Chapter 44
After Jiang Sining’s agent arranged for people to spread fabricated scandals about Qin Wen, the ominous feeling in his heart did not subside; instead, it grew stronger.
He stared at the name “Gu Xingshi,” and the more he looked, the more familiar it seemed.
Suddenly, something flashed in his mind. Before he could figure it out, his assistant called in a panic, “Brother Wu, someone online is exposing dirt on Brother Sining!”
Jiang Sining was unconcerned. “Is this your first day working with me? It’s just haters barking nonsense. Get someone to suppress it. Do you have to bring up such trivial matters?”
The assistant grew anxious. “This time it’s different! The one posting the dirt is that #10086!”
The agent’s face suddenly changed.
He finally remembered who Gu Xingshi was!!
But Jiang Sining was still oblivious to the gravity of the situation, impatiently asking, “What #10086? What nonsense are you talking about?”
The agent explained, “It’s that marketing account that exposes real scandals! People say the person behind it might be the police! It’s related to this Gu Xingshi!!”
As he spoke, he opened Weibo.
Sure enough, at a glance, he saw Jiang Sining’s name trending.
#JiangSiningBuysFanArmy
#QinWen’sScandalsWereReleasedByJiangSining
[I was wondering how Qin Wen, a newbie who just debuted, suddenly had so much dirt spread about him. Turns out a ‘top-tier’ star got involved!]
[Hahahahaha, is Jiang Sining losing it? Qin Wen’s supporting role is even more popular than his leading role!]
[Didn’t Jiang Sining say in an earlier interview that the two dramas should compete fairly? Is this what he calls fair?]
The agent clicked in and nearly cursed aloud.
Who clarifies rumors by directly exposing the hired trolls who spread them?!
Not to mention, they even revealed the companies behind the troll accounts. Do they have any sense of decency!!!
Fortunately, he reacted quickly. While having people calm the fans, he also pushed an assistant forward to take the fall.
Soon, Jiang Sining’s fans charged to the front lines.
[Don’t be ridiculous! What’s our Brother Sining’s status? Does he need to target a newbie who just debuted?]
[The agency has issued a statement. A junior assistant who is an anti-fan of Qin Wen acted under the company’s name. He’s been fired!]
[Our brother is innocent. The things Qin Wen’s haters did are being blamed on him. Truly, the more popular you are, the more trouble comes your way!]
*
Jiang Sining’s fans have always been fiercely combative. Seeing this, the agent breathed a slight sigh of relief.
But just then, #10086 posted on Weibo again.
This time, the exposé was about how, during a previous shoot, because the producer praised his stunt double for being handsome, Jiang Sining secretly tampered with the wires used for aerial stunts. This caused the stunt double to be seriously injured, losing his career and health, leading to years of hardship.
They even attached screenshots of the stunt double’s Weibo posts over the years as he tried to seek justice online, along with his account.
Immediately, many people flocked to it.
[This injury looks so serious! So pitiful! @JiangSining, are you even human?]
[The injury happened five years ago? I remember there was news back then saying Jiang Sining’s wire malfunctioned, and he was injured but still insisted on finishing the shoot. Fans even praised his professionalism. Turns out it was someone else’s blood and tears!]
[This is attempted murder!! If it’s true, then Jiang Sining is utterly lawless! Authorities, please investigate and punish severely!]
As soon as this exposé came out, even Jiang Sining was taken aback. He angrily shouted at his agent, “Didn’t you say you cleaned up all the loose ends and left no evidence?”
The agent was panicking too. “At the time, there was no evidence left! Otherwise, he wouldn’t have failed to get justice all these years!”
At this moment, the assistant hesitated, “Brother Sining, Brother Wu, the fan groups are all asking the company and Brother Sining to clarify this…”
“So what if he knows it’s true? Without evidence, what are we afraid of!” Jiang Sining said viciously. “Go and post a Weibo for me!”
