Ni Zijing had changed into a dark gray women’s suit, tall and sharp. Her long black hair was loose, and she grasped Yu Huai’s hand. Although it looked effortless, it rendered Yu Huai completely immobile.
Yu Huai was startled by the chill in Ni Zijing’s eyes. Upon taking a second look, she realized that this was precisely the woman holding Qiao Qiao in the photographs!
“Want to hit someone?” Ni Zijing squinted slightly, her tone utterly cold. After looking Yu Huai up and down, she added, “Your name is Yu Huai, right? Fine, I’ll remember that.”
Such an arrogant female artist. If someone didn’t put her in her place, she would fly straight to the heavens.
Yu Huai had originally wanted to open her mouth, but she was forcefully driven back by Ni Zijing’s sheer presence.
Standing there in a disheveled state, she felt the watching eyes of onlookers falling entirely upon her. Someone at the edge kindly reminded her that there would be media interviews shortly and urged her to quickly go change her clothes.
Glaring bitterly at Qiao Qiao, Yu Huai spat, “You just wait!”
Qiao Qiao shrugged. Come at me. Afraid of you?
After Yu Huai left, her assistant cast a covert glance at Ni Zijing standing beside Qiao Qiao and let out an internal exclamation: This is too cool.
Ni Zijing’s expression wasn’t great, but she soon skillfully pushed Qiao Qiao’s wheelchair and signaled the assistant that she could knock off for the day.
“Sister Qiao, there’s an interview later.” The junior assistant looked somewhat troubled, seeing that Ni Zijing intended to push people right out.
Qiao Qiao waved a hand. “It’s fine. I’ll be back in a bit.”
“Sister Can Can, how did you get in?”
Ni Zijing pushed Qiao Qiao outside, where a spacious van was unexpectedly waiting.
“I said I was bringing you food, so they let me in.” Moreover, she had also bought boxed meals for the entire film crew. If they didn’t let her in, who would they let in?
Ni Zijing opened the lunch boxes she brought and lined them up one by one in front of Qiao Qiao. Letting out a sigh, she continued, “You, why don’t you ever talk back when someone bullies you?”
Qiao Qiao smiled. “Who said she was able to bully me?” Originally, Qiao Qiao hadn’t planned on letting Yu Huai lay a finger on her anyway; she just hadn’t expected Sister Can Can to show up and give Yu Huai such a resounding slap in the face.
Not to mention, it felt truly satisfying.
Watching Qiao Qiao begin to eat in a leisurely manner, Ni Zijing found it quite interesting. She quietly stared at her for a good while before saying, “I’ve discovered that you actually have quite a temper yourself.”
“Who doesn’t have a temper?” Qiao Qiao raised an eyebrow. “Aren’t you the same? Just now, you looked like you were ready to hit someone.”
Ni Zijing curled the corners of her lips. “I almost did.”
If Yu Huai had actually struck Qiao Qiao, Ni Zijing felt she truly would have made Yu Huai suffer a massive loss.
Hearing Sister Can Can say this, Qiao Qiao felt a sudden flutter in her chest and paused her chopsticks.
“You seem rather formal today.”
A suit and high heels; she looked immensely charming. Qiao Qiao thought that if she were out on the street, a whole crowd of girls would probably throw themselves at her.
Lowering her voice, Ni Zijing remained unruffled. “Mm, I have a gathering tonight.”
Prompted by this remark, Qiao Qiao recalled that she still had to attend tonight’s event to toast and go through the motions for that abruptly parachuted President Ni. Her pretty brows furrowed with visible annoyance.
“I don’t have to go either.” Seeing Qiao Qiao’s expression, Ni Zijing added, “How about I take you out for a walk tonight?”
Hearing those words, Qiao Qiao finally put down her chopsticks.
She lifted her lowered eyelids, her eyelashes sweeping upward, though her gaze carried an unmistakable sense of estrangement and coldness.
“Sister Can Can.” Qiao Qiao’s tone turned somewhat serious. “Do you like me?”
