Chapter 55
Although he agreed to let Yu Congyan accompany him, Xia Wansheng was still worried about the upcoming court hearing, unsure what the original owner’s parents might say.
If they decided to go down in flames, his carefully constructed persona would be ruined.
But he couldn’t let them get away with it either. After much deliberation, he decided to have the system review the original owner’s background information.
He would look for any loopholes and improvise accordingly.
[Host, there’s really no need for all this effort, their case is a slam dunk, there won’t be any problems.] The system assured him confidently.
[And even if something goes wrong, we can always use their memory discrepancies as an excuse and improvise.]
The system also wanted to suggest a quick offline exit as a last resort, but seeing Xia Wansheng lost in thought, studying the information, it decided not to mention it.
“I remember the book mentioning the original owner had an older sister who was constantly being exploited by their parents, and later disappeared after being targeted by competitors.” Xia Wansheng suddenly asked.
This part seemed rather abrupt in the original story, as she wasn’t mentioned again.
[Yes, it was probably just to highlight the parents’ character, a brief mention.] The system pulled up the settings and confirmed.
There was no further elaboration.
Xia Wansheng turned over in bed and saw the empty photo frame, thinking he should take a picture with Yu Congyan when he had time.
“System, can we take something back from this world when we leave?” he asked.
He had been here for a while, he should at least have a souvenir.
Something to remember this experience during his mundane life back home.
[Yes, but only one item, we don’t have enough capacity for more.] The system tried to explain the data storage limitations, but its technical jargon was incomprehensible.
After listening for two minutes, Xia Wansheng manually muted the system.
Peace and quiet finally returned.
Suddenly, his phone rang. An unknown number.
It wasn’t the frantic original owner’s parents, but a young woman’s voice, her tone cheerful.
“Long time no see, you’ve completely ruined my plans.” Although she said that, she didn’t sound angry.
“May I ask who this is?” Xia Wansheng had a guess.
“What, after all this time, you won’t even call me ‘sister’?” Xia Zhaoyu took off her sunglasses, her tone indifferent.
She had returned to settle the score, to finally deliver justice, even if it meant sacrificing years of hard work.
But shortly after arriving, she was informed of the upcoming court case.
“I was planning to handle it myself, now you’ve saved me the trouble.” Xia Zhaoyu’s tone was slightly displeased, then she asked, “Why did you do this?”
In her limited memories, her younger brother had once been able to see through their parents’ blatant favoritism, but he gradually changed under their influence.
Xia Zhaoyu had long given up hope, after all, he had also been involved in her downfall.
But this situation was unexpected.
“Just stating the facts, I didn’t do anything.” Xia Wansheng didn’t dare to elaborate, any slip-up could ruin everything.
The person on the other end, also clever, understood immediately.
“Alright, the facts.” Xia Zhaoyu didn’t ask further.
The airport announcements started, she had returned to handle this matter, since it was already resolved, she could go back.
“Thank you for taking care of this,” Xia Zhaoyu stood up, grabbed her suitcase, put on her sunglasses, glanced at the departure board, and said with a smile, “Until we meet again.”
Bright sunlight streamed through the windows, she walked towards it, stepping into a brighter future.
The call ended.
Xia Wansheng stared blankly out the window, a flock of doves flying across the sky.
He realized for the first time that his arrival here had truly changed the course of this book.
[Host, this is a good thing, why don’t you look happy?] The system asked, puzzled.
Xia Wansheng sighed, turning the empty photo frame face down on the table.
He could no longer deceive himself, this wasn’t just a game world, and the people around him weren’t just NPCs.
But this only made him want to stay even more.
Lu Mingxi finally finished everything. On the day he completed the project, he mysteriously promised Xia Wansheng a surprise, saying he had saved him the best seat at the music festival and telling him to arrive early and wear a mask to avoid being recognized.
Xia Wansheng thought it was finally time to see the results of their hard work, he was looking forward to it.
[Don’t worry, host, I’ve given you a “guaranteed invisibility” aura, we can even go on stage and sing and dance!] The system declared excitedly.
It had installed this plugin a long time ago and could finally use it!
The grand music festival was about to begin.
