Chapter 362 - 295: Dropping a Bombshell

The awards ceremony didn’t end until the middle of the night.

Ni Bingyan’s group had dinner and returned to the hotel. After their whole routine of showering, removing their makeup, and doing their skincare, a glance at the clock showed it was already almost three in the morning.

There was no time for chatter; they all went back to their own rooms to sleep.

Although the day had its ups and downs, the result was good in the end. Everyone was happy, so they couldn’t help but have a few drinks to celebrate.

After her shower, her cheeks were flushed. Ni Bingyan sat at her vanity, staring at the award trophy for a long time. Eventually, she couldn’t fight off her exhaustion any longer. Smiling, she pulled the covers over herself and fell into a deep, peaceful slumber.

While she slept comfortably in a five-star hotel’s luxury suite, Lin Zhiyuan was enduring an ordeal!

For a senior to make things difficult for a junior in a public setting like an awards ceremony was, to some extent, a loss of grace.

Besides, the two had never crossed paths and had no history of animosity. To target her so pointedly made even the people on the island feel she was a disgrace, that she had lost face for Taiwan, to say nothing of the other side of the strait.

She was a trending topic on Weibo for most of the night. Netizens dug up every last bit of her past, dragged out her filmography for critique, and tarred any artist associated with her with the same brush. In the end, they practically cursed her and her entire family tree back from the dead!

Wherever there was a hot topic, there were paparazzi.

It wasn’t often that so many people were chasing after her. Lin Zhiyuan liked this kind of heat, but it would have been perfect if they weren’t after her because of Ni Bingyan.

Unfortunately, there were no "if onlys."

"What time is it? Can you all just stop following me! I want to go home!"

After leaving the awards ceremony, she had gone to a celebratory party for a close friend whose son had won the Best Newcomer award.

After what had happened, she hadn’t wanted to go, but her old friend’s invitation was so insistent she couldn’t refuse, so she went.

She never expected to be cornered by entertainment reporters right at her own front gate.

She had been drinking and was now a bit groggy and incredibly sleepy. The paparazzi in front of her were all a blur.

They were dead-set on blocking her from going home, insisting on asking about the one thing she never wanted to mention again. You can just imagine how she felt!

The entertainment reporters on Taiwan Island had always been wild. Hounding a director for an interview in the middle of the night was nothing.

In their desperation to get an explosive, first-hand scoop, it wasn’t even strange for them to shove microphones into people’s mouths.

News has a shelf life. They had been staking out the place for half the night, and now that they finally had her, how could they not grill her for some answers?

"Everyone really wants to know right now! Why did you target Miss Ni? She was a candidate for Best Actress, which means the judges felt she had the skill to win this award. Why did you deliberately make things difficult for her? Did you think she was unworthy?"

A final shred of clarity in Lin Zhiyuan’s mind was urging her to get home. Hearing this, she snapped her mouth shut.

’If I go along with what these paparazzi are saying, I’ll offend the judges. How will my films ever win awards in the future?’

The winter wind was bitingly cold. The paparazzi, wrapped in down jackets with runny noses from the chill, refused to give up, a testament to their determination.

Finally, unable to bear their pestering any longer, Lin Zhiyuan shoved aside the paparazzo in front of her and shouted, "I! Said! No! Comment!"

She didn’t live in a remote area, and there were security cameras everywhere. But she was still a woman, and even if she was a bit older, being surrounded by several young men was still a little frightening.

That’s why she deliberately shouted, hoping to wake her neighbors.

"Come on, just say a few words~"

The paparazzi were very experienced when it came to avoiding legal risks.

The group surrounded Lin Zhiyuan, careful not to touch her, but simply blocked her path whenever she tried to leave.

In the middle of the night, being a woman, she was naturally apprehensive. She didn’t dare to charge into the young men. Seeing her way blocked, she could only try to break out in another direction.

In this way, she was quickly penned in place.

The feeling was infuriating. Lin Zhiyuan was livid:

"If you keep pestering me, I’m calling the police! This is false imprisonment! It’s harassment! I’m going to sue you!"

Taiwanese Mandarin always has a certain cutesy quality to it. Even when she was angry, her words lacked force.

"Aiya, Sister Lin, don’t be such a stranger. Just tell me~"

"As long as you tell us, I’d be willing to spend a few days in jail for it!"

