Huayu: I'm reborn, but you still force me to be a scumbag?

Chapter 530 Do you know or not?
on the screen.

The progress bar for episode nine is already four-fifths complete.

The man on the screen seemed to change as his hair color changed.

If before he dyed his hair he was like a young, restless volcano, making people constantly worry that he would cause trouble, then now he has become a calm and deep lake.

This relieved people's worries about him and made audiences all over the world want to explore the secrets in his heart.

When Joy from California betrayed her promise to her husband at 7 a.m., secretly sitting on the sofa, alone, she pressed play to continue the playback...
At 6 p.m. in Turin, Italy, a couple saw the same spot as her and started talking about it.

“davvero messo male, ho la sensazione che potrebbe suicidarsi. (He's in such a bad state, I feel like he might commit suicide.)”

“Ahahahahaha, Gina, è impossibile (Hahahaha, Gina, this is impossible)”

"Why? All his family and girlfriend are dead."

"Oh my god, Gina, do you even need to ask? Because he's the main character, how can we make a sequel if he dies? Didn't you see this is season one?"

"Robert, I hope you're right."

Of course that's right.

Netflix's backend data shows that among the millions of viewers worldwide who started binge-watching on this day, those who were extremely emotional and immersed in the show were a minority. But knowing this is one thing; when Xie Jiajun got home, packed his bags, slung his backpack over his shoulder, entered the subway station, and began waiting for the train to the airport…

At 5 p.m. in an apartment in Barcelona, ​​Spain, two girls who were looking at a laptop together finally calmed down.

A girl with long brown hair said, "Parece que va a ir a Canadá a buscar a su hija. (He is going to Canada to find his daughter.)"

Beside her, a dark-haired girl murmured, "Dios mío, al verlo así, se me parte el corazón. (My God, looking at him, my heart is breaking.)"

The long-haired girl said, "Maria, please stop crying! Look at the paper on the ground!"

The black-haired girl said, "Oh, Nicole, look at him. He has nothing now. Don't you feel sorry for him?"

“I’m not as invested in the story as you are. He’s not penniless; in reality, he’s worth more than anyone you or I have ever met.”

"...But you still got up with me at 9 a.m. to watch dramas until now."

The long-haired girl was momentarily speechless, then immediately retorted, "I just think the plot is good."

Some people watch for the plot, some watch for the characters.

In an old country house in Nice, France
A woman in her forties sat in front of her computer in her bedroom for seven hours. No one talked to her or discussed the plot with her. Despite having just lost her job, she showed no signs of fatigue and ate only one meal of pasta from morning till night.

She saw herself in this drama.

On the small laptop screen in front of him, Xie Jiajun saw the ghostly man reappear on the opposite subway platform, playing a game with another short, thin man where the loser gets slapped.

Xie Jiajun was furious, and she let out an angry exclamation:

“C'est lui! (It is him).”

Yes, just as this short yet long series seemed to be coming to an end,
The mastermind behind the scenes, 001, also died of cancer. Just when most viewers thought the show was about to come to an end, it turned out that the hellish game was still going on.

The red-haired single woman clutched her cushion tightly, her eyes glued to the screen, completely oblivious to everything around her—

Watching the red-haired boy inside, who seemed to have gone mad, rushing through the steps and corridors to the opposite platform, only to find everything empty except for the short, thin man standing there helplessly, while the tall man in black had vanished without a trace.

"Who are you!"

"Where did he go!"

"Say!"

"Listen, you're not allowed to play this game."

"Look me in the eyes, do you understand?"

Listening to Xie Jiajun's Cantonese and seeing the Spanish subtitles, the woman felt as comfortable as breathing as she had nine hours ago.

The man disappeared.

Xie Jiajun was unable to find him.

In a villa in Stoke, England, a bald man sitting on a sofa sighed regretfully.

At that moment, the door behind him opened.

A woman walked in and exclaimed in surprise, "Michael, OMG, you didn't go to practice today?"

The man turned around and said lazily, "Don't be so surprised. I'm not 18 anymore. The team doesn't have any requirements for me."

"But you can't do this... You've been watching this TV series all day?"

"Hmm, are you going out for dinner? Wait for me, I'll be done watching soon."

"Is it good?" The woman walked over and sat on the sofa, looking curiously at the computer screen projected onto the TV.

The man said, "It might be the best I've seen in the last five years."

"Haha, I remember you said the same thing when you watched Game of Thrones... Is this the last episode?"

"Yes, it's the last episode. It looks like he's about to leave Hong Kong; this is him boarding the plane. This show is different from Game of Thrones; it's very... indescribable. You can watch one episode, and I guarantee you won't be able to take your eyes off it."

"Haha, really? It's not going to be like Game of Thrones again, is it? It's making me so uncomfortable."

"No, no... wait, let me finish reading this. This is the last one."

The boy on the screen stopped in his tracks.

The camera lens had been following the back of his red head as he walked step by step down the glass walkway before boarding the plane.

Once he boards that plane, he can fly to where his daughter is.

With his current knowledge, abilities, and bank savings, he can now live a life of wealth and luxury that others envy.

But he suddenly stopped.

