Chapter 5
“！！！” Yu Congyan had a bad feeling.
He wouldn’t be walking into another accident scene, would he?
Yu Congyan rushed towards the bedroom, pulling aside the servants who were also hurrying upstairs in a flurry.
At this moment, Xia Wansheng felt that his life these past few days had been excessively comfortable.
The original owner seemed to be a somewhat famous singer. How come there hadn’t been a single engagement in so long?
Xia Wansheng tried to find traces of himself on social media, but found that related terms were dominated by negative comments, with only a few fans still fighting hard.
Related topics on Weibo were also basically overrun:
“Why isn’t he keeping up the singer-songwriter persona anymore? Did the ghostwriter raise their price? #XiaWanshengPersonaCollapse”
“He claimed to be a rich second-generation heir before, but the photos were exposed as stock images, and the owner of that supposed villa is A City’s richest CEO, Yu Congyan. So, he’s living in the incredibly expensive Yu residence? #XiaWanshengFlopped”
Xia Wansheng briefly scrolled through the original owner’s past posts. He would casually flaunt his rich second-generation persona while interacting with fans, showcasing things like high-end banquets and restaurants, as well as expensive accessories of brands he didn’t recognize.
It seemed the original owner had tried to please Yu Congyan for this reason as well. To maintain his persona, he occasionally needed concrete proof, and as the lies persisted, they became harder to maintain.
Among the overwhelming negative comments, a few fan comments were scattered: “These are all baseless accusations, stop spreading rumors, black fans!”
“The truth will eventually come to light.”
“So concerned about our idol, don’t you have your own?”
Xia Wansheng felt a bit of sympathy after reading through them.
Since the game currency could only be exchanged at a rate of one ten-thousandth, it was better to use the money to give back to the fans.
Consider it a reward for their dedication.
Xia Wansheng decided to hold a lottery, giving away all his savings, a prize of five million in cold, hard cash.
He opened Weibo, filled in the lottery details, and, after double-checking the number of zeros in the pop-up question “Are you sure the lottery amount is 5000000,” clicked confirm.
Xia Wansheng calmly clicked “Publish.”
After setting up the lottery, he continued organizing the scattered manuscripts piled in the corner, hoping to gain a better understanding of the original owner’s thoughts and feelings, perhaps even finding character settings not mentioned in the book.
Before finding the right opportunity, he needed to participate more in the main storyline. In the original book, the final outcome was being dragged to the river and drowned. Whether he got the five million sooner or later wouldn’t make much difference.
Xia Wansheng searched for a long time but couldn’t find a complete manuscript. Most of them were fragmented thoughts and inspirations, not even forming coherent passages.
Xia Wansheng: “Wasn’t the original owner a singer-songwriter? Why isn’t there even a first draft?”
At this time, netizens were still arguing under the posts of various TV drama actors when someone discovered the sudden appearance of a huge lottery.
The first reaction was naturally, “It must be fake,” but it wouldn’t hurt to try, just for fun.
With the “might as well” mentality, the lottery quickly surpassed 100,000 reposts.
“Guys, I came across a lottery, is this five million just virtual currency? Hahaha.”
“No way, the initiator is a minor celebrity in the entertainment industry, can’t they afford five million?”
Many onlookers joined the fun, believing it was just another publicity stunt.
Soon, some bloggers also reposted it, incidentally exposing Xia Wansheng’s past experiences and his true and false persona.
“A singer-songwriter who doesn’t even know basic chords, a rich second-generation heir with clothes that still have tags on, what kind of amateur actor is this?”
“Always messing up, this lottery is probably another impulsive act, definitely can’t deliver.”
This caused an uproar. A controversial figure coupled with a shocking act instantly ignited the entertainment industry, which had been quiet for several days.
A blogger commented: “Is he planning to gain a wave of attention and then hold a livestream saying his account was hacked to gain sympathy?”
“Definitely a publicity stunt. If this lottery actually happens a week from now, I’ll eat my keyboard braised!”
Everyone was waiting to see how Xia Wansheng would handle the situation.
Xia Wansheng was tidying up other dusty manuscripts when his phone suddenly rang with a special notification sound from QQ.
He recognized the avatar. One of the few fans who had defended him earlier was her.
Xiaoyue was an ordinary office worker whose biggest hobby after work was listening to music. She happened to hear the original owner’s singing during a livestream and was amazed. Later, she learned he was a singer-songwriter and was impressed by his talent, becoming Xia Wansheng’s most loyal fan. She was always reliable when entrusted with fan-related matters.
Xiaoyue’s first reaction was that his account had been hacked. “Wanwan, quickly check your Weibo, is there a problem with the staff in charge? Why did you suddenly start a lottery, for such a large amount?”
Xiaoyue didn’t expect a reply. The previous Xia Wansheng was always busy, only replying with a stingy “Mm” after she informed him of important arrangements or solved major problems. She couldn’t say she wasn’t disappointed, but…
Her phone suddenly lit up. A white bubble appeared on the other end of the screen full of green bubbles: “It’s a lottery to thank the fans for their support and care.”
Someone else must be using the phone, right?
Xiaoyue was puzzled at first, then just as she was about to confirm, Xia Wansheng sent another photo. Judging by the background, it was taken in a room. A hand with distinct knuckles held a fragment of sheet music. “Do you remember which song this melody is from?”
