Chapter 44: Their Love Cannot Be Let Down
A lucky hit.
That was the only phrase Jin Yanliu could think of.
He really hadn’t meant to screw over Zhao Sili.
Tonight’s charity gala was attended by everyone in the industry. Zhao Sili’s Lile Media had officially opened for business, so naturally, he wouldn’t miss such an industry event. Zhao Sili was a businessman. His interactions with Jin Yanliu weren’t simply about pursuing him; it was clear he also wanted to ride on his popularity.
Zhao Sili’s relentless pursuit of Jin Yanliu was known throughout the entertainment industry, and Zhao Sili had gained notoriety because of this rumored affair. His interaction with Jin Yanliu at this charity gala was clearly an attempt to kill two birds with one stone.
By boasting that he would donate double whatever Jin Yanliu donated, he would both please Jin Yanliu and show off his wealth, maximizing his presence.
Zhao Sili had actually guessed that Jin Yanliu wouldn’t donate a small amount. However, the donations from celebrities attending the charity gala today fluctuated within the tens of thousands. Yao Sisi, who had donated one million, was an exception. He estimated that Jin Yanliu would donate at most one million, which would already be considered outstanding among these celebrities.
So, when Jin Yanliu turned over the white board in his hand and he saw the string of zeros trailing behind the number, he froze.
The entire gala erupted in a buzz. Everyone was shocked by Jin Yanliu’s generosity and also eager to see Zhao Sili’s reaction.
No one expected to see such a good show!
Even the host was momentarily embarrassed. She smiled at Zhao Sili sitting in the audience, feeling a bit sympathetic towards him. For a moment, she didn’t know what to say. After a while, she finally said, “Wow, let me count… tens, hundreds, thousands, ten thousands, hundred thousands, millions, ten millions, hundred millions… Are you sure you didn’t add an extra zero?”
Jin Yanliu smiled and said, “I’m very sure. I just don’t know if Mr. Zhao is still sure.”
After he finished speaking, he looked at Zhao Sili.
Of course, Zhao Sili couldn’t take out two hundred million. It wasn’t just a matter of losing face. Even for a wealthy tycoon, taking out so much money at once wasn’t easy. This was a charity gala, not a national disaster relief donation. Only a lunatic like Jin Yanliu would donate one hundred million in one go.
Zhao Sili, always gloomy, blushed. The people around him were laughing, some with goodwill, others mocking him.
The slap in the face came so fast, like a tornado.
[So did Zhao Sili end up donating?]
[Oh my god, what a predicament. Just thinking about it makes me embarrassed for him. Two hundred million, who can afford that? If he doesn’t donate, he’ll be contradicting himself after what he just said. I bet he must hate Jin Yanliu now.]
[What does it have to do with Jin Yanliu? Jin Yanliu’s donation was predetermined. He didn’t know Zhao Sili would follow suit. Zhao Sili can only blame himself for trying to join in the fun.]
[What happened in the end? I didn’t see the follow-up.]
[Two hundred million is definitely impossible. Zhao Sili ended up donating ten million.]
[That’s still a lot.]
[Zhao Sili must be so pissed. If he had just donated ten million from the beginning, he would have gotten such good publicity. But now it’s so awkward, he’s bleeding so much money, and he’s become the laughingstock.]
[He must be pissed. I bet he never intended to donate ten million in the first place. I wonder if he was just trying to show off. It’s hilarious.]
[He wasn’t trying to show off. If he really had to, he could take out two hundred million. The Zhao family is not an ordinary family. But spending the money and losing face like this is truly frustrating.]
[Jin Yanliu became famous with this single donation. I saw even straight men’s forums praising him. After tonight’s fermentation, it will probably blow up everyone’s social media tomorrow.]
[Doing charity really boosts one’s image. I’m becoming a fan.]
[Kind and beautiful, that’s him.]
The charity gala finally ended. Cheng Fei and Fatty Xiao surrounded Jin Yanliu as they left.
Jin Yanliu was the focus of tonight. People constantly greeted him along the way. It was cold outside, with the north wind blowing. Fatty Xiao quickly draped a long coat over Jin Yanliu.
He was about to get into the car when he heard someone calling his name behind him. He glanced back and saw Zhao Sili walking towards him with a cane.
The surrounding people secretly looked at them. Jin Yanliu stopped, put on his coat properly, and waited for Zhao Sili to reach him.
“Mr. Zhao, you spent a fortune today,” Jin Yanliu said with a smile.
Being able to offend Zhao Sili like this today was an unexpected delight.
Zhao Sili smiled, but there was no mirth in his eyes. “I underestimated you.”
