How can you ascend to heaven when you are a star?

Chapter 492 Catching the mole

Liu Haiyang returned to the set of "A Love So Beautiful," his gaze dark and menacing as he looked at everyone there, as if he wanted to devour them.

After witnessing the 'accident' that happened to Chen Mingyuan, he became increasingly convinced that the 'accident' on his film set was also very likely man-made.

Just like the rats and cockroaches that often appear, it's very likely that someone deliberately brought them to the set to create chaos.

The idea began to take root and sprout in his mind, and then grew wildly like roadside weeds, completely unstoppable.

The stagehands are moving boxes so slowly, could there be rats hiding inside? The costume crew is carelessly tossing clothes on the ground, could there be scorpions hiding inside? The lighting technician is walking around with a spotlight, is he damaging the bulbs?
And the assistant director who just passed by him without saying hello, is he hiding something?

Liu Haiyang frowned, his expression serious, looking at everyone as if they were traitors secretly causing trouble.

"Old Wang, come here!" Liu Haiyang shouted at the assistant director, his voice as cold as the weather in January.

The assistant director rushed over, a smile plastered on his face: "Mr. Liu, you wanted to see me?"

"Did you check that batch of props carefully this morning? Did you find anything wrong? Like loose screws or something?" Liu Haiyang asked, staring into the other person's eyes, trying to find a flaw.

"Everything has been checked, there's no problem," said Assistant Director Wang after hearing this.

"Are you sure there's no problem?" Liu Haiyang's voice was full of disbelief. "Since filming started, there have been problems on set almost every day, especially with props. Didn't the guitar the male lead was using break yesterday? Didn't you check it yesterday?"

"Mr. Liu, the guitar broke because the male lead didn't know how to play it and played it too hard. There's nothing wrong with the guitar itself," Assistant Director Wang quickly explained, not wanting to take the blame.

"What about the day before yesterday? Why did the female lead's bag suddenly leak while she was carrying it?" Liu Haiyang asked again.

“Mr. Liu, that bag is just a cheap knock-off. I bought it online for 16 yuan, and they even gave me a 3 yuan cashback for writing a good review. Think about it, what kind of good bag can you get for 13 yuan? It’s normal for the seams to stretch when you put too much stuff in it,” said Assistant Director Wang.

He even took a picture of the torn part and sent it to the merchant, who refunded him 5 yuan. In fact, he only spent 8 yuan. Later, he had the props team sew it up with needle and thread, and he is still using it now.

"Even if the packaging isn't sturdy, what about the props that broke before? The clothes, the necklace, the telescopic pole, and the reflector that broke on the day of filming—were all of those not sturdy?" Liu Haiyang continued to ask, his tone aggressive.

“Mr. Liu, those props have been used countless times. They’re old stuff anyway. And isn’t it normal for things to wear out during filming? Don’t even mention those small items; even precision instruments break down sometimes,” Assistant Director Wang said with a bitter face, his voice tinged with resentment.

If the other party wasn't his superior, he would have turned against them long ago.

This is clearly questioning his work attitude and doubting that he has done his job well.

Liu Haiyang was taken aback after hearing this. The other party's explanation seemed to make some sense; filming does indeed cause wear and tear.

Did we misunderstand Lao Wang?
However, as the company's vice president and the film crew's producer, even if there was a misunderstanding, he couldn't apologize; he should just take it as a spur to his subordinates.

"Be more careful when inspecting props in the future, and try to nip any potential problems in the bud so they don't appear during filming and reduce unnecessary trouble, understand?" Liu Haiyang said.

"Understood," Assistant Director Wang replied, though he was very displeased.

You're working and someone suddenly calls you over, and then they bombard you with a barrage of doubts and questions. Who wouldn't be in a good mood?
He had been supporting Vice President Liu at the company all along; his loyalty had been wasted.

"Alright, go ahead and get busy," Liu Haiyang said.

Without saying a word, Assistant Director Wang turned and left.

After seeing Lao Wang off, Liu Haiyang walked around the set with his hands behind his back. Suddenly, he saw Xiao Li, the production assistant, fiddling with his phone, his fingers tapping incessantly on the screen, as if he were sending a message to someone.

'Could this be a message to Chen Mingyuan?'

Thinking of this, he immediately went over.

"Xiao Li, what are you doing?" Liu Haiyang asked sternly.

Startled by the sudden shout, Xiao Li saw Vice President Liu approaching with a serious expression and stammered, "President Liu, I... I was sending a WeChat message to Brother Wu, asking him to bring back a bottle of iced tea."

