Guess What? The Entire Entertainment Industry Thinks I’m Dead - Chapter 3

Lin Chenghuan was utterly astonished. Recalling Lu Zhiwei’s unsettled expression, she found it both amusing and touching. But why did Lu Zhiwei think she was the type to take her own life so easily?

With this thought, Lin Chenghuan returned to the surveillance feed to check on Lu Zhiwei’s current state. She was no longer in the first-floor hall but had gone to the study on the second floor.

Lu Zhiwei had visited Lin Chenghuan’s home several times before, even staying for a week once, so she was quite familiar with the study. She stood there, staring blankly at the furnishings, seemingly lost in thought, which made Lin Chenghuan feel a pang of guilt.

It seemed she had no choice but to meet Lu Zhiwei today. Although the two had often clashed at work, it was clear that Lu Zhiwei was genuinely distressed upon thinking Lin Chenghuan had died.

Just as Lin Chenghuan made up her mind, Lu Zhiwei suddenly stiffened, strode to the desk, and picked up a flat, rectangular object.

What was it that had caused such a drastic change in her expression? Lin Chenghuan looked closely and finally realized that Lu Zhiwei was holding what appeared to be a box of medication, and her hand was trembling slightly.

Medication in the study… Ah, that must be the antidepressant pills left behind by Tao Chuyan, her friend from the university music department who was now a moderately successful singer.

Two months ago, Tao Chuyan had stayed with her for a while due to insomnia and poor mental health, and she had left many things behind. The medication… if she remembered correctly, was called Agomelatine, right?

Now, Lu Zhiwei was bound to misunderstand even more. Sure enough, Lu Zhiwei rushed to the desk, searching for other suspicious items, and soon discovered more sleep aids and a letter.

Since the study was small and not as far from the camera as the first-floor hall, Lin Chenghuan could hear the conversation inside. But what followed took her by surprise.

“President Lu, please don’t worry. Sister Huan is perfectly fine. You mustn’t misunderstand… Oh my god, what is this?” Li Xiaoyi, who had followed Lu Zhiwei into the room, exclaimed in shock.

“A… suicide note?” Lu Zhiwei was equally stunned, her face instantly paling with despair.

Such a heart-wrenching expression was rare on Lu Zhiwei’s face, but Lin Chenghuan had no time to dwell on it. She immediately turned and rushed out of the room.

She hurried to the study door and pulled it open. Lu Zhiwei’s expression remained one of profound sorrow, and it took her a moment to look up at the sound of the door opening.

In that instant, Lu Zhiwei’s expression shifted from pain to disbelief, then to an unmistakable spark of light in her eyes. She stared at Lin Chenghuan as if beholding a rare treasure, her face reflecting the relief of surviving a disaster and the joy of recovering something precious.

Lin Chenghuan had initially felt guilty, but seeing Lu Zhiwei’s reaction stirred complex emotions. Was it really necessary to react like this? Someone as reserved as Lu Zhiwei was displaying her feelings so openly.

And why wasn’t she angry? Lin Chenghuan hadn’t replied to her messages for days, shouldn’t she feel played? It seemed President Lu was much kinder than she had imagined, not the type to treat employees like mere machines…

“I’m sorry, President Lu. That suicide note was just performance art. I wrote it with a friend. You know how, back in university, I used to get stuck… uh, climb onto streetlights to contemplate life.”

Lin Chenghuan entered the room and spoke. Lu Zhiwei still looked somewhat dazed, which made Lin feel even more guilty. She continued to explain, “The medicine all belongs to Tao Chuyan. I’m truly sorry for not replying to messages these past few days, I was sick and didn’t check my phone.”

“Mm, as long as you’re alright,” Lu Zhiwei replied with a gentle smile, her expression returning to its usual calm and composed demeanor.

For a moment, Lin Chenghuan didn’t know what else to say. Then it occurred to her, could the other party think she was deliberately stirring up drama? If so, wouldn’t that lead Lu Zhiwei to look down on her character?

How dreadful it would be to be despised by a former boss with whom she had a superficially harmonious but secretly competitive relationship… Lin Chenghuan felt like crying but had no tears. Why hadn’t Fang Yuan consulted her before making that decision?

“Ms. Lin has been suffering from eye nerve fatigue these past few days. The doctor advised her to avoid electronic devices, so she hasn’t touched her phone or computer,” Li Xiaoyi chimed in promptly.

“In that case… you really should rest properly,” Lu Zhiwei said softly, her gaze still fixed on Lin Chenghuan.

“Ms. Lu, why don’t you chat with Ms. Lin? I’ll go check on lunch,” Li Xiaoyi said, seizing the opportunity to slip away upon seeing the situation.

Left alone in the room, the atmosphere grew somewhat stiff. Summoning her courage, Lin Chenghuan spoke again, “Ms. Lu, if you’re angry, feel free to scold me. I was definitely in the wrong about this matter.”

“No need to be so formal. I’m no longer your superior,” Lu Zhiwei replied with a faint smile, her eyes carrying a complex emotion that was hard to decipher.

“But you’ll always be Ms. Lu to me,” Lin Chenghuan responded with a smile of her own.

In the entertainment industry, it was common practice to treat people according to their status, those in power were always surrounded by admirers. Whether as an investor or the head of a well-connected film company, Lu Zhiwei was someone countless people sought to please.

Even though Lin Chenghuan had once argued with her in a fit of anger, in the end, she still had to consider Lu’s influence in the industry and maintain a respectful tone.

