Chapter 431 – The Movie Emperor’s Beloved Neighbor – Nothing Is More Important Than Business (14)
Li Manpei is a trending young celebrity. Although her performance in “Extreme Wilderness” was less than ideal and didn’t match the persona she had built, she was still a human life. Netizens from all sides kept a close eye on both the production team and the hospital, hoping to get updates as soon as possible.
Fortunately, the production team had taken extra precautions. After emergency treatment, Li Manpei was transferred to a better-equipped central city hospital. By the third day, she regained consciousness.
However, the very first sentence she spoke after waking caused a huge uproar.
“Senior Brother Bai, why did you push me?”
Her once-beautiful face was now thin and pale, without a trace of color, making her look fragile and pitiful.
People tend to sympathize with the weak. As a result, many forgot Li Manpei’s earlier manipulative “green tea” behavior and instead took her side, united in anger.
Netizen 1: [I didn’t expect this—Bai Tang is that jealous? Even harming his junior sister from the same sect?]
Netizen 2: [Li Manpei is stirring up trouble again. Her senior brother is already down on his luck with fewer resources than her, and she still won’t let him go. When Bai Tang had his accident before, she didn’t hold back from stepping on him either.]
Netizen 3: [Only an idiot would risk their own life just to frame someone. Li Manpei may be a bit of a schemer, but she’s not brainless.]
Netizen 4: [They should call the police. If Bai Tang really pushed her, that’s intentional assault.]
The internet buzzed with endless arguments. Bai Tang currently had no agency, and he himself was still sleeping soundly at Heng Xingjian’s house, so he couldn’t respond immediately or handle the crisis. This caused some of his supporters to lose confidence.
Why hasn’t Bai Tang responded yet? Could it actually be true?
They couldn’t believe that the cheerful boy from the livestream—the one who often flirted sweetly with the Best Actor Heng and treated the production team considerately—could be a would-be murderer.
By the time Bai Tang woke up and learned about the situation, the internet was already in chaos.
“Qiu’er, what’s going on?” Bai Tang was still confused. Did those people have any evidence that he pushed Li Manpei? Why were they making such a big deal out of it?
As Tang Tang’s number one die-hard fan, Qiu’er had already registered an account while Bai Tang was still asleep and had been arguing with netizens for five hours straight.
Qiu’er got angry just looking at the comments. “It’s all that Li Manpei making things up and slandering Tang Tang! Even in the hospital she won’t behave. People are worried about her, and the first thing she says is, ‘Why did Senior Brother Bai push me’…”
If it weren’t for Li Manpei’s dramatic accusation, netizens wouldn’t have believed her so quickly. After all, she was the victim—surviving a near-death experience and wanting justice seemed natural.
“She used to be in the same agency as Tang Tang. She must know he doesn’t have any backing now, so she dares to act so recklessly.”
“I have every reason to suspect that there’s something wrong with Li Manpei’s brain. Back on the mountain, she should have seen how the male lead protected the host. Anyone with a brain wouldn’t keep targeting the host after that. The male lead’s background and power in the entertainment industry aren’t exactly a secret,” Xiao A said, holding a diagram of the human brain as if it were Li Manpei’s, trying to spot some flaw in it.
No matter what, a clarification still had to be made.
Bai Tang logged into his account and posted a clarification on Weibo.
Although it was a bit late, for the fans who supported Bai Tang, it was undoubtedly reassuring. As for those who still didn’t believe him and continued to insult him online—he was going to take action.
Call the police.
The best solution.
“If you’re in trouble, go to the police. That’s something we learned in kindergarten—didn’t you all go to kindergarten?” Bai Tang calmly replied to the netizens who were insulting him in private messages, even posting screenshots of those messages.
“Thank you to all the fans who support me for your concern. If I didn’t do something, then I didn’t do it. My conscience is clear. If there’s a problem, go to the police—I believe in justice. For those who don’t believe my explanation, please stop insulting me. Let’s speak with facts instead. (Screenshots of private messages) @Z City Police”
When celebrities encounter situations like this, they usually just issue warnings or lawyer’s letters and leave it at that. Who would have expected Bai Tang to be so direct—reporting it to the police on the spot and even posting his follow-up conversations with them? His open and straightforward attitude, with nothing to hide, won over quite a few people. Even some haters began to wonder if they had misunderstood him.
After finishing everything, Bai Tang went to find Heng Xingjian in the study and threw himself into his arms. “A Jian, you have to take me in—I have nowhere else to go.”
Although the matter had been reported to the police, before any official conclusion was reached, there was no stopping the mouths of netizens. Having experienced online harassment and even stalking before, Bai Tang didn’t dare to underestimate anyone now. Who knew—maybe one of Li Manpei’s die-hard fans was secretly planning how to ambush him with a sack.
Heng Xingjian wished for nothing more than for the boy to grow closer to him—but not like this, forced into staying indoors.
He stroked Bai Tang’s soft black hair. Thinking of Li Manpei spouting nonsense in front of the media, a trace of sharpness appeared in his usually gentle eyes.
“Tang Tang can stay as long as he wants. This is our home.”
“Hm?”
The boy’s questioning tone was misunderstood by Heng Xingjian as reluctance. Having already come up with a perfect plan to ruin Li Manpei completely, Heng Xingjian panicked. Had he been too forward and scared Tang Tang?!
“Tang Tang, I’ve already decided that you’re the one for me in this lifetime. Would you be willing to give me a chance—with marriage as the goal—to see if I’m suitable to be your partner for the rest of your life?”