Soon, netizens discovered that Jiang Sining had posted on Weibo, stating that the person was indeed his stunt double from back then, but the injury was purely an accident. Out of sympathy, he gave him a sum of money, and perhaps it was this money that gave him improper ideas. He had been pestering him all these years. Out of consideration for his injury, he had endured silently, but he didn’t expect him to become more aggressive. Now this matter has seriously affected his work and life, and he would no longer tolerate it. He would take legal action to clear his name.
He even swore at the end that if he had indeed committed any crimes, the police should come and arrest him immediately.
This statement was quite forceful.
Fans immediately became excited.
[I knew it! Our brother isn’t that kind of person. Always supporting the best Brother Sining!]
[Hahaha, I love this kind of strong response from our brother!]
[Didn’t you all say that #10086 is from the police? Why are you chickening out now! Our brother has said that if he really committed any crimes, let the police come and arrest him. What’s wrong? After spreading so much dirt, now you don’t dare?]
*
Besides Jiang Sining’s fans, many others stirred the pot, saying that #10086 just got lucky with a few real scandals but is essentially a hired troll backed by Leshi Entertainment.
Otherwise, why didn’t #10086 directly clarified the rumors about Qin Wen, but instead posted information about the fan army to divert attention?
When Gu Xingshi saw this, he was stunned. “Qin Wen has only debuted for such a short time, and he already has so many anti-fans?”
The system spoke softly, [They’re not Qin Wen’s anti-fans; they’re yours…]
“Mine?” Gu Xingshi asked.
“How is that possible? I always get along well with others.”
The system sighed. [Host, if you don’t need your conscience, you could donate it to someone who does. Think about it: since #10086 appeared, how many scandals have you exposed? How many people have you sent to jail? Do you know how many people hate you to the bone?]
Gu Xingshi righteously said, [I was merely fulfilling the duties of a law-abiding citizen. Even if we take a step back, if they ended up in jail so easily, weren’t they at fault?]
The system chose to give up.
As for these anti-fans of #10086, they didn’t care whether the dirt on Jiang Sining and Qin Wen was true or false. The only thing they wanted was to pull #10086 down from the pedestal and tear it apart.
It’s just that the previous scandals had all been proven true, and they had no grounds to argue.
But this time was different.
Jiang Sining’s strong response—didn’t it suggest that this scandal was fake?
For the anti-fans, as long as they could prove that #10086 wasn’t invincible, it meant they had found its weakness and could eventually drag them out from behind layers of anonymity and bring them to justice.
Watching the anti-fans attacking #10086, Jiang Sining and his agent felt quite pleased.
Jiang Sining said smugly, “I told you there’s nothing to worry about with this kind of thing! Just an online marketing account, and look how scared you were.”
The agent wiped the sweat from his forehead and was about to say something when the doorbell suddenly rang.
Thinking it was another takeout order Jiang Sining had placed, he opened the door, only to see a team of police officers.
The agent: “!!!”
Jiang Sining, hands in his pockets, sauntered over casually. “Who is it…”
“Are you Jiang Sining?” A police officer held up an arrest warrant. “Hello, we are—”
Before he could finish, Jiang Sining started shouting, “Even if I had people spread dirt about Qin Wen, that’s just defamation. What right do you have to arrest me!!”
The police officer looked puzzled. “Who said you’re being arrested for spreading rumors?”
Jiang Sining glared, “Then what is it! Did that #10086 send you to arrest me!”
Police officer: “?”
He had to reopen the arrest warrant. “Look carefully. You are being arrested for suspected tax evasion.”
Jiang Sining: “!!!”
The agent hurriedly opened his phone and discovered that, indeed, two minutes ago, #10086 had posted a new Weibo, precisely about Jiang Sining’s tax evasion.
The agent’s face turned ashen with regret.
Who else coordinates an exposé with the police arriving at the same time!
Such seamless coordination—is the police station owned by you!!!
They just wanted to force Qin Wen out of the industry, but #10086 wanted them destroyed!!
If they had known that #10086 had such deep connections and was so ruthless, why did they provoke them in the first place!!
But now, it was too late for regrets.
