Chapter 72 Chapter 72 A candid photo that will soon become world famous...
Leclerc said that he and Barbara had a quarrel over their agent, and then they parted ways in anger and he went back to his room. But soon Barbara called to apologize and said she asked Charles to find her at the back door. Leclerc was met by paparazzi from The Sun as soon as he left the room. He had been dodging them all the way but didn't expect there were paparazzi in the lobby. Fortunately, he met Quan Xing Ai and recognized them as Asians he had met in the restaurant, so he boldly came up to ask for help.
The main reason was that he had a hunch that the three of Xing Ai seemed to be stars as well, and he guessed right. He never expected that there were even the singers in his playlist.
Quan Xingai and Quan Zhilong looked at each other. She looked carefully at Leclerc's face. This guy was good-looking, with a pair of melancholy and pitiful puppy eyes, slightly drooping. Then she turned her head and looked at the place he mentioned. Sure enough, there was a middle-aged man dressed like a hotel resident, but his eyes were moving around smartly. He saw Quan Xingai and then ignored her.
This is normal, Quanxingai has no reputation in Europe.
"So you want to avoid the paparazzi to meet your girlfriend? How old are you? You can't be in love for the first time at the age of 15? It's not a big deal for an athlete to fall in love." Quan Xingai withdrew his gaze and was a little speechless.
"Me? Do I look very young? I'm 24 already. I joined the team at 22 and won my first championship at Ferrari's home track - oh, but as for the paparazzi, well, I don't care. It's my agent's request. I injured my foot in the last race and can't race in the next one, so Terry hopes that I won't have any love scandals." Speaking of racing, Leclerc became visibly excited.
"I know you crashed in the first race of the new season in Bahrain, so is your foot okay?" Kwon Ji-yong asked.
"Wow, you've seen the game! We haven't met yet. I'm Charles Leclerc. Hello." Charles extended his hand in surprise and got to know several new friends.
"This is the only one of us who has watched F1. I'm Lee Joo Hyuk."
"I'm Quan Xingai, you can call me Sarah. You should know this person." Xingai and Li Zhuhe laughed together.
Quan Zhilong was a little helpless, "Hello, I am Gdragon Quan Zhilong."
"!! GD! Ah, you are GD! Oh my God, I love your songs so much! I'm sorry I didn't recognize you." Leclerc was very surprised, then he hugged Kwon Ji-yong tightly, and now he finally recognized him.
The four of them got to know each other due to some inexplicable incident. After a while, the door to the hotel kitchen opened. Charles Leclerc came out first, then looked at the three Asian faces and said happily:
"Oh, thank you. I can see Barbara after I go out the back door..." Leclerc laughed.
"Is that Barbara really here?" Quan Xingai walked around the alley and didn't see anyone.
"Why did your girlfriend suddenly ask you to go to the back alley? Charles, are you sure it wasn't your girlfriend who asked the paparazzi to take pictures of you?" Quan Zhilong, who has been in the circle for 20 years and is already experienced in this kind of thing, felt that something was wrong when he looked at the environment, so he habitually went to the back door behind the protruding pillar to find cover.
After they got to know each other, they listened to his story in the coffee shop and thought it wouldn't be difficult to help him meet his girlfriend without being seen by the media in the hotel. They just treated it as gossip, so the four of them went to the back alley of the hotel together.
"In fact, my agent Terry has told me more than once that Barbara is not simple, but how could she be so innocent..." Leclerc frowned as if he himself was a little puzzled why Barbara was not here.
Then footsteps were heard at the entrance of the alley, followed by flashes of light as bright as daylight.
"Hey, Charles, I got a tip-off that you will be here with your girlfriend today, so, is this oriental beauty the one?" Bald head, red nose, jacket, needless to say, this person looks absolutely British, and the tone, well, it must be The Sun.
