My Wandering Swordsman

I walked out towards the film studio.

After walking for about the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, they heard footsteps ahead and saw three or four figures rushing over in a hurry.

Oh ho, there's someone I know here.

The one leading the group was none other than Niu Dafa, the heartless production assistant on set.

The crew of Niu clearly recognized me, or rather, after yesterday and today's two shows, there probably aren't many people in the entire crew who don't know me, Ji Xiaosong.

When he saw me standing brazenly in the middle of the road, he paused, raised his hand, and stopped the people behind him.

I glanced at him and saw three burly men behind him, broad-shouldered and thick-waisted, probably his gang of stuntmen again.

Niu, the production assistant, strolled over to me, stopped in front of me, looked me up and down, and frowned before speaking, "Ji..."

"Ji Xiaosong." I said coldly, giving him his full name.

He clicked his tongue and asked impatiently, "What are you doing blocking the way in the middle of the night instead of sleeping?"

I replied slowly and deliberately:

"You can't get through."

His expression immediately changed.

Now that things have come to this point, everyone understands that I'm here specifically to wait for them.

"Hey Ji, aren't you being a bit nosy? Don't think that just because Yu Weiwei is backing you up, I won't dare to touch you."

I glanced up at the few burly men behind the production assistant and smiled.

"Then why don't you make a move? With just these few lousy cowards behind you?"

Upon hearing this, the expressions of the three stuntmen changed instantly, but due to my heroic performance that day, none of them dared to step forward.

Niu, the production assistant, cursed under his breath as "useless," his facial muscles twitching as he sneered, "Hey Ji, don't be so arrogant. Let me tell you straight, you won't be around for much longer. There's no point in me dealing with you now."

"You're in for a world of hurt once that guy gets back, hehe."

My pupils contracted.

That gentleman? Is he referring to the eldest prince or...?

It seems that Niu, the production manager, knows some inside information.

I took a moment to process what I was thinking, and was considering taking the opportunity to ask a few more questions, but before I could even speak, the production manager waved his hand and said, "Let's go!"

They were actually planning to retreat immediately.

I quickly called out, "Stageman Niu, please wait!"

He turned his head in confusion and scoffed:

"What? Now you're scared? Hahahaha—"

"You can beg me on your knees, but it won't do you any good. You're lucky if you even walk out of Hengdian unscathed."

I ignored his harsh words and simply said loudly, "Want to talk?"

"Pooh!"

The production assistant spat, his spittle almost splashing onto my shoes: "What the hell are you talking about? Just wait to die."

After saying that, he turned and left, his back view crisp and clean.

I was too lazy to chase after him, so I put my hands in my pockets and slowly said to his retreating figure:

"Heh, the production crew in Hengdian is really something else. They take the extras' fees and then beat them up... They're like the ones who dug the well while they're drinking the water. I've really seen something new."

Niu, the stage manager, suddenly stiffened and stopped.

He slowly turned around, his smile completely vanished: "What did you say?"

I knew he had heard me, so I didn't say anything more, tilting my head to look at him: "Want to talk?"

On the contrary, the stuntmen behind Director Niu were somewhat confused: "Brother Niu, what's this 'head fee'?"

Niu, the production assistant, looked even darker and waved his hand impatiently: "It's nothing, you guys go ahead, I'll talk to this kid."

The stuntmen looked at each other, but didn't ask any questions. After exchanging glances, they turned and walked back.

The footsteps faded into the distance, and the street fell silent again, leaving only Niu Juwu and me, standing a few steps apart, sizing each other up.

Seeing that the stuntmen had walked away, he leaned closer to me and whispered, "Kid, what exactly are you trying to do? I'm warning you, don't talk nonsense."

I chuckled.

"Am I talking nonsense? Extras earn 25 yuan a day, you give them 18 yuan, and you take 7 yuan from each person. That's incredibly greedy."

I said that to test him. My aunt said the daily allowance for extras on set is 25 yuan, but now the production manager is only paying us 18 yuan a day. I don't know who's pocketing that money.

The production assistant was stunned after hearing this:

"Twenty-five? Are you kidding me? Where did this twenty-five come from?"

Ok?

I kept staring at his face and noticed his expression changing repeatedly: surprise, bewilderment, and then utter confusion...

His expression didn't seem fake.

My heart sank: "I'm talking nonsense? My aunt told me herself that extras earn twenty-five a day."

"Grass?"

"Holy shit, holy shit..."

"Honestly, Assistant Director Wang paid me twenty yuan a day."

"No, how can people's hearts be so black..."

After hearing this, Niu, the theater manager, jumped up and down, cursing in the street.

I squinted.

Assistant Director Wang! It's that beast again!

My mind raced for a moment, and I sneered, "You've already smoked two yuan anyway, so what if the extras find out about this..."

Taking a cut is like poop in your pants; a little bit is still a little bit, it doesn't matter how much.

Niu, the production assistant, understood this perfectly well and asked through gritted teeth, "What exactly do you want?"

"Tell me what you know about the First Prince."

After a pause, I added, "Oh, and also, let's work together on the extras."

With such a sordid incident happening on set, I have no reason not to get involved.

When Niu, the production manager, heard me say this, he was taken aback at first, and then chuckled a few times.

"You bastard surnamed Ji, you're a complete hypocrite! You were just standing up for the extras, and now you're ready to profit from their misfortune?"

I rolled my eyes at him: "The cooperation I'm talking about is different from what you're thinking. Haven't you heard of Robin Hood-style 'robbing the rich to help the poor'?"

The production assistant, Niu, took a while to react before slowly speaking:

"You mean... you're getting it from the assistant director's side? How much have you been drinking? You're talking nonsense."

"You don't need to worry about that, just tell me whether we're willing to cooperate or not."

"Cooperation my ass. You don't even have many days left to live, and you're still thinking about money. Lu Guodong will be back soon."

"Lü Guodong?"

"Well--"

When the production assistant realized he'd let something slip, he decided to drop the bomb and spill everything out:

"Lu Guodong is a well-known local investor. Over the years, all the films he has invested in, such as 'Party B and Party D' and 'The World Is Full of Thieves,' have made a fortune. He's in Hong Kong and Taiwan on business these days and can't keep an eye on things here. When he comes back, haha."

I vaguely guessed what was going on: "Is Lü Guodong the eldest prince's father?"

The production assistant looked at me like I was an idiot: "Of course! If I were you, I'd buy a train ticket and leave right there tonight."

"Ahem!"

I coughed a few times suddenly.

No wonder, now I see. It seems I've really run into a tough opponent.

However, with outsiders in front of me, I remained calm and collected: "Let's not talk about that. Just answer me whether you're willing to cooperate or not?"

The production assistant started looking me up and down, and after a long while, he finally said, "If you can get that bastard Wang to cough up the money, then let's cooperate."

That's exactly what I was waiting for him to say:

"it is good."