That night, the incident of Xie Guan being chased by stalker fans trended. His three million "beautiful girl" fans across the internet went crazy flaming the stalker fans; for a time, the cries of battle shook the heavens and rivers of blood flowed. Xie Guan secretly used his burner account to browse Weibo and discovered that in many reposts and original posts, the names of Hengrui Group and Huo Mingjun were prominently listed, though they were all replaced with initials to avoid censorship.

When Huo Mingjun left the airport, he was escorted by a car in front and another behind; such a procession was hard not to notice. The car that helped Xie Guan shake off the tailing vehicle and force the minivan to a stop was one of the bodyguard's cars. A fan had taken photos of the scene, and after several rounds of reposts and detailed comparisons, they finally pieced together the true identity of this "passerby" who had righteously intervened.

The heat from Hengrui Group's "Yihe Yipin" incident had yet to fade. Huo Mingjun had attended the press conference and gained a batch of "looks fans" back then. This time, his suspected interaction with Xie Guan triggered a frenzied wave of shipping. Moreover, because Huo Mingjun had paid special attention to the airport incident, all related news consisted only of text descriptions, always prefaced with "it's just hearsay." Not a single picture was leaked. Hengrui Group's control over the news was so tight it was almost airtight, which further solidified Huo Mingjun's domineering CEO persona.

Some onlookers, who loved drama, gleefully explained the industry nightmare known as the "news barrier"—the Huo family had always been extremely guarded about public opinion. Unless they themselves were willing to release information, the media could hardly dig up any valuable news, hence their reputation in the industry as the "news barrier."

With this, Huo Mingjun's image became even more mysterious. Onlookers speculated that perhaps Huo Mingjun had just been passing by and had a random moment of kindness, letting his bodyguards help Xie Guan out. The majority of rational Crab Fans (as Xie Guan's fans call themselves) cautiously suggested that the two might have an unknown friendship. And then there was a small, crazed group of CP fans shouting, "I'm not listening, I'm not listening, this ship is so exciting, please give me more dog food..."

The man himself, Xie Guan, was secretly lurking on his own fans' shipping wars, enjoying himself immensely and laughing so hard under the covers that he pounded the bed. Just then, the bedroom doorknob was turned from the outside. Xie Guan's ears were sharp, and with an agility completely inconsistent with his yet-to-recover state, he instantly shot up, quickly shoved his phone under the pillow, and completed the three fluid motions of hiding, lying down, and playing dead in one second, putting every skill he had ever learned to its ultimate test.

Huo Mingjun pushed the door open, walked up to the "peacefully asleep" Xie Guan, and said expressionlessly, "Still pretending? Hand over the phone."

Xie Guan let out two realistic little snores.

Huo Mingjun: "Are you going to hand it over yourself, or should I take it by force?"

The Sleeping Beauty surnamed Xie finally roused himself. "...Mingjun, what did you just say?"

It was amazing that he could have such acting skills while running a fever, as if he wasn't the same person who had been so clingy and weak in the car, struggling to even get a word out.

Huo Mingjun bent one leg, pressing his knee onto the edge of the bed, and leaned over to search under the pillow. Seeing things were going badly, Xie Guan flusteredly grabbed his wrist and kept trying to dodge, and the two of them scuffled back and forth. In the end, Huo Mingjun pinned Xie Guan over his lap with one hand and confiscated his phone from under the pillow with the other, bringing an end to this kindergarten-level skirmish.

"Patients need entertainment too!" Xie Guan protested. "I can't just lie here and meditate all day long!"

Huo Mingjun was unmoved. "You can sit up and meditate."

Xie Guan: "..."

"Get your sleep, focus on getting better. You're not going back to the set until you've recovered," Huo Mingjun patted him and said ruthlessly, "It doesn't matter who pleads for you."

Xie Guan's phone was confiscated, but the discussions online continued to brew.

