Chapter 49

Zuo Mingran took a moment to log onto Weibo using a secondary account. Shi Shuangxia and Yan Yunyang were on a flight to Y City, so she couldn't reach them for the time being. However, she received several messages from Wen Feifei, who was currently shooting on set.

Zuo Mingran skimmed through the messages, focusing on the less important parts. Since there was no response from the other side, she assumed they were currently filming. Zuo Mingran set her phone aside and went to take a shower.

As a party involved in the incident, Zuo Mingran had to make a trip to the police station. Not only her, but the other individuals present at the scene also had to provide witness statements. However, everyone was covered in mud and water after coming down from the mountain, so apart from Fan Zhenzhen, the others found a nearby hotel to change clothes.

After changing, as Zuo Mingran sat in the car and brushed through Weibo, she received a message from Wen Feifei. It began with Wen Feifei expressing her astonishment at how shameless Zuo Mingran's relatives were, then she asked about Zuo Mingran's plans.

This matter wasn't much of a secret, so Zuo Mingran straightforwardly replied, "We'll go to court, what else can we do? Besides, they still owe me tens of thousands in compensation."

When Zuo Mingran's birth parents passed away in a car accident, she was under eighteen and required a legal guardian according to the law. Her relatives were initially reluctant to take on this financial burden, but then her so-called uncle heard about the compensation money while the others were still unaware. He quickly arranged the paperwork to become her guardian. Afterwards, once the compensation money of over eight hundred thousand arrived, he promptly bought a house in the city for his own use and a commercial property.

Over eight hundred thousand ten years ago was not a small sum, but unfortunately, it had little to do with Zuo Mingran. Her parents barely passed away for a year when, due to various reasons, she had to drop out of high school and start working. Eventually, she encountered Shi Shuangxia, and after stumbling through so many years, she finally achieved a somewhat satisfactory outcome.

Those matters from the past were nothing more than memories of someone else in Zuo Mingran's mind. As she spoke about them, she lightly touched on the subject, as if it was really as she described it. After so many years had passed, any grudges and grievances had dissipated, allowing her to face everything calmly. The online trolls who cursed her parents and distorted her photos, if she had to face every single one of those incidents, she might have died or come back to life countless times.

She spoke with ease, but Wen Feifei felt indignant while listening. However, since she was on set and couldn't send voice messages directly, she had to express her anger through typing. "They are so shameless! Who gave them the courage to spread rumors and defame you online? They are the real villains, aren't they?"

Wen Feifei grew up with people protecting and nurturing her, even after entering the entertainment industry, she still had people looking out for her. She hadn't experienced much of the dark side. When she was angry, she would simply repeat a few phrases, appearing more furious than the person directly involved. Finally, Zuo Mingran turned the situation around and comforted her, "It's alright, this matter won't be settled easily. It's pointless for them to cause a ruckus online. Once we're done handling things here, I'll go back and settle the score with them."

Upon hearing this, Wen Feifei remembered another incident that was also trending, "By the way, what's going on with that reality show of yours? I heard Fan Zhenzhen got arrested?"

There are too many journalists and media on the scene, and the news cannot be stopped at all. It is probably spreading throughout the whole country. Wen Feifei, who is always interested in gossip, is still curious, "Isn't she usually following the route of a rich and spoiled princess? How did she end up on a rule-of-law program? Is she transitioning into a legal expert?"

Zuo Mingran was amused by this metaphor. He guessed that Wen Feifei must have spent a lot of time browsing the internet.

She also saw the Weibo that sent Fan Zhenzhen to the hot search. It was a short video clip, probably intended to capture their journey down the mountain, but coincidentally, it captured the entire process of the police arresting Fan Zhenzhen.

In the crowded scene, the silver limited-edition bracelet on Fan Zhenzhen's wrist was noticeable and was circled in red by netizens who enlarged the image. If someone didn't know, they would think it was a test center for this year's college entrance examination.

It is true that Fan Zhenzhen's debut time is short, but her starting point is particularly high. While her teammates were still struggling in third, fourth, fifth, and sixth-tier cities, she had already obtained various resources easily. At a birthday party, she even invited celebrities from various fields, implicitly declaring her wealth and firmly establishing her princess image.

