Ji Le never in her life expected she would have the chance to trend on Weibo alongside Wei Xin.
Truly an honor...
Pfft, yeah, right.
Ji Le yanked a handful of hair, jumped out of bed, and hammered frantically on the bathroom door.
"Wei Huojin, stop soaking in there! Hurry up and get out, we're in a scandal together, ahhhhh!"
The moment the words left her mouth, a sharp splash echoed from inside the bathroom, as if something had dropped into the water.
"My phone..." Wei Xin stared blankly at the ripples in the bathtub.
A few seconds later, it finally dawned on her to go fish the phone out.
"What are you standing there frozen for? Hurry up and post on Weibo to clear this up, ahhhhh!" Ji Le was acting like her tail was on fire.
Wei Xin casually threw on a bathrobe and came out, holding up her dripping phone, which was still covered in bubbles. With a smile that didn't reach her eyes, she said, "You're paying for this."
Ji Le: "???"
Just as the two of them were about to argue over who was at fault, a knock sounded at the door.
"Sister Xin?"
It was Taozi's voice. Wei Xin glared at her damned childhood friend and walked over to open the door.
Standing outside was Taozi, holding a bag of fruit, and right behind Taozi stood a very pretty woman.
Her long hair fell loosely over her shoulders, somewhat disheveled.
Most of her delicate face was hidden behind a black mask, revealing only a pair of classic peach-blossom eyes that held traces of worry.
Xu Wenyi?!
Wei Xin instinctively stepped back a few paces. Why was she here?
"Sister Xin, um, I ran into Teacher Xu on my way back. She happened to be looking for you, so we came up together."
"You came at the right time. Lend me your phone to log into Weibo." Wei Xin covered her accidentally deceased phone with a piece of white paper and held a three-second moment of silence.
"Forget it, you edit the caption. I'm not great with words..." Wei Xin handed the phone back to Taozi.
Just as she was about to briefly summarize the requirements for the post, she heard Xu Wenyi's voice, laced with surprise and concern.
"You're trending on Weibo?" Xu Wenyi stared at her anxiously, as if she had just seen some terrifying sight.
Knowing she was in the wrong, Wei Xin apologized repeatedly. "I'm so sorry, this whole thing is my fault. It didn't affect your work, did it?"
She had guarded against Du Lüe for ages, never expecting that she and Ji Le would end up as scandal targets.
Truly, you can guard against enemies day and night, but thieves within the household are impossible to prevent.
Wei Xin cast a resentful glance at her childhood friend, picked up a box of strawberries, and handed them to Xu Wenyi. "What are you doing here?"
"To help you clear your name," Xu Wenyi took out her phone. "Let's take a selfie together and post it. Who is she?"
"Ji Le, a friend. We're completely innocent!" Wei Xin put down the strawberries and sat up straight.
Ji Le clicked her tongue. "Wei Huojin, are you sure you're not the bottom in this?"
"Cough, cough, cough!"
Wei Xin had just shoved two strawberries into her mouth when she heard that. Choking hard on them, she coughed until tears came out.
Xu Wenyi was startled. While pulling out tissues to wipe her mouth and hands, she gently patted her back. "Do you want some water? Did you choke?"
Taozi was a step slower, holding out a tissue with a blank look on her face. After a moment of thought, she handed the tissue to Xu Wenyi instead.
"I have a selfie, but my phone is broken..." Wei Xin glared at her childhood friend. "Ji Le, send the photo to Taozi, and then get your ass out of here and buy me a new phone—the newest model with the largest storage."
"I don't have money, but you can take my life." Ji Le flopped carelessly onto the sofa and even swiped the box of strawberries sitting in front of Wei Xin.
Wei Xin laughed outly of sheer exasperation. "I'm counting to three. One, tw—"
"I'm joking, I'm going to change my clothes right now."
"Wait, let's take another group photo so I can help you clear things up together, lest the haters start making wild guesses." Xu Wenyi opened her camera. "Do you want to join, Taozi?"
Since they were taking a proper group photo, Wei Xin simply hauled Sister Liu over from next door—Sister Liu was currently on the phone, chewing someone out.
The five of them squeezed onto the small sofa looking somewhat stiff and took a photo.
Xu Wenyi smiled brightly as she linked arms with the rigidly upright Wei Xin, while Ji Le flashed a casual "V" sign. Standing behind the three of them were a bewildered Taozi and Sister Liu, who was putting on a surface smile while secretly continuing to type angry messages.
