Idol Chapter 136 Part 1

This was the biggest and most expensive concert in Corona’s history, with flawless execution throughout the entire process, winning widespread acclaim and applause.

The crown was no longer the newcomer who had to greet every senior they met. After debuting for five years and coming a long way, they became the target of many new generations’ admiration, standing at the peak of fame and glory in the entertainment circle, their strength comparable to the gods.

Both inside and outside the venue, the atmosphere was immersed in the festive mood of the carnival, with many celebrities from the entertainment industry personally attending to experience the joy.

But Jiang Shu did not go.

At this moment, he was sitting on the top floor of the administrative building F, silently sipping his bitter tea.

The secretary on the opposite side of the desk uncomfortably rubbed his hands, trying to get more hints.

Uncle Wang looked at his watch and spoke on behalf of Jiang Shu.

“Secretary Miao, it’s been eight minutes. How much more time do you want to waste?”

Miao Su squeezed out a smile, feigning calmness, “Boss Jiang, I don’t know why you called me here…”

Jiang Shu did not look at him.

Another confidant stepped forward directly, his tone mocking, “Mr. Miao, do you know the consequences of betraying SPF?”

“What betrayal?” Miao Su was surprised. “What are you talking about? You’ve got the wrong person, right?”

Uncle Wang refilled Jiang Shu’s tea cup and then threw a stack of photocopies in his face.

Although Corona only had six members, they were involved in multiple business cooperations across different fields. On the surface, the six members participated in various activities, but behind them, there was a huge company system controlling and supporting the different departments together.

Secretary, assistant, manager, planner, operator…

Dozens of positions and hundreds of employees were assigned to support the crown as their strong backup.

And Jiang Shu, as the main agent, was like the head of this huge beast, controlling the dynamics and trends with his ruthless methods over the years.

There were several major incidents on the surface of Corona, each time from hype to turmoil deliberately stirred up by opponents, from the “New Year’s Eve Father Abuse Gate” to the “High Heel Demon Dance”, each hoping for the group’s dissolution.

These were just the tip of the iceberg, with more silent scheming and targeting behind the scenes, all countered and struck back by the company in secret, blocking all harm and attacks outside the door and responding clearly and logically.

The business field is a battlefield, and as long as there are huge interests, the smoke of gunpowder will never cease.

At this moment, only the sound of the fresh air system could be heard in the dark room, and despite the cool and pleasant environment, Miao Su’s cold sweat was about to drip.

He forced a smile, half-kneeling to pick up the photocopies scattered on the ground one by one.

There were his past few months of entry and exit monitoring, private phone call records, and snapshots of him leaving from the back door of the Silver Pearl Hotel.

“How was the banquet at Young Master Han’s home? Did you get used to the food?”

Miao Su swallowed, tremblingly said, “Please hear me out, that time was my high school classmate’s birthday, I went there and Han Qu was also there, I really didn’t—”

Jiang Shu slowly put down his teacup, his eyes sharp as a hawk’s, filled with scrutiny.

“Contract.”

His subordinates presented Miao Su’s previously signed confidentiality contract, reading it to him clause by clause, page by page.

From criminal responsibility to compensation, Miao Su’s face turned pale as he listened.

“I, Jiang, am not ungenerous.”

“Year-end bonuses, dividends, holidays, I have never treated my subordinates poorly, not even one.”

Jiang Shu leaned on the table and stood up, stepping in front of Miao Su.

“I am generous, but you are not.”

Miao Su couldn’t bear to look into the eyes of Boss Jiang without his sunglasses, hurriedly lowering his head to explain, “I didn’t sell the company, I didn’t say any data, they wanted to give me a bank card and stuff, I didn’t take anything, Boss Jiang, if I had taken it, I wouldn’t have died well—”

He was just a secretary, with not much to his life, completely panicked when facing a tough situation.

“Did I ask you if you took it?!” Jiang Shu suddenly roared, his voice sharp and echoing, “What did Han Qu ask you?!”

Miao Su, desperate, kept saying, “He asked a lot of questions, I didn’t dare to answer, asked how you were doing, asked about the personalities of the six Corona members, Boss Jiang, I’m a coward, I really didn’t dare to say anything!”