Jeon Seong-ae looked confused, she was leaning to the side and just happened to look up and talk to Charles, while Lee Joo-hyuk was standing in front of Leclerc and turned around to look at the paparazzi when he heard the footsteps. Kwon Ji-yong was blocked by Lee Joo-hyuk and mostly by the pillar, but his shoes were exposed.
"Shit, Shelby, why are you here? Tips? What tips?" Leclerc was confused for a moment and then quickly became angry.
"You don't have to worry about that. Ma'am, are you Charles' girlfriend? The legendary Barbara who faked her identity as a wealthy man?" The paparazzi had taken enough photos and was trying to get something out of Quan Xingai when he saw her.
"You have no right to film here." Quan Xingai immediately calmed down, denied his girlfriend and spoke righteously.
"Let's go back to the hotel. He can't get in." Kwon Ji-yong has reopened the back door of the hotel. Xing Ai sighed and looked at Kwon Ji-yong. The plan can't keep up with the changes. She called Chi Mingzhen and asked her to come over with Wu Xianhao.
"Charles, what? A relationship requires a foursome?" The paparazzi took many photos of the four of them and started shouting.
After returning to the hotel, the paparazzi wanted to follow in but were stopped by the kitchen staff. They took advantage of this time to go back to the hotel lobby. As soon as they returned to the lobby, they saw the staff.
"Charles! Where have you been? You didn't really go looking for Barbara, did you? Didn't you find anything? I told you she was no pushover. I've caught her, and she's not Barbara." The man in a suit and tie mumbled a bunch of English, and judging from his accent, he was British.
"Terry, I was photographed. What, what is going on?" Leclerc was still in a daze. Seeing the poor little Charles's appearance, the agent kindly pointed to Barbara, who had been caught and taken to the hotel not far behind him.
"I just found out and when I arrived at the hotel I saw her on the phone. It was the guy from The Sun. Her identity was fake. She is not the granddaughter of a Russian oligarch. She is just a female liar. Her real name is Anna." The agent continued to reveal.
If possible, Jeon Seong-ae, Kwon Ji-yong and Lee Joo-hyuk would really like to grab a handful of melon seeds and listen to some gossip. The three of them tilted their heads to look at 'Barbara' who was not in a hurry at all and was still leisurely looking at her nails.
"Ouni!" Xingai waved her hand. She saw Ji Mingzhen and Wu Xianhao coming.
"What's wrong?" Ji Mingzhen went downstairs with Wu Xianhao after receiving a call from Xingai. How could something go wrong while having a meal? And what about the Sun newspaper?
"Are you okay? What happened?" Wu Xianhao asked when he saw Quan Zhilong.
"It's not that bad, but you'd better call President Wen. Nuna should be in London soon." Quan Zhilong held his forehead. Today's unexpected episode was a bit troublesome, but it should be controllable. The Sun should publish the photos, but they still need to communicate with Leclerc to find out what happened.
"It's hard to say how big a deal it will be..." Li Zhuhe looked at Zhilong and sighed.
Thinking about being photographed by The Sun, everyone was speechless. Lee Joo Hyuk and Oh Hyun Hao started talking about it, and Kwon Ji Yong sighed and went aside to call his agent.
"Now there is something more important..." Quan Xingai asked Leclerc with his eyes.
"Oh, sorry, I haven't had time to tell you what happened just now. My mind is a little confused."
"Charles! You agreed to meet me through the back door, but you called your agent to arrest me? What do you mean?" Before anyone else could get angry, the legendary female con artist stormed up to Leclerc and lashed out at him. Without waiting for him to explain, she hurriedly shouted, "We're done! We're breaking up!"
Chi Mingzhen was confused. What was going on with these foreigners? "What happened? Is their breakup related to you?"
"Ouni, calm down first. There were some small incidents - sir, um, I'm afraid you have to deal with another problem first." Quan Xingai patted the British agent's shoulder. She looked at Leclerc's melancholy blue eyes and sighed helplessly.
"What Sun? Oh - you are?" agent Terry asked politely.
