Chapter 64
Even so, the female reporter had to keep up appearances. She hid her true thoughts and gave a slightly stiff smile. “Hello, Miss Xu. My editor sent me to interview you.”
She slipped on her glasses one-handed and fixed Xu Chun with an utterly sincere look. “Could you spare me a moment?”
The woman was already here; Xu Chun couldn’t refuse her—not unless she wanted Tudou News to twist the facts and make black seem white the way only they could. Smiling faintly, she shot Zheng Yanran a reproachful look. Under Zheng Yanran’s slightly guilty gaze, she nodded politely. “Of course.”
Then she turned to the few teachers. “I’m truly sorry. I need to think it over first. Once I’ve decided, I’ll let Sister Yang know.”
The teachers nodded and, before leaving, didn’t forget to campaign for votes. By the time they’d all finally gone, ten minutes had passed.
The female reporter watched Xu Chun with wide, eager eyes, not rushing her but unable to hide the longing on her face. Xu Chun glanced at Zheng Yanran, who clearly knew she was in the wrong, then invited the reporter into her nanny van to escape prying eyes. The reporter cleared her throat. “Actually, I came because I got word that someone in your crew was just involved in a stabbing.”
“Rest assured, nothing has leaked online yet. It will soon, though.” She smiled faintly, her baby face naturally inspiring goodwill. “Miss Xu, I imagine you don’t want your fans to worry too much, do you?”
At first Xu Chun had thought there was no need to say much to someone from Tudou News, but on second thought, cultivating a good relationship with them couldn’t hurt. So she changed her attitude in an instant. “Ask whatever you want. I won’t hide anything I can tell you.”
She winked at the other woman. “Think of it as making a friend of a pretty lady.”
The reporter understood at once. She straightened, her expression turning serious. “Rest assured, I have strong professional ethics. I’ll report the facts truthfully, without adding a single ounce of false information.”
That was what she said, but Xu Chun knew people in this profession rarely spoke a word of truth. So she answered the reporter’s questions with a mix of truth and lies. On the surface, both wore smiles; underneath, they racked their brains trying to trip each other up. Zheng Yanran’s cheek twitched violently. The scheming between these two put together outnumbered even her mother’s.
She fixed a thoughtful gaze on the resourceful reporter and suddenly hit on the idea of poaching her and sending her to Jiang Banxia.
Jiang Banxia was in the early stages of starting her business and badly needed talent. Capital wasn’t an urgent need at the moment—and if it were, Zheng Yanran could just get some from her mother.
The reporter noticed the Zheng heiress appraising her with a speculative, utterly certain look, but paid it no mind. Her whole heart was on today’s performance. After confirming that everything Xu Chun had suffered today stemmed from a conflict within her family’s company, her eyes flickered. She was just about to jot down her ideas and plans when she felt a cold gaze land on her face.
“My family is currently bidding on several important projects. A young lady like you wouldn’t cut off someone’s livelihood and drive them to ruin, would you?”
A chill ran through the reporter’s heart, and the tip of her pen bled a blot of dark ink onto the paper. After a long moment, she smiled. “Of course not. Miss Xu has been so open with me. How would I dare betray her trust?”
“Good.” Xu Chun’s radiant smile returned, and in the most innocent, gentle tone she said the most chilling words. “Because if you go back on your word in the end”—she pointed at Zheng Yanran—“she’ll have a nice long chat with you about life.”
The reporter shuddered on the spot. Who in any circle hadn’t heard how difficult Zheng Yanran was? Weighing the pros and cons in a flash, she decided not to make an enemy of Xu Chun. “Rest assured. Once the article goes out through our company, everyone will surely love your kind, loyal, and generous aunt and uncle even more.”
Xu Chun was finally satisfied. Now that her parents had cut ties with Yang Xingyan and the others, they were at a critical stage of independent development. If Tudou News could be put to good use, it would give her parents wings; and the stronger they became, the more secure she would feel.
After politely seeing the reporter off, Xu Chun turned to Zheng Yanran. “What are you doing here?”
Hearing the unwelcome tone, Zheng Yanran’s eye twitched. “Obviously I came to see you.” With utmost sincerity, she said, “I haven’t seen you for days. I can’t eat, I can’t sleep, and I miss you so much that I barely have the strength to get out of bed each day…”
Xu Chun hurriedly rubbed away the goosebumps all over her body and cut her off. “If you’ve got something to say, say it. If you’ve got to fart, fart.”
Zheng Yanran choked. This person was truly cruel, heartless, and merciless. She had not an ounce of tenderness for a delicate flower like herself. But she knew this wasn’t the time to fool around. She put on a serious face. “Have you heard the rumors circulating online lately about Yu Sui’an’s background?”
