"...Actually, contacting you wasn't my idea, but my assistant's. She felt that for a girl to end up being talked about and criticized all over the internet was too serious, so she asked me to remind you one more time."
Xu Gui didn't take credit for this, because if it weren't for Yuan Lu, she would have quickly forgotten about it and wouldn't have thought about it anymore.
"There's nothing I can do, my assistant is too soft-hearted and too kind, so my agent got your contact information from the staff at Hunan TV, which led to all this after I contacted you."
Xu Gui said, then suddenly smiled. She looked at Wu Xue, feeling somewhat relieved, and said, "Well, it seems that my assistant's good intentions weren't wasted. You seem like a pretty good person."
—At this moment, the other party was still considering her side's position, which showed that the other party wasn't a bad person at all.
After hearing Xu Gui's words, Wu Xue suddenly realized, "Oh, I see..."
"So," Xu Gui said, "if you really want to thank me, just thank my assistant. I didn't do anything."
Wu Xue pursed her lips and said, "That's true, but if it weren't for Miss Xu's fortune-telling ability, who would have known what I would encounter last night?"
She really didn't expect Liu Dawei to go live and broadcast their intimate moment... Just thinking about what almost happened to her last night made Wu Xue feel a chill run down her spine, so cold that she couldn't help but hug her arms.
"...No wonder you said that I would become a sensation in the next two days." Wu Xue smiled bitterly.
Now, recalling Xu Gui's prophecy during the live stream, she felt that every word was profound. It was just a pity that she was so focused on buying the trending topics that she was going to buy that she hadn't taken Xu Gui's words to heart.
Fortunately...
fortunately, he was willing to remind her again under such circumstances, otherwise, she really would have become a sensation in a strange way.
Wu Xue couldn't imagine how she would continue living under the strange looks of others if such a thing really happened. How could she face people... She definitely wouldn't be able to survive.
She took a deep breath, looked at Xu Gui again, and said, "Anyway, thank you so much, and thank you to your assistant... I was thinking last night that if I had the chance, I would definitely thank you properly."
Xu Gui looked at her and asked, "You called me out, it wasn't just to thank me, was it?"
Hearing this, Wu Xue's eyes flickered, as if she felt a little guilty, but the next second, she looked at Xu Gui and met his gaze.
"Yes!" she said. "Besides thanking you, I have another request for your help… I want you to help me figure out if Liu Dawei has any other videos of me."
She bit her lip and said in a low voice, somewhat embarrassed, "This isn't the first time we've had a relationship. I'm afraid he's done similar things before."
"So, Miss Xu, please…" she looked at Xu Gui expectantly, "I can give you money, as long as you help me figure this out, I'll give you whatever amount you want!"
Xu Gui: "What if he really has other videos? What do you plan to do? Let me also figure out where he's kept those videos?"
Hearing this, Wu Xue's eyes flickered, and she said in a low voice, "I… I can't help it… those videos can't be leaked. If Liu Dawei spreads them out and other people see them… I won't be able to live, really, I really
won't be able to live!" She seemed very emotional and pitiful. Anyone who heard what she said would probably feel pity for her, but clearly, Xu Gui was not among those "anyones".
Compared to her agitation, Xu Gui's reaction was remarkably calm and indifferent. She gazed at Wu Xue with a knowing, insightful look, and Wu Xue's pitiful, pleading expression gradually froze under her gaze.
"..."
Wu Xue's tearful expression vanished. Tears still clung to her eyes, even her eyelashes held glistening droplets, but her expression was no longer one of pitifulness.
She appeared remarkably calm.
"...I thought Miss Xu was soft-hearted, and that if I cried a few times, you would agree to help me with the divination," she said.
Xu Gui replied, "Compared to your earlier act of feigning pitifulness, I much prefer your current self." Vulnerable, yet exceptionally calm.
Hearing Xu Gui's words, Wu Xue gave a soft, bitter smile. She said, "Although I did try to play the victim, everything I just said was true... If Liu Dawei really did film me before, it would have been a terrible thing for me."