"Terry, I messed up. I'm sorry. We were photographed by The Sun and they were innocently implicated by me," Leclerc stepped forward and spoke apologetically.
Then, Ji Myung-jin's mouth opened wide enough for an egg. She just went upstairs to get her phone, and then the world turned upside down? Who is this foreigner? What is this Sun? What the hell? What the hell is this!!!
"Yes, we are just innocent passers-by affected, but The Sun took photos. If we hurry, it will probably be in the newspaper tonight." When Quan Xing Ai said this, she felt speechless.
Terry's expression grew serious. He glared at Leclerc and said, "We need to have a good talk."
"I think so. I'm a Korean artist and an idol. My name is Jeon Seong-ae and you can call me Sarah. That's actor Lee Joo-hyuk, and the one calling over there is Gdragon, a singer." Jeon Seong-ae said helplessly.
"Four of us were photographed together? Oh, then just explain that it was a gathering of friends."
"But Shelby knew I was there to meet my girlfriend..." Leclerc began, "He sounded like he knew a lot of details..."
Terry's expression grew serious. "Damn it, how much does The Sun know?"
"I don't know. Shelby said it himself based on the tip-off that 'I will meet my girlfriend at the back door'. It was probably Barbara who broke the news... I told you that I will convince you to bring her to the Chanel show tomorrow..." Leclerc was very depressed. He fell in love and ended up meeting a female con man, and even implicated others. He looked at the three new friends with some apology.
After the call, Quan Zhilong was also helpless. "What leverage do you have over that lady? Will she reveal anything untoward?"
Leclerc shook his head. "No, but I wonder if Barbara will exaggerate or say something."
Kwon Ji-yong clenched Jeon Sung-ae's fingers. He realized that this was an opportunity to openly display his relationship with Sung-ae. With this unlucky driver and Joo Hyuk, The Sun would only think that it had photographed Leclerc's 'romance', and the Korean media would probably guess that it was his relationship, but he didn't need to deny it personally, as the F1 public relations team would take care of it.
So it doesn’t matter whether they are in a relationship or not, and it doesn’t matter what the media will write about who is in a relationship with whom. What matters is that he can openly announce that he and Xing Ai are writing songs and performing together.
"I just went out to call some friends and received two pieces of news, one good news and one bad news." Terry came back from the phone with a face as dark as coal, and he was so angry looking at Leclerc.
"Uh, what's the news?" Leclerc was still confused and asked his agent, who was also the team's public relations manager, cautiously.
"The good news is that besides The Sun, several other well-connected French media outlets also photographed the four of you, chatting in the hotel cafe. It's perfect for supplementary reporting to clarify the situation. The bad news is that I just ran into your 'Barbara' again. She said she wants to publicly announce that she was dating you before her 15th birthday!"
Terry felt like he was going to have a brain hemorrhage. If this woman just wanted to get ahead and use her fame, it would be fine, but this woman whose real name was Anna was actually a swindler. Terry had found out before that she wanted to cheat money by pretending to be the girlfriend of an F1 driver after being photographed in a relationship. After she announced her breakup in the hotel lobby, she grabbed Terry and told him proudly that she was actually only 16 years old. If he didn't give her a large sum of money, she would tell the paparazzi that she could have been 14 or 15 when Leclerc was in love with her, and the paparazzi's report tomorrow would definitely emphasize the fact that Charles' girlfriend was underage.
He pulled Leclerc aside and asked him if he had ever taken an intimate photo with the woman.
"No! Of course not... We've only been dating for a week..." Leclerc felt that he was unlucky. He actually met a scammer?
Terry felt fortunate that Charles was quite intelligent. They had only been together for a week, so they hadn't had many opportunities to spend time together. Charles hadn't taken any photos with her, let alone any intimate photos. He hadn't even touched her. They had just met for lunch today, but it ended on a sour note...
