Big Shot Ch.164.2

Chapter 164.2: Shen Xiu, Who Nearly Died from Holding Back His Words

In the master bedroom.

Staring at the tightly shut door, Shen Xiu finally relaxed a little after Fang Mo left. The tension in his mind loosened, and only then did he remember the question he hadn’t had the chance to ask earlier.

…Where is Area C?

Where is he even staying?

How was he supposed to find his friends?!

One problem after another crashed down on Shen Xiu, but he didn’t have the courage to open the door and call Fang Mo back to ask.

Fang Mo was unfamiliar and so intimidating that just looking at him made Shen Xiu nervous. Unable to ask him, Shen Xiu could only turn to the system that had arranged all this: “System, are you there?”

The system responded with… silence.

Shen Xiu had no choice but to accept the fact that the system was offline. Numbly, he opened his suitcase. As his dull gaze swept over the master bedroom—so big that he couldn’t even clearly see the far end—he silently used the task of unpacking to distract himself and ease his anxiety in this unfamiliar place.

—

Meanwhile…

In Area C.

Mu Zhenchu shrugged off his jacket and rolled around happily on the soft bed.

He let out a satisfied sigh: “Okay, so I didn’t wake up in a 500-square-meter bed, but waking up in a 500-square-meter bedroom? I feel like I’ve just peaked in life!”

Taking the opportunity, Xiang Yueting suggested, “Hey, why don’t we room together? I’m scared of staying somewhere else alone.”

Although there were no cameras inside the rooms, the hallway outside was under full surveillance, and even outside the villa, patrolling guards could be seen everywhere. Even though he knew this place belonged to Shen Xiu, Xiang Yueting still felt nervous.

There were pools, fountains—even artificial beaches and a man-made sea—but Xiang Yueting had no desire to go out and enjoy any of it.

His suggestion was met with agreement from the others. One by one, they chimed in.

“I want in too.”

“Count me in.”

“Me too.”

“Add me…”

In the end, except for Shen Xiu and the absent Shang Yu, the seven members of The Galaxy grouped themselves into two rooms.

The members of Storm were just as anxious as The Galaxy and quickly followed their lead, also opting to stay several to a room.

The bodyguards simply smiled at everyone’s self-initiated arrangements. “As long as you’re all happy.”

—

After finishing unpacking, Shen Xiu recalled the weapons he had seen on the patrolling guards outside. Too afraid to wander around, he stood by the wide floor-to-ceiling window, cautiously observing the grounds and trying to spot his friends.

When a knock sounded at the door, Shen Xiu—who had been stealthily studying the layout and surroundings—was so startled his heart nearly stopped. His throat bobbed, and before he could think it through, his mouth responded faster than his brain: “Come in.”

Only after hearing Shen Xiu’s cold tone did Fang Mo push open the door.

As he entered, he saw Shen Xiu standing by the window, his body slightly turned, that cold, sharp gaze now landing squarely on him.

“!”

His brother really did know Shen Xiu too well—he even knew about Shen Xiu’s habit of standing by the floor-to-ceiling window with a calm, indifferent expression while looking out at the view!

When he saw Fang Mo enter, Shen Xiu finally recovered from his earlier fright. He was grateful that Fang Mo had knocked before coming in; otherwise, if he’d walked in on Shen Xiu secretly observing the area’s layout, it would’ve felt like getting caught “drawing a map of someone else’s house” inside their home—awkward, to say the least.

Fang Mo, now composed, quickly spoke up: “Mr. Shen, lunch is ready. Please come down and dine.”

Shen Xiu: “!”

So that’s why he was here! Not because he noticed Shen Xiu secretly mapping things out in his head.

Relieved, Shen Xiu secretly let out a breath and responded, “Okay.”

With that, he started walking toward Fang Mo.

Fang Mo slightly lowered his head, avoiding eye contact as he moved to walk ahead and guide Shen Xiu like a butler.

After all… there was no actual butler or domestic staff here. To prevent unrelated people from entering, they had a bunch of rugged bodyguards instead. Other than Area A—where Mr. Shen lived—being cleaned daily, the rest of the zones were only thoroughly cleaned once every three days.

