Whoever Falls in Love First is the Dog - Chapter 22

Chapter 22: “It’s late, I wanted to say goodnight.”

Shen Mengke had finished washing up early, but she tossed and turned in bed, unable to sleep.

The living room gradually grew quiet. Moments ago, she could still hear Shi Shuiying and the others playing around, so they must have gone to bed.

Shen Mengke didn’t know what time it was. She lay on her back in the darkness, staring at the ceiling, belatedly realizing that she had unconsciously vented her inner anxiety on Chen Yanxing.

She clearly knew her many flaws. When she was in a bad mood, she was like a firecracker, ready to explode at any moment. Due to the show, the cameras, and the unfamiliar people she had to maintain a good image in front of, Shen Mengke’s various irritable emotions had been suppressed all day. She hadn’t expected to relax in front of Chen Yanxing.

Perhaps it was because Chen Yanxing wasn’t in the industry and wouldn’t have any impact on her life, or perhaps it was because Chen Yanxing had seen her at her worst.

Shen Mengke sighed softly and closed her eyes.

Once she started thinking at night, it was destined to be a sleepless night. Shen Mengke was used to such nights. Just as she was about to completely empty her mind, a knock suddenly sounded on the door.

Shen Mengke was startled and immediately sat up in bed.

She wasn’t sure if she was hallucinating. After all, this was on a show. Besides pranks from the production team, no one would knock on a guest’s door at this hour, right?

The next second, the knocking sound came again. Shen Mengke then turned on her bedside lamp and walked over to open the door.

Outside the door, Shu Yun wore a white, somewhat sheer nightgown, holding a pillow, and looked at Shen Mengke with slightly furrowed brows.

“Sister?” Shen Mengke exclaimed in surprise, “You…”

“There’s a bug in my room, and you know I’m most afraid of these little creatures…” Shu Yun said, hugging her pillow tighter. “I don’t know how many more there are in the room, and I don’t dare to disturb them. It’s so late, so I can only come to you.”

“Mengke, would you be willing to let me stay for a night?”

When Shu Yun said this, her brows were slightly furrowed, and her eyes seemed to flicker with tears, looking pitiful and innocent.

“Ah…” Shen Mengke hesitated. Of course, she knew Shu Yun was afraid of bugs. Shu Yun had once cried in front of her because of a small fly. However…

This was, after all, a show recording. The camera at the end of the hallway was still diligently working. She wasn’t sure if this part would be cut by the production team.

Seeing Shen Mengke’s dilemma, Shu Yun sighed, “Never mind, I won’t make it difficult for you. I’ll just make do on the sofa for a night.” Saying this, Shu Yun turned to leave. Shen Mengke quickly pulled Shu Yun back.

Not to mention she couldn’t bear to let Shu Yun sleep on the sofa alone, even if Shu Yun went there, if the production team edited this part into the main show, and the scene of Shu Yun leaving Shen Mengke’s room to sleep on the sofa appeared, Shen Mengke would probably be scolded out of the industry.

“Come in,” Shen Mengke said, stepping back to clear the doorway.

Shu Yun smiled and said, “You’re so kind.” With that, she leaned in and kissed Shen Mengke’s face.

Shen Mengke froze in place until Shu Yun walked into the room. She hadn’t reacted.

The camera at the end of the hallway continued its dutiful work. Shen Mengke didn’t know how much it had recorded, only feeling a sudden regret after she came to her senses.

Why hadn’t she fallen asleep? Why had she opened this door? Why had she participated in this variety show?!

Shen Mengke re-closed the door and walked back into the room. She looked at Shu Yun sitting on the bed and said helplessly, “Sister… in the future, can you not…”

Shen Mengke hesitated for a long time, unable to complete a full sentence.

Shu Yun looked up, “Hmm?”

“Oh… this is a show recording, after all, so please don’t just kiss me casually. Besides… we broke up a long time ago…”

Hearing this, Shu Yun suddenly smiled, “I thought you not refusing this afternoon meant you tacitly agreed we were back together.”

