No wonder they paid 50 million for a set of photos; they weren't ordinary photos after all.

Xu Zhaozhao looked up at her assistant and asked, "Are there any other clothes to choose from?"

"some."

The assistant nodded. "But this is the outfit with the most fabric."

Xu Zhaozhao remained silent.

He spread out the two tattered pieces of cloth and held them up to himself.

Without the strange iron rings and patterns on those photos in the photography exhibition, and with some layered textures, Xu Zhaozhao could barely accept it.

Taking a deep breath, she looked at her assistant and asked, "Shall we do our makeup first?"

The assistant nodded, indicating that he understood and agreed.

The makeup wasn't complicated, and it was done quickly.

"Miss Zhao Zhao, go change your clothes."

Xu Zhaozhao had no choice but to take the two pieces of fabric into the fitting room.

I changed quickly. Although there was less fabric, it was only a little shorter than a normal tank top shorts.

Standing in front of the dressing mirror, she nervously tugged at the fabric at the hem of her skirt.

"By the way, who's the male lead I'm shooting with today?"

After she had changed her clothes, Xu Zhaozhao remembered to ask.

"He's a young entrepreneur, Fu Chengze," the assistant replied.

Xu Zhaozhao was startled and almost tore her skirt off.

Isn't he a young, handsome man?

How did it become Fu Chengze?

-

Meanwhile, Gu Qingyan was on set, sitting in the rest area before his scenes were scheduled to start.

He idly twirled the diamond ring on his ring finger.

After a long while, he finally took out his phone, made a call, and asked, "What is she doing?"

Unbeknownst to anyone on the other end, Gu Qingyan's previously normal expression darkened, and he emanated a destructive aura.

Before Gou Ge could react, Gu Qingyan grabbed the car keys and sped away, leaving only exhaust fumes behind.

Ding ding ding...

Ding ding ding...

Gu Qingyan's phone kept ringing in his pocket, but he seemed not to hear it, staring intently ahead as he navigated through several yellow lights.

squeak--

The screeching sound of brakes rang out, Gu Qingyan braked to a stop, looked at the red light that had just flashed, and slammed his fist on the steering wheel.

My phone was still ringing in my pocket; it was Gou Ge calling.

He answered the phone impatiently, "Postpone all of today's announcements."

But Gou Ge wasn't concerned about that. Afraid that Gu Qingyan would hang up, he quickly said, "Brother Gu, look at the trending topics!"

Gu Qingyan clicked on the trending topics.

#BestActorAndActressVisitSet#

#Gu Qingyan appears at Happy Valley and shares a deep gaze with Qin Yueling – is good news on the horizon?#

#If Gu Qingyan and Qin Yueling were to date, would you give them your blessings?#

Gu Qingyan randomly clicked on a title and saw the photo.

It was at the entrance of Gaga Xuan Hot Pot restaurant that he bumped into Qin Yueling that day, and someone took a picture and uploaded it online.

The angle is subtle; it was taken from the side when he brushed past Qin Yueling, making them look very intimate.

Below this was a popular comment from Xia Huai.

Xia Huai v: Some people are really shameless. They should consider whether they're even worthy of being associated with someone like that. [Grinning face]

This reply is already quite forceful; it's an accusation that Qin Yueling and Gu Qingyan are having a scandal, without even considering their own status.

【Huh? What do you mean? Don't think that just because you're the eldest daughter of the Xia family, our little Lingdang is afraid of you! Lingling is good enough for anyone!!】

[Don't listen to her, everyone. She's Xu Zhaozhao's girlfriend, helping her smear our goddess Qin. An award-winning actor and a TV queen, a match made in heaven!]

[That makes perfect sense, okay? Haven't you heard that Gu Qingyan is a "living Buddha"? Isn't this just Qin Yueling unilaterally creating a scandal? Where's her shame?]

[Stop arguing. Qin Yueling and I were good friends before she retired from the entertainment industry. Isn't it normal for good friends to visit each other on set after a comeback?]

...

Everything about Gu Qingyan spread incredibly quickly, especially with Xia Huai's help, and it soon climbed to the top of the trending searches.

"Brother Gu, should we handle this?" Brother Gou's voice came through the phone again.

Gu Qingyan's temples throbbed, and the veins on his arms bulged.

If she can take those kinds of photos with Fu Chengze, why can't he have a scandal?

He blurted out, "No."

"Huh?" Gou Ge asked, puzzled.

Gu Qingyan has been in the industry for so many years, but he has never allowed scandals to fester.

The red light in front of us is counting down: 7, 6, 5...

Gu Qingyan stared intently, gripping the steering wheel tightly, his gaze heavy.

With the last second of the red light, he squeezed out four words from between his teeth: "Clean it up."

After saying that, he hung up the phone, threw the phone on the passenger seat, and the car shot off like an arrow.

When the car arrived at the clothing building where Xu Zhaozhao was staying, Gu Qingyan saw a car coming from the opposite direction.

Even with the windshield reflecting light, Gu Qingyan could still make out Fu Chengze's outline.

The brakes, which had been pressed down, became increasingly loose, and the car was floored on the accelerator, hurtling towards Fu Chengze.

Thud—

A deafening explosion rang out.

In an instant, the two cars collided head-on, metal pieces flew everywhere, and small flames shot up.

Screams erupted from the surrounding area.

Gu Qingyan acted as if nothing had happened, opened the car door, and strode steadily towards the 18th floor of the clothing company.

The elevator doors opened, and Xu Zhaozhao, still wearing those two tattered pieces of cloth, looked anxiously at Sister Yan, seemingly discussing something.

Seemingly aware of the intense gaze from the side, Xu Zhaozhao turned her head and met Gu Qingyan's cold and stern eyes.

My heart skipped a beat.

Before Xu Zhaozhao could say anything, Gu Qingyan dragged her toward the fitting room with such force that she couldn't break free.

The amusement park scene was recreated—or rather, a more violent storm.

Click.

The fitting room door was locked from the inside.

Xu Zhaozhao's heart raced, as if it were about to burst out of her chest.

Only a dim overhead light cast a shadow on Gu Qingyan's delicate face, obscuring his expression.

"Gu Qing... um..."

Before Xu Zhaozhao could utter her last word, it was completely swallowed up by the strong, cold, woody fragrance.

He was both fierce and urgent, forcing Xu Zhaozhao to respond directly, her tongue going numb.

But Gu Qingyan had no intention of letting her go.

The calloused hand moved up her waistline, sending shivers of pleasure through her.

Xu Zhaozhao couldn't withstand it; a barrage of fists rained down on his chest, and tears involuntarily streamed down her face.

The hand stopped on her neck and tightened slightly.

I really want to strangle her...

He finally released her and whispered, "Didn't you say your story with him was over? Why did you take these kinds of photos with him?"

In the last second before he crashed into the car, he was still thinking about whether Xu Zhaozhao would die with that guy surnamed Fu!

A violent aura enveloped Xu Zhaozhao, and the hand gripping her neck tightened, rendering her speechless.

She could only shake her head desperately, large tears sliding down her face and landing on Gu Qingyan's hand.

Bang!

He released Xu Zhaozhao, swung his right fist, and slammed it against the wall next to her ear with a dull thud.

The tassels of the Buddhist prayer beads swayed gently, brushing against Xu Zhaozhao's cheek.

It felt like the caress of a demon.

His voice was like a devil's whisper, "Xu Zhaozhao, you lied to me."