Chapter 47 – The Suddenly Leaked Photo
He almost forgot—he had liked Nan Xiao since childhood.
Back then, Nan Xiao was fair and tender, a particularly pretty and adorable little girl. From the moment he met her, Xiao Zekai loved chasing after her.
But a child’s affection can’t be taken seriously. Later, Xiao Zekai forgot about it, and his memories stayed fixed after the age of ten.
Nan Xiao’s accident happened when she was ten. He had felt heartbroken and stayed by her side constantly, comforting and encouraging her. He even asked his father to pull strings for her medical treatment.
Later, when Nan Xiao was often bullied because of her disfigurement, he would fight those kids—through elementary, middle school, and even into high school. Who knows how many times he protected her.
Afterwards, in college, they attended different schools, but their relationship never drifted. They still often met for meals, just as close as when they were children.
But after graduation, Nan Xiao insisted on marrying Xie Chengyu. From then on, their relationship changed.
Looking at the drawing in his hand, Xiao Zekai recalled all those beautiful childhood memories and sighed.
The next morning, Nan Xiao arrived at the crew. After observing the filming of the most important scene, she returned to the lounge to revise the script.
She thought the morning would pass as calmly as usual. But around nine o’clock, a major event occurred—her photo was exposed online. And it was one of her during her disfigurement, without a mask!
In the photo, Nan Xiao wore plain gray loungewear. The baggy clothes hid her figure, revealing nothing of her body shape.
She stood on a set of steps, gazing into the distance as if waiting for someone. The photo happened to capture her profile.
Her eyes were flawless, but one cheek was marred by a hideous scar, branded across her fair skin like a grotesque mark.
The photo first appeared on a popular forum. The post quickly passed ten thousand views, then someone reposted it to Weibo. Major bloggers shared it, and soon it hit the trending list.
When Nan Xiao opened Weibo, she saw the hashtag #XiaoxiaoWuyeDisfiguredFace# glaring back at her—ranked third on the hot search.
Normally, with Nan Xiao’s popularity, she wouldn’t reach the top three. But after her conflict with Xu Ruoxin had been exposed, Xu Ruoxin’s fans remembered her. Now, when her photo was leaked, those big fan accounts reposted it, fueling the spread. Soon, ridicule and abuse propelled her to the top.
When she saw the trending topic, Nan Xiao was sitting at her desk. Lin Yan had sent her the link. She clicked it and stared at the enlarged photo, wide-eyed, frozen for a long moment.
Then, with a sudden jolt, she stood up. Her hand slipped, and she accidentally opened the comments section.
There, she saw lines of insults calling her “hideous” and “disgusting.” Rage made her hands tremble so hard that her phone clattered to the floor.
Bending to pick it up, she immediately exited the comments. She couldn’t bear to read such venomous words.
Pacing the lounge, she racked her brain: how had that photo been leaked? Then another urgent thought struck her—
Previously, the whole internet had been searching for her photo, but no one could find one.
Now that it had finally been exposed, journalists would swarm for interviews, desperate for the first scoop.
She had to get somewhere safe before being discovered. If she delayed even a few hours, she’d be surrounded.
Calming herself, she packed up quickly.
You’re smart, she told herself. You caught the key point. Now stay calm, leave the set immediately…
She repeated it to herself, forcing down her anger, panic, and grief, grabbed her bag, and hurried out.
But she was still a step too late.
The moment she stepped outside the set gates, a crowd of hidden reporters suddenly surged forward, cameras flashing like a swarm of bees, surrounding her completely.
Nan Xiao froze. Just seconds earlier she had checked carefully, seeing no one, before daring to step out. Where had all these people come from?
“Miss, are you the screenwriter Xiaoxiao Wuye? Can you remove your mask and let us see?”
“Xiaoxiao Wuye, how did you get those scars? How did you marry the investor of the crew while disfigured?”
“Xiaoxiao Wuye, are you clinging to your husband so Xu Ruoxin won’t win? Have you quarreled with Xu Ruoxin over this?”
“Xiaoxiao Wuye…”
The barrage of questions made her head spin.
She was usually mild-tempered, but being shoved around while bombarded with offensive questions, even she couldn’t hold back her temper.
“Sorry, I’m not Xiaoxiao Wuye, and I don’t want to answer your questions.”
She wore a mask covering most of her face. Denying her identity outright—what could they do without proof?
But the reporters weren’t so easily deterred. They ignored her denial and pressed closer with more questions.
Then, a man with round glasses asked a particularly cruel one:
“Xiaoxiao Wuye, you’re so ugly—after marrying your husband, did you ever have a normal sex life? Did he ignore you for so long that he turned to Xu Ruoxin instead?”
Shame and humiliation seized Nan Xiao. If not for her restraint, she would have struck him.
“Get lost! What business is it of yours whether she and her husband are fine or not!”
A furious shout split the air. The crowd was forcibly parted as a tall, broad man pushed through, pulling Nan Xiao into his arms.
He wore a black suit. His handsome face was shadowed with rage, his entire presence blazing with fury.
Everyone gasped when they saw his face.
Wasn’t this Xie Chengyu, the most powerful man in Beicheng’s business circle? What was he doing here?
The reporters stared, stunned, at Nan Xiao clutched tightly in his embrace, then at Xie Chengyu’s stormy expression.
Could it be? The mysterious investor behind The Imperial Consort’s Tale, the one secretly married to Xiaoxiao Wuye for three years… was none other than Xie Chengyu?
This… this was explosive.
“Step aside, everyone. Our president and his wife are leaving.”
