The Supporting Male Characters Who Died Alone All Those Years Later

Bei Er withdrew from the variety show, and a recently popular male star took her place. He was sweet-talking and knew how to handle things. He prepared some delicious treats as a bribe for their first meeting, and with his humble and enthusiastic attitude, he quickly won the favor of the entire production team.

Of course, there was the inevitable line; “Dongchen Ge, I grew up watching your dramas.”

He Dongchen smiled and said, “That’s nice.”

Changing guests midway through a show was a common occurrence in the industry. When a lazy fish left, an actively cooperative one arrived, and everyone accepted it well.

In this industry, it was a constant struggle against the current. If you didn’t advance, you fell behind. If you didn’t work hard, you would be pushed out by newcomers. If you wanted to earn a living, you had to compete; there was no such thing as effortless contentment or peaceful years.

Even if you managed to grab onto the investors’ coattails, you still needed to work hard to showcase your value.

A salted fish had no future.

Back to the point, after Bei Er withdrew, the production team barely made a splash, at most giving a reminder to the other guests.

The show was in high demand; one had to be cautious of being snatched away.

Because of that, Fang Nanxing was a bit anxious. Her partner was Film Emperor He, and many people were likely to have their eyes on him. Her management company was only average in strength; if they were snatched away…

Thinking about it made Fang Nanxing a bit sad. She wasn’t sure if it was sadness over losing such a good opportunity or sadness over missing the chance to work with Film Emperor He.

Preoccupied with that, she inadvertently showed some distraction during filming.

In the fourth episode, the content involved picking mushrooms. The guests were required to distinguish between poisonous and non-poisonous mushrooms. If they picked a single poisonous mushroom, they would lose half a kilogram of mushrooms. He Dongchen watched as Fang Nanxing, oblivious, picked a whole bunch of poisonous mushrooms and put them all into her basket.

He remained silent. Very good, after working hard for an hour, everything was back to square one.

He Dongchen shook his head with a smile, crouching down to press Fang Nanxing’s hand that was still picking poisonous mushrooms. “Speak up, did you get your hands on a hidden script?”

“Ah???” Fang Nanxing was stunned, then looked down at the red mushrooms with white stems in her hand and the bright red mushrooms in the basket. She became flustered and, with a face full of shame, said, “Sorry, I held us back.”

“It’s okay, don’t get distracted,” He Dongchen said gently, with no trace of blame in his tone.

This made Fang Nanxing even more embarrassed. She quickly composed herself, stopped overthinking, and became completely focused on picking mushrooms, darting around the forest like a young girl.

Out of the camera’s view, Fang Nanxing secretly touched the back of her hand, her ears turning slightly red.

Behind her, He Dongchen, carrying the basket at a leisurely pace, occasionally bent down to pick up a few missed mushrooms. When passing a cluster of poisonous mushrooms, He Dongchen paused for a moment, then, pretending to be nonchalant, casually picked a few and put them in the basket.

For safety, during the mushroom feast that night, the production team had substituted the mushrooms picked by the guests with mushrooms bought from the supermarket to avoid any unknown mushrooms causing problems. If someone ended up in the hospital, it would have been a huge issue.

***

After the feast, the guests dispersed to their rooms to rest. The popular little star hurriedly left, dragging his exhausted body to the car.

The production team had rented several townhouses again, this time they were vacation rentals designed for tourists, so the decor was very distinctive, filled with potted flowers everywhere, and the view was a riot of colors.

He Dongchen’s room was on the third floor, facing the garden. After washing up, he walked out onto the balcony to enjoy the breeze. The countryside not only had good air quality but also a more dazzling starry sky.

Below, the garden appeared frost-covered under the moonlight, and above, the starry sky was brilliant. With a cool night breeze, it was extremely pleasant.

He Dongchen let the gentle wind dry his recently washed, slightly damp hair, a smile lingering on his lips.

When his hair was nearly dry, He Dongchen prepared to go back inside. As he turned, he saw a slender, tall figure stepping out onto the neighboring balcony.

The two of them locked eyes in the night, both momentarily stunned.

Fang Nanxing smiled, “What a coincidence, you’re here to enjoy the breeze too.”

He Dongchen silently stopped his steps toward his room and moved toward her balcony instead.

The balconies of the two rooms were connected by a security glass window and a curtain for privacy.

At this moment, neither side had drawn their curtains, so they could clearly see each other.

Fang Nanxing noticed He Dongchen approaching the security window, and her heart began to race. Barefoot, she naturally moved closer until they were a meter apart, separated by a glass window, side by side, enjoying the garden bathed in moonlight.

“What were you thinking about this morning during the shoot? You picked half a basket of poisonous mushrooms. If I hadn’t stopped you, you’d still be picking them,” He Dongchen teased.

Fang Nanxing awkwardly stuck out her tongue, then fell silent. After a while, she said vaguely, “I just saw that Bei Er withdrew and was a bit worried about myself.”

He Dongchen pondered for a moment and understood her concern.

In the current variety show, Fang Nanxing’s popularity was second only to his, even surpassing the young star’s, making her highly noticeable and a prime target.

It was perfectly normal for Fang Nanxing to be worried.

He Dongchen thought for a moment and comforted her, “The director won’t frequently change guests, so you can rest assured.”

Fang Nanxing responded and regained her composure, flashing a brilliant smile. Sometimes hard work might seem futile, but without effort, opportunities would never be seized.

