Chapter 561: The Strongest Command Respect

This was something that had happened in her past life; even if Yan Zi cried until she was a puddle of tears, countless people would still curse her.

No matter how heartfelt or moving her words were, countless Yao Beina fans would denounce her, though everyone kept restraint during the memorial service.

At an idol's memorial, it's inappropriate to make too much noise—let her depart in peace first.

But Yan Zi's arrival immediately drew a swarm of reporters, and she chattered to them, ruining the atmosphere while acting as if she were the good person here, angering many Yao Beina fans.

So they argued with her, accused her.

But no one expected she had fans too; soon both sides plunged the scene into chaos.

In her past life, this didn't escalate so much—Fang Hong's butterfly effect had changed some things, which was normal; back then, the memorial was held in Shencheng before the burial in Jiangcheng.

With Fang Hong's influence, everything was flown directly to Jiangcheng—this place was different, the time was different, so more things had changed.

"Don't you know where you are? Anyone who shouts again, get out of here—now!" Fang Hong's tone was stern, his face grim.

This instantly silenced some of the noisy crowd; they grew less impulsive, still afraid of the Principal.

Most others involuntarily stepped back a pace.

After all, Fang Hong's decades-long aura of authority still carried immense weight—even those who didn't know him could tell at a glance he was no ordinary person.

Most of those watching or the families recognized the Principal; their hearts steadied immediately—this was best handled by the Principal.

Those too low couldn't control it; those too high didn't want to get involved; families, bound by face, treated everyone as guests and couldn't intervene.

But the Principal was high-ranking, an outsider, unafraid of offending anyone, capable of controlling the scene—his presence alone prevented chaos, for his reputation and ruthless methods were widely known.

If he couldn't handle this, no one here could—Wang Zhongjun was far too weak.

The families were watching too, but said nothing.

"Principal, I'm just here to pay respects to my former student," Yan Zi explained, unwilling to be humiliated by being thrown out.

She wore glasses; now she still looked young, not yet aged as she would become later.

"You come to pay respects—then pay respects. Why make such a spectacle? Can't you be discreet? Must you turn this into your personal fan event?" Fang Hong's tone remained harsh, showing Yan Zi not the slightest courtesy.

"The reporters interviewed me—I only wanted to express a few words of remembrance for Yao Beina," Yan Zi argued.

"From now on, if you say one more word, don't blame me for being uncivil," Fang Hong pointed at her.

He had no patience for her nonsense—pay respects quietly, don't stir up trouble or provoke Yao Beina's fans.

Don't turn this place into a mess.

He walked to Yan Zi's side, where reporters crowded around; he shoved aside the front row and barked: "All of you—get out. No interviews here."

The front-row reporters retreated, pushing those behind them; the chain reaction caused several reporters behind to nearly fall, some dropping their equipment onto the ground.

"You're acting so arrogantly—don't you fear us blacklisting you?" one brash reporter snapped, furious at being ordered away, his expensive gear now on the floor.

He believed his profession was the uncoronated king—celebrities feared their pen, and he assumed the Principal was no different; most other reporters shared this arrogance.

Many feared the Principal—but they didn't.

"Then go ahead—see if I care," Fang Hong was utterly dominant, showing everyone here what true dominance truly meant.

He berated Yan Zi, then immediately turned on a hundred reporters—it was insane.

Media reporters? In no time, they'd all be eating off his Douyin and Toutiao—how could they blacklist him? Video and text media would be replaced by Douyin and Toutiao.

In the era of self-media, he would become the biggest media boss.

Wang Zhiwen wasn't afraid of these reporters—he thrived anyway. Was he, at his level, afraid of media blacklisting? Impossible.

"Principal—"

"Slap!"

As Yan Zi opened her mouth to speak, Fang Hong swung backhand—a sharp slap across her face, knocking her glasses off to the ground, not a hint of jest in it.

The scene fell instantly silent; everyone was stunned by the sudden turn.

Reporters recoiled involuntarily; the slap rang loud enough for distant people to hear—some stared, dumbfounded: Did the Principal really just hit her?

They'd assumed he was just threatening—never thought he'd actually strike, especially in front of so many; some exchanged glances.

All could only say: the Principal was formidable—he meant every word.

Sa Dingding, Tan Weiwei, and other stars exchanged glances—the Principal had zero restraint, not even acknowledging this senior figure.

None of them expected him to hit—everyone thought it was just bluster.

The scene was silent; even breathing grew quieter. All eyes turned to Yan Zi—now she stood with her face turned sideways, head bowed, expression hidden.

But the clear palm print on her cheek was visible; the slap had been brutal—several strands of her hair had been knocked loose.

"Principal—!" Yan Zi roared in fury.

Before she finished, Fang Hong raised his hand high again—ready to strike another slap; Yan Zi instinctively stumbled backward.

She seemed to trip on something, falling backward—luckily, someone behind caught her.

"Either leave, or pay your respects quietly," Fang Hong stared at her with icy eyes—say one more word, and he'd hit her for real.

Yan Zi was stunned and furious, yet dared not speak—she could argue back if it was words, but physical force? She couldn't withstand it.

Of course, her heart burned with hatred—but she dared not show it; though the Principal operated in a different field and couldn't directly block her career,

she was still a public figure—public opinion was fearsome. If the Principal wanted to ruin her, he could.

She couldn't even bear the backlash over Yao Beina's case, let alone try to salvage her reputation—his intervention would make it infinitely worse.

She knew how Yan Zi had surrendered—she understood it well—but her own pride wouldn't let her bow.

