After My Cross-dressing Cover Was Blown, the Movie Star Became My Accomplice - Chapter 1

Chapter 1

◎ Is this comedy senior being targeted by a ghost? ◎

The spring night carried the lingering chill of winter. After a busy day, exhausted workers felt the cold brushing against their faces and quickened their pace toward the warmth of their homes.

Lights in the residential buildings flickered on as people returned, then extinguished as their owners prepared for rest. Just as the lights went out, the sound of hurried footsteps suddenly echoed from the stairwell of a certain building!

The hallway lights activated following the footsteps. A vigorous figure dressed in a long black coat moved rapidly, taking the stairs two or three at a time.

In front of him, an ethereal ghostly shadow was scrambling and crawling for its life in a wretched state, letting out shrieks inaudible to ordinary people.

“Don’t chase me! I haven’t harmed anyone! Go away, go away!!”

The ghost ran to the rooftop door. A flash of joy crossed its eyes as if seeing a savior; its illusory form passed through the door, followed by a burst of laughter born from surviving the ordeal.

“Hahaha! The rooftop door is locked! I’ll see how you get in now, hahaha!”

Mu Yao looked at the pitch-black rooftop door, neither flushed nor out of breath. He pulled a ring of keys from the pocket of his black coat. His slender fingers lightly flipped through the ring and found a key labeled ‘Building 11 Rooftop.’

Click!

The sound of the key turning rang out, and the ghost’s laughter stopped abruptly.

“Keep running. Why aren’t you running anymore?”

Mu Yao stepped out from the door, slowly approaching the terrified ghost. His narrow, alluring phoenix eyes were sharp and cold, faintly shimmering with a slight red light.

Staring into those eyes, the ghost trembled and suddenly fell to its knees.

“I was wrong, Lord Living Wu-Chang! I shouldn’t have harmed people! Please, let me go! I… I still have unfulfilled wishes!”

“Ghosts aren’t without places to hide. Why don’t you just jump down and be done with it?”

Mu Yao ignored the ghost’s plea for mercy, instead asking an irrelevant question.

“J-jump? Jumping won’t do, I’m scared!”

The ghost shook its head repeatedly. This residential building had thirty floors; looking down from the roof made its legs go weak. Moreover, the temperature here was low and the wind was strong. As a ghost, it wouldn’t want to come here if it wasn’t fleeing for its life, let alone jump off!

It couldn’t jump even a little bit. Even as a ghost, it wouldn’t jump off a building!

“Heh. Scared of jumping, yet you dare to harm people. You certainly have some nerve.”

Mu Yao gave a light chuckle and flicked his wrist. A pitch-black chain shot out rapidly, binding the ghost directly within its coils.

The ghost had no time to react; its movements froze and its expression turned vacant.

“I was just jealous of her. Why does she get to sit in my office now that I’m dead? That’s my office, it should have been mine…”

Under the influence of the chain’s power, the ghost spoke in a flat, monotone voice, but Mu Yao sensed the feeling of jealousy through the chain.

“Your death had nothing to do with her. You died of sudden exhaustion from overwork. She merely took over your position; if not her, it would have been someone else.”

Mu Yao lowered his eyes and spoke softly.

“You should be glad she didn’t die because of you. You cannot afford the punishment for taking a human life.”

“She… she didn’t die?”

The ghost slowly looked up at Mu Yao. Upon seeing Mu Yao nod, it suddenly broke into a relieved smile.

“That’s good. I don’t have to face punishment.”

Mu Yao shook his head and said no more. He took a piece of talisman paper from his pocket, which had complex incantations written on it in cinnabar.

He slapped the talisman onto the ghost. Upon contact, the charm transformed into a cyan flame and began to burn. The ghost gradually dissipated within the fire, finally turning into a string of information.

Zhou Jiating, born March 18, 1994, at the Hour of the Monkey. Died suddenly on November 8, 2024, at the Hour of the Tiger. Lifespan: 30 years, 7 months, and 21 days. Location of death: Office on the 18th floor of Xinghe Mansion, B City. Cause of death: Sudden cardiac arrest.

The chain fell to the ground. Mu Yao raised his hand to lightly touch the floating words, and the residual memories of Zhou Jiating’s life suddenly surfaced before his eyes.

“Mom, why are you calling me so late? Oh, I’m coming home for the holidays this year, don’t worry. No… no overtime, I’m playing games at home! I know, I’ll go to bed early!”

In the office, Zhou Jiating was rapidly tapping on her keyboard. She was wearing Bluetooth headphones while talking to her mother, occasionally taking sips of coffee with her left hand.

She hung up the phone and looked exhausted at the computer screen. The unfinished PPT before her gave her a massive headache.

“When will these days ever end!”

She muttered softly, then picked up her coffee cup to brew another cup of ‘night-time life-saving water.’ Just as she stood up, a feeling of chest tightness hit her. Before she could call for help, she collapsed.

