mobius tripped over a box on the floor as he carried Xia Qingtian home, nearly sending her flying. Fortunately, his regular workouts kept his balance sharp.
After carefully placing her on the bed, mobius surveyed the room.
Xia Qingtian must have dropped her luggage and gone straight to his place. The lights were still on in the room, offering a clear view of the entire suite.
When he bought his apartment in Xiaoyao Pavilion, mobius had purchased the one opposite as well, worried about noisy neighbors. He had them renovated together but kept it vacant, only allowing Bai Yuqi to stay there for two or three days when he was down on his luck and needed a place to crash.
Now, the room was filled with a feminine aura it had never possessed before.
Cute ornaments adorned the shelves, fluffy dolls occupied a corner, and women's clothes were strewn about haphazardly.
mobius couldn't help but recall Wen Ning's disdain for Xia Qingtian during their previous live stream.
He smiled wryly, covered Xia Qingtian with the quilt, and was about to leave when he felt a soft hand tugging at his sleeve.
mobius looked from the small hand to Xia Qingtian's醉酒 (zuìjiǔ - drunk) face.
As if trapped in a nightmare she couldn't wake from, Xia Qingtian's brows were furrowed, and she looked deeply distressed.
"Qingtian, Xia Qingtian." mobius half-knelt, about to reach out and touch Xia Qingtian to rouse her from her nightmare, when he heard her teeth grind.
"I won't let you go! I'll never let you go, even in death! In the next life... next life..." Xia Qingtian's voice trembled, as if enduring immense pain. Her eyelashes fluttered, and a sheen of sweat covered her forehead.
Hearing this, mobius's movements froze. He then gently pulled away Xia Qingtian's hand from his sleeve, placed it back under the covers, and tucked the quilt in.
Finally, mobius gently pressed her furrowed brow, quietly turned off the light, and left Xia Qingtian's apartment.
Back in his study, mobius sat at his desk, staring blankly at the computer.
He hadn't paid much attention to the Xia family, and his initial impression of Xia Qingtian was vague.
However, he hadn't been oblivious to the reasons for the Xia family's decline and the fire that had declared Xia Qingtian dead.
In fact, that incident was riddled with inconsistencies.
Xia Qingtian's recent somniloquy had only reinforced this suspicion.
Thinking back, from the time he first met Xia Qingtian, Song Junhan, who was supposed to be the Xia family's son-in-law, had been the biggest variable.
With this thought, he pressed a shortcut key on his keyboard, switching to his custom-built system, and then issued a series of commands.
He directly accessed all of Song Junhan's information archives to date.
From his imprisonment, to multiple interrogations, to clearly unreasonable sentence reductions, and even his eventual release, it was evident that there had been deliberate actions by certain individuals.
Not to mention that shortly after Song Junhan’s release, he joined a newly established entertainment company in L City.
"L City Qimeng Entertainment..." mobius murmured the company name, finding it somewhat familiar.
Wasn't Qimeng Entertainment the unfortunate company that had acquired the script for "Zui Jian Yuan Yang Lu" and subsequently faced a major investigation due to a pig-headed teammate, leading to the entire company being scrutinized?
mobius hadn't paid much attention to this company before, but considering the information about Song Junhan and others,
Qimeng Entertainment clearly had significant issues.
As if struck by a sudden thought, mobius pulled out the planning document for "Heartbeat First Step" from the pile of files on his desk and checked the résumés of the various guests in the detailed plan.
Indeed, two artists were from Qimeng Entertainment, one male and one female.
"Lü Songtao, Qiu Xinxue."
His gaze moved up from these two names, and he saw Xia Qingtian and Ling Fenghan's names.
It seemed that "Heartbeat First Step" might not proceed as smoothly as he remembered.
However, mobius felt he could trust Xia Qingtian, as she always managed to surprise him.
Still, as a dating reality show, the production team was bound to stir up some drama.
After much deliberation, mobius took out his phone and dialed a number: "Hello, have you rested?"
"Mr. Gu, Happy New Year." Ling Fenghan's voice came from the other end of the line. "I haven't rested yet. Since I'm participating in the filming of 'Heartbeat First Step' tomorrow, I'm watching past episodes."
Ling Fenghan was getting good rest these days. Without the harassment of obsessive fans, he felt that every day was worth looking forward to, and every job was filled with passion.
"You'll be with Qingtian this time. She's new, so please take care of her." Mr. Gu instructed.
"Mr. Gu, please rest assured." Ling Fenghan immediately replied.
He and Xia Qingtian were good friends, and he had a good impression of her before. It was only right to look after her.
Seeing Ling Fenghan agree so readily, Mr. Gu paused and then said, "Currently, the company is quite strict about artists dating. You... you don't need to deliberately create a persona, don't let those with ulterior motives take advantage of it. Your fanbase has many 'girlfriend fans,' and being too deliberate isn't good."
"Mr. Gu, please rest assured." If Ling Fenghan couldn't understand the subtext of Mr. Gu's words, he would truly have been wasting his time in the industry.
Moreover, he had already witnessed the intentional or unintentional flirtatiousness between Mr. Gu and Xia Qingtian, which made him understand Mr. Gu's advice even better.
"I will definitely treat Qingtian like my own sister and take good care of her."
"Alright, it's getting late. Get some rest." Mr. Gu hung up after hearing Ling Fenghan's assurance.
After the call ended, Mr. Gu arranged for someone to keep an eye on Qimeng Entertainment and Song Junhan.
He had a feeling that Song Junhan might be the breakthrough he needed to truly uncover that organization.
Mr. Gu himself couldn't remember how many times he had clashed with that organization.
That organization was very cunning. Whenever there was even a slight issue, they would immediately cut their losses, regardless of how large the company or how critical the cash flow. They would sever ties instantly.
This also proved that the organization's true core was deeply hidden, and what appeared on the surface were merely money-making schemes and a smokescreen.
Mr. Gu had thought on multiple occasions that he had finally grasped the organization's Achilles' heel, only to realize it was just another disposable facade.
From visible sectors like finance, mining, materials, logistics, scientific research, culture and entertainment, to blockchain technology and old aristocratic families, to clandestine operations involving arms trafficking, pharmaceuticals, currency, equipment, and other contraband, as well as power-for-sex transactions in the global political arena.
Mr. Gu realized that to eradicate this tumor, a much larger net was required. Thanks to Xia Qingtian, this net was becoming increasingly complete.
He believed that this time, Mr. Gu would succeed in stopping them before they could execute their terrifying plan.
His hand, dangling by the table, clenched into a tight fist, and Mr. Gu's gaze darkened.
This time, it would be possible.
His gaze fell again on the two names in the planning document. Mr. Gu murmured, "Lü Songtao, Qiu Xinxue."
"These two also need to be thoroughly investigated."