Xiao Liu never imagined that the turning point in the situation would ultimately depend on him. During one of his indulgent nights, the owner of the nightclub he frequented, who had extensive connections, introduced him to another industry friend, Mr. Liang, who had been an old acquaintance of Chen Fei many years ago. From Mr. Liang, he heard a completely different version of the story. "He Wei and Chen Fei? Good brothers?" Mr. Liang sneered, "Good brothers, my ass. Chen Fei hated him." Xiao Liu didn't expect such an explosive opening. "Love-hate relationship?" he said, dumbfounded. "Are they... that kind of relationship?" Mr. Liang was taken aback and looked at him, half amused, half exasperated. "Young man, what are you thinking?" "He Wei is too high-minded, always considering himself an artist. Chen Fei, on the other hand, is the complete opposite, a thorough businessman." "He did appreciate He Wei's talent, but He Wei made films without any regard for cost, losing money on every project, making Chen Fei look like a fool. Oh, there were a few years when commercial blockbusters were popular in the country, right? Chen Fei roped in He Wei to make one, saying it would rival Joss Whedon..." "It was a multi-billion project," Mr. Liang said mysteriously. "Guess how much it made at the box office?" "One billion?" Xiao Liu guessed as low as he could. Mr. Liang sneered and held up three fingers. "Thirty million." Xiao Liu gasped. "That's a huge loss." "Yes, Director He walked away unscathed, at most getting criticized for a few months. Chen Fei was different; he was the main investor and almost went bankrupt," Mr. Liang said, his tone filled with regret. Xiao Liu was stunned. "Then later... Chen Fei was still willing to invest in his posthumous work?" Mr. Liang smiled. "He wasn't willing, but fortunes change. Later, He Wei begged Chen Fei, saying he had sold his house in the second ring to make the film and almost knelt before him." "Chen Fei didn't agree for nothing; he had conditions. The condition was for He Wei to create some buzz, hold a grand amateur casting, and finally select a newcomer from his company. He Wei agreed initially, but later changed his mind, saying he found a good talent in the casting and refused to honor the prior agreement, putting Chen Fei in a difficult position." Xiao Liu exclaimed, surprised to learn the backstory behind Li Ling's selection. "I still remember that girl, quite pretty, very spirited, with fierce eyes, never smiled at anyone, and didn't know how to toast..." Hearing this, Xiao Liu couldn't help but widen his eyes. He felt that the proud, wild, and stubborn nineteen-year-old Li Ling described by Mr. Liang was vastly different from the one he knew now—she had changed so much. "Believe it or not, Chen Fei liked that type. So he didn't argue with He Wei over it and even signed a long-term contract with the girl." Xiao Liu was shocked. "What was he thinking?!" Mr. Liang smiled slightly. "He did have some ideas, but He Wei was very protective of his actors and wouldn't let anyone touch them." Xiao Liu breathed a sigh of relief. "Unfortunately, this protection led to problems. As the film progressed, rumors started to spread." "What rumors?" Xiao Liu asked nervously. "That He Wei was too good to her, too caring. What else could happen between a director and an actress?" Mr. Liang said, winking. "The girl was young, and I heard someone saw them hugging when the film wrapped up. Tsk tsk, a romantic scene." Xiao Liu wanted to refute, saying 'What's the big deal about a hug?' but he held back. "Who saw it?" he inquired. "Not sure, seems like some kind of assistant... photography assistant?" Xiao Liu secretly noted it down. Mr. Liang continued, "Later, the situation escalated. Not long after the film was finished, Mrs. He went to the director's studio and made a huge scene, smashing everything." "She looks so gentle, but when she gets angry, she's like a lioness." The other party recalled with great interest and deliberately mimicked Mrs. He's voice, "It's enough for the old man to sleep with his little lover, but to film it for everyone to see? I really wanted to stab him with a knife—" "So if you ask me why Mrs. He wouldn't let the film be released, I think that's the only reason. She probably couldn't stand He Wei filming a 'Lolita' even on his deathbed." "This wasn't a secret back then either. Your editor friend probably didn't want to say everything, thinking that time has passed and wanted to save some face for Director He." "No..." Xiao Liu found it too absurd, "Even if Mrs. He didn't trust her husband, hadn't she seen the movie? It wasn't like that at all! Just because of such a misunderstanding..." Mr. Liang raised an eyebrow, "Did He Wei ask her when he sold the house? He only cared about making movies. His well-educated wife was just there to