Welcome to the Bizarre Games

Chapter 580 Employer
The rest of the conversation wasn't convenient to discuss in the teahouse. Coincidentally, someone else called to urge them on, so Hu Shuang decided to wait until they got to the film set.

They valued Hu Shuang highly, even taking Zhou You seriously, and specially arranged for a nice car to pick her up.

When Zhou You went out and saw it, he couldn't help but smile.

—Well, another Bentley.

Do these rich people really like this car model that much?
Seeing Zhou You's expression, Hu Shuang asked with some curiosity.

"What, Mr. Zhou, do you not like Bentleys? If it's really not working out, I can ask them to change the car."

Zhou You shook his head, casually opened the car door, and got in.

"It's just that I was thinking about some damn miser. Let's not waste any more time. I really can't stand the smell of tea everywhere. Let's go over there first."

The place where Aida Maki is is not far from here.

According to Hu Shuang, the big star has a very tight schedule lately—he was filming a short film today, which is why he had time to meet Zhou You.

However, the word 'reception' just doesn't feel right no matter how you look at it.

Soon, the two arrived at the location, which was a guesthouse converted into a photography studio. Although it was just for shooting short films, there were quite a few people there. The studio was surrounded by several layers of walls, and security guards had even set up a cordon at the entrance to prevent any enthusiastic fans from breaking in.

After Hu Shuang and Zhou You got out of the car, she only said one sentence to the security guard and was allowed to go together without even using her work ID. Then she led Zhou You through the employee entrance and after several twists and turns, they finally arrived at their destination.

however.

As soon as the door opened, a hysterical scolding voice came from inside.

Zhou You had never studied Japanese, and even though he had watched so many adult films, the only words he was familiar with were "uh-huh" and "ah-ah"—so he simply turned his head and looked at Hu Shuang with a blank expression.

Hu Shuang sighed softly and said, "Excuse me, please excuse me for a moment." Then she skillfully walked through the crowd and arrived at the center of the stage.

At that moment, Zhou You noticed a girl standing where the lights were focused, her delicate face held high, speaking arrogantly.

Without a doubt, this was the employer of this trip, the big star named Maki Aida.

However, unlike the youthful, vibrant image on the billboard, this person now had an angry expression and was spewing out words that, although incomprehensible, were clearly a reprimand.

Opposite her was a male celebrity who, while not as handsome as her, was still quite dashing, and a middle-aged man with a full beard who looked like a director.

However, whether they are celebrities or directors, under the scrutiny of Aida Maki, they can only hang their heads like defeated roosters, weakly enduring all the attacks.

—Up until Hu Shuang appeared.

Upon seeing her appear, the two men, whose faces were covered in spittle, rushed over as if they had found a savior. They showered her with flattery, though they couldn't understand it, it was clearly a plea for mercy—they looked so humble that they seemed about to kneel down.

Fortunately, Hu Shuang lived up to their expectations. After walking over, she only said a few words to calm the big star's anger. Aida Maki glared fiercely at the two people opposite her, then flicked her sleeves and left in a huff.

What an arrogant official attitude! They're not even going to act anymore? Has the entertainment industry really gotten to this point, where actors can even give directors the cold shoulder?

Zhou You watched in astonishment, but the staff seemed used to it and quickly started cleaning up the set—as for the other male lead?

They couldn't wait any longer and fled as if their lives depended on it.

After calming down the director who was full of gratitude with a few words, Hu Shuang slowly walked towards Zhou You.

To be honest, Hu Shuang seems to be quite famous here. The moment she arrived, almost everyone's eyes were on her.

However, Zhou You never cared about this and just laughed as if no one was around.

"What happened? Why are they arguing so loudly?"

Hu Shuang smiled wryly.

"It's nothing, just a small problem in the middle. Maki was never satisfied with one particular scene, and even after several reshoots, it still didn't meet her requirements, so she couldn't help but throw a tantrum."

