As the stage lift slowly rose, Li Cheng heard the director's voice confirming the route for the eighth time in his earphones. Song Qian's silver tassel skirt swept across his wrist, reflecting tiny starlight under the spotlight. He heard the sudden sound waves from the audience, like the sea water at high tide flooding over the edge of the stage.
Tian Xiwei sat in the second row VIP area, her nails digging deep into her palms. When the director cut the camera to her face for the third time, she could even hear the shutter sounds coming from the media area behind her. On the big screen, Li Cheng's hand was supporting Song Qian's lower back, their noses were only ten centimeters apart, and the diamonds on Song Qian's eyelashes flashed coldly in the close-up shot.
"Teacher Tian, smile." The executive director's low voice suddenly rang in her ears. She raised the corners of her mouth reflexively, and caught a glimpse of her stiff facial muscles on the big screen to the side. On the stage, Li Cheng's thumb was unconsciously stroking the gauze on Song Qian's waist, a move they hadn't rehearsed.
The electronic clock in the waiting area ticked to 22:00, and golden paper pieces fell like a rainstorm. Li Cheng lowered his head in the golden rain, his nose almost touching Victoria Song's collarbone. Tian Xiwei suddenly remembered the rehearsal three days ago. She stood in the shadow of the console and saw Li Cheng say to Victoria Song in the same way: "It needs to be two degrees lower here."
At this moment, Song Qian's pearl earrings trembled slightly with her breathing, and Li Cheng's lips clearly said "You are so beautiful" in the slow motion. Tian Xiwei touched the edge of her phone and it was already hot. On the lock screen was a message from Li Cheng 20 minutes ago: "The choreographer changed the movements temporarily, and I will explain it after the end."
The sensor door of the artist passage had just opened one-third of the way, and Tian Xiwei had already squeezed into the metal corridor with a cold glow. The smart bracelet projected a scarlet countdown on the ground - there were 4 minutes and 32 seconds left before Li Cheng's team's evacuation passage opened. She ran wildly on her -centimeter high heels, and the diamond-studded heels collided with the marble floor, creating fine sparks.
"Sister!" The cousin rushed out from the blind spot of the corner surveillance, his work ID still shaking. The electronic screen behind him showed the real-time image of the lounge door. Li Cheng's black performance clothes were slipping off his shoulders, revealing the unhealed bruises on his butterfly bones from the wire hanging.
Tian Xiwei directly pressed the iris recognition lock, and her cousin suddenly crossed his arm to block the sensing area: "He is changing clothes." The ceiling light in the corridor reflected two pale spots of light on his lenses, "and Teacher Song Qian will come to review the process in five minutes."
"Get out of the way." She could hear the coldness in her voice. Her cousin didn't move at all, with his left hand behind his back, quietly pressing the emergency communication button. At the end of the corridor, there was a humming sound as a mechanical door opened, and a cleaning robot slowly drove over with its blue lights flashing.
The smart bracelet suddenly vibrated, and a special attention push popped up: #李程宋茜眼镜画丝# followed by a bursting flame emoji. Tian Xiwei grabbed her cousin's wrist fiercely, and the rhinestones on her nails cut through the fabric of his cuffs: "Which side are you on now?"
The cousin looked down at the torn cufflinks, which were the limited edition gift from Tian Xiwei for his birthday last year. The emergency lights in the corridor suddenly turned red, and the AI voice announced coldly: "Security alert, physical conflict detected in area B3."
The moment the door to the lounge opened, Tian Xiwei smelled the familiar scent of cedar perfume mixed with sweat. Li Cheng stood in front of the holographic projector in a silk robe, with gold powder for the stage stuck on his collarbone. The virtual screen was replaying the duet just now. He raised his hand and passed through Song Qian's 3D image, drawing a light blue data stream in the air.
"The choreography requires it." When he turned around, the belt of his robe was loose, and the sequins on his chest were like stars. "The director cut to the audience shot seventeen times. You should know this time."
Tian Xiwei slammed the door shut, and the smart lock sounded a failed authentication prompt. The aromatherapy humidifier in the corner sprayed white mist, blurring Li Cheng's outline: "Do you need to touch her waist to count the beats? Do you need to whisper sweet nothings in her ear? Do you need to leave a kiss mark behind her ear?"