In the early hours of the morning, an audience member who had attended the recording of Star Attraction finally connected the "hmj" to the "Huo Mingjun" who had appeared on the big screen, confirming the fact that the two knew each other.

And from the tone of their phone call, they not only knew each other, but seemed to be quite close.

Following that, the masses, who were now running on high octane fueled by the gossip, continued to dig deeper. They unearthed the fact that Xuandu Pictures, a newly established subsidiary of Hengrui Group, was the investor for the film version of The Rising Tides of the Azure Sea.

In the entertainment industry, once interactions between people involve resources and benefits, it's no longer a pure friendship.

Fans and anti-fans, having heard the news, swarmed Xie Guan's Weibo comments. The CP fans, on the other hand, collectively ascended to heaven.

Within the Star Attraction production team, the chief director watched the footage of the "selling melons" segment five or six times over. He knew this segment was a huge bombshell and that the ratings would definitely skyrocket after it aired, but having been immersed in the entertainment industry for many years, he had once tried to bite off more than he could chew, only to chomp down on the "news barrier," leaving him with a psychological scar that he hadn't forgotten to this day.

Although no one in this circle could blot out the sky with one hand, his position was not some eternally secure iron throne. The chief director didn't mind offending some relatively harmless figures for the sake of guaranteeing viewership, but that didn't mean he was noble enough to sacrifice his livelihood for the sake of reporting the truth.

He gritted his teeth in anguish and finally made up his mind: "Cut this part. It can't be aired."

Xie Guan was forced to rest in bed for two days, doing nothing but eat and sleep, completely oblivious to the tumultuous rumors swirling in the outside world. By the time he was up and about again, it was time to return to the film set.

Xie Guan stayed in B City for a total of three days without once stepping into his own home; the entire time was spent in Huo Mingjun's apartment. For ordinary friends, this might seem overly clingy, but the two men themselves were perfectly natural and at ease. Xie Guan, with his straightforward and unthoughtful mindset, assumed everyone in the world was as open and upstanding as he was. Huo Mingjun, on the other hand, had for years been the type to be experiencing an internal apocalypse while appearing calm and unruffled on the surface. Even if he did have some thoughts, with Xie Guan's denseness, it was unlikely he would ever notice.

So when Huo Mingjun woke up early the next day to personally drive Xie Guan to the airport, Xie Guan still hadn't realized what a high level of treatment he was receiving. During the forty-minute drive, he even had time to catch up on sleep. He groggily woke up once when they passed a toll booth, and his eyes fell on Huo Mingjun's focused profile as he drove. He was briefly struck by how handsome he looked, felt a sense of peace in his subconscious, and so closed his eyes and went back to sleep.

Huo Mingjun was a very steady driver, and it wasn't until they pulled into the parking lot that Xie Guan sat up with a dazed look on his face. "We're here...?"

"Mhm," Huo Mingjun casually flattened a lock of hair sticking up on the back of his head. "Your flight leaves in an hour. It's not convenient for me to be seen with you, so I won't walk you in."

"It's fine, no need," Xie Guan said, covering his mouth as he let out a small yawn, preparing to get out of the car. "Thanks for everything. Drive safe on your way back. I'm off."

"Remember to take your medicine on time, get plenty of rest, and don't forget what I told you before," Huo Mingjun said. "Also, I'm going to be dealing with that Zhong Guanhua soon. I'm giving you a heads-up so you're aware. If anyone asks, just pretend you don't know anything."

Xie Guan grunted in acknowledgment. He was rather forgetful and hadn't yet registered why Huo Mingjun was specifically telling him this. "Ask me? He's the one who wanted to pull out, it's not like I snatched his role. They can't sling mud at me, right?"

Huo Mingjun looked at him helplessly for a few seconds. Seeing that Xie Guan was still completely clueless, he couldn't help but reach out and flick him gently on the cheek. "Once the wound heals, you forget the pain."