Chapter 137: Children’s Laughter (16)
In the spacious redwood walk-in closet, silence fell.
Chi Yan seemed to be so enraged that she trembled with anger, her shoulders shaking, and even the delicate, beautiful jewelry she wore swayed along with her, making a faint sound.
A helpless beauty should have evoked sympathy.
However, all the people present now looked at Chi Yan with eyes full of anger and wariness. They could no longer be deceived by the illusion she had created.
Yan Shixun, however, appeared distracted by the jewelry Chi Yan wore. His gaze sharpened slightly, as if recalling something. “You’ve replaced Lin Ting’s identity. Unless someone can take your place, your original identity should be empty.”
“Among the people of the Jing family, since the two sisters, Jing Wan and Jing Xiuwen, have been found, the remaining unfilled female identity should belong to Lin Yu, who lives on the third floor with an unknown identity.”
“And Lin Yu…” Yan Shixun’s tone was firm as he looked at Chi Yan with a subtle emotion in his eyes. “Her room and your dressing style match perfectly.”
Zhang Wubing’s school uniform, Yan Shixun’s formal three-piece suit and overcoat, Ye Li’s old-fashioned long skirt—all of these were closely related to their identities.
Chi Yan’s should have been the same.
Just like the female ghost Zhang Wubing imagined after seeing Lin Ting’s study, to others, Lin Ting should have been a hardworking editor, engrossed in her spiritual world’s prosperity. She likely didn’t care about her outward appearance and had become thin from long hours of desk work.
Simple and modest—that was the impression most people had of Lin Ting in later years.
However, the reason Yan Shixun didn’t immediately assume Chi Yan was an imposter based on her different appearance compared to his imagined “Lin Ting” was because he had seen portraits and photographs of Lin Ting left behind at the Jing residence.
Although Lin Ting’s most well-known identity was as an editor for the Binhai Daily, a progressive figure of that era, many people had forgotten that she came from a distinguished family.
Her father was a high-ranking official in the capital, and she had truly been raised as a refined young lady in a wealthy family.
So, Lin Ting’s appearance might not have been as modest.
Especially in those portraits, where a woman with a bright smile and delicate features dressed beautifully, the image didn’t match simplicity at all.
Although Yan Shixun had never seen Lin Ting’s real face, he believed that the portraits displayed alongside the Jing couple’s portraits at the Jing residence could only belong to Lin Ting.
Jing Wan and Lin Ting were truly in sync in their thoughts and spirits, soulmates with the same lofty ideals.
When one of them learned of their betrothed wife, they chose to shoulder the responsibility without hesitation, despite being criticized for it. They never spoke to justify themselves, allowing the traditional-minded and conservative Jingshi Wanxiu to avoid any discomfort and giving her the utmost respect and freedom.
The other, after learning of their beloved’s choice, calmly and rationally chose to support them and strongly agreed with their decision.
She even wrote an article advocating for women like Jingshi Wanxiu, showing sympathy for the plight of women in the old times and was one of the leaders of the literacy movement for women during that era.
Moreover, from the story of Li Xuetang’s script, Yan Shixun knew that both Jing Wan and Lin Ting were in great danger, yet they both considered each other’s wellbeing, placing their own lives and deaths aside.
Lin Ting played such a significant role in Jing Bin’s life that, had it not been for Jing Bin’s sudden realization about his betrothal, the two of them would have already been planning their marriage.
In this case, Yan Shixun didn’t believe that any other woman could be in the Jing family’s home.
Thus, the beautiful woman in the portraits, either wearing a complex European-style gown or a glamorous cheongsam, was, in Yan Shixun’s opinion, Lin Ting.
Because of this, he hadn’t questioned Chi Yan’s identity.
Until Bai Shuang, the eldest daughter of the Jing family, was knocked unconscious by Chi Yan and hidden away, only to be accidentally discovered by Zhang Wubing.
After Yan Shixun ruled out the identity of Lin Ting in his mind, he began to suspect that the identity Chi Yan had assumed was likely Lin Yu’s. But at the same time, he had doubts about Lin Yu’s position within the Jing family.