“How would I know?” Xu Chun raised an eyebrow. “My phone’s only had internet for two days.”
Zheng Yanran was speechless.
“I keep feeling someone released this information at this particular time”—she paused—“to pave the way for officially revealing Yu Sui’an’s true identity.”
Zheng Yanran’s sixth sense was always accurate. Xu Chun fell into thought. The original novel had never mentioned Yu Sui’an’s true identity.
She stayed silent, and Zheng Yanran, thinking she knew something, asked directly. Xu Chun shook her head honestly. “I really don’t know.” Then she thought of Sheng Yigui and told Zheng Yanran, “You could ask around in B City next door. Yu Sui’an used to go to school there; if you can find her old classmates, you should be able to dig something up.”
“Especially a man named Sheng Yigui and his parents.”
Having gotten a rough direction, Zheng Yanran immediately picked up her phone and arranged for people to investigate. Once everything was arranged, she finally had the leisure to chat about this and that. “Do you know my mom and her friends have been talking about nothing but you lately?”
Xu Chun: “?” Why did she suddenly have a bad feeling?
Xu Chun didn’t particularly want to know, but Zheng Yanran was enthusiastic. “From their tone, they all seem to like you quite a bit.” She looked Xu Chun up and down. “Though if it were me, I’d like you too.”
“Your looks are first-rate, you’re famous, and you grew up in a decent family with no lack of manners. Whether kept at home for fun or taken out to negotiate business, you’d do just fine.”
Xu Chun: “???”
[Old subway grandpa looking at phone meme.]
Are all you city folk this twisted?
She couldn’t help but let out a “ho.” “Zheng Yanran, confess. Have you secretly cheated on Jiang Banxia and fallen for me instead?” She narrowed her eyes. “Well, well. I never thought you were that kind of person. I’m going to tell Jiang Banxia right now and get her out of this sea of misery before you leave her battered and broken…”
“Don’t, my dear sister!” Zheng Yanran hurriedly grabbed Xu Chun’s restless hand. “Just name any small request and I’ll agree to it, won’t that do?”
She was terrified Xu Chun would run to Jiang Banxia and spout nonsense. She already had a hard enough time pursuing the woman; if she lost her because of Xu Chun now, she’d cry herself to death.
Hearing what she wanted, Xu Chun immediately stopped struggling. “Good. Then help me keep an eye on that reporter and Tudou News. If the article they publish is unfavorable to my parents…” Zheng Yanran tactfully picked up the thread. “Rest assured, dear sister. I’ll take care of it.”
With that, she couldn’t help but sigh. “If your uncle and aunt really can cut off the past and rebuild their company, wouldn’t you attract even more bees?”
Zheng Yanran looked her up and down, her gaze less than innocent. Xu Chun immediately aimed a kick at her. “You pervert.”
Zheng Yanran jumped out of the van and ran. “I’m joking!” She glanced back as she jogged. “But you really should be careful that no one’s got their eye on you.”
Zheng Yanran was usually unreliable, but she’d come all this way and repeated those words twice before leaving, clearly because she had some inside information. Yet no matter how Xu Chun racked her brain, she couldn’t figure out who in this world besides a lunatic like Zhao Ciying could have their eye on her.
She couldn’t figure it out, so she stopped thinking about it.
When Xu Chun got out of the van, she happened to run into He Qingli. He Qingli watched Zheng Yanran’s fleeing figure in surprise and asked Xu Chun, “Did she cause trouble again?”
“Not this time.” Xu Chun’s gaze followed Zheng Yanran. “She’s just got an awfully annoying mouth, day after day.”
He Qingli couldn’t help but smile. She was deeply grateful to this good person who had lent Fu Xin a hand in her difficult time and given her enough room to shine. “Miss Zheng isn’t a bad person. She may seem unreliable on the surface, but she’s actually very kind.”
Xu Chun felt the same. “She just takes full advantage while President Zheng is out there fighting for the business.”
“Let’s go. Time to film.”
After the interview, the reporter quickly sent a preliminary draft back to the editorial department. Last time, even in a remote mountain village, the incident of Xu Chun and He Qingli falling ill and going to the hospital together had drawn considerable attention online; today’s attempted stabbing in a bustling town center sparked fierce online discussion in no time as well.
【What’s going on with this crew? Can’t they guarantee even basic safety for their actors while filming? How many times has something happened to a female actress now?】
【Hasn’t it always been unavoidable? With this kind of drama, you have to shoot on location to convey authenticity and visual quality. Otherwise the keyboard warriors would be the first to jump out and accuse Sister Xu and Lizi of being unprofessional.】
【Exactly. If they used green screens, Sister Xu would be the one getting cursed out in the end.】
【This was an accident too. Who’d have thought that in a society ruled by law, someone would dare commit a knife attack in broad daylight? But the crew has security, and Xu Chun has bodyguards, so basic safety is at least covered.】
...