Originally, no matter how much Fan Zhenzhen showed off, people could only say that she indeed had the capital for it and it wouldn't affect others. However, Fan Zhenzhen's fans didn't act reasonably. They criticized their fellow contestants during the talent show and targeted senior colleagues after debut. Leaving aside other things, they have done plenty of disgusting things.

There is a saying in the fan circle that fans should not engage in negative behavior towards the main character. However, this saying also depends on the situation. Fan Zhenzhen's fans have caused conflicts with many people before and after, and if Fan Zhenzhen intervenes and speaks clearly, it would not escalate into a situation where both sides are at odds, not to mention that Fan Zhenzhen sometimes adds fuel to the fire.

Now that the tables have turned, and Fan Zhenzhen is involved in an unfavorable hot search, the fans of the various people who had conflicts with her in the past, regardless of whether they held grudges, have come together to attack Fan Zhenzhen's fans online.

Fans who have always been unbeatable have never suffered such grievances before. However, they can't deny the video for the time being, so they can only argue online with others while relentlessly questioning the show's production team for an explanation, giving off an air of "how did my child, who was fine at home, end up in trouble when they went to you" like frustrated parents.

The production team couldn't say a word of defense. First, they neglected to check the weather forecast, which resulted in the artist being trapped. Now, Fan Zhenzhen's fans are holding them accountable. Besides the first issue, just the matter of Fan Zhenzhen alone, not to mention the fans, the production team also wants to know what exactly happened. When the police car drove in, dozens of eyes stared, and they were so scared that they thought they had a fugitive hiding among the staff.

Now, it seems that it would have been better if they really had a fugitive hiding!

When they were on the mountain, the only people with Fan Zhenzhen were Zuo Mingran, Yin Ruxin, another guest, and their respective accompanying photographers.

They definitely couldn't get any information from the artists, so the production team could only focus their attention on the four photographers. However, unexpectedly, one after another, they remained tight-lipped. After questioning for a long time, not a single word leaked out. In the end, someone couldn't help but remind the production team, suggesting that they cut ties with this matter and completely disassociate themselves from it.

All of them are people who have been in the industry for a long time, and their skill of seeking benefits and avoiding harm has long reached its maximum level. When this phrase came out, the production team understood what it meant.

When gods fight, these mortals would do anything to stay far away.

At this point, the production team wasn't afraid of being criticized by Fan Zhenzhen's fans. They hastily prepared an announcement with a clear central message: don't ask me, I don't know, and I can't control it.

When Zuo Mingran arrived at the police station, he happened to see Fan Zhenzhen's fans shifting the blame onto Yin Ruxin, who happened to be present. They even summarized how she had schemed and framed Fan Zhenzhen, presenting the entire cause and effect.

Unexpectedly, despite the changes in the process, the outcome of Yin Ruxin being blamed remained the same as in the original script.

The details of the incident couldn't be revealed to the public yet, so Zuo Mingran made up some excuses to evade further questions. Fortunately, Wen Feifei wasn't the type to dig deeper, and after chatting for a while, she continued with her filming.

Accompanied by Angel, Zuo Mingran walked into the police station.

The police station was already surrounded by a group of reporters who had rushed over upon hearing the news. Zuo Mingran nearly had his eyes blinded by the flashing lights as he entered wearing sunglasses.

After giving his statement, Zuo Mingran handed the copy of the video to the police. It was his first time being questioned at a police station, and he had expected it to be very complicated, but the process turned out to be unexpectedly fast.

Perhaps considering her status as a female celebrity, the officer responsible for taking her statement was a female police officer. She smiled and said, "This is the first time I've come across a case like this, where the victim, the suspect, the evidence, and the witnesses are all just neatly delivered to our police station."

Zuo Mingran couldn't help but think of that joke – a family should always be neat and orderly.

The other people who were present were also called in, including the guest that Zuo Mingran didn't know well. He claimed to be near-sighted and standing far away, stating that he didn't see anything and couldn't testify. His accompanying photographer followed suit and insisted that he didn't know anything either. The police had no way to deal with such people, so they let them go.

The remaining few people, including Yin Ruxin, didn't need to be mentioned. As for the young photographer who had the SLR camera, even if he claimed not to have seen anything, nobody believed him, so he had to make a statement honestly. What surprised Zuo Mingran was the other two accompanying photographers. After all, this incident involved the Fan and Yan families, and neither of them were easy to provoke. It seemed that these two individuals were aware of this and chose to play dumb, not wanting to offend anyone regardless of the final outcome.