In this unfamiliar place, Shen Xiu didn’t dare wander or touch anything. He obediently followed behind Fang Mo.

When they arrived at the dining room, Shen Xiu spotted the Storm production team. If Fang Mo hadn’t still been there, he might’ve lost control and rushed straight toward them.

But with Fang Mo still walking just ahead, Shen Xiu could only keep his composure, trailing behind with restraint, eyes shining with anticipation as he gazed longingly at his friends.

The Storm crew could all feel it—when Shen Xiu entered the dining room, the first thing he did was sweep them with a cold, meticulous gaze, one by one.

Taking advantage of the fact that Shen Xiu hadn’t yet walked over, Lu Wen leaned in and whispered to Shi Yu, “Old Shi, is he checking to make sure no one’s missing?”

Shi Yu replied in a low voice, “Of course. I heard that people like Shen Xiu—those who are meticulous and deep-thinking—tend to have a hard time trusting even the people around them. Even on their own turf, they’ll still want to personally confirm everyone’s safety.”

He didn’t wait for Lu Wen to respond before grumbling under his breath:

“I honestly don’t know what the Teles Awards organizers were thinking. Just to earn some ‘peace advocate’ brownie points, they had to pick this place? It’s like they think being an industry authority means they can disregard our safety.”

While Lu Wen and Shi Yu were whispering to each other, Fang Mo had already reached the head of the dining table. He pulled out the chair and said respectfully to Shen Xiu, “Mr. Shen, please have a seat.”

Shen Xiu glanced at the long table and saw that this was the only vacant seat.

As he sat down in the lone open chair, he quietly said to Fang Mo, “Thank you.”

Then, casting an apologetic glance toward his teammates—who had clearly been waiting for him for who knows how long—Shen Xiu spoke with a rare trace of embarrassment: “Sorry to keep you all waiting.”

Used to Shen Xiu’s polite but distant manner, the Storm production team knew it was a result of his upbringing. They responded right away:

“No, not at all.”

“Yeah, we just got here too.”

“That’s right, we only just arrived.”

…

The dining table was a long one—too long for Shen Xiu to hear the people seated farther away. All he could do was watch their lips to guess what they were saying.

Seeing and hearing that no one minded his late arrival, Shen Xiu finally relaxed.

Once he was seated properly, Fang Mo gave the signal for the head chef to begin serving the meal.

Per Fang Heng’s instructions, Fang Mo had specifically told the chefs not to make too much noise while serving. Everything was done quietly and efficiently—they placed the dishes and left in near silence.

During the meal, Shen Xiu kept glancing at his friends sitting not too far from him. Several times he wanted to speak, but seeing everyone quietly eating, he couldn’t bring himself to break the silence. The words stuck in his throat.

Meanwhile, those seated farther from Shen Xiu took advantage of the distance to quietly gossip while eating.

“As expected, no one understands Shen Xiu better than the Xiuologists. From the moment he walked in to how he sat down at the head of the table—it’s clear he’s used to this kind of setup.”

“Agreed. Just look at how naturally he carries himself while eating. That kind of composure only comes from growing up in this kind of environment.”

“Everyone gets their own serving of everything—can’t deny it, Shen Xiu’s hospitality is top-notch.”

“I bet Shen Xiu isn’t used to sharing dishes with others. Remember when he ate hot pot with The Galaxy members? Their relationship must really be something. Ugh, another day of being equally jealous of everyone in The Galaxy.”

Shen Xiu, with so much on his mind and words stuck in his throat, found no flavor in the food. Whatever was put in front of him, he ate—mechanically, tastelessly, just going through the motions.

When the meal was finally over, Shen Xiu belatedly felt a surge of relief—thankfully, each dish had only been served in small portions. With how distracted and absentmindedly he had eaten, if the portions had been any larger, he might’ve been overwhelmed—not just by the unsaid words but by a painfully full stomach too.

