Chapter 44

Chapter 44

The moment the sensitive word "drug use" was uttered, the audience in the live stream, who had been ready to savor the next juicy tidbit, momentarily dared not send any chat messages.

Fang Shanyou, already bruised and swollen from the group beating, now looked as if a painter's palette had been overturned on his face. He stared at Ning Yichu with a mix of embarrassment and resentment, yet couldn't utter a word, looking utterly ridiculous.

The staff members who had stepped forward earlier to mediate and were supporting Fang Shanyou were also shocked by the words "drug use." They instinctively let go of him, as if they couldn't get away fast enough.

With no one supporting him, Fang Shanyou fell to the ground. With great difficulty, he managed to squeeze out two stubborn words from between his teeth: "Evidence..."

Ning Yichu replied without haste, "Perhaps there are drugs in the luggage you brought for this show? After all, the recording lasts five days. It's hard for drug users to stay away from them for that long."

In his past life, Fang Shanyou had only been on the show for three days but still risked bringing drugs even though his luggage might be checked, secretly using them in the bathroom. This time, with five days and the clear knowledge that the program team had scrapped the luggage check, Ning Yichu was convinced Fang Shanyou wouldn't come empty-handed. His suitcase must contain evidence.

Hearing this, a program staff member couldn't help but shake their hands out in disgust, exclaiming, "I even helped him with his luggage! I feel contaminated! No wonder he asked as soon as he arrived if they were still staying in that glass house with Alien—he was worried it wouldn't be a convenient spot for that!"

Although the program team had previously said only five houses were available, realizing the glass house was truly unsuitable for living, they had no intention of making things difficult for the guests and had temporarily prepared a new house. The *Tomato* members were staying there.

The director's face went pale. "Call the police! Hurry up and call the police! This is way above our pay grade. If there really are drugs in his suitcase, then no one should touch it again!"

This was an abandoned private island without its own police station, but it wasn't completely isolated. There were authorities on nearby islands. In any case, they had to call the police and see how they would handle it. The director didn't dare touch this hot potato with a ten-foot pole.

"No need to call the police specifically again. The police are already on their way to arrest Fang Shanyou," Ning Yichu said.

Hearing this, Fang Shanyou's eyes widened. Not thinking straight, he suddenly scrambled up and tried to run outside.

The director, not daring to let him escape, quickly shouted for those standing by the door to close it and called upon several stronger staff members to restrain Fang Shanyou, before he did something desperate and dangerous to others.

After doing this, the director cautiously asked Ning Yichu, "Did you, Mr. Ning, already report it to the police?"

Ning Yichu replied, "Actually, I reported it to the police a week ago. Before this, the police had been tracking the relevant individuals, waiting for the right time to make arrests. From last night until early this morning, they have already arrested a batch of drug dealers, users, and those who provided venues for drug use. They were preparing to issue a public announcement. I also just received a receipt from the police this morning as the whistleblower."

"They knew Fang Shanyou, a drug user, was also recording the show. Even though he was unlikely to get far, they still asked me to keep an eye on him. Now that you, director, are aware, I suggest you turn off the cameras pointed at the island's dock and move Fang Shanyou somewhere off-camera to hold him until the police come to take him away."

"Fang Shanyou wasn't involved in drug trafficking. Although he used drugs, according to current laws, it's not considered a crime. That's why the police left him for last to avoid alerting others. However, confiscating the drugs and enforcing compulsory rehab is still necessary."

As he spoke, Ning Yichu looked at the silent Ning Zeshu. "Your fourth uncle Ning Shaoli—who was already kicked out of the family—and Gu Zhangke, your fifth aunt Ning Anxia's ex-fiancé whose engagement has been broken off, will have to go to prison to take responsibility for their own crimes."

Ning Zeshu was stunned, but asked out of curiosity, "You just said Fifth Aunt knew about Fang Shanyou's drug use. So why does it sound like she's not in any trouble?"

Ning Yichu raised an eyebrow. "What a tight-knit family you have. Because Ning Anxia only knew someone was using drugs but didn't report it, and she herself wasn't involved in drug use, providing a place for it, or trafficking, although I'd very much like to see her in jail, according to current law, she indeed isn't committing a crime. She'll probably just get a talking-to from the police."

Ning Zeshu was genuinely surprised and puzzled. Although he knew Ning Yichu was deliberately fishing for this question, he still chose to take the hook and spoke up, "Then why is it related to Gu Zhangke and Ning Shaoli? Did they provide a place for drug use?"