“Think again!!”

“I just said a few words!!” Miao Su hugged his head and squatted on the ground, shaking all over, “I said the six of them were all pretty good, nice to everyone!”

Jiang Shu’s face turned pale, his right hand gripping Miao Su’s shoulder tightly, pressing down his anger, “Who did he ask about?”

“He, he first asked about Huo Ren, then asked about, asked about Chi Ji!”

“What did you answer?”

“I said it seemed like Huo Ren was polite and smiled at everyone, but felt quite indifferent, while Chi Ji was open-hearted, treating everyone like a little cotton jacket—”

“—Slap!”

Jiang Shu slapped him to the ground, shouting furiously, “When was it your turn to point fingers?!!”

Miao Su could no longer care about anything else, covering his face and arguing loudly, “I didn’t betray any business secrets, I’m just a secretary who does odd jobs, I didn’t want to be dragged into this mess!!”

Jiang Shu, furious to the point of throbbing temples, pressed his fingers against his forehead, took a few breaths, and walked outside.

Uncle Wang, holding the folder, followed closely behind, descending the stairs with him.

“That fool?”

“Uh-huh.”

Uncle Wang gave a look to his subordinate behind him.

Miao would no longer be able to mix in any industry for the rest of his life, even applying for a job as a street cleaner might get him kicked out.

Jiang Shu’s mind was racing with countless pieces of information, and he spoke again with a calm voice, “Starting today, cancel all of Chi Ji’s commercial activities. Announce to the public that he has gone abroad for further studies—just keep this kid on the seventeenth floor, strictly monitoring anyone who has come into contact with him.”

“Boss Jiang,” Uncle Wang hesitated, “Is Chi Ji Corona’s weakness? Han Qu’s side might not even be sure of this.”

“By hiding him away like this, isn’t it the same as indirectly admitting it?”

Jiang Shu made a sudden stop, causing Uncle Wang almost to bump into his back.

“Does it matter whether I admit it now?”

“Chi Ji’s depressive state has only eased for three to five months. If he goes out to a meet-and-greet now, and someone comes out to curse him for being a dead freak and a sissy for dancing in high heels, do you think he can withstand it?!”

When Xie Lianyun had an incident, Han Qu had sent someone disguised as a fan to throw a glass bottle in an act of violence, and Huo Ren felt so guilty about the slight scar on his eyebrow every time he saw it.

Those two kids were at least tough enough to keep their composure when faced with issues, but Chi Ji, as innocent as a fifteen or sixteen-year-old, was in a completely different situation.

Uncle Wang quickly agreed, concernedly saying, “Han Qu has already started targeting the vulnerabilities inside SPF. Should we vet all our core staff again?”

“Check three times, tighten security at all entrances and exits, and absolutely do not allow any riffraff to sneak in.”

Jiang Shu took a deep breath and stepped into the elevator.

“Starting today, we enter A-level protection mode, absolutely—absolutely do not slack off.”

The celebration ended at two in the morning.

The six youths were sprawled all over the place in the nanny van, with Xie Lianyun being smeared by three people.

“Move over—I can’t breathe—”

“It was so lively today, why did Boss Pei come but not Uncle Jiang?”

Huo Ren, wrapped tightly in a blanket in the passenger seat, mumbled sleepily, “He must have gone for business.”

“Uncle Jiang doesn’t love us anymore,” Mei Sheng speculated, “The company has recruited many pretty kids in the last two years—”

Bo Jue tapped his head with a finger, “What are you thinking?”

Huo Ren’s chest was still vibrating with the bass from the stage earlier. After trying unsuccessfully to sleep, he turned to look at the night view outside the window.

The nanny van was driving past the high-tech development zone, where tall buildings and neon lights flickered, resembling a dark forest of fireflies in the night.

“So tall.” He gazed at the spire-like buildings, murmuring, “When did we get such tall buildings.”

“That’s Old Han’s building.” Long Jia side-eyed him, “Do you see those next to it? Fengxing Electronics, Fengjia Communications, and Chenyu Technology…”

“Isn’t Chenyu Technology the one that sells phones? It’s related to Old Han?”

