Reborn, my online friend is the real me.

In late October in Beijing, the wind started to get a little erratic.

It's not the gentle autumn wind, but the kind that carries sand down your neck, making you wonder if you live in the desert.

Every day, Su Yu would chew up two ounces of dirt as he walked from his dormitory to the teaching building.

Wang Boxue said he was taking calcium supplements, and Su Yu said, "Then chew more."

Life was peaceful and fulfilling: attending classes, taking photos, developing pictures, writing scripts, and occasionally chatting with Anxi on QQ.

Before the controversy surrounding Feng Xiaogang's verbal abuse of reporters had subsided, Zhang Tielin, Fan Binbin, and Huang Lei all jumped out to voice their support, making it seem like a grand celebration for the entertainment industry.

That evening, Su Yu lay on the table, munching on an apple while chatting with An Qian.

"How long do you think this argument about Director Feng will last?"

Su Yu precisely tossed the apple core into the trash can and typed a reply: "This won't last long. This kind of thing isn't honorable, and it'll probably be overshadowed by other news soon."

Why?

"It's a distraction," Su Yu said matter-of-factly. "That's how the entertainment industry is. Once one hot topic is over, they'll always come up with an even bigger one. Just you wait, in less than a week, there'll be an even bigger scandal. By then, who will remember who Feng Xiaogang criticized?"

Anxi sent a "You know so much" emoji.

Su Yu said smugly, "That's right, my eyes have seen through too much."

He was just bragging when he said that.

To his utter surprise, this even bigger bombshell came faster, more shockingly, and a million times more outrageous than he had imagined.

.....

On the first Friday of November, Su Yu was arguing with Wang Boxue about a composition problem in their dormitory.

Wang Boxue took a series of black and white photos with the theme "Autumn on Campus". The composition emphasizes the contrast of light and shadow, and the pictures are clean and neat.

After Su Yu read it, he said it was good. Wang Boxue was dissatisfied: "Good? Can't you offer any constructive suggestions?"

Su Yu thought for a moment and said, "The biggest problem with your set of photos is that they look too much like textbooks."

"What do you mean?"

"Every single one of your photos follows the standard composition taught by the teacher: the golden ratio, diagonals, framing—all correct, no surprises." Su Yu pointed to one of the photos. "Look at this one, the ginkgo leaves are on the bench, the light and shadow are beautiful, but you could imagine this scene before you even took the picture; a good photo should be something you didn't expect before you pressed the shutter."

Wang Boxue scratched his head thoughtfully, about to retort, when the dormitory door was pushed open.

Lu Yang walked in, holding a cup of instant coffee, his expression somewhat subtle.

He sat down at his desk, opened his laptop, and after a while, suddenly said, "Liu Yifei is in trouble, and it's even involved the school."

Su Yu and Wang Boxue leaned over at the same time. The computer screen showed the homepage of Sina Entertainment, with a headline prominently displayed.

"Is Liu Yifei's academic credentials fabricated? Netizens question her years of study in the US, and her admission to the Beijing Film Academy is also under scrutiny."

Wang Boxue was the first to exclaim, "What the hell? Liu Yifei's academic credentials are fake?"

Su Yu didn't say anything, but bent down and flipped over.

The post was very detailed, even meticulously prepared.

Skeptics did the math: Liu Yifei went to the US in 1997 and returned to China in 2002, only five years. American elementary school is two years, middle school three years, and high school three years, totaling eight years. How could she complete eight years of schooling in five years? Either her academic credentials are falsified, or her age is falsified.

The post also included a bombshell, questioning the shady admission process for the Beijing Film Academy: Liu Yifei is an American citizen, and foreign students are exempt from the college entrance examination. Is this a privileged admission?

After reading it, Wang Boxue looked puzzled: "This...it seems to make some sense? How can you study for eight years in five?"

Lu Yang adjusted his glasses: "This calculation is flawed. The American education system is different from China's, and the system also varies between different states and schools. You can't simply use two years of primary school as an example; she went to the US at the age of ten."

Su Yu didn't participate in the discussion; he was thinking about something else entirely. Just two days ago, he had told An Qian that there would be an even bigger scandal than Feng Xiaogang's, and here it was.

Is my mouth blessed or something?

He took out his laptop, opened QQ, and sent a message to Anxi: "Have you seen the news? Your goddess is in trouble."

Anxi's profile picture was lit up, and she replied instantly: "I saw it!!! I'm so angry!!!"

Three exclamation marks—Su Yu could feel the anger on the other side of the screen.

"As a die-hard fan, what's your take on this?"

Anxi: "Are these people crazy? All that talk about fake degrees and privileged admissions is utter nonsense! I follow her every day, how come I don't know she's faking it?"

Su Yu smiled and said, "Don't get excited, this isn't that simple."

........

Two days later, the real bomb dropped.

Beijing experienced its first rain of autumn, and the chill made Su Yu pull out his long underwear from the bottom of his drawer.

