Zhang Baiwei seemed to realize something and shot Cui Xinyue a cold glance.
"It’s already raining. There’s no opening ceremony tonight, and you are no longer part of this film crew."
A look of terror crossed Cui Xinyue’s eyes.
"Director..."
Zhang Baiwei shuddered in fear.
"Don’t call me Director! You’re trying to get me killed!"
After saying this, Zhang Baiwei backed away from Cui Xinyue as if she were the plague, then quickly fled the scene.
Everyone present was dumbfounded.
’Just who in the world is that man!’
’Director Zhang Baiwei fired Cui Xinyue just like that because of him?’
’Is that what the truly powerful people of this world are like?’
Everyone started whispering amongst themselves.
The topics of discussion were either speculating about Jiang Chaosheng’s identity or gossiping about Cui Xinyue.
The class monitor, Li Mingyue, was the calmest one there.
During her follow-up interview, she had displayed outstanding powers of observation and was exceptionally transferred to the Criminal Investigation Department.
Li Mingyue had been observing Jiang Chaosheng and Zhang Baiwei the entire time.
’I can’t see through Jiang Chaosheng. His eyes are full of world-weariness, yet there’s an indescribable wildness to him. A very mysterious man, one with a story to tell.’
’And Zhang Baiwei? The moment he saw Jiang Chaosheng, his eyes were filled with reverence and terror.’
’That man must be a major figure with incredible influence.’
’The strange thing is how young he is.’
’He’s definitely not some second or third-generation rich kid from a powerful family.’
’That man is the very definition of distinguished.’
Li Mingyue secretly committed Jiang Chaosheng’s face to memory...
...
Downstairs.
When Jin Meiting saw the vintage car, her jaw dropped.
A vintage Maybach. She had only ever seen one in short videos.
Classic cars from this era were usually treasured antiques, collected by the wealthy.
This was the first time she had ever seen someone actually drive one on the road.
But when she considered the identity of the man before her, it all seemed perfectly normal.
Jin Meiting went to open the passenger-side door, but then she heard Jiang Chaosheng, who was in the driver’s seat and glancing at the passenger seat, say:
"Get in the back."
Jin Meiting froze.
’Does the boss not want me to sit in the passenger seat?’
’I know a lot of men like having a beautiful woman sitting next to them...’
’But the boss in front of me is clearly no ordinary man, and I’m not a beauty captivating enough to charm him.’
"Okay."
As Jin Meiting finished speaking, she was about to open the back door.
Only then did Jiang Chaosheng turn his gaze to Jin Meiting.
"I wasn’t talking to you."
Jin Meiting blinked.
’He wasn’t talking to me?’
’Then who was he talking to?’
Jin Meiting belatedly looked toward the back seat.
’Somehow, I feel like someone is sitting there.’
Jin Meiting opened the door and got into the passenger seat.
The car started moving.
It was fast.
The strange thing was, they hit nothing but green lights.
The car drove for a long time without once hitting the brakes.
It was as if the traffic lights were giving the car special treatment.
Or perhaps... the traffic lights didn’t dare to stop this car.
After driving for a long while, Jin Meiting mustered up her courage and asked:
"Boss Jiang, did Zhang Baiwei also make a deal at your shop?"
Jiang Chaosheng glanced at Jin Meiting, the corner of his mouth curling into a slight smile.
"Very good."
Jin Meiting was taken aback.
"What?"
Jiang Chaosheng said:
"It’s good that you aren’t afraid of me. Otherwise, a lot of your work in the future would be very difficult."
Jin Meiting looked down at her own pale thighs.
’It’s not that I’m not afraid, it’s just that I’m slow to scare.’
’But even for someone as slow to scare as me, it took this long to dare to speak to Boss Jiang. That alone proves just how terrifying he is.’
Jiang Chaosheng continued, "Twenty years ago, Zhang Baiwei traded for something at Antique Shop Zero."
Jin Meiting blinked.
"His sudden rise to fame twenty years ago... was that because he traded for something from you?"
Jiang Chaosheng nodded.
"You could say that."
Jin Meiting’s interest was piqued.
"What was it?"
A smile played on Jiang Chaosheng’s lips as he said slowly:
"He traded his fertility for a few old books."
According to the transaction records, Zhang Baiwei walked into Antique Shop Zero twenty years ago.
Zhang Baiwei wanted good stories to turn into movies, but being afraid of death, he was unwilling to trade his Soul Power.
So, the previous manager had no choice but to give Zhang Baiwei a few novels that he himself had written over the long years.
Since his wife was already pregnant at the time, Zhang Baiwei chose to trade his fertility.
In a way, it was a good deal.
In this world, there are probably many people who want children, men and women alike, who would be willing to trade their lifespan for fertility, right?
Soul Power could be traded for more than just Taboo Items.
Fertility, health, kindness, and even malice could be traded at Antique Shop Zero.
