Going from "Fanservice" to Reality with My Goddess - Chapter 19

Yu Nianzhe rubbed her brow. The lingering effects of last night’s drinking hadn’t worn off, and the sudden awakening sent a sharp, throbbing pain through her head.

She let out a low groan and asked, “What is it?”

Lin Xin sounded frantic on the other end of the line. “Sister Yu! You—you—you need to check Weibo, right now!”

“Don’t panic,” Yu Nianzhe replied. “I’m going there now.”

Lin Xin was nearly dying of anxiety. “Sister Yu, what on earth is going on?”

Yu Nianzhe offered a few words of comfort before hanging up and opening the Weibo app.

In truth, she didn’t even need to open the app. Every push notification from various apps on her phone featured her name, and mentioned alongside her was another: Jiang Hongyi.

Yu Nianzhe clicked on the trending topics. Sitting at the very top was the tag #Jiang Hongyi Yu Nianzhe#.

She tapped into it and saw the top-ranked post: “Jiang Hongyi and Yu Nianzhe Caught in Intimate Moments on Set; Relationship Suspected to Be Exposed.”

Seeing the headline made her head throb even harder. She closed her eyes, calmed her nerves, and clicked to read the full text.

The content essentially claimed that since the two were filming the same movie, their characters’ onscreen chemistry had leaked into real life. It alleged they frequently looked after one another and spent a great deal of time together off-camera, suggesting their relationship had blossomed into a romance.

The post was accompanied by several blurry photos. Some showed them in costume, others in casual wear, but one could vaguely identify them as Yu Nianzhe and Jiang Hongyi.

While the photos were grainy, Yu Nianzhe remembered two of them clearly. One was from a scene in the Imperial Garden where Jiang Hongyi had suddenly pulled her into an embrace. The other was from last night’s dinner, captured while Jiang Hongyi was toasting her.

Looking at the text and images together, their relationship did indeed look incredibly intimate—as if it were a proven fact.

If Yu Nianzhe weren’t the person involved, she might have believed it herself.

She hadn’t paid it much mind at the time, but looking back now, this was clearly a long-premeditated scheme.

The comment section was already a chaotic battleground as various factions converged.

Fish-Fish-Fish: Our Little Yu is busy filming and focusing on her career. She has no time for romance. Marketing accounts, please don’t mention her.

Driving a Tractor: Well, this is quite sudden. (Eating popcorn)

Love-Ginger-Sauce: Could certain “actresses” please stay away from my Big Brother? Take a right turn at the exit and don’t let the door hit you.

Just a Passerby: Certain actresses really are something… I’m impressed, truly.

Ito: Ginger-slices, get lost! Jiang Hongyi’s acting is atrocious, and his EQ is rock bottom. He can only pull a stiff face and pretend to be young. Who would like him? Get out of here!

Holding My Little Blanket: Trash marketing accounts, ruining my idol! Waiting for an official denial.

April: I recall Lovesickness is a female-centric “double-lead” movie, right? So the female lead hooked up with a male supporting actor? This is truly confusing behavior.

After a brief browse, Yu Nianzhe exited Weibo.

After a moment’s thought, she contacted Director Duan Yi to request a half-day’s leave. Duan Yi had also seen the news and told her to handle her personal affairs first.

As soon as she finished speaking with Duan Yi, Wu Lian’s call came through.

The moment the call connected, Wu Lian’s piercing, vitriolic voice blasted through: “What is wrong with you? You’re in the middle of filming, and you’re caught up in a scandal with a man? Can’t you control yourself? Or do you think your reputation is so good that you can afford this? All you know how to do is cause trouble for me!”

Launching into a tirade without asking for the facts—this was exactly how Wu Lian operated.

Yu Nianzhe managed to say, “I didn’t—”

Wu Lian cut her off, refusing to listen. “Fine, no need to say more. It takes two to tango. Let me make this clear: your contract hasn’t expired yet, so stop messing around with this nonsense.”

Yu Nianzhe’s explanation was cut short before it even began. She paused, realizing that Wu Lian wouldn’t listen, and even if she did, she wouldn’t necessarily believe her.

