Chapter 23：Synthetic Photos (1)

In just two short days, Qiuling Yao already felt completely exhausted.

On the first day, the stock market of Qi's Corporation was once again affected, and some shareholders and investors came to her studio to make trouble. The entrance was blocked, and the walls were covered with big red words, demanding that she immediately leave the city of A and give Qi's Corporation peace.

Qiuling Yao was worried about the safety of her employees, so she had no choice but to dismiss them and close the studio.

On the second day, Qiuling Yao's car was vandalized. Whenever she went out, she was treated like a pariah, with people calling for her punishment everywhere.

The television and newspapers were filled with negative reports about her, all aimed at driving her out of the city of A.

Although she knew that all these things were instigated by Lu Meizhen and Qi Yushan, she was powerless to do anything about it.

Initially, Qiuling Yao thought about leaving with Ball Ball temporarily to avoid the situation. However, she quickly dismissed the idea. Lu Meizhen and her daughter's ultimate goal was not to send her to France but to drive her out of the city of A. If she left on her own, it would play right into their hands.

She hadn't thought of a specific plan yet when Lu Meizhen and Qi Yushan came knocking on her door.

The mother and daughter duo appeared with their usual pretense of "nobility" and showed complete disdain for her.

Qiuling Yao didn't want to let them in, but she also didn't want to become the subject of gossip among her neighbors, so she reluctantly opened the door.

Once inside, Lu Meizhen's face immediately turned sour. She glanced around Qiuling Yao's house and said sharply, "You have a big villa but choose to live in this small place. People who don't know might think I, the stepmother, am mistreating you."

"Isn't that the case?" Qiuling Yao retorted coldly, immediately shutting Lu Meizhen up. There were only the three of them in the room, so why bother pretending?

"I wonder how long you can be so arrogant," Lu Meizhen said cheerfully, feeling triumphant about Qiuling Yao's impending downfall.

"Mom, don't talk to Sister like that," Qi Yushan intervened with a friendly smile.

Anyone who heard Qi Yushan's words would think she and Lu Meizhen were not cut from the same cloth. This was precisely where her cunning lay.

Initially, Qiuling Yao was indeed deceived by Qi Yushan's ploy, but after witnessing it multiple times, she became accustomed to it.

"Sister, Mom is harsh with her words but soft-hearted inside. She actually cares about you a lot," Qi Yushan smiled and said again.

"Yeah, what else?" Qiuling Yao yawned, showing impatience.

Qi Yushan smiled and placed a brown paper bag in front of Qiuling Yao. "Sister, this is a gift from me to you. Take a look and see if you like it."

"What's there to like about my own 'erotic photos'? If you like them, take them as a memento," Qiuling Yao said without even looking, knowing exactly what was in the brown paper bag.

With computer technology so advanced nowadays, any kind of photo could be created. Qiuling Yao was indeed angry the first time she saw the photos Qi Yushan had produced. She slapped Qi Yushan in anger, and the scene was captured by a reporter and made headlines. It was only two days later that she realized it was all part of Qi Yushan's carefully orchestrated scheme to cement her reputation as a villainess.

After witnessing such staged performances multiple times, she became numb to them. It was just baffling that despite how fake everything was, people always believed it without questioning its authenticity.