She looked at Xu Gui and said calmly, "You know, at first, I didn't actually intend to sleep with Liu Dawei. He raped me."
Liu Dawei was her top fan. At that time, she had only been streaming for a short time, but every time she streamed, Liu Dawei would shower her with gifts, very generously, spending over a million yuan on her in a month. Therefore, she contacted him, and later he invited her out for a few meals.
"I knew he had bad intentions, but I thought that as long as I protected myself, it wouldn't matter if he took advantage of me a little..."
She just never expected that Liu Dawei would rape her.
That day, when she woke up naked in bed, feeling the strange pain emanating from her body, she felt like the sky had fallen. For a moment, she even thought about dying, about jumping off a building to commit suicide.
"But in the end, I gave up," Wu Xue smiled, her tone calm. "Because I thought, what could I change even if I committed suicide? Could it change the fact that I was raped, or could it change my impoverished and miserable life?"
The answer was: neither.
Since neither could it, why would she commit suicide? Suicide would only hurt herself, so… she suddenly didn't want to die anymore, and her desire to live was more intense than ever before.
Then she thought, since she'd already been slept with, she couldn't let it go unpunished—calming down, she began to think about how to use this to her advantage.
Later, she demanded a lot of benefits from Liu Dawei.
As Wu Xue spoke, she took out a cigarette from her bag, and just as she was about to light it, she looked at Xu Gui questioningly: "You don't mind, do you?"
Xu Gui shook his head.
Wu Xue smiled and skillfully lit her cigarette—she had a very sweet face, and because of her youth, her face was full of collagen, making her look full of healthy vitality.
But now, the way she smoked revealed a hint of weariness and world-weariness.
With each inhale and exhale, the cigarette glowed crimson, and a puff of not-too-pungent smoke escaped from her mouth, obscuring her face and making it difficult for Xu Gui to see her expression clearly. He could only hear her remarkably calm voice, as if she were talking about someone else's affairs.
"...Later, I slept with him a few more times. I sold my body, and he gave me money. We each got what we wanted."
She knew this was a transaction, a transaction using her body as collateral. Although she felt disgusted, even loathing herself because of it, she thought… as long as she could become famous, gain recognition, and make a lot of money, it would all be worth it.
She really wanted to make money, lots and lots of money…
but she hadn't expected Liu Dawei to be doing live streaming… Thinking of this, Wu Xue couldn't help but gasp.
"Idiot!" she couldn't help but curse, angrily stubbing out her cigarette in the ashtray.
At this moment, the waiter brought their coffee. Xu Gui thanked him, looked at the coffee in the cup, and took a sniff. She found that the taste was rather ordinary… hmm, not as fragrant as the coffee she had at Lu Baiyi's house.
As for the taste… Xu Gui took a sip, and the coffee kept spilling from her mouth.
"Ugh," she hurriedly pulled out a tissue to wipe her mouth, then pushed the cup of coffee aside with disgust, her face clearly saying "disgusting."
After pushing it a short distance away, she still seemed unhappy and pushed it even further.
Wu Xue, who was stubbing out her cigarette, couldn't help but laugh at this scene. Her previously gloomy mood seemed to improve a little. After laughing, she sighed, "I know that since I did such despicable things, I deserve this fate, but..."
She lowered her head to Xu Gui, "I'm begging you... Miss Xu, please help me, just out of pity."
Her head was bowed, her posture extremely humble, and her expression was one of embarrassment and shame. Clearly, for Wu Xue, revealing these ugly and shameful things to Xu Gui was something she found difficult to say.
Just as she was pondering whether Xu Gui would help her, she heard Xu Gui's voice above her.
"You don't need to say that about yourself…" Xu Gui said casually, "In this matter, aren't you the victim?"
Whether it was being sexually assaulted at the beginning, or enduring the relationship and profiting from it later… none of that can hide the fact that in her relationship with Liu Dawei, she was indeed the victim from the start.
Although, she, as the victim, wasn't perfect; morally flawed.
