ASPWL Ch10: Redefinition

Lin Xueqing lay on the ground for a long time without getting up. Mama and Papa Huo and rushed to the hospital with Lin Xueqing, who was bleeding from a head injury and crying uncontrollably, not even having had dinner.

Ye Leyao was left at home, regretting not being able to go to the hospital and witness the drama firsthand.

Mama Huo and dad didn’t return that night. It wasn’t until the next morning that they came back, exhausted.

As soon as they got home, they went upstairs to sleep, and Ye Leyao didn’t have the chance to ask about the details.

It wasn’t until noon, when Huo Jing came home, that Ye Leyao learned from his older brother about everything that had happened the night before.

That fall of Lin Xueqing’s looked scary, but the doctor simply bandaged her up to stop the bleeding, then she was taken to induce vomiting and have her stomach pumped.

Hmm…

The doctor said that if they had come a bit later, the ring might not have been in her stomach anymore.

Mama Huo turned pale upon hearing this.

When the nurse came out holding the ring in a tray, she was muttering, “Swallowed such a big rock… and didn’t even choke.”

Human potential is truly limitless.

With the evidence in front of her, Lin Xueqing could no longer deny it. She could only cry and apologize to Mama Huo, saying she was just possessed.

She also said that she did it all for her child.

She said her son was still young and couldn’t be without her, begging Mama Huo not to call the police for the sake of their many years of friendship.

Thinking about the food residue stuck to the rock made Mama Huo feel disgusted. Hearing Lin Xueqing’s excuse made her even angrier, and she pointed at her nose, scolding, “For that foster son you hold so dear, you not only mistreated your own daughter but even committed a crime for him! Have you ever thought that your precious son isn’t some orphanage child but your husband’s illegitimate son with his mistress?!”

Upon hearing this, Lin Xueqing was stunned: “No… it can’t be…”

Mama Huo sneered, “Can’t be? Did you really not notice or are you just pretending? You’re with your precious son every day, did you really not see how much he’s starting to look like your husband?”

It was as if a bucket of cold water was poured over her head; Lin Xueqing felt a chill all over. She shook her head, muttering, “No… it can’t be…” She stared at Mama Huo, stubbornly defending herself, “I… they… many people said before that they looked…”

Lin Xueqing’s throat seemed to be gripped tightly by an invisible hand. The details of their past interactions flashed vividly in her mind, and she couldn’t shake them off. She opened her mouth but couldn’t say a word.

Greatly shocked, Lin Xueqing’s legs gave out, and she collapsed to the ground.

Mama Huo looked coldly at her pathetic state.

In the end, out of respect for her deceased uncle, she didn’t call the police.

But Mama Huo wasn’t going to let go of the matter of Lin Xueqing stealing her jewelry worth two million. Before leaving the Huo residence, Huo’s dad had the butler take inventory of Mama Huo’s jewelry.

It wasn’t until the middle of the night that the butler brought the completed list to the hospital.

A total of twelve necklaces and nearly a hundred rings were missing.

Seeing the list, Mama Huo was so angry she laughed.

Leaving aside the necklaces, just those hundred rings, the cheapest one was worth at least fifty thousand. Mama Huo had worn them no more than once or twice, and they were in excellent condition. Some were even limited editions from over a decade ago, with a total market value of at least five million!

Lin Xueqing only sold the jewelry for about two million.

She still had the same shallow foresight as before.

“I won’t ask for more,” Mama Huo said coldly, “Just return the money you got from selling my jewelry, and we’ll call it even.”

Lin Xueqing had already cried; now she sat despondently on the hospital bed, no longer arrogant.

She did whatever Mama Huo said.

However, since the bank only opened during the day and the amount Lin Xueqing needed to transfer was large, it took until now to sort everything out.

“And Mom’s ring?” Ye Leyao asked.

Huo Jing paused and said, “It was taken to an auction.”

Ye Leyao’s pupils widened.

[No way? No way? It can’t be that coincidental!]