If Jing Bin had followed the path of many people from that era, marrying a concubine to live in his home, Yan Shixun would have never believed it.
——Moreover, historical records clearly state that after Jingshi Wanxiu’s death, Jing Wan never remarried and, until his death seventy years ago, was buried alongside his early-deceased wife.
But despite this, on the third floor, the master bedroom floor, there was a room clearly belonging to a woman.
How could Jingshi Wanxiu and Lin Ting tolerate such a thing?
One of them had the official status of Jing Bin’s wife, while the other occupied Jing Wan’s entire spiritual and emotional world, leaving him no room to give any attention to other women.
Unless… they both knew that Lin Yu would have no personal emotional entanglements with Jing Bin.
Yan Shixun’s gaze toward Chi Yan was filled with silent scrutiny.
But why were they so sure? After all, judging by the room’s layout and the items inside, Lin Yu was at the prime age of a young woman, as radiant as a flower.
This left only one explanation—Lin Yu was most likely a relative of Lin Ting.
If Lin Yu, who shared the same surname as Lin Ting, had come to seek refuge with her, then it made sense that Lin Ting, who had no place to stay and was living at Jing Bin’s house, would have had no choice but to ask Jing Bin to explain the situation and temporarily arrange for Lin Yu to stay in an empty room in the Jing residence.
The reason she would be placed on the third floor was probably because of the close relationship between Lin Yu and Lin Ting. While Jingshi Wanxiu valued Lin Ting, she didn’t want to neglect someone close to Lin Ting like Lin Yu. Therefore, she gave up a room on the side of the third floor to accommodate Lin Yu.
After all, Yan Shixun had previously looked through the Jing residence, and most of the guest rooms were filled with Lin Ting and Jing Bin’s private books and notes. The few rooms left for guests were relatively simple.
“Lin Yu? Or… Lin Qiong?”
Yan Shixun looked at Chi Yan with a determined gaze.
He was not offering Chi Yan a choice; he was directly giving her an answer.
At first glance, the names Lin Ting and Lin Qiong seemed like they could be sisters, and even Zhang Wubing had wondered about this when he first found Lin Qiong’s identity card.
In Yan Shixun’s eyes, the only person who could have been highly regarded and treated well by those around Lin Ting, and who had a close relationship with Lin Ting, was Lin Qiong.
Moreover, Lin Qiong and Lin Ting were both graduates of Beijing University. It was rare for sisters to attend the same university, even in modern times.
Therefore, Yan Shixun was certain that Lin Qiong and Lin Yu were actually the same person.
—Although he still didn’t know why Lin Qiong had changed her name to Lin Yu.
Chi Yan’s face turned pale. Realizing that everyone’s attitude toward her had turned sharply, she stopped maintaining the gentle image she had kept up until now and refused to cooperate with Yan Shixun.
“Yan Shixun, instead of questioning me here, you might as well go and find out where that ghost child is,” Chi Yan sneered, mocking him. “There’s already a corpse. Even if something happens to me, how can you be so sure that others won’t be implicated?”
“Even if I die…”
Chi Yan’s red lips curved into a malicious smile, like a venomous snake flicking its tongue. “I’ll drag all of you down with me.”
The dim kerosene lamp exploded with a loud noise, and as the flame flickered, the shadows danced in the dim light, making Chi Yan’s face appear hideous and terrifying, like a ghostly mask.
Yan Shixun stared back emotionlessly, unafraid.
The tense atmosphere between the two was palpable, and it even seemed to infect the audience watching from behind the screen.
[This close-up… Brother Yan’s eyes are scaring me.]
[I almost fell to my knees just now. When I locked eyes with Brother Yan, I swear I could feel all the wrong things I’ve done over the years flashing through my mind—everything, even the time I stole a piece of candy from the convenience store when I was a kid.]
[Doesn’t it feel like waiting for a trial in front of a judge? For a moment, I felt like I was back in the courtroom, listening to the trial. The nervousness was the same.]
