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Lu Heng had not finished speaking when a shrill phone ringtone suddenly rang out in the silent cemetery.

Lu Heng frowned. After seeing the caller ID on the screen, he stepped aside and answered.

"...I'll head back right away. Don't worry, I won't delay Director Smith's audition..."

After hanging up, Lu Heng turned around to find that He Weiwei had calmed down considerably. She said evenly, "Is it the audition for that Hollywood blockbuster? I heard it's for the third male lead. I wish you success."

"Thank you." Lu Heng slipped his phone into his pocket, thought for a moment, and said, "Should I take you home?"

"No need." He Weiwei shook her head and held the two children close. "I want to stay here and keep Brother Sun company a little longer. You should go first. Be careful on the road."

Lu Heng hesitated for a moment, then nodded. "My condolences."

He Weiwei covered her mouth with one hand, took a deep breath, and said to the children, "Say goodbye to Uncle."

"Goodbye, Uncle!"

Lu Heng crouched down and rubbed the tops of the children's heads. "Goodbye, little ones," he said gently.

To get from the cemetery back to the city, he had to travel along a long, narrow mountain road. By the time Lu Heng left, the rain was falling harder and harder. Thick fog filled the mountain road, and visibility kept dropping. Lu Heng glanced at his watch and anxiously pressed down on the accelerator.

The torrential rain washed loose stones and mud down from the mountain, clogging the winding road completely. Lu Heng hit the brakes in time, but before he could feel relieved, there was a sudden thud on the roof. A tremendous force pressed down from above...

Lu Heng's vision went black, and he knew nothing more.

"Erwa, Erwa..."

Who knew how long had passed before his father's low voice sounded in the darkness. Lu Heng stood where he was, feeling as though someone were pushing and pulling him along. A spot of light suddenly appeared in the pitch-black darkness before him. He followed it, and the light grew larger and closer. The next second, his vision abruptly darkened. Walls and a ceiling he had not seen in many years, their peeling plaster covered with newspaper, came into view. Then came his father's dark face, speaking in a country accent. "Get up, quick. The production crew will be here soon."

Lu Heng stared blankly at everything before him: the dilapidated house, the old furniture, the walls papered with newspapers, the hard earthen kang beneath him, his father's face, still dark and thin but much younger, the crowing of chickens and barking of dogs outside, and the heart-rending cries of children. It all made him feel as though he were still dreaming.

Yet everything before him was so real.

So real that it was impossible to believe.

Seeing Lu Heng's stunned, bewildered expression, Lu Zhenjun assumed his son was worried about the next seven days of life ahead. He lovingly rubbed Lu Heng's head. His limited vocabulary and honest nature left him unsure how to comfort his son, so he could only urge him stiffly, "Get up already. Don't still be lying around in bed when they get here."

Lu Heng asked instinctively, "Who's coming?"

"The production crew." Lu Zhenjun thought for a moment, then added, "Since we promised them, we have to follow through. When you get to the city, remember not to accept things from people casually. Don't let them think us country folk are shallow and look down on us."

The production crew... Exchanging Lives?

The information from his father made Lu Heng clench his fists in disbelief.

That had happened when he was fourteen.

At the age of fifteen, Wei Linxuan, the only son of the chairman of Huaxia Imperial Entertainment, had planned the first reality show of his life. It had spoiled young playboys from the city swap lives with simple, kind-hearted mountain children from the countryside for a week, intending to help city boys understand themselves and cherish what they had, while broadening the mountain children's horizons and encouraging them to study hard.

Having lived another life, Lu Heng could neither confirm nor deny whether the show itself truly held such positive significance. But he knew that it had indeed drawn countless eyes. As soon as it aired, it set a nationwide ratings record of 10.6% and caused a huge social stir. Huaxia Imperial Entertainment took the opportunity to launch the Under the Same Sky charity fund, joining with local governments and enterprises to do charity work. While building the image of a charitable, conscientious company, it also expanded Huaxia Imperial Entertainment's and Wei Group's network of connections. It was a win for both fame and profit. It was said that Wei Group's stock had soared by dozens of percentage points because of it that year. As for the show's creator, Wei Linxuan, the news media lavishly praised him as the most outstanding planning genius of the twenty-first century.

Afterward, Wei Linxuan launched several more wildly popular variety and talent shows in succession, successfully reclaiming market share that had been seized by several other entertainment companies. He then swallowed up Star Entertainment and several other record and film companies in one sweep, entering the film and music industries. He invested in and founded the two major literary websites Set Sail and Jinjiang, fully integrating the capital model of adapting online novels and popular songs into games, films, and television dramas. He then showed remarkable foresight in investing in industries such as mobile communications and online information. Even as the entire world talked down the economy during the financial crisis, he acquired several leading companies in related industries one after another, ultimately leading Huaxia Imperial Entertainment into becoming a new entertainment-industry giant.

Compared with his brilliant new boss, Lu Heng, who had likewise shot to fame overnight because of Exchanging Lives, had a far more troubled fate. After the program aired, Lu Heng's simple, wholesome image won the love of a broad audience. Star Entertainment, Huaxia Imperial Entertainment's greatest competitor, wanted to ride the wave of Swapping Lives for publicity. Without informing the production crew, it privately contacted Lu Heng to discuss signing him.

Lu Heng, who also wanted to become a star, hit it off immediately with Star Entertainment. Once the two sides secretly signed a contract, Star Entertainment specially held a press conference. When the news spread, the media erupted. They all came forward to accuse Lu Heng of being ungrateful and kicking away the ladder after climbing it.

At the time, Lu Heng was young and hot-blooded. Having just entered the entertainment industry, he did not even understand what a competing company was. The unanimous accusations left him so flustered before the media that he spoke without thinking. Not only did he offend Huaxia Imperial Entertainment, which had not originally taken the matter seriously, but he also lost the popularity he had only just gained.

Many fans came to believe that Lu Heng was cold-hearted and morally flawed. A great many went from fans to casual followers, then from casual followers to antis.