do the laundry and cook." Xiao Liu's eyes widened, feeling a wave of helplessness and anger. His own family was very happy, and he couldn't imagine such an irresponsible husband and a marriage filled with mutual misunderstanding and hatred. "Even if he did something wrong, what did Li Ling do wrong?" he said somewhat fiercely, "I don't believe there was anything between her and He Wei..." "You don't believe it?" Mr. Liang smiled slightly, "Right, that young girl back then also insisted she was innocent and even went to explain to Chen Fei." "Still too young." He laughed slowly, "Isn't it like a lamb entering a tiger's den?" Xiao Liu's heart gradually sank, "A lamb entering a tiger's den... what do you mean?" "Well, he didn't succeed." Mr. Liang said meaningfully, "Otherwise, Chen Fei wouldn't have been so angry later." "She was in his office for less than ten minutes, and after that, she never made another movie." Xiao Liu was stunned for a moment and suddenly realized it was true. Li Ling had been acting for nearly ten years, starring in countless web movies and dramas... But none of them were shown on the big screen. He had always felt that some things didn't add up: even if He Wei's last work wasn't released, she should still have had the spotlight as the leading actress. Li Ling shouldn't have ended up so miserably. But what if she had offended someone? What if the other party held her contract and wanted her to suffer? The tea in front of them had gone completely cold. A layer of grease floated on the surface, reflecting their wavering faces, making it even more disgusting. - Li Ling had originally planned to go on a half-month trip as soon as the filming wrapped up, and she had even bought the plane tickets early. Who knew that while she was packing, she received another piece of mixed news. Another web drama she had filmed years ago was being brought up and was about to air. The promotional window was very short, and since the other main actors were unavailable, they had to ask her to fill in. Li Ling had no choice but to cancel her plane ticket with resentment. The pre-release event arranged by the production team was for several actors to visit a live broadcast room together. Everyone introduced their characters one by one. When it was Li Ling's turn, she honestly said, "Hello everyone, my name is Li Ling, and I play the villain in the first unit." The host asked from the side, "You have such thick eyebrows and big eyes, what bad things did you do?"Although Li Ling found the script incredibly corny, she still cooperated by flashing a wicked smile and poking the (non-existent) male actor's chest muscles beside her: "I've taken a liking to him." The other actor screamed, clutching his chest, and said with a pitiful expression, "Please, don't take advantage of me!" This was a very low-budget black comedy, claiming to be the Chinese version of "Black Mirror," with its selling points being its wild imagination, satire, absurdity, and grand worldview. The first episode tells the story of the male protagonist waking up to find himself in a world where gender roles are reversed. His female boss at the company subjects him to various forms of harassment and abuse. He tries to emulate Shiori Ito and break the silence, only to be smeared and humiliated in return. The male protagonist is forever trapped in his cubicle, unable to defend himself, and in his despair, he hangs himself. At the moment his head enters the noose, he sees the truth: It turns out he is the real-life criminal, and everything he experienced was an illusion crafted by the victim he drove to death, a tooth-for-a-tooth retribution. The show hadn't aired yet, so it was impossible to spoil the ending. Therefore, the early marketing strategy focused on how bad and terrifying Li Ling's character as the female boss was. A few people were joking around when suddenly, a washed-up idol named Li Junhao shouted: "Indeed, Teacher Li's performance is so good, we should investigate thoroughly. Could it be that she has real-life experience with these unspoken rules? Do you remember if there were any victims on set?" As soon as he said this, the atmosphere in the live broadcast room became subtly awkward. Everyone exchanged glances, feeling embarrassed. Even if it was a joke, no one had ever joked like this before; it was just stirring up trouble. Li Ling, however, wasn't angry at all. She smiled and said, "To be honest, I've even played a corpse. Should we go to the morgue and ask about that too?" Strangely, although she kept smiling, the air in the live broadcast room suddenly turned cold, as if the chill of a morgue had seeped in. Li Junhao shrank his neck and didn't dare to speak again. The host seized the opportunity to smooth things over: "Haha, let's interact with the audience in the live broadcast room—oh my, thank you