HEIFEIGU -Chapter 144

【There it is again. That familiar special-effects scene.】

【With skills like this, why not save domestic xianxia dramas?】

【Absurd! But if it’s Xie Jixing, it’s normal.】

【@UrbanLegendsEncyclopedia Bro, get to work. Time to update your post.】

【Am I the only one noticing the incense ash is gold powder?】

【If we go burn incense and secretly…】

【Isn’t that basically gold panning?】

【I checked—no tickets needed, you can even bring your own incense. I’m in City C. I’m going now.】

The livestream truly brought popularity to Shancai Sect.

When fans in City C arrived, Xie Jixing and Qian Shuyun had already left.

Only the white-bearded old man remained.

Xie Zhi’ning had changed back into casual clothes, smiling as he dried herbs in the backyard.

Fans came to chase stars.

But once they entered the sect, all worldly desires faded.

Only calm remained.

Holding lotus flowers, gazing at the sky at forty-five degrees.

No one restrained them.

Yet they didn’t even dare speak loudly.

Even when burning incense, they forgot about “panning for gold.”

When a glimmer in the ash reminded them, no one dared touch it.

It felt too sacred.

Some even wanted to bring their own gold powder to sprinkle in.

After leaving, they felt refreshed, as if purified.

Peace filled their hearts.

Online, the sect gained many spontaneous supporters.

After this major event, Xie Jixing and Qian Shuyun returned to their own work.

“A Scroll of Long Song” was starting its roadshow promotions.

Normally, Qian Shuyun, as male lead, should attend.

But he was too busy.

So the burden fell on Xie Jixing, Wei Tingquan, and Jiang Yueli.

Wei Tingquan, the “dirty-jokes specialist,” grabbed Xie Jixing and whispered: “So? Did you use everything I taught you?”

Xie Jixing touched his nose and looked up.

Images of recent “position switches” flashed through his mind.

They’d been abstinent lately.

He really missed it.

Seeing his expression, Wei Tingquan narrowed his eyes knowingly.

He nudged him with his elbow.

“When you two get married, I’d better get a matchmaker’s red envelope.”

At roadshows, reporters usually focused on leads, directors, and writers.

Xie Jixing, as third male lead, was mostly there for appearances.

Director Yang, Writer Li, Jiang Yueli, and Wei Tingquan were the main figures.

Questions for Xie Jixing were mostly:

“How did it feel acting for the first time?”

“Any interesting stories?”

After answering a few, he zoned out, listening to Director Yang talk about the future of film.

This was just a media meeting, not livestreamed.

Most reporters had been briefed.

They tacitly stuck to drama-related topics.

But someone was desperate for traffic.

A male reporter suddenly raised his hand.

“May I ask Teacher Xie a question?”

His tone was polite, but sharp and aggressive.

The main cast froze.

Xie Jixing, who had looked dazed, narrowed his eyes slightly and smiled.

“Go ahead?”

“A few days ago, you publicly livestreamed a religious ritual. May I ask—are you now a religious believer?”

This question had nothing to do with the TV drama. The surrounding media all looked at the reporter in surprise.

Since the male reporter dared to ask, he had already prepared himself. He secretly started a livestream on his phone.

The phone was connected to the tiny camera pinned to his chest, perfectly capturing the scene on stage.

The reporter worked for a small media outlet that had transformed from gossip entertainment.

They had built their business on rumors and secret filming. As long as there was traffic, they didn’t care how dirty their methods were.

Once this question was thrown out, no matter how Xie Jixing answered—or even if he refused and showed anger—the reporter would get attention.

Xie Jixing glanced sideways at Director Yang.

This was a private question. Should he answer it?

Before Director Yang could respond, the reporter pressed again.

“Teacher Xie, why aren’t you answering? Is there some inside story, so you feel guilty?”

As soon as he said this, Xie Jixing’s smile grew even brighter.

Beside him, Wei Tingquan silently lit a candle for the reporter in his heart.

Why did you have to provoke him?

Don’t you know his battle record is publicly available?

“You’re urging me so urgently. Is it because you have some inside story and feel guilty?” Xie Jixing replied calmly, staring at the blinking light on the reporter’s chest.

Since getting into a relationship, he felt he’d become much more mild-tempered.

But some people just insisted on courting disaster.

Seeing that Xie Jixing hadn’t fallen into his self-proving trap, the reporter’s face darkened.

“Believing in religion in our country is legal and compliant,” Xie Jixing stated slowly.

Shancai Sect had complete procedures and could withstand any investigation.