The holographic image was frozen at the moment of the curtain call, with Li Cheng's fingertips hovering cm above Song Qian's waist. The air purifier suddenly increased its power, crushing his sigh into electronic noise: "That was a misplaced shot. You've clearly seen the rehearsal video."
“But you didn’t say you wanted to improvise.” She ripped off the pearl earring on her left ear and threw it at the projector, causing ripples in the virtual image. “During the rehearsal, there were only three seconds of eye contact here, but you saw five seconds tonight! Five seconds is enough for CP fans to cut twenty slow-motion clips!”
Li Cheng raised his hand to turn off the projection, and the blue data dots fell on the Persian carpet like fireflies. The smart watch on his wrist suddenly lit up, showing that Victoria Song was waiting outside the door.
Tian Xiwei looked at the jumping portrait and suddenly found that he had changed the dial - it was the sleeping face that he secretly took when she was filming on the set last week.
"You know what's the most disgusting thing?" She pulled open the high collar of her dress, revealing the unhealed teeth marks below her collarbone. "The night before last, you bit this place and said 'mine', and today you can do this to someone else."
The alarm suddenly sounded and an automatic fire extinguisher popped out from the ceiling.
The cousin's voice came from the loudspeaker: "Teacher Song Qian's team arrived early, and the cleaning robot needs to pass here." Li Cheng suddenly grabbed her wrist and pressed it on the smart watch, and a string of encrypted files being uploaded popped up on the dial.
"This is the original video footage from all the cameras tonight. The director cut to the audience seats 37 times." He swiped his finger across the holographic screen, pulling out a dense stream of data. "The studio is muting the sound. The rehearsal comparison video will be released in three hours. There are nine photographers outside the door right now. The corridor surveillance memory card will be automatically destroyed in minutes."
Tian Xiwei looked at the close-up of herself forcing a smile in the data stream, and suddenly realized that each camera switch was precisely stuck after the intimate actions of Li Cheng and Song Qian.
Li Cheng pressed his thumb on the corner of her red eye: "Every time you blink, the ratings will increase by percentage points."
The sound of mechanical wheels rolling came from the corridor, and Song Qian's laughter penetrated the door like a crystal wind chime.
Li Cheng suddenly pushed her into the dressing room, locked the door, and whispered, "You should be thankful that the hot topic tonight is the 'suspected romance', not the hospital trip that was photographed by the paparazzi last week."
In the darkness, Tian Xiwei felt the unremoved gauze on his back. When the smell of disinfectant mixed with the smell of blood came up, she heard her heart echoing hollowly in her chest. Outside the dressing room, Victoria Song was saying, "Teacher Li's outfit is really dangerous and charming."
The intelligent temperature control system in the dressing room suddenly started up, and the LCD panel showed that the outside temperature had dropped sharply. Tian Xiwei's back was against the mobile hanger full of performance costumes, and the crystal-embroidered costumes hurt her shoulder blades. Li Cheng's hand was still resting on the metal cabinet beside her ear, and the holographic screen projected by the watch was playing the Weibo topic page #Cheng Xi Hot Dance# in a loop.
"Last month, I had a fever of 39 degrees when I was filming a rain scene in XX. You insisted on pulling out the IV tube to visit me on set." Li Cheng's breath swept over the scabby bite marks on the side of her neck. "At that time, the head of the production team held up a polygraph and asked about our relationship. You said, 'We really haven't broken up.'"
Tian Xiwei's eyelashes trembled, and her nails studded with diamonds scratched the gauze on his chest: "So now you want revenge business? Use this..." She choked suddenly, and the sound of electricity from Song Qian's assistant adjusting the headset came from outside the dressing room.
The holographic screen suddenly popped up an urgent news push, with a top star's underground love affair exposed followed by a bursting flame symbol. Li Cheng quickly switched pages, and the studio's backend data showed that the parking lot surveillance of their secret date was being sold on the dark web. Tian Xiwei saw her profile wearing a fisherman's hat flash by in the blurry picture.
