Soon the concert reached its climax. Spurred on by Xu Shilan, the whole audience was practically boiling over; everyone rose to their feet, singing and dancing along with her voice. Even the Young Miss and Tang Yun were caught up in the atmosphere, standing and swaying to the music with the rest of the crowd.

It had to be said: had Wei Zhao not possessed an iron will, he too would surely have been swept away by the mood. But Wei Zhao's self-control was beyond the reach of ordinary men, so he simply sat in his seat and did not move.

He only opened his eyes once to glance at Xu Shilan on the stage, then shut them again and let his body sway to the rhythm.

In the very front row of the VIP seats sat a middle-aged man. Seats like these were generally never sold to the public but kept for in-house distribution; such good seats were all given away to connections and to those close to Xu Shilan.

Still, not many middle-aged men came to watch Xu Shilan perform. Apart from parents who had brought their small children along, this middle-aged man was the only one.

The middle-aged man was plainly and unobtrusively dressed, yet anyone who knew quality would have been astonished: ordinary as the cut of his clothes was, the fabric was of the very finest. Beside him sat a man in his thirties with piercing eyes, dressed in black like a close guard — clearly the middle-aged man's bodyguard.

"Feng Er, tell me — is a man like me not utterly pathetic? I cannot even protect my own woman and daughter." A glint of tears flashed through the middle-aged man's eyes. For all these years he had endured in silence, and only before a few trusted subordinates would he let a trace of weariness and grief show.

To become one who rises above others, one must learn ruthlessness. Entangled by too much feeling, one hands one's rivals no end of openings. Even if there is feeling in the heart, one must appear heartless.

"Master, this Feng Er does not know. Feng Er knows only that the master is a formidable man, a man who does great things. Great men are not bound by trifles," the guard called Feng Er answered respectfully.

"You — what else do you know how to say besides these words? You are not half so quick-witted as your third younger brother!" The middle-aged man shook his head in mild exasperation. "Still, you are loyal. For so many years you have followed at my side. But once in a while, could you not chat with me? Without treating me as your master?"

"The master is always the master. This servant does not know what else he could be," Feng Er said blankly.

"Never mind!" The middle-aged man waved his hand. "Let's watch the concert."

"Yes! The young lady is truly beautiful!" Feng Er nodded and said.

"..." The middle-aged man shook his head.

A phone buzzed. Wei Zhao fished it out of his pocket and glanced at the caller ID — it was actually a call from Old Man Wei! Wei Zhao was slightly taken aback. After all, the old man rarely called him first; most of the time it was he who called the old man.

And if the old man was calling, it must be about something very important.

At that thought, Wei Zhao hurriedly pressed the answer key and picked up.

"Hello? Old man? What is it?" Wei Zhao said.

"What did you say? It's all noise on your end, I can't hear you!" Old Man Wei bellowed into the phone. "Xiaoyi, where are you?"

"What did you say?" Wei Zhao could not hear what Old Man Wei was saying either. The noise at the concert venue was simply too loud; neither of them could make out the other's voice.

"Wait for me — I'll find somewhere quieter and call you back!" Wei Zhao shouted into the phone, but his shout was quickly swallowed up by the singing at the venue.

Wei Zhao turned his head, meaning to tell Feng Xiaoxiao beside him, but when he saw that she was on her feet waving a glow stick, her face alight with excitement, he could not bring himself to disturb her. So he turned to look at Tang Yun on his other side. Tang Yun had stood up too and was singing along with the Young Miss, though she was not as absorbed in it as Feng Xiaoxiao.

Wei Zhao tugged at Tang Yun's hand. She quickly lowered her head and asked, "What is it?"

"I have something to take care of — I'm going out to make a call. Just letting you know," Wei Zhao said, brandishing the phone in his hand.

"All right!" Tang Yun nodded.

Wei Zhao rose and left the VIP seats, walking quickly out of the gymnasium and heading for the restroom down the corridor.

But when he reached the door of the first-floor restroom, he heard voices inside — a man's voice, and one that seemed rather familiar.

"Young Master Bing, I didn't get to see Xu Shilan, but her manager turned down my proposal... Yes, she said she wanted to pay for treatment, but I told her there was no room for discussion... Don't worry, Young Master Bing, I'm right here at the concert. If she has an episode later, I'll go make my case again. This illness — if she doesn't go to the Medicine King, no one else can cure her, and she'll surely fall into Young Master Bing's arms..."

It was Su Jiaonang's voice! Standing at the restroom door, Wei Zhao cocked his ear for a while and recognized this old acquaintance's voice. From the sound of it, he was on the phone with Zhao Qibing. As for what the two of them were discussing, Wei Zhao had more or less caught the gist.

It seemed the superstar Xu Shilan had some illness and had gone to the Medicine King for treatment. Zhao Qibing had probably made some casting-couch demand of her, and she had refused. She wanted to pay for treatment, but Zhao Qibing would not agree, and so the two were locked in a standoff.

Of course, such matters had nothing to do with Wei Zhao. Whether Zhao Qibing went philandering or dallying, so long as he did not provoke Wei Zhao, Wei Zhao would pay him no mind. Since he had shifted his ambitions toward playing with a star, there was nothing Wei Zhao could do to interfere.

In affairs like this, one strikes and the other submits. If that Xu Shilan wanted her illness cured, then being toyed with by Zhao Qibing was only natural.

After listening a while, Wei Zhao no longer wished to keep listening — but this restroom he no longer intended to enter either. He could have forcefully driven Su Jiaonang out, but this restroom was clearly the one closest to the gymnasium hall, and Su Jiaonang was inside now; who might come in next was anyone's guess.

Wei Zhao felt that his conversation with Old Man Wei ought to be confidential, so he was unwilling for anyone to overhear it — nor could anyone be allowed to. He decided to find a restroom farther away.

After a quick circuit of the first-floor corridor, he found there were only two restrooms, and the other one was likewise near the mouth of another passage.

Fastest updates; for pop-up-free reading, please visit.