“Besides, aren’t we recording a romance show? We’re not sleeping in front of the camera, so a kiss isn’t allowed?”

“I…” Shen Mengke was momentarily speechless, but she still stubbornly shook her head, “No.”

Shu Yun’s eyes changed color in an instant, but as the bedside lamp shone towards the foot of the bed, only a dimness remained, making it difficult for Shen Mengke to see clearly.

“So… you have a new partner?” Shu Yun asked again, “Is it Xu Shinian? I heard you two collaborated recently, and she was very concerned about you today.”

Shen Mengke shook her head, frowning slightly. “She and I are just friends.”

“Then you just genuinely don’t like me anymore?”

“No…” Shen Mengke pursed her lips. “Sister, you know I don’t mean that. It’s just… I don’t want to be in a relationship right now.”

“And between us… a kiss can’t solve all our problems.”

As Shen Mengke spoke, Shu Yun listened quietly, a smile gradually appearing on her face. She chuckled, “You’re still the same, you can’t take a joke.”

Under the dim light, Shu Yun’s smile wasn’t particularly reassuring, and Shen Mengke didn’t believe Shu Yun’s words were just a joke.

She wasn’t a child anymore; she could somewhat discern the truth in people’s words.

Shu Yun’s explanation, instead of alleviating Shen Mengke’s anxiety, only exacerbated her insomnia.

All night, her mind was like two little people fighting, one upholding the gentleman’s agreement, Chen Yanxing, and the other, Shu Yun, with her first love complex.

They were fighting over something, Shen Mengke couldn’t see clearly, but she knew they weren’t fighting over herself.

After countless times of wide-awake eyes, Shen Mengke finally gave up resisting and sat up. She looked at Shu Yun sleeping beside her, carefully picked up her phone, put on a coat, and left the room.

The door closed softly. In the darkness, Shu Yun also sat up.

The summer night wasn’t particularly cool. Shen Mengke wore a simple T-shirt and shorts, covered with a thin shirt, and sat in the swing in the yard, gently swaying.

The moon was beautiful tonight, high and round, surrounded by countless stars, without a single cloud.

Shen Mengke took a photo with her phone, preparing to log into her main Weibo account for the first time in a while to do some promotions, only to find that her login was restricted.

Shen Mengke frowned and repeatedly checked before realizing that her password had been changed. Under normal circumstances, a celebrity’s main account is managed by their company. Without thinking, she knew it was because she was terminating her contract, so the company had reclaimed her account.

Shen Mengke laughed in anger. Their contract was expiring normally, not a contentious breach of contract. Usually, in such situations, companies wouldn’t directly confront artists like this, as a single artist, no matter what, was still very valuable.

It wasn’t unheard of for companies to directly hand over artist accounts to celebrities. Who knew if they would collaborate again in the future? Rational people wouldn’t casually burn bridges with someone in the industry.

Shen Mengke held her phone, sneering. She didn’t care what time it was in the middle of the night. She directly called Fan Shi.

“Give me back my Weibo account!”

Shen Mengke had been taught benevolence, righteousness, propriety, wisdom, and trustworthiness since she was a child. Being polite and understanding rules was practically ingrained in her. Even when she was most angry, she wouldn’t so rashly disturb someone in the middle of the night.

But today, Shen Mengke simply couldn’t bear it anymore. Even though her rationality told her it was wrong, she still did it.

At worst, she would apologize afterward. She didn’t want to wrong herself for the sake of some illusory decorum.

Fan Shi was woken up from her sleep, still a bit dazed. Hearing Shen Mengke’s words, Fan Shi was even more confused, “What’s wrong with your Weibo?”

She sat up, turned on the light, and took out another phone to open Weibo. The first thing she saw was a trending topic about Shen Mengke:

#ShenMengkeMovesToFanxingEntertainment#

Fan Shi was stunned for a moment, rubbed her eyes to confirm she wasn’t mistaken, and then spoke, “You’re going to Fanxing?”

The originally furious Shen Mengke was also stunned. “How did you know?”