"Why did the director cut my shot 17 times today?" She suddenly grabbed the belt of his robe that had slipped off. "Last week, the producer said he wanted to make a couple special for us, but you threw the script down and left on the spot."
Li Cheng's smartwatch gave off a red warning, indicating that the heat source of the media equipment gathered outside the door had exceeded the safety threshold. He opened the locker room secret compartment, pulled out a spare sweater and put it on Tian Xiwei: "Three photographers are cracking the wireless signal in the corridor, you go through the fire escape."
Tian Xiwei grabbed the medical box in the secret compartment, and half of the diagnosis sheet appeared from the gap in the bandage. When she saw the red seal of "unhealed bone fracture", Li Cheng had already opened the air vent on the ceiling. The cold wind rushed in with the debris of ribbons, and the roar of New Year's Eve fireworks came from afar.
"The wirework accident last month wasn't an accident at all, right?" She suddenly slapped the diagnosis on the makeup mirror, knocking over a row of liquid foundation. "The wirework artist is a man's cousin, and there are seventeen minutes of blanks in the equipment inspection records."
Li Cheng turned around suddenly, knocking over the swivel chair with his back. The smart security system suddenly sounded an alarm, and the virtual image of his cousin popped up on the emergency screen on the wall: "Brother! The YY team is buying the hot search position for 'Underground Love Real Hammer' and is going to put the "
"Disconnect all external network connections!" Li Cheng's fingers left an afterimage on the holographic keyboard. "Activate plan B and call up the behind-the-scenes surveillance footage of the "XXX" crew. I need the original file with a timestamp."
Tian Xiwei watched the data flood casting an eerie blue light in his pupils, and suddenly realized that this quarrel had long been incorporated into some kind of carefully planned crisis public relations. She touched the vibrating phone in her sweatshirt pocket, and the lock screen showed 37 missed calls - the latest caller was the legal director of Hesong Media.
There was a sound of something heavy falling to the ground outside the locker room. Song Qian's exclamation was mixed with the sound of glass breaking: "Teacher Li! Your trophy." Tian Xiwei heard the slight sound of gears turning behind the metal cabinet. It was the emergency escape passage customized by Li Cheng being activated.
"Go through the ventilation duct, the exit is in Parking Lot C." Li Cheng put the magnetic card into her palm, the coolness of the hemostatic patch on his fingertips, "My RV has an anti-eavesdropping device, the password is our engagement date."
Tian Xiwei grabbed his bandaged arm and said, "Let's go together." Her nail polish dug into the gaps in the gauze, and blood oozed out, blooming like plum blossoms on the white fabric. "Those press releases, those hot searches, we can obviously..."
"Have you forgotten that Daxun was previously targeted by rivals for a negative search? We are in a very passive position now." Li Cheng suddenly pushed her onto the telescopic ladder. "There are 23 media outlets waiting outside the door to take photos of us together. Your new high-end endorsement is in the public opinion observation period."
The sensor lights of the escape passage lit up one after another, and Tian Xiwei saw that the inner wall of the pipe was covered with fine scratches - those were the counting marks that Li Cheng made with his ring every time he had an anxiety attack. The latest one was stained with gold powder that lit up like stars, and it was engraved with today's date.
The exhaust fan in Area C of the parking lot blew in snowflakes, and Tian Xiwei's sweatshirt hood was covered with ice crystals. The RV's biometric recognition system flashed green, and the onboard AI suddenly announced: "You have three emergency contracts to sign, namely, compensation for the termination of the couple variety show contract, the termination agreement of the CP to the business cooperation, and "
She slammed the door of the RV, and the smart glass instantly switched to anti-peeping mode. The in-car screen automatically played the live broadcast of the evening party. Li Cheng was being interviewed by a group of people, and a bloody scratch appeared on his collarbone. The reporter's microphone almost poked his chin: "May I ask what considerations did you and Song Qian have for adding the lifting action on the spot?"
Tian Xiwei suddenly recognized the scratch - two hours ago, when she pulled his necklace in the lounge, the diamond lock shaved her skin. The live camera suddenly cut to a distant view, and Li Cheng's right hand was unconsciously stroking the necklace pendant, which was the double ring lock she designed herself on last year's Chinese Valentine's Day.