Ning Yichu tilted his head. "Gu Zhangke used drugs and provided a venue for it. Several wealthy 'young masters,' along with a few opportunistic hangers-on from the entertainment industry who acted as lackeys, serving drinks and joining in on the drug use, all gathered at Gu Zhangke's place. That's why Ning Anxia, before the engagement was broken off, accidentally discovered this."

"As for Ning Shaoli, he used drugs and... was preparing to join drug trafficking but hadn't yet carried it out. Who knows what they'll charge him with. Although I also hope he gets a heavy sentence, I couldn't very well wait for him to actually commit the crime before turning him in."

After all, every day delayed meant this dirty business harmed more people. So, after Ning Shaoli was exposed and expelled from the Ning family, Ning Yichu immediately reported it to the police.

In the original book's plot, Ning Shaoli was later also kicked out of the Ning family after his background was exposed. But spoiled from being the young master, he couldn't survive without the Ning family's support and outsiders' flattery, especially since he was also addicted to drugs.

Thus, to earn money to maintain his extravagant spending and to continue his drug habit, Ning Shaoli began participating in drug trafficking soon after leaving the Ning family. He had "connections" from his previous drug use, making it easy to enter this line of work.

In this life, Ning Yichu exposed Ning Shaoli's background and had him expelled from the Ning family earlier. And Ning Shaoli was even more impatient to join drug trafficking than in the original plot.

Fighting drug crime is a dangerous, long-term war. For the police, successfully arresting a batch of drug dealers within a week of receiving a tip was indeed a welcome surprise. Ning Yichu was also a bit surprised at the speed when he received the text message this morning.

Under the director's arrangement, program staff prepared to take Fang Shanyou elsewhere to wait for the police.

Watching them leave, Ning Yichu asked Ning Zeshu again, "Gu Zhangke has been arrested. I guess the Gu family will definitely make a scene at the Ning family. The Ning household should be quite lively right now. Aren't you going to hurry back to be the family's precious little peacemaker? Aren't you afraid the Ning family will truly hold a grudge against you later, making it irreparable?"

【He directly said "get lost," yet Ning Zeshu can still forcefully interpret it as concern. I have to admire his ability.】

【Knowing her fiancé and brother were using drugs but not reporting it, and even using this to threaten other drug users involved... Ning Anxia is quite "impressive" too.】

"Let Xiazhi Entertainment go bankrupt too, okay? Please, I'm begging."

"Although I don't know how Ning Lao Si was kicked out of the Ning family, in short, he was raised as a biological son, right? The Ning family is quite... a den of all sorts of vices."

"I'm more curious how such a messed-up family managed to support a large industry like the Kangning Hotel..."

【Maybe this is what they often say, 'The world is one big makeshift stage'...】

"But as you said, I should go home now. I am indeed a bit concerned about the family's situation, with so many changes happening in a short time." Ning Zeshu's tone shifted abruptly as he said this.

Ning Yichu found him annoying. Hearing this suited his wishes: "I hope your house is never at peace."

Just as Ning Yichu guessed, at this very moment, the Gu family was indeed at the Ning residence.

Gu Zhangke was suddenly taken away by the police in the early hours of the morning. After some inquiries, the Gu family felt this matter must have been caused by Ning Shaoli corrupting their Gu Zhangke. With the previous grievance over the broken engagement with Ning Anxia, the Gu family simply went to the Ning residence to make a scene.

Among the Gu family members who came, some were just there for show and to add to the chaos. One happened to be watching the live stream of Ning Yichu and He Shixia's show on their phone. Hearing Ning Yichu mention Gu Zhangke, this person quickly stopped the others and had them listen together.

After hearing what Ning Yichu said, the Gu family became even more furious. They completely ignored Gu Zhangke's drug use, placing all the blame on the Ning family. "Our Zhangke got dragged into this because of your Ning family! Ning Yichu wanted revenge on your Ning family, and that affected our Zhangke. You Nings are nothing but trouble! If our Zhangke really goes to prison, our Gu family will never let you off!"

Ning Shaoren and Han Wenhua were also furious. "Your Gu Zhangke chose to use drugs himself. Instead of hiding at home to avoid embarrassment, you have the nerve to come to our house shouting and threatening! What's wrong with you!"

"Are you deaf? Didn't you hear what Ning Yichu said? Even if it's related to the Ning family, it's related to Ning Shaoli! He was already kicked out of the Ning family before. He has nothing to do with us anymore!"

