Chapter 98

Preparation

The atmosphere curdled into awkward silence. Only the AI voiceover playing in the stairwell carried on, cheerful and oblivious.

"Mr. Xu — some of our cleaning staff are local residents from low-income households, with limited formal education. They're hardworking and quick with their hands. It's after noon — their rest period." The general manager steeled himself and offered an explanation on behalf of the cleaner watching videos in the corridor. "I apologize. This is a failure of my management."

The PR manager had already slipped into the stairwell and found the cleaner, gesturing at him to turn off his phone.

Among Kunlun's many branches, the Linhai office was not large. Its original purpose had been to support local economic development, which meant its management style was also more locally adapted.

That Xu Chenzhu would personally attend this anniversary had caught everyone entirely off guard. They had no experience receiving him.

The person who emerged from the stairwell behind the PR manager was a man of about fifty, hunching his neck in apprehension, skin weathered dark, clutching a phone with a cracked screen.

"It's lunchtime — why haven't you gone to eat?" Chao Musheng saw the man's fright and smiled to calm him. "Is there anything at the company giving you difficulty?"

The man shook his head repeatedly. "The management here treats us very well — we even get daily necessities every month. I — I —"

He looked up at the young man in front of him, smiling, and felt some of the panic loosen. "I'm sorry. I won't play with my phone in the stairwells again."

"It's all right — it's your break time, staff are free to relax." Seeing the man's face flushed red, hands trembling with nerves, Chao Musheng softened his tone further. "Though in public areas going forward, you could keep the volume a bit lower."

He glanced at the surroundings. "Are you the one responsible for cleaning this section?"

The man nodded.

"It's very clean." Chao Musheng extended his hand. "Thank you for your hard work."

"No — no, it's not hard." The man hadn't expected someone so senior to shake his hand. He stuffed the phone into his pocket, wiped both palms on his clothes, then took the offered hand — doing his best to keep the trembling contained. "The leaders here are very kind and look after us well. Lunch every day is good too."

He didn't know how to phrase things elegantly, and his words came out jumbled, but he still wanted to say good things about the company's people in front of this important leader.

"We are deeply grateful for everything you contribute to Kunlun." Chao Musheng placed his other hand over the man's rough, dark-skinned hand.

The man felt slightly dazed. The leader was so warm with people.

"Mr. Chao is right — without all of you, there would be no Kunlun." Xu Chenzhu gave a nod to the branch management. "Your work in people-centered management has been very well done."

With both Xu Chenzhu and Chao Musheng having spoken, the branch management collectively exhaled. Thank goodness Xu Chenzhu was magnanimous enough not to pursue it.

The elevator doors opened. Chao Musheng stepped in and waved to the cleaner. "Goodbye."

Xu Chenzhu gave a nod, unhurried and warm.

When the elevator doors closed, the PR manager's shoulders finally relaxed. She looked at the cleaner, who was still staring at the elevator with a dazed smile, and shook her head with quiet exasperation.

Thank goodness it was Mr. Chao who broke the tension first. Otherwise this man would have lost his job.

"I've told you all dozens of times — use earphones when you're on your phone during the break." She sighed. "You're lucky you ran into an Mr. Chao who was willing to smooth things over."

"So his name is Chao." The cleaner touched the phone in his pocket. He's a very good-looking young man. He sort of resembled the person the internet was saying the big boss might be romantically involved with.

"Are you going to do this with your phone again?"

The cleaner shook his head vigorously. He would never cause trouble like this again.

*

Chao Musheng's group reached the third floor, which had been decorated with festive lights and was already full of staff. The moment they walked in, a wave of applause broke out — several people came forward with flowers.

The scene was oddly familiar. When school administrators came to inspect during primary and secondary school, it went something like this.

The general manager's years in education had clearly left a lasting impression.

Xu Chenzhu was invited to speak on stage. Chao Musheng and Secretary Liu took seats at the front table alongside the general manager and other local figures; Chao Musheng shook hands with each of them in turn.

Secretary Liu chatted with the table. Chao Musheng held the flowers the staff had given him and looked up at Xu Chenzhu addressing the room.

