19 – Go to see him
On New Year’s Eve.
The temperature in Beijing dropped to over ten degrees below zero, with goose-feather snowflakes drifting from the sky. The streets were adorned with colorful lights, and the festive atmosphere grew increasingly vibrant.
A thick layer of snow blanketed the ground. Wen Man, wearing snow boots, stepped onto it, producing a crisp “crunch.” The cars parked by the roadside were also covered in a heavy layer of snow.
She scooped up a handful and held it in her palm, feeling the icy chill against her fingertips, which instantly turned red.
As the snow melted from the warmth, water trickled through Wen Man’s fingers. She used the fallen snow on a car to shape a small snowman, then picked up a twig, broke it into two pieces, and inserted them into the snowball.
A simple little snowman was complete.
Wen Man took out her phone, snapped a photo of the snowman and the heavy snowfall, and sent it via WeChat.
After waiting for a long time without a reply, Wen Man turned and entered the television station.
It wasn’t until after nine in the evening that the recording of the program began.
When Wen Man handed her phone to Xiao Ning, she deliberately checked her WeChat again—still no reply.
She frowned briefly before resuming her usual cold and indifferent expression as she walked backstage to prepare for her entrance.
Today’s program was a variety-style interview, similar to a new drama press conference. It only required interacting with the audience, discussing her work, and promoting the new drama, without the need for exaggerated games. Wen Man wore a tight-fitting fishtail gown in silver, with her entire back exposed—a vast expanse of snowy white skin, dazzling and eye-catching.
From behind, Xiao Ning caught a glimpse of the alluring sight.
She clicked her tongue and took out her phone to snap a photo of Wen Man waiting backstage.
The audience turnout was large. Although Wen Man wasn’t a top-tier star, her appearance still stirred up a wave of excitement.
The audience seats were a sea of darkness, with many holding up support banners for Wen Man, creating a small patch of red.
The host conducted interviews one by one, following the order of star status and main roles. The atmosphere was lively, filled with laughter and conversation.
Wen Man spoke little, occasionally responding with a few words, never overstepping.
This wasn’t her stage to steal the spotlight.
After the new drama promotion segment, the host took out cue cards and said, “Next is the audience Q&A session, where fans submitted their questions. To satisfy everyone’s curiosity, the questions are quite bold. I took a glance earlier and was quite startled.”
The host walked over to Wen Man and said, “As expected, our goddess Wen caused quite a stir the moment she appeared today. Most of the questions on these cue cards are about you. Are you nervous?”
Wen Man glanced at the thick stack of cue cards in the host’s hand and answered honestly, “Yes.”
In truth, she could probably guess what those cue cards contained.
Interviews and promotions were always like this—using the most attention-grabbing topics to generate buzz and traffic, and someone always had to bear the brunt of it.
Wen Man lowered her eyes, her emotions unreadable.
Normally, for such segments, the production team would notify the talent agency in advance, allowing them to prepare ambiguous responses before the show and avoid conflicts afterward.
But clearly, Wen Man hadn’t received any prior notice from her agency.
Chen Yue hadn’t given her any hints, nor had she provided a script for her to memorize and deliver a perfect response.
This was likely the effect Chen Yue and the production team were aiming for.
Wen Man could even imagine how the cameras would capture her expression of disappointment and awkwardness, and how the editing would later twist her words, turning black into white.
Everything was predictable.
All because she wasn’t popular, all because she lacked fame.
Wen Man’s wings were still not fully grown, and she had no one to rely on behind her, so all she could do was endure.
Xiao Ning frowned backstage as she listened to the questions the host asked on stage, her expression growing increasingly grim.
There was no need to guess who was behind it.
Wen Man forced a smile, looking at the array of cameras in front of her, and answered as flawlessly as she could.
As soon as the recording ended, Wen Man stepped off the stage and saw Chen Yue standing at the door of the dressing room, arms crossed, waiting for her.
