Chapter 98 This is a topic that can be discussed publicly...
Suspected of being in a relationship and reducing her public appearances, Sheng Yi gradually faded from social media activity for six months. In contrast, Wen Shili's new album made a splash.
Although he's already semi-retired from the entertainment industry, he's incredibly capable; even the smallest news item can draw countless eyes. His fans, who came specifically for his work, have very little wish—as long as he doesn't completely disappear, he can do whatever he wants.
Such influence is truly unique to Sheng Yi; most people have long lost interest in comparing themselves to him. Even his cameo role in a movie garnered significant attention, with many claiming they would buy tickets for him, effectively boosting the film's exposure. Judging by future developments, he'll likely achieve further success during awards season.
She spent the Spring Festival on set again, but this year, in addition to the crew dinner, she had another task—chatting with her fans.
Actually, it was just a sudden idea she came up with after accidentally seeing comments from longtime fans. She didn't know about the production team's arrangements beforehand, nor did she reveal it to anyone. Unexpectedly, after the show actually aired, the number of people watching far exceeded her original expectations. Jingjing, who was chatting with her friends, nervously put on a vest, ready to step in and influence public opinion at any moment.
It's supposed to be a time for family reunions, are people all so free?
After several years of companionship, Sheng Yi recognizes some of her fans' names, but some are quite funny—they change their names every time she films a new drama, making it impossible to tell them apart anymore. At times like these, having them chat with her truly feels like seeing family.
Over the years, fans have gotten to know Sheng Yi's personality pretty well. In the festive atmosphere, everyone's conversations have become increasingly unrestrained. When the topic suddenly shifted from "What are we having for New Year's Eve dinner?" to "You look thinner again, and your brother-in-law hasn't even mentioned it," Sheng Yi didn't even realize it.
Huh? She was stunned.
Other fans were equally enthusiastic.
Is this something that can be discussed publicly? Especially with the celebrity himself?
Although couples celebrate various holidays with great enthusiasm, they've never officially announced their relationship to the public. Why reveal it now? Wouldn't it be better to keep it a secret?
In reality, it was just a single comment, and Sheng Yi could have easily closed her eyes and pretended not to see it. The problem is, she did see it.
The moment that sentence was uttered, those who already had doubts also began to feel uneasy, for whether it was true or not, the outcome was the same. In an instant, all sorts of unrelated comments began to scroll and flood the screen, pretending that nothing had happened, interspersed with the occasional question, some subtle and some direct.
Fortunately, she hadn't wasted those years in front of the camera. Sheng Yi recalled her expression management just now and figured it shouldn't be noticeable.
"It's not finished filming yet." She smiled as usual, as if she were just replying to a very ordinary sentence.
However, the implication was clear: even if the brother-in-law wanted to intervene, he wouldn't have the opportunity to do so.
The fans felt as if they had been punched in the face, a feeling that the dust had finally settled.
"Aaaaaah, honey, are you going to abandon me?! The stench is wafting all over here!"
"Help! Take it back! Take it back! I'll pretend I didn't hear that."
Although they may occasionally feel curious, most of the time they accept the current situation, where both parties are aware of each other's existence but do not know exactly who it is.
After all, there aren't many female celebrities in the industry with good taste. The brother-in-law, who is usually only mentioned in banter, is eventually revealed to be a rather unpleasant old man... well, let's just say the scene is quite something.
Based on their understanding of Sheng Yi, they probably wouldn't be able to bring themselves to eat anything too heavy-handed. But no one is perfect, and maybe Sheng Yi's only flaw is his lack of taste? Let's just say we're talking about a colleague; it's best not to discuss a male celebrity's private life.
After the initial gasps, the fans completely lost interest in digging deeper. Aside from the same old congratulations, they threatened the man opposite them to treat Sheng Yi well. Sheng Yi accepted all of this and then naturally changed the subject.
However, the live stream ended earlier than expected. The reason was simple: Lao Qian called Jingjing's phone, begging her to end the stream immediately. Otherwise, it seemed he could have flown over right away.
Amidst the various recommendations and criticisms of the Spring Festival Gala programs, Sheng Yi, along with her relationship gossip, surged to the top of the list, only to be dragged down by Lao Qian.
Unfortunately, there were too many people having fun that night, and the platform's employees were also on holiday. Before he could continue to invest more money, the trending search rankings started climbing all the way up again.
If it weren't for the special circumstances that prevented entertainment news from spreading too freely, she estimated she could have stayed on the top spot for an entire night.
It simply revealed a secret that everyone already knew, but what the person himself admitted is completely different. The holidays are almost over, and netizens are still investigating Sheng Yi's boyfriend. Wen Shili himself is also on the list. Unfortunately, the scope of the list is too broad, making it impossible to focus on a single conclusion. So, after much deliberation, the most likely possibility points to someone outside the entertainment industry.
Of course, this did not affect the fact that the male stars who were mentioned were all excited in their respective CP supertopics as if their favorite couple was getting married on the spot tomorrow.
Sheng Yi ran away after setting the fire. After the New Year, her period drama entered the promotion stage. Before it was broadcast, she was finally able to leave the set.
At the event, reporters were eager to get their hands on her, some even wanting to dig into her private life, but ultimately could only keep their thoughts to themselves. The production crew had reviewed the interview outline beforehand, and all underhanded approaches had been politely discouraged.
