Chapter 72

The public relations team of the Best Actor was naturally very impressive, able to turn black and white upside down and confuse day and night.After using the health report to shake the morale of the army of condemnation built up by netizens, they quickly followed with a statement.

First, they admitted the mistake of hiding the marriage, then gave a preview saying they would tell everyone the whole truth in a live broadcast program. They also hinted that the Best Actor and Wang Jiani were both innocent.

[Damn, they want to use the popularity of the show to vividly portray their lies, help them whitewash their image, and by not explaining now, they're also giving Ruan Jia one last chance. If Ruan Jia cooperates with their other proposals, they won't need to use this method.]

The Qin Family was shocked. Could they really play it this way?

"That Ruan Jia will come out to prove her innocence, right?" Qin's Mom said in bewilderment.

"Ruan Jia has never wanted others to know about her illness," Qin Yan frowned.

"Why don't you try to persuade her, big sister?" Qin Rong asked anxiously.

Qin Yan felt that as the hospital director, she could show concern for a patient, so she inquired about the situation.

The hospital told Qin Yan that Ruan Jia had seen the news online and seemed to be devastated. She had locked herself away, and nurses and doctors were unable to communicate with her.

If Ruan Jia didn't come forward, no one else could do anything on her behalf.

The next day, promotional videos of Sheng Wenyue and Wang Jiani were ready online, and CP fans' hopes were rekindled from the ashes.

Public opinion had been completely guided. Sheng Wenyue and Wang Jiani were portrayed as star-crossed lovers who couldn't be together, while Ruan Jia was the evil original wife, stubbornly refusing to let go despite not being loved, and causing trouble for others.

Although it wasn't official news, it sparked widespread sharing. It wasn't hard to see whose marketing ploy this was. Sёarᴄh the Novёlƒire.n(e)t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

The Qin Family watched these maneuvers with wide eyes.

"Why do unfaithful people always seem to live better than faithful ones?" Qin Rong couldn't help but ask Ji Fei.

Ji Fei replied, "Because faithful people have more moral constraints than unfaithful ones, so they worry more. People who worry more are more likely to get sick. So this teaches us a lesson."

Everyone looked over curiously.

"Vent your frustrations outwardly on others more, and reflect inwardly on yourself less. That's the secret to longevity," Ji Fei said with a profound look.

Just as Ji Fei was criticizing, she received a call from Gao Hao.

Gao Hao had just received the notice.

"The first day's shooting schedule is out. I don't know if it's a coincidence or the program team stirring up drama, but we'll be competing against the Best Actor's group, performing with the theme of 'true love'. They'll perform first, and we'll follow. Although the competition system is more advantageous for us, it's clear that no one will pay attention to us. This is obviously the program team giving the Best Actor's group a chance to hold a clarification press conference. Anyone in their group is just cannon fodder. So we can only keep a level head. Let's be conservative with our script and wait until the storm of public opinion they bring has passed before saying anything, to avoid getting caught up in it."

Ji Fei asked curiously, "They specifically chose our group, is it deliberate retaliation?"

Gao Hao sneered.

Ji Fei pondered, "True love, huh. I have some ideas for the script."

On the day of filming, in the waiting area.

Sheng Wenyue was staring at his phone absentmindedly. He had been waiting for Ruan Jia to contact him, thinking she would be furious and come looking for him after seeing the news, but Ruan Jia hadn't done anything, which made him uneasy.

"Senior, why don't we just give up? It's all my fault," Wang Jiani said, looking pitiful.

"Things have progressed to this point, there's no turning back now. With the broadcast of the show, there must be a divorce announcement," the manager reminded.

Sheng Wenyue closed his eyes briefly, "If she still won't bow her head even now, forget it. Let the lawyers go find her directly."

Wang Jiani's eyes flickered, "What if Sister Ruan Jia doesn't sign?"

Sheng Wenyue avoided Wang Jiani's gaze and said somewhat stiffly, "I will promise her it's a fake divorce. After I've arranged things for you, I'll never be involved in your affairs again and will stay with her forever. She should stop making a fuss then. This is the most we can do to make it up to you, Jiani. I'm sorry, this is all I can do."

Hatred flashed in Wang Jiani's eyes, "I'm afraid your wife will be angry with you. What if she's too angry and won't forgive you?"

"That won't happen. We've been together since we can remember. She loves me very much. Even if she's angry for a while, she'll eventually forgive me," Sheng Wenyue said, and then smiled.

[He actually smiled, does he think he's made the most decisive choice between the two of them and the future will be bright? What kind of bizarre thinking is this?]

Ji Fei was eagerly watching the drama unfold in the waiting area, while Qin Zhao and Qin Rong, who came as an assistant, quietly eavesdropped.

Qin's Father and Qin's Mom in the audience area were too far away to hear the inner thoughts and felt frustrated.

However, the live broadcast soon began. After the Host announced the competition mode, the Best Actor's group took the stage first.

At the same time, because it was an unfamiliar number, Ruan Jia answered the call.

"Hello, we are the legal representatives of Mr. Sheng. May we ask if Ms. Ruan is currently..."

Waiting for the Lawyer to arrive, Ruan Jia speculated on Sheng Wenyue's intentions. Actually, she knew that every time Sheng Wenyue mentioned divorce, he was just trying to scare her. But what if this time it was real?

