A Warm and Cute Strike (GL) - Chapter 17

Li Meiman was a night owl. It was Saturday, and despite it being 1:00 AM and the dormitory lights being off, she was still huddled under her covers, scrolling through Weibo with great enthusiasm.

Why is it so laggy? She had just finished a funny clip and wanted to check the trending topics, but the page wouldn’t load no matter how much she tapped.

Since the campus Wi-Fi was notoriously unreliable, she didn’t think much of it. She kept refreshing, and when the page finally loaded, she was nearly frightened out of her wits by the top three trending topics.

Trending #1: Ye Feifei’s Husband and Daughter

Trending #2: Ye Feifei & Xiang Nan

Trending #3: The Three of Us

Holy crap, who’s trying to harm my beautiful Feifei now?!

Just then, her phone vibrated with a WeChat message from Su Xiaoyu, a fellow “Leaf” (Ye Feifei fan) she often chatted with.

Su Xiaoyu: Meimei, did you see the hot search? Ye Feifei actually has a partner! And she even has a kid!

Su Xiaoyu: [Crying.jpg] I’m dying.

Su Xiaoyu: To think I shipped the “Bamboo Leaf” (Ye Feifei x Zhu Qingsong) CP for so long. Ye Feifei is such a liar! No, I have to go comfort my poor Songsong right now!

Meiman’s eyes widened in disbelief. She quickly opened Ye Feifei’s Weibo.

The latest post had only been up for half an hour, but it already had tens of thousands of comments, and the number was rising. Recalling the lag from earlier, Meiman began to understand the gravity of the situation.

But what she found most unacceptable was the content. Her “Goddess Feifei” was married? And had a daughter? What kind of international joke was this? And who was this “Xiang Nan”? How dare he steal her from Zhu Qingsong? This was intolerable!

Meiman, like Xiaoyu, was a fan of the “CP” (couple) between Ye Feifei and Zhu Qingsong. Zhu Qingsong was a top-tier “idol” and the male lead in the hit xianxia drama that made Feifei famous.

When Feifei first landed that lead role, she had faced immense public pressure, but she eventually won the audience over with her superb acting. Meiman was an old fan who had followed her since her debut, believing her beauty and talent were destined for stardom. Initially, she had looked down on Zhu Qingsong—thinking those “pretty boys” lacked the acting chops to match Feifei.

But the chemistry between the two on screen was simply too sweet. After following that xianxia drama, she had fallen completely into the “ship” and hadn’t come out since.

Now, seeing Feifei showing off her love for some man who had seemingly appeared out of nowhere, she simply couldn’t accept it!

And not just a husband, but a child too? A secret marriage and child? Meiman felt betrayed.

With a heavy heart, she opened Feifei’s comment section to vent, only to find a stream of well-wishes. As she read, her frustration began to dissipate.

As some comments pointed out: how much courage did it take for a top-tier actress at the peak of her fame to go public with her marriage? If she truly loved her idol, she should respect her choices!

Mulling this over, Meiman began “liking” the supportive comments and then clicked over to Xiang Nan’s Weibo. She wanted to see exactly what kind of charm this man had to steal her away from Zhu Qingsong! If he wasn’t good enough, she couldn’t guarantee she’d keep her temper in check!

More and more fans were flooding from Ye Feifei’s page to Xiang Nan’s Weibo.

The comments were a mix of envy, jealousy, and outright vitriol, but the majority were blessings—some were sincere, while many were the result of paid internet commenters (water soldiers) steering the narrative.

Despite it being the middle of the night, the internet was abuzz because of this “Drama of the Year.”

Just as Huashi Company’s emergency PR team breathed a sigh of relief, thinking they had weathered the storm, several entertainment tabloids released a series of announcements at 8:00 AM the next morning that sent shockwaves through the public again.

“Ye Feifei’s Unmarried Pregnancy: Father’s Identity a Mystery, Famous Director Xiang Nan Takes the Blame!”

“Ye Feifei Manipulates Fans: Uses Idol Zhu Qingsong for CP Hype While Clinging to a Famous Director!”

“Ye Feifei’s Scandalous Photos Exposed: Former Hostess Climbed the Ladder by Selling Herself for Roles!”

Tabloids like these popped up like bamboo shoots after a spring rain. Each was written with “evidence” that made the gossip-hungry public go wild, instantly pushing Ye Feifei into the eye of a storm of criticism.

