Chapter 66

A drama crew a thousand miles away.

Song Linchuan got off work a little late and was on his way back to the hotel when he saw Pei Kuang's message. Without thinking twice, he immediately called him.

"What's your problem? I don't have a sister," Song Linchuan said, puzzled. "I can't get into character to answer you."

Pei Kuang's eyes flickered. "Then what if it was your auntie instead?"

As soon as Song Linchuan heard this, he got excited, as if he was about to crawl out of the phone line.

"Who confessed to my auntie? Huh? Which punk was it? Where is he?"

Seeing his strong reaction, Pei Kuang was stunned for a moment, then couldn't help but hold his forehead. "No one did. I said 'what if,' hypothetically!"

He definitely couldn't let Song Linchuan know about Jing Fan confessing to Song An'an.

Otherwise, the girl would think he was a tattletale.

Song Linchuan breathed a sigh of relief. "You scared me. I thought someone had confessed to my auntie."

He switched hands to hold the phone, very puzzled. "Why are you hypothesizing in the middle of the night? You're bored, huh?"

Pei Kuang avoided the main issue. "It's nothing. I ran into some trouble and was a little confused."

Song Linchuan said "Oh," and went back to WeChat. He looked again at Pei Kuang's message:

"What would your first reaction be if you saw your sister being confessed to by a boy?"

He didn't have a sister, but if it was his auntie instead...

"My first reaction would definitely be freaking out. No matter what, I'd have to meet the punk who dared make moves on my auntie!"

Pei Kuang paused, then asked, "What if you knew he was outstanding?"

Song Linchuan scoffed. "You clearly don't get it. No matter how outstanding, I'd still find faults to pick on.

When someone tries to steal your cabbage, who cares about all that?"

Hearing this, Pei Kuang suddenly fell silent.

Song Linchuan didn't rush him either. Normally, he might have wondered about Pei Kuang's motive for the question. After all, such a leading question would make anyone ponder.

But this afternoon, when Pei Kuang first got in trouble, Song Linchuan had called him right away. Pei Kuang briefly explained some things, including his relationships with Zhang Man, Xie Yin, and him, but didn't go into too much detail.

Song Linchuan had a wild imagination. Seeing Pei Kuang's message, he associated it with Pei Kuang's relationship with Xie Yin.

Sister? First reaction to being confessed to?

He roughly knew what trouble Pei Kuang had run into.

"What if it was a girl you liked who got confessed to by someone else?" Pei Kuang asked after a pause.

Song Linchuan frowned.

He hesitated for a good while before responding, "I'd probably be on pins and needles, afraid she'd say yes."

This time, neither spoke again. Neither hung up, but they were clearly both lost in their own thoughts.

After another few minutes, Pei Kuang lightly sighed and asked, "Linchuan, what do you think of me?"

Song Linchuan was startled.

They had been good friends for years and knew each other well. Outwardly, Pei Kuang looked modest, but was actually quite proud inside. Of course, his pride was well-deserved.

'What do you think of me?' This kind of question fishing for praise had never occurred to Song Linchuan that Pei Kuang would ask. But considering what had happened today, it made sense. Being hurt like this by family would make anyone's composure crack.

"Let me put it this way. My dad always said I was arrogant. Of all the people in the world, those I genuinely look up to are few. But you, Pei Kuang, are one."

"Anyway, you've got the looks, the capability, good character, decent temper... "

It was rare for Song Linchuan to sincerely praise someone. After praising him, he cringed at his own cheesiness.

Of course, he didn't forget to brag at the end. "I won't say more. Overall, you're just a bit worse than me."

Pei Kuang was silent for a few seconds before laughing softly. "Alright, I got it."

Song Linchuan raised his eyebrows. He had praised him so much, yet this was his reaction?

"What are you laughing at? What do you get?"

Pei Kuang's eyes crinkled in amusement. "I really didn't expect you to think so highly of me."

"It was a bit cheesy though."

Song Linchuan: "..."

Jerk!

He shouldn't have been soft-hearted.

The two chatted a while longer before hanging up. Before they did, Pei Kuang still reminded Song Linchuan not to get involved online, as it was never a good thing and would only attract trouble.

"Too late to tell me not to take sides online!" Song Linchuan said. Pei Kuang was surprised. "What did you say?"

Song Linchuan was nonchalant. "Right before calling you, my auntie posted a Weibo supporting you. I liked it."

After hanging up, Pei Kuang went on Weibo and found Song An'an's post.

@AuntieSongAn'an: I believe you. @PeiKuang

The girl didn't understand anything about taking sides in the entertainment industry or weighing pros and cons. She only knew that when someone she trusted was misunderstood, she had to stand by him.

Pei Kuang put down his phone, thinking back to the confirmation from Song Linchuan earlier. His emotions were complex, but it was mostly joy.

He leaned back on a recliner on the balcony, gazing at the night sky, his thoughts wandering.

