Everyone in the Entertainment Industry Thinks I’m a Flirty Diva [Entertainment Circle] - Chapter 19

Although she wasn’t particularly interested in gossip, Chu Xi, ever the amateur beauty blogger, clicked into Le Shan’s Weibo out of professional curiosity to see what rare treasures she was flaunting.

Could using them turn someone into a fairy?

Unexpectedly, as soon as she entered, she saw that Le Shan had just posted a new update.

@Le Shan: “I’ve been subjected to a lot of malicious speculation these past few days. I initially had no intention of addressing these baseless rumors, but they’ve only grown worse. Thank you all for your concern about my personal life, but I’m sorry to ‘disappoint’ some people. I hereby solemnly declare that I do not know any ‘sugar daddy’ and have never been ‘kept.’ Those who spread and fabricate rumors, please show some self-respect, or I will take legal action. Gratitude.jpg”

Le Shan’s post had been up for about half an hour, and the comments and reposts had already surpassed ten thousand. Chu Xi instinctively felt uncomfortable when she saw the words “sugar daddy” and “kept,” but she still clicked open the comments section below Le Shan’s post.

[Go, Shan Shan! We stand tall and walk straight. We support Shan Shan in defending her rights against the rumor-mongers!]

[Those who spread rumors are even worse than those who make them up.]

[Everyone has witnessed Le Shan’s hard work over the years in the industry. She’s climbed step by step—rumor-mongers, know your limits!]

[F*ck you for spreading such rumors! Shan Shan, don’t be upset!]

[As if everyone is like Chu Xi? It’s hilarious how she’s suddenly getting whitewashed just for appearing on a variety show.]

[How can a toxic disgrace like Chu Xi, who’s been forcefully shoved into the spotlight, even compare to Shan Shan? She’s the rotten apple in every big production—let’s see how long her sugar daddy can keep propping her up.]

[I heard Chu Xi was already a delinquent in school, hanging out in nightclubs as a minor. What kind of decent person could she be?]

[She didn’t even go to college, did she? Debuted at eighteen and immediately got a sugar daddy backing her.]

[Damn, I didn’t know about this. Really, just anyone can make money in the entertainment industry now, huh?]

…

Chu Xi clicked into the trending topics. #Le Shan Denies Rumors# had already claimed the top spot.

In the related posts under the hashtag, some marketing accounts had summarized the whole saga. It was said that Le Shan had posted a selfie on Weibo that accidentally revealed her vanity table, and eagle-eyed netizens had dug up that the skincare set on her desk was shockingly expensive. Then, gossip forums started buzzing with claims that Le Shan had recently hooked up with a sugar daddy, skyrocketing her resources—her team was reportedly negotiating several film projects and endorsements under Yuanjing Group, with the sugar daddy being none other than the CEO of Yuanjing Group.

However, most of this gossip had been confined to niche forums, and many people hadn’t even heard of it. It wasn’t until Le Shan suddenly came out to deny the rumors tonight that the public became aware she had been accused of being a kept woman.

Some accused her of self-promotion, but they were quickly criticized by Le Shan’s fans and passersby. What female celebrity would willingly use such a topic to hype themselves up?

Naturally, this kind of topic related to a “sugar daddy” inevitably led almost everyone to think of Chu Xi.

It was common knowledge that Chu Xi had a sugar daddy. Otherwise, how could a female celebrity debut with top-tier film and television resources and big-name co-stars right from the start? On one side was Le Shan, who promptly denied rumors of having a sugar daddy, and on the other was Chu Xi, propped up by her sugar daddy, her terrible acting like a rotten apple spoiling the barrel in major productions.

Comparing the two was enough to make anyone furious.

The public opinion under the marketing accounts’ posts mirrored that under Le Shan’s Weibo—praising Le Shan while taking a jab at Chu Xi.

Before long, alongside the trending hashtag #Le Shan Denies Rumors#, #Chu Xi# also climbed the hot search rankings.

Clicking into it revealed an avalanche of scandals: her terrible acting was a disgrace to the industry, her reliance on a sugar daddy, her high school education, her rebellious past as a “socialite” who frequented nightclubs during her school days, and even accusations that her persona on the reality show Brave Heart was entirely fabricated. Chu Xi’s fan community was overrun by these scandalous posts. Her small fanbase lacked the strength to fight back and was utterly crushed.

