A live stream that dramatically transformed a depressed schoolgirl shocked netizens across the count

When the name Wang Rui was mentioned, Long Shao's eyelid twitched.

He turned his head and stared at the staff behind him, trying to glean some denial from their faces.

The staff member's face turned pale, and his lips trembled for a long time, but he couldn't utter a single word.

Chen Lang released his grip and squatted down in front of Long Shao.

He raised his hand and flicked the back of his fingers twice on the side of Long Shao's shoulder that wasn't broken.

"Xiao Yunlong, 25 years old, the eldest son of the co-founder of Xingyao Interactive Entertainment."

His voice was casual, but the microphone simultaneously transmitted his clear enunciation to the live stream of 300,000 viewers.

"The scar on my right eyebrow bone."

Chen Lang raised his gaze and it fell on the light mark.

"You brag to others that it was left at the Guia Circuit in Macau? Let me remind you for free. Three years ago at the LKF bar in Shanghai, someone smashed a Budweiser bottle and stabbed me while trying to grab a female model's booth."

"The alarm record is still in the system. Should I read out the alarm number?"

Long Shao's face was deathly pale, and the veins on his temples were throbbing wildly.

The noise from the morning market subsided, and Su Niannian pressed herself against the wall, her nails digging into her palms.

The racetrack was fake, the wine bottle was real; Long Shao's boasting was crushed in the mud by Chen Lang's few words.

Chen Lang dusted off his hands, stood up, and put his hands back in his pockets.

He tilted his head, took out his phone with his right hand, lit up the screen, and shoved a screenshot of a document directly in front of Long Shao's eyes.

Black background with white text: Xingyao Interactive Entertainment's internal contract template, featuring hidden clauses and exorbitant penalty fees for breach of contract.

"An S-level performance-based agreement has a 92% success rate in forcing a signature. Bloggers who refuse to sign will have their accounts restricted and their data wiped to zero within three months, and may even end up with millions in debt and commit suicide."

Chen Lang pressed a button, the screen went out, and the phone slid back into his pocket.

"They've already stripped you bare, so what are you pretending to be a gangster for?"

Long Shao knelt on the bluestone slab, his bones feeling like they were about to fall apart, trembling uncontrollably.

He was surrounded by layers upon layers of tourists holding up their phones, dozens of cameras shoved into his face.

The eight-million-dollar Richard Miller watch fell to the ground, its dial cracking into spiderweb-like patterns, the second hand stuck in the shards of glass, refusing to move.

The live stream chat exploded.

[Holy crap! Holy crap! They've stripped him naked! This guy's got some serious stuff going on in the atmosphere!]

[What the hell is this Macau race track? Turns out it was a bar robbery where someone got shot in the head! Hilarious!]

[Young Master Long must be sweating buckets right now, his cerebellum must be atrophied. Who did he have to mess with? He messed with Brother Lang! I'll break his legs with a titanium alloy kick!]

Investigate Xingyao Interactive Entertainment's dual contracts! So Ye Xingyu was driven to that state by these rotten contracts!

Su Niannian straightened up by leaning against the wall, her weak knees trembling.

She stared at Long Shao kneeling on the ground, tears falling onto her collarbone, and a grin spreading across her face.

That arrogant young master of capital is now worse than a stray dog.

Through the gaps in the crowd, Ye Xingyu bit her lower lip and tasted the blood.

The devil who choked her and forced her to work despite her injuries had his spine broken by someone's foot.

The sea breeze rushed into her lungs, sending a chill down her spine and clearing her mind completely.

The assistant next to her even tried to reach out and tug at her clothes.

Su Niannian took half a step forward, swung her arm, and slapped her assistant's hand away.

Her eyes were bloodshot, and her jaw was clenched tightly.

"Get lost."

The assistant shrank back, stung by that gaze, and retreated repeatedly.

Ye Xingyu didn't even glance at those people.

She picked up the black men's windbreaker, which had been washed three times and folded neatly, and strode through the crowd of onlookers.

The black leather shoes stomped heavily on the bluestone slabs.

She stopped in front of Chen Lang, bending her back to a perfect ninety-degree angle.

"Thank you for saving my life."

The sound trembled.

Long Shao used his only remaining left hand to support himself on the ground and saw his most profitable cash cow bowing to a passerby in front of the entire internet.

His face contorted and twitched with rage, his reason consumed by fury. He roared and lunged forward, reaching out to grab Ye Xingyu's skirt.