Zuo Mingran thought for a moment and could only attribute this to Fan Zhenzhen's poor interpersonal relationships.

Fan Zhenzhen's manager, Sun Kai, was also at the police station, accompanied by a lawyer.

When Sun Kai saw Zuo Mingran, his expression was somewhat strained.

After coming down from the mountain for such a long time, it was enough for him to figure out the ins and outs of the matter, otherwise he wouldn't have quickly hired lawyers and been busy trying to exonerate Fan Zhenzhen.

Zuo Mingran thought back to the movies and TV shows he had seen, and suddenly felt that he should also hire a lawyer. However, he was not familiar with anyone in Y City, so he didn't know where to find a reliable lawyer.

Angel, who was following behind, seemed to understand her thoughts and whispered, "Sister Ran, Xia Jie must have already found a lawyer. We just need to wait."

Zuo Mingran nodded, thinking that Xia Jie and Xia Jie only rushed over after receiving the news of her being pushed down the hill. Knowing her personality, she might have directly brought a lawyer with her.

***

As evening approached, Shi Shuangxia and Yan Yunyang arrived in Y City one after another.

It was quite a coincidence that these two people flew from different cities, not only arriving at around the same time, but also bringing lawyers with them.

As a talent manager, Shi Shuangxia's connections had always been a mystery. The lawyer she brought seemed to have a good relationship with her. When she saw other lawyers present, she didn't say anything and just chatted briefly before pulling Shi Shuangxia aside and saying a few words. When she returned, she was alone.

Zuo Mingran thought that the other party might mind working with other lawyers, so she couldn't help but ask quietly.

Shi Shuangxia's expression was a bit subtle as she looked at the two people not far away and whispered, "The lawyer I brought with me just told me that Lu Zhiyong, the one General Yan invited, is a big shot in the industry who specializes in these kinds of cases. With him here, our case is basically stable."

Zuo Mingran was somewhat surprised. From the time the incident happened until now, it had only been a few hours. If we consider the time spent on the plane, it meant that Yan Yunyang had quickly contacted this industry big shot as soon as the incident occurred.

Shi Shuangxia continued, "The lawyer I brought is someone I know. He said a few words and then left. He was busy too, and only came with me because of our relationship. But now we have a big shot in the industry sitting here." Pausing for a moment, she said, "I don't know how General Yan managed to invite this big shot."

Although she didn't know much about the rules of the lawyer industry, Zuo Mingran understood that famous big shots in the industry have jam-packed schedules, and even if you have money, you might not be able to hire them.

Indeed, as Shi Shuangxia said, the incident happened suddenly, and it was unclear how Yan Yunyang managed to invite someone to Y City to take on this case.

Shi Shuangxia didn't think much about it. Besides marveling at the power of capital, she quickly shifted her focus to another matter. "By the way, your uncle...forget it. I've tried to contact Left Xingde, but I haven't been able to reach him. It seems like he has received a lot of benefits and is not willing to let go. But it's okay, your incident was already trending on social media, and the PR department came up with several plans that weren't quite suitable. But with this incident happening, it has alleviated some of the heat from that incident."

Speaking of which, Zuo Mingran remembered that there was something else she hadn't mentioned. She smiled and said, "It's not really unfair to her, at most it's just reaping what she sowed. I have a rough idea of who is behind all of this."

She briefly recounted the conversation she had with Fan Zhenzhen in the cave to Shi Shuangxia, saying, "Fan Zhenzhen doesn't actually know much about me, but suddenly knowing so much, the only possibility is that someone told her. But for no reason, I can't imagine someone specifically taking my personal information to go find her."

Thinking about how the two things that kept her busy all day were related to the same person, Shi Shuangxia clenched her teeth in anger. "What's wrong with this person? Did you provoke her? I don't remember you two ever working together."

Zuo Mingran choked up and vaguely said, "Well, there is a bit of a conflict."

Shi Shuangxia asked, "Is there something I don't know?"

After all, she was her talent manager, and the situation had escalated to a life-or-death situation. It really wasn't good to continue hiding it. Zuo Mingran glanced at Yan Yunyang, who was oblivious, and gritted her teeth, lowering her voice. "It's because of Yan Yunyang."

