Chapter 110: Film Emperor (Arc End)

Feng Yu once again received a rejection from Tong Jianxu and, after looking at his working schedule for the year, grew a little worried.

In the past few months, whether it was endorsements, variety shows, or scripts that had been passed along, Tong Jianxu had turned them all down.

The first two categories were understandable—routine rejections. After all, with his current status and positioning, every endorsement needed to be carefully considered, and variety shows lately had a tendency to become landmines. Feng Yu was only responsible for filtering out suitable collaborations; whether he accepted them or not was up to him.

But there were two scripts that Feng Yu had evaluated as decent and thought might genuinely interest Tong Jianxu, and he still rejected both of them.

Feng Yu began to worry that he was avoiding acting because of what happened in Wang Chenqi’s production, specifically due to that unfortunate Duan Hui incident.

“Yu-jie, it’s not because of that. I just feel really tired recently and want to take some time off to rest and spend more time with my kid.”

The main reason, really, was to spend more time with his daughter. But Tong Jianxu hadn’t told Feng Yu about Qian’s special situation, so she wouldn’t understand why he was so anxious about his child.

With his explanation, Feng Yu reluctantly accepted that he was just genuinely tired and didn’t want to work, rather than having another emotional breakdown.

“Alright then. If nothing really great comes up in the meantime, I won’t bother you with it. Take a proper break—until the end of the year at most. Next year, I expect you to work properly!”

After handling his manager’s concern, Tong Jianxu turned to Qian and said, “Come on, Daddy’s taking you out for something yummy today.”

Because of the nature of his profession, it was hard for him to take his daughter to popular, crowded places, so he often took her to private, more secluded spots—frequently upscale restaurants.

That’s why Zaiye often said that Tong Jianxu was raising his kid into a fat orange cat.

Due to his metabolism, Tong Jianxu wasn’t prone to gaining weight, but that didn’t mean he could just eat recklessly. When dining out, he usually only tasted the food. The only one who could truly eat to her heart’s content was Qian.

Watching his daughter eat was like watching a mukbang. Every time he saw her devouring her food, he felt a warm satisfaction and joy.

This time, they were dining at a rooftop restaurant in Century Tower. Above them was a glass dome, the seating was surrounded by fresh flowers and greenery, and each table had a little flower pond with running water and golden fish swimming around.

The typical guest would appreciate the tranquil scene of water and fish. Only a child like Qian would be drawn in and start leaning over the edge trying to catch the fish.

Tong Jianxu didn’t stop her. When she caught a fish with her bowl and excitedly showed it to him, he gently stroked her head and praised her.

“Let’s take it home and raise it.”

“Okay! Qian wants a pet.”

“When it’s grown… we’ll eat it!”

“…That works too.”

Tong Jianxu waved over a waiter to bring a small tank, letting Qian personally transfer the fish into it.

“One fish is lonely. Let’s catch another one to keep it company.” The wealthy and indulgent Film Emperor could probably buy the whole fish pond if he wanted.

Qian used her bowl and spoon to catch more fish by the pond, one after another.

Tong Jianxu heard her counting the fish as she assigned them: “One for me, one for you, one for Daddy, one for Mommy, one for Auntie…”

After they’d eaten and finished catching fish, having spent most of the day there, Tong Jianxu left the restaurant holding his daughter’s hand in one hand and the fish tank in the other.

At the entrance, they unexpectedly ran into Zaiye and Assistant Zhang, both in full suits, just finished with a business lunch with partners.

Compared to these two professional and powerful-looking execs, the laid-back father-daughter pair in casual clothes looked absolutely carefree and happy.

Naturally, the four of them walked together. With one glance at the fish tank in Tong Jianxu’s hand, Zaiye understood immediately.

“You two actually bought feng shui fish from a restaurant like this? These are really easy to kill. Next time, I’ll take Qian to the flower-and-bird market instead.”

Tong Jianxu replied, “Sure. When you bring them back, we’ll raise them together and see which fish dies first.”

Zaiye looked at the beaming child and silently decided to buy a few predatory fish that loved eating small ones.

Before running into the two men, Assistant Zhang had been discussing a recent project with the boss. Now, shifting gears, she turned to Tong Jianxu and said, “Mr. Tong, I received a wedding invitation from host Pei He. I don’t know him personally, but his fiancée, Xia Zhi, is a senior from my university, though we weren’t really close.”

Tong Jianxu remembered it too. “Ah right, I was going to bring it up. Pei He and I are on good terms, so I should attend.”

He didn’t have many close friends in the industry, but Pei He was among the few he got along well with. An established host known for his kindness, Pei He had once helped him during a low point in his career.

Though they didn’t keep in frequent contact, getting an invitation meant he would definitely go.

“He invited the whole ‘family.’ I was hesitating about asking you to come along, but since the bride’s your schoolmate, let’s go together. What do you think?”

Assistant Zhang nodded decisively. “Alright, I’ll adjust my schedule for that day and meet you two beforehand.”

As they discussed the plans, they gradually fell behind. Up ahead, Zaiye was carrying the child and striding ahead, asking her what she’d eaten.

