Xu Baichang's mind was in turmoil. He felt as if he had a fishbone stuck in his throat, and his voice was hoarse, unable to give a complete answer. He tried to calm his breathing and did not answer Xiao Shulang's question directly. Instead, he asked, "What did he say about me? It doesn't matter, just tell me."
Xiao Shulang stroked his phone. His phone's current screen saver was a street scene from the intersection he filmed that day, the road he was about to take, and also the road that Xiao Shulang in the original book could never walk again.
"He said that Xiao Shulang was Xu Baichang's stand-in, and that Luo Tian had never liked Xiao Shulang."
Xu Baichang trembled. He covered his face with his hands as Xiao Shulang spoke, his eyes reddening, unsure whether it was for himself or for Xiao Shulang.
"Sorry, I'm a little confused right now."
Xiao Shulang nodded. Although Xu Baichang didn't directly say when Luo Tian started pursuing him, judging from his reaction at this moment, Xiao Shulang already had the answer.
It must have been before he broke up with the original owner, otherwise Xu Baichang wouldn't have reacted so strongly.
So, the chat logs between Xu Baichang and Luo Tian, plus his own, are irrefutable proof that Luo Tian is a scumbag who cheated on her.
Xiao Shulang naturally wanted to record it, but it wasn't such a simple matter for Xu Baichang.
Xu Baichang was unwilling to say it directly at this moment, and Xiao Shulang understood.
Putting aside personal feelings, Luo Tian is currently very popular. If Xu Baichang were to produce the records, it would be a blatant break with Luo Tian. This is not just Xu Baichang's business; it also involves the company and the team. He cannot act rashly.
Moreover, some people might take the opportunity to distort the truth and accuse Xu Baichang of being a third party.
He could have stayed out of it, and the company certainly wouldn't have wanted him to get involved and get tainted.
Xiao Shulang knew that this conversation was over for today. Xu Baichang needed time. As he stood up, he said, "Teacher Xu is a good person. I said all this in the hope that you will not be deceived any further."
He blinked gently: "I wouldn't care about someone like Yin Xingzhi. The way he looks at Luo Tian is exactly the same way Luo Tian looked at me back then."
It wasn't genuine love at all; it was nothing more than greed for fame and fortune.
A note from the author:
I'm taking a day off tomorrow, but I'll update as usual on Thursday.
Chapter 16 What a terrible teammate!
Xiao Shulang pushed open the glass door and returned inside, leaving Xu Baichang alone on the terrace in silence.
Those inside could see what was happening outside. Xu Baichang's movements were so exaggerated that no one else would miss them. You Ziang asked Xiao Shulang, who had just returned, "What's wrong with him?"
"Let him have some peace and quiet by himself."
You Ziang sat on the sofa. Xiao Shulang patted him on the shoulder as he passed by: "If you want to comfort him, I suggest you go later."
You Ziang has been getting closer and closer to Xu Baichang lately, and it seems like they're not just making ordinary friends. You Ziang understood immediately: "Okay."
Luo Tian had been in contact with his agent in his room. Since there was no recording at the moment, Luo Tian no longer needed to hide his expression. He had even broken several pens on the table: "Director Gao actually spoke up for Xiao Shulang!"
"It's all because you're stupid!" The agent was also furious. "Even if you didn't want to go on his show, you could have talked to the company about it. Why did you have to handle it yourself and end up with this mess?"
The agent knew about his relationship with Xiao Shulang. Luo Tian treated Xiao Shulang as a sugar daddy to get resources, which made things easier for him. But now that Xiao Shulang was no longer there to clean up the mess, he finally realized how troublesome it was to manage Luo Tian.
If Luo Tian wins this contest with Xiao Shulang, his popularity will soar to new heights; if he loses, he'll be branded a scumbag, his image will crumble, and everything will be over.
Luo Tian: "If the person surnamed Gao is speaking up for him, then he should also send someone to speak up for me."
The agent sneered: "Do you even know how to write the phrase 'self-preservation'?"
Some friends are just playing along; they'd rather avoid such things than risk losing their support. If they want some smart people to side with them, it has to be in their best interest.
"However," the agent changed the subject, "while we can't find someone with the seniority of Director Gao, we can still get a couple of younger people to speak on your behalf. By the way, have you contacted anyone yourself?"
