Old Zhang nodded gravely, acknowledging the gravity of the situation. "Of course, we'll cooperate fully."
With that, Old Zhang, steeling himself, headed to Wen Bai and Gou Zhe's resting area to explain.
Wen Bai watched as Old Zhang, who had just moments ago instructed other actors to rehearse their scenes, was suddenly confronted by police.
Gou Zhe's gaze immediately swept towards the crowd, specifically in the direction of the household service robots. However, with the current disarray, he couldn't spot the one he was looking for.
Sensing something was amiss, Gou Zhe turned back and met Wen Bai's eyes. They exchanged a look.
Old Zhang approached and explained the situation in detail to both of them. Then, looking at Wen Bai, he apologized, "Mr. Wen, filming cannot continue today. This incident was unexpected, and it seems we'll have to reschedule."
Wen Bai nodded.
"Mr. Gou, the same applies to you. We'll need to set a new time."
Gou Zhe replied, "No problem. Such things are unpredictable, and I'm fine as long as we coordinate the timing." After all, he had been paid.
Gou Zhe glanced again in the direction of the household service robots, pausing for a few seconds. He then turned to Old Zhang and asked, "Director Zhang, are all the household service robots from the research center here?"
Old Zhang nodded. "They should be. Xiao Chen just did a headcount not long ago."
Gou Zhe stated sternly, "No, there should be one more household service robot."
Old Zhang looked bewildered, as he hadn't noticed anything of the sort. He simply called over Xiao Chen. "Xiao Chen, come here!"
Xiao Chen, who was busy explaining and coordinating with the police and staff, immediately trotted over upon hearing his boss's call. "Yes! Coming!"
Old Zhang said, "Xiao Chen, Mr. Gou mentioned one household service robot is missing. Please confirm."
Xiao Chen immediately counted the household service robots standing by. He then replied, "That's right. We brought six household service robots today. Look, one, two, three, four, five... six! There are exactly six right there."
"How many male and female?" Gou Zhe's expression grew serious.
"Three male household service robots and three female household service robots."
Not far away, three male and three female household service robots were indeed standing.
"Where are the others? Did anyone else bring their household service robot today? Anyone who appeared counts," Gou Zhe inquired cautiously.
Xiao Chen's gaze fell on the tall robot that was taking a cup from Wen Bai's hand. "Only Mr. Wen brought one. No one else did." Besides, who would always have their household service robot with them? Household, after all, was meant to be kept at home. However, that didn't apply to Mr. Wen in front of him. It was likely that household service robot held special significance for Mr. Wen; he'd even heard it saved his life.
Gou Zhe frowned and fell silent.
Wen Bai, overhearing their conversation, began to pay attention to the male lead, Gou Zhe. Wen Bai had personally seen the woman leave with a robot. He knew it was a robot because System 001 had identified it from the chatter in the crowd. When someone had asked a household service robot to deliver water, the woman had left, and the water-delivering household service robot had followed. In fact, neither Wen Bai nor System 001 had noticed the face of the person following the woman, let alone their eyes.
System 001 whispered in Wen Bai's ear, "Host, if that woman and the robot were not together, it's highly likely to be a rogue robot."
Wen Bai responded, "Mhmm."
Wen Bai hadn't been paying attention to the staff or the household service robots because his focus had been on the pastries bought by Director Li...
Meanwhile, Director Li, who was at the robot research center, had only gone out to buy a cup of the most popular milk tea nearby for Mr. Wen. How had the police arrived so quickly?
Director Li quickly gathered information and then hurried over to Wen Bai's side. "Mr. Wen..." He was out of breath.
Wen Bai, however, stood up and walked towards a different direction, putting distance between himself and the male lead, Gou Zhe. Director Li, seeing this, followed with keen observation.
Once Wen Bai was sure they were out of Gou Zhe's earshot, he said to Director Li, "Go find out the specific details about the woman involved in the incident, including her social connections..."
While Director Li couldn't guarantee other aspects, he was experienced in this area. He solemnly promised, "Mr. Wen, rest assured, I will handle this for you. I will do a good job."
Wen Bai nodded.
Everyone remained present; Wen Bai showed no intention of leaving. Knowing Gou Zhe's hidden identity, he was sure he would get involved in this matter.
Wen Bai returned to his seat and picked up the milk tea that Director Li had brought. Director Li, after handing the milk tea to Wen Bai, went aside to make a phone call.
Gou Zhe blinked in surprise when he saw Wen Bai return. He was still here? And not leaving? There had been a death here; weren't these wealthy individuals very superstitious about such things?
Not only was this area affected, but the entire street and adjacent areas were being questioned by the police. Soon, a police officer approached them.
Old Zhang whispered something to the officer, and after they finished speaking, he led the officer over. The police questioned Gou Zhe and Wen Bai in a standard manner. Knowing Gou Zhe's status as a top celebrity and Wen Bai's as a super-rich tycoon, and more importantly, that neither of them knew the deceased woman or moved in the same circles, the police concluded their brief inquiries. They indicated that they were finished with them. Old Zhang politely escorted the officers away.
Meanwhile, others around them were still being questioned in detail.
Gou Zhe's agent, Jiang Yue, visibly grew anxious after taking a few phone calls. They had already lost too much time due to this sudden event. If they delayed any longer, they might miss the evening's engagement. Gou Zhe was the main attraction. The high price paid to secure Gou Zhe also meant an exorbitantly high breach of contract penalty.
After a detailed explanation with Old Zhang, Jiang Yue informed Gou Zhe that they had to leave.
Before leaving, Gou Zhe stood up and brushed off imaginary dust from his clothes. He glanced at Wen Bai and the tall robot behind him, then prompted Wen Bai, "Mr. Wen, aren't you leaving?"
Wen Bai remained seated, took a sip of the milk tea bought by Director Li, and gestured towards the person speaking without directly answering.
Gou Zhe: "..."
Subsequently, Gou Zhe and his agent departed.