I Swear I Don’t Want to Be Everyone’s Favorite - Chapter 46.1

Jiang Luoyue didn’t grasp the underlying meaning in Yu Jingtang’s words, but her intuition told her it wasn’t something she wanted to pry into or perhaps, even if she did, she wouldn’t be able to offer Yu Jingtang the response she sought.

People often seemed to be like this: curious enough to unravel every thread, eager for answers. Yet once they truly understood everything, they found themselves at a loss, unable to cope.

For Jiang Luoyue, her relationship with Yu Jingtang seemed to be just that kind of existence.

To prevent Yu Jingtang from dwelling on it, Jiang Luoyue hastily changed the subject: “I feel like I’ve changed a little.”

The words slipped out before she could even pinpoint what exactly had changed. Yet Yu Jingtang nodded seriously, leaving Jiang Luoyue puzzled. “You know?”

Yu Jingtang nodded without hesitation. “You’ve become smarter.”

She thought her answer was flawless, but Jiang Luoyue suddenly fell silent, as if lost in deep thought,

“It does seem that way,” Jiang Luoyue said. “But as they say, ‘One takes on the color of one’s company.’ If I’m around you all, why would I become smarter? Shouldn’t I be getting dumber instead?”

The others, who had just approached only to be called “dumb”: “…?”

“My life is really looking up,” Xiang Fan sneered sarcastically. “I actually get to hear Jiang Luoyue insult me now.”

Jiang Luoyue immediately shut her mouth and flashed an innocent smile at her. Under her gaze, the feigned anger on Xiang Fan’s face faded somewhat.

Fu Yunqing, however, wasn’t as easy to appease. She pointed an accusing finger and declared, “Jiang Luoyue, I’m warning you even though you’re pretty and pitiable, I won’t let you call me stupid.”

“Mm, mm,” Jiang Luoyue replied dismissively. “You’re not stupid. You just talk a bit too much.”

And you’re pretty good at skating too, Remembering the scene from earlier, she curved her eyes into a smile.

Fu Yunqing didn’t understand the reference but immediately responded anyway, “You could tell I’m a figure skating prodigy just from that?”

Even though Fu Yunqing herself had no idea when she’d learned to skate, it didn’t matter. If Jiang Luoyue said she was good at it, then she was a prodigy in that area!

If she didn’t know how, she could learn, but if she missed a chance to show off, she’d have to wait for the next one!

“What Luoyue means is that you slide around in your wheelchair like you’re skating.”

Ning Fuguang, however, was far less gentle than Jiang Luoyue. After mercilessly teasing her, a familiar shriek immediately sounded in Jiang Luoyue’s ears: “Jiang Luoyue, look at her!”

She glanced at Fu Yunshu, who stood beside Fu Yunqing: “…”

Shouldn’t she be calling for her sister at a time like this? Why was Fu Yunqing still calling for her?

It was only then that Jiang Luoyue realized this was her first formal meeting with Fu Yunshu. Yet their very first encounter had already been marred by such a scandal. Fu Yunshu’s first impression of her must be terrible, right?

Even Jiang Luoyue didn’t understand why she felt the need to win over Fu Yunqing’s sister, but making a fool of herself in front of a friend’s family still left her feeling somewhat embarrassed.

“I’m sorry,” she murmured, her cheeks flushing as she spoke. In an instant, she seemed to revert to that quiet, gentle background presence, a stark contrast to the sharp, unhesitating image she had projected while confronting the camera earlier.

Fu Yunshu was utterly amazed, but before she could respond, Fu Yunqing pouted and said, “Why are you apologizing? Why aren’t you concerned about me? I’m exhausted from all that kicking”

Only then did Jiang Luoyue snap back to reality. “Wait, wasn’t that being livestreamed earlier?”

Since they were live streaming, Fu Yunqing’s act of kicking someone with her one good leg was obviously recorded. The police couldn’t possibly ignore them and only take away a few irrelevant individuals.

Xiang Fan scoffed lightly, “At least the production team has some conscience.”

After Jiang Luoyue retorted with, “How could you bear to blame me?” the live stream was cut off. Whether it was Jiang Luoyue’s explosive comebacks or the actions of the others, none of it was broadcast.

