Chapter 80
The moment this piece of gossip came out, everyone present and every viewer in the livestream was completely stunned.
‘Damn, I never would’ve thought that after all this time, we’d still get a reversal on the “Blue Enchantress” incident [I’m completely dumbfounded.jpg]’
‘I knew Brother Chi would never do something like that. He’s just not that kind of person [bursting into tears.jpg]’
‘Finally, I can hold my head high again. I’ve disliked Su Jia for a long time already. The moment I first saw him, I felt there was something off about him. Sure enough, sometimes you really do have to trust your instincts.’
‘Live interview for Su Jia fans—so, how does it feel? Is this your perfect ‘brother’ now? [hehe.jpg]’
Inside the training room, Xie Qingchi looked slightly dazed.
He could hear Lin Zhiqiao’s inner thoughts, and he also knew about the “great achievements” Lin Zhiqiao had pulled off before.
Ever since the first day he saw Lin Zhiqiao on Idol Star Dream, one thought had kept circling in Xie Qingchi’s mind from time to time.
Lin Zhiqiao had changed so many people’s “fates”—
So was it possible that he, too, could become one of them?
Xie Qingchi didn’t know.
Back then, he had always treated the members of the group as friends. Su Jia, the youngest and most clingy one, had especially been someone he treated like a younger brother.
Even when Su Jia confessed to him and was rejected, Xie Qingchi had never changed his attitude toward him.
It was only after that night at Blue Enchantress, when he had a huge fight with Su Jia, that he finally realized all the beautiful appearances had actually just been false illusions he had imagined for himself, lies he had used to deceive himself.
The most obedient, sweetest little brother was not a little brother at all, but a wolf in sheep’s clothing.
The friends who joked and laughed with him every day were not friends either, but the first sharp blades to stab into him the moment something happened.
Only then did Xie Qingchi realize that in the deep waters of the entertainment industry, he had actually always been alone, with no one to rely on.
He could not win against Su Jia, who had powerful backers behind him. The so-called friends he believed in had never truly considered him a friend. And among all those who knew the truth, not one person chose to stand up for him.
What Xie Qingchi got was only betrayal after betrayal.
So many years had passed. The so-called “truth” had already taken root deeply in everyone’s minds. Even Xie Qingchi himself had long stopped hoping that one day the truth would come to light and clear his name.
Until now. Lin Zhiqiao’s appearance had made his heart, silent for years, begin to beat again.
It was not that he had given up hope. It was just that… he had never found a chance. After disappointment came again and again, he had gradually gone numb.
Xie Qingchi’s fingers slowly curled tighter. His soft palm stung where his nails dug into it, but that pain only made him more clearly aware that this was not a dream, but something truly happening in reality.
This time… would it finally be the chance he had always hoped for?
A sudden cry of pain snapped Xie Qingchi out of his drifting thoughts.
Before he could even fully react, his body had already moved on instinct, quickly heading toward the direction the cry had come from.
It was the trainee whose movements he had corrected just now.
The trainee no longer had the smugness he showed when he talked back. He was clutching the side of his waist and collapsed on the floor, his whole body curled into itself. His face had gone deathly pale from pain, and cold sweat was constantly seeping out.
At a glance, it was obvious something had gone wrong with his waist.
The moment Xie Qingchi saw the spot he was holding, he knew exactly what had happened.
He crouched beside the trainee and lightly pressed the side of his waist twice, asking softly, “Does it hurt here?”
The boy was already in too much pain to speak. His teeth were clenched tight, and he could only shut his eyes and nod.
Xie Qingchi said nothing more. One hand pinned down the trainee’s arm, while the other landed on the side of his waist. In a low voice, he said, “It’ll hurt a bit. Bear with it.”
As he spoke, he exerted force with his hand. The trainee cried out in pain a few more times, but before long, his expression eased.
“Feeling better?” Xie Qingchi asked.
The trainee nodded. “Mm, much better. Thank you.”
“Get two people to help him over to the side so he can lie down for a while,” Xie Qingchi instructed. Then he turned back to the trainee and added, “This time it’s just a strain with a bit of cramping. If it goes on too long, there’s no telling what could happen.”
“I’m giving you the afternoon off. Just to be safe, you should still go to the hospital and get it checked.”
The trainee looked embarrassed. “Okay, I understand.”
‘Tsk tsk, this is the fastest face-slapping turnaround I’ve ever seen.’
