Meng Nianchu tiptoed behind her back and walked up to Mu Junze. "Well, isn't it great?"
"Not bad."
Meng Nianchu's eyes curved into a smile. She took Mu Junze's hand and led him to a chair. Standing behind him, she kneaded his shoulders and complained slightly, "I knew you wouldn't remember your own birthday. You always remember mine clearly, but when it comes to your own, you forget everything."
"It's not important."
Meng Nianchu paused for a moment and then said with a soft smile, "I rarely get a break. If it weren't for your birthday today, I would definitely be sleeping at home instead of coming out."
Mu Junze suddenly took Meng Nianchu's little hand and pulled her to sit beside him. "Let's eat."
His tone was much gentler, as if tinged with gratitude.
Meng Nianchu pursed her lips and smiled. Then she suddenly remembered that the cake she had bought was still downstairs with the waiter. She patted Mu Junze on the shoulder twice and got up to walk out of the room.
She rushed downstairs quickly to get the cake. Just as she was about to go upstairs, she caught a glimpse of a familiar figure out of the corner of her eye. She curved her lips and walked over with a beaming smile.
"Teacher Zhang Fan, what are you doing here?"
Zhang Fan, who was about to book a private room, turned around upon hearing the voice. When his eyes met Meng Nianchu's, a smile appeared on his face. Seeing the cake in Meng Nianchu's hand, he guessed whose birthday it was.
"Is Mr. Mu here?"
"Upstairs," Meng Nianchu said with a smile. "Why don't you come to the private room I booked for dinner? We all know each other, so it won't be awkward."
"Okay," Zhang Fan said, rarely refusing. "I actually have some work - related matters to discuss with you. I'm sorry to interrupt your time as a couple."
"It's okay."
Zhang Fan and Meng Nianchu walked side - by - side towards the stairs. Just as they were walking upstairs, Linda suddenly walked out of a private room on the left side of the first floor.
Looking at the backs of Meng Nianchu and Zhang Fan, Linda took out her phone and took a picture of them.
In the photo, they were standing very close, talking and laughing face to face. An outsider might really think there was something going on between them.
Linda looked down at the photo she had taken and sneered.
It was really God's blessing that she got such a good opportunity. If this photo were to be spread, she wondered how much harm it would do to Meng Nianchu.
But that was exactly what she wanted.
She put away her phone. Jin Hui, who was drunk after a big meal, staggered out of the private room and put his arm around Linda's neck. "Beauty, what are you looking at?"
Linda flattered him with a smile. "Nothing. I just suddenly remembered a necklace I liked yesterday. I'm going to take a look."
"Go then. Take my card and buy whatever you want!"
Linda looked at Li Qi, motioning for him to take care of Jin Hui. "You take care of him. I'm leaving first."
"Be careful, sister - in - law."
After getting rid of Jin Hui, Linda could focus on her own business. She secretly sent the secretly - taken photo to an online gossip account and deliberately exaggerated the story, saying that Zhang Fan had called Meng Nianchu "baby" when they went upstairs together.
Seeing that the message was successfully sent, Linda didn't care anymore.
The people from the gossip account would definitely post it!
The variety show that Meng Nianchu was on was very popular at the moment. Both Meng Nianchu and Zhang Fan were in the spotlight. Once such news was posted, the gossip account could gain extremely high popularity. Since Meng Nianchu and Zhang Fan were on the same variety show and now were rumored to have a shady relationship, their reputations would surely be severely damaged!
Then she would see who would still stand by Meng Nianchu, the once - proud phoenix, after such a thing happened!
The look in Linda's eyes gradually turned cruel.
She wanted Meng Nianchu to experience the pain she had suffered back then!
Zhang Fan said he had work - related matters to discuss with Meng Nianchu. It was mainly because the recent rumors about Meng Nianchu and Mu Feng were getting too out of hand. If this continued, it would damage both of their careers to a certain extent. So Zhang Fan wanted to transfer Mu Feng to Linda's group and replace him with Yu Likun under Meng Nianchu.
Meng Nianchu flatly refused as soon as she heard what Zhang Fan said.
Seeing that he couldn't persuade Meng Nianchu and afraid of making the situation worse, Zhang Fan didn't continue. After saying what he wanted to say, he left the private room.
After hearing what Zhang Fan said about Mu Feng, Meng Nianchu felt a bit down. Mu Junze noticed her unhappiness. After lunch, he took her back to Shangting and told her to rest first.
Just then, Meng Nianchu's phone suddenly rang like crazy. When she opened it, she saw messages from Mu Feng and Bai Ling.
The content of their messages was almost the same. After reading them, Meng Nianchu's heart skipped a beat. She opened Weibo and found that her private messages were flooded.
The title "Meng Nianchu and Zhang Fan's Secret Date, Suspected Affair" was at the top of the trending list.
Meng Nianchu's head buzzed. She opened the photos under the article and tightened her grip on the phone.
"When was this taken?"
Why didn't she notice at all?
Previously, the rumors about Meng Nianchu and other actors had disappeared quickly without her explanation, as netizens didn't believe them.
But as these kinds of gossip news appeared more frequently, netizens got tired of it, which would surely damage her popularity.
Some netizens even dug out the videos and photos of Meng Nianchu and Zhang Fan's first cooperation in a TV drama. Although it was just Zhang Fan guiding Meng Nianchu in acting, netizens said that they had an affair at that time.
The situation got worse. The voices scolding Meng Nianchu for seducing men and having an affair grew louder.
Zhang Fan's previous humorous and kind - uncle image was regarded by netizens as a deliberately created persona. In fact, they thought he was a vulgar and disgusting man.
The situation continued to ferment until the next day. The video of Zhang Fan being blocked on the road and pelted with things by netizens was posted on Weibo, causing a lot of ridicule.
Sitting on the sofa, Linda ate fruits and laughed heartily when she saw how things had developed.
She hoped the situation would get even worse and finally make Meng Nianchu fall from her current position. Then she wanted to see who would still look up to her!
In the variety show, Meng Nianchu had been involved in rumors with two men in a row. Meng Nianchu's fans blamed the director, saying it was a deliberate hype, and some said it might be just for mutual benefit.
Anyway, Zhang Fan had touched the most sensitive nerve of netizens - having an affair with an actress under his supervision.
Netizens called for Zhang Fan to quit the show. Under pressure, the investor behind the variety show "Star Making" had to withdraw their investment. Caught between two fires, Zhang Fan was in a difficult situation, and the show had to end prematurely.