That's all, if there was no sex, then it's fine, don't worry about the other person, although the Sun will write a lot about this relationship, but they photographed four people! So this has a lot of room for maneuver.
"Well, my dear friends, I think we can become very good partners. Do you have time to chat?" Terry turned and looked at Kwon Ji-yong and Oh Hyun-ho with a friendly and pleasant smile.
Quan Zhilong also smiled and said, "Of course."
"Our president will be here soon, Mr. Terry. Let's discuss it in detail tonight." Wu Xianhao also spoke.
*
All Star Love didn't know about the subsequent arrangements. She was pulled by Kimi to change her style. The most important thing for her now was to participate in the big show in the evening. It was best to put other things like The Sun, F1, Ferrari and so on behind her.
As she changed into Margiela's haute couture and prepared to go to the show, she was holding her phone and asking Quan Zhilong about the latest gossip and how the Sun should deal with the matter.
Xing Ai waited for a while before receiving a reply from Quan Zhilong, who sent a long list of gossip about Anna.
It turns out that when Barbara met Leclerc, she claimed that she was already an adult and the granddaughter of a Russian Far East oil tycoon. Leclerc did not care about her identity. They dated for a week, but because Leclerc was about to start training for the new season, they did not have much time to spend together and could only chat long distance with their mobile phones.
Agent Terry noticed something was amiss and began investigating the woman named Barbara. He then realized the information she was telling him seemed off: oil tycoon, oligarch's granddaughter, and 18-year-old inherited a trust—it was all a lie! So Terry earnestly tried to persuade Leclerc to be wary of this con woman.
And then... something happened today! She got photographed!
Now, Leclerc and Terry finally know that this woman has been cooperating with the notorious toilet newspaper The Sun since the first day of their relationship, and has been leaking information to them. She hinted that Leclerc has a new girlfriend, a mysterious exotic woman from the Far East, who is not yet an adult, and they will meet in the alley behind the XXX Hotel during this week's Paris Fashion Week.
She wanted to build momentum for herself, saying that her identity as an oligarch's descendant was fake, but her girlfriend was real. She could continue to cheat using the identity of an F1 girlfriend. However, she didn't expect that she would be met by Terry and held captive when she was heading to the back door of the hotel. She ran away in anger and threatened to expose the truth.
After finding out Anna's identity as a liar, Terry was no longer in a hurry. Even if the other party exposed the information, it would be useless. He had already started contacting those who had been defrauded by Anna to sue her. Her identity would be exposed and no one would believe her. What's more, she was already an adult. The claim of being 14 or 15 years old was just a scam.
Not only that, he discovered that F1 Ferrari could indeed cooperate with Korean chaebols.
“So, is Eunjoo here?” Jeon Seong-ae texted and asked.
[Hyun-ho has already notified Nuna, and she's already flown over. She'll be here in time for dinner. Honestly, this is a godsend. Honey, you're truly God's favorite.]
[How do you say that?]
We just talked about announcing our friendship at noon, and then ran into Ciel that afternoon. How could this not be a godsend?
[Ah! Zhilong, what do you want?]
[You know, Ferrari doesn't want Anna's story to be exposed, so President Wen will discuss business cooperation with Ferrari. So don't worry about the four of us being photographed together and it becoming a big deal.]
[Tsk tsk, then you don't understand The Sun. They'll definitely cut out everyone irrelevant, leaving only the half featuring me and Leclerc, and then make up a short essay of several hundred words.]
[Hahahahaha, it seems you are really experienced.]
[Whisper... Is this glorious?]
[Don't worry, baby, these are not problems. Eunju will tell you when you come tonight.]
Quan Xingai had a smile on her face, so she was no longer worried. She could interact with Zhilong openly, and the temptation was indeed great, and she really liked it.
*
This year's Margiela show was held at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts (Paris National School of Fine Arts), which is usually an academic hall full of art and history. Now the brand has decorated the show venue into an old-fashioned cinema, which perfectly echoes the dramatic theme of the season.
