Snow-Kissed Rose (GL) Chapter 48.1

After the first public performance, the production crew gave the trainees a double holiday on June 15 and 16. The trainees were free to do whatever they wanted in these two days.

Apart from a few whose homes were far from N City or had other plans, most trainees chose to go home. Song Yingshi was no exception, buying a plane ticket back to S City the next day. She also bought one for Huai Xu.

Since the two came together, they naturally had to return together.

Not to mention, Huai Xu had yet to visit Magnificent's office despite having signed with the studio.

Since yesterday's recording lasted late into the night, Song Yingshi bought tickets for a midday flight. When she and Huai Xu exited S City's airport, it was already past two in the afternoon.

Many vehicles were coming and going at the airport's entrance. The afternoon weather in June was hot and stuffy. The sky was pale, with only a hint of blue and a few clouds.

However, despite the scorching weather, Song Yingshi felt great after finally escaping the never-changing White Tower.

Xu Conghan personally came to pick up Song Yingshi today. When Song Yingshi saw her family's driver waiting by the roadside, she turned to Huai Xu and said, "I'll send you my company's address later. We'll meet there tomorrow, have a meal, and get acquainted with the other members of the studio. Then, we'll fly back to the White Tower at 3 PM."

Huai Xu had no objections and nodded.

Song Yingshi was about to leave with her underarm bag, but after taking two steps forward, she turned around to look at Huai Xu again.

Seeing this, Huai Xu retracted her gaze from Song Yingshi's family car and asked, "What?"

"Is it convenient for you to go back by yourself? Do you want me to give you a ride?" Song Yingshi asked.

"There is the subway," Huai Xu replied.

Song Yingshi nodded at this answer. Depending on traffic, Huai Xu might reach home sooner using the subway.

"See you tomorrow, then," Song Yingshi said, smiling and waving at Huai Xu before walking away.

Song Yingshi didn't lack any necessities at home, so she didn't bring any of her suitcases back with her. As she approached the car, the driver opened the door, and she got into the back.

Seeing Xu Conghan in the back seat, Song Yingshi greeted, "Mom, I'm back."

Immediately after Song Yingshi entered the car, Xu Conghan scrutinized every inch of her daughter, asking, "How is it over there? Is your accommodation comfortable? Did you have fun? Why must you return tomorrow? You should rest some more at home."

Smiling, Song Yingshi patiently replied, "I only get two days off before I have to resume training. And, of course, I had fun! Your daughter also made plenty of friends!"

Xu Conghan smiled. Then, her gaze shifted toward the girl outside, who had returned with her daughter.

The girl had a thin, tall figure and an unforgettable face.

Retracting her gaze, Xu Conghan asked Song Yingshi, "She must be your roommate, right? I kept seeing her with you on the show."

"She is. Her name is Huai Xu," Song Yingshi answered.

"Huai Xu... Are you two close?" Xu Conghan asked.

"How can you doubt your daughter's intellect and cuteness? Of course, I'm close with everyone!" Song Yingshi said playfully. "But I'm the closest with her!"

Xu Conghan smiled and nodded.

The mother and daughter chatted the entire way home. Upon arriving home, Song Yingshi returned to her room, pulled out her phone, and messaged Huai Xu the address of Magnificent Studio's office.

Huai Xu quickly replied: "Received."

In response, Song Yingshi replied with an "OK" emoticon and added: "Let me know when you get home."

Huai Xu: "Let me know when you get home."

Song Yingshi: "?"

A question mark popped up on Song Yingshi's head when she saw Huai Xu copying her message, and her first thought was that Huai Xu was messing with her. However, after thinking about it again, she couldn't help laughing.

Then, Song Yingshi raised her phone, took a picture of her room, and sent it over.

Song Yingshi: I'm already back in my bedroom.

Huai Xu didn't reply this time, so Song Yingshi exited the chat to check her message log.

As expected, during the time the production crew had confiscated her phone, she had accumulated many messages.

At first, the messages inquired about her disappearance. Later, they questioned her sudden decision to join an idol survival show.

The Song family's clan chat was especially lively.

After replying to these messages, Song Yingshi saw that she had several dozen new friend requests. Taking a look, it turned out that they were all from the show's trainees.

Song Yingshi had exchanged contact information with Tao Qin and a few other trainees before leaving the White Tower, so she assumed they had shared it with the other trainees.