Xiaoyue recognized it immediately: “The chorus of your debut song.”
“What about this one?”
“The fifth song from the 2022 Winter album.”
After a few exchanges, Xia Wansheng finally understood which periods these fragments belonged to.
But it all felt very wrong. He could only find finished products, and they were in a different handwriting from the original owner’s, suggesting a ghostwriter.
Xia Wansheng continued to consult his encyclopedia, Xiaoyue: “I’ve forgotten a lot of things recently, the rumors online…”
Whether it was being frozen out or being kept by someone, the guesses seemed accurate. Could it be he was surrounded by stalkers without knowing it?
Xiaoyue immediately declared her loyalty: “Don’t worry, Wanwan, those rumors are false. We’ve already warned everyone in the fan group not to believe them. We will always support you!”
Xia Wansheng: “Actually…”
“I’ll inform the other fans right away. Since it’s your intention, we can’t let this money go to waste, we have to make the most of this attention!”
Xia Wansheng felt like he was the most passive one in the entire fan group. After thinking about it, he sent a greeting to the number labeled “Agent” in his phone, letting them know he was still alive.
Then, seeing the red exclamation mark on the screen, he finally understood why he had been so idle these past few days.
Xia Wansheng sighed, continuing to try and organize the original owner’s manuscripts. They looked impressive at first glance, but they couldn’t fool an expert. They seemed too rough, as if hastily put together just to create a persona.
Xia Wansheng pulled out the latest manuscript from the very bottom, picked up the guitar that was used as decoration in the corner of the bedroom, tuned it, and plucked a string.
“Snap,” the sound of a long-unused string suddenly breaking.
It was also the sound of Yu Congyan pushing open the bedroom door.
Xia Wansheng was sitting blankly on the windowsill, a shallow cut on his cheek from the broken string. The breeze lifted the white curtains, the young man’s thin back against the white wall, scattered sheets of music beside him.
Yu Congyan was speechless for a moment.
“What’s wrong?” Xia Wansheng seemed oblivious to the pain, only hissing after his fingers touched the wound. “Sorry, the strings haven’t been tightened in a while, I didn’t control my strength.”
Were these strings some rare commodity? He had just given away five million in a lottery, he definitely couldn’t afford to replace them.
Xia Wansheng felt deeply regretful, his restless right hand already reaching for the window.
If he couldn’t afford it, then he had a reason to…
“These were yours to begin with, you don’t need to apologize.” Yu Congyan’s tone was stiff. Now, whenever he saw Xia Wansheng make any slightly unusual movement, he felt a headache. Seeing the medicine box from yesterday made him even more annoyed: “Don’t move, let me apply some medicine.”
Shen Xinghe’s warning echoed in his mind: “Dude, if you really don’t like him, just break up amicably, don’t let things escalate to the point of no return.”
The current Xia Wansheng was definitely a dangerous element, prone to accidents at any moment. Yet the person involved seemed accustomed to it, making him look like he was overreacting.
He couldn’t understand it.
Yu Congyan picked up a cotton swab dipped in iodine. The slight pain made Xia Wansheng instinctively flinch.
“Don’t move.” Yu Congyan used his free left hand to hold his neck.
The distance was far too intimate. With the slightest carelessness, their eyes would meet, their palms feeling each other’s warmth, the sound of accelerated heartbeats filling the air.
When the medication was finally applied, both of them breathed a sigh of relief.
Xia Wansheng suddenly remembered something, picking up the manuscripts beside him, “Did I used to write songs?”
Yu Congyan paused, his expression unchanged: “You should have.”
If that whole day-long fiddling around he called “creating” was considered songwriting.
“I see. Was I interested in art history then? Many of the books in the bedroom are rare editions.” Xia Wansheng pointed to the bookshelf that almost covered the entire wall.
This time Yu Congyan hesitated noticeably, only replying after he finished applying the medicine and packing up the first aid kit: “Perhaps.”
Was Xia Wansheng planning to return to the entertainment industry? He was the one who had offended a bunch of business tycoons, claiming he could make it on his own. Had he finally learned his lesson?
“I see…” Xia Wansheng didn’t think much of it. After all, the CEO was busy with important matters and wouldn’t pay attention to such trivial details.
Sitting in his study chair, the more Yu Congyan thought about it, the more uneasy he felt. He sent a message to his assistant: “Has Xia Wansheng made any moves recently?”
As soon as he sent it, a barrage of messages came back: “CEO Yu, Mr. Xia just launched a lottery on Weibo with a prize of five million. The news has spread all over the internet.”
The assistant had assumed the CEO was behind it, but his boss immediately distanced himself, making him hurriedly report back, waiting for further instructions and ready to call an emergency meeting at any moment.
Launched a lottery?
Yu Congyan usually left his social media to his assistant. He rarely checked it himself, but when he did, he found he didn’t need to search. Everyone had already pushed the post to the top of the trending topics.
Yu Congyan scanned it briefly. It was an event to give back to the fans. Apart from the considerable prize money, there was nothing special.
The assistant waited for a long time without further instructions and sent a message asking: “CEO Yu, do we need to remove the trending topic?”
“No need.” Yu Congyan replied calmly.
He wanted to see what Xia Wansheng was planning this time.
