After Being Scummed – Chapter 40

The Little Prince entered her world

Zuo Jingyou adopted Yin Bai’s suggestion and changed the flight to the one at 5:30 in the morning, intending to arrive in Haicheng at 7:00 and directly check into the hotel previously booked by Yin Bai.

However, as it turned out, in the early hours of the night, news of another actor’s arrest for drug use broke out.

The actor in question was none other than Chen Jingtao, the male lead in the movie 《1874》, the same film in which He Zhiwen had proposed to Zuo Jingyou. Chen Jingtao was one of the most charismatic box office draws among the younger generation, and no one had expected him to be involved in such a thing.

The fact that he turned out to be that kind of person intensified the social repercussions even more! After all, it was well known how severe the country’s crackdown on drugs was, leaving almost no possibility for artists involved with drugs to make a comeback.

Chen Jingtao’s imprisonment made the storm even more significant.

Both the director and the male lead of 《1874》 being imprisoned drew media attention to the actors who had been part of the film. As the female lead, Zuo Jingyou found herself at the center of the storm.

After all, with both the male lead and the director being imprisoned for drug use, who knew whether Zuo Jingyou, as the female lead, might also be involved? Various anonymous forums erupted with speculation about Zuo Jingyou’s potential drug use, making the rumors even more difficult to control.

As a result, before 7:00, reporters from various major media outlets, each trying to outdo the other, all gathered at the airport exit, waiting for Zuo Jingyou to show up.

Zuo Jingyou was somewhat unprepared for this situation, but she had experienced such big scenes before. She still followed the plan and left in two groups with her assistants.

Yang Yi left through another exit with another personal assistant, diverting some of the reporters. Zhang Yu, seeing that the situation was almost the same, then led Zuo Jingyou, who was in disguise, in a different direction.

However, this time there were too many reporters, and as soon as Zuo Jingyou appeared, she was spotted. Reporters with cameras saw her at the airport and, like sharks sensing blood, immediately got excited: “It’s Zuo Jingyou! Zuo Jingyou!”

One reporter pointed, and all the reporters on the scene turned their gaze toward Zuo Jingyou. Zhang Yu, who was with Zuo Jingyou, hesitated for a moment, and the next second, she was ready to run, holding Zuo Jingyou’s hand.

But the reporters were just too fast; they came from all directions and quickly surrounded Zuo Jingyou. In no time, the airport exit was completely blocked, with a group of reporters thrusting various microphones at Zuo Jingyou: “Zuo Jingyou, what’s your take on He Zhiwen and Chen Jingtao’s drug use and imprisonment?”

“Regarding the drug use incident involving Director He Zhiwen, were you aware of it beforehand?”

“Both Director He Zhiwen and Mr. Chen Jingtao using drugs, were you aware of this in the past?”

“Did you also participate in the parties with He Zhiwen and Chen Jingtao in the past?”

Amid countless camera flashes, Zuo Jingyou, wearing sunglasses, walked through the crowded people, stepping forward without saying a word. Zhang Yu followed her, acting like a protective mother hen, flapping her hands and loudly shouting, “Make way! Please move aside! Don’t block the way, give way!”

Good heavens, this has nothing to do with Zuo Jingyou, why are they all targeting her? Have these paparazzi gone mad?

As it turned out, these paparazzi were indeed going mad. Seeing that there was only one person with Zuo Jingyou, one of them approached her aggressively and thrust the microphone right in front of Zuo Jingyou’s face: “Miss Zuo Jingyou! Did you also participate in drug use!”

At that moment, someone from the side pushed the journalist’s shoulder, and the microphone was shoved into Zuo Jingyou’s face. Zuo Jingyou immediately stepped back, but it was too late; she was struck on her sunglasses and stumbled backward.

Seeing the situation, Zhang Yu quickly supported Zuo Jingyou’s waist and exclaimed, “Teacher Zuo!”

A tearing pain shot up from her foot, and Zuo Jingyou let out a soft groan, wrinkling her brow in discomfort.

It was bad; she might have twisted her ankle. Zuo Jingyou thought, but she still endured the pain and steadied herself with Zhang Yu’s help.

She raised her gaze, coldly scanning the reporters in front of her, and said with displeasure, “Everyone, could you please be quiet?”

Even when surrounded by so many people, Zuo Jingyou’s voice remained calm and composed. The hot-headed reporters involuntarily quieted down upon hearing her voice.

Zuo Jingyou, with Zhang Yu’s support, looked at the reporters who were getting close to her and said, “Step back, please. If you have any questions, we can take them one at a time.”

“You’re all friends we see regularly, is it really necessary to take things to this extent?”

Hearing her words, the reporters tactfully took a step back. However, they still held their microphones, looking at Zuo Jingyou with sharp eyes, and without a trace of compassion, one of them asked, “Teacher Zuo, are you open to an interview? Do you know anything about He Zhiwen’s drug use?”

Zuo Jingyou glanced at the person speaking, and calmly replied, “You’re from Fresh Fruit Entertainment… Well, let me tell you, I know nothing about this matter. Just like all of you, I only found out about it last night through a police report.”

Zuo Jingyou continued, and seeing that the reporter wanted to ask more, she quickly interrupted and said, “This is a public place, and I wouldn’t have normally accepted interviews here. But you’ve caused too much trouble for others, so I’ll make it short.”

Zuo Jingyou stood in the center of a group of reporters surrounding her, enduring the pain, and with a straight back, she responded calmly and gracefully, “I don’t know anything about He Zhiwen’s drug use, and similarly, I don’t know about Mr. Chen Jingtao’s situation. What they did together last night, I believe the police will provide a more definitive announcement after their investigation.”

