CH 21

In the private room on the third floor of Eve, Mu Qingyan and Ji Liyun were leisurely eating steak.

Mu Qingyan didn’t like Western food, especially steak. He knew that Ji Liyun brought him to Eve because the original owner liked Western food.

He had intended to take a few bites just to be polite, and prepare to go home for a late night snack when he discovered after one bite that the steak served by this restaurant was indeed incredibly tender and delicious, and the other dishes were also impeccable.

It was no wonder that it was a restaurant favored by Ji Liyun, and a three-star Michelin restaurant.

After eating and drinking their fill, Mu Qingyan wiped his mouth.

Ji Liyun also put down his knife and fork, wiped his mouth clean, took a sip of wine, and asked, “Does the Mu Group have many cooperation projects with Xingh] Hao’s companies now?”

“After I divorced Xing Hao, the Mu Group has terminated all cooperation with Xing Hao’s company, but we still maintain a cooperative relationship with the Planet Company,” Mu Qingyan replied frankly.

He felt that Ji Liyun must have had a reason for asking him this question, so he asked, “Why did you say earlier that you hoped the Mu Group would withdraw from the Polar Plan?”

The original novel did not mention the Polar Plan, so even though Mu Qingyan knew that it was a project that the Mu Group was cooperating with the Planet Company on, he thought that this Polar Plan had no impact on the main story.

Ji Liyun gestured to the waiter in the room to leave with his eyes, and then said, “As far as I know, the Planet Company will hand over the Polar Plan project to Xinghao.”

Mu Qingyan had a hunch, “It’s not just for this, is it?”

“The most important thing is that Xinghao doesn’t want to do just geological and biological research like you agreed on,” Ji Liyun consciously lowered his voice, “He wants to use that place for dark web transactions.”

“It seems that Xing Hao is really getting impatient,” Mu Qingyan raised his eyebrows and chuckled lightly.

He knew that Ji Liyun had many connections and must have verified this information before telling him. Besides, Ji Liyun had no reason to lie to him.

Mu Qingyan messaged Ye Qiqi and asked her to check the progress of the Polar Plan and send him all the relevant electronic materials.

When Ji Liyun drove him to the MU company building and dropped him off, Mu Qingyan happened to receive a call from Ye Qiqi.

“Boss, I have checked it out. The Polar Plan is currently progressing normally, and the work progress of each company is consistent with the plan. I have copied the electronic version to your computer, and the hard copies are also on your desk.”

“Thank you, take a rest early,” Mu Qingyan said.

“Okay, boss.”

Ji Liyun got out of the car and opened the passenger door for Mu Qingyan, saying, “Looks like you’re going to be busy tonight.”

“Yes, thank you for dinner,” Mu Qingyan replied politely.

He was about to bid farewell to Ji Liyun and walk towards the elevator to MU company’s building, when Ji Liyun said, “Do you mind having a cup of tea with me?”

If it was someone else who said this, Mu Qingyan would have bluntly said “I mind”, but the other person was President Ji who provided him with reliable information.

Mu Qingyan smiled and said, “Sure.”

He led Ji Liyun to the President’s office on the sixteenth floor and personally brewed two cups of Pu’er tea.

“Your office decor is tasteful,” Ji Liyun sat on the sofa, took the tea from Mu Qingyan, and said, “You go ahead with your work, I’ll look at the documents.”

“Okay.”

Ji Liyun took out his gold-rimmed glasses from his briefcase and put them on. His temperament changed from a “domineering President” to a “refined gentleman”.

Mu Qingyan felt that Ji Liyun was more suited to being a “refined gentleman”.

Ji Liyun opened his tablet and read the documents while saying, “You can ask me anything you want.”

“Okay.”

Although he didn’t say it directly, Mu Qingyan guessed that the reason why Ji Liyun stayed to work overtime with him was because he cared about the “Polar Plan” and didn’t want him to be undermined by Xing Hao.

Mu Qingyan didn’t say anything else, but looked carefully at the files that Ye Qiqi had already sorted and classified for him.

On the surface, everything was normal, and all work and project progress were according to plan, neither delayed nor ahead of schedule.

However, at the routine meeting, Xing Hao did submit a signed authorization letter authorizing him to be in charge of the North Polar Plan.

Indeed, Ji Liyun’s information was accurate.

Mu Qingyan spent nearly two hours reading through the hundred or so documents and said to Ji Liyun, “You’re right, Xing Hao is indeed going to be involved in this project. But for now, I can’t tell if he’s going to make any moves.”

“Will you advise Uncle Mu to withdraw from the Polar Plan?” Ji Liyun asked.

“Of course not. On the contrary, I’m going to use this Polar Plan to catch Xing Hao’s weaknesses,” Mu Qingyan said.

Ji Liyun didn’t stop him and only said, “If you need it, Ji Group is willing to provide help at any time.”

“Thank you, but we don’t need it for now,” Mu Qingyan told Ji Liyun his guess, “I suspect that Xing Hao wants to use the Polar Plan for dark web transactions, not just to make more money.”

