Snow-Kissed Rose (GL) Chapter 96.2

Having skipped the dinner preparation, Song Yingshi decided to volunteer for cleanup. Fortunately, there was a dishwasher in the kitchen, so it wouldn't be too much of a hassle.

Song Yingshi didn't ask Huai Xu to join her, but when she heard the kitchen's sliding door opening, her first thought was that Huai Xu had come to help her. She never expected it to be Fu Shu instead.

When Song Yingshi didn't see any cameramen following Fu Shu, her expression instantly turned cold, and she uttered not a single word.

There was no way Song Yingshi could have any good impression of any of the original novel's male protagonists. The stronger their obsession with Huai Xu, the more she detested them.

"Little Shi," Fu Shu called out as he walked over.

A strange feeling suddenly arose in Song Yingshi. After all, who would address their love rival by their nickname?

Fu Shu looked like he wanted to say something, but before he managed to do so, the door behind him opened again.

Huai Xu walked in this time.

Song Yingshi's mood improved slightly when she saw Huai Xu. She also forgot about what she had just been thinking, her eyes colored with affection mixed with a hint of resentment as she thought, Look at your rotten 'fated' partner, confronting me privately.

Song Yingshi didn't know if Huai Xu understood her gaze, but she guessed that Huai Xu did, because she saw Huai Xu's long brows raise slightly as she turned to Fu Shu and said, "We're still on the show, so you'd best restrain yourself."

Fu Shu seemed agitated as soon as he saw Huai Xu, his focus shifting instantly. With reddened eyes, he snapped, "Shouldn't I be saying that to you? No matter how intimate your relationship is, you shouldn't have done what you did on the show. Do you take everyone for a fool? Do you think nobody knows what you did upstairs before dinner?"

Fu Shu originally planned to take things slowly, but Song Yingshi and Huai Xu disappearing together before dinner greatly agitated him. The thought that they might have… Fu Shu found it hard to calm down.

Before Huai Xu even responded, Song Yingshi grew upset. In a voice carrying three parts viciousness, three parts mockery, and four parts haughtiness, she boasted, "So what if we did what we shouldn't have? What can you do about it? Stop poking your nose in where it doesn't belong."

Since her love rival was here to pick a fight, Song Yingshi wasn't about to calmly reason with him. She struck back and asserted her dominance without hesitation.

Song Yingshi's words left Fu Shu appearing on the verge of fainting from sheer rage.

"Song Yingshi, you…"

A strange feeling appeared in Song Yingshi's heart once more. Was Fu Shu so easily defeated? Where was the confidence he showed when he fought back against Huai Xu just now?

Suddenly, Fu Shu raised his hand, seemingly intending to do something to Song Yingshi. Seeing this, Song Yingshi narrowed her eyes and went on alert.

Song Yingshi's gaze held quite a deterrent effect, causing Fu Shu to lower his hand and walk out of the kitchen. However, just as he brushed past Huai Xu, he suddenly turned and swung his palm at her—

Song Yingshi's pupils narrowed as she screamed, "Fu Shu, you dare!"

At the same time, an extremely sharp, piercing voice sounded from outside the kitchen: "Fu Shu, you're hitting a woman?!"

…

On the rooftop, Hu Feng rubbed her right ear, asking, "Did I imagine that?"

Kou Lengyu looked back, pondering as she said, "It sounded like a woman's voice. Zhou Chun? Is she calling Fu Shu?"

[I heard it, too.]

[Fu Shu-something-something-woman? Are there any experts here? I regret turning the volume down.]

[I smell drama!]

…

Downstairs, Zhou Chun watched the scene before her in disbelief.

Previously, just as Zhou Chun reached the kitchen door, she heard Fu Shu shouting and behaving completely unlike the refined gentleman she had envisioned. The man she liked wouldn't talk to a lady like that, sounding so patronizing and controlling. In an instant, the persona of the person she had liked for two years shattered.

Zhou Chun didn't want to face such a Fu Shu, so her first thought was to turn around and walk away. But remembering the ongoing argument inside, she hesitantly opened the door. At the very least, she wanted to have Fu Shu stop yelling and behaving so embarrassingly.