“You’re trending. Didn’t you call to talk about this?”

Shen Mengke’s heart skipped a beat. Years of crisis awareness allowed her to immediately open the trending topics on Weibo. Three glaring terms were hanging in the top three positions:

1. 1. 1. 1. #ShenMengkeMovesToFanxingEntertainment#

1. 1. 1. 1. #ShenMengkeBowsAtRecordingSite#

1. 1. 1. 1. #ShenMengkeGenuine#

Shen Mengke immediately clicked on the first trending topic. What she saw was the Weibo post that Fanxing’s official account had liked.

Shen Mengke’s first reaction was that Chen Yanxing was retaliating against her? Then she thought again, Chen Yanxing shouldn’t be that bored.

But Fanxing’s official account had only liked a Weibo post and done nothing else, not even giving an explanation, letting the trending topic ferment.

Now almost everyone was convinced she was going to Fanxing, and some even dug up the fact that her contract with her current company hadn’t expired yet, accusing Shen Mengke of breach of contract. And so…

Shen Mengke sighed, suddenly feeling so tired. Had she offended someone?

“I see,” Shen Mengke said, then hung up the phone. At this moment, how could she still be in the mood to care about whether the moon was full or how many stars there were?

After the call was hung up, Fan Shi quickly reacted and promptly dialed a number.

“Sorry for calling so late, but it concerns Shen Mengke…”

Shu Yun stood by the window, looking at Shen Mengke in the yard, and said, “I know, go ahead.”

Shen Mengke sat in the yard for a long time, looking at the message on her phone.

Shen Mengke: [Boss Ren, I am Shen Mengke. I took the liberty of asking Ms. Chen for your contact information and disturbed you late at night. I apologize for any inconvenience.]

[I’m sending this message for two reasons. First, I’ve decided to sign with Fanxing Entertainment, and I’ve also scheduled to meet with Ms. Chen the night after tomorrow. She should have informed you, right? Regarding the signing, I’d like to discuss it with you in person then.]

[Second, regarding the trending topic on Weibo, the official Fanxing account liked a post. I don’t know if it was a mistake or for what reason, but it has already caused a negative impact on both of us. How do you think we should handle this matter?]

Shen Mengke tried her best to humble herself before her future boss. She thought she wouldn’t get a reply tonight. Just as she was about to look up and continue counting stars, a message came back:

[I’ll have someone handle it.]

Shen Mengke was stunned for a moment. Not sleeping in the middle of the night, and still having time to play on her phone? Could it be that Boss Ren was also suffering from insomnia like her?

Did even bosses have worries?

Boss Ren naturally wouldn’t be insomniac; someone else was.

When Chen Yanxing called and woke up the sleeping Boss Ren, Ren Zhou cursed and roared, “Chen Yanxing, you’d better have a good reason!”

Ren Zhou always had a bad temper when waking up. If it weren’t Chen Yanxing calling, she would have blocked the number long ago.

“What’s with the trending topic?” Chen Yanxing asked.

“What trending topic?” Ren Zhou opened her eyes sleepily and checked the time on her phone. “It’s midnight, aren’t you sleeping and just surfing the internet?”

“Shen Mengke’s trending topic.”

“Didn’t I tell you tonight? You said you wouldn’t look.”

“Not that one. Why did Fanxing’s official account like a Weibo post about Shen Mengke?”

Ren Zhou frowned, and it took her a while to remember her casual action. “To build momentum for her, of course. It’s rare to have a good trending topic, what’s wrong?”

“It’s not good. Go see for yourself.”

After saying that, Chen Yanxing hung up the phone.

Ren Zhou held her phone, staring blankly at the ceiling for three seconds before hissing and immediately opening Weibo.

Indeed, public opinion had already taken a turn for the worse.

From the afternoon when photos of Shen Mengke bowing appeared online, to Fanxing’s official account liking the post, public opinion slowly shifted from “Shen Mengke is sincere” to “Shen Mengke is being pretentious.”