Huo Jing was puzzled but didn’t ask further. He took out a bank card and gently placed it on the table. “By the way, we have you to thank for this…”

Ye Leyao, deep in thought, blinked in confusion, “Huh?”

[What’s this got to do with me?]

[Did big brother not sleep all night and lose his mind?]

Huo Jing: “…”

Indeed.

Ye Leyao didn’t know anything.

But who did he learn from? His words can be so sharp!

“Your pocket money,” Huo Jing said, rubbing his aching temples, deciding not to argue with Ye Leyao.

Ye Leyao was surprised, “Didn’t I already get this month’s pocket money?”

Huo Jing pretended to take back the bank card, “Don’t want it?”

Ye Leyao quickly grabbed the bank card and stuffed it into his pocket, his movements smooth and swift, “Thank you, big brother!”

Seeing his adept actions, Huo Jing found it amusing. Remembering what his mother had asked him last night, he said, “By the way, mom said you want to enter the entertainment industry?”

“Yes!” Ye Leyao nodded.

[I want to make a lot of money!]

Hearing his ambitious words, a hint of amusement flashed in Huo Jing’s eyes, but he didn’t take it seriously.

He just said, “I’ll have someone arrange it.”

After saying this, Huo Jing got up and, without resting, went to the company.

Actually, with Ye Leyao’s superior looks and the support of the Huo family, making a name in the entertainment industry wouldn’t be too difficult.

But Ye Leyao had never suffered much and didn’t seem to have much ambition, so Huo Jing didn’t have high expectations for him.

However, since Ye Leyao was like a younger brother he had watched grow up, he couldn’t let him be bullied in the industry. So, as soon as he got to the company, Huo Jing called his assistant and briefly instructed him about Ye Leyao’s entry into the industry.

The assistant worked quickly and brought a list to Huo Jing within an hour.

Huo Jing looked at the list and frowned immediately, “The manager only has three years of experience?”

The assistant explained, “Yes, but Du Yan is reliable and quick-witted. If he manages the young master, apart from being at a disadvantage in resources…”

“Why should he be at a disadvantage in resources?” Huo Jing interrupted.

The assistant was stunned, “Didn’t you say the young master wanted to play around in the industry?”

Huo Jing: “Even if it’s just playing around, Leyao shouldn’t be shortchanged in resources. Doesn’t our subsidiary have many projects this year? Why can’t they all be given to him?”

Assistant: “…”

Isn’t that what you said?!

He followed your instructions exactly!

Sometimes, the assistant really wanted to call the police!

Ten minutes later, Huo Jing finished reviewing the assistant’s list.

Within those ten minutes, he crossed out all the names on the list one by one.

After clearly understanding what “playing around in the industry” meant, the assistant handed Huo Jing a new list of management teams.

The lead manager, Li Li, had ten years of experience, was the top manager at Huo Group’s entertainment subsidiary, and had produced two of the hottest stars in recent years.

The PR and legal team was even more impressive. They were responsible for all PR and legal affairs of the entire subsidiary.

Hmm.

Directly assigned a whole company.

After reviewing the list, Huo Jing finally nodded in satisfaction and handed the list to the assistant, “Barely acceptable, let’s go with this for now.”

Assistant: “…”

Okay, redefining “playing around in the industry.”

Since the boss had agreed, the assistant had no choice but to quickly get to work.

As soon as he returned to his desk, a colleague excitedly approached, “Assistant Feng! Do you know why Yu Bai was replaced?”

Assistant Feng was momentarily confused, then his eyes widened, “Isn’t Yu Bai the rising star Longheng Entertainment is promoting this year? Why was he replaced?”

Just as confused were the netizens.

At noon, the official Weibo of “The Sickly Beauty’s Wealthy Husband” announced that Yu Bai would no longer play one of the male leads due to certain reasons, and the role would be recast, inviting suitable actors to audition.

The announcement caused an uproar among Yu Bai’s fans.

They flooded the drama’s official Weibo, demanding an explanation, but the account pretended not to see it.