The car communicator suddenly lit up, and the virtual image of the legal director appeared above the steering wheel: "Ms. Tian, the company requires you to go online immediately to attend the crisis meeting. The studio just released the unpublished footage of the TV series you collaborated on two years ago, and now the public opinion is beginning to turn to 'dedicated actors are maliciously speculated.'"
Tian Xiwei clicked on the real-time public opinion monitoring and saw that the hot search #李程田曦薇田耕纪# was climbing. In the related video, she was hanging on the wire and flipping in the air. The moment the wire rope suddenly broke, Li Cheng flew under her. The date of shooting of this never-before-seen behind-the-scenes footage was the beginning of the drama in which they first collaborated as the male and female protagonists.
The RV suddenly shook violently, and a blinding flash of light lit up outside the bulletproof glass. Five photographers were trying to penetrate the smart glass with laser pointers, and the sound of drone propellers hovered on the roof. Tian Xiwei activated the autopilot mode and saw in the rearview mirror that Li Cheng's assistant team rushed out of the fire escape and built a human wall with reflectors.
The car refrigerator suddenly popped out, revealing a brown paper bag tied with a ribbon. Tian Xiwei tore open the seal of the document, and a blood-stained wire hook fell out - the metal fracture surface had obvious signs of human cutting. The attached appraisal report showed that the inspection time was four hours after the wire accident.
The smartwatch suddenly received an encrypted file transfer request, and Li Cheng's voice message was filled with electrical noise: "The spare dress for the awards ceremony red carpet is in the third wardrobe. Remember to ask the stylist to cover up the tattoo on your ankle." Only then did she realize that the cuffs of her sweatshirt were stained with gold powder, flashing tiny lights in the dim carriage.
As the city skyline exploded with the first fireworks of the new year, Tian Xiwei was using the RV's laser projector to check Li Cheng's medical records. The holographic image showed that there were six bio-alloy stents embedded on both sides of his spine, and the most recent repair surgery was just three days ago. The emergency contact column on the consent form for the surgery was filled in with her alias.
The public opinion monitoring screen suddenly went red, and an entertainment celebrity released a 4-second clip from the parking lot surveillance: a close-up of the ring mark on Li Cheng's left ring finger as he pushed her into the RV. The comment section instantly became crowded with comments: "This is definitely a sign of a couple's ring" and "Go back in time! A year ago, Li Cheng had a ring-shaped sunburn mark on his hand backstage at the Asian Film Awards."
Tian Xiwei took out the necklace she was wearing, and the platinum ring flickered in the light of the fireworks. In late autumn last year, when they were shooting on location in Shanghai, Li Cheng said as he put the ring into her necklace: "Wait until the Olympics are over." At that time, they were staying in a hot spring hotel to watch the first snow, and the stitches on his lower back had not yet been removed.
The RV suddenly braked, and Tian Xiwei crashed into a locker filled with notices. The windshield showed that there was a fan chasing car accident ahead, and more than 20 girls holding "Li Cheng" light signs were surrounding a black nanny car. The silhouettes of other people were vaguely visible on the reflective film, and she was signing autographs for the fans chasing the car.
The smart navigation system replanned the route, and the road signs of the ring highway glowed coldly in the snow. Tian Xiwei clicked on the special attention reminder, and Li Cheng's studio had just issued a statement: "Legal procedures have been initiated against false rumors", with a picture of the judicial appraisal report of the wire accident. She zoomed in on the corner of the picture and saw a handwritten note next to the seal of the appraisal agency - the client's signature was Li Cheng, but the contact number was filled in with her personal number.
The car communicator lights up again, this time with a 3D projection of the art director of VOGUE: "Teacher Tian, the cover plan for the spring issue needs to be adjusted. The brand wants to keep the two-person project, but requires the addition of the theme of 'broken feeling'." The background sound is filled with the chaotic typing of keyboards, "Teacher Li Cheng's team just sent a set of photos of back injuries. Do you want to do a mirror image?"
