Chapter 25
The phone rang for the third time.
With the surrounding commotion, Xia Wansheng naturally couldn’t hear it.
But after the expensive camera equipment was damaged, everyone calmed down considerably.
The villagers had been acting out of anger, frustrated that the money they were promised was suddenly gone.
But they didn’t dare to break the law. Now, seeing blood, they were at a loss, only able to stammer out incoherent complaints:
“If it weren’t for you, we would have been fine, why did you have to come and disrupt our lives with this cultural project? It’s all just for show, you don’t care about what happens afterwards!”
As he spoke, the leading villager glanced back at something, then launched into a tearful accusation.
“We were living peacefully here, and you keep coming back for your program, forcing us to leave the place our ancestors have lived for generations!”
Xia Wansheng sensed something was wrong with their behavior, as if they had rehearsed their lines and actions.
A problem that could have been resolved on the spot was dragged out, as if they had to put on a show here.
Xia Wansheng had encountered similar situations when traveling with his boss. Destroy the other party’s evidence, then control the narrative in the media.
It was easy to manipulate public opinion in the information age.
Spread a rumor, write a sensational headline, and even if the truth was eventually revealed, it would rarely gain as much attention as the initial rumor.
In other words, for unscrupulous companies, whoever controlled the narrative controlled the outcome, regardless of right or wrong.
Xia Wansheng quietly covered his wound and retreated into the crowd.
Few people would think of this, but he had been tricked this way before at his previous company, almost causing the company’s stock price to plummet.
The crew members at the front were still negotiating, the villagers, although not resorting to violence, were putting on an act.
Perfect for filming, then adding a sad background music, portraying them as victims just trying to protect their homes, what was wrong with that?!
It was all about manipulating public emotions and then shifting the blame to unrelated competitors.
Xia Wansheng easily located a camera not far away. The person behind it wasn’t even trying to hide, after all, the footage would be maliciously edited later, they just had to complete their task.
“Let’s go, there’s no point in arguing with them.” The director realized there was no room for reasonable discussion.
This was bad luck.
Such targeted harassment, they must have an ulterior motive, targeting either the program or the reputation of the company behind it.
Xia Wansheng thought it was the latter.
Sure enough, after a while, the person behind the camera signaled to someone, indicating they had gathered enough footage.
Upon seeing this, the villagers, who had been arguing with them, pretended to be angry and impatient, telling them to leave.
“Go, go, and never come back here again!” The villagers shouted as they shooed them away.
The whole incident seemed bizarre. The program team just thought they were unlucky to encounter scammers and dismissed it after a few complaints.
On their way back, everyone seemed downcast.
“They were supposed to help us create some drama for the show, and now, after getting the money, they’re causing trouble, clearly trying to extort more.” The director team said through gritted teeth.
They had agreed on everything beforehand, but now they were being scammed.
As they were complaining, they suddenly realized they had originally planned to target Xia Wansheng, and he was right beside them. They quickly lowered their voices.
The director discreetly glanced at him and, seeing he didn’t react, relaxed and continued venting his frustration about the incident.
“Have we offended anyone recently?” Xia Wansheng pondered.
Such tactics couldn’t be the work of ordinary people, there must be a powerful group behind this.
“I don’t think so, besides, we have the backing of Yu Corp, who would dare to mess with us?” The director waved his hand dismissively.
Even if they didn’t care about the program, they would still have to consider whether they could challenge the capital behind it.
But tall trees attract strong winds.
“What if someone is specifically targeting Yu Corp?” Xia Wansheng reminded him.
It wasn’t uncommon for these corporate battles to drag down smaller players. Public opinion, starting from a small spark, could eventually escalate and bring down a giant.
“If this becomes a PR crisis, Yu Corp’s stock price will definitely fall.” The director finally realized.
They had been used as pawns.
Yu Congyan, still unaware that someone was targeting his company’s stock price, frowned and hung up the phone.
No one answered. Had Xia Wansheng gotten separated from the group and disappeared?
Where would he find him in this remote wilderness?
“Don’t worry, CEO Yu, several people went out together, they should be able to look after each other, nothing will go wrong.” A staff member quickly came over to comfort him.
This was a good opportunity to get closer to him. Just casually strike up a conversation, and with some luck, he might be able to connect with Yu Congyan.
“Yes, they just went out to explore the surroundings, it’s not a big deal, they should be back soon.” Another person chimed in.
But Yu Congyan couldn’t listen to these pleasantries, they didn’t understand the potential consequences of delay.
“Did you get through to the director?” Yu Congyan didn’t want to hear these empty reassurances.
He couldn’t allow himself to be in such a passive position again.
“The director’s phone is also unanswered, he’s probably busy.” The staff member was used to this, not expecting much.