Just when everyone thought the topic would pass, he added lightly:

“But you—show me your press card, will you?”

The entire hall fell silent.

Being questioned on the spot was humiliating, and the backlash hit the reporter himself.

He gritted his teeth and glared at Xie Jixing.

“But as a celebrity, you livestreamed for that sect. Isn’t that abusing public resources and trying to make money?”

This was blatant malicious guidance.

A staff member squeezed over.

“Hello, please show your press card.”

“Also, this media meeting is mainly for promoting A Scroll of Long Songs. Please don’t ask unrelated questions.”

Seeing himself at a disadvantage, the reporter simply went all out.

“He won’t answer—that means he’s guilty! He’s trying to scam money!”

“I’m already livestreaming! Don’t touch me! You’re violating human rights! The viewers are watching!”

Hearing this, the staff didn’t know what to do. The scene became chaotic and awkward.

Xie Jixing’s calm voice came through the microphone.

“It’s fine. Let him go.”

“I can answer this question.”

“My livestream account is my personal account. As long as I don’t violate laws or platform rules, I can stream whatever I want.”

“But you—today is clearly a drama promotion event. Yet for traffic, you asked irrelevant questions. That’s what wasting public resources really is.”

The reporter’s face turned black. He was about to speak again, but Xie Jixing predicted it.

“Next you’re going to say I’m trying to make money, right?”

“First, let me apologize to everyone. I never meant to waste public resources…”

Hearing this familiar sentence pattern, Wei Tingquan couldn’t help laughing.

What a master of sarcasm!

“But if I don’t waste public resources, I’ll be accused of violating human rights. That’s so hard,” Xie Jixing sighed theatrically.

“Shancai Sect doesn’t charge admission. You can bring your own incense. There are no mandatory fees. But we do offer some high-end religious services…”

He smiled soothingly at the reporter.

“But you and your nonexistent money can rest assured. You’re definitely not our target client.”

“We only serve people who meet these conditions.”

“First, they must be good people.”

“Second, they must be good-looking.”

“Third, they must have a normal brain.”

“Oh, and of course, they must be rich.”

“You meet none of these, so don’t worry.”

“After all…” Xie Jixing tilted his head and smiled brightly.

“I’m very expensive.”

In an instant, a person had been reduced to bad, ugly, stupid, and poor.

Who could stand that?

The reporter still wanted to make trouble.

But under Xie Jixing’s smiling gaze, he suddenly felt cold all over. His hair stood on end.

For a moment, he couldn’t say a word.

Several security guards came up to escort him out.

He tried to struggle, but his limbs were weak. He could only be dragged away obediently.

Near the exit, he suddenly felt a chill on his back, as if an invisible sheet of ice had stuck to him.

Yin Wenshan hated gossip reporters most. When he was alive, he’d been slandered terribly.

Enraged, he made a gloomy talisman and slapped it onto the reporter, ensuring he’d have nightmares every night.

On it were all the reports the man had written before.

All the rumors he’d spread—Yin Wenshan wanted him to experience that pain himself.

After this incident was cleared up, the meeting went smoothly.

The roadshow was exhausting, and they still had several cities to visit. So the crew booked a hotel near the airport, in a remote area.

As soon as Wei Tingquan left the venue, his face darkened.

Xie Jixing leaned over. “What’s wrong?”

“They’re here again,” Wei Tingquan said with rare disgust.

His manager explained, “Sasaeng fans.”

“They chase his schedule everywhere. It’s insane.”

“They once hid in his hotel wardrobe and nearly scared him to death. They even installed a pinhole camera.”

“Now security is tighter, so they follow our cars. There’s already been a minor accident, and they still won’t stop.”

Xie Jixing looked at a white van by the roadside.

It had privacy film, but flashes were still visible inside. Someone was secretly taking photos.

His face darkened.

He grabbed Wei Tingquan’s wrist. “I’ll go with you.”

The van started moving. Soon, the white van appeared in the rearview mirror.

Traffic wasn’t light. To avoid losing them, the van weaved dangerously.

“Find a remote road,” Xie Jixing told the driver.

The driver knew many deserted training roads and quickly changed direction.

The white van followed.

Surprisingly, a black sedan followed behind it.

Inside the sedan, the male reporter aimed the camera at himself.

“Even though I didn’t get much at the press conference, don’t worry—I’ve followed their car.”

“There’s another car ahead. I suspect Xie Jixing and Wei Tingquan are secretly meeting fans.”

“I’ve already arranged tomorrow’s trending topic.”

“Brothers, just wait in the livestream. Big news is coming.”