Chapter 51 – Investors
Chen Bai “…”
Chen Bai rubbed his face again.
It turned out that besides watching a friend act, there was also the awkwardness of friends watching him act.
The white-haired man seemed to drain of color, lying back on the sofa as if he had turned into a fresh corpse.
Fortunately, he didn’t have to play dead for long, as the episode they were watching happened to be the last part of the last episode available on early access, ending just as the credits rolled, with no more episodes afterward.
Zhang Ling and Huo Qing both sighed, while the caregiver, who had been watching with equal interest, immediately started looking up the next broadcast time.
As the screen went dark, Chen Bai regained some energy and sat up. Huo Qing gave him a thumbs-up, praising his acting.
With a faint smile, Chen Bai lay back down.
The caregiver stood up, grabbed a fruit basket from the cabinet, and went to prepare a fruit plate.
That afternoon was filled with lively conversation. It had been a while since they’d seen each other, and Aunt Zhang had a lot to say. Chen Bai, with his varied work experiences, always had some gossip to share, keeping everyone, including the caregiver, entertained as they snacked and chatted.
Time passed as the sun moved, its light shifting from the doorway to shine through the window on the other side.
Even though they were on the top floor, tall trees outside the window cast a dappled shadow in the sunlight.
The room was filled with laughter. Zhang Ling, wrapped in a blanket over her lap, took a sip of water with a smile, then turned back to listen to Chen Bai as he spoke, casting a shadow on his slim profile and his hair, now tousled from leaning against the sofa.
The messy hair stood out, slightly moving with his actions in the air.
Without thinking much, almost instinctively, she reached out with a hand from her waist.
Someone nearby stabbed a piece of fruit, making a soft sound.
“…”
Just before her hand touched the disheveled white hair, she snapped back to reality and stopped mid-air, starting to retract her hand.
Chen Bai “?”
Noticing something in his peripheral vision, the person who had just stabbed a piece of fruit and was chewing on it slightly puffed out his cheeks. He turned his head and saw the hand suspended in mid-air. Swallowing his fruit, he pointed to his messy hair and asked, “Auntie, do you want to touch it?”
Then he generously said she could go ahead if she wanted to, adding, “They say it feels pretty nice.”
By “they,” he meant the group of people from the crew. His good neighbor had only touched his hair while blow-drying it or putting on his hat, never offering any comments on its feel.
Since he changed his hair color, he had grown quite accustomed to people tugging at it, and he had become desensitized to it. Considering Auntie was in a wheelchair and seated lower, he thoughtfully lowered his head.
Zhang Ling’s outstretched hand didn’t retreat but gently landed on his white hair.
It did feel nice. His hair was soft, fine, and plentiful, a bit messy but not bothersome.
She lowered her gaze and started smoothing out his hair bit by bit.
Chen Bai, accustomed to others tugging at his hair roughly, waited for the familiar feeling but didn’t feel it. It was only after a moment that he realized she was gently tidying his hair.
Her movements were light, a bit cautious, and he could only faintly feel a warm sensation through his hair. He almost didn’t notice it.
After smoothing out the mess of hair, Zhang Ling finally withdrew her hand.
Chen Bai raised his head again and smiled.
With his hair now neatly arranged, there was nothing left to tug on. Huo Qing, who had been watching from the side and itching to touch it herself, regretfully gave up and could only sit back and watch.
The room was quiet, with only their conversation filling the air. Just as she sat back down, footsteps could be heard outside the room.
Since unauthorized people couldn’t access this floor, and it wasn’t time for a doctor’s routine check-up, she glanced at the time.
It was about the time her brother usually arrived. Realizing who it might be, she stood up to open the door before the person outside had a chance to knock.
The moment she opened the door, the person in the hallway was standing right outside.
He was dressed in his usual suit, though he had removed his jacket, which he draped over his arm. As he walked into the room, he looked over to where the hospital bed should be and asked, “How’s Mom?”
The bed was empty.
He must have come straight from work, as his tone was still cold and businesslike, almost formal. Huo Qing, accustomed to his manner, led him toward the small living room, saying, “She’s great. Brother Bai came, and they had a wonderful time chatting.”
Huo Chuan asked, “Chen Bai?”
It was indeed Chen Bai.
Entering the living room, he immediately noticed the person sitting by the sofa.
The person looked up, still smiling, his eyes curved with lingering laughter.
Everyone in the small living room noticed him and greeted him. Chen Bai, with his white hair, chimed in with “Mr. Huo” along with the others.
Every time they met, there seemed to be something different about him.
Huo Chuan’s gaze lingered on him briefly before he nodded and glanced around the room.
A bouquet of flowers sat on the coffee table, white and green, alongside a half-eaten fruit platter and other snacks.
The room had clearly been lively this afternoon.