She didn’t try to explain further, simply saying, “I understand. Thank you, Sister Wu.”

Wu Lian let out a cold sneer. “Fine. Just stay quiet and don’t respond. I’ll handle it.”

“Alright.”

The other side hung up.

Before Wu Lian could even begin her preparations, a new development occurred on Weibo.

@Jiang Hongyi: The moonlight is truly beautiful tonight.

The “melon-eating” netizens grew even more excited.

Good heavens, what was Jiang Hongyi trying to do?

The comment section quickly ignited into a new storm.

A River of Ginger Water Flows East: Jiang-Jiang, blink if you’re being blackmailed.

Super Invincible Beautiful Girl: Holy crap, is this an official confirmation from the source?

9:30 Tonight: It’s early morning; the moon just went down. Beautiful, my foot.

Facing the Sea: Your “Big Brother” really directed and acted in this whole drama himself. I’m throwing up, I’m throwing up.

Meatball Stew: I bet you’re the one who paid for that trash news. I was wondering how Little Yu, who’s been filming so quietly, could be caught up in this. Get lost.

Hidden Hatred: Can the “Fish-fans” have some shame? Is Yu Nianzhe even a good person? Why would Jiang-Jiang be interested in her? He didn’t even say anything specific! Does posting a status bother you that much?

It seemed clear now that the news of the “exposed romance” had likely been planted by Jiang Hongyi’s team. Jiang Hongyi and Yu Nianzhe were of similar status and both currently popular; creating a “CP” (Couple) dynamic and generating ambiguity would indeed benefit both parties.

Even if the timing was poor.

They were currently filming Lovesickness, and having one of the female leads in a scandal with a male supporting actor was inappropriate.

This situation had pros and cons. Whether the benefits outweighed the risks was likely why Wu Lian was hesitating and hadn’t made a move yet.

If possible, Wu Lian would naturally prefer Yu Nianzhe to be linked with Shen Yan. But as the filming of the movie neared its end—and since the film couldn’t be released domestically—subsequent interactions would only decrease, making it difficult to maintain that connection.

While Wu Lian wanted Yu Nianzhe to ride Shen Yan’s coattails for publicity, tying her to another woman long-term wasn’t a permanent solution. Yu Nianzhe’s contract wasn’t up yet; Wu Lian didn’t care about Yu Nianzhe’s personal well-being, but she would never pass up a chance to make money.

While Yu Nianzhe was overwhelmed by the situation, Shen Yan also received the news.

The reason was simple: though the Film Queen Shen Yan was famously out of the loop (using “2G internet”) and rarely logged onto Weibo, she had Song Xin by her side—a true “super-fan” of Yu Nianzhe. Getting first-hand information about Yu Nianzhe was effortless.

That morning, from the moment she saw Song Xin, the young girl had been chattering away, muttering under her breath.

Shen Yan caught the name “Yu Nianzhe” and asked, “What are you whispering about?”

Song Xin turned around, looking furious. “It’s those people on the crew! They’re trying to force our Little Yu into a ‘CP’ for hype. I’m with the crew every day—does that guy surnamed Jiang even know Little Yu? They haven’t even spoken ten sentences to each other! Ambiguous my foot, scandal my ass! My ‘Yan-Zhe’ ship is the only true love, okay? Where did this Jiang Hongyi cult come from? ‘The moonlight is beautiful tonight’? It’s beautiful enough to stab a badger.”

Even after Song Xin’s rant, Shen Yan was still only half-clear on the details.

Song Xin said, “Sister Shen, just go on Weibo and see for yourself.”

Shen Yan opened Weibo and saw the top trending topic featuring the two names Song Xin had mentioned.

She tapped in and the first post she saw was Jiang Hongyi’s status.

Shen Yan skimmed the content, her brow furrowing deeper with every word.

By the time she finished, she understood the situation. She knew exactly what the relationship between Jiang Hongyi and Yu Nianzhe was really like.

She was currently very displeased.

Shen Yan closed her eyes. Logically, this had nothing to do with her. She should remain a quiet bystander; she shouldn’t interfere.

She remembered what Yin Qin had told her before.

