Chapter 71: Conflict
[No… Shaoyao, aren’t you being too blunt?]
[There were rumors before that Shao Yao had a dog-like temperament. Maybe it’s a case of dogs sympathizing with each other? They collaborated on Voice of the Dead once and became battle comrades?]
[So funny. This is seriously disregarding Meng Qin’s face. But I have to say, if Lin Ge Entertainment wants to blacken Lu Xu’s name, can they at least use their brains? Has Lu Xu ever given anyone else the cold shoulder besides your people?]
[Never reflecting on oneself, always blaming others.]
[Maybe Lin Ge Entertainment’s ridiculous antics are just too much. Whenever other members of Verse trend, I automatically assume Lin Ge Entertainment is at fault.]
[+1 +1 +1.]
Lu Xu scrolled further down the trending topic #Meng Qin Receives Lu Xu’s Cold Gaze#. It was unclear if Feiyang Entertainment’s PR had stepped in or if Lin Ge Entertainment had truly enraged the public to this extent, but most of the comments read: “So what, wanna fight?” or “What do you expect, a smile? Your face is as big as a basin.”
There were also a bunch of comments consisting of chaotic combinations like “aww,” “ahh,” “great,” and “so handsome,” with no concrete meaning.
Of course, some comments came from the most detail-obsessed tech geeks.
As everyone knew, the fashion world excelled at elevating some while trampling on others. The seating arrangements at G-brand’s gala were certainly deliberate. If anything went wrong, the sharp-tongued fashionistas in attendance would criticize the brand so harshly it’d make them doubt their existence. Competing brands would surely mock them in secret.
For example, at one fashion show years ago, five celebrities were crammed into two front-row seats, turning the brand into a laughingstock across the entire fashion world.
Since someone had already exposed that Meng Qin was only there to leech off G-brand’s event, it was natural for gossip accounts to thoroughly investigate what kind of invitation he had received, which guests were present at the same time, and so on.
[Crashing events was probably not a one-time thing. Based on my meticulous analysis, during February’s X-brand show in Country P, Meng Qin’s fans claimed he was invited by the brand and sat in the front row. However, from the event’s feedback, his seat wasn’t actually in the front row but was likely in the section reserved for media.]
[Last year, at the Paris Film Festival held in Country I, Meng Qin attended the short film screening segment and took photos with overseas celebrities, even sharing kisses. Coincidentally, there was also a trending topic back then: #MengQinDiscriminatedByGaye#. Does anyone still remember that?]
[The earliest incident dates back to the Verse days. At the time, all the members of Verse except for Lu Xu attended a fashion week in Country P and received invitations from three major brands to attend their shows. However, an industry insider noted that Verse’s treatment wasn’t on the same level as other big names who received invitations. No one believed it back then, and the insider was harassed by overzealous fans until they deleted their account.]
[…]
[…]
Through years of gossip consumption, netizens had honed their skills—scandals always unraveled deeper the more they were probed.
The scenario Meng Qin had envisioned, where the public rallied to accuse Lu Xu on his behalf, didn’t materialize. Instead, countless instances of him crashing fashion shows and leveraging international celebrities to boost his image were dug up. These examples were so abundant that no deep investigation was even necessary.
[Is his mindset still stuck in the early 2000s? Using the lack of accessible information to fabricate a superstar image doesn’t work anymore!]
[Please acknowledge the gap between yourself and Lu Xu. G-brand’s seating arrangement already says it all.]
[If I were Lu Xu, I’d have kicked him in the head by now. Lu Puppy is just too classy.]
[How did a member of Verse end up like this?]
As Meng Qin’s entire history was exposed, the other members of Verse couldn’t escape scrutiny either.
During their time as a group, the members of Verse were undeniably popular, each seemingly outshining the other. Even in the early stages of their disbandment, fans were aware that Xie Qingyang and the others had been “wronged.” With Lu Xu as a convenient scapegoat, fan support for the trio was stronger than ever, even surpassing the group’s activity period.
However, the greatest strength of Verse lay in its group dynamic—individually, the members had flaws, but as a team, they complemented each other.
When pursuing solo careers, the options were limited: either the singer route or the actor route. Domestic variety show industries were still underdeveloped, with most shows having short lifespans, making it difficult for them to sustain an artist’s career unless the artist reached the pinnacle of the industry.
Xie Qingyang chose to focus on variety shows and eventually became a host. Unfortunately, his hosting skills were average at best, unable to command an entire show.
In today’s variety show landscape, comedic personalities with quick wit are more popular. Xie Qingyang’s role in Verse had been that of the mature, steady leader who looked after the younger members. For him to shed that image and play the comedic foil was simply beyond his capability.
Moreover, his talent was limited.
As for Gu Sinian, his achievements in The Watchers and Rising Sun spoke for themselves.
It didn’t matter if it was a small pie. But he took on a big pie, and he needed the ability to digest them.
Then there was Meng Qin… The fashion route was inherently unstable, like a tree without roots. Without solid works to his name, this path was bound to be unsustainable.
[When Xie Qingyang and the others were so eager to push Lu Xu out of the group, did they ever consider that they might end up like this one day?]
[Fans love idols because idols shine brightly on stage. But looking at the other members of Verse, all I see is impatience and ambition without the hard work to back it up.]
Marketing accounts, under the headline The Rise and Fall of Verse, thoroughly dissected the post-disbandment careers of Xie Qingyang, Gu Sinian, and Meng Qin. The conclusion was clear: even two years after Verse’s dissolution, the three were still living off the group’s past glory.
[To some extent, Lu Xu is the only member who has successfully broken away from Verse.]
[Don’t always post about Lu Xu, it will only make you lose face.]
