Chapter 169 Trust Him

Sang Yijia chuckled, feeling a mix of amusement and exasperation. "It's fine. My second brother already asked the school to help clarify things."

"The school has released an official statement now, so everything is sorted out," Sang Yijia said, having found out just a few minutes prior. "My third brother recommended a lawyer friend, and they've already started taking screenshots to preserve the evidence."

Sang Yijia was certainly not going to be polite to these internet trolls.

"That's a relief." Duan Yuqing let out a long breath. "I was just so furious when I saw Weibo earlier, and coupled with the mess with my former agency, sigh."

Duan Yuqing didn't even know how to express her frustration. After letting out a series of sighs, she continued, "I'm afraid I won't be able to join Qi Bin's team."

Duan Yuqing had harbored an idea for a long time, but she hadn't dared to act on it. After seeing her former team's response just now, however, her resolve solidified. "Jiajia, what do you think if I start my own team?"

"An all-female team, and then we go win a few world championships," Duan Yuqing said, pausing for a moment. "Do you think after that, people will still say that women are bad at gaming?"

Sang Yijia was momentarily stunned, taking quite a while to process the thought. Of course, she would undoubtedly support this choice, but there was one glaring issue—it was far too realistic.

Most women were not passionate about gaming, especially electronic sports. Perhaps women might follow esports, watch livestreams, and tune into tournaments, but when it came to actually competing, Sang Yijia figured there were very few who would do so, let alone finding women who played at an elite level.

"You think it's really difficult too, don't you?" Although Duan Yuqing couldn't see Sang Yijia's expression, she could easily imagine it. "Still, I want to give it a try."

"You'll succeed," Sang Yijia replied sincerely. "There will definitely be people out there just like you."

"Thank you."

The call ended.

Lu Wenchuan turned his gaze toward her. "Aunt Zhang sent up some mung bean and coix seed sweet soup just now, saying it clears heat, detoxifies, and reduces internal heat."

It was the first time Lu Wenchuan had realized a sweet soup could have so many medicinal properties, and he looked at it with curious interest.

"Aunt Zhang used to live in City G; people over there are quite fond of herbal teas and sweet soups." Sang Yijia picked up her phone, walked back to sit down, and told Lu Wenchuan about Duan Yuqing's situation.

"Qi Bin previously wanted to put together an all-female roster as well," Lu Wenchuan remarked. "Why isn't it working out now?"

"Some of the members there refuse to submit to Yuqing." After taking a sip of the sweet soup, Sang Yijia narrowed her eyes in pure bliss. "Next time we go to City G, I'll treat you to herbal tea."

"Um..." Lu Wenchuan had a gut feeling it wouldn't taste pleasant at all, but since it was Sang Yijia's invitation, he couldn't refuse. "Alright."

"We'll go whenever we have time."

"Sounds good." Sang Yijia finished the sweet soup in no time. "You should talk to Qi Bin. If the conflicts within that team can be resolved, it's best to fix them."

"And if they can't," Sang Yijia paused slightly, "I'll buy a stake in it."

"Then the next time we meet, we'll be adversaries."

"That would be between him and me, not you," Lu Wenchuan instantly denied. "I can just forgo those shares."

Sang Yijia paused, unable to hold back her laughter. "You're really so generous. Those are shares we're talking about; how can you just give them up like that?"

"You're much more important than shares," Lu Wenchuan replied.

***

City No. 1 High School issued an official clarification statement.

Netizens were dumbfounded, completely failing to realize that it was nothing more than dirty water deliberately splashed onto Sang Yijia.

[Come to think of it, Sang Yijia doesn't really have any dirt on her to begin with. Why would anyone target her?]

By this point, netizens had already forgotten the previous controversies. Furthermore, Sang Yijia had not participated in any film or television projects prior to this, so the only thing the general public remembered her for was the romance reality show she had recently resumed filming.

Yet no one remembered why the previous season of the reality show had been halted, and certainly no one thought to bring it up.

Memories seemed somewhat chaotic, but no one cared enough to dwell on it.

Following the clarification from City No. 1 High School, Yan Ningxi and Bian He were finally able to log back into their accounts and repost the statement to show their support for Sang Yijia.

However, it was all a bit too late; some netizens began to mock them for being fair-weather friends who only showed up once the trouble had passed.

Yan Ningxi even called Sang Yijia to apologize for it.

Still, in this industry, not kicking someone when they were down was already considered a decent virtue.

How could Sang Yijia possibly care about such trivialities?

Yet Yan Ningxi still felt guilty and insisted on treating Sang Yijia to a meal.

From its emergence to its conclusion, the smear campaign lasted less than two hours before being completely snuffed out.

Watching the trending topics on Weibo alongside Sang Yijia's name, Lan Qing clenched her fists tightly. "Sang Yijia is just too lucky."

"Why does she always get to be so lucky?" Lan Qing didn't dare to speak loudly. With her back to the camera, she stared at her phone screen, scrolling through the news on Weibo.

Jingle bell—

Her phone rang.

Seeing that the incoming call was from Huang Hong, Lan Qing panicked instantly. She averted her gaze toward the camera across the room while quickly detaching the wireless microphone clipped to her collar, only then daring to answer the call.

"Director Huang, why are you calling at this hour?" Lan Qing's heart was trembling, terrified that someone might find out.

"Why wouldn't I be able to call?"

"I've arrived at your hotel. Come over tonight."

Lan Qing's heart instantly turned cold. "Director Huang, I'm still recording the show right now. I'm afraid it's not convenient."

"What do you mean not convenient? Find a way to get over here."

The man on the other end of the line gave Lan Qing no room for refusal, hanging up the call immediately after speaking.

Lan Qing felt utterly chilled to the bone. Checking the time, it was already ten o'clock at night. If she took a shower now and slipped away quietly after the lights went out, it should probably be fine.

***

It was ten o'clock in the night.

Sang Yijia looked at Lu Wenchuan. "Still not leaving?"

Although she had taken a shower and felt much more alert, sleepiness was beginning to creep up on her.

"I'll head back in a moment." Seeing Sang Yijia begin to yawn, her eyelids drooping heavier and heavier, Lu Wenchuan smiled with doting fondness and gently ruffled the crown of her head. "I'm leaving right now."

"Remember to brush your teeth and wash your face later." She had just eaten sweet soup, after all; she couldn't just go straight to bed like that.

"I'll make breakfast tomorrow, so you don't need to wake up too early." Lu Wenchuan desperately wanted to pull Sang Yijia into his arms and hold her tight, but with Aunt Zhang around, he didn't dare pull any other stunts.

"Mm." Sang Yijia stood up and took the initiative to step into Lu Wenchuan's embrace, giving him a brief hug. "Goodnight."

Lu Wenchuan's heart instantly softened, making him even more reluctant to leave.

"Goodnight." He didn't dare let his lips linger on Sang Yijia's forehead, pressing a soft kiss only to the crown of her hair.

After sending him off and returning inside, Aunt Zhang coughed lightly. "Jiajia, Mr. Lu seems like a good man, but..."

The Lu family was a prominent and powerful household, whereas the Sang family, regardless of anything else, simply possessed vast wealth. The two families might not be an equal match in social standing.

Besides, that elderly Mr. Lu certainly wouldn't consent to it.

"Aunt Zhang, I'm very happy right now," Sang Yijia said, the corners of her lips curving upward. "And..."

Looking back toward the door, she could almost still picture Lu Wenchuan's figure lingering there. "I trust him."