Chu Xi hadn’t expected a perfectly fine evening to suddenly turn into this. She stared at the hateful posts and the torrent of scathing comments.

She could accept the criticism about her terrible acting and being a disgrace to the industry. She could even accept the accusations about having a sugar daddy.

She wasn’t a professional actress and had never received formal acting training. She’d entered the industry purely because a talent scout spotted her while she was driving a tricycle on the street. Thrust in front of the camera as a complete amateur, her original agency was too poor to provide proper training, so her performances were naturally awful. Not long after, she was signed by Gu Mingjing. Chu Xi had assumed that someone as wealthy as Gu Mingjing would assign her a professional team with acting coaches. But after signing the contract, no acting teacher ever appeared. Instead, big-budget productions were thrown at her one after another, forcing her to stumble through scene after scene. Gu Mingjing didn’t seem to care how she performed—he just wanted her to keep acting. With her raw skills and seasoned co-stars, the contrast only made her look worse. Gradually, she became too self-conscious to act freely, and after two years, she’d barely improved.

But when they dug up her high school education and her rebellious past as a “socialite” who frequented nightclubs, Chu Xi closed her eyes. Buried memories she never wanted to revisit flooded her mind.

“Ah!” She suddenly curled into a ball, clutching her head as if she were back in those days when her hair was yanked and her head slammed against the bathroom wall. Trembling all over, her face was already streaked with tears.

At that moment, her phone on the bedside table rang. The caller ID showed Fu Bai.

Chu Xi sniffled, her arm reaching for the bedside table to pick up the phone. “Hello?” Her voice was clearly choked with tears.

Upon hearing Chu Xi crying, Fu Bai grew anxious. “Don’t cry, don’t cry yet. We’ll figure something out now.”

Between sobs, Chu Xi asked, “Fu Bai, am I really that detestable?”

Those people hated her, so they grabbed her hair and slammed her head against the bathroom wall. Now these people hated her, wishing she would disappear forever. Gu Mingjing hated her, telling her not to covet what wasn’t hers. Even the heavens hated her, refusing to let her live any longer.

Fu Bai replied, “No, that’s not true. So many people like you. Don’t you have lots of fans now? They even came to the airport to greet you. Have you forgotten?”

Chu Xi thought of her “bricks”—her loyal fans.

But those hate posts weren’t entirely wrong—her acting was mediocre, she was a disgrace pushed by connections, and she relied on a sugar daddy to monopolize good resources.

She was just a kept woman, unworthy of her fans’ affection.

Chu Xi hung up on Fu Bai.

Fu Bai immediately called back, seemingly afraid she might do something rash. Chu Xi declined the call, but Fu Bai persisted—calling again and again until Chu Xi finally noticed the caller ID had changed to a different name.

“Grandma.”

It was Grandma Chu calling.

Chu Xi quickly answered, wiping her nose and forcing her voice to sound steady. “Hello, Grandma.”

“Nian Nian,” Grandma Chu didn’t notice the strain in her voice. She didn’t use smartphones or go online, only knowing that Chu Xi acted in movies and TV shows, that she was a star.

“Nian Nian, are you asleep? Is Xiao Gu there?” Grandma Chu asked.

Chu Xi sniffled and, at the mention of Gu Mingjing, lied as usual. “Not yet, I’ll sleep soon. Gu Mingjing… he’s not here. He’s away on business.”

“Oh, he’s always traveling,” Grandma Chu sighed. “Nian Nian, I miss you. I just wanted to call. When are you coming home?”

“I miss you too, Grandma. I’ll visit in a few days when I’m free. I bought you some clothes—they should arrive tomorrow or the day after. Ask Aunt Chen to fetch them for you and try them on.”

“Okay, okay. Thank you, Nian Nian. I missed you tonight, so I called to hear your voice. You should sleep now—you must be busy with work.”

Chu Xi forced a sweet tone. “Goodnight, Grandma.”

The moment she hung up, Fu Bai called again.

This time, Chu Xi answered.

“Don’t you dare do anything stupid!” Fu Bai blurted in panic. “I’m coming over right now!”

