After leaving the teahouse, Wen Zhi let out a sigh, as if she wanted to expel all the negative emotions she had been harboring over the years.
She felt her shoulders lighten considerably, and even the scenery in front of her seemed much more pleasing to the eye.
Just as Wen Zhi was immersed in this joy, her phone rang again.
She was about to answer when the call ended, only to realize that the caller had already made numerous attempts before, and she hadn't heard any of them, possibly due to poor signal.
Just as she was about to call back, Yan Xi called again. Wen Zhi thought that the online issue might have been resolved, so she answered the call right away.
"Is it all taken care of?"
"You should come back to the apartment, I need to talk to you about something," Yan Xi said seriously.
Not hearing the answer she wanted, Wen Zhi raised her eyebrows.
Yan Xi had been her agent for some years now, and they understood each other quite well. If the issue had indeed been resolved, it would have been mentioned in the initial call.
But since it wasn't brought up and instead she was being asked to come back to the apartment, there might be some thorny issue to deal with.
Wen Zhi didn't ask any further. She made a sound of acknowledgment and promptly hung up.
When she arrived back at the apartment, Yan Xi was staring at her phone so intently that she didn't even notice Wen Zhi's return.
"What issue could there be that my capable Yan Xi hasn't managed to handle?" Wen Zhi said cheerfully, sitting down beside her.
Clearly, Wen Zhi hadn't yet grasped the seriousness of the situation.
Hearing Wen Zhi's voice, Yan Xi lifted her gaze from the phone and stared at her for a while, unsettling her with the intensity of her look.
"Miss Yan, I know I am beautiful and charming, but discard any inappropriate thoughts; I still prefer men," Wen Zhi joked.
Her joke didn't evoke even the slightest smile from Yan Xi, who instead directly sent the headline she had been fixating on to Wen Zhi's phone.
"Take a good look at this yourself."
Her secretive manner piqued Wen Zhi's curiosity even more.
She opened her phone and saw the headline regarding her, He Hanjin, and Bai Yuewan that Yan Xi had sent her.
It labeled her a "mistress," accusing her of meddling in the relationship between the two.
Wen Zhi wasn't the least bit angry. On the contrary, she continued to read with amusement, scrolling through the barrage of scathing comments from netizens.
"This Wen Zhi really has no shame, thinking just because she's a celebrity she can meddle in other people's relationships at will!"
"Any decently brought-up person knows not to be someone else's mistress. Is that so hard to understand? She really has no self-respect!"
"Just thinking about immediate pleasures without considering the future, I guess Wen Zhi's career is probably over!"
"..."
All the negative comments seemed to entertain Wen Zhi.
Yan Xi kept observing Wen Zhi's expression and, seeing that she was not upset but instead continuously looking at her phone, one couldn't help but suspect that she was so shocked she'd become senseless.
Yan Xi had intended to discuss with Wen Zhi what to do next, but seeing her current state left her perplexed.
"Wen Zhi, are you... okay?" Yan Xi tentatively asked.
Wen Zhi looked up, her eyes smiling as they met Yan Xi's concerned gaze, "I'm great, why do you ask?"
"You shouldn't take these online comments to heart. You have a bright future ahead of you. If we work hard together, we can definitely make it!"
"The previous matter had largely been dealt with, but I don't know who suddenly leaked the issue with you three. The situation is now a bit difficult to control, so I urgently wanted to meet you to discuss what steps to take next."
If it were any other matter, Yan Xi could have decided on her own how to handle it without causing Wen Zhi too much concern.
But the current issue was out of the ordinary, and she naturally did not feel confident to judge it herself and could only listen to the opinion of the person involved.
Wen Zhi seemed to not take the situation to heart at all, casually saying, "Just handle it yourself, I trust you."
These words almost choked Yan Xi with her own spit.
How big-hearted she must be to not care about even this kind of thing!
Wen Zhi's journey had not been easy, and Yan Xi knew this all too well, which is why she did not want to see her collapse because of such a matter.
Yan Xi knew very well what kind of person Wen Zhi was.
"Are you really okay with me handling it?"
"We've been working together for so many years, what is there for me not to trust? If it's not handled well, there will still be someone to catch us."
Someone to catch us?
This indeed made Yan Xi somewhat puzzled.
She had never heard of Wen Zhi having any support behind her; otherwise, she would not have struggled so much.
Just as Yan Xi was about to continue asking, Wen Zhi's phone rang once more, and with just a glance, she answered the call.
"Are you... okay?"
The person on the other end was silent for a moment, followed by a deep voice.
Wen Zhi slightly curved her lips, yet her words were filled with vulnerability.
"I'm okay, it's just that the online public opinion has influenced me a little, I'm afraid I won't be able to take it and might get extremist thoughts..."
Before Wen Zhi could finish her sentence, He Hanjin interrupted anxiously, "I won't allow you to do anything foolish!"
"Don't be overly concerned. I'll handle the online situation for you. You mustn't do anything foolish, or else, I will have to keep you by my side every single moment."
Yes, for him, Wen Zhi was of exceptional importance, and he naturally did not want to see any accidents happen to her.
Feigning a soft sob, Wen Zhi said, "Won't it trouble you? If Miss Bai finds out, it'll have some impact on me, on you, wouldn't it?"
"I said there won't be any!" He Hanjin said with slight anger.
Seeing that the timing was about right, Wen Zhi did not say more but obediently agreed.
"You just wait there quietly; I will handle everything soon. Don't have wild thoughts, did you hear me!"
"Alright, I got it."
He Hanjin was truly afraid she would do something foolish. After a few more words of comfort, he hung up the phone to send someone to deal with the online situation.
Wen Zhi looked at the hung-up phone, turned to Yan Xi with a smile, "You don't need to interfere with this matter; continue with your other tasks."
"Ah?" Yan Xi was even more puzzled.
"Who was on the phone just now? What did you talk about that suddenly made you not need me anymore?"
While Yan Xi was asking these questions, Wen Zhi's phone pinged with a message. She glanced at it and saw it was a text from He Wenyan.
The smile on Wen Zhi's face deepened as she stood up, slung her bag over her shoulder, and said, "If I say you don't need to worry, then don't. Keep your mind at ease; the problem will be resolved soon."
With that, she left the apartment, leaving Yan Xi alone sitting on the sofa, dumbfounded.