The night is as quiet as flowing water. Xing Yichen stood in front of the window and watched as the moonlight washed over the neatly trimmed grass.
He didn't understand what came over him, but he ended up rewatching the online video of Qiao Moyu leading the boy out of the sea of flames.
Xing Yichen even felt he was crazy for looking up Qiao Moyu's Weibo and browsing through her comments section.
She had become a hot search topic this evening because of her rescue. The comments were filled with concerned words from her fans.
"Sister Moyu, are you hurt? How're you feeling? I'm so sad!"
"Moyu, in the past, I always thought you had nothing else but your beauty, but now I feel that I was too narrow-minded! There were so many people at the scene, but only you were courageous enough to jump into the sea of flames to save someone's life! I really admire you! What a person does in a life and death situation will reflect their true nature. Even if your acting isn't the best, I believe you will become more and more outstanding! I think highly of you!"
"Sister Moyu, I was just a passerby before, but now I'm going to be your fan!"
"Goddess, from the moment you split the wooden board with your bare hands, I was really surprised. And now I'm even more surprised that you can also jump into a sea of flames to save someone."
"Sister Moyu, are you hurt? Does it hurt anywhere? TT^TT Wu wu, can you take a photo so we can see if you're doing ok?"
...
Perhaps she saw the comments from the fans below, so Qiao Moyu posted a selfie.
She most likely washed her face after stepping out of the bath, since she still wore the hairband that pulled her fringe back, revealing her delicate and refined small face.
She lifted her right hand and made a heart gesture. One can see the blisters on her white wrist.
Qiao Moyu replied in a video: "Thanks for your concern my fans, I'm alright now. It's just part of being a martial artist so I got myself a few blisters. I'm doing well now!"
As soon as this was posted on Weibo, the fans began to passionately post replies. As he was browsing, Xing Yichen noticed a comment that questioned the legitimacy of Qiao Moyu's rescue, implying that she did it to gain fame and fortune. It read: "Qiao Moyu, why exactly did you save that kid? Isn't it suspicious that it was even filmed in HD? You see, your fans even increased by more than 1 million in just one video, isn't that really surprising?"
At first, no one noticed this comment, but after a while, someone jumped into the comment section and retorted back: "Hehe, your heart is so dark. Someone was brave enough to do something good, and yet you paint it black and say she did it on purpose. I hope you fall into a sea of fire where no one can save you!"
Very soon, many people joined in to argue, but for some reason, the number of people who questioned Qiao Moyu's actions suddenly appeared at once, like bamboo shoots after a spring rain.
Several people appeared out of nowhere to spread doubts about Qiao Moyu's purpose, saying that she relied on backhand dealings to obtain fame. Otherwise, how could she know that a fire would start in that location? Could it have something to do with her? In short, anything coincidental was focused upon and questioned.
Xing Yichen frowned. He understood that someone must have hired a black powder army to stain Qiao Moyu's name on purpose, making a lie out of truth. Although such claims couldn't be supported by logic, people are scary creatures. If they gossiped too much, they could easily turn around the situation.
As there weren't many fans in Qiao Moyu's group, the cursing comments actually surpassed the ones that defended her name. The anti-fan army even scolded her loyal fans, saying they were brainless and were brainwashed by Qiao Moyu herself.
He wasn't sure if it was because he was saved in the past, but Xing Yichen felt that such sincerity and courage shouldn't be misunderstood. He thought for a moment, then picked up his phone, intending to contact his special assistant to hire a group of 'fans' who can comment and reverse the public opinion.
However, just as he dialed the number, a large number of Qiao Moyu's fans appeared on the internet. Their comments were very reasonable and well thought out. They analyzed the situation in an orderly manner and shamed those anti-fans.
In a glance, Xing Yichen knew that this had to be accomplished by a hired team. He couldn't help but wonder, 'Just who did this?'
Although Qiao Moyu's drama crew is supportive of her, they certainly wouldn't spend so much money to quell down the public opinion at such a high speed. Therefore, someone in the background must be helping her.
However, he was familiar with everyone that Qiao Moyu is surrounded with. Who could possibly help her?
In another villa, not far away from Xing Yichen's, Father Ye and Mr. Huang bent down in front of a computer.
The two of them observed the changes on Qiao Moyu's comment section, unable to hold in their surprise.
Mr. Huang asked: "Mr. Ye, was this done by your team?"
Father Ye shook his head: "I haven't even had the chance to send orders, who would someone take initiative to do this for her?
"Could it be Peicheng?" Mr. Huang glanced at the screen while tapping the table. His face displayed a meaningful smile.
"Him?" Father Ye smirked: "It's more likely that his rival helped rather than that boy. It can't be him!"
"I don't think so," Mr. Huang commented: "This time, they've been filming together everyday. They've even cuddled together with their intimate scenes. Perhaps there's already a spark between them."
"Really?" Father Ye said doubtfully: "Then I'll ask him about it."
