved. “I can see clearly.”
Zhao Muqing had watched the video in full himself; every movement executed by Shen Guanzhi’s mother was remarkably polished, truly earning her the title of a dazzling star on stage.
“This is my first time watching her perform on stage too.” As the video reached its end, Shen Guanzhi hit pause and turned his gaze to Zhao Muqing. “She never took the stage again after getting married. After she passed away, I couldn’t even bear to look at anything related to her.”
“Because of the nightmares?”
Shen Guanzhi offered no sound of dissent, acknowledging it silently.
Zhao Muqing instantly grew nervous. “Then did I do something wrong?”
“No,” Shen Guanzhi said softly, wrapping his hand around Zhao Muqing’s wrist. “You’ve made me realize that facing her isn’t such a difficult thing after all.”
That sounded like a good thing overall, and Zhao Muqing beamed a radiant smile. Just as he was about to speak, Shen Guanzhi unceremoniously cut him off: “Have you ever danced ballet?”
Zhao Muqing couldn’t help recalling his disastrous attempts in Room 012 and that segment where he had been caught red-handed by Shen Guanzhi. “Sort of.”
“Is there a recording?”
As soon as the question left Shen Guanzhi’s lips, Zhao Muqing froze in place. What was that supposed to mean? Did he want to watch him dance? He hadn’t performed all that well last time, so what kind of weird hobby was this?
Seeing that Zhao Muqing didn’t reply for a long time, Shen Guanzhi frowned. “Never mind.”
“Don’t be disappointed, Boss,” Zhao Muqing fawned, stepping closer. “Tell me what you want to see and I’ll dance it right now, even if my dancing looks hideous.”
Shen Guanzhi went back to flipping through the documents in his hands on his own, refusing to look up at Zhao Muqing again. Figuring he was busy and didn’t have time to entertain him, Zhao Muqing simply walked right out of the study doorway.
Just as he was about to step past the threshold, Shen Guanzhi’s voice drifted from behind him: “I really like the gift. Thank you.”
“Don’t mention it. No matter how I think about it, I’m the one who should be thanking you more.” Zhao Muqing let out a light laugh, his figure quickly disappearing around the hallway corner.
To his surprise, Zhao Muqing noticed that during this period, Shen Guanzhi kept spending ages flipping through documents in the study before finally retiring to his room to rest. On top of that, he was exceptionally busy at the studio; whenever Zhao Muqing went to his office to steal some electricity, the man was basically never around.
After turning it over in his mind, Zhao Muqing concluded that it had to do with the new recruit Shen Guanzhi was planning to sign, as mentioned by Li Shuqiao.
Sure enough, right after Zhao Muqing finished his training class, his phone chimed with a message from Shen Guanzhi stating that because he had to go to the company to meet with the new recruit in person, he wouldn’t be able to come pick him up from class.
Zhao Muqing didn’t think much of it, hopping into the driver’s car to head back to the villa on his own. Along the way, he casually browsed his phone. The browser was pushing spam ads at him again, and just as he was about to swipe them away, his gaze inadvertently caught the location of a news flash: right here in Dongyuan City.
Since it was something that might be happening nearby, he developed a mild streak of curiosity for no particular reason. The news reported that a violent incident had broken out inside an office building. A man had engaged in a brawl with a knife-wielding assailant, and the police were currently maintaining order while the underlying cause remained unknown.
According to relevant insiders, the man was not a company employee, but merely entered the company as a visitor, and was ambushed right as he stepped out of the elevator.
Catching the name of the company, Zhao Muqing felt a jolt of extreme familiarity. He instinctively tapped open his chat history with Shen Guanzhi, as it was the company of the former project manager, and also the exact destination Shen Guanzhi had headed to that afternoon.
The memory suddenly connected back to the sight of the manager grabbing Shen Guanzhi by the collar outside the exhibition.
A deeply ominous guess forced its way into Zhao Muqing’s mind. He hurriedly sent a message to Shen Guanzhi, but waited quite a while without receiving a reply.
The sense of impending doom grew increasingly intense. His eyes remained glued to the chat interface until he completely lost his patience.
“Driver,” Zhao Muqing gripped his phone tightly. “Turn the car around. I need to go find Shen Guanzhi.”