After glancing around, Chen Bai looked down at his phone to check the time.
Even the God of Wealth had finished his workday; it was indeed getting late.
He realized it was about time for him to head home. He could still catch dinner with his good neighbor, then get ready for his scheduled livestream.
With Auntie’s family gathered, there was no need for him to stay. He casually put on his hat, pulled out a mask from his pocket, and stood up, announcing that it was time for him to leave.
Zhang Ling glanced at the time.
Knowing he was busy, she was grateful he’d spent nearly the whole afternoon with them. She didn’t ask him to stay but sighed and smiled, agreeing.
Not entirely comfortable with him leaving alone, her gaze swept the room before she called her son’s name. “You drove here, right? Why don’t you give him a ride?”
The God of Wealth as a chauffeur?
Chen Bai froze with his mask half-on, feeling like he was being somewhat disrespectful.
He raised his hand, about to decline, but the moment he entered, Huo Chuan had already set down his jacket and, without much discussion, agreed to drive him.
Zhang Ling added, “Make sure you see him home.”
Chen Bai “…”
So, somewhat naturally yet inexplicably, Chen Bai left the hospital room with the God of Wealth.
Huo Chuan had indeed driven himself today, keys in hand, without a chauffeur.
But before they got in the elevator, Chen Bai politely said he could go home on his own.
Yet Huo Chuan stepped into the elevator with him, making his intentions clear.
Surprised to have him volunteer as a driver, Chen Bai glanced at him, wondering about his mental state.
Huo Chuan, catching his gaze, simply replied, “She’s in a good mood today.”
It was an explanation of sorts.
With Auntie feeling happy today, he didn’t want to spoil the mood. Driving wasn’t a big deal.
They descended in the elevator to the busy first floor of the inpatient wing.
Outside, they reached the car parked in the lot, and Huo Chuan started the engine.
Sitting in the back seat felt too much like he was treating Huo Chuan as a chauffeur, so Chen Bai took the passenger seat. After he buckled his seatbelt, Huo Chuan turned to him and asked for his address.
Chen Bai pulled out his phone to check the map and gave him the name of the nearest subway station.
Huo Chuan didn’t move, asking for the exact location.
It seemed he truly intended to see him home.
The neighborhood was large, with several entrances, so there wasn’t much harm in him knowing where he lived. So, Chen Bai shared the name of his residential complex.
The car started and slowly pulled out of the parking lot.
The last rays of the evening sun filtered through the roadside greenery and into the car, casting shifting shadows. A sliver of light fell beside the passenger seat, illuminating a patch of white hair under the brim of a hat.
Chen Bai, looking down, sent a message to his good neighbor. After putting his phone away, something occurred to him, and he lifted his head, suggesting, “Auntie needs rest, but it doesn’t have to be too quiet.”
He continued, “It’s too lonely for her to be in that big house alone. Sometimes, she should have some friends over. Whether it’s playing mahjong or doing something else, it would be nice.”
Rest is important, especially for Auntie Zhang’s illness; she should avoid emotional ups and downs. Living alone in such a quiet space, without any fresh happenings, could lead to negative thoughts, which would affect her mood and, ultimately, her health.
Huo Chuan didn’t disagree. He glanced sideways at him and then returned his gaze to the road, agreeing with a nod.
The last bit of daylight faded away completely, and the streetlights began to glow.
As they reached the latter part of the journey, the phone in Chen Bai’s pocket vibrated. In the dimly lit car, he pulled it out, and the screen cast a light over the interior.
It was a call from Auntie Zhang. He glanced at the screen and answered.
She didn’t have much to say, just wanted to ask where he was and how much longer until he got home. Glancing at the navigation on the car’s display, he replied that he was almost there, only a few minutes away.
She said something else, to which he responded, leaning back and chuckling lightly.
The car stopped at a red light, and Huo Chuan glanced at him from behind the steering wheel.
Unlike his usual manner, he looked relaxed, with an unrestrained smile on his face, his tone slightly different—his voice lifting at the end of his sentences, clearly in a good mood.
The car was quiet, the only sound being the hum of the air conditioner, and though they weren’t speaking loudly, their voices filled the silence.
After ending the call, Huo Chuan turned to him and asked, “You’re quite fond of her, aren’t you?”
He was obviously referring to Ms. Zhang.
“Mmm.”
Chen Bai put his phone down, smiled, and said, “Auntie is a lot like my mom—they both love to chat.”
The two women might have had completely different personalities otherwise, but this shared love of conversation was strikingly similar. Or maybe, in that regard, many mothers are quite alike.
It was just a shame he’d been too prideful back then, never really getting to have a good chat with her. Now, even if he wanted to, he couldn’t.
He wore a light smile, his eyes clear and emotionless, as though simply stating a fact.
Huo Chuan looked away and gave a slight nod.
