Back in her previous life, when she read this part of the story, she even specially commented and ridiculed the author for putting in this plot point.
She had a nagging feeling that the three moral views of the novel "The Film Empress' Loyal Dog CEO" were quite twisted. If good people die young, the bad ones should suffer for a thousand years. If it weren't for the fact that the villainess shared the same name as hers, she would've abandoned a novel as crazy as this a long ago!
At this moment, when she thought of Lu Beige's final ending, Qiao Moyu couldn't help but sigh in her heart. Noticing how sleepy Luo Luo appeared, she took his hand and led him home.
As they walked up the stairs, Qiao Moyu already made her decision. She bent down and said to the little boy: "Luo Luo, mom will bring you someplace tomorrow. Mom is going to work just like last time, so Luo Luo should play closeby, alright?"
When the toddler heard that his mother will be bringing him to her work, he nodded immediately.
Qiao Moyu ruffled his hair and said in a mysterious voice: "Also, Luo Luo can help mother. I've prepared something that I need your help with."
She had already given it some thought. In fact, bringing him along whenever she did this will bring great benefits to his life in the future.
When she helped Director Wang last time, Qiao Moyu had no other choice since she urgently needed money. Now and in the future, she will examine the other person's character to see if they're fit for enlightenment.
If she could bring good fortune to Lu Beige tomorrow, perhaps she can save a life and prevent him from suicide. Then her deed would be a merit.
When Qiao Moyu reached the bedroom upstairs, she noticed just how tired Luo Luo was. She picked him up, and in less than two minutes, the little toddler fell asleep in her arms.
As he dozed off, his small lips pouted while his eyelashes left delicate shadows on his face. Who knows what he dreamt of, since the boy suddenly smiled.
After a few minutes, he smiled once again.
Qiao Moyu accompanied him for a while before getting up and going to another room to listen to the recordings.
Lu Beige should have left this letter around three days ago. There was only a single sentence on it: "Master, I didn't know I would fall to this point one day, but there's no other way out for me."
Below was a written address and time for the opening of his studio.
Qiao Moyu recorded his contact details and called him.
After a few rings, someone answered. It was a very young and clear voice: "Hello."
Qiao Moyu answered with a coarse voice on purpose: "This Master just visited the Taoist Temple at the Northern Suburbs."
Startled, Lu Beige immediately replied: "Greeting Master! Have you read my letter?"
"Yes." Qiao Moyu said: "Tomorrow, we will arrive on time at the appointed location."
"Then as for the compensation–" actually, Lu Beige seldom spoke of money since he was too poor to even pay start his own business.
Qiao Moyu recited the lines she prepared beforehand: "I will be opening my doors tomorrow without accepting a single cent. If you're perhaps blessed with fortune, then make sure to remember the way there."
Initially, Lu Beige was very adamant about going; if the other party charges expensively, he will try his best to match the price. However, if the price was neither too high nor too low, it was unknown whether this was a scam or not.
He quickly said: "Master, I will pay for your hard work…I am indeed very poor right now, so please don't despise me."
"If you feel sorry for yourself, then write a song everyday and give it to Little Sister!" Qiao Moyu added, "Tomorrow, a quarter before one, we will be there on time,"
"Alright, thank you master!"
After hanging up, Qiao Moyu prepared to leave the next day. Since Luo Luo's equipment wasn't so good the last time, she prepared this time by specially creating a set of clothes for Luo Luo. She also ordered a 'peach wooden sword' that looked as if it was made of plastic with a wooden pattern.
Thus, the next day, the pair of mother and son finished their breakfast and went back home to change their outfits.
Compared to back then, Qiao Moyu was now somewhat famous, so she applied her makeup and disguise much more seriously this time.
Using a facial contouring technique, she made the outline of her face more solid and firm. She also thickened her eyebrows, drew herself an Adam's Apple, and shaded her chin and upper lip, making it appear as if she had a stubble.
After dressing up, she glanced at the mirror and smiled in satisfaction. This way, no one should be able to recognize her right?
She wrapped her chest and wore loose Taoist robes so that her chest wouldn't be so obvious. After putting on her outfit, she proceeded to dress Luo Luo.
The boy didn't need any makeup at all since he only needed to wear a fake bun. This time, Qiao Moyu specially adorned her son's hairbun with a lotus leaf. In addition, she had him wear a green Taoist robe and cloth shoes, making him look like a small cultivator who had recently transmigrated to the modern world.