Then, he slowly took out his phone and dialed a number.

He gained everything because he dialed that number on that rainy day.
And then I lost everything.

Why is he dialing this number again now?
At this moment, all the audience members were on edge.

Everyone who has read this far has already guessed the answer.

The phone rang once, and a cold, mechanical male voice came from the other end:

"Hello, would you like to participate in the game? If so, please state your name and date of birth."

"Xie Jiajun, July 29, 1986."

The next second, the mechanical voice disappeared, replaced by a real male voice, deep and urgent:

"Get on that plane, Ah Jun, don't do anything foolish."

"What's wrong with you? Can you tell me?"

Xie Jiajun's voice was calm, yet it suppressed a volcanic surge of emotion.

All I know is that lending money to others was a foolish thing to do.

It would be foolish to join your game.
Going to bet on horse races is a foolish thing to do.

It's foolish to be fooled by an old man.
It would be foolish to let a stupid woman die for me.

Not admitting my mom to the hospital was a foolish thing to do...

Besides that, what else is foolish?

He didn't turn around, only showing a bright red back of his head in front of the camera.

At this moment, countless eyes from all over the world are watching him on the screen.

No one knows what the expression on his face was like.

However, the emotions hidden in his voice were like magma beneath a volcano—fiery, scorching, and frenzied.

"Don't you guys like playing Eagle Catches Chicks? Now it's my turn to catch you."

After saying that, the man on the screen hung up the phone and casually stuffed it into his pocket.

Then, he slowly turned around.

Suddenly, a very rhythmic melody began to play.

He began walking back step by step along the glass walkway. The camera pulls back, following his resolute and steady steps.

Every step felt like a tap on the audience's hearts.
Advancing inch by inch, tightening inch by inch.

Ultimately, everyone's attention,

Everyone was completely drawn to that face—

Those features were like a painting, those eyes like a knife.

He just stared fixedly at the camera.

It sent chills down everyone's spines and stirred a powerful tremor deep within their chests.

Then, he blinked hard.

In that instant, it was as if a sword had been drawn from its sheath.

The screen then went black.

—The five large characters "The Eagle Catches the Chicks" slowly appeared.

The music swells, and the subtitles appear accordingly.

Suddenly, in every corner of the world,

I don't know how many languages ​​were spoken at the same time.

Their tones differed, but their emotions were exactly the same:
"Damn, that's it?!"

……

……

Chen Nuo went to bed very late and got up very early that day.

When he woke up, it was still barely light, but the flight team had arranged the itinerary with the Federal Aviation Administration overnight. They were to depart from Palo Alto Airport at 9 a.m., fly for about 5-6 hours, and arrive in Washington, D.C., so he had to get up around 7 a.m.

While rinsing my mouth, I looked at the various text messages and WeChat messages on my phone. It was around 10 p.m. Beijing time, not too late, so I had to reply to the messages and make the calls that needed to be made.

Of the contacts he received, 99% were asking when he would arrive in Beijing, and only 0.1%, meaning just one person sent him a text message saying the TV series was great and addictive. That person was none other than Keira Knightley, who was far away in England and whom he hadn't contacted in a long time. He was quite surprised.

After replying "thank you" to "English Rose," he felt a little more at ease.

Although Netflix headquarters wasn't open yet at this time, and he couldn't get last night's viewing data, if even someone like Kayla sent a special praise, it meant the show's performance was pretty much top-notch.

He once told Allison that the show's grade would be either an F or an A++.

Since it's not too bad, then it must be A++?
Thinking of this, Chen Nuo couldn't help but chuckle to himself.

This is not him trying to comfort himself.

That's how this is from the start. Either Western audiences simply can't accept Chinese TV dramas and won't even watch them, then it'll be an F. But if they're willing to accept them and watch them, then the result will only be an A++.

He is quite confident about this.

After all, it used the framework of the original "Squid Game" as a template, and added more elaborate special effects, more stunning real-life scenes, and a more powerful cast than the original. Most importantly, the original's idiotic protagonist was frustrating to watch.

But this one is different. It uses a "power fantasy" theme as its core, making it a million times better than the original's pathetic tone. Back in 2012, let alone feeding it to foreigners, if this drama were to air in China, he thinks it would be enough to make all the old bookworms who read Tang Jia San Shao and Chen Dong on Qidian (a Chinese online literature platform) feel incredibly satisfied.

To be honest, A++ is an understatement; according to the power rankings in wish-fulfillment novels, it would be S-level.

However, all of this is just his speculation. He will probably find out the final result when he flies to Washington.

After thinking about this place, I thought about back home.

At this moment, Chen Nuo couldn't help but feel a bit of a headache.

He was supposed to leave today, but now he can't. He also has to call people to explain some of the things he promised to do.

Oh shit.

After rinsing his mouth and getting dressed, he thought for a moment and then made a phone call.

The call was answered after only two rings. The voice sounded very serious, as if it were coming from a respectable place without any female students: "Hello, who is this?"

Chen Nuo said softly, "Hello, Dean Zhang, good evening. I'm sorry to bother you. I'm Chen Nuo."

"Ah? Ah!"