[Yes, yes, yes, that’s exactly the feeling! The previous summary nailed it.]
[But why does Brother Yan keep focusing on Chi Yan’s identity? If it’s the script, just follow the process and find the person who will assassinate him in three days. If it’s now beyond the script, just call the authorities and have Chi Yan sent out—how simple is that?]
[You probably missed it, but from the start, Brother Yan mentioned that the outside of the concession area is covered in thick fog, and it’s impossible to leave. So whether the authorities can get in is still a question. On the other hand, Brother Yan is actually looking for the people who might be a threat to him. Chi Yan’s original identity was so questionable that she was willing to lie and harm others. Who knows what’s wrong with her true identity.]
[Now I don’t trust a single word Chi Yan says. But I know that whatever risk she’s willing to take, it’s definitely not trivial. Her original identity must have something huge behind it. I even have a guess: Could she be the one who wants to kill Brother Yan?]
[Wow, that’s a big theory. But wasn’t Brother Yan asking if Chi Yan was Lin Qiong earlier? That name sounds so similar to Lin Ting’s, right?]
[I’ve heard of Jing Bin, and now I know Lin Ting is Mr. Lin Ting, but who exactly is Lin Qiong? Is she a real historical figure, or is the director making her up?]
[When Chi Yan mentioned that Director Li Xuetang based this on a true story, I went and flipped through my textbooks. Jing Bin led many important agreements and projects, and I have an entire unit dedicated to him in my textbook. But I’m just a beginner, so I admit, I didn’t find any related stories… Maybe Jing Bin went through so much danger in his life that even our textbooks can’t record it.]
[Or maybe to the editors, this was just a private matter of Jing Bin’s, and they thought it wasn’t worth mentioning. You probably didn’t know, but many people used to say that Jing Bin was a scumbag, morally corrupt, and they even wanted him removed from the textbooks.]
[Maybe I should check if there’s a biography of Jing Bin for sale. There might be a record of it. Or perhaps there’s something in the local history of Binhai City? Tomorrow I’ll go to the Binhai City Library to look for it.]
[Hmm? Is the shooting location in Binhai? This fog looks familiar. When I was leaving work today, my navigation warned me that the Jiangxia Bridge was temporarily closed due to low visibility because of the fog. Could this be the same fog?]
[I’m not sure which concession area Director Li rented, but if it’s the East District of the concession, that would be right near the Jiangxia Bridge.]
[Hmm… Based on the show’s usual pattern, I have a bad feeling about this.]
“Don’t say it! This child is scared QAQ.”
Bai Shuang was still unconscious, her entire body wrapped in Yan Shixun’s heavy coat, making her appear even more delicate and pitiful.
But if Yan Shixun’s assumption was correct and Chi Yan had attacked Bai Shuang because she held crucial evidence that could reveal her identity, then, setting aside everything else, Chi Yan had indeed made a clever move.
As long as Bai Shuang remained unconscious, even if Yan Shixun confirmed she was Lin Qiong, there was still no direct evidence to prove it.
Moreover…
“Don’t you think there’s a problem with what you’re saying?”
Chi Yan sneered, “Lin Yu and Lin Qiong are clearly two different names. What gave you the courage to say they are the same person?”
“Do you think you’re clever?” Chi Yan said, her tone mocking. “If you were truly smart, you wouldn’t be here bothering me.”
With that, Chi Yan straightened her back, her once-panicked expression replaced with cold beauty. She walked past Yan Shixun, her high heels clicking sharply as she moved toward the exit, as if ready to leave the room.
Lu Xingxing reached out to stop her, but Chi Yan’s voice turned hard as she spoke, “Step aside.”
“Unless Yan Shixun and you all can provide physical evidence proving that I did all this, don’t even think about restraining my freedom.”
Chi Yan slowly looked around at the group, her voice icy. “I won’t hide this, I’ll be clear with you all—there’s a ghost child waiting to take your lives. Did you see the body in the living room? That’s your fate. The danger is imminent, and yet you still want to keep pestering me about Bai Shuang?”
“Run for your lives, each for themselves.”