Ning Anxia's biological mother, Liu Shuang, was also extremely displeased. "On the contrary, our Xiaxia is the one implicated by your Gu Zhangke! She didn't gather people to use drugs, and now she's been called to the police station for a talking-to! We haven't even come to trouble your Gu family yet, and you have the nerve to come to our door! Fortunately, the engagement was canceled. If she had really married your drug-using son, my Xiaxia would have been miserable!"

Gu Zhangke's father spat. "Miserable? Give me a break! Why didn't she tell us when she found out earlier? If she had told us, we would have disciplined Zhangke long ago, and today's events wouldn't have happened! Ning Anxia is heartless, wishing nothing good for our Zhangke!"

Gu Zhangke's mother clapped her hands. "Now I see! Ning Anxia and Ning Shaoli don't share the same mother. She can't stand Ning Shaoli staying on the right path, of course she wishes he'd die from drug use. Naturally, she wouldn't tell anyone. So she had to keep our Zhangke's drug use a secret too! Our Zhangke was implicated by Ning Shaoli and targeted by your Ning Anxia's resentment! It's all Elder Ning's fault for being dishonorable in his old age, fostering a family with a twisted moral compass!"

Ning Anxia's biological brother, Ning Shaoren, said coldly, "If your Gu Zhangke was forced to use drugs, then hurry up and tell the police! Why aren't you going? What kind of scoundrel your son is, you know perfectly well yourselves!"

Gu Zhangke also had brothers present. One retorted, "Scoundrel? Your family previously wanted to marry your precious daughter to our family's scoundrel! It seems wishing siblings ill must be the Ning family tradition!"

Ning Anqiu and Ning Andong, the sisters, carefully tried to blend into the woodwork. Their mother, Yu Lianlian, and biological brother, Ning Shaoli, had been expelled from the Ning family. Now the Gu family was here causing trouble, constantly mentioning Ning Shaoli. But Ning Shaoli wasn't here. As Ning Shaoli's sisters from the same mother, they were very afraid of being singled out by the Gu family.

The Ning family's second daughter, Ning Anchun, and her husband, Wang Mian, were still too ashamed to show their faces after their private affairs were exposed. They had been shut in their rooms these past two days, so they avoided the Gu family's bombardment for now.

As for Ning Zeqi, the eldest son of Ning Shaoren and Han Wenhua, and Ning Zeshu's biological brother, he was present but, as usual, watched coldly as if it had nothing to do with him, only retorting briefly when directly insulted.

As the Gu family continued making a scene at the Ning residence, Ning Anxia, who had been called to the police station to assist in the investigation and receive education, returned, physically and mentally exhausted. As soon as she entered, she was seized by the Gu family and subjected to a barrage of accusations and scolding.

Ning Anxia was irritated and distracted. On her way back, she had also received a timed email from Lu Yuanshu, saying that by the time she read it, Lu Yuanshu would already be on a plane back to Sheffield. Lu Yuanshu had struggled and hesitated but ultimately decided to give up on this relationship.

With both career and love life in turmoil, and the Gu family coming to cause unreasonable trouble, Ning Anxia randomly picked up a nearby vase. "All of you, get out of my way!"

The Gu family glared at her. "Oh, going to hit someone now? Come on, hit me! After you hit me, I'll call the police and send you to jail just like Zhangke!"

Ning Anxia sneered. "Now it's Zhangke, Zhangke, Zhangke. I didn't see you treasuring him so much before. Did you know he said he used drugs because no one in the Gu family cared about him?"

The Gu family paused, then became even more enraged.

"Ning Anxia! You're still trying to drive a wedge between us and Zhangke! If our Zhangke goes to prison, your Xiazhi Entertainment can forget about continuing! Our Gu family and your Ning family are mortal enemies from now on! Let's see how much longer your Ning family can keep strutting around!"

……

The police arrived on the island and, without the audience knowing, took Fang Shanyou away along with his luggage, also checking the suitcases of his teammates.

Ning Zeshu subsequently quit the show as well. The director arranged for a boat to take him away. As for the early termination penalty—Ning Zeshu hadn't even taken a fee, so there was no penalty to discuss.

Initially, the director had thought Ning Anxia wanted to get a family member some screen time, maybe to launch their career. But by now, the director couldn't figure out what Ning Zeshu had actually come for. In any case, they were all "high-maintenance divas," so it was just as well to see him off.

Fang Shanyou's involvement with drugs was such a serious issue. The production team felt it inappropriate to jump right into fun and games, as it would give a bad impression. Since it was almost time for the originally scheduled lunch preparation anyway, they simply let the guests skip the planned werewolf game and head straight to the dining area to cook and eat.