When he heard the two behind him finalize the arrangement, he turned back and said, “I’ll go too.”

He wasn’t really interested in the wedding. He just wanted to spend more time with the child.

Even if he didn’t know the bride and groom, as the big boss of Kuangye Games, he had no trouble getting an invite.

“Sure. If it gets too crowded and we can’t keep an eye on Qian, you can help us out,” Tong Jianxu said.

Ever since learning that Qian might not be around forever, Tong Jianxu’s relationship with Zaiye had improved significantly. Perhaps it was empathy, perhaps a softened heart.

Pei He had many friends in the entertainment industry, and his bride Xia Zhi came from a wealthy family, so the wedding was grand and star-studded. The red carpet at the hotel entrance was lined with arriving celebrities, drawing a crowd of reporters and giving the whole event the air of a film festival opening.

Assistant Zhang arrived early and set out with Tong Jianxu and Qian. Zaiye, who had originally planned to go with them, got held up by work and would join them later.

That day, Qian was styled like an adorable flower fairy by a makeup artist—silk flowers in her braids, on her dress, and even tied to her wrists with ribbons.

But this cute little flower fairy insisted on wearing a pair of oversized sunglasses.

Why? Because the two bodyguard uncles accompanying them were both wearing sunglasses, and Qian absolutely had to match.

One of the bodyguards, despite his serious appearance, doted on the child almost as much as Tong Jianxu. As soon as she asked, he somehow fished out a spare pair and gave it to her.

The sunglasses were too big, constantly sliding down her nose and getting stuck on her cheeks. They didn’t cover her eyes, so she had to hold them up with her hands the whole time.

At the entrance of the city’s largest hotel, Tong Jianxu got out of the car with Assistant Zhang and Qian. Flashlights went off in a frenzy.

The groom was nearby. He came over, beaming, to greet Tong Jianxu.

Qian stood by his feet, listening to the adults chat. Suddenly, someone by the red carpet called out, “It’s Qian! Qian, look this way!”

Qian glanced at the still-talking adults, held onto her slipping glasses, and walked toward the red carpet.

Two bodyguards followed, flanking her on either side, alert for any potential danger.

A cute little girl in sunglasses, escorted by two towering bodyguards, stepping onto the red carpet—it was such an amusing sight that everyone’s cameras turned to her at once.

Qian saw people cheering and waving on both sides, very enthusiastic. She waved back, even throwing in a wrist-twisting flourish.

“She’s adorable! She waved at me!”

“Sweetheart, over here!”

Tong Jianxu hadn’t noticed right away. When he finally saw her walking up the red carpet, he quickly wrapped up his conversation and hurried after her with Assistant Zhang.

The crowd’s enthusiasm only grew. Qian responded by waving both hands. Her sunglasses, no longer supported, slipped from her face and fell to her cheeks—revealing her dark, grape-like eyes—then landed with a soft plop on the ground.

Qian squatted down to pick them up, her little skirt blooming like a flower. Several cameras captured this series of adorable movements.

Tong Jianxu caught up and scooped his daughter into his arms, carrying her through the rest of the red carpet.

Zaiye arrived hastily just as the banquet began.

As soon as he got there, Tong Jianxu handed the child over to him. Assistant Zhang was pulled away by the bride to greet some schoolmates, and a stream of people came up trying to chat with Tong Jianxu and establish connections. Seeing that the child couldn’t sit still while eating, he decided to leave her with Zaiye for a bit of peace.

Most of the attendees were from the entertainment industry and didn’t know Zaiye very well. Even the few who approached were scared off by his intimidating expression.

Zaiye put on Qian’s sunglasses, adopting a thoroughly unapproachable look. With gloved hands, he peeled shrimp, dipped them in sauce, and held them out to Qian, who was sitting across from him, so she could bite off the tail.

Occasionally, someone recognized who he was and noticed that Qian was Film Emperor Tong’s daughter. Still, no one dared ask about their odd arrangement—they could only stare curiously.

After the banquet, the next part of the event was about to begin, but Tong Jianxu left early with the child.

“They’re heading to a yacht for photos next. It’s probably going to be noisy. We’ll skip it.”

The three adults were planning to head back when Qian, upon hearing the word “yacht,” immediately tugged on his hand and whined, “I want to go on the yacht too!”

Tong Jianxu replied, “Their yacht is too loud. Next time, Daddy will buy a yacht just for us, and we’ll go play on it, okay?”

“No! I want to go now!” The child throwing a tantrum was giving them all a headache.

“You’re the only one making a fuss. How are we supposed to get you on a yacht at such short notice?” Zaiye grumbled, then turned around and made a call to a friend, requisitioning a yacht docked nearby.

Tong Jianxu: “…” And this man had the nerve to say he spoiled the kid?

Because the child insisted on a big boat, they changed course and went to the nearby dock for a yacht ride.

Fortunately, she was easy to satisfy. After two laps around the coastal waters, she was content.

On the way back, Zaiye took out a box and pulled from it a bracelet that looked like a smartwatch. He strapped it onto Qian’s wrist.

During this time, Zaiye had connected with a friend and invested in their research, acquiring this little device.

