Chapter 167: The Visit
Chapter 167: The Visit
When Lin Mu returned from his bath, Yao Xianxian appeared to be fast asleep.
He chuckled softly, took off his bathrobe, and slipped under the covers. Gently reaching his hands around from behind, he held Yao Xianxian in his arms. The moment he touched her fullness, the beauty in his arms suddenly trembled involuntarily.
“Haha, still pretending to be asleep!”
Lin Mu grinned and playfully squeezed the softness in his hands.
“I’m not playing with you anymore! You’re so annoying!”
Yao Xianxian immediately buried her face in the pillow out of shyness.
“Alright, alright, no more fun. Let’s sleep quickly. We have lots of scenes to shoot tomorrow and can’t end up with two panda eyes.”
Lin Mu hugged Yao Xianxian again, kissed her earlobe, and spoke.
Leaning against Lin Mu’s broad chest and feeling his strong muscles, Yao Xianxian suddenly felt a sense of peace. She lifted her head slightly, moved her hair forward, and soon fell into a deep sleep.
Holding the soundly sleeping Yao Xianxian, Lin Mu’s lips curved into a smile. He gently kissed her fragrant hair and slowly drifted off to sleep as well.
“Quick, quick, quick! All cameras get ready. We’re starting the shoot soon. Hey, you people over there, move away! The camera is picking you up!”
The Director held a large plastic megaphone, his script rolled up in his hand, waving it around as he yelled.
Today’s shooting schedule was heavy, with four different locations to cover, so time was tight. The Director was more irritable than usual, and even a minor dissatisfaction would earn someone a harsh scolding. Several supporting actors had already been berated into a daze.
Yao Xianxian was in great form today, likely because she had slept well the previous night. Every scene she shot went smoothly.
There was a kissing scene in the middle. Considering it was their first time working together, the Director asked both of them to get into the right mood to avoid too many retakes. He had seen this situation many times—actors unfamiliar with each other often struggled with kissing scenes, and lack of familiarity was the biggest obstacle.
While the Director wasn’t looking, Lin Mu winked playfully at Yao Xianxian and grinned mischievously.
Yao Xianxian glanced at the Director, secretly shook her small fist, and pretended she was going to hit someone.
“Alright, all cameras, get ready! Action!”
At the Director’s command, all cameras started filming simultaneously.
Next to a large fountain, two fashionably dressed young people walked slowly around it. As they got closer, their eyes suddenly met at the same moment.
They gazed at each other deeply. The girl’s eyes gradually filled with tears, and the boy’s eyes grew misty. They moved slowly toward each other, the distance shrinking until they finally embraced tightly.
The boy kissed the girl’s hair and earlobes, then gently moved to her slightly closed eyes. He continued downward, past the tip of her nose, until his lips met her bright red ones. The girl responded passionately.
They looked like characters from a painting—so warm and beautiful.
“Good! Cut!”
The Director shouted with satisfaction. He hadn’t expected them to cooperate so well. He had been worried the scene would require multiple retakes, but they managed to get it in one take. They were truly born for acting, with their emotional coordination perfectly on point.
“We passed in one take. How did we cooperate so well?”
Lin Mu wiped the tears from the corner of Yao Xianxian’s eyes and grinned.
“It’s all because someone was sneaky beforehand.”
Yao Xianxian shot Lin Mu a playful glare, then laughed and ran off to change clothes. They still had two more locations to shoot, and it was already 3:00 PM. They needed to hurry, or they’d be filming late into the night again.
At 10:30 PM, the day’s busy shooting finally ended. Everyone breathed a sigh of relief. They were utterly exhausted—today’s workload was heavier than the previous few days combined. From the Director down to the prop masters, no one had the energy to move.
Back at the Hilton Hotel, after washing up, Yao Xianxian changed into a pure white training outfit and sat cross-legged in the living room to begin her cultivation. This was her usual routine—whenever she had free time between events or shoots, she would seize the moment to practice.
If it weren’t for her diligent and hard training, such a difficult Cultivation Technique would have been impossible to master. At her age, she had already reached the peak of the Subtlety Realm, just a step away from the Spirit Gathering Realm. Once she opened her Dantian, she could refine essence into Qi, generating the initial Zhenyuan, and then advance into the realm of Qi Cultivation.
The main reason she started cultivating right after her bath was because Lin Mu wasn’t around. After his bath, Lin Mu had said he needed to take care of some business with the Dragon Protection Corps and left alone.
With Lin Mu not there, Yao Xianxian had nothing else to do, so she decided to cultivate alone.
Lin Mu was on the road, driving while looking at the information sent to his Mobile Phone. The photo displayed was of the woman who had been with Yao Xianxian the previous day.
With the powerful intelligence capabilities of the Dragon Protection Corps, the woman’s background was quickly uncovered.