It’s just that they couldn’t be traded for ordinary antiques.
Of course, something like malice was utterly worthless, and the Manager would never trade for such a useless thing.
An expression of utter shock was plastered on Jin Meiting’s face.
She never would have imagined that Zhang Baiwei had become famous through a trade!
’Just how many celebrities in this world have walked into Antique Shop Zero?!’
Jiang Chaosheng glanced at her, seemingly reading her mind.
"People like him are rare, because very few can find Antique Shop Zero.
They are all people at the lowest points of their lives who also possess great providence."
After Jin Meiting processed this information, she asked:
"What are we doing tonight?"
Jiang Chaosheng’s eyes narrowed.
"Recovering Taboo Items."
.....
「10 PM, South Sea Qiulin Mountain.」
Ferraris, Lamborghinis, McLarens, and Porsche 911s sped along the winding mountain road.
The roar of engines and the screams of their female companions were like a shot of adrenaline for the rich second-generation street racers.
They frantically stomped on their gas pedals, letting out strange cries of excitement.
In the fastest car, a Bugatti Veyron leading the pack, sat a red-haired young man.
The voice of a companion crackled through the car’s intercom system.
"Boss Xia, you’re in top form today!"
"Damn, you’re good enough to go pro with skills like these!"
"You guys don’t know, our Boss Xia is in a good mood today."
"Why’s that?"
The red-haired youth said smugly:
"Because my sister is about to die."
The intercom system went completely silent.
The red-haired youth sneered.
"Isn’t it a happy occasion when your own sister dies?
The ten-billion-dollar fortune will be all mine!
My parents must be senile, handing the company over to a woman to manage!
So what if she went to school for a few more years than me?"
A companion’s voice came over the intercom.
"Uh... Boss Xia, first off, congrats on your sister dying.
What I wanted to say is, there’s a strange car about to catch up to us."
Their silence had nothing to do with the life or death of the red-haired youth’s sister.
These street racers were quite skilled, and their cars were all expensive sports cars.
But the car catching up to them... it was just too ridiculous!
The red-haired youth’s interest was piqued.
"For real? There’s a master driver like that in the South Sea? What kind of car is it?"
A companion’s voice came over the intercom:
"It looks like a Maybach, but... HSSS... Boss Xia, you should just see for yourself."
The red-haired youth was stunned for a moment.
’What does that mean?’
’I don’t get it.’
’Is it some kind of badass sports car?’
’More badass than mine?’
His companion’s voice came over the intercom again:
"It’s already passed us. It’s coming for you."
The red-haired youth quickly glanced at his rearview mirror and was completely floored.
’If I’m not mistaken, is that a Maybach W3?’
Unless you were a true car enthusiast, few people would be able to recognize, or even have heard of, this car.
Because this thing had a rather classic name—a vintage classic.
It was an antique car that had ceased production before World War II. What was it doing here?
It was covered in rust spots, its paint faded.
’Am I seeing a ghost?’
For something like this to appear in the middle of the night was genuinely creepy.
After a moment of thought, the red-haired youth figured it out.
’Some tycoon must have taken the shell of a vintage classic and built a high-performance car inside it.’
’I have to admit, you must be loaded to get your hands on an antique like this and modify it to this extent.’
’But... a car like this wants to challenge a real sports car? What a joke!’
The red-haired youth held his breath, focused on driving, and secretly accelerated.
"Challenge me? In your next life!"
But the vintage classic still caught up to the red-haired youth.
Unconvinced, the red-haired youth looked over at the vintage car.
He just had to see what kind of person had managed to catch up to him!
But one look was all it took. The red-haired youth’s eyes went wide, and he immediately lost control and flipped his car.
He was incredibly lucky to be alive. He didn’t die, merely crawling out of the overturned car with blood streaming from his head.
The red-haired youth stared at the car’s flickering taillights, his eyes filled with terror, his legs trembling uncontrollably.
What had he just seen?
In the driver’s seat, a man was driving the car, with a beautiful woman in the passenger seat. The two of them were talking.
The terrifying part was the back seat!
There were foreigners dressed in Renaissance-era clothing, a family of three by the looks of it, sitting perfectly upright.
Most importantly, those figures were semi-transparent, covered in blood, their faces deathly pale, and they were giving him an eerie smile.
The red-haired youth muttered over and over:
"I’ve seen a ghost, I’ve seen a ghost..."
...
Jiang Chaosheng glanced behind the car.
"Your future work, besides helping me recover Taboo Items, will also involve keeping an eye out for potential buyers."
Jin Meiting looked back at the red-haired youth standing terrified on the side of the road.
"A potential buyer... him?"
Jin Meiting already understood what recovering Taboo Items entailed, as Boss Jiang had explained it to her on the way.
’But how am I supposed to find potential buyers?’
Jiang Chaosheng chuckled softly.
"Not him. His sister."
"In a desperate situation, and possessing a high social status. I like that very much."