Even more, terms like #ShenMengkeBreachOfContract# #ShenMengkeBetrayal# #ShenMengkeDishonest# appeared simultaneously.

Ren Zhou was different from Chen Yanxing. Chen Yanxing had been sent by the Chen family to that godforsaken place for so many years and didn’t understand many things. But Ren Zhou had been immersed in the entertainment industry for years and could tell with a single glance that someone was deliberately slandering her.

The marketing accounts that appeared at the same time, with largely similar rhetoric, unfortunately, Shen Mengke’s studio was somehow playing dead, and Shen Mengke’s fans were only causing chaos on the platform, especially since it was late at night, with even fewer active users, allowing these terms to quickly trend.

Ren Zhou chuckled, becoming interested. She sat up, turned on the room light, and stared at those terms.

She had never paid attention to Shen Mengke before. Only after Shen Mengke became involved with Chen Yanxing did she briefly look into her, only knowing that Shen Mengke was an actress with a bad reputation and not much popularity, so she hadn’t investigated further.

Now it seemed that Shen Mengke’s bad reputation and frequent negative trending topics were likely all part of a deliberate scheme.

Shen Mengke was a girl from the countryside, with no background and no threat to anyone. Who would be so eager to prevent her from becoming popular even before she had?

Ren Zhou switched to her official account and posted a Weibo:

[@FanxingEntertainment: Shen Mengke is an excellent actress. Fanxing Entertainment looks forward to collaborating with you @ShenMengke]

And in the next second, Fanxing’s official account followed Shen Mengke.

Everyone knew the power behind Fanxing Entertainment. With the official entry, although the words were vague, no one dared to target Fanxing Entertainment again, so the blame shifted back to Shen Mengke.

Immediately after, Shen Mengke’s studio also entered the fray, issuing a statement saying that Shen Mengke’s contract with JING company was about to expire, but Shen Mengke would continue to renew her contract with JING company, and all online rumors about switching companies were false information.

JING was the company Shen Mengke was currently signed with. It was clear that this statement was also an order from the company.

Ren Zhou quickly saw this message and frowned.

Not just Ren Zhou, but Shen Mengke, who had been staring at her phone, also saw it, her fingers unconsciously clutching her phone tighter.

She couldn’t describe her feelings at that moment. Nearly seven years of collaboration, and in the end, it still led to a betrayal.

Shen Mengke scrolled through the comments. The Weibo post, which had been sent out less than a minute ago, refreshed, and hundreds of comments instantly popped up.

[Why renew the contract? Has JING done anything good these past few years? Not only have they suppressed so many dramas from airing, but they also don’t have good resources!]

[No variety shows, no dramas airing, why stay with your company! To be drained?]

[How long has the company been doing nothing human? Just when we finally hoped for contract termination, they pull this trick again?]

[Your studio’s Weibo post wasn’t sent without the sister’s knowledge, was it? Who’s your boss?]

[You’re supposed to refute the rumors, not spread more!]

[@ShenMengke, what do you say? Are you still renewing your contract?]

@ShenMengke!

“……”

Underneath, one after another, no one wanted Shen Mengke to renew her contract with JING, and for a moment, Shen Mengke felt complicated.

She changed the name of her private account and, under the moonlight, began to draft a Weibo post. But the moment she finished writing the long text, she hesitated.

She could be impulsive once, but she couldn’t be impulsive a second time on the same night.

The longer she stayed in the entertainment industry, the more she understood that one should not speak out casually online.

Shen Mengke hesitated, her finger hovering over the [Send] button for a long time. Just as she was about to press it, the door behind her suddenly opened.

Shen Mengke felt like a child caught doing something wrong by a teacher. She immediately put away her phone and looked back.

Shu Yun stood at the doorway, smiling at her.

Her pure white nightgown seemed even more sheer under the moonlight, like gauze woven from moonlight, draped casually over her.

Her dark long hair was a bit disheveled, falling over her chest, covering any potentially exposed areas. The moonlight shone on her bare skin, making her already overly pale skin glow even more, standing out remarkably in the night.

