Gu Xuejun's expression changed upon hearing this. He turned around to look behind him, and when he saw who it was, his displeasure instantly vanished, replaced by a fawning smile. He said repeatedly,
"Oh, it's Young Master Chu! You still like to joke around. In front of you, how can I, Gu Xuejun, have the right to speak! Hehe..."
Chu Xiaobai's expression remained indifferent as he said calmly,
"Mr. Gu, you're too kind..."
After saying this, Chu Xiaobai left Gu Xuejun aside, took two steps forward, and stood before Chen Yang and Su Jun. At this moment, Chu Xiaobai's expression softened considerably.
"Brother Xiaobai, good morning!" Chen Yang greeted him with a smile.
"It's getting late! I went to bed too late last night and couldn't get up this morning..." Chu Xiaobai yawned, then asked, "Huh? Luo Zi hasn't arrived yet? That kid must have been playing games all night again!"
"I called him, he's on his way!" Chen Yang replied, then pointed to Su Jun and said to Chu Xiaobai, "Brother Xiaobai, let me introduce you, this is Su Jun, the younger brother of a good friend of mine."
Then Chen Yang said to Su Jun:
"Xiao Jun, this is the son of Minister Chu of the Ministry of Culture, you can just call him Brother Xiaobai!"
"Brother Xiaobai, hello...hello!" Upon hearing Chen Yang say that Chu Xiaobai's father was actually a minister, Su Jun felt a little nervous and quickly stepped forward to greet him, his voice trembling slightly. "Hello!" Chu Xiaobai greeted Su Jun warmly, then turned to Chen Yang and asked, "By the way, what were you talking about regarding the interview?"
Chen Yang glanced at the embarrassed Gu Xuejun beside him and said jokingly,
"Well, Xiaojun came to Beijing for an audition for the drama academy. He applied to the directing department. Just now, Mr. Gu gave Xiaojun some kind advice, right, Mr. Gu?"
Chen Yang emphasized the word "kind advice," the sarcasm obvious.
Gu Xuejun's father was a department head in the Central Propaganda Department, a department-level official, while Chu Xiaobai's father was the Executive Vice Minister of Culture, a high-ranking ministerial-level cadre. In terms of "connections," Gu Xuejun was far inferior.
Furthermore, while the Chu family couldn't compare to the major political families, they were still a well-known family, and their influence was far beyond what Gu's father, working alone in the Central Propaganda Department, could match.
Gu Xuejun, unaware of Chen Yang's close relationship with Chu Xiaobai, overheard them discussing their drama school auditions. Unable to resist showing off, he even added a hint of threat, hoping to vent his frustration from his humiliation at Xu Qingya's birthday party the previous day.
However, Chen Yang had already arranged to meet Chu Xiaobai, making Gu Xuejun's behavior utterly clownish.
"Uh… well, hehe…" Gu Xuejun stammered for a while, unable to come up with anything coherent.
Chu Xiaobai glanced at Gu Xuejun. He had never liked this notorious pimp, and their industries were similar—both in the entertainment industry. Although Gu Xuejun's company was far less powerful than Chu Xiaobai's, rivals are enemies, and Chu Xiaobai found Gu Xuejun utterly unpleasant.
Therefore, Chu Xiaobai didn't hold back for Gu Xuejun, directly saying:
"It's just an interview, why make such a fuss? I'll give the academy a heads-up, it'll be a piece of cake!"
Su Jun could hardly believe his ears. These past few days, he'd been constantly worried about the interview. He had no money, no connections, and his professional skills were only average; passing the interview seemed impossible. He never imagined that this problem, which had troubled him for so long, would be so effortless for Chu Xiaobai.
At the same time, Su Jun was filled with admiration for Chen Yang. In the few interactions he'd had since yesterday, Su Jun had discovered that although Chen Yang came from Southeast Province, the people he associated with in Beijing were all young, promising, and from prominent families. Especially Chen Yang's performance at the Changjie branch last night had deeply impressed Su Jun.
"Brother Xiaobai, is it really that simple?" Chen Yang grinned at Gu Xuejun, deliberately asking, "According to reliable sources, the acceptance rate for the interviews is outrageously low, supposedly only 500 to 1!"
Gu Xuejun stood to the side, his face alternating between red and white. If there were a crack in the ground right now, he'd probably crawl into it without hesitation. He was caught in an awkward situation, unsure whether to stay or leave.
Chu Xiaobai shrugged and said casually,
"Don't even mention 500 to 1. Even if they only accept one person, I'll still help you get it done! Don't worry!"
Su Jun was overjoyed and thanked Chu Xiaobai repeatedly.
Chu Xiaobai, however, didn't seem to care much. After all, in his eyes, this was indeed a trivial matter. He turned to Chen Yang and said,
"Chen Yang, let's play a few games before Luo Zi arrives! Let's stretch our muscles."
"Brother Xiaobai has spoken, of course I'll oblige!" Chen Yang nodded with a smile, then looked at Gu Xuejun with a half-smile and asked, "President Gu, want to play some tennis?"
Gu Xuejun quickly replied,
"No, no, I have plans with friends. Young Master Chu, you guys have fun!"
With that, he fled the tennis court as if escaping. Chu Xiaobai watched Gu Xuejun's hasty retreat, spat with disdain, then grinned and put his arm around Chen Yang's shoulder, saying,
"Come on! Let me see your tennis skills!"
…
In the outskirts of Beijing, in a grand villa district, the guards at the entrance weren't security guards, but heavily armed soldiers, and most of the vehicles entering and leaving the complex were military vehicles with small license plates.