"You shouldn't ask him about this matter. If you do, it will have a bad consequence." Mr. Huang added: "Let nature take its course! Since we have nothing else to do, let's continue on with our game of chess."
...
That night, all of Qiao Moyu's anti-fans were rendered speechless by the counter arguments. The person who plotted against her was unable to destroy her image and instead, gave a boost to her popularity. Qiao Moyu's fans even increased by over a million because of this event.
Since the actress herself insisted that she was fine, the filming crew continued on with their original plans. Two days later, the filming crew returned to the Imperial capital and Qiao Moyu was finally able to return home.
When she arrived, it was just time for lunch. Luo Luo sat on his high chair while Nanny Yu fed him. He pouted as he complained: "Luo Luo doesn't like to eat pumpkins!"
"Luo Luo doesn't like carrots!"
"Luo Luo doesn't like cucumbers!"
He rejected those vegetables one by one. The only food he favored was the pickled fish that Nanny Yu cooked earlier today, while the rice was left untouched.
By the time Qiao Moyu pushed open the door and walked in, Sister Yu was advising the little toddler: "Baby needs to eat all kinds of vegetables and rice so you can grow up well. Didn't Luo Luo say that he wants to grow up fast and protect mother? If you don't eat properly, our picky Baobei will grow slowly."
REPORT THIS ADUpon hearing this, the little boy took a small bite of the pumpkin, chewed, then paused.
Qiao Moyu deliberately closed the door very quietly. She changed her shoes to indoor ones, circled around the hallway, and quietly came into the dining room.
The little guy spat out the cucumber that Sister Yu fed him. He reached out and scooped a piece of fish before placing it in his mouth.
His hand was white and tender. Qiao Moyu snuck up behind him, her lips curling up. She stuck her head out beside him and grinned: "Luo Luo, is the fish tasty?"
The little boy was about to bite into the fish when he suddenly noticed Qiao Moyu right by him. He immediately forgot about the fish and dropped the half-bitten piece on his plate, his mouth hanging open.
The boy's eyes widened in disbelief when he saw his mother suddenly appear before him. His expression froze on his small face, making him appear very comical and cute.
Qiao Moyu couldn't help but pull closer and kiss each side of the little boy's cheeks. Then, she handed a gift that she had prepared beforehand and said: "Luo Luo, mom is back. She brought a present for Baobei!"
Only then did Luo Luo react. He beamed and happily received the gift. Seeing that Qiao Moyu had come for him, he immediately moved his small lips closer and planted a kiss on his mom's cheeks, leaving two soft imprints.
"Mom misses Baobei. I've been wanting to come back for a while now so I can give Baobei a hug!" As Qiao Moyu spoke, she bent down and made eye contact with Luo Luo: "Do you miss your mom?"
The little boy unconsciously nodded. However, when he noticed Qiao Moyu's burning gaze, his little face quickly turned red and his chubby hands stuck to each other. His eyelashes drooped down in embarrassment.
Qiao Moyu laughed, but didn't let him off. She pretended to be at a loss and asked: "Baby isn't talking. Did you miss mom?"
Hearing her point this out, the little toddler panicked and immediately clarified: "Luo Luo thought of mom!"
The corner of Qiao Moyu's lips lifted to a smile: "Little cutie, why are you so cute?!" As she spoke, she hugged the boy and kissed him enthusiastically.
After a long while, she placed Luo Luo back on his high chair, then went to wash her hands. After sitting down, she said: "When mom wasn't around, did Baobei eat properly?"
Luo Luo quickly covered the leftover vegetables on his bowl with his small hand.
Understanding his intention, Qiao Moyu purposefully said: "Baobei is so obedient. He finished eating all the dishes Nanny Yu gave him! This baby must be very smart and cute!"
REPORT THIS ADWith that, she got up and went to the kitchen to fill her bowl with soup, thus leaving time for Luo Luo.
Just as expected, as soon as she left the room, the little toddler scooped the food into his mouth.
Nanny Yu told him to slow down because she was afraid he would choke, but he chewed quickly and stuffed the last pumpkin into his mouth. When Qiao Moyu returned, his small cheeks were puffed up with noticeable pumpkin grains on his mouth.
Qiao Moyu feigned ignorance. She sat down beside the boy and said: "Luo Luo, mom and Baobei need to discuss something."
The toddler nodded and looked up at her and Nanny Yu with wide eyes.
"Baobei is now two-years-old and will be going to kindergarten when you turn three-years-old, which means you'll have to learn to eat by yourself." Qiao Moyu explained: "Babies in kindergarten eat with their own spoons. Since Luo Luo is very smart, you must also learn how to eat with your own spoon! So, from today onwards, Nanny won't spoon feed you anymore, okay?"
Since the boy learned that other babies already knew the skill, naturally, he couldn't afford to fall behind either. He wanted to say something, but then he kept it to himself and simply nodded his head.
