novelraw Chapter 29 Wen Ziliang Suddenly Calls
Chapter 29 Wen Ziliang Suddenly Calls
Xia Ziming drank the water in the glass of cold water in one gulp.
The bottom of the glass slammed heavily onto the marble tabletop.
"You were just an accident."
"The only person he cared about from beginning to end was Lin Shishi."
Song Ze paused in his movements.
Is it her? This beautiful goddess?
She was indeed beautiful, and he was attracted to her, but that was all.
Wen Ziliang's public image is that of a philanthropic and upright man. He is humble and polite at charity galas and doesn't even accept dirty jokes in interviews.
Now that layer of skin has been peeled off.
Xia Ziming gave a mocking smile.
"He spent eight million in sponsorship and managed to snatch a regular spot on the second season of 'Heartbeat Signal' from the primary production company."
"He had planned it all out in advance: to pursue Lin Shishi on the show in front of millions of viewers, and to make their on-screen romance real."
"He really wants Lin Shishi to be his girlfriend."
But then, an unexpected event occurred.
A fantasy drama series, three years in the making, suddenly started filming ahead of schedule. It was Wen Ziliang's key asset in his bid for the Golden Eagle Award for Best Actor.
The schedule completely clashes.
He can't go.
But a source within the production team leaked a message.
"Is the production team trying to create a CP (couple pairing) between me and Lin Shishi?" Song Ze quickly connected the two lines.
"Yes." Xia Ziming twisted her hands together.
"The ratings plummeted in the first few episodes, and the production team panicked. They internally decided on this script featuring a down-on-his-luck scholar and a cold, aloof diva."
When the news reached Wen Ziliang's ears, he panicked.
Song Ze leaned back in his chair. The sofa made a slight rustling sound.
So this was the source of that "force majeure." In his previous life, he spent three years investigating the truth, suspecting that his rivals had set a trap for him, and that internal power struggles at the top had affected innocent bystanders.
Who would have thought that the collapse of his reputation, the infamy he faced, and his eventual retirement from the entertainment industry was not caused by any capital game at all?
It was just a powerful person who got a little jealous and casually crushed an ant that was blocking their way.
Song Ze tugged at his collar, letting out a soft chuckle.
"Just because of that?"
"He couldn't stand me sharing the stage with Lin Shishi, so he just had me killed?"
"You six girls, you just became tools he could grab at will to throw dirty water on you?"
Absurd. Utterly absurd. A top celebrity, to satisfy his own desires, dug up the chat logs of several girls he had drugged and ruined, and casually shattered the lives of seven people.
Xia Ziming lowered her head further and further. Her shoulder-length hair fell down, obscuring her originally arrogant face.
"sorry."
"The whole internet is criticizing you right now, and I don't dare to call the police."
"My parents are teachers in a remote county. I got into Fudan University School of Medicine, and they regarded me as the hope of the whole family."
She clasped her hands around her thighs.
"If I report it to the police, the video will appear anonymously in the shared email inbox of my supervisor and classmates the next day."
"How am I supposed to go on living?"
The voice grew softer and softer, almost a whisper. He curled up in the chair.
Song Ze stopped laughing.
Indeed, he couldn't just think of himself; he also had to consider Zimo and the other five girls.
He looked straight ahead and spoke softly.
"The one who is wrong is the beast who committed the violence."
"You're not in the wrong."
Xia Ziming opened her mouth, but no sound came out.
"What can the video prove? It can only prove that he, Wen Ziliang, is a piece of trash who controls women with his specialty cocktails and hidden cameras."
Song Ze pulled over the tissue box on the table and pulled out two sheets of paper.
"You're still the top student at Fu Jen Catholic University's School of Medicine, receiving a full scholarship every year. That's a status that a rat in the gutter can never take away."
He tossed the tissue next to Xia Ziming.
Then, resting his chin on one hand, he changed his tone, adopting the casual, joking manner he used in high school.
"Now that we've laid our cards on the table, let's do it the way we did back in high school."
"You're so outstanding, what are you afraid of?"
"Are you really worried that this will leave you with a criminal record and prevent you from finding a wealthy husband?"
He raised an eyebrow.
"At worst, I'll support you for life, don't try to carry this burden on yourself."
The semi-private room was silent for two seconds. The only sound was the hum of the air conditioner vents.
Xia Ziming stared at the two tissues beside her.
"At worst, I'll take care of you for the rest of your life." This crude promise, brimming with a sense of江湖 (jianghu, a term referring to the world of martial arts and chivalry), shattered the rational defenses she had maintained all night.
She grabbed a tissue, crossed her arms over the edge of the table, and buried her face in it.
howling.
The semi-private room in the corner of the Western restaurant was filled with years of suppressed fear and despair.
Song Ze sat opposite her, motionless. He neither offered her water nor went over to pat her on the shoulder.
At this point, any extra sympathy would strip away the last bit of dignity she had left, a pride she held dear.
He sat quietly, letting her cry out all the emotions she had endured over the past seven years of unrequited love and the inhuman torment of the past few months.
A dozen minutes later, the crying gradually turned into intermittent sobs.
Xia Ziming pulled out a soaked tissue and vigorously wiped away the tear stains and remaining makeup from her face. Reason regained control of her mind.
She crumpled the waste paper into a ball and threw it into the trash can under the table.
"That full HD video was deadly." The voice still had a heavy nasal tone.
"He made me look at the camera and say yes."
She placed her hands flat on her knees.
"The police, after seeing the video, could only conclude that it was a consensual relationship dispute. Joyful Century, the company behind Wen Ziliang, employs top-tier legal counsel in the industry."
"How can I sue?"
Song Ze picked up the lemonade and took a sip.
"A single incident might be considered a relationship dispute, but what if there are six similar overlapping incidents?"
He put down the cup and drew a circle on the water stain with his finger.
"Six girls who had no real-life connection used the exact same methods, and even the lines in their voluntary video recordings were exactly the same."
Xia Ziming quickly grasped the idea, but immediately shook her head.
How did you convince the other five people to join forces?
"Zhang Yilin is in Ward 7. She's your cousin. I've spoken with her a few times, so things will be easier to handle there. Xu Yu is a social media influencer, so she'll be easy to contact as well."
Xia Ziming counted on her fingers.
"As for the remaining three, I don't even know their names, ages, or which cities they live in. We were in an anonymous fan support group, and we all used pseudonyms."
Song Ze seized upon the loophole in these words.
"You're in a group? Were you still in it after the incident?"
Xia Ziming hesitated for a moment.
"The morning after the incident, I opened WeChat and was notified that I had been removed from the group chat."
He was precisely kicked out of the group chat. Song Ze quickly grasped this key point.
Xia Ziming took out her phone, opened her photo album, and found a screenshot.
"This is a screenshot of the group member list that I took before I was kicked out. At the time, a few people were discussing Wen Ziliang's extremely private schedule, and I took the screenshot intending to post it online."
Song Ze took the phone.
The screen displayed a string of unconventional usernames and thirty-five profile pictures.
"Were there more than six female victims?"
Xia Ziming's phone suddenly lit up.
A number flashed on the screen—Wen Ziliang.
Her face turned deathly pale instantly.
Song Ze pressed her hand, slid to answer the call, and pressed speakerphone.
"Zimo, where are you? Send me your location, I'll come pick you up in half an hour..." Wen Ziliang's voice was still gentle, even with a smile.