Chapter 64

Chapter 64

Now all fans and passersby were convinced that Song Nian was the despicable one who snatched Quan Mingjun's role away.

Wrongfully squeezed out, the victim Quan Mingjun instantly became the object of everyone's sympathy, while criticism, blame, and insults surged toward the perpetrator Song Nian.

Eventually, the attacks grew, evolving from simply condemning the role theft to attacking Song Nian as a person.

Irrelevant past incidents were dredged up, as if re-examining a test paper to be corrected; netizens took out magnifying glasses, trying to find every flaw to criticize.

At the peak of the storm, public opinion shifted. What was once praised—his acting and styling—was now heavily criticized, brutally abused, and mocked for his terrible acting.

Even his relationship with Li Yanchuan, once highly admired, was now dragged out for ridicule.

"Netizen A: See? Who was praising Song Nian for having such a big-shot husband but still acting earnestly? As expected, he bought his way in!"

"Netizen B: After all, it's all about capital paving the way. Even Quan Mingjun's locked-in role can be snatched away. Disgusting."

"Netizen C: Get out of the entertainment industry, you spoiled brat with connections!"

Public opinion is terrifying. When it’s on your side, it lifts you to heights you don’t deserve, making you feel euphoric. But when it turns against you, it hurls you deep into the mud, branding you with a baseless stigma from which you can never recover.

Song Nian’s once calm social media accounts were now overrun by Quan Mingjun’s fans, with his inbox, private messages, and comment sections all showing 99+ notifications.

When he clicked in, it was all nothing but rampant insults.

Seeing those messages, he felt his body stiffen, a chill shooting up from his feet straight to the top of his head.

His mind became a mess, unable to process the malice from the other end of the screen. He just stared blankly, his unfocused eyes hollow.

All kinds of filthy words gushed out, venting pure malice, like demons clamoring to devour bones and drink blood.

These were strangers he had never met, yet they harbored such profound hatred, wishing to devour him alive and destroy him until he's gone.

"Bro, don’t look anymore."

The assistant, unable to take it anymore, grabbed his phone and switched it to airplane mode, cutting off all messages.

Song Nian let out a muffled "mm," still frozen in the same posture, his head drooping and the vulnerable curve of his bowed neck.

He pressed his lips together and curled his fingers helplessly.

Seeing him like this, both the driver and the assistant felt awful, but in this situation, any words of comfort seemed useless.

Just then, the agent, Brother Wang, called.

Since Song Nian’s phone was unreachable, he dialed the assistant’s number.

"Bro, the agent wants you to pick up."

The assistant handed him the phone, lowering his voice and mouthing the words:

"The company should find a way to handle this."

Right. With such a big public relations crisis, the company’s PR department would surely have a solution.

At that thought, hope sparked in Song Nian’s chest, and his eyes lit up when he raised his head.

Brother Wang’s voice came through the phone, but instead of his expression relaxing, it grew heavier. The smile that had just appeared on his lips tightened into a straight line, and his expression dimmed.

"I hope you understand. This is the company’s call."

Brother Wang sighed on the other end.

"...I understand. Thank you for your hard work, Brother Wang."

When he hung up, Song Nian slumped back into his seat, his mind going blank.

"What did they say, Song Nian-ge? Is the company stepping in?"

The assistant pressed urgently.

But the person beside him turned to look, his expression indifferent, as he slowly shook his head.

"What does that mean?"

The assistant was stunned.

"Brother Wang said it’s complicated, involving Quan Mingjun, Qu Liang, and the production team. I’m the greenest here, so the company thinks it’s better to let the storm blow over than to issue a clarification."

Song Nian’s lips twisted into a smile that held no trace of humor.

As a profit-driven entertainment company, the priority was always profit. Without any benefit, they wouldn’t bother.

Among the actors auditioning for the second male lead, the moment Quan Mingjun lost, Qu Liang reacted. And with the so-called insider leak, it was clearly a threat and signal to the production team.

— They had even prepared an excuse to overturn the already confirmed second male lead, making it easy for the team to just go along with it if they wanted.

And Song Nian, caught in the middle as a rookie, naturally became the sacrificial lamb.

Not to mention how difficult it would be to win this PR war. The production team’s stance was still unknown. Even if they issued a clarification, the effect might be getting half the result with twice the work. Most people wouldn't buy into it.

Besides, although Song Nian had the Li family behind him, no one had stepped forward to back him.

In comparison, sacrificing one part and letting Song Nian take some heat seemed like a better deal.

Moreover, even bad publicity was still publicity. Take the heat, then try to spin it—maybe it could even boost his popularity.

He had to admit, the logic was solid. After hearing all that, the assistant fell silent.

"Isn’t there any other way?"

Even as he asked, he already knew the answer.

— There really wasn't one.

"It’s okay. We’ll just follow the company’s plan."

Song Nian even tried to comfort the other, patting his shoulder.

For the rest of the ride, no one spoke, and the atmosphere grew heavier than before.

"Then, bro, don’t go out during this time. I’ll update you on any developments."

When they dropped him off at the villa, Xiao Sun wanted to stay and keep him company, but Song Nian refused. The younger man repeatedly urged him to be careful.