"You wretch! How dare you betray the public..."

Chen Lang didn't even lower his head; he slightly lifted his eyelids and glared at him with extremely cold eyes.

Long Shao's voice stopped abruptly as a piercing pain shot through his brain from his severed wrist.

His pupils contracted, and he scrambled backward on his hands and feet, his shoes slipping on the bluestone slabs, until he fell into the arms of the bodyguard behind him.

"Go...go quickly!"

Two bodyguards, each 1.9 meters tall, grabbed Long Shao's arms and dragged him out of the alley.

A pair of haute couture shoes kicked over a bougainvillea pot by the roadside, scattering red petals mixed with soil all over the ground.

The fill light bracket slammed onto the stone slab with a thud, kicking up a cloud of dust.

The morning breeze blew by, completely dispelling the scent of perfume.

Ye Xingyu maintained her 90-degree bow, the fabric on her back taut and straight.

The windbreaker was held in the palm of my hand, the rough texture of the fabric digging into my fingertips.

Chen Lang reached out, hooked his knuckles around the collar of the windbreaker, and casually tossed it aside to catch it.

The movements were swift and decisive, without the slightest hesitation.

Get up.

Ye Xingyu straightened up.

Her eyes were red-rimmed, and water droplets clung to her eyelashes.

Chen Lang slung his windbreaker over his shoulder and put it back in his pocket with one hand.

"If you're in that situation, you can't just watch them sink. Anyone else in that position would have to go in too."

Ye Xingyu shook her head and looked directly at him.

"It's different. The rip current lasted for more than forty seconds, and there were several people standing on the shore, but you were the only one who jumped in."

Chen Lang didn't respond to that. He slightly raised his chin, looked past her, and glanced to the side.

Ye Xingyu turned her head in the direction of the gaze.

Two steps away, Shen Qingci stood quietly.

The morning light pierced through the thin mist and shone on the white floral wreath on her head.

Her skin was pale and cold, her eyes were aloof and distant, yet she gazed at Ye Xingyu with an extremely subtle look.

Ye Xingyu's pupils contracted slightly.

The floodgates of memory were suddenly opened.

Yesterday on the pebble beach, my lungs were filled with the stinging seawater, and in the last second when my vision blurred, it was these eyes that caught my eye.

His long, soaked hair, his icy lips, and his rock-solid palm pressed against her heart, slowly easing its pounding.

"It's you..."

Ye Xingyu's voice became hoarse, and her fingertips dug into her palm.

"You were the one who performed CPR on me yesterday."

Shen Qingci did not dodge, but nodded slightly.

Su Niannian suddenly appeared from behind and stared at Shen Qingci's face.

The girl who was unusually calm on the gravel beach yesterday, even as she was breaking down and screaming, perfectly overlaps with the person in front of me wearing a flower wreath.

Su Niannian's legs went weak, and her knees buckled as if she were about to smash into the bluestone slab.

Shen Qingci moved even faster.

She took a half step forward and grabbed Su Niannian's forearm with her fair hand.

With calluses from years of holding a pen, his fingertips gently supported the weight of the falling object.

Su Niannian's face was covered in tears, and her lips trembled.

"Thank you... thank you for saving her... all I could do yesterday was cry, I didn't even know how to perform CPR... if it weren't for you, I wouldn't even have my best friend anymore..."

Shen Qingci lowered her eyes.

She looked at the girl who was crying so uncontrollably, without saying it was okay or that it was just a small favor.

She reached out and tucked a strand of wet hair that was stuck to Su Niannian's face behind her ear.

"She's alive."

Shen Qingci's voice was cold and clear, "Your friend is alive, that's enough."

Su Niannian bit her lip, swallowing the wailing sound.

Ye Xingyu stepped forward, turned around and hugged Su Niannian's trembling shoulders, pulling her into her arms.

She turned around and looked at Shen Qingci and Chen Lang.

"Could you come over for a visit tomorrow?"

Ye Xingyu's fingers twisted the floral fabric at the hem of her skirt tightly, her knuckles turning pinkish-white.

"I rented a courtyard at the foot of Cangshan Mountain. I'd like to cook dinner myself to formally thank you all."

The veins on the back of her hand bulged as she rapidly increased the volume of her speech.

"It was just a simple home-cooked meal! There was no one else around, just me and a few girls living together."

Su Niannian sniffed hard beside her and replied in a hoarse voice.

