Chapter 235 - 191: Sports Superstar? Musical Prodigy? Superstar

"I’m pretty curious," Chu Bamboo said, leaning back in his office chair and sizing up the two men before him with a peculiar expression. "You two seem so chummy now. Are you still rivals?"

"Chummy? I wouldn’t say that," Zhao Shao said, stunned for a moment. He glanced at Lin Xia beside him, and after a brief thought, a look of disdain crossed his face. He scooted his chair a little farther away from Lin Xia.

Then, Zhao Shao looked at Chu Bamboo, his voice full of sincerity. "In this whole world, the person I’m closest to is you... Ah Zhu!"

"If I had to choose between Lin Xia and you, I’d choose you a million times over."

Chu Bamboo was speechless, a grimace twisting his face. "...Dude, if a girl said that to me, I’d be touched... but coming from you, it’s just... not necessary, you know?"

"Gotta admit, that’s true!" Lin Xia nodded in full agreement. "I actually can’t stand this guy. He’s arrogant and conceited. His only saving grace is that when you shove the truth in his face, he’ll actually admit he was wrong."

Lin Xia let out a sigh. "Thank god you’re different, Ah Zhu! You’re a genius, but you’ve never once looked down on me."

He paused for a moment.

"But that’s exactly why," Lin Xia said, clenching his fists, his voice ringing with passion, "I have to crush this guy in the business world!"

"Hah, I’ll be waiting!" Zhao Shao struck the classic Gendo Ikari pose, deliberately lowering his voice to a deep rumble, like a final villain.

"You two!" Chu Bamboo slapped a hand to his forehead. This was so cringe. "Why don’t you go star in some over-the-top drama series?"

"...That’s not a bad idea!" Lin Xia glanced at Z on the computer screen and sank into deep thought.

"Then I call being the main character!" Zhao Shao blurted out the instant the idea registered.

"Main character my ass!" Lin Xia rolled his eyes. "How many brilliant scientists do you know who are main characters? They’re usually evil scientists or supervillains!"

"What about Iron Man, then!" Zhao Shao shot back, furious.

"...You two aren’t in the same company! Why can’t you each get your own show?" Chu Bamboo’s mouth twitched as he watched realization dawn on their faces. He was speechless. ’Why are these two acting like children?!’

"Father!" Suddenly, Z sent out a signal, its mechanical female voice simulating a grave tone. "According to the information I have retrieved from the web... a new wave of shills has appeared on the internet, targeting you."

A brief silence fell.

"...It’s finally happening?" Lin Xia was the first to react, his face lighting up with a fighting spirit, looking like he was itching for a brawl.

"I knew it. Competing on the charts, digging up dirt, playing dirty—it’s an essential part of the entertainment industry!" Zhao Shao nodded calmly. He took a sharp breath, a glint of steel in his eyes. "Alright, what kind of dirt are they flinging at Ah Zhu?"

And then...

"You’re mistaken, Mother, Uncle Lin. This new wave of shills is also doing nothing but praising Father."

Lin Xia: "?"

Zhao Shao: "?!!"

Chu Bamboo’s brow furrowed. ’Are they trying to set me up for a fall?’ Then he heard...

"However, their angle of praise is quite peculiar. They’re hailing Father for his unimaginable and extraordinary athletic talent! They’re calling him the future ’Prince of Sprinting’."

Chu Bamboo: "?!"

In an instant, Chu Bamboo understood, and a storm erupted in his mind. ’Is this... Yuan Qiang’s doing?!’

A flood of information collided in his head. Without hesitation, he pulled out his phone and dialed Yuan Qiang’s number.

At that moment, he suddenly remembered what his close friend had said about not wanting to be involved in sports... because the things you run into are just sickening. He was starting to understand what it all meant.

The call connected almost instantly. Yuan Qiang’s voice, tinged with delight, came through. "Mr. Chu, you..."

"Did you release that old video of me sprinting as a publicity stunt?!" Chu Bamboo’s expression darkened. If they created all this hype and leaked crucial details about him... then the situation would become very complicated.

After all, most of the videos Z had to alter for the police were of this exact type... footage that showed Chu Bamboo performing inhuman feats.

It wasn’t that breaking a running record was so sensitive in itself. The problem was that in the video, Chu Bamboo shattered a record without breaking much of a sweat, which was highly abnormal.

"Ah... this!" Yuan Qiang’s brain almost short-circuited.

"If you released it, then I’m pulling out of the Olympics!" Chu Bamboo said coldly. "If you’re still in touch with Principal Li, you should understand that I couldn’t care less about the ’honor’ of being an Olympic track and field champion right now!"

Zhao Shao, who had been listening silently on the side: "..."

’Oh, right.’ Zhao Shao suddenly recalled that the whole reason he’d wanted to befriend Ah Zhu in the first place was because of his potential to become a track and field champion.

"..." Zhao Shao was at a loss for what expression to wear. In the end, all he could do was sigh. It had only been a few days, yet it felt like another lifetime.

"Huh? This... it’s not that serious, is it! You..." Yuan Qiang panicked, his words tumbling out. "Okay, okay, hold on, I’ll... I’ll... D-don’t worry, I promise it won’t be leaked!"

Chu Bamboo remained expressionless. ’Of course, even if the video did get leaked, it probably wouldn’t be a huge problem.’

’After all, if it were a really big deal, my close friend would have warned me about it in no uncertain terms...’

’The most likely outcome would be the video getting out, raising suspicions, and then Howard and his people would start probing me!’