Liu Haiyang didn't believe it, so he snatched the phone from the other person's hand and looked at the chat content on the screen.

The person Xiao Li was chatting with was someone named 'Brother Wu'. Xiao Li had just sent this person a WeChat message, the content of which was...

They really did ask the other party to bring a bottle of iced tea.

Could this be some kind of code?
"Who is this Angkor?" Liu Haiyang asked.

"Brother Wu is Wu Liang, from our film and television production department," Xiao Li said honestly, still a little confused, not understanding why Vice President Liu was so angry.

He couldn't help but recall his recent days on set, and it seemed he hadn't made any mistakes.

He was just an ordinary employee; even if he had a lot of guts, he wouldn't dare to anger Vice President Liu.

Liu Haiyang was taken aback. He knew that Wu Liang was a team leader in the field management.

Slow!

Filming is underway on set, but Wu Liang is not on set. Could this person be the mole?
"Where did Wu Liang go?" Liu Haiyang asked in a deep voice.

"Brother Wu went to buy things," Xiao Li said timidly, barely daring to breathe.

"During filming, he wasn't on set. What did he go out to buy? Tell me the truth, where did he go?" Liu Haiyang glared, his voice laced with intimidation.

"Mr. Liu, isn't it almost noon? Sister Shan said she wanted to eat spicy crayfish for lunch, so Brother Wu drove to buy some for her," Xiao Li explained.

"Shanshan? Qiao Shanshan?" Liu Haiyang raised an eyebrow.

"Yes, yes." Xiao Li nodded.

"..."

Liu Haiyang was speechless.

Qiao Shanshan is the most popular actress among the young artists of Tianxi Media, and she is also the female lead handpicked by him for "A Love So Beautiful".

If Wu Liang went to buy spicy crayfish for Qiao Shanshan, then the suspicion of him being a spy can be ruled out.

'Why is Qiao Shanshan eating spicy crayfish at lunchtime? Can't she just eat it at home tonight?'

Liu Haiyang muttered to himself.

He glanced at the cautious and timid Xiao Li in front of him. Wouldn't it be a loss of face to let the other party leave just like that?
Those who know him are catching a mole; those who don't might think he's going through menopause.

"Why aren't you focused on your work during work hours? Why did you ask Wu Liang to buy you iced tea? Why are you so greedy?" Liu Haiyang said coldly.

Xiao Li turned his head and pointed in the direction of the director, saying with a wronged look, "President Liu, it's not me who wants to drink, it's Director Xu who wants to drink."

"..."

Liu Haiyang's lips twitched, as if he had been slapped. Although there were no external injuries on his face, it turned even redder.

考！
It's even more embarrassing.

That Xiao Li is so annoying! Can't he just finish what he's saying?

Is he deliberately playing a trick on him?

"Director Xu wants a drink, why don't you go buy it? Why ask someone else to bring it? By the time Wu Liang gets back it will be noon. Can't you be more efficient and stop slacking off?" Liu Haiyang said irritably.

At the same time, he activated his passive skill as a leader: nitpicking.

"Director Xu said there's no rush, we'll drink it at lunchtime," Xiao Li said quietly.

Liu Haiyang: "..."

Looking at Xiao Li with his head down, Liu Haiyang felt like he had been slapped again, and this time it was the kind where he was the one who offered his face.

"Xiao Li, come here quickly and help me move a box."

Just then, a staff member's voice came from not far away.

Liu Haiyang's heart skipped a beat; he felt this was simply heavenly music. Without those words, he would be mortified. Who is this? He deserves extra chicken legs for lunch!

"Go move the boxes," Liu Haiyang said, waving his hand.

"Oh," Xiao Li replied, and fled as quickly as if escaping.

Liu Haiyang breathed a heavy sigh of relief, but he couldn't help but wonder: No wonder Wang Xiaofei and Chen Xukun hadn't been exposed for so long; it's so hard to find the mole!
"Ah! A mouse!"

Suddenly, a scream echoed throughout the entire film set!
This instantly reignited Liu Haiyang's fighting spirit, who had been somewhat disheartened. The mole had taken action; it must have been the mole.

This time, we must find this mole.

He looked in the direction the sound came from and ran quickly towards it.

There's a mouse inside the clothes!

"Quickly, kill it!"

A commotion erupted in the costume department, the actors hid to one side, and the staff frantically swept the pile of clothes on the ground with brooms.

Liu Haiyang stopped in his tracks; this scene seemed familiar.

By the way, the same thing just happened on Chen Mingyuan's film set, except it wasn't rats, it was scorpions.