Ni Zijing was momentarily taken aback, not expecting Qiao Qiao to be so direct. Just as she was pondering how to express her feelings to Qiao Qiao without being abrupt or appearing frivolous, Qiao Qiao spoke again.
“Don’t give me any nonsense about love at first sight.” Qiao Qiao closed the lunch box and pushed it across the table toward the other person. “No matter what you’re thinking, I can tell you clearly that I have no feelings for you whatsoever. Furthermore, I don’t even know who you are, so I hope you won’t waste your energy on me, okay?”
Looking at the lunch box in front of her, Ni Zijing finally let out a slow smile after a moment. “You’ve finally thought of asking who I am?”
The more she looked at Qiao Qiao right now, the more adorable she found her. The moment she managed to graze the edges of Qiao Qiao’s territory, this little hedgehog immediately bristled all over again.
“Qiao Qiao, I am someone who has the power to propel you upward.” Ni Zijing earnestly pronounced her name, her pitch-black eyes locking onto Qiao Qiao. “I can give you everything you deserve, making your star path brilliant. I can even let you reach the very end of all this glory.”
This was what Qiao Qiao deserved; it was simply lacking the right timing.
When she signed Qiao Qiao, Ni Zijing genuinely thought this way, to provide her with all the best resources. Yet through these past few days of contact, she discovered that Qiao Qiao wasn’t the intensely utilitarian type of female celebrity.
“However, I’ve found that none of these are actually what you want.” Ni Zijing’s gaze seemed intent on seeing right through Qiao Qiao, her tone mixed with helplessness. “Qiao Qiao, you are very lonely.”
Qiao Qiao was still wearing that dark green cheongsam, every movement brimming with unique charm. She had originally been lazily leaning back in her seat, listening to Ni Zijing talk, but at the final sentence, her posture stiffened slightly.
“So I’ve been wondering.” A trace of tenderness surfaced in Ni Zijing’s eyes. “What on earth should I give you?”
Growing somewhat angry, Qiao Qiao lowered her long, crossed legs. “Really full of yourself, aren’t you? Who do you think you are?”
She spoke with such high-sounding logic, acting as though she were terribly formidable. Who on earth was she to dare say she was very lonely? Talking about lifting her up, did she think she was some big boss or something?
“Who else could I be?” Ni Zijing laughed softly. “I am Ni.”
“I’m going to the interview, I’m leaving.” Qiao Qiao’s hand already rested on the car door handle, and she turned back to toss out a final sentence inside the vehicle: “Don’t come looking for me anymore.”
Instead of getting angry, Ni Zijing merely found it amusing. Qiao Qiao’s foot couldn’t move; without her help, where could she possibly go? Just as she was about to step out the other side to wheel the chair over and pick up Qiao Qiao, she heard Qiao Qiao abruptly pull open the car door.
Camera flashes, chaotic questioning, and a flurry of microphones surged forward all at once.
“Qiao Qiao, are you currently together with the person in those photos?”
“What is the exact relationship between the two of you?”
“Could you answer us? Are you Qiao Qiao’s secret lover?”
“Will you answer us, please?”
Seeing Qiao Qiao open the door, a swarm of reporters rushed over. Qiao Qiao hadn’t anticipated that these reporters would chase her all the way here, and for a split second, shock registered on her face.
It had to be Yu Huai!
Reacting swiftly, she put on an immaculate smile for the lenses, only to be yanked back into the vehicle by Ni Zijing.
“You.”
Before Qiao Qiao could finish her sentence, she watched that person climb out from the other side.
A moment later, the door on Qiao Qiao’s side was pulled open once more. Ni Zijing wheeled the chair over and scooped Qiao Qiao down to sit properly, her movements smooth and fluid as flowing water.
In place of the previous calm came a frenzy of rapid camera shutters. Those reporters looked as though they had struck gold, completely losing their minds. This action clearly screamed girlfriend! Everyone knew that since Qiao Qiao debuted, she had never been seen in a single scandal with anyone.
Blocking the view of Qiao Qiao’s eyes with her hand, Ni Zijing spoke with displeasure: “If you want to interview her, turn off your camera flashes first.”
