Brother Dao Took the Entertainment Industry by Storm, Fans Beg Me Not to Kill Anymore

Chapter 773: First Time in Hong Kong

It was the peak of summer in July, and Xiao He set foot on the land of Hong Kong for the first time in his life.

Unlike the dry heat of the inland, the air here was mixed with the faint sea-salt scent of Victoria Harbour, sticky yet gentle.

The street signs were stacked layer upon layer, crisscrossing neon signs in traditional characters, paired with the flame trees in full bloom on both sides of the roads, creating a vibrant backdrop unique to the midsummer of Hong Kong Island.

At the same time, the area was also filled with densely packed skyscrapers and glass curtain walls reflecting the blazing daylight of summer.

Thus, there emerged a scene where one side was a modern, towering city skyline, while the other was a patchwork of old and worn street blocks and buildings. The old and new architecture overlapped, every inch of the scenery carrying the distinct imprint of Hong Kong Island.

Listening to the faint Cantonese conversations brushing past his ears, Xiao He couldn't help but place his hands on his hips and take a deep breath inside the hotel lobby.

“Following Director Zhuang around, life is good!”

Even here, they had chosen a luxurious hotel in an excellent location, with décor that exuded the unique style of an international city.

Although it wasn't quite as grand as the estate they'd stayed at on the island last time, overall, the treatment was still very impressive compared to other production crews.

Beside him, Liu Rulan also nodded. “Yeah, Director Zhuang has a huge influence even here in Hong Kong.”

But before they could finish their words, the front desk they were supposed to check in with suddenly became noisy.

“What's going on? We booked our rooms in advance, so why are they already occupied?”

The producer Wang Sheng tapped on the polished marble countertop, questioning with a sharp tone.

“We're terribly sorry, that was our oversight. How about we help arrange nearby hotels for you?”

The front desk staff member gave a slight bow and apologized to Wang Sheng fluently in Cantonese. But because she spoke too quickly, Wang Sheng couldn't understand a single word, which only made him angrier.

“Didn't you hear we're speaking Mandarin? Speak Mandarin! Don't give me any of that nonsense! I need your hotel to answer my question right now! Why was there an oversight? Who made the oversight? Is your hotel not going to give us any explanation and just send our people somewhere else?”

Wang Sheng was so furious he laughed, his voice gradually rising.

The others, who had already been getting impatient waiting, began to walk over.

Just then, someone came over to try and calm Wang Sheng down. “Hey, hey, Producer Wang, no need to get so mad. It's not necessary. Let's just clarify the situation.”

Seeing the situation was getting out of hand, the front desk staff quickly called for the manager.

“What's happening over there?”

Xiao He turned his head and asked Xiao Chen, who had just run over to report after checking on the scene.

“Apparently, before we arrived, the hotel didn't have enough rooms. So, without communicating with us, they gave some of our reserved rooms to someone else in advance.”

Xiao Chen lowered his voice. “And they gave away the best rooms.”

Those rooms were typically reserved for the director, producer, and main actors.

“Oh, so they sure know how to pick and choose, using our rooms to play the good guys?”

Xiao He raised an eyebrow. But Liu Rulan felt something wasn't right. She glanced around and asked Xiao Chen, “Where's Director Zhuang?”

“Director Zhuang, he—”

Xiao Chen looked around but didn't see him.

That made sense. If he had been here, he would have gone over as soon as he heard the commotion.

Xiao He also glanced around and noticed that among the team that had arrived early, the only ones who could really “speak up” were basically him and the accompanying producer Wang Sheng who was handling this trip.

“Well, Sister Liu.” Xiao He looked at Liu Rulan. “Should we go take a look too?”

Liu Rulan nodded. “Sure.”

Just as they reached the front, the manager arrived. After learning the situation, he quickly scanned the production team members behind Wang Sheng. His face showed not only panic but also a hint of guilt, but he forced it all down and apologized sincerely to Wang Sheng: “I'm sorry, sir. This was indeed an oversight by our staff. But we really don't have enough rooms at the moment. There's nothing we can do about it...”

