Chapter 119: Olive Branch No. 2
Gu Qinghuan wanted to ask Bai Qingyin about the B-plan, so she brought Bai Qingyin to her office.
As soon as the door opened, the calico cat lying on the scratching board lifted its upper body. Seeing a stranger behind Gu Qinghuan, it immediately sat up alertly.
Gu Qinghuan tore off a piece of freeze-dried chicken breast for it, letting it eat quietly without paying attention to them.
“You keep a cat here too?” Bai Qingyin asked with interest, trying to get closer to take a look.
But the calico cat snatched the treat and ran to a corner, staring at Bai Qingyin. It seemed that as soon as she got near, it would keep running.
Bai Qingyin grudgingly gave up observing the cat and started looking around the office.
Only then did the cat put down the treat and start eating it with a crunching sound.
The most eye-catching items were the three human-sized dog beds against the wall. Bai Qingyin asked: “Are these for you and your friends?”
Gu Qinghuan nodded: “The green one is mine. If you want to try it, you can lie on the green one.”
The implication was that the other two colors were off-limits—her friends might not agree. She hadn’t actively pushed the invitation but had considered her friends’ feelings, which made Bai Qingyin think Gu Qinghuan was truly a “good kid.”
She happily lay down in the green dog bed: “Alright, I’ll give it a try.”
Gu Qinghuan boiled some water: “I only have hot water. Do you want some?”
“Yes,” Bai Qingyin replied. As a high school student, she usually drank whatever came with takeout; hot water was sufficient.
Gu Qinghuan mixed the hot water with some cold bottled water in a disposable paper cup, ensuring the temperature was right before handing it to Bai Qingyin. She pulled a chair to sit across from her.
“Which celebrity is Jin Ding Entertainment sending?” Gu Qinghuan asked directly.
Bai Qingyin liked this straightforwardness and immediately replied: “Lou Cheng. She was a contestant on a girl group survival show under Jin Ding. During the broadcast, her popularity consistently ranked third, and she eventually debuted in the group.”
“But now that girl group is essentially defunct. According to rumors from Jin Ding, it’s expected to officially announce its disbandment around March. The seven members are currently looking for new paths.”
“Can we trust this information?” Gu Qinghuan asked.
Being questioned didn’t upset Bai Qingyin. After all, if their B-plan were discovered by Jin Ding, it would be bad. At least she had the backing of Qinyin Entertainment—Gu Qinghuan didn’t necessarily.
She replied: “Yes, you can trust it. That girl is smart. Before I contacted her, she behaved very obediently in Jin Ding. If it weren’t for clues provided by the police, I wouldn’t have known she was secretly protecting other girls inside Jin Ding.”
With police verification, Gu Qinghuan’s trust in this idol, Lou Cheng, increased significantly, though she still planned to observe personally.
In Mingde, being a student was the best disguise. Under the pretext of curiosity, she could watch secretly without suspicion—people would just think she was curious or a casual fan.
“By the way,” Gu Qinghuan remembered Wing, “Sister Bai, do you know him?”
Being called “Sister Bai” by a high school girl put Bai Qingyin in a great mood; she felt lighter and more cheerful.
“The actor from Huarong coming for this show? Although we’re not in the same field, Huarong has a good relationship with Qinyin, so I’ve heard a bit.”
“He’s classically trained, a key trainee for Huarong. His acting is good. Personality-wise, he’s supposedly a bit silly—but in this industry, you never know. At least on the surface, his reputation is good.”
Gu Qinghuan thought about her previous conversation with Wing and felt he might indeed be a bit silly.
After speaking, Bai Qingyin realized: “You’re asking about him because you’ve already met?”
“I saw him in the cafeteria. He invited me to join his team,” Gu Qinghuan said.
Bai Qingyin was shocked: Was being a “good kid” really this powerful? In just half a day, someone had already extended an olive branch?
She had originally intended to invite Gu Qinghuan herself!
Thinking of this, Bai Qingyin immediately said: “Why not join my team instead?”
Gu Qinghuan hesitated: “Sister Bai, you’re probably preparing a music program, right? I can hum along with a melody, but my high notes are impossible—I’d go off-key instantly without the original track.”
“Who said I’m definitely doing singing? Besides, my label is ‘creative singer.’ Creativity is the focus,” Bai Qingyin said confidently. “You don’t need to answer immediately. Once I prepare the program, you’ll be interested after seeing it.”
Gu Qinghuan hesitated: “Then I’ll think about it.”
Hadn’t she just said this recently?
Bai Qingyin was much more satisfied after hearing this. She drank her cup of water in one go and stood up: “Alright, rest well. I’ll go prepare. If you need anything, tell the production team to contact me; I’ll take care of it.”
The words sounded familiar to Gu Qinghuan.
She watched Bai Qingyin leave, tossed the disposable cup into the trash, and saw the calico cat had finished its treat and returned to the scratching board.
She crouched down and said to the cat: “I seem to be quite popular, huh?”
The cat opened one eye, glanced at her, and closed it again.
When will this two-legged beast learn to speak? It doesn’t understand anyway—what’s the point of talking to it?
Gu Qinghuan stood up, closed the curtains, and decisively lay down in her dog bed for a nap.
It didn’t matter—there was still time. Resting now would build energy for later.
After a good nap at noon, Gu Qinghuan returned to class feeling energetic.
At the classroom door, Bao Qingsong caught her: “Class president! I heard that Wing invited you to join his team at lunch?”
Gu Qinghuan sighed: “Your information network is impressive. I really admire it.”
Bao Qingsong scratched his cheek awkwardly: The confession wall had posts, and he got the news quickly. But to hide his identity, he only said: “I saw the post on the confession wall. Lots of people are asking about you now!”
Gu Qinghuan pulled out her phone and checked. Indeed, she saw the most recent post.
From the content, the poster seemed to be a fan of Wing.
Gu Qinghuan had expected that the person was curious about her identity just to get an autograph or something. But upon closer inspection, it was full-on fan promotion.
“Wing is such a good kid, his acting is great”—all summarized in one sentence: Please feel assured and join Wing’s team!
Although the fan had obvious bias, it still served as an information-gathering channel.
Fans might not know the real side of their idol, but they absolutely knew the image he projected.
By understanding this image, she could test in person whether Wing was consistent inside and out.
Some aspects of an idol’s persona are deliberately designed for fan appeal. As long as it doesn’t have serious consequences, Gu Qinghuan wouldn’t judge too hastily.
She quickly messaged the student who posted the confession: “Hello, I’m the person you asked about. Can you tell me more about Wing?”
After asking a few questions and confirming her identity, the person sent one document and compressed file after another, entering full-on promotional mode.
If it hadn’t been time for class, Gu Qinghuan suspected the person could have kept going until her phone died.