Chi Yan tilted her head slightly and gave Yan Shixun a mocking look. “Don’t follow him, or you’ll lose your life. You all heard it—Yan Shixun said he wants to help that ghost child.”
Yan Shixun’s expression didn’t change; he simply allowed Chi Yan to leave, indifferent.
Lu Xingxing furrowed his brows and looked at Chi Yan with increasing annoyance. But since Yan Shixun hadn’t spoken, he withdrew his arm and didn’t stop her.
Chi Yan scoffed and raised her head, resuming her haughty and elegant demeanor as she left through the cloakroom.
But inside, she didn’t feel as calm as her outward appearance suggested. Instead, she felt confusion and panic.
She had expected that when the crisis struck, everyone would look out for themselves. After saying what she did, she thought the others would be concerned for their own safety, casting doubts on Yan Shixun and becoming opposed to him.
At that point, the seemingly united group would break apart, each person scattering. She could then take the chance to talk to someone alone, like An Nanyuan or Lu Xingxing, who appeared young and naïve, gaining their trust and making them help her escape the ghost child’s pursuit.
But Chi Yan was disappointed.
Until she stepped out of the room, no one voiced any suspicion of Yan Shixun.
Instead, the area around her remained eerily quiet.
The cold autumn night wind swept through the hallway, seeping into Chi Yan’s thin, beautiful clothes, making her shiver.
Standing in the empty corridor, she gazed into the darkness with her beautiful eyes, suddenly feeling a creeping fear rise from the deepest part of her heart.
It was as though in the thick darkness, layers of ghostly figures were hiding.
They lurked in the corners of her vision, in places hard to notice, staring at her with lifeless eyes. From every direction, they slowly drew closer, their mouths silently stretching into greedy, malicious smiles…
However, Chi Yan remained oblivious to this.
She stood in the cold autumn night, goosebumps slowly rising on her arms, her muscles stiffening, and her eyes gradually taking on a look of fear.
Chi Yan couldn’t help but recall the strange occurrences around her in recent years.
It started with the tragic deaths of her two cats.
Although she explained to her fans and the outside world that it was because some paparazzi had sneaked into her house and the cats discovered them, leading to their deaths, this incident even trended on social media, sparking outrage among her fans and causing them to distrust any negative news about her.
But even though everyone sympathized with her and she won a public relations battle, Chi Yan knew the truth.
—Those two cats were killed by the ghost child.
In order to control the ghost, Chi Yan had resorted to an ancient, poisonous method found by a master, using her own unborn child to nourish the ghost. This not only strengthened the ghost’s powers but also made it believe that she was its mother.
At first, Chi Yan had been nervous, tossing and turning, crying for a long time, unsure if she should go through with it.
Several times, she went to the master, crying and saying she wanted to give up. Even though she couldn’t be a perfect mother, she didn’t want to be so cruel to her own flesh and blood.
But in the end, Chi Yan had spent all her savings and energy to find this ghost, making a desperate gamble. If something went wrong, she would lose everything.
She had bet everything on this one chance, hoping to win.
The master also solemnly warned her that raising a ghost child was a path with no turning back. Since she had already started feeding it, she couldn’t regret it. Otherwise, the enraged ghost child would lose control and turn on its benefactor.
At that time, when Chi Yan was still young, she had no choice but to harden her heart and feed the fetus in her womb to the ghost child.
Every night, the ghost child would crawl out from the magical artifact and burrow into her belly to devour the fetus. Chi Yan would lie awake, her eyes devoid of any spirit, staring at the ceiling as she felt the gnawing pain in her abdomen and the gradually weakening life force of the fetus. Night after night, she couldn’t sleep.
But after that, the ghost child really did grow much stronger, just as the master had predicted.
Because of this, Chi Yan gained more luck from the ghost child, and everyone who stood in her way was cleared away.
The original female lead encountered a mishap, and as a result, Chi Yan took her place in the script. After the film was released, it received overwhelming acclaim and won numerous awards.
The original award winner was suddenly embroiled in a scandal, and Chi Yan, who had only been a candidate, ended up winning the award, becoming the youngest Best Actress in history.
