Chapter 299: Making the world envy her life
The subtle tactic landed perfectly. By neither denying nor confirming outright, she had just confirmed everything.
The reporter’s sly grin widened, his job done, but he pushed once more. "Miss Hua, everyone is jealous of you right now. You have the perfect career, and you have even bagged the perfect man. What can you say about this?"
Hua Ling lowered her lashes, pretending to be bashful, though her mind was razor-sharp. "It is all thanks to Scholar Xu that I have the mental strength I have today," she replied softly. "And, of course, thanks to the fans who have always supported my work. Without them, I would not be standing here. And thanks to Blue Entertainment as well."
The crowd erupted into chatter. Reporters exchanged excited glances. Fans screamed her name louder, some already flooding the internet with clips and posts: "She didn’t deny it! Hua Ling and Xu Ming are real!"
The young reporter bowed lightly and retreated, his smirk hidden from the cameras but not from Hua Ling. She knew exactly what she had orchestrated.
Because this was no accident. This was the very reporter she had quietly instructed beforehand.
The one who would slip in the question at the perfect moment, stir the flames just enough, and make her the undeniable center of attention.
Tonight, Hua Ling wasn’t just dazzling with her career. She was making the world envy her love life too.
She had to be the most talked-about woman in the room—the star who owned not just the stage, but every headline by dawn!
The grand staircase leading into the stadium gleamed under the flood of golden lights.
Hua Ling walked slowly, her heels striking the polished steps like a queen claiming her stage.
Her lips curved into a sly smile. Everything had gone according to plan.
There was no way Lin Qian could show up now.
No dress. No designer. No chance. Hua Ling had shut every door. Even those who might have helped were warned off.
At this very moment, Lin Qian was nothing but a shadow outside the spotlight.
The cheers suddenly swelled again.
On the far side of the carpet, Zhou Ming was finishing an interview.
The cameras had been drowning him in flashes. His tailored suit, his perfectly styled hair—he was every inch an A-lister now.
And all thanks to the movie he had starred in with Hua Ling.
When his eyes caught hers across the carpet, his smile shifted instantly.
It became brighter. Warmer. Real.
Without hesitation, Zhou Ming left the reporters mid-sentence and strode toward her.
The crowd exploded.
Reporters spun around, cameras firing in rapid bursts.
Hua Ling tilted her chin just slightly, her smile widening at the perfect angle.
She extended her hand. Zhou Ming clasped it with both of his, greeting her as though they had been reunited after years apart.
"Ling-jie," he said warmly, his voice carrying over the chaos. "It’s been too long."
The fans lost it.
"Oh my god, is this real?!" someone screamed.
"They’re glowing—look at them together!" another cried.
"I can’t believe Yue Xin and Han Zhi are standing side by side again!"
"Their visuals are insane!"
"Forget everything else, this is the real couple. I ship them!"
The flashing, the shouting, the endless screams—it was pandemonium.
Hua Ling basked in all the praises she was receiving from the fans.
Their shouts were deafening and they almost could not be controlled by the security that had been put in place.
The film Hua Ling and Zhou Ming had starred in was called "Surely, it is you."
The film had a done so well domestically and even international it was critically acclaimed.
Many challenges of the female lead running away at the last moment from the villain into the arms of the main lead had been done a couple million times and it had cemented this film as one of the most popular.
Even though the two leads had ended up together it was still a very heart-wrenching film and now that they had found each other again on the red carpet, the fans could not stop shouting at the sight of the two of them.
The reporters took this chance to ask all the questions they had wanted to ask. They shoved each other up and down trying to get a glimpse of these two on the red carpet together.
One reporter extended his mic towards Hua Ling.
"Miss Hua, how do you feel having met up with one of your co-stars on the red carpet today?"
Hua Ling was in a good mood so she flashed a smile, "It feels very very nice to meet up with him today. It has been a long time since we acted together and the seeing him now brings back so many memories."
Zhou Ling smiled when he heard that. The reporter lifted his mic towards him and he answered simply, "Meeting Ling Jie is always an honor to me because the films popularity was only due to her excellent acting and her star power. We would have never been that popular if it was not for her!"
His words were very right and they were praising Hua Ling so much.
Hua Ling’s smile was so wide that she almost looked like the joker.
The reporters wrote down everything and even asked more questions and the two of them answered quite well.
One reporter had the last question that everyone was dying to hear, "In the film, Yue Xi ends up with Han Zhi so we thought that in the real life Hua Ling would end up with Zhou Ming, now that the reality is much different how do you feel Mr. Zhou?"
The crowd erupted into laughter when they heard that. The reporter was clearly echoing Hua Ling’s earlier interview when she was asked about Xu Ming.
Zhou Ming pretended to be upset, his acting flawless, "My heart was broken to wuwuwu!"
Laughter erupted even more while Hua Ling pretended to blush.
Zhou Ming then said, "Han Zhi is already satisfied but in the real life, Hua Ling belongs to Scholar Xu. The couple looks so good together that I cannot dare come in between the two!"
He was obviously joking and the place was quite lively.
Hua Ling smiled even more but very soon, her smile became very stiff.
Someone from the crowd suddenly shouted, "Wow!"