Shi Shuangxia: "?"

Three minutes later, Shi Shuangxia, who understood the ins and outs of the situation, looked at Yan Yunyang's figure not far away and shook her head with a sigh. "She really is a femme fatale... no, a blue-eyed disaster."

Zuo Mingran: "..."

Zuo Mingran didn't know how to refute that statement for a moment. Shi Shuangxia turned her head and patted her shoulder. "That works out perfectly, then. Let Yan Zong handle this matter. Since he is the main culprit, I don't have to worry about this favor anymore."

Just as she finished speaking, a voice suddenly sounded in their ears, "What main culprit?"

Yan Yunyang had returned without them noticing that Zuo Mingran and Shi Shuangxia were talking. However, they were speaking in low voices, so he only caught the words "main culprit."

It was always a little embarrassing to talk bad about someone behind their back. Shi Shuangxia chuckled and said, "Oh, it's nothing, we were just talking about how Fan Zhenzhen is the main culprit in this matter and she should bear the corresponding responsibility."

Yan Yunyang: "..."

Yan Yunyang said, "That's for sure."

Zuo Mingran covered her face and changed the topic. "It's already past eight. Let's find a place to eat first."

They had rushed over from out of town, and calculating the time, they should have taken a flight before lunch, and then went straight to the police station after arriving, with several hours in between.

She looked at Shi Shuangxia and invited with a smile, "Sister Xia, come with us."

Half an hour later, Zuo Mingran and Yan Yunyang returned to the hotel to eat take-out.

Ignoring the fact that the hashtag #ZuoMingranTheWhiteEyedWolf was still trending, the video of her entering the police station in the afternoon had already received over a hundred thousand comments. People were speculating about the connection between her and the incident, and countless reporters were trying to intercept her. Going out to eat at this time would undoubtedly be walking into the line of fire.

Following the principle of "better safe than sorry," they decided to order take-out directly after leaving the police station, saving themselves a lot of trouble.

Naturally, Yan Yunyang joined her. Shi Shuangxia and lawyer Lu Zhiyong were taken out to eat by Wen Mo, who had arrived later. The five of them split up, with the exception of the "neglecting the old for the new" expression from Shi Shuangxia. Overall, it could be considered a pleasant gathering.

But so much had happened in just a few days, and even more in a single day. Especially when she had narrowly escaped with her life, she suddenly felt as if she were in a different world.

Zuo Mingran had little appetite and only ate a little before propping her chin up and staring off into space. Yan Yunyang scooped a bowl of porridge and handed her a spoon without a word.

Zuo Mingran remained in a daze for a while before taking the spoon and drinking the porridge absentmindedly. Then, she asked with no particular aim, "How are we going to handle this matter?"

Yan Yunyang had obviously already discussed it with the lawyer, and everything had gone smoothly at the police station in the evening, with no signs of haste.

Placing a plate of peeled shrimp in front of Zuo Mingran, Yan Yunyang calmly said, "Attempted murder, as according to the Criminal Law."

Zuo Mingran choked, "Attempted murder... Will Fan Zhenzhen plead guilty?"

In fact, she had also considered this in the afternoon. Although it was clear that Fan Zhenzhen had had the intention to kill when she pushed her, it was difficult to determine the matter. The video could provide evidence, but it couldn't capture sound, so only the two of them knew what Fan Zhenzhen had said back then. Not to mention whether Fan Zhenzhen would admit guilt, the Fan family would definitely not sit idly by. This was also why Shi Shuangxia had asked An Qi to call the police on the spot, so that the Fan family would not be able to cover up the incident.

"There's enough evidence to convict as long as there's a chain of evidence," Yan Yunyang said.

Zuo Mingran held the spoon in her hand and mumbled, "But the Fan family won't just sit idly by."

"Fan Jiang is getting old," Yan Yunyang suddenly said. "In another two years at most, the Fan family's company will need an heir."

Zuo Mingran was momentarily stunned, and Yan Yunyang continued, "Fan Zhenzhen has a half-brother from the same father but different mother. His name is Fan Yiming. You should have met him at the birthday banquet. I took some time this morning to talk to him."

Yan Yunyang stopped there and didn't continue, but in an instant, Zuo Mingran thought of many things.