Tian Xiwei looked at the neon signs outside the window that were receding, and suddenly realized that the electronic screens all over the city were playing the wonderful recap of the New Year's Eve party. When the freeze-frame picture of Li Cheng and Song Qian appeared, she finally saw the controversial lifting action - the root of Li Cheng's right ring finger that was holding Song Qian's waist was clearly wearing the same ring mark as hers. (End of this chapter)
Tian Xiwei sat in the second row VIP area, her nails digging deep into her palms. When the director cut the camera to her face for the third time, she could even hear the shutter sounds coming from the media area behind her. On the big screen, Li Cheng's hand was supporting Song Qian's lower back, their noses were only ten centimeters apart, and the diamonds on Song Qian's eyelashes flashed coldly in the close-up shot.
"Teacher Tian, smile." The executive director's low voice suddenly rang in her ears. She raised the corners of her mouth reflexively, and caught a glimpse of her stiff facial muscles on the big screen to the side. On the stage, Li Cheng's thumb was unconsciously stroking the gauze on Song Qian's waist, a move they hadn't rehearsed.
The electronic clock in the waiting area ticked to 22:00, and golden paper pieces fell like a rainstorm. Li Cheng lowered his head in the golden rain, his nose almost touching Victoria Song's collarbone. Tian Xiwei suddenly remembered the rehearsal three days ago. She stood in the shadow of the console and saw Li Cheng say to Victoria Song in the same way: "It needs to be two degrees lower here."
At this moment, Song Qian's pearl earrings trembled slightly with her breathing, and Li Cheng's lips clearly said "You are so beautiful" in the slow motion. Tian Xiwei touched the edge of her phone and it was already hot. On the lock screen was a message from Li Cheng 20 minutes ago: "The choreographer changed the movements temporarily, and I will explain it after the end."
The sensor door of the artist passage had just opened one-third of the way, and Tian Xiwei had already squeezed into the metal corridor with a cold glow. The smart bracelet projected a scarlet countdown on the ground - there were 4 minutes and 32 seconds left before Li Cheng's team's evacuation passage opened. She ran wildly on her -centimeter high heels, and the diamond-studded heels collided with the marble floor, creating fine sparks.
"Sister!" The cousin rushed out from the blind spot of the corner surveillance, his work ID still shaking. The electronic screen behind him showed the real-time image of the lounge door. Li Cheng's black performance clothes were slipping off his shoulders, revealing the unhealed bruises on his butterfly bones from the wire hanging.
Tian Xiwei directly pressed the iris recognition lock, and her cousin suddenly crossed his arm to block the sensing area: "He is changing clothes." The ceiling light in the corridor reflected two pale spots of light on his lenses, "and Teacher Song Qian will come to review the process in five minutes."
"Get out of the way." She could hear the coldness in her voice. Her cousin didn't move at all, with his left hand behind his back, quietly pressing the emergency communication button. At the end of the corridor, there was a humming sound as a mechanical door opened, and a cleaning robot slowly drove over with its blue lights flashing.
The smart bracelet suddenly vibrated, and a special attention push popped up: #李程宋茜眼镜画丝# followed by a bursting flame emoji. Tian Xiwei grabbed her cousin's wrist fiercely, and the rhinestones on her nails cut through the fabric of his cuffs: "Which side are you on now?"
The cousin looked down at the torn cufflinks, which were the limited edition gift from Tian Xiwei for his birthday last year. The emergency lights in the corridor suddenly turned red, and the AI voice announced coldly: "Security alert, physical conflict detected in area B3."
The moment the door to the lounge opened, Tian Xiwei smelled the familiar scent of cedar perfume mixed with sweat. Li Cheng stood in front of the holographic projector in a silk robe, with gold powder for the stage stuck on his collarbone. The virtual screen was replaying the duet just now. He raised his hand and passed through Song Qian's 3D image, drawing a light blue data stream in the air.
"The choreography requires it." When he turned around, the belt of his robe was loose, and the sequins on his chest were like stars. "The director cut to the audience shot seventeen times. You should know this time."
Tian Xiwei slammed the door shut, and the smart lock sounded a failed authentication prompt. The aromatherapy humidifier in the corner sprayed white mist, blurring Li Cheng's outline: "Do you need to touch her waist to count the beats? Do you need to whisper sweet nothings in her ear? Do you need to leave a kiss mark behind her ear?"
