Chapter 43

"Wow!" Cui Dongjian raised his eyebrows in surprise, then turned his head with a smile and said to Yang Mo in a flirtatious manner, "It seems you're quite popular among them, huh?!"

"Hehe." Yang Mo laughed awkwardly and said, "They're all friends."

Yang Mo felt embarrassed, and the few girls were even more ashamed, feeling utterly humiliated. They were also worried that the manager would blacklist them because of this. S.M. Entertainment had very strict rules about artists dating, especially for girl groups, as scandals could severely damage their popularity.

To avoid making the girls feel uncomfortable, Yang Mo took the initiative and said, "Let's go with Jessica. There were some photos of me and her being close in the news, which makes it more plausible."

"Alright, no problem." Cui Dongjian agreed immediately, then stood up and said to Jessica, "From now on, you two are a couple. Now, we need to do some preparations. Come... I'll take you to take some couple photos."

Cui Dongjian was a man of action. He quickly called in a photographer and had several sets of couple photos taken for Yang Mo and Jessica, including beach-themed, home-themed, and even a bed set.

To show how close they were, they did things like biting the same apple and kissing. Yang Mo wasn't particularly uncomfortable with this, but what surprised him was that Jessica showed no discomfort at all and was very cooperative. On the other hand, YoonA grumbled a bit when they were taking the kissing photos. Her expression and tone made it clear she was jealous, but no one pointed it out. Matters of love and jealousy were personal, and no one could interfere.

After several sets of photos were taken, S.M. Entertainment quickly uploaded them online. At the same time, many "insiders" started leaking information, saying that Yang Mo and Jessica from Girls' Generation had been a couple for three years and had been together since they were young.

With these voices, public opinion began to shift gradually. S.M. Entertainment's manipulation of public opinion was truly skillful, and with a series of promotional moves, Girls' Generation quickly gained recognition worldwide.

This small change made Girls' Generation's manager, Lee Jinju, very happy. She had been on the verge of a breakdown, but now she was holding Yang Mo's hand, expressing her gratitude and repeatedly apologizing for her earlier rashness. Yang Mo didn't take it to heart; it was normal for women approaching menopause to have unstable emotions, and there was no need to be too serious about a physiological issue.

During the planning of this whitewashing operation, Kim Tae-hee called. She wasn't there to blame him but to apologize. She felt that she had dragged Yang Mo into this mess, and if she hadn't asked him to take care of the girls, none of this would have happened.

Yang Mo was deeply moved by Kim Tae-hei's kindness and quickly comforted her, telling her that things were already moving in a positive direction. Kim Tae-hee felt less guilty after hearing this and reluctantly hung up the phone.

Lu Xueman also called, saying that the incident had garnered a lot of attention in China. Due to China's proximity to South Korea, people quickly learned that the girls were from Girls' Generation, and many theories emerged online. Because of this, many sponsors who were close to signing deals with them in China chose to wait and see. Yang Mo told her directly that they didn't need to sign any sponsorship contracts for now; once he established his value, people would come knocking with checks.

Finally, Lu Xueman seriously asked Yang Mo about the truth of the matter.

Yang Mo patiently explained to her that Girls' Generation were just his friends, and nothing had happened between them. However, to resolve the situation, he had cooperated with their agency to manage the crisis.

Lu Xueman asked in detail about the cooperation, and Yang Mo told her about the plan to pretend to be a couple with Jessica.

Lu Xueman hesitated for a moment but then agreed. She was a smart person and, although emotionally she didn't want Yang Mo to be in a fake relationship with Jessica, she knew it was the only way to resolve the crisis. In the end, reason overcame emotion, and she accepted the arrangement.

After all internal issues were resolved, on the third day, S.M. Entertainment and the Miami Heat held a grand press conference at the American Airlines Center. On that day, there were over three to four hundred journalists in attendance, more than at a U.S. presidential inauguration. The journalists were from various countries, including China, South Korea, the United States, Japan, and some European countries.

After all, this incident had become a global focus in the past two days, and S.M. Entertainment had played a significant role in fueling the hype. They wanted to use this opportunity to promote Girls' Generation and make them famous.

Yang Mo and Jessica walked into the venue hand in hand, and immediately, a flurry of camera flashes went off, capturing countless moments.

After they sat down, they exchanged a deep, loving glance. Yang Mo then spoke up, "Thank you, all journalists, for attending this clarification conference. I'm sure you've all seen the negative reports about me in the past two days."

"This incident has caused significant distress to both me and Jessica, disrupting our peaceful and happy lives. We are a couple who have been dating for three years. I don't know who took those photos or who maliciously fabricated a story that doesn't exist. I reserve the right to sue the person or persons responsible, and I will file a formal lawsuit after this press conference."

After Yang Mo finished speaking, he leaned back. Jessica moved forward and said into the microphone, "Regarding that day, I and Mo invited my group members to our house for a party. Everyone had a great time, and my boyfriend is very hospitable, so he let them stay overnight. We never expected that such a wonderful event would be maliciously distorted. I am very angry, and the person behind this must apologize to us."

Jessica's indignation grew as she spoke, making it seem like a declaration of war.

After their brief statements, the Q&A session began. Since they had rehearsed their lines beforehand, everything went smoothly.

To Yang Mo's surprise, at the end of the press conference, Jessica suddenly leaned in and kissed him on the lips. Before he could react, her agile and slippery tongue entered his mouth, and he quickly reciprocated.

They kissed deeply for over two minutes, and the venue was once again filled with flashing lights.

If there were any doubts about their relationship before, they were now completely dispelled.

After the press conference, many media outlets reported on the incident. S.M. Entertainment even bought ads in influential media, featuring Yang Mo and Jessica with the headline "Love That Shakes the City" and a photo of their deep kiss at the press conference.

After the press conference, Yang Mo returned to the backstage. Before he could question Jessica about the sudden kiss, a tall, muscular black man came over and gave him a high-five.

Yang Mo looked closely and recognized him, feeling a bit surprised. He quickly high-fived him and then did a chest bump.

"Hey, man, you did great! You're even more popular in Miami than I am now."

"Unfortunately, it's not because of my basketball skills," Yang Mo said awkwardly, smiling at Dwyane Wade. Since he had decided to sign with the Heat, he had imagined many times what it would be like to play alongside Dwyane Wade, but he had never imagined their first meeting would be in such a noisy environment, which made him a bit uncomfortable.

"Keep it up. I heard from Riley that you're a great player," Dwyane Wade encouraged Yang Mo, then leaned in and whispered, "If there's another party like that, remember to invite me."

"Huh?" Yang Mo was taken aback. He thought, "Could it be that you came to meet me just for that kind of party? I'm not that kind of person!" Suddenly, Yang Mo felt a sense of injustice, as if even jumping into the Yellow River couldn't wash away the misunderstanding. If the team leader thought this, wouldn't the other teammates tease him about it in the future?

...

[Chapter 5 is here, please give me recommendations, favorites, and clicks. Remember to log in to your account. PS: Thank you to "Book Friend 130415090136317" for the tip and "mm123" for the update vote. If everything goes well, there will be five updates tomorrow.]

Page break AD starts

Page break AD ends