As expected, the second episode of True Star Training Cla.s.s continued to rouse the interest of numerous people. The ratings for the second episode broke the record the first had set. The spike in ratings, however, had nothing to do with Tang Feng this time. Although Tang Feng was skilled in both singing and piano, Ge Chenâs fall from his horse had stolen everyoneâs attention this week. When the segment containing Ge Chenâs fall came on TV, the ratings had spiked up to a record high for the episode.
The day after, a representative from Su Entertainment announced that Ge Chen had suffered slight shock and a leg injury from the incident and was undergoing treatment at the hospital. The representative added that Ge Chen fell because his horse had been startled by something and started galloping wildly. Fortunately, Ge Chen had only suffered minor injuries. He would be back to full health after resting for a few months. The representative ended by thanking everyone for their concern.
The horses at the riding field had all been trained since they were foals. Under normal circ.u.mstances, it was very rare for them to go mad and start galloping wildly. Tang Feng had watched the initial recording of the episode and discovered something while examining the footage. The horse Ge Chen had been riding on was restless and jittery from the start. It obviously didnât start going mad in the middle of recording.
From the symptoms the horse had been exhibitingâŠit seemed like it had been injected with a stimulant.
He was an idol who had debuted at the same time as Ge Chen, but his luck was unbelievably awful; a dark cloud seemed to continuously hang over his future as an actor. The difference between his dismal luck and Ge Chenâs rampant popularity was as great as the distance between the sky and the ground.
To add to this unfortunate situation, it had been exposed only a few days earlier that he had deliberately pushed Ge Chen off the boat during filming.
By joining the training cla.s.s, Ge Chen proved to be a threat to everyone involved. Tang Fengâs chances of being a potential suspect were the greatest out of all the trainees.
Even if the Tian Chen Group had sent out a representative to publicly refute the false theories when they caught wind of the rumors, remarks such as âTang Feng had deliberately tried to set up Ge Chen with an âaccidentââ were already floating around popular news sites and forums as people continued to fan the fire. The false theories spread around the web faster than a computer virus. Even though there was proof that Tang Feng hadnât injected the horse with a stimulant as he wasnât at the scene during the incident, someone would always jump out and claim that Tang Feng could have had an accomplice.
Moreover, Ge Chen chose to remain quiet on the matter. His silence only fueled the suspicions of the public.
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âWhy is he doing this?â Tang Feng stared at the city through the floor-to-ceiling windows inside the Tian Chen Groupâs presidentâs office. It was a dark and gloomy day. The lead-colored sky was overcast with thick layers of dark clouds, looking like it was about to rain.
He turned to face Lu Tian Chen. âIâm not the one who injected Ge Chenâs horse with the stimulant, but it seems heâs perfectly fine with letting the public think otherwise. I donât know what I had done to provoke him this much and make him use even his injury to slander my name. Heâs not even attempting to find the real culprit, but instead wants to s.h.i.+ft the blame to someone else. President Lu, what a wonderful person you have chosen.â
Tang Fengâs voice made it clear that he was mocking Lu Tian Chen. He wasnât narrow-minded enough to be angered by the groundless claims everyone was making, but he did find the whole situation ridiculous.
He could disregard the bunch of obscene remarks about him on the internet. But if someone was trying to push him to his limits by slandering his name again and again, then he was going to let the other person know that he wasnât a pushover who was going to endure it in silence.
As someone who had been working in the entertainment industry for almost twenty years, Tang Feng immediately noticed Ge Chenâs intentions. If he hadnât, he might as well return to the afterworld and give up on being an actor.
Even if he was a good person, it didnât mean that he would allow himself to be bullied by others. Tang Feng didnât think of himself as an especially good person in any case.
As for media and public relations, he would leave them for his agency to deal with. In his past life, being framed for a crime he didnât do never happened. Because if someone dared to frame him and went to court with him, then they would certainly lose their entire family fortune in the process. However, when in Rome, do as the Romans do. Tang Feng was still unfamiliar with Chinaâs rules and regulations, so it was best to leave it up to the professionals.
The gossip by the public and the wildly untrue, paid comments by the Water Army were still going rampant on the internet. Tang Feng had come to Lu Tian Chenâs office as he believed that this president who was in an intimate relations.h.i.+p with Ge Chen could give him an explanation.
âI know youâre very angry, but anger wonât solve anything. Come sit.â Lu Tian Chen walked toward the table near the windows while holding two gla.s.ses of wine. As always, both his expression and voice were rather indifferent.
Tang Feng walked over slowly and sat down in front of Lu Tian Chen. He picked up a gla.s.s and took a sip of the golden liquid inside. âI simply do not want to take responsibility for something I have not done. Nor do I want to lower my head cowardly and continue to let people smear my image however they want. Since itâs already come to this point, if I continue to remain silent, Iâll only give others the idea that Iâm easy to bully. In the future, someone will try to smear my image a second time. There will be a second Ge Chen.â
He didnât care that the public was ridiculing him as a form of amus.e.m.e.nt, but he couldnât stand being unjustly blamed for something he didnât do.
âYouâre an employee of the Tian Chen Group, my company. No one can spread rumors about you and smear your image.â
Tang Feng couldnât resist a chuckle. He bantered, âPresident Lu, I am indeed an employee of the Tian Chen Group, but right now someone is indeed spreading rumors about me. Not only that, thereâs a bunch of people online accusing me of things and trying to smear my image.â