Chapter 30: The Truth
Su Chimian was originally having afternoon tea on the balcony, but when he glanced at his phone, he unexpectedly saw the revelation on Weibo.
At first, he looked at the post and just thought the blogger was desperate for attention.
No one knew better than him what had happened when Chi Xiasheng fell into the sea. In such a vast, boundless ocean, how could there be any chance of survival?
And before he had fainted from the sound of the gunshot, he had clearly seen a large area of the sea stained red with blood.
Shot and then fallen into the sea, if he could still survive that, Su Chimian would have to admire his luck.
With a one-in-a-million chance of survival, Su Chimian didn’t believe Chi Xiasheng could still be alive.
At first, he just treated the post as entertainment, but when he saw the video the blogger had released, along with the information dug up by netizens who were like Sherlock Holmes, his expression gradually became serious.
The video was definitely not fake, and combined with the start time of this film crew and their current location…
Could it be that Chi Xiasheng was really still alive?!
When Su Chimian confirmed this news, his heart pounded wildly, and his fingers trembled, almost shattering the cup in his hand.
After taking a couple of deep breaths, he quickly called Su Jinfeng.
But halfway through, he felt something was wrong and quickly hung up.
Among all the Su family members, only Su Jinfeng still held a glimmer of hope that Chi Xiasheng was alive. The rest of them, even Father Su, wished that this son of his had just died. After all, Chi Xiasheng’s existence represented too many secrets that couldn’t be covered up. His being alive would only be a headache for the Su family.
On the other hand, Su Jinfeng, who had once hated Chi Xiasheng’s stubborn and cold personality and had found him an eyesore, even threatening and coercing him to yield, had actually grieved for this brother after he met with misfortune. After all, no matter how much he disliked him, he didn’t wish for his death.
After thinking for a moment, Su Chimian still decided to tell Father Su about this.
After receiving the call, Father Su was surprised for a moment. The little guilt he had felt for Chi Xiasheng slowly vanished, and he began to think more about how to handle this matter properly.
“I’ll have someone take down the trending topic. You don’t need to worry about this for now. Don’t say anything to the public.”
Father Su was genuinely thinking of Su Chimian. He gave him a few instructions and then had someone handle the matter.
Chi Xiasheng being alive had brought him a lot of trouble. Father Su frowned, his fingers tapping on the table, his eyes deep.
Forget it, he and this child were never meant to be father and son. In this life, they were probably destined to be enemies.
Father Su would absolutely not allow Chi Xiasheng to tarnish the Su family’s image. Even after learning that he had survived a great disaster and was stranded on a small island, he had no intention of bringing him back. After all, they had already completely torn off the facade, so there was no need to play the family card anymore.
But just as Father Su was suppressing the online buzz, the young lady of the Bai family suddenly jumped out and pushed the matter back into the spotlight.
Looking at her words on Weibo, Father Su’s eyelids couldn’t help but twitch violently.
Bai Ranran didn’t explicitly say that Chi Xiasheng had jumped into the sea because he had been kidnapped and the Su family had chosen to abandon him, which had led to the kidnappers killing him. But her attitude, clearly knowing the truth but seemingly unable to say it directly due to some scruples, made the netizens even more curious.
People often first doubt the authenticity of things that are openly announced. If there is conclusive evidence, they will choose to believe it. If the evidence is insufficient, they might even step on it.
From beginning to end, there were almost no outsiders present when Chi Xiasheng was abandoned by the Su family. Even if he posted about it on Weibo, the Su family had every reason to deny it.
At that time, with each side sticking to their own story, and the Su family being powerful, Chi Xiasheng would not be able to get any good out of it.
Not to mention that his fame was not as great as Su Chimian’s. At that time, Su Chimian’s fans would inevitably stand with the Su family to slander him.
Perhaps the final result would be a hasty end, with Chi Xiasheng’s reputation only getting worse, and him not getting any good out of it.
But now, the situation was reversed.
With the young lady of the Bai family helping Chi Xiasheng stir up trouble, the Su family couldn’t directly target the Bai family and could only watch as the matter was brought up again by the netizens. After all, Bai Ranran had not directly slandered the Su family. If Father Su were to bicker with a junior, it would make people look down on him.
The key was that she wasn’t saying it explicitly. The truth that the netizens guessed would be more convincing than if it were directly announced.
Su Father gripped his phone, his heart sinking.
The situation online was far more lively than Father Su had imagined.
Because she often posted about celebrities, Bai Ranran’s Weibo had tens of millions of fans. Basically, everyone who surfed the internet had heard of the young lady of the Bai family. She was a well-known rich girl who was a bit of a ditz.
Now that Bai Ranran said there was a dark story, the netizens believed her without any hesitation. After all, people in the wealthy circle were exposed to much more than ordinary people. And since Bai Ranran wasn’t explicitly stating the truth, it was either because she wanted to create some buzz, or the truth was too deep for her to say.
