TLSOTMTKOGAYWHTDI Chapter 50

Chapter 48: Video Leak

Zhuo Huaimo stood in the top-floor office of Xingyue Media, overlooking the city’s night view.

His slightly tired face was reflected in the glass window, his fingertips gently caressing the coffee cup in his hand. The heat in the cup had long dissipated, leaving only a cold bitterness. His gaze landed on the equity transfer agreement he had just signed on the desk. Thirty percent of the shares exchanged for temporary peace.

“Was it worth it?”

Yu Fengran’s voice came from behind, deep and gentle.

He held the latest financial report in his hand and walked to Zhuo Huaimo’s side, placing it gently on the table.

Zhuo Huaimo didn’t turn around, just smiled faintly, “You know me. The matter has already happened. I only consider the optimal solution.”

Yu Fengran looked at him, a hint of heartache in his eyes.

He knew how much pressure Zhuo Huaimo had been under recently. From the exposure of their intimate photos to the plummeting of Xingyue’s stock price and the frantic attacks from public opinion, Zhuo Huaimo had borne almost everything single-handedly.

And he, as Zhuo Huaimo’s long-time friend and partner, could only do his best to share some of the burden.

“Huaimo, you don’t have to carry it alone.”

Yu Fengran’s voice was soft, but carried an undeniable strength. “Xingyue isn’t your sole responsibility. We’re all here.”

Zhuo Huaimo finally turned his head and looked at Yu Fengran.

His eyes were still calm, but there was a hint of exhaustion and gratitude hidden within.

Honestly, he was truly grateful to Yu Fengran for being there every step of the way.

No matter the time or circumstance, Yu Fengran always placed himself in a very low position, leading many in the business world to believe that Yu Fengran was dependent on Zhuo Huaimo in their partnership.

In fact, he had to admit that over the years, Yu Fengran had cleaned up a lot of messes for him and the company.

The company’s old employees all knew that Zhuo Huaimo could be absent from the company for a week, but Xingyue Media couldn’t function without Yu Fengran for even seven hours.

Yu Fengran’s inner strength was something that even Zhuo Huaimo couldn’t fully comprehend.

Zhuo Huaimo forced a wry smile. “In the future, I’ll try to cause you less trouble!”

“Huh?” Yu Fengran was confused by this sudden statement.

Zhuo Huaimo pretended to be relaxed and laughed, “Cleaning up messes is such a damn hassle!”

Yu Fengran smiled, just about to say that he was used to it, but Zhuo Huaimo interrupted him.

“Hey, but with my personality, I’ll probably only be able to settle down for a couple of days. You know me; I can’t be without a little lover!”

He tried his best to transform back into the carefree and amorous Zhuo Huaimo. “There’s no way. I’ll die without love!”

Seemingly flirtatious words, but said with incomparable sorrow.

He wasn’t lying. He not only carried a deadly curse on his back, but also a stupid System.

He and Qi Yanwang had officially broken up, and his holiday had also been completely exhausted during these three months of debauchery.

Although the price was a bit high – backstabbed by his little lover, and losing most of his life’s savings – these things seemed to be less painful than the fact that he and Qi Yanwang were officially separated.

Zhuo Huaimo suddenly felt that his brain was a bit abnormal, like the idiotic male lead with a love-obsessed brain in those stupid dramas.

He’d already been bitten, but he couldn’t bear to let go!

No choice; he liked it, so he deserved it!

Yu Fengran smiled, patted him on the shoulder, “You’ve been through a lot lately. Go find someone. Date ten or eight. I’ll cover for you, as long as…”

Yu Fengran rarely spoke in a roundabout way, usually saying everything in one go, so everyone could get back to what they were doing. This sudden “as long as” surprised Zhuo Huaimo a bit.

Zhuo Huaimo put down the coffee in his hand, raised his eyes to look at him, his usually amorous eyes were full of laughter. “As long as what?”

Yu Fengran smiled faintly, “Old Zhuo, just play around, don’t take it seriously, and don’t let it end up like this time!”

When Qi Yanwang was mentioned, Zhuo Huaimo’s eyes dimmed slightly, and his smile froze on his lips.

Yu Fengran got up and patted him on the shoulder. “Don’t think about these things. There are still many things to do next. I’ve taken over all of Qi Yanwang’s work. Don’t worry!”

Zhuo Huaimo adjusted his glasses and said nothing more.

The name Qi Yanwang had become a thorn in his heart, impossible to remove, and untouchable.

