TRYMBPIETM 38: Mirror, Night, Snow Peak (1)

Guan Xihua had decent connections in the entertainment industry, but he wasn’t exactly a professional agent.

It was only this February that he resigned from his job at a TV station. As soon as he joined Yade Media, he transitioned directly from cameraman to manager and was handed three young artists by the company—one of whom was the newly signed Chi Qingzhou.

The other two followed conventional career paths—one came from a talent show background, and the other was a trainee.

Only Chi Qingzhou had an utterly bizarre debut, stepping right into the center of a storm.

Guan Xihua never quite figured out what route Chi Qingzhou was taking.

When he first received a call from Pearl Watches, he could hardly believe it. One moment, he suspected it was a scam. The next, he wondered if a rival was trying to mess with his artist.

Pearl Watches was a major domestic brand that had been gaining international recognition in recent years. Its “Zongheng” and “Luoyan” series were especially popular among celebrities, with even renowned international actors endorsing them voluntarily.

By all logic, someone at Chi Qingzhou’s level should never have been able to land such a deal.

Guan Xihua cautiously probed the caller multiple times and even reached out to friends to verify the information. Only then did he finally confirm that Pearl Watches genuinely wanted to discuss an endorsement deal with his artist.

As he negotiated with the brand’s representative, his gaze lingered on the words “A subsidiary of the Song Group” on their website. Thinking of Song Yuzhi—the man his artist had likely saved—he vaguely understood the reason behind the offer.

This was a token of gratitude from Song Yuzhi and the powerful figures backing him.

A sincere and substantial token, one that would elevate his artist’s status.

The gesture was so generous that, beyond being stunned, Guan Xihua couldn’t help but feel triumphant.

Back when his artist was being smeared online, those idiot colleagues had mocked him for making the wrong bet—choosing Chi Qingzhou over Chi Qingning.

And now?

Those fools were probably kicking themselves with regret!

Guan Xihua, brimming with excitement, shared his speculation: “Qingzhou, saving Song Yuzhi really paid off! From the looks of it, he’s completely fallen out with Chi Qingning. All the resources he gave Chi Qingning before have been pulled back. Chi Qingning’s bound to be the laughingstock of the industry for a while!”

Du Huan clapped his hands in delight. “That’s great! Guan-ge, you have no idea—when Chi-ge visited Chi Qingning earlier, he was impatient with him, as if he couldn’t wait for him to leave. Just seeing that made me so angry. What kind of person is that? Doesn’t even know how to appreciate kindness.”

Guan Xihua’s smile faded. “What? He gave Qingzhou attitude again? And yet, he deliberately puts on a front in public, pretending to be on good terms with Qingzhou? What a masterclass in fake innocence!”

From the shadows, the system suddenly chuckled—a laugh tinged with both self-mockery and the smugness of someone who had seen it all before.

Chi Qingzhou sighed and tried to pacify them. “He’s just a kid. He was feeling unwell and wanted to rest.”

After a pause, under the speechless gazes of the two men, he added, “Besides, he promised to visit the temple once his foot heals. That means he’s someone who listens to advice. Don’t talk about him like that.”

Guan Xihua: “…”

Du Huan: “…”

The system: [Hahahaha! I knew it!]

It then exaggerated its tone, imitating a line from a movie: [Do you even know who you’re talking to? This is the biggest Bodhisattva in the whole plane!]

A Bodhisattva who, when at peace, makes you want to carve a lotus throne for him in a temple, but once he takes action… he’s a force of utter destruction. Are you scared yet?

Chi Qingzhou smiled slightly, and the system immediately shut up.

Left with no words, Guan Xihua and Du Huan tactfully changed the topic.

After lunch, Guan Xihua took Chi Qingzhou to the company for a quick styling session before heading to Pearl Watches.

The endorsement negotiations went smoothly. The current president of Pearl Watches personally received Chi Qingzhou and offered him incredibly favorable terms—

They had chosen a rare dual-format endorsement deal, combining both print and video advertisements.

Though the president made it clear that the video campaign would depend on the effectiveness of the endorsement, this was already an unexpected windfall for Guan Xihua.

Both parties completed the process amicably, and Chi Qingzhou signed his name on the contract.

The president was respectful. Though he didn’t invite Chi Qingzhou to dinner, he personally introduced him to the advertising director and tentatively set the filming schedule.

Before they left, the president made a special remark to Guan Xihua: “This is my secretary. Mr. Guan, please exchange contacts with her. When Mr. Chi comes for the shoot, if he encounters any trouble, just let her know.”

Guan Xihua nodded absentmindedly and exchanged numbers with the secretary. Even after leaving the Pearl Watches building, he still hadn’t fully processed what had just happened.