Was she still unwilling to let go?

Sheng Wenyue was like that dirty thing in her brain. If she didn't dig it out, she would die, but the process of digging it out was too dangerous. Without her parents, and with the dream that could support her beliefs long forgotten, she had been living her life revolving around Sheng Wenyue. The pain of such separation might be unbearable for her.

As if wanting to self-harm to alleviate the pain, she wanted to see an ending.

In the hospital room, the TV was on, and Ruan Jia stared intently at the live broadcast as Sheng Wenyue and Wang Jiani entered hand in hand.

A beautiful love story began.

And Ruan Jia's eyes gradually lost their light.

However, millions of netizens watching the live broadcast were about to be fooled.

Those were all brief stage plays, but they depicted snippets of a helpless love story.

"...Childhood sweethearts, pestered since they were young, their families urged them to marry under the pretext of cooperating to start a company. The male lead was focused on his career, indifferent, and just went along with it..."

"...Realizing the mistake of the marriage, he wanted a divorce, but the original wife kept clinging to the Best Actor. The Best Actor, soft-hearted towards the original wife, was entangled for many years and could only numb himself through work. Otherwise, he wouldn't have kept the marriage secret for so long. Over these years, the company has grown big and strong relying on the Best Actor's commercial value. The original wife has enjoyed the benefits without effort, which is good enough. The Best Actor doesn't owe her anything..."

"...Four years ago, he finally met his soulmate, his true love, and wanted to start a new life. But the original wife used her power to drive away the true love, making her suffer all kinds of hardships abroad and destroying her career..."

"...After finally coming back, the Best Actor just wanted to make amends and take care of her, never intending to have an affair. But the original wife was suspicious, not only framing the drinking incident but also faking illness to deceive people, and designing various schemes against the true love. Seeing things develop like this, the Best Actor finally decided not to tolerate it anymore and officially announced his intention to divorce the original wife..."

Based on their recent investigations into the real events of the three people, fans immediately understood the meaning of the stage play. This was the truth they had been waiting for.

The comment section instantly collapsed, and the internet exploded.

"These days, is it a capital offense to divorce without love? At least the Best Actor hasn't really had an affair."

"Can you please set my brother free? My brother has the right to pursue his own happiness."

"In my opinion, since the rumored affair with Wang Jiani four years ago, my brother has kept himself clean in all his works over the years. You can see it's true love. It's quite pitiful that they're being kept apart by a paranoid person now."

"The most pitiful is Wang Jiani, who was driven away, targeted, and framed. She only fell in love with another pitiful person, just two lonely hearts getting close to each other. It's Ruan Jia who won't let go and keeps tormenting the Best Actor."

There were also bystanders who held different opinions.

"Is there a justification for changing affections now?"

"Am I the only one who sympathizes with the original wife? What kind of mistress logic is prevailing now?"

But these were quickly buried by the overwhelming flood of comments. It was almost a one-sided trend.

The stage play ended with the two divorcing, true love coming together, and the evil original wife leaving their world.

Even after the stage performance ended, the comment section was still full.

It seemed that no one cared about the next performance at all.

Meanwhile, Qin Yan, watching the live broadcast, was really alarmed. Worried about Ruan Jia's condition, she hurried to the hospital room, only to see a Lawyer walking in.

"Miss Ruan, we've been entrusted by Mr. Sheng to give you this divorce agreement. We hope you'll sign..." The lawyer looked up at the girl on the hospital bed and suddenly broke his professional composure, blurting out, "Um... that's just a script, you don't need to take it seriously..."

Qin Yan, looking at Ruan Jia's condition, sharply inhaled.

It was as if her soul had been extracted from her body.

At this moment, the live broadcast screen shook as a new group of guests appeared.

The screen suddenly darkened, as if someone was plunged into darkness.

Suddenly, an ethereal voice rang out.

"Why aren't you actively seeking treatment? Are you trying to punish those who hurt you by killing yourself? If you're not afraid of death, what are you afraid of in life?"

In the darkness, a light shone on Ji Fei, lying on the hospital bed, all alone.

As if on the brink of death, she replied, "I... I don't know."

"If you had a chance to start over, what would you choose?" the ethereal voice continued.

"Choose what?" Ji Fei remained confused.

"Your health or him, which would you choose?"

"Your parents or him, which would you choose?"

"Being a world-renowned photographer or him, which would you choose?"

"You actually have many choices, don't you?"

The light gradually brightened, and Ji Fei slowly sat up, a spark flashing in her eyes. She seemed to have suddenly understood, and the answer emerged.

In the hospital room, the dazed Ruan Jia was stunned.

Watching the performance, Sheng Wenyue's face slightly changed. Photographer?

Perhaps due to the unusual opening, the barrage of comments paused briefly before gradually resuming, though with less attention.

But in the next second, the lights dimmed and then brightened again. The sound of a slap resounded throughout the venue, startling the audience into silence and snapping Ruan Jia back to reality.

"You scumbag! Cheating is bad enough, but you dare try to prettify it with lies? You think you're worthy of ruining my life?"

It seemed like she was scolding someone...

The comment section exploded once again.