Chapter 32: Fallen Angel
"Siyi, something happened!" Chen Chen rushed straight into Qin Siyu's dorm room this time.
It was rare for Tian Siyi to see such panic on his face. Even when he met Zhou Jiajia before, he had never looked this nervous.
"What happened?"
Feeling his emotional reaction, Tian Siyi frowned as well.
"Look at the school forum." Chen Chen handed his phone to her with a serious expression.
There was a post titled "Your Angel Has Already Fallen."
When she opened it, she saw several photos showing Tian Siyi holding someone's arm while walking toward the staff dormitory.
Qin Siyu frowned too and snorted.
"They edited me to look like a man? Isn't this obviously fake?"
Tian Siyi's foot had not recovered yet. Qin Siyu had only been helping her walk, but someone had turned that into material for a false rumor.
"What should we do?" Tian Siyi bit her lip. Her mind went completely blank.
It was the first time someone had spread a sexual rumor about her. Things like this were probably common for celebrities, but she had been a boy before, so she had never imagined something like this would happen to her.
Besides, she wasn't even a celebrity yet.
Qin Siyu said anxiously, "We need to make a post and clear this up right now!"
But Chen Chen shook his head.
"No. How are you going to explain it? Say the photos were edited? Do you have any proof?"
"......"
Qin Siyu froze.
Proof?
The pictures themselves had been edited, but how could they prove that?
The three of them knew the photos were fake, but how would the other students know?
Chen Chen explained,
"People on the internet don't really care about the truth. They just want something exciting to watch. Besides, this post became popular way too quickly. It's obvious that internet trolls are pushing it. I checked several of the accounts. They're all new accounts or inactive fake accounts."
Qin Siyu didn't understand much about these things. She just didn't want Tian Siyi to be treated unfairly. She asked anxiously,
"Then what do we do? We can't just let Siyi be bullied like this."
Chen Chen looked seriously at Tian Siyi.
"Stay here tomorrow. It should be fine if no one helps Sister Qin for one day, right?"
Qin Siyu nodded immediately.
"Of course."
She gently hugged Tian Siyi, who looked very depressed. She wanted to comfort the hurt girl, but she didn't know what to say.
Suddenly, Tian Siyi looked up.
"No. If I hide, won't they just be happy? I don't want to see the look on their faces after their plan succeeds!"
Who else could have done something like this?
Someone so bold and completely without limits, who also hated her...
She didn't even need to think. It had to be Wang Xiaoxiang.
She really hadn't expected Wang Xiaoxiang to have no bottom line and do something like this.
Now she regretted not hitting her harder back then.
Chen Chen immediately replied, "But if you go outside, people will gossip about you. Some of them might even look at you with disgusting eyes."
"So what? You've known me for so long. Since when have I ever been someone with such a weak heart?"
Tian Siyi forced a smile, her white teeth tightly clenched together. A cold, fierce killing intent could be seen in her eyes.
"Just give me two days. I'll definitely solve this."
As Tian Siyi's manager, this was Chen Chen's first real test.
He had to handle this matter well.
And as Tian Siyi's friend, he wanted to end this as soon as possible and make sure that every person responsible for it was held accountable.
Tian Siyi patted him on the shoulder and said,
"I know. I trust you. But just sitting here and waiting isn't my style. Tomorrow, not only am I going out, I'm also going to keep handing out ice pops to everyone!"
For once, Chen Chen spoke in a harsh tone.
"Think this through! You didn't read the whole post just now. There are even screenshots from an AI face-swapped video of you further down."
Tian Siyi blinked her big, innocent-looking eyes, grabbed Chen Chen's phone, and kept scrolling.
Instead of getting more upset, she laughed.
"Heh, their editing skills are pretty good. But this is already against the law, isn't it?"
Chen Chen noticed that although Tian Siyi was smiling, there was something unusual about her eyes.
They were bright... unnaturally bright.
And they were so red that they almost hurt to look at.
He had known her for many years, but this was the first time he had ever seen her look so fragile, as if she might break with just a touch.
"So... don't go out tomorrow. Trust me. As long as they've broken the law, I'll make every one of them pay for it."
"It's fine." Tian Siyi smiled. "Do you think becoming a celebrity would really be smooth sailing?"
Chen Chen stayed silent.
Of course he couldn't promise that.
Even though his older sister was a famous talent manager, she couldn't guarantee that every artist she managed would become successful, let alone have a career without problems.
"I'm pretty, right? Pretty girls are always surrounded by rumors. I should get used to it early."
Chen Chen wanted to keep persuading her, but the words stopped in his throat.
Even if he could solve this incident, or even every problem that might happen in the future, he couldn't guarantee that he would always be by Tian Siyi's side.
Besides, he knew her well.
Once she made up her mind, nothing could change it.
In the end, he nodded.
"You're right. Some things can only be understood after you go through them. And this time, I'll stay with you the whole way."
Qin Siyu couldn't listen anymore and interrupted.
"Wait, you're really agreeing to this? Do you know how those boys are going to look at her after seeing those rumors and pictures?"
"I know. That's why the first thing I did was tell her not to go out. But she's an independent person. The choice should be hers. And I believe in her. You shouldn't underestimate her either."
His firm and righteous words left Qin Siyu speechless. What Chen Chen said made sense. But she was still worried.
Tian Siyi understood how she felt and comforted her.
"Exactly. Don't underestimate me. I'm pretty amazing too!"
Qin Siyu looked at her, gently held her face, and wiped the corner of her eye with her thumb.
"You're still pretending to be strong. You're already crying."
Tian Siyi gently pushed her hand away, wiped her eyes with her sleeve, and smiled.
"I was really scared at first. But after I calmed down, it wasn't such a big deal anymore. Let them talk if they want. It's not like I'll lose a piece of myself because of it."
Qin Siyu didn't know what else to say.
No wonder Tian Siyi called herself stubborn.
She really was.
All Qin Siyu could do was remind her, "Take good care of yourself."
"I will."
"Let me teach you some fighting skills."
"Hm?" Tian Siyi let out a soft sound. She had always been confident in her ability to fight. Even though Qin Siyu was in the military, she didn't think another woman could beat her.
Chen Chen added, "She's actually pretty good at fighting."
At last, Qin Siyu smiled. "Are you two looking down on me?"
"No, no!" they both said at the same time, quickly defending themselves.
Qin Siyu continued, "I was the hand-to-hand combat champion in the military. Don't underestimate an old soldier who's just waiting to retire while working in the clinic, okay?"
"......"
Tian Siyi had to admit it.
She really had underestimated Qin Siyu.