Chapter 27

After Liu Meifen’s call, Wen Tang was no longer in the mood to chat with Gong Yue.

Once at the set, she threw herself into the intense filming schedule. Since Gong Yue had arrived, his scenes were immediately scheduled.

Indeed, starting today, Gong Yue will also be working.

However, the filming was divided into two groups, and Gong Yue’s main scenes were assigned to Group Two. Therefore, despite being on the same set, there was little interaction between the leads and supporting actors unless specifically arranged.

However, there were rumors circulating in the crew about the untold story between Wen Tang and Gong Yue. With both main actors present today, everyone was excited but, due to Wen Tang’s intimidating presence, they only whispered among themselves and didn’t openly discuss it.

After lunch, there was a brief rest period. After eating, Wen Tang sat down to play with her phone.

Usually, she would chat with Gong Yue at this time, but with him being present on set, it seemed unnecessary. Wen Tang played a relaxing game like “Candy Crush,” which usually occupied her for over half an hour if undisturbed.

This time, however, she was interrupted by Ke Xin after only ten minutes.

“Tang Tang, something big has happened!!!”

Ke Xin jumped up in shock!

While Wen Tang was absorbed in her game, Ke Xin, who had nothing to do during lunch, had been scrolling through Weibo on her phone.

She was startled by what she found.

“Tang Tang, look! You’re trending, number one on the hot search!”

Ke Xin grabbed Wen Tang’s arm and thrust her phone in front of Wen Tang’s face.

Wen Tang was used to trending topics, especially in recent years. It was common for her to make it onto the hot search list, and she had seen it so many times that it barely surprised her.

However, Ke Xin’s reaction was unusual.

Wen Tang’s game ended abruptly due to the interruption. She looked up at Ke Xin’s phone screen.

Usually, when Wen Tang made the hot search list, it was related to her ex-boyfriends—either being spotted together, some new achievement of theirs, or scandals. She rarely paid much attention to these things.

“This time, it’s really serious. Wen Anle was drunk and driving last night and caused an accident!” Ke Xin couldn’t wait for Wen Tang to read the details and blurted out, “Wen Anle fled the scene but was caught by the police two hours later. And he just turned eighteen a few days ago, so he doesn’t even have a driver’s license!”

“Oh my God, no driver’s license and still daring to drive, and drunk driving at that? How could he be so reckless?!”

Ke Xin was completely shocked by Wen Tang’s father’s family.

Normally, a random drunk driving incident that ends in a hit-and-run wouldn’t attract much attention. But this was different because the person involved was Wen Tang’s half-brother.

Initially, it was just a police announcement from Lingcheng: an 18-year-old Wen had been caught driving without a license and fleeing the scene of an accident at 2 AM.

Such incidents are common; usually, the most people do is complain a little. In more severe cases, there might be a bit more outrage, but the issue typically blows over. However, this case sparked an extraordinary reaction.

The police announcement was released at 8 AM with little fuss, but it wasn’t until the news was leaked that Wen Anle was Wen Tang’s half-brother that it exploded onto the trending list with shocking speed.

When it’s about Wen Tang, it’s a whole different story!

The media quickly caught wind of it, digging deeper and publishing articles that went viral within half an hour.

In reality, the situation was even worse than Ke Xin described.

Wen Anle’s drunk driving and hit-and-run was serious enough. If the people he hit had only sustained minor injuries, it might have been manageable with financial compensation and legal responsibility. But the situation was far from simple.

Wen Anle had hit a family of three: two adults and a five-year-old child. The couple had just returned from their hometown and got off the highway past eleven at night. Shortly after, Wen Anle crashed into them.

The collision sent both adults into the intensive care unit, while the child, protected by his mother, only had minor scratches.

The media sensationalized the story, portraying it as a severe case of personal injury caused by Wen Anle’s ignorance and lack of morals, which had a terrible impact on society.

The article included a video.

The first part showed the victims being rushed to the hospital, bleeding and unconscious, with the two adults being carried away and the child crying helplessly, making viewers feel heartbroken. The latter part showed Wen Anle being arrested by the police. Initially, he was defiant and refused to acknowledge his wrongdoing. Only after being handcuffed did he panic, shouting, “You’re just after money! I have it! My sister is Wen Tang—everyone knows her! How much do you want? She can pay for it! Let me go! I want to go home, let me go!”

This statement thrust Wen Tang into the spotlight.

【What? This is Wen Tang’s brother? Her real brother???】

【Drunk driving and causing harm! He’s eighteen and still has no basic legal knowledge?】

【A classic line returns: ‘My sister is Wen Tang, my father is X Gang!’】

【The couple looks truly pitiful; they were just returning home and now are in the ICU. If something happens to them, what will happen to the child left behind?】

【Heartbreaking! The child’s cries are too sad. As a mother, I can’t stand such videos. The culprit must be severely punished!】

【Eighteen and an adult now—he should go to jail!】

【How dare he drive without a license? This is outrageous and must be punished severely!】

【Wen Tang, as an actress, has already faced criticism for her personal life. Who knew her brother would be even worse, driving without a license and drunk? Society’s trash! He should be shot on sight!】

【Look at his arrogant behavior when arrested. What does that say? Complete disregard for the law and morals! Who gave him such audacity?】

