Chapter 377: The Old Master’s Plot (1)

Vv was a mystical existence in the industry; low-key, of few words, and mysterious. No matter how much his fans shouted and pleaded, he did whatever he liked. Yet, this ‘devil may care’ attitude of his garnered even more support for him. Moreover, since making his first public appearance till now, he wasn’t involved in even a single scandal. At times, one sentence was all it took from him to send ripples across the industry.

After his appearance on Weibo, what was once a battle royale immediately turned into a one-sided massacre. Only a few fans who didn’t have enough brain cells to rub together were left on Luofeng’s side, while the rest of them no longer dared to mouth off.

However, things definitely wouldn’t end just like that.

By the time Zhao Chengning and Shen Jingbin reached Yiju’s headquarters, its senior management had already received word and personally came out to receive them. Then, they were sent straight towards the Public Relations Department.

“We’ve already contacted the hotel and asked them to provide the elevator’s surveillance footage. However, if the surveillance footage was made public, your identities would be exposed in the process. Would the two of you be alright with this?” Yiju’s senior management carefully asked the fearsome looking group as they wiped a bead of cold sweat from their brows. They were deathly afraid of accidentally offending B City’s overlord.

“I’ll agree to it as long as you ensure this person never shows their face again,” Zhao Chengning said.

The senior manager anxiously looked towards the public relations director - a woman in her forties. She wore a business suit and was adorned with immaculate makeup. She presented herself well, and not a hair was out of place. She pushed up her spectacles and said, “I’m afraid that people in that industry are extremely tolerant towards one another. It would take substantial evidence to ensure that he never shows his face again.”

Zhao Chengning pondered the matter for a moment before he said, “Wait.”

Then, under everyone’s gaze, he called Chen Yi and simply explained the reason for his call: he wanted Blooming Flower Pavilion’s surveillance footage.

Chen Yi was a little excited when she first picked up, but after finding out the reason for his call, her spirits plummeted. But, after thinking about it for a bit, she realised that this was a chance to threaten Zhao Chengning. However, she was stopped short by Zhao Chengning just as she was about to say something. “Chen Yi, do you believe that if I wanted to, I could make Blooming Flower Pavilion part of the Zhao family tomorrow?”

Chen Yi froze. She suddenly realised that Zhao Chengning’s friendly attitude towards her previously was really just out of courtesy. Yet, she was under the impression that he was being gentle towards her. With a dejected sigh, she agreed to hand over the surveillance footage to him.

Blooming Flower Pavilion’s surveillance footage proved to be much more useful than the one from Panlong Kaiyuan Hotel. After viewing the footage, they knew that Luofeng would have absolutely no chance at a comeback once it was released to the public. At the same time, the storm brewing in the depths of Zhao Chengning’s eyes became fiercer.

Shortly after Vv made his Weibo post, Yiju, which had been silent thus far, suddenly threw out two videos. One was taken from the inside of an elevator. In it, Luofeng could clearly be seen trying to cozy up to a young woman beside him till another man, who was on the woman’s other side and appeared to be her boyfriend, stepped in. He then flew into a humiliation-fuelled rage and stormed out of the elevator. The second video taken in a restaurant. In it, the young woman from before made an appearance yet again, followed by Luofeng, who she happened to run into. She tried to avoid him, but Luofeng insisted on sticking close to her. The two of them exchanged a few sentences before Luofeng suddenly made a move on her. Unfortunately for him, he was knocked flat on his stomach before he even touched her.

These two videos were like a bolt from the blue, thoroughly silencing Luofeng’s supporters. In that instant, internet sentiment did a complete 180 and everyone now stood against Luofeng.

Following that, Yiju’s management revealed Shen Jingbin and Zhao Chengning’s identities. After watching the videos, everyone felt like they’d been played for fools and exploded in a rage, including Luofeng’s fans. They switched sides and tore at their former idol.

Hence, a celebrity ended up committing career suicide just like that.

After this incident, Vv’s fame soared to even greater heights. In fact, even the celebrities that had sided with Yiju increased in popularity as well, while Luofeng, who found out about it later on, was frothing from the mouth in anger.

And yet, no medicine existed for regret. One had to reap what they’d sowed.

In the end, the incident had a satisfying conclusion, and Jade Sea Pavilion’s offline meetup was a resounding success.

Shen Jingbin noticed that Zhao Chenging responded a lot more strongly this time around than the previous online incident. When she asked him about it, Zhao Chengning made up an excuse to throw her off.

He certainly wasn’t going to tell her the reason was because Luofeng had set his sights on her, and even dared to make a move. Even though Luofeng failed in the end, he still had to pay for his crimes.

Grandpa Shen learned about the incident several days later when it was almost time for the new semester to begin. He told the siblings to have a meal at the Zhao household before returning to A City, which the pair agreed to without much further thought.

The siblings arrived at the Zhao residence early in the morning. When they walked up to the front door, they noticed that there were many other wealthy and reputable people present. When the butler, who was receiving the guests by the door, caught a glimpse of them, he hurriedly dealt with the person in front of him before walking over.

“Mr Shen, Miss Shen, you’ve arrived.”

Shen Jingbin asked, “This is?”

“Oh, many paid the Old Master a visit during the New Year. At that time, he was busy so he couldn’t attend to them. Now that he’s free, he’s decided to host a banquet to return the favor.”

Shen Jingchen took a quick glance at the casual clothes he and Shen Jingbin were wearing. Feeling a little embarrassed, he asked, “Why didn’t you tell us about this beforehand? Our attire isn’t really befitting of such an occasion...”

The butler interrupted him. “It doesn’t matter Mr Shen. Our Old Master has said that both of you are like family, so there’s no need for you to stand on ceremony. You’re free to wear whatever you want.”

Even though the Old Master Zhao had given them the okay, the siblings still weren’t feeling very comfortable about it. Just think about it: everyone else would be in formal attire while the two of them wore sweaters and flip flops. It didn’t seem right no matter how you looked at it.