Chapter 19: Oh no, he's pretending now

Sitting on the sofa,

Chen Yun did not pay attention to what Bai Shi was going to do when he suddenly ran into the bedroom.

Instead, he looked towards the living room of Bai's house.

Compared to his last visit before the New Year, the layout here had changed somewhat.

But overall,

it still exuded an indescribable artistic charm.

The coat rack at the entrance

was a sculpture carved from high-quality wood.

Not far away, in a display cabinet made of some type of wood, there were various colored porcelains.

The surrounding walls were also adorned with several copies of "Mona Lisa," "Starry Night," "Impression of the Sunrise," "Han Xizai Night Banquet Painting"...

Indeed, there were multiple copies of each of these famous paintings.

On a nearby easel, there was also a half-finished "Mona Lisa."

These famous paintings were all imitated by Bai Shi.

Even with Chen Yun's limited understanding of art, he believed Bai Shi's painting skills could possibly be considered top-notch in his time.

Every time Chen Yun came, he saw a variety of different paintings.

There were oil paintings as well as ink wash paintings.

With Chen Yun's knowledge of art, he could not discern the incredible aspects of these imitations.

He could only say they seemed identical to the famous paintings from his memory.

After looking around for a moment,

Chen Yun did not look any further.

Sometimes he was truly grateful for his limited knowledge of art.

Otherwise, he might have long discovered just how many illicit items were hidden within this small room.

Enough to get Bai Shi executed a dozen times over.

Honestly,

he sometimes really suspected that one of these famous paintings might actually be genuine.

But,

whether in the past or now,

Chen Yun's attitude towards this friend remained the same: he did not wish to delve too deep.

It was an understanding between them.

Just as Bai Shi had initially often hid himself habitually, but gradually became less defensive around Chen Yun.

Of course,

Chen Yun would definitely not reveal his current special circumstances to Bai Shi.

This was not about whether they were friends or not.

Rather, it was a necessary decision for a mature and cautious adult to ensure his own safety.

Until he was certain that his "special" could not be controlled or exploited by the outside world, he wouldn't even tell his family about his special changes.

While contemplating,

Chen Yun heard the sound of the bedroom door opening.

Looking in the direction of the sound,

he saw Bai Shi, dressed in a suit and holding a briefcase, walking out confidently.

The dark blue suit was tight on his body.

The red bow tie was neatly fixed.

However, combined with his Mediterranean hairstyle and plump physique,

the entire impression he gave off was both serious and comical.

"What's this?"

Chen Yun was taken aback.

He was somewhat slow to grasp why Bai Shi was dressed in business attire.

"I could assist you with information technology, but we live in a society governed by law, and it's not suitable to use those somewhat irregular hacking techniques."

"So, it's time to rightfully make use of legal measures."

Bai Shi said, puffing out his chest.

His left hand, not holding the briefcase, touched the red bow tie on his chest, adjusting it to sit even straighter.

"Legal measures?"

"Bai Shi, you mean…"

Chen Yun eyed Bai Shi's appearance, and a guess formed in his mind,

but he dared not be certain.

"Call me Bai Lv, thank you."

Bai Shi revealed a smile,

appearing to be in his element.

Hearing this, Chen Yun asked hesitantly, "You are a… lawyer?"

It was no wonder he was hesitant.

Because if that were the case, it seemed Bai Shi was just a bit too overpowered.

Rich, skilled in art, versed in hacking, and now a lawyer too…

And possibly proficient in various other domains.

No matter how you looked at it, it seemed a bit too overpowered.

How had I ever ended up playing with someone like this?

In his silence,

Bai Shi flashed his pearly white teeth and smugly said, "You can check my Phoenix University diploma as well as my lawyer's practice certificate."

"There are no fakes—earned them all through my own capabilities."

It was as if he thought of something else and quickly added that.

His smile was especially radiant.

Clearly, this was giving him quite a thrill.

Looking on, Chen Yun didn't know why, but he felt a little itch in his teeth.

He really felt like smashing his fist right into this jerk's head at that very moment.

But considering their previous friendship and his current situation of asking for a favor, Chen Yun chose to hold back for the time being.

"So you... are you confident?"

Chen Yun couldn't help but ask Bai Shi, who had already started gloating in front of him.

"Not much confidence."

"Probably just 99%."

Bai Shi smiled and laid out a few A4 sheets fresh from the printer, still smelling of ink, across the table in front of Chen Yun.

Chen Yun looked at the warm pages before him,

carefully reading the content.

On the paper, a bunch of charges against that web celebrity shop were laid out with clear logic.

It didn't look like something that could have just been prepared in the bedroom.

"You... had this prepared already?"

"No!"

"You were quietly collecting all the non-compliant aspects of that web celebrity shop when you dined on 'Ox Knee Round' masquerading as Australian M7 Wagyu?"

Chen Yun was first taken aback,

then reacted almost immediately.

Thinking about the web celebrity shop's misdeeds of substituting inferior goods and casually leaking surveillance, Chen Yun thought it deserved what was coming for it if Bai Shi was targeting it.

"In that case, since the web celebrity shop that leaked my surveillance can be dealt with easily, what about the Shucheng Morning News?"

Chen Yun asked curiously.

"That medium-sized media enterprise is easy to handle too—rest assured."

"You just go back. By tonight at the latest, I'll have everything settled, and the related videos will mostly be taken down."

Bai Shi nodded confidently,

reassuring Chen Yun in this manner.

After a moment of silence, Chen Yun also nodded.

"What about the retainer fee?"

Chen Yun hesitated and asked.

The things he had asked of Bai Shi in the past were never that serious, and a meal usually sufficed as a thank you.

But now, asking Bai Shi to help in his capacity as a lawyer, some sort of retainer fee seemed necessary.

"There's no need for a retainer fee."

"You were quite powerful in battle yesterday. Just cover for me in a couple of days when we go somewhere, and ensure I don't get beaten up in a surprise situation."

Bai Shi said, with a smile creeping onto his face.

"Ah? What are you going to do in a few days?"

"Who's going to beat you up?"

Chen Yun was stunned, feeling that what Bai Shi entrusted him with did not seem like anything serious.

"I had an argument online with the owner of an educational institution before the New Year. I wanted to get back at them but found out they were on holiday for the festivities."

"Now that their holiday is over, I managed to sneak in and scope the place out yesterday."

"Heh heh heh..."

Bai Shi said, unable to suppress a mischievous chuckle.

And Bai Shi's remarks finally made Chen Yun realize the intention behind his purchase of a bunch of educational materials.

He had been stewing over this malicious intent for several months, trying to find a way to infiltrate the educational aid organization.

Indeed, his purchase of educational materials and the tutoring institution interview were not aboveboard activities.

This was truly a case of harboring a grudge.

"I won't partake in anything illegal."

Chen Yun stated with moral firmness,

feeling rather hesitant to wade into these murky waters.

Who knew what Bai Shi was up to; if Chen Yun became an accomplice, it could lead to jail time.

"Don't worry, I don't engage in illegal activities either. I just heard that the owner is quite superstitious, and he recently bought a money plant."

"So..."

"Poring hot 'Water' over the plant might be quite interesting."

Bai Shi said with a grin that was chilling to the bone.

On the side,

Chen Yun gave Bai Shi a disdainful look.

"Alright, I'll do my best to ensure you don't get beaten to a pulp."

Chen Yun agreed reluctantly.