"Baobei, when we go out later, remember not to call me 'Mom.' You have to call me 'Master'!" Qiao Moyu reminded him, "Baobei, we're going to work so we have to go with our heads held high!" Qiao Moyu urged.
The toddler nodded again and again. Suddenly, he straightened his back, but rather than pushing out his chest, he ended up bulging out his little belly. This made him look both funny and cute.
Since it was almost time, Qiao Moyu brought the boy out of the house. The pair got on a taxi and headed straight for Lu Beige's studio.
Lu Beige's studio was renovated from his own house. His family used to be residents of Imperial City, but his parents left early, leaving him a villa in this old city.
Qiao Moyu recalled the novel mentioning that the man had sold the villa that was worth 20 million, all because he had to pay back millions in compensation when he was framed.
This matter was the main reason for his suicide.
The taxi turned and left, finally stopping at a stone paved alley. Qiao Moyu paid the fare and brought Luo Luo to the entrance of a small courtyard.
It was already 9:40 and there was still 20 minutes until the studio opens. However, when she reached the door, Qiao Moyu was unable to hear any sound.
There were only two cars parked at the front gate; neither of them were high end cars either.
In this world, it was always easy to beautify something that was already attractive. However, very few willing to offer coal in the middle of a snowstorm.
(T/N: basically it's easy to offer help to someone rich and famous, but very few people are truly kind enough to help someone in need)
Qiao Moyu pushed the door open. When she saw that there were only four or five people inside, she realized that these were probably the few friends that Lu Beige had left.
Upon seeing her enter, Lu Beige's spirits lifted immediately. However, his hopes dropped just as quickly when he saw her holding onto a two or three-year-old Daoist boy who was as fair and cute as a glutinous rice ball. The man suddenly felt that he was too naive to place all his hopes on this master.
However, he still came over to welcome the newcomer: "Great Master, hello. I'm Lu Beige. Thank you for coming today!"
The young man before her appeared to be around twenty-six or twenty-seven-years old. While Lu Beige still appeared young and handsome, there were slight wrinkles around his eyebrows perhaps due to his five years of seclusion.
He didn't have styled hair like other musicians. Instead, he had a clean and crisp hair-style. Since it was cut very short, his handsome facial features were immediately noticeable.
Qiao Moyu suddenly realized that if she were to pursue the career of opening the light for others, she needed to have a Daoist title, right? After a moment's pause, an idea finally dawned on her and she said: "Mister Lu, this young Master is called Qing Yin."
"Oh oh, so it's Taoist Leader Qing Yin! As he spoke, his gaze turned to Luo Luo who was shorter than Qiao Moyu's waist. He continued, "Then this–"
Qiao Moyu glanced at the obedient Luo Luo and explained to Lu Beige in a mysterious voice: "This is the 32nd generation successor of the Spiritual Void Sect, and also my disciple. Since he's young, he doesn't have a Dao title. You can call him Luo Luo."
"So it's Taoist Luo Luo!" Lu Beige smiled at the boy while the toddler grinned back, revealing his cute and tiny canine teeth.
Qiao Moyu glanced at the time and said: "Prepare the altar."
Lu Beige nodded and brought her to the table in the middle of the courtyard.
Off to the side, Lu Beige's friends sized up Qiao Moyu. They all felt she was too young, so they shook their heads and sighed. However, she didn't care for them and proceeded to take out the props she prepared beforehand.
It was the same bronze bowl with three candles to the front. Qiao Moyu lit up the candles, took out her peach wood sword, and started chanting.
On the other side, Luo Luo acted as if he was 'experienced.' He stood under an old sycamore tree in the yard and imitated his mother.
After Qiao Moyu finished reciting the chants, she started to dance with her sword. Her figure was slender and her movements were agile; every motion she made was filled with an otherworldly aura.
Lu Beige, who had lost his hope earlier, suddenly had an inspiration upon seeing this.
He quickly walked to his room, grabbed a pen and paper, and began to write down the melody he had just thought of.
It was quiet within the courtyard. The sycamore tree leaves would flutter from time to time, like green butterflies fluttering in the wind.
The morning sunlight shone through the trees, shedding light upon a city that had a thousand-year-old culture. It gave off an unexplainable feeling of heaviness from its vicissitudes.
Lu Beige moved his brush as if he was flying. He quickly wrote upon the paper. Such an environment reminded Qiao Moyu of those days when she used to practice martial arts with her brother in her previous life. Thus, the more she danced, the more energetic she felt.
Luo Luo stared in awe at his mother's agile movements and tried to imitate her. However, his arms and legs were just too short. Just one lift of his leg caused him to land on his butt upon the ground.
