Chapter 115: The New Bodyguard

“I’m fine. It was my master who took the bullet for me.”
Xiao Ran’s anger had faded away due to the numerous calls he had received. He no longer remembered how many times he had said this. This time, though, he was telling Wei Dongling.
Wei Dongling was very surprised by this but didn’t understand what exactly had happened. “It’s good that you’re fine. Let’s talk about it tomorrow!”
Xiao Ran suddenly grinned. Why not use this opportunity to promote Phantom Company among the public? If planned properly, the whole of Southeast Asia would come to know about Phantom Company. In the future, this would become Phantom Company’s intangible asset—something the other major companies hadn’t developed.
He acted on his thought immediately, as that was his style. He quickly shouted into the phone, “Wait, Ah Dong. Contact every journalist you can reach as soon as you start work tomorrow. I want to hold a press conference to boost the company’s reputation. This is a great opportunity for promotion.”
Wei Dongling was stunned, then forced a bitter smile. Xiao Ran really was… Even in such a situation, he was still thinking about taking advantage of it. Xiao Ran didn’t care about that. Since things had already happened, hiding them was pointless—better to make use of the situation.
The next day, in Phantom Company’s meeting room, media outlets such as Oriental Daily, Ming Pao, TVB, and ATV were all present. Microphones and cameras focused on Xiao Ran, trying to capture him in frame.
Xiao Ran entered the meeting room with a smile, not wanting to dampen the atmosphere. Facing countless microphones and cameras, he gave a subtle smile and said, “I’ve invited the journalists here today to explain what happened in yesterday’s shooting incident and share some of my thoughts. Please feel free to ask questions!”
He pointed with his finger, and Liang Jiabao stood up anxiously and asked, “President Xiao, could you explain what happened in the shooting? Also, I’d like to ask if the bodyguard with you is out of danger now?”
Other journalists were envious of Liang Jiabao for getting to ask the first question, but they couldn’t envy him—everyone in the circle knew that Liang Jiabao had the best relationship with Xiao Ran among the journalists. Xiao Ran smiled faintly, repeated what had happened yesterday, then nodded at Liang Jiabao in thanks. “He’s out of danger now. Thank you all for your concern!”
The second question came fiercely, from a reporter from a well-known tabloid magazine: “President Xiao, it’s said that someone offered ten million dark coins to the underworld to find out who’s behind this. Could it be you?”
Faced with such a sharp question, Xiao Ran still smiled, but he knocked twice firmly on the table and stared at the reporter, saying, “Phantom Company is a legitimate film company. It’s ridiculous to try to link us to the underworld with such rumors! Of course, since such rumors exist, I really don’t care. On behalf of Phantom Company, I’m donating ten million to the police, hoping they’ll crack down on crimes vigorously.”