"My sour fish soup is amazing! Xingyu can make flower cakes, and we'll knead the dough ourselves! If it's inconvenient, another day is fine too, we'll wait!"

The two girls stood close together, their eyes filled with anticipation.

Chen Lang raised an eyebrow but didn't speak.

He turned to the side and looked back at Shen Qingci.

Shen Qingci lowered her gaze.

She could see the marks on the inside of Ye Xingyu's wrist.

Besides the purplish-red fingerprints left by Long Shao, there were also several slightly lighter-colored crescent-shaped old pinch marks.

That's something I pinched myself.

Shen Qingci's eyelashes trembled slightly.

She was all too familiar with these marks; only when it hurt did the noise in her head stop.

She raised her eyes, her gaze clear.

"it is good."

In short, it was decisive and efficient.

Su Niannian's tense shoulders relaxed, as if a huge burden had been lifted from her body.

Ye Xingyu's eyes lit up, and she grabbed Su Niannian's fingers and squeezed them twice.

Chen Lang looked at Shen Qingci's profile and let out a soft chuckle.

"Okay, I'll go tomorrow."

He took out his phone and scanned Ye Xingyu's WeChat QR code.

"Send me the address, we've noted down this meal."

After being accepted as a friend, Chen Lang casually changed the nickname to "Windbreaker".

Ye Xingyu looked at those three words, her nose tingled, and she pulled Su Niannian to bow again before turning and disappearing into the crowd at the morning market.

The morning breeze swept through the long alley, carrying the sweet aroma of hot soy milk.

Chen Lang ripped the windbreaker off his shoulders, spread his arms, and draped it over Shen Qingci's thin shoulders.

"The mountain breeze is cool."

The fabric, with its minty and sea salt scent, wraps around the shoulders.

Shen Qingci gathered her fingers around the collar, her fingertips tracing the creases Ye Xingyu had made.

The two walked back side by side on the bluestone slabs.

"She has old pinch marks on her hands."

Shen Qingci looked straight ahead, her voice very soft.

"Damaged by fingernails."

Chen Lang put his hands in his pockets and slowed his pace to match her rhythm.

"Um."

"I used to do that too."

Chen Lang paused.

Shen Qingci turned her head, facing the sunlight streaming in from the alley entrance, her gaze direct and unwavering.

"That girl named Su Niannian, even with her voice hoarse from shouting, stood in front of her. I've never had anyone like that before, so she's luckier than me."

She stopped and looked into Chen Lang's eyes.

"That's why I agreed. I recognized that feeling."

Chen Lang stared at her for two seconds.

The sunlight outlined her cool and aloof features, and the fragile glass shell was peeling away little by little, revealing the tough interior inside.

He raised his hand, placed his palm on the white floral wreath on the top of her head, and gently rubbed it.

"Teacher Shen has it now."

Shen Qingci's ears burned. He didn't dodge, but simply raised his hand to straighten the crooked flower wreath.

Chen Lang's phone vibrated in his pocket, and the pale blue system panel silently unfolded in front of his retina.

[Ding! High-value side quest trigger condition detected.]

[The person being healed by the host, "Shen Qingci," and the external figure, "Ye Xingyu," share a deep-seated psychological trauma that resonates with each other.]

[Criteria for determination: shared memories of self-injurious behavior, similar oppressive upbringing, and common emotional isolation mechanisms.]

[Unexpected side quest unlocked - "Echoes in the Ruins"]

[Task Description: Shen Qingci actively chose to approach Ye Xingyu, without host guidance or task-driven intervention. This is a spontaneous empathic projection behavior generated by the recipient of the healing, and the system classifies it as a high-value variable.]

[Special Bonus: During Shen Qingci's participation in the healing process, her own healing progress will receive an additional boost.]

[Has intervention been confirmed?]

Chen Lang glanced at the panel, closed his eyes slightly, and shut down the interface.

He turned his head to look at Shen Qingci beside him, a casual smile playing on his lips.

"I'll take you to a fancy restaurant tomorrow."

Shen Qingci glanced at him and the corners of her lips curled up slightly.

"What are you plotting now?"

"Innocent," Chen Lang said lazily, drawing out his words.

"I just wanted to eat sour fish soup."

After saying that, he slightly raised his chin towards the alleyway deep in the ancient city where white smoke was rising: "Let's go, Teacher Shen, there's still a large part of Dali Ancient City waiting for us to explore."