Zhang Fan shook his head. "I'm fine."
Just as she was about to ask Zhang Fan where he had offended those three people, suddenly the phone rang in the room. Following the sound, Meng Nianchu saw the black phone thrown on the ground.
She recognized at a glance that the phone didn't belong to either her or Zhang Fan. Letting out a big breath, she picked it up, answered the call, and turned on the speaker.
A rough male voice came from the receiver.
"How's the job going? Has that old guy Zhang Fan been scared? The higher - ups said that there were too many people there, so they didn't dare to maim him directly. Just give him a couple of whacks to teach him a lesson, and our mission will be completed. Don't waste time outside. Come back quickly after you're done. Make sure no one catches you with anything on you!"
As soon as the man finished speaking, he hung up the phone directly.
Now both of them understood. It turned out that these people weren't just a bunch of hooligans but part of an organized revenge.
Zhang Fan was angry and confused. "I don't even know those people."
He had never offended anyone. Why would they take revenge on him?
Those people were very cautious. There were no saved phone numbers on the phone, and even the phone's address book was set to automatically delete after each call. Meng Nianchu couldn't find a single clue.
Zhang Fan couldn't figure out the whole thing either. He could only hope that the police could get something from those people.
However, the police didn't find out anything useful either. When they received the call from Meng Nianchu with the lead, no matter how hard they questioned those people, their only statement was that they saw Zhang Fan as a rich man and wanted to get some money from him.
They couldn't use force on them. Since they couldn't get anything and no one had died, the police just made those men compensate for the things they had damaged in Zhang Fan's room and then let them go.
Zhang Fan had no choice. Afraid that those people would come to cause trouble again, he hired a few more security guards. Just as this matter was settled, another one quickly followed.
Zhang Fan received five calls from different investors in one afternoon. Each one of them spoke in a commanding tone, insisting that Zhang Fan invite Linda back to the crew. Otherwise, they would withdraw their investment!
The calls came almost simultaneously, leaving Zhang Fan at a loss.
But Meng Nianchu found something fishy. There had been hooligans causing trouble just a couple of days ago, and then there were these collective demands from the investors. How could there be such a coincidence in the world?
She originally wanted to ask Mu Junze for help, but then she remembered that Mu Junze had just managed to secure a great piece of land in the US and was discussing cooperation with an American company. He was short on funds. Moreover, her own film - acting earnings over the past two years were not even half of what those investors were investing. She really couldn't help much.
Secondly, among those investors, apart from the money, there were also contributions related to the clothing, drinks, and all sorts of aspects of the variety show. If they really withdrew their investment, the variety show couldn't go on at all.
Meng Nianchu even wondered if Linda was behind the hooligans and the collective demands from the investors.
The more she thought about it, the more likely it seemed.
Under the pressure of the investors, Zhang Fan had no choice but to reluctantly agree. But when he called Linda, she replied that they had to talk in person.
There was no other way. Zhang Fan had to go. Before leaving, he also asked Meng Nianchu to come along. On the way, Meng Nianchu learned from Zhang Fan that it was Linda's repeated request. He had no choice.
The two found the place according to the address Linda had sent. The car stopped steadily at the door. They got out and looked at the villa where Linda lived. They were a bit surprised.
Just the exterior of the villa was magnificent and luxuriously decorated. It was as if it was just short of having the words "I'm a rich man" written on it, which matched Linda's eye - catching personality.
The two stepped into the living room.
As soon as they opened the door, a strong smell of perfume wafted into their noses.
Meng Nianchu hated this pungent smell the most. Her delicate eyebrows furrowed tightly.
"Who was it who said no matter what they wouldn't let me back to the set? Now you're coming here on your knees to beg me to go back. I said you'd regret it sooner or later."
Linda, who was sitting on the sofa eating fruits, turned her head when she heard the door open. Seeing it was Meng Nianchu and Zhang Fan, she immediately said something in a sharp and sarcastic tone.
Zhang Fan sat down beside Linda with a cold face. "You can go back."
His reluctant and emotionless words made Linda let out a snort of laughter. "Now you're the one begging me. Is this the way you talk?"
"Then what do you want?" Zhang Fan had run out of patience with this woman. If it weren't for the need to calm down the investors for now, he would never have come to find her!
Linda raised her chin and looked down at him. "When you kicked me out of the set, there were so many people there. You almost made me lose all my face. Do you think you can just say a couple of words and I'll go back? It's not that easy. Unless you kneel on the ground and beg me, or I won't go back."
"Will you stop being so unreasonable!" Even Meng Nianchu couldn't stand such an excessive demand.
Linda gave her a cold look. "You publicly slandered me on the stage. I haven't even settled the score with you, and now you're lecturing me. Who do you think you are?"
Meng Nianchu let out a sneer, her eyes full of scorn. "If you hadn't done those things, the evidence wouldn't have pointed at you. You know better than anyone else what you've done. Just because you got out of the police station, what does it prove? The evidence still points at you!"
"Meng Nianchu, you!"
Without giving the enraged Linda a chance to speak, Meng Nianchu interrupted firmly. "Don't think that just because you have a backer who can pressure those investors into forcing Teacher Zhang Fan to come to your house to invite you back to the crew, you can act so high - and - mighty and arrogant! He's coming to invite you only because of the investors' faces, not because your professional ability is really outstanding!"
"Teacher Zhang Fan has his prestige in the entertainment industry. Those investors won't cut off their own arms and fall out with Teacher Zhang Fan. You'd better take what you can get and don't ruin yourself!"
Linda had originally planned to teach Meng Nianchu and Zhang Fan a good lesson, but unexpectedly, she was scolded by Meng Nianchu instead. Linda gasped for breath, her eyes wide open as she stared at Meng Nianchu, wishing she could dig a hole in her body.
Zhang Fan said calmly, "I'm old. I can't kneel. If something happens to me while kneeling here, it won't look good on you either. I've already come to your house as you asked. If you want to go back, then go. If not, that's fine too. I, Zhang Fan, am old enough not to be brought down by such a small thing."
"At worst, the variety show will end halfway, and then news will spread about Linda hiring people for revenge and pressuring the show." Meng Nianchu chimed in.
Linda's face turned red and then white.