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to want nothing more than to leave, but he held her back firmly. "Tell me what Han Bi said! If you're disappointed with me, give me the chance to explain. It's not fair for you to judge me so harshly....Step by Step Heart 722

Moyao asked, "Is there something"

Moxiaobai waved his hand and smiled, saying, "It's not really a big deal. It’s just a movie I took on initially but now I don't want to act in anymore. They said they would sue me if I didn’t show up for the shoot soon, and there are also several contracts. These are trivial matters."

Moyao frowned, "Once you sign a contract, you should fulfill it. This is irresponsible."

Moyao hated people who were irresponsible, but he knew Moxiaobai wasn’t one of them; indeed, Moyao heard Moxiaobai protesting his innocence: "Boss, I am truly innocent! I didn't expect the female lead to be suddenly replaced by the producer's girlfriend. He wants me to promote his woman Let him dream on. And it’s not like I’ve slept with her and made a fool of myself."

The real issue was that he had great chemistry with another actress, whom they'd collaborated with many times and who was experienced. Suddenly replacing her with someone new was asking too much, even for the sake of friendship.

It was so underhanded.

When he originally took on the contract, there were conditions that his friend should be the female lead; now the investor had replaced her because she allegedly didn’t conduct herself properly. He wasn't unfamiliar with this tactic either and found it immature to pull off in front of him. It irritated him to look at, so he simply ignored it. As for acting in the film Not a chance.

Work not going smoothly Simply back out then; much better that way.

Moyao pursed his lips and seemed deep in thought. He had already heard Moxiaobai's explanation, but thinking he hadn’t understood it the first time around, Moyao shook his head suddenly and asked Moxiaobai, "Xiaobai, do you remember who you are"

He didn't look at Moxiaobai. The afternoon light faintly illuminated Moyao’s bloodless face; there was a startling pallor about him like translucent sunlight, making Moxiaobai feel a chill and not quite understand what Moyao meant.

Do you remember who you are

How could he not remember who he was He was... Mu Baixiao suddenly paled, looking at Mu Yao with a hint of panic. "Brother, are you angry with me"

Mu Yao squinted his eyes. Even though he was seriously injured and pale, his spirit still seemed sharp as an eagle in the vast desert, very dangerous and terrifying.

"I'm just confused about where exactly you position yourself."

"Boss, I know what I’m doing," Mu Baixiao's explanation was weak and he seemed lost. Although Mu Yao never spoke loudly to him, his calm tone made Mu Baixiao feel afraid.

This world had only two people who could make him feel fear: Ye Wei and Mu Yao.

Mu Yao said, "No, you don’t know what you're doing. You take on two or three films a year; they occupy almost your whole year. Only when you have free time do you care about the mafia's affairs. This confuses me: are you part of the Mu family or an international star I once had the illusion that you didn't really care about the mafia, and it seemed insignificant to you. Your career is in Washington, within the entertainment industry. Otherwise, how would I explain your dedication"

"I do care about the mafia’s affairs, but..." Mu Baixiao was at a loss as to how to explain his current anxious feelings; he felt cornered by Mu Yao into admitting his negligence and irresponsibility.

He could not refute any of it because that was exactly the case.

A sense of frustration welled up inside him. "You always handle everything so well, with you, Xiao Gege [little brother], and Jie [sister]. It seems I’m unnecessary; even if I'm not in the mafia, all these matters will be taken care of without me..."

Mu Yao suddenly turned his head. The pain from his injury when he moved sharply was unbearable but did nothing to dampen his anger. His gaze locked onto Mu Baixiao like an eagle’s, terrifying and piercing him with a sense that every bit of flesh would be stripped away, leaving only bones. Even Mu Baixiao, who feared no one, felt fear in the face of this gaze; such eyes were rarely seen from Mu Yao.

After his anger, came disappointment.

His eyes were dark and deep like an endless abyss, with a heavy wave of coldness that turned into bone-deep disappointment. Mu Baixiao was shattered by the look in Mu Yao's eyes; he almost immediately wanted to admit his mistake and apologize for saying such heartless words, but Mu Yao’s gaze silenced him, choking off all sound at his throat.

"Get out!" After a long while, Moyao spoke in a heavy voice for two words. His chest rose and fell sharply, with veins bulging on his forehead. Mo Xiaobai almost cried out loud in front of him. He knew that he had truly infuriated the big boss, yet he couldn’t even bring himself to apologize. What hurt him most was the disappointment from Moyao like a cross weighing heavily on his body, leaving him motionless. Mo Xiaobai felt wronged and heartbroken, caught off guard...