“Don’t have too much interaction with Yu Nianzhe. Don’t stay tied together once the movie is finished. We don’t need that kind of hype.”

She didn’t need the hype.

What she needed was Yu Nianzhe.

Yu Nianzhe herself naturally wouldn’t want a scandal with Jiang Hongyi, but her agent might think differently.

At this thought, Shen Yan logged back into her Weibo.

To hell with “keeping her distance.” She liked Yu Nianzhe, she wanted to be close to her, and she couldn’t stand her being linked to anyone else.

At the same time, in the room next door…

Yu Nianzhe had also made up her mind and logged onto Weibo.

Three minutes later, many people refreshed their feeds to see two new posts. They were posted almost simultaneously, and the content was identical.

Both Yu Nianzhe and Shen Yan had shared Jiang Hongyi’s post with the same caption.

@Yu Nianzhe: Good for stabbing a badger.

@Shen Yanyan: Good for stabbing a badger.

Weibo erupted completely.

On Land: No need to look—this is definitely the Film Queen herself. That “flavor” is just like the old days. It’s been a long time since I’ve seen Sister Shen charge into battle like this; I almost missed it.

Lazy Cat Doesn’t Want to Get Up: Hahahahaha, sorry to that Jiang-whoever, but I am laughing so loud.

Yan-Yan-Yan: Shen Yanyan, who usually can’t post once a year, just posted her second one this month? And both are related to Lovesickness.

March 3rd: To the person above, you should say they’re both related to Yu Nianzhe. (Adjusts glasses)

Blueue: The person above is a pro shipper. I’ll ship this for eternity.

The two parties involved were stunned for a few seconds when they saw each other’s posts.

Then, both broke into a smile.

Now, Wu Lian didn’t have to hesitate anymore; any path toward a scandal with Jiang Hongyi was dead. However, the current tide of public opinion was highly favorable for them, so it wasn’t a loss.

Fortunately, Shen Yan had made that post; otherwise, Yu Nianzhe would likely have been scolded to death by Wu Lian.

The relationship between Yu Nianzhe and Shen Yan was much better than Wu Lian had imagined.

In the end, the whole affair turned into a “one-man show” directed by Jiang Hongyi, ending amidst the “hahahaha” laughter of the netizens.

Meanwhile, Yin Qin made yet another emergency call to offer her “kind regards” to Shen Yan.

Yin Qin had completely lost her temper by now, realizing that no matter what this “ancestor” promised verbally, she would go ahead and do whatever she wanted the moment she turned her head.

Yu Nianzhe wasn’t the artist she managed; Shen Yan was the boss she worked for. She could offer the boss advice, but she couldn’t dictate the boss’s decisions. Yin Qin could only do her best to arrange the subsequent PR.

Actually, the situation wasn’t difficult to handle. The internet was currently full of netizens laughing at Jiang Hongyi and “CP fans” swooning over the “Godly Sisterhood” of Shen and Yu. It hadn’t caused any damage to Shen Yan’s personal image.

The tag #Jiang Hongyi Yu Nianzhe# remained high on the charts, but alongside it, the tag #Moonlight is beautiful, good for stabbing badgers# had floated to the front. Clicking on it revealed a sea of “hahahahahaha.”

Seeing that there was nothing left to worry about, Yu Nianzhe finally breathed a sigh of relief.

That afternoon, she returned to the set to continue filming. Seeing Shen Yan again, Yu Nianzhe felt she should say something to thank her.

But a flimsy “thank you” seemed too superficial.

Fortunately, Jiang Hongyi’s scenes were already finished, so he didn’t need to come to the set. Otherwise, just imagining the encounter made Yu Nianzhe feel the secondhand embarrassment.

Lin Xin followed behind her, whispering a critique: “That idiot Jiang left at the perfect time. If I had to see his face again, I’d be so embarrassed I’d dig out a three-bedroom apartment with my toes.”

Arriving at the set, everyone acted as usual; no one showed any signs of strangeness. When they saw Yu Nianzhe, they greeted her with smiles. No one asked too many questions, and no one made any snide remarks.

Filming proceeded normally from then on.