Chapter 034: Should We Pretend to Be a Couple Too?

Lu Jingshan ended his phone call. The first thing he said to Fang Yimeng wasn’t about work.

She listened to his firm, undeniable words, and she had to admit—her heart skipped a beat.

“Finished with the interview? Did you find the water?”

Fang Yimeng looked away and nodded, stepping into Room 1901. She kicked off her slippers at the entrance and walked barefoot into the living room.

Lu Jingshan watched her relaxed and carefree demeanor with helplessness, tidying up the mess she left behind. As he followed, he grabbed a pair of fluffy slippers and brought them over.

He sat on the sofa and started adjusting the screen-sharing settings for the pitch deck. Casually, he asked, “Your agent already told me about the trending topic on Weibo. She said I shouldn’t get involved.”

“That’s what I came to discuss with you,” Fang Yimeng said, her usually charming face unusually serious.

He tilted his head slightly to glance at the woman sitting cross-legged on the sofa in her long dress.

Raising one brow with a hint of amusement, he teased, “What do you want to discuss? Should we pretend to be a couple?”

Her fingers tapped rapidly on the iPad. Hearing his joke, Fang Yimeng looked up at him with a sigh.

“I don’t care about fame. Didn’t you say you’re about to launch a new product? Won’t this trending topic affect your release?”

Lu Jingshan closed his laptop and stretched his long legs out lazily. Leaning back against the sofa, he shifted slightly before responding:

“The PR department ran an evaluation. They think this kind of buzz won’t affect the product launch. We’re fine.”

His deep, naturally affectionate eyes settled on Fang Yimeng, dark irises filled with an unaware tenderness.

“What I’m more concerned about is… you. Whether this trending topic will negatively impact you.”

He deliberately dragged out the sentence, speaking with subtle meaning.

Fang Yimeng thought about Qingyue Media—the culprit behind the trending rumors—and clenched her molars with a cold laugh.
“I’m not some traffic-star. I rely on my work to make a living. As long as my reputation in the industry is intact and I can still get roles, I don’t care if I get one hundred more trending topics like this.”

The two tested each other’s boundaries, and when they realized neither had crossed a line the other couldn’t tolerate, they tacitly dropped the subject.

Fang Yimeng curled up on the sofa, tapping furiously on the iPad screen.

Five minutes later, the iPad made a soft “whoosh” sound.

Moments later, all the electronic devices in Room 1901 chimed in sync.

Lu Jingshan took out his phone and saw a Weibo notification on the lock screen—from none other than Fang Yimeng herself.

@Actress_Yimeng
“Apologies for taking up public attention at a sensitive time. First and foremost, let me clarify: going to bars happens during my private time after filming. For those sweet little fans who may not know much about me, allow me to reintroduce myself. I’m Fang Yimeng, 26 years old, a professional actress with a simple social life and currently single. I’m in the prime of my life—if I don’t go out and enjoy myself at night, what am I supposed to do? Stay home and play with clay?”

Within five minutes, the post had attracted hundreds of comments.

Among them, the top few were especially eye-catching:

@Anti-Emo-Fang Leader:
“Gotta admit—I’ve been roasting her for so long, it’s almost turned into affection. Today’s trending topics were honestly hilarious. Fang Yimeng isn’t some traffic celeb, and going to bars isn’t a crime. Whoever at Qingyue bought this trending tag is just nasty.”

@SuperTopic Anti-Fan King:
“LOL, classic Emo Fang. How many years has it been, and people still think going to a bar makes someone a bad person? If you’re still wrapping your feet like it’s the Qing Dynasty, might as well wrap up your brain too.”

@CPStanYYDS:
“Came to check on my OTP and got surprised. Why aren’t these self-proclaimed anti-fans bashing her anymore?”

@Anti-Emo-Fang Leader replied:
“It’s a thing. Sometimes you roast someone long enough, and you start to admire them. We even know her college entrance exam score. No one online knows her better than we do. These trending topics? 100% a rival company’s stunt.”

To Fang Yimeng’s surprise, the comments section was unusually supportive. She recognized those anti-fan usernames instantly—they were the same people who had long mocked her acting scripts in the fan forums. Who would’ve thought that in a critical moment, even they would flip sides and defend her?

She couldn’t help but glance toward the sky beyond the large floor-to-ceiling windows.

Did the world flip upside down or something?

With her post online, countless netizens weighed in. Many supported her, saying there’s nothing wrong with going to a bar. Everyone’s a single adult—celebrity or not—and as long as it doesn’t cross moral or ethical lines, even a wild night now and then is fair game.

This level of tolerance was unexpected.

While things were calm and easygoing for Fang Yimeng and Lu Jingshan, others were not nearly as composed.

…

At Qingyue Media

Li Jincheng sat in his leather executive chair, his entire PR team standing before him in stony silence. No one dared make a sound.

His aura was icy cold, anger smoldering just beneath his sharp eyes. He glanced at the trending Weibo history again, lips curling into a mocking sneer.

“Whose idea was it to buy that 5 a.m. trending topic?”

No one responded.

“I told you to dig up dirt on her, and you hand her a chance to gain a better public image? Why am I even paying any of you?”

His voice was harsh and merciless. Not giving them a chance to defend themselves, he pressed the intercom button and swept a cold glance over the room.

“Qingyue doesn’t keep dead weight. Fire all of them. They’ve failed their performance evaluations and violated internal policy. They’re not coming in tomorrow.”

His words landed like a slap. Every face turned pale with shock.

But Li Jincheng didn’t care what they thought. He transferred the call to HR.

“Hire a new PR team. I don’t care if you have to poach them—get it done.”

Even after twenty people silently filed out of his office, his face remained thunderous.

Frustrated, he lit a cigarette and took a hard drag. Smoke blurred his sharp features.

“Did Hualing respond yet?” he asked.

His assistant, pale and nervous, had no choice but to repeat what Hualing’s executive team had said.

It wasn’t good news.

Li Jincheng hadn’t expected the once quiet, reserved childhood friend to speak to him so coldly.

He narrowed his eyes dangerously at the assistant, who shrank back in fear.

“If he wants to be a rival, so be it,” Li Jincheng sneered.
“That brat who just came back from overseas—what does he know?”