Chapter 2: The Willing Fish Takes the Bait

There was a moment of silence in the temporary production office, then everyone looked at the young Daoist priest before them with various thoughts in mind.

Seeing that Zhang Jizhong looked displeased, Meng Fanyao acted as the vanguard: "Grandstanding and spreading rumors, Daoist Priest Lu, could it be that you were an actor by trade?"

Lu Kuan glanced at him indifferently, "You actually guessed right on the first try; back in the day, I spent several years running around film sets after graduation, and my acting skills were nothing to sneeze at."

He then spoke in a clear, resonant voice: "Sorrowful that fortune does not arrive, I lift the ladder to climb, but with a single insect wing in hand, I turn to find I cannot descend."

"You may just take my words as gibberish."

He then shook out the yin-yang contracts in his hand: "I have already signed all four copies of these two sets, take them."

Meng Fanyao’s expression tightened, wondering what hidden trap he had set.

But he figured a Daoist priest unversed in worldly affairs couldn't possibly understand these underhanded tricks.

Even if he did, so what?

Seeing Lu Kuan make a move to leave, Ju Jueliang’s expression turned anxious.

This Hong Kong director understood a few things about geomancy and Feng Shui, and he had been quite convinced by what he just heard.

But Zhang Jizhong looked sheepish; although he had some doubts in his heart, he ultimately didn't hold much hope for this overly young Daoist priest.

A man without hair on his chin cannot handle important matters!

Lu Kuan walked out leisurely, and just as one foot stepped out of the office, he was grabbed tightly by Ju Jueliang!

"Daoist Priest Lu!" The already convinced Hong Kong director turned to Zhang Jizhong with a bitter face: "Director Zhang! Look at this..."

Ju Jueliang was a firm believer in Feng Shui and metaphysics, and secondly, the production had been plagued by constant trivial issues that delayed the schedule; as the "firefighter" of the crew, he was inevitably going to take the blame.

He was anxious!

Fortunately, this Daoist Priest Lu was a kind soul; after all, wasn't a PR company just about helping others in their time of need?

Lu Kuan looked back and swept his gaze over the crowd with a distant look, the meaning in his expression quite clear.

Do you actually want me to speak or not?

Are you willing to swallow this straight hook of mine?

Zhang Jizhong looked at Ju Jueliang with helplessness; with the light drizzle outside continuing, he decided to treat the dead horse as a living one.

"Daoist Priest Lu, would you mind offering a bit more guidance?"

"If it truly proves beneficial, we are not stingy people."

Hong Kong people are easier to fool after all; with these delivered assists and straight men, he had to divide and conquer the enemy.

He nodded kindly at Ju Jueliang: "Then I shall tell you more about the prophecy of the hexagrams and their transformations."

"The lake without water is 'Oppression'; water beneath the lake is the image of oppression. For people, it means lawsuits; for matters, it means discord!"

"In short, Director Zhang should have a lawsuit pending against him recently."

"Besides, I don't think the production halt today is just because of this little rain, right? Where is Mr. Li Yapeng?"

Once these words were spoken, everyone present was shocked.

Everyone here was, of course, aware of the production halt; the Li Yapeng assault incident hadn't been fully resolved, and the Yancheng merchant who was beaten had been lingering at the crew's hotel since last night, refusing to leave and demanding an explanation, threatening to expose it to the media otherwise.

It was just extortion.

Only a few key crew members and those involved like Zhou Xun knew the inside story, and in this era, internet information wasn't very developed.

This young Daoist priest, who had only arrived by car from Maoshan a hundred kilometers away today, should have had no way of knowing in advance.

"Nonsense! What lawsuit does Director Zhang have? Do not maliciously slander him!"

Meng Fanyao, eager to protect his master, was about to suppress Lu Kuan's wild talk when he suddenly caught Zhang Jizhong shaking his head at him calmly, and his heart skipped a beat!

The bearded man had his own secret suffering.

He had fired Wang Rui first, and then, in order to hype up *The Legend of the Condor Heroes*, he had spouted off in front of the media, claiming it was because the former's standards weren't high enough.

As a result, this verbal attack caused the contract for the worker Wang Rui's new drama, *Love Proves This Life*, to fall through, and the latter sued him in the Xicheng District People's Court of Beiping, demanding that the bearded man apologize publicly and pay 10,000 yuan in mental damages.

He had just received the subpoena.

If Li Yapeng's matter could have been learned by this young Daoist from the driver or Zhou Xun, whom he had just chatted with, the lawsuit matter had not yet hit the papers, so it was absolutely impossible for him to have known.

Seeing the varied expressions of the few, Lu Kuan just stood quietly to the side with his hands behind his back.