【Just the brother of an actor and still so arrogant?】

【I used to admire Wen Tang’s acting and dedication, but with this incident involving two lives, I can’t support her anymore. Unfollowed!】

【‘My sister is Wen Tang’—haha, how old are you, kid? Still not weaned?】

【…Um, isn’t it a bit hasty to assume it’s true just because someone says so in the video? Wen Tang has been acting for years and is known to be from a single-parent family, with her mother as her manager. Where would a brother come from?】

【Besides her mother, I haven’t heard of any other relatives… Is it wrong to criticize her without knowing the facts? Even if he is her brother, why blame her? She wasn’t the one driving!】

【Wen Tang is really being wronged here!】

【Please direct your criticism at the actual perpetrator, not the bystanders!】

【I don’t believe it. My Tang Tang doesn’t have a brother! Stop spreading false rumors; spreading rumors is punishable by law!】

【So naive. Does a child just appear without a mother? Why would he claim Wen Tang as his sister if it weren’t true?】

【The police report says ‘Wen,’ so clearly they share the same surname! What’s the issue?】

【Wen Tang’s fans should stay away to avoid being criticized.】

【Three lives are at stake—this is no joke! Wen Tang must explain why her brother was driving without a license. Is it not because you’ve been supporting him?】

【An actor can’t act like this and get away with it. Regardless, a satisfactory explanation is needed!】

【Praying for the family of three. All criminals should be locked up, and those who protect them are guilty too!】

【With such behavior, wanting to be an artist? The bar for being an artist is way too low! Treating such people as idols will corrupt the next generation.】

【Wen Tang, we need an explanation.】

【Wen Tang, come out and give the public an explanation!】

…

The trending topics on Weibo were full of anger and accusations.

Wen Tang’s fans, known for their fierce support, found their voices drowned out by the torrent of criticism from netizens.

The scandal had erupted at just the right time, during the lunch break. Not only Ke Xin but also others in the crew saw it.

Whether or not the person who committed the hit-and-run was really Wen Tang’s brother, this situation shouldn’t be linked to Wen Tang.

Legally, there’s no concept of collective punishment.

But Wen Tang was a major celebrity.

Being splashed with such mud was truly an undeserved disaster!

Fame often brings trouble, and it’s not uncommon for Wen Tang’s team to manipulate public opinion and twist the facts to shift blame.

In the industry, people are more rational about these matters compared to the general public. However, there are still plenty of onlookers who enjoy the drama.

Ke Xin handed her phone to Wen Tang, showing her the comments. After doing so, she regretted it.

Talking about these issues is one thing; making her read the comments was unnecessary.

Being a celebrity, it’s inevitable to face online harassment, but celebrities are human too and don’t have hearts of stone.

“Tang Tang…” Seeing Wen Tang’s cold, expressionless face as she scrolled through the comments page by page, Ke Xin felt helpless. “Those people don’t know anything and are just talking nonsense… Maybe you should stop looking. There’s nothing good here.”

Yang Yang also said, “Yes, Tang Tang, don’t look. Wen Anle’s actions have nothing to do with you. It’s not worth letting it affect your mood!”

Wen Tang finally understood why Liu Meifen had called her this morning.

The news spread quickly, and soon, Director Zhou approached her with his phone.

“Wen Tang, I need to ask you something.”

Wen Tang looked up at him.

Director Zhou hesitated briefly before handing her a photo on his phone. “Is this… really your brother?”

Wen Tang stared at him with cold eyes. After a long silence, Director Zhou touched his nose. “Alright, regardless of whether he’s your brother or not, this situation has gotten too big and is affecting things negatively. You should resolve it quickly to avoid impacting the filming.”

The impact on filming wasn’t something they could simply decide.

This was just the beginning, the public outrage was growing faster than anyone had anticipated. The family involved in the accident had their background exposed: they ran a small baozi shop, worked hard in Lingcheng, had just bought a house and car with a loan at the beginning of the year, and had recently returned from a funeral to find themselves in the ICU. The situation was tragic, especially with their under-six-year-old daughter left behind. If anything happened to her parents, her future looked bleak.

The online criticism against Wen Tang and Wen Anle was harsh. Even Wen Tang’s cats, featured in her Weibo posts, were attacked, with people claiming that her cats were more valuable than human lives.

When the public’s ire is directed at you, nothing seems right.

In such a situation, how could Wen Tang continue filming? A swarm of reporters surrounded the set, making it impossible for the security to manage.

Wen Tang received another call from Liu Meifen, who instructed her to return home immediately. But it was too late, the reporters had already blocked the way.

With the help of the crew’s security, Wen Tang managed to escape.

In the crowd, as she was leaving, she glanced back and saw Gong Yue looking at her. The young man’s expression of anger and disdain mirrored that of the online critics, showing no attempt at concealment.

Not understanding, not seeking the truth, and judging based on one side of the story—this was the extent of it.

When Gong Yue’s gaze met hers, he was startled and quickly averted his eyes.

Feeling guilty?

Too scared to look at her?

Wen Tang didn’t know and didn’t want to know.

Hmph.

Everything on the phone was illusory.

He was just like everyone else.

…Superficial.

Even if he didn’t know who she really was, today’s behavior meant she would have nothing to do with him from now on. She had her pride and dignity.

So be it.

Not worth it.

Wen Tang turned and walked resolutely through the crowd.