However, Zhou Chun never imagined Fu Shu would try to hit a woman. When she saw Fu Shu's actions, her anger immediately shot through the room, and a scream escaped her mouth before she even realized it.

Following a brief silence in the villa, the cameramen hurried over, and the people on the rooftop rushed downstairs. Meanwhile, realizing that something bad might've happened, the PD abandoned his half-eaten bento box and went into damage control mode.

After instructing the cameramen to focus on the river view for the live stream and not film inside, the PD approached Zhou Chun and asked, "What happened?"

Zhou Chun sat in the living room feeling utterly miserable, her girlish heart and filters having shattered into countless pieces. Not only had her pursuit of love fallen flat, but she had also grimly realized her poor judgment in men.

It was common for a person's love to turn into hatred. Facing the PD's question, Zhou Chun answered expressionlessly, "There are truly all sorts of people nowadays. To hit a female co-star while on set—you really are something, Instructor Fu. I don't know about everyone else, but I, for one, don't want to record a show with such a violent person."

Everyone else: ?!

Hu Feng hurriedly scanned Zhou Chun's body, asking, "Did Fu Shu hit you?"

Realizing the severity of the situation, the PD asked seriously, "Instructor Zhou, where were you struck?"

In response, Zhou Chun said coldly and furiously, "He cursed Song Yingshi and then tried to hit Huai Xu! I saw it!"

Everyone: ??? Since when did you like the two of them so much? You're even acting as if you're the one injured.

Immediately, everyone turned to look at Song Yingshi and Huai Xu.

"Zhou Chun is right," Song Yingshi said, her expression cold and stern.

"Little Shi and Instructor Zhou stopped him in time, so he didn't actually hit me," Huai Xu stated calmly.

That still means he tried to hit you!

Everyone was stunned, finding this situation hard to believe. However, they had no choice but to believe it. After all, it was highly unlikely for three female guests to falsely accuse one person. Not to mention, everyone had noticed Zhou Chun's subtle targeting of Song Yingshi and Huai Xu earlier.

But how could Fu Shu be so simple and crude? They were filming a live broadcast show! Where was his brain? Had he gone crazy?

Looking at Fu Shu, the PD asked symbolically, "What do you have to say for yourself, Instructor Fu?"

Fu Shu hung his head and stayed silent, his mind consumed by the sight of Song Yingshi looking at him in disgust, as if he were a cockroach, and the expression Huai Xu made when he passed her.

Previously, as Fu Shu walked by Huai Xu in the kitchen, he saw her looking at him condescendingly, her eyes conveying the composure and provocation of someone who had already possessed the treasure he desperately sought. The moment he saw this look, the last bit of reason within him vanished. To make matters worse, as he swung his hand, he clearly saw Huai Xu deliberately standing her ground, a hint of mockery and satisfaction flashing in her eyes.

—She did it on purpose!

This was the thought that came to Fu Shu's mind.

Unfortunately, it was too late for regrets.

Fu Shu closed his eyes, cold sweat dripping from his forehead, his voice sounding hoarse and defeated as he said, "Contact Jia Yi. I'm withdrawing from the show."

…

Jia Yi was staying in a nearby hotel, so it didn't take him long to reach the villa.

When Jia Yi arrived, the show had already resumed filming, and everything was peaceful on site. Only Fu Shu was absent, having retreated into his room.

The audience watching the livestream wasn't made up of naive children. In no time, all sorts of speculation and false rumors began circulating.

Additionally, someone had retrieved and amplified the content of the scream earlier. Now, seeing Fu Shu withdraw from the show due to "health reasons," only his most dedicated fans continued to believe in him.

[All men who hit women are assholes. Absolutely disgusting. I'm never supporting him again.]

[My Life's Journey has once again collapsed a celebrity's persona. Just thinking I used to like his face makes me sick.]

[Fu Shu's fans, stop trying to make excuses for him. If it weren't true, would Fu Shu withdraw from the show all of a sudden? "Health reasons" is just an excuse to fool you.]