At the same time, Qi Yanwang stood in front of Zhuo Huaimo’s villa. The electronic screen’s cold red light reflected on his purplish knuckles. After ten consecutive incorrect entries, the lock had activated a 24-hour lockout program.

Twenty cardboard boxes printed with the Xingyue Media logo were neatly stacked in the courtyard. His haute couture suits were casually draped with dust covers, and the simple ring he’d brought back from Hokkaido was thrown on top.

Although he’d been mentally prepared, when he really faced this scene, his heart still ached.

During this period, his heart had been repeatedly tormented and humiliated by Zhuo Huaimo, cut open again and again, almost ground into powder, ready to be scattered to the winds in the next second.

Not only that, but he also had to repeatedly weigh his self-blame and unwillingness. Although the final result was always to strengthen his belief that he wanted to keep Zhuo Huaimo by his side, the process was always torturous.

At this moment, he actually felt a sense of relief.

He masochistically felt Zhuo Huaimo’s indifference and torment towards him, because this could reduce some of the guilt in his heart.

Zhuo Huaimo sat in the empty living room, holding a cup of coffee that had long gone cold, staring blankly at the clock on the wall.

Time ticked by, and the System’s countdown echoed in his mind, like a dull knife, slowly and cruelly severing his nerves.

The damned System Meow reconnected, with its familiar ruthless Make complaints: “How long are you going to sit here? I told you not to play around! Now you’ve gotten yourself into trouble, haven’t you?”

Zhuo Huaimo rolled his eyes at it. “If I wanted to play around, would I look for him?”

System Meow helplessly licked its fur. “That’s even worse. You only cared about those three months of bliss and didn’t think about how to clean up afterward!”

Zhuo Huaimo really couldn’t refute that statement.

From the moment he first saw Qi Yanwang, he was attracted to him as if he was possessed. He was indeed not approaching him with a purely casual attitude, at least not entirely.

It was just that the rush of dopamine caused a systemic imbalance in his primitive instincts.

He desperately wanted something to happen between him and that person. He had to squeeze himself into that person’s life.

Even if the two of them could only walk together for a short while, he would be willing.

At that time, he was like a naive teenager, reckless and regardless of the consequences.

Qi Yanwang was probably his only decision without a Plan B!

“Life value remaining: 72 hours! Hurry up and find a target!”

The System constantly urged him, reminding him that his life was just a transaction.

He sometimes even suspected that the System had deliberately found him, using his proud acting skills to navigate among those who played at love, in exchange for his laughable life value.

Zhuo Huaimo closed his eyes, and Qi Yanwang’s face appeared in his mind.

He didn’t want to go looking for any new target, didn’t want to engage in any more insincere interactions with people he didn’t love.

“Don’t blame me for not reminding you. Once you die, you’ll lose everything. Maybe Qi Yanwang will be sad for a few years, then meet someone who looks like you, and then it’ll be a typical substitution romance – boom!”

Damn it!

He had to admit that System Meow was good at manipulating people.

In the past, he was just afraid of death. Now, he was unwilling to die.

The phrase “Qi Yanwang will find someone else in the future” instantly ignited his fighting spirit and desire to survive.

He decisively rushed back to the dressing room, changed his clothes, grabbed his car keys, and returned a call to the young man who had invited him out several times. “Address!”

But just as he was on his way to the appointment, the phone rang.

Zhuo Huaimo glanced at it. It was Yu Fengran calling. Without a second thought, he answered it directly, his tone relaxed. “Hey, Old Yu~”

“Where are you?”

Yu Fengran’s tone was heavy.

“On the way to a date. What’s wrong?”

“Come back to the company immediately. Enter through the underground parking garage. I’ll have people from the company pick you up downstairs!”

“What’s wrong?”

“Don’t ask any questions, don’t answer anyone’s calls, come back immediately!”

After speaking, he hung up directly.

Zhuo Huaimo knew that something was wrong, but what exactly had happened to make the usually calm Yu Fengran so serious?

Zhuo Huaimo turned the steering wheel sharply and parked the car on the side of the road. When he took out his phone and saw the overwhelming trending searches, the blinding white light of the phone screen reflected on his suddenly bloodless face.

The trending topics were like a viper’s tongue.

