Chapter 69: New Year
It wasn’t only fans, passers-by, and trolls who watched the video that made everyone sour, but also dozens of people from the Mu family. Everyone watched it.
Mu Minde was so angry that his blood pressure soared. The cane in his hand fell heavily on the ground as he cursed, “Mu Xiulun’s wings has really hardened! It was fine when he used to play with a starlet like Su Jin before, but he actually talked about affection?? Don’t tell he even wants to marry her?”
The Mu family was sitting on endless assets, a self-proclaimed plutocratic family. Mu Minde’s two daughters and one son were all married to both government dignitaries and energy oligarchs from other countries.
Mu Xiulun was nominally his ‘adopted son’, and even though his marriage was delayed, Mu Minde was not too anxious. However, Mu Minde had been paying attention to the wealthy ladies of the right families, and had been preparing to let Mu Xiulun go to a few parties and meet those girls after some time.
How could he have imagined that Mu Xiulun would bluntly declare in front of so many paparazzis that he was courting an actress?
Unacceptable!
Seeing that Mu Minde in a fit of rage, Mrs. Mu pretended to calm him down: “You know Mu Xiulun’s character most. He has always decided on his own. When did he ever listen to us? Look at his work. He didn’t want the Mu family’s ready-made company and ran to fiddle with non-ferrous rare earths and whatnot and unobtrusively acquired a tin mine in Indonesia. Now, it is said that he’ll advance to some new energy source or something. Emotionally, he also dislikes to socialize with those ladies. Except for Su Jin, did you ever see anyone else around him? I know you think Su Jin has a bad reputation and impure motives. Indeed, Mu Xiulun kept her as his mistress before, but maybe they have developed real feelings after getting along?”
Mrs. Mu’s words were like pouring oil on a fire. The more Mu Minde listened, the angrier he became, and then ordered his personal assistant to call Mu Xiulun immediately.
As a result, they called three times, but all three went unanswered.
The next time they called —— they were directly blocked!
*
“Your phone keeps vibrating. Won’t you answer it?”
The mega indoor studio, which could accommodate a thousand people, was filled with countless enthusiastic viewers. A girl wearing a mask with a duck-tongue cap avoided the crowds and stood in an inconspicuous corner, quietly watching the stage.
However, the phone of another ‘audience’ beside her kept ringing, which disturbed her.
Su Jishi looked at the man standing to his left and asked, “Whose call is it?”
Mu Xiulun replied indifferently, “A crank call.”
While speaking, he cleanly pulled that phone number into his blacklist, completely ignoring the name displayed on the screen.
Today, they were at the official recording site of the New Year’s gala in City B. Because there were many celebrities participating in the recording, the scalper admission tickets had been sold at sky high prices. Nonetheless, the high prices did not deter the hardcore fans, and the studio was packed with fans gathered in different small squares, enthusiastically exchanging fresh information in between shows.
No matter whose fans these viewers were, they were all talking about the same gossip, which naturally had to do with the names ‘Su Jin’ and ‘Mu Xiulun’.
Unbeknownst to the gossipers, the objects of their gossip were actually standing in the corner of the studio.
On stage, the two hosts finished their crosstalk and read out the name of the next program —— “Here comes The Four Beauties!”
Su Jishi was very familiar with the process of the program, because she descended from the sky in a hanging basket as Su Jin a few days ago. She had no artistic talent, and at that time, she could only clumsily muddle through by relying on the ‘rival type’, while Su Jin who appeared on stage now was playing the music wholeheartedly.
Looking at the same work from a different perspective, the perception was naturally different.
From the ‘person in the play’ to the ‘person outside the play’, Su Jishi looked at her sister who was kissed by the spotlight on stage, and then looked at the fans who were moved to tears because of Su Jinqing’s performance, and finally understood the meaning of the name ‘Su Jin’.
The entertainment world was very complicated, but at the same time it was also very pure.
She gazed at the eye-catching figure in the center of the stage with pride.
That was her twin sister, the other her in the world!
In her twenty-eight years of life, Su Jishi and her sister have been separated for twenty years, but this was the first time she felt so strongly that they were a ‘whole’.
It was great to have a sister —— It was truly comforting to have a blood relative who could face glory and slander with her.
When the last note ended and the ethereal sound of the pipa trailed off leisurely, the audience left from the fairyland in a trance and froze for a long time before they remembered to applaud.
Su Jishi was left panting for more. She came to the studio today in disguise to listen to her sister’s solo, and now that she was done, she wanted to leave as soon as possible before she got caught —— However, when she turned her head, she accidentally ran into a pair of eyes.
Su Jishi never thought that while she was watching her sister on top of the stage, Mu Xiulun beside her had actually been looking at her.
It wasn’t a peek, but an open and honest gaze.
The man’s gaze was fiery, in essence.
Su Jishi was startled and asked him in a good-natured way, “What are you looking at?”
Mu Xiulun replied, “I’m, of course, looking at you.”
