**Chapter 73**
She’s having a baby?
Who?
Zheng Xinran?
Xu Lanfeng froze, like she’d just seen her idol’s career implode. It took her a while to regain her composure.
No way! Zheng Xinran doesn’t even have a boyfriend—just one rumored fling, and now this?
Suddenly, Xu Lanfeng remembered the tabloid report from last month about that rumored person being spotted near Zheng Xinran’s home. Both sides’ studios had denied it, but now everything felt shady.
Don’t do this to me, Zheng Xinran!
Song Hezhu looked at Xu Lanfeng and thought poor Lanlan couldn’t catch a break—she’d just lost one ult bias at the start of the month, and now another.
Song Hezhu comforted her warmly: “Lan, if you stan-hop fast enough, the collapses won’t catch up to you.”
Xu Lanfeng looked devastated.
Meanwhile, many fans nearby had also heard the rumor.
Zheng Xinran is having a baby?
Come on!
These tabloids have no shame. Can’t they even look with their own eyes? Our girl clearly isn’t pregnant!
Zheng Xinran urged her manager, “We need to go. Now.”
“Alright, alright, Xinran, don’t worry.”
Zheng Xinran didn’t relax until they were on the plane. She pulled down her mask, her face etched with exhaustion, but still asked, “Who leaked the itinerary?”
Her manager said she didn’t know. Still shaken by what had happened, she added, “Only a handful knew about the trip. I’ll investigate thoroughly. You just focus on having a safe delivery.”
Zheng Xinran wanted to help but felt powerless. She nodded and said, “Thanks for everything, Huang Jie.”
Huang Wei paused, then smiled. “This is nothing. If you hadn’t fought for me back then, I’d probably be on the streets by now. Don’t stress—I’ve got your back. I’ll handle everything for you.”
“Thank you, Huang Jie.”
Back at the airport.
Lin Xiawan’s flight was delayed, so the group sat waiting for updates.
Xu Lanfeng scrolled through her phone, scrambling to find a new bias to fill the void.
This one?
Nah, too overexposed.
How about this one?
No good—he always starts drama and mooches off his female co-stars.
Hmm. Xu Lanfeng switched back—this one might work.
He's actually pretty good-looking.
And Xu Lanfeng has a vague impression of this guy—a guy with a clean image, never stirs up drama, skilled but keeps a low profile.
Just not very popular.
Talk about an underrated gem! Alright, it's decided—you're the one.
Just as Xu Lanfeng was about to jump on the bandwagon, she saw a hashtag blow up.
At the top of the list was Zheng Xinran’s name.
Actually, Zheng Xinran had already been trending earlier, but when Xu Lanfeng clicked in, it was just footage of her at the airport. Xu Lanfeng brushed it off, figuring it was still the same old news—until now.
Xu Lanfeng gasped loudly, drawing everyone’s attention. Song Hezhu asked, "Lan, what’s up?"
Xu Lanfeng said, "Zheng Xinran’s pregnancy and baby news is blowing up online."
At the same time, Zheng Xinran’s previous rumored partner also made it to the trending list. Xu Lanfeng grumbled, "No way, it’s him?"
Lin Tingyue, who was looking down at her phone, said, "Nope, not him."
Huh?
Then who the heck is it?
"The father of Zheng Xinran’s baby is Lu Xingchao."
Lu Xingchao… That name sounded familiar. Xu Lanfeng froze—wasn’t that the same wholesome guy she’d been ready to stan?
Xu Lanfeng felt a wave of frustration. What’s even real in showbiz these days?
"Speaking of which, this Lu Xingchao is a total dirtbag. He’s always idolized Zheng Xinran, simping for her for years. Last year, Zheng Xinran finally relented, and they got together. Zheng Xinran actually wanted to get married and have kids. When she got pregnant, she wanted to announce it, but Lu Xingchao refused, saying he was worried it would affect her career."
"Zheng Xinran rarely plays up any personas, and besides, she’s long past the age where marriage and kids would be an issue—who cares? If anything, it’s Lu Xingchao who’d be hit hard. He’s been selling himself as ‘boyfriend material,’ relying on his clean image and good looks to attract armies of stans. Going public would’ve wrecked *him*, not her."
So Zheng Xinran was tricked by a scumbag? Xu Lanfeng leaned in.
Exactly. Zheng Xinran is almost 32. If she chooses to marry and have kids, no big deal.
Only now did Xu Lanfeng understand. She felt a little guilty and decided to backpedal hard.
"Dragging it out until now, Zheng Xinran is almost due. To keep it under wraps, she had to go abroad to give birth. But she probably never expected Lu Xingchao was scheming against her, planning to ruin her reputation. He’s the one who leaked her itinerary."
What a sleazeball. How can people like this exist in the world?
Xu Lanfeng gritted her teeth in anger, but the boarding call sounded, and she had to board the plane.
The next time she heard news about Zheng Xinran was three days later.