The companies she invested in made money, the films she starred in won awards, her personal box office records were constantly breaking new records, and her name became known on every street and alley.
Chi Yan had never imagined that the world after fame would be so dazzling and intoxicating.
Those big names who had once looked down on her were now all smiling at her warmly, even taking the initiative to share their contact information. Famous directors who she once only dreamed of working with now sent her invitations, and her pay kept increasing.
Wherever she went, she was pursued by fans and the media.
Chi Yan felt an almost unreal sense of elation, but she truly felt happiness.
What was more terrifying than never having something was having it and then losing it.
Chi Yan would never allow such happiness to be taken from her. After savoring the sweetness of success, she became uncontrollably greedy.
Whenever she noticed the ghost child’s power weakening, or if the fortune it could provide was no longer enough for her ambitions, Chi Yan would get pregnant again, feeding the fetus to the ghost child to gain even greater success, her career advancing like a tidal wave.
However, the human body has its limits.
Chi Yan didn’t know—“Life is fragile.”
When the master first told her about the existence of the ghost child, he solemnly explained that this ghost was stronger than others because it was a natural evil ghost with Evil Spirit Bone Transformation. By nurturing it, one could gain both human and ghostly blessings, and it could even escape the watch of heaven and earth.
But in return, the ghost child would bring negative effects to everything and everyone around it and was extremely vicious.
After all, it was an anomaly, a loophole in the natural order of the world. How could the heavens allow it to continue to exist?
The master had heard that the ghost child had two older sisters, both of whom were killed by the ghost child before they could grow up. The ghost child’s parents had also died, leaving only one younger sibling, who was only a year old and just born. If the ghost child had died sooner, the baby would have perished as well.
At that time, Chi Yan, eager for benefits, heard all of this but didn’t care. To her, who had hit rock bottom, even if it meant losing her life, she would have agreed.
However, as Chi Yan received more and more, she no longer wanted to let go.
She wanted to keep the ghost child forever and, in her unrestrained greed, continued to feed it fetuses.
But after too many miscarriages and years of living in close quarters with the ghost child’s bones, Chi Yan’s body completely collapsed.
During her last miscarriage, Chi Yan almost died in the hospital. She bled so much that the nurses had to keep filling basin after basin with blood, and the doctors gasped, thinking she wouldn’t survive.
But with the ghost child’s presence, Chi Yan couldn’t even die if she wanted to.
She quickly recovered physically and her appearance remained as beautiful as ever.
However, certain things had already started to change behind the scenes.
—The ghost child grew stronger, while her body grew weaker.
As a result, the ghost child broke free from Chi Yan’s control, gained its own consciousness, and even learned to think.
Chi Yan didn’t pay much attention at first; she thought it could be solved by feeding it another fetus.
However, two pieces of news came to her simultaneously like a bolt from the blue, leaving her stunned.
The doctor informed her that, in order to save her life, they had to make a difficult choice during surgery, and she would no longer be able to conceive.
At the same time, the master, whom Chi Yan had paid handsomely to keep close, urgently told her that once the evil ghost with Evil Spirit Bone Transformation lost control, there was no way to reverse it.
The ghost child had been born as an evil ghost, full of ghostly energy, and had died young. After becoming a ghost, it had continued to absorb the inherent spiritual energy of the fetuses, even feeding on their souls. This accumulation of power had allowed it to surpass the limitations of humans, gods, and ghosts.
The master speculated that now, even heaven and earth might be powerless against the ghost child.
No matter how much wealth or status one had, they were still mere mortals—how could they compete with something like this?
The master said that, at this point, the only way to end the cycle was for Chi Yan to truly become pregnant, allowing the ghost child to be born from her own womb and sever the karmic bond.
But it was too late.
And after more than ten years of immense success gained through the ghost child, Chi Yan was unwilling to let go.
She clung to the hope of continuing to use the ghost child, while the master, filled with fear, scolded her for being foolish and, in a panic, ran off to another city, cutting all ties with her.