Zhou You took a sip of the drink he'd taken from the car—a drink he didn't even know the name of—and then raised an eyebrow in surprise.

"Reshoot? Isn't that what directors usually do? How come she's overstepping her bounds?"

"You know, famous celebrities always have certain privileges, especially for lesser-known directors. And Maki has been emotionally unstable lately because of the stalker incident, so..."

At this point, Hu Shuang shook her head again.

"Forget it, this has nothing to do with you. You just need to protect her for the next few days. The Metropolitan Police Department will take over afterwards. She happens to have some free time now, why don't you come with me to find out the details?"

Zhou You thought about it and it made sense—according to what was said before, he would only be a bodyguard for a few days, and not even a close bodyguard—so what did it matter to his family how difficult the girl was to serve?
Finish the job quickly, get paid, pay off the debt, and if you have extra time, stay here for a couple more days and bring back some local specialties for the little ghost girl. That should be the end of it.

Having finally escaped the script, Zhou You really didn't want to get into any more trouble.

So he casually tossed the beverage can in his hand, which landed squarely in the trash can, and then bent down and smiled very gentlemanly.

"Then please lead the way, Miss Hu."
-
Maki Aida stayed on the second floor of this guesthouse.

Although it was just a temporary shoot and the crew provided hotel accommodation, the big star refused the crew's offer because the environment was "too simple," and then unreasonably occupied the largest and most luxurious single room left in the guesthouse.

As they approached the house, they could still faintly hear scolding voices coming from inside. After Hu Shuang knocked on the door, a man who looked like an assistant came running out of the house in just a few seconds, giving the two of them a "good luck" look before he left.

Hu Shuang didn't seem to care at all; she simply smiled and pushed open the door.

—The interior decoration is much more luxurious than the exterior, and it's not even in the style of the guesthouse itself. It's clear that it was redecorated after the guests checked in.

Meanwhile, Maki Aida was half-reclined on the sofa by the door, crossing her legs without any decorum, holding a remote control in one hand and a glass bottle in the other, gulping it down.

If I'm not mistaken, that should be a whiskey bottle, right?

In broad daylight, during work hours, you're so brazenly and recklessly drinking. Even I wouldn't dare to be so arrogant, yet you're behaving so blatantly?

When Zhou You walked in, Aida Maki was clearly taken aback—she didn't seem to expect a stranger to enter her own lounge. She quickly put down her wine bottle, put on a business-like smile, and even straightened her clothes.

However, upon seeing Hu Shuang, she suddenly relaxed, smiled joyfully, waved, and said a few words.

But I understood what Zhou You meant. That was it.

"Sister Hu, you're here?"

Compared to her familiarity, Hu Shuang appeared quite distant.

She smiled and nodded, then asked a few questions in an inquiring tone. After receiving an affirmative answer, she pointed at Zhou You and said something.

Clearly, this is an introduction to someone.

Compared to her enthusiasm for Hu Shuang, Aida Maki was noticeably colder towards Zhou You—even displaying obvious indifference and distrust.

The big star frowned and said something to Hu Shuang—after receiving an affirmative answer, his expression darkened further, almost resembling his previous loss of control.

Hu Shuang sighed, turned her head, and said to Zhou You.

"Maki's been a bit emotionally unstable lately, and she's run into a few scammers, so... well, let me translate for you. What she just said was..."

However, Zhou You waved his hand, stopping her from speaking.

"No need. I've recently learned some magic, so I can try it out here."

Seeing his actions, Aida Maki sat back down, crossed her legs, and smiled sarcastically—clearly, she wanted to see the 'liar' make a fool of himself.

Zhou You didn't argue, but instead looked around, picked a leaf from the vase, bit his tongue, and smeared it with his blood.

Then, he snapped his fingers.

To Aida Maki's slightly surprised gaze, without any ignition source, a pale blue flame suddenly ignited—and Zhou You picked up a leaf, roasted it slightly, and finally put it under the tip of his tongue.

