CHAPTER 197: CHAPTER 197: TAKING THE INITIATIVE TO PROTECT HIM

Everyone looked as though they were about to enjoy a good show, sneaking glances at Shen Yi and observing his reaction.

Sang Ning, sitting next to Shen Yi, was the first to sense something off about him.

When the loudspeaker announced that the last contestant was Qingyue, Shen Yi suddenly gripped the armrests of his seat tightly, his body trembling slightly and uncontrollably.

Sang Ning was all too familiar with this reaction from Shen Yi. She immediately held him down and whispered, "Calm down, calm down. There’s a camera right there. For God’s sake, don’t faint again!"

Remembering the humiliating incident when he fainted in front of Sang Ning during the countryside filming, Shen Yi tried his hardest to suppress his emotions, repeatedly giving himself mental cues to stay calm.

Calm down, calm down. It’s all in the past. Don’t think about it. Forget it!

Sang Ning had been secretly watching Shen Yi’s reaction the entire time.

It was as if he recalled something humiliating; his lower lip was bitten tight in an effort to endure, while his pale skin showed an unnatural flush.

Sang Ning’s curiosity grew stronger. What had happened between Shen Yi and Qingyue?

Why did Shen Yi always react so strongly whenever Qingyue was mentioned?

It didn’t even seem like Qingyue’s character had been mentioned in the original novel.

The applause in the waiting room signaled the emergence of another focal point.

"Hello, everyone, I’m Qingyue."

A tall, slim, fair-skinned young man entered the group’s line of sight.

Sang Ning raised her eyes to look. The newcomer was wearing a casual white shirt, smiling as he waved and greeted everyone.

He was indeed good-looking, the type that gave off a big-brother-next-door vibe, and his smile had a certain contagious charm.

But Sang Ning couldn’t shake off a faint sense of oddity surrounding Qingyue. She couldn’t quite explain it.

Her intuition told her that Qingyue might just be a hidden nutcase.

His smile might seem bright, but there was not the slightest trace of joy in the corners of his eyes, which instead carried an intense gloominess.

Someone eagerly stepped forward to greet Qingyue, and he responded politely, but his gaze stayed fixed on Shen Yi the whole time.

Once he handled those greetings, Qingyue walked straight toward Shen Yi.

"Long time no see, my dear teammate."

Standing in front of Shen Yi, Qingyue extended his hand for a greeting.

Shen Yi stood up, but he deliberately avoided eye contact with Qingyue. Facing Qingyue’s outstretched hand, he made no move to reciprocate.

The atmosphere froze for a moment, and to ease the awkwardness, Chu Xi took the initiative and shook Qingyue’s hand. "Hello, Qingyue. It’s been a while."

When Chu Xi shook hands with Qingyue, Sang Ning couldn’t help but question Chu Xi’s fan loyalty.

Fans of Qingyue and Shen Yi had torn each other apart; by fan circle standards, even if Chu Xi wasn’t going to claw at Qingyue, the least she could do was spit at him.

And yet, here she was, voluntarily stepping forward to shake hands and say hello. Sang Ning was truly baffled.

Qingyue cast Chu Xi a brief glance, offered a perfunctory smile, then subtly pulled his hand back, his gaze once again landing on Shen Yi.

"Long time no see," Shen Yi awkwardly muttered, his arms crossed over his chest, showing no intention of shaking hands with Qingyue.

Sang Ning activated her magnifying-glass mode of observation. She noticed that after Qingyue pulled his hand back from Chu Xi, he rubbed both his palm and the back of his hand against the fabric of his pants.

It was as if Chu Xi had sullied his hand and he urgently needed to clean it.

But Qingyue’s actions were slow and subtle, and since all attention was focused on his confrontation with Shen Yi, even Chu Xi herself didn’t notice she had been scorned by Qingyue.

Sang Ning was struck by a startling thought: Could it be that Qingyue didn’t like women?

Sure, Chu Xi was quite annoying, but even with her issues, Sang Ning didn’t hate her to the extent of feeling like physical contact with her left her dirty.

With this thought, Sang Ning reached out her hand to Qingyue, greeting him enthusiastically: "Hello, I’m Sang Ning."

Qingyue’s hand, still rubbing his pants, froze abruptly. His gaze toward Sang Ning darkened.

If Sang Ning wasn’t mistaken, she could see an unmistakable hint of disgust in Qingyue’s eyes.

Yes, disgust.

Even though Sang Ning was a widely disliked figure in the circle, she and Qingyue had never crossed paths before.

The look of disdain from Qingyue felt inexplicably unwarranted.

Determined to confirm her suspicion, Sang Ning forced a handshake, gripping his hand against his will.

This time, the look in Qingyue’s eyes shifted from disgust to shock.

Not only did Sang Ning refuse to let go, but she smiled as she tightened her grip, mischievously pressing her fingers into the palm of his hand in a way that could almost be seen as harassment.

In return, Qingyue’s eyes burned with humiliation and hostility.

Sang Ning could feel his hand trembling faintly in her grasp, before he wrenched it away with sudden force.

Just relying on her and Chu Xi wasn’t enough evidence. Time to test this with Qin Kai.

"Brother Kai, you’re the last one—go on and shake hands with Qingyue," Sang Ning said, prompting Qin Kai, who had been standing there watching the scene, to react with a blank "Oh."

He then smiled and extended his hand: "Hello, Qingyue. I’m Qin Kai."

To everyone’s surprise, Qingyue showed no signs of aversion toward Qin Kai’s handshake request. Instead, he actively extended his hand and clasped Qin Kai’s in return.

At that moment, Sang Ning was hit with a shocking epiphany.

Damn! What’s going on here? Could it really be as she suspected?

No way!

Whenever Qingyue was mentioned, Shen Yi would always become deeply unsettled. Could it be that, at some point, Shen Yi had faced some major humiliation at Qingyue’s hands?

Or perhaps the reason Roche disbanded wasn’t at all what the industry speculated about resource competition, but something far darker and more sinister.

Sang Ning’s expression darkened as she stepped between Qingyue and Shen Yi, deliberately separating the two.

Whether her suspicions were correct, nobody who could emotionally destabilize Shen Yi to the point of fainting could be a good person.

As Shen Yi’s friend, she had to shield him from Qingyue’s relentless presence.

"There’s an empty seat over there. Why don’t you sit there?" Sang Ning said to Qingyue, pointing to the spot beside Chu Xi, clearly attempting to keep Qingyue away from Shen Yi.

Qingyue smiled faintly. "Could we switch seats? I haven’t seen Shen Yi in ages. I’d like to catch up with him."

Sang Ning sneaked a glance at Shen Yi; sure enough, his face had turned ashen and his whole demeanor hinted at unease.

Hah, cunning bastard.

Sang Ning denied Qingyue’s request outright, grabbing Shen Yi and sitting down with him. She responded with a smile: "Sorry, first come first served. I haven’t seen Shen Yi in a long time either. I’ll talk to him first."

To Shen Yi’s left sat Sang Ning, and to his right was Qin Kai.

Sang Ning worried that Qingyue might try to swap seats with Qin Kai, who was too easygoing to refuse.

So she took the matter into her own hands and shoved Qingyue into the seat next to herself. "Qingyue, here’s your spot. If you need to say anything to Shen Yi, tell me, and I’ll pass the message along for you."

"..."

Chu Xi thought Sang Ning was unbelievably shameless—allowing Shen Yi and Qingyue to sit on either side of her. Just how did she have the audacity to pull this off?