After leaving the detention center, Ou Yunchen immediately called Fan Zhijie.
He asked Fan Zhijie to have someone follow Xie Youlin, not at the Xie family residence, but to find Xie Youlin's new address, and to pay attention if he had any contact with a deaf-mute couple.
The mystery was now solved by Ou Yunchen!
It turned out that Shen Yuxuan had accidentally killed Mrs. Xie. Old Shen, in order to save his daughter, had begged Xu Shuming for help, and Xu Shuming, who needed an executioner, had used Old Shen to murder Su Hui.
After the deed was done, Old Shen disappeared, Su Hui's death was staged as a suicide, and Xu Shuming escaped.
This left only the person who truly wanted Mrs. Xie dead. If Shen Yuxuan pleaded guilty, that person would also successfully escape.
Two seemingly unrelated individuals had become perfect criminals, hidden behind two unrelated incidents, and thus went unnoticed.
Even though Ou Yunchen knew all this, he couldn't act rashly. Sometimes, a hasty move could ruin his plan.
***
A few days later, Liu Jinhua saw Zhou Man off at the airport.
Zhou Man: "Alright, don't be too sad. This is a decision I've thought about for a long time. I really long for a life without worries, a life not lived under the spotlight."
Liu Jinhua: "Didn't we agree when you came to Xio, that we would create dreams together at Xio? You've only made one movie and retired? You're retiring just as you've achieved something?"
Zhou Man: "I want to live an ordinary life. If I can manage the mundane aspects of life well, I'll be a successful woman."
Liu Jinhua watched as the luggage behind Zhou Man was placed onto the conveyor belt one by one, and as they were tagged and moved away, she felt even more heartbroken.
Liu Jinhua: "Why didn't you let Teacher Luo go with you?"
Zhou Man said with a bitter smile that they had broken up.
Liu Jinhua: "I don't believe it. He still loves you."
Zhou Man: "I was only with him for a short time for his script. But we are truly not compatible."
Liu Jinhua: "Going there alone, to such a cold place, what will you do?"
Zhou Man: "I'll just wear more layers. I'm already looking forward to sitting by the fireplace and warming myself in winter."
Liu Jinhua: "Go, go, don't come back!"
Zhou Man opened her arms. Liu Jinhua was still stubbornly reluctant to hug her old friend, but Zhou Man threw herself into Liu Jinhua's embrace.
This embrace made Liu Jinhua's eyes redder. She knew Zhou Man's personality and knew she would never return.
After seeing Zhou Man off, Liu Jinhua returned to the car. Ou Yunchen had been waiting impatiently.
Liu Jinhua: "Boss, aren't you going down to see your employee off?"
Ou Yunchen: "She's not coming back, but you can visit her often."
Liu Jinhua: "I still can't understand it. Even if she agreed to retire from acting for Yan Shizong, she shouldn't have gone to such a faraway country to live alone!"
Ou Yunchen: "Disappointed in love, perhaps."
Liu Jinhua: "But Teacher Luo loves her so much. They should be together."
Ou Yunchen glanced at Liu Jinhua's indignant expression and didn't want to say much more. After all, he had asked Zhou Man the same question. Although Zhou Man had only replied that she was tired, it contained too much helplessness.
Yan Shizong would never let Zhou Man be happy. Even if Zhou Man exchanged her retirement from acting for peace, that man would not allow Zhou Man to marry Luo Ying and live a happy life as a simple woman.
Therefore, Zhou Man didn't want to hurt Luo Ying, because she knew Yan Shizong would stop at nothing to destroy Zhou Man's marriage and her entire life, which would indirectly hurt Luo Ying, who deeply loved her.
To leave this city of turmoil, leaving alone was not enough. They should leave everyone behind.
Go to a cold country with no worldly disputes, and silently endure the loneliness.
Perhaps she could raise a few dogs for companionship. If she encountered fans studying abroad, a few photos and an autograph would be a tribute to her past glory.
Ou Yunchen remembered everything Zhou Man had said, and also remembered his last words to Zhou Man.
"This is perhaps what love should look like. Only when we are well apart can we be eternally happy."
Liu Jinhua: "Boss, without Zhou Man, our golden signboard is gone..."
