Chapter 5
Ji Xiaoling had never dreamed that things would come to this point. She poked her phone screen hard and saw the questionable comments under the microblog, the bottom of her eyes crawling with red blood and breathing more and more sharply. In that instant, a delicate face became twisted and hideous, making one wonder where the beauty had gone.
The assistant sitting next to her dared not say anything. Watching Ji Xiaoling throw her phone out of the window, the assistant was furious in her heart but dared not speak out in anger.
“That bitch Meng Zhen, why does she have to go against me? Are you sure the editor cut out all the footage of the big wedding?”
The assistant secretly rolled her eyes. If it wasn’t for the good salary of Ji Xiaoling’s studio, she would have quit long ago. But now, she still patiently explained for the sake of money, “We have discussed with the director and scriptwriter and made some changes to the plot of that section, not exactly according to the plot of the novel, but there should be no problem. Besides, Meng Zhen has offended Yunlai Entertainment. Even if she clears her name, she will have no resources. Sis, you don’t need to take her to heart.”
At these words, as if she thought of something, Ji Xiaoling took out her own phone from her bag, and without consulting the studio or her assistant, she directly took a picture of the script, with the text.
【The original story is the original story, but the script is the script. There is no slapping in the big wedding scene.】
In all their years of living, netizens had never seen two female celebrities tearing each other up live. One by one, they were now holding up their melon seeds.
Meanwhile, Meng Zhen had finished practicing her basic gymnastics. Her pink, glossy cheeks were wet with a fine layer of sweat beads, her teenage skin slightly flushed from the exercise and friction. Her thick, voluminous black hair was up and tied in a pill head. Although it was obvious that she did not bother to dress up, she was nevertheless beautiful to the point people couldn’t take their eyes off her.
“Zhen Zhen, look at Weibo, someone has clarified for you!”
Lei Yin let out a loud wail, her puffy little face filled with excitement.
Meng Zhen picked up her phone and flipped through it. She also saw the clarification statement from “Favorite Bunny” and the fan group. Seeing that her fans were so protective of her, a warm current passed through her heart, and she liked the post before seeing Ji Xiaoling’s latest update.
After reading the tweet, Meng Zhen smiled coldly. She had known for a long time that Ji Xiaoling was not very smart, but she had never imagined that she was this stupid.
If she had the new modified script in her hand, how could she not have photos of the old script herself?
Meng Zhen didn’t want to leave her fans who were defending her alone, so she edited her Weibo and posted the photos of the old script she had saved on her phone. This was a choice Ji Xiaoling made on her own and no one else could be blamed for it.
【I’m not sure when the script was changed. I just filmed the scene according to the director’s request. In the novel, Murong Li’s own brother ended his own life because of the female lead so Murong Li slapped the female lead, which is also the reaction a normal person should have. I didn’t expect to become an abuser because of that.”
Hengdian Film and Television City is the largest film and television base in China, and there is surveillance in all indoor studios, so I request the crew to release the unedited surveillance content @You Feng Lai Yi TV series @Director Zhao Chuanzi.】
The A4 paper in the photo was filled with dense notes in highlighter, from the character’s demeanor to the surroundings, all of which had been carefully analyzed.
Meng Zhen, a star from the talent show, had been in the hot seat this year, and this, coupled with rumors of alleged bullying by the cast, had sparked a flurry of attention from passers-by.
These netizens originally thought that Meng Zhen had joined the cast just to muddle through, but they didn’t expect her to analyze the script so seriously. Not to mention her good acting skills, her serious attitude had won her a wave of goodwill.
The tweet had just been posted for less than 10 minutes, and it was already trending.
There were many die-hard fans who were so excited that they became speechless when they saw their idol’s post. But, there were also many keyboard warriors, who got money, continued to attack Meng Zhen, believing that this was a self-directed drama that she had put on just to make a hot topic.
The internet was divided into two schools of thought: one believed that Meng Zhen was innocent and that it was unfair to label her as a bully of the cast when she only performed according to the script designed by the scriptwriter; the others held the opposite view, saying that the script may have a slap scene in it, but actors usually performed those scenes in a borrowed position1Actors usually take those scenes from an angle that make them look like they hit the other person for real while in fact, they are just pretending to hit.. Meng Zhen must have deliberately made things difficult for Ji Xiaoling. If not, why would an actress who had always been known for being a nice person target a young idol many times?
Even though Meng Zhen and her fans had already posted screenshots of parts of the novel and script on Weibo, the stubborn netizens still didn’t believe them.
It was as if God had covered the curtain in front of their eyes, otherwise, how could those eyes not see the truth?
Some of the “hazelnuts” were so angry that they cursed, but there were many sensible adult fans who tried to avoid ruining Meng Zhens’s popularity.
The president of Meng Zhen’s support group, a well-known cartoonist, edited a tweet:
【Justice is in the hearts of the people.
