Since she had spoken, Quan Jiu had nothing to hide. She poured out the bitterness of her two-year marriage, during which Wang Feifei was so angry that she almost flipped the table several times.
It was only when Quan Jiu finally recounted how she escaped that Wang Feifei, both surprised and sighing, grabbed Quan Jiu's arm. "Jiujiu, aren't you afraid he'll catch you again? That man surnamed Chu is a devil. Even I want to steal your adorable twins, let alone him. These wealthy families value their heirs the most. Not to mention Mimi, if he finds out about Tutu's existence, he might really go to any lengths to snatch her away from you."
Her words struck a chord with Quan Jiu. She said helplessly, "It's also fate playing tricks. I never expected him to live in Lijing Yuncheng. In fact, I've already... met him. That's also why I'm moving."
"What? And he... let you go?" Wang Feifei asked in surprise.
"He seemed to be ill at the time, his consciousness unclear. I escaped, and I don't know if he remembers," Quan Jiu recalled the deep and domineering kiss from back then, blushing slightly. But then she thought of his heartlessness towards her, and her heart felt as if it were being gnawed by ants, a subtle pain.
Wang Feifei didn't notice her unusual demeanor and worried, "You absolutely cannot run into that plague god again. You should just move... Oh, that won't work either, my brother is still living at home, so he can't know either."
Quan Jiu smiled gratefully. "I'm not as panicked now. Lijing Yuncheng is quite large, and it's not easy to run into him. Besides, Mimi and Tutu's schools are there, so I probably can't move in the short term."
"That's true," Wang Feifei felt a little more at ease. After a moment of silence, she asked again, "What are you going to do next? Are you going to keep hiding from him?"
Quan Jiu shook her head and smiled. Thinking of her two little treasures filled her with fighting spirit. "I want to build my own power, a power strong enough to contend with him."
Wang Feifei thumped her chest, full of fighting spirit. "I support you."
...
After Quan Jiu and Wang Feifei finished lunch, they returned to the film crew to continue working.
When Jiang Nanchen saw Quan Jiu again, he didn't know where to put his face. Quan Jiu, on the other hand, had a frank smile, showing no sign of anger. But it was precisely because of this that Jiang Nanchen felt even worse. In Quan Jiu's eyes, he couldn't see the slightest possibility for himself.
"Jiujiu..." Jiang Nanchen said with a bitter expression, "I'm truly sorry today. I really didn't expect it to turn out like that."
Quan Jiu smiled slightly. "It's really nothing. I haven't taken it to heart. You should also be more open-minded. As long as we do a good job on 'Floating Life' together, that's enough. I hope it's a box office hit, I'm still waiting for my dividends."
With things said to this extent, Jiang Nanchen couldn't say more and could only smile before they each went back to their own work.
Public relations assistant Zhao suddenly exclaimed, "This is bad."
Jiang Nanchen walked over. "What's wrong?"
Zhao frowned. "A large number of negative news about our crew has suddenly appeared online." She forwarded the message to the director's group.
Quan Jiu clicked it open. It was the Weibo trending searches list. The top ten were all various untrue news. Among them, her identity as "nine" was the most prominent.
#《浮生》Male Lead Kept by Screenwriter Nine#, #Nine, an Old Cow Eating Tender Grass#, #Ugly Fat Otaku Nine Abuses Power for Personal Gain#, #Xiao Qi Avoids a Calamity#, #《浮生》Female Lead Pregnant Before Marriage#, #《浮生》Boycotted Before Filming Even Starts#...
Almost every headline was sensational.
Quan Jiu clicked into the trending searches to read the comments. They were all insults and personal attacks, only stopping short of digging up her ancestors and flogging their corpses.
As for the crew and the two main actors, they were also severely criticized. Liu Wenwen, in particular, looked like she had a child in the photos. However, someone had checked her household registration information, and she was unmarried. Because of this, she was verbally torn to shreds.
Wang Feifei was both shocked and angry. "This is definitely malicious targeting."
Jiang Nanchen said with a heavy brow, "Even if it's malicious targeting, once negative news erupts, the public will no longer believe in facts. They will only be happy to gossip. Even if we clarify, they will think it's an excuse."
Zhao was already busy with public relations handling.
Jiang Nanchen sighed and called all the important staff to a meeting to discuss.
"Now, we are facing three problems: First, the risk of investors withdrawing their capital; second, the problem of netizens' boycott; and third, the issue of clarifying the negative news."
Wang Qiang couldn't help but speak first. "This is definitely malicious targeting by our opponents, and the sudden widespread outbreak suggests that the opposing force is quite significant. I believe that since things have reached this point, it's no longer a matter of clarification, but of us fighting back forcefully. I suggest reporting to the police and filing a case, letting the police intervene and investigate. This will show our innocence and also deliver a heavy blow to the instigators."
Jiang Nanchen nodded. "That's feasible. Even if the police can't find anything, we have to show our stance."
"The investment problem, to put it bluntly, is a public opinion problem. Once the public opinion problem is solved, all problems will be solved," Wang Qiang added.
Quan Jiu continued, "These are all just treating the symptoms, not the root cause. We need to find out the person behind it to achieve a lasting solution. Otherwise, if it doesn't work once, they will definitely have a second and third attempt. For them, it's just a matter of buying some internet trolls and trending searches, which is not difficult at all."
"But how do we find them?" Luo Cheng asked, confused.
Quan Jiu already had an idea. "This matter can be left to me. I will find the person behind this."
"Screenwriter Quan, you don't need to force yourself. It's not easy to find the real culprit. The immediate priority is to resolve the public opinion. As for the person behind it, it's not too late to spend energy on it after we've dealt with the current issues," Wang Qiang said truthfully.
Quan Jiu smiled slightly, her eyes filled with certainty and composure. "I'll have results for you tomorrow."
Tomorrow? Everyone was surprised. Although they didn't say anything outwardly, they didn't believe it in their hearts. How could it be possible? If it were that easy, they wouldn't have been suddenly attacked. Now, they had no idea why they were targeted, and they didn't know where to start to find the person behind the scenes.
Just as Jiang Nanchen was about to speak, his phone suddenly rang. He answered it. The person on the other end was somewhat angry. "Director Jiang, what's going on with your crew? Before filming even starts, you're on the trending searches three times a week. Look at today's topics. I, for one, dare not cooperate with you anymore. I want to withdraw my investment. According to the contract, you caused the negative impact first, so I will not pay any liquidated damages."
Although Jiang Nanchen was angry, he still wanted to try and salvage the situation. He explained, "We are already preparing to report to the police and have the public security organs intervene and investigate. This matter is malicious targeting."
"I don't care about these things. I only care about the results. The current result is that you have been boycotted by the entire internet. How can I dare to jump into a pit? I won't talk anymore, I'm busy. Goodbye."
Jiang Nanchen opened his mouth, but ultimately hung up the phone. "Qi Ran wants to withdraw his investment."
"Let him withdraw. Our film will definitely be a box office hit, and they'll regret it then," Wang Qiang said irritably.
But as soon as he finished speaking, his own phone rang. He picked it up and heard another withdrawal call.