He and Wang Boxue ran back to their dorm from the cafeteria, half-soaked, and were drying their hair with towels when Lu Yang, sitting in front of his computer without looking up, said:

"Come and see, this time it's really blown up."

Su Yu leaned closer and saw a long anonymous post on the Tianya forum with the title in bold red font.

"Liu Yifei's true identity: From an abandoned American girl to a kept woman in Beijing"

Wang Boxue read the title aloud: "Canary? What does that mean?"

Su Yu didn't reply after reading it, and continued scrolling down.

The post was written in great detail, even professionally.

The content includes: Liu Yifei's parents divorced when she was four years old, and her mother, Liu Xiaoli, had a sham marriage with an American man and took her to the United States; after failing to make a living, she was taken back to China in 2001 by Chen Jinfei, a wealthy man from Beijing; Chen Jinfei bought Bai Xiuzhu in "The Story of a Noble Family", Wang Yuyan in "Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils", and Xiaolongnu in "The Return of the Condor Heroes"; Liu Yifei was Chen Jinfei's mistress, and the mother and daughter served Chen Jinfei together.

After reading it, Wang Boxue's face turned pale: "This...this is too vicious! It's trying to kill someone!"

Lu Yang's tone was calm: "This kind of writing doesn't seem like that of an ordinary netizen. It's organized, premeditated, and has a script; someone must be pulling the strings behind the scenes."

Su Yu leaned back in his chair, put his hands behind his head, and said, "Goodness, this is a much bigger scandal than Feng Xiaogang's."

He took out his phone, logged into QQ, and sent a message to Anxi: "Did you see that post on Tianya?"

Anxi replied instantly: "I saw it. I'm so angry I've already eaten two bowls of rice."

Su Yu almost burst out laughing: "Two bowls? You must be really angry."

Anxi sent an angry emoji: "Are these people crazy? Writing this kind of stuff, aren't they afraid of getting retribution?"

Su Yu typed: "Calm down first, let me analyze this for you."

Anxi: "You go ahead."

Su Yu thought for a moment and then began sending them one by one.

"First of all, I don't think it's necessary to take the education issue too seriously. The education system in the United States varies from state to state. In some states, elementary school is only five years, middle school is three years, and high school is four years, which adds up to twelve years. If she skipped a grade or went to a special school, it's not impossible for her to finish in five years. Besides, she's an actress, as long as her acting skills are good, her education isn't that important."

Anxi: "What about keeping a sugar daddy/sugar baby? That's even more infuriating!"

Su Yu: "The 'sugar baby' thing is pure nonsense."

Why?

"Think about it, if Chen Jinfei were really keeping Liu Yifei as a mistress, would he let her act? He'd be too busy hiding her to even think about spending money to make her a star for the whole country to see. Isn't that crazy? In a normal sugar daddy/sugar baby relationship, people keep their mistresses hidden away, not on screen."

Anxi sent a long string of "hahahaha" and then said, "You're really vulgar, but you're right."

Su Yu was smug and continued, "I think Chen Jinfei might be Liu Yifei's mother's lapdog."

After the message was sent, there was a silence on the other end for about ten seconds.

Anxi: "...What? A simp? What do you mean?"

Su Yu suddenly realized that the term "simp" had not yet been coined in 2004.

He quickly explained, "It's that kind of guy who really likes someone and tries his best to please her, but the other person might not appreciate it. It's a dialect term from our area."

Anxi: "...Your Jingzhou dialect is really strange, but this description...seems kind of fitting?"

Su Yu breathed a sigh of relief: "Right? Let me tell you, this kind of thing happens all the time. Rich older men who can't get their goddesses end up supporting their goddesses' daughters. I've seen this kind of script on TV."

Anxi sent a speechless emoji: "What kind of TV shows do you watch?"

Su Yu didn't respond to that, and continued his analysis: "And there's that rumor about the transgender person. You can see people talking about it on Tianya. That's even more outrageous; it's obviously made up. If Liu Yifei was a man who transitioned, then the doctor who performed her surgery deserves a Nobel Prize."

Anxi sent a long string of ellipses: "...There's such a rumor?"

Su Yu: "Yeah, I just saw it. It says something like 'Liu Yifei is a boy who transitioned from male to female.' Don't you think these people are out of their minds?"

Anxi: "Anyone actually believe that?"

Su Yu: "There will always be people who believe it. That's how it is online. No matter how outrageous your story is, there will always be people who take it seriously. Let me tell you, this rumor about a transgender person will only get more and more outrageous in the future. You, as a die-hard fan, should be prepared."

Anxi was silent for a moment, then asked a question that Su Yu hadn't expected: "Su Yu, why are so many people suddenly criticizing her? It's never been like this before."

Su Yu raised an eyebrow and typed, "Why are you acting like a manager when you're just a fan? Asking such detailed questions?"

Anxi: "I'm just curious. Why don't you analyze it for me? Didn't you say you've seen through so much? Let me see what you're capable of."

Su Yu's competitive spirit was aroused by the words "Let me see your skills," and he decided to show off his abilities.

"Okay, then I'll analyze it for you."