Chapter 24

Jiang Xuan listened to his agent’s panicked and anxious voice over the phone, and he felt as though he might explode. A surge of rage clogged his lungs, making it difficult to breathe, and his fingernails dug deep into his palms. Yet, he felt no pain at all.

Jiang Xuan had never imagined that for a situation that seemed certain to lead to ruin, Lin Yi wouldn't even need to think about how to break it. He had simply pulled the firewood from beneath the pot and overturned the chessboard entirely—what was there left to resolve? The game itself no longer existed!

The agent’s voice was trembling: "Boss, what do we do now?"

So, he only realizes I’m the boss when there’s a problem?

Jiang Xuan roared into the phone: "You fucking ask me what to do? Who do I ask? I hired you to work for me, not to ask me what to do!"

As he was shouting at the agent, a new call came through. He glared at the screen, but the moment he saw the word "Wife," he instantly went quiet, like a screaming rubber chicken whose neck had been pinched. Even though Zheng Ya was not in front of him, he smoothed his expression and answered the phone with a sincere tone.

Zheng Ya’s voice was clearly laced with anger: "Jiang Xuan, what are you doing? Offending the Qin family, the He family, and the Feng Group all at once? If you want to court death, don't drag others down with you!"

Jiang Xuan coaxed her gently: "Wife, I’m sorry. I really didn't know it would turn out like this. That kid named Lin Yi stole the spotlight from our son, and I just couldn't stomach it, so I wanted to teach him a small lesson. I’m sorry, honey, it was my impulse. It’s my fault."

Hearing about her son, Zheng Ya’s fury subsided slightly: "How is our son?"

Jiang Xuan replied: "The doctor said he was frightened and only just fell asleep. Before he went to sleep, he was still calling for his mother. I was worried you were too busy with work, so I didn't call you."

Zheng Ya had just stepped away from a business banquet and indeed hadn't had time to answer calls from her son. However, as soon as she sent off her clients, her assistant told her about Jiang Xuan offending those powerful families, and she was instantly livid.

Although the Zheng family in the capital was far from being a century-old aristocratic lineage like the Qin family, they were not without their own foundation. They had once been glorious, though they had since declined. Because her father’s eldest branch only had a daughter, her grandfather had been desperate to hand the company over to the second branch, simply because they had produced a son.

The strong-willed Zheng Ya refused to lose to her cousin, who only knew how to eat, drink, and play, so she used iron-fisted tactics to seize the company. Because of her dominant personality, she hadn't chosen a husband of equal social standing, but instead chose the mild-mannered Jiang Xuan. She never expected that the usually obedient Jiang Xuan would cause such a massive disaster the moment he acted!

Zheng Ya rubbed her temples, which were throbbing from the alcohol, and said coldly: "Useless. You can't even handle such a small matter."

On the other end of the line, Jiang Xuan’s face flushed red, and his breathing grew heavy. But his voice remained submissive: "Wife, I’m sorry. The studio has received lawyer’s letters from several firms..."

Zheng Ya said in a low voice: "First, have the studio issue an apology statement, and make the tone sincere. Take a photo of you and our son at the hospital, and make it look as miserable as possible. I will handle the rest. You just take good care of our son."

After hanging up, Jiang Xuan’s face was ashen. That word "useless" had pierced his heart. Looking at Ian, who was lying in the hospital bed and looked strikingly like Zheng Ya, a sense of resentment washed over him as well.

***

Dr. Yang, who was on duty at the hospital, had just finished his rounds and returned to his office. Usually, by this time, his lower back would be aching so badly he’d need to lie down for a while. But today, even though he had performed a surgery in the afternoon, his back felt only slightly sore, not painful.

He was even more convinced of the child’s acupuncture technique. He couldn't help but recall the video he had recorded of the child performing the acupuncture earlier that afternoon. He pulled out his phone, slowed the playback speed, and watched it carefully. At the time, he had been completely immersed in the warmth and comfortable changes in his body, but now, watching from the perspective of an observer, his brows furrowed tighter and tighter.

This technique was both bold and meticulous—surely, no traditional Chinese medicine practitioner with less than ten years of experience could pull this off? Even if the child had started learning from the womb, that wasn't ten years. He couldn't help but suspect that the Meng Po soup the child drank might have been watered down.

After watching, Dr. Yang thought of the traditional Chinese medicine research group he was in and uploaded the video. Although Dr. Yang came from an ordinary family, his mentor during his doctoral studies was a titan in the industry.

His mentor was very open-minded and supported his decision to return to his hometown after graduation to contribute to local medicine. Therefore, even though Dr. Yang was not in the capital, he had connections in the medical field thanks to his mentor. The TCM group he belonged to had been introduced to him by his mentor. The practitioners in the group greatly appreciated this excellent young man and often offered him guidance.

After posting the video, Dr. Yang wanted to add a few words of explanation, but he was called away by a nurse in a rush. He didn't have time to look at his phone again. By the time he finished his work and returned to his office, more than two hours had passed.

He closed his eyes, exhausted, failing to notice the group chat messages constantly popping up on his phone—nearly two-thirds of them were tagging him.

***

The first trip to the small fishing village on Mao'er Island had come to an end. Lin Yi listened to the tour guide’s announcement, feeling a bit lost. From the moment he opened his eyes in this world, he had been filming the program; hearing that the first leg of filming was over, he suddenly felt adrift.

If he wasn't filming, what was he supposed to do? He looked at Qin Siyan not far away. Follow his master? Hmm, his master wouldn't let him follow.

