Chapter 27
Shen Jinfeng’s praise did not carry any other meaning. He was only thinking that after he left this deserted island, he would soon be living a happy life with a house, a car, money, and plenty of leisure.
Qin Ye had recommended over a hundred films all at once, which gave him a good way to pass the time.
However, after he praised him, he saw Qin Ye’s expression, clearly wanting to smile but deliberately restraining himself, and his heart stirred.
All right. The secret admirer had probably once again felt that he had tasted a bit of “sweetness.”
He turned his head back and swallowed the further praise that had been about to leave his mouth.
He did not need to write it down like Gu Shengsheng did. After quick-transmigrating through so many worlds, if he did not even have skills like photographic memory, it would be a little unworthy of his identity as a quick-transmigrator.
Clearly, Qin Ye’s “tiny” change in expression was somewhat unworthy of his title as a triple-gold Best Actor, because the bullet comments noticed it too.
[Is it my imagination? Why do I feel like Ye God sounded so smug when he said that?]
[Well, his memory is indeed good. And he clearly has more than just these hundred-plus films stored in his head. He said earlier that this portion was what he thought would help with practicing acting. I randomly searched a few films I hadn’t heard of, and their ratings are all pretty high.]
[He probably didn’t just watch them. He must have specially studied them before. Only if you seriously and deeply research something can it leave such a deep impression in your mind.]
[Otherwise, how did he become a Grand Slam Best Actor at such a young age?]
[I’ve really never seen Ye God look this obviously happy before, aside from when he was acting in movies. So Ye God likes hearing this kind of praise! Got it. From now on, I’ll go to his Weibo every day and praise, praise, praise! I’ll even praise him in person!]
[Enough already. He’s not a public figure anymore. And when he was in the entertainment industry, which fan didn’t praise him even more fiercely than this? It’s not like he reacted.]
[Cough cough, understood. Only Big Shot Shen’s praise works, right?]
Qin Ye’s company employees were also watching the livestream. After seeing this once-in-a-century smile from their boss, they actually shivered.
Hiss. The boss could actually smile?
Only Gu Shengsheng, after hearing the answer, felt a “sour” feeling rising in his chest.
It was a mixture of admiration and jealousy.
Actually, he usually liked watching films too, but of the hundred-plus films Qin Ye had just listed, which came from countries all over the world, Gu Shengsheng had not seen more than half of them.
Moreover, simply watching films and watching films with the mindset of studying were two different things.
Qin Ye had clearly remembered the content of more than a hundred films. In the middle, he had casually mentioned several titles and specifically pointed out certain scenes for Gu Shengsheng to study later.
That heaven-defying memory and sharp perception!
Mm, how to put it?
How could one not feel sour?
Those with the same feeling included other actors who were also watching the livestream, or who had not been watching but had this clip specifically forwarded to them by their managers: “…”
The managers said: “Someone as talented as Qin Ye still works that hard! How do you have the nerve to sleep? Get up and study!”
The actors: numb.
Maybe that person really just has a good memory?
Damn it, so sour!
Gu Shengsheng carefully put away his backpack.
His earlier complacency about his own acting skills cooled down.
After being continuously critiqued by Mo Fan, Shen Jinfeng, and Qin Ye, he became somewhat less confident. However, correspondingly, he felt that all three of them had made sense, and he had once again found a direction for improvement.
Seeing the obvious change in his expression, the netizens watching the livestream felt something indescribable.
[How is this different from me getting into an ordinary first-tier university, only for my cousin who got into Peking University to tell me I’m still so trash?]
[Comparing an ordinary first-tier university to a top school is indeed a little overestimating yourself, but that doesn’t mean an ordinary first-tier university is bad!]
[The audience isn’t stupid. We can tell good from bad. Gu Shengsheng’s acting was actually quite good… At least among his peers, I feel like he’s invincible. He’s better than some highly popular big flowers and male stars whose acting hasn’t improved in years. But the people critiquing him, Mo Fan and Qin Ye, are indeed much better than him… Even if those two don’t remember being actors, they still point out the problem sharply.]
[Person in front, didn’t you forget to mention that the one who gave the most critique was clearly Shen Jinfeng hahaha. His acting in reality isn’t that good either, right?]
[Uh, I don’t know either. Is there a possibility that Big Shot Shen was pretending to be bad outside before? Or maybe he had some special mission that required him to hide his abilities? Okay, I can’t keep making this up. Next person…]
Qi Xiu looked at Gu Shengsheng’s discouraged appearance and hesitated, not knowing whether he should continue discouraging him.
