Chapter 100
That's not all.
Less than two hours later, amidst a barrage of comments and tagged comments questioning him, Jiang Li posted another message.
The text of the statement is as follows:
Hello everyone, I am Jiang Li. I apologize in advance for taking up public resources.
Having worked in the industry for four years, I know all achievements are hard-won. Here today, I sincerely thank everyone for their support, which has made @SpringAwakeningBand what it is today.
I've always kept my public and private matters very separate. Friends who know me even a little know that I'm not good at expressing my feelings. But due to public opinion, I have to stand up and say something.
How can I tell you this?
After much thought, I decided to be open and honest: I was the one who liked her first, the one I had a crush on for a long time. As for her, I was the one who actively pursued her.
Also, relationships are a matter between two people; there's no such thing as one person giving away money.
If there has to be one, it won't be her.
Having said that, I'm not someone who enjoys excessive attention to my private life. My life outside of band performances is my own. Whether in the past, present, or future, I hope everyone will focus more on the work and less on the person behind it. After all, "nobody cares about the chicken that laid the egg." Please be mindful of your words and actions. Thank you.
Guan Nan stared at the words on the screen, her cheeks and ears involuntarily burning. She immediately dared not look up at him again, but she didn't know where to look.
Scrolling down further, he added another sentence after editing it a second time, and even tagged someone.
—"Since you're so eager for clicks, I'll give you some buzz @xxxxgossipers @xxxgossip lovers @······"
Amidst all the foul language, he single-handedly dragged himself into this mess, and then took all the blame on his own.
The person who least liked to talk about personal privacy in front of the camera ended up talking about their relationship openly and frankly on a public platform, regardless of rumors, and thus lowered their stance in the relationship.
After watching it, Guan Nan had mixed feelings. She was touched, but the high number of likes and comments made her feel uncertain and anxious about the future of herself and the band.
It wasn't easy for a band that wasn't exactly mature to get to where it is today.
Guan Nan was deeply moved yet also filled with worry and unease: "Jiang Li."
"Hmm?" Jiang Li turned his head.
"Thank you."
"..." Jiang Li frowned, snatched the iPad from her hand, entered the engine of a reading app, swiped the screen a few times, and then tossed it over, "Take a look."
Upon seeing this, Guan Nan was stunned for a moment, then looked down.
The screen switched, and a book titled "The Art of Speaking" was displayed in front of me, with the words "Are you still afraid to speak?" prominently displayed on the title page.
The air suddenly became very quiet.
Seeing her expression, Chen Fei leaned closer, looked down, and suddenly burst out laughing: "Damn Jiang Li, you really are a genius!"
"What is it?" Yena also came over and glanced at it.
Suddenly, Guan Nan calmly exited the book, found a copy of "Meditations," and blatantly pushed it to his side.
Jiang Li chuckled softly, slowly tapping the screen to reveal a book titled "You Only Look Like You're Trying Hard."
After a two-second silence, Guan Nan glanced at him and silently typed a line of text.
Jiang Li raised an eyebrow slightly.
After typing it, Guan Nan silently deleted it, then quickly typed a line with a stiff, expressionless face. The search results popped up.
—From "Rich People Think Differently"
"Oh," Jiang Li chuckled, saying lazily, "You even know how to manage money? Have you read 'The Richest Dog in Babylon'?"
"······"
"What about 'Rich Dad Poor Dad'? It's not popular either."
"······"
"A new batch of leeks, huh?" Jiang Li said softly, a slight smile playing on his lips. "They're really keeping a low profile."
Having understood what he meant, Guan Nan pursed her lips and typed with a hint of annoyance, as if expressing her current mood.
Then, she pushed the iPa into his hand; it was clearly printed with "Pride and Prejudice."
Jiang Li smiled but said nothing, and replied with a copy of "The Silent Majority". As if that wasn't enough, he also replied with a copy of "Time Is Silent, Yet It Answers All Questions".
Guan Nan glanced at him, then, enraged, snatched back the iPad and locked the screen to stop him from continuing.
After watching the whole thing, Chen Fei, carefree and uninhibited, laughed the most, pointing at the two of them and saying, "You two really are like 'Love in the Time of Cholera'!"
Guan Nan's anger caused damage to her heart meridians, and she was kept in the hospital for observation for two days. They only left slowly after nightfall, when they were sure that Guan Nan was alright.
The joking and bantering stopped, and the ward suddenly became empty.
Jiang Li then walked back to the bedside and sat down. He didn't say a word, just stared straight at her with his eyes. His expression was no longer as casual and carefree as before, and his smile was somewhat mocking.
Just as Guan Nan was feeling flustered and wanted to start a conversation, she heard him say that.
"You didn't tell me about something this big?" Jiang Li said coldly.
Guan Nan pursed her lips, her shoulders stiff, and said slowly, "I didn't mean to keep quiet."
“Oh,” Jiang Li nodded, “that means you’re informing me.”
"...No, not exactly."
After a moment of hesitation, she saw Jiang Li move his stool forward a little, then raise his chin, adopting a "go ahead and I'm listening" posture.
Guan Nan suddenly felt that things weren't so easy to explain.
"What," Jiang Li said in a nonchalant tone, yet it carried a clear message that 'I'm not in a good mood right now, but if you want, I can make you feel bad too,' with a smirk at the end, "you're not going to say anything?"