The holographic image was frozen at the moment of the curtain call, with Li Cheng's fingertips hovering cm above Song Qian's waist. The air purifier suddenly increased its power, crushing his sigh into electronic noise: "That was a misplaced shot. You've clearly seen the rehearsal video."
“But you didn’t say you wanted to improvise.” She ripped off the pearl earring on her left ear and threw it at the projector, causing ripples in the virtual image. “During the rehearsal, there were only three seconds of eye contact here, but you saw five seconds tonight! Five seconds is enough for CP fans to cut twenty slow-motion clips!”
Li Cheng raised his hand to turn off the projection, and the blue data dots fell on the Persian carpet like fireflies. The smart watch on his wrist suddenly lit up, showing that Victoria Song was waiting outside the door.
Tian Xiwei looked at the jumping portrait and suddenly found that he had changed the dial - it was the sleeping face that he secretly took when she was filming on the set last week.
"You know what's the most disgusting thing?" She pulled open the high collar of her dress, revealing the unhealed teeth marks below her collarbone. "The night before last, you bit this place and said 'mine', and today you can do this to someone else."
The alarm suddenly sounded and an automatic fire extinguisher popped out from the ceiling.
The cousin's voice came from the loudspeaker: "Teacher Song Qian's team arrived early, and the cleaning robot needs to pass here." Li Cheng suddenly grabbed her wrist and pressed it on the smart watch, and a string of encrypted files being uploaded popped up on the dial.
"This is the original video footage from all the cameras tonight. The director cut to the audience seats 37 times." He swiped his finger across the holographic screen, pulling out a dense stream of data. "The studio is muting the sound. The rehearsal comparison video will be released in three hours. There are nine photographers outside the door right now. The corridor surveillance memory card will be automatically destroyed in minutes."
Tian Xiwei looked at the close-up of herself forcing a smile in the data stream, and suddenly realized that each camera switch was precisely stuck after the intimate actions of Li Cheng and Song Qian.
Li Cheng pressed his thumb on the corner of her red eye: "Every time you blink, the ratings will increase by percentage points."
The sound of mechanical wheels rolling came from the corridor, and Song Qian's laughter penetrated the door like a crystal wind chime.
Li Cheng suddenly pushed her into the dressing room, locked the door, and whispered, "You should be thankful that the hot topic tonight is the 'suspected romance', not the hospital trip that was photographed by the paparazzi last week."
In the darkness, Tian Xiwei felt the unremoved gauze on his back. When the smell of disinfectant mixed with the smell of blood came up, she heard her heart echoing hollowly in her chest. Outside the dressing room, Victoria Song was saying, "Teacher Li's outfit is really dangerous and charming."
The intelligent temperature control system in the dressing room suddenly started up, and the LCD panel showed that the outside temperature had dropped sharply. Tian Xiwei's back was against the mobile hanger full of performance costumes, and the crystal-embroidered costumes hurt her shoulder blades. Li Cheng's hand was still resting on the metal cabinet beside her ear, and the holographic screen projected by the watch was playing the Weibo topic page #Cheng Xi Hot Dance# in a loop.
"Last month, I had a fever of 39 degrees when I was filming a rain scene in XX. You insisted on pulling out the IV tube to visit me on set." Li Cheng's breath swept over the scabby bite marks on the side of her neck. "At that time, the head of the production team held up a polygraph and asked about our relationship. You said, 'We really haven't broken up.'"
Tian Xiwei's eyelashes trembled, and her nails studded with diamonds scratched the gauze on his chest: "So now you want revenge business? Use this..." She choked suddenly, and the sound of electricity from Song Qian's assistant adjusting the headset came from outside the dressing room.
The holographic screen suddenly popped up an urgent news push, with a top star's underground love affair exposed followed by a bursting flame symbol. Li Cheng quickly switched pages, and the studio's backend data showed that the parking lot surveillance of their secret date was being sold on the dark web. Tian Xiwei saw her profile wearing a fisherman's hat flash by in the blurry picture.
"Why did the director cut my shot 17 times today?" She suddenly grabbed the belt of his robe that had slipped off. "Last week, the producer said he wanted to make a couple special for us, but you threw the script down and left on the spot."