Lu Xu’s fans had no sympathy for the ridicule Meng Qin faced—after all, what Meng Qin was experiencing now was something Lu Xu had endured hundreds, if not thousands, of times before.
The difference? Meng Qin brought this upon himself, while Lu Xu’s suffering was something they had inflicted on him.
Gu Sinian and Xie Qingyang, dragged into the mess because of Meng Qin’s antics, were left speechless: “…”
They couldn’t help but blame Meng Qin for stirring up trouble unnecessarily, especially by crashing G-brand’s event. “Weren’t there enough other events for you to crash?”
Meng Qin retorted without hesitation: “Haven’t you two done the same? The marketing accounts are digging everything up now.”
The three of them were far less glamorous than they used to be, and their current budgets for PR weren’t as generous. As the marketing accounts shifted their attention from Meng Qin to the other two, Gu Sinian and Xie Qingyang were forced to shell out for another round of PR expenses.
If Lu Xu were still in Verse, they could have simply shifted the blame onto him. Fans wouldn’t have scrutinized it too closely, and a couple of poorly Photoshopped images would’ve been enough to smooth things over.
Gu Sinian and Xie Qingyang were merely collateral damage, their reputations only slightly affected. Meng Qin, however, was not so lucky.
Reportedly, after this incident, G-brand implemented stricter vetting for event attendees.
A fashion industry insider revealed that during an internal meeting, G-brand explicitly mentioned Meng Qin by name—declaring that in the future, Meng Qin’s name was to be banned from all brand-related events.
G-brand’s actions were understandable.
Lu Xu, as G-brand’s spokesperson, was present as the face of the event. His role was to enhance the brand’s reputation and boost sales.
It could be said that G-brand had set the stage for Lu Xu, their spokesperson, to shine. Yet, before the event even concluded, the trending topic ended up being #Meng Qin Receives Lu Xu’s Cold Gaze#.
If Lu Xu’s reputation took a hit, how would that benefit G-brand?
Would G-brand be pleased to see their ambassador being insulted by the fans of a star who had crashed their event?
The answer was obvious.
Meng Qin thought he had successfully tarnished Lu Xu’s reputation, but in reality, the one who ended up embarrassed was G-brand.
Although G-brand’s domestic operations weren’t as prominent as some other luxury brands, its status was undeniable.
When a celebrity gets blacklisted by G-brand, other brands naturally hesitate to work with them—it would make their own brand seem less prestigious than G-brand.
While Meng Qin had been a frequent presence at fashion shows, he was far from indispensable in the eyes of brands. Even if they stopped collaborating with him, it wouldn’t have much of an impact on their business.
Moreover, betrayal is a cardinal sin in partnerships. No brand would choose a collaborator known for such behavior.
This ripple effect in the fashion world soon extended to other commercial sectors. By the time Lin Ge Entertainment realized what was happening, most of Meng Qin’s existing partnerships had already dissolved.
In particular, the watch and jewelry categories he had long coveted had shut their doors to him entirely—those brands were lining up to collaborate with Lu Xu instead.
Compared to Meng Qin, the return on investment for partnering with Lu Xu was far higher.
Naturally, Meng Qin was furious, almost to the point of spitting blood. But this was the reality of the entertainment industry. Everything that had once happened to Lu Xu was now being returned to Meng Qin in full.
Meng Qin had previously mocked Lu Xu for being mentally fragile and unable to handle any pressure. But when faced with both fan backlash and pressure from business partners himself, Meng Qin realized that his own mental resilience was likely even weaker than Lu Xu’s.
Among everyone, the person most delighted by Meng Qin’s downfall was Gu Sinian.
Back when Gu Sinian had been down on his luck, Meng Qin had mocked him mercilessly more than once. Now that fortune had turned, and it was Meng Qin’s turn to suffer, Gu Sinian showed no restraint in returning the favor.
While he didn’t mock Meng Qin outright on Weibo, he did post a sly jab in his private social circle: “Just can’t stop freeloading.”
Meng Qin, furious, stormed over to Gu Sinian’s residence and got into a heated argument.
The bond they once shared as members of Verse had all but disintegrated after the group disbanded. If either of them had managed to maintain their stardom, they might have been more magnanimous. But the reality was that both of their careers were fading fast.
Obscurity had made them bitter, irrational, and even oblivious to their surroundings in moments of rage.
When Xu Wen sent Lu Xu a screenshot of Gu Sinian’s post and a video of their argument, Lu Xu blinked in surprise. “Where did this come from?”
“A friend in the industry passed it along,” Xu Wen replied. “If you don’t mind, the company can use it for some PR.”
“Go ahead, I don’t mind,” Lu Xu said, clicking on the video. “Wow, they almost started swinging at each other.”
“They’re showing their true colors,” Xu Wen said with a resigned sigh. “Considering how Lin Ge Entertainment keeps causing trouble for you, this gives them something to deal with on their own.”
Xu Wen couldn’t believe that, even at this point, Lin Ge Entertainment was still trying to use Lu Xu for clout. Despite Lu Xu having signed with Feiyang Entertainment a while ago, Lin Ge still acted as if he were an unrepresented has-been they could manipulate at will.
Feiyang Entertainment, however, had some tricks up its sleeve.
The next morning, marketing accounts exploded with a sensational headline: “Former Boyband Members Turn Rapper and Boxer, Showcasing Dance Skills in Heated Feud.” The article detailed the dispute between Gu Sinian and Meng Qin.
Renowned actor Shao Yao was among the first to like the post.
Lu Xu facepalmed. “…Can you stop? You’re overdoing it.”
To be fair, Shao Yao did have the physique of someone who could box.
But if he kept this up, he’d end up turning into Liu Chunfeng.
Liu Chunfeng – the director of Son of Heaven, looks like a boxing coach