"That’s right, that’s right! We haven’t even eaten yet! We’ve been waiting for you for so long, just to ask a few small questions!"

"Yeah, yeah! Sister Lin has always been so cultured and reasonable. There must be a reason for what you did today. We don’t believe the nonsense people are saying online!"

"Yeah, yeah! You two don’t even know each other, you had no reason to target her~"

...

After saying those things on stage and suffering all that humiliation, she had received a message from Zhen Yiyi after the ceremony. Not only did Zhen Yiyi not thank her, but she also subtly chided her for being a busybody.

Lin Zhiyuan was already feeling terrible.

At her friend’s party, everyone had insinuated that her actions tonight were ungracious, causing her compatriots to lose face along with her.

In her foul mood, she drank too much. Surrounded by the reporters who were sweet-talking her as if feeding her some bewitching potion, it didn’t take long for Lin Zhiyuan’s resolve to crumble:

"I was given two envelopes, one after the other. In the first envelope, the winner wasn’t surnamed Ni at all! Tell me, how could I not be angry? I’ve dedicated my whole life to film, and to watch this kind of conspiracy happen right before my eyes, how could I not be furious?!"

This was exactly what the paparazzi had been waiting for all night, wasn’t it?

’Oh my god!’

’This scoop is explosive!’

"Sister~ please~ just a few more words~"

Just as they were about to ask who the original winner was, a gust of cold wind blew over, clearing Lin Zhiyuan’s head. Realizing her mistake, she clutched her shawl, adamantly refusing to say another word, and shoved past the stunned paparazzi to get through her courtyard gate.

The paparazzi didn’t dare force their way into a private residence, so they had no choice but to leave.

Still, this scoop was more than enough!

And so, when Ni Bingyan woke up the next day, well-rested, she heard a commotion downstairs from her hotel.

Peeking out, she saw a large crowd of heavily bundled-up fans gathered with megaphones. On a long banner were angry, black-inked words: "EXECUTE THE THIEF!"

She had good eyesight and recognized them at a glance as Zhen Yiyi’s fans.

Hearing the shouts coming from their megaphones, Ni Bingyan’s face instantly turned pale!

"Mainland girl! Go back where you came from!"

"Mainland girl! Give my Sister Yiyi her Best Actress award back!"

"Shameless!"

"It was a conspiracy! I won’t accept this!"

...

Here on Taiwan, she only had three staff members with her. Even if she found acquaintances to help, they couldn’t possibly counter the locals’ home-field advantage!

Seeing the hotel surrounded, Ni Bingyan’s heart pounded with panic.

’When people are angry, there’s no reasoning with them!’

’Especially obsessed fans. They could do anything on impulse!’

Ni Bingyan had woken up as soon as she heard the noise downstairs.

After running to the window to look, her first move was to draw all the curtains and shut all the doors and windows.

Without even taking off her pajamas, she threw on a tracksuit for ease of movement.

Just as she was pulling on her socks, about to slip on her sneakers, she heard a knock on the door.

Ni Bingyan jumped in fear but managed to steady herself. She ran into the bedroom, closing the door behind her, and called Sister Wei.

When she learned it was Sister Wei outside, Ni Bingyan’s heart relaxed. Only then did she come out, open the suite’s main door, and let her in.

"Keep the door and windows shut, and the curtains drawn. You are not to go out! You are not to go online! And you are absolutely not to accept any interviews of any kind! Stay right beside me! Sit here quietly! Got it?"

The moment she entered, Sister Wei rattled off the instructions, then pulled out her phone, opened her laptop, and got to work.

Seeing her disheveled hair, her nightgown, and her lack of makeup, it was clear she had just scrambled out of bed. Ni Bingyan was touched and truly did sit obediently beside her, watching.

A short while later, there was another knock on the door.

This time, with Sister Wei there, she felt more courageous and went to peek through the peephole.

Seeing that it was only Sister Li and Brother Biao outside, she quickly opened the door to let them in.

"Sister Wei is already here. We’ll do whatever she says!"

Ni Bingyan locked the door and then pushed a shoe cabinet in front of it to act as a barricade before speaking to the two of them.

Her movements were crisp and efficient, taking only a few seconds.

The two of them were still a bit groggy from sleep. Seeing this, they were instantly jolted wide awake!

’Is the situation really this serious?’