Looking at the chat history on the tablet, Luo Tian's mood finally improved: "Yes."
When Luo Tian participated in the talent show, he formed a clique in private. Some of his close friends knew what kind of person he was and were just in cahoots with him, while others were deceived by him and believed his lies.
Zhou Tong belonged to the latter category. After Luo Tian contacted him privately, he immediately expressed his willingness to help speak out.
[Zhou Tong V: Director Gao, is there some misunderstanding between you and Luo Tian? Brother Tian is a very good person, I believe he is not that kind of person.]
In addition, some artists contacted by the agent spoke out, and some colleagues spoke up for Luo Tian. Some people began to waver again. As long as public opinion is not one-sided, there is still a chance for a tug-of-war.
Agent: "Xiao Shulang doesn't have any dirt on you, does he?"
Luo Tian affirmed, "No, I wouldn't go so far as to leave those words in the chat history."
"That's good. As long as there's no solid evidence, it'll be over sooner or later." The agent thought for a moment, "Now, many people aren't buying into the idea of using online trolls to fabricate negative stories to lower Xiao Shulang's image. You should try your best to make his image look bad on the show. Anyway, you definitely can't be the scumbag."
Luo Tian understood, of course, but he stayed in his room all night discussing countermeasures with his agent, completely unaware that Xiao Shulang had successfully bypassed them and had already shown Xu Baichang their chat history.
Even if Xu Baichang doesn't publicly fall out with Luo Tian, she will definitely not develop any further relationship with him.
After all, he almost became the third party in someone else's relationship!
For Xu Baichang, this was absolutely unacceptable.
Luo Tian was still feeling fortunate that public opinion had been brought under control, but little did he know that after a good night's sleep, he had already lost completely.
The next morning, when everyone was moving to their new place with their luggage, Luo Tian wanted to stick close to Xu Baichang, but Xu Baichang moved away.
Luo Tian, who was confused: "?"
Everyone had to board the bus, and Xu Baichang didn't want to sit with him at all, so he sat down next to You Ziang, leaving no empty seat next to him.
Luo Tian: ? ?
Was Xu Baichang just avoiding him? Why? Could it be that he believed Director Gao's words?!
Luo Tian's expression was even more interesting than when he was acting. Xiao Shulang was almost amused. He happily chose a window seat, and as soon as he sat down, he found that a shadow had fallen next to him.
Qin Shuang sat down next to him, fastening her seatbelt. Noticing Xiao Shulang's gaze, she turned her head slightly and asked, "What's wrong?"
Xiao Shulang: "Ah, it's nothing."
Qin Shuang's movements and expressions were so natural that even though Xiao Shulang clearly had something to complain about, he didn't know where to begin.
It was just sitting down next to me, and it didn't seem like a big deal. But looking around carefully, I noticed that when we went out together before, there were a few people sitting alone, but today everyone was in pairs. And there were You Ziang and Xu Baichang, Luo Tian and Yin Xingzhi, plus Qin Shuang and myself... What a strange combination.
Before the car started, the staff said, "Thank you all for getting up early. The live broadcast room isn't open yet. We'll turn on the camera after the car starts and film the edited version. The first edited version has already aired. Please take some time to retweet the production team's Weibo post later, thank you."
"Oh, right, and this too." The staff member walked over to Xiao Shulang and Qin Shuang's seats and handed Xiao Shulang a slip of paper. "Teacher Xiao, the sponsor wants to add an advertising slogan and would like you to come."
"Me?" Xiao Shulang was somewhat surprised.
When sponsors sign agreements with the production team, they have to include the length of advertising shots and lines in the agreement. Adding more lines means paying more money, and the advertisers also get a commission.
"Looks like you didn't know!" the staff member exclaimed excitedly. "Yesterday, online orders for 'Good Taste' candies surged. Buyers left messages saying they watched our program, thought the candies looked incredibly delicious, and wanted to try them."
Xiao Shulang used the sponsor's candy in the gift, but the candy ended up in Qin Shuang's mouth. Looking back, he felt that the selling point should have been Qin Shuang eating the candy.
"Isn't this an effect caused by Qin Shuang?"
"The sponsors also feel that you deserve credit."
