Chapter 93.1: Clarifying the Styling Plagiarism Incident
The system, which had just gone online only to immediately catch wind of the drama: […]