When they were busy, their schedules were erratic, it was common for them to be unreachable for three days.
“Is this how your program team ensures the safety of the participants?!” Yu Congyan couldn’t hold back his frustration.
An unanswered phone wasn’t a good sign. He couldn’t sit still any longer and stood up, preparing to go look for them himself.
Yao Village wasn’t very big. He had glanced at the map while reviewing the investment proposal and roughly knew the filming locations.
The program team’s visits and game segments would likely be in those areas.
Yu Congyan’s sudden action startled the staff.
“Don’t worry, CEO Yu, I’ll call again!” The staff member prayed the director would answer this time.
The call actually connected!
“Hello, what’s up?” The director’s voice sounded unclear.
The background was noisy, he was probably at another filming location.
The staff member quickly asked the most important question: “Director, where are you now? There’s an emergency, could you give us your location so we can find you?”
He was afraid of losing his job if he waited any longer, it was better to go with CEO Yu to find them.
“No need, no need, we’ll be back soon, there was just a small incident, we’ll talk about it later.” The director hung up after speaking.
He wasn’t about to tell them about being used.
The director had instructed them to appease the investor and keep him calm.
The staff member breathed a sigh of relief, “CEO Yu, the director said they’ll be back soon, why don’t we wait a little longer?”
He didn’t dare to speak too loudly, afraid of offending the investor again.
But waiting was never Yu Congyan’s style. He politely listened to the staff member’s response, then put on his coat and left.
The staff members exchanged glances, not daring to let the investor go alone, so they followed him.
“Why didn’t we notice before, CEO Yu is so concerned about Mr. Xia. Just because he hasn’t seen him for a while, he’s personally going to look for him?” the intern asked curiously.
This protectiveness was a bit excessive.
“Don’t read too much into it!” The team leader almost covered the intern’s mouth. They shouldn’t be saying such things.
The team leader looked around, making sure no one was eavesdropping before lowering his voice:
“You’ve heard a lot of gossip about CEO Yu, right? The kind that’s everywhere, and no matter how outrageous, Yu Corp never bothers to respond.”
The intern nodded hesitantly.
After all, all kinds of marketing accounts wanted a piece of this newly successful businessman, constantly churning out gossip, with various starlets trying to get his attention.
“Exactly, if their relationship was real, how could CEO Yu ignore those rumors?” The team leader shook his head and said meaningfully.
Xia Wansheng was more likely being forced to comply.
“!!!”
The intern suddenly realized.
“How could this be, Mr. Xia wasn’t willing…” the intern stammered in disbelief.
Then were the previous instructions to target and bully Xia Wansheng really from CEO Yu?
If they had followed the original plan, they, as staff members, would likely be the target of online attacks after the program ended.
What price had he paid to change this situation?
Xia Wansheng’s phone was still unreachable.
Yu Congyan’s thoughts drifted towards unpleasant possibilities, like the silent depths of water, or a desolate valley.
He quickened his pace. According to the map in his mind, he was almost at the most likely location, but he still didn’t see the person he was looking for.
The sky gradually darkened.
The group finally appeared from around the corner. The director was carefully checking his equipment for damage.
“I’m going to give them a piece of my mind when we get back, we really messed up this time…” The director stopped mid-sentence, seeing a familiar tall figure standing at the intersection.
Why was CEO Yu here?!
Had he already learned about someone targeting him and come to confront him?
Despite being just a few steps away, the director felt his steps grow heavy.
Yu Congyan scanned the group, not seeing Xia Wansheng.
He didn’t give the director a chance to speak, walking straight towards him and asking: “Where’s Xia Wansheng?”
He didn’t even bother with pleasantries.
“Ah? Oh, Mr. Xia, he was slightly injured and went to treat his wound.” The director thought for a moment.
Perhaps noticing Yu Congyan’s displeased expression, he added: “He’s by the well over there, he should be back soon.”
The most urgent matter was to inform CEO Yu about someone targeting the Yu family!
Just as the director was about to approach him, Yu Congyan walked away without a word, leaving him no chance to speak. He could only sigh and continue inspecting his equipment with a heavy heart.
He also stopped the staff members who wanted to follow Yu Congyan, “Let’s go, we need to have a meeting when we get back!”
To maintain its ancient charm, the streetlights in Yao Village were only installed at necessary intersections, all designed as lanterns.
This somewhat reduced the brightness.
Xia Wansheng was by the well, using the dim light to treat his wound. The blood had started to clot, mixed with dirt, a gruesome sight.
His movements were gentle, but he still felt the pain.
“Why didn’t you answer the phone?”
Yu Congyan’s voice came from behind him, his usual cold tone, but with a rare hint of concern.
Xia Wansheng instinctively shielded his left hand.
Although he knew Yu Congyan didn’t faint at the sight of blood, he still did it.
