My cousin asked me to go to Wuha, and Hanikezi stuck to me.

"You'll meet on the red carpet." Xiao Fang took a deep breath.

Chen Yi stared at the name on the tablet.

"Wouldn't it be better to meet up?" Chen Yi said casually.

He tossed the tablet back in front of the small square.

"Since you're an award presenter, let's follow the rules."

Two weeks later.

Chen Yi's personal studio in Beijing.

Xiao Fang slammed a huge printed seating chart onto his desk.

"Brother! Look what that old woman Hong has done!" Xiao Fang pointed at the blueprints.

"Section A, third row, Hanikezi. Section B, sixth row, you. There are three rows of seats in between, and a two-meter-wide aisle!"

Chen Yi leaned back in the boss's chair.

"Not only that," Xiao Fang continued, "I've heard that Sister Hong has even arranged the seating around Hani. To her left is a newly signed young actor from her company, and to her right is a well-known married veteran actor. Even if the cameras pan across the set, you two won't even be able to see the backs of your heads together!"

"She really went to a lot of trouble." Chen Yi twirled the lighter in his hand.

"How could I not go to all this trouble!" Xiao Fang pulled up a chair and sat down. "These past two weeks, Sister Hong has been treating Hani like a donkey in a production team. She's been traveling to three cities non-stop, auditioning for four historical dramas. Hani's personal cell phone has to be handed over to her assistant every night at ten o'clock sharp, and there's even someone guarding outside when she goes to the toilet. Brother, have you guys contacted each other these past two weeks?"

Chen Yi did not respond.

Contact?

Hanikezi is indeed being watched very closely.

But Sister Hong overlooked one crucial detail: she forgot that Hanikezi had a tablet computer that she usually used for playing games.

For the past two weeks, the two have relied on voice chat in the team rooms of Honor of Kings to keep going.

That was late the night before last.

Hanikezi hid in her hotel bed, keeping her voice very low during the live stream.

"Chen Yi, that male lead in the historical romance drama doesn't even memorize his lines, he just recites numbers!"

"Sister Hong got me another micro-business endorsement deal today. The face mask I used was so bad it made my face powder fall off."

"I can't hold on much longer."

Chen Yi was looking at the script outline at the time.

"Hang in there for one more day," Chen Yi said into the microphone. "I'll give you a gift at the Golden Melody Awards ceremony."

Hanikezi immediately perked up on the other end of the voice call.

"What gift? Something to eat?"

Chen Yi chuckled.

"It's better than food. It will allow you to eat whatever you want from now on."

Memories come together.

Chen Yi looked at Xiao Fang, who was sweating profusely across from him.

"Have you completed the legal procedures regarding the script?" Chen Yi changed the subject.

"We're done." Xiao Fang pulled a thick document out of his bag. "The copyrights are all registered under our studio's name. But bro, where did you get such an awesome script? Several evaluation experts said it's definitely aiming for a major award. The female lead's character is practically tailor-made for Hani."

"Enough talk, put it away." Chen Yi pushed the document back.

"I'll find an opportunity to hand it to her tomorrow night."

"Tomorrow?" Xiao Fang's eyes widened. "Brother, are you crazy?! Tomorrow's event, with hundreds of cameras, you're going to hand over the script right under Sister Hong's nose?"

Chen Yi stopped what he was doing.

"Not only will I hand it over," Chen Yi said with extreme certainty, "I'll also make sure she receives it openly and honestly."

Xiao Fang swallowed.

"Brother, don't do anything rash. I asked some friends in the industry, and the new executives at Star Entertainment have been frequently contacting those people from Fengxing Studio these past few days." Xiao Fang lowered his voice.

"Those paparazzi are notoriously difficult to deal with. They're experts at micro-expression analysis. Even if you just raise an eyebrow, they can write a 100,000-word essay about it. Sister Hong has definitely gone all out this time, even getting these people involved."

"Let them take the pictures." Chen Yi picked up his coffee and took a sip.

"Brother! This is no joke!" Xiao Fang slapped his thigh anxiously. "Sister Hong is just waiting to catch you two red-handed! If she catches you making eye contact for even a second, tomorrow's trending topic will be 'Secret Relationship Exposed'! Xingyu's PR department has already prepared the press release!"

Chen Yi put down his coffee cup.

"Star Entertainment's stock price has plummeted beyond recognition." Chen Yi tapped his fingers on the table. "The new board of directors desperately needs a large sum of money to fill the hole. Honey's current S-level contract is their only lifeline."

"Exactly!" Xiao Fang chimed in, "Once your affair is exposed, Hani's commercial value will plummet. Xingyu Entertainment can then legitimately demand an exorbitant breach of contract penalty, effectively locking her in for life!"

"You've got a good plan," Chen Yi sneered.

Just as Xiao Fang was about to continue trying to dissuade him...

A blinding red screen appeared on Chen Yi's retina.

The system panel pops up automatically.

[WARNING: A large-scale targeted malicious spying setup has been detected.]

Location: The Chinese Golden Melody Awards ceremony and surrounding area.

[Event Analysis: A high density of unofficial paparazzi were present at the scene, with multiple telephoto lenses locking onto the area. This appears to be a last-ditch effort by the remaining forces of Star Entertainment Media in conjunction with their investors.]

[System suggestion: The host should activate basic disguise throughout the red carpet and indoor events to prevent facial micro-expressions and gaze points from being captured and magnified by high frame rate devices.]

Chen Yi looked at the scrolling red text on the panel.

The new executives at Star Entertainment Media clearly weren't planning to let it go so easily.

Zhou Jianguo is in jail, but the greed of capital will not stop.

They were aware of Hanikezi's current commercial value, and also knew that Chen Yi was the biggest variable.

Since they can't kill Chen Yi openly, they'll resort to the most despicable means.

During the Golden Melody Awards, which were broadcast live across the entire internet, any moment when the two of them exchanged glances or had even the slightest contact in private could immediately go viral and become a trending topic.

"Brother? What are you thinking about?" Xiao Fang shivered as he looked at Chen Yi's suddenly cold expression.

"Raise the security level for tomorrow by one level." Chen Yi closed the system panel.

"Tell the legal department to be on standby at any time."

Xiao Fang was stunned for a moment.

"What happened?"

"Someone wants to give us a big gift tomorrow night," Chen Yi said with a cold, emotionless smile.

The voice just fell.

My phone, which was on the table, suddenly vibrated.

The screen lights up.

It wasn't WeChat, but a very basic text message.

Chen Yi picked up his phone and opened the text message.

The sender was a long string of virtual numbers, and its origin could not be traced at all.

The message contained only two short sentences.

"Tomorrow night, your secret relationship will be made public."

"Get ready."

ps:

[Four chapters completed for today. Remember to click to urge for more updates and add to your bookshelf!]