But soon, Chi Yan understood why the master had been so terrified.
When she woke up one morning, she found that there were no familiar cat sounds in the house; it was eerily silent, like a tomb.
But when she opened the door, what she saw was a scene straight out of hell.
—Blood and pieces of flesh were sprayed everywhere, and the two originally cute cats hung dead on the stairs, their eyes clouded and glassy, their bodies already stiff.
The ghost child killed two cats because it felt the cats were taking away “mother’s” love.
Chi Yan was terrified but had no choice but to summon her courage to deal with the vicious ghost child, trying to calm it down.
But the ghost child’s demands grew increasingly excessive. At first, it just wanted her to spend time with it, then it demanded all of Chi Yan’s time, and eventually, her flesh and blood…
Chi Yan finally realized on the night the ghost child tried to kill her that it had developed its own thoughts.
It had completely lost control.
From that night onwards, Chi Yan began experiencing terrifying supernatural phenomena. Even when she was among a crowd, she couldn’t escape the ghosts drawn to her by the ghost child.
They relentlessly pursued her, full of hatred and malice, seeking to claim her soul and flesh. Chi Yan was anxious, almost on the verge of breaking down.
So, Chi Yan fled.
She went abroad, thinking she could escape the ghost child. At first, this strategy worked, and she enjoyed a rare peace.
However, before Chi Yan could relax, she made a horrifying discovery—
A change had occurred at the place where she first found the ghost child’s remains.
By chance, Chi Yan had heard from a master that a graveyard on the outskirts of the capital city was frequently haunted by ghosts. He speculated that there might be the remains of someone with an unusual history, like a malevolent spirit entombed there.
Soon, at a dinner gathering, Chi Yan overheard a drunken socialite talking about a story within their circle, mentioning that the Jing family had a child who died young. Their family had a deep taboo about it, and a master from the capital city had once accidentally let it slip that the child’s death might have been due to a malevolent spirit.
Chi Yan connected the dots and realized that the ghost child, who had died young, had been buried there.
And that child’s surname was Jing.
She handed over all her money to the master, begging him to help her make the connection.
The master agreed, but for safety’s sake, Chi Yan had to personally exhume the child’s remains from the grave.
After all, it was a malevolent spirit. Even though the master was swayed by money, he was still cautious.
But by then, Chi Yan was desperate for success and no longer cared about anything else. So, on a moonless night, she dug up the grave and took the decayed remains of the child from the valuable coffin.
And the corpse smiled at her.
It seemed to be asking—Are you my mother?
From then on, Chi Yan obtained everything she had ever wanted.
The years of peace almost made her forget about it, but just as she left the country, the Jing family in the capital discovered that the remains had been stolen from their family’s grave.
It was as if someone had told them exactly what had happened, pinpointing Chi Yan as the culprit.
The enraged Jing family used all their influence, vowing to retrieve the child’s remains from wherever Chi Yan had fled and make sure she paid for her actions.
The Jing family had been around for centuries, and their power was even greater because of a family member from a century ago. Few in the capital dared to provoke them.
The Jing family wanted someone, who would dare stop them?
Chi Yan’s whereabouts were soon revealed, and she realized that even though she was abroad, the past still clung to her. As soon as the Jing family found her, the ghost child followed.
At this time, Director Li Xuetang found Chi Yan, offering her a rough script for *Binhai Nocturne* and sincerely invited her to play the role of Lin Ting, the female lead.
After reading the script, Chi Yan listened to Li Xuetang talk about its backstory, and her heart sank, growing cold as if turning to stone.
She knew she had to return to the Jing family mansion in the concession area of Binhai City to settle this once and for all.
Otherwise… the ghost child would kill her.
Chi Yan had once thought this would be her way out.
But now, standing in the dark corridor, where only the wind howled, she suddenly felt a surge of fear and uncertainty—had she made a mistake?
Perhaps, returning to the Jing mansion would be walking straight into a trap…
Chi Yan’s pupils contracted, the cold and fear making her teeth chatter, the only sounds in her ears her heartbeat and the clattering of her teeth.
