Chapter 73.2

Ten minutes later, Li Yingjie called again to discuss a solution with Wen Tang.

It was actually a very simple public relations issue; as long as the facts were presented, the rumors would naturally dissipate. Even Li Yingjie didn’t take the morning’s gossip seriously. The reason for the call was mainly to ensure that Wen Tang, as the person involved, was informed. Additionally, although Wen Tang’s reputation would be affected by such gossip, the real concern was that these media fabrications might impact Wen Tang’s relationship with her husband. It was crucial for Wen Tang to think about how to explain things to her husband in advance. Little did Li Yingjie know, her well-meaning advice almost backfired—the couple had been reading the gossip together in bed as they hadn’t even gotten up yet.

The solution was straightforward and quickly provided.

Without letting the matter escalate, within less than two hours, the trending topic online was clarified and the facts were restored.

The company issued a clarification statement: the dinner last night involved the entire film crew, and the male actor in the gossip was seated next to Wen Tang by chance. The photos published by the media had omitted everyone else at the table, leaving only Wen Tang and the alleged male lead, which was highly misleading.

As for returning to the hotel one after another… the entire film crew was arranged to stay at that hotel, so everyone, not just Wen Tang and the male actor, returned together.

Once the announcement was made, the rumors quickly dissipated.

[The reversal, though delayed, has arrived!]

[I told you Tangtang would never do something like that!]

[How about it, haters? Did you get slapped in the face? Satisfied?]

[Maybe they’re already divorced, and it’s just that outsiders don’t know. How could you easily enter such a wealthy family?]

[Haters: Always stubbornly arguing.]

[See, Tangtang and her husband have a great relationship! So everyone, stop meddling! As fans, we’re exhausted from all these divorce rumors about Tangtang every few days!]

[No matter what, I only believe in Tangtang! I don’t trust what others say; only official announcements count!]

[This is the tenth time Tangtang has been ‘divorced’ since her official marriage announcement, about once every two months…]

[The frequency of these fake divorces is truly shocking!!]

[What will Wen Tang’s husband think of these rumors?]

[Wen Tang is pitiful.]

……

[Routine question: So, who exactly is Wen Tang’s husband? What kind of person is he?]

……

After the rumors, a few days passed, and with a movie set to release, Wen Tang had to start promotional activities.

In recent years, Wen Tang had been focusing on films, and several of them had achieved high box office success, making her highly popular in the film industry with constant film offers.

Although she had acted in TV dramas for many years and won many awards, the transition from TV dramas to films is notoriously difficult.

Wen Tang’s success in this transition is quite impressive.

During the promotional period, in addition to attending essential film crew events, Li Yingjie also brought several reality TV show opportunities.

Since Wen Tang’s appearance on a reality show two years ago received a positive response, Li Yingjie had been keen on getting her to participate in more reality shows to maintain her public presence. Wen Tang’s fan base from her TV drama days had followed her into the film industry.

Despite Li Yingjie’s efforts to get Wen Tang to participate in more variety shows, Wen Tang had consistently declined. In recent years, Wen Tang had become increasingly reluctant to appear on camera for anything other than acting.

When Li Yingjie brought several variety show proposals, she expected them to be rejected as usual. However, Wen Tang surprised her by selecting one.

It was the recently popular show “Take Me to Your Home.”

Seeing that Wen Tang chose this show, Li Yingjie raised an eyebrow, “Are you sure you want this one? This show requires you to have the filming done at your home.”

The name of the show spoke for itself.

It was a home-visit variety show with three resident guests, rotating through different celebrities’ homes. Its popularity was due to the live streaming that occurred during each recording. This live stream was a major highlight of the show.

Many people are very interested in celebrities’ private lives, and the show’s guest lineup was well-curated to appeal to a broad audience.

Wen Tang occasionally watched variety shows in her spare time and had seen this one. She felt it was suitable for her current situation.

Forget about being a regular guest, but participating in one episode was acceptable.

She nodded and said, “This one.”

Wen Tang reasoned that since everyone was so curious about her private and married life, it was better to reveal it openly rather than letting them speculate endlessly. With so many false divorce rumors, constant rebuttals were tiring.

Her husband seemed to be slightly impatient.

Once the decision was made to participate, the date was set quickly—next Friday, for one day, from 8 AM to 8 PM.

The production team was thrilled to hear Wen Tang agreed to participate. It would be her first reality show appearance since her marriage announcement and filmed at her home. This meant significant publicity! They quickly brought the contract for her to sign and eagerly awaited the recording day.

Tuesday came, and it was the day the production team announced the location for the next episode.

The show aired in a recording-broadcast format, with episodes airing a week after recording, making it timely and effective. The live streaming during recording sessions attracted large numbers of viewers, depending on the celebrity’s popularity.

In the morning, many people were scrolling through Weibo while waiting for or riding on public transport. There hadn’t been any major news recently, except for the earlier gossip about Wen Tang, which had been clarified as media hype.

At 8:15 AM, followers of the “Take Me to Your Home” official Weibo account saw the latest post.

“Take Me to Your Home” official Weibo:

Carrying longing and hope, it’s warm, sweet, and strong. Please take me to your home. @Wen Tang

The post instantly ignited the netizens’ enthusiasm.

[What? Am I seeing this correctly? This episode’s guest is Wen Tang???]

