Chapter Nineteen: Clarification

At that moment, a red Ferrari sped along the downtown overpass. Sitting in the passenger seat, Yu Nuannuan was pressing the voice button, speaking passionately: “I told you she’s Gu Lingyi, but no one believed me!”

“I commented on every post with a picture! Do you know what they said about me?”

“They said I’m just a fan of Gu Lingyi, here to boost her image!”

“I ask you—” Yu Nuannuan rolled her eyes and stretched out her words sarcastically, “Does Gu Lingyi even need anyone to boost her image? Huh!”

Her best friend in the driver’s seat comforted her from the cramped space: “It’s normal not to believe it. Who would expect someone trending on hot search to just come out shopping…”

“But Gu Lingyi herself is just too beautiful! And she wasn’t even wearing makeup!”

The two of them were the girls from the elevator earlier. In Jiangcheng’s socialite circles, Gu Yanyue was regarded as the leading figure and fashion icon. Her every word and action was imitated.

Therefore, Gu Lingyi, standing on the opposite side, was naturally unwelcome.

Yu Nuannuan toyed with her freshly done nails while opening a voice message sent by Ye Zhi.

“I don’t even know who that man is, but in the photos online, they’re holding hands~”

“Wait a minute!” Ye Zhi hesitated, “Isn’t Gu Lingyi supposed to like the eldest son of the Huo family?”

The rumor that the legitimate daughter of the Gu family had a crush on Huo Qi was something the rich second-generation kids in the racing team had mentioned before.

Yu Nuannuan was indifferent. “What does it matter? She just switched affections!”

Gu Lingyi didn’t seem like the type to stubbornly cling to things.

Recalling how she was startled by Gu Lingyi in the elevator for no reason, Yu Nuannuan turned around gloomily to look at Yu Liang in the driver’s seat.

“Brother! You’ve met Gu Lingyi before, right? What do you think of her personality?”

The car exited the overpass. Yu Liang answered without addressing the question: “How do you know I’ve met her?”

Yu Nuannuan: “Yueyue said so… just this morning!”

“Yueyue?” At the red light, Yu Liang stepped on the brake, his slender index finger softly tapping the steering wheel, his voice calm and steady: “What did she say?”

Yu Nuannuan replied without hesitation: “She said Qi Ge went out with you guys and brought her along for fun.”

“‘For fun’?”

It was common for entertainers to be invited to dinners and parties to liven up the atmosphere, but ‘for fun’ in this context?

Yu Liang was suspicious of the intent behind Gu Yanyue’s choice of words when Yu Nuannuan spoke with interest.

“I didn’t have the nerve to ask this morning…”

“Brother!” Her tone was curious, “Is your ‘for fun’ the meaning I’m thinking of?”

The mechanical dashboard reflected the streetlights. Yu Liang countered, “What meaning are you thinking of?”

His voice bore no hint of anger or joy. Yu Nuannuan confessed without realizing it, “Of course, accompanying for drinks, accompanying for games, and accompanying for…”

Suddenly, Yu Nuannuan stopped mid-sentence. She realized that such speculation about a girl might be going too far.

But Yu Liang, determined to get to the bottom of it, asked, “Accompanying for what?”

In their circle, all sorts of entertainments existed. Only when a person was there to be freely admired, played with, and touched could it truly be called ‘for fun.’

Lightly applying such a phrase to Gu Lingyi made Yu Liang feel an indescribable resistance. His voice was low and hoarse: “Accompanying to sleep? Is that it?”

Yu Nuannuan lacked confidence and nervously added: “Yueyue also said we girls should know how to love ourselves…”

“Uh…” Yu Nuannuan suddenly faltered.

Saying it like that seemed to unfairly label Gu Lingyi as ‘not loving herself.’

Even worse, it implied a messy private life!

Yu Nuannuan shook her head hard, certain she had misunderstood Gu Yanyue’s words.