"Don’t worry. Go on back."

Song Nian just wanted some peace and quiet, so he smiled and waved goodbye.

The car pulled away, leaving him alone in the vast villa.

The villa felt empty and silent, unlike the outside world just moments ago filled with noise and congestion, but his ears were still ringing. The smile on his lips slowly faded, his mind racing.

He sat down on the sofa. After a brief moment of discomfort, he grew oddly calm.

In fact, he could actually understand why the company did what it did.

Because it was clear that Quan Mingjun was behind this whole thing.

From the production team’s point of view, compared to him being dragged through the mud, the investor and the male lead were obviously the safer bet.

From the company’s perspective, it was also smarter not to offend a big name.

No matter what, throwing him under the bus was the best move.

Even a sensible person like him should learn to stay silent, follow the company’s arrangement, and not fight back.

That made sense, logically.

But emotionally, who could handle getting that much hate online?

Every time he recalled those vicious attacks, he couldn't stop trembling, and it became hard to breathe.

It felt like he was the worst person in the world, being condemned by everyone.

Yet, he had done nothing wrong.

The audition was a fair shot. He thought he did a good job, and the crew even gave him a verbal offer, flat-out saying they picked him for the second lead.

He had never done anything bad—so why was he the one being attacked, bearing fake accusations?

Quan Mingjun had someone backing him, so he could get away with anything, while Song Nian didn't even have his own company's support.

All the suppressed grievance came flooding back. His nose started to tingle for no reason, and tears spilled from his eyes.

The first tear slid down, and then it was like a dam breaking, totally unstoppable. Song Nian couldn't hold it in anymore and started sobbing from the hurt.

Even when he cried, he was really quiet. There was no loud wailing. He just lay on his side, curled up, shoving his face into his knees, letting out muffled cries.

If it weren't for his shoulders shaking and the occasional sniffle, anyone might have thought he was asleep.

After crying for a bit, Song Nian suddenly stopped and looked up.

—He'd just thought of Li Yanchuan.

He had the driver come early to get him, so he must've seen what was online.

In that case, would he come home early?

He had to get it together. He couldn't let Li Yanchuan see him like this—no point making him worry.

With that, he lifted his head and wiped his face.

Song Nian had always been the type to only share the good, never the bad. Since the company had already made up their mind and it was a done deal, there was no need to let others worry.

Even if Li Yanchuan could step in and help, he didn't want to be a nuisance. He should just behave and figure things out on his own.

Just like when he was a child, when he fell and scraped his knee. Even though it hurt so bad he limped, he never told his parents.

He'd wait for the pain to ease a bit, hide the scrape under his pant leg, and walk home with his usual smile.

Because telling them would only distract his busy parents and stress them out. Besides, if he didn't say it, they wouldn't notice.

He patted his cheeks, forced a grin, and tried to look normal.

Just then, the front door swung open.

The man who walked in looked around the room, nervous, not his usual calm self, as if he had rushed back in a hurry. When his eyes met Song Nian's, he relaxed a bit.

“Honey, you’re back?”

Not wanting to worry him, Song Nian forced a smile and went over to greet him cheerfully, not mentioning a word about what happened today.

But seeing the smile on his face, Li Yanchuan didn’t feel relieved. Instead, his lips pressed together, his expression turning more troubled.

Because the Song Nian he'd just seen on the camera wasn't like this at all.

Worried sick, Li Yanchuan had left the office two hours early. After learning that the driver had already taken him back to the villa, he pulled up the surveillance feed on his phone to check on him.

What he saw was Song Nian curled up, sobbing.

When he saw those red eyes and tear-streaked face, his breath hitched. It felt like his heart was being squeezed.

The pain hit even harder when the guy bravely put on a brave face and came to greet him.

Even though his eyes were still swollen, and his smile carried a deep bitterness.

“Honey, would you like some water, or maybe something to eat? But Aunt Wang hasn’t come yet…”

Probably feeling guilty, Song Nian fumbled to find various topics to talk about.

But the other person didn’t respond. Instead, he suddenly reached out, firmly grabbing his wrist.

“Song Nian.”

Li Yanchuan looked straight at him. His deep, pitch-black pupils held an indescribable intensity and depth, reflecting only one person’s image.

“If it hurts, you can just cry.”

In front of me, you don’t have to pretend. I can accept all your negative emotions and every version of you.

So, you don’t have to act like you’re fine. You don’t have to hide behind a smile. Just cry it out loud.

The man’s words were not insincere. The seriousness in his gaze was so warm that it was hard to look away.

That soft sentence was like the last straw that broke the camel’s back.

Suddenly, that suppressed bitterness rose again.

He had promised himself he wouldn’t cry in front of him.

But a line of clear tears fell silently from his eyes.

In front of Li Yanchuan, Song Nian could no longer pretend. He threw himself into his arms and couldn’t hold back his sobs.

Tears gushed out like a dam breaking, and he wailed, pouring out all his grievances.

For the first time, someone cared about how he felt.

It was as if, on that night when he scraped his knee, someone finally noticed his wound, gently applied a bandage, and told him it was okay to say it hurt.