Lu Bochuan?
Although Liu Piaopiao worked in the entertainment industry, she was well aware of the names of business tycoons. She hadn't expected the woman in front of her to be Lu Bochuan's wife.
For a moment, Liu Piaopiao didn't know whether to be happy or angry.
This wife of Lu Bochuan knew Feng Xiangdi and would definitely help Feng Xiangdi retaliate against her. But on second thought, she was currently blacklisted and had no hope of making a comeback. She had managed to sneak into the banquet today with great difficulty, yet no one paid attention to her and she was almost kicked out. If this woman could really help Feng Xiangdi prove that she hadn't plagiarized, then she herself could take the opportunity to clear her name and return to the entertainment industry.
Liu Piaopiao instantly made up her mind; she had to cling to Lu Bochuan's wife. If this woman still felt unsatisfied, the worst-case scenario was letting Feng Xiangdi slap her back!
"Mrs. Lu, I believe you! I believe you," Liu Piaopiao said, grabbing Shu Qingqing's hand excitedly.
Shu Qingqing silently pulled her arm back. "Tell me, what exactly happened."
Recalling the incident, Liu Piaopiao practically gnashed her teeth in anger.
It turned out that after The Legend of Consort Tong became a massive hit, Liu Piaopiao shot to fame. However, despite her popularity, most of the income from her event appearances went into the company's account, leaving her with very little. Aside from her grandmother's medical bills, she had to buy various clothes, bags, and jewelry to maintain her dignity as a female celebrity. At the end of last year, she was invited to attend a platform's year-end gala, but the outfit provided by her company was ugly and of poor quality. Liu Piaopiao didn't want to wear it, but she didn't have the money to buy haute couture either. Right at that time, someone recommended a niche luxury dress designer to her—Feng Xiangdi. Liu Piaopiao contacted Feng Xiangdi and paid for a custom-made evening gown.
The gown was beautiful. When she received it, she was thrilled.
Who knew that when she attended the event that night, she would end up wearing the exact same outfit as another female celebrity.
And this celebrity was none other than Su Yue, the female lead who starred alongside her in The Legend of Consort Tong.
That very night, the internet was flooded with smear articles against her, claiming that Su Yue's dress was the authentic one and hers was a knockoff.
They even said she relied on her popularity to intentionally clash outfits with Su Yue.
Later, it was indeed confirmed that she was wearing a knockoff. Following that, she was cyberbullied by the entire internet and never managed to make a comeback.
Liu Piaopiao concluded angrily, "How could I intentionally clash outfits with her! It's not like I have nothing better to do. She just wasn't happy that I was more popular than her!"
Shu Qingqing didn't comment after hearing this. She took out her phone and searched for news about The Legend of Consort Tong.
Sure enough, most of the results that popped up were edited clips of Liu Piaopiao; there were relatively few of the female lead. It was evident that the second female lead character Liu Piaopiao played was much more likable.
Scrolling further down, she saw that in the various events attended by the cast of The Legend of Consort Tong, the number of times Liu Piaopiao stood in the center position was actually higher than Su Yue.
Searching for Su Yue's personal social media account next, one could tell from the content she shared that Su Yue was likely a wealthy young lady.
Shu Qingqing seemed to understand a bit.
She put away her phone and asked Liu Piaopiao, "Is Su Yue's family very wealthy?"
Liu Piaopiao answered without thinking, "Yes, her family background should be quite good. When we were filming, a random pair of her shoes would cost tens of thousands."
Shu Qingqing asked again, "Was the dress she wore that clashed with yours haute couture?"
Feng Xiangdi rushed to interject, "It absolutely couldn't have been haute couture. I really didn't plagiarize."
Liu Piaopiao glanced at Feng Xiangdi and said, "No. She also had someone custom-make it."
Shu Qingqing looked at Liu Piaopiao. "Since Su Yue's family is wealthy, why would she choose to have a dress custom-made instead of wearing haute couture when attending an event?"
Liu Piaopiao sighed. "Mrs. Lu, you don't understand. Su Yue's gown was personally designed by Top Designer Li. This Top Designer Li is quite famous and has won many international awards."
Although Shu Qingqing felt Liu Piaopiao made sense, she still felt something wasn't quite right.
Just as she was thinking, her arm was pulled by Feng Xiangdi. "Qingqing, I actually worked at this Top Designer Li's company for a period of time before. And back then, I presented my design draft during a department meeting."
Liu Piaopiao was surprised. "I've never heard you mention this before! So you mean Top Designer Li plagiarized your design draft?"
Feng Xiangdi didn't answer Liu Piaopiao's question; she continued speaking to Shu Qingqing. "This design draft was originally meant for a competition. At the time, I showed my design draft to the company's director, but she said it didn't meet the standards and threw it away right in front of me. But I didn't buy it. I have reasonable suspicion that she gave my design draft to someone else, or my design draft was picked up by someone else. That's why I came here today, to confront her."
Shu Qingqing only then noticed that Feng Xiangdi was wearing a waitress uniform.
"So the key now is to find your design draft," Shu Qingqing summarized.
Feng Xiangdi nodded guiltily.
Shu Qingqing asked, "Where is that design director? Take me to her."
Feng Xiangdi replied, "She left. I was originally going to chase after her, but I didn't expect to run into Miss Liu."
Liu Piaopiao: ...So she had ruined things?
Liu Piaopiao stammered, "I... I really didn't know... If I had known... Alright, I'm sorry."
As the three were talking, Ren Qiuyang walked over gracefully. "Qingqing... are these two... your friends?"
Shu Qingqing was just worrying about how to meet that design director. Seeing Ren Qiuyang, she immediately felt a burst of joy. According to the original owner's memories, this person was the leading figure in the socialite circle of Jing City, so it shouldn't be difficult for her to inquire about a design director.
So she said, "Yes, they are my friends. By the way, Miss Ren, do you know the design director of Fengshang?"
Ren Qiuyang replied, "I do know her, but why are you looking for her?"
"I have some business with her." But Shu Qingqing didn't specify what it was.
Ren Qiuyang smiled and didn't press further. "Alright, I'll give you her contact information."
After that, Ren Qiuyang didn't stay much longer.
Liu Piaopiao knew of Ren Qiuyang and was just about to ask around, but Shu Qingqing signaled for her to go back first.
She had no choice but to leave, looking back reluctantly with every step.
Only then did Shu Qingqing have the time to look closely at Feng Xiangdi.
This Feng Xiangdi was the original owner's college classmate and dorm mate. When the two first met, they hit it off exceptionally well, and their relationship had always been very good. During their sophomore year, the class monitor organized a spring outing for the whole class. The original owner accidentally fell into the water. The original owner didn't know how to swim, and neither did Feng Xiangdi, but Feng Xiangdi still jumped in without hesitation with a wooden stick to save her.
Their relationship became even better after that; it wouldn't be an exaggeration to call them biological sisters.
However, during their senior year, Feng Xiangdi suddenly fell in love with a resident singer at a bar. She even stopped attending classes and wanted to elope with him. The original owner tried to persuade her countless times and was even slapped by that man later on, but Feng Xiangdi remained determined to elope.
Later, Feng Xiangdi really left, and the two never contacted each other again.
Just now, when she saw Feng Xiangdi's face, Shu Qingqing's heart clenched fiercely.
She knew this was because the original owner had never let go of Feng Xiangdi.
Shu gently reached out to smooth her tousled hair. "How have you been? Is life with him treating you well?"
Feng Xiangdi gave a bitter smile. "He died."
