ABSML Chapter 40: Hype
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ANNOUNCEMENT
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Fortunately, the two police officers weren’t into celebrity gossip. If Chen Zhan had been caught doing bad things in his own district, it would’ve been a major news story.
Chen Zhan gave Lin Chiang a deep look, then reached out to pat his shoulder—only for Lin Chiang to dodge coldly.
Chen Zhan wasn’t bothered. Smiling, he said, "Behave yourself."
He returned to the car, took a few flowers, and handed them to the officers. "Thanks for your hard work."
After watching Lin Chiang get taken away, Yin Ronglan shook his head and turned to speak to Chen Zhan, only to catch him turning off a voice recorder. His eyelid twitched, and he casually remarked, "So you’ve started using it already."
Chen Zhan responded flatly, "I checked the official website. It wasn’t cheap, so I might as well use it to its full value."
They continued selling flowers until after 11 p.m. Looking at the noticeably emptier streets, Chen Zhan shrugged. "Looks like we’ll be celebrating the New Year in the car."
Yin Ronglan drove under a pedestrian bridge, parked, and pointed upwards. "Let’s go up and take a look."
Chen Zhan nodded.
There were about ten minutes left until midnight, and in the distance, fireworks were already lighting up the sky.
Chen Zhan’s gaze flickered, and he pointed at them.
Yin Ronglan understood his meaning. "The city designated specific areas for fireworks this year. If we walk a little further, we’ll reach Jing Shui District, where fireworks are allowed."
Chen Zhan mused, "Seems like Lin Chiang was just unlucky."
Just one district over, and he would’ve been fine.
The reason Yin Ronglan had chosen this pedestrian bridge was obvious—it was right next to a famous radio station. They were broadcasting a live New Year’s countdown, and as the numbers ticked down, Chen Zhan’s eyes narrowed slightly. When the clock struck midnight, faint cheers could be heard in the distance.
The few remaining pedestrians on the streets instinctively stopped and looked up.
"Happy New Year," Yin Ronglan’s voice sounded beside him.
Chen Zhan smiled. "Happy New Year."
By the time they got home, it was already early morning. Chen Zhan first conducted a Weibo lottery draw, organized the winners’ list, and published it. But just as he finally lay down, four hours later, he was woken up by the sound of firecrackers outside.
Chen Zhan sat up in bed like a resurrected corpse, pressing his forehead. Weren’t fireworks and firecrackers supposed to be banned?
The old residential area had poor sound insulation, and some dog had been startled, barking madly.
There was no way he could go back to sleep in such a situation.
Gritting his teeth, Chen Zhan left his warm bed and decided to head out. He asked the shop owner for a stack of courier slips, planning to send out gifts after the New Year. On the way, he stopped by the commercial market and bought a good amount of colorful thread.
Just as he was nearing his neighborhood entrance, a person hurriedly ran toward him, crashing straight into his chest.
Chen Zhan frowned and instinctively steadied the other person.
For a brief moment, though he couldn’t see clearly, it seemed like the person had deliberately sped up and run into him.
"Chen Zhan!" A voice, filled with pleasant surprise, called out.
The woman steadied herself and looked up at him.
She seemed somewhat familiar.
"Don’t you remember me?" The woman naturally grabbed his arm. "I’m Chen Ru, we worked on the same drama before."
Chen Zhan vaguely recalled someone like her from the set. In his memory, she was always close to the female lead at the time. Thinking that people of similar nature tend to stick together, he hadn’t interacted with her much.
He responded politely, "What a coincidence."
For some reason, half of Chen Ru’s sleeve was completely soaked, forming a thin layer of frost in the cold wind. Since she was holding onto his arm, Chen Zhan naturally noticed it.
Without drawing attention to it, he withdrew his hand. "It’s cold, you should head home soon."
Normally, one would invite an acquaintance inside to warm up. Chen Ru hadn’t expected such a reaction from him and barely maintained her smile. "Could you help walk me home?"
Chen Zhan raised an eyebrow.
Chen Ru lowered her head, eyes slightly red. "A crazy fan was following me. I even tripped while trying to get away. I’m really scared right now."