Yu Liang said no more. The sleek sports car accompanied by the engine’s roar drove into the Yunding Estate.

The residential area, covering over forty thousand square meters, housed only twenty villas, each equipped with lawns, swimming pools, and private helipads.

It was the gathering place of Jiangcheng’s wealthiest elites.

Yu Nuannuan took her small bag and got out of the car, but after only a few steps, Yu Liang stopped her.

“Let me see the photos.”

“What photos?” Yu Nuannuan was momentarily stunned, then quickly understood. “Oh—you mean the photos of Gu Lingyi…”

“There are plenty online, from all angles…” Yu Nuannuan muttered while randomly opening a photo and handing the phone to Yu Liang. “So? Can you tell?”

“This really is Gu Lingyi!” Yu Nuannuan jumped up and down beside him, emphasizing, “I saw her with my own eyes! She took off her mask less than half a meter from me!”

Yu Liang stared at the photo, which was clearly taken from a distance.

The image was blurry but not out of focus. A slender woman stood in front of a man, stretching on tiptoe, holding up a small object with both hands.

The man raised his head high, showing no cooperation.

After viewing the photo, Yu Liang tossed the phone back to Yu Nuannuan and walked straight to the elevator.

Back in his room, he hesitated for a moment before opening Weibo.

Just as Yu Nuannuan said, there were photos taken from various angles online.

Her fair, flawless skin and perfect body proportions were undeniably Gu Lingyi’s.

It was her, no doubt.

But who was this man?

Yu Liang’s thoughts grew chaotic. He didn’t know where the vague anxiety stirring within him came from.

At that moment, a WeChat notification popped up—it was a group chat with Huo Qi and others.

[Huo Qi: Gu family recognition banquet, next Saturday.]

[Qin Xiao: [image] My brother said he met someone who looks very much like Gu Lingyi at Y1, and even asked me if it was her.]

Huo Qi probably didn’t even open the photo. Seeing a man’s name, he simply denied it.

[Huo Qi: Not her.]

Yu Liang glanced at Huo Qi’s confident reply and let out a snort.

At the same time, his phone rang with a notification: the real-time trending topics on Weibo had updated. Seeing the name ‘Gu Lingyi,’ Yu Liang didn’t hesitate to click.

The top two trending topics: #Yan Xi Founder Responds#, #Sorry Gu Lingyi#

After the incident had simmered overnight, someone from Yan Xi Photography Studio finally appeared.

Yu Xi V: First of all, I want to thank everyone for their concern and support. Thanks to the firefighters and our staff’s joint efforts, the studio’s aftermath has reached a conclusion.

Here, I want to say to artist Gu Lingyi: I’m sorry.

Because I was focused on the aftermath, I failed to notice that Gu Lingyi was wrongly accused due to the studio accident, causing her harm and defamation, bringing her distress. That is one issue.

Secondly, due to a lack of professional ethics, some studio staff took things out of context and spread false rumors online, leading Gu Lingyi to suffer undeserved insults and personal attacks. This person has been dismissed.

But the harm has already been done. All of this was due to my negligence. So, I apologize! Gu Lingyi.

Also, I want to personally thank Gu Lingyi.

When the accident happened this afternoon, I was trapped at the fire scene. It was Gu Lingyi who bravely rescued me, allowing me to escape danger.

I feel it necessary to inform everyone that the person you are criticizing is my lifesaver.

Regarding the online criticism directed at Gu Lingyi, please watch the following videos.

Yu Xi posted a straightforward video.

One was a clip captured by a makeup artist’s vlog showing the entire process of Gu Yanyue falling and her clothes being torn, during which Gu Lingyi remained perfectly still from head to toe.

Another was security footage from the restroom during the fire, with a clear timestamp in the upper right corner.

At the very end, Yu Xi humorously added:

“Pure heroic footage of Ms. Gu, for more, please visit @Top Cameraman Lao Ke.”