Hear this life

Wen Tingli's statement caused a stir in the press and film circles.

The direction of public opinion reversed within one day, but there were still many people in society who were skeptical about this. Some people went to the Public Trial Bureau of the French Concession to verify it, but unexpectedly they received confirmation from the staff on the spot: they had indeed received two petitions from Miss Wen, and the relevant witnesses and evidence in the case had also arrived, and they would handle the case according to law.

Due to the high level of public attention, the police station quickly intervened in the investigation of the case and soon announced the results of the investigation: Wen Xiaotao's biological mother was undoubtedly Mrs. Wen, and the so-called "Wen Xiaotao is Wen Tingli's illegitimate daughter" was purely a malicious slander.

In addition to the delivery record sheet from four years ago provided by Ci Xin Hospital, the key evidence also includes a piece of solid evidence provided by an important party in this case. However, due to privacy issues, the police decided not to announce it to the public at the request of the party involved.

On the same day that the police station issued the investigation report, the lawsuit filed by Wen Tingli against Chen Maoqing and newspapers such as the Hujiang Tabloid for spreading rumors officially entered the process.

Wen Tingli requested the court to hold a public trial of the case. When the news came out, there was an uproar in the community, as it meant that everyone could go to the trial on the day of the trial.

In court, Chen Maoqing and others hesitated and could not produce any evidence when faced with questions from lawyer Liu Yaqiao.

The citizens in the gallery were so angry that they could not help but rush to the railing and throw egg shells and orange peels at the clowns. Chen Maoqing was beaten to a bloody mess on the spot and the scene was in chaos.

At the second hearing, the judge announced that Wen Tingli won the case. At the same time, he ordered Chen Maoqing, reporters from the Shanghai Tabloid, the Shanghai Morning Post and other related organizations to compensate Wen Tingli for her reputation loss of 4,000 yuan, and ordered them to publicly apologize to Ms. Wen Tingli within ten days.

After the court session, Wen Tingli came out accompanied by lawyer Liu Yaqiao. As soon as she reached the steps, she heard applause from all around. Looking around, she saw that they were all citizens who came spontaneously to listen to the trial.

"Miss Wen, well done!" Everyone's eyes were filled with excitement. "Good will prevail over evil! You finally won the case. We are all happy for you!"

Wen Tingli never sheds tears in public, but at this moment, facing so many enthusiastic faces, she was choked with sobs and unable to speak.

***
The day after winning the lawsuit happened to be the premiere day of "Sweeney Detective".

At noon, a long queue formed in front of the International Cinema.

In the evening, Mrs. Zhou followed Wen Tingli's instructions and brought Xiao Taozi to attend the premiere. Before she even got out of the car, she was overwhelmed by the huge crowds of people at the entrance of the cinema. Xiao Taozi curiously tapped the car window with her two little hands: "Mrs. Zhou, look, there are so many people there."

Mrs. Zhou was so shocked that her tongue was tied. "Yes, are all these people here to watch your sister's play?"

The driver, Lao Li, smiled and said, "That's right, Miss Wen's play is really popular before it even hits theaters."

Mrs. Zhou was so happy that she didn't know what to say. She turned her head and saw Xiao Taozi lowering her head to take out snacks from the paper bag. She hurriedly advised: "Good baby, this thing is very greasy. If you eat too much, you will get diarrhea."

At this moment, Wen Tingli was busy putting on makeup backstage at the Wanguo Cinema. According to Liu Menglin's previous promise to the outside world, she would go on stage to interact with fans after the premiere of "Fair Detective" tonight.

A large group of people surrounded her and showed their courtesy. Wen Tingli responded as usual, but she couldn't help feeling a little emotional. Yesterday, most people in the industry were avoiding her as much as possible, but in just one night, they all put on a collective, enthusiastic face.

But she was very open-minded about it. Human nature always has both bright and dark sides, and her greatest strength is that she knows how to respect human nature and deal with it appropriately. Seeing more and more people gathered around her, she waved to the mirror excitedly: "Xiao Chen, please help me call Mantingfang to order two tables of midnight snacks, the most sumptuous ones, I will treat everyone to a midnight snack tonight."

Everyone cheered enthusiastically. The theater's deputy manager Shi took the opportunity to join in the fun and said, "Since Miss Wen is inviting us to dinner, why don't we at the International Cinema join in the fun? To celebrate the success of the premiere of "My Fair Detective," how about I treat everyone to ice cream?"

Everyone became more and more amused: "Manager Shi, you are taking advantage of Miss Wen."

Wen Tingli walked out of the crowd with a smile on her face. The movie was about to start and the audience had already taken their seats. She chose the right moment to walk behind the curtain on the side of the stage, raised a small telescope, and quietly looked towards the audience seats.