*
Online, the anti-fans were still attacking #10086, unaware of the latest development. Just then, a paparazzo suddenly posted several photos.
Although somewhat blurry, it was still clear that the person being escorted into a car by the police was Jiang Sining.
The paparazzo explained that the photos were taken near Jiang Sining’s company and were absolutely authentic.
However, they only captured him being taken away, without knowing the reason.
As soon as this news broke, the internet was in an uproar.
[What the! Jiang Sining just said that if he committed any crimes, let the police come and arrest him. Did it come true so quickly?]
[Hahahahaha, I’ve heard of ‘asking for proof and getting it,’ but now there’s ‘asking to be arrested and getting arrested.’ The entertainment industry keeps refreshing my understanding every day.]
[I just love how Boss #10086 never lets a slap in the face wait overnight. It’s very friendly to my health!]
[Where are Jiang Sining’s fans now? Why aren’t they coming out to say their brother is innocent? Dog Head Emoji]
[Didn’t you all clamor for the boss to provide evidence? What evidence is stronger than the police personally coming to arrest someone? Or do you have to wait until the official announcement confirms your brother’s guilt before you believe it?]
[Haha, to the prophet above—I just visited Jiang Sining’s fan forum, and they still don’t believe it. Some even say he’s filming a drama. I’m dying of laughter. So the police are cooperating in filming just to let paparazzi take pictures?]
[Never mind, let them continue deceiving themselves for a bit longer. Given how quickly the police showed up, I think the official announcement isn’t far off.]
Sure enough, not long after, an official notice about Jiang being investigated for tax evasion appeared among the trending topics.
[Hahahahaha, thumbs up for the police’s efficiency!]
[I also heard that the police are investigating the stunt double’s injury from a few years ago. Apparently, they’ve found some evidence. Jiang Sining’s agent confessed everything to earn leniency. If he’s convicted of intentional injury, Jiang Sining might end up making license plates in prison~]
[Truly, the net of justice is vast and spares no one! Salute to the responsible police officers! And a big shout-out to Boss #10086 for revealing the truth!]
*
This news hit like a bolt from the blue for Jiang Sining’s die-hard fans and the anti-fans of #10086.
The haters of #10086 completely lost their composure.
But they wouldn’t admit they were wrong and continued to spew curses under #10086’s Weibo posts.
However, not long after, #10086 shared a news article.
The article reported that the Wujin City Public Security Bureau, in cooperation with other provincial and municipal police departments, launched a “Clean Internet” operation to crack down on illegal activities like selling celebrities’ personal information, as well as on water armies and haters disrupting the online environment.
Due to the large number of people involved, it took until now for the case to conclude.
The haters: “!!!”
“This is a threat!!
A blatant threat!!!
#10086, aren’t you always exposing celebrity scandals? What is the meaning of this!
We’re just engaging in some online trash talk; you actually want us to go to jail! That’s too much!
Even so, many haters began deleting their abusive comments while still cursing. Some, feeling guilty, even directly deactivated their accounts.
Their behavior made the onlooking netizens burst into laughter.
[Hahaha, I’m dying here. These sewer rats were so arrogant before. Now that the boss just shared a Weibo post, they’ve tucked their tails between their legs!]
[Aaaaah, they actually caught these toxic individuals! The police are awesome! Boss #10086 is awesome too!!]
[Thinking about how my favorite actress was supposed to attend the Hong Kong-Macau Film Festival, but her information was leaked and her flight was tampered with, causing her to miss it. She was so looking forward to possibly winning an award and had prepared so much, but it all came to nothing. Even now, she feels bad when mentioning it. We fans have hated those who leaked her information! Finally, justice has been served! Waaaah!]
[Same here! My favorite idol had a stalker fan buy the seat next to him. Not only did they take close-up photos, but they also tried to grab his mask, nearly scratching his face. Thinking about it makes me so angry I could scream!!]
[Hahahahaha, haters asked for proof and got proof! Come on, show us what other tricks you’ve got up your sleeves. I want to see how many more official notices we’ll get today!]