The little toddler lifted his head and realized that a very tall man was in front of him. Because of the shadow, he couldn't see the man's face clearly.
The next second, the man before him lowered his head and gazed back. He then bent over, placed his hand on Luo Luo's shoulder and looked at him for two seconds.
Ye Peicheng felt that this little boy looked very familiar, as if he had seen him somewhere.
But…when had he ever been to a Taoist temple, let alone a Taoist child?
While he was pondering in confusion, the little toddler's eyes suddenly lit up. He happily called out: "Uncle!"
His voice was soft and small, clearly carrying the scent of milk. This caused Ye Peicheng's heart to quiver.
He recalled seeing this child before when he visited the shopping mall. However, why was this kid dressed up like this?
He wore a Taoist Priest's hair bun, along with a green Taoist robe that almost reached the back of his shoes. His feet was wrapped in black clothed Taoist shoes with white soles, but since the boy's feet were small, the shoes appeared comical and cute.
The corner of Ye Peicheng's mouth twitched. This was the first time he had seen a child dressed up this way. Why would his parents dress him up in such a funny look?
After Luo Luo called him 'Uncle,' the toddler immediately gasped. Mom said they were working right now, so he shouldn't casually speak to anyone!
Knowing that he had misspoken, he hurriedly covered his mouth with his chubby little hands and glanced warily at Ye Peicheng.
Since Qiao Moyu was dancing behind the sycamore tree, Ye Peicheng hadn't caught sight of her as of yet.
He intended to go over and greet Lu Beige, but the man seemed completely immersed in his own world, ignoring all of his surroundings. Since Ye Peicheng knew that his friend was writing a song, he didn't come over as to not disturb this moment of inspiration.
Ye Peicheng squatted down and asked Luo Luo, "Boy, why are you dressed like this? What about your parents?"
Luo Luo didn't reply, fearing that he would make a mistake during their 'work.' He covered his mouth with all his might in case he ends up speaking to this uncle if he wasn't careful enough.
Martial Artists usually have sharp and clear hearing. So when Qiao Moyu heard this conversation behind the sycamore tree, she couldn't help but wonder why that voice sounded so familiar.
The next moment, she heard the familiar voice speaking once again: "Baobei, I remember talking with you last time at the mall. Why won't you speak this time?"
Qiao Moyu's heart skipped a beat and her legs became unsteady. She almost fell to the ground when she landed from her mid-air flip.
Was that Ye Peicheng's voice she just heard?!
REPORT THIS ADClimbing the parasol tree, her eyes swept across the surrounding area and looked towards the other side of the tree.
Ye Peicheng was half-crouching on the ground at the courtyard entrance. In front of him was a young toddler who was fidgeting. The two of them seemed to be 'conversing' but only Ye Peicheng's voice could be heard.
It can't be. She rarely goes out to give generous service, dressing up as a Taoist and opening the light for people. How can she meet Ye Peicheng now of all times?
Before coming here, she didn't even know that the actor would come and visit! That was because the novel simply mentioned that when Lu Beige's studio opened for business, only one person from the entertainment circle came to visit while the rest were all his ordinary friends.
However, Qiao Moyu had no idea that the person from that circle was the influential Ye Peicheng!
However, thinking about it, such a relation was quite possible. Even though Ye Peicheng was a Film Emperor and the heir to the Ye Family, his strained relationship with his father, along with his brother taking over the family business caused him to be suppressed in the end.
Lu Beige was also a high-minded person; he didn't want to trouble the only friend he had in the entertainment circle if ever something happened to him. It's possible that Ye Peicheng only heard of his predicament after he committed suicide.
However, these were just fleeting matters. As far as Moyu was concerned, her next actions were crucial.
If she was dressed like this, would Ye Peicheng recognize her?
Qiao Moyu no longer had any thoughts of continuing her sword dance. At that moment, she only needed to take the final step, which was the most vital part of the process of opening the light.
Ashes sank to the bottom of the bowl. She closed her eyes as her hands gently caressed the bronze bowl. The moment the whisk landed, she picked up the bronze bowl and quickly sprinkled half of the water in the bowl onto the studio's signboard, while the rest was splattered onto Lu Beige's body.
At this moment, Ye Peicheng, who had been intrigued by Luo Luo's silence and was trying to help him speak up, slowly shifted his gaze onto Qiao Moyu.
Just when Qiao Moyu was about to put away her horsetail whisk, their gazes met in this courtyard surrounded by sycamores.