to this viewer for sending the 'Flower Road' gift!" Everyone exclaimed, "Such generosity from the boss..." Their crew was so obscure, and the live broadcast was lukewarm at best, so it was rare to encounter someone so generous. Li Junhao immediately rushed to the screen, cheerfully reading out, "Thank you, 978753..." He struggled to read the string of numbers for a long time and finally had a brainwave, saying directly, "Thank you, baby!" Li Ling had already guessed who it was from the beginning and couldn't help but show an even more pained expression when she heard Li Junhao call them "baby." Sure enough, the next second, Li Junhao's joy vanished. Because 9787532754335 left a message on the screen: "Apologize." Li Junhao stiffly averted his gaze, pretending not to see it, and tried to read other people's comments. But 9787532754335 started spamming gifts again. With each expensive gift, they sent a message saying "Apologize," quickly filling the entire screen. "Why did you say that?" "Apologize." "Apologize." ... Li Junhao's face became even more strained, and he turned to the others for help. However, none of them intended to step in, clearly siding with the big spender. He had no choice but to turn to Li Ling and reluctantly say, "I'm sorry." 9787532754335's spamming immediately stopped. Li Ling graciously said, "It's okay, I know you were just joking."Li Junhao breathed a sigh of relief, but the actress changed her tone and said: "Of course, I don't mind playing the villain. If the audience hates me, I would be very honored. But as professional actors, we should stick to our principles. The lives of actors and their characters should never be equated, right?" Her tone was gentle, with a slight smile on her lips, but her gaze was serious and calm, staring directly at the other person, appearing sharp and intimidating. Li Junhao was stunned, unable to look away for a long time. After a while, he finally said, "Yes, yes, Ms. Li, you are right." 9787532754335 started spamming darkly again: "Don't look." "What are you looking at?" "Dig out his eyes." [Sorry, according to relevant laws and regulations, your comment will not be displayed.] 9787532754335 was very angry, furiously smashing a whole page of gifts. - After the live broadcast ended, Li Ling immediately sent a private message to 9787532754335, saying, "Brother, you are too handsome." She also subtly expressed that she appreciated the gesture and that he didn't need to spend so much. After all, raising children is also very expensive. 9787532754335 replied in a stiff tone, "I have money." He still seemed very unhappy, questioning her, "Who are you acting with? The level is too low." Li Ling said, "There's no choice, I have to make a living." Just after sending this message, someone beside her hesitantly asked, "Ms. Li, would you like to have dinner together tonight?" Li Ling: ? She looked up to see Li Junhao looking at her shyly, "I'm really sorry about earlier. I shouldn't have said that. Can I make it up to you with dinner tonight?" Li Ling: "..." She said very gently, "Sorry, I have a date with my boyfriend tonight." A perfect rejection, turning the little idol into a dejected stray dog, who left with his head hanging low. Li Ling looked down to see several messages from 9787532754335. The earlier ones were still very gentle, praising her high standards and saying no one else was worthy of her. The latest one turned into a question: "What are you doing? Why aren't you replying?" Li Ling felt that 9787532754335 seemed to be getting clingier, but she still explained nicely, "That little actor just asked me to dinner." 9787532754335: ? After a moment of silence, he said, "Are you going?" Li Ling smiled smugly, "Of course not, I said I have a date with my boyfriend." 9787532754335 sent three ellipses and then didn't contact her for the rest of the night. Li Ling was so busy with promotional work that she didn't notice for several days. In the end, it was 9787532754335 who reached out to her, asking how her dinner with her boyfriend went. Li Ling was confused, and only after connecting the dots did she understand what was going on. After explaining, 9787532754335's attitude softened a bit, and he started confiding in her about his son's relationship issues. Li Ling: "!! By the way, you mentioned he was going to confess. How did it go?" "He got rejected." Li Ling: ??! It turned out that after finally waiting for the end of the final exams, the little genius planned to confess the night before, but the neighbor suddenly moved away. "He feels abandoned," 9787532754335 said, feeling down. "Now he locks himself in his room every day, drawing, and refuses to come out." Li Ling: "..." She felt heartbroken hearing this and cursed the girl for being heartless, not even saying a proper goodbye before moving. After a moment of