Chapter 8: That's Actually a Nice Name

"You! That's a foul!" Wen Qingye swatted at her shoulder, both angry and flustered.

Jiang Li set her down and reminded her: "The most important thing is to run. Don't give the attacker time to react."

Wen Qingye refused to accept this outcome. "I've got it! Again!"

Jiang Li smiled helplessly but played along obediently.

Wen Qingye's movements were a bit smoother this time, but against Jiang Li, it still felt like a kitten swiping at nothing.

This time Jiang Li didn't even give her the chance for an elbow strike. She grabbed Wen Qingye's wrist and, with a reflexive grappling move, took her straight down to the ground.

"Ow ow ow ow ow!!!" Wen Qingye's arm was twisted behind her back. Her free hand slapped the ground in pain.

"Jiang Li! What are you doing?!" The squad leader's sharp reprimand snapped Jiang Li back to reality. She released her immediately.

Jiang Li felt terrible and quickly helped her up from the ground.

Disaster! Muscle memory was a terrifying thing—she'd actually just thrown a delicate girl to the ground like that.

Wen Qingye was left disheveled by Jiang Li's handling, dust all over her white tee, hair a mess.

Jiang Li couldn't remember exactly how the rest of the drill had ended. All she recalled was being chewed out by the squad leader and ordered to find Wen Qingye and apologize immediately.

Wen Qingye was rubbing her shoulder and walking back toward the academic building with Hu Yue when someone patted her shoulder from behind. She turned and saw Jiang Li's face, tinged with apology.

Wen Qingye instinctively took two steps back.

"Um…" Jiang Li scratched her head. "Sorry about that. I didn't gauge my strength properly. Are you okay? Should I take you to see a doctor?"

Wen Qingye rolled her shoulder and decided it wasn't serious. "I'm fine, nothing major. I'm the one who insisted on going again. You don't need to feel bad."

Hu Yue beside them snorted with laughter and suggested: "Why don't you two add each other on WeChat? That way if Xiaoye's shoulder has any problems later, you can take responsibility."

"Of course, of course." Jiang Li pulled her phone from her pocket and opened WeChat. "I'll scan you."

Wen Qingye hesitated for a moment, then held up her QR code. Jiang Li scanned it. "There. Accept the request."

Once they were added, Jiang Li held up her phone toward her. "If your shoulder acts up, come find me. I'm heading back to base now."

Wen Qingye… Jiang Li smiled, then turned and walked away.

Hu Yue bumped her shoulder, grinning. "Interested? Want to try developing something here?"

Wen Qingye thought about how Jiang Li had just slammed her into the ground and decisively shook her head. "Pass. She doesn't know the first thing about being gentle with a flower."

Just then, Jiang Li sent a message:

"Hi, I'm Jiang Li. What should I call you?"

Wen Qingye typed three characters: Wen Qingye.

Jiang Li… actually, that's a nice name, Wen Qingye thought.

Coincidentally, Jiang Li was thinking the same thing.

[End of Flashback]

The livestream had already begun. Wen Qingye sat in front of the camera, guided by a host beside her as they moved through the program.

Wen Qingye had done her homework on the new lipstick line beforehand. She could rattle off every shade number accurately, and her presentation flowed smoothly. She even applied the lipsticks on her own lips for live swatches.

She kept wiping off one color, concealing her natural lip color with a cushion foundation, then applying the next shade to show the fans in the livestream.

After swatching over a dozen lipsticks in one go, Wen Qingye's lips were already red and slightly swollen.

Ning Si and Jiang Li stood outside the room, monitoring the situation inside at all times. Ning Si in particular was lurking in the livestream chat, keeping a close eye on the comments.

Thankfully, most of the messages were fans praising Wen Qingye's beauty or feeling sorry for her lips being put through the wringer for swatches.

But there were plenty of antis in the chat too. Though fans were fighting hard to drown them out, comments like "go die," "traitor," and "flop into the ground" still slipped through.

Ning Si didn't forget to remind the backstage assistant to ban each and every one of those antis.

Ning Si let out a heavy sigh and muttered under her breath: "These antis are getting outrageous!"

Jiang Li didn't quite understand. She asked: "Are you just going to let these antis run wild? Doesn't the company help her deal with this?"

Ning Si explained with a headache: "Xiaoye just came back to China. She hasn't made any money for the company yet. On top of that, the company is still helping her sort out the legal disputes with her former agency in Korea. Before Xiaoye blows up, the company isn't going to invest too much capital in her."

Jiang Li didn't fully grasp the inner workings of the industry, but she understood one thing: in entertainment, fame was everything.

Actually, yesterday Jiang Li had already searched Wen Qingye's name across various platforms. The reviews were a mixed bag at best.

Wen Qingye had spent a year and a half as a trainee at a well-known Korean entertainment company, ultimately debuting as part of the 7-member girl group LUMINA.

Korean girl groups typically operated under strict internal hierarchies and role divisions. As the only foreign member, Wen Qingye had been virtually marginalized within LUMINA.

Wen Qingye had earned her place in the Korean industry through sheer talent and beauty. To boost the group's profile, she'd frequently appeared on variety shows to get her face out there. Her natural beauty, unpretentious personality, and straightforward sincerity had won her a loyal fanbase and casual public goodwill. Everyone thought she was on track to carve out a real space for herself in K-pop.

Then, the day after LUMINA released their new album, Wen Qingye suddenly announced on social media that she was terminating her contract with her company.

The 7-member performance stages were hastily reduced to 6. When her former teammates unfollowed Wen Qingye on Instagram one after another, it sparked a massive wave of discussion.

Rumors swirled. Some said Wen Qingye had endured a full year of bullying from her teammates—physically and psychologically worn down until she'd had no choice but to terminate.

Others claimed a domestic Chinese company had offered her money and resources to poach her, and she'd caved to the temptation, abandoning her teammates to return home.

Opinions flew in every direction, yet from start to finish, Wen Qingye never stepped forward to explain a single thing. In interviews, she only offered safe, surface-level pleasantries.

Not long after, a former teammate posted a late-night message on social media, passively-aggressively implying that Wen Qingye had betrayed the group—then deleted it within seconds. But the screenshot spread like wildfire, and LUMINA's group fans flooded Wen Qingye's Instagram comments with furious insults, calling her a traitor.

After Wen Qingye returned to China and signed with a new agency, the antis only grew more furious. The abuse migrated from Instagram to Weibo—every kind of vile language, even death threats.

Three months had passed since her return. From the early days of being devastated by every anti comment, to now actively blocking out social media entirely—who knew what she'd been through in between? Only Wen Qingye herself knew.

Jiang Li had seen those ugly words too. She couldn't be as nonchalant as Wen Qingye. She wanted to drag every single person hiding behind a screen, cursing Wen Qingye, out into the open and beat them to a pulp.

Suddenly remembering someone, Jiang Li excused herself to Ning Si: "I need to make a phone call."
Ning Si nodded. Jiang Li stepped into the hallway, found a number, and dialed. The call was picked up almost immediately. The person on the other end sounded genuinely surprised: "A-Li? Well, this is rare! You actually calling me?"

Jiang Li spoke with a hint of a smile: "Are you still working at that PR firm? I need to ask you for a favor."

The other end sounded cheerful: "Don't be polite with me. Whatever it is, just say it!"