Soon, the news trended on social media.

Netizens were buzzing with speculation.

Some irrational fans even went to Longheng Entertainment’s official Weibo, demanding answers.

At Longheng Entertainment.

The assistant reported the online public opinion impact to Qin Yao, who had just finished a call with an investor asking for accountability.

“The Sickly Beauty’s Wealthy Husband” was a big-budget drama with many producers and investors. Yu Bai was unanimously chosen as the male lead. Now that he was replaced, the investors were demanding an explanation, with some even threatening to withdraw their investment if Yu Bai wasn’t in the cast.

Qin Yao’s response was simple, “Feel free.”

So within two hours, most of the investors withdrew, while the remaining few were still negotiating compensation with Qin Yao.

After hearing the assistant’s report, Qin Yao nodded, indicating that he could leave.

The assistant hesitated for a moment but couldn’t hold back, “We’ve already found some evidence. If we make this public now, public opinion will quickly turn—”

Qin Yao interrupted, “Now is not the time.”

They had found some evidence, but it wasn’t enough to completely ruin Yu Bai. Releasing it now would only be seen as a deliberate slander and the matter would be downplayed.

Moreover, Qin Yao’s goal this time wasn’t just to replace Yu Bai. He wanted to uproot the person protecting Yu Bai behind the scenes.

…

On the other side, Ye Leyao’s eyes lit up when he saw the trending topic and quickly called his second brother, Huo Yan.

“Second brother, did you know the lead actor in the crew next door has been replaced?” Ye Leyao’s eyes sparkled.

Huo Yan had just finished filming and was exhausted. Hearing this, his eyes brightened, “Yu Bai was replaced?”

Qin Yao was unlucky?!

Wow!

What great news!

Ye Leyao didn’t expect Huo Yan to be unaware and briefly explained the situation.

Huo Yan’s smile grew wider and wider.

Great, great, as long as Qin Yao was unhappy, he was happy!

Then, he heard Ye Leyao change the topic—

“Second brother, do you have the contact information for the director of the ‘Sickly Beauty’ crew?”

Huo Yan’s smile instantly vanished, and he frowned, “Seriously, Ye Leyao, you want to audition for the lead role?”

Ye Leyao frowned even more, “Audition for what? I can’t act. I want to invest!”

Huo Yan: “???”

If you give money to Qin Yao, how will he look unlucky?!

Huo Yan was about to flatly refuse when he suddenly remembered that Ye Leyao knew some “plot” details they didn’t.

He paused and asked tactfully, “Do you think this TV drama is promising?”

Ye Leyao replied just as tactfully, “I think… it should make some money.”

Huo Yan wrestled with the idea of making money versus seeing Qin Yao’s downfall for a while before finally nodding slowly.

After all, who can refuse money?

That evening, Qin Yao finished dealing with company affairs and suddenly received an invitation from Huo Yan on his phone.

Staring at the message for two seconds, Qin Yao eventually replied.

Although he didn’t really want to see Huo Yan, he was quite interested in meeting Ye Leyao, who Huo Yan had taken away that day. He also wanted to verify if he could still hear Ye Leyao’s thoughts.

The next day.

The three of them met at a secluded café.

Ye Leyao and Huo Yan arrived first.

When Qin Yao was led in by the waiter, the moment his eyes met Ye Leyao’s, he heard a loud, ear-piercing male soprano—

[I’m going to get rich!!! Congratulations to me for getting rich! Congratulations to me for being wonderful~~~ Good luck comes! May good luck come to me! Good luck brings money and love~~~~~~ Good luck is coming to me~~~~~]

Qin Yao: “…”

Qin Yao’s fingers at his side turned white with the force he used. Great, no need for verification.

Huo Yan, sitting next to Ye Leyao, looked resigned to his fate.

Hearing the door open, Huo Yan’s gaze was faint and his face pale, even with a hint of resentment in his tone, “Why are you so late?”

Qin Yao: “…”

Is it too late to leave now?