#

#From Capital’s Toy to the Entertainment Circle’s ‘Godfather’: Zhuo Huaimo’s ‘Rise to Power’ Exposed!#

#Xingyue President Zhuo Huaimo’s Indecent Video Leaked#

#Inside Story of Zhuo Huaimo and Qi Yanwang’s ‘Unspoken Rules’ Exposed: Another Solid Piece of Evidence for the Dark Side of the Entertainment Circle!#

Trembling, he clicked on it. In an instant, he saw a twenty-three-year-old version of himself kneeling naked on a carpet, his skin pale and sickly under the cold light.

His hands were tied behind his back, and a diamond-studded dog collar was around his neck. A greasy laugh came from outside the camera. “Young Master Zhuo’s waist is really suitable for a chain.”

“Come on, come over here and lick it clean. Lick it clean, and I’ll give you the male lead!”

The camera shook, showing his thin and unsteady figure, with broken wine bottles and scattered clothes around him.

The phone slipped from his palm, Zhuo Huaimo’s breathing suddenly stopped, and his ears rang.

His stomach cramped, as if countless cold hands were reaching out from the depths of his memory, fiercely gripping his heart.

Those humiliations and fears that he had locked away in the deepest recesses of his memory surged up like a tide, almost drowning him.

The phone in the passenger seat vibrated wildly as media outlets called him non-stop.

He looked around in terror. Suddenly, a white flash went off in the rearview mirror, filling him with panic. It was as if countless reporters would swarm out of that car in the next second and surround him.

Zhuo Huaimo trembled as he rummaged for his medicine bottle. His Adam’s apple bobbed as he swallowed the dry pills, the fragments scraping his esophagus painfully.

He curled up, reaching for the bottle of mineral water that had fallen under the accelerator, his forehead hitting the steering wheel with a muffled thud. In the instant that the seatbelt dug into the scar on his collarbone, memories sprayed like a high-pressure water gun –

On his twenty-third birthday, he was tricked into a hotel suite by his manager.

As the diamond-studded collar was fastened around his neck, the balding investor pinched his chin and said, “Young Master Zhuo’s proud spirit will only taste good when crushed and soaked in wine.”

This video clearly had a second half – he smashed the wine bottle and stabbed it hard into his thigh, trying to stay awake despite being drugged.

Clearly, the other party wanted to directly put him to death.

Half of the video was enough to nail Zhuo Huaimo to the pillar of shame.

The pills in his throat suddenly expanded into blades, and Zhuo Huaimo vomited, clinging to the car window.

A reporter recognized his car, and the crowd surged like a tide.

“Open the door, President Zhuo!”

“Is that you in the video with the chain around your neck?”

The muffled thuds of reporters pounding on the car window overlapped with the sound of kicking doors in his memory. He bit the tip of his tongue fiercely, the taste of blood and the bitterness of the pills exploding in his mouth.

Suddenly, with a loud bang, the driver’s side door was violently pulled open.

The cold autumn wind poured in instantly, and a suit jacket with the scent of cedar trees was thrown over his head.

Zhuo Huaimo trembled violently in the darkness, the burning temperature of the other person’s palm scorching his spine through the fabric.

Qi Yanwang directly tore off the seatbelt and dragged him out, wrapping him in his coat.

Xingyue Media’s security was forcibly separating the crowd.

“Don’t look.”

Qi Yanwang suddenly covered his eyes, but Zhuo Huaimo still saw through his fingers – the advertising screen on the side of the road was playing the scene of him crawling on his knees to reach for the contract. The crushed diamonds on the collar reflected colorful humiliation in the camera.

He arched his body suddenly and vomited, stomach acid mixed with blood splattering on Qi Yanwang’s expensive leather shoes. The sound of cameras clicking frantically came from behind him.

Qi Yanwang suddenly turned around and snatched the nearest camera, smashing the machine hard against the advertising screen amidst exclamations.

Amid the exploding sparks, he roared with red eyes, “If anyone takes another picture of him, I’ll dig out their eyeballs!”

Zhuo Huaimo in his arms suddenly stopped moving.

Qi Yanwang looked down and found him smiling at his bloodstained fingers, his gold-rimmed glasses sliding down to the tip of his nose, revealing the insane glimmers in his eyes. “Well done… I should have done that back then, too…”

Qi Yanwang lifted him up and rushed into the business car, followed by the sound of Yu Fengran directing security to block off the scene.

In the office, Gu Chen Zhou looked at this scene of “hero saving beauty” and smiled sinisterly. “Qi Yanwang, shouldn’t you thank me? For giving you another chance to perform!”