“Yes, Eshan Venture Capital, they do the kind of business where you invest one to earn a thousand.” Long Jia straightened up and pointed to several other buildings for Huo Ren, “This one, this one, pharmaceuticals, electronics, logistics, all industries supported by Old Han over the years, his life’s work of good deeds.”

Investing millions in the early stages of startups, later reaping profits of billions.

Huo Ren stared at the gradually distant high-tech park, chuckling after a while, “Brother Long knows all about this stuff.”

Meanwhile, in the pool area of the underground club.

Han Qu was sitting askew by the pool table, casually looking at the position of the cue ball, and took a haphazard shot.

The cue ball, struck with too much force, rattled around, causing all the red, blue, and black balls to scatter chaotically.

“Old Xu, you’re a psychologist, right? Do you think celebrities are particularly prone to depression?”

Before the man in white could respond, a big guy with a beard next to him laughed, “It’s fashionable now, huh? Everyone’s rushing to say they have this disease.”

“Exactly,” another small woman covered her mouth and laughed along, “If you’re losing an argument, just bring this up, and it’ll work. I’ve learned it too.”

Doctor Xu was not accustomed to the smoke here. He had originally come to drink tea with a friend but was dragged here by that bad friend.

Han Qu was still waiting for an answer, glancing at him again.

“Maybe.”

“Maybe? What do you mean by maybe?”

Dr. Xu slowly said, “High work pressure, too much exposure to public negativity, and being less guarded psychologically might make one prone to such tendencies.”

If a person doesn’t empathize with the world while alive, even if there’s a flood, it wouldn’t concern them, naturally reducing a lot of burdens.

Han Qu noticed his defensiveness, softened his tone, and casually coaxed him, “You’re a well-known expert in this field, and I have a friend who’s suffering from this disease. I really wanted to ask you about it today.”

The bad friend chimed in messily, “It’s a favor from President Han to us—ordinary people have a hard time seeing him.”

Dr. Xu, hearing it was related to a patient, slightly relaxed his furrowed brows, “Is your friend here?”

“Not here.”

“How’s the condition? Is he taking his medication on time?”

“I’m embarrassed to ask,” Han Qu said leisurely, “Just in case, I mean, if that person has been denied his personality for years, has a bit of a tendency, how should I, as a friend, help him?”

“Denied personality?”

“Uh-huh, like people wishing him dead every day, hoping he gets a sex change surgery to castrate himself—”

Xu Le always felt that this conversation lacked sincerity, and he was unclear about Han Qu’s personality, worried that he might act rashly and further aggravate the patient’s condition.

He pondered over and over again, cautiously giving a reply: “We need to respect the patient’s choices, protect their emotional state, and avoid stimulation.”

“Stimulation?” Han Qu laughed, “How could that be? I treat him like a treasure.”

Xu Le pursed his lips and said no more.

This game of billiards was not very enjoyable.

Even though a few henchmen made efforts to liven up the atmosphere throughout, the new doctor did not play along, finding an excuse to leave hastily after drinking just a couple of glasses of wine.

Han Qu did not mind, playing with his phone with one hand while holding the cue in the other, signaling his men to come over for orders.

“Do you remember the previous few times?”

“Again?” Chen, looking distressed, said, “We can do it again, but the cost is too high, it’s not worth it.”

Han Qu glanced at him, nonchalantly chewing on a piece of ice, the crunching sound particularly clear in the billiard room at that moment.

After finishing the ice, Han Qu leaned in to whisper something to Chen, causing him to look panic-stricken.

“This, this probably won’t work, right? It will probably all be deleted as soon as it’s uploaded online?” Chen, fearing that he would be blamed for incompetence, hurriedly distanced himself, “Han, now Weibo and other platforms are very strict, what you’re talking about really can’t make a fuss—”

“Who said anything about making a fuss?” Han Qu raised his eyebrows, “Just post it, take a screenshot, print it out and keep it safe, don’t worry about the rest.”

“Don’t worry?!”

“Yeah, delete it if you want, no need to buy any trending spots.”

Chen was completely confused, stammering, “Just the printout will do?”

“Just the printout.” Han Qu crushed another piece of ice, speaking unhurriedly, “Then put it in the filing cabinet, leave it there and don’t bother.”