Her name was Shen Xue, and her family background was average. Both her parents were salaried workers, earning modest wages. After graduating, because she was somewhat attractive, Shen Xue was tricked by a fake talent scout who promised to make her a star. Instead, she fell into a trap of extortion.
After being deceived and taken to a hotel room, a large number of photos were taken to blackmail her. Left with no choice, she sank deeper into the mire.
Although her experiences seemed pitiable, since she had involved Yao Xianxian and nearly ruined her innocence, Lin Mu would not let her off easily.
It wasn’t just Shen Xue—he wouldn’t spare any of the people manipulating her from behind the scenes.
At the end of the information on his Mobile Phone was the address of a lounge bar, the same place Yao Xianxian had been the previous day. Because Shen Xue and her organization targeted a higher-end clientele—serving major clients and wealthy people rather than ordinary escorts—places like lounge bars, which were classy and atmospheric, were their preferred locations for selecting customers.
Arriving at the bar entrance, Lin Mu parked his car and took out the High Polymer Disguise Mask. After putting it on, he got out of the car, walked to the bar entrance, and showed the security guard a photo on his Mobile Phone—it was a picture of Shen Xue.
“I’m here to meet someone. Has this young lady arrived yet?”
The guard glanced at the photo and immediately nodded, pointing inside. “She’s been here for a while. She’s a regular here.”
Lin Mu nodded, put away his Mobile Phone, pushed open the bar door, and walked in calmly.
Unlike ordinary bars, this place lacked noisy atmosphere and deafening music. Instead, there was only soft, melodious music and a relaxed ambiance. People sat in small groups, occasionally leaning in to whisper to each other.
In terms of style and atmosphere, it was indeed much better than a typical bar.
After a casual look around, Lin Mu quickly spotted Shen Xue sitting in a booth not far away. Next to her was a middle-aged man with a beer belly, who was gazing at Shen Xue flirtatiously and saying something that made her giggle.
He walked over slowly and stood in front of the booth. At first, the two thought he was a bar attendant.
“Get me two more margaritas.”
The big-bellied man waved without turning around and tossed a stack of cash from his wallet.
Lin Mu didn’t move, just stood there quietly watching them. Eventually, they sensed something was off and turned to look at him together.
“Who are you looking for?”
The middle-aged man frowned and asked Lin Mu.
“I’m looking for her.”
Lin Mu gestured toward Shen Xue with his chin and smiled slightly.
“Hey, kid, you have to wait your turn. You know the rules, right?”
The middle-aged man sneered, looking at Lin Mu as if he were an idiot.
“I make the rules.”
Lin Mu’s lips curled slightly as he lifted the hem of his clothes, revealing the sleek, silver barrel and wooden grip of a Colt.
“Sorry for the trouble. I didn’t mean any offense. I’ll leave right away.”
The middle-aged man’s expression changed slightly. He grabbed his bag from the table and left without even a glance at Shen Xue, hurrying away.
Shen Xue also saw the gun on Lin Mu and a flash of panic crossed her eyes. She stood up to leave, but the warning look on Lin Mu’s face made her wisely sit back down.
“Good, it seems you know what’s appropriate. Now, I’ll ask, and you answer. Don’t try to lie to me, or you’ll regret it.”
Lin Mu sat down next to Shen Xue and spoke calmly. Then he listed where Shen Xue’s parents worked, their job positions, which buses they took to work, and their home address.
With every sentence he spoke, Shen Xue’s face grew paler. By the time he finished, there was no color left in her face.
“It seems you’ve thought it through. Now, I’ll begin asking questions.”
Lin Mu nodded, his eyes fixed intently on Shen Xue as he asked, “Were you with Yao Xianxian last night?”
“Yes, Yao Xianxian came to see me last night. We’re old classmates who hadn’t met in years, so we sat here for a while.”
Shen Xue quickly nodded in response.
“Old classmates? Is this how you treat old classmates?”
Lin Mu let out a cold laugh. “Why did you trick Yao Xianxian into going to a hotel later?”
“I didn’t mean to. They found out, and a very influential client specifically requested to have Xianxian. They forced me to drug her. I had no choice—I really didn’t trick her into going on my own.”
Shen Xue hurriedly defended herself.
“Humph! Do you know what happened yesterday?”
Lin Mu snorted coldly and asked again.
“No, I don’t. After that client arrived, I left alone.”
Shen Xue slowly shook her head.
“You know very well what kind of person Yao Xianxian is. If something like that had really happened, her life would have been completely ruined. Do you feel any guilt for what you did?”
Lin Mu asked coldly.
“What could I do? I could barely protect myself—I had no other options.”
Shen Xue gave a bitter smile and wiped away the tears welling in the corners of her eyes.
“Don’t play the victim in front of me. You brought this upon yourself. Now, I’m giving you a chance to make up for your mistakes.”
Lin Mu snorted and looked at Shen Xue with a cold expression as he spoke.