Additionally, Song Yingshi found that she had been pulled into a new group:

Spring Star Flower Nursery

Almost every trainee from this season's Star of Spring was in this group.

Seemingly trying to vent their frustrations from not being able to use their phones during this period, many trainees chatted enthusiastically in the group. Some even invited others for gaming sessions and group voice chats.

After scrolling through the messages, Song Yingshi sent an emoticon before pulling Huai Xu into the group. Then, she put her phone away and went downstairs to accompany her parents.

Unbeknownst to Song Yingshi, her actions sparked an exciting discussion in a certain group chat she wasn't in.

...

Spring Star Social Anxiety Sanatorium

Tao Qin: "Ahhhhhhhh!!!!!!"

Tao Qin: "I told you! @Lu Xuewen, I told you that we didn't need to invite Huai Xu! Just five minutes after joining, Little Shi already added her! Snow-Kiss Rosed POWER!!!"

Lu Xuewen: "."

Yu Sheng: "This is crazy. On my way home, I heard two little girls next to me talking about Snow-Kissed Rose. I'm just about to watch their CP clips. drooling.jpg."

Tao Qin: "Voice chat! Let's watch it together!"

Lu Xuewen: "Save a spot for me!"

Quan Yuanyuan: "Snow-Kissed Rose forever! But what is this group about? Why am I here?"

Wen Qingzi: "I'm also here."

Xing Huan: "0-0"

Tao Qin, the God of Les-dar, who had gotten overly excited and forgot about the little friends she had pulled into the group: "Because...I discovered that you all are budding lesbians! :heart:"

Quan Yuanyuan & Wen Qingzi & Xing Huan: ?!

…

Song Yingshi didn't stay idle. Since she finally had internet access again, she used this opportunity to browse forum posts, Weibo, etc., trying to get a comprehensive understanding of the lesbian community. This was so that she could avoid creating misunderstandings and getting tricked by the system again in the future.

Among the information Song Yingshi found, a few topics left a deep impression on her.

At the top of them was "Read a Tranquil Book"[1], a topic recommended by the system. When Song Yingshi learned the meaning behind this saying, she cursed the system with enough words to compose a 500-word essay.

Fortunately, Huai Xu wasn't a particularly social person, so she shouldn't be aware of such lesbian slang.

Besides that, the topics that left a deep impression on Song Yingshi were: The Hands of a Budding Lesbian, How to Identify a Strong Butch, Are Lesbians Divided Into Tops and Bottoms, How Do Lesbians Achieve X Satisfaction, Ways to Tell if a Woman Is a Lesbian, Stay Away From Straight Women if You Cherish Your Life...

Essentially, the internet was filled with both valuable and rotten information.

Song Yingshi had been smart since she was a child. After immersing herself in reading for half a day, she went from being an ignorant straight woman to a relatively knowledgeable "niece."[2]

Based on the article Song Yingshi read, the actions of a "niece" fit her perfectly. If she didn't know any better, she would think she was reading a recollection of her behavior around Huai Xu. This discovery was so shocking she had to put her phone away to calm down.

After temporarily separating herself from the lesbian circle's influence, Song Yingshi went to sleep and woke up energized the next day.

Although Star of Spring's dormitory conditions were excellent, nothing could replace the feeling of home. The only thing Song Yingshi couldn't get used to was waking up to see that next to her was not another bed but furniture.

After having breakfast, Song Yingshi had the driver drop her off at Magnificent Studio's office.

As Magnificent was only a small studio with few employees, Li Yining used a single-family villa with a good environment as the company's office.

Although it hadn't been more than 24 hours since they last met, Song Yingshi couldn't help but feel a sense of unfamiliarity when she saw Huai Xu again.

Perhaps it was because they had been living together and wearing the same training uniform for the past two weeks.

After suddenly being apart for one night and seeing Huai Xu in casual clothes, Song Yingshi's brain had trouble linking the Huai Xu before her and the Huai Xu she normally saw.

However, this situation was not without benefits.

Leaving the White Tower allowed Song Yingshi to seal off certain memories in the White Tower. Additionally, with the buffer of the past few days, she could now face Huai Xu with greater ease, as if she had returned to the way she was before they came clean to each other.

Watching Huai Xu approach her, Song Yingshi took two steps forward and put her hands behind her back. In a reprimanding tone, she said, "You were almost late."