During the time Jing Fan confessed, he had waited under that tree, anxious the entire time, and even had the urge to go interrupt multiple times.

It wasn't until Song An'an said "I'm sorry" that he finally relaxed completely.

To Pei Kuang, this was already enough to explain everything, but he still cautiously called Song Linchuan to confirm.

Thinking back now, his abnormal behavior these past days had shown signs.

At first, he had treated her as a sister. When exactly did that change? Even he couldn't say clearly.

That night, Pei Kuang stood on the balcony blowing the cool breeze all night, in an unusually good mood.

-

Li Dong acted quickly. As a veteran manager, he naturally knew the most appropriate way to release the information they had.

First, he found the marketing accounts they had collaborated with before to expose the relationships between Pei Kuang, Zhang Man, and the Xie family.

Then, through the direction of internet water armies, he revealed Pei Kuang and Xie Yin's romantic relationship from two years ago.

Although not too detailed, he emphasized that this matter was originally Zhang Man's idea, and she had actively approached Pei Kuang to make it happen.

Of course that wasn't enough. They also leaked through so-called insiders that Xie WenTao had racked up huge gambling debts.

And thus inferred that the reason Zhang Man had suddenly come out with so-called exposés was likely because she wanted Pei Kuang to fill the hole in their debts but was refused, leading to her extreme behavior.

Connecting all these matters, although Pei Kuang and his agency hadn't released any statements, public opinion online had shifted.

Everyone's focus immediately moved, and with a little imagination, they basically guessed the crux of the matter.

[Holy crap! Is this real? Pei Kuang's mom is unbelievable, she actually ruined her own son's future for her stepdaughter!]

[I know, I was wondering why his mom suddenly came out exposing her own son. Now it makes sense.]

[Speechless. Pei Kuang must have done evil in his past life to run into a mom like this.]

[No wonder I always thought something was off about Pei Kuang and Xie Yin's romance from two years ago.]

[Right, the only one who benefited from start to finish was Xie Yin. Pei Kuang's career was almost ruined. Looking back now, the whole thing seemed suspicious!]

[Speaking of which, wasn't Pei Kuang being a bit cold by not giving them some money? After all, she's still his mother.]

[Why should he? Using your son's money to fill holes for your current daughter, something's wrong with her brain.]

[Haha, here's another Leshan Giant Buddha!]

[I know, some people really can be shameless, only seeing things from their perspective. Standing there lecturing with no skin in the game!]

[Wahhh, my heart hurts for my brother. He debuted at 15. What was the Xie family and his mom doing back then? And now they want to reap the rewards?]

[Hehe, Pei Kuang is obviously trying to divert attention. No one really cares about your family affairs. Please respond to the drug abuse allegations and don't try to gloss over it.]

[Yes, I was just about to say, you've been silent for so long, you must feel guilty! This is a matter of principle. Please don't fans, otherwise you are letting down all the anti-drug police who sacrificed themselves.]

...

After the incident had fermented for a while, Li Dong felt the timing was right and immediately had the studio issue a statement.

The statement was simple, just the two words "statement", plus three evidentiary materials issued by the relevant authorities.

One was a certificate showing no history of drug abuse, one showing no criminal facts, and one was a hair test report, all stamped with the seals of the relevant authorities.

Of course, some people still questioned the authenticity of these three certificates.

Soon, relevant media contacted the authorities who had issued the certificates, and they all gave affirmative replies without exception.

When things developed to this point, Pei Kuang was completely cleared of suspicion.

Considering Pei Kuang's father's affairs, Li Dong did not disclose it to the outside world. With the previous foreshadowing of Zhang Man, people naturally assumed that the second piece of information he exposed was deliberately poured dirty water and was not credible.

Of course, there were still a few black fans who clung to this point and clamored for Pei Kuang to explain it clearly. They adopted an ignore strategy for this.

But as the incident fermented, some people who knew the inside story spoke out online about what had happened that year. This was also within Pei Kuang's expectations.

After all, that incident caused quite a stir at the time. Many people in their hometown knew about it, and it was even reported by local media.

When the truth came to the surface, there was a moment of sighing and regret online.

With the fans' heartache, the sympathy of netizens, and the lament of onlookers, Pei Kuang's situation directly reversed.

At this point, the incident was considered over.

But while some were happy, others were worried. At this time, the Xie family was shrouded in gloom.

In the Xie family living room, Xie Yin, Zhang Man, and Xie WenTao all had ugly expressions on their faces.

Xie Yin had just rushed back from out of town. This incident with Pei Kuang had a big impact on her.

In the past year, her resources had already declined sharply. As a result of this incident, several collaborations she had finally locked down directly fell through.

Also, the affair from years ago was exposed. The anger of Pei Kuang's fans towards her online, the ridicule and taunting of netizens, made her not even dare to log into Weibo now. Xie Yin glanced at Zhang Man, a trace of disgust flashing through her eyes.