The coffee cup fell to the floor, cushioned by the carpet without breaking. It rolled a few times and stopped. The open office area outside was empty; no one discovered Zhou Jiating’s collapse.

“Sigh, another poor soul.”

Mu Yao sighed softly. As his hand moved away from the words carrying Zhou Jiating’s past, the text gradually dissipated into the night sky.

The clouds in the sky shifted slowly and unnoticed. The bright round moon revealed a corner from between the clouds, and moonlight spilled onto Mu Yao.

Beneath the moonlight, Mu Yao closed his eyes, digesting the sorrow that inevitably rose in his heart. His thick, crow-feather lashes brushed through the air. When he opened his eyes again, they were clear.

He looked at the bright lights in the residential buildings far away. Every light represented a family, yet among these thousands of lights, not one belonged to him.

“This was just an ordinary ghost with no connection to my father. I need to find more ghosts.”

“Ding-ling-ling, ding-ling-ling!”

Just as Mu Yao finished speaking, the phone in his pocket rang. On the empty, deserted rooftop, this sudden ringing was spine-chilling.

Mu Yao, however, was not startled by the sound. He calmly took out his phone and answered.

“Hello?”

“What do you mean ‘hello’! Mu Yao, my little ancestor, where are you in the middle of the night?! Even if we’re just an 18th-tier ‘little transparent’ in the entertainment industry, and few people recognize you when you go out at night, you can’t just run around at random! What if you’re targeted by some unscrupulous paparazzi?!”

The voice of his manager, He Ji, came through the phone in a nagging stream. Mu Yao subconsciously moved the phone further away, turned to leave the rooftop, and locked the door behind him.

“Nothing much, just out for a stroll. I’m heading back now, quickly.”

“How quick is ‘quickly’?! Can you be back in five minutes? Do you know how terrified I was when I walked in and saw the house pitch black and empty?”

Listening to He Ji’s voice, Mu Yao showed a helpless, bitter smile. His manager was great in every way, except for being a bit of a worrywart.

“I can’t make it in five minutes, but it will be very quick. Wait for me at home.”

“……Is everything really okay?”

“It’s fine, trust me.”

Mu Yao quickened his pace and hung up He Ji’s call. He took the keys to the guard room, where the old man was sleeping wrapped in a coat. He silently put the keys back and quickly left the neighborhood.

In the night, he crossed the road and wove through several streets, finally entering an old-fashioned residential area that looked quite aged.

The lights in the neighborhood were dim, tall trees blocked the moonlight, and the surrounding houses exuded an ancient atmosphere.

Mu Yao entered the building where he rented an apartment and went to the third floor to unlock his door.

“Mu Yao! Let’s make a deal. Can we rent a place with a better environment? This place is too terrifying even with all the lights on! The heater isn’t warm, and the windows seem to leak air!”

As soon as he entered the room, Mu Yao heard He Ji’s complaints.

“The rent here is cheap. You know the company doesn’t give me much money.”

Mu Yao didn’t take off his coat immediately. Instead, he went into the kitchen to fill the kettle with water and set it to boil. Then he turned on the space heater. Only when he felt the room temperature rising did he take off his clothes.

“You should have turned on these heating devices while waiting for me.”

“I didn’t dare turn them on blindly; I didn’t want to waste electricity and cost you money.”

Feeling the temperature in the room rise, He Ji pushed up his silver-rimmed glasses and muttered.

“Alright. You came to my house in such a hurry; what are the work arrangements?”

Mu Yao sighed, knowing He Ji meant well. Considering the other man wasn’t someone with a lot of free time, there had to be a reason for him being here.

“Oh, right. This is your latest work schedule. It’s a variety show guest spot I worked hard to secure. Perform well and try to get more screen time.”

Reminded by Mu Yao, He Ji hurried to rummage through his briefcase and handed over a stack of documents.

“A travel variety show?”

Mu Yao took the file and saw the large, unmissable words: Journey of the Four Seasons: Embark on a Trip Whenever You Want!

“Yes, a travel show. This is a new variety project from Tencent. It’s themed around the four seasons and filmed in four different locations over the course of a year. Each episode will be broadcast immediately after filming, and the next will be recorded after the previous one finishes airing. There are three fixed guests: Qu Fu, Bi Tu, and Kong Yanfei. There is one rotating guest spot, and I secured the rotating position for the first episode for you. There’s also one guest star whose identity is being kept highly confidential; I couldn’t find out who it is, but it’s likely a heavyweight guest.”

Hearing Mu Yao ask about work, He Ji immediately began to speak eloquently.

“With Qu Fu, Bi Tu, and Kong Yanfei in the crew, the popularity won’t be low, and there will be no lack of buzz. Even if you’re a ‘little transparent,’ you can still manage a few shots. Work hard and fight for yourself. Your conditions are so good, don’t stay buried forever.”