Jin Yanliu smiled even more brilliantly and mischievously, “I told you before, you don’t understand me. Now, this is good. You see, you understand me a little better now, right?”
He chuckled, waved, and got into the car.
Fatty Xiao and Cheng Fei followed closely behind. As soon as the car door closed, Cheng Fei said, “He’s already upset enough tonight, and you’re still provoking him.”
Jin Yanliu glanced at Zhao Sili through the car window and saw Zhao Sili pressing his thin lips together, looking at him with a rather gloomy expression.
Tonight, he was triumphant, his heart filled with the last madness before his downfall. Seeing Zhao Sili like this, he only felt joy.
Cheng Fei suddenly handed him a script.
Jin Yanliu was stunned for a moment, and Fatty Xiao had already turned on the car’s interior lights.
“You definitely won’t refuse this one,” Cheng Fei said with a smile.
When someone’s luck arrives, it truly can’t be stopped, especially in the entertainment industry. Those who are fading will only fade further, while those who are popular will become even more popular. Jin Yanliu had recently received countless good scripts.
However, Jin Yanliu, whether out of caution or high standards, had actually rejected several good movie scripts.
“I think our next step should still be making movies. Let’s not take on any TV series for the next two years. In the field of TV dramas, to some extent, you’ve already reached the peak. It’s time to turn to the big screen.”
Jin Yanliu looked at the title of the script, “Forecast.”
He looked up and asked, “Whose script is this? Why does it look so familiar?”
Cheng Fei revealed a very proud smile, “This is a script our studio worked hard to secure for you. Consider it an early birthday present. Your favorite director, Yang Hanyun’s new movie.”
Jin Yanliu immediately sat up straight upon hearing this.
Seeing his reaction, Cheng Fei became even more smug, “This is his first new movie in three years. You’ll miss out if you don’t take it.”
Yang Hanyun was one of the top three directors in the country, known for his strong personal style, especially for his mind-bending suspense films. Of the seven movies he had made, five were crime suspense films, all classics. Jin Yanliu had been a fan of Yang Hanyun’s movies since middle school.
Jin Yanliu touched the script in his hand, his feelings extremely complex.
There was about a month left before he would be possessed. “Into The Abyss” still had about a week left to film. In the remaining twenty-odd days, he had too many things to deal with, and he was in no mood to film another movie. He hadn’t even started his self-destruction yet. Even if he took this movie, it would be for the imposter.
Cheng Fei asked, “Aren’t you going to read it?”
“I’ll read it back at the hotel,” Jin Yanliu said.
He suddenly saw several girls standing in the cold wind, holding light signs. They jumped up as soon as they saw their car.
“Are those my fans?” he asked. “Why are they still here?”
Cheng Fei glanced out the window and saw the light signs in the girls’ hands, Jin Yanliu’s name shining brightly.
“It seems so,” he said.
“Stop the car,” Jin Yanliu said.
The car hadn’t left the square yet, so the driver stopped. The girls hadn’t held out much hope, but as soon as they saw the car stop, they immediately screamed.
Jin Yanliu opened the car door and got out, wrapping his coat tightly around himself in the cold wind.
It was really cold.
It was so cold, and these girls were still waiting for him.
The girls screamed and ran over. When they reached him, they became shy, both excited and afraid to get too close to him.
Jin Yanliu smiled and asked, “Why are you still waiting for me here?”
“We wanted to see you again. We thought we could only see your car,” the short-haired girl at the front said excitedly. “I was waving my light sign just now. Did you see it?”
Waiting for so long, waving their light signs vigorously, just to let him see them. They probably hadn’t expected him to stop.
The love of fans was sometimes truly selfless.
“It’s too cold. You should go back quickly,” Jin Yanliu said with a smile.
“We saw your one hundred million donation! We’re so happy!” a long-haired girl said. “Brother, you’re amazing!”
Jin Yanliu smiled and asked, “Do you want to take a picture together?”
“Yes, yes, yes!” The girls jumped up.
Jin Yanliu had Fatty Xiao take a few pictures for them. Jin Yanliu was tall, so he crouched down slightly when taking the group photo.
After taking the photos, he chatted with them for a bit before getting back into the car. As the car door was about to close, the girls shouted at him, “Brother, we love you!”
Jin Yanliu smiled and waved, then the car door closed.
“These fans are really…” Cheng Fei said, “Sometimes I think they’re silly, and sometimes I’m touched by them. It’s great to be young, to be able to like someone like this.”