The two chatted casually, enjoying the breeze on the balcony for nearly an hour before being called back to rest by their respective managers.

***

A few days later, the fourth episode aired, and many online commentators seized the moment to attack Fang Nanxing for picking poisonous mushrooms.

Brother Liu knew his star had a special fondness for Fang Nanxing, so he immediately informed him, stroking his chin and saying, “It looks like there’s been a large-scale backlash.”

He Dongchen glanced at the online reactions, frowned slightly, and called the director. The director’s response was vague and evasive. “There are indeed some people making contact…”

He Dongchen snorted coldly. “Then let him take my place.”

The director was taken aback. He almost blurted out that changing the lead role was out of the question; He Dongchen was their show’s biggest draw, and they wouldn’t replace him with anyone else.

But having heard that, the director finally understood He Dongchen’s stance. Earlier, there had been whispers about an issue between He Dongchen and Fang Nanxing, which he hadn’t believed, but now…

The director quickly apologized and reassured him, ending the call and immediately rejecting the proposal. He then instructed the team to work overtime to improve Fang Nanxing’s reputation.

The production team released various behind-the-scenes clips showing Fang Nanxing in a positive light, as well as scenes of other guests mistakenly picking poisonous mushrooms, including a few instances where He Dongchen also picked poisonous mushrooms by mistake.

The online sentiment began to shift.

[Local people often mistake poisonous mushrooms. So what if Fang Nanxing made a mistake? Other guests made mistakes too, and even He Dongchen made a few. Why single out a young girl for criticism? There’s a conspiracy!]

Public opinion calmed down, leaving only a few persistent trolls.

It was now clear to everyone that someone was deliberately targeting Fang Nanxing.

Netizens lamented how easy it was to ruin someone’s reputation.

Afterwards, Fang Nanxing found out somehow that He Dongchen had called the director to apply pressure. She was overjoyed and murmured to her phone, wondering if he must like her.

After all, the industry was so realistic; who would go out of their way to help without telling the person involved?

Lying in bed, Fang Nanxing couldn’t help but roll around in excitement.

Just as she was getting excited, her phone rang.

***

“I’ve solved a small problem for you. Don’t you think you should give something in return?” The distinctive voice of He Dongchen came through the phone.

Fang Nanxing: “…”

Oh, he’s asking for something in return. She had been overly sentimental.

Her racing heart immediately calmed down. Fang Nanxing replied slowly, “What do you want in return?”

“I’m preparing to direct and star in a movie. There’s a role that suits you quite well. I’ll send you the script later. Think about it.”

Fang Nanxing immediately replied, “No problem!”

He Dongchen’s first major project would undoubtedly attract a lot of attention, especially since it was for the big screen. Even if it was just to build her credentials, it was a great opportunity.

Thinking that way, Fang Nanxing started to feel eager again. She wondered if she still had a bit of goodwill towards him.

***

Qincheng Entertainment had dropped He Dongchen’s movie, so He Dongchen decided to take matters into his own hands. He chose an action film script and invested most of the capital himself.

When the news broke, people watched with interest. It was certain that He Dongchen, as the lead actor, would be fine, but could he handle directing on his own, especially for an action film which wasn’t very popular at the moment?

Facing external doubts, He Dongchen remained calm and composed, methodically assembling his team. Having built up quite a few favors before, he had no shortage of investment or connections, and there was no lack of actors coming in for auditions.

He Dongchen considered all applicants, keeping those who seemed suitable and rejecting only the artists from Qincheng Entertainment.

In response, Fu Wenyu sneered. He was waiting to see what kind of outcome He Dongchen, with his limited experience, could produce.

“So, President Fu, how should we handle Director Lu’s film?”

“Put it on hold for now. Once He Dongchen takes a fall, he’ll be back to acting in no time.”

Director Lu, who had been innocently caught in the crossfire: “…”

Alright, vacation time is coming up. Without three or four reminders, I won’t return! Does he think I have no temper?

***

Meanwhile, after Bei Er withdrew from the show, other resources were quickly snatched away. Bei Er herself didn’t seem to mind much and happily counted the breach of contract fees paid by the partners.

Given her past behavior, no one was withholding the breach of contract fees.

Bei Er’s manager was busy running around for new artists and didn’t want to deal with her anymore. However, before completely parting ways, she intended to squeeze out Bei Er’s last bit of value.

“You wanted to quit the industry, right? Your reputation doesn’t matter. Just help me with the newcomer. After all these years of hard work, socializing, drinking, and multiple hospital visits for stomach bleeding, I’ve finally reached this point, only for you to squander it all. You need to compensate me.”

Upon hearing that, Bei Er was immediately disheartened and timidly asked, “How do I help with the newcomer?”

The manager smiled, of course, it was her specialty; undermining others.

Soon, Bei Er’s jealousy towards the newcomer led to a flood of negative gossip about her. Everyone was eager to criticize her.

Fu Wenyu, who was still paying attention to Bei Er, became thoroughly disappointed. Although he was very controlling, he didn’t like spineless people. Bei Er’s actions, at best, could be described as being passive, but at worst, she was just a pushover who could be trampled on by anyone.

Fu Wenyu completely forgot about Bei Er and focused on developing his current artists. The two of them appeared in public together multiple times, leading to rumors that Fu Wenyu, the domineering CEO, had fallen in love with a divorced female artist. The female artist’s popularity soared, turning into a real-life Mary Sue!