“Brother He, you know I’ve never thought about becoming a superstar.”

As He Ji spoke, Mu Yao flipped through the documents. He found that this variety show indeed had high popularity and buzz, just as He Ji said.

Qu Fu: One of the rising “little flowers.” Although she was only 23, she was already a veteran in the entertainment industry—a child star the audience had watched grow up. There were countless trending searches about her, and almost every time, it was a “storm of blood and wind.” One could say she was half-famous and half-infamous.

Bi Tu: A veteran comedian from a grassroots background, 45 years old. He frequently appeared in various comedy programs, served as a judge for comedy shows, and was a regular at major galas. Although he didn’t frequently trend, he was a national-level veteran comedian.

Kong Yanfei: She wasn’t from the entertainment industry, but she brought plenty of buzz. At 16 years old, she was an Olympic gold medalist who had brought glory to the country, winning world-class honors at a young age.

With these three people together, how could there be any lack of topics and popularity?

“I know you don’t want to be famous; you just want to go home and take care of your mother and live your ordinary life. But have you thought about how much your mother’s treatment costs per year? You can’t earn enough just by working odd jobs. You have to seize every opportunity. Only by moving up can you take care of your mother, and only by moving up can you have a chance to leave this company!”

He Ji spoke solemnly, looking at Mu Yao with utter sincerity.

“……”

Mu Yao remained silent. He knew He Ji was right.

“Mhm, I know. I’ll work hard. It’s late, Brother He, do you want to stay overnight?”

“No, I have other arrangements tomorrow. This crappy company squeezes its staff every single day.”

He Ji shook his head in complaint and tapped the documents on the table.

“I snatched this job, so the arrangement is very tight. Recording starts in two days. The recording location is written in the file. As for the following filming locations, the crew is keeping them secret; you’ll find out when you get there!”

“Okay, I’ll be there on time!”

After seeing He Ji off, Mu Yao continued to flip through the file. Only after confirming the recording location did he put the documents away.

By then, the hot water was ready. He opened a drawer, took out a flat hot water bottle, and poured the hot water into it. Watching the hot water bottle become plump, he carefully wrapped it in a towel.

He turned off the space heater and climbed into bed with the hot water bottle.

Two days later, Mu Yao arrived at the recording location specified in the document—an art park in the commercial center. A grey-brown two-story building was the filming site for the crew.

Mu Yao pushed the door open and explained his purpose to the front desk on the first floor.

“Oh, you’re Mu Yao. You’re quite handsome.”

The receptionist looked up at Mu Yao and pointed upstairs nonchalantly.

“Third office on the second floor. You’re the first guest to arrive. A stylist will give you a simple look, and then you just wait in the office for the others.”

Mu Yao nodded and went upstairs as instructed.

The third office on the second floor was still being set up. Everyone was slightly stunned when they saw Mu Yao enter.

“Hello everyone, I am Mu Yao. I’m here for the recording.”

Mu Yao introduced himself simply; he had encountered this situation many times.

“Oh, Mu Yao, I know you. You’re the rotating guest, right? Come, come, let’s get your styling done first. He Ji really is something; he didn’t tell me this kid was so good-looking!”

The director’s eyes showed a look of satisfaction. He nodded and arranged for someone to style Mu Yao.

Mu Yao obediently followed the stylist to the vanity mirror. He looked at himself in the mirror and understood why the director was satisfied.

In the mirror, he had a pair of alluring, narrow phoenix eyes. The inner corners were sharp as blades, while the outer corners upturned slightly. His lashes were so thick the stylist didn’t even need to touch them. His pupils were dark brown, turning slightly amber under the light.

His nose was high-bridged, yet the tip was rounded and soft. The lines of his lips were distinct; when he wasn’t smiling, he carried an air that warned strangers not to approach.

This kind of look was popular in the entertainment industry—at least, that’s what Mu Yao felt.

The makeup artist was very agile. Once the styling was done, she let Mu Yao find the director. The director arranged for him to film B-roll of himself waiting for the others, and Mu Yao followed orders.

While he was filming the waiting footage, the second guest arrived.

“Oh my, I thought I was the first one. I didn’t expect someone to be even earlier than me!”

Filming Mu Yao didn’t require too many shots. After seeing the photographer make a “finish” gesture, Mu Yao turned toward the source of the voice.

The second guest to arrive was Bi Tu. He had a round face and small, narrow eyes. Even when he wasn’t smiling, the corners of his mouth tilted upward. His face had some fine wrinkles, and he walked forward with a smile.

Mu Yao’s pupils suddenly constricted. In his eyes, Bi Tu’s body was covered in a heavy ghostly aura, but strangely, there was no ghostly shadow around him.

‘Is this comedy senior being targeted by a ghost?’