She slowly walked towards Shen Mengke, “Why are you sitting here?” she asked.

Shen Mengke didn’t speak but moved to the side. Shu Yun smiled knowingly and sat down next to Shen Mengke.

The swing was originally for one person, but since both of them were thin, they managed to squeeze in.

Shen Mengke looked up, pointed at the stars in the sky, and said, “I’m counting stars.”

Shu Yun didn’t look up; instead, she kept staring at Shen Mengke, saying, “How many have you counted?”

“Three hundred… or maybe five hundred. My eyes got blurry, so I can’t count clearly.”

“Then why don’t we count the moon? There’s only one, and whether you can see it or not, it’s always there.”

After that, both fell silent. Shen Mengke kept looking up at the stars until her neck ached, and a tear slid from the corner of her eye.

“Sister…”

She lowered her head, letting the tears fall onto her smooth thighs.

“Hmm,” Shu Yun hummed.

“I hate you quite a bit right now,” she said.

Shu Yun lowered her gaze, her eyes falling on the tear stain on Shen Mengke’s thigh, and softly hummed.

Shen Mengke took a deep breath, then slowly exhaled. She said, “If you had just held on a little longer back then, maybe I would have really taken that role, and then… wouldn’t I not be so obscure now?”

Shu Yun didn’t speak but reached out to grasp Shen Mengke’s hand, which was resting on her thigh. Shen Mengke tried to pull away but couldn’t, still held tightly by Shu Yun.

“If I hadn’t listened to you back then and signed with this company, then I…”

Her voice choked, and she couldn’t utter the rest of the words.

She lowered her head, but no more tears flowed out. “I’m sorry,” she said.

Shen Mengke laughed at herself, “Sometimes I also find myself ridiculous. I’m this old, and the first thing I do when something goes wrong is still忍不住 to blame others.”

“Before you came back, I even thought about directly retiring from the industry…”

Shu Yun tightened her grip on Shen Mengke’s hand. She moved her lips, but couldn’t bring herself to speak.

For a long time, neither of them spoke. Just as Shen Mengke was about to give up, her phone suddenly rang.

Shen Mengke looked at it. It was an unknown number. She hesitated for a moment but answered it anyway.

“I’ll take this call.”

She finally had an excuse to leave Shu Yun. Pulling her hand from Shu Yun’s grasp, Shen Mengke walked to the side with her phone.

She felt a brief moment of freedom, the freedom of being released from a cage to breathe.

“Hello?”

Shen Mengke usually wouldn’t answer unknown calls directly; she would usually wait for it to ring three or four times before answering.

But today, since it was an excuse to answer the phone, she wouldn’t hang up.

Before the call connected, she thought it might be a scam, or a nuisance call, many possibilities, but she never thought it would be Chen Yanxing.

“It’s me.”

When her voice came through the phone, Shen Mengke felt as if the surrounding muddy air was instantly blown away by a refreshing breeze.

Shen Mengke froze, tears falling uncontrollably. “You…”

“Uh…” The other end seemed to hesitate, then said, “Ren Zhou asked me to ask you, are you still renewing your contract with your original company? If…”

“No,” Shen Mengke immediately replied, “I won’t sign with them again. As soon as my contract expires, I’m leaving.”

Chen Yanxing seemed to let out a sigh of relief and said, “Good, I understand.”

With that, a brief silence fell between them again. “Then…”

“Ren Zhou…”

Both spoke at the same time and stopped at the same time.

Chen Yanxing: “You go first.”

“Hmm, I wanted to ask, why isn’t Ren Zhou contacting me? She just replied to my message.”

“Hmm… she’s busy.”

“Busy? So late at night…”

“She’s a boss, it’s normal to be busy.”

“Oh,” Shen Mengke lowered her head, looking at the flowers at her feet, then asked, “What were you going to say?”

“It’s late, I wanted to say goodnight.”

Shen Mengke bit her lip, looked up at the moon in the sky, “It certainly is late. Well… goodnight?”

“Hmm, goodnight.”