Huai Xu glanced at Song Yingshi before turning on her phone's screen, saying, "There are still five minutes left."

"I'm the boss. How dare you talk back to me?" Song Yingshi rebuked.

"Lead the way, then, Boss. I'll follow," Huai Xu said, smiling.

"You are very brave to let your employer lead the way for you," Song Yingshi remarked.

Despite what Song Yingshi said, she still stepped forward and took the lead.

While guiding Huai Xu inside, Song Yingshi introduced the studio's current situation. Although Li Yining would be more suitable for this role, she wanted to do it, so she did.

After introducing each department in detail, Song Yingshi led Huai Xu to her manager's office to meet her new manager.

"Instructor Qu?" (Ref. Chapter 6)

Qu Qing was dressed in hip-hop rock fashion, just like when Huai Xu first met her at the Capella Hotel. Upon seeing Huai Xu, Qu Qing stood up to greet her, "Surprise? Your 'homeroom teacher' has come to be your manager."

Huai Xu genuinely did not expect this development.

Naturally, Huai Xu still remembered Qu Qing as though they had met yesterday. After all, the woman had brought with her a group of instructors to put her through two weeks of grueling but fulfilling training that involved 11 lessons per day.

Huai Xu never thought Qu Qing would show up as her manager today.

...

After Qu Qing chatted with Huai Xu, she left to handle some work-related affairs. As they were alone, Song Yingshi said, "Big Sis Qing is also my manager. She's responsible for handling our future activities, though whether we will work as individuals or as a unit remains undecided. We'll talk about that after we finish filming Star of Spring."

After a slight pause, Song Yingshi continued, "We can make some adjustments if you don't like this arrangement."

Initially, Song Yingshi had considered putting an appropriate distance between her and Huai Xu. But...she felt that it would be a good idea to show a person preferential treatment or poor treatment simply because of their sexual orientation.

Additionally, Song Yingshi felt that, since Huai Xu had denied liking her, it would be callous of her to avoid Huai Xu.

Hence, after much deliberation, Song Yingshi decided to stick to her original plan.

Huai Xu had no opinion on the operation of the studio, so she replied, "I'll follow your arrangement."

Song Yingshi smiled.

Huai Xu's attitude was the same as always, taciturn but trusting. This was the best outcome Song Yingshi could hope for.

The two reached a silent consensus, keeping some things in their hearts and letting time smooth things out.

Amidst a pleasant atmosphere, Song Yingshi took Huai Xu and the other staff in the office to a team-building dinner. Then, she and Huai Xu rushed to the airport to return to the White Tower.

The production crew required that the trainees report back to the White Tower by 7 PM on the 16th. Like students returning from a weekend, the trainees begrudgingly returned to the White Tower and surrendered their phones to the production crew.

To avoid any smuggling incidents, the production crew even searched the trainees using metal detectors, and sure enough, many trainees were caught attempting to smuggle electronic devices into the White Tower.

When Song Yingshi and Huai Xu arrived, they happened to see Wan Jiao hugging a staff member while howling, "Sis, you can't do this to me! Not even a Switch?! There's 12 minutes left until seven! Let me play another game!"

Song Yingshi promptly joined the crowd and laughed at Wan Jiao.

Amidst the jovial laughter, Shi Zhi appeared in the lobby and called out to Song Yingshi and Huai Xu, "Little Shi, Huai Xu, come here."

Then, Song Yingshi heard Shi Zhi saying, "Get ready. You two have a live stream at 8 PM."

Hmm?

Live streaming?

TL Notes:
[1]Read a Tranquil Book (读一本恬静的书): This is a saying originates from an article on Weibo that attempts to discourage lesbianism. The article tells women to read a tranquil book when they have thoughts of having sexual relationships with other women.

"Read a tranquil book" is later used by the lesbian community as a saying to point out women who lust for other women. E.g., if you tell Woman A to "go read a tranquil book," you are suggesting/pointing out that Woman A is lusting after other women.

In this chapter's context, by recommending Song Yingshi search for the term "read a tranquil book," the system is saying that she is lusting after other women (Huai Xu).

[2]niece(侄女): It is a play on words. Niece is pronounced somewhat similarly to straight woman (直女). In the Chinese lesbian circle, niece is used to refer to women who flirt with other women/show signs of being a lesbian, but are heterosexual in reality.