"Congratulations on wrapping up!"
After finishing the final scene, Xiao He's filming concluded, along with Li Hanyue who also wrapped up on the same day.
Liu Zehang handed flowers to both Xiao He and Li Hanyue.
"Thank you."
Xiao He looked around at everyone, his eyes showing traces of reluctance and emotion.
This past month with the crew had been an incredibly novel and unforgettable experience for him.
Xiao He felt he probably wouldn't forget it for a long time.
Even Bao Wei and Zhuo Jianhua came over to congratulate him.
Hou Rongxuan patted Xiao He's shoulder and said meaningfully: "I originally wanted to introduce you to another director, but Teacher Zhuo told me he'd already made the first move. I couldn't very well compete with him. Let's work together again when there's an opportunity."
Xiao He quickly expressed his thanks.
Several people then gathered around Li Hanyue to offer encouragement, creating a particularly strong atmosphere of farewell.
However, when Xiao He saw the hundred points he'd painstakingly accumulated, his sadness about parting instantly disappeared, and he could barely suppress the urge to laugh up at the sky.
Haha! Finally! He'd finally grinded out a hundred points!
—This also indirectly showed just how inhuman Zhu Third Brother was, squeezing out even this one draw for Xiao He.
Thinking about the scenes he'd filmed, Xiao He sincerely hoped Zhu Third Brother would be caught someday.Holding onto this hope, Xiao He pressed the lottery button.
The lottery interface remained as plain as ever, instantly displaying the prize when clicked—
[Congratulations on obtaining "Hacking Skills (Beginner Level)", automatically learned]
[Hacking Skills (Beginner Level) Details: Entry-level hacking techniques from the database, more conducive to committing crimes online.]
Xiao He was dumbfounded.
Huh?
What kind of prize was this? I'm already a computer science major, and you give me beginner hacking? Who are you looking down on? Drawing this is no different from getting nothing—
The next moment, Xiao He was thoroughly proven wrong.
Suddenly, a wealth of hacking-related knowledge appeared in his mind, far surpassing anything he could have learned in school, as if directly opening the door to a new world, elevating his understanding and application of computers and networks to an entirely new level.
If the previous Xiao He was just an ordinary programmer who coded without striving for perfection but merely functionality, now he was a black ghost capable of freely navigating networks, delving into core mechanisms, and skirting the edges of the law.
—That was a completely gray area.
But this wasn't what surprised Xiao He the most.
"Just beginner level?" Xiao He clicked his tongue.If "beginner" already placed him in the upper-middle tier domestically and internationally, what level would higher-tier hacking skills be?
Unfortunately, that remained unknown for now.
-
After packing up, Xiao He planned to return to school first, waiting for the new crew's filming notice.
He invited Li Hanyue to go together.
Li Hanyue waved her hand and instead extended an invitation: "A friend is coming to pick me up. Brother Xiao, why don't you ride back with us?"
Xiao He checked his ride-hailing app, about to agree, when an unfamiliar black car slowly pulled up beside them.
"Actor Xiao, Ms. Li, where are you heading? I can give you a lift."
The car window rolled down to reveal Li Zhicheng in the driver's seat, addressing them both.
Recognizing Li Zhicheng, Xiao He immediately grew wary: "Uncle Li? Aren't you staying with the crew today?"
"The director asked me to purchase some more props," Li Zhicheng explained, a shadow passing through his eyes. "Get in, it's not easy to get a taxi here."
What's this guy's angle...
Xiao He narrowed his eyes.He'd been too busy lately to deal with him, and now this guy was making the first move?
Xiao He curled his lips and waved to Li Hanyue: "Then I'll ride with Uncle Li. See you."
With that, he opened the car door and got into Li Zhicheng's vehicle.
Li Hanyue nodded: "Okay, bye Brother Xiao~"
Li Zhicheng leaned out to look at Li Hanyue: "Ms. Li, aren't you coming too?"
Li Hanyue explained: "My friend will be here soon, you two go ahead."
Li Zhicheng: "..."
The man's expression darkened momentarily as he turned to look at the innocent-faced Xiao He beside him, but ultimately said nothing more, stepping on the accelerator to drive out of the film studio.
Inside the car, an eerie silence settled between them.
Xiao He decided to remain composed, keeping his hands naturally on his lap and looking straight ahead, the picture of docility.
Li Zhicheng glanced at the young man through the rearview mirror, seemingly deep in thought, then reached for a cigarette: "Do you smoke?"
"No thanks, I don't smoke."
"Alright."
"Speaking of which, Uncle Li, your accent is quite strong. Are you also from C Province originally? What brought you to Shanghai?"
Li Zhicheng rubbed the steering wheel: "Just came to broaden my horizons."
"After all—" He smirked at Xiao He, "Student Xiao's knife skills really opened my eyes. It was my first time seeing such techniques—quite different from the usual methods."
"Student Xiao, how... did you practice those knife skills?"
"It's the Bone-Cleaving Knife Technique."
The young man said quietly.
"Uncle Li, do you know? The key to deboning lies in efficiency and aesthetics. If you're fast enough, you can see the prey's muscles twitch from lingering nerve reflexes, the bones dancing under the blade. But if you're too slow, the knife might get stuck between bones, making creaking sounds—that would really damage both the work's completion and efficiency."
Li Zhicheng narrowed his eyes slightly: "Oh?"
He looked up at the rearview mirror, where the young man seemed to know he was being watched, his gaze suddenly piercing through the mirror to meet Li Zhicheng's. Those pitch-black eyes were identical to someone's from twenty years ago, brimming with pure malice: "Uncle Li, have you ever experienced that?"