Xia Wansheng gave his name at the entrance and was led to the VIP lane. The program hadn’t started yet, so he went to the lounge to find Lu Mingxi.
Lu Mingxi looked well-rested, showing no signs of his recent all-nighters.
“Nervous? After all this preparation?” Xia Wansheng sat down on the sofa in the lounge.
The organizer was clearly wealthy, the facilities top-notch, Xia Wansheng felt his bank account increasing just by being here.
“A little, I feel like I’m still dreaming.” Lu Mingxi tried to appear relaxed, but his hands, holding his headphones, were trembling.
Xia Wansheng patted his shoulder, “You can do it. If you succeed, I’ll publicly admit you’re much more talented than me.”
“！！！” Lu Mingxi’s eyes widened, and he immediately started practicing, determined to win this round.
Reverse psychology was truly effective.
The atmosphere was lively, the weather perfect, but Xia Wansheng felt something was off about the staff member sitting beside him.
He couldn’t shake the feeling that the staff member was unusually tense, not enjoying the lively atmosphere like the other fans, his attention fixed on the stage.
He became even more agitated after each segment, constantly wiping his sweaty hands.
Probably eager to give a gift after the show.
Xia Wansheng thought he must have gone through security, so there shouldn’t be any problems, but he still kept an eye on him.
After the final chorus, the audience started to leave, and the staff began maintaining order.
This staff member prepared to go on stage to clean up, reminding Xia Wansheng to take his trash with him.
“Please leave, the event has concluded.” The staff, wearing vests, started directing the crowd.
Xia Wansheng was planning to talk to Lu Mingxi after the show, so he naturally wasn’t leaving yet.
But the staff member seemed puzzled by his refusal to leave, repeatedly saying: “Sir, the event has ended, please take your trash with you when you leave.”
He had a fixed smile on his face, but Xia Wansheng sensed a hint of madness in his eyes.
“I’m waiting for a friend, he’ll be finished soon.” Xia Wansheng didn’t reveal his connection with Lu Mingxi, feeling something was off about this person. He decided to warn Lu Mingxi later.
Perhaps he was sent by a rival, to create some scandalous material.
Lu Mingxi finally emerged from backstage. Xia Wansheng approached him, ready to ask how he was, but the staff member was faster, rushing towards them like an excited fan, asking for an autograph.
Xia Wansheng, already suspicious of this person’s strange behavior and incoherent mumbling, saw the security guards approaching to escort him away. They had also noticed something was amiss.
But it was too late.
The extremist, disguised as a staff member, pulled out a small knife and lunged towards Lu Mingxi.
“！！！”
Xia Wansheng was surprised by his own quick reaction.
In the nick of time, he grabbed the metal chain on Lu Mingxi’s outfit and pulled him back. Lu Mingxi fell, narrowly avoiding the blade.
But the knife still grazed his sleeve, thankfully not causing any serious injury.
More security guards arrived and subdued the attacker, who continued cursing: “It’s all your fault, if you hadn’t stolen Ah Tian’s opportunity, he wouldn’t have died! I’ll make you pay!”
Xia Wansheng stepped back, closer to the railing, quickly searching his memory for this “Ah Tian.”
This person, in the original book, had been framed and shelved for years, eventually leaving the industry, his death later attributed to an accident.
He hadn’t expected this to be connected to Lu Mingxi.
As Xia Wansheng was still lost in thought, he suddenly felt a push from behind.
He lost his grip on the railing and fell from the platform.
His last memory was Lu Mingxi’s panicked voice.
He tried to tell him he was fine, but he couldn’t speak, then he lost consciousness.
The world spun and faded.
Xia Wansheng opened his eyes, his body aching.
A doctor was examining the patient in the next bed. Seeing him awake, he quickly came over, “You’re finally awake! Do you know how lucky you are?! You were hit by a truck! It’s a miracle you survived!”
The doctor chatted with him while checking his vitals, making sure there was no brain damage.
Finally relieved, he said: “Rest well, have your family or friends come over, I’ll explain the details to them later.”
“You can just tell me,” Xia Wansheng, noticing his hoarse voice, paused, then forced a smile, “I can handle it.”
His mission was completed…wasn’t it?
