Chapter 48: The Online Love Rival Becomes a Charmer (48)

Chapter 48: From Supporting Role to Charmer in an Online Romance (48)

"Tang Qing, Zhong Yu is at the door," the system remarked, surprised. "The third love interest is here specifically for you. He must have already confirmed that Jiang Yiyi wasn't the one who called the police."

Tang Qing wasn't surprised—after all, he was a chairman; figuring out the truth would've been easy for him.

She opened the door and saw Zhong Yu standing silently. As always, he wore a suit, though the top button of his collar was undone. From his expression, he seemed to be in a bad mood.

"Looking for me, President Zhong?"

Wearing only a thin nightgown, Tang Qing stood at the doorway, looking frail. "Got it all sorted?"

"It wasn't Jiang Yiyi." He stated bluntly, stepping forward. His gaze was intense as he spoke slowly and deliberately: "I'm sorry."

"I did a lot of things to hurt you while trying to help Jiang Yiyi. I leaked those forum photos, arranged your pairing with her on the show, and even orchestrated the interview about your mother..."

"Tang Qing, I apologize to you."

As expected of a true businessman—flexible and adaptable. Just from his apology alone, he seemed far more mature than Yang Mingyue.

"I accept your apology." Without hesitation, Tang Qing replied in a tone of negotiation. "So, President Zhong, how do you plan to compensate me?"

"You’ve caused me quite a bit of trouble—you owe me compensation."

Clearly not expecting such a direct request, Zhong Yu hesitated for a moment before quickly responding, "I’ll pay off your debt."

"Assistant Zhang told me you still owe 200,000."

"How generous of you, President Zhong," she said with a grin, clearly pleased. "But I don’t need your help with that. If I recall correctly, don’t you run a media company?"

"You were going to clear the way for Jiang Yiyi originally. Since she turned out to be foolish, why not work with me instead?" Smiling, Tang Qing looked like a cunning fox, holding out her hand as if expecting payment.

This request was impossible to turn down, both professionally and personally. Professionally, Tang Qing had solid looks and presence—more composed than Jiang Yiyi, and better at presenting herself. Personally, there was also the matter of the life-debt he owed her; Zhong Yu had no grounds to refuse.

"I'll arrange someone to handle the contract with you. Same role as Jiang Yiyi?"

Tang Qing shook her head. "Of course not. The 'pure campus belle' image is too clichéd."

"Give me some profitable projects instead. How does 'The Most Money-Making Female College Student' sound? More appealing, don’t you think?"

Tang Qing had thought this through. A gentle campus belle persona was great, but after graduation, what was the point of being called a "campus belle"? It limited future opportunities, likely restricting her to ingénue roles.

In comparison, whether as a blogger repaying debts or sharing romantic experiences, she could showcase more dimensions of herself, avoid the saturation, and become more competitive.

Besides, who could possibly resist money?

Her clarity and composure were unlike anything expected from a typical college student. Zhong Yu couldn’t help but glance at her again.

Tang Qing smiled enchantingly, completely different from Jiang Yiyi’s sweet smile. Hers was sharper, more striking—just as netizens described: if Tang Qing so much as looked your way, you'd get lost in her eyes.

The system announced: "Zhong Yu’s affection points: 77."

Soon, netizens noticed that their favorite relationship blogger had made shocking progress in paying off debts. Last month, she had earned less than 70,000; this month, she paid off another 120,000!

"Wait, sis, where are you getting all these money-making opportunities?"

"Sis, wake up! You're still a student! How are you this good at making money?"

"I'm dying of jealousy. Some people just deserve to be spoiled by men! If someone's this beautiful and can earn this much money, I’d fall for them too…"

Under Zhong Yu’s guidance, Tang Qing quickly built her reputation as a hustle blogger. She was especially down-to-earth, often sharing tips on scoring deals and freebies on Weibo.

Free check-ins on public accounts, trial products from websites, sponsored posts—many of these strategies were prepared by Zhong Yu’s company, even including exclusive giveaways designed specifically to enhance Tang Qing’s persona.

Netizens who followed her advice actually made some real cash, and soon, more and more people began following Tang Qing, joining her hustle squad.

"Follow Sister Qing and make money—I love Sister Qing!"

"Sister Qing teaches me how to date, Sister Qing helps me earn more!"

"A dollar or two adds up—Sister Qing leads me to extra cash!"

Amid the chaotic slogans, Tang Qing’s side-hustle influencer image was officially solidified.

The system tutted in admiration. "Money really is the greatest charm. Tang Qing, the love points from ordinary people have been rising quickly—it's already at 13.89 million!"

"Follow me, and you'll earn money—who wouldn't love me?" With a playful wink, Tang Qing adjusted her makeup in front of the mirror. She was about to head to Si Yuechen’s lab to sign a contract—another opportunity to boost love points—so she had to prepare carefully.

"Zhong Yu’s love points are rising fast too. Total simp! Ever since he found out you called the police, his love points have been increasing by almost one point a day. It's already at 82 now!"

Among the three male leads, Zhong Yu’s affection was the easiest to gain. He was the classic gratitude-driven guy, meticulously remembering every major favor.

The reason he had liked Jiang Yiyi in the first place was because of a life-saving favor. Now that the beneficiary had changed, Zhong Yu’s love points practically climbed on their own without Tang Qing needing to actively pursue him—self-infatuation on autopilot.

While still getting ready, Tang Qing suddenly received a WeChat message from Yang Mingyue, saying he needed her help with something.

He was already standing outside her door, waiting for her to open it.

Yang Mingyue had brought a dog—a puppy that couldn’t have been born long ago.

The lanky guy rubbed his neck, speaking awkwardly, "Uh… I found it near the cafeteria. Tang Qing, keeping a dog in the dorm isn’t really convenient, so I thought maybe you could help out?"

The puppy had already been cleaned up—a schnauzer, a breed girls usually loved, petite and cute.

The system saw right through it, exposing Yang Mingyue’s lame excuse in Tang Qing’s mind. "He’s lying. He stole this puppy from his cousin’s house."

"He must’ve seen Si Yuechen give you a robot, so now he’s giving you a pup. What a smooth operator—this way, he can use visiting the dog as an excuse to see you more often."

Even without the system’s input, Tang Qing could guess Yang Mingyue’s intentions. The puppy looked too well-bred to be a stray…

Not rejecting his shy move, Tang Qing took the puppy with a gasp of delight. "Really? This dog is so pretty—it was abandoned?"

Yang Mingyue couldn’t meet her eyes, stammering, "Yeah… picked it up…"

"Tang Qing, give it a name."

Her eyes sparkling with mischief, Tang Qing lifted the puppy and teased, "How about *Xiao Yue*? What do you think?"

"From now on, I’ll call you *Xiao Yue*—how’s that?"

Just hearing the name made Yang Mingyue turn beet red. *Xiao Yue… that sounds like you’re calling me…*

But hearing it from Tang Qing’s lips filled him with giddy happiness.

Watching Tang Qing snuggle the pup, calling it "*Xiao Yue*" over and over, Yang Mingyue couldn’t help but daydream… *What if she were really snuggling me… that’d be even better.*