[Police announcements are popping up like cabbages, hahaha. #10086’s identity as police is confirmed now!]
[Boss #10086 is the real Disciplinary Committee of the entertainment industry.]
*
At Wen Corporation, Wen Yue closed the file in his hand and asked, “What’s the current situation?”
Tang Ling reported, “Everything is going smoothly. Southern Film and Huanyang Capital behind Jiang Sining haven’t realized that you were just using him as a point of entry. We’ve caught them off guard.”
After hearing this, Wen Yue paused.
He had been eyeing Southern Film and Huanyang Capital for a long time. This time, he leveraged Jiang Sining’s tax evasion to draw them in, but based on his understanding of them, they shouldn’t have been this careless.
Thinking of this, he looked up and asked, “Did something else happen?”
Tang Ling nodded, opened #10086’s Weibo page, and handed it over, saying, “Netizens seem to think this was done by this account, which has perfectly covered our tracks.”
“This account has always been speaking up for LeShi Entertainment’s artists. This time, since Jiang Sining fabricated slander first, it provoked his retaliation, which coincided with our actions. It should just be a coincidence.”
As Wen Yue listened, he browsed through Weibo.
In his mind, the image of Gu Xingshi emerged clearly.
“President Wen?” Tang Ling asked.
Wen Yue snapped back to reality and continued with the subsequent arrangements as if nothing had happened.
Professional, calm.
No different from usual.
Tang Ling breathed a sigh of relief; perhaps President Wen spacing out earlier was just his own imagination.
After everything was handled, Tang Ling was about to leave.
Wen Yue suddenly called out to him, “Isn’t the Golden Lily Awards coming up?”
The Golden Lily Awards is one of China’s three major television awards, held annually—a grand event in the TV drama industry.
Tang Ling was momentarily stunned but quickly thought of Secrets of the Six Doors.
Although this drama isn’t produced by their company, as a major investor, if it wins awards, it would be greatly beneficial to them.
Thinking of this, he quickly said, “Yes, President Wen. Director Gao and his team have already submitted their applications.”
Unexpectedly, Wen Yue asked, “I heard the competition for this year’s Best Newcomer Award is quite fierce?”
Tang Ling was taken aback again.
Wait, their company doesn’t have anyone participating in the Best Newcomer category this year! Why is President Wen suddenly asking about this?
But as a diligent assistant, he still answered earnestly, “Yes, it’s like this every year. The newcomers are all about the same level; it mainly depends on how much effort their companies put in.”
“About the same?” Wen Yue thought.
But not necessarily this year.
Wen Yue remembered that the newcomer under Gu Xingshi seemed to have performed exceptionally well.
Moreover, he recalled that when Sun Hongfei reported his work, he mentioned Gu Xingshi several times, praising his responsibility and integrity, noting that he never engaged in shady practices.
If, due to an unfair competitive environment, his artist lost his only chance at Best Newcomer, who knows how disappointed he would be.
Besides, although #10086 helped them inadvertently, repaying Gu Xingshi would be appropriate.
Thinking of this, he said, “I recall that the Golden Lily Awards wanted to increase sponsorship before; we can agree, but the only requirement is that this year’s selection must be fair and just.”
“Uh?” Tang Ling was surprised.
Wen Yue asked calmly, “Is there a problem?”
Tang Ling hesitated for a moment.
Requesting fairness is indeed something President Wen would say.
But the Golden Lily Awards have nothing to do with them, and President Wen usually doesn’t do things without a clear benefit!
However, under Wen Yue’s indifferent gaze, Tang Ling swallowed his doubts. “No problem, President Wen.”
He left the office feeling utterly bewildered.
Still, he couldn’t ignore President Wen’s orders.
After pondering, he decided this matter had to be entrusted to someone discreet and reliable.
Thinking of this, he took out his phone and called Sun Hongfei.
After listening, Sun Hongfei sighed inwardly.
President Wen truly cares deeply for President Gu, always watching over him.
