A dozen minutes later, Ren Yifei and the music producer walked out of the editing room together. They got along well, both with relaxed smiles on their faces.
The music composer is a highly acclaimed artist in his own world, having won numerous awards. It would be difficult to find someone like him if this place weren't in such a remote corner.
Ren Yifei has always respected those who pursue excellence in their respective fields.
Boss Ajin made the video for him for free, so Ren Yifei gave the editor and the background music composer a bonus of one thousand yuan each. It wasn't much, but it would last a long time in this desolate corner.
However, what made the editors and music teachers feel most comfortable was probably the respectful attitude of the big names on the star chart.
The same thing can seem different because of the change in identity.
Having settled the video matter, Ren Yifei prepared to leave. Before leaving, Boss A Jin whispered, "Don't worry, there won't be any unauthorized personnel next time."
Her face flushed red, feeling utterly betrayed. What happened to being friends, having a pleasant working relationship, and knowing each other since childhood? Was this what they meant by a tense, confrontational relationship?
Are you kidding me?!
Ren Yifei was taken aback for a moment, then smiled and said, "It's alright. The fact that he's here in good condition means I don't care much. There's no need for me to affect your normal operations."
The people he cares about are either dead or crippled, and they don't even come close to him.
Those suicides and car accidents were indeed unrelated to him. But he could be somewhat connected to what led to all of this.
For example, he could guide a private investigator to find out about his stepmother's transfer of assets and her meeting with a divorce lawyer, or he could deliver details of the bullying to the victim's sister.
I've suppressed my extreme emotions for many years, and I've almost forgotten what kind of person I was back then.
"It's not just because of this," Boss Ajin explained. "We're in the service industry, after all, and this employee can't seem to get the attitude right. That kind of attitude easily breeds resentment. You know, in the Desolate Corner…"
She shook her head: "He's not really suited here." Perhaps not really suited to this world either.
Neither of them noticed that the person they were talking about was standing on the roadside, mingling in the crowd.
Watching Ren Yifei disappear into the distance under the escort of the ghost card, jealousy filled his face: It's always like this. This person always lives so brilliantly, making others pale and colorless.
The untimely death of the young film emperor Ren Yifei brought him to the top of the trending searches, and his past was also dug up, causing him to trend as well.
Nicknames like "ungrateful wretch," "cuckoo," and "cuckoo bird" have been added to his name. Back when he was at the height of his popularity, he was a regular on the trending topics, and his fans were overwhelming Ren Yifei. But now, he's completely powerless to fight back.
He debuted as an idol, selling the image of a young prince, relying on his youth for his career. So after two years, he failed to successfully transform himself and became a second-rate actor, an old heartthrob.
This time, the "ungrateful wretch" trending topic caused him to lose a role he had worked so hard to get.
After that, he came here.
In the first instance, I didn't even survive two days before losing a life.
In the second instance, he tries his best to portray the character and disguise himself, but is discovered by the NPC. That instance has a background setting of ghost possession, and the character's family believes he is possessed, so he dies again.
Having died twice and left with only one life, he could only find odd jobs and manual labor. He didn't have many coins left and was barely surviving. Just then, Black Rabbit became famous and saw the secretly filmed face, which shocked him greatly.
Under emotional pressure, he publicly revealed information about Ren Yifei, nicknamed "Black Rabbit," online, including his previous diagnosis of paranoia and a series of events that happened in his family afterward.
This actually happened once in the real world.
The public opinion at the time almost caused Ren Yifei, who became famous at a young age, to suffer a mental breakdown and choose to leave this world. However, it was later heard that he went to act in a play on the recommendation of an old actor.
When he reappeared in the public eye, he was already the best supporting actor.
However, for some reason, the people in this world, knowing that the Black Rabbit was mentally ill and suspected of murder, didn't seem to mind at all, and even liked him.
After that, someone contacted him, offering 1,000 white coins for Ren Yifei's information. Now they want him to get close to Ren Yifei to see if he can provoke him.
Three thousand white shells.
He had so much money that even knowing he would be humiliated if he came, he still shamelessly came and waited here for four or five days.
However, just a minute earlier, the person who hired him had already deleted him. Yes, he failed.
He had sold his self-respect for three thousand white shells, while Ren Yifei's casual video could get hundreds of thousands of views. Jealousy burned away his reason.
"Ren Yifei!" he ran over and shouted.
Ren Yifei turned around.
"Why can you live such a carefree life? You don't participate in variety shows, you don't shoot commercials, you ignore investors, and you don't even pay attention to your own fans. Why can you succeed while I can't?!"
Ren Yifei tilted his head and smiled.
From childhood to adulthood, they were two extremes. Ren Yifei was very talented, but also socially awkward and a complete shut-in. This person had average talent, but was adept at social interaction and could build relationships with anyone.
In real life, the latter is naturally more popular, since there's no conflict of interest involved. And he did indeed enjoy a period of great popularity, being a top-tier heartthrob.
During those years, Ren Yifei was involved in the theater circle, and his annual income was one percent of that.
At the height of his fame, fans relentlessly attacked Ren Yifei, to the point that he deleted all his public accounts and only worked in niche arthouse films.
Sometimes Ren Yifei wanted to thank him. At an age when Ren Yifei should have been young and arrogant, he was polished from a stubborn rock into a beautiful jade by the entertainment industry's culture of praising the powerful and belittling the weak, and by his fierce fans.
Ren Yifei transitioned from a child star to a more serious actor, relying on his talent rather than his looks, and that was during those few years. Later, he won Best Supporting Actor for his portrayal of an orphan in a chaotic world, which officially launched his journey to winning numerous Best Actor awards.