“Bang, bang…”
She glanced back at the still quiet, uneventful cloakroom, knowing those inside would no longer help her.
Thus, she had no choice but to step forward, her heels clicking sharply on the silent house floor.
“Clack!”
In the living room, a body lay on the carpet, half-burned and charred, its blackened remains grotesque.
The corpse’s previously slightly closed eyes suddenly shot wide open, staring at the ceiling.
A swirling black mist grinned at the corpse, as if responding to something.
The next moment, the corpse suddenly sat up from the carpet, staring straight ahead.
The sound of high heels made the corpse turn its head stiffly, twisting beyond human limits as its neck muscles ripped, until it was facing the stairs.
It seemed to be waiting for…
“Brother Yan, why did you let her go?”
Lu Xingxing couldn’t help but ask, angrily pointing to the door. “That woman did so many wicked things, and still had that attitude toward you! How could you tolerate it? Are you a saint made of clay with a good temper?”
Ye Li, who had been standing quietly by, slowly raised his eyes to look at Lu Xingxing, his cold gaze laced with a warning.
Lu Xingxing immediately shut up, shrinking behind Zhang Wubing, and remained silent.
Yan Shixun merely fluttered his eyelashes and sneered. “Lu Xingxing, maybe you want to learn what a good temper is—want to try it yourself?”
Lu Xingxing made a soft grumble, “So you’re so gentle with Chi Yan—do you like her?”
As soon as the words were spoken, both Yan Shixun and Ye Li turned their gaze to Lu Xingxing. The oppressive atmosphere was so heavy that it nearly made Zhang Wubing, who was used as a shield by Lu Xingxing, collapse onto the floor, hugging his leg and calling for his father.
Zhang Wubing, desperate to survive, immediately cast Lu Xingxing aside and jumped to the side.
Suddenly, without a shield, Lu Xingxing: “………”
Traitor!
Zhang Wubing received the eye signal and spat. Who’s my dad? I can still tell the difference!
Seeing Ye Li and Yan Shixun stride towards him, Lu Xingxing forced a smile, trying to defuse the tension.
“Ah-ha, ha-ha, Master Uncle, you’re really a kind person, a true light of Taoism… Ah, ah, ah, I was wrong! Please spare me, Master Aunt! QAQ!!!”
An Nanyuan innocently looked up at the ceiling, then down at the expensive wool carpet beneath his feet, staring at the sky and the ground, deliberately avoiding looking forward.
Zhao Zhen quickly pulled Director Li Xuetang away, turning their backs to face the wall, murmuring to each other as if suddenly appreciating the moment, clearly deciding that now was the time to discuss the play.
After the screams from the cloakroom gradually faded, leaving only the sounds of crying, the others silently turned away as if suddenly losing interest in everything else.
Yan Shixun, refreshed, slowly turned his neck, relishing the “crack” of his joints as his muscles and bones felt relaxed.
He sneered. “I’m a married man; you need to show me some respect.”
Ye Li, who had been reaching toward Yan Shixun, froze. His narrow eyes widened in disbelief, his breathing trembling.
He looked at Yan Shixun in disbelief.
It was as if a huge, pleasant surprise had struck him, making his head spin, and everything around him faded into nothing, leaving only the young man in front of him.
“Thump… thump…”
The heartbeat echoed slowly, clearly audible.
In that moment, Ye Li felt as if he had just stepped out of a place of wailing ghosts into the human world again.
An Nanyuan and the others also stared at Yan Shixun, thinking he was about to reveal a romantic relationship.
But Zhang Wubing, standing nearby, only focused on pitying Lu Xingxing, unconcerned with what was happening. Based on his knowledge of Yan Shixun, he was certain that there was no romantic involvement.
He swore, if Yan Shixun was ever in a relationship, he would willingly give his head for Yan Shixun to kick like a ball.
Sure enough, the next moment, under everyone’s gaze, Yan Shixun continued, “Jing Bin’s wife is Jingshi Wanxiu, not Lin Qiong—she was just a temporary resident, and her allegiance is unclear.”
