79: Chapter 79 The whole company was celebrating someone else's birthday, and no one came to pick her up.

When the wheels of the evacuation flight rolled onto the runway of the Imperial Capital Airport, the three hundred people in economy class applauded in unison.

By the third time the "Welcome Home" announcement played over the intercom, the flight attendant's voice was trembling.

First-class compartment.

Jiang Rumu pulled her face off the headrest; a deep red crease was imprinted on her right cheek.

"We're here?"

"We're here."

Li Li leaned over and moved her plaster-casted leg off the footrest.

"Wait a second." Jiang Rumu grabbed his sleeve. "Do I have a mark on my face?"

"Yes."

"Is it bad?"

"Have you ever seen a waffle?"

Jiang Rumu slapped his arm.

Five minutes later, Old Zhou came to knock on the door.

"Mr. Li, Ms. Jiang, Director Pei requests your presence in business class for a meeting."

In the last row of business class, four seats had been temporarily cleared.

Director Pei Zhao sat in the middle. Having barely slept for three days, his makeup was meticulously touched up; only the string of rosewood prayer beads on his wrist betrayed his true state—there were three beads. There had only been one when they left.

On this trip to the Middle East, he had used up his entire three-year quota for superstition.

The other guests had already arrived.

Shen Jue and Cen Ye were squeezed together, Gu Zeyan sat on the far edge, and Han Xubai was leaning against the cabin wall scrolling through his phone. Yin Ruoying had changed into clean clothes, and her makeup was exquisite. Fang Ruowei was touching up her lipstick. Qi Wanyin was holding a book without opening it.

Wen Ditang arrived last. Her chestnut-brown fishtail braid was a bit loose, and the red mark on her forehead from a bump hadn't faded yet. She squeezed in and sat next to Fang Ruowei.

Li Li carried Jiang Rumu over from first class on his back.

Shen Jue jumped up. "Brother Li, let me—"

"Sit down."

Li Li turned sideways and placed Jiang Rumu in the window seat. He was familiar with the routine, as if he were moving a package.

Director Pei Zhao scanned the room; everyone was there.

"Long story short." He fingered his prayer beads. "Force majeure led to the cancellation of the program. The contract states in black and white that both parties are exempt from liability. The lawyers have confirmed it."

Han Xubai adjusted his gold-rimmed glasses and nodded.

"However—" Director Pei Zhao pulled out a tablet. "We recorded for less than a week, but the amount of footage is three times that of a regular season. The station's intention is to release two special short episodes. Everyone must appear. The editing rights belong to the Production Team, and the final cut will be submitted to each team for approval beforehand."

"Any objections?"

No one had any objections.

Who would lose out on this deal? Although the show had flopped, the fan bases of this group had skyrocketed. Shen Jue gained twenty million, Cen Ye eighteen million, and even Han Xubai's legal education account gained nine million followers.

Two short episodes were equivalent to a free extension of their popularity.

Gu Zeyan was the first to nod, Yin Ruoying crossed her legs and said "Sure," Qi Wanyin turned a page of her book, which was taken as consent, and Fang Ruowei smiled and said, "I fully support Director Pei."

Han Xubai raised his hand: "Just don't include the footage of me under the collapsed ceiling; my hairstyle was terrible."

Shen Jue chuckled: "I don't care; everyone on the internet has already seen my most embarrassing moments anyway—"

Cen Ye slapped the back of his head: "Shut up."

Li Li leaned back in his chair. "No objections."

Jiang Rumu nodded.

"Good." Director Pei Zhao closed the tablet. "Then this matter is—"

"Director Pei."

Wen Ditang spoke up.

Everyone looked over.

She was sitting on the edge of her seat, her fingers twisting the ribbon coming from the end of her fishtail braid.

"I just wanted to ask."

She tilted her head and blinked twice.

"The two short episodes... whose footage will be used primarily?"

Director Pei Zhao's hand froze on the prayer beads.

Wen Ditang smiled, very obedient, very harmless.

"Because I recalled that most of the exciting scenes... were of Brother Li and Sister Mu. The Water World part, the palace part, the desert part... they were basically stories about the two of them."

She paused.

"The footage of the rest of us... shouldn't be too much, right?"

Silence.

The air conditioning vent hummed.

Shen Jue opened his mouth, then closed it again.

The cigarette on Cen Ye's ear spun half a turn and stopped.

Gu Zeyan lowered his head, staring at his black phone screen, not looking at anything.

Yin Ruoying's fingernail scraped silently against the armrest.

Han Xubai adjusted his glasses and looked down to open his book. It was the standard "I am reading, I hear nothing" pose.

Fang Ruowei's lipstick cap snapped shut. Her smile remained, frozen for three seconds—muscle memory.

Qi Wanyin's hand turning the page slowed for a beat.

Director Pei Zhao turned the prayer beads one full circle.

"Regarding the allocation of footage, the post-Production Team will take everything into consideration."

The tail of his sentence was light and airy, just enough to nail this topic into its coffin.

Wen Ditang smiled. "Okay, Director Pei Zhao, I was just asking casually."

Just asking casually.

What this girl threw out wasn't a question; it was a nail.

It was nailed into the softest part of everyone's heart—what exactly did you contribute in this disaster?

Everyone knew the answer.

No one was willing to say it out loud.

Wen Ditang withdrew her gaze and looked down to fix her ribbon, gentle and innocent.

What a white lotus.

Director Pei Zhao quickly wrapped things up. Everyone returned to their seats to wait for the plane to land.