“Wen Man, tonight’s—”
Before Chen Yue could finish, Wen Man walked straight past her and pushed open the dressing room door.
“Excuse me.”
Chen Yue was taken aback by Wen Man’s actions. She turned and entered the dressing room, slamming the door shut to keep the staff outside.
“Wen Man, how dare you treat me like this?! Do you think the time you spent being blacklisted wasn’t enough to smooth out your attitude?”
Wen Man ignored Chen Yue and walked into the changing room, swiftly taking off her clothes.
Chen Yue pounded on the changing room door, raising her voice: “Who do you think you’re giving attitude to? Don’t forget, if it weren’t for me promoting you, you wouldn’t even have climbed to where you are today! What’s with the arrogance? Open the door!”
Wen Man yanked the door open, now dressed in casual clothes, and tossed the silver gown she had been wearing aside.
“Wen Man, have I been giving you too much leeway? Do you have any idea how much money I’ve invested in you? I sent you to Paris to raise your profile, and you didn’t even make a splash. What right do you have to give me attitude now?”
Wen Man turned to face Chen Yue, curling her lips into a cold smile. Surprisingly calm in the face of Chen Yue’s scolding, she replied:
“It’s the company’s operational rule to invest money in signed talents. Sister Chen has indeed invested a lot in me—aside from that Paris fashion show, there was also the three-day trending topic about me being a homewrecker, right? How many people under your management have you ‘promoted’ this way? I respect Sister Chen’s operational strategies, but next time you buy such articles, please inform me in advance. Even if I have to play the villain, I should at least earn back your investment for you, shouldn’t I?”
With that, Wen Man pulled open the dressing room door and walked out.
Outside the dressing room, a crowd had gathered, having clearly overheard their conversation.
Wen Man took the phone from Xiao Ning’s hand. A WeChat message from twenty minutes earlier popped up on the screen.
Wen Man tapped to open it—it was a photo.
An English-style manor filled with sculptures in European architectural style, and on the fountain platform in front of a bronze carving stood a snowman of the same design.
Wen: 【It’s waiting for you here.】
A faint smile touched Wen Man’s lips.
Behind her, Chen Yue’s loud, sharp scolding echoed, grating and piercing.
Wen Man took the coat Xiao Ning was holding, opened an app, and began booking the earliest available flight.
She moved quickly, almost running, desperate to escape this place as soon as possible.
On the eve of this imperfect New Year’s Eve, Wen Man had someone she was crazily longing to see.
Amidst the swarm of reporters and their long-lens cameras gathered at the television station entrance, Wen Man slipped out through the back door, bundled up tightly, hailed a taxi to the airport, and boarded a flight bound for England.
This was undoubtedly the most thrilling New Year’s Eve she had ever experienced.
She carried nothing but her ID card and passport tucked in her coat pocket.
The luggage she had prepared was still in her original van, left untouched. Everything had happened too suddenly, and Wen Man didn’t want to waste time retrieving it, fearing Chen Yue might try to stop her.
Even after crossing international borders and landing smoothly on the flight to the western edge of Eurasia, Wen Man’s heart continued to race.
Outside the airport.
A black Maybach was parked not far away.
As soon as Wen Man stepped out of the airport, she spotted Wen Yanchuan dressed in a black suit, snowflakes dusting the shoulders and collar of his overcoat. His innate air of aloofness and detachment made him resemble a flawless sculpture in the snow, like a work of art.
At that moment, Wen Man’s chest trembled violently.
Almost instinctively, she broke into a run toward him.
When she was just a few dozen centimeters away, reason seemed to pull her back. She tried to stop, but it was already too late.
Wen Man stumbled, falling toward Wen Yanchuan.
In the next second, Wen Yanchuan reached out and firmly caught her in his arms.
Wen Man’s forehead pressed against his chest.
A faint vibration echoed from his chest as his low, magnetic voice sounded above her head.
“Caught you.”