“Gu Shengsheng, do you still want to hear the rest?”
Gu Shengsheng raised his head. Only then did he remember that he had clearly been listening to a fortune reading.
“Yes!”
Qi Xiu considered his words for a moment. “Gu Shengsheng, I remember your parents are pretty rich. Are they good to you?”
Gu Shengsheng subconsciously answered, “Yes.”
But for some reason, the moment he said it, something felt strangely wrong, and a sour sense of insincerity welled up in his heart.
He carefully thought back. “My parents are usually busy making money, very busy. They don’t have time to care about me in daily life. But they’re very generous with money. I have a lot of allowance!”
“They work so hard to make money for my sake, after all.”
Qi Xiu frowned slightly.
Logically, he should not doubt the result he had calculated, but this result did indeed not match what he knew of Gu Shengsheng.
The hexagram showed that Gu Shengsheng simply had no affinity with family affection.
This “no” did not mean he had no parents. It meant his bond with his parents was thin. In other words, they had no affection and might even turn against each other.
Gu Shengsheng was the latter.
The old man had taught him that when telling fortunes for people, he should speak as tactfully as possible. Good matters should be emphasized; bad matters should be briefly glossed over.
Otherwise, the person being read would be unhappy.
Qi Xiu went over his wording in his heart and tried his best to find a version that sounded acceptable. “Gu Shengsheng, your parents’ career might face a crisis. In other words, they may become less rich.”
Gu Shengsheng was stunned. “Ah?”
Qi Xiu said, “Of course, that’s not the main point. Mainly, your birth chart shows that when your career reaches its peak, you’ll be dragged down by your parents… Of course, parents give birth to us and raise us, so saying ‘dragged down’ isn’t very appropriate.”
But with Gu Shengsheng’s parents, using “dragged down” to describe what they had done was already putting it lightly.
Gu Shengsheng’s career, and even his life, would be dragged into the valley several times by them.
“That is, your career might have several major rises and falls. Your reputation and wealth may hit rock bottom because of your parents. You should prepare yourself mentally, or after we get out, pay more attention to your parents’ situation?”
Gu Shengsheng still listened in confusion.
“What will they do? What should I do after I get out?”
Faced with Gu Shengsheng’s questions, Qi Xiu was also somewhat lost.
He had not had parents since childhood. The old man had raised him.
He thought about it. If the old man cheated him out of all his money and ruined his career…
The old man was already fated to be unable to hold on to money. As his disciple, in ancient times, he would be equivalent to a son. Being affected a little… seemed only natural.
Could he blame it on the old man? Wouldn’t that be unfilial?
Thinking this, he suddenly felt that the expected 5.65 million was not so fragrant anymore.
Qi Xiu’s face grew bitter.
Forget it. He was used to being poor. Maybe he would not be used to a life with money anyway.
Some of the netizens watching the livestream seemed to gradually come back to their senses.
[I remember that after Gu Shengsheng became famous as a child star at five years old from Director Zhang’s film, his parents never worked again, right?]
[Good grief. This couple relied on a child who was only a few years old to support them all these years?]
[Gu Shengsheng basically raised himself, right? To be fair, having a child like that is easy. It’s like now, with so many children becoming popular on short video platforms, aren’t they basically supporting the family from childhood too?]
[That’s different. When short-video kids become influencers, they’re just appearing on camera. The shooting, planning, and editing behind the scenes still have to be done by the parents, right? But being a celebrity is different. Gu Shengsheng was famous, so jobs basically came to him. His parents didn’t have to work and just followed him every day. And it’s said that when Gu Shengsheng was filming, his parents would lie around eating and playing in the hotel while he didn’t even have an assistant on set.]
[Have you guys noticed why only Gu Shengsheng used to be called the national child star? Because he really never stopped acting from childhood to adulthood! Even a production-team donkey isn’t worked like that, right?]
[Fan here. Damn it, I’ve disliked that couple for ages! In previous interviews and livestreams, Shengsheng said he wanted to go to school, improve his cultural course scores, then take the art exam and officially enter a film academy to improve himself. During that period, he studied whenever he had free time on set. After filming during the day, he went back to the hotel and studied for several more hours every night. In the end, two months before the college entrance exam, his parents accepted a new drama for him and directly made him miss the exam. Later, when Shengsheng appeared again, his whole spirit was different, but he still comforted us and said it was okay, he could take it next year. Sob sob.]