They clearly hadn't expected this; their reaction was incredibly lifelike, so it's almost certain they weren't AI.

Immediately afterwards, the previously serious voice became lively, "Professor Chen, hello, hello, where is this number? I didn't save it, haha, sorry, but I recognized the voice immediately. Haha."

Chen Nuo also smiled and said, "Dean Zhang, this is my number from the United States. You can write it down and call me if there is any emergency in the future."

Zhang Tianyou said, "Okay, okay, I'll remember that. Professor Chen, did you call me for something?"

The last-minute rescheduling was really awkward, especially since the dean of the Beijing Film Academy's acting department kept calling him Professor Chen... To be honest, Chen Nuo had heard so many titles, not to mention things like President Chen or Brother Nuo, or even insults like Teacher Chen or Chen the Scumbag, but the title Professor Chen made him feel like he was floating on air and extremely comfortable.

After a moment's hesitation, he said somewhat apologetically, "There is something I need to discuss, Dean Zhang. It's like this... I'm really sorry, but the plans for going to school have changed. We originally scheduled it for the day after tomorrow, right?"

Dean Zhang said, "Yes. Everything's arranged here, and the students have been notified. Professor Chen, is there any problem on your end?"

Chen Nuo said, "There is a problem. Something came up in the US and I might have to postpone my return to China for a few days. Could you please reschedule?"

Dean Zhang's voice trailed off: "Oh... okay, it's alright, I understand. As long as Professor Chen comes, any day is fine. Once you've confirmed it, I'll immediately have my people change the time."

Chen Nuo quickly replied, "Okay, okay, then we'll put it there... If nothing unexpected happens, there shouldn't be any problems after the 25th."

"Okay, then..."

The conversation was suddenly interrupted when a somewhat rude male voice rang out: "Dean Zhang, is this Chen Nuo? Come, let me say a few words to him."

Zhang Tianyou asked, "Professor Chen, I'm having dinner with Professor Huang Lei and other teachers right now. He wants to say a few words to you. Is that alright?"

Chen Nuo laughed upon hearing this and said, "Of course, Dean, please give the phone to Teacher Huang."

Then the call went to a different person. The man said, "Chen Nuo? This is Huang Lei. How have you been lately? Why have you been staying in the US all this time? You won an award but didn't come back. Are you physically in one place but mentally in another, having forgotten all about home?"

Chen Nuo laughed and said, "No, no, I wouldn't dare, Teacher Huang, please don't wrong me. I was in Cao Cao's camp, but I was thinking about returning to Shu every day. It's just that I had no choice. If something really came up, I would have to make my own decision. I went back today."

Huang Lei said, "What's wrong? If you hadn't come back soon, I think Dean Zhang would have had to send an eight-person sedan chair to America to carry you away."

Chen Nuo certainly couldn't tell Huang Lei that the US president had invited him to the White House, and that he couldn't refuse, or else they would make things difficult for him. If he said that, the other teachers would likely completely change the impression; they would call him Professor Chen, and he couldn't actually act like a professor in front of his former teachers. He immediately replied perfunctorily, "Well, it's a long story. I'll talk to you in detail when we get back."

"Haha, okay, I'll wait for you. Come to my house then, and I'll tell you, my cooking skills are amazing now. I'll cook a whole meal for you myself."

"Okay, it's a deal then."

"By the way, Teacher Ye, Teacher Zhang and the others are here. Come on, let me turn on the speakerphone so you can say a few words to everyone. We were just talking about your time at school, praising you to the skies."

Okay, Huang Lei has already put the message here, so even if Chen Nuo is clueless, he should know what to say.

So Huang Lei turned on the speakerphone and exchanged a long string of warm pleasantries, saying "Hello, Teacher Zhang" and "Hello, Teacher Ye" for a while, before finally hanging up the phone with a reluctant expression.

He could tell that although the teachers were all quite polite, it was impossible for none of them not to feel that he was being arrogant. Even Dean Zhang might not be as happy as he appeared. Huang Lei, sitting next to him, naturally saw things more clearly than he did, which was why he acted this way.

But he really had no choice, did he?

If he felt wronged, he wouldn't be so polite when he called his father next.

"Hey."

"Hey."

After exchanging greetings, the two remained silent on the phone.

In the end, Chen Bicheng couldn't hold back any longer. He sneered and said, "Such a big shot! Do you even know who your old man is entertaining right now? I'm taking time out of my busy schedule to answer your call, and you're acting all high and mighty?"

Chen Nuo chuckled and asked, "Who is it?"

Chen Bicheng sneered, "Have you heard of Zhang Meilan?"

Chen Nuo said, "No."

Chen Bicheng scoffed: "You don't even know who Vietnam's richest man is?"

Chen Nuo said, "I don't know. My mom is probably asleep. I called her but she didn't answer. Tell her when you get back that I can't come back for the next couple of days because I have to meet someone. You guys can stay in Vietnam for a couple more days."

Chen Bicheng said impatiently, "Who are you seeing this time? Why did you suddenly do this? Why didn't you say so earlier? I've already packed my luggage and everything."

Chen Nuo said, "Have you heard of Obama? Do you know who the President of the United States is?"

(End of this chapter)