Qiao Moyu handed the spoon to him and said: "Baby, we will now learn to scoop up our own rice and vegetables. Once you learn how to use a spoon, I'll teach you how to eat with chopsticks."
The toddler finally finished stuffing the food in his mouth and hurriedly nodded: "Luo Luo will be using chopsticks today!"
"So quickly?" Qiao Moyu praised him and began to teach him how to use chopsticks.
"Baobei, see? Chopsticks need to be held like this…" Qiao Moyu raised her hand as she demonstrated to him.
Just when the little boy was about to reach out and grab the chopsticks, his expression suddenly froze.
Qiao Moyu noticed that his expression wasn't quite right, so she asked: "Luo Luo what's wrong?"
The little fellow stretched his hand and pointed to the spot where Qiao Moyu's wrist was scalded: "Mom, what happened to this?"
Qiao Moyu glanced down and said: "It's fine. I just got burned. It'll be fine in a few days!"
Hearing this, Luo Luo's eyes immediately teared up. He moved his small face closer to her and blowed gently on her injured spot: "Mom, don't be afraid. It won't hurt after Luo Luo is done blowing!"
The sensation of the boy's breath on her wrist was a bit ticklish. Qiao Moyu bowed down and looked at Little Luo who was blowing seriously. An indescribable warmth filled her heart.
Qiao Moyu couldn't help but ponder. Right now, she was far away from her family and had come to this strange world. Although she was always optimistic, there inevitably be times where she felt hesitant and uneasy. She never thought that the first person who would give her a sense of belonging would be a two-year-old child.
And this child was created from her current body's flesh and bone– her biological son.
Her eyes turned moist and she couldn't help but say gently: "Since Baobei blew on mom's wounds, it doesn't hurt at all!"
The little toddler beamed with joy upon hearing this. His black, glass-like eyes were now filled with confidence: "Luo Luo was able to help mom!"
"En!" Qiao Moyu said seriously: "Luo Luo, you've helped mom a lot."
After lunch, the weather was quite nice, so Qiao Moyu took Luo Luo out to play at the residential area. She plans to bring him back home home for an afternoon nap later after he finishes digesting his food.
This toddler really enjoyed playing with the slide. He was clearly only two-years-old, but he wanted to be like the older kids and learn to climb up the slide. As a result, Qiao Moyu had to hold his little butt each time since he couldn't reach out and grab both sides when he slid down. Moyu laughed at him and he laughed alongside her.
After some time, Qiao Moyu held him steadily while he played on the swing. At that moment, her cellphone rang.
She answered: "Hello, Director Wang."
Director Wang appeared to be at the top of a mountain. The sound of rushing wind overlapped with his voice over the phone: "Master!"
Ever since Qiao Moyu helped him out, his career clearly improved. That was why he had always been very grateful towards Qiao Moyu for her 'graciousness.'
Today, he and his friend had a rare moment of having extra time, so they went out for a walk in nature. There was an abandoned monastery located in the mountains in the northern suburbs; this was the very same monastery the director would mention whenever someone asked him where they could meet this 'master.'
When director Wang arrived at the worn out monastery earlier that day, he saw traces of the place being cleaned. There were a few envelopes neatly placed on the table with impressively written calligraphy: "Great Master, please open the light."
Through the phone, the director said: "Master, it's like this. I went to the monastery earlier today at the northern suburbs and found that there were several letters sent to you–"
Qiao Moyu had initially planned to bring Luo Luo to the mountains this weekend for some fresh air and sightseeing. Who knew that Director Wang would go there first? She pondered for a moment, then replied: "Then I have to ask Director Wang to tell me what are the contents of those letters!"
Thus, Director Wang opened each letter one by one and read every single word out loud.
Qiao Moyu pressed the record button and recorded everyone's requests, including how to contact them. Then she thanked Director Wang and hung up on the phone.
Although she didn't take any of the letters to heart, she did have quite an impression one of the people that Director Wang mentioned.
There was a reference to a musician who had always been obsessed with writing music, but had lost out on drug addiction five years ago. He now returned to start anew, but he no longer looked the way he did before.
Tomorrow was the opening day of his music studio, but the entertainment industry was always changing trends too quickly. This man had been in seclusion for five years now.
The reason why Qiao Moyu took notice of him was because this musician was mentioned in the original novel as someone who committed suicide. The text said something along these lines: "Qiao Moyu chose to die at the Imperial Capital's famous Holy Land of suicide, where the famous musical prodigy Lu Beige also jumped off from about a year ago…"
When she first read this, Qiao Moyu had specially gone back to recheck the earlier chapters, discovering that Lu Beige hadn't taken any drugs at all. This scandal was a setup by someone else.
The music created by this talent was actually very spiritual and clever, but the world was too harsh. He was shunned as someone rigid and unsophisticated, being too unwilling to sacrifice certain principles to fulfil other's interests. So even after he recovered, he was still bogged down by depression, to the point where he finally chose to jump off the building to end his young life.