[Shengsheng also said before that he wanted to attend acting improvement classes, but that later came to nothing too.]
[Damn, hearing you guys say this, his parents do kind of feel like they treat Gu Shengsheng as a money-making machine. The more you think about it, the scarier it gets!]
[And Gu Shengsheng didn’t sign with a company. When the black material that caused his reputation to worsen first came out, his fans fought so hard and were all doing anti-defamation work. Gu Shengsheng didn’t come out to respond, but his parents were the first to appear before the public and apologize tearfully, saying they hadn’t taught their child well. I mean, after so many years half-mixing in the entertainment industry, did they not know doing that wouldn’t benefit their son?]
[Gu Shengsheng’s reputation completely reversed because of that slap he gave Li Hao, right? Because of his childhood filter, plus the fact that he’d been active on screen all these years, everyone was originally asking why. Was there a hidden reason? Was he filming? Later, what sealed the conclusion that he had bad character was because his mom posted on Weibo saying Gu Shengsheng’s personality had gotten worse and worse over the years, that he had a big temper, and that being adored by everyone in the entertainment industry had spoiled him rotten. She apologized on Gu Shengsheng’s behalf.]
[I remember, I remember. After Gu Shengsheng’s mother came out to respond, his fans went silent. Back then, everyone was saying if there was an apology, Gu Shengsheng should come out and apologize himself. But in the end, he never came out to apologize. Afterward, his reputation completely worsened, and his resources dropped.]
[Gu Shengsheng has been filming for so many years. If he really acted like a big shot and had a bad temper, beating and scolding staff at every turn, shouldn’t that have been exposed long ago?]
[What kind of parents would do this? It can practically be called sparing no effort to destroy their child’s future. Do his parents have a grudge against him?]
[Season Three of “Being a Person” was also accepted by his parents, right? Look at the persona Gu Shengsheng received. Isn’t it obviously a sacrificial lamb script? Think carefully. All of you, think carefully.]
[All I can say is, good thing Gu Shengsheng is performing okay right now, and because Big Shot Shen is here, they haven’t truly faced a survival crisis. Otherwise, with his persona, it’s hard to say what he would have done. At the very least, there’s a subconscious hint influencing him to do bad things. I’m not saying he definitely would do bad things, but everyone knows how important environment and subconscious influence are.]
Outside the variety show, Gu Shengsheng’s parents, who were also watching the livestream, saw the screen full of bullet comments. Their eyes darkened, and their faces twisted.
Father Gu looked nervous. “What do we do? A lot of netizens have noticed something’s wrong and are saying they’ll investigate us!”
As half-entertainment-industry people who had been around the circle for more than ten years, they knew very well the power of fans and netizens.
Moreover, the things they had done could not withstand digging.
Mother Gu’s face was full of impatience. “Who am I supposed to ask if you ask me? Young Master Li said that if we don’t ruin Gu Shengsheng, don’t even think about letting your illegitimate son continue studying at that international school.”
Father Gu angrily stood up all at once. “Why are you only talking about me? Didn’t you also keep several pretty boys? If you hadn’t gone gambling until Gu Shengsheng’s money wasn’t enough to repay the debts, would things have fallen to this point? Gu Shengsheng could have kept earning money in the future. Now we’re destroying him, draining the pond to catch the fish!”
“Oh, you even know the phrase ‘draining the pond to catch the fish’? Why don’t you look at that brat? He said he wanted to study and wouldn’t film for the next year. If he doesn’t film, where will our money come from?”
“Damn it. Now that he’s grown up, his wings are hard. He said that in the future, he wants to keep the money he earns himself, and we have to ask him for however much we spend. You go ask then? If he knows about your messy affairs, will he give you money to support your lover and illegitimate child?” Mother Gu said without restraint.
Father Gu complained, “If it weren’t because he asked you for tuition and you couldn’t even take it out, would he have said he wanted to manage his own money?”
Mother Gu sneered. “Was I the only one who spent the money?”
“Young Master Li said we can’t let him make a comeback through this show. That matter Young Master Li mentioned—just tell me whether we’re doing it or not.”
Father Gu was still somewhat hesitant. “Do we really have to do that? That would completely destroy our son.”
Mother Gu lifted her chin toward the screen. “There. Didn’t that fortune-teller say our son’s career will have big rises and falls and still rise again? The final result is still good. Since he can still climb back up anyway, we’re not exactly wronging him.”
Father Gu no longer hesitated. “Fine. We’ll do it!”
“I’ll call Young Master Li.”