silence, somewhat confused, he said, "Yeah, why did she leave without saying goodbye?" Li Ling originally wanted to continue scolding, but suddenly thought of something and said guiltily, "She might have her own reasons." He immediately asked, "What reasons?" Li Ling said, "How would I know? I'm not an elementary school student." Disappointed, he said, "Alright." Then he reflected, "Maybe I still don't understand her well enough." Li Ling didn't understand why he was so obsessed with this matter and joked casually, "Shall I hire a private detective for you?" He reluctantly admitted, "I already did." Li Ling: ??? Hearing this, Li Ling was really worried about the little genius's state. She proactively asked him if he wanted his son to video call her. "Or a phone call would be fine," she suggested. The other party was silent for a long time, as if she had scared him. Then he fell into a rather long period of confusion, hesitating and constantly changing his mind. At first, he said, "No, he's scared." Then it changed to, "It's possible, but he doesn't want to turn on the camera." Li Ling said, "Then just a phone call?" He said, "No, it has to be a video call." After hesitating for a while, he said tactfully, "He also doesn't want to turn on the microphone." Li Ling didn't get angry with the elementary school student, and even felt more sympathetic: "It's okay, anything is fine." He was quiet for a moment and then said somewhat stiffly, "Alright, thank you, sister." But in the following days, they didn't find a chance to video call because Li Ling was really too busy. She could only try to take a small amount of time every night before bed to record a one or two-minute video for him, saying a few encouraging words. No matter how late it was, he would immediately reply, saying "Thank you," "I really like it," or "Good night." Soon, it was the night of the new drama's premiere. The first episode was Li Ling's major scene. The greasy female boss she played locked the male lead in the office, not only saying many disgusting things but also trying to touch him several times. She nervously opened the video and found that the comments were indeed scolding her. —Disgusting, disgusting, disgusting, disgusting —Help, I'm going to throw up —Ahhh, I suggest a thorough investigation, it doesn't seem fake —Tsk, could it be a real-life experience? Actress, come out and explain? Li Ling breathed a sigh of relief. Great, at least it could still be aired and wasn't taken down for no reason. Her agent suddenly called. Li Ling said with a cheeky smile, "I understand, I understand, love it, black or red, it's still popularity. I'll post a few self-deprecating Weibo posts tomorrow, remember to buy me some promotion." The agent said somewhat stiffly, "You're overthinking it, you don't need to spend money, the entire crew's publicity budget is saved because of you." Li Ling was stunned: "Why?" "...Haha, see for yourself." Li Ling couldn't believe her eyes. In just a few minutes, how had her Weibo been reposted tens of thousands of times? Clicking in, she saw that an account named Jin Jingyao with a verified badge had reposted her performance clip and made a sharp two-word comment: "Good show." Li Ling: ??? Brother, was your account hacked?? As it turned out, the people in the comment section were even more confused than she was. Otherwise, her reposts, comments, and likes wouldn't be increasing exponentially every second. If only the A-shares had such strength. Li Ling, puzzled, sent a WeChat message to Jin Jingyao, asking what he was doing—after all, the contract clearly stated that the identity of the female lead must be kept confidential until his movie was released. Why did he like her post so early? What if it got exposed? Without a word, he called her. The phone vibrated wildly, and Li Ling was so startled that she hung up immediately. Jin Jingyao sent a question mark. Li Ling: "..." She suddenly felt a bit embarrassed. It wasn't until she was poked by 9787532754335 that she realized maybe it was a bit unfair to the crew for her to leave without saying goodbye. She secretly contacted Xiao Liu and found out that they had even prepared a wrap party for her. This made Li Ling even more embarrassed. But Xiao Liu was a bit strange too. After a few words, he started crying, saying things like "My daughter is so miserable" and "Daddy, hug you," which gave Li Ling the creeps, so she hung up. In short, facing Jin Jingyao at this moment, Li Ling couldn't help but adopt an ostrich mentality and made up an excuse: "Director, I'm going to sleep now. Let's talk tomorrow." He replied quickly: "Good night." Li Ling: "[Moon][Moon][Moon]" After this peaceful exchange, she immediately opened her private messages and said to 9787532754335: "Oh my god, something big has happened, I have to stay up all night!!!" 9787532754335: ?