Wu Xue, upon hearing Xu Gui's words, looked up in astonishment, her gaze fixed on her.
"Don't you think I'm shameful?" she asked Xu Gui urgently, pressing, "Don't you think what I'm doing is shameless? Unashamed?"
Xu Gui replied, "It's alright."
She thought for a moment and said, "If we're talking about shamelessness, you're not the only one... Isn't that Liu Dawei even more shameless than you? Oh, no, he's not only shameless, he's also a criminal!"
If Wu Xue had moral flaws, then Liu Dawei was truly committing a crime, whether it was initially assaulting Wu Xue or later secretly livestreaming behind her back. If word got out, these were things that would get him arrested by the police.
"Hmm," Xu Gui nodded, "If we're talking about shamelessness, then that Liu Dawei is even more shameless than you!"
Wu Xue was stunned when she heard these words. After a few seconds, she suddenly clapped her hands and laughed, saying, "You're right. If we're talking about shamelessness, who can compare to that idiot?"
"You don't know, several times I've wanted to chop that thing off. It's one thing that he's old and ugly, but after we're in bed, that thing can't even last a few minutes. I feel ashamed for him!"
She didn't lower her voice at all. The men and women in the booths next to her who heard this were speechless. Was this something they could hear?
Wu Xue was still laughing, laughing until tears came out. After she finished laughing, she said, "You're right. If that thing doesn't feel shameless, why should I feel shameless?"
Xu Gui looked at the laughing Wu Xue and felt that she was full of contradictory qualities.
She looked to be only in her early twenties, a young and vibrant age, but her face occasionally betrayed a maturity beyond her years. She herself probably didn't realize that she harbored a certain disgust and shame towards herself regarding her affair with Liu Dawei… she loathed herself for doing it.
Yet, while she loathed and hated herself, she continued to do it.
"Humans are truly strange creatures…" Xu Gui muttered.
After thinking for a moment, she said to Wu Xue, "You can rest assured about what you're worried about. Liu Dawei doesn't have any other videos of you. Yesterday's live stream was his first time doing that."
Hearing this, Wu Xue closed her eyes and breathed a sigh of relief.
Xu Gui looked at her and asked, "What do you plan to do next? Liu Dawei treated you like that, you must already be thinking about how to get revenge
, right?" Her eyes were clear and bright, as if she could see through Wu Xue's thoughts. Wu Xue's eyes flashed, and she sighed, "Nothing can be hidden from you, Miss Xu... Yes, I am indeed thinking about how to get revenge on him. During the time I was with him, I've managed to gather some dirt on him."
"However, I haven't figured out how to do it yet..."
Wu Xue frowned.
She said she wanted to get revenge on Liu Dawei, but she hadn't figured out how to do it, or rather, how to carry out the revenge, how to maximize the benefits of what she had... Wu Xue hadn't thought about any of these things.
Xu Gui took a sip of lemonade and offered her a suggestion: "If you trust me, you can go find Liu Dawei's wife. I think she might be able to give you some advice."
Wu Xue was surprised and couldn't help but ask, "Liu Dawei's wife... will she help me?"
She pursed her lips, unconsciously biting the dry skin on her lower lip, tearing it off. Blood oozed from under the bitten dead skin, which she licked indifferently.
"I have this kind of entanglement with her husband, making me the third party in their marriage. Won't she want to beat me up if she sees me?" she asked.
Xu Gui: "Liu Dawei's wife is a smart woman. A smart woman sees more than just you... Do you think that all these years, you've been the only one by Liu Dawei's side?"
Wu Xue was taken aback.
"Liu Dawei's wife has wanted a divorce for a long time, but she hasn't had any leverage over Liu Dawei. Your appearance should be a good thing for both of you," Xu Gui said.
Wu Xue began to think. She looked at Xu Gui and said, "I'll think about it carefully."
The two chatted for a while, then Xu Gui decided to leave. The coffee in the cafe wasn't very good, and she couldn't sit still, so she said goodbye to Wu Xue.