Li Li carried Jiang Rumu on his back again and walked toward first class.

"She did that on purpose." Jiang Rumu leaned on his back, her voice very low.

"I know."

"Aren't you angry?"

"Angry at whom? At a twenty-one-year-old girl? She stated a fact."

Jiang Rumu didn't respond.

Her plaster-casted leg swayed against his waist.

Immigration took forty minutes.

The evacuation flight used a special channel, and customs and border inspection were working at maximum efficiency, but the three hundred people still formed a long queue.

Li Li pushed Jiang Rumu's wheelchair at the very back. The wheelchair was one the flight attendants had dug out from the plane's storage room; the front left wheel was a bit crooked, causing it to bump along.

The moment the exit gate opened—

A wave of sound crashed down upon them.

"Jiang Rumu——!!"

"Li Li——!!"

"Li Li Zai Mu——!!!"

Imperial Capital International Airport Terminal 3 Arrival Hall.

A dense crowd blocked everything from the arrival area to the entrance of Starbucks. Fluorescent support signs were held up, blotting out the sky, and LED signs flashed like a concert. Security guards were holding up crowd-control barriers, which were being pushed into wavy shapes, at risk of collapsing at any moment.

Li Li pushed the wheelchair to a stop in the exit passage.

The guests in front had already left. The Production Team had set up a work group to coordinate follow-up matters, but it was highly likely no one would speak in it.

Gu Zeyan was surrounded by three staff members and evacuated from the left side. Yin Ruoying's team was more professional; six bodyguards cleared the way, and a black van was parked three meters outside the exit.

Shen Jue was dragged away by his agent, who grabbed his arm and pulled him out. He was still looking back and was nearly trampled out of his shoes by the crowd.

Cen Ye walked out by himself with his hands in his pockets, gestured "shh" to the fans, took the cigarette off his ear, and walked out.

Qi Wanyin's assistant opened an umbrella indoors—not to block rain, but to block phone cameras—and whisked her away. Han Xubai walked away quickly, following his law firm colleagues. Fang Ruowei stopped at the exit for thirty seconds, waving and smiling at fans, her pose perfectly calculated for a nine-grid social media post, before ducking into a white sedan.

Wen Ditang walked out clutching a canvas bag; surprisingly, there were seven or eight fans holding handwritten signs that said "Go Little Deer." She covered her mouth, making an "Oh my god, so touched" expression, and was picked up by a middle-aged woman.

One by one, they all left.

Everyone had a team, bodyguards, and a car.

Some fans dispersed, but the number of people in the hall increased instead of decreasing.

The real protagonists hadn't come out yet.

"Jiang Rumu! Jiang Rumu! Jiang Rumu!"

"Li Li! Li Li! Li Li!"

Outside the barriers, there were at least three thousand people.

Li Li stood in the passage, looking at the sea of people outside.

Jiang Rumu sat in the wheelchair, her phone pressed to her ear.

The fourth ring. It connected.

"Sister Mu?!" Lu Cheng's voice was light and urgent.

"Little Lu, I'm here. Who is coming to pick me up?"

There was silence on the other end for two seconds.

"Sister Mu... I'm sorry."

Lu Cheng spoke so fast she didn't stop for breath.

"Director Zhou is hosting a birthday party today for the new male artist signed to Company, and the whole Company was kept behind, including Director Sun and Little Wen. I asked Director Sun for permission to pick you up at the airport, and she said Director Zhou gave the order—"

Pause.

"What did he say?"

"He said... 'If Jiang Rumu can survive on the battlefield alone, does she really need someone to pick her up just to come home?'"

The passage was too noisy; the speaker was on.

Every word poured into the ears of the person behind her.

Jiang Rumu pressed her thumb against the frame of her phone.

"I see."

"Sister Mu, I can sneak out, I'll take a taxi right now—"

"No need. Don't cause trouble for yourself."

"But there are so many fans outside, and your leg..."

"I said no need."

She hung up.

The screen went dark.

She stared at the glass, which was shattered like a spiderweb, for two seconds.

If she can survive on the battlefield alone, she needs someone to pick her up to come home.

Good words.

Truly good words.

Li Li walked around to the front of the wheelchair and crouched down.

Jiang Rumu looked up.

"Is there anyone to pick you up?"

"No."

"What about your luggage?"

"Just that one suitcase. The Production Team helped bring it."

Li Li stood up.

He walked around to the back of the wheelchair.

He grabbed the handle of the carry-on suitcase by the side of the passage with one hand.

His other hand rested on the wheelchair handle.

"Let's go. I'll clear the way."

Jiang Rumu turned her head.

"You alone? Pushing a wheelchair? Dragging a suitcase? Through three thousand people?"

"Basic operation."

The front wheel of the wheelchair rolled crookedly over the floor tiles of the passage.

At the exit, three thousand mouths opened at the same time.

The screaming shook the signs on the ceiling until they swayed.

Li Li lowered his head to Jiang Rumu in the wheelchair.

"Hold on tight."

Three thousand people outside were shouting her name.

Behind her, there was no agent, no assistant, no van.

Only a crooked wheelchair, a carry-on suitcase, and a man in a white T-shirt.

Jiang Rumu placed her hands on the wheelchair armrests and gripped them tightly.

On the other side of the barriers, countless phone cameras were aimed at the exit passage.

The first second the wheelchair rolled out, forty million people's phone screens lit up simultaneously—

The number one trending topic was already up.

#Jiang Rumu returns home with no one to pick her up, Li Li pushes wheelchair through the crowd alone#

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