Ou Yunchen: "It's time for us to move forward. The first generation's mission is complete. The second generation should transform and fully embrace entertainment capital."
Liu Jinhua: "I don't understand."
Ou Yunchen: "We can put aside the emotional aspects for now. We have already shown Xio's strength to the world through Zhou Man. Next is to quickly get money into our pockets and make money from fans."
Liu Jinhua nodded, but deep down she still felt her boss was heartless. As soon as Zhou Man's plane left, he seemed to have forgotten her and was stepping into a new era...
Ou Yunchen: "Xi Ya's beauty brand has been established. Besides her personal promotion, we still need an important channel."
Liu Jinhua: "We haven't found a suitable online partner yet."
Ou Yunchen: "I've invested in Yunniao Technology, an AI technology company. I want to try a new approach with their负责人."
Liu Jinhua's interest was piqued. It sounded like a brand new promotional method.
The AI beauty blogger would launch Xi Ya's beauty brand with a bang. Whether the collision of topics and attention would be dazzling fireworks or a destructive head-on collision was yet to be seen.
Ou Yunchen: "This is just the surface. What I want is to attract artists through investment, making them actively join our team."
Liu Jinhua: "Artists don't understand investment, but our boss is an investment magnate. They invest their money, and on the surface, they also become capitalists. In reality, the true controller is still you."
Ou Yunchen: "If it's done well, it's a win-win. If it's done poorly, it's the artist's investment failure."
Liu Jinhua clicked her tongue in admiration. She had been with Ou Yunchen for so long, and she still couldn't fathom what money-making schemes were going on in her boss's head!
Artists were once the signboard of entertainment companies. Now, artists had become the products of entertainment companies.
It wasn't enough to make money from their traffic; they had to make back the money they earned.
What Ou Yunchen wanted was the simplest principle: money can make money, but it must circulate within the same pool.
Liu Jinhua mumbled softly, "Heh, you are the judge, the judge of the game!"
Ou Yunchen: "What did you say?"
Liu Jinhua: "I said you're the judge! You're playing us all like puppets!"
Ou Yunchen laughed heartily. What an interesting and honest assessment!
At this moment, Ou Yunchen's phone rang.
--Ou Yunchen on call--
Fan Zhijie: "Mr. Ou, we've followed him!!!"
Ou Yunchen: "Where?"
Fan Zhijie: "Xie Youlin has left the Xie family and moved into a high-end apartment complex. That deaf-mute elderly couple also lives in the same complex."
Ou Yunchen: "Investigate what that couple does."
Fan Zhijie: "Okay."
--Call ended--
After dropping Liu Jinhua back at Xio, Ou Yunchen immediately contacted Ruan Miaomiao.
Ruan Miaomiao ran down from the office building, panting. She had gained weight again after not seeing him for days.
Fatty: "Brother, why are you here?"
Ou Yunchen: "Is Sister Song here?"
Fatty: "My mom? No, she's in a meeting and won't be back until next week."
Ou Yunchen: "Does Sister Song know about Mrs. Xie's death?"
Fatty: "Yes, she was very down for those few days."
Ou Yunchen: "Do you know the relationship between Mrs. Xie and your mother?"
Fatty: "They were probably friends. Otherwise, why would she be so sad when she saw the news of Mrs. Xie's death?"
Ou Yunchen: "She never mentioned Mrs. Xie before. Did she say anything?"
Fatty thought for a moment and then shook his head. This only made Ou Yunchen more curious about the matter between the two of them.
Fatty: "However, she did mention Xie Youlin."
Ou Yunchen: "What did she say?"
Fatty: "She said she hoped Xie Youlin would manage Xie's Media well..."
Ou Yunchen was puzzled. When people heard about a child losing both parents, wouldn't they first say something like, "What a poor child"? Why would they say they hoped he would manage the company well?!
Ou Yunchen: "Help me arrange a meeting with your mother. Let me know if she's back."
Fatty: "Okay. Oh, right, Brother, Ah Cai's birthday is tonight. Did he tell you?"
Ou Yunchen: "Yes, he did. I have other things to do tonight, so I won't be joining you young people."