CH 67

7-9 minutes 23.05.2023

When Yu Zhou learned about the matter, it was already the second day after returning to Jiangcheng.

The posts were deleted very quickly since most of the netizens in the forum knew the boundary between gossip and infringement. Moreover, the wind on the internet always goes like this; anything excessive and overly aggressive would result in a backlash.

For example, in the beginning, when the news spread that Xiang Wan was acting like a diva and refusing to record, some netizens blamed Xiang Wan, sympathizing with the organizer and the overworked workers.

Perhaps it was because they saw public opinion on their side and got carried away, or perhaps they couldn’t swallow their anger and wanted to “press their advantage”. Either way, they quickly released the bill.

But once this expense bill was released, it crossed the line in the minds of most netizens. They began to sympathize with Xiang Wan because it wasn’t hard to imagine the ethical standards of the organizers who would invade someone’s privacy like this.

So without Xiang Wan saying anything, netizens began to suspect that there was more to the “refusal to record” incident.

Furthermore, the discussion about the condom rose to the level of whether women have sexual autonomy and how to avoid slut-shaming and sexual shame. In the newly started thread, most of the bystanders sided with Xiang Wan.

Never mind whether the bill was real or fake, even if it were real, so what? Didn’t she have the right to use it? Should she be exposed like this, her privacy paraded in front of others, subjected to contempt and insult?

The answer was obvious.

By the time Yu Zhou saw it, the forum was almost cleaned up, leaving only this thread discussing women’s rights without naming names.

She hesitated for a moment but still told Xiang Wan.

Yu Zhou wasn’t very clear about the course of events and could only piece together the remaining information from the thread.

She said to Xiang Wan, “If you’re willing, we can sue them.”

But Xiang Wan thought about it and felt it was unnecessary.

She didn’t want to be held back by such incidents just as she was starting her career.

Moreover, she blushed slightly while saying softly, “I don’t really want to argue with others about whether I used a condom.”

Yu Zhou was both exasperated and amused: “Weren’t you very assertive at home before? You wouldn’t even take off the finger cots when asked and now you’re shy? You know you’re a lady?”

“Who would believe that you were just curious and tried it for fun?” Yu Zhou found it a bit tricky.

“Let’s not talk about the condom. Let’s clarify the diva behavior, alright? The problem is, it was a rehearsal, no recording, so we have no evidence, we can only speak for ourselves.” Yu Zhou clicked her tongue, “Or write an emotional essay, explaining the whole story.”

“I received a private message yesterday. A fan recorded it,” Xiang Wan said.

“Huh?”

“She sent me a video clip. It was taken on a phone, a bit distant and not very complete. The host’s words weren’t clear, but the words on the big screen were captured.” The fan didn’t know what kind of clarification she was going to make, nor whether it would be helpful, so she didn’t act rashly, just sent the video privately to Xiang Wan.

“That’s great!” Yu Zhou was delighted, “Shall we post it now?”

“Do you want me to help with the text? I’m good at this,” she added.

Xiang Wan thought for a moment before shaking her head: “Can you help me find someone to… pixelate the host and other staff members who appear in this video, just in case?” She struggled to find the right word, “pixelate”.

“I’ll post a Weibo first.”

As she spoke, she took a screenshot of the lines on the big screen from the video and posted it on Weibo.

Yu Zhou leaned over to see that there was no long essay, just a short line of text and a picture.

“Such lines, I do not deserve; such an event, you do not deserve.”

Wow, so cool, thought Yu Zhou.

“With a post like this, you’ve already won,” Yu Zhou watched the fans excitedly reposting the Weibo, then asked her, “Do you still need the video?”

“Wait.”

“Wait for what?”

“Wait to see if they respond. If they do, then release it.”

She couldn’t play her trump card all at once. Moreover, in the screenshot from the video, there was a pause button. The organizers should know that she had the video. She was just holding back a bit. If a threat alone could intimidate them, so much the better.

“You’re so smart,” Yu Zhou said, propping her face up with her right hand while watching her.

Xiang Wan smiled, “There’s no need for excessive admiration.”

Yu Zhou pulled back her smile and rolled her eyes at her.

When the trouble on the internet was almost cleared, Yu Zhou thought that she should consult with her seniors about how to select events and how to communicate with event liaisons. She felt she had made mistakes too. Although the organizers were wrong at first, if she had communicated well at the time without choosing to escape, perhaps they wouldn’t have lost their tempers and the incident might not have caused Xiang Wan so much trouble.

Whether Xiang Wan was in the right or not, Yu Zhou still hoped that she could stay away from controversy. Public opinion was a double-edged sword, hurting others while hurting oneself. If everything could be resolved peacefully, that would be best.

After some consideration, Su Chang was a freelancer and didn’t usually take on many such events. She feared that no one in the Three Sounds Studio had much experience. Moreover, Su Chang was in the midst of negotiating a contract with Xiang Wan, so she didn’t want her to get involved in this matter.

Owing a favor could make contract negotiations tricky.

So she sent a message to Peng Xiangzhi, asking: “Director Peng, when does the recording end today? I’d like to treat you to a meal~”

Peng Xiangzhi replied: “Record your ass.”

“?”

“What’s wrong?” Yu Zhou asked.

“Your Su Chang, she hasn’t shown up for three days.”

Yu Zhou quickly dialed Peng Xiangzhi’s number.

Peng Xiangzhi’s voice sounded half-dead as she laughed coldly when she picked up the phone: “Good timing for your call. Can you ask her if she’s dead?”

“What happened?” Yu Zhou felt a tightness in her chest.

“My recording room arrangement, you know how hard it was for me to set it up, you saw it clear as day in the group chat, didn’t you? She just decided not to come, ruining all my appointments.” Peng Xiangzhi was seething with anger.

“Did she say anything?”

“She said nothing at all, just sent me a WeChat message saying she was sorry and that she would compensate me later.”

“Is this about money? Is this about money?” Peng Xiangzhi’s voice rose to a high pitch.

“So the shooting hasn’t started?” Yu Zhou was getting nervous.

“It started. We’re recording others’ parts first. Fortunately, Zhou Ling had another audio drama to fit in, so I’ve left the scenes between her and Su Chang empty.” Peng Xiangzhi laughed bitterly, “After your dear Miss Su said she couldn’t record anymore, she sent me a schedule for other people to record again, having already arranged their schedules.”

What else could she say? Could she tie Su Chang up and bring her over?

“Ah, this…” Yu Zhou didn’t know what to say. She offered a few words of consolation before she hung up.

Then she called Su Chang.

No answer.

Half an hour later, she tried two more times, but still no answer.

Feeling a sense of unease, she grabbed her coat and headed towards Zhujiang Villa.