So what if you're not good at socializing? So what if you're not famous enough? You're talented, don't ask for high prices, are responsible and don't cause trouble. Directors love actors like that. Whatever effect they want, they can perform it, and they can perform it even better.
How good is the price-performance ratio?
His previous work, including a series of art-house films that were never even released, also built his network of connections. Directors also have their own circles; good actors are often promoted by others, given a chance, and mutually benefit from each other's success.
Does this person understand these things?
Why should he succeed? To even ask that question... this person must be really not thinking straight.
He can't sing or dance, his acting is terrible, and his god-like looks are all thanks to post-production editing. I want to ask, why? He can't even read his lines properly, yet he gets hundreds of millions for a movie.
He wouldn't think he's a misunderstood genius just because his fans praise him a couple of times, would he?
If you can still sell a persona and exploit people in the entertainment industry, why not try it in a desolate corner?
"Why can't you? Of course, it's because..."
"You are not virtuous enough to deserve your position."
Even in this desolate corner, old acquaintances still come to slap him in the face. What kind of persistent spirit is this? In front of everyone, Ren Yifei stepped onto the flying shuttle with a smile, seemingly not caring at all.
But as soon as the flying shuttle closed, the smile on his face vanished completely.
It's not because of this person, but because of the memories of the past that this person brings.
Everyone says that Ren Yifei became a movie star at a young age and has a very good temper. But that's not true. When he was a child, he was known for his violent temper. He didn't give face to anyone and was like a wild animal. Anyone who reached out to him would get spit in his face.
When he was in elementary school, his biological mother lost custody of him because he was accused of child abuse, and he was indeed locked in the basement and became malnourished.
However, his controlling mother refused to let go. She pretended to let him stay one last night to celebrate his birthday. But on his birthday, she slit her own throat in front of Ren Yifei and committed suicide.
"I am a monster, and you are a monster too."
With hallucinatory memories lingering in his mind, Ren Yifei returned to his residence expressionlessly. It was two o'clock in the afternoon, the sun was bright, but he felt a little cold and wrapped a scarf around himself.
The guiding spirit watched as he bought many cakes, all covered in thick cream. At first, he used a knife and fork, but later Ren Yifei picked them up with his hands to eat.
One, two, three...
"No one will ever truly love you except me."
The woman lying on the ground stared straight at him, her red dress mingling with the red blood. From that day on, his ability to feel emotions seemed to have been severed by something.
Only when he experiences other people's lives can he feel a little warmth that belongs to others.
His biological father did not welcome him; he was the child of a madwoman. His fans were initially disappointed, saying he wasn't as endearing as he was in the movies.
His mother was right; no one likes the real him. They only like the characters he portrays.
'Villain System'... Ren Yifei squeezed the cake, almost flattening it, but memories flooded back uncontrollably.
He remembered that the 'Great Villain System' arrived not long afterward.
Scattered fragments of memory from the past are extracted one by one: a kind and gentle doctor walks back and forth, and the young boy hides and secretly listens to their discussion of his condition.
"A mixture of movies I've seen and other elements...a dream projection..."
"It's delusional disorder."
Is the 'Great Villain System' real? Ren Yifei stared blankly at the red string on his wrist that no one else could see or touch.
He looked up at the endless wilderness, numbly stuffing cake into his mouth, bite after bite. The food he once longed for could no longer bring him any happiness.
It felt like being in a cold ocean, with no one reaching out to you.
Dessert connoisseur… Ren Yifei suddenly thought of that fragrant soul.
Even among a group of blind people, there is occasionally someone who can see.
"We're going to eat soon, and if I eat too much cake, I won't be able to eat any of the other dishes."
The cake in his hand was gently put down, and his emotional turmoil gradually subsided, like a raging torrent turning into a babbling brook. A faint smile appeared on Ren Yifei's face.
Samantha's location is in Mermaid Bay, at the border of Dongxing District and Wuwanghai. This restaurant is also very famous; it's a floating restaurant, situated on a quirky little island.
As the tide rises, the island floats up; as the tide falls, the island sinks down.
It is said that some people even come here at night specifically to watch the moon rise over the sea.
At this time, Ren Yifei wouldn't be able to see the moon rising over the sea, but he could see the sunset. He checked his watch; he was half an hour earlier than agreed.
He has this habit of not liking to make people wait for him. Even though there's a saying in the entertainment industry that the later you arrive, the higher your status, he still does things his own way and always arrives early.
Unexpectedly, he arrived early, but there were others who arrived even earlier.
As soon as Ren Yifei arrived, Saman saw him. Despite having an ethereal appearance, as if he grew up drinking dew, he always dressed like a bear cub whenever they met, which was strangely adorable.
"Ah Fei must have poor blood circulation, that's why he's afraid of the cold." Saman looked at himself and thought, "Hmm, I have plenty of blood circulation, I'm like a little heater."
He went to greet them, carrying the snacks he had painstakingly bought.
"Ah Fei." Samantha sidled up to him and handed him the pastries. "I bought these on the way. They're pretty good; you might like them."
This really hit Ren Yifei's weak spot. He didn't even last two seconds before his hand reached out on its own and grabbed the exquisite four-drawer pastry box.
It's not a big deal to eat a little, is it? We even ate his blood twice in the dungeon.
Thinking about it that way, Ren Yifei felt perfectly justified in taking the money. They were business partners; having a meal together and bringing some snacks was perfectly normal, wasn't it?
"Thank you, how about I treat you this time?" Ren Yifei, with his deep pockets, was full of confidence in treating everyone.
"Okay." Saman's eyes crinkled, his smile even brighter than the sun hanging over the sea.
Inviting someone to a meal is like giving them an umbrella; one person invites, and the other returns the favor. Over time, you become familiar with each other, don't you?
Author's Note: Afei: Favorability +1, +1, +1...