The reporters went wild: “Ah, please tell us who on earth this person is! Little Qiao, could you explain for us? The fans are extremely concerned!”
Gritting her teeth internally, Qiao Qiao wondered if Sister Can Can could please stop messing around. At this rate, the scandal was going to become set in stone!
Pulling down the hand shielding her eyes, she reached out and snatched one of the microphones: “She’s an outsider. Please protect her privacy and stop taking pictures of her, thank you.”
Sensing that Qiao Qiao was worrying about her, Ni Zijing felt quite pleased. With a smile curving her lips, she faced the lenses: Go ahead and take pictures. Even if you take them, I’ll make sure you can’t publish them.
A reporter asked, “Are the two of you in a romantic relationship?”
“No.”
“So it’s just hype?!” The reporter pressed on relentlessly. “Your behaviors and gestures look extremely ambiguous. Is this a publicity stunt, please answer!”
Hearing this, Ni Zijing couldn’t sit still any longer. Frowning, she asked, “Do you people have something wrong with your eyes?”
Qiao Qiao was alarmed: Stop talking, Sister Can Can!
“I am the one pursuing her unilaterally, and I hope everyone won’t misunderstand.” The microphone quickly swung over to Ni Zijing’s side. “Qiao Qiao has consistently and firmly rejected me, so please don’t spread random rumors.”
The smiling expression and tone Ni Zijing used made the reporters feel as though being rejected wasn’t a depressing thing at all.
It’s over. This is truly over.
Watching Sister Zou stride over this way with a dark expression, Qiao Qiao knew that receiving a severe tongue-lashing was absolutely inevitable.
The culprit remained completely unaffected. After delivering those remarks, she gave the reporters zero further opportunity. As it happened, Zou Jingzhi came over to salvage the situation, so Ni Zijing exchanged brief greetings with Sister Zou and left.
Inside the room, Qiao Qiao kept her head lowered, awaiting the impending storm.
It wasn’t that she was scared; rather, she was wondering how public opinion would spin her relationship with Sister Can Can. What if some meddlesome person dug up Sister Can Can’s real information through a human flesh search? Wouldn’t that end up disrupting Sister Can Can’s life?
Zou Jingzhi stood with her back to Qiao Qiao by the window, utterly silent.
“Sister Zou, say something.” Qiao Qiao couldn’t stand her silence. “This is making me uncomfortable.”
“Little Qiao.” To Qiao Qiao’s ears right now, Sister Zou’s voice sounded exceptionally grinding.
“You’ve gotten quite formidable now, haven’t you? Falling in love with hot searches and making daily appearances, is that it?” Sister Zou spun around to face Qiao Qiao. “At the rate these reporters operate, you’re going to explode all over the front pages of every website tonight, do you know that?”
Qiao Qiao scrutinized Sister Zou’s expression. “But Sister Zou, why do you look kind of happy?”
Indeed, the corners of her eyes were upturned; no matter how one looked at it, she didn’t seem angry at all.
Unable to hold it in any longer, Sister Zou relaxed her tone considerably: “How could I not be happy? Your popularity is rebounding, Little Qiao! Hurry up, hurry up! I think we just need to execute President Ni’s directive and let you and that Sister Can Can show your faces together more often.”
“Who?” Qiao Qiao thought she had misheard.
“President Ni said that you and Sister Can Can can serve as a highlight.” Sister Zou gestured toward the evening gown already laid out on the bed. “You must go to tonight’s banquet for me. Oh right, that Sister Can Can just asked for your phone number, saying she’ll come pick you up for the banquet later.”
Qiao Qiao was speechless.
Sister Zou had only just departed when Qiao Qiao’s phone began to ring.
Assuming it was Sister Can Can, Qiao Qiao picked up the phone to take a look.
It was an unfamiliar number, but the area code indicated her hometown of Beilin City.
“Hello?”
“Sister!” Qiao Yi’s anxious voice came through the phone line. “Sister, please find someone to help me! I didn’t dare tell Mom, I only dared to reach your phone.”
A weight sank in Qiao Qiao’s chest. “Where are you right now?”
“The police station.”