Setting aside everything his position meant — Xu Chenzhu was genuinely good-looking. He matched every specification the domineering CEO archetype in fiction called for.

Except he didn't smile with cold menace. He didn't verbally humiliate his staff. He didn't summon employees at midnight to investigate his love interest. He didn't interrupt meetings to go coddle someone.

The absurd behaviors that came with the archetype — he had none of them. The hardware requirements — he had every one.

"Xiao Chao — what are you looking at?" Secretary Liu turned his head, sensing something unusual in Xiao Chao's expression.

"A domineering CEO who isn't broken in the head." Chao Musheng handed the bouquet to a bodyguard and took out his phone to photograph Xu Chenzhu. "Don't you think there's a particular kind of appeal to a composed, mature man?"

Secretary Liu looked at the boss in Chao Musheng's phone camera. The somewhat garish festival lights on stage, through Xiao Chao's lens, seemed to shift into a kind of aurora, adding a soft luminescence to the boss's hair.

He looked at Chao Musheng. Then at the boss on stage. He smiled, and said nothing.

Some people were born with the ability to lead. A few short words and the entire room was moved — even the representatives at the front table had lit up.

When Xu Chenzhu came off the stage, the applause from the entire third floor was almost enough to lift the ceiling.

His eyes swept across the sea of animated faces and settled on Chao Musheng. Chao Musheng was clapping too, eyes bright as stars, full of warmth.

Xu Chenzhu came to sit in the empty seat beside him. A cup of warm water appeared at his elbow.

"Mr. Xu — have some water."

Chao Musheng placed the cup in Xu Chenzhu's hand. Today was the branch anniversary; the headquarters team wouldn't have arrived empty-handed — there were still many award and recognition segments to come.

"Thank you." Xu Chenzhu took it. His fingertips brushed the back of Chao Musheng's hand by accident. The hand holding the cup trembled.

Chao Musheng noticed the ripple across the water's surface. He lifted his own juice glass and touched it to Xu Chenzhu's cup. "To Kunlun — may we keep growing."

A soft clink.

He had only touched a cup — but what was trembling was his heart.

Xu Chenzhu took a sip of his water. It tasted, faintly, of something sweet.

*

When Secretary Liu took the stage to announce headquarters' awards for the branch, the room's energy crested completely.

Bonuses, resources, commendations, promotion opportunities, and headquarters training slots — every category landed exactly where people most wanted it.

During the draw, an employee who'd won a prize gathered enough courage to ask for a photo with Mr. Chao.

The branch leadership was somewhat uncertain — Mr. Chao had been trending heavily online recently, but he was a headquarters executive, not a performer they'd engaged for the event.

"Thank you all for treating me like a celebrity." Chao Musheng stood and smiled his way onto the platform, where he was immediately surrounded by a cluster of young staff.

"Mr. Chao — you look even better in person than in the videos!"

Nobody could tell who had shouted it. The room broke into laughter.

Some people are born with gravity. Others are born to be liked.

Even with Xu Chenzhu present, everyone's gaze seemed to keep returning to Chao Musheng.

"Our Xiao Chao certainly seems to be popular wherever he goes." Secretary Liu carefully monitored the boss's expression, half expecting jealousy or displeasure — but found something that looked, unexpectedly, closer to pride.

The expression was oddly familiar. It reminded him of his niece when she watched her favorite artist standing on an awards stage, surrounded by admirers.

Happy because you are happy. Proud because you've succeeded. Beaming because you shine.

Secretary Liu had never loved anyone that way; he couldn't feel what the boss was feeling. But he could see how carefully the boss was holding it.

He watched: a woman of thirty or forty nearly lost her footing in the crowd and was about to fall, and Chao Musheng was first to reach out and steady her, then turned his head just slightly to let her friend photograph them together.

This was a very successful anniversary. Even by Secretary Liu's measure — it wasn't refined, it bore no resemblance to the atmosphere at Kunlun headquarters — it was still a success.

Because every face on the platform was genuinely happy, and the energy below matched it.