…

Outside the camera's view, when Zhou Chun saw Jia Yi arriving at the villa, she snorted, "What a spineless man, running away at the first sign of trouble."

After saying so, Zhou Chun saw Huai Xu looking at her. Her face blushing, she asked, "What are you looking at?"

When Zhou Chun recalled how she misunderstood Huai Xu as being interested in Fu Shu, she nearly died from embarrassment.

"Nothing." Huai Xu shook her head.

Zhou Chun didn't dwell on the matter. After a while, she asked with innocent curiosity, "By the way, what did Song Yingshi mean by 'doing what you shouldn't have done?' Are you and her for real?"

Huai Xu: "..."

"Pfft… Cough, cough, cough!"

Zhou Chun and Huai Xu both turned their heads.

Li Taoran, who had accidentally overheard something strange, clutched her water cup and staggered back a few steps, declaring, "I didn't hear anything!"

Having filled her cup with water, Huai Xu returned to the living room, where she saw Jia Yi and Fu Shu's assistant escorting Fu Shu out of the villa in a hurry.

Huai Xu paid no extra attention to Jia Yi, treating him no differently than a stranger. However, her gaze paused for a few seconds as it landed on Fu Shu.

Huai Xu could sense that, after she put herself in danger to entrap Fu Shu, his body had genuinely started to experience issues. However, his situation wasn't as bad as Zheng Qiyi's, and she didn't receive any memories as she had hoped.

The main reason Huai Xu had provoked Fu Shu was so that he could obtain more memories related to him. Unfortunately, it seemed her provocation was lacking, and her attempt failed…

Facing the night sky, Huai Xu pondered as she sipped warm water.

Previously, Huai Xu had obtained a second piece of memory related to Zheng Qiyi after she had revealed all his dirty secrets in front of him.

Although Huai Xu hadn't done anything yet, Zheng Qiyi would most certainly be doomed if she decided to take action. When Zheng Qiyi realized this, some mysterious condition must have been met, causing him to be assaulted by an unknown pain, while she gained an additional set of memories related to him.

Huai Xu sighed. Looking at things from this perspective, she realized that she likely hadn't threatened Fu Shu enough. In that case, she would have to make him experience what it felt like to fall from the clouds into the mud.

…

Due to Fu Shu interrupting their rhythm, everyone lost interest in conducting any further activities for the night. This meant that the guests had the entire evening to themselves.

Song Yingshi gazed at Huai Xu's back from afar. However, she didn't approach Huai Xu. Instead, she pulled out her phone and looked at a message she had just received—

This afternoon, Song Yingshi had messaged Chen Ru, who was helping her investigate Zheng Qiyi in the distant B City, to have her subordinates investigate the toxic solo fan incident. Thus, Fu Shu's behind-the-scenes shenanigans had been brought to light.

Besides that…

"There's been some progress on Zheng Qiyi's situation. His caregiver says his manager has visited him several times, but Zheng Qiyi insists he can no longer compose songs and refuses to sing," Chen Ru reported in her message.

Suddenly, the sound of glass shattering came from outside the window, like cellophane being crumpled, followed by a dull pause and a lingering echo.

A moment later, Zhu Zi's voice came from the second floor, "I accidentally knocked over a potted plant! Thank goodness no one got hurt…"

Subsequently, Hu Feng and the others quickly offered concerned exclamations.

Eventually, the noise subsided, and silence returned to the villa.

Standing by the floor-to-ceiling window, Song Yingshi returned her gaze to Huai Xu.

Huai Xu was unaffected by the noise, her head never turning. As she stood on the balcony, her graceful figure quietly merged with the night, beautiful, tall, and enchanting.

The wind rustled Huai Xu's hair, causing it to look like an indistinct sail in the darkness.

Song Yingshi was clearly looking at a person she had held and seen before. It wouldn't even be an exaggeration to say that she was the person most familiar with Huai Xu in this world. Yet, in this spectral night, at first glance, Huai Xu seemed completely unfamiliar to her.