After a while, Maki Aida finally clapped her hands.

"What an amazing magic show. It's a shame you're a con artist. If you don't mind, I have a few acrobatic jobs you could try."

Zhou You simply smiled and said...

"I am grateful for your kind words, Miss Aida, but I personally prefer the domestic market, and I also have some family ties that make it impossible for me to work overseas."

When he spoke, it was already in fluent and clear Japanese.

Hu Shuang, who was standing next to him, suddenly turned her head and looked at him in utter astonishment.

Zhou You didn't offer any explanation.

This is considered a kind of magic among the three religions and nine schools of thought. Originally, it was used to communicate with those different kinds of beings by mastering ten thousand words, but in reality, it is also an excellent translator.

The reason why we don't use it as soon as we get off the plane is quite simple.

—I don't know what the person who created this spell was thinking. This damn medium actually smells like ammonia!
So unless it's absolutely necessary, Zhou You really doesn't want to put such a thing in his mouth.

Suppressing the urge to vomit, Zhou You still smiled and said.

"Well, I was hired by you, Miss Aida, at a high price. Since I'm charged by the day, I don't mind—but you certainly don't want this, Miss Aida, right? So let's not waste time with sarcasm. Why don't we sit down and talk about the situation in detail?"

Maki Aida looked at him carefully, her expression growing increasingly calm, before finally speaking after a long while.

"Since you were introduced by Sister Hu, I'll trust you this once. Please have a seat, and you can ask me anything."

Zhou You didn't argue, but casually sat down on the other side, looked into Aida Maki's eyes, and asked.

"So, my first question is, Ms. Aida, I heard you've been troubled by a stalker lately? Could you tell me what happened?"

Upon hearing this, Aida Maki immediately wore an expression as if she had swallowed a fly.

"That was about three months ago. I received several emails in a row, full of nonsense, saying things like they couldn't lose me. This had happened before, usually from obsessive fans. I didn't pay much attention to it at first, and my manager handled it."

"But after two or three days, I suddenly felt a dark shadow following me. At first, I thought it was just my imagination because I was too tired from work and that I would be fine after a few days of rest. However, for some reason, the shadow did not disappear but instead got closer and closer. Finally, I realized that it was not my hallucination at all, but a real stalker!"

"Miss Aida, have you told the people around you?"

Aida Maki's impatient face finally showed a hint of fear.

"I immediately notified my agent and bodyguards, but those guys are useless. They insisted that they didn't see any suspicious figures at all. But I clearly saw him backstage, staring at me with those eyes. I had no choice but to call the police, even though it would be bad for my image. But after the police investigated, they told me, told me..."

"—I'm telling you, that person is already dead, isn't that right?"

These words seemed to have triggered a switch, and Masaki Aida suddenly stood up, his handsome face turning extremely ferocious as he roared.

"Yes, they did tell me he was dead, and even showed me that disgusting photo to convince me. But I clearly remember that he was stalking me not long ago, and I could even see him for days after the police confirmed it."

Seeing this, Hu Shuang frowned and wanted to go over to comfort her—but unlike before, as soon as she touched her hand, she was flung away.

Finally, Zhou You secretly cast a Tranquilizing Talisman.

A translucent aura shone down on Aida Maki, finally calming her down a bit. However, Zhou You didn't give her time to rest and continued speaking.

"Ms. Aida, please don't worry. We can't confirm whether the real culprit is the dead person yet. Oh, excuse me, could you cooperate with me to do some tests?"

Upon hearing this, Aida Maki instinctively clutched her chest.

What kind of tests would you like to have?

"Don't be so nervous. I'm not filming an adult movie. I just want to confirm."

Zhou You unleashed the Duanxie, the lamplight reflecting off its sharp edge, exuding a fierce aura that sent chills down one's spine—then he shrugged and said.

"Just checking if you've been possessed by some evil spirit."

"—Or perhaps, are you the evil thing itself?"

(End of this chapter)