The PR manager was the only one standing in the crowd with both feet on the ground, feeling her already sparse hair lose a few more strands.

Mr. Chao is a genuinely rare kind of good person, willing to let himself get caught up in this with the branch staff.

When she saw the general manager joining the photos with Chao Musheng — grinning broadly — she pressed her fingers to her scalp in despair, turned, and said to her assistant: "Lunch is over. Arrange a group photo."

You are a branch general manager. Seeking a photo with the president's assistant while leaving the CEO on the sidelines — do you still want to keep your job?

*

Chao Musheng's smile had gone faintly stiff around the edges. When the PR manager arrived to organize the group photo, he exhaled quietly and walked quickly to Xu Chenzhu and Secretary Liu for some water.

"Our Xiao Chao is very popular." Secretary Liu, noticing that Chao Musheng's collar bar had gone slightly crooked, couldn't help laughing. "Your online presence these past two days has been higher than any of the artists'."

"When I finished the college entrance exams, I apparently had the confidence to say I could take on the entertainment industry." Chao Musheng rubbed his cheeks. "What possessed me back then?"

"Hold still." Xu Chenzhu stood and adjusted the position of the jewelry on his collar bar. "There."

"Did you actually consider going into entertainment?" Secretary Liu asked, curious. "What changed your mind?"

"Jinghua's admissions office came to my house, and the coursework genuinely interested me." He paused. "The population is aging — I want to design an eldercare robotics program. If I'd gone into entertainment, I'd never have had the time."

Things were much better as they were.

Artists had to manage their expressions every moment of every day. Impossibly difficult.

Secretary Liu wiped at his face. The gap between some people and others was vast. He felt slightly unwell; this line of conversation was approaching uninhabitable territory.

Jinghua's admissions office coming to your house to recruit you. What a niche reason for anything.

"You really should know — Kunlun's entertainment division was established two years ago as well. If you'd gone into entertainment, you might have ended up being one of Kunlun's own artists."

"Being an artist is too difficult." Chao Musheng looked down and touched the collar bar Xu Chenzhu had just adjusted. "I much prefer the life I have."

Even Luo Yixuan, with his level of popularity, was being made things difficult for. For ordinary artists, it would be worse.

"Zhaozhao." Xu Chenzhu rested a hand briefly on his shoulder. "We should go for the group photo."

Whether by chance or design, no one stood to Xu Chenzhu's left during the photo — everyone nudged Chao Musheng into that space.

"One, two, three — smile."

Chao Musheng noticed that Xu Chenzhu's mouth had curved, just slightly. He turned his head to look. Xu Chenzhu felt the glance and tilted his head toward him.

Click.

The photograph held.

*

After the group photo, the group toured the branch's production facilities before heading back.

Traffic through the city was slow. Chao Musheng leaned against the seat back and began to drift.

"Sleep a while. I'll wake you when we arrive."

His eyelids settled. He let himself sink into sleep. In the dream, a great glass box appeared — full of tiny figures, densely packed. He tried to see what was inside, but a gust of wind carried him away.

He opened his eyes. The car had stopped outside a villa.

"Mr. Xu — is this your Linhai property?" He pressed his face against the car window, looking at the beautiful house. "It's lovely."

"I rarely stay in Linhai, so this one isn't very large."

Xu Chenzhu stepped out and opened Chao Musheng's door. "The gala starts in two hours. Come see if there's anything that suits you."

Mr. Xu has some misunderstanding of what "not very large" means, Chao Musheng thought. A villa with gardens front and back, a swimming pool, and a pavilion — isn't that quite large?

The world of the wealthy was difficult to comprehend.

The villa had few staff; the interior was cool and quiet. He could feel the emptiness of the space as soon as he stepped inside.

He followed Xu Chenzhu into the dressing room and noticed a photograph hanging on the wall. No people or buildings — only a river. The surface lay perfectly still, like water that had never moved.

"This should fit you well." Xu Chenzhu took out a garment — tags still attached. He looked back and found Chao Musheng studying the photograph. A pause. "You don't like it?"