[I don’t think Bai Ranran would suddenly pull a stunt like this. The truth might really be very unexpected.]
[Watching the show with my melon seeds. I just want to know now, has Chi Xiasheng really been rescued?]
[Probably. Bai Ranran’s post is basically an indirect admission.]
Just as the netizens were carefully observing and discussing with their eight-power magnifying glasses, Chi Xiasheng finally contacted his agent.
Li Cheng hai was the one who had been most saddened by Chi Xiasheng’s disappearance. So, when he heard his voice on the phone, he almost cried with joy.
“I didn’t dare to believe it when I saw the news online. I knew you were a lucky one!”
Hearing his choked-up voice, Chi Xiasheng’s heart also warmed. “Yes, I was really lucky.”
Thinking of his experience at the bottom of the sea, he couldn’t help but sigh with emotion.
After catching up, Li Ge asked him what was going on online.
Chi Xiasheng briefly told him about the kidnapping. Hearing how Father Su had abandoned Chi Xiasheng for the sake of the Su Group, Li Cheng hai was so angry he almost fumed.
“Does Su Chengjian have a conscience?! You are his biological son!”
Li Cheng hai cursed him out and, thinking of how some people online were still slandering Chi Xiasheng for creating hype, he couldn’t help but feel sorry for this child. Not only was he abandoned by his closest relatives, but he had just escaped from the bottom of the sea, and there were already bloggers on the internet being malicious towards him, trying to use this matter to slander him.
Sighing, Li Cheng hai asked him what he wanted to do next.
“I’ve already asked Miss Bai Ranran for help. The things the Su family did can’t be said openly, so we have to do it secretly. This way, we can also divert the netizens’ attention to other places.”
Chi Xiasheng explained his thoughts, and Li Cheng hai nodded repeatedly. They were not strong enough and indeed couldn’t go head-to-head with the Su family.
“Li Ge, I can’t come back for now. Can you help me go home and check on my dog?”
While living at the bottom of the sea, the thing Chi Xiasheng was most concerned about was the Little Black he had at home. He had been missing for so many days, would Little Black have starved to death without food?
Li Cheng hai knew he would ask about the dog. “Don’t worry. After you went missing, I went to feed him every day. I originally wanted to take him back to raise him, but Little Black was unwilling.”
Hearing this, a smile appeared on Chi Xiasheng’s lips.
“Then I’ll post on Weibo for you to report that you’re safe?”
Chi Xiasheng also nodded in agreement. “Post it tomorrow. The film crew should officially announce that I’m playing the role of Xiyu tomorrow.”
Li Ge was a little dazed, thinking that Chi Xiasheng had experienced too much in just over a month. How did he even get into Director Bo Wenye’s film crew?
But since the phone was not his, Chi Xiasheng couldn’t talk for too long. He said a few simple words, hung up, and returned the phone to Bai Ranran.
Bai Ranran blushed as she took her phone back and said shyly, “Are you going to play Xiyu Immortal Lord? Can I come and watch tomorrow?”
Because she was a fan of Qiu Li, she had been following this drama from the beginning and knew all the characters well. Knowing that Chi Xiasheng had successfully gotten the role of Xiyu, she imagined him in the flowing robes, looking ethereal, and her face became even hotter.
Chi Xiasheng naturally agreed.
After leaving the restaurant, he went to find Wen Nian on the island.
Wen Nian was having a blast on the island.
Having never been on land before, he found everything on the island novel. But the buffet restaurant was still his favorite place. He spent half the day there, and the other half in the forest looking for all sorts of strange fruits.
He only came back late at night, almost driving Chi Xiasheng, who couldn’t find him, crazy with worry.
“Where did you go? I thought you were lost.”
Wen Nian held the small green fruits he had picked from the tree and looked up at him happily. “There are so many fruits in that forest. I picked them all. Let’s eat them together, Xiaxia!”
Chi Xiasheng looked at the small green fruits in his arms and felt a strange sourness in his teeth.
“No, thank you. This fruit is very sour. It’s probably not ripe yet.”
Wen Nian, with his limited social experience, looked at him with a “don’t you dare lie to me” expression and put a small fruit in his mouth.
“Mmph!”
Wen Nian’s face puckered up from the sourness, and he quickly threw the fruit into a nearby trash can. This was also something Chi Xiasheng had taught him: throw away unwanted trash in the trash can.
“It’s so disgusting, nothing like the sweet coconut!”
Feeling betrayed by nature, Wen Nian angrily threw the fruits back into the small forest.
After all the fuss, Chi Xiasheng finally led Wen Nian back to their room to sleep.
The people who came to this island were either rich or noble, so the hotel was very large, only two stories high, with very few rooms.
Chi Xiasheng and Wen Nian were staying in a two-room suite with a shared small living room, and each room had its own bathroom.
The moment he got back, Wen Nian turned into a small carp and lay on his back in the bathtub.