The area outside the show was tightly cordoned off, with flashes of light forming a dazzling daylight, and countless cameras greedily capturing the stars and models inside and outside the show.
Quanxingai smiled appropriately and moved slowly to the entrance of the show under the protection of security. Inside the show was another world, with carefully tamed light projected on the central T-stage. PR for Quanxingai took the top position near President Martin Margiela.
The entire show embodies Pirate's consistent practice of deconstructionism, a rare experimental creation using unconventional materials. The mixed-gender cast of male and female models, each veiled, combined this deconstruction with a dramatic narrative, showcasing the vulnerability of individuals in the post-pandemic era—a bold and subversive interpretation.
Quan Xingai seemed to be lost in thought. She always felt that she saw a hint of desolation in the work.
As the last model filed out, Pirate gave his thanks and the Margiela show ended. All the stars applauded loudly and expressed their admiration for Pirate without reservation during the media interview.
"Galliano is undoubtedly a genius among geniuses. Beneath his crazy creative exterior lies his absolute respect for the traditional craftsmanship of haute couture and his unrivalled application of it. Therefore, these dramatic moments must be based on impeccable craftsmanship. I really like this show." Quan Xingai exclaimed in admiration, hiding her intuition about a sense of "dejection".
Later, at the after-show party, Jeon Seo confirmed her thoughts about Galliano's decadence and depression.
John Galliano was a sensitive artistic genius, and he was British. She knew many British people. Her uncle in heaven was also British, and her fan base in her previous life was also from Britain and Japan. She was actually very familiar with Galliano, but this was the first time she met him. Quan Xingai just greeted him like a fan meeting him for the first time, exchanged greetings, and chatted about the recent weather in Paris.
After all, although the British are arrogant, they cannot do without France in their hearts. When it comes to food, fashion and travel, France has always been a fashion trendsetter.
"Mr. Galliano, the global economy is recovering, but today's fashion show still seems to be tinged with romantic pessimism. The veils covering the face, the models wrapped up... Mr. Galliano, you..." When Martin Margiela left, only Quan Xingai and the security personnel were left by Galliano's side. Without anyone else, Xingai simply boldly asked her own guess. She saw the pessimism and fatigue. Could it be that Pirate Master wanted to retire?
"You're very perceptive, dear. I've heard your name, Sarah, what a beautiful name. I've seen some of your past mashups of my work, which I admired," Galliano said, hugging Quan Xingai warmly. Seeing the clothes she was wearing, he felt nostalgic. "You paired the 2019 Projection collection very well. The organza and breeches were very interesting."
"Thank you. I'm a loyal fan of yours. I'm a fan of designs with dramatic atmospheres and intricate deconstructed patterns. But your work today, sir, seems tired?"
"Your eyes are so beautiful and precise, I see a touch of Kate Moss in you, maybe even as sharp as hers."
Quan Xingai smiled and said nothing, "Sir, tell me you don't want to rest, right?"
"Maybe, who knows." John Galliano said nothing and shrugged.
Quan Xing Ai actually tasted a special meaning.
In fact, after Pirate left Dior, she heard rumors several times that Dior wanted to invite this famous designer back, but Margiela helped John during his low period, so John stayed in Margiela. But now Xing Ai thinks Pirate may want to leave Margiela.
The music at the after-show party was RD's Green Asylum album. Obviously, the psychedelic and complex style also fascinated Galliano. He chatted with Quan Xingai for a whole night and found that this Asian girl was indeed very suitable for his style and had her own attitude.
"I'm guessing Margiela will be going for a sophisticated yet shabby street style for their Spring/Summer show at the end of the year? Don't look at me like that, John. I didn't steal your designs. I've seen all your work and it's easy for me to understand your ideas. I'm also fascinated by that kind of deconstruction of history and future, haute couture and street style, and masculinity and femininity."
"Wow, Sarah, you are amazing. I will also invite you to the September show. Well, you are very suitable for my design, but who knows about Margiela." Galliano playfully raised his mustache.