Bai Tang’s eyes curved with happiness as he was about to agree, when Xiao A suddenly interrupted:
“Host, you need to be reserved. Qiu’er’s handbook says that if something is obtained too easily, it won’t be cherished. This is a husband-training manual Qiu’er wrote based on the male lead’s personality—ah~”
Xiao A was caught off guard when Qiu’er twisted him. What grudge was this?! The male lead had already spoken—if they just got married on the spot, there’d be no role left for the female lead. What was the point of any “test”? Wasn’t Xiao A supposed to be on the female lead’s side?
Xiao A felt wronged. He had clearly followed the method written in Qiu’er’s notebook. And hadn’t Qiu’er always been reluctant to see the host and the male lead get together so quickly? Sigh… a wife’s thoughts were truly hard to understand.
In the past, Bai Tang might have listened to Xiao A. But after going through so many lifetimes, he no longer wanted to test the male lead based on some unfounded fear that he might change his heart, wasting both of their time.
Smiling brightly, the young man stood on tiptoe and kissed the man’s thin lips. “Let’s pick an auspicious day to register our marriage.”
Heng Xingjian was both surprised and delighted. Just as he was about to confirm it, Bai Tang’s next sentence stopped him in his tracks.
“You’re not even focusing when you kiss. You can sleep in the study from now on.”
Heng Xingjian: “!!!”
Whether it was the “benefits” now or those in the future, Heng Xingjian couldn’t afford to miss out. Besides, the person was already in his arms—there was no way he could run away.
A wonderful life began. With no elders at home, the only one who could be considered an elder was the housekeeper. Nicknamed the “Elder Slayer,” the little squirrel managed, in less than two days, to make the usually expressionless housekeeper beam with smiles. Every day, he happily busied himself in the kitchen, saying he wanted to cook nourishing meals for Bai Tang.
Bai Tang, meanwhile, lived quite leisurely—sleeping, browsing the internet, and snacking in Heng Xingjian’s room. Life couldn’t have been more pleasant.
It wasn’t that reporters hadn’t tried to find Bai Tang—they simply couldn’t.
They turned their attention to Bai Tang’s parents and went to the hospital. But a hospital is a place for treating patients—how could it be surrounded by reporters? How would ambulances get in and out?
The reporters couldn’t even get through the hospital’s main entrance. Even if some tried to sneak in disguised as patients, they still couldn’t access the inpatient ward. After speaking with Bai Tang on the phone and understanding the seriousness of the situation, his parents, though worried, chose to avoid causing him trouble. They even stopped their daily walks downstairs.
The people staying with Bai Tang’s parents were all patients of similar age. They weren’t interested in entertainment industry gossip—unless it made the national news, they wouldn’t pay attention to which celebrity got married, divorced, or filmed a drama.
Though it was called a hospital ward, it felt more like a retirement home. Bai Tang’s father played chess with fellow patients, while his mother watched TV dramas with other female patients. Their days were simple but fulfilling. Most importantly, Bai Tang had said that once this matter was resolved, he would leave the entertainment industry, bring his parents home, and have the family live together.
Having their child by their side—that was all they wished for.
The two elders were in great spirits, cheerful all day long. From time to time, they would chat with fellow patients, happily imagining a future surrounded by children and grandchildren.
Li Manpei became famous—half for her popularity, half for the controversy. Numerous endorsements and appearances lined up, waiting for her to choose once she was discharged from the hospital.
She wasn’t worried at all about Bai Tang calling the police to investigate the scene. At the time, there had been a chaotic crowd, and everything happened in an instant. Even the cameramen had put down their equipment to rescue people—what evidence could possibly have been left behind? As for witnesses, perhaps Heng Xingjian, who had been nearby, might have noticed something. But everyone knew he was on Bai Tang’s side, so his testimony wouldn’t count as reliable evidence.
News in the entertainment industry moves quickly. Within a few days, the incident lost its heat, replaced by stories of Li Manpei’s “rebirth from the ashes” and her return after recovering her health.
Just as Li Manpei had expected, collecting evidence proved extremely difficult—but not entirely fruitless. In the early stages, both parties’ statements were consistent. The disagreement arose after Bai Tang was pulled back up: one claimed that Bai Tang had pushed her, while the other insisted he had not.
When questioning the witnesses, one of the cameramen suddenly slapped his thigh. “That’s right—there might be evidence! Maybe that camera caught it.”
To capture either clever or embarrassing moments from the guests, the production team had installed a miniature camera beneath the broken bridge. That camera might have recorded the moment Bai Tang was pulled up.
The police and the production staff quickly retrieved the footage, loaded it onto a computer, and located the time of the incident. Sure enough, everyone involved was in frame. When Li Manpei fell, they slowed the footage down several times. Her facial expression was twisted, and her hand was extended outward—not in a pulling motion, but clearly in a pushing one. Bai Tang, firmly held by Heng Xingjian, had shifted slightly to the side. Unable to pull her hand back in time, Li Manpei lost her balance and fell.
This was crucial evidence. The production team cooperated fully, submitting the footage and promising not to disclose anything before the final result was announced.
Meanwhile, Li Manpei was discharged from the hospital and took on several endorsements, riding a strong wave of momentum.
However, this was also the last stretch of time she could enjoy her success. Heng Xingjian and Bai Tang didn’t deal with her immediately—not because they couldn’t, but because they were busy planning their honeymoon route. Whatever needed to be handled could wait until after they finished their “important business.”