Theft

Gu Ze heard it, of course. He didn't know what Ye Qing had been about to say next, but he had a feeling it would be much like the last few times.

Sometimes, after hearing something often enough, you simply got used to it.

Ye Qing had noticed a change in himself over the past few days, too. He seemed to enjoy looking at Gu Ze more than usual, and his imagination seemed to run wilder and wilder whenever Gu Ze was around.

Sure, Gu Ze had a great figure, a handsome face, and a lovely personality. But he wasn't the only person like that. Ye Qing still felt something was off with himself.

Something was off. Definitely off.

Before Ye Qing could figure out why, filming kept him busy. Most of his scenes happened to fall on these few days, and by the end of each day, he had no time to think about anything else.

It was only now that he finally met the screenwriter of this drama.

The screenwriter had been there when filming began, but Ye Qing had never met him. Later, he heard that the man had taken leave because of a family matter and gone home, so naturally, Ye Qing hadn't had a chance to see him.

Ye Qing loved the script, so he had a good impression of its writer. He thought the man must be incredibly talented.

But the moment he saw him, all he could think was that he'd been deceived. The man hadn't written this drama at all. He had stolen someone else's work.

[What do I do? I can barely keep smiling.]

Gu Ze, who had been talking to someone, glanced at Ye Qing. What was wrong now?

[That smile makes me want to slap him in the face with my shoe.]

[I hate people who steal others' work and claim it as their own more than anything.]

[The person beside him is the one who actually wrote this script.]

That told Gu Ze what was going on. He couldn't help wondering what was wrong with the crew he'd chosen. Trouble kept cropping up one thing after another.

It was common enough in the entertainment industry for someone's work to be published under another person's name, but he wouldn't allow it on his set. Making a good drama took everyone's effort. Every contribution, large or small, mattered to the production.

They had barely managed to push down the trending searches about Yu Hang. Were they about to go through it all again?

For now, the most important thing was exposing the screenwriter. But a man who dared do this had probably covered his tracks, and finding proof against him might not be easy.

On top of that, Gu Ze had to pretend he knew nothing in front of Ye Qing.

What a pain.

Gu Ze's problem was also the one Ye Qing was wrestling with: how could he convince everyone that the screenwriter had stolen someone else's work?

The screenwriter's surname was Bai, and he was credited with several smash-hit dramas. But all Ye Qing could think today was that the man had claimed someone else's work as his own. How did he sleep at night?

Ye Qing studied the words above Screenwriter Bai's head so intently that anyone who didn't know better might have thought he was a huge fan.

Even the director chuckled and said, "Xiaoqing, are you a fan of Screenwriter Bai?"

"I am. I really like Screenwriter Bai."

[Enough to want to ruin him.]

At last, Ye Qing spotted the crucial detail in the tiny text: the person beside Screenwriter Bai hadn't gone along with it willingly.

Ye Qing turned to look at the young man. So he had already been planning to bring everything to light.

Ye Qing took another look and couldn't help sighing inwardly.

[How did he end up with a mother like that?]

It turned out the young man had wanted to expose everything for a long time. He had held back only because of his mother.

Screenwriter Bai was a close friend of his mother's. After his father died, Screenwriter Bai had supported the two of them for quite a while. Around high school, the young man wrote a novel. Knowing that the uncle who often helped him and his mother was a screenwriter, he made a point of showing it to him.

After reading the story, Uncle Bai praised him lavishly. He said the young man wrote very well and could show him anything else he wrote.

Not long afterward, the young man discovered a television drama with a plot remarkably similar to his story.

When he asked about it, he learned that Uncle Bai had made a few changes to the story and gotten someone interested in it.

He wasn't that young at the time, but he was still naive. He was simply happy to see his work produced. It would have been even better if his name had appeared as the writer.

But Uncle Bai had said the drama could only be made under his established name. No one would pay attention to an unknown writer.

And since the man had supported his family and his mother urged him to agree, he decided he could accept it.

After he went to university, though, he studied screenwriting. As he gained knowledge and experience, he came to understand what Uncle Bai had done.

He didn't want to keep doing this. He didn't want his work buried under someone else's name anymore. Grateful for the help his family had received, he told Uncle Bai sincerely that he wanted to stop.

He hadn't expected the man's attitude to change completely. Uncle Bai showed his true colors and even began using the young man's mother to threaten him.

He had told his mother that Uncle Bai was not a good person, but she refused to believe him. Whenever he hid her somewhere so he could deal with the man himself, Uncle Bai always managed to find her.

He no longer dared take the risk. He didn't know how much power the man had.

While he hesitated, he went on to write many more scripts. Recently, though, he had begun thinking about exposing the truth again.

[Tsk. He doesn't want to drag his mother into this, but she's been involved with that man all along.]

[She was the one who told him where she was hiding every time. That's how he found her so quickly.]

[She knows exactly what her son is going through and still turns a blind eye. Honestly...]

Even Gu Ze couldn't help thinking how badly a mother who refused to see reason could hold her son back.

Still, as long as the young man wanted to bring Screenwriter Bai down, matters would be much easier.

Noticing Ye Qing staring behind him, Screenwriter Bai pulled the young man forward and introduced him to everyone. "This is my apprentice, Xia Luan."

The others immediately began heaping praise on Xia Luan. He found it tiresome. He couldn't stand these people.

Over the next few days, Ye Qing often brought his script to Screenwriter Bai and discussed it in front of the entire crew. He claimed he loved the story and wanted to know how Screenwriter Bai had come up with it.

Screenwriter Bai could answer simple questions, but as soon as Ye Qing dug a little deeper, his explanations became muddled.

Perhaps aware of the problem, he began asking Ye Qing to come to his room for their discussions. But Ye Qing had no intention of doing what he wanted. He insisted on talking on set.

His reason was that he wouldn't feel safe going to the man's room alone.

Screenwriter Bai was furious. What did Ye Qing mean, he wouldn't be safe? It wasn't as if Screenwriter Bai was into men. Damn it!

He even lost his temper with Ye Qing. "I think actors should focus on acting well. There's no need to concern yourself so much with the script."

Ye Qing put on a hurt expression. "Am I bothering you, Screenwriter Bai? I know I ask a lot of questions, but it's only because I genuinely love the story."

"If you don't like it, Screenwriter Bai, then... then I won't ask anymore. I wouldn't want to annoy you."

At that, the rest of the crew looked at Screenwriter Bai reproachfully.

If Ye Qing wanted to ask, why shouldn't he? They were all working on the same drama, so it wasn't as if he'd leak anything.

Only Gu Ze knew Ye Qing's real purpose. To make the effect stronger, he occasionally asked a few questions himself, though nowhere near as many as Ye Qing.

Ye Qing grew more relentless, while Screenwriter Bai's answers became increasingly perfunctory. Even the other crew members began to notice something was wrong.

Ye Qing put on another pitiful expression. "If you don't want to tell me, Screenwriter Bai, just say so. Why brush me off like this? You're trampling all over my sincerity."

Screenwriter Bai was terrified of him by now. "That's not it, Xiaoqing."

"Then what is it? Your answers seem so disjointed. Or did you not write this yourself, Screenwriter Bai? Otherwise, how could you be so unfamiliar with your own script?"