Peak Entertainment: General Manager’s Office

Li Qianjin listened to his assistant’s report on the public opinion and nodded with satisfaction. Although Huashi Company had stolen the march by exposing the marriage themselves, Peak Entertainment’s team had quickly shifted gears. They were using the momentum to muddy the waters as much as possible.

“Keep following up. Report any changes to me immediately!” Li Qianjin said sinisterly. “And as for that whistleblower… you know what to do. If he tries to play tricks on me, I’ll make sure he gets what’s coming to him!”

“Yes, sir. I understand!”

In the morning, Qin Xinlan packed her things and, after breakfast, took Qin Xuening to the hospital. Xuening had wanted to stay and accompany her mother, but Xinlan insisted she stay at home for her mental health.

Leaving Xuening in the ward, Xinlan took the thermos to get some water. As she passed through the hallway, she heard several nurses huddled together, whispering.

She caught the names “Ye Feifei” and “Xiang Nan,” which made her stop in her tracks. The more she listened, the stranger her expression became.

She hurried to a windowsill, set the thermos aside, and searched for news about the Xiang couple on her phone. A mountain of negative press appeared.

When she saw that this had all started after Xiang Nan and Ye Feifei simultaneously went public on Weibo, the color drained from her face.

Somehow, she thought back to the night before in her brother’s study—the photo of the one-month celebration she had seen, and her boyfriend Chen Yang’s suspicious behavior.

It made no sense; she had just told him about their relationship the night before, and they were exposed the next day! Her intuition told her there was a connection.

The thought that Ye Feifei and Xiang Nan might have been exposed because of her filled Xinlan with anxiety and guilt. After hesitating, she decided to find Chen Yang and get the truth.

“Xiao Ning, Auntie has to go out for a bit. Wait for me here, and remember to tell the nurses if you need anything.”

Xinlan gave Xuening instructions and specifically asked a nurse to keep an eye on her before hurrying out of the hospital. Chen Yang’s phone was off, but she knew he was likely at a certain bar.

Because it was daytime, the bar was quiet. A bartender was wiping glasses. Chen Yang was one of the owners and had a private booth, so Xinlan greeted the bartender and headed straight there.

“Oh? You want to buy more scoops?” Xinlan heard Chen Yang’s voice from outside the booth.

“Hahaha, no problem. As long as the price is right, I can give you as much dirt on Ye Feifei and Xiang Nan as you want!”

Xinlan stood frozen. She couldn’t believe those words were coming from Chen Yang.

“No problem, cash on delivery. See you at the usual place!” As Chen Yang spoke, he opened the door. He looked up to see Xinlan standing there, staring at him as if he were a stranger.

He stammered, “You… why are you here?”

“Chen Yang, it really was you… Why did you betray Mr. Xiang and the others?” Xinlan questioned, her eyes red. “You promised me you’d keep the secret!”

Initially guilty, Chen Yang felt his temper flare up when challenged. “What’s with that attitude?”

“Yang-ge, what’s going on?” A coquettish voice came from the booth, followed by a woman with messy hair and disheveled clothes.

Xinlan was completely stunned. She pointed at the woman, her lips trembling, unable to speak.

“Yang-ge, who is this?” The woman wrapped her arms around Chen Yang’s waist from behind, looking at him flirtatiously.

Chen Yang felt uncomfortable under Xinlan’s gaze. He had made a fortune from the scoop yesterday and had come to the bar to drink and pick up a girl in celebration. He hadn’t expected Xinlan to show up so early.

“Get lost!” He pushed the woman away.

“Ouch—” The woman fell to the floor and grumbled, “You were calling me ‘baby’ last night, and now you’re turning your back on me?”

SLAP!

Before Chen Yang could say another word, Xinlan slapped him across the face.

“Chen Yang, we’re finished!” She sobbed, covering her face as she sprinted out of the bar. She didn’t want to stay in that filthy place for another second.

Chen Yang was dazed for a few seconds. Seeing her run, he wasn’t about to let her go and chased after her. But as he burst out the door and saw her get into a taxi, his world suddenly went dark—

A sack was pulled over his head. Two burly men, ignoring his struggles, dragged him into a secluded alleyway. They swung iron rods and began a brutal beating!

Dazed from the start, Chen Yang was given no chance to beg for mercy. Fists, feet, and rods rained down on him. Once he was emotionally broken, they coerced him into giving up all his bank card information.

After that, they gave him one last round of kicks and punches. Leaving him barely alive at the end of the alley like a dead dog, the two men quickly vanished from the scene…