He glanced at his artist through the rearview mirror.

Chi Qingzhou was sitting with his head lowered, intently nibbling on a bag of konjac strips.

Retracting his gaze, Guan Xihua asked in disbelief, “Qingzhou, back when the show lost contact with you, what exactly did you do? Why is the Pearl president treating you with such… reverence?”

Chi Qingzhou looked up, eyes filled with a bit of confusion. He hesitated before replying, “I just got rid of a bad guy.”

“A bad guy?”

Guan Xihua thought for a moment. Oh, he must mean that Zhu-whatever guy.

He mused aloud, “Guess it’s true—doing good deeds pays off. Good people are always rewarded.”

Xing Shuangzhan, lurking in Chi Qingzhou’s shadow, burst into laughter.

Chi Qingzhou paused his chewing, curved his eyes into a smile, and responded lightly:

“That’s right.”

…

Pearl Watches was highly dedicated to this collaboration. After just three days of rest at home, Chi Qingzhou received a notification that the set was ready, and he could begin filming.

When Guan Xihua saw the materials they sent over, he was once again stunned.

For no other reason than that the designs for both the photoshoot and advertisement were meticulously crafted.

Without hesitation, Guan Xihua decided to accompany Chi Qingzhou throughout the entire process.

He gave instructions to his other two artists, telling them that he would be busy for the next two days and that they should take care of themselves, contacting him before making any major decisions.

The two artists nodded repeatedly, filled with admiration for Chi Qingzhou.

However, they were well aware that his journey to this point had not been easy, so they felt only admiration, not jealousy.

The one from the talent show muttered, “So this is the advantage of being able to fight? Should I sign up for a martial arts class to improve myself too?”

The other artist pondered for a moment—actually, that didn’t seem like a bad idea.

“What kind of martial arts class are you thinking about? We’re too old to train in traditional disciplines like Tongzi Gong. Those crash courses… I don’t know if they’re reliable.”

The one from the talent show thought hard, then suddenly brightened as he saw an assistant passing by the lounge door.

“Chi-ge’s assistant, Du Huan, isn’t he trained in Muay Thai? I looked him up—he even won a championship. Let’s ask him to teach us!”

The other artist’s eyes lit up too. “That’s a solid idea! He’s a professional, he’ll definitely know what he’s doing. We can pay him for lessons.”

The two exchanged glances and immediately pulled out their phones to message Du Huan.

Guan Xihua had no idea that his two “normal” artists were about to embark on an increasingly “abnormal” path. He picked up Chi Qingzhou from his home in high spirits and drove him to Pearl Watches headquarters.

Chi Qingzhou sat in the back seat and yawned.

For the past three days at home, aside from absorbing the spiritual energy of the mountain forest, he had done nothing else, leaving him feeling a bit lazy.

But he had almost completely absorbed the energy, and the progress in repairing his soul was promising.

Last night, Xing Shuangzhan had repeatedly examined the other half of his soul. The wounds caused by the Jingming Mountain tomb had fully healed, but the torn parts of his soul remained unchanged. They still required pure emotions to maintain their current state and prevent further deterioration.

Seeing this, Chi Qingzhou immediately gave the remaining energy to Xing Shuangzhan so he could heal the lingering damage from the heavenly thunder.

Thunder repels evil beings. No matter how feared Xing Shuangzhan was, it didn’t change the fact that he was still, at his core, a ghost.

The residual thunder energy continued to harm his soul, eroding his ghostly essence and causing him pain.

Yet, Xing Shuangzhan had never once uttered a word of pain.

He didn’t want Chi Qingzhou to worry because of him.

He knew very well that as long as his wounds remained, Chi Qingzhou would continue to worry, so he didn’t refuse the spiritual energy.

As expected, after seeing him accept it so readily, Chi Qingzhou’s mood had been great ever since last night.

Xing Shuangzhan let out a soft chuckle.

Taking advantage of the fact that Guan Xihua couldn’t see him, he reached out from the shadows and gently pinched Chi Qingzhou’s warm fingers.

Chi Qingzhou immediately became alert and gave Xing Shuangzhan a puzzled look.

Xing Shuangzhan only smiled in silence.

Ah… he’s acting up again.

Chi Qingzhou, unfazed, turned his gaze away. Noticing that they had arrived at the underground parking lot, he got out of the car with Guan Xihua and headed toward Pearl Watches headquarters.

Their set was on the 11th floor. When the elevator doors opened, Chi Qingzhou stepped out first, with Guan Xihua walking beside him, quietly reminding him of key points to keep in mind.

From the north end of the corridor, a chaotic mix of footsteps and low conversation could be heard.

A mature male voice spoke, “Xue Jinshi, we’re outside—can you watch your image a bit? You don’t have to say everything that comes to mind!”