“How do I look? No makeup, without a hair wash. If you want to see me in all my glory, then why don’t you just go and look at Jinqing on stage? Anyway, we have the same face. Looking at her is the same as looking at me.”
“But no matter how identical you look, she is not you.”
Su Jishi felt so frustrated that she wanted to scold him but didn’t know where to start.
Why did she never find out that Mu Xiulun was such a pestering character before? His announcement to the press that he was pursuing her beforehand was quite remarkable.
*
After the recording of the program, Su Jinqing and Lin Yan took a night flight back to Australia that night.
In order to cover things up, they did not take an ordinary business flight. Instead, Mu Xiulun sent his own private jet to fly them back.
In the VIP lounge, Su Jinqing couldn’t hold back her tears again. She was sentimental to begin with so at this parting, she was even more sorrowful.
Su Jishi hugged her tightly and said soothingly, “Don’t cry. We’ll see each other again in two months. You’d better enjoy your last vacation. The mouths of keyboard warriors are much more powerful than a crocodile’s mouth. Don’t cry again when you’re scolded. I’m a poor student, so I can’t afford to buy a plane ticket back from the United States to comfort you!”
When Mu Xiulun heard that, he took the initiative to say, “Why do you have to buy a plane ticket? Whenever you need to return to China, this special plane will fly directly to the United States to pick you up.”
Su Jishi glared at him: “You talk a lot.”
Mu Xiulun: “…”
The dignified President Mu didn’t dare say another word after receiving a scolding from Miss Su.
Seeing the interaction between the two, Su Jinqing burst into laughter. She also hugged her sister back heavily and took the opportunity to whisper in her ear, “Sister, I think Mr. Mu is a good person. Consider him.”
Su Jishi didn’t answer, as if she hadn’t heard it.
*
After Su Jinqing left, Su Jishi’s life once again returned to being busy.
However, this time, she was no longer forced, like a ‘duck driven onto a perch((drive a duck onto a perch – to make somebody do something entirely beyond him))’, but took the initiative to take up Su Jin’s burdens. Every day after she finished her work, she happily drew a cross on her calendar, just like a student waiting for winter break.
There was no day off for artists. As the year end approached, in particular, the more work they had.
At the end of the year, Su Jishi took two more magazine covers, three inside pages, promoted a cosmetics brand, conducted an online fan meeting, and took time to participate in a charity event.
By the time she finished all these jobs in one go, the New Year came in her footsteps.
Xiao Xia gathered a few minions from the office to work overtime, wrapped gifts, and sent them to all the media reporters she knew well. The gift boxes were elegantly packaged; a bottle of fragrance for one person, a luxury key pendant, a red wine, plus a desk calendar with Su Jin’s picture on it.
Su Jishi flipped through it and sighed: “The cost of this box is several thousands, no?”
Otherwise, you could say that the entertainment industry was a money squandering establishment. The ‘gift list’ listed by Xiao Xia was printed out with more than a dozen pages of Excel forms, and hundreds of people were listed on it. The total probably amounted to a fortune.
Xiao Xia blinked: “No, ah, they only cost ten yuan.”
Su Jishi: “…?”
Xiao Xia pointed to the gift boxes and said, “These are the products you endorse, and the manufacturers want no money. It’s this gift box that’s a bit more expensive. One costs more than nine yuan.”
Su Jishi: “…What about the calendars? The calendar does cost something, right?”
Xiao Xia smiled: “The calendar printing is sponsored by President Mu. He covered all the printing costs this time. The extra calendars are not wasted. He took them back and said he’ll give them to their company employees as a New Year gift!”
Su Jishi: “…”
Impressive.
……
Good wishes flooded Su Jishi’s WeChat. As soon as she opened her chat box, the word ‘bless’ rained down.
At first, Su Jishi patiently replied ‘Thank you’ and ‘Happy New Year’. But later, she felt it was too cumbersome, so she typed a statement and sent it to everyone in her contact list.
【Thank you all for your care and attention, and please give me more guidance in the New Year.】
Simple, crisp and sharp, quite like Su Jishi’s style.
After the group message was sent, she naturally harvested a new batch of well wishes. Su Jishi didn’t even bother to look at them, and directly chose ‘Mark all as read’.
Just then, a new message jumped to the top of the software.
The sender’s avatar was an iceberg, and the sender’s name was Mr. Mu.
Su Jishi: “…”
Her hand moved on its own and clicked on the message.
In the dialog box, two well-wishes were attached closely together.
Dr. Su: Thank you all for your care and attention, please give me more guidance in the New Year.
Mr.Mu: Every year ahead, please also give me more guidance.
Su Jishi: “…Shameless, you really put gold on your face.”
But despite saying this, when she reacted, she had already pinned ‘Mr. Mu’s’ account at the top.
The author has something to say:
Secretary Gao: For the Chinese New Year, Boss Mu mysteriously called me to the office and said that in order to thank me for my hard work this year, he would give me a gift. I asked, is it a year-end award? He said no, it was his wife’s desk calendar.
Secretary Gao: Is my boss sick?
Peek-Aboo 
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