The cinema was already packed. When she saw this, she exclaimed inwardly, who else could that be but Mr. Kuang?

He arrived as promised and brought several friends with him.

She cast a grateful glance in the direction of Kuang Zhilin, then raised the telescope again to look towards the VIP seats.

However, there was no sign of Lu Shicheng.

Just as I took the telescope away from my eyes, a staff member came hurriedly and said, "The movie is about to start. Manager Shi, please go to the VIP room to have some tea and rest."

The movie lasted for an hour and a half. During this time, Wen Tingli and Manager Shi kept craning their necks to observe the reactions in the audience. Although the International Cinema did not give up the premiere rights of "Sophie Detective" because of this incident, they had no idea whether the movie would be a hit.

However, as they watched, Manager Shi's frown relaxed, and his eyes gradually sparkled with excitement. The audience laughed at every turn. Sometimes the plot was so exciting that they were so nervous that they gasped. But when the truth was revealed in the end, the audience took out their handkerchiefs to wipe their tears.

As an experienced cinema manager, Manager Shi knows that only a hearty movie-watching experience can bring about such performance.

At this point, his heart finally settled down, and he said to Wen Tingli with a flushed face, "Congratulations, Miss Wen. You can prepare the champagne!"

Wen Tingli's eyes were slightly red, but there was a steady smile on her lips. After going through so many ups and downs, her heart was as solid as a rock. Compared to the panic and helplessness she felt when "Beauty of the South" was first released, this time she felt more calm and composed.

Manager Shi's prediction was exactly right. When the screening ended and Wen Tingli and several other leading actors came on stage, there was prolonged applause from the audience. Some fans even wanted to rush onto the stage to shake hands with the leading actors. The commotion at the scene lasted for several minutes.

Many people shouted in the audience: "I haven't seen enough, I want to watch the second part!"

"That's right, let's keep filming "Sophie Fletcher."

Wen Tingli was caught off guard and smiled brilliantly. She walked to the center of the audience to interact with the fans. Assistant Director Tan said on the stage with great interest, "Thank you all for your love for this film. We will consider this suggestion carefully."

After the show, Wen Tingli was still immersed in high spirits. Surrounded by her colleagues, she returned to the backstage chatting and laughing. When she asked about Mrs. Zhou and Xiao Taozi, the driver Lao Li said that they had left a long time ago.

"Just halfway through the movie, the young lady had a stomachache. Mrs. Zhou hurriedly took her out to the toilet, but she still pooped in her pants, so she had to take the child home first." The driver, Lao Li, said, "I was going to take them home, but Mrs. Zhou was worried that I wouldn't be able to get back in time to pick up Miss Wen. Fortunately, Mr. Meng Qiguang drove by and the young lady knew him, so she got in his car and left."

"Mr. Meng?!"

Old Li nodded: "Yes, Mrs. Zhou was afraid of dirtying Mr. Meng's car, but Mr. Meng said it didn't matter at all. By the way, Miss Wen, are we going home directly now?"

Wen Tingli woke up as if from a dream and said hurriedly, "Go home immediately."

Passing by a Wuzhou Pharmacy on the way, Wen Tingli asked Lao Li to stop the car and buy some children's antidiarrhea medicine. After arriving home, Wen Tingli first put her ear to the door and listened vaguely, and heard Xiao Taozi and Zhou Sao talking in the living room.

When I opened the door, I saw Xiao Taozi and Mrs. Zhou sitting at the door of the toilet washing their faces. Xiao Taozi had already changed into a new set of clothes.

"Who sent you back?" Wen Tingli stood at the door and looked around.

"Mr. Meng, didn't Old Li tell you?" Mrs. Zhou looked around following Wen Tingli's gaze and suddenly understood, "He left a long time ago. He sent Xiao Taozi and me home and left."

Wen Tingli didn't ask any more questions. She squatted down and looked at Xiao Taozi's face with concern. She handed the medicine bag in her hand to Zhou Sao: "Are you still having diarrhea?"

"No more. Hey, Mr. Meng also bought your medicine on the way. He said to try one dose first and see if it doesn't get better, then go to a regular hospital as soon as possible. I wanted to give him the money, but he drove away without saying a word."

At this point, Mrs. Zhou blinked her eyes: "The Mr. Meng that Xiao Taozi mentioned last time, is he the gentleman here tonight? Did he also buy those toys? This man is very patient with Xiao Taozi, and he kept telling her stories on the way. This Mr. Meng is with you——"

Wen Tingli interrupted Mrs. Zhou: "I'm a little hungry, can you see if there is anything to eat at home?"

