The online public opinion continued to ferment in various ways.
Xiao He, however, had returned to a leisurely pace, filming as usual, completely unaffected by the domestic public opinion.
Because of his intervention, Xingchen Entertainment had also quieted down. The Qin father and son had their own troubles to deal with and no longer paid attention to Xiao He's situation.
Instead, those who had spread the Damaging Information about Xiao He were dumbfounded, never expecting they would be arrested for such things.
"I didn't know! This job was posted in a part-time group chat, so I just took it. I never thought it would be illegal—"
"I didn't make up these Damaging Information, I just reposted them. That's not illegal, right?"
"They said they'd pay me fifty yuan for every repost to a hundred-person group chat! I don't know anything else! How about I return the money to them? Please don't arrest me—"
Without exception, all these people spreading the Damaging Information said similar things when caught.
In their view, it was just reposting a message—not like they had fabricated the Damaging Information themselves. What did such a small matter have to do with them?
After all, plenty of people spread rumors about celebrities, and there were so many anti-fans anyway. Why should they be arrested? They didn't mean any harm—
But it was too late for regrets.
Their actions constituted spreading rumors, and moreover involved systemic public officials and school safety education issues, making the circumstances particularly severe. What awaited them was likely criminal responsibility—
Not long after, the person who fabricated the rumors was also arrested.
What was unexpected was that it was a girl who looked somewhat well-behaved and spoke particularly gently, who had just reached adulthood not long ago.
Police investigation revealed that this girl had already been one of Xiao He's anti-fans since his Mu Ze period. She had repeatedly posted negative comments about Xiao He online, and eventually went so far as to conduct offline investigations, digging deep into Xiao He's past in an attempt to uncover Damaging Information about him.
This recent exposure was entirely fabricated through her own simple investigations and imagination, then posted to various anti-fan group chats where others spread it further.
When Xiao He heard this news, even though he was abroad, he felt a chilling sensation throughout his body.
He couldn't understand where this baseless hatred came from, that it could drive someone to such madness—even intruding into real life to pry into his past and his family.
Yet the reason this girl became his anti-fan was actually quite simple, even somewhat ridiculous.
It was simply because a classmate she disliked in real life happened to like Xiao He.
Later, the classmate this girl disliked actually became wildly popular by editing Mu Ze videos, rapidly gaining followers. Out of jealousy, she cursed at Xiao He in the comments section, only to be cursed back by Xiao He's other fans.
This was unacceptable! She came to the internet to be emperor—when she criticized their idol, they should just take it! How dare they fight back and curse at her!
Immediately, this girl became even more defiant, sparring with Xiao He's fans across different comment sections as if she had found a vent for releasing life's frustrations, freely spewing all kinds of malicious words.
So back and forth, she genuinely became one of Xiao He's anti-fans.
Xiao He: ...I'm really speechless.
After being arrested, this girl still tried to seek Xiao He's forgiveness, but Xiao He didn't even want to speak with her.
Well, she's old enough now—let the law deal with her as it should.
There are so many eccentric people in this world, and he didn't mind encountering them one by one and dealing with them—it was just a matter of convenience anyway.
...
Early June, the production team's filming work temporarily halted.
Xiao He and Xiao Chen flew to Miami Airport in the United States, preparing to take a flight back to China to attend the White Magnolia Awards ceremony.
After checking their luggage, Xiao He and Xiao Chen randomly found seats to wait for their flight.
Since they were abroad where fewer people recognized him, Xiao He didn't wear a mask or hat, just dressed in ordinary casual clothes with a black neck brace hanging around his neck that he planned to lean on later, while lowering his head and playing on his phone.
"Oh! It's Xu Li!"
While Xiao He was scrolling through his phone, he suddenly heard a strange scream from nearby.
What made it strange was that the girl used pure English at first, but the name was pronounced using English-style Chinese, making the whole thing sound particularly odd.
Out of curiosity, Xiao He glanced over.
Then he made eye contact with several young, blonde, blue-eyed girls.
"Hi—"
The girls waved excitedly when they met his gaze.
It was only then that Xiao He belatedly realized that the extremely inaccurate Chinese name pronunciation they were using wasn't "Xu Li" but "Xu Ning."
So, had Law of the Jungle been released recently? Were these people his fans?
Time had passed so quickly—
"Hi? Hello there."
Xiao He initiated conversation in English.
Sure enough, after confirming it was indeed "Xu Ning" himself, those foreign girls immediately crowded around: "Xu Li, we super super like you! Could we trouble you for an autograph?"
"Xu Li, are you alone today? Where are your companions?"
"Xu Li, can we take photos together? I absolutely love your movie!"
"Xu Li, are you returning to China? Will you come back here later?"
"Xu Li, your racing skills are amazing! Will you participate in competitions again?"
"Xu Li—"
It wasn't until facing these foreign girls who similarly carried goodwill and affection that Xiao He realized celebrity chasing was the same both domestically and internationally.
This fiery enthusiasm nearly overwhelmed him.
Xiao Chen promptly helped maintain order: "Please don't get too excited, take it slow, take it slow—"
At this moment, Xiao He and Xiao Chen clearly hadn't yet realized the severity of the situation.
Facing fans, Xiao He had instinctively switched into work mode with a smile, pulling a marker from his pocket and signing autographs for the girls in front.
Since this was a chance encounter, these girls didn't have proper autograph paper, so most used items they carried with them instead—like clothes, hats, phone cases, etc. While efficiently signing for them, Xiao He answered their questions.
"Me? I'm not an idol from Japan or Korea, I'm an actor from China, and I'm not mixed-race either."
"Chinese martial arts? I do know a little."
"Samurai sword? No no, that's called a Tang sword, it's a type of ancient cold weapon from China. If you're interested, you can look into it."
"Lin Yu'an? Well, his real name is Liu Zehang, he's currently in China."
Actor names and character names often become strongly associated both domestically and internationally, so Xiao He didn't mind them continually calling him "Xu Li." However, after finishing the signatures, he would still formally introduce his actual name.
"My name is Xiao He, I'm the actor who plays Xu Ning, I'm a Chinese actor. Thank you for liking the movie, and thank you for liking our characters."
Unexpectedly, before this wave of fans had left, another small group gathered around.
Xiao He vaguely sensed something was wrong.
He glanced around and was shocked to discover more and more people gathering toward him, even holding up phones to record him.
"Is Law of the Jungle really that popular here?"
Xiao He whispered to Xiao Chen's ear.
Xiao Chen thought for a moment, uncertain: "I, I think so? Sister Liu didn't mention it."
Xiao He's relevant overseas platform accounts were all managed by his domestic studio. As for the movie release, after Xiao He's racing competition provided some promotion, the production team had basically taken over all promotion and trailer responsibilities. So neither of them truly understood the current situation on international internet.
"Oh no, this is bad."
Xiao He stood up, "This is getting intense, I can't handle it. We need to quickly call some security personnel from the airport and retreat—"
As Xiao He finished speaking, the airport had already noticed their situation. Several burly security personnel squeezed through the crowd, striding toward Xiao He and the others...
After briefly communicating with airport staff, a group quickly escorted Xiao He away from the chaotic scene.
In the end, the neck brace Xiao He had been wearing around his neck was snatched away by someone. With the help of these enthusiastic security personnel, Xiao He finally managed to squeeze through the crowd and board the plane through a special passage.
What a miscalculation!
Xiao He slumped in his seat, sighing helplessly.
If he had known it would be like this, he would have obediently worn his hat and mask!
"Brother Xiao, are you really this popular now? You've actually become famous overseas!"
Xiao Chen was utterly astonished.