Huh? Are villainous bosses this easy to flirt with?

Chapter 196 The Waters of the Rich and Powerful Are Too Deep

……

The October wind in City A carried a slight chill, sweeping across the concrete ground of the film set and swirling up a few withered yellow leaves.

Xie Qing, wearing a khaki trench coat, flipped through the script with her slender fingers, standing next to the monitor with director Mi Qiwu, discussing a certain plot point in the script in low voices.

After the discussion ended, he turned and walked back to his seat, only to find that a number of people were gathered around Jiang Lingling's small stool, looking at their phones and discussing something.

"what's the topic?"

Xie Qing sat down in front of her folding chair and took the thermos cup that Chu Luo handed her. The moment the lid was unscrewed, the steaming heat carrying the aroma of tea wafted out.

Jiang Lingling mysteriously kept it a secret, saying, "It's a secret of the wealthy family."

Xie Qing: "?"

The actresses around Jiang Lingling who were discussing things said, "Teacher Xie, we're talking about Gu Yan, the former Best Actor who retired from the industry."

"Gu Yan?"

Xie Qing hadn't heard this name in a long time, and it took him a while to remember, "Oh... it's him."

Jiang Lingling clapped her hands suddenly, "That's right, it's him!"

She leaned closer to Xie Qing and asked, "Qing~ Did you see the trending topics this morning?"

Xie Qing: "No."

Jiang Lingling clicked her tongue knowingly, "That's true, you were either filming or discussing the script with the director this morning, so you didn't have much time to read."

"Come, come, let me tell you about it."

She switched into gossip mode, chattering away, "Didn't Gu Yan have a scandal with that idol named Xie Nuo, whose bed photos were known all over the internet, and then he retired from the entertainment industry to inherit the family business? You must know about that, right?"

Xie Qing took a sip of tea without saying a word. "Yes, I know."

Those photos were leaked from him, how could he not know?

Jiang Lingling continued, her tone filled with envy, "The whole internet was in an uproar back then. Who would have thought that Gu Yan was actually Gu Jiming's grandson!"

"That's Gu Jiming, from the Gu family, one of the top five wealthy families in City A. Born into such a family and being the heir to the family business, it's safe to say that Gu Yan has no worries in this life."

"result--"

Jiang Lingling suddenly raised her voice, adopting the posture of a storyteller, just missing a gavel, "Guess what?"

Xie chuckled and asked, "What?"

"A son of an illegitimate child named Gu Zhiheng suddenly appeared in the Gu family. This morning, the Gu Group held a press conference, and Old Master Gu Jiming announced in front of all the reporters that the heir of the Gu Group is that illegitimate son, Gu Zhiheng."

Upon hearing this, the actors huddled together and whispered among themselves.

"Tsk tsk tsk, the waters in wealthy families are really too deep; illegitimate children can appear out of nowhere."

"It's not just the wealthy families! Men with even a little money have a ton of illegitimate children and marry multiple wives."

"Does Gu Jiming really feel comfortable entrusting his family business to an illegitimate son? What is he thinking?"

"..."

Xie Qing was somewhat taken aback when she heard the news, but she was more inclined to watch the show unfold.

There were no illegitimate children in the original book, and Gu Yan was always the heir to the Gu Group.

But the plot has gone so far as to be unrecognizable even to its own mother, with a bastard child suddenly appearing and stealing the position of heir from the male protagonist, Gu Yan.

He was really curious about how things would develop next.

Jiang Lingling shook her head. "How about that? Didn't expect that, did you!"

Xie Qing: "I really didn't expect that."

Jiang Lingling suddenly remembered something and asked, "Speaking of which... Xie Qing, didn't you have a rumored relationship with Gu Yan before, and you even participated in the same variety show?"

Xie Qing nodded calmly, "Yes, it's because of the rumors about me that I was attacked by the entire internet."

A deathly silence fell over the surroundings. Jiang Lingling, realizing she had misspoke, said apologetically, "Um... I..."

Xie Qing laughed first, not caring much, "It's all in the past, you don't need to take it to heart."

Jiang Lingling breathed a sigh of relief and resumed her "hot chat" mode, but she never mentioned Gu Yan's name again in the subsequent chat, and the others also tacitly avoided this taboo.

*

In the dead of night in City A, neon lights shimmered in the humid air.

Inside the "Cloud Realm" bar, laser lights sliced ​​the dance floor into colorful fragments, and amidst deafening electronic music, young men and women swayed wildly to the rhythm, the scents of perfume and alcohol fermenting in the sweltering air.

In the VIP booth area, a man mechanically repeated the action of raising a glass, his hair disheveled, his eyes bloodshot, and the tie around his neck crooked like a dead snake.

"That's enough, Gu Yan."

Nie Hua snatched the wine glass away. "So what if you lost your position as heir? It's not like everything's settled yet. Just take it back. Who are you trying to impress by drinking like this?"

Gu Yan didn't answer. He grabbed a beer bottle from the table, tilted his head back, and chugged it down. Nie Hua reached out to stop him, but was pulled back by someone next to her.

"Nie Hua, don't worry about this."

The young man with dyed silver hair, a cigarette dangling from his lips, said, "Brother Gu is upset, so let him drink."

"that is!"

Another young man, with his arm around a female companion, drunkenly chimed in, slamming his glass down, "A good drink can wash away a thousand sorrows. If you get drunk, you'll still be a hero tomorrow!"

Which of these people in the booth wasn't born with a silver spoon in their mouth? Yet, they always have one or two, or even a whole bunch of, illegitimate children in their families who cause them trouble.

Alcohol was burning away his reason. A young man with many earrings smashed a bottle, cursing, "Damn it, illegitimate children are the most disgusting things!"

The sound of shattering broke through the noise. The security guard frowned and looked over, but was stopped by the manager without making a sound.

The latter waved his hand dismissively—they were just a bunch of spoiled young masters acting crazy under the influence of alcohol; what's the big deal about smashing a few bottles?

They wouldn't care if the money was too much; they'd tear the roof off if they were paid more.

The young man, reeking of alcohol and staggering, who had just smashed the bottle, approached Gu Yan indignantly. "Brother Gu, is your grandfather senile? How could he leave the family business to a bastard?!"

"It's just that project in the west of the city lost some money. Everyone makes mistakes, and besides, this is your first time doing it. Does your grandfather have to be so ruthless?"

"..."

He was determined to defend Gu Yan, but he noticed that Gu Yan's face was getting worse and worse, and the veins on his hand holding the wine bottle were bulging, as if he was about to lose control of his emotions.

The silver-haired youth reacted quickly, covering the man's still-talking mouth with his hand. "Alright, shut up."

Just then, a lazy voice abruptly cut in, "Oh, drinking?"

A tall, slender man, with his arm around a boy, strolled leisurely to the booth. "Why didn't you call me?"

Upon seeing the newcomer, the silver-haired youth turned to his companion and whispered, "Who the hell brought him here?!"

His companion shook his head blankly, having sobered up considerably.

Nie Hua greeted him with a forced smile, "Young Master Bai, what brings you here?"

"What, am I not welcome?"

Bai Xiaoran sat down, and the boy he brought sat down next to him with a pale face, red eyes, and a slight tremor in his body—this person was Xie Nuo.