Wu Xue stood up, hesitated for a moment, and asked, "Ms. Xu, if I need anything in the future, can I ask you for help again?"
Xu Gui looked at her, thought for a moment, and said, "If you can afford it… having my fortune told is very expensive. You won't always be so lucky."
She was implying something.
Wu Xue said guiltily, "...You already know that I was chosen in the live stream that day; wasn't that a coincidence?"
Xu Gui nodded.
"Next time, if you want my fortune told, come to me with money," she said. "I'm not the kind of person who does a losing business twice."
*
Before the filming of the second season of "Three Hundred and Sixty Trades," Xu Gui, Fu Xia, and He Yuan had a meal.
Fu Xia treated them to the meal. Coincidentally, He Yuan returned from K Province at that time. Xu Gui had asked Fu Xia if she minded having another person, and after receiving her reply that she didn't mind, he invited He Yuan along as well.
The three of them ate at Fu Xia's favorite restaurant. Xu Gui still remembered the owner of this restaurant, mainly because their ice cream was indeed delicious.
When Xu Gui and He Yuan arrived, Fu Xia was already there. Upon seeing them, she stood up and waved enthusiastically, "Here! Here!"
After Xu Gui and He Yuan walked over and the three sat down, Fu Xia complained, "It's so hard to get you to come out for a meal! I was thinking, if you hadn't come this time, I would have gone straight to the orphanage!"
Xu Gui replied, "I just didn't have time… Oh, by the way, let me introduce you. This is Fu Xia, a friend I met on '360 Trades.' This is He Yuan, also a good friend and roommate of mine. We live in the same dormitory at the company!"
Fu Xia and He Yuan exchanged a glance and shook hands amicably.
"Hello…"
"Hello,"
He Yuan said with a smile, "Ms. Fu, I know you. I watched your live stream on '360 Trades.'"
Although Fu Xia didn't make it to the end of the show, she gained quite a few fans during that time. After all, her live streams had a lighthearted atmosphere, and Fu Xia was good-looking, had a good temper, and a good family background, so it was inevitable that she would have admirers.
After He Yuan and Xu Gui became friends, He Yuan specifically watched Xu Gui's live streams. Because Fu Xia appeared frequently in them, she also watched Fu Xia's live streams. Therefore, she knew Fu Xia fairly well.
As for Fu Xia's feelings towards her…
"The teacher with great acting skills that Xu Gui mentioned in her live stream the other day, was that you?" Fu Xia said with certainty.
Xu Gui was surprised, "How did you know? Can you tell fortunes? How do you know everything…"
Fu Xia knew about Xu Gui's previous filming of "Fashion" and the scripts she had accepted. Sometimes Xu Gui even suspected that Fu Xia was a fortune teller… Humans are truly terrifying.
"I'm not a fortune teller," Fu Xia said, "I just know a lot of information…"
She then gestured to He Yuan, "Miss He, please don't be shy, it's my treat today. Order whatever you like."
He Yuan thanked her.
After ordering, the three sat together and talked, mainly Fu Xia. She was talkative and always had something to say, and she had a wide range of sources, knowing a lot of gossip in the industry. Xu Gui and He Yuan listened with great interest as she talked.
However, once the food was served, the three stopped talking and focused on the food.
It must be said that Qin Sulan's cooking skills were really good. He Yuan, unsurprisingly, was also captivated by her cooking. The three of them ate without looking up until they finished their meal and started eating dessert, when they finally had the energy to talk.
"...By the way, I heard that something really interesting happened at Boss Qin's house recently." The well-informed Fu Xia started talking again, whispering, "It's said that Boss Qin's uncle thinks her cooking is so good because she has some kind of Qin family recipe, so he's been trying to steal it."
"Not only that, her uncle also coveted the restaurant, so he had Boss Qin's cousin poison her... Luckily, Boss Qin discovered it in time, otherwise she would have been in serious danger."
"Because of this, Boss Qin had to close the restaurant for almost half a month, only reopening to customers these past two days."