Whether it was the earlier [Boy Group Training Camp] or now the Golden Lily Awards, where’s the “fairness” in this? It’s clearly “favoritism”!
He immediately said, “Understood, Assistant Tang. I’ll take care of it right away.”
Tang Ling was puzzled. “Wait, don’t you think it’s strange?”
“What’s strange?” Sun Hongfei asked, perplexed.
“I mean… don’t you find it odd?” Tang Ling pressed.
“Not at all,” Sun Hongfei replied matter-of-factly.
“…” Tang Ling was speechless.
Why do I feel like everyone is hiding something from me?!
*
Meanwhile, Gu Xingshi was still worried about the Golden Lily Awards.
In terms of ability, Qin Wen definitely had no problem.
But he also knew that such awards didn’t solely depend on the actor’s talent; company resources, public opinion, and even judges’ biases could all have an impact.
But these were precisely his shortcomings.
When Qin Wen was on set, he heard Director Gao talk about this award. As the highest honor for TV dramas, it carried significant prestige.
Moreover, the Best Newcomer Award could only be applied for during one’s first TV drama. If missed, there would never be another chance.
Qin Wen indeed desired it, but he also knew that winning this award required giving up many things.
Even someone as capable as President Gu was worried; it showed how difficult it was.
Thinking of this, he said to Gu Xingshi, “President Gu, maybe let’s forget about it?”
“Forget it?” Gu Xingshi replied.
Qin Wen pressed his lips together. “I can build my reputation one role at a time. As for winning awards, let’s leave it to fate.”
There was no trace of unwillingness on Qin Wen’s face.
But Gu Xingshi knew that as an actor, who wouldn’t want to win awards? It’s professional recognition and proof of one’s talent.
Qin Wen said this just to comfort him.
He was so considerate that it made one feel a bit sad.
Gu Xingshi made up his mind. “No way. What’s yours is yours. You’ve done your very best; the rest falls under the agent’s responsibilities. Leave it to me!”
“President Gu…”
But Gu Xingshi had already shooed him off to attend classes.
First, Gu Xingshi sought out Liang Wenjun. As a top agent in Beijing with numerous big names under her wing, she agreed without hesitation after being asked by Gu Xingshi.
That evening, many well-known actors posted on Weibo praising Qin Wen’s acting skills, including several previous Best Actor and Best Actress winners of the Golden Lily Awards.
That’s not all; soon after, Best Actress Yuan Qingqing also posted on Weibo.
[Recently, I’ve been watching Secrets of the Six Doors. This drama really surprised me, especially the actor who plays Yu Changyan, @Qin Wen. His acting is quite stunning. I hope we have the opportunity to collaborate.]
As soon as this was posted, it shot up to the trending topics.
Several of Yuan Qingqing’s friends interacted with her under the post.
[Rare to see you praise someone, hahaha. But this kid’s acting is indeed good.]
[Collaboration, huh? Count me in.]
[Young actors these days are incredible. The new generation is pushing us forward!]
[Wow, wow!! So many big names—I think I’m about to faint.]
[Aaaaah, it’s Brother Wei! Could some director please see this? I want to see Sister Qing, Brother Wei, and Little Qin Wen act together. Please!]
[Qin Wen now has half the entertainment industry acknowledging his acting skills, hahaha.]
[This lineup is unbeatable!!]
*
Originally, the competition for this year’s Best Newcomer Award at the Golden Lily Awards was quite chaotic.
After all, several newcomers were from big companies and had fan bases, though their acting skills were debatable.
They were all competitors of similar caliber, each wanting to win the award to outshine the others.
So they hurled slander at each other, and fan wars ensued, creating endless chaos.
Who knew that with Qin Wen’s endorsements coming out, they suddenly fell silent, and Weibo became much calmer.
Only some uninformed fans were still fighting for their idols.
But some clear-sighted bystanders sharply commented: [If you can’t beat him with slander and can’t surpass his acting skills, what’s the point? Might as well give up~]
Thanks for the chapter!
Thank you for the chapter!