Yan Shixun’s stance was clear: Lin Qiong was a social butterfly, which meant she had connections with many people in Binhai, but due to the mixed nature of her relationships, she couldn’t guarantee that everyone she interacted with was on the same side as Jing Bin.
He even wondered if the “suicide” scene Ye Li discovered, along with the incident Zhao Zhen mentioned about the knockout blow, might be related to Lin Qiong.
But as he absentmindedly considered the situation, he suddenly noticed the disappointed gazes of everyone around him.
Yan Shixun: “…??”
“What are you looking at me for?” Yan Shixun turned around, still puzzled, thinking there might be a ghost standing behind him.
But clearly, there was nothing.
This made Yan Shixun even more confused. “Do you all still have expectations for Chi Yan?”
Just thinking about what Chi Yan had done to her fan, Bai Shuang, An Nanyuan couldn’t help but shudder. He quickly averted his gaze, startled by Yan Shixun’s words.
Li Xuetang cleared his throat, feeling a little embarrassed by his recent thoughts.
It was strange, though. Lu Xingxing had sped all the way from the ballroom to the newspaper office building and then to the Jing residence, practically covering the entire concession area. He had collected all the guests who weren’t at the Jing residence, but ended up finding only Li Xuetang. The rest of the crew had disappeared without a trace.
Now, standing in the room, there was only Li Xuetang, the “outsider,” who had earlier expressed his dissatisfaction with Yan Shixun because of Chi Yan’s actions.
Even though he had quickly realized his misunderstanding, the words had already been said, and Yan Shixun had heard them.
In the chaotic scene just now, there hadn’t been time to think, but now, with Chi Yan gone and Bai Shuang’s vital signs stabilized, the environment had gradually relaxed. Surrounded by the other guests—who trusted each other and even saw each other as teammates—Li Xuetang suddenly felt the awkwardness return.
——The awkwardness of having said the wrong thing, having done the wrong thing.
Poor Li Xuetang, who had been famous for many years, had not had anyone dare to treat him harshly for a long time. Even when he made a mistake, people would only quietly talk about it behind his back and wouldn’t publicly challenge his dignity.
But now, Li Xuetang’s face reddened, and he wished he could just turn around and leave, escaping this suffocatingly awkward situation.
“Director Li.”
Yan Shixun noticed Li Xuetang’s discomfort. He took a few long strides toward him, his expression serious.
Li Xuetang cleared his throat again, hurriedly touching his nose to collect his thoughts, before speaking: “Yan Shixun, right? I apologize to you. It was indeed my mistake earlier, misjudging you to be someone who… was against Chi Yan.”
“Director Li, I have a memory problem, and I’ve already forgotten what happened earlier.”
Yan Shixun’s tone was calm as he interrupted Li Xuetang. His expression was neutral, showing no sign of discomfort.
“However, I do have another matter here that I’d like your answer to, Director Li.”
Li Xuetang was momentarily stunned but quickly agreed, saying, “Please ask.”
When people realize they’ve made a mistake, they often feel the need to make up for it, to offer something in return.
Zhao Zhen, who was watching from the side, had no doubt that even if Yan Shixun asked Li Xuetang to play the lead male role in his movie right now, Li Xuetang, who already admired Yan Shixun, would agree without hesitation.
But Yan Shixun obviously wasn’t planning to enter the entertainment industry, and he showed no interest in the precious opportunity that others would fight tooth and nail for.
For Yan Shixun, the truth was far more valuable than any favors from a renowned director.
“Director Li, what exactly is the story of the script for *Binhai Nocturne*?”
Yan Shixun asked calmly. “Chi Yan told me that there are eleven characters, each with their roles in protection and slaughter. Jing Bin and Lin Ting are at the center of the storm.”
He hadn’t stopped Chi Yan from leaving because Yan Shixun realized that the person who had the full script, Li Xuetang, was right here.
Why waste time?
That’s why he let Chi Yan leave, not wanting to hinder his chance to get the script.
Yan Shixun lowered his voice slightly: “So, who exactly is Lin Qiong?”
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