The other reporters stared at that reporter with looks of disbelief. Anyone familiar with the industry knew that Xiao Ran had almost no connections with the gangsters. Although there had been a conflict last time, Xiao Ran quickly resolved the huge uproar, and most of the underworld members held him in some respect. As for him being involved in illegal activities, that was even more impossible—Xiao Ran was a person of status and influence; how could he possibly answer such a question? The reporter from Dongfang Daily chuckled and said, “President Xiao is really concerned about local security. But I’d like to ask, do you think the police can solve the case successfully? It’s said that public distrust in the police remains high!” Xiao Ran smiled—a bright, sunny smile—and raised his hand high to emphasize his certainty: “I firmly believe that the Hong Kong police are the guardians of the citizens, so I’m sure they will restore a clean environment in Hong Kong! Our company will also continue to donate to the police to show our determination to eradicate crime.” A reporter from a radio station asked, “President Xiao, after going through that near-fatal shooting, what are your personal thoughts?” Instantly, clouds covered Xiao Ran’s face. He slammed the table angrily, the loud noise startling everyone present. Xiao Ran then stared at the camera like a lion and slowly said, “No matter who tries to knock me down, they must be prepared to be knocked down by me!” “Damn you, bastard!” Fueled by rage, Wang Yu kicked over the table in front of him and smashed it at the TV. “You wretched guy were just a minor scriptwriter before, and now you dare to speak so arrogantly? I’ll destroy you!” The TV wasn’t broken, and Xiao Ran on screen continued to speak in a calm voice. Wang Yu grew angrier and threw a stool at the screen. With a bang, the TV was finally smashed. The few strong men nearby looked at Wang Yu, whose veins were bulging on his forehead, with expressions of dissatisfaction. If it weren’t for Wang Yu’s reckless behavior, they wouldn’t have had to hide here. But after all, Wang Yu was their boss! “When are the brothers from the Zhulian Gang coming?” Wang Yu glanced at his subordinates standing idly aside and kicked one of them angrily. “You idiot, are you dead? Answer me!” “They said they’ll send someone tomorrow and suggested you go to Taiwan first!” The subordinate replied timidly, “Brother Wang, let’s go back to Taiwan first. We can think about getting rid of Xiao Ran later.” Wang Yu became even angrier and started punching around wildly. “I want you to teach me—am I the boss or are you the boss? Wait until tomorrow when the Zhulian Gang arrives.” Finally, he stopped. Hate flashed in the subordinate’s eyes as he thought to himself that Wang Yu was already a loser who would have been dead on the streets if not for the Zhulian Gang’s protection. But thinking of those ten million in illegal funds, he started scheming.

Ten million in hidden funds? Xiao Ran handed it over to Ghost King Dong. He didn’t believe Ghost King Dong would dare keep that ten million unless he wanted to quit the underworld. Still, Xiao Ran was cautious—he invested ten million through the investment department in a small company under Lianying that had been losing money, so that even if the police investigated, there would be no evidence.

Xiao Ran disliked getting his hands dirty; he didn’t need to take action personally. All violence was fake—money could control everything. With money, one became the boss of the gang. With Yi Meiying’s strength and some backing threats, the gang certainly wouldn’t dare do anything to him.

The case had been handed over to Liu Guanglu’s criminal investigation department. It only took Liu Guanglu twelve hours to get the mastermind to talk. The answer surprised Xiao Ran but also relieved him—it was Wang Yu. He was relieved because it wasn’t the Fang family behind it; otherwise, things would have been much more troublesome.

Xiao Ran had never taken Wang Yu seriously, thinking he was just a fool who didn’t use his brain and only knew violence. If he wasn’t stopped by the underworld, he’d end up in prison sooner or later.

But he never expected Wang Yu to be the one behind the shooting. Still, it fit Wang Yu’s style—he had lost everything in the last gamble and must have hated Xiao Ran deeply, making such an act entirely plausible.

What made Xiao Ran hesitate was the Zhulian Gang behind Wang Yu. Of course, in theory, the Zhulian Gang was unlikely to cross the line. But if they were just interfering with his movie distribution in Taiwan, that was already a major problem.

Guan Xin was now in the hospital and was fine. But he grew more confused. After he passed on the information to his superior, the superior quickly sent someone to give him an answer. The answer lay with those two young men in front of him and another superior. After checking the surroundings, one kept watch at the door while the other two talked inside.

One of the young men was tall and burly, resembling a northerner. The superior was an older man who smiled kindly and said, “Ah Xin, you’re comfortable now. You don’t need to go on missions for now!”

Guan Xin felt sweaty. Being called comfortable while lying in the hospital? If that was the case, he preferred not to have such “comfort.” The superior didn’t waste words and told him directly, “The higher-ups read your report and really appreciate Xiao Ran. They’ve decided to help him.”

Guan Xin suddenly remembered the report he submitted half a month ago when the evaluation period for Xiao Ran ended. The report detailed Xiao Ran’s daily life and Guan Xin’s impressions of him. He believed Xiao Ran didn’t have an obvious political stance on the surface but privately favored the mainland government. Guan Xin even thought Xiao Ran was completely aligned with the mainland government.

