Chapter 2695 - 2757: Director Ning Shows Her Power

Li Yifei had already stepped forward, and Ning Xin’er decided to confront the matter head-on. Although the opponent might be stronger, after understanding the reason, she also had some resentment towards Xia Hai Entertainment. For Xia Hai himself, even more so, as he had ruined countless young female artists, claiming they could become famous if they slept with him, and if not, he would find ways to suppress them. Such a person existing in the already dark entertainment industry was akin to a devil. Yet, he had connections and power, so even those who hated him couldn’t bring him down.

Ning Xin’er tapped on her phone, composing a tweet: "The quality of a movie is naturally up to the audience to judge. Thank you to the Cannes Film Festival jury for nominating my first work, ’Immortality,’ for multiple awards. I was somewhat surprised when I learned the news today, given this is my first work. Despite the thorough preparation throughout the process, there are still many areas where it falls short, unable to match the works of veteran directors—but I’ll work hard to create better films for everyone. Please support ’Immortality.’ You don’t owe me a movie ticket, but I hope the film provokes thought; it has depth. Lastly, congratulations to Summer Entertainment; congratulations on your film also being nominated for Cannes. Let’s work together to bring glory to domestic films."

Bringing glory to domestic films is what many people hope for. The first half of Ning Xin’er’s tweet was normal, but the latter sentence about Summer Entertainment’s film seemed to superficially praise but secretly criticize it—or rather, outright mock it. A 500 million Huaxia currency investment couldn’t garner any significant award nominations, while another film got a meaningless award nomination—this was a direct slap in the face. Of course, some felt this slap was too direct, too crude, but more people felt it was necessary; since they were causing trouble for her, she struck back at them.

However, many people hadn’t realized why Ning Xin’er mentioned Summer Entertainment, leaving them confused until someone in the comments pointed it out, and they suddenly understood: so those so-called film critics gang-bullying Ning Xin’er, belittling her film, and defaming her personally—were all orchestrated by Summer Entertainment.

"Whoa, this company is really petty. What’s their character like? So black-hearted just to blackmail!"

"Summer Entertainment is trash. Damn you, blackmailing my goddess! Your big investment company can’t make a decent film, and even your past box office hits were rigged. Now you have the nerve to defame my goddess. I swear, I’ll never watch anything from Summer Entertainment again, and all their stars are dogs!"

"Upstairs, you’re a bit irrational as a true fan. Summer Entertainment did wrong, but don’t target all their stars. Some of them are good people. But I agree with boycotting Summer Entertainment—this garbage company should be boycotted. We’re Huaxia people, supporting our own films going international, especially such a promising film with potential for box office success from a new director. How can they slander and hurt so maliciously? It’s senseless!"

"I don’t care about anything else; everyone who likes my comment will receive one hundred Huaxia currency!"

"Upstairs dumbass? Still hoping for likes, get lost! Our goddess’ Twitter doesn’t need your garbage riding on the trend, scram!"

Ning Xin’er’s comment section instantly became a chaotic stew. Even though it was already midnight, netizens were energetically discussing, unwilling to miss any trending topic. With millions of followers as an Internet Celebrity, even though there might be some zombie fans, the engagement was high. Many saw this tweet and, understanding the background, instinctively chose to believe a beauty: imagining Ning Xin’er made a low-key transition to a director, coming out of retirement, creating a great film skyrocketing to success.

Of course, those tasked with dirty work didn’t stop either. They quickly organized a counterattack, for instance, a self-proclaimed renowned critic with over five hundred thousand followers on Twitter immediately retaliated against Ning Xin’er’s response, considering the money in his pocket and Summer Entertainment’s position, writing: "Some people just can’t accept criticism. A small-budget film is just that, not deserving of exaggerated praise. With a budget of just millions, I can’t imagine any good special effects or a convincing cast. I can’t see how it will have box office appeal. Here, I predict if a certain film surpasses ten million at the box office, I’ll livestream eating shit!"

This critic could be considered the epitome of "dark for the sake of being dark," dismissing facts, disregarding everything, charging ahead to tarnish reputations, and never admitting defeat.

Unfortunately, his Twitter followers were too few, with little active engagement. But similar attracts similar, his fanbase also consisted of biased people, dimwits, making comments below give the critic a false sense that he was right. Undoubtedly, some fans immediately unfollowed him, thinking he was clearly brainless.

