The painkillers dulled Jiang Yue's shoulder to a manageable throb, but not the chill that ran down her spine every time she stepped onto set. The scaffolding was gone. The harnesses checked, double-checked, signed in triplicate.
But that wasn't where the danger lived now.
It lived in the whispers.
In the way some staff paused conversations when she passed. In the way certain directors no longer made eye contact. It was as though her mere survival had made her untouchable—and not in the flattering way.
She entered her dressing room between takes. Her makeup stylist had left early. The lights were off, the room quiet except for the faint hum of the air vent.
She tossed her jacket on the back of the chair, reached for the script—and froze.
The script wasn't hers.
Not the annotated copy she'd left behind, filled with notes and instinctual line shifts. This one was clean. Too clean.
And tucked inside was a folded piece of paper.
"Nice performance today. Shame about what you said about Director Qiu last week. Did you know this room echoes?
It's a shame when stars forget walls have ears."
Jiang Yue's jaw clenched. She turned slowly, scanning the corners.
[System Alert: Unregistered Listening Device Detected – Dressing Room, Vanity Area]
Type: Miniature Parabolic Mic
Installed: 4 Days Ago
Recording Log: 37 Clips
Zeyan arrived within ten minutes. He didn't knock. He locked the door behind him.
She handed him the note. He didn't even blink.
"Run a signal sweep," he said to the system.
[Active Sweep Engaged – Compiling Audio Leaks... Upload Source Match: 79.3% – Linked to Y.R.Q. Comms Layer via Temp VPN Node]
Same tag. Again.
Ruiqing wasn't just trying to break Jiang Yue on set anymore. She was building a case. Twisting truth into perception.
Jiang Yue sat on the vanity stool, staring at her reflection. "Do you think they've released anything yet?"
Zeyan shook his head. "Not yet. They're saving it for maximum damage. Possibly tied to the midseason marketing push. If they spin this right, it'll look like you're sabotaging your own directors."
"Then we need to burn it before it airs."
[System Module Unlocked: "Whisper Cutter"]
Function: Intercept and counter audio smear campaigns using authenticity overlays + fan-led transcript audits
Cost: 6.5 BP | 4.1 PP
Bonus Effect: Reputation Shield (+3 days immunity to reputation drop below baseline)
Zeyan toggled the option.
Hours later, just as a tabloid uploaded a blurry audio snippet titled "Jiang Yue Trashes Her Director?", it was immediately followed by a fan-edited supercut of Jiang Yue praising the same director across multiple interviews—backed by raw behind-the-scenes footage SkyInk conveniently "found" in their archives.
"I've never felt safer on a set. Director Qiu gives actresses space to be fierce."
"He told me once, 'Don't act the fall. Just fall. I'll catch it with the lens.' That stuck with me."
The original clip was buried under a wave of fan support, defense threads, and media blogs praising her professionalism.
[Public Doubt Immunity Triggered: +0.0217] [FL Credibility Rating: +0.94% in Industry Boards]
[New Passive Acquired: "Echo Proof – Tier I" – Immune to unverified character smear attempts for 7 real-time days]
Later that night, Jiang Yue filmed a short IG story. Simple. Honest.
No makeup. Dim lighting.
"I've never had time to fake being nice. If I ever have something to say, I say it loud enough not to need hidden mics. Good night."
It was bold. It was viral.
Even the cynical blogs had to admit: the girl had steel in her spine.
Ruiqing threw her tablet across the room.
"She's not cracking. She's getting fan armor."
Su Cheng rubbed his temples. "Maybe we're pushing too fast—"
"No. We're not pushing fast enough."
Back in his office, Zeyan stared at the analytics overlay.
Jiang Yue's numbers were steady, rising. The system plotted her growth not just in popularity—but in survivability.
[FL Evolution Arc Status: Stable → Ascending]
[Risk of External Smear Campaign: Mitigated]
[Company Public Trust Metric: +6.2%]
Zeyan smiled.
The higher she climbed, the clearer the view.
And they hadn't even started the revenge arcs yet.