As the incident drew more and more attention online, the crew had no choice but to issue a statement on Weibo. They didn’t shirk responsibility; instead, they solemnly promised to strengthen security and provide everyone with basic safety guarantees. This improved many people’s impression of the crew and raised their expectations for the drama itself.
After all, something made by a crew with decent integrity shouldn’t turn out too bad, right?
The crew hadn’t expected their statement to raise people’s expectations. Overjoyed, they quickly got to work on various remedial measures. Meanwhile, Tudou News seized the moment to swiftly release the reporter’s carefully edited interview.
Tudou News was already notorious for its past misdeeds. It had no shortage of followers across platforms, but they weren’t loyal fans. They were haters who loathed it.
They followed Tudou News purely to curse it out.
If it behaved itself and didn’t stir up trouble, fine; but the moment it dared to distort right and wrong and make waves, netizens would be the first to rush over and curse it to high heaven. Because of its track record, the instant Tudou News made a move, netizens flocked to the battlefield. When they saw the words 【Xu Chun】, they remembered the unfriendly things it had published about her before, and some impatient netizens immediately started furiously typing curses.
【Is there no end to this? Is there any agency that can shut down this vile media outlet? Causing trouble every single day and making the internet a toxic mess is extremely unhealthy for teenagers’ physical and mental development!】
【I knew that dog had been quiet so long because it was brewing something big. Sure enough, it’s set its sights on Sister Xu, trying to suck her blood and ride her popularity… Huh? Wait, what’s with Tudou News today? It actually didn’t slander Sister Xu.】
The first person to catch on was soon joined by other netizens and fans who had already sent curses and replies. They too realized something was off about Tudou News today.
They stopped typing without meaning to, and after patiently reading through the whole report, everyone had only one thought: “?”
Could Sister Xu have secretly bought out Tudou News behind their backs?
Otherwise, given Tudou News’s nature, how could it possibly publish such proper, truthful, and fair reporting? It was as absurd as the sun rising in the west.
More netizens, realizing that today’s Tudou News had reformed, recalled the words they’d just sent: 【...Sorry, my hands were faster than my brain.】
【That dog is really something. Its usual irritating behavior almost made me bring out the Italian cannon just now.】
【But is this news actually true? How did the matter with Sister Xu’s parents’ company involve Sister Xu? Even if her parents split from their partners, there’s no need for a knife attack, is there?】
【I’ve heard about this. Apparently President Xu and Mrs. Xu decided not to cooperate with President Xu’s friends anymore. One of them couldn’t take it and wanted revenge, hoping to make him bury his own child.】
【How vicious! With that kind of tolerance and magnanimity, President Xu was wise to stop cooperating with them!】
【And if what I’ve heard is true, President Xu was especially good to those friends. At first he helped them start their companies without sparing any effort or asking anything in return, then personally led them and taught them things until they found their footing. In the end, to preserve their friendship and relationship, he’d even sacrifice more of his own share on good projects so his brothers and friends could make big money and live well.】
【And they repay him like this? Ingrates.】
【Just like Yu Sui’an.】
The moment Yu Sui’an was mentioned, the direction of the comments shifted. Yu Sui’an’s fans rushed in and desperately argued with everyone, turning the comment section into a toxic mess.
But the Yu Sui’an of now was no longer the Yu Sui’an of before. Especially after her misdeeds were exposed time and again, everyone knew her true face and true character. So the moment her fans entered the fray, they were jointly cursed by everyone until they shrank back, not daring to reply.
This crowd was too fierce; they simply couldn’t out-argue them.
Yu Sui’an’s resources were poor now, and rumors of a ban circulated. Her fans had endured nothing but cold stares. Anxious yet helpless, they could only put up a stubborn front: 【Just you wait. Once Suisui’s several dramas air, we’ll see whether the people backing you get anxious!】
The more Yu Sui’an’s fans thought about it, the more reassured they felt. Their Suisui was the industry’s model worker; over the past year or so, she’d filmed a full five dramas. So whether or not the ban rumors were true, as soon as those pending dramas aired on satellite TV, their Suisui would immediately return to the top.
Not to mention, in four or five months, Suisui would have two dramas airing at the same time.
Of course, this was inside information they’d heard; no one else knew yet.
The drama Suisui and Xu Chun had filmed together wasn’t one they would watch anyway. The agency didn’t seem to be pinning its hopes on it either, so they were busily arranging for another of Yu Sui’an’s sweet little dramas to air at the same time, going head-to-head with Secret Crush.