"Good Taste" candy was a small sponsor of the program. There weren't many advertising opportunities to begin with, but Xiao Shulang's actions brought them a pleasant surprise. In recent years, the sales volume of the candy market has been quite average, and there have been very few explosive growth.
Yesterday's surge in sales showed them the potential, but there was also a very real problem—it would be more expensive to hire Qin Shuang.
Xiao Shulang was also very realistic: "How much do you want for this one?"
The staff counted out a number.
Xiao Shulang: "I'll take it."
Nothing is more enjoyable than making money!
It's always a good start if someone is willing to use it for advertising, regardless of the size of the company.
Luo Tian was trying to strike up a conversation with Xu Baichang, but Xu Baichang leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes, looking like he was going to catch up on sleep. Luo Tian didn't want to force him to wake up.
Luo Tian felt something was off and wanted to talk to Yin Xingzhi to see if he had missed something. But Yin Xingzhi also closed his eyes and was about to sleep. Luo Tian wondered: Why is everyone so sleepy? The most sleepy one should be him, who has hardly slept all night!
The car took everyone to their destination, where they would stay for five days. Half an hour after departure, the live stream started, and the viewers who came to check in immediately noticed the seating problem.
Wow, these are all in pairs, have they been separated?
[No, it's obvious someone failed. Luo Tian didn't get to sit next to Xu Baichang.]
[I really want to know what happened when they got on the bus! Production team, you know what's going on, right? They absolutely have to include this part in the edited version!]
An hour later, the car stopped in front of a villa in the mountains. On the way, they had seen a resort sign somewhere that was supposedly under development but not yet open to the public. It was very close to the villa in the mountains.
When everyone got out of the car and walked into the courtyard, they found that there were already people waiting there.
Zhou Tong: "Yo, you've finally arrived!"
Tian Xiaole waved: "Hello everyone!"
The staff led the applause: "Welcome our guest stars Tian Xiaole and Zhou Tong! They will be spending a few days with you as our relationship advisors this season!"
Zhou Tong and Tian Xiaole were guests on the first season of Heartbeat Encounter (heterosexual theme), and the only couple to successfully pair up. They officially announced their relationship after the show ended and are still in love. They were invited to be guests on the second season.
That's right, Zhou Tong is the same Zhou Tong who debuted with Luo Tian through the talent show and who spoke up for him last night.
Zhou Tong stepped forward and hugged Luo Tian. The two brothers bumped fists. He greeted the other guests one by one, but skipped Xiao Shulang.
Xiao Shulang understood; they had come to support and back Luo Tian.
His relationship with Luo Tian was already out in the open, and all he was thinking about was how to get irrefutable evidence to destroy the other party. Since someone was going to side with Luo Tian, it was better to do it openly than secretly.
After all, Zhou Tong didn't seem very smart.
The reactions in the comments section were varied.
Wow, that's so rude!
【Ugh, bro, why are you in such a hurry to take sides? You can only know a person's face, not their heart. What if he's a scumbag like Luo Tian? Do you really know him?】
True friends, true character—that's what makes Luo Tian's friend!
Tian Xiaole greeted everyone, and awkwardly tried to smooth things over in front of Xiao Shulang: "Sorry, he's just a bit simple-minded."
Yesterday, as soon as Zhou Tong posted on Weibo, his agent bombarded him with calls. Luo Tian contacted him privately. Zhou Tong's team only saw the post after it was published and got a scolding, but Zhou Tong insisted that he did nothing wrong. What's wrong with speaking up for a friend? It's the right thing to do!
When Tian Xiaole called him, he felt wronged and said that Luo Tian was fine and that Director Gao must have misunderstood. According to Luo Tian, it was definitely Xiao Shulang who was stirring up trouble.
Tian Xiaole was quick-witted. After hearing this, she could only sigh and think that she would have to be more careful when she went on the show so that nothing would go wrong.
Xiao Shulang nodded calmly: "It's alright, I understand."
The villa is still three stories high. The third floor is where the production crew lives, and the guests' bedrooms are on the second floor. The structure of the house is different from before. Xiao Shulang and Qin Shuang are staying next door this time.
Considering that everyone would be tired from traveling for so long, the production team prepared tea and snacks for everyone to rest. Zhou Tong and Tian Xiaole, acting as advisors, were also given opportunities to offer advice.