“Wear it. Don’t take it off casually.” He untied the silk ribbon and flower from her wrist and fastened the bracelet.

“What’s this?” The child tugged at the band.

“It can monitor your health and send real-time updates to my phone. If anything’s wrong, I’ll know right away. It can also make quick calls to reach me and pinpoint your location. It can even answer your questions.”

He tapped the small screen and said, “Xiao Wan.”

The bracelet responded instantly, “Hello, I’m Xiao Wan. How can I help you?”

It was equipped with Deep Blue Tech’s latest system, unlike the typical dumb AI on the market. It was fully conversational. When Qian began chatting with it earnestly, the two somehow started debating whether the bracelet was male or female. Zaiye began to suspect his friend at Deep Blue had exaggerated just to get funding.

Qian, delighted with her new toy, kept talking to it.

Tong Jianxu also glanced at the device and listened as she introduced her new “little buddy.” Whatever Qian had learned from Zaiye, she repeated to Tong Jianxu with confidence. He listened, smiling.

Qian even ran over to explain it all to Assistant Zhang.

Assistant Zhang listened seriously, though she was more familiar with the bracelet than the child—after all, their team and Deep Blue Tech were about to start working together because of it.

Which meant she now had even more to do.

“This is for you.”

Qian handed her the silk ribbon flower that Zaiye had just taken off her wrist and tied it around Assistant Zhang’s wrist.

By the time the yacht docked, it was already dusk.

After a full day of play, the child still wasn’t ready to go home.

There was a beach nearby. Qian pulled on Tong Jianxu’s hand, dragging him over to play.

She ran to the shore to collect seashells.

This posed a bit of a challenge for the three well-dressed men in suits, now forced to step onto the sand behind her.

“I’ve taken her to the beach before too,” Zaiye said, watching the child crouched down, digging in the sand.

Tong Jianxu glanced over at him, his competitive streak flaring.

“Then in a couple of days, I’ll find a better beach and take Qian for a proper day of fun.”

He walked over to the child and bent down to look at the shell she held up.

“What a pretty shell. What kind is it?” he asked.

Qian, hearing him, looked down at her smart bracelet and asked, “Xiao Wan, what kind of shell is this?”

The bracelet answered, “Xiao Wan cannot see. Please hold it up.”

“Xiao Wan cannot see. Please hold it in front of Xiao Wan’s eyes.”

Qian frowned. “But you don’t have eyes.”

Bracelet: “Xiao Wan has eyes!”

Suddenly, a different voice chimed in.

【Host, that’s a moon shell.】

Qian pouted and looked up at the smiling Tong Jianxu. “It’s a moon shell.”

Tong Jianxu said, “Even though Xiao Wan didn’t recognize it, you did. Amazing!”

Qian huffed, “The dumb Blue Orb recognized it!”

Then she turned back to the bracelet. “You didn’t know, but you’re a good system. That one knew it, but it’s a bad system.”

Tong Jianxu listened to her childish chatter, but suddenly, a flash of realization struck him like lightning.

System?

He vaguely remembered reading a web drama script with a plot about high-tech systems binding to humans. Could Qian’s situation be something similar?

“Qian, just now you mentioned a system. That thing that’s always with you—is it your system?” he asked, almost holding his breath.

Qian casually nodded. “Yeah.”

【Host must not disclose information related to other worlds or systems. Violation will trigger the punishment protocol.】

Tong Jianxu couldn’t hear the warning. He only felt as though the fog before his eyes had finally cleared, and he pressed further, “What’s the deal with your system? Was it the one that brought you here? What does it want from you?”

While digging up another moon shell, Qian said, “It wants Daddy to love me.”

【Warning! Host has disclosed core system information. This world’s task is forcibly terminated. Punishment task initiating in 30 seconds. Countdown: 30, 29, 28…】

The system’s prompt suddenly changed, and Qian froze. She tilted her head in confusion and let out a soft “huh?”

Tong Jianxu was still questioning her. “Why? What would it gain if Daddy loves you?”

From a distance, Zaiye and Assistant Zhang approached one after the other.

“It’s about time to head out. We can come play again next time,” said Zaiye.

Qian looked at Tong Jianxu crouched in front of her, then at Zaiye walking slowly over, and listened to the countdown in her mind.

【20, 19…】

Suddenly, she understood.

The shell in her hand slipped from her fingers and fell to the ground with a soft plop.

The child’s voice trembled with tears. “Daddy.”

Tong Jianxu didn’t understand why she had suddenly started crying.

“What’s wrong? Daddy won’t ask anymore, no more questions, don’t cry.”

Qian clung to his hand, voice breaking as she dragged him toward Zaiye.

“Daddy!”

“What is it now? Acting cute won’t work. It’s late—you can’t be out here in the wind. We’ll come again next time.” Zaiye sped up as he spoke, only to have the child grab his hand.

The moment he grasped her small, sand-covered hand, it suddenly vanished. Her whole body disappeared before his eyes, as though wiped away by an invisible hand in an instant.

Plink.

The smart wristband he’d once fastened onto her wrist tumbled to the ground.

Yu Qian reappeared in the system space.

The once-calm system space was now glowing with flashing red lights.

———(Arc End)———