The car reached a familiar area, and he pulled over as directed by the GPS. The person in the passenger seat unbuckled his seatbelt and jumped out, closing the door and waving from outside.
He seemed to be in a hurry, as he didn’t linger by the roadside but jogged into the complex after just a couple of waves.
Watching him disappear, Huo Chuan reoriented the car and began driving back.
Despite the apparent urgency, there really wasn’t anything pressing.
He just wanted to get back quickly to have dinner with his good neighbor.
For reasons unknown, Comrade Old Xu had recently started learning how to cook. Although his skills weren’t any better than his younger brother Xu Lang’s, he had made some progress.
For instance, he could safely cook a bowl of fragrant rice.
Eating rice that evening, although he couldn’t detect much flavor, Chen Bai still enthusiastically gave him a thumbs-up, appreciating the emotional effort.
He’d already planned to livestream later that night, so with time running short, he finished dinner and then helped wash the dishes before excusing himself.
From the kitchen to the hallway, Chen Bai put his hat back on, pausing halfway as if he’d thought of something. “You haven’t felt my new hair, have you?”
He took off the hat he was putting on and asked, “Want to give it a try?”
Xu Sinian “…”
His question was so casual that it caught Old Xu off guard, and it took him a moment to process it.
Looking down at him at the doorway, he was still looking up with an expectant gaze and repeated the question.
After a brief silence, Old Xu raised his hand, and his cold-gray watch flashed in the light.
And just as his hand was about to touch the soft white hair, Chen Bai smiled.
In that instant, the previously calm figure quickly ducked, darted forward, and leaped up.
Using a series of fake moves, Chen Bai put one hand on his good neighbor’s shoulder and, taking him by surprise, managed to grab his hair in a sudden burst of wild ruffling.
His movements were quick and his technique wild.
So that was the real objective.
Feeling a bit of weight on his shoulders, Old Xu took a half step back, leaning against the hallway cabinet. He instinctively reached out to steady Chen Bai, preventing him from falling.
Fully confident in his good neighbor’s strength, Chen Bai, while settling his balance, continued his chaotic hair ruffling, all the while giving a brief evaluation: “A bit stiff; not sure yet. Let me try again.”
Old Xu let him continue.
Finally satisfied, Chen Bai gave him a pat on the shoulder and was gently set down, landing on the floor with ease.
Back on solid ground, he looked up at his handiwork, quite pleased, and even took a picture for posterity.
Having successfully messed with the hair of the award-winning actor, Chen Bai felt content. After taking his commemorative photo, he put his phone back in his pocket and then finally put on his hat properly.
With his hat in place, he waved goodbye and quickly ran to the elevator.
He made his escape right after the ruffle, leaving his good neighbor standing in the doorway, watching him leave.
The elevator went down, stopped on the next floor, and then remained silent.
Xu Sinian “…”
Old Xu stood by the doorway, quietly looking down at his hand.
Chen Bai quickly returned to his place, turned on his computer, and resumed his unremarkable livestream.
Sitting down in front of the screen, he felt like he might have forgotten something, but he couldn’t quite figure it out, so he let it go and rejoined his friends in a group call.
Today was supposed to be a fairly ordinary day with a small profit, until a message popped up on Chen Bai phone after his live stream ended.
It was a transaction notification.
To be precise, it was a credit notification, showing an incoming payment of 200,000 yuan from the account of “The God of Wealth” from before. This was a reward, or rather a thank-you payment, for spending the afternoon with Aunt Zhang.
Chen Bai wasn’t visiting her at the hospital just for this money. But since The God of Wealth had already transferred it, and returning it would incur extra fees, he decided to keep it.
Receiving 200,000 yuan at two in the morning certainly boosted his spirits. He put down his phone and went to wash up. After changing into his pajamas and lying comfortably in bed, he picked up his phone again.
Thinking back, he realized he had been here for quite some time and had earned some gold coins along the way. His income from various channels had been deposited in different accounts, and he hadn’t had time—or perhaps he just hadn’t thought of it yet—to gather it all together.
His mind still alert, he had time on his hands, so he turned over and started checking each of his bank accounts, trying to see how close he was to his three-million-yuan goal.
The bulk of his savings was in the card linked to The God of Wealth, as well as in the one for “Chen Yi Bai.” “Chen Er Bai” also had a share, including some prize money from his last competition. The numbers seemed fairly decent.
Chen Yi Bai’s endorsement was also expected to bring in a significant amount, though it would take quite some time to actually receive it.
Switching his phone to a split screen, he displayed the bank balances on one side and a calculator on the other, going through his accounts one by one.
He was meticulous, starting with the cards that had smaller amounts, down to the last two decimal points.
The first few cards contained amounts ranging from a few dozen to several hundred yuan, with one card approaching ten thousand. He paused and remembered it was from his locksmith jobs.