If things are like what the crew of “You Feng Lai Yi” says, please ask them to release the surveillance video. We will send it to the appraisal to confirm if the video has been edited, and then the truth will be presented to you in full. If the crew doesn’t release the video, it can only explain one thing: Meng Zhen is wronged.
All of us “hazelnuts” believe that our favorite star is not that bad. The production team did not give an explanation to Meng Zhen, and the company simply blacklisted her. However, “hazelnuts” are willing to accompany their idol. As long as Meng Zhen is innocent, we will follow her all the time. 】
These words from the president of the fan group woke up many netizens, and many people who wanted to find out the truth had sent a message to the cast of “You Feng Lai Yi”, asking them to make a statement.
The “slapping incident” took place in Hengdian Film and Television City, and the actors and crew involved in the shooting that day all knew exactly what was going on, but for some reason, they didn’t come forward to testify.
The director, Zhao Chuanzi, was pacing back and forth in his hotel room, scratching his scalp, his black red face wrinkled together, obviously anxious to the extreme.
Seeing his appearance, the assistant director couldn’t help but advise, “It’s just something that happened between the actresses. It has nothing to do with you, so just release the original surveillance.”
“It’s so easy for you to say. Once the surveillance video is released, won’t it prove that Ji Xiaoling is lying? When Meng Zhen was scolded all over the internet, everyone in the crew was sweeping the snow in front of their doors. No one spoke up for her at all. What will the public think of us if we get hit in the face? What about “You Feng Lai Yi”?”
Although “You Feng Lai Yi” was only a web drama, Zhao Chuanzi had poured his heart and soul into this drama. He had been a director for so many years and could see the advantages of a script clearly. When he first received the novel “You Feng Lai Yi”, Zhao Chuanzi was in shock and expected that the content of the book would be a big hit when it was filmed.
In order to make more money, he even sold a suite in the suburbs of Beijing. If this web drama flopped, his fortune which he had worked for most of his life would be folded into it. Zhao Chuanzi could not afford such serious consequences so he was so worried.
“Meng Zhen’s fan group made it very clear that they would send the surveillance video for identification. If a fake video was released, the consequences would definitely be more serious.”
The assistant director also found it tricky, but when he saw Zhao Chuanzi’s face that had turned into pig’s liver color, he didn’t complain anymore about him doing something unkind. He just sighed.
“Forget it, I’ll call Meng Zhen. The girl is young. She might listen to the advice, let’s make the big things into small things to settle it.”
The assistant director had a good plan, but when he opened his phone’s address book, he realized he had no contact details for Meng Zhen.
As a newly debuted artist, she was under the strict control of her agency. Meng Zhen’s dealings with the crew were all done through her assistant.
The assistant director swore to himself and dialed the mobile phone number of Yunlai Entertainment’s assistant, “Xiao Xiao, send me Natalie’s contact information. I have something to discuss with her.”
Assistant Yu looked back at Yu Jing’s gloomy face and waited for her to agree before replying, “Okay, I’ll send Meng Zhen’s number to your WeChat right away. No trouble no trouble. Bye, Deputy Director.”
After the call hung up, Yu Jing slapped the table hard. The stinging pain from her palm aroused anger at the bottom part of her heart.
In Yu Jing’s opinion, Meng Zhen was the trash she didn’t want. It was really lucky that such a loser could have a chance to turn around.
“Sister Yu, don’t be angry. The company has already blacklisted Meng Zhen. Even if she clears her name, she won’t have the chance to act in movies in the future–”
“What do you know? Stars in the entertainment industry aren’t afraid of being scolded. What they’re afraid of is the lack of attention. If no one cares about a star’s news, then he wouldn’t have any commercial value. Now, Meng Zhen can even be in the hot search with a tweet, do you think she looks like she has no commercial value?”
Yu Jing was so angry that her face turned red. After more than ten years of smooth sailing in Yunlai Entertainment, this was the first time she had ever tasted frustration.
It’ll better be true as the assistant said, that Meng Zhen will never be able to film again. Let’s wait and see how things develop!
The assistant director got Meng Zhen’s mobile number and dialed it directly. As soon as the call was answered, he said bluntly, ” Meng Zhen, this is Assistant Director Zhou. I’m sure you’re aware of the controversy on Weibo. If there’s any problem, why don’t we sit down and talk about it? It’s better than hurting the peace.”
At the moment, Meng Zhen was standing on the balcony of her flat. The air quality in the capital was not good and the stars could not be seen at night, only the lights of the buildings across the street came into view.
The evening breeze whipped through the soft, broken hair. The young girl’s sneer seemed to be crushed by the wind, completely inaudible.
A breach of the peace?
So, in these people’s eyes, cyberbullying against a young girl was described as “peaceful”.
The original “Meng Zhen” was no longer there, but a soul from decades ago now resided in her body. Such a lively life, will the traces of her existence be erased after a good talk?
Meng Zhen watched her original body grow up to the age of eighteen. She suffered countless grievances and endured countless pains but only her fans would return her passionate and pure love, so she fell in love with filming and acting.
It’s a pity that she couldn’t change her fate after all.