"I'll go check it out."
"No need, I roughly know who it is." Xu Chun's gaze fell on the receding street scene outside the car window. "He's the only one who knows about the orphanage I'm in."
-Shen Zhu.
Friday evening at 6:35 PM.
A popular online marketing account posted a video that immediately went viral, consistently ranking among the top three trending topics.
Although the video is only a few dozen seconds long, it is very clear, and you can clearly see the face of the person on the other side. Everyone can recognize that it is Xu Chun at a glance.
A disheveled middle-aged woman knelt on the ground, clutching Xu Chun's hand and wailing, repeatedly apologizing. From her words, it was clear that she was Xu Chun 'Xu Chun mother, and that she had been searching for him ever since he was taken away by human traffickers many years ago.
When netizens who didn't know the reason saw her pitiful appearance, they were all moved with compassion.
"No matter what, it's not right to make someone so old kneel on the ground. Looking at Xu Chun's expressionless face, I think he's quite cold-blooded."
"Who would believe something that's just baseless? If someone suddenly appeared claiming to be my mother, I wouldn't believe them either. Please provide some evidence."
"I always felt that Xu Chun was hard to fake. His former colleagues all said the same thing, saying that he was completely different in front of the camera."
"I remember Shen Zhu saying before that Xu Chun is a very good actress..."
"Their previous endorsements were the same; they only cared about making money and completely disregarded the well-being of their fans."
Xu Chun was aware of these online comments, but he wasn't worried. He was currently playing chess with Xie Jianyuan in his room, and he frowned as he glanced at the board, seemingly pondering a strategy.
Seeing Xie Jianyuan's absent-minded look, I knew he had read those comments online.
"No rush," Xu Chun smiled slightly. "This is just the beginning. I'll show him what it means to ask for trouble."
Xie Jianyuan lifted his eyelids and glanced at him. Although he was somewhat surprised that Xu Chun would say such a thing, he was slightly relieved to see how calm and composed he was.
However, he was thinking about something else. He had already found out who was behind the endorsement controversy and had taken action to deliberately suppress Shen Zhu's announcements and activities. He didn't intend to let him off so easily, but that's a story for another time.
What's troubling him now is how to explain to Xu Chun the mastermind behind this, because Xu Chun and Shen Zhu seem to have a good relationship, and he's worried that Xu Chun will be sad and heartbroken after knowing the truth.
Chapter 94 Sending Flowers
"What's wrong? Why are you looking at me like that?" Xu Chun placed a piece on the board, glanced at him, and smiled faintly.
Xie Jianyuan seemed to have made up his mind, and said in a deep voice, "Your previous endorsement controversy was orchestrated by Shen Zhu. I found those people who were 'defending their rights' and managed to get them to talk. They were indeed acting under someone's orders. There were indeed people who had allergies, but not as many as reported. Many people exaggerated the situation."
Xu Chun didn't show any surprise and said gently, "I know."
Xie Jianyuan was taken aback. "You knew all along?"
Xu Chun laughed and said, "Not only that, I also know that this whole thing was mostly his doing, otherwise they wouldn't have known my home address and information."
His guess was indeed correct; Shen Zhu was the mastermind behind these events. He was also monitoring online public opinion and spending money to buy trending topics to keep the buzz going.
This controversy has gone viral, unlike previous fan wars. It has sparked a huge level of social discussion, and even official Weibo have commented on it.
Xu Changjiao also responded in an interview with reporters, and in the video she showed a paternity test report, confirming that Xu Chun is indeed her biological son.
She broke down in tears several times during the interview, tearfully recounting her pain after Xu Chun was abducted, hoping that Xu Chun would understand her feelings as a mother.
Netizens also began to condemn Xu Chun's cold-bloodedness and ruthlessness. Logically speaking, blood ties should be above all else. After all, they are your biological parents, and they did not abandon you on purpose. The child was abducted, which is already tragic enough. Now the child does not even recognize her.
At this critical juncture, fans' efforts to control comments are seen as more endearing by outsiders. People unfamiliar with fan circles believe that things should be discussed directly and are very resistant to fans using images to control comments. However, the fans are also helpless, as all they can do is take the initiative to control comments, suppress negative and malicious remarks, and nip any potential negative comments in the bud by outsiders.
As the controversy escalated, the executives at Xu Chun's agency couldn't sit still any longer. They summoned Su Li to inquire about the situation. After hearing the whole story, they decided to hold back. Since someone was trying to target Xu Chun, they might as well turn the tables and use this opportunity to implicate the mastermind behind it all, and even gain some publicity from the incident.
"Have you found out who's behind this?" Su Li was stopped again as she was leaving and asked.
She hesitated for a moment, then finally shook her head. "I don't know."
"Okay, you can leave now."
After Su Li closed the door, she realized she had actually lied. She already knew from Xu Chun who was behind it all. The reason she chose to keep it a secret was because Shen Zhu was also a company employee, and the company's higher-ups would definitely choose to protect her to quell the current turmoil and avoid creating any complications that could harm their own interests.
Xu Chun is an artist she personally mentored, and now that he has finally achieved his current status, she can't just stand by and watch him be ruined.
Moreover, Xu Chun has always been a person with his own ideas. Perhaps he already has a plan, just waiting for the right opportunity to retaliate immediately, leaving no room for the other party.
Xu Chun had a variety show shoot on Thursday afternoon, and the current public opinion has indeed affected his work. Whenever he appears in the public eye, there are cameras and microphones pointing at him and snapping photos, some even right up to his face.
Escorted by her agent and security guards, Xu Chun finally made it to the backstage of the variety show recording. After entering the dressing room, Xu Chun felt much easier to breathe. Recalling the difficulty she had in breathing when she was squeezed earlier, she couldn't help but smile to herself.