Chapter 270: The Recording is Exposed

Chapter 270: Chapter 270: The Recording is Exposed

Lai Liang’s final bit of self-consolation was that he could take Chang Mu’s money and flee the country.

R Country would be best. The people there wouldn’t care about what he’d said; in fact, they’d probably accept his betrayal as a token of loyalty.

Maybe in R Country, his career would take off even more than it had back home!

’Once the dust settles in a few years, won’t the media and the public back home be singing my praises again?’

Lai Liang thought he had it all figured out, but his gaze on his phone grew more and more frantic.

Once the clock struck midnight, Lai Liang still hadn’t received a notification that the money had arrived.

He immediately called Chang Mu.

Chang Mu, her voice laced with annoyance, said there was a problem with her bank card and that she’d give him the money in two days.

Lai Liang, on the verge of a complete breakdown, screamed:

"I knew you never planned on giving me the money!"

"Who said I wouldn’t? I just told you to wait two days! Can’t you even wait two days? Or do you think I can’t even come up with that little bit of money?"

In reality, Chang Mu was terrified.

She remembered exactly what she had said. If that recording got out, she’d face social suicide and a nationwide crusade against her.

Then, the person being flamed and cursed out by netizens wouldn’t be Nan Zhi, but her!

When she was in Nan Zhi’s body, she had been able to bail when the hopeless mission progress became too much to bear.

But in Chang Mu’s body? She didn’t have that many points to trade for a new body!

Therefore, she absolutely could not let herself be cornered into a desperate situation.

Chang Mu even had a gut feeling that if things got too ugly, even worse things would be waiting for her.

’Maybe even Father will get angry, and then my cards...’

’No!’

’I absolutely cannot let that recording get online!’

Of course, her fear and panic didn’t stop Chang Mu from putting on a brave face with her words.

She thought this would be enough to cow Lai Liang and make him behave for two days.

But she didn’t understand Lai Liang’s situation. He was a dog backed into a corner.

And a cornered dog will bite.

So Lai Liang told her grimly that he was going to release the recording right now.

Chang Mu panicked but still insisted that a little recording like that couldn’t threaten her.

Lai Liang let out a dry "Heh heh" and was about to hang up when Chang Mu frantically stopped him, saying they could still talk.

Lai Liang ignored her, forcing Chang Mu to soften her tone.

Eventually, her demands turned into pleas.

Lai Liang didn’t listen at all. As if for revenge, he listened to Chang Mu’s entire transformation from forceful to pleading, giving her a sliver of hope with his silence.

Just when Chang Mu thought she had finally convinced him, Lai Liang hung up with a sharp CLICK and cleanly uploaded the recording to the internet—using his personal account!

Lai Liang already had a small following on social media platforms like Weibo.

After the scandal broke, his accounts were flooded with people calling him a traitor and a scoundrel.

At the same time, many people were just there for the show, waiting for Lai Liang to respond.

For a full day, Lai Liang had remained silent.

Just when everyone thought Lai Liang would probably be too scared to show his face ever again...

Lai Liang hit back by dropping an audio file!

When people opened it, it turned out to be a recording of a call between Lai Liang and Chang Mu!

It was clear Lai Liang had ulterior motives, guiding Chang Mu to admit her identity as soon as the call connected.

Then, in just a few words, Lai Liang teased out the real reason Chang Mu had invited him—

for Nan Zhi.

Chang Mu was completely brainless. She thought that just because she paid Lai Liang, she was his master, and spoke without any restraint.

She jealously expressed her dissatisfaction with Nan Zhi, saying her cooking skills were definitely fake. She wanted Lai Liang to go on the show, slap Nan Zhi in the face, and expose her true colors!

Then, she would arrange for paid commenters to coordinate with him, completely dragging Nan Zhi down so that Lai Liang could step on her to get to the top and replace her as the country’s hottest celebrity chef!

A single audio file sent the entire internet into an uproar!

[I knew there’d be some big drama late at night! Glad I was still scrolling after midnight!]

[There’s more to the story? Fight, fight! I love to see it!]

[Tsk, tsk, tsk, the rich young miss’s image has finally collapsed. Where are all the people who were defending her before?]

[Wow, and to think I was just telling my friend that Chang Mu didn’t deserve all the hate. Turns out she was the mastermind all along!]

[I knew it! I’ve been watching the stream for so long, and the comment section was always great. The moment this rich miss showed up, it went downhill fast. Turns out it was all her paid bots!]

[I bet even her fans are fake. She acts all high and mighty and above it all, but what’s the reality? Behind the scenes, she’s scrambling to get famous! And I just don’t get it, why is she so hostile toward Nan Zhi?]

[I suspect there’s more to this story. Hope we get to hear all the juicy details.]

[Oh my, the rich miss is already so wealthy, but she still comes online to try and get attention from us plebs and be an influencer. How terrifying for us!]

[Am I the only one curious about why Lai Liang suddenly turned on her?]

[What else could it be? Money, obviously. The deal fell through! They’re two peas in a pod, both rotten! It’s great to see a dog-eat-dog fight!]

[This whole thing is developing so fast. I’m curious to see what happens next!]

[Isn’t the production team going to respond? Or have they not seen it?]

...

The production team?

How could they not have seen it?

Right now, they were on the verge of being driven mad by this sudden development!

You have to understand, when Chang Mu posted her apology that afternoon, they had their official account symbolically repost it with a few neutral words, not wanting to blow things up.

Who would’ve thought that by midnight, just as the day was ending, Chang Mu would stab them in the back!

The whole team was running around like headless chickens, dealing with inquiries from all sides, especially from their sponsors.

If Chang Mu’s presence truly caused irreparable damage to the show’s reputation, affecting viewership and public perception, then those same sponsors who were just flocking to them would kick them to the curb in a heartbeat. They’d turn on you faster than you can flip a page!

"Director Xu, what do we do?"

Standing by the window, Xu Lin stubbed out his cigarette.

After a moment’s thought, he called Mr. Lu’s assistant.

Why had they been so wary of Chang Mu?

Wasn’t it because she had been recommended by the sister of another major investor!

Xu Lin and his team didn’t dare offend their investors, but if they continued to protect Chang Mu now, they would lose even more of them.

So, after thinking it over, the only person Xu Lin could turn to for help was Mr. Lu Shixu.

The call was answered quickly, and the person on the other end was very friendly.

But after hearing the question, Tao An sounded a bit surprised:

"What? That Miss Chang was recommended by Miss Tang?"

Xu Lin was taken aback.

"You two didn’t know?"

Tao An hurriedly said he was hanging up to go ask Mr. Lu for instructions.

Xu Lin waited patiently.

Not even two minutes later, the reply came—

"Mr. Lu says to handle it however you see fit. He will take responsibility for any subsequent problems."

"You got it!"

A broad smile broke out on Xu Lin’s face, sweeping away all his frustration!

He then turned and commanded everyone:

"Let’s get to work!"