In a high-level conference room at the children’s brand’s headquarters. Outside, the view was clear, with white clouds and a blue sky. Inside, the atmosphere was tense and oppressive. Wang Shilan sat at a ten-meter-long table, with several young people in sharp suits and sharp-eyed gazes standing on either side of her. The brand manager wiped the sweat from his forehead, unsure how he’d survived the last ten minutes. The live stream had been abruptly cut off by upper management, disregarding the losses.
His first thought was, “Is this crazy? Has the boss lost his mind?”
Today was the big day for the spokesperson’s debut and live sales. The brand’s new product line was supposed to launch today. The live stream had accumulated 500,000 viewers, a record for the children’s brand. Who could have the power to shut down the stream? Then he saw Wang Shilan, her presence commanding. The short-haired woman walked in with authority, a coat draped over her shoulders, its hem reaching her ankles. Apart from the coat, she was dressed casually. But despite her ordinary outfit, the manager could feel her powerful aura.
She was only accompanied by a male assistant. They strode through the building, led by a guide, straight to the conference room, and sat down. Five minutes later, Wang Shilan’s team had all arrived. Once the brand’s relevant personnel were present, they got straight to business. The brand’s founder had been confused at first about why Wang Shilan was personally taking down Du Ze. To outsiders, Du Ze and Wang Shilan seemed to have a great relationship. Du Ze had repeatedly stated publicly that he admired Wang Shilan, that knowing she was a single mother had touched him, and that he was determined to give her and Niu Niu a complete family.
His overconfident remarks had initially drawn some criticism. A beautiful single mother with at least a dozen properties and assets worth a fortune didn’t need a man to give her a “complete family.” But over time, people realized Du Ze wasn’t just talking. Every time paparazzi caught him, he was either dropping Niu Niu off at kindergarten or picking her up. After a week of staking out his house, a gossip account with sharp commentary declared him the cleanest, most down-to-earth celebrity they’d ever followed. That period of heavy criticism was also when Du Ze was pursuing Wang Shilan the hardest. Even Wang Shilan couldn’t bear to see so many people attacking him. She offered her PR team’s help.
Du Ze just shook his head. “If I cared about that, I would have stayed far away from you. Let them talk. Their words don’t cost me anything. Even bad publicity is publicity.”
Wang Shilan still remembered how charming he was back then: humorous, gentle, and resilient. He’d told her time would prove everything. Now Wang Shilan knew it had all been a lie. As the saying goes: if someone appears perfect for you out of nowhere, they probably approached you with an ulterior motive. Life isn’t a fairy tale. After the brand’s team had seen the evidence, Wang Shilan’s assistant stepped forward and put it away.
“Ten seconds from now, my people will release all of this. At the same time, I will file for divorce. Du Ze and I are through.”
Wang Shilan wasn’t asking for their opinion. She had her assistant transfer a sum of money to the brand’s account.
“I’ll pay the penalty. I can also recommend a new spokesperson, someone better than Du Ze.”
The brand team was speechless. She’d given them money, provided solutions, and even offered to help them find a replacement. Wealthy, vindictive, and decisive. Du Ze had thoroughly provoked Wang Shilan, and his career in entertainment was effectively over. The brand team quickly changed their tune, agreeing to cooperate with Wang Shilan.
Ten minutes earlier, in another office on the same floor.
The brand’s PR team and Du Ze’s studio team were holding an emergency meeting. The brand’s PR team naturally wanted Du Ze to issue a clarification, claiming the videos were maliciously edited and that he would never yell at Niu Niu or threaten to cut her hair. Du Ze stood by the window, the noisy bickering behind him giving him a headache.
When the stream was cut, the set was flooded with people. He didn’t know how many times he’d been stepped on. His clothes were dirty and wrinkled, and he’d only escaped with his assistant’s help. His temples throbbed. He couldn’t figure out who was out to get him. How had internal footage from the show gotten out and been edited like this? It was clearly a setup. He was sure someone was targeting him. If Wang Shilan saw these videos, she’d divorce him for sure. No. His reputation was already destroyed. He couldn’t lose Wang Shilan too. As long as she still loved him and didn’t divorce him, there was still hope.
“We need to release a clarification video right away. Netizens aren’t easy to fool. It’s best to do a live stream and speak sincerely.”
“I agree. Even if we can’t do a live stream, a video would work. Or at least a written apology. We can’t just stay silent and let this get worse.”
The brand’s PR team was frantic. Who had said Du Ze had no scandals, that he was as clean as a blank slate? Their phones had been ringing off the hook for the past few minutes. Du Ze’s studio team disagreed with apologizing.
“Apologizing would be admitting the video is real. We can say it’s a malicious edit. Everyone knows what kind of person Mr. Du is. I strongly oppose apologizing.”
“I agree. Apologizing will only make him a target. How can he stay in the industry after that?”
“I say we contact a lawyer and sue ‘Little Feet Big Adventure.’ How could they let internal footage leak like this?”
Someone interrupted: “This video isn’t internal footage at all. It’s all from the live streams. The quality is just better.”
The room was chaotic, with everyone deflecting blame and unable to agree on anything.
“Everyone shut up!”
Du Ze shouted.
T/n: Sorry for the lack of updates this weekend. I’ve been house hunting, and it has been exhausting and frustrating(I want to cry). The places we’re finding are either not worth the price tag at all, overpriced, or way out of our budget. Good news tho’; I’m taking a break from all that and making up for the late chapters right now<3
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