"Should I post it then?"
"Wait, can you also post the elevator selfie Xiaoxin took?" Sister Liu hung up the phone, temporarily letting off her colleagues in the PR department.
"Sure, then let me add Taozi."
Ji Le didn't even think before cutting her off. "I'll add you, I have it on my phone."
Wei Xin pressed her fingertips against her temple. "This is her personal account, what are you sticking your nose in for?" Then she told Xu Wenyi, "Don't pay attention to her."
"What, scared I'm going to run off with your girlfriend?"
The space between Wei Xin's brows twitched. "You... shut up!"
"Ooh~ struck a nerve, did I?"
After finishing her act of trolling, Ji Le braved Wei Xin's murderous glare and introduced herself to Xu Wenyi. "Hello, Miss Xu, my name is Ji Le. I'm her cousin and childhood friend. Would it be alright if we exchange contact info? I have pictures of Wei Huojin from when she was little."
Taozi: *Wait, wasn't it a contract relationship???*
Sister Liu: *Teacher Xu is truly such a kind person, rushing over specially to help Xiaoxin clear her name.*
"Miss Xu?"
"Of course! Of course it's fine." Xu Wenyi snapped back to reality, her voice carrying a trace of imperceptible tremor. "I—should I scan your code?"
Wei Xin screamed like a marmot inside her head. *What on earth is going on? This isn't even real, why bother adding each other on WeChat?*
*We didn't even add each other in our past lives, you know!*
*It's all Sister Liu's fault for insisting that Xu Wenyi post the elevator photo.*
"Should I refer to Ji-mubai as a friend, or should I state directly that she's your cousin?" Xu Wenyi asked, seeking the person involved's opinion.
"Just say she's my cousin."
Without even thinking, Wei Xin chose to let Xu Wenyi expose the family relation between Ji Le and herself.
The moment the words left her mouth, she instantly regretted it.
*Calling her a friend would've been fine, why did I have to add that bit?*
Xu Wenyi was quite surprised by her choice, and her tone carried a hint of joy as she typed away, asking, "How did the phone break? Can I write that you were in a rush to clear your name and accidentally dropped it in the water?"
Wei Xin tilted her head in confusion, not understanding why she had to specifically mention the phone.
Was it just to give those malicious netizens another source of amusement?
Xu Wenyi patiently explained, "Blockade is less effective than diversion. Today's incident is clearly the work of someone plotting against you behind the scenes; a normal statement won't stop the internet trolls from keeping the narrative going. If we put the phone falling into the water out in the open, and then get the fans to guide the public to join in on the joke..."
Living, breathing humans in comment threads were the most precious commodity, and the simplest way to get passersby to jump into the fray was to give them a running joke to play with.
If this joke landed well, it wouldn't just boost Wei Xin's clout; the next time a similar piece of gossip popped up, ordinary onlookers would likely associate it with this farce.
Not only would it buy time for her team's PR efforts, but it would also unconsciously tip the scale in the onlookers' hearts toward Wei Xin's side—truly killing several birds with one stone.
Sister Liu silently praised her in her heart. An artist this smart and decisive was just her cup of tea, unlike certain other people who only knew how to act...
Wei Xin nodded, indicating she understood. "Take another picture of me kicking Ji Le out the door, and add a caption saying she went to buy me the newest, top-tier model phone."
She paused, then added, "Wait until she brings the phone back before posting the follow-up. Still use your account to post it, alright?"
"Of course." Xu Wenyi smiled as she asked Ji Le to cooperate for the photo.
"Do I seriously have to buy this phone tonight?" Ji Le had just showered and didn't want to go out. "Can't I just buy it online for you?"
"Oh, in that case, I'll have your mom buy me a new one, and by the way, I'll let her know you're abroad with..." Wei Xin generously offered a second option.
Ji Le took a deep breath, gritting her teeth. "I'm going."
Seizing the opportunity, Xu Wenyi snapped the photo of Ji Le being kicked out the door.
Before she had even taken a few steps out the door, Ji Le turned back around to drop one last parting threat: "Wei Huojin, you're ruthless! Just wait until I get something on you, see if I don't bleed you dry!"
"Oh, I'm so scared."
Ji Le: (?▼-▼)