A young man, presumably Xue Jinshi, responded irritably, “Did I say anything wrong? That makeup artist was trash. Do you even know what ‘trash’ means? Should I buy you a dictionary so you can look it up?”

“You—! That’s not the point! You’re going to be the death of me!”

A timid female voice interjected, “Qian-ge, it’s not Xue-ge’s fault. He was just standing up for me when he argued with the makeup artist…”

“Sigh, I know, I know. Xiaomai, don’t worry. I won’t let this grievance slide—I’ll make sure that little nobody gets what’s coming to him!”

“Thank you, Qian-ge.”

“What are you thanking me for? This is how it should be.”

The conversation stopped as a group of people turned the corner.

Leading them was a young man dressed in a trendy, stylish outfit. His short, tousled hair had a streak of red-dyed fringe, and three diamond earrings adorned his left ear.

His features were strikingly refined, with minimal but well-applied makeup. He had the cool, edgy look of an idol star, one hand in his pocket, his expression one of deep irritation.

Beside him was his manager, dabbing at the tears of a red-eyed young woman.

Two tall bodyguards followed behind, carrying multiple bags.

Chi Qingzhou crossed paths with them, locking eyes with the young man, who looked momentarily stunned.

He knows me? Chi Qingzhou tilted his head slightly in confusion.

Xue Jinshi abruptly averted his gaze, his brows furrowing tightly as he strode toward the elevator.

With his long legs, his manager had trouble keeping up and instinctively called out his name.

As Xue Jinshi brushed past Chi Qingzhou, his gaze flickered sideways, and he let out a quiet, derisive snort.

Before Chi Qingzhou could turn around, Xue Jinshi had already reached the elevator, impatiently jabbing the button multiple times.

His manager nodded at Guan Xihua and Chi Qingzhou as a polite greeting before hurriedly catching up.

“What’s with the rush?!”

The elevator doors opened, and Xue Jinshi stepped inside without hesitation, followed by his manager, assistant, and bodyguards.

Just before the doors closed, Chi Qingzhou turned back and flashed him a rather odd smile.

Xue Jinshi froze, staring at his reflection in the elevator’s metallic doors before snapping back to reality with a cold huff.

His manager sighed in exasperation. “Xue Jinshi, what’s with you today? First, you argued with the makeup artist, and now you’re ignoring people. Did you take crazy pills or something?!”

Xue Jinshi abruptly turned around. “What’s wrong with me? I just can’t stand people who are as scheming as a coal briquette. Got a problem with that?!”

“I don’t think there’s a single person in this world you don’t look down on!” his manager shot back. “Your public persona is ‘bold and straightforward,’ not ‘picking fights with everyone you see’!”

Xue Jinshi scoffed again but then fell silent, staring at his reflection in the elevator. After a moment, he muttered softly,

 “Who said there’s no one I admire?If he hadn’t taken away the glass of water, would I still be able to continue singing now?”

…

Guan Xihua escorted Chi Qingzhou to the dressing room before stepping out to speak with a secretary who had come to check on things.

With Chi Qingzhou’s looks and physique, the makeup artist’s job was incredibly easy.

The stylist brought over the outfit from another room and told Chi Qingzhou that there was a small partitioned area where he could change.

“Mr. Chi, rest assured, our Pearl Studio places great importance on artists’ privacy. There are absolutely no cameras or recording devices inside.”

Chi Qingzhou didn’t really care about this, but he appreciated the respectful and friendly attitude of the staff, so he smiled and complimented them before stepping inside to change.

Seeing this, the makeup artist whispered to the stylist, “Mr. Chi has a really good personality. He’s easy to get along with.”

The stylist also whispered back, “I watched the entire live broadcast of the last episode of Scenery Along the Way. He really is a good person. I feel like he saved the others more than twice, yet he never boasted about it.”

She thought for a moment and then said seriously, “You know my literature skills have always been bad, so I don’t know how to describe it properly. But he gives off this kind of… swordlight and shadow aura^[1].”

That description—

The makeup artist burst out laughing, not mocking her but simply responding, “Didn’t Director Sun worry before that Mr. Chi wouldn’t be able to pull off the effect he wanted? I bet he’s in for a surprise.”

The stylist nodded in agreement.

After a short wait, Chi Qingzhou finished changing and stepped out.

Pearl Studio had prepared a deep gray formal suit for him, youthful in cut with subtle Huaxia-style design elements, giving it a seamlessly elegant classical aesthetic.

The stylist was instantly impressed. She noticed that the cuff of his sleeve wasn’t quite straight, so she hurried forward to adjust it.

She took hold of Chi Qingzhou’s left sleeve, unfastened the cufflink, and prepared to re-button it.