“This is a matter concerning He Zhiwen and the others, it has nothing to do with me. If a press conference is necessary, it’s up to them to hold it. You don’t need to keep bothering me.”

After finishing her statement, Zuo Jingyou gave a courteous smile to the reporters in front of her and said, “Now, if you don’t mind, I would like to leave. Could you please make way?”

With that, Zuo Jingyou lifted her leg, endured the pain while wearing high heels, and walked directly towards the exit with Zhang Yu’s support.

The reporters were not willing to give up and followed Zuo Jingyou closely, thrusting their microphones at her, persistently asking, “Miss Zuo, you mentioned this has nothing to do with you. Does that mean He Zhiwen has a history of drug use, and is your divorce from him related to this?”

“This time, He Zhiwen was arrested and imprisoned along with Lin Xiao. Did He Zhiwen’s infatuation with drugs lead to his affair with Lin Xiao?”

“Teacher Zuo…”

“Teacher Zuo…”

The voices of the entertainment reporters were extremely clamorous, like ten thousand ducks quacking in Zuo Jingyou’s ears. Zuo Jingyou lowered her head, pursed her lips, and didn’t respond to any of the questions.

So annoying… such boring questions… She clearly stated that she had no connection with He Zhiwen, so why were they still pestering her?

Her ankle was in a lot of pain; the twist had been quite harsh. These people were going too far. Why wouldn’t they listen to reason? Didn’t they realize they were causing trouble?

The excessive pain made it hard for Zuo Jingyou to focus. She leaned against Zhang Yu, silently moving forward. All she could hear was the noisy click of cameras, blinding flashes, and a relentless stream of unproductive questions.

It seemed like a long time had passed, or maybe it was just a short while, but the relentless questioning seemed to have stopped. They all turned their attention to the front and whispered, “The big shot is here…”

“It’s the boss…”

“Don’t take photos anymore, that person has arrived…”

Even Zhang Yu beside her stopped in her tracks and looked toward the front, trembling as she called out, “BO… BOSS…”

BOSS?

Zuo Jingyou heard the voices and raised her head to look ahead.

Compared to the well-lit airport lobby in the early morning at 7:00, the scene was hazy. In the dim, Zuo Jingyou saw Yin Bai wearing a casual gray suit, leading a group of bodyguards, and leaning on a cane. She had a stern expression as she forcefully pushed through the circle of reporters, heading toward them.

In the dim world, Yin Bai seemed like a ray of light, cutting through the obscurity of dawn and coming straight towards her.

The reporters surrounding Zuo Jingyou spontaneously moved aside when they saw Yin Bai, allowing her to walk step by step to Zuo Jingyou with her bodyguards.

Even though the distance was less than five meters, Zuo Jingyou felt like Yin Bai had walked a lifetime to get to her.

Zuo Jingyou lowered her gaze, watching Yin Bai’s cane come to a stop not far from her. She slowly raised her head, looking at Yin Bai. Perhaps it was the hazy morning light, but for a moment, Zuo Jingyou felt like Yin Bai didn’t look quite real, making her appear dreamlike and enchanting.

She couldn’t describe the feeling, but at that moment when she met Yin Bai’s gaze, her voice involuntarily softened, “Why did you come?”

Yin Bai, with a stern expression, leaned on her cane and looked at Zuo Jingyou, supported by Zhang Yu. She said, somewhat displeased, “I told you, I was worried about you.”

She continued, raising her chin to look at Zuo Jingyou, and asked, “What’s going on? Why is Zhang Yu helping you? Are you injured?”

Zuo Jingyou nodded, her eyes soft, and her tone somewhat plaintive, “Yes, I twisted my ankle.”

Yin Bai sighed, walked to Zuo Jingyou’s side with her cane, and reached out her hand, saying, “I told you, these reporters can be very scary. Why didn’t you leave in the middle of the night?”

Zuo Jingyou let go of Zhang Yu, took Yin Bai’s hand, and leaned against her as she explained, “It’s not a big deal, actually. Everything was resolved just now.”

“Resolved? Weren’t you surrounded by people just a moment ago?”

Zuo Jingyou leaned against her as they both tried to walk on one leg, and she smiled, saying, “So, you came to rescue me, didn’t you?”

Yin Bai thought for a moment and nodded, saying, “Well, it’s a good thing I came!” She was quite the clever little one, foreseeing this.

Zuo Jingyou leaned on her, gazing at her with great tenderness, and said, “Yes, it’s a good thing you came.”

As if crossing a vast sea of time, she finally arrived by her side. At this moment, Zuo Jingyou suddenly had a moment of clarity: everyone who appears in her life might have a special meaning.

If He Zhiwen once represented love, then what did Yin Bai represent? Zuo Jingyou wasn’t entirely sure of Yin Bai’s current role, but she understood that Yin Bai had truly entered her world.

Just like the Little Prince who landed in the desolate desert, uninvited and silently entered her world.

Yin Bai reached out, holding Zuo Jingyou’s shoulder, supported by her cane, and half-hugging her, they walked through the encircling reporters with a group of bodyguards.

When the reporters couldn’t capture a clear shot of Yin Bai’s face, one brave photographer raised a camera and clicked a shot of the two from behind. It seemed like a signal, as the others quickly realized and raised their cameras, clicking away at Yin Bai and her entourage protecting Zuo Jingyou as they left.

They took photographs, recorded videos, and after they finished, the reporters turned to their colleagues, asking if anyone had managed to get a clear shot of Yin Bai’s face.

A colleague chuckled and said, “Who would dare to take a shot? That’s none other than Boss Yin!”

That’s right, it was Boss Yin. The cold and ruthless Black King of Hell of the entertainment industry, who had caused numerous companies and media outlets to lose significant lawsuits trying to get a single picture of her over the years.

Given her track record, who would dare to photograph her again?