“…” Guan Nan glanced at him and slowly lowered her head. “I haven’t figured out how to say it yet.”
"Is it that you haven't figured out how to say it, or that you haven't figured out how to tell me, or that you didn't want to tell me at all?" Jiang Li paused at the end, his Adam's apple bobbing up and down, as if he was already restraining his tone.
"······"
Seeing that she was still hesitant and unsure how to start the conversation, Jiang Li breathed a sigh of relief, but his tone wasn't much better: "Didn't I tell you to come to me first if anything happens, and I'll take care of it?"
Upon hearing this, Guan Nan's eyes welled up with tears.
Over the years, she has known all too well that she has no one to rely on, that she has no support behind her, and that she has to constantly bail people out. But when she is truly afraid, she cannot even show fear; she has forced herself to be strong and persevere until now.
Looking back now, I realize how difficult each day was, and how isolated and helpless I was.
Looking down again, the few chips left in his hand were gradually disappearing.
Accustomed to her miserable circumstances, accustomed to the shamelessness of having no dignity, she had no parents and could only rely on herself for everything. Gritting her teeth and desperately moving forward was her only way to fight against this world.
Whether it was fortunate or unfortunate, we got through it all.
Hearing this, Guan Nan's eyes still reddened, and she nodded sullenly.
"If we really can't solve it, can't we work together to find a solution? Having one more person is always better than having one alone." Seeing that she was finally starting to waver, Jiang Li remained calm. "Even if we're going to have a fight today, I'm still here."
"Guan Nan, feel free to borrow my power. I'm all yours, what are you afraid of?"
Guan Nan cleared her throat and called out his name: "Jiang Li".
"Yes, I'm here," Jiang Li replied.
“Over the years,” Guan Nan paused, then said softly, “have you ever blamed me?”
Jiang Li retorted, "Why should I blame you?"
"It's my fault for leaving Fuling without a word, and then running back here in a sorry state after something happened." Guan Nan blinked, her voice dry.
As soon as he finished speaking, Jiang Li shook his head: "I feel sorry for you."
In that instant, Guan Nan felt as if her heart had been struck by a heavy object, and even her expression changed.
He said the same thing a few days ago by the lake.
He said that too.
Guan Nan remembered.
Suddenly, Guan Nan looked up sharply and stared at him with wide eyes.
“I’ve been waiting for you to come to me, but since you’re not coming, it can only be me—” Jiang Li hadn’t finished speaking when he saw her looking up at him with red eyes, and he instantly softened and lost all his temper.
However, when Guan Nan's gaze met those familiar eyes, she found that what he said was perfectly reasonable, and he didn't seem to think there was anything wrong with it.
Guan Nan's heart skipped a beat, and she suddenly said, "Jiang Li."
“You seem to really like calling my name,” Jiang Li said slowly, raising an eyebrow.
Guan Nan was taken aback.
She forgot where she saw the sentence, but it went like this:
The happiest thing in the world is having someone call your name.
Just then, you turn around, and there he is.
After a moment, she nodded, then hesitated and said, "My feelings for you came before my feelings for you."
Upon hearing this, Jiang Li smiled nonchalantly, as if he didn't take her words seriously, and joked to ease the tension: "What kind of tongue twister are you talking about?"
"Jiang Li".
"Um."
What happened to your face?
"I tripped and fell."
Does it hurt?
"It hurts."
"oh."
"oh?"
...
This incident has dragged on for quite some time.
Under the influence of this public opinion, Hecangyuan has become a place people avoid like the plague.
Merchants are suffering under malicious complaints and reports, and coffee shops are receiving frequent calls, always ready to be inspected by various departments. After a while, they are so exhausted that they have dark circles under their eyes.
That day, Guan Nan and his friends gathered all the evidence. With the help of their roommates from "Mickey Mouse Clubhouse," they not only put the mastermind behind the startup company and those who were cheering them on in the media on the trending topics list, but also sent them to the police station.
Those photos, videos, chat logs, and various documents that had been locked away for so long were finally brought to light.
Harassment, indecent assault, malicious monopoly, and tax evasion are among the multiple offenses punishable by confiscation of all property and imprisonment.
With Zhao Hong taking the lead, the bloggers who used to openly praise and criticize Guan Nan in the videos and make ambiguous statements have also stepped forward. This time, they are no longer talking about "profiting from human suffering," but are bowing and apologizing to Guan Nan from afar in the video because they had no choice but to do so.
The world is a cold and indifferent place, and only those who experience it truly know its warmth and coldness; even Guan Nan could not remain calm and composed.
Online public opinion and disputes never cease. No one really cares about the truth of the matter, or how anxious and sleepless the people on the other side of the screen are.
Fortunately, the storm passed, but onlookers flocked in, grabbed the next trending topic, and then left in a swarm, all while clamoring for justice and speaking out for internet law enforcement.
After everything settled down, Guan Nan and the others finally received the long-overdue payment.
Guan Nan turned off the internet and stopped paying attention to public opinion, but her desire to start her own business grew stronger. However, after checking her mobile banking app and glancing at the money that had been deposited into her account, she immediately sent a message to Jiang Lifa.
Guan Nan: [Jiang Li.]
Guan Nan: [Don't be reckless.]
Guan Nan: [If you don't want to work hard anymore, I'll support you.]
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