Xiang Yueting had held back all through lunch, but he finally couldn’t take it anymore. After wiping his mouth and seeing that the chefs weren’t coming back, he blurted out eagerly, “This food is divine! Absolutely delicious!”

“It’s even better than those 3,000-a-meal dishes I’ve had before—insane.”

“What a shame we can’t take pictures and post them on Moments.”

At that, several people let out sighs.

Forget taking photos—just thinking about those patrolling guards outside made them too scared to even pull their phones out of their pockets. They were terrified that the moment they did, a bunch of red laser dots would appear all over them.

Shen Xiu, having just finished rinsing and wiping his mouth, heard the others start chatting—and felt a rush of excitement he could barely contain.

“!”

They’re finally talking! He nearly suffocated holding it in!

Someone like Shen Xiu, who had always disliked talking, never imagined that one day he would nearly die from not being able to speak.

“Didn’t you say you were going to room with Song Chengwang? Why’d you move out?”

Xiang Yueting replied with a long-suffering sigh, “I decided to stay with Zhuang Yi instead. Song Chengwang and Xia Wenhao are absolute maniacs!”

Down the long table, Shen Xiu heard Xiang Yueting mention they had all grouped up to share rooms. His eyes couldn’t help but sweep over the group.

In a place this unfamiliar and potentially dangerous, being able to huddle up and provide each other with a sense of safety—he was so envious!

Could they maybe include him, too?

But… the numbers were already set. If he tried to tag along now, would it be awkward?

Even if they did mind, they’d probably still say they didn’t—just to be polite.

Thinking that far, Shen Xiu could only give up on the idea.

“Mr. Shen.” Fang Mo entered from outside and walked to Shen Xiu’s side. Glancing at everyone, he said, “Someone from the Teles Awards organizing committee is here. They said they’re ready to take you and your friends over.”

Wait a minute… what was he about to ask earlier?

Hearing Fang Mo’s words, Shen Xiu suddenly forgot what had been on the tip of his tongue just moments before.

He instinctively looked toward Xuan Yushu. “Director Xuan…”

Xuan Yushu spoke up calmly, “Let’s go.”

“Mm.” Shen Xiu responded and stood up.

The others also echoed their agreement and rose from their seats.

Fang Mo added, “I’ll have the vehicles prepared.”

Although the Teles committee had sent people over, Shen Xiu and the Storm team would still be traveling in their own vehicles.

—

Half an hour later, the convoy left the K Corp area.

Suddenly, just as everything seemed to be going smoothly, the cars came to a sharp halt.

Shen Xiu drew his gaze back from the window, puzzled, and looked toward the front of the vehicle—at the same time, he heard Fang Mo’s voice:

“It’s Adams.”

Just as he said that, Shen Xiu heard a sharp voice calling out from outside.

“Shen Xiu, long time no see. Isn’t your approach this time just a little unethical?”

Shen Xiu: “?”

Wait, who was this person shouting his name out loud?

He rolled down the window and stared at the face not far away—distinctly foreign features. He looked the man over from his hair to his chin and was absolutely certain: he didn’t know this person.

Could it be… a hater?

It had to be. Otherwise, why accuse him of being unethical?

Maybe it had something to do with the Teles Awards’ Best Supporting Actor. Maybe this Adams thought Shen Xiu had stolen the award from an artist he supported.

After thinking it over, Shen Xiu figured that had to be the only explanation.

He hadn’t expected that something as dramatic as a hater blocking a car—something Fang Chengxing had warned him about—would actually happen to him too. Thankfully, this wasn’t one of those extreme cases Fang Chengxing mentioned, like someone throwing paint or carrying a knife with bad intentions.

Fang Mo glanced at Shen Xiu. Seeing him staring coldly and expressionlessly at Adams, lips pressed tight in silence, Fang Mo didn’t dare speak up on his own.

“Shen Xiu, aren’t you going to come out and have a little chat?”

Adams’s voice rang out again from outside.

But with Shen Xiu present, Fang Mo knew it wasn’t his call to make. He asked respectfully, “Mr. Shen, would you like to speak with Adams?”

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