After the show, Quan Xingai asked Kimi, "Have Galliano and Dior reconciled?"
"What? What do you think?"
Quan Xingai shrugged, "I don't think anything, it's just my intuition."
"Will this affect our business cooperation negotiations with Margiela?" Wu Xianhao asked what he was most concerned about.
"It won't have much of an impact. We're talking about a global spokesperson cooperation. Margiela has never had a spokesperson for their fashion show, so it's even more impossible for them to give it to me. The fragrance line is the most suitable one. No matter where Pirate Lord is, it won't affect my contract." Quan Xingai thought for a while and said.
"That's fine. Martin likes you very much. I think the business meeting should produce results soon."
"I have to work harder. I think I need to write songs and become more famous! Even though I am treated very well at Margiela today, I may just be a supporting role at Dior the day after tomorrow." Quan Xingai didn't feel that way when he was in Korea. As his fame grew and his fans increased, he finally felt the gap between small stars and big stars when he returned to Europe and the United States. He finally found his goal again.
"Take it one step at a time. You're already amazing. How much better can you get?" Kimi sighed and continued, "Keep your ready-to-wear line. I think there will be surprises in the future. Margiela is just the beginning."
"Actually, there's another good news. I got Pirate Lord's private number. The conversation we had today took all my life's effort." Quan Xingai was quite proud. Galliano said more than once that seeing her was like seeing a young Kate Moss. Everyone knew that Kate Moss was Pirate Lord's muse.
"Anyway, I wouldn't worry about Xing'ai's social skills at all."
"Maybe next year Pirate will announce his return to Dior in a high-profile manner, and then bring Star Love to be the spokesperson for Dior." Chi Mingzhen thought about it and then began to fantasize happily.
It's a beautiful fable because it all came true in 2022.
However, Quan Xingai, who is still struggling, has never thought about this possibility. She is only concerned about the "big gossip" that will be published in the newspaper tomorrow.
"Don't be so happy. So the president is here? How was the talk with our new friend?" Quan Xingai asked.
"We've been in a business meeting since tonight. Zhilong is in there too. Why don't you ask Zhilong?" Wu Xianhao came out to pick up Xingai in the middle of the meeting. "When I came out, they were already discussing a collaboration. It's between the president's foundation and F1 Ferrari. They're working on promoting F1 in the Asian market."
Quan Xingai nodded in understanding. This was the reason why President Wen interrupted the consortium meeting to come to Paris. Not everyone can get the opportunity to be associated with Ferrari and F1.
She chuckled softly, "Looks like I'm going to be famous tomorrow morning."
"You mean the Sun?"
Quan Xingai shrugged. "Yes, Ferrari is willing to cooperate because they really need our cooperation."
"This is F1, will they really cooperate?" Chi Mingzhen still found it a little unbelievable.
Jeon Seong-ae shook her head and said, "You'll see. It's hard to say for sure. After the epidemic, attention to all sports has shrunk. And you have to believe Eun-joo. This opportunity is also a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for her parent company." There are definitely benefits to being connected with Ferrari and F1.
"Yeah, I think you're right." Kimi agreed without even looking up from his phone.
After a while, Quan Xingai also saw it. She saw that Kwon Ji-yong and Lee Joo-hyuk uploaded photos of dinner and drinks with Leclerc in the evening, but there was no group photo, only the hazy photo of dinner and tableware.
Then in the middle of the night, Leclerc also posted a photo of the dinner. There were no people but the hands of two people were vaguely visible.
@Charles Leclerc: A wonderful dinner, finally meeting up with my friends in Paris. One of the hard-working ladies was missing. Don't worry, we'll make sure you enjoy your meal. [Wine glasses and cutlery jpg] [Selfie jpg]
No one put the two circles together that night, and no one thought there was anything wrong, but tomorrow night everyone will be surprised by this amazing development.
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