It seemed his report had been confirmed by other intelligence officers, and the higher-ups saw Xiao Ran as a promising talent. Thinking of this, Guan Xin couldn’t help but smile. “Then when can I go on a mission?”

“Don’t you always have tasks to handle? You still haven’t finished this one!” The boss smiled maliciously. “So, don’t expect anything else until you finish this task!”
A task? Was there one? Guan Xinli immediately remembered that staying by Xiao Ran’s side seemed to indeed be a task, and his superiors hadn’t said anything about canceling it. His joy instantly turned into complaints flowing eastward: “This task is utterly boring—it’s completely not suitable for someone like me!”
The boss laughed and said seriously this time, “You can’t escape. I guess the intention from above is to have you stationed by Xiao Ran as a liaison. Of course, you won’t need to act as a bodyguard anymore; their department will be responsible for Xiao Ran’s safety from now on.”
After an introduction, Guan Xin learned that the tall and muscular one was named Yang Guang, while the other, thin as a monkey, was named Hou Zhiji—perfectly complementary to each other. But Guan Xin didn’t find it funny at all. Intelligence officers from the security department always used codenames as real names; he was no exception.
“Is it worth it? Xiao Ran is just a relatively talented filmmaker!” Guan Xin was very confused. Was it really necessary to have three people from the State Security Bureau around him just for one Xiao Ran?
The boss sighed deeply. “You just don’t like to think about these things. Movies can be entertainment or a tool for shaping public opinion, understand? Our movies aren’t good enough, so we always need someone better to support them. No matter how good we are, we still need promotion. Haven’t you seen the U.S. doing the same? Anyway, it’s useless to explain to you. Just carry out your task properly. As for when to reveal your identity, decide for yourself.”
As soon as Xiao Ran got out of the car, he heard a loud boom in the sky—it had started raining, and the rain grew heavier by the moment. Upon entering the hospital and reaching Guan Xin’s ward, Xiao Ran immediately noticed two youths with a stark contrast in appearance, quietly eating apples by themselves, and he was stunned.
Who are these people? Xiao Ran wondered. All this time, he hadn’t seen Guan Xin having any local friends. Before he could ask, Guan Xin chuckled and invited him over to make the introductions. After hearing the introductions, Xiao Ran looked at the two of them in confusion before suddenly realizing everything.
“Since I’m injured, I brought two friends to help you. They used to be bodyguards!” Guan Xin blurted out nonsense without any sense of pressure. He knew Xiao Ran had guessed his identity and that he could also figure out the identities of the two others; it was just inconvenient to reveal it right away.
More people from the State Security Bureau. Was this a movie or a spy novel? Xiao Ran smiled bitterly. He felt the State Security Bureau really valued him, sending two more people to protect him. Well, maybe it was also for surveillance—anyway, that’s what it was.
After shaking hands with the two, the muscular youth gave a simple smile and let Xiao Ran call him Yang Guang, while the monkey-like youth truly went by the nickname Monkey. Xiao Ran inwardly sighed: This place is almost turning into a base for the State Security Bureau.
After greeting Guan Xin and about to leave, Guan Xin suddenly remembered something and called out, “Wait, those martial arts experts I mentioned last time will arrive in Hong Kong in a few days. How do you plan to handle them?”

Xiao Ran was instantly stunned. He thought, “It really came. It seems there’s really no place to accommodate them.” After some thought, he came up with an idea and smiled. “It’s simple—open a martial arts school for them. Of course, while promoting our national heritage, they can also work at the company as action instructors or something.”
When they left the hospital, it was still raining. Xiao Ran frowned slightly but felt something on top of his head. Looking up, he saw Sunlight holding an umbrella for him. After thanking Sunlight, Xiao Ran went to the back seat. As Sunlight and Monkey got into the front seat to drive away, something utterly absurd happened suddenly.
*****
After so many days, it’s finally my turn to promote myself. My new work will be officially released in October, at the end of this month. Stay tuned…