Zheng Xinran released all her chat logs with Lu Xingchao, including him begging her not to go public, and after she got pregnant, pleading with her not to abort the baby.
There were also messages where Zheng Xinran flew abroad, and Lu Xingchao sweetly promised he’d hurry over to join her—things like that.
It was the nail in his coffin.
That evening, Zheng Xinran went live.
In the livestream, she looked clearly worn out, but her eyes were as sharp as ever, reminding everyone of her brilliant performances on screen.
Zheng Xinran said she was initially taken in by Lu Xingchao’s smooth talk and agreed to be with him.
Now that she’s seen his true colors, she’s decided to break up with him.
She also said the price of misplaced trust is high, but she has no regrets. No use crying over spilled milk—what’s done is done. Instead of staying stuck in regret, she’d rather move forward bravely and solve the problem.
She told every girl to value herself and encouraged those who had been deceived, saying a little shade won’t dull a pearl’s shine.
In the end, Zheng Xinran said every girl is a beautiful pearl.
And now, she already has her own little pearl.
After this livestream, Zheng Xinran didn’t lose any fans—in fact, she gained hundreds of thousands of followers overnight.
Lin Tingyue, Bai Yaxin, and Lin Xiawan all became Zheng Xinran fans, and Xu Lanfeng bounced back, declaring Zheng Xinran her ultimate idol—no more switching favorites.
...
Since Lin Tingyue joined Song Hezhu and the others for a get-together once, they often invited her along for future hangouts.
Lin Tingyue joked, “I feel like I’ve become your honorary member.”
Song Hezhu threw an arm around her shoulder and laughed heartily.
Everyone silently thought, *Honorary? More like our mole.*
But today, while grilling at this campsite, there shouldn’t be any drama, right?
“We’ve got gossip!”
Seriously? Even here?
Everyone turned their heads and saw Qin Tiangong walking over with a big watermelon.
Oh. Just a literal watermelon.
Qin Tiangong felt the vibe and asked, “Not excited for watermelon?”
The group nodded half-heartedly. “Yeah, thrilled.”
Song Hezhu asked, “Where’d you even get a watermelon?”
As he sliced it, Qin Tiangong replied, “The owner grew it in a greenhouse. But it’s the season’s last haul.”
After cutting it up, Qin Tiangong told everyone to dig in. Lin Tingyue took a bite—not summer-sweet, but still crisp, sweet, and juicy.
“So…”
Song Hezhu’s eyes gleamed, and Qin Tiangong knew she was plotting something.
He cut her off. “Don’t mention Xiao Hao.”
That caught the gossip-hungry group’s attention. Song Hezhu burst out laughing. “So… what happened between you two after that?”
Qin Tiangong muttered gloomily, “What do you think? Blocked, deleted—done and dusted.”
“Did you have to go nuclear? You could’ve kept gaming together.”
Qin Tiangong buried his face in his hands, miserable. "Every time I play games with him, I picture him in drag."
Everyone burst into laughter.
Qin Tiangong sighed helplessly, "Can we just mind our own business?"
"Got it, got it."
After being coworkers this long, they all knew that teasing him occasionally helped him get used to it, but pushing too far might make Qin Tiangong lose his temper.
They stopped at the right moment. After finishing the watermelon, they started preparing the ingredients for the evening barbecue.
The grill was provided by the campsite; all they needed to do was skewer the ingredients they brought and brush on the sauce.
As they worked and chatted, the sound of an argument came from nearby.
With perfect synchronization, they all fell silent, stopped what they were doing, and strained to listen.
But it was too far away to hear clearly—only phrases like "You've got no shame!" and "You're despicable!" reached them.
Song Hezhu suggested, "Let's take a break from saucing and go see what the fuss is about first?"
Everyone eagerly agreed, "That's why you're the boss."
With that, they took off running.
Song Hezhu: "..."
By the time they arrived, quite a crowd had already gathered—just like Song Hezhu and her group, they had rushed over from nearby to watch the drama.
* * *
Lin Tingyue remarked, "Nosiness is hardwired in all of us."
Even though they were being watched, the two arguing showed no signs of stopping.
"I never knew you were this kind of person. You already made plans with me, yet you went and asked another girl out? Are you that lazy? Even if you're dating around, at least spread them out—one girl a day, okay? This just makes me look like an idiot."
"I told you, I don’t even know her! She came onto me and said her hand was hurt, so I checked it for her."
"Checked? My ass!"
Fu Qiao was seeing red. Shi Feizhou had always been her *crush*, and she had been overjoyed when he invited her out. But then she arrived only to witness this scene.
Even though he was her *crush*, Fu Qiao couldn't tolerate this—she wasn't that far gone.
Shi Feizhou was just as frustrated.
He pulled the person hiding behind him and whispered, "Back me up here!"
But she just stood there with reddened eyes, stammering. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't get a word out. Shi Feizhou grew even more annoyed. "Who the hell are you?"
Lin Tingyue also wanted to know—who turned out to be the one who gave her the surprise of her life. "What era is this? They still have child brides these days?"