Ji Liyun put down his tablet and nodded, “I also think so. What do you think Xing Hao’s goal is?”

“Transfer the crime of dark web transactions to the Mu Group. After all, the Mu Group is the main person in charge of the Polar Plan. If he bribes the other two research institutes, he can fabricate evidence of Mu Group’s crimes.” Mu Qingyan speculated.

“That sounds like an idea that Xing Hao would come up with,” Ji Liyun laughed, with a hint of sarcasm.

“You know, the brain is a good thing, but Xing Hao doesn’t have one,” Mu Qingyan raised an eyebrow.

Ji Liyun didn’t know if Xing Hao had a brain before, but now, looking at the things Xing Hao has done, he had the same thoughts as Mu Qingyan.

“Ah, there’s nothing to worry about,” Mu Qingyan stood up and stretched her arms backward, “just wait for the right opportunity.”

“Not bad,” Ji Liyun took off his glasses and said warmly.

“It’s already half past ten,” Mu Qingyan looked at her watch and said, “let’s go back.”

“Before we go back, I want to give you something,” Ji Liyun said.

“What is it?”

“A guest role,” Ji Liyun smirked mischievously, “not many lines, but there’s an action scene.”

“An action scene? What kind of action?” This unclear term confused Mu Qingyan even more.

Ji Liyun sent Mu Qingyan the director’s contact information and said, “slap Xie Ming’s face.”

Mu Qingyan accepted eagerly, “sounds good.”

On Saturday afternoon, Ye Qiqi arranged a nanny car, assistant, and bodyguards to take Mu Qingyan to the filming location of the costume drama “Flying Sky Little Catcher.”

At this time, there was a large group of fans outside the set, constantly looking into the filming area, hoping to catch a glimpse of their idols.

When Mu Qingyan arrived, this group of fans all recognized him.

“Hey? Does Xiao Mu have scenes today? What role is he playing?”

“I heard he’s the younger brother of the deceased.”

“Pfft, he’s not even a professionally trained actor. What’s the use of being good-looking? He’s just a guest appearance.”

“Exactly. I bet that ‘Acting PK Battle’ show had a script, and he probably secretly practiced for months just for those ten or so minutes in front of the camera. Hahaha.”

Mu Qingyan overheard the gossip, but paid it no attention and went straight to greet the director before heading to the dressing room.

Before coming, he had read the script and heard some rumors about Xie Ming. Xie Ming was originally the male lead in “Flying Detective,” but due to his poor performance and declining popularity in the “Acting PK Battle” show, the director replaced him with the third male lead.

Xie Ming was furious and caused a scene, even declaring, “Even if I don’t have a role, I won’t lower my worth to play the third male lead.”

But after a few days, he realized that the third male lead was actually the best role he could get at the moment. He apologized to the director and producer and reluctantly took on the role.

Mu Qingyan’s guest role was not important, just the younger brother of a deceased character in the show who mistakenly thought the third male lead was responsible for his brother’s death, and slapped him three times at the funeral.

As the CEO of the investment company, Ji Shi Group, Ji Liyun recommended Mu Qingyan to the director when he heard of this role.

The director had heard of Mu Qingyan and readily agreed.

“Xiao Mu, are you ready? You’re up for the next scene!”

The staff knocked on the door of the dressing room, urging Mu Qingyan on, but when they saw him, they were stunned.

She had been in the business for over ten years, working on hundreds of movies and TV shows, and had seen countless actors and stars, but no one was as stunning and dazzling as Mu Qingyan.

Even in mourning clothes, he looked like a fallen immortal.

Mu Qingyan straightened his clothes. “I’m ready. Let’s go.”

Walking onto the set, he appeared on camera with a natural look and almost no makeup, but his bone structure was truly perfect, making him photogenic from any angle.

Even the director, who had seen countless actors, deeply felt that Mu Qingyan was born for the big screen, with no angles left unflattering in 360 degrees.

In this scene, Mu Qingyan completely immersed himself in the character, his emotions were on point, and his performance was very genuine. His close-up shots numbered more than a dozen and were all done in one take.

The director couldn’t help but praise him, “Of all the actors I’ve worked with, Mu Qingyan is by far the easiest to work with. You can tell he has a natural talent.”

The background actors also chattered during breaks.

“Who said variety shows have scripts? I think Mu Qingyan was born to act.”

“Yeah, with such a good figure and looks, it would be a shame not to be an actor.”

“He’s just guest starring this time, but will he take on a formal role in the future? If he does, I’m really looking forward to it.”

On the other hand, Xie Mingben was unhappy because of the scene where he had to act opposite Mu Qingyan, repeatedly making mistakes even with a few lines of dialogue.

And to make matters worse, it was a scene where he had to take slaps.

Watching from the sidelines, Ye Qiqi counted and found that Xie Mingben had taken 37 slaps from Mu Qingyan. By the end of the scene, his face was swollen.

Ye Qiqi clicked her tongue and said, “Tsk tsk tsk…”

Author’s note:

Ji Liyun: I’m really a little clever.