Chi Qingzhou lifted his arm slightly to make it easier for her to work.

As he raised it, she noticed that he was wearing a watch on his left wrist—one with a rather luxurious design, seemingly a commemorative model from the international blue-blood brand VN.

She couldn’t help but smile. “Mr. Chi, do you usually wear a watch? You’ll need to take it off for the shoot since we’ll be switching it out.”

Chi Qingzhou complied, removing the watch and handing it to the stylist.

Knowing how expensive VN watches were, and that she absolutely couldn’t afford to lose it, the stylist carefully cradled it while looking for a storage box.

The dressing room was well-lit, and as she turned, she accidentally positioned the watch under the brightest light.

In the natural lighting, the watch’s slightly irregular and less-than-refined skeleton dial was laid bare, and the three blue diamonds set into the hands had an oddly dyed appearance, like flawed pieces that had been soaked in artificial coloring.

The stylist froze for a moment.

Instinctively, she lifted the watch a bit higher, scrutinizing it for a few more seconds before finally confirming—this was a counterfeit.

She was momentarily stunned.

In the industry, wearing knockoffs was an incredibly severe mistake.

It was seen as an act of smearing the brand’s image, a major offense that could utterly destroy goodwill.

An artist caught wearing counterfeits would be blacklisted by the entire fashion industry—never again able to borrow clothes, accessories, shoes, or anything else from major brands, let alone receive endorsements or collaborations.

The host Qi Ming, who had been involved in the incident that led to Lu Yao’s fatal accident, had once set up Chi Qingzhou using this exact issue in a solo interview.

The stylist’s mind went blank, and her heart pounded wildly. When she noticed the makeup artist looking at her in confusion, she quickly lowered her hands.

Her impression of Chi Qingzhou was too good for her to believe he’d done this on purpose.

On top of that, the boss had specifically instructed them to look after Chi Qingzhou, so she had no intention of offending him outright. After ten seconds of internal chaos, she swiftly tucked the watch into its box, closed the lid, and turned back with a smile.

“Mr. Chi, this watch is very well-maintained. It looks like it holds special meaning for you?”

Chi Qingzhou blinked and gave an almost sheepish smile.

“It was a birthday gift from my younger brother.”

Younger brother?

Both the stylist and the makeup artist thought for a moment. That likely referred to… Chi Qingning, who had made headlines recently due to the real and fake young master scandal.

He was still legally a foster son of the Chi family, so it made sense for Chi Qingzhou to call him “younger brother.”

The stylist’s smile turned somewhat subtle. “So, Mr. Chi Qingning gave this to you as a birthday gift?”

Chi Qingzhou responded naturally, “Yeah.”

He took the box from the stylist, opened it, and retrieved the watch, turning it over.

Aside from the standard engraved model number, there were indeed four additional characters—

“Chengnian Kuaile” (Happy Coming of Age).

The stylist felt relieved, but a new question soon arose. “Happy Coming of Age? Was this an 18th birthday gift?”

Wasn’t it said that Mr. Chi had celebrated his 22nd birthday a few months ago?

When the Chi family found him, he should have been 19, so how could this be a coming-of-age gift?

Chi Qingzhou didn’t seem to notice anything amiss, still maintaining that natural expression.

“It was for my 19th birthday. My younger brother said that I wasn’t home when I turned 18, unlike him and our eldest brother, who both had proper coming-of-age ceremonies, so I never received a coming-of-age gift. He wanted to make up for that.”

As he spoke, Chi Qingzhou’s beautiful peach blossom eyes curved with his smile, giving him an air of innocence and sincerity.

“This was the first gift I received after coming home, so of course, it’s special to me.”

The makeup artist, who hadn’t seen the watch, found Chi Qingzhou’s demeanor quite endearing. Though she felt that Chi Qingning’s gesture carried a bit of an ostentatious undertone, she didn’t have the heart to dampen Chi Qingzhou’s happiness, so she simply smiled.

“As long as Mr. Chi likes it, that’s all that matters.”

The stylist, on the other hand, recalled details about the watch’s design. The commemorative model had been released five years ago, all featuring clear diamonds on the hands.

Three years ago, VN had issued a re-release with slight modifications, where the hands were instead set with blue diamonds.

This realization made her fully believe Chi Qingzhou’s words and filled her with utter disdain for Chi Qingning.

Bragging about having had a coming-of-age ceremony in front of the real young master was bad enough, but deliberately giving him a counterfeit watch on top of that?

Did this green tea schemer think Mr. Chi was soft-hearted and would wear it no matter what, just so he could set him up?

This person had a heart darker than coal, with more schemes than a honeycomb had holes.

Once work was done for the day, she had to share this story with the girls in her circle!