Who would have thought that at this moment,
Qi Xiu spoke again on the screen. “Sigh, this is a little strange. My hexagram shows that very soon, your career is going to drop again. It’s because of your parents.”
He was very puzzled, then raised his head nervously and asked Gu Shengsheng, “Could there be a problem with your university? You can’t study abroad and have to drop out to work?”
Gu Shengsheng’s face was full of confusion. “Poss-Possibly?”
Hearing this conversation, as well as the chain reaction it caused in the bullet comments,
Father Gu and Mother Gu shuddered all over. A chill rose from the soles of their feet, and they no longer dared to act.
“This kid, how—how is he so eerie?”
Seeing the bullet comments explode again,
Mother Gu’s voice trembled slightly. “Let’s not do it for now?”
Father Gu nodded with lingering fear. “If we do it now, won’t everyone know we did it on purpose?”
Meanwhile, Gu Shengsheng grew sad after hearing Qi Xiu’s conclusion. “I want to go to school.”
Qi Xiu also panicked a little. “Gu Shengsheng, you won’t be unable to pay my tuition after you get out, right?”
The two looked at each other, suddenly a little panicked.
He Erwang, who had been gossiping from the side, finally could not hold back and burst into laughter. “Hahahahahaha, why are you two so miserable? Qi Xiu, if he can’t pay, I’ll pay for you.”
Half smug, half comforting, he said to Gu Shengsheng, “It’s fine. I have a lifetime of wealth and honor. Become my little brother. If something happens to your parents, I’ll support you through university. When your career isn’t going well, I’ll introduce work to you. If you have no money, I’ll lend it to you.”
[I… I was originally feeling sorry for Gu Shengsheng, but my passionate sympathy was suddenly drenched cold.]
[Young Master, Young Master! I’m willing to be your little brother!]
[You know, if after Gu Shengsheng gets out, He Erwang is still willing to protect him, then it would be hard for him not to make a comeback!]
Shen Jinfeng also spoke, comforting Gu Shengsheng. “Don’t overthink things that haven’t happened yet. After we get out, we’ll help you see how to avoid the risks. Going to school won’t be a problem. As for future matters, we’ll talk about them later. Even if your career suffers setbacks, does that mean it can’t rise again?”
His words seemed to have magic.
Gu Shengsheng looked into his eyes, and his mood immediately settled.
“Okay, Boss. I believe that with all of you here, I’ll definitely overcome the difficulties!”
Shen Jinfeng: “…”
Mm. So confident.
With them here, he could overcome difficulties.
But when Shen Jinfeng thought of Gu Shengsheng’s pulse earlier, he did not say anything more.
Qi Xiu spoke weakly from the side. “Don’t worry. After the wind and rain, there will still be a rainbow.”
It was just that Gu Shengsheng’s wind and rain might be an extra-large typhoon-level storm.
“As for love, do you want to hear it?”
Gu Shengsheng was a little scared. “Good or bad?”
Qi Xiu’s gaze was strange. “I don’t know how to say it. It’s just as rich and colorful as in film and television dramas.”
He stopped caring about Gu Shengsheng and simply said the rest all in one breath. “You may yearn more for the kind of love that has ups and downs, tormenting both body and heart. You’ll fall for someone who originally doesn’t like you but forces you. After a series of setbacks, he finally falls in love with you, and you two achieve a happy ending.”
Just like a novel.
A whole white-moonlight-stand-in plot. He chases, he flees, and in the end, neither of them can escape even with wings.
Gu Shengsheng’s face was numb. He could not understand it, and he did not want to hear the details either. “This is my destined partner?”
Qi Xiu nodded.
Gu Shengsheng asked, “Can it be changed?”
Qi Xiu hesitated. “Logically, yes. But it’s a little difficult.”
Gu Shengsheng lowered his head, no one knew what he was thinking. After two minutes, he lifted his head with a determined expression. “After we get out, can you all supervise me? I absolutely won’t date!”
[Hahahahahahaha, look how scared the child is. Absolutely won’t date.]
[Gu Shengsheng is going to be traumatized by Qi Xiu, right?]
[But what he said isn’t wrong. A love affair destined to make you suffer—why date at all?]
[Looking at it this way, Gu Shengsheng’s fate is indeed quite miserable.]
[But from a result-oriented perspective, it actually turns out okay… Qi Xiu said both his career and love will rise and fall but eventually have good results. Is this considered miserable or good?]