[Wow, it’s been ages since Tangtang participated in a variety show! The last time was two or three years ago on ‘Celebrity Kitchen’!]

[I’m so excited!]

[Wen Tang’s home? Is this for real? Ahhh, I want to know if her husband will be there!]

[Tangtang has been almost invisible except for movies. Finally, she’s coming out to make an appearance! Ahhh!]

[This show has a live stream too. I’ve never seen Wen Tang live before; I’m so excited!!!]

[I’m also looking forward to it. I’m curious about what Tangtang’s home is like!]

[Will I finally get to see Tangtang’s husband???]

[Can’t wait!!!]

……

The time quickly came to Friday.

Wen Tang provided the address of the apartment she shares with Zhou Jingyu for the show. For convenience, they had been living there for several years without moving.

Before the production team arrived, Wen Tang had already informed the property management, so the team’s vehicle had smooth access to the building.

When filming such shows, many celebrities use rented or other properties to avoid exposing too much of their personal lives. The house shown on the show may not necessarily be the celebrity’s real residence. Real homes often reveal too many details, and many celebrities have faced issues when their real homes were exposed.

After receiving Wen Tang’s positive response, the production team assumed she would use a different location like most celebrities do. However, Wen Tang gave her actual address without any hesitation! This made the production team even more excited about filming this episode. Filming in a real home makes the setting more lived-in and natural, with many small surprises that are particularly worth looking forward to!

However, Wen Tang had also stated in advance that only she would appear on camera for this episode. No additional people could be edited into the final footage, a condition that was specifically written into the contract.

As for who those additional people were, it was obvious.

Given Wen Tang’s careful protection of her partner in recent years, the production team was prepared for this. Although they couldn’t film her partner, a day of filming in her home still promised plenty of highlights. Wen Tang was a walking source of buzz, and any casual appearance could easily become a trending topic!

At 8:30 AM, the production team arrived at Wen Tang’s home and rang the doorbell.

After a short while, the door was opened.

Wen Tang greeted them in casual homewear, without makeup, showing her bare face. Seeing the production team, she waved politely and said, “Good morning.”

She then opened the door to let them in.

Wen Tang had started her career as a child star and had rarely appeared without makeup over the years. Seeing her up close, her skin was as white as jade, smooth and flawless, with large, bright eyes and long lashes that didn’t require mascara.

Wen Tang’s beauty wasn’t just a result of rumors. Even without makeup and with a camera close up, she could still astonish everyone instantly.

This was a new show that started airing this year, and most of the production team had never met Wen Tang before. Seeing her like this was a moment of awe for them.

The show’s regular guests included two female and one male guest: Bai Jia, a famous entertainment show host, Luan Qianqian, a young actress, and Qiu Mingxu, a well-known pop singer.

Among the guests, Bai Jia was a few years older than Wen Tang, while Luan Qianqian and Qiu Mingxu were younger, especially Luan Qianqian, who was a big fan of Wen Tang’s TV dramas and films!

The production team was invited into Wen Tang’s home.

With Wen Tang’s permission, they first filmed the interior of her house. It was spacious and cozy, with traces of daily life, but had clearly been tidied up for the shoot, showing nothing particularly out of place.

Wen Tang had two cats, both very cute and beautiful.

The cats weren’t at all shy around the newcomers.

Wen Tang picked up the curious cat that meows at everyone and petted it, saying, “This is Prince.”

Then she pointed to the aloof cat on the cat tree and said, “That’s Princess.”

Both cats were plump and had shiny fur.

The production team included cat lovers, and the two female guests’ eyes lit up upon seeing the cats.

“Wow, your cats are so cute!”

“They’re really well cared for!”

They reached out to pet them, but Prince jumped out of Wen Tang’s arms and hopped onto the cat tree, joining Princess in looking down at everyone with an air of aloofness.

The two female guests: “……”

Wen Tang: “…… They’re usually like this with me too. You’ll get used to it.”

Guests: “?”

Wen Tang added, “When my husband is around, they only show affection to him. When he’s not here, I can finally hold them.”

The days when Wen Tang was surrounded by her two cats before meeting Zhou Jingyu were long gone.

Wen Tang voluntarily mentioned her husband.

The production team had done their homework on Wen Tang’s husband. Upon learning Wen Tang would be in this episode, they made a special effort to investigate him. They discovered that her husband was Zhou Jingyu, the renowned President of the Shengling Group—young, handsome, and wealthy!

The rumored “old man” was far from what the public had guessed!

When Wen Tang’s husband was mentioned, Bai Jia was excited and asked with a hint of curiosity, “So, does your husband usually feed the cats?”

Wen Tang was surprised and turned back to ask, “How did you know?”

Bai Jia smiled, “It’s natural that the one who feeds them is the one they’re closest to.”

Wen Tang nodded and said, “That’s right. I often go out for filming, sometimes for months at a time. I don’t spend much time at home throughout the year. Since I’ve been with my husband, he’s taken care of the cats.”

These everyday details were quite mundane but appealing to the audience and the production team!

The team wanted Wen Tang to share more, and Luan Qianqian, being younger and more candid, couldn’t help but ask about her idol’s recent marital life.

Luan Qianqian asked, “Sister Tang, there are always rumors about you and your husband’s marriage…”

Before she could finish, Wen Tang gave a light “Hah” and said, “You believe those media stories?”

The implication was clear: don’t believe it. None of it was true!