Chapter 27 Part 2

"Do you have time to talk about the news regarding Qingye?"

"I've already spoken with Ji Yan about this. I'm willing to cooperate with the clarification," Xu Zhinan said. "But I need to confirm the facts of that video, whether it's really related to me."

"Huh?" Wang Qi didn't understand. "What else could it be?"

"..."

Wang Qi: "I just asked Qingye too. He admitted it was for a girl. After thinking about it, who else could it be but you?"

Xu Zhinan was quiet for a moment. An indescribable feeling bubbled up in her heart, like the fizz in a carbonated drink.

She quickly agreed to help with the clarification.

After that, Wang Qi would arrange and handle everything.

The faster a crisis was managed, the better the result. The next morning, Wang Qi came to pick her up. He had already arranged an interview with a reporter in advance.

Because Xu Zhinan didn't want to reveal her identity, her face would be blurred out later, and a voice changer would be used for her voice.

It was Xu Zhinan's first time in such a situation, with two cameras pointed at her. Fortunately, the entire interview process was quick. The reporter and Wang Qi already knew each other, so no deliberately difficult questions were asked.

"Thank you," Wang Qi said to the reporter after it was over. "I'll have to trouble you to edit the video as soon as possible. We can't let public opinion continue to ferment."

This kind of news was mutually beneficial. The reporter got an exclusive headline, and Lin Qingye could clear up the misunderstanding. They worked overtime, and it was released that very afternoon.

The hype generated by the previous interview video had already laid the groundwork. As soon as Xu Zhinan's video was released, the traffic skyrocketed.

So many people had been waiting to see Lin Qingye fall this time. Even if it didn't finish him, it would at least be a stain he couldn't wash away, something that would inevitably be brought up whenever he was in the news.

But no one expected it to be resolved so perfectly. The tide of public opinion turned immediately.

[Su Zheng, go to hell!! How dare you verbally abuse the child of a martyr and then have the nerve to blame someone else!!!!]

[Becoming a fan of Lin Qingye now. y1s1, you should fight fire with fire against trash who bully their classmates!! And he even used her deceased father to attack her, that's just disgusting!]

[It's true that your appearance reflects your heart. The first time I saw Su Zheng's video, I thought he looked so creepy.]

[I feel so bad for the young lady in the video. Your father is a hero! Don't take the words of such trash to heart!]

[Lin Qingye is awesome! Su Zheng can go die!]

[Why isn't Su Zheng showing his face now? Wasn't he so capable before? With such good acting, why doesn't he become an actor??]

[Give me a break. His acting was so exaggerated when he talked about being unable to move on from the school bullying. Even though you can't see the young lady's expression and her voice was altered, you can still feel her sadness. That's what it's like when someone is telling the truth.]

...

After watching the video, Lin Qingye's brows gradually furrowed.

Even though Xu Zhinan's face was blurred to the point where her features were completely indistinguishable, it was impossible for him not to know it was her.

Lin Qingye watched the video three times, then called Wang Qi. "What's the situation online?"

"What situation? Is there a new problem?" Wang Qi jumped in fright and immediately opened his computer to check.

"No, the clarification video."

"I asked your girlfriend to do the interview this morning," Wang Qi said, bewildered. "Didn't your girlfriend tell you?"

He had been swamped by this whole affair and also had to consider the impact on 'Here for the Song'. He figured Xu Zhinan would tell Lin Qingye anyway, so he hadn't had the time to specifically inform him.

Lin Qingye: "..."

He raised a hand to press the spot between his eyebrows, his thoughts unreadable. After a long moment, the corner of his mouth lifted slightly.

Wang Qi added, "There's one more thing I need to tell you. Although this matter is more or less resolved, as is standard practice, the fact is that you hit someone. We can't advocate for that, so you still have to apologize for this action. Of course, the apology statement will also clearly condemn Su Zheng's disrespectful behavior towards a martyr."

Wang Qi had originally thought Lin Qingye would give him another headache by saying something like "Su Zheng deserved to be beaten," but unexpectedly, he agreed readily this time. "Alright."

He even sounded like he was in a pretty good mood.

Ever since Lin Qingye reposted her tattoo contest voting link that day, Xu Zhinan's votes had been increasing at a fluctuating pace. Although she was still behind Lu Xihe, she had pulled far ahead of third place.

Xu Zhinan had always admired Lu Xihe's tattoo style, and he was indeed a very senior tattoo artist. Xu Zhinan wasn't the least bit unhappy with the voting results.

She exited the link and tapped on the Weibo app she had opened earlier from her phone's background. There were already many comments under her clarification video.

She skimmed through them and was relieved to confirm that public opinion had shifted.

Soon, another customer came into the shop.

He had also found out about her through the contest and came specifically to get a tattoo. He even brought a design he had prepared in advance, so they started right away.

The design wasn't large; it took two hours to complete.

By the time they finished, the sky had already turned dark.

Xu Zhinan had just had a fever not long ago, so her mother had been urging her to come home and rest early these past few days. She had been closing the shop early every day.

She packed up her things and was about to go home when the door was pushed open again, the wind chime tinkling softly.

The man who had just been the subject of heated online discussions appeared before her.

Xu Zhinan paused. For some reason, her mood upon seeing him after this incident was very calm. She asked, "Why are you here?"

Lin Qingye closed the door and walked to her side. "Didn't I get a tattoo here before? It's inflamed."

"..."

Xu Zhinan couldn't help but say, "It's been so many days. If it's still inflamed now, that patch of your skin would already be ruined."

Lin Qingye laughed, leaning sideways against her wooden table. "I saw your interview video."

"Yes, Producer Wang came to find me this morning." Xu Zhinan calmly gave the credit to others. "I ran into Ji Yan at the hospital yesterday. She was the one who told me about this."

Lin Qingye's lips curled into a roguish smile. The aura around him seemed to shine even brighter, returning him to his former dazzling self.

He moved a little closer, looking at Xu Zhinan from a short distance, and asked slowly, "Then why did you help me?"

Xu Zhinan didn't dodge or avoid his gaze. She looked straight at him and said calmly:

"Because I discovered that you seem to like me a lot."

As her words fell, Lin Qingye felt as if his heart had been seized in a tight grip.

His secret, buried deep for so many years, had been caught.

The author has something to say:

Oh ho, the tables have turned. Ah Nan is taking charge.