[Forget it. Before he entered the variety show, he was already being scolded overwhelmingly, and that apparently still doesn’t count as hitting bottom. This kind of thing will happen several more times in the future. His career is like this, and his love life is like this too. How strong of a heart does he have to build?]
Hearing Gu Shengsheng’s request, Qi Xiu opened his mouth. After hesitating, he swallowed the words he had wanted to say.
What he had calculated also showed that Gu Shengsheng would attempt suicide because he could not withstand the blow…
If he did not date, then that part would not happen. That was good too.
“All right, there’s nothing else.” He sighed. “Gu Shengsheng, be strong. With Boss here, everything will be fine!”
Shen Jinfeng, who had been cued from the side: “???”
No, what did this have to do with him?
Qi Xiu avoided his gaze, feeling a little guilty.
Hehe, why?
Because he had calculated that Boss was not only his, Qi Xiu’s, noble benefactor, but also the benefactor of Gu Shengsheng, this unlucky kid.
Hehe.
No wonder he had agreed at the time to join Gu Shengsheng’s expedition team.
He must have also calculated this and wanted to save this unlucky classmate.
After Gu Shengsheng’s part ended, Qi Xiu looked at the last two people with great interest.
“Boss, Brother Ye, are you coming?”
Shen Jinfeng shook his head and looked toward Qin Ye. “You said earlier that your mother found many fortune-tellers for you. Do you want to ask Qi Xiu to calculate for you and see if the result is the same?”
Qin Ye glanced at him. He had originally wanted to say no, but his mind immediately changed.
He hesitated for a moment and slowly nodded. “Fine.”
There was no loss in calculating.
Ms. Yun had already helped him calculate so many times.
Qi Xiu was full of enthusiasm. Based on his shallow knowledge of face reading, Qin Ye also looked like the kind of person whose nobility could not be described in words.
At the very least, his whole body was filled with the aura of someone in a superior position.
Of course, he definitely could not compare to Boss!
“Brother Ye, what do you want to calculate? Eight characters too?” He wanted to calculate whether Qin Ye or He Erwang was richer!
Qin Ye shook his head.
Other people used eight characters because they did not know what exactly they wanted to calculate and wanted to see everything, filled with curiosity about their own future.
But for him:
Health—his whole family had monthly checkups, and family doctors lived with them.
Wealth—his net worth was the same as He Erwang’s. He could burn money for fun every day and still not spend it all.
Career—he indeed still had thoughts of climbing to a higher level, but his business plans were all in his head. He did not need fortune-telling to assist or predict them.
Qin Ye glanced at Shen Jinfeng beside him, whose eyes were bright and “expectant” as he looked at him, and his heart suddenly stirred.
Although he was confident that his feelings would not be wrong, after all, he truly had never been in a relationship.
It would not be bad to seek confirmation.
Thinking of this, Qin Ye’s breathing became uneven for a beat, and his heart suddenly grew somewhat nervous.
He moved his gaze away and composed himself before saying to Qi Xiu, “I want to look at love.”
As soon as the words landed, he suddenly felt the gaze beside him become even hotter.
As expected, Shen Jinfeng could not resist looking at him!
Qin Ye looked straight ahead and asked Qi Xiu, “Can you help me see when my love will come?”
Qi Xiu gave a somewhat disappointed “oh.”
Only looking at love.
Wait, looking at love was also quite interesting.
No one was perfect. A person could not be good at everything, right?
He Erwang had a life of wealth and honor, but his relationships were not very good.
Maybe Qin Ye was the same, hehe.
Moreover, he had just looked at two people, and both of their love lives were hard to describe.
The old man had told him before that the world sang praises of love, but after calculating fortunes for a lifetime, he had not calculated many cases of happy, fulfilling love.
Qi Xiu regained his spirit. “Eight characters can also show love, but if we’re only looking at a single aspect—and your question is specific, asking when love will come—I’ll use six lines to read it for you.”
Fortunately, under the old man’s influence, he was also used to carrying three copper coins with him.
The copper coins were lucky and had not fallen into the sea.
Qi Xiu took his copper coins and turtle shell out of his carry-on bag. After thinking about it, he first went to wash his hands.
Then he came back, placed the copper coins in his palms, quietly contemplated for three minutes, put all three copper coins into the turtle shell, shook it and repeated the process six times, casting the hexagram.
After recording the hexagram, he quietly thought for several minutes.
He clicked his tongue in surprise.
Then he suddenly looked up and congratulated Qin Ye. “Don’t worry. Your love is coming very soon.”