In fact, she had looked down on her stepmother Zhang Man all these years. If not for her taking matters into her own hands and contacting the media this time, things would not have developed to this point.

She couldn't even figure out what Zhang Man was thinking in her head to do such a self-sabotaging thing.

These past two years, if not for her harboring some special feelings towards Pei Kuang, she wouldn't even give Zhang Man a proper look.

Of course, Xie Yin looked down on both Zhang Man and her dad Xie WenTao.

She had tolerated their attempt to use her to tie down Pei Kuang all this time, also because she herself had ideas in that aspect.

Xie Yin knew her grandfather's intentions. Her father was the only son of the Xie family of this generation, and her father only had her, a daughter. Sooner or later, the Xie family would fall into her hands.

But she really had no talent or interest in doing business. Her grandfather saw Pei Kuang's abilities and wanted her to marry Pei Kuang, so that Pei Kuang could come to manage the Xie family business on her behalf.

Xie Yin was happy to see this happen. She liked Pei Kuang. Especially when her grandfather put Pei Kuang's asset investigation materials in front of her, Xie Yin only realized how outstanding this man really was.

But what Xie Yin didn't expect was that this husband and wife actually harbored the idea of having Pei Kuang repay their debts.

"What were you thinking? Such an obvious lie that would fall apart with a poke, yet you still dare to say it out!" Xie Yin still couldn't hold back, spewing all her anger at Zhang Man.

If not for her taking matters into her own hands, things would not have escalated to this point. Now they had completely torn all pretenses with Pei Kuang.

Zhang Man didn't speak. She looked at Xie Yin, then at Xie WenTao, and finally lowered her head.

Compared to acting arrogantly in front of Pei Kuang, she had always been very humble in the Xie family over the years.

In fact, Zhang Man also didn't expect things to turn out this way.

Just two days ago, Xie WenTao's creditors came knocking on their door. The couple had an argument at home.

Xie WenTao blamed her for not persuading Pei Kuang, hurling abuse at her, saying all kinds of nasty things, and even hit her.

Zhang Man already harbored resentment towards Pei Kuang. Now she attributed all her misfortunes to him. She just happened to see a news that an artist was banned for drug abuse.

So she came up with this method of retaliation.

Zhang Man didn't understand anything about the entertainment industry, she didn't even know you could check for a certificate of no drug abuse history to prove it.

She just wanted to ruin Pei Kuang.

Xie WenTao was silent the whole time, sitting gloomily on the other side of the sofa.

He knew he was finished.

Just now, he received the news that those creditors had already gone to the hospital with his IOUs to find Father, and now everything could no longer be concealed.

"Dad, exactly how much debt do you owe?" Xie Yin asked.

She also learned about Xie WenTao's gambling debts from online. Right now she was more concerned with how much money the Xie family would have to fork out to fill this hole.

Xie WenTao didn't even lift his head, but this time he no longer concealed it and told the truth.

Upon hearing this figure, Xie Yin and Zhang Man were shocked frozen in place.

"How can it be so much!" Zhang Man exclaimed, "Didn't you say it was just a few million?!"

Xie WenTao ignored her words, still bowing his head sitting there.

Compared to Zhang Man, Xie Yin's expression was even uglier, because she roughly knew how much the Xie family still had left.

If all of Xie WenTao's owed sums were exchanged for, the Xie family would really be emptied out, maybe not even enough!

She was the only granddaughter of the Xie family of this generation. The Xie family's assets would eventually fall into her hands, this was something she had always been proud of.

But now it was gone, all gone!

Xie Yin suddenly stood up, asking in a difficult tone, "What will happen if it's not repaid?"

Xie WenTao raised his eyelids to glance at her. "I used the family assets as collateral. If not repaid, forced execution will happen."

Xie Yin staggered back two steps, her face instantly turning pale.

This time it was really over!

-

Pei Kuang's matter was resolved, so Song An'an was naturally very happy.

But after understanding the ins and outs of the matter, like countless netizens and fans, she felt more heartache for Pei Kuang.

Song An'an was randomly browsing online and saw a few comments among the messages sympathizing with Pei Kuang.

- It's good that Pei Kuang still has his aunt, he has family.

- Yes, when this incident came out, his aunt was the first person to publicly support Pei Kuang online, quite touching.

- After catching up on that 3-year old lifestyle variety show, I suddenly understand a bit why Pei Kuang was so good to his aunt at first, it must have been emotional transference. He really treated his aunt like family.

- From psychological analysis, someone like Pei Kuang who grew up lacking parental love since childhood would definitely yearn for familial affection.

"Emotional transference?" Song An'an murmured.

Was this how Pei Kuang felt about her?

It probably was.

Song An'an lowered her eyelashes, a trace of loneliness flashing through her eyes.

After a while, she made a decision.

From now on, she would put aside other thoughts and strive to treat Pei Kuang like a nephew.