He waved his fishtail at Chi Xiasheng as a goodbye, and the enlightened carp Wen Nian fell asleep in the next second, his little white eyes rolled back.
Chi Xiasheng couldn’t help but smile and went back to his own room to sleep.
Because he hadn’t slept on a soft bed for a long time, he felt a little unaccustomed when he first lay down. But he had been busy all day and was too tired to stay awake, so he quickly fell asleep.
After he fell asleep, the excitement online was just beginning.
The netizens were very interested in this kind of wealthy family drama and entertainment industry secrets, so they used all their intelligence overnight, determined to dig up the truth.
Qiu Li, who had been paying close attention to the online dynamics, found that things had not gone as she had expected at all and had completely deviated in another direction.
The netizens were no longer concerned about whether Chi Xiasheng was using the incident of falling into the sea to create hype. Instead, they were eagerly investigating the truth of the matter.
Qiu Li let out a long breath, thinking, What truth could there be about falling into the sea?
This wasn’t a TV drama. Could it be that he was kidnapped and jumped into the sea with no way out?
It was probably just an accident while on a boat.
Just like that little young master of the Cheng family before, hadn’t he accidentally slipped and been swept away by the sea while looking for inspiration by the seaside?
Qiu Li wanted to draw the netizens’ attention to Chi Xiasheng playing the role of Xiyu, but she had already spent almost all her savings and was powerless.
Feeling unwilling, she scrolled through her phone until dawn.
But just as the sky was turning white, a netizen with some connections actually released a part of the truth:
[I have a relative who works at a bank. They said that the Su family had cashed out a large sum of money before. It was only much later that my relative vaguely heard that someone in the Su family had been kidnapped. But it seems the kidnappers killed the hostage, and they couldn’t be saved. I feel that this kidnapped person might be Chi Xiasheng.
Also, this is a news report I found in the Hai City Morning Post. It’s about the police catching seven vicious kidnappers. The timing is a perfect match.]
This comment was well-reasoned and was quickly pushed to the top by the netizens.
Bai Ranran, the champion of all-nighters, even went on Weibo and liked this comment, which indirectly confirmed its authenticity.
Now the netizens were in an uproar. This huge kidnapping bombshell had left them completely shocked.
[So, Chi Xiasheng was kidnapped, then the kidnappers killed him and threw him into the sea? That’s too tragic!]
[Oh my god, I hope he’s okay.]
[I always thought he was just bored and had an accident while playing on his own yacht. But the truth is so tragic?]
[Me too… I thought it was just an accident that happened while a rich young master was playing around. Sigh, I apologize for my previous words.]
Chi Xiasheng’s agent also posted on Weibo in a timely manner, stating that he had been rescued by someone and was fine.
The netizens were very warm-hearted, and they all commented below, saying that if you survive a great disaster, you will have good fortune later.
Now, no one was saying that Chi Xiasheng was using the incident of falling into the sea to create hype. After all, he had just escaped from the brink of death and was already miserable enough.
And the blogger who had revealed the news earlier, seeing that he had gotten involved in such a big matter, quickly deleted his post and ran away.
Qiu Li looked at the truth, and her face couldn’t help but hurt a little. But she could only pretend that nothing was wrong, put on a thick layer of foundation, and rush to the film set.
In the corridor, she ran into Chi Xiasheng and Wen Nian. When Wen Nian saw her face, he shouted, “A monster!”
Chi Xiasheng quickly covered Wen Nian’s mouth and looked at Qiu Li apologetically.
Qiu Li was already feeling guilty. Now, she didn’t want to meet Chi Xiasheng’s gaze even more and left with a hint of anger.
Wen Nian, his mouth covered, blinked his big eyes at Chi Xiasheng.
“Niannian, can you use your brain when you talk in the future? You can’t be so impolite.”
Wen Nian was released and took a deep breath. “I’m a fish, Xiaxia. Where do I have a brain!”
Chi Xiasheng was speechless for a moment. He had really forgotten that Wen Nian was an enlightened fish, and his brain capacity was not enough to support him thinking before he spoke.
“And she was really scary. You didn’t see it just now, the look in her eyes when she left was just like when a big shark was chasing me!”
Chi Xiasheng had been locking the door and hadn’t seen Qiu Li’s expression. Hearing this, he couldn’t help but frown.
Could it be… no?
But thinking of the online revelations, he wasn’t so sure anymore.
He was unwilling, and he didn’t want to believe, that the girl who had shown him kindness on the show would slander him online.
“But what if it’s true?” Wen Nian pouted and looked at Chi Xiasheng.
Chi Xiasheng could only sigh. “Then I’m really too miserable.”
One of the few people he had a good impression of actually held such great malice towards him.
“It’s okay, I’ll always be good to you!”
Seeing Chi Xiasheng’s downcast expression, Wen Nian quickly hugged him.
Chi Xiasheng tapped the silly fish’s head and took him to the film set.