Such tweets couldn’t draw Ning Xin’er’s or Li Yifei’s attention, even though busybodies kept @-ing them, the mentions were too many and the comments too numerous, so they only glanced casually.

On the other side, Ye Yunzhu yawned, stretched lazily, and softly said, "I’m going to sleep first; you guys continue the battle, don’t slack off!"

"Yunzhu, how do you want us to fight?" Ning Xin’er asked teasingly across Li Yifei.

"Well... if it’s that kind of battle, go to the next room, so you don’t wake me up!" Ye Yunzhu closed her eyes.

"Haha, if there’s any shaking, it’s to wake you first, make you sleep!" Ning Xin’er said.

Li Yifei patted Ye Yunzhu’s ample, elastic rear and said, "Sleep, we’ll do our thing and sleep too. Any issues, we’ll handle them tomorrow."

"Mm-hmm, goodnight, dear daddy of the kids, and goodnight, little-bottom Ning Xin’er!" Ye Yunzhu said.

Ning Xin’er puffed up her cheeks and huffed. Her bottom wasn’t considered small, and despite having children for many years, it was still perky thanks to workout attention. Yet compared to Ye Yunzhu, it fell short. The latter was something of *****, with a larger frame and also enjoyed working out, just like Lin Qiong—they could be called the family’s *****. Earlier, when doing what they loved, Li Yifei praised several times that such a **** was perfect for charging forward...

Ye Yunzhu fell asleep, while Li Yifei and Ning Xin’er browsed Twitter for a while, whispered a few exchanges, knowing that with the tweet sent, even if it didn’t explode tonight, tomorrow would be a storm. Given Xia Hai’s character, he would certainly feel provoked and was unlikely not to retaliate.

"Retaliate then. If necessary, I’ll go and have a talk with him, have a good exchange." Li Yifei hugged Ning Xin’er, his hand quietly rubbing somewhere, causing her body to tremble lightly, soon forgetting about these things, turning around and stretching out two fair arms to embrace Li Yifei, offering her soft lips.

This matter was infuriating, but for Li Yifei and Ning Xin’er, it wasn’t a big deal: the film was completed, nominated for a film festival, while Summer Entertainment’s two films ended up with nothing. Ultimately, Ning Xin’er’s side was victorious, while the others were akin to roadside *****, unpleasant but unnecessary to step on—others might choose to detour, but Ning Xin’er and Li Yifei, with their temper, stood there angrily berating whoever owned the dog.

Yet, it was not crucial: immersed with each other now, Ye Yunzhu’s bed-shaking concerns quickly ensued. Given the particularly soft bed, even the deepest sleep couldn’t resist being disturbed.

In the confusion, Ye Yunzhu was awakened not only by shaking but also by being pressed by an unexpected form...

After a night of madness, Li Yifei naturally woke first, arms wrapped around, withdrawing his hand, grabbing his phone from the bedside, casually browsing Twitter. Maybe it was still early, as last night’s storm hadn’t yet erupted, though the storm was looming; Summer Entertainment surely knew, and now it was just seeing their response.

Early, between eight and nine, Ye Yunzhu had already awakened, tidied up, and gone to work. Mayor Ye’s work ethic was beyond doubt, dedicated to every task—despite having obvious privileges in Mile City. For her primary duties, Ye Yunzhu never relaxed, never just got by.

Due to the Li family’s connections, Ye Yunzhu’s departments were relatively relaxed, but other mayors never underestimated her. Some departments never hindered those managed by Ye Yunzhu, so her governed departments seemed transformed, and common obstacles became rare.

No one dared to challenge Ye Yunzhu; who knows if Li Yifei might rage—many had seen this in Mile City these past two years, anyone who initiated trouble came to bad ends. But Ye Yunzhu took no pride in this, dealing properly with superiors and subordinates, maintaining boundaries, knowing her place—and now becoming Vice Mayor, holding no airs.

Of course, for some, her lack of airs represented a citizen-friendly image and an attitude.

Overall, Ye Yunzhu’s work was smooth, with fewer distressing matters, making her appear younger. With her child growing up, soon to enter school, and led by elder sister Li Yufei, becoming more sensible—freeing Ye Yunzhu’s mind considerably. She even considered having another child, though she later dismissed the idea herself.