Originally, the order for selecting ingredients for this meal was supposed to be based on the results of the morning's werewolf game. But since the game wasn't played, the guests could choose freely. The production team really didn't have the energy to manage it anymore.

Ning Yichu still left the cooking to He Shixia, sitting outside to rest and space out. This time, however, he wasn't sleepy to begin with, and he was also being a bit more careful, afraid of catching a cold from the wind like the night before last. So, he didn't accidentally fall asleep this time.

During the cooking, Zhang Kejiu and Cui Yun came out once, looking like they couldn't hold back any longer.

Ning Yichu blinked. "Something to ask me?"

Zhang Kejiu nodded, then gritted her teeth and asked directly, "Mr. Ning, Cui Yun and I want to know, do you have any dirt you want to spill on us to the audience?"

Cui Yun chimed in, "We really can't stand it anymore. It feels like a sword is hanging over our heads. We're leaving tomorrow morning. If you know any dirt about us that you're planning to reveal, could you just say it now?"

Alien's Ji Tianfeng, Zheng Gu, and Shen Zhou were done for; Tomato's Fang Shanyou was finished; the surprise guest Ning Zeshu had been confronted repeatedly and exposed plenty of his own scandals; the remaining four members of Tomato who were still okay had at least been mentioned by Ning Yichu. Only Zhang Kejiu and Cui Yun had never been singled out.

They started out purely watching the drama, but as it went on, they began to worry that they might also be part of Ning Yichu's script, just waiting for their turn to be performed for the audience.

Zhang Kejiu and Cui Yun were dead serious, even asking as if it were a life-or-death matter. Ning Yichu, for once, was caught off guard by the question, then couldn't help but laugh. "Well, you can rest easy. I don't have any dirt on you planned for exposure."

Hearing this, Zhang Kejiu and Cui Yun both breathed a sigh of relief, feeling reassured.

Although they hadn't known each other long, for some reason, they both felt Ning Yichu spoke quite honestly. Apart from the obviously sarcastic remarks, everything else was straightforward, with no possibility of him suddenly going back on his word later.

Ning Yichu smiled again. "But by coming to ask me like this, aren't you making the audience suspect that you might also have some shady secrets?"

Zhang Kejiu and Cui Yun were momentarily speechless.

Then Cui Yun shrugged. "Anyway, I can guarantee there's no superstition, harming teammates, pretending to be single, deceiving feelings, plastic surgery debts, selling oneself for glory, or criminal behavior. But as humans, if you really say you've never done anything you regret from childhood till now, I certainly don't have the guts to claim I'm that perfect. So, yeah, I was pretty anxious. Asking Mr. Ning puts my mind at ease."

"Hahaha, Cui Yun just listed Alien's three and the recently departed Fang Shanyou, right?"

"Can't blame these two from Make for being anxious. After all, everyone else got mentioned, only they were left."

"I get it, I get it. It's like walking through the 'no purchase' exit at the supermarket without buying anything. Even though I know I didn't steal anything, I still feel inexplicably guilty. It's a weird mindset..."

"Actually, the nation's favorite couple Ren Shi and Qin Muyun haven't been mentioned either. This couple has been really low-key these past few days. I'm quite curious about their divorce reasons."

"It's fine. Just open the stock market and you'll see the depressing sight of Kangning's stock continuing to fall today. Just a bunch of slow-reacting shareholders crying their eyes out."

"If there were any major developments, we should have heard about them, like Xiazhi Entertainment going bankrupt or something."

"If I were an artist at Xiazhi Entertainment, I'd be looking for a new agency right now."

Back with the production team, by the time the guests finished making lunch, eating, and returning to the werewolf game location, Ning Zeshu had just come ashore.

He had notified the Ning family in advance, and they sent a car to pick him up.

Getting in the car, Ning Zeshu smiled. "Eldest Brother, why did you come personally to pick me up?"

Ning Zeqi looked at him coldly. "What you should ask is, why am I the only one who came to pick you up."

Ning Zeshu was curious. "Is the family very angry because of my performance on the show?"

Ning Zeqi's tone was somewhat businesslike, but he was telling the truth. "They don't have time to be angry with you. Everyone's quite busy. The Gu family just came to the house and made a scene. After the Gu family left, everyone else went out separately, probably afraid Xiao Chu would keep exposing things and rushed to cover up their own stupid mistakes."