Li Cheng's smartwatch gave off a red warning, indicating that the heat source of the media equipment gathered outside the door had exceeded the safety threshold. He opened the locker room secret compartment, pulled out a spare sweater and put it on Tian Xiwei: "Three photographers are cracking the wireless signal in the corridor, you go through the fire escape."
Tian Xiwei grabbed the medical box in the secret compartment, and half of the diagnosis sheet appeared from the gap in the bandage. When she saw the red seal of "unhealed bone fracture", Li Cheng had already opened the air vent on the ceiling. The cold wind rushed in with the debris of ribbons, and the roar of New Year's Eve fireworks came from afar.
"The wirework accident last month wasn't an accident at all, right?" She suddenly slapped the diagnosis on the makeup mirror, knocking over a row of liquid foundation. "The wirework artist is a man's cousin, and there are seventeen minutes of blanks in the equipment inspection records."
Li Cheng turned around suddenly, knocking over the swivel chair with his back. The smart security system suddenly sounded an alarm, and the virtual image of his cousin popped up on the emergency screen on the wall: "Brother! The YY team is buying the hot search position for 'Underground Love Real Hammer' and is going to put the "
"Disconnect all external network connections!" Li Cheng's fingers left an afterimage on the holographic keyboard. "Activate plan B and call up the behind-the-scenes surveillance footage of the "XXX" crew. I need the original file with a timestamp."
Tian Xiwei watched the data flood casting an eerie blue light in his pupils, and suddenly realized that this quarrel had long been incorporated into some kind of carefully planned crisis public relations. She touched the vibrating phone in her sweatshirt pocket, and the lock screen showed 37 missed calls - the latest caller was the legal director of Hesong Media.
There was a sound of something heavy falling to the ground outside the locker room. Song Qian's exclamation was mixed with the sound of glass breaking: "Teacher Li! Your trophy." Tian Xiwei heard the slight sound of gears turning behind the metal cabinet. It was the emergency escape passage customized by Li Cheng being activated.
"Go through the ventilation duct, the exit is in Parking Lot C." Li Cheng put the magnetic card into her palm, the coolness of the hemostatic patch on his fingertips, "My RV has an anti-eavesdropping device, the password is our engagement date."
Tian Xiwei grabbed his bandaged arm and said, "Let's go together." Her nail polish dug into the gaps in the gauze, and blood oozed out, blooming like plum blossoms on the white fabric. "Those press releases, those hot searches, we can obviously..."
"Have you forgotten that Daxun was previously targeted by rivals for a negative search? We are in a very passive position now." Li Cheng suddenly pushed her onto the telescopic ladder. "There are 23 media outlets waiting outside the door to take photos of us together. Your new high-end endorsement is in the public opinion observation period."
The sensor lights of the escape passage lit up one after another, and Tian Xiwei saw that the inner wall of the pipe was covered with fine scratches - those were the counting marks that Li Cheng made with his ring every time he had an anxiety attack. The latest one was stained with gold powder that lit up like stars, and it was engraved with today's date.
The exhaust fan in Area C of the parking lot blew in snowflakes, and Tian Xiwei's sweatshirt hood was covered with ice crystals. The RV's biometric recognition system flashed green, and the onboard AI suddenly announced: "You have three emergency contracts to sign, namely, compensation for the termination of the couple variety show contract, the termination agreement of the CP to the business cooperation, and "
She slammed the door of the RV, and the smart glass instantly switched to anti-peeping mode. The in-car screen automatically played the live broadcast of the evening party. Li Cheng was being interviewed by a group of people, and a bloody scratch appeared on his collarbone. The reporter's microphone almost poked his chin: "May I ask what considerations did you and Song Qian have for adding the lifting action on the spot?"
Tian Xiwei suddenly recognized the scratch - two hours ago, when she pulled his necklace in the lounge, the diamond lock shaved her skin. The live camera suddenly cut to a distant view, and Li Cheng's right hand was unconsciously stroking the necklace pendant, which was the double ring lock she designed herself on last year's Chinese Valentine's Day.
The car communicator suddenly lit up, and the virtual image of the legal director appeared above the steering wheel: "Ms. Tian, the company requires you to go online immediately to attend the crisis meeting. The studio just released the unpublished footage of the TV series you collaborated on two years ago, and now the public opinion is beginning to turn to 'dedicated actors are maliciously speculated.'"