"No." Chao Musheng shook his head. "It's just — the river looks oddly familiar."

He took the clothes Xu Chenzhu handed over. When Xu Chenzhu stepped out, the garment proved unexpectedly well-fitted — as though made for him.

He looked at his reflection, straightened the cuffs, and opened the door.

"It suits you." Xu Chenzhu had been waiting outside. He looked at Chao Musheng as he emerged and smiled with quiet warmth. "May I choose the accessories for you?"

"Go ahead."

A watch. A lapel pin. A collar bar. Cufflinks.

Every piece paired perfectly with the outfit, as though all of it had been prepared and waiting for one specific person to come and wear it.

Chao Musheng looked down at the man bent slightly at the waist, fastening his cufflinks, and said nothing to refuse any of it.

"Done." Xu Chenzhu finished and stepped back. "They suit you."

Chao Musheng looked at his reflection for a few seconds, then turned to Xu Chenzhu with a smile. "Your taste is excellent, Mr. Xu."

The dressing room light was soft. Chao Musheng thought he could almost hear Xu Chenzhu's heartbeat.

"I should head over." He raised his wrist, felt the weight of the expensive watch, and tilted his head. "Mr. Xu — will you take me?"

"I'll take you."

*

Walking the red carpet was always the segment fans cared most about: who walked first, who closed the show, who got the host interview, whose gown was this season's couture, whose looked better — everything was fuel for argument.

The red carpet livestream platform was Nangua Video, which had started promoting the event days in advance.

"Mr. Chao still hasn't returned. What does his assistant say?"

Several industry figures were growing anxious — some of them had come specifically because Kunlun's headquarters representative was attending.

If Mr. Chao didn't come to the gala, what was the point of sitting here?

One figure, learning that Curly Hair was close to Chao Musheng, specifically called her over to ask. Only after confirming that Mr. Chao would indeed be attending did they settle down.

The security player stood in a corner, watching the crowd gathered around Curly Hair. The intent in his eyes was barely concealed.

Curly Hair turned sharply and met his gaze.

Their eyes held. Cold certainty filled the air between them.

She cut through the crowd and walked directly to him. "Take a guess — if I told the security team leader right now that Mr. Chao doesn't like you, would he have you dismissed?"

"You—!" He stared at her. She was different.

Before, she wouldn't have harmed another player. She would never have allied herself with NPCs, borrowing their authority to pressure players. But now she spoke of instance NPCs with complete ease and casualness.

"Frightened?" She saw the fear flicker in his eyes and gave a short laugh. "Then manage your eyes and your hands. Stop planning to cause trouble in this instance — or you'll die here."

The player said nothing. He swallowed it down. As long as I hold out until Song Xu dies, this woman won't have anything over me.

"If it weren't for your sister, you'd have been finished the first time you came at me." She could see he still wasn't reconciled. "I've said what I have to say. If you still want to get yourself killed, I won't stop you again."

He watched her walk away. His smile was contemptuous.

What does it matter if she's won over an NPC? Can that NPC actually kill an artist, generate some real news?

A star falling — now that was his kind of story.

He loved nothing more than watching the moon and stars tumble from their heights, filth and all, down into the common world.

*

As the car approached the gala venue, Chao Musheng's phone rang. Chao Yin.

"Sheng-sheng — will you have time to make it tonight?" Noise in the background — she was already at the venue. "Your assistant is here, don't rush getting here. Mind the traffic."

"Mom — I'm at the door already." He looked out at both sides of the road, thick with fans holding support banners. The driver was moving carefully.

The fans noticed the car coming and studied it with curiosity. Which artist's vehicle was this?

The make and the plates didn't look like anything an ordinary artist could afford. A brand sponsor's executive, perhaps?

The car skirted the fans at the front entrance and came in through the rear underground car park. Chao Musheng spotted Chao Yin waiting there with several event reception staff.

"Mr. Xu — I'm getting out." He turned to Xu Chenzhu. "See you in the morning."

"All right." Xu Chenzhu adjusted his collar bar one final time. "Enjoy your evening. I'll watch the livestream."

