ALL NOVEL
Chapter 181
Turns out Zhong Ruanxing's silence over the past few days wasn't out of fear, but because she was collecting evidence! What a brave, smart, strong heroine!
She can refute vulgar men eloquently, beat sleazy guys to the ground physically, has the intelligence to gather evidence, and seems to embody all the qualities that make people adore her! That Reuters photo from Zhong Ruanxing’s shooting competition is trending online again.
Looking at that picture along with her actions, she’s simply gorgeous inside out!
The reversal of victim status brought this incident to a peak, even catching the attention of state media, which issued announcements to eradicate unseemly drinking culture and severely punish sexual harassment in the workplace, specifically calling out the entertainment industry and warning those within to self-reflect.
The implicated celebrities were caught completely off guard. They had no idea Yuan Zhiyong would be so unreliable that even after the victim had recorded video evidence, he still dared to distort the facts! He’s really done them in!
Yuan Zhiyong was also confused.
At that time in the private room, everyone was focused on him and Zhong Ruanxing, no one noticed the inconspicuous young agent next to her. Moreover, it's an unspoken rule that no recordings are allowed at these investment dinners. If discovered, they'd never invite that side again.
But now Zhong Ruanxing seems to have broken this rule. And as the perfect victim, no one dared criticize her for not following etiquette at this time.
Yuan Zhiyong, the real mastermind behind the scenes, doesn't have a Weibo. With nowhere to vent their anger at being deceived, netizens naturally went after “Goddess”’s official account, as well as the long list of artists exposed by Xu Qishen.
Fuck, they usually pretend to be otherworldly fairies - kind, gentle, passionate and cheerful. Turns out they're just a bunch of vicious bugs!
As fellow women, knowing such slander would bring what consequences for the victim, not only did they not try to stop it, they even fanned the flames. How is this behavior any different from being an accomplice to murder?
Everyone knows showbiz is competitive, but if you want to succeed, do it with your own ability! Using such sinister schemes to sabotage others, what kind of behavior is this?
With Cheng Xitian taking the lead, the mob of second-tier celebrities didn’t even dare go on Weibo after being flamed. They wanted to refute, but no one knew what evidence the great Xu Qishen possessed. If they dared speak up only to have Xu slap them in the face with proof, things would become even more humiliating.
Whether they did it or not, their conscience is clear. With no way to prove their innocence, they could only follow the simplest PR method - pretend to be dead and stay silent, waiting for the fervor to naturally die down, or to be drowned out by other trending news.
Showbiz is always like this.
But even if netizens stop flaming after a while, Xu Qishen didn’t merely want to frighten them. Soon after, the masterminds and accomplices all received lawsuits from Shenhai Law Firm. What awaited them wasn’t only the iron fist of the law, but Song JinXing had been planning this for so long after his girlfriend suffered so much abuse, there’s no way he’d let this go easily.
As the mastermind, at most Yuan Zhiyong would be convicted of defamation. But that clearly wasn’t Song JinXing’s goal.
This man already had a criminal record. He’d wantonly taken advantage of women in showbiz for years. Some willing to use this to get ahead, but many like Zhong Ruanxing who refused such dirty transactions.
Song JinXing expended some effort before finding women who had suffered under Yuan Zhiyong, including some who didn’t wish to come forward - not out of cowardice, but because society's standards for women are too harsh. Even as the victim, she has to be perfect to avoid criticism.
But 7 women, forced to endure Yuan Zhiyong’s villainy before, now willing to stand up with someone on their side, stated their willingness to testify against his past infringements on them.
Netizens never imagined this scandal would also reveal such great evil.
Of the 7 brave women, half had already left showbiz and became nobodies. If not for Yuan Zhiyong, they could have had bright futures.
With Zhong Ruanxing’s support, Xu Qishen officially filed lawsuits for rape and molestation charges against Yuan Zhiyong on behalf of these women. Seven heart-wrenching testimonies from seven women, revealing just the tip of the iceberg.
Led by these seven, more and more artists spoke up, male and female, more or less having suffered such coercion. Consensual trade of resources aside, not everyone is willing to trade their body for fame!
Have to accompany drinking just to discuss cooperation, have to hug and touch just to show you’ll come through, have to withstand vulgar jokes and teasing just to humor your superiors - that’s considered obedient.
Everyone feels there’s no real harm done, so what’s there to make a fuss about?
Previously, these were the unspoken gray areas of the industry. It seemed to the public that showbiz was supposed to be like this.
But there’s never supposed to be anything. Doing wrong repeatedly doesn’t make it right.
Now, someone is standing up, determined to tear off this shameful veil, to break this longstanding rotten tradition. She stands there as if declaring war on all with evil intentions.
The netizens supporting all this somehow feel hot-blooded.
How could the family understand! Zhong Ruanxing is so brave, hitting the producer when told to, suing other actresses when told to, terminating contracts when told to. And now even helping fellow victims sue, acting all cocky and arrogant as if nothing scares her.
She’s like reforming the entertainment industry!