Crying While Filling the Pit I Dug - Chapter 94

Meng Jiangye stopped abruptly, flipping through his computer, deep in thought. Then he said, “Zeng Jiayuan! She once fought for the script of ‘My Thirty Eight Days’ and even approached the director herself, but in the end, he chose you. Since then, she might have held a grudge. Last night, she lost the Best Supporting Actress award, while you won. I even heard gossip that she once pursued Xu Nanfang, but you were the one who got close to him.”

In the industry, many vie for roles, and everyone competed fiercely. However, with only one role available, some were bound to succeed while most would fail. Additionally, although Xu Nanfang strongly recommended Song Miaomiao at the time, the director also interviewed her and approved, which wasn’t a result of any unspoken rule. If Zeng Jiayuan did develop negative feelings for Song Miaomiao out of spite, she could only be considered unlucky.

Song Miaomiao truly had no knowledge of Zeng Jiayuan’s pursuit of Xu Nanfang, and the gossip forums hadn’t mentioned it either. 

She pondered the situation again and realized that suspicion fell heavily on her. After all, she had publicly hugged her at the awards ceremony the previous night, seemingly displaying affection for the media. On the surface, it seemed unlikely that she was involved, but privately, she stabbed her with a knife. However, Song Miaomiao couldn’t be certain. 

“Let’s navigate through this crisis first.”

Luckily, she had been at the gym earlier, with the coach intending to showcase her as an inspirational figure for weight loss. She had taken some pictures during her weight loss journey, depicting her body at different stages, which could disprove any accusations of plastic surgery. As for the incident with the mineral water thing, she had to rely on contacting the film crew to set the record straight.

Meng Jiangye, in the midst of responding to a barrage of scandals, diligently forwarded Song Miaomiao’s weight loss pictures to entertainment reporters he knew.

As the dark winter night settled in, Meng Jiangye was on the verge of contacting Song Miaomiao’s film crew to clarify the mineral water incident when his phone erupted with notifications. Countless reporters were calling simultaneously to get a certain truth.

　　———————

At precisely 10:00 in the evening, Xu Nanfang posted a message on Weibo.

Xu Nanfang: Good night, have sweet dreams of me. @Fang Zhenxin

Meng Jiangye, unaware of the context, understood from the reporter’s call that Xu Nanfang had mentioned something about Fang Zhenxin on Weibo. After ending the call, he swiftly opened to Weibo.

“Zhenxin, are you and Xu Nanfang dating?”

Song Miaomiao was bewildered. “No.”

As they spoke, another call interrupted Meng Jiangye’s concentration. Nevertheless, he had already opened Weibo. He switched his phone to airplane mode and handed it to Song Miaomiao. “Take a look at Xu Nanfang’s Weibo.”

Song Miaomiao accepted the phone, and upon seeing the post, her heart nearly leapt from her chest.

“Him? He! He.” Song Miaomiao covered her mouth, her eyes widening. “What does he mean by that?”

Meng Jiangye inquired, “Are you sure you’re not dating him?”

“No!”

“Has he ever pursued you?”

Song Miaomiao shook her head. “No, I wish he had. Then, I wouldn’t lie to you.”

“Have you two ever been involved romantically?”

Song Miaomiao shook her head. “You know I like him, but apart from filming together, there’s been nothing between us. I don’t even have his personal number.”

While Song Miaomiao did have Xu Nanfang’s contact details, the number belonged to his assistant, Wen Qiuyue. Xu Nanfang rarely used his phone, especially on set, preferring communication through assistants and managers.

Meng Jiangye remained skeptical. “He hasn’t mentioned anything about this?”

“He’s never said a word to me.”

Meng Jiangye retrieved the phone from Song Miaomiao’s grasp, disabled the airplane mode, and disregarded the flood of calls and messages. “I’ll call and inquire with his manager.”

However, at that moment, Xu Nanfang’s agent and company personnel were also besieged by the media, making it impossible for Meng Jiangye to establish a connection.

Uncertain of Xu Nanfang’s intentions, Meng Jiangye pondered. Xu Nanfang hadn’t pursued Song Miaomiao nor mentioned wanting to work on their potential coupling. Following the Weibo post, Song Miaomiao couldn’t reach Xu Nanfang.

Meng Jiangye entertained another strategy: allow the situation to escalate and generate more attention. It was imperative not to hastily react. Even if it was a ploy, they needed to wait until the situation unfolded further, potentially resulting in long-term popularity for Song Miaomiao.

Song Miaomiao and Meng Jiangye found themselves with no alternative but to observe and await developments. They refrained from responding to any inquiries, opting to wait for any new developments before deliberating further.

In Song Miaomiao’s phone, several individuals from the industry reached out, seeking clarification, but she chose not to engage.

She opened her Weibo and was surprised to discover that Xu Nanfang had actually followed her. While she had followed Xu Nanfang a while back, he hadn’t followed her back. In fact, he rarely used Weibo, mainly cooperating with the studio to post pictures, promote new dramas, and endorsements. With trembling hands, she clicked on Xu Nanfang’s Weibo and reread his post. 

The comments below were all from fans: 

“I’m crazy about this love.”

“Fang Zhenxin is my spirit animal.” 

“Today, we’re all Fang Zhenxin enthusiasts.”

Song Miaomiao’s notifications continued to chime. She navigated to her Weibo homepage, where the latest post was about the red carpet at the Golden Fish Awards. She was clad in a dress, posing for pictures in the hotel corridor. While the post had garnered no more than 2,000 comments the day before, the number suddenly skyrocketed to 20,000.

The comments were overwhelmingly negative, with most of them criticizing her.

The top trending topics on Weibo were dominated by the pair. The key words included: #Xu Nanfang with Zhenxin#, #Xu Nanfang Golden Fish Award Best Actor#, #Weird Fang Zhenxin#, #Fang Zhenxin weighed 180 catties#, #Record#, #How can Fang Zhenxin be so virtuous and capable#…

As Song Miaomiao scrolled through, she didn’t feel saddened by the criticism. To her, the entire situation felt surreal, akin to something from a fantastical story. Others’ opinions of her were just that—their opinions. What truly mattered to her was Xu Nanfang.

Unexpectedly, Meng Jiangye interjected, “Zhenxin, didn’t I tell you not to respond immediately?”

Perplexed, Song Miaomiao responded, “I didn’t respond. I didn’t reply to any of the messages they sent.”