After speaking with her grandmother, Chu Xi suddenly felt calm.

Even if everyone else disliked her, Grandma still loved her. The bond of blood, the only family she had left, could always soothe her wounds.

“Don’t worry, I won’t do anything reckless. Don’t come over—it’s late,” Chu Xi reassured.

Knowing Fu Bai wouldn’t believe her, she added, “I was just upset earlier, but I’m fine now. Instead of rushing here, you should focus on what to do next.”

Hearing her composed tone, Fu Bai hesitated. “You’re not lying to me? You’re really okay?”

“Should I video call you to prove it?”

Only then did Fu Bai relax. “Alright, alright, I believe you.”

He then asked, “Should I spend some money to take down the trending topic?”

Chu Xi fell silent before replying, “Don’t waste the money.”

Fu Bai hesitated. “Then…”

Chu Xi: “Will buying it off make it as if nothing ever happened?”

She hung up the phone and glanced at her fan group chat.

[What do we do! We can’t control the negative comments at all!]

[We have to keep trying even if we can’t!]

[Xi Bao, are you reading this? Xi Bao, please don’t be sad, we all believe in you!]

[Xi Bao, I was the fan who came to pick you up at the airport that day. The moment I saw you, I knew you weren’t that kind of person. Stay strong, Xi Bao!]

Suddenly, a fan excitedly posted:

[Ahhh! Dong Wei just posted on Weibo! He’s speaking up for Chu Xi!]

[What? Dong Wei posted?]

[Yes, yes! Everyone go check it out! Like, comment, and repost!]

After participating in Brave Heart, Chu Xi had followed the other male guests on Weibo. She checked Dong Wei’s account and saw a new post.

@DongWei: Chu Xi is a wonderful girl.

Accompanying the post was a photo from their first training session, where he struggled with coordination and Chu Xi had practiced with him all night.

Soon after, Zhao Mincong also posted on Weibo: Chu Xi is a wonderful girl.

The attached photo was from the first day when cosmetics were confiscated. Everyone had assumed Chu Xi was hiding them, and she had been ready to silently take the blame.

As if coordinated, Yu Yiyuan, Liu Jinxiang, and even Yan Zhun—who had kept his distance from Chu Xi throughout the show to avoid rumors—all posted the same message:

“Chu Xi is a wonderful girl.”

Chu Xi had never had many friends in the industry. No one expected that all the male guests from Brave Heart would speak up for her today.

Even Chu Xi herself was surprised.

On one side, there were endless blacklists and smear campaigns. On the other, multiple industry figures were voicing their support. So, what kind of person was Chu Xi, really?

The atmosphere grew tense.

Tonight, Le Shan had debunked rumors about her sugar daddy, dragging Chu Xi’s alleged patron back into public discussion.

Now, with cooler heads, people began to sense something unusual.

This time felt different from before.

In the past, whenever Chu Xi was criticized for starring in bad films or acting overly dramatic on variety shows, expensive-looking PR teams would swiftly suppress the backlash—removing hashtags and flooding comments seamlessly. But this time, the hashtags remained trending, and there was no sign of any PR intervention.

Only then did people realize that something about Chu Xi lately seemed… off.

Although Brave Heart is a variety show produced by Tencent, it’s an online program, and there’s no guarantee it would be a hit before its premiere. In the past, Chu Xi had always appeared on popular prime-time variety shows—why would she suddenly join something like Brave Heart, an uncertain, grueling, and exhausting program?

Chu Xi, who used to wear high-end luxury couture, recently walked the red carpet in a two-hundred-yuan dress.

That time at the airport when fans chased her with bricks even made it to the trending list—apparently, she was flying economy class that day. Who knew there were still celebrities traveling economy these days?

The big-budget movie Chu Xi was originally set to star in recently fell through, with the production team suddenly announcing its cancellation.

Chu Xi…

Netizens gradually realized one undeniable fact.

Chu Xi’s resources had taken a nosedive recently.

No one really knew what kind of person Chu Xi was, but now it seemed like everyone had stumbled upon an even juicier piece of gossip—

Chu Xi’s sugar daddy had dumped her!

No one even cared about whether Le Shan would issue a denial or what kind of denial she’d make anymore.