Besides, today was her fault, she had even inconvenienced Lu Zhiwei, who had traveled a long distance to see her. Being a little more polite was nothing. As Lin Chenghuan consoled herself, she noticed a flicker of sadness in Lu Zhiwei’s eyes before the latter stepped forward.

To her astonishment, Lu Zhiwei embraced her. What did this mean? Not only was she not angry, but she was also showing such closeness… was this some new intimidating tactic?

“Ms. Lu? Are you alright?” Lin Chenghuan asked, her emotions in turmoil, relieved that the other’s hold wasn’t too tight.

“It’s really good to see you alive. Otherwise, with so few people daring to oppose me, life would be quite dull,” Lu Zhiwei finally said something normal, and Lin Chenghuan felt considerably more at ease.

“Thank you for your concern, Ms. Lu.”

“Since I have nothing much to do these days, I’ll rest here at your place for a while. How does that sound?”

“…Alright. Stay if you don’t find it strange, there are plenty of rooms anyway.”

“Mm.”

With that, Lu Zhiwei released her like a victor who had just won a round, her face beaming as she headed out to the kitchen to help herself to food without any hesitation. Lin Chenghuan watched her retreating figure, her feelings exceptionally complicated.

Lu Zhiwei had gone to two different places to find her and had shown such concern, Lin Chenghuan couldn’t help but feel somewhat moved.

If the situation were reversed… if she had heard news of the other’s death and discovered things like a suicide note or other messy details, she would indeed feel regret and sorrow. It seemed they were both kind-hearted people after all.

However, Lu Zhiwei’s initial expression had been rather exaggerated, she couldn’t tell if it was just her imagination.

Lin Chenghuan’s heart was in turmoil, her mind a chaotic mess as she stood dazed on the second-floor landing. Soon, Li Xiaoyi emerged from a corner and handed her a phone.

“Sister Huan, I’m really sorry. President Fang originally intended for this news to circulate for just three to five days. After all, it’s a rare opportunity to trend on social media, and you haven’t appeared in the public eye for a long time…”

Li Xiaoyi explained with an awkward smile. Lin Chenghuan knew it wasn’t the assistant’s fault, so she nodded.

“As for your parents, President Fang sent them a video early on to reassure them. For everyone else… well, you’ve been unreachable.”

“Mm.” Lin Chenghuan smiled faintly. In the past, her work number had been mostly unreachable too, she had been stepping back from the industry for two years already. Not replying to many people over the past three days wasn’t a big issue.

Lin Chenghuan opened WeChat and saw that her chat list was indeed flooded with messages. Whether they were close acquaintances or not, all the coordinators, planners, screenwriters, and producers she had met over the years in the industry were inquiring about her well-being. In comparison, messages from other actors were drowned out and nowhere to be seen.

After replying individually to the more important contacts and sending a batch response to the others to reassure them, Lin Chenghuan opened her chat with Lu Zhiwei again.

Three days ago, shortly after the absurd news had started trending, Lu Zhiwei had sent her first message after half a year of silence.

[Have you seen the trending news today? It’s utterly ridiculous. Anyone can edit entries on Weibo, and yet so many self-media outlets are spreading it.]

[Where are you? Are you by the sea?]

[I’d like to see it too. It’s been two years, I actually miss you.]

The latter two messages were sent about two hours apart. This side of President Lu was rare to see; even she couldn’t stay calm in the face of life-and-death matters.

[Thank you, I miss you too, President Lu.] After sending this reply, Lin Chenghuan glanced downstairs. Lu Zhiwei was probably having a meal in the restaurant.

It was only 10 a.m., not yet lunchtime. She wondered if Lu Zhiwei had just flown here from Beidaihe, her meal timing was completely off.

Lin Chenghuan felt both touched and emotional. As she stood there lost in thought, her phone rang. Fang Yuan was calling. She answered, listened to the other’s apologies, and replied with a resigned “it’s fine.” Then, she discussed with Fang Yuan how to address the trending topic.

Handling such a hot search required careful strategy to avoid making the public think she was staging a publicity stunt and damaging her reputation. Overall, being falsely reported as dead made her a victim, which was easier to manage than other types of negative news.

However, Lin Chenghuan was used to being criticized and had already decided to step back from the entertainment industry. Even if the situation wasn’t handled well and added another layer of infamy, she didn’t really care.

Fang Yuan’s company’s PR department had prepared two versions of a statement for her. One emphasized playing the victim, focusing on the theme of being weak and unconscious for three days only to be falsely reported as dead. The other was a calm narrative condemning irresponsible media and issuing a legal warning.

After reading both versions, Lin Chenghuan felt a headache coming on. She was on her own now, no longer tied to a company, why bother releasing such obviously formulaic statements?

“Sister Fang, thank you for your kindness, but I’ll handle this matter myself.” After sending this voice message, Lin Chenghuan immediately opened Weibo and began editing the content she intended to post.

Woke up to find out I’ve died? Don’t worry, such good fortune could never land on me.

I just took a walk by the seaside, came back and drank a bit too much, then slept for two days. Thanks for your concern, and sorry for troubling everyone with my trivial matters.

Also, some self-media outlets really need to tone down the wild speculation.

After writing this, Lin Chenghuan casually recorded a short video and attached it to the post before publishing. For the past two years, she hadn’t posted a single Weibo update, but now she finally had to face this stormy battleground of public opinion once again.