The Martial Artist Turned Movie Mogul
Chapter 1001 - 1000. Are they internet water army or haters? (Fourth update)

Chapter 1001: 1000. Are they internet water army or haters? (Fourth update)

This person isn’t normal, Wen Nuan thought.

"It’s the acupoints sealing the Gu insect. Don’t bother studying it—based on your current abilities, you can’t unseal it. It’ll remain locked inside your body."

"There are so many people in the village, and plenty of them surround me. Why did you single me out?"

"Because of the sharp grass. You mentioned it can detoxify miasma, which is true, but its primary use should be to release miasma. I noticed that within a kilometer outside the village, it’s growing everywhere, and even within Collar Village, your house has the most of it. That suggests you frequently use it."

"You’re right, that’s indeed the case,"

Ah Cui nodded. "Sharp grass can not only detoxify miasma but also release it. The village is full of sharp grass but lacks miasma because nearby there’s a specific type of Yellow Scarlet Flower planted."

She looked up at Tang Shu. "You’re quite astute."

"..."

What’s it like to be called smart by a younger girl? Wen Nuan and the others felt their hairs standing on end, chills running down their spines.

Tang Shu said nothing either, her gaze growing colder. She then took a few steps forward, standing in front of Ah Cui, observing her for a while.

"Why are you staring at me?"

"..."

Tang Shu turned and left. Wen Nuan followed closely behind. When the two reached a large tree in Collar Village, Wen Nuan finally asked,

"What’s going on? Is there something you haven’t said yet?"

"She’s not 17 or 18, not some young girl."

What?!

This was impossible. No matter her physique or appearance, she looked very youthful, certainly no older than twenty. How could Wen Nuan not at least recognize that?

Wait, given that legendary Gu insects actually exist, perhaps youth-preserving techniques aren’t so hard to believe either?

What is all this... Wen Nuan felt like the scientific principles she’d trusted for over twenty years were about to collapse.

"Xiao Shu, please speak human language."

"It’s the Gu insects. She has more than one Mother Gu inside her—how old she actually is, I can’t discern. But there’s no question this person isn’t normal."

"..."

"Why are you making that face? The existence of Gu insects is perfectly reasonable—they’re just a means to an end, nothing supernatural. Don’t look like your worldview is shattering."

Tang Shu was utterly unimpressed with her friend’s increasingly cracked expression. She hadn’t even gotten to the more fantastical parts yet—was this really all it took to break her? Your mental resilience isn’t great, Captain.

Wen Nuan wiped her face and finally pointed toward the group of slightly dazed women. "Can the Gu insects in them be removed?"

"Not exactly."

"What do you mean ’not exactly’?"

"Forcibly extracting both Mother and Child Gu would damage their mind. If you’re okay with that, I could try. But if you want them to remain normal villagers, you’d need me to extract the Mother Gu while leaving the Child Gu inside them."

"Leave it inside them? Are you kidding?"

"Not at all. I’m entirely serious."

"So they just have to keep it? Won’t it affect their health?"

"Using medical methods, this is as far as I can go."

Tang Shu thought for a moment. "Didn’t you mention external help earlier? If their willpower is strong enough, hypnosis could allow them to recover slowly. That’s the only option."

Wen Nuan wiped her face again.

***

Imperial Capital.

Xu Corporation’s stocks continued to plummet. The entertainment reporters gathered outside the company headquarters still hadn’t managed to interview Eldest Miss Xu, and reluctantly shifted their focus elsewhere.

So that afternoon, as Luo Lin stepped into Starshine Media wearing high heels, she discovered twice as many journalists congregating outside as usual.

"What’s going on now? Did our precious troublemaker stir up some groundbreaking scandal again?"

By the time she’d finished arming herself and reached her office, ten minutes had already passed.

Shen Yan had ruffled his hair into a bird’s nest, looking as chaotic as he felt.

"This time, it’s not something our boss stirred up, nor is it from those bored veteran fans—it’s from legitimate keyboard warriors."

"What? Can you clarify?"

Baffled, Luo Lin started scrolling Xu Corporation’s official social media comments page after Shen Yan’s explanation. Faced with endless waves of posts, she stared speechlessly for quite a while.

"Ahem, are you sure these... um... irrational keyboard warriors aren’t Tang Shu’s fans?"

"Not entirely certain. I tracked some of their IDs—about half of them only started following our boss’s social media in the last three or four days. They’re not veteran fans and haven’t joined any Support Club groups, so the admins can’t do much about them."

"..."

A third wave of fandom? Seriously?

Luo Lin was genuinely stunned that Tang Shu could attract such a diverse fanbase—not only devoted fans and haters, but now these new ones obsessed with her mysterious background.

This also meant these fans were harder to manage, especially since her agency couldn’t intervene.

"And the other half?"

"They’re paid trolls,"

Shen Yan’s expression turned strange. "Honestly, this mess really has nothing to do with us. These trolls are clearly targeting the Xu Corporation, while the small portion of new fans merely piggybacked on their posts to toss in their comments. I’ve seen the news—Xu Corporation’s stock has already fallen four consecutive days."

This clearly must be the Xu Family’s longstanding rival at work—it really isn’t tied to our boss!

Luo Lin nodded thoughtfully. "If that’s confirmed, your explanation makes sense."

"Should we intervene?"

"Intervene in what? Are you brain-damaged? Whatever trouble Eldest Miss Xu caused has nothing to do with us. I certainly don’t have the patience for it."

Luo Lin held a particularly poor opinion of Xu Qianyu—very poor.

Her job often brought her face-to-face with executives from major companies. While the Xu Family hadn’t dabbled in entertainment, they’d crossed paths in various situations, leaving her with unpleasant impressions.

Shen Yan shrugged but offered a reminder, "Still, Sister Luo, be careful when leaving work. There are loads of reporters downstairs—I had to fend them off just to get up here."

"Got it. We’ll just watch the chaos quietly—treat it as free theater,"

she said, relishing the thought of someone else stirring trouble. Who told that Eldest Miss Xu to speak out of turn?

At this moment, Luo Lin felt conflicted joy—pleased that someone else’s misfortune amused her, frustrated that the reporters downstairs were hobbling other company operations.

But her plans to enjoy the spectacle didn’t last long. No—not even half a day, as the situation took a sudden turn by the afternoon.

It started when Shen Yan asked the Support Club admins about the new fans. Once they realized Xu Corporation’s official social media had been overrun, they went to investigate.