"Are you sure it was a fan?" Chen Zhan questioned skeptically. "Fans of minor celebrities are usually pretty mild."
"…"
He was telling the truth, but her expression still turned unpleasant. Gritting her teeth, she said, "Maybe they have some issues."
Though he had his doubts, Chen Zhan still agreed. If a girl was really being followed, it wasn’t a joke.
Chen Ru was quite chatty, talking non-stop along the way. Perhaps because of their height difference, she often leaned in slightly when speaking, tilting her head up to look at him.
"We share the same surname; maybe we came from the same family long ago."
Chen Zhan merely smiled without commenting.
She claimed her home was near his, yet they walked for almost forty minutes.
After escorting her upstairs, Chen Zhan politely declined her invitation to come in for tea and turned to leave.
There was no direct bus back to his neighborhood, and he didn’t want to take a taxi, so he had to retrace his steps. Though he was dressed warmly, by the time he reached home, he still shivered several times from the cold. Even after drinking a cup of hot water, he couldn’t fully shake off the chill.
Once his hands regained some warmth, he pulled out the embroidery thread he had bought and sorted it out.
Muttering "A mother’s loving thread," he bent his head and carefully stitched, one thread at a time. Over three hours later, the finished piece emerged. Chen Zhan shook it out, very satisfied.
He knocked on the door of the old man across the hall, raising his eyebrows as he showed off his embroidery. "What do you think?"
The old man’s expression shifted a few times before he finally smiled. "Very unique. Is this… ‘Once Entering the Marquis’s Household, Depth Like the Sea’?"
Chen Zhan calmly corrected, "‘Meeting at Joy’."
As he spoke, he removed last year’s embroidery—a weasel paying respects to a chicken—and replaced it with the new one. The old man’s mouth twitched. He figured a simple "fortune" character would’ve been more appropriate.
After completing the task, Chen Zhan clapped his hands, looking quite pleased with himself.
Before he had the chance to admire his work, he suddenly swayed slightly. The old man frowned. "Are you feeling unwell?"
Chen Zhan pressed his temples. "Maybe I didn’t sleep well last night."
The moment he said that, his headache worsened. Waving his hand, he returned to his apartment. When he collapsed onto his bed and touched his forehead, it was slightly warm.
"System, get me an ice-cold towel."
The response he received was that such a function was not available. After debating for a while, he eventually took two fever reducers, deciding to sleep first and go to the hospital only if things didn’t improve.
This Spring Festival wasn’t about to let Chen Zhan off easily. As he had foreseen, birds of a feather flock together.
Chen Ru hadn’t encountered Chen Zhan by accident, and the so-called "fan" story was pure nonsense. After the web drama finished airing, her already low popularity plummeted. On set, she had gone out of her way to befriend the female lead, hoping to ride on a "sisterhood" narrative. But after Xiao Tong was blacklisted due to an endorsement scandal, all her efforts were wasted.
In the entire cast, the most popular person now was Chen Zhan. If she could create some gossip with him, she might just climb her way back up.
"Brother Zhang, how are the photos?" She touched up her makeup, a satisfied smirk on her lips as she spoke on the phone.
"They’re decent. I’ll pick a few and do some edits. You should start drafting the press release."
Chen Ru cheerfully hung up and began contacting people. Once everything was in place, she paid for a trending search spot.
The headline was eye-catching: "Chen Zhan and Mysterious Woman Return to Love Nest Together."
She didn’t release all the information at once but included enough clues in the photos so that netizens could piece things together and discover her identity.
She had planned this for a long time with her team. Even the timing of the trending post was carefully chosen. She was confident that after fermenting overnight, the topic would explode by morning.
During the holiday season, there was a lack of juicy gossip, so netizens quickly became invested, engaging in heated discussions.
"Who is this? Is she even more attractive than Jiang Ying?"
"Even Chen Zhan has someone, and I’m still single?"
"Super curious what kind of girlfriend he has!"
Chen Ru sat in front of her computer, watching as the trending topic climbed higher and higher. In about half an hour, her identity would inevitably be exposed.
Thinking about the potential invitations from agencies and media coverage, any last traces of guilt or hesitation disappeared. Feeling delighted, she popped open a bottle of champagne and admired the night view.