Yan Yunyang knew about this from Shi Shuangxia, and according to the timeline, Shi Shuangxia hadn't come down from the mountain at that time. In other words, before Fan Zhenzhen's manager found out about the incident, Fan Yiming had already learned about the situation here. However, he didn't do anything, even pretending not to know and only revealed it when the news broke out.

As this drama between the prominent families unfolded right before her eyes, Zuo Mingran murmured, "The same root, but different paths to take."

Yan Yunyang gestured for her to finish eating the shrimp. "The lawyer will handle everything. Just focus on eating well and resting."

Zuo Mingran muttered under her breath, "Isn't this just like raising pigs?"

Yan Yunyang heard her and smirked, not saying anything.

The previous hotel had been surrounded by reporters, so in the afternoon, Shi Anqi had found another hotel. But it seemed that there were too many reporters who had come to spectate, and in the end, they only managed to secure three rooms. With seven people in total, Zhuang Bai went to stay with a friend in Y City. That left the six of them, with two people per room.

Fortunately, they had booked suites, so even with two people in one room, it didn't feel cramped.

Zuo Mingran sat on the bed, staring blankly at Yan Yunyang, who was tidying up the sofa.

Based on the current situation, even if neither of them had spoken up first, both Zuo Mingran and Yan Yunyang had silently agreed that they wouldn't get a divorce. Their recent interactions were no different from any other couple.

They were all adults, and previously, because there were multiple rooms at home, they hadn't felt comfortable bringing it up. But now that they were sharing one room, with the door locked, would he really say he wanted to sleep on the sofa?

Zuo Mingran summoned up her courage and stuttered, "It gets... quite cold at night here."

Yan Yunyang paused in unfolding the sofa bed and looked up at the air conditioner in the room.

Zuo Mingran felt a surge of anger and got up from the bed. "The air conditioner is broken, it only cools but doesn't heat."

Yan Yunyang looked at her with deep eyes, and the overhead lights shining into his eyes seemed like a starry sky in an infinite universe.

Zuo Mingran took a step forward, but it turned out that the seemingly flat blanket in front of her was actually empty. She stepped into nothingness, and just as she was about to fall face down, Yan Yunyang instinctively lunged forward and caught her. They ended up embracing each other, and just as Yan Yunyang was about to say something, Zuo Mingran seemed to have anticipated this. She hooked her arms around his neck, leaned back, and the two of them fell onto the soft bed together.

Yan Yunyang: "..."

He lowered his head and looked at the girl in his arms, feeling a slight headache. "Aren't you afraid of falling this time?"

Zuo Mingran naturally said, "Don't I have you to catch me?"

The ambiguous posture of the two reached its peak. Yan Yunyang closed his eyes and suddenly raised his hand to cover Zuo Mingran's eyes.

The sudden darkness was a bit confusing. Zuo Mingran blinked and tentatively asked, "Yan Yunyang, what are you doing?"

Losing sight, the other senses became particularly sensitive. After an unknown period of time, perhaps only a dozen seconds, perhaps half a minute, or maybe longer, Zuo Mingran heard him say, "Ranran, I like you."

Zuo Mingran was stunned for a while, until the hand in front of her eyes moved away. Although she was happy to be confessed to, she couldn't understand why he would cover her eyes. Was there a curse that made confessions ugly?

But soon, she understood the reason behind it. Even though it wasn't obvious on his face, Yan Yunyang's ears were blushing as if they could drip blood.

Zuo Mingran pretended not to notice, squinting and smiling like a fox. "I know, I like you too."

Yan Yunyang looked at her steadily, "Can I pursue you, then?"

"We are..." Zuo Mingran was about to say that they were already married, but a thought flashed through her mind. She looked at Yan Yunyang for a long time, nodded, "Okay."

The one who married him was the previous Zuo Mingran, not her.

So, they would be like ordinary people, starting from confessing to each other, then dating, then getting married, and then spending their lives together.

Zuo Mingran's eyes welled up with tears, and Yan Yunyang helplessly touched her head and kissed her forehead. "Go to sleep early."

Zuo Mingran nodded with red eyes, watching him get up, walk to the sofa, pick up a pillow, and walk back.

"Girlfriend, since we're in a relationship, do you mind sharing the bed with me?"