"I'm the company representative — I won't be walking the carpet." He unclipped his seatbelt. "You probably won't see me in the stream."

"With your looks, even without the red carpet, the cameras inside will linger on you." He leaned across and pressed open the car door. "Go on. Don't keep Auntie Chao waiting."

Secretary Liu, in the passenger seat, said nothing — only got out and opened the rear door for Chao Musheng.

"Thanks, Liu-ge."

"Think nothing of it." Secretary Liu kept his voice low and playful. "This is your stage tonight. It's only right to give you the full treatment."

"When it's your stage, I'll open the car door for you." Chao Musheng grinned back. "And hold your umbrella."

He quickened his pace toward Chao Yin.

Secretary Liu shook his head fondly. He didn't know if Xiao Chao had noticed — that when the boss said he wanted to watch the livestream, Xiao Chao's first instinct had been to say but the boss wanted to see him specifically, which was why he'd emphasized not walking the carpet.

He closed the rear door and got back into the passenger seat. He glanced back. The boss's eyes were still on the retreating figure.

Maybe the boss would get his wish after all.

*

"Mr. Chao!" The reception staff, unable to contain their excitement at his return, came forward quickly.

"I'm sorry — some traffic on the way. Thank you all for waiting." He glanced toward Chao Yin behind them, not wanting to delay her. "Shall we go in."

The reception staff had worked in fashion long enough that the sight of Chao Musheng's accessories stopped them cold internally. Worthy of a Kunlun headquarters representative. Even top-tier artists couldn't borrow pieces like that.

Chao Yin noticed the car that had brought her son. It was still there — a globally limited-edition luxury model. The plates were even more striking than the car itself.

She looked away and turned to Chao Musheng, falling into step beside him, out of earshot of the others. "Where did the jewelry come from?"

"A friend prepared it for me." He pressed the elevator button; the lapel pin at his chest caught the light. "Does it look good?"

"It looks wonderful." Something she couldn't name sat strangely in her chest. "Like it was prepared specifically with you in mind."

The jewelry, the watch, the outfit — every element matched Sheng-sheng's bearing as though they'd been chosen with intimate knowledge of it.

"Yes." A quiet laugh; something soft moving in his eyes. "I think so too. He must have put real thought into it."

The staff who'd come in with them overheard the exchange about the jewelry and started finding words for what they were seeing, admiring each piece from top to bottom.

Not flattery — it was simply true. Mr. Chao suited these things in a way that was almost uncanny.

A shame he wasn't in the industry — the fashion resources that would come his way would be extraordinary. Wealthy patrons would see him in this and lose their minds, desperate for the same set.

Chao Yin's gaze dropped to the watch on her son's wrist. Her eye twitched.

A handcrafted gemstone timepiece, globally limited. Other people wore them with insurance policies. Her son had it on his wrist like it was nothing.

What kind of friend, she thought, would be generous enough to simply put something like that on Sheng-sheng's wrist?

And more to the point — as well as she knew her son, he would not normally accept gifts of this kind from even a close friend. It didn't fit his usual way of doing things at all.

This is very strange.

Too many people around to ask further, and she had artists to receive. She brought Chao Musheng into the venue, arranged for an assistant to accompany him, and had to leave.

*

Chao Musheng walked straight into the main hall. As the assistant showed him to his front-row seat, he looked back toward the other rows. "Where are Kunlun entertainment's artists seated?"

He was here as Kunlun's representative. Even at an event that was more about entertainment, it seemed right to show some interest in the company's artists.

"Mr. Chao — Song Xu is in Row Two, Section B. The other two artists are in Rows Three and Four."

By Song Xu's usual standing, Row Two was more than he could normally claim. But with Mr. Chao present, Nangua Video — as one of the lead organizers — had made a point of giving Kunlun's entertainment division the full respect.

Section B was centre of the second row — directly behind Chao Musheng's area.

"Hmm?" Chao Musheng noticed something strange beneath the seat with Song Xu's name card. A brief flash of red. He stepped across the aisle and moved toward it.