Xu Gui remained calm, while He Yuan looked surprised, clearly not expecting such a dangerous thing to happen at the restaurant.
"As expected, Xu Gui, you knew about this all along…" Fu Xia looked at Xu Gui. "Last time I brought you to dinner, didn't you already know all this? And you were the one who told Boss Qin about her uncle, weren't you?"
Xu Gui didn't answer Fu Xia's question directly, but instead asked, "What happened to Boss Qin's uncle?"
Fu Xia said, "It seems he was arrested by the police. The evidence against him for poisoning Boss Qin is conclusive, and he'll probably go to jail… But this must have been a big blow to Boss Qin. I saw her recently, and she looked much more haggard."
Xu Gui nodded thoughtfully.
"So, it really was you who reminded Boss Qin…" Fu Xia leaned closer and asked softly.
Xu Gui glanced at her and asked in return, "What do you think?"
Fu Xia's eyes lit up, and she said, "I knew it was you who helped." She looked smug, though it was unclear what she was smug about.
Xu Gui tacitly agreed, then looked at He Yuan and asked her about the filming situation.
Xu Gui sensed that He Yuan's filming this time must have gone very smoothly, because she felt that He Yuan's aura had changed. The He Yuan of the past seemed very quiet, always carrying a melancholic air, but this time, she seemed more cheerful, and even more... radiant?
It was as if she suddenly had an extra layer of light. Sure enough
, upon hearing Xu Gui's question, He Yuan smiled and nodded, saying, "This filming went very smoothly... Xu Gui, let me tell you, this time, many of the teachers on 'The Acting Competition' said my acting was very good. Do you know Teacher Huang Wenshan? He even praised me as a hidden gem."
He Yuan was clearly very excited, her cheeks flushed as she spoke.
Compared to the last time Xu Gui saw her, she now looked much more confident, with a rather radiant air.
Looking at her like this, Xu Gui knew that her filming trip had been very enjoyable.
"The Acting Competition?" Fu Xia leaned over and asked curiously, "Did Miss He participate in the 'Acting Competition' program?"
The Acting Competition is currently a fairly popular program. Several episodes have been filmed, with the first two being the most popular. While the show's popularity has decreased somewhat since then, its core audience remains, and its viewership is still significantly higher than that of most programs.
At least for now, the Acting Competition is still a good opportunity, especially for some newcomers.
Upon hearing Fu Xia's inquiry, He Yuan politely replied, "...Miss Fu, you can just call me He Yuan."
Fu Xia responded, "Then you can call me Fu Xia too. Don't call me 'Miss Fu,' it's too polite. You're Xu Gui's friend, so you're my friend too."
She asked enthusiastically, "I just heard you mention Huang Wenshan. I really like him too! I loved his drama 'Heroes of Chaos,' he was my idol for a long time."
He Yuan's eyes lit up: "You also like 'Heroes of Chaos'?"
Fu Xia: "Yes!"
The two suddenly had so much to talk about, and looking at each other, they seemed much closer: they were definitely sisters who had watched the same drama.
Of the three, only Xu Gui hadn't seen the drama: "..." She silently ate the last bite of her dessert.
...
Qin Sulan knew Xu Gui had come to eat with Fu Xia, and after they finished eating, she came to see Xu Gui.
Xu Gui looked at her and felt that she had lost a lot of weight since the last time they met, but her complexion was healthier. This was probably because she had stopped eating the food that her uncle and cousin had given her after Xu Gui reminded her.
Having stopped eating the laced-up medicine, her complexion naturally improved considerably.
Xu Gui and she went aside to talk. Qin Sulan gratefully thanked Xu Gui; without him, she might already be dead.
Now that the Qin family was gone, if something had really happened to her, her belongings would very likely have ended up with her uncle's family, and her uncle's plans could have come true.
Thinking of this, a cold glint flashed in Qin Sulan's eyes.