While Mrs. Zhou was busy in the kitchen, Wen Tingli took Xiao Taozi to sit on the sofa, and then checked the medicines on the coffee table one by one.

As Mrs. Zhou said, Meng Qiguang bought two boxes of children's diarrhea medicine powder for Xiao Taozi. He also bought a bottle of Western vitamin pills and some children's tonic medicine for strengthening the spleen and stomach.

Wen Tingli thought for a moment, then opened Xiao Taozi's two little hands and examined them carefully: "Did Mr. Meng buy anything else for you?"

Xiao Taozi shook her head.

Wen Tingli was about to give Xiao Taozi a few more words of advice when her sister blurted out, "I saw Mr. Lu."

Wen Tingli was startled and quickly grabbed Xiao Taozi's hand: "Where did you see Mr. Lu?"

"In front of the cinema." Little Taozi broke away from her sister's arms and jumped in front of the sofa like a little rabbit.

Wen Tingli patiently coaxed her sister: "Xiao Taozi has been studying in kindergarten for so long, she should understand some principles, right? Tell your sister about the situation at that time. This matter is very important to your sister."

Xiao Taozi tilted her head and thought for a while: "I saw Mr. Lu get off the car and look at my sister's photo at the entrance of the cinema."

She put her hands in her trouser pockets, walked to the chest of drawers, frowned, raised her head and looked at a photo of Wen Tingli on the top of the chest.

"like this."

Wen Tingli couldn't help laughing: "And then?"

"Mr. Lu saw Xiao Taozi, and Xiao Taozi waved to Mr. Lu from the car. It was Mr. Meng's car. Mr. Lu looked at us for a while and then walked away."

It took Wen Tingli three full seconds to understand what Xiao Taozi meant. "You mean, when Mr. Lu saw you, you were already in Mr. Meng's car?"

Little Taozi lowered her head and fiddled with the toy in her hand, and after a while she nodded nonchalantly.

"Then - did Mr. Lu come over and say anything to Mr. Meng? What was Mr. Meng doing at the time?"

"Xiao Taozi doesn't know." After thinking for a while, he said, "Mrs. Zhou is helping Xiao Taozi tie her shoelaces, and Mr. Meng...is not saying anything."

Wen Tingli stood up quickly and walked back and forth in the room for several circles. It turned out that Lu Shicheng had been to the International Cinema tonight. What a coincidence -

She suddenly returned to the sofa, hugged Xiao Taozi, and warned her sternly: "Xiao Taozi, you are not allowed to ride in Mr. Meng's car anymore. Never! And you are not allowed to accept any gifts from Mr. Meng."

Xiao Taozi nodded, but she didn't understand the meaning of these words: "Why?"

"Because..." Wen Tingli tried to keep a straight face, but couldn't help laughing, "Because - someone will be unhappy."

"Who is unhappy?" Xiao Taozi turned her head around in confusion, "Mrs. Zhou? Is it Mrs. Zhou who would be unhappy?"

Wen Tingli imitated Xiao Taozi and looked around: "Yeah, who would be unhappy?"

Finally, she suppressed her laughter and warned: "In any case, you can't take Mr. Meng's car anymore. Xiao Taozi must remember this. I will remind Mrs. Zhou later."

Xiao Taozi nodded vigorously.

***
The next day, the movie newspapers were all about the great success of the premiere of "Sweeney Detective".

Over the next three days, the box office grew at an unexpected rate every day, and soon broke the highest box office record of the Universal Cinema over the years.

Many cinemas that had previously been on the sidelines regarding the film are now completely unable to sit still and are rushing to Golden Pictures to discuss arrangements for the subsequent rounds of screenings.

Wen Tingli became a big celebrity overnight and had a busy schedule every day, but on this day, she still took out a morning to take Xiao Taozi to kindergarten. As soon as she arrived at the school gate, thunderous applause broke out spontaneously from all around. It turned out that it was the principal and teachers who came out to greet her in person. They had all read the recent news, and their eyes were full of praise when they looked at Wen Tingli.

Wen Tingli smiled, took her sister's hand and walked to the director, then bowed to him.

"Master Principal, I came here today not only to send my sister to school, but also to help her change her name to a formal school name."

The headmaster asked in surprise, "What kind of scientific name do you plan to give Wen Xiaotao?"

"Kuang Weihang." Wen Tingli smiled and touched her sister's head. "I think she should remember that our mother's original name was Kuang Xiuzhen. At the same time, I hope that she can experience less wind and rain under my protection. I also hope that she can have great ambitions in the future. I also pray that her life will be a great voyage."

(End of this chapter)