Mud beads

The cabin overhead lights came on at 4:30 a.m.

Liang Xia opened her eyes and realized she hadn't slept at all. The plane was descending, and she couldn't see the city outside the window; only the lights on the wings flickered in the darkness.

After the phone signal was restored, messages flooded in all at once.

The agent made seven phone calls. The work group chat was piled high with dozens of unread messages, topped by a screenshot of a trending topic.

Newcomer actor Liang Dong was caught violently assaulting a disabled person in the street, allegedly with a weapon, causing serious injury.

The accompanying images are simple: a close-up of Yu Zhaozu's missing right hand, a screenshot of Liang Dong throwing a punch, and a still from the drama featuring Chen Ye.

Liang Xia turned off the screen and gripped her phone tightly in her hand.

As the plane landed, she dragged her silver suitcase out. The car she had booked in advance was already waiting at the exit. She opened the door and got in. The warm air from the air conditioner mixed with the stench of human breath hit her, and she gagged, but quickly managed to suppress it.

The meeting room of Yuanfan Interactive Entertainment was already full of people.

Empty coffee cups were piled on the long table, bottled water labels were torn into strips, and the whiteboard was covered with platform, brand, and project names. Liang Dong's agent sat in front of the projection screen, his shirt heavily wrinkled and a layer of bluish stubble on his chin.

Upon seeing her enter, the meeting room fell silent briefly before quickly resuming its heated discussion. Liang Xia placed her suitcase against the wall and sat down in the last seat.

The projection screen was playing the entire surveillance footage of the residential area. The agent rewound the footage, stopping at the frame where Yu Zhaozu knocked the phone away.

"The Yu family blocked people first and made the first move," he said. "Releasing the complete surveillance footage can at least prove that Liang Dong did not intentionally injure anyone, and we can attribute it to an act of bravery."

The PR manager crossed his arms: "Would an act of heroism escalate into such a violent fight? In the eyes of fans, the depravity of a popular celebrity dating is no less than beating someone in the street."

"The Yu family is now willing to reconcile."

"After the settlement, will our partners no longer hold us responsible?"

Mr. He sat at one end of the long table, flipping through the materials in front of him. Among them were Liang Dong's business data for the past six months, the increase in followers after the movie's release, search index, brand pricing, and several unstamped cooperation intentions.

He sighed and pushed the documents to the center of the table: "The rivals won't let this opportunity slip by."

After 3 a.m., more than a dozen marketing accounts simultaneously changed their copy. Some edited Liang Dong's fighting scenes from "Letters from the North" into the aftermath of secretly filmed videos, while others dug up clips of his early live streams, saying that he had a gloomy personality and had violent tendencies from an early age. The newcomers that their rivals were promoting had previously had their popularity suppressed by Liang Dong twice, and this time they spent a lot of money to remove one entry and immediately replace it with another.

The legal representative added, "The Yu family is demanding five million, with medical expenses and follow-up treatment to be paid separately. They will only issue a letter of understanding after receiving the money, and they also promise not to accept media interviews."

"The company can afford five million." Mr. He pointed to the risk list on his hand with a pen.

The public relations manager projected another form onto the screen.

Skincare brands have suspended official announcements, two completed TV programs have requested the removal of their scenes, and the production company of a campus drama has sent a risk notification letter. All remaining city roadshows for "Letters from the North" have been cancelled, and several ongoing business projects were also terminated this morning. The total compensation and refunds already requested exceed 30 million yuan, and will continue to increase.

Mr. He leaned back in his chair and looked at everyone at the conference table: "How much will it cost to clean all of this up?"

No one answered immediately.

The PR manager estimated for a moment: "Settlement, project compensation, removal from trending topics, and then negotiating with the platform and brands, 50 million might not be enough. The criminal liability hasn't been determined yet, and every time new information comes out, we'll have to start all over again."

After a long silence, Liang Xia finally spoke: "If we give him five million and get a letter of understanding, will he not have to go to jail?"

The legal counsel glanced at her: "A settlement can only secure a lighter sentence. If the injury assessment determines it's serious, the case can't be dropped."

Upon hearing this, Mr. He rubbed his temples with his fingers.

Liang Dong's commercial value is only just beginning to materialize. He gained mainstream recognition with a supporting role in a film, but he hasn't carried the box office on his own, nor has he starred in any other works to prove his star power. Fans have come quickly, but brands are still observing. Even now, his most memorable work is still in theaters, and the phrase "causing blindness" has already overshadowed his name.

There is never a shortage of young, handsome, and trouble-free male actors in the market.

"Liang Dong is talented," his agent broke the silence first. "We can give him some time..."

Mr. He looked up: "How long?"

The agent did not respond.

"Six months, a year, or three years?" President He closed the documents. "The company will spend fifty million to get him out, settle things, and then wait a few years for the audience to forget. Even if the audience forgets, you know the current policies—how difficult is it for a disgraced artist to make a comeback? How much do you think he can earn for the company in the future?"

After he finished speaking, the conference room fell completely silent.

"The issue now isn't whether Liang Dong can make a comeback," the legal representative raised a hand and spoke again. "The issue now is how to minimize the losses."

He paused for a moment, then added, "If not handled properly, Liang Dong will very likely face a prison sentence of three years or more."

Liang Xia sat at the back, looking down at her hands resting on her knees. She had just gotten her nails done two days ago, costing almost five hundred yuan. When paying, she didn't think about anything, just waved her hand and the money was swiped.

Liang Dong became famous too quickly in the movie, so quickly that everyone thought the money was already in his pocket. But the apartment was rented, the car belonged to the company, and it was unclear whether the clothes delivered by the brand were actually gifts or loans. His face had just been printed on the mall's big screen, and before he could get anything in return, he had already become a bad debt on the spreadsheet that needed to be dealt with.

After a flurry of discussion in the meeting room, a final decision was quickly made. The company suspended all of Liang Dong's work, halted new promotional investments, and the business department negotiated a separation with the brand and platform. The legal department continued to follow up, striving to minimize Liang Dong's criminal liability, but the agency reserved the right to seek compensation from the artist.

The agent stood up: "If he gives up now, he's completely finished."

"Follow the stop-loss plan for now. Continue to fight for the legal outcome, and keep business operations up to today." General Manager He picked up his pen and signed the meeting minutes at the end. "The company has done everything it could."

The agent's face remained tense for a long time, but in the end, he said nothing. He picked up the complete surveillance footage and legal documents from the table, pushed open the door, and went out to continue making phone calls.

The people in the meeting room gradually left.

Liang Xia remained seated in the same place.

The cleaning staff came in to collect the cups, pouring the now-cold coffee into the trash can one by one. Dark brown liquid spilled onto the crumpled tissue, quickly forming a clump. The projector remained untouched; the risk chart was still displayed on the screen, Liang Dong's name in the upper left corner, followed by a long string of numbers.

It took Liang Xia a long time to get up.

She dragged her suitcase downstairs, the wheels making a hollow sound as they rolled over the polished stone surface of the lobby. Outside the glass doors, it was already bright daylight, and the morning rush hour crowds passed by her.

The taxi stopped in front of her, and the driver got out to open the trunk for her.

"Where to?" the driver asked.

Liang Xia sat in the back seat and did not answer immediately.

She seemed to have nowhere to go.

It seems that she and Liang Dong have never stopped wandering.

She looked down at the apartment address saved on her phone for a while.

"Go here."

Liang Xia handed her phone to the driver.