This was the residential area for leaders of the Beijing Military Region at the deputy commander level and above. Villa No. 6.
Fan Zihong sat on the living room sofa, his face ashen. His attendant, Alin, stood before him, head bowed, trembling with fear, beads of cold sweat beading on his face.
Fan Zihong angrily demanded,
"Tell me, what exactly happened? That old bastard Zheng Laoxi is utterly unreliable!"
Fan Zihong had just received news that Zheng Laoxi and several other thugs had been arrested by the Beijing Public Security Bureau's special police. At the same time, news also came that Liao Yongchang and others from the Changjie branch had been placed under coercive measures. At least thirteen section-level and division-level cadres from the Changjie branch had been confirmed to be involved in the case.
Thirteen key and mid-level leaders from a small branch had fallen from grace—this was definitely a case of collusion! Ah Lin lowered his head, avoiding Fan Zihong's face, which was contorted with rage. He stammered, "Young Master, things were going smoothly. Zheng Laoxi and his gang had successfully extorted Su Jun, but at the last moment, Chen Yang, along with Xu Haoran from the Xu family and Liu Zhengyi from the Liu family, suddenly appeared, beat up Zheng Laoxi, and rescued Su Jun…
Zheng Laoxi, perhaps fearing your punishment, took it upon himself to contact Liao Yongchang of the Changjie branch, intending to use police force to arrest them first…"
Fan Zihong, upon hearing this, flew into a rage, "That Zheng Laoxi…" "Did they stuff manure in there? A mere police station thinks they can deal with Xu Haoran and Liu Zhengyi? Is he a pig-brain?"
"Young Master, it's probably because Zheng Laoxi didn't recognize them. As a result, things escalated at the station. I heard that Political Commissar Han from the Garrison Command personally went to the branch office and brought them out. Afterwards, Political Commissar Han personally called the main leaders of the Municipal Party Committee and the Ministry of Public Security to express his dissatisfaction. So now Zheng Laoxi and Liao Yongchang are probably doomed!"
"Damn it! A bunch of pig-brains! They're more trouble than they're worth!" Fan Zihong cursed.
He didn't care about Zheng Laoxi and the others' lives! He was just extremely annoyed that Chen Yang had so easily thwarted his plans.
It seemed that every time Chen Yang appeared, Fan Zihong never encountered anything good. This was all part of a meticulously planned scheme. First, he'd use a few thugs to force Su Jun to sign a huge IOU. Then, while Chen Yang was still in Beijing, Fan Zihong would fly back to Rongcheng with the IOU to find Su He.
Presumably, the delicate and pretty Su He would be terrified upon seeing the IOU! With a little coercion and enticement, Fan Zihong could easily win over this charming beauty!
That was Fan Zihong's carefully laid plan. Unfortunately, things didn't go as planned. Fan Zihong never imagined that Chen Yang could overhear his phone call with Zheng Laoxi while he was in the bathroom. His supposedly flawless plan was shattered by Chen Yang and his two scions of powerful families.
Fan Zihong grew increasingly frustrated. He couldn't help but kick over the coffee table, shattering the exquisite Jingdezhen white porcelain tea set into pieces. A Lin, startled, lowered his head even further, barely daring to breathe.
After a long pause, Fan Zihong, panting heavily, said through fantasies:
"Call Uncle Jiu and tell him to take down that demolition office director as soon as possible! We must make sure the fire is directed at Chen Yang! I don't need to tell him how to do it, right?"
"Yes, young master! I'll contact Secretary Fan immediately!" Ah Lin replied respectfully.
"Also, book two tickets back to Rongcheng this afternoon! We're heading back right away. I'll make Chen Yang wish he were dead!" Fan Zihong said through gritted teeth, his eyes gleaming with extreme resentment. Alin hesitated for a moment, because Fan Zihong had specifically instructed him to keep an eye on Xu Qingya's itinerary. He was going to return to Rongcheng on the same flight as Xu Qingya, so Alin couldn't help but ask:
"Uh... Young Master, we still don't know Xu..."
Seeing Fan Zihong's almost murderous glare, Alin quickly swallowed the rest of his words and replied repeatedly:
"Yes! Young Master! I'll book it right away!"
After saying that, Alin bowed slightly to Fan Zihong and was about to take his leave. At this moment, Fan Zihong suddenly called Alin back, saying thoughtfully:
"By the way, you said last time that Su Jun was here for the drama academy's audition, right?"
"Yes, Young Master!" Although Alin was a little puzzled by Fan Zihong's sudden question, he still quickly answered it.
"With Chen Yang there, his audition should go smoothly, right? If I remember correctly, Minister Chu's son from the Ministry of Culture and Liu Zhengyi are best friends!" Fan Zihong said meaningfully. "Uh… I guess so!" Ah Lin replied, then tentatively asked, "Young Master, should we give them a heads-up and make sure that kid fails the interview?"
Fan Zihong jumped up immediately, cursing:
"You're talking nonsense! He's my brother-in-law, how can we let his dreams be shattered? Pass! He must pass the interview! If Chen Yang can't handle it, we'll help him get accepted…"
"Yes! Young Master!" Ah Lin was stunned by the scolding and quickly echoed.
Faced with the unpredictable Fan Zihong, Ah Lin was trembling with fear, feeling like he was living under invisible pressure all day.
After Ah Lin respectfully took his leave, Fan Zihong muttered to himself:
"Brother-in-law, now that you're studying in Beijing, we can get to know each other better…"