Even so, the few words she said were enough for the public to dig into.

In less than an hour, the trending searches were filled with content related to Jiang Luoyue.

All sorts of marketing accounts jumped in, conducting a comprehensive search around Jiang Luoyue’s claim that she was supporting her entire family alone. Their original intention was to debunk it and expose her hypocritical persona, but from the scattered details of gossip from years ago, they pieced together a truth far more absurd than what Jiang Luoyue had described.

When many celebrities are asked why they entered the entertainment industry, the answers are always varied some by accident, some out of passion. But when the underage Jiang Luoyue was interviewed, her gaze was somewhat timid as she softly replied that it was to ease her family’s burden.

At the time, many people became fans because of that video, sympathizing with her for thinking about her family at such a young age. Little did they expect that soon after, someone would expose that her parents drove luxury cars, lived in mansions, and her younger brother attended a private school, a lavish lifestyle that had nothing to do with “hardship.”

It was precisely because of this that when her former agency accused her of lacking contractual integrity, public opinion trampled her so harshly.

But months later, when people revisited the cause and effect, they suddenly realized that the company that had accused Jiang Luoyue had long deleted those posts and vaguely mentioned in subsequent announcements that the previous disputes with the artist were misunderstandings and had now been resolved amicably.

As for the so-called lavish lifestyle, it had nothing to do with Jiang Luoyue. The title the reporter initially used when breaking the story wasn’t to denounce her for having a fake persona but to question whether her parents were exploiting Jiang Luoyue and treating her as a tool for their own gain.

Even though the account was soon banned for spreading rumors, some people had saved the content at the time. Through her profile, many saw a Jiang Luoyue completely different from the one on screen.

There was Jiang Luoyue, shuttling between film sets and school, almost late and rushing in just as the bell rang, her face full of relief; Jiang Luoyue, looking frustrated while solving math problems, biting on candy to distract herself; Jiang Luoyue, scolded harshly by the director for messing up her lines due to exhaustion.

And Jiang Luoyue, entering and exiting a dilapidated neighborhood, dressed simply, never having lived a single day of a “lavish” life.

This reporter had followed Jiang Luoyue for many years, from the age of fourteen until just before she reached adulthood. Jiang Luoyue had even become familiar with her, and in many photos, she would look at the camera and smile, greeting her.

It was precisely because of this that the reporter felt genuine anger at Jiang Luoyue’s parents’ irresponsibility, unable to understand why her family enjoyed everything while the public’s gaze and doubts were all focused on Jiang Luoyue.

Seeing these photos again, Jiang Luoyue felt as if a lifetime had passed.

Her impression of this reporter was extremely faint. In her memory, she only remembered a particularly kind woman who would speak to her gently and ask about her recent situation.

A reporter suddenly appeared in her life, became friends with her for a while, and then vanished just as abruptly. Until their last meeting, Jiang Luoyue never learned her name, nor did she know that the leaked photos had been exposed by that very person.

By the time Jiang Luoyue saw the trending searches, the posts questioning her parents had already been deleted. Under manipulation, public opinion had shifted entirely to questioning her personally. Of course, she didn’t bother to dig into the backstory; instead, she faced the pressure and stepped forward to apologize.

Even now, Jiang Luoyue still didn’t understand what she had done wrong back then. Yet, when she thought back on the incident, the resentment and unwillingness she had felt as a teenager, forced to apologize, were now overshadowed by a flutter of joyful surprise.

Without her knowing, there had once been someone who genuinely tried to protect her.

Jiang Luoyue pressed her lips together and lifted her gaze, noticing that everyone was scrolling through the trending searches but occasionally glancing her way.

When caught, Fu Yunqing stubbornly retorted, “If you weren’t looking at me, how would you know I was looking at you?”

Jiang Luoyue: “…”

Xiang Fan sneered mockingly, “Was she looking at you? Don’t be so full of yourself.”

“She was looking at me,” Yu Jingtang said.

Ning Fuguang rolled his eyes, “What does that have to do with you? No one asked you to speak.”