Actually, she hadn't believed Xu Gui's words at first. After all, her parents had died, and it was her uncle and aunt who had taken care of her. But who could have imagined that her uncle, who had been so loving towards her when she was young, would be so cruel to her now?
"...Now, besides thanking you, I don't know how else to thank you," Qin Sulan said.
It could be said that Xu Gui had saved her life; simply saying thank you seemed too inadequate.
"This is our restaurant's VIP card," she said, handing a card to Xu Gui earnestly. "There's only one of its kind in the world. It's a lifetime free card. From now on, Miss Xu, whatever you eat at our restaurant is free."
Xu Gui glanced at the card. "Permanent?"
Qin Sulan nodded. "Permanent."
Xu Gui asked curiously, "What if I come to eat here every day, or bring a lot of people to your restaurant? Won't you get annoyed?"
Qin Sulan smiled and said, "Of course not. It's my honor that Miss Xu is willing to patronize our restaurant."
Xu Gui grunted and put the card away. "Okay, then I'll come to your restaurant next time. Don't worry, I won't bring a lot of people to freeload! I'm still very polite."
Speaking of politeness, Xu Gui was very proud—she really was a very polite turtle.
As the two were still talking, a burst of crying suddenly came from the restaurant entrance.
"...Qin Sulan, come out here! That's your own uncle! How could you be so heartless as to not even spare your own uncle? Have you forgotten who fed you when your parents died?"
"Qin Sulan!"
Hearing this voice, Qin Sulan's face immediately turned cold. Xu Gui, standing beside her, curiously glanced outside and saw a middle-aged woman being stopped by a waiter at the restaurant entrance, with two five- or six-year-old children beside her, wailing loudly.
The commotion at the entrance also attracted the attention of other diners, causing a stir in the restaurant.
"Miss Xu, I have something to attend to and can't entertain you..." Qin Sulan said considerately.
Xu Gui said kindly, "It's alright, we're leaving after we finish eating anyway, you can go and take care of your business."
Qin Sulan smiled apologetically at her, turned, and walked towards the restaurant entrance. The moment she turned, her smile vanished, and her eyes turned cold.
"...Is that Mr. Qin's aunt outside?" Fu Xia and He Yuan curiously approached Xu Gui, peering towards the restaurant entrance. "Wow, is she throwing a tantrum?"
Xu Gui and He Yuan watched as Mr. Qin seemed to patiently speak to his aunt, but she showed no mercy, crying and wailing, accusing Mr. Qin of being unfilial.
Fortunately, the farce didn't last long. Soon, the police arrived and took the family away, finally bringing peace to the restaurant.
Because of this incident, Mr. Qin even gave every customer a free meal.
Fu Xia couldn't help but sigh at Mr. Qin's bad luck—having such a cannibalistic family of relatives, wasn't Mr. Qin unlucky?
Xu Gui and He Yuan had already finished their meal. After watching the farce, they left. Instead of immediately going their separate ways, the three of them strolled around the nearby shopping mall and bought some things.
As for going outside… it's so hot now, going outside would be torture. It's much better to stroll around in the mall; the air conditioning is great, much more comfortable than outside, especially since Xu Gui is sensitive to heat and loves water.
They shopped until the afternoon, then had dinner before parting ways and going home.
Tomorrow, Xu Gui will start filming the second episode. The next time the three of them see each other will probably be after Xu Gui finishes filming the second episode of "360 Trades."
Hmm, that'll be several days.
After confirming that Xu Gui and the others didn't need their driver, Fu Xia left first, followed by He Yuan—because of tomorrow's filming, and Xu Gui planning to go back to the orphanage tonight, He Yuan had to go home alone.
"Contact me if you need anything," He Yuan gestured as if making a phone call. Xu
Gui nodded, watching her leave in a taxi. After they both left, she also prepared to go home, taking out her phone to call a taxi. But just then, she suddenly felt a weight on her leg. Looking down, she saw a little dumpling clinging tightly to her thigh.
Xu Gui: ?
"Sister, I'm hungry!" the little dumpling said, staring at her expectantly.
Xu Gui: ?