But Jiang Hua had no intention of buying it. "Do you think I'm afraid? If I were so easily coerced by you, I wouldn't need to stay in this country. I could just tuck my tail between my legs and run away from this city or even the country. Wouldn't that be more in line with your wishes? It's just a simple gathering of friends. You can talk your way out of it, but it's nothing."
It's not like she was actually caught in bed with someone else. Besides, it's all baseless. Jiang Shiwan's attempt to use this as an excuse is a gross underestimation of her mental fortitude.
She thought Jiang Shiwan was trying to use Gu Yiming to threaten her. Little did she know she was wrong.
But don't even think about getting her to quit the entertainment industry; there's no way she'll do that.
She tossed the photo back onto the coffee table and coldly remarked, "Your wishful thinking is going to fall through again."
Even if her relationship with Gu Yiming were normal, let alone tense, she wouldn't be scared out of her wits by a few photos. Gu Yiming hadn't contacted her, so she didn't mind having another charge against him.
Let's just give up and do whatever we want.
Jiang Shiwan had considered many possibilities before coming, but she never expected that she would refuse so decisively. She was a little exasperated. "You are really confident! I don't believe you are not worried about the photos being exposed. Your relationship with Gu Yiming is already very strained, right? Aren't you afraid of making things worse? Do you really want to take this opportunity to have your cake and eat it too, hoping to rekindle your old flame with Ye Mucheng? I didn't realize you had so many faces!"
Jiang Hua glanced coldly at Jiang Shiwan, her tone disdainful: "You think you can come to my house and swagger around just because you took a few photos? You think too highly of yourself."
If she were so easily threatened, then Jiang Hua wouldn't need to be in the entertainment industry, which is like a cesspool. She might as well have just been a parasite dependent on Gu Yiming from the beginning, living the life of a wealthy wife who never had to worry about food or clothing. Why bother creating trouble for herself?
"No matter how high and mighty you sound, you still have to fight with your current husband while taking the opportunity to seduce your ex. Don't think of yourself as some kind of saint. You could shamelessly seduce your brother-in-law back then, and now you can flirt with Ye Mucheng. You're a wanton person at heart." Jiang Shiwan still gritted her teeth when talking about the past between the two of them. She would never forget being ruthlessly cheated out of her love.
"Don't try to absolve yourself of all responsibility. We both know exactly what happened back then. The reason I did what I did was out of desperation. If someone slaps me, am I supposed to just obediently accept it and let them bully me?"
No one is born kind, and Jiang Hua is no exception.
If those old, trivial matters were brought up, it would probably take a whole day to recount them. She didn't want to dwell on those sordid things; just thinking about them gave her a throbbing headache. She said coldly, "I don't want to bring up those old stories. I used to disdain them, but now I feel there's no need. Since you want to be a big star and flaunt your fame as much as you want, I won't interfere. I just want to live a peaceful life."
"You were dumped by Gu Yiming, so you're now convincing yourself to let it go?"
Jiang Shiwan truly didn't consider herself an outsider. When no one made her tea, she took a can of Coke from the refrigerator, opened it, took a couple of elegant sips, and even made a few sarcastic remarks.
If she hadn't investigated these matters, she wouldn't be here, saying these things so recklessly. Without Gu Yiming's protection, and with Jiang Hua pregnant, if her extramarital affair were exposed, public opinion would definitely break her down.
"I know you're a smart man. If these photos are released to the public, you might not be worried, but what kind of family is the Gu family? Would they let a minor celebrity ruin their reputation? It doesn't matter if you're shameless, but when a married man has an affair, the Gu family will be implicated, and of course, Ye Muchen too. He's worked so hard for so many years and finally reached the peak of his career. He'll probably also be affected by public opinion. Both men, whose careers are at their peak, will likely be affected."
Upon hearing these words, Jiang Hua almost wanted to refute them, but she lowered her eyes, tightly clutching a photograph, staring at Ye Muchen's handsome profile, completely stunned and unable to utter a word.
Seeing her expression, Jiang Shiwan revealed a smug smile and added fuel to the fire: "With such a scandal involving the Gu family, even if you insist that nothing happened and that you only had one meal together, you don't live in the Gu family home and are too close to men, the media loves to make things up based on pictures. If they fabricate stories that you were kicked out of the house or moved out without your family's knowledge, everyone will take the opportunity to speculate about your relationship with your husband. They can create all sorts of rumors. Tell me, when Gu Yiming is furious, how will he deal with Ye Mucheng?"
Jiang Hua's breathing gradually became heavier. Thinking of that man's ruthless methods, Ye Mucheng's company might be suppressed. He was no match for the Gu family. She suddenly gripped the photo tightly. "You are shameless."
"I'm shameless?" Jiang Shiwan said as if she had heard a funny joke. "I'm doing this because you forced me to! If you don't want to leave the industry, fine, but as soon as I leave your house, I'll have someone release the news. You and Ye Mucheng will be ruined! We'll be a pair of fallen lovers. I just don't know if Ye Mucheng will turn around and bite you."
Jiang Hua's mental defenses had crumbled; her eyes were red, and she was speechless for a long time, while Jiang Shiwan showed great patience, waiting steadfastly.
"Okay, I promise you."
Finally, after much deliberation, Jiang Hua compromised.
Jiang Shiwan's plan succeeded, but she wasn't too smug. She said, "You issue the statement yourself. I need to see it with my own eyes."
Jiang Hua gritted her teeth, not bothering to discuss it with her assistant, nor was there any way to do so. She logged onto Weibo, her fingers trembling for a long time, but she was completely powerless. The moment she issued the statement, she felt as if her body was floating, and she felt a little incredulous.
After battling with Jiang Shiwan for so long, he ultimately lost by a single move and suffered a complete defeat.
"Are you satisfied now?" Jiang Hua asked, barely audible, through suppressed tears.
Seeing the overwhelming number of reposts and comments, and how it had already climbed into the top 5 of the trending searches in just ten minutes, demonstrating its widespread influence, Jiang Shiwan finally showed a relieved expression. Looking at Jiang Hua's trembling body and slightly protruding belly, her gaze suddenly froze, and a sinister glint flashed in her eyes. That child should never have come into the world. Sooner or later, she would get rid of the child as well.
However, now that she has solved one problem and achieved half of her revenge, she feels much more relaxed. Her Weibo account will likely be even more chaotic because she has already hired online trolls who are waiting for this moment and will definitely take the opportunity to release their own press releases to ride the wave of popularity.
Although it's a bit uncomfortable to be trending like this, it's worth it for her to become popular again.
Jiang Hua's phone kept ringing with numerous text messages and calls. Frustrated, she silenced it and looked at the person sitting comfortably on the sofa, saying irritably, "I've already posted it on Weibo, what more do you want? Do you want me to add a picture of the two of us to prove that I was threatened by you to post it?"
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