There were too many twists and turns in the filming of *The Legend of the Condor Heroes* in his past life; not only that, but the Li Yapeng injury incident would happen later, which was an even thornier issue for the crew.

He glanced at Zhou Xun, who was looking at him with sparkling eyes, and thought that by now, Guo Jing and Huang Rong should have developed feelings for each other due to the play; it was just a pity for the supermodel Qu Ying, who had helped her boyfriend secure the role in *The Legend of the Condor Heroes*.

Zhang Jizhong coughed lightly, glanced at the constipated-looking production manager, and was about to say a few words to smooth things over when he was interrupted by Ju Jueliang.

"Daoist Priest Lu, may I ask what the solution is?"

He didn't want to follow in Wang Rui's footsteps; if things kept dragging on like this, he wouldn't finish filming even if given a few more months.

Lu Kuan calmly looked at Meng Fanyao, his gaze landing exactly on the two yin-yang contracts that had just been signed, the implication in his expression self-evident.

The few people in the room looked at each other, but with Zhou Xun and Jiang Qinqin present, they couldn't say much.

It was just that this Daoist priest, who supposedly ignored worldly affairs, seemed quite extraordinary, didn't he?

Meng Fanyao came back to his senses, looked inquiringly at his leader, and only after seeing the latter nod did he pretend to be calm and say: "Daoist Priest Lu, please go outside for some air first; give us some time to discuss."

"Very well!"

Lu Kuan flicked his long sleeves lightly and turned to leave the office.

Zhou Xun had long been on pins and needles and quickly pulled Jiang Qinqin along to follow him out.

"Hey, little Daoist, you're something else. Did you know about Li Yapeng's business beforehand?"

The three stood still outside the office; the crew members were all hiding from the rain in the makeup room, so no one was around to disturb their conversation.

Lu Kuan looked in surprise at the lady's cigarette that Zhou Xun was handing over, and unable to laugh or cry, he blurted out: "Isn't it a bit reckless to offer a cigarette to a Daoist priest?"

Jiang Qinqin burst into laughter, and Zhou Xun lit one for herself.

Female stars of this era were mostly open and casual; if they dared to do this in the future, they would be on the front page the next day.

It was just that Lu Kuan looking at a Huang Rong in ancient costume squinting her eyes and blowing smoke out of her nostrils was truly a bit surreal.

Zhou Xun’s lips curled up: "I see you have some skills; why don't you be my private consultant from now on? I'll pay you a salary."

She had seen Zhang Jizhong's astonishment just now; clearly, this young Daoist had hit the mark.

She had just finished filming Lou Ye's *Suzhou River* last year and won Best Actress at the Paris International Film Festival, and had also shone in *Palace of Desire*, so she was a bit of a little rich woman.

"Hehe, no need. I have always sold my services, not my art."

"Then just now..."

Jiang Qinqin realized halfway through what she was saying and covered her mouth to giggle: "Zhou Xun, don't look at how young he is; I bet he's had quite a few little girlfriends. He doesn't look like a monk at all."

Zhou Xun had also never seen a Daoist priest like this; the key was how he managed to be so flirtatious while looking so righteous—it was truly rare.

Good looks are justice; even dirty talk could be seen as charm. Boss Lu of the PR company in his past life was all too familiar with this process.

Zhou Xun smiled: "Then Manager Meng really found the right person. Not to mention being a religious consultant, coming to the show to play a guest role would be more than enough."

Lu Kuan smiled without speaking, thoughtfully flicking his sleeves to block the rainwater suddenly sliding off the canopy for them.

Jiang Qinqin looked at the elegant, tree-like young Daoist with lingering eyes; shrouded in the misty rain of the heavenly street, she was momentarily mesmerized.

The young Daoist concentrated in deep thought, wondering how the few in the room were considering things.

With this mysterious jargon of his, combined with the information gap of a traveler from the future, it shouldn't be hard to bluff them; it just depended on what kind of fish he could catch.

After all, this penniless financial situation still needed to be improved.

The three of them were laughing and talking together, while the three in the room were plotting how to deal with this young Daoist priest who didn't know the immensity of heaven and earth.

Zhang Jizhong tilted his head slightly to let the production manager light his cigarette and exhaled a puff of smoke: "Little Meng, what do you think about this?"

Meng Fanyao didn't dare to assert that Lu Kuan was a fake Daoist at this moment; after all, the facts were right before his eyes, and his judgment had been too precise.

But looking at the two signed contracts, he was truly unwilling to hand over the 250,000 yuan kickback he had already secured.

For some people, not getting enough of a bargain is much more uncomfortable than suffering a loss!

Meng Fanyao was an old producer who knew all the dirty secrets of the crew, and suddenly, a flash of inspiration led him to offer a plan.

(End of chapter)