The work team was also on tenterhooks. Although her popularity had stabilized and her fans' reactions after the relationship was officially exposed were quite normal, as a female celebrity who hadn't completely given up on popularity, her future development would inevitably be questionable if she lost the support of her fans, or rather, the audience.
If "Starry Night, Dreamlike River" was her attempt in the idol drama field and a great success, and last year's cameo film allowed her to barely enter the world of realistic films, then this big-budget period drama, in which she is undoubtedly the female lead, is a true test of her current audience appeal and influence.
Capital is driven by profit; this is a battle we cannot afford to lose.
"Stop swaying around, okay? Didn't you film three movies last year?"
The premiere wasn't bad, or rather, it was as steady as a flat line, making it oppressive and suffocating. Old Qian had pulled out quite a bit of hair from his head, but Sheng Yi acted as if nothing had happened, even taking the time to comfort him.
Old Qian wanted to twist her head off to see if it was empty inside. "If it stays like this, you're going to get trampled on later."
Sheng Yi patted him on the shoulder, "Give him two more days."
It might sound strange, but those involved in a project have a certain foresight regarding how much effort has been invested. Once everyone has done their utmost, the final outcome is beyond their control.
If it were up to her, she would definitely want the show to be as popular as possible, but that's not entirely up to her. Even the fans know to say that a new show needs to be watched for three days before it becomes popular, it's really not good if it becomes popular too early.
Fortunately, once the overall picture was clear, the data from all platforms began to improve, and the final results showed that all the struggles under the cover of snow and ice were successfully rewarded.
A sense of relief followed, but then came a sudden feeling of exhaustion.
I can't explain why, it's just that I suddenly felt like I wanted to stop and catch my breath.
Old Qian was so happy he forgot his own name. With a wave of his hand, he gave her some time to rest.
Sheng Yi returned to Ancheng alone.
For more than half a month, I had a great time with my friends.
Wen Shili was abroad during that time, and Sheng Yi didn't know exactly what he was busy with; it probably wasn't related to his original work. Cao Jun was also given a long vacation and didn't accompany him. But judging from his schedule, it must have been a very busy period.
Once home, Sheng Yi started following her mother's healthy routine of going to bed early and waking up early. They didn't have many opportunities to chat, but every morning when she woke up, she would see familiar notifications of likes on her WeChat Moments, as well as replies to her pointless complaints.
Sheng Yi heard the news of his return from Yu Ying. As soon as she finished work that day, she received a phone call from her mother, who bombarded her with questions: "Why didn't you tell Shi Li you were going back?"
Tsk, whose side are you on anyway? Sheng Yi was still shaken. Following her reminder, she finally saw the phone call and voice message from Wen Shili.
So, he went directly to Ancheng via a connecting flight?
On the phone, Yu Ying was still grumbling rather unhappily, saying that she was too rushed to invite him to dinner. At the end, she threw a tantrum at Sheng Yi, ordering her to find another opportunity to bring him home to meet her father.
She shrugged, agreeing to whatever was said. Whether it was true or false, the right to interpret it ultimately belonged to her.
Their work didn't overlap much, and amidst their busy schedules, Wen Shili even released a new song the following month. Seeing the flood of fans saying his style had changed, Sheng Yi felt a little guilty. However, the records being broken all the way through proved once again that whatever style he used, it was his own style.
Compared to the profound interpretations from various professionals, the general public was much more straightforward: "I guarantee this was written for his sister-in-law!"
"Ahhh, this is so sweet! I didn't know you were such a good love song writer. I wish you two continued happiness and love, and I hope you'll write more great songs!"
"How about one song a month? We'll make it into an album by the end of the year. I've already thought of a name for it: 'The Four Seasons of Love'."
"Hey, isn't the person upstairs so tacky? I suggest they write one song a week."
Regarding his unrevealed, mysterious girlfriend, as long as the rumors aren't completely baseless, no one seems to care. Sometimes, when he's bored, Wen Shili even likes comments that he finds agreeable. At first, some people questioned whether it was a slip of the hand, but then, after 24 hours without canceling, everyone realized that it was actually true!
Of course, there will be dissenting voices, most of which focus on mocking his identity that has remained unclaimed for many years. Such comments can only be dealt with in one way—by being completely ignored by him.
Wu Simin showed the utmost enthusiasm for Wen Shili's love life and career, providing her with updates every few days. Even more surprisingly, she had already climbed to a relatively high position in the topics related to their pairing. After having a meal together, she firmly stood on Wen Shili's side, providing her with, but not limited to, firsthand information, real-time updates, and a one-stop shop for praise and sob stories.
That day, while Sheng Yiren was still groggy, Wu Simin's greeting arrived on time: a link with the message, "He's so pitiful."
Sheng Yi clicked on it and found that it was a video that Wen Shili had recorded at some point. Compared to the topic of discussion, Wu Simin's focus was clearly on what he was doing.
Feeling that words weren't enough, she switched to voice messages and rattled off a string of words: "I don't believe you two aren't wearing matching couple items."
"Haha, this person is so pretentious. He pulled at his sleeve at least five times in one video."
With her pointing, Sheng Yi's attention was immediately drawn to it. It was indeed a small gift he had given her before, a casual style that wasn't unisex and wouldn't be too conspicuous if worn out, but it was the only one she had never seen on camera.
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Author's Note: Countdown to completion! My next novel, "Heartbeat Disguise," is available; feel free to add it to your favorites if you're interested. [heart emoji]
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