The internet was in uproar. Fans dug up every shred of the past and found evidence against Yu Xinjie and Zhao Mei. Even the phone call from Yu Xinjie in the broadcast of ‘Wife and I’ was intercepted and interpreted. The situation fit perfectly.
People sympathized with Yu Yaoyao, that she had taken the phone call from her family even when she was busy with her show. She had always provided for her family and yet, always blamed and shamed for it.
They understood why she didn’t want to go home to her maiden family. They understood the psychological trauma that her stepmother and stepsister caused her over the years:
[If I were her, I would not go home either! Would I be so stupid to the extent that I take initiative to give my head away, or even to have my blood sucked?]
[After enduring it for five years, she is now providing for herself by working. Her husband’s company experienced a crisis just a while ago, and these two had no money to ask from. Now that they suddenly are doing well, this seemed obvious that they are them for money again!]
Yu Yaoyao was unaffected. Most of the brunt of the internet was directed to Zhao Mei and Yu Xinjie. The next day, Yu Yaoyao still attended the script-reading on time. They had reached the part where Yu Yaoyao’s character finds out proof of her husband’s affair. She squatted at the gate of the community and cried out. Yu Yaoyao’s face was full of tears when she reached that part. The mood was only made better by the milk tea ordered by the assistant director. But her eyes were red and swollen when she returned to the hotel room.
The reporters and photographers lurking around the hotel quickly got up and clicked her pictures as she approached. Her red eyes didn’t go unnoticed. It was obvious that she had been crying.
“Madam Yu, we are sorry to disturb you. Would you mind sharing with us if you have contacted your family since yesterday?” questioned the reporters, “Did they talk to you about anything?”
“Did they come forward to apologize to you?” another asked.
“Do you know who broke the news to the reporter yesterday? Was it your sister?”
“Those mentioned on the Internet, about your limited bags and clothes being snatched away by your sister…Are they true?”
The reporters all had their microphones pointing at Yu Yaoyao for her answer. The scene would have overwhelmed anybody. Yu Yaoyao’s eyes were swollen, and her voice was hoarse.
“I…,” she tried.
Her voice was hoarse from reading the script non-stop this morning. She had had to cry and yell at Wei Ming, who played the husband. They had been so engrossed that they had used their maximum energy in the reading. As a result, her voice had become hoarse and strained.
Please read the original translations at Lunarletters dot com
The reporters didn’t know this. They thought that the news about her crying and fainting the other day was real. Seeing her today, they were sure that whatever happening was having a very big effect on her.
“Madam Yu, can you still speak? If you can’t, can you nod and shake your head to answer our questions?” suggested by a reporter.
Yu Yaoyao shook her head and delicately put her hands on her chest, swallowing with difficulty. “Sorry, I can’t give an interview right now,” she said finally.
The reporters followed her through the hotel hallways. She stooped on the stairs to her room and turned around. “I would appreciate it if you could please stop following me,” she said tiredly, “My husband is not here right now. It is not appropriate for men to follow. Otherwise I might be accused of something untrue and it will make the headlines again. Please.”
She walked to her room and closed the door. The reporters were stunned. The reporters usually were very aggressive when they wanted an interview. But her words had shocked them. This had happened before. Her younger sister had posted her photo, which was obviously photoshopped, of her meeting a man in secret in a hotel room. The reporters assumed that she had been hurt a lot by that news, even though later it was proven to be fake. Had she completely lost her trust in people? Although they didn’t get an interview with her, it didn’t stop them from creating and publishing their own version of the story:
‘Yu Yaoyao is at the extreme point of mental fragility after being falsely accused!’
‘Losing voice, swollen eyes, crying all night, already on the verge of collapse in the morning…’
‘Reporters turned down for an interview outside her door just because she was scared to be framed again. She no longer dares to be alone with a reporter in a room!’
‘Yu Yaoyao locked herself in the room because her husband was not around! There is no cost for framing. Her younger sister has to reflect on her actions. The society also needs a reflection on cyber violence!’
After these new headlines, fans rallied to her support. The fans felt enraged that strong, self-sufficient Yu Yaoyao who had seemed so unyielding and brave in the broadcast of ‘My Wife and I’ had been so broken down. She had taken everything in stride and dealt with problems with a smile and elegance. Even when she had been accused and questioned about her affair with Chen Jiao, she had stayed strong, calm and posted a clarification on her Weibo. During preparation for ‘In the Limelight’ she had declared with confidence that she would one day become a formidable and accomplished actress that could stand shoulder to shoulder with Shen Yichong.
The fans who had watched her grow from an actress taking on simple, small roles to being a talented and loved celebrity had never seen her so helpless and sad. It broke their hearts and they directed their distress in the form of anger towards Zhao Mei and Yu Xinjie:
[Cancel Yu Xinjie, cancel stepmother, cancel biological father. They need to apologize to her today!]
[UP! Don’t even think about getting off from the hot search if you haven’t apologized already! Let’s bump up these headlines so they know they can’t escape!]