If both Secret Crush and Suisui’s other drama performed well, it would all be credited to their Suisui. If Secret Crush performed poorly while Suisui’s drama did well, that would prove their Suisui had not only acting skill but also popularity and audience appeal. She could carry ratings.
By then Xu Chun would be utterly defeated, and they’d see how Xu Chun’s fans could still praise her to the skies.
The simplest, most intuitive way to judge an actor is by the traffic and popularity of her works.
Of course, Yu Sui’an’s fans wouldn’t easily leak this information. But Xu Wei, lurking in the fan group, had already gathered all the details and promptly wrote an email to Xu Chun’s agent, leaving it to the agent to devise a countermeasure and deal with these people properly.
Watching the fantasy and hope on their faces turn to disbelief and despair in an instant was simply too satisfying.
Xu Wei considered herself quite vindictive. She’d poured so much money into Yu Sui’an and suffered so much grievance; if she didn’t get it back with interest, she’d be letting herself down.
After all, she still owed Xu Chun a sports car. Xu Wei’s eyes darted as she realized she’d have to think of a way to squeeze some money out of Yu Sui’an to properly repay Xu Chun.
Xu Chun’s father hadn’t known about Yang Xingyan’s failed attack, but once Tudou News exposed it, all the aunts and uncles from every side started calling to ask about the situation. Hearing it, Xu Chun’s father flew into a rage. “He’s got a lot of nerve!”
After fuming for a while and dealing with the relatives, he suddenly calmed down. Seeing what Yang Xingyan had done today only made him more convinced that his current decision was correct.
It wasn’t just Yang Xingyan. There were also all those relatives the aunts and uncles had quietly slipped into the company. He had to find a way to root them all out and hand Xu Chun a complete, flawless company. After all... his greedy daughter had her sights set on Qin Yao!
He didn’t know if it would work out in the end, but he couldn’t let anyone look down on his daughter or think she was a toad dreaming of eating swan meat, delusional beyond hope.
Xu Chun’s father took a deep breath and quickly drew up a plan to thoroughly clean house inside the company.
Though the Xu Group couldn’t compare to a massive corporation like the Qin Group with its complicated personnel structure, their company had developed to this point and had no shortage of parasites. Like those managers who had vigorously pushed for cooperation with the companies of Yang Xingyan and the others... who knew how many kickbacks and benefits they’d secretly taken from them?
The more Xu Chun’s father thought about it, the angrier he got. And when he thought that the one who had caused all of this was himself, he felt like slapping his own face.
How many things had he done wrong, how much money had he lost, in those careless moments of the past? But thankfully it wasn’t too late. He still had time to make one more push.
As he pondered all this, Tang Shiyu gently reminded him, “It’s time to go.”
They had come to this city for a conference and to see if there were any good cooperation opportunities. After all, no one complains about having too many projects. But most people had their sights set on the currently flourishing Qin Group, as well as the Jiang and Zheng families who had appeared on the variety show, or at the very least the Jiang family. As for Zhao Ciying, she was tempting, but one had to weigh whether one could bear the consequences when she went mad.
So after weighing the pros and cons, many people focused their attention on Jiang Zhaolie.
After all, she had Qin Yao behind her and the Jiang family to support her. Even if there was no chance to cooperate this time, as long as they built a good relationship with her, there would surely be some small fish and shrimp slipping through for them to pick up.
Xu Chun’s father and Tang Shiyu had set their sights on none other than Jiang Zhaolie.
Precisely because Jiang Zhaolie had done that to their daughter, they should go and earn their enemy’s money into their own pockets.
When the two of them finished getting ready and arrived at the venue, Jiang Zhaolie came over to them on her own initiative, her words full of intent to cooperate. Xu Chun’s father couldn’t help but look at his wife. “?” A weasel wishing a chicken a happy new year. Nothing good could come of it?
Tang Shiyu was also uncertain. Just as the two were thinking about how to deal with Jiang Zhaolie, they saw Zheng Jinchan striding toward them, her gaze fixed straight on them, her purpose obvious.
And from another direction, Zhao Ciying’s figure slowly appeared, moving in their direction as well.
Seeing this, Tang Shiyu couldn’t help but exchange a look with Xu Chun’s father. They still didn’t know what these people wanted, but why did it feel like their daughter’s philandering had turned this into some battlefield of jealousy?
TL Note:
nanny van (保姆车) = luxury van used by celebrities for travel, rest, and styling between shoots.
Italian cannon (意大利炮) is an internet meme meaning to bring out heavy artillery, i.e., launch a fierce attack.
toad dreaming of eating swan meat (癞蛤蟆想吃天鹅肉) = a delusional ambition, especially someone of low status desiring someone far above them.
weasel wishing a chicken a happy new year (黄鼠狼给鸡拜年) = to have bad intentions behind a friendly facade.