Although she had schemed against Chen Zhan, if he was smart enough to cooperate, they could play the role of a contract couple, later transitioning into dating shows. It would be a win-win situation.
·
Not everyone got to enjoy a warm and happy reunion during the Spring Festival.
At that moment, Yin Ronglan was at his company, handing out red envelopes to employees on duty.
Many people fought for holiday shifts—not just because of the high wages, but also because they wanted to avoid visiting relatives.
“Men, huh? He used to be obsessed with Jiang Ying, and now he’s already moved on.”
A coworker elbowed them, signaling them to be careful with their words. The speaker quickly backtracked. “Of course, President Yin, you’re definitely not like that.”
Yin Ronglan didn’t mind the remark but focused on another thought. He knew for a fact that Chen Zhan wasn’t seeing anyone—he was being set up.
Maybe this was an opportunity. As a friend, he could rightfully intervene.
Unlike before, this time he called Chen Zhan first.
After several rings, a weak “Hello?” finally came through.
Yin Ronglan frowned slightly. “Where are you?” After a pause, he added, “What are you doing?”
Chen Zhan: “At home. Stewing myself in an iron pot.”
“…?”
Chen Zhan: “Fine, I have a fever.”
With a sigh, Yin Ronglan said, “I’m coming over.”
And he hung up.
The roads were clear, and by driving a little faster, he arrived in half the usual time.
However, the troublesome patient was not as weak as expected. Aside from his slightly flushed complexion, there was no sign of helplessness.
Chen Zhan opened the door and immediately went back to bed, pointing at the table. "I already poured you some water."
Yin Ronglan first took his temperature—it wasn’t too high.
Chen Zhan could also feel his strength gradually returning, knowing he had avoided the fate of needing an IV drip.
"What made you suddenly think of calling me?"
Yin Ronglan gazed at him for a moment before chuckling. "Frequent headline guest."
Chen Zhan was momentarily stunned, then fumbled under the blanket for his phone.
After scrolling through Weibo for a while, Yin Ronglan asked, "Do you need me to handle it?"
Chen Zhan shook his head. "She’s digging her own grave."
As he spoke, he handed the phone over. Yin Ronglan took a look and saw that the once-playful gossip had turned into a flood of criticism.
[Trojan: It’s midnight! Still no update! Don’t let me find out which woman seduced Chen Zhan and caused him to stop updating!]
[King of Mutt Fans: Femme fatale! He didn’t even skip updates on New Year’s Eve, but now he did today!]
[Zhang Aotian: This woman clearly only approached him after he got famous. Where was she when the whole world was against him before?!]
[ljh: Sis won’t allow you to date! Can love help you update? No, it can’t!]
After reading through some comments, Yin Ronglan’s gaze darkened.
Their relationship had only just improved—if Chen Zhan were to start dating now, they might drift apart again.
Just then, a subordinate called, asking if they should suppress the news.
Yin Ronglan stood up, walked to the door, and said in a low voice, "Add fuel to the fire."
The subordinate hesitated. "You mean… let the netizens keep opposing Chen Zhan’s relationship?"
"His focus right now should be on his career," Yin Ronglan said indifferently.
After hanging up, he returned to the room.
Chen Zhan was leaning against the headboard, his head tilted slightly. At some point, he had fallen asleep.
Yin Ronglan pulled up a chair and sat beside him, feeling that the quiet Chen Zhan was completely different from his usual self. With the rise and fall of his breaths, he even had a hint of youthful innocence.
Smiling and shaking his head, Yin Ronglan left a comment under the trending news: Career comes first.
By the time he wrung out a towel and returned, the comment had already gained thousands of likes.
He even received a private message: Chen Zhan Career Group, Group ID: 152XXXXXX.
After a brief hesitation, Yin Ronglan joined.
The 500-member group quickly reached its limit.
The group owner posted an announcement: Eliminate all of Chen Zhan’s romantic entanglements! Everything for the updates!!!
The members flooded the chat with flower emojis in agreement.
Yin Ronglan thought for a moment, then sent a thumbs-up emoji.
Author’s Note:
Later, when news broke that Chen Zhan and Yin Ronglan were dating—
Group owner: There was a spy among us!
_____
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