‘This just proves it—if you don’t listen to your elders, you’ll suffer right in front of your eyes [shrug.jpg]’
‘Xie Qingchi’s movements were way too practiced. Did this kind of thing happen to him a lot before?’
‘Don’t say anymore, my heart hurts for Brother Chi [tearful.jpg]’
‘I’m dying, where are all the people who were speaking up for Su Somebody just now? Why can’t I see a single one of them anymore?’
‘They probably unfollowed and quit being fans on the spot [cat secretly laughing.jpg]’
‘Su Jia’s expression is sending me. If that isn’t forcing a smile, I don’t know what is hahaha.’
‘How weird. Why did so many people used to say Su Jia had a good temper? His mind is narrower than the tip of a needle [eye roll.jpg]’
Lin Zhiqiao watched the whole thing from the side and shook his head with a sigh: [If you’d known it would come to this, why bother in the first place? You just had to get hurt before learning your lesson, huh?]
[Speaking of which, what was the name of the big shot Su Jia found again? Zhou Ming? Why does that name sound kind of familiar? Didn’t Lin Chen mention it before or something?]
Lin Zhiqiao could not quite remember clearly.
[Zhou Ming is at Blue Enchantress right now? Good lord, playing this hard in broad daylight? With that kind of intensity, isn’t he worried he won’t be able to sleep tonight… holy shit!!!]
Another sharp scream sliced through the air.
[Officer, help! There are people doing drugs in a group ahhh!!!]
*
The news that the Zhou family’s eldest young master had been taken away spread across the internet very quickly.
At the same time, the “Blue Enchantress” incident climbed onto the trending list once again after all these years.
Someone posted on Weibo:
“It’s finally been exposed. I’ve been suffocating holding this in all these years.”
“I guess you could count me as a witness to the Blue Enchantress incident. I was there that night too, and I saw the entire argument between Xie Qingchi and Su Jia from start to finish.”
“I’m a regular at Blue Enchantress. It was my first time seeing Xie Qingchi, but I’d seen Su Jia’s disguised outfit quite a few times before.”
“I really didn’t expect the whole internet to start attacking Xie Qingchi after that night. I had video footage in my hands and originally wanted to post it to speak up for him, but because of a certain reason everyone understands, not only was I unable to post the video, I even received personal threats.”
“Attached here are the video from back then and screenshots proving the threats.”
“Watching Xie Qingchi get smeared and blackened for so many years has honestly made me feel awful. All I could do these years was buy more of Brother Xie’s albums to support him.”
“And by the way, Brother Xie wasn’t wearing makeup that night. His bare face was ridiculously strong. Personally, I think he looked even more amazing than Su Jia with makeup on.”
“And lastly, confession time to my Brother Chi—Xie Qingchi, I’m your [beep——], I’ll love you for ten thousand years!!!”
Under that Weibo post, someone jumped out to nitpick:
‘You couldn’t post it back then, so how come you can post it now? Isn’t this just a paid PR draft someone bought to clear their name?’
But that person was quickly dragged.
‘Didn’t even need to click your profile to know what kind of thing you are.’
‘Bro, didn’t you see the trending topics? The reason it can be posted now is because Su Somebody’s backer has already been taken away by the police.’
Besides that, there were also people claiming to be Su Jia’s former classmates who came out and said Su Jia had always had a terrible temper, loved stabbing people in the back, and used to flirt with other male classmates all the time when he was in school, and so on.
The internet turned into a complete mess. Hammer after hammer dropped, and very quickly Su Jia was nailed straight into the ground. Every persona he had built up was stripped away one by one, leaving his true face completely exposed.
At that moment, Su Jia knew nothing about the heated discussion online.
The trainee’s sudden waist injury had undoubtedly been a slap in his face, to the point that he nearly could not keep the expression on his face steady.
It was only during the mid-session break, after that trainee had left for the hospital, that Su Jia’s mood improved slightly.
But clearly, he started feeling better far too early.
While guiding the trainees during practice, Su Jia had kept his phone on silent the entire time. It was only during the break that he finally had time to take it out. The moment he unlocked it, he was shocked by the countless unread messages and the huge number of missed calls.
The unread messages came from all major platforms and messaging apps, every single one glaring in red with 99+. Most of the missed calls were from his manager.
A bad feeling instantly rose in Su Jia’s heart.
He did not dare open any of the unread messages. Only after finding an empty classroom and locking the door did he call his manager back.
The other side picked up almost instantly. Before Su Jia could even ask what had happened, his manager’s panicked voice came through.
“Su Jia! It’s over! It’s all over!!!”