Could this be Chen Mingyuan's revenge?
He arranged for people to release scorpions, and the other side arranged for people to release rats?

Well, that must be the case.

Liu Haiyang stood aside, silently observing everyone around him.

The mole must be very happy and feel a great sense of accomplishment to see the crew in chaos because of the rats.

Therefore, whoever laughs is the traitor, and whoever gloats is the traitor.

His eyes, like radar, scanned the faces of these people one by one, with a focus on the staff in the costume department.

The rat suddenly darted out from the pile of clothes and, chased by the staff, slipped away through the wall and into the sewer.

"Sigh, we didn't catch them again!" one of the staff members sighed.

"It seems to be the same rat as last time. Has it mistaken this place for an amusement park?" another staff member said dejectedly.

"Damn it, that's too arrogant. Tomorrow I'll buy a few mousetraps and kill it."

"Wait, you'll be responsible if someone gets caught!"

"Are we just going to let this rat run rampant like this?"

"Forget it, just chase them away."

"..."

Liu Haiyang was somewhat disappointed because he hadn't found the mole, but the staff's discussions did give him some inspiration.

Since that mole has repeatedly released rats to cause trouble on set, wouldn't catching the rats solve the problem?
Throw one, catch one; throw two, catch both.

Once the mole sees that releasing rats doesn't work, won't they stop doing it in the future?

Thinking of this, a smile unconsciously appeared on his face. He then quickly left the film set and drove out of the film studio.

noon.

While the actors and crew were taking a break, Liu Haiyang returned to the set carrying an airline-approved case.

"cat?"

Someone with a sharp eye spotted the cat inside the carrier at a glance.

"Where? Where?"

Upon hearing this, the others looked around and quickly discovered it.

Liu Haiyang opened the carrier, reached inside and took out the cat, a smug look on his face.

Yes, he left just now to buy a cat.

The saying goes: one thing subdues another.

Setting mousetraps might hurt people, so wouldn't buying a cat solve that problem?
As soon as the mouse appears, immediately release the cat, and the mouse will surely die.
Moreover, once the mole sees there's a cat, he won't release mice anymore.

"Mr. Liu, is this the cat you bought?" Director Xu Baoping walked over and looked at the cat in Liu Haiyang's arms.

This is an orange cat with a round and cute body. Its eyes are like two bright gems, sparkling with curiosity as it looks around.

"Hmm." Liu Haiyang said while petting the cat, "With it here, we won't have to worry about mice anymore."

"Mr. Liu is so thoughtful!" Xu Baoping gave a thumbs up. No wonder he didn't see him at lunch earlier. He thought he was having a private meal. It turned out he was there to buy a cat.

"Ah, Mimi is so cute." Qiao Shanshan walked over and gently stroked her. "So soft, Mr. Liu, may I hold her?"

Liu Haiyang nodded and handed the cat over.

Qiao Shanshan took the cat and held it in her arms, sometimes touching it with her hands and sometimes pressing her face against it. The men around her were filled with envy, and some even imagined themselves as the orange cat, wishing they could touch and cuddle with Qiao Shanshan as well.

"Xiaoli, take some photos for me," Qiao Shanshan said to her assistant. She planned to post these photos on Weibo later; her image as someone who loves animals would definitely attract a lot of fans.

The assistant immediately took out her phone and snapped a series of photos of Qiao Shanshan and the orange cat.

After filming, Qiao Shanshan returned the orange cat to Liu Haiyang, and when the other actresses saw it, they all surrounded it and asked to hug it.

It wasn't that they particularly liked cats, but rather that the cat was brought by Vice President Liu.

As the old saying goes: "Even if you don't respect the monk, you should respect the Buddha."

Even if Vice President Liu doesn't like his cat, he has to pretend to like it. If no one likes or loves it, then Vice President Liu's purchase of this cat would be a waste.

"so cute!"

"so beautiful!"

"So well-behaved!"

"..."

Lunch break has become a time for petting cats.

Before they knew it, it was 1 p.m., and the actors and crew began preparing for the afternoon's filming.

Liu Haiyang, holding the orange cat in his arms, wandered around the film set. He had been worried about mice on set before, but now he hoped they would appear soon so that the orange cat could have a chance to shine and show how wise his decision to buy the cat was.

'Come out, come out if you dare!'

Don't be a coward!

Liu Haiyang's eyes were filled with anticipation and excitement; he had already imagined this cat-and-mouse duel as a showdown with Chen Mingyuan.

He is the orange cat, and Chen Mingyuan is the mouse.

……

(End of this chapter)