Yan Zi suppressed her rage, her face stern, and walked toward the memorial hall, ascending the steps without uttering a single word.

The Principal was truly powerful—he'd forced Yan Zi into silence, deepening the awe of everyone present.

Fang Hong scanned the crowd; the fans, ordinary people like them, all retreated to their spots, clearing the path.

"All of you—move back," Fang Hong took one step forward; the reporters all retreated, terrified of being hit.

The pen met a hard opponent—and the hard opponent won. Of course, what they wrote behind his back was their business—but to his face, they had to yield; he'd actually struck.

Once the reporters retreated to their original positions, no longer blocking the area, the scene returned to quiet solemnity.

She was mainly scared by the Principal; someone sighed, "The Principal is still awesome—no ordinary person could be this forceful."

"Not only that, you have to say nice things," someone said.

In her past life, You Niao also gave a speech over the loudspeaker, saying many things about how she treated Yao Beina as a "family member," how good Yao Beina was, and how much she admired her.

Of course, the family didn't want to make a big scene, so they had her give a short speech over the loudspeaker.

This time, with Fang Hong here, she probably won't get to speak at all—she'll just have to hold it all in.

You Niao had already entered the funeral hall, and many people couldn't help but look at her with strange eyes.

Though none here had gone outside and didn't know what had happened beyond, they'd heard rumors of the incident and seen the clear palm print, and all felt a bit startled and doubtful.

"Your husband just slapped someone! And now you won't even let her say a word—so powerful," Zhang Jingying remarked, secretly delighted.

She'd just heard it herself and spread the news to Liu Tianxian; the rumor spread fast—there were so many people, and so many had seen it.

Even internet media had started writing articles about it.

Liu Tianxian stood among the crowd inside the funeral hall; she wouldn't appear publicly at this memorial—her fame was too great, the impact too large; her presence would only cause trouble, and she only wanted to quietly send her friend off in peace.

"Really?" Liu Tianxian was astonished.

"True—news outlets have already reported it. Look," Zhang Jingying pulled out her phone and tapped a trending topic for her.

In just this short time, it had already hit the trending list.

Shuchang also tilted her head to look; the article's headline read: Shocking! Principal Slaps You Niao.

It was clickbait, but after reading the content, it largely reconstructed the actual events—this couldn't be hidden; too many people knew.

Someone had even filmed a video; everyone now had cellphones, and they were all smartphones.

Below, Wangyi comments were mostly cries of "Good!"

"She deserved it—messing around at someone's memorial!"

"You Niao killed Beina—good slap!"

"Support the Principal!"

"No matter what, you shouldn't hit someone!"

"Hitting someone at a memorial is just disrespectful!"

"."

You Niao's reputation was terrible; aside from a few comments criticizing Fang Hong's actions, most Wangyi comments praised him for hitting her.

"The Principal is way too violent," Shuchang said after watching the video, also astonished.

Liu Tianxian glanced at it, but said nothing.

She looked up, didn't see Fang Hong, and asked, "Where is he now?"

"Going to maintain order. This place needs someone like your husband to keep it under control," Zhang Jingying patted Liu Tianxian's shoulder.

She didn't think Fang Hong had done anything wrong—on the contrary, she felt her friend was safer with such a forceful protector.

Haven't you seen how much better Liu Tianxian's life has become? Before, it was terrible—once, I saw her crying alone in the bathroom, crying from being insulted.

Liu Tianxian nodded, said nothing; she felt little emotion about You Niao—she'd been slapped, so what?

She watched the center of the hall: You Niao had already paid her respects and spoken a few private words to Yao's father and mother—she knew how to handle herself well.

With Fang Hong keeping order, all the celebrities behaved themselves—no one dared turn this into a fan convention.

No one dared exploit this wave of attention anymore; everyone had become much more restrained.

Reporters still tried to pull people for interviews, but none dared cross the line or press too hard—they still kept order.

This world, at its core, still respects the strong.

The memorial proceeded smoothly; once all the rituals were complete, the time came, and eight professionals lifted the ice coffin.

They were taking it to be cremated, then buried.

Yao's father and mother burst into uncontrollable sobs; Yao's mother nearly lunged onto the coffin, but was held back tightly by others.

This scene made many family members and friends feel heartbroken too.

Liu Tianxian wore sunglasses, watching the ice coffin being carried out; tears slipped down her cheeks—she didn't even know how many times she'd cried.

But her feelings and past with Yao Beina were destined to become memories.

Thinking of this, she leaned her body against Fang Hong's chest—it felt a little better this way.

As the ice coffin was carried out of the funeral hall, the fans burst into tears; some wailed loudly, others grew agitated and tried to rush past the barriers, but were stopped by security.

The ice coffin was slowly carried onto a hearse; when the hearse began to move slowly, some fans even ran after it, crying as they ran.

Since it was right at the funeral parlor and the crematorium wasn't far, the hearse moved very slowly.

The fans followed it all the way.

No matter how sorrowful the scene, how hard the parting, this moment was destined to end—it would inevitably become the past.

In the end, Yao Beina was buried at Shimenfeng Celebrity Cultural Park, a place of beautiful scenery, surrounded by green trees, where many celebrities and some revolutionary soldiers were also laid to rest.

There were bronze statues of celebrities too; a bronze statue of Yao Beina was erected on her tombstone, modeled after her famous artistic photo with her hand resting under her chin.

The statue was surrounded by crowds; this place became where fans came to mourn her, and the crowds would never stop coming.

Some fans even came just to bring food and spare change to guard her grave.

(End of Chapter)