The thing he feared the most was disappointing his family. His brother and sisters were all so outstanding; since childhood, he had always been the one with the worst aptitude among them. When it came to intelligence, he couldn’t match Wushuang; in terms of martial skills, he wasn’t as good as Moyao; when it came to intellect, he fell short compared to Mo Chen. But he still tried his best to keep up and not hold anyone back. He strove to become stronger so that he could live up to being the son of Ye Wei and Mo Jue.

Childhood playfulness gradually disappeared as he grew up, turning into a profound and harsh reality. In front of his most outstanding brother, sisters, parents, and uncles, Mo Xiaobai felt unprecedented pressure.

The people around him were all so powerful; therefore, he had to be strong too. This was an unconscious thought in his mind. He didn’t want to admit defeat, whether it was at the bottom of every test from childhood or adolescence—though not by much—he always felt like something was missing. His siblings would run ahead and leave him no choice but to look up and chase after them nonstop.

As he grew older, this feeling only intensified...

He didn’t know when exactly he started harboring such self-destructive thoughts, leading him to spend more time in his entertainment career. He also had no idea what he was trying to prove by doing so.

"Brother..."

"Get out!" Moyao’s voice was colder than ever before, leaving Mo Xiaobai no chance to explain. Under Moyao’s icy gaze, Mo Xiaobai reluctantly left the room. He could argue with Moyao, but he couldn’t articulate the profound inferiority and dissatisfaction buried deep in his heart.

He had once complained and felt lost, yet nobody seemed to understand him. Gradually, he closed off his heart.

Moyao was beyond furious; this anger wasn’t directed at Mo Xiaobai but rather at himself. Initially hearing what Mo Xiaobai said made him very angry. If it weren’t for the fact that he had been injured, he would have punched Mo Xiaobai right then and there. Over the years, everything they had given to him seemed distorted in his eyes; he couldn’t fathom how Mo Xiaobai could harbor such terrifying thoughts.

He never mentioned that Xiaobai was very optimistic and positive. He wouldn’t tell you if something upset him. In front of others, he always appeared cheerful and full of vitality, like a source of joy to everyone around him.

He had no idea that Xiaobai harbored such heavy burdens in his heart.

How could he have such a foolish thought, thinking everyone would be fine without him What made him think that way Mo Yao felt icy cold all over. In his hazy state of mind, there was a sense of perception that it seemed like the first time he entered Mo Xiaobai's heart. To put it more accurately, this was perhaps the first time Mo Xiaobai had openly expressed his feelings. If not for him questioning him so directly, maybe he would never have known about these thoughts in Xiaobai’s mind.

After all those years as brothers and after loving him for such a long time, he overlooked even Xiaobai's pride and self-respect carelessly. He treated himself like an iron man, taking on everything by himself without letting anyone else help, not wanting Xiaobai to get his hands dirty with blood or bear the burden of killing.

Xiaobai's heart was the cruelest among them four but also the most compassionate. This complexity always puzzled him and Wu Shuang; how could someone be so merciless yet at the same time sympathetic towards others

He clearly remembered Xiaobai’s first kill, when he couldn’t sleep for a whole night and went back to bury the victim properly, burning his own clothes as offerings. After each kill, he would remain unhappy for some time. Once, he killed a husband and wife but took care of their six children, another time he killed siblings but helped them show filial piety to their parents. There were many such instances… He was indeed compassionate.

Yet when they received orders to eliminate someone, Xiaobai wouldn’t spare even an infant wrapped in swaddling clothes, putting a bullet through its head without causing it any pain or suffering before sending it off to the afterlife, regardless of whether that child had just been born and knew nothing.

It was hard for him to comprehend such a complex Xiaobai; compassion was rare in their world since everyone carried their own dirtiness.

Xiaobai once said he could kill but would never harm an innocent person, or his conscience would be plagued forever.

Because of this, Mo Yao often stopped him from doing things that would get blood on his hands, shouldering the burden himself. This was too harsh for Xiaobai.

He gradually realized it was precisely because he indulged him so much and thought he was doing what was best for Xiaobai that led to these thoughts in Xiaobai’s mind. His intention had been to protect him well, but he never expected it would cause such a heavy psychological burden.

This was his mistake.

It was his pampering and indulgence that made Xiaobai so high up there, without heart or conscience, carefree and unrestrained in this world. It was him who made Xiaobai bury the pain and resentment deep down, enduring despair and suffering, even taking on the pain of being ostracized as their source of amusement.

Now he questioned why Xiaobai acted so heartlessly and recklessly; wasn't that rather laughable me killing people on your behalf. How can you be unwilling to spend such a small amount"“Who said anything about money I’ve never done something like this!” Long Chengtian roared, grabbing the bag wi...