While little Lin Yi was still pondering this, Nora walked up to him. He had to pause his thinking.

Nora: "Yi-bao, can I add you on WeChat? I want to invite you to play at my house."

WeChat?

Lin Yi paused for a moment before recalling from the memories of the original Lin Yi that WeChat was for chatting, calling, and video calls. He marveled once again at how smart the people in this world were.

Lin Yi shook his head: "I don't have WeChat."

From the moment Nora walked over to Lin Yi, Qin Siyan had been watching them out of the corner of his eye. When Nora shook her smart watch, he knew what they were doing. He moved toward them, nonchalant. If Lin Yi exchanged contact info with Nora, he would "casually" mention it, and Lin Yi would surely agree. But just as he got close, he heard Lin Yi’s refusal. The words he had prepared to "casually" say were stuck in his throat.

Nora immediately took off her smart watch: "Yi-bao, I'll give this to you. I have other colors at home."

Nora’s watch was white. He Tong doted on her and, seeing she liked the series, had bought every color.

Little Lin Yi frowned: "I can't accept such a valuable gift. I will buy one myself, and when we film the next episode, we can add each other."

Nora looked a bit down: "Then let’s pinky-promise. You can't forget."

Lin Yi: ... He had fought with girls his age, but he had never pinky-promised before. This feeling was very novel. Is this what making friends is like? It must be friends.

When Qin Siyan heard Lin Yi say he didn't have a smart watch or a phone, he instinctively reached into his pocket. There was a phone in his pocket.

He Tong smiled and waved at Nora: "Nora, we need to get to the car." She then blew a kiss to Lin Yi: "Yi-bao, see you next time!"

Lin Yi stared at her, a trace of confusion in his big eyes. In the original Lin Yi’s memories, there was no meaning attached to that gesture. He was a little distressed. It probably meant "see you next time," right?

As soon as he turned around, he saw Qin Siyan. Did he come to say goodbye? Little Lin Yi had Aunt He Tong’s gesture in his head. Should he... He placed his small hand to his mouth, and then...

Qin Siyan: "What are you doing?"

Lin Yi stopped halfway and blinked at him. *I... I don't know either.*

Zhong Qi: "Xiao Yi, are your parents coming to the airport to pick you up?"

President Qin was too busy to come, and Xie Yu and Qin Siyan were being picked up by the Qin family butler. He Tong and Xi Lan were being picked up by their husbands. He and Yang Xing were being picked up by their agents. It seemed like Xiao Yi was the only one alone?

Zhong Qi’s words were overheard by the director’s assistant. She exclaimed: "I forgot to notify Xiao Yi’s parents!"

Zhong Qi was also stunned: "The show has been livestreaming for the past two days. Even without a notification, shouldn't Xiao Yi’s parents know the show ends today?"

***

In an upscale residential area in Ning City.

Ding Lan was carrying a bag full of groceries. The weather had been too hot lately, and her precious son had no appetite, so she decided to change up the menu today. Three women walking their dogs approached.

"Oh my, isn't this Hao Hao’s mom? Why did you buy so much stuff?"

The lady on the left teased with a smile: "Still calling you Hao Hao’s mom? Yi-bao is already a big star now. We should change it to 'star mom'!"

The lady on the right echoed: "Yes, Xiao Yi is so smart and cute. I’m so envious that you raised such an excellent son!" She then exclaimed: "Wait?"

The other two asked, "What is it?"

"Isn't Xiao Yi coming back today? Why is Hao Hao’s mom still at home?" If it were her son, she would have been at the airport before dawn. No, she would have arrived at the filming site a day early.

Ding Lan had been smiling when she first saw them. She knew that the husbands of these three women were either executives at large companies or entrepreneurs. Being on good terms with them was a way to build connections. But hearing them call her "star mom" over and over felt grating, and the smile on her lips stiffened.

Lin Yi is coming back? Why so fast?

The lady in the middle noticed her expression was off and asked with concern: "Hao Hao’s mom, are you alright?"

Ding Lan put on a gentle smile: "It’s nothing, it’s just too hot and I’m feeling a bit unwell. Xiao Yi’s father went to pick him up. I knew he was coming back today, so I specifically bought the seafood he likes so we can eat as soon as they get home."

The lady on the right said with envy: "Xiao Yi is so lucky—beautiful, cute, and smart, and he has such a good mother like Mrs. Ding. No wonder he’s so excellent!" She added, "We won't hold you up. When Xiao Yi gets home, bring him out more so we can bask in the glow of a little star."

Ding Lan smiled broadly: "Oh, Xiao Yi is just a child, he’s not as amazing as you say."

After parting ways with the three women, Ding Lan returned home, the smile on her face instantly vanishing, leaving her eyes cold.

Lin Hao saw her return and immediately ran up to hug her: "Mom, Mom." Seeing the seafood in the shopping bag, he pouted: "Why is it lobster again? I want to eat flower crabs!"

Ding Lan knew her son; Lin Hao could only distinguish between big and small lobsters and crabs, and had no idea about the varieties. But he was her precious son, so she pinched Lin Hao’s chubby face: "Fine, whatever you want."

Ding Lan took the shopping bag to the kitchen, asking: "Oh right, Hao Hao, how did you know about flower crabs?"

Lin Hao: "Lin Yi has them."

Ding Lan was confused: "What?"

Lin Hao handed his phone to Ding Lan. In the video, the production team had given Lin Yi three crates of seafood. In one of the crates, the abalones were large and plump—the kind that were hard to buy even with money!

Ding Lan’s face turned ugly, and Lin Hao stepped back in fear: "Mom..."