Ning Zeshu sighed. "So they are still angry with me. Xiao Chu really cares about me, letting me leave the show early to mend fences with the family in time. I can't let down his kindness. I should still call Mom and Dad and all the uncles and aunts. What do you think, Eldest Brother?"

Ning Zeqi sneered.

So Ning Zeshu started making calls, first to his mother, Han Wenhua, who was most likely to soften toward him.

As soon as the call connected, Ning Zeshu whined pitifully, "Mom, I saw Eldest Brother at the port... Only Eldest Brother came. None of you came, not even you, Mom. Do you really misunderstand me?"

On the other end, Han Wenhua was taken aback. The whiny, acting-spoiled tone Ning Zeshu used on the phone was familiar to her, completely different from the hypocritical and mean tone in the program's live broadcast. Yet the person on the show was undoubtedly Ning Zeshu himself, which confused her for a moment.

"Xiao Shu, you..." Han Wenhua ultimately couldn't bring herself to be too harsh. She just asked, "Why did you act like that on the show? Did Ning Yichu force you?"

Ning Zeshu continued with his well-behaved act. "No one forced me. I just felt that Xiao Chu has changed a lot since getting married. He exposed a lot about the He and Ning families, making both families the butt of jokes. After all, Xiao Chu and I grew up together. I understand him. I guessed he would keep exposing things during the live broadcast because... well, he hates our family, and it's somewhat understandable."

Han Wenhua said discontentedly, "What's understandable? He's just an ungrateful backstabber. Xiao Shu, since you thought of this, why didn't you tell the family in advance so we could have stopped him from going on the show earlier?"

Ning Zeshu sighed. "It couldn't be stopped, Mom. Xiao Chu even exposed things at the banquet the He family held for him. Just stopping him from going on a show wouldn't stop him from talking."

"So I had no choice but to go on the show myself. My original thought was, since Xiao Chu wanted to expose things, I might as well go along with it. And by playing the villain myself, I could make Xiao Chu think all the fault lies with me, that I'm the one who harmed him. That way, his anger and the audience's anger would be directed at me. Even if they noticed the Ning family, they wouldn't have a concrete sense of our family members, and the specific hatred would be focused solely on me."

Hearing this, Han Wenhua's heart immediately ached. "So your performance on the show was just an act... Why didn't you tell the family your plan in advance?"

Ning Zeshu let out a sob. "All the elders in the family dote on me. If I told you in advance, you definitely wouldn't have let me go take the blame. But I really wanted to shield the family from some of the storm. I thought you understood me and definitely wouldn't misunderstand me. I didn't expect... today, only Eldest Brother came to take me home..."

These words made Han Wenhua quickly feel guilty. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, Xiao Shu. It's all Mom's fault. And it's your dad's fault too, saying we can't spoil you anymore, that it's ridiculous for the whole family to pick up one kid. He's simply unreasonable. Xiao Shu, where are you? Mom will come pick you up right now, okay?"

Ning Zeshu, still with a choked voice, said, "No need, Mom. I'm already on my way home. But I want to see you as soon as I get home, okay?"

Han Wenhua agreed immediately. "I'll go home and wait for you right now."

Ning Zeshu sounded moved. "Thank you, Mom, for still being willing to forgive me. I acted on my own, but accomplished nothing and just caused more trouble for the family..."

Han Wenhua immediately shook her head. "Xiao Shu, you didn't do anything wrong. There's nothing for Mom to forgive. This matter is still your dad and Fifth Aunt's fault for acting so hastily, which disrupted your plan. You took all that humiliation and burden. Being able to think about shielding the family from the storm, Xiao Shu has grown up."

After several rounds of conversation, Ning Zeshu had won over Han Wenhua. Then he wiped away his non-existent tears and continued calling Ning Shaoren.

Ning Zeqi drove while listening to him use the same tactics, with nearly identical timing for sobs and choked voices, to win over every member of the Ning family. And from the feedback, he succeeded with all of them.

After finishing all the calls, Ning Zeshu let out a long, tired sigh. "What a hassle."

Ning Zeqi curled his lip. "People online say our Ning family is stupid. Looks like they're pretty stupid indeed. Pity, though. Your tricks worked on everyone, but they were completely ineffective on Xiao Chu."

"Eldest Brother hasn't fallen for my tricks for a long time either. But it's also a pity that by the time you 'had your awakening,' Xiao Chu already thoroughly hated you." Ning Zeshu smiled. "Speaking of which, Eldest Brother, Xiao Chu's sources are so well-connected. Do you think he might already know that it was you who took him to He Shixia's room that night?"