Chapter 128: Ship Name: Slap Girl

"Grandpa, please be reasonable. Dad is out working," Bai Lu said.

"What kind of work is more important than you?" Lu Cheng was furious. "Your grandmother and I are old with weak immune systems, so we can't visit. As for him, he’s run off to some distant place, leaving you all alone at home!"

Bai Lu quickly interjected, "That’s not true! Dad specifically arranged for Uncle Gu to come and look after me."

Just then, Gu Pianran walked in with two cups of ginseng tea.

Upon seeing him, Lu Cheng’s expression toward his own son—who wasn't even present—became even more sour, as if he were looking at an eyesore.

Song Jinse gestured for Gu Pianran to sit beside her. She took his hand and said with a smile, "Pianran, you’re not young anymore. Shouldn’t you start considering your personal life? About that person I mentioned to you before..."

Her uncle’s face stiffened visibly.

Uncle Gu had been so good to her; she couldn't be an ungrateful wretch.

"Cough, cough, cough..." she said, deliberately lowering her voice. "Grandma, Lu-lu has a sore throat."

"Oh, no, no! Grandma will go boil some loquat, lily bulb, and red date soup. It’ll soothe your throat right up." Song Jinse immediately abandoned her matchmaking efforts and directed her husband: "Quick, go get that..."

As soon as her grandparents entered the kitchen, Bai Lu bolted toward the study. "Uncle Gu, I’ll help you pack the documents so you can make a quick escape."

Gu Pianran was already grabbing his coat. "It’s too late. There are too many files; I’ll come back to get them tomorrow."

"Oh, that works too!" Bai Lu nodded, pushing her uncle toward the door. "Don't bother saying goodbye to Grandma and Grandpa. I’ll explain things to them later."

Gu Pianran smiled. "I didn't spoil you for nothing."

Bai Lu leaned against the doorframe, clicking her tongue. Her uncle’s retreating figure looked quite pathetic.

As soon as she closed the door, she heard her grandmother scolding her: "You never learn anything good, you just copy your father. Whenever I mention setting Pianran up on a date, you and your father have the exact same habits—either you’re starving, or you’re feeling unwell."

The father and daughter always found excuses to steer her away and let Pianran slip away. The most annoying part was that she fell for it every single time.

Bai Lu was stunned. Her grandmother’s reaction speed was just too fast. No wonder Uncle Gu said there wasn't enough time to pack the documents... The old fox was definitely more experienced.

Relying on her charm, Bai Lu barely managed to smooth things over. Then she heard Song Jinse say, "And another thing, no matter how much you love looking pretty, you shouldn't go out with bare legs in such cold weather!"

"Bare legs?" Bai Lu asked, confused. "I’m terrified of the cold. Dad even complained about me for wearing cotton trousers—ouch!"

She clutched her head where she had just been tapped. "Grandma! Why did you hit me?"

Song Jinse was indignant. "Your Uncle Gu said you were so vain that you went out playing in a skirt with bare legs, which is how you caught a cold and got a fever. What, you think your Uncle Gu would lie to you?"

*Couldn't her uncle have come up with a better excuse for her!*

Bai Lu apologized obediently and was lectured by Song Jinse for over an hour. She finally realized that her uncle had framed her on purpose. The old fox must have been angry that she hadn't told him about her selling off Wu Liping, so he deliberately set her up to be scolded by her grandparents. *Hmph, I shouldn't have saved the old fox earlier.*

When she left the next day, Song Jinse had wrapped her up like a rice dumpling. It was a struggle to even walk, but Bai Lu didn't dare say a word, obediently wearing exactly what her grandmother liked.

Xiao Dan was shocked when he saw her and pulled out his phone to double-check. "Lu-lu, you’re going to Seoul, not the North Pole."

"There is a kind of cold called 'Grandma thinks you’re cold,'" Bai Lu sighed gloomily while looking out the window. "Alright, tell me, have you found out who is replacing Qiaoqiao?"

Because of the incident where she slapped an internet celebrity at her birthday party, Qiao Qianyi had been viciously attacked by netizens. Unlike Bai Lu, who had actually fought Liu Na Na, the video of Qiao Qianyi hitting someone only showed the act itself, without any context.

Moreover, that internet celebrity was incredibly good at twisting the truth. She had written a Weibo post that sounded so submissive and full of pathos, masterfully using the art of selective framing. The entire post seemed to be explaining things on behalf of Qiao Qianyi, but every word pointed toward a wealthy socialite star looking down on a small influencer with only a few hundred thousand followers. It claimed the star thought the influencer wasn't worthy of being at the same party, made sarcastic comments, and when the influencer retorted, the star slapped her. Worse yet, the star had used her status as a wealthy heiress to act arrogantly after the assault.

Although guests who were present tried to explain, the more they explained, the more it gave netizens the impression that they were ganging up on the influencer. The main problem was that Qiao Qianyi’s usual behavior was indeed quite arrogant. On top of that, her fans, the "Chocolates," didn't know how to be low-key, often using her status as a rich girl and socialite to bait others. Whenever they argued with rivals, they would often retort: "If a rich girl wants resources, can’t her family afford them? Why would she need to fight with you?"

It was an unsolvable situation. One stone stirred up a thousand waves.

Qiao Qianyi had offended many in the circle. With capital backing her, she had blocked many people’s paths, both openly and secretly. All kinds of anti-fans and rivals smelled the shift in the wind and, eager to stir up trouble, jumped into the fray. The narrative spiraled out of control. Once capital entered the mix, it became a game of chess, and in the end, it was just about who could throw more money at the problem. As one of the "Big Three," Yuxing Entertainment, no matter how powerful, couldn't fight several companies at once.

Unaware of the truth, netizens were unknowingly guided by the capital-driven public opinion. To avoid the storm, Yuxing Entertainment decided to have Qiao Qianyi voluntarily quit the show and suspended all her scheduled appearances.

But the netizens were still not satisfied. They asked: "What does Qiao Qianyi rely on?" The answer: "Her rich father." Then, President Qiao and Yingqiao Real Estate were also targeted by netizens.

The carefree Qiao Qianyi was actually quite cheerful about it, saying, "Old Qiao never thought in his life that he’d get to ride his daughter’s coattails and make it to the trending list."

Bai Lu had wanted to help clear Qiao Qianyi’s name several times, or at least explain the situation. But both Yuxing Entertainment and Qiao Qianyi refused. Bai Lu didn't care a bit about Yuxing Entertainment, but she had to listen to Qiao Qianyi.

"I know you want to help me, but you can’t. If you step up to speak for me now, netizens will think you’re ganging up with me, and you might get dragged into the mud too. Why bother? I’m used to being scolded. At worst, I’ll just quit the industry and go home to live off my parents. Your career is going smoothly, so don't get involved in this mess."

She also added, "Bai Lu, being able to call you a friend makes being scolded a hundred times worth it. You want to help a friend, and I want to protect mine. So, don't be stubborn—listen to me and stay silent."

Bai Lu stayed silent, but as a member of the Lu family, she was protective of her own! She logged into her main Weibo account—which was fully managed by Yuxing Entertainment—and liked every post and comment supporting Qiao Qianyi.

Less than ten minutes later, Yuxing Entertainment changed the account password. Lai Jian called her, practically roaring, "Bai Lu! Do you know that netizens have paired you and Qiaoqiao up as a couple? They’re calling you the 'Slap Girls'!"