Wang Sheng frowned. “So, after we called you over, you're just going to fob us off with 'there's nothing we can do'?”

“Uh, well—”

The manager wiped his sweat, frantically thinking of a solution in his mind. Meanwhile, the front desk staff member muttered something under her breath in Cantonese.

“What did you just say?”

A vaguely familiar male voice sounded beside her.

The front desk staff froze and looked up to find a very, very familiar young man standing right in front of her—

He wasn't wearing a mask or a hat, just a simple pair of glasses. His outfit was also very plain: a T-shirt and shorts. But perhaps because of his good physique, the casual look came off as rather stylish and high-end.

The next moment, she almost gasped out loud. Barely containing her shock, she stared at Xiao He's face, unable to hide the panic on her own. “You're Xiao He! So this is your production crew?”

It was strange. Why hadn't they noticed Brother Xiao's registration information when they checked earlier...

—Actually, this was also part of Xiao He's strategy to disguise their movements. Otherwise, wherever he went, stalker fans would follow, and that was just disgusting.

“Were you just cursing us out? Cursing us?”

Xiao He didn't look pleased just because the front desk girl recognized him. Instead, he stared seriously at the person in front of him.

For this shoot in Hong Kong, as the male lead, Xiao He had to learn some Cantonese to avoid communication issues when working with local actors. Fortunately, with his enhanced memory, he could learn the language faster. So after landing, he was already able to communicate with the locals in Cantonese without any barriers.

So when this front desk staff muttered that “those mainlanders were nothing but trouble,” Xiao He caught it instantly.

But when he questioned her, he chose to use the most standard Mandarin.

“Ah—you heard that? I'm so sorry, Brother Xiao. I really didn't mean it—”

Jolted by Xiao He's reminder, the front desk staff remembered what she'd said and immediately grew terrified. She bowed repeatedly, apologizing: “Brother Xiao, I wasn't cursing you. I'm sorry...”

“You were cursing me, cursing all of us. I heard it loud and clear.”

Xiao He said expressionlessly.

“I really didn't expect your hotel to have two faces when it comes to treating people.”

Not only had they given away their rooms to others without permission, but the moment they learned it was an entire production crew, they panicked.

It turned out they were only picking on the weak.

Too bad for them—this time they bit into a rock.

“What's going on? What's happening over here now?”

Just as the first issue remained unresolved, another argument broke out. The manager had to rush over again to mediate this new conflict.

Seeing that Xiao He was involved in the altercation, the rest of the crew quickly gathered around. Even Lao Qi, who doubled as a bodyguard, subtly moved behind Xiao He to be ready for any emergencies.

Xiao He didn't say anything, but Xiao Chen pointed at the staff member and said angrily, “Your hotel staff just cursed us out! We're all Chinese people, and she still has the nerve to act all superior because of where she's from? What's your hotel's deal? If you don't want to serve mainland guests, just say so!”

At that, Xiao He let out a soft cough to signal Xiao Chen to tone it down. But Wang Sheng perked up at those words and fixed his glare on the hotel manager. “Yeah! If you don't have enough rooms and don't want to serve us, just say it outright! And while you're at it, tell us who you gave our rooms to! Who could be so special that your hotel would break the rules and not even bother to inform the guests? Kid, you've got some nerve! Even your boss wouldn't dare to give away Director Zhuang's room without permission, but you guys went ahead and did it?”

The manager was already drenched in cold sweat. He tried to defend himself: “Uh, I'm really, truly sorry. But we really can't make the call here, and we can't arrange extra rooms for you all. This time, it's because some friends of the boss came. They had made arrangements a long time ago, so we had no choice...”

“Oh, so you're saying that because they booked earlier, we're just out of luck, huh? Then why did you act like you had rooms in the first place?”

Wang Sheng crossed his arms and laid on the sarcasm thick, his insinuating tone dialed up to the max.