The car slowly drove away. Jin Yanliu saw the girls excitedly jumping through the car window. Their excited laughter could be heard from so far away; it was pure joy from the bottom of their hearts. The autographs he signed for them, they would probably treasure them for a lifetime. They would definitely excitedly post them all over social media, just because they had seen him, spoken a few words to him.
Seeing that he was a little down, Fatty Xiao quickly said, “Brother Yanliu, you’re trending again today, and it’s all praise.”
Jin Yanliu smiled and said, “Let me see.”
Fatty Xiao sent him screenshots of some comments from various forums. Jin Yanliu leaned back in his seat and looked at them one by one.
They were all praising him, praising him for outshining the female celebrities tonight, praising him for being kind and beautiful. He smiled as he read, but his heart grew increasingly sad.
After tonight’s excitement, there was a sense of loss and confusion after the bustling activity. He even felt that these people weren’t really praising him, but were shocked by the one hundred million. Rather than being shocked by his generosity, they were shocked by the dreamlike feeling brought about by the huge sum of money.
One hundred million at a whim, even if it had nothing to do with them, it was still exciting to watch the drama unfold.
No matter how he squandered his money, no matter how self-destructive he was, even if he fell from the peak into the valley, he would be the one losing, and the imposter would be the one gaining. Besides, the things he possessed, how could he destroy them just because he wanted to?
He was Jin Yanliu, but Jin Yanliu no longer belonged solely to him, this body, this name.
The logic of his reverse transmigration was too chaotic, seemingly destined to fail.
If it couldn’t succeed…
When he returned to the hotel, the crew was still filming night scenes. After he finished showering, Zhou Beiyang still hadn’t returned. He lay in bed and finished reading the script of “Forecast.”
It was really well-written. The ending was still Yang Hanyun’s favorite shocking reversal, which left him stunned for a long time after reading it.
He lay back on the bed, the feeling of dejection intensifying.
Such a good script, he really wanted to act in it.
“Hello, Little Ai.”
Ding-dong, Little Ai came online: “Dear.”
Perhaps sensing his dejection, Little Ai was particularly gentle this time: “What’s wrong, dear?”
“The imposter didn’t transmigrate here of his own volition, right? Was he forced to come here just like the Shen Jintai you mentioned?”
Little Ai said: “This… the novel doesn’t mention it. Probably.”
“Then he’s not that hateful, after all, none of this was his choice. After he transmigrates, he’ll be slept with by so many men, it’s quite pitiful, right?”
Little Ai: “…Not pitiful, he’ll enjoy it.”
“…” Jin Yanliu was silent for a while and said, “If I leave him a great future, a good man, and a lot of money, after he transmigrates, will he do as I ask if you tell him? Like, act seriously, don’t fool around, and live a devoted life with Zhou Beiyang. Didn’t you say Zhou Beiyang is likely the final male lead? I’ve taken him directly to the finish line, so he doesn’t have to be involved in a polyamorous relationship, right?”
“Dear, what’s wrong? Weren’t you going to take revenge on him?”
“Helping me is also for the sake of harmony, to eliminate the possibility of his polyamorous relationships. Whether I take revenge on him or not, whether I self-destruct or not, it doesn’t make any difference to you, does it?” Jin Yanliu was silent for a while, thinking of Zhou Beiyang, his fans, his not-so-close father, his friends, and people like Fatty Xiao and Cheng Fei.
Did he really want to hurt these people for the sake of the imposter? If he went crazy with self-destruction, these people would be very hurt, right? The more they loved him, the more disappointed and sad they would be, watching him fall from the sky.
“Then don’t self-destruct,” Little Ai said softly, “Dear, there are thirty-one days left. Enjoy your last days. Actually, you’ve already disrupted the plot invisibly. As for what will happen after the imposter transmigrates, whether he will still get entangled with those big shots, it’s all unknown. Nobody knows.”
Jin Yanliu pursed his lips and said, “That’s letting him off easy.”
“He may not be doing it willingly. He might also be forced to leave his familiar life, his family, friends, and even loved ones, to become Jin Yanliu.”
When Zhou Beiyang returned, Jin Yanliu was already asleep.
He washed up quietly and then slipped into bed, snuggling up behind Jin Yanliu and gently hugging him.
Jin Yanliu suddenly turned around, nestled into his arms, and hugged his waist.
“Awake?” Zhou Beiyang asked softly.
Jin Yanliu didn’t speak, seemingly still fast asleep, hugging him purely out of habit and instinct.
Zhou Beiyang didn’t say anything more. He just kissed Jin Yanliu’s hair, inhaling Jin Yanliu’s unique, faint fragrance that melted into his heart and soul.