Tian Xiwei clicked on the real-time public opinion monitoring and saw that the hot search #李程田曦薇田耕纪# was climbing. In the related video, she was hanging on the wire and flipping in the air. The moment the wire rope suddenly broke, Li Cheng flew under her. The date of shooting of this never-before-seen behind-the-scenes footage was the beginning of the drama in which they first collaborated as the male and female protagonists.
The RV suddenly shook violently, and a blinding flash of light lit up outside the bulletproof glass. Five photographers were trying to penetrate the smart glass with laser pointers, and the sound of drone propellers hovered on the roof. Tian Xiwei activated the autopilot mode and saw in the rearview mirror that Li Cheng's assistant team rushed out of the fire escape and built a human wall with reflectors.
The car refrigerator suddenly popped out, revealing a brown paper bag tied with a ribbon. Tian Xiwei tore open the seal of the document, and a blood-stained wire hook fell out - the metal fracture surface had obvious signs of human cutting. The attached appraisal report showed that the inspection time was four hours after the wire accident.
The smartwatch suddenly received an encrypted file transfer request, and Li Cheng's voice message was filled with electrical noise: "The spare dress for the awards ceremony red carpet is in the third wardrobe. Remember to ask the stylist to cover up the tattoo on your ankle." Only then did she realize that the cuffs of her sweatshirt were stained with gold powder, flashing tiny lights in the dim carriage.
As the city skyline exploded with the first fireworks of the new year, Tian Xiwei was using the RV's laser projector to check Li Cheng's medical records. The holographic image showed that there were six bio-alloy stents embedded on both sides of his spine, and the most recent repair surgery was just three days ago. The emergency contact column on the consent form for the surgery was filled in with her alias.
The public opinion monitoring screen suddenly went red, and an entertainment celebrity released a 4-second clip from the parking lot surveillance: a close-up of the ring mark on Li Cheng's left ring finger as he pushed her into the RV. The comment section instantly became crowded with comments: "This is definitely a sign of a couple's ring" and "Go back in time! A year ago, Li Cheng had a ring-shaped sunburn mark on his hand backstage at the Asian Film Awards."
Tian Xiwei took out the necklace she was wearing, and the platinum ring flickered in the light of the fireworks. In late autumn last year, when they were shooting on location in Shanghai, Li Cheng said as he put the ring into her necklace: "Wait until the Olympics are over." At that time, they were staying in a hot spring hotel to watch the first snow, and the stitches on his lower back had not yet been removed.
The RV suddenly braked, and Tian Xiwei crashed into a locker filled with notices. The windshield showed that there was a fan chasing car accident ahead, and more than 20 girls holding "Li Cheng" light signs were surrounding a black nanny car. The silhouettes of other people were vaguely visible on the reflective film, and she was signing autographs for the fans chasing the car.
The smart navigation system replanned the route, and the road signs of the ring highway glowed coldly in the snow. Tian Xiwei clicked on the special attention reminder, and Li Cheng's studio had just issued a statement: "Legal procedures have been initiated against false rumors", with a picture of the judicial appraisal report of the wire accident. She zoomed in on the corner of the picture and saw a handwritten note next to the seal of the appraisal agency - the client's signature was Li Cheng, but the contact number was filled in with her personal number.
The car communicator lights up again, this time with a 3D projection of the art director of VOGUE: "Teacher Tian, the cover plan for the spring issue needs to be adjusted. The brand wants to keep the two-person project, but requires the addition of the theme of 'broken feeling'." The background sound is filled with the chaotic typing of keyboards, "Teacher Li Cheng's team just sent a set of photos of back injuries. Do you want to do a mirror image?"
Tian Xiwei looked at the neon signs outside the window that were receding, and suddenly realized that the electronic screens all over the city were playing the wonderful recap of the New Year's Eve party. When the freeze-frame picture of Li Cheng and Song Qian appeared, she finally saw the controversial lifting action - the root of Li Cheng's right ring finger that was holding Song Qian's waist was clearly wearing the same ring mark as hers. (End of this chapter)