Once he finished with the smaller accounts, he moved on to the payroll card for Chen Er Bai, where the figure suddenly jumped, instantly reaching six digits, a pleasing sight.
Adding in The God of Wealth’s account, his balance jumped straight to seven figures.
Glancing at the number in his calculator, he looked back at Chen Yi Bai’s account, and his mind started whirring as he noticed something off. He sat up straight.
Seven figures plus seven figures—they successfully added up to a seven-figure sum starting with a three.
Chen Bai “…”
Fully awake now, he recalculated.
[ 3,025,063.89 ]
The result was the same.
He made over three million, with an extra twenty thousand, and nearly three months left before the repayment deadline.
He had actually finished his task ahead of time. Though he still had the massive four-hundred-million-yuan mountain looming over him, at least completing the three-million goal in advance was something.
Once the money was repaid, the remaining amount was roughly the same as when he first arrived here, before he’d been hospitalized.
It was hard to say whether he was back to square one or had somehow made progress.
On an otherwise ordinary evening, breaking the three-million barrier, Chen Bai immediately went to boast to his good neighbor, carefully selecting a meme of himself with self-praise.
At this hour, his good neighbor was surprisingly online, responding with praise of their own, albeit a bit confused.
With the double compliment from himself and his neighbor, Chen Bai put down his phone and fell asleep contentedly.
The endorsement was almost finalized, but the contract process was slow, and his money partner estimated it would take about two weeks. They had met recently to discuss it.
It was troublesome to meet at the company, as it was far away and there were other fans waiting downstairs. There were also risks to meeting outside, so his partner had already taken it upon themselves to use his place as a go-to spot for discussing matters, bringing things over directly whenever there was an issue.
Once again dragged out of bed, with a messy head of hair, he washed up and sat on the sofa, receiving two updates.
The first was that the issue of the driver his agent had been clamoring about was finally on the agenda. The company planned to get him a car and a driver, though the arrangements would take some time.
The second update was about script selection.
Right now, ‘Ask Fate’ was still airing, with sky-high ratings, far surpassing the second place. Several production companies had sent over scripts in the meantime.
Not commenting on the quality of the new scripts for now, Chen Bai, with half-closed eyes, glanced at a few pages. Halfway through, he opened his eyes a bit more and cautiously asked, “Aren’t we just asking for the moon here?”
Their pricing was sky-high, and, to be fair, these companies were willing to accept it, each one offering more than the last.
The agent tapped his head and said, “You’re worth it.”
Finding an actor with inherent commercial value wasn’t just about hiring a suitable actor; it was an investment. And investments require spending money. If they wanted the commercial benefits, they’d have to pay for them.
She set a reasonable price given his rapidly rising fame, large fan base, and relatively few works, making it objectively risky, but it was fair compared to others in the industry.
She suspected he still hadn’t quite grasped his standing, maybe even still seeing himself as a newcomer.
So, still thinking of himself as a rookie, Chen Bai continued looking through the scripts.
There were six in total, with the last one being the thinnest—just a few pages—but its price stood out, radiating a sense of grandeur and wealth from the very first glance.
His agent had learned to get herself a drink. When she returned, she saw him holding that thin script and said, “That’s a film script. They’ve been searching for actors for a while and will start shooting soon.”
Among the six scripts, there were three for dramas, two for variety shows, and one for a film.
She said, “It depends on which path you want to take. If you aim to become a media personality, the variety shows are worth considering. But if you want to pursue acting, I’d personally recommend trying out the film.”
Each option had its pros and cons. The company was weighing its options, but ultimately, it would depend on his own choice.
Chen Bai chose to look over the film script.
He didn’t know much about this field, but his intuition told him that if he chose the former option, there would be even more “wife” and “husband” comments in the discussion threads than before.
He wasn’t planning on dating, and he definitely wasn’t interested in committing “polygamy.”
His agent wasn’t surprised; it was pretty much what she had expected. She sat down with her cup of water and said, “This is a good film script, and the role they’re offering you is also quite good.”
The script was solid, a big production with a well-known director, and other established actors had already signed on. The cast was impressive.
The film was a martial arts piece, and the character was the third male lead, a blind swordsman whose wife had died. He had once been a renowned and charismatic swordsman, but now he lived in self-imposed exile, alone, blind, and carrying a sword he could barely wield.
Chen Bai felt that this role would objectively be a test of his abilities, and he was a bit surprised they had offered it to him.
His agent understood and said, “I heard from someone over there that a major investor recommended you. Do you have any friends with that kind of influence, other than Xu Sinian?”
“A major investor?”
Chen Bai flipped through the thin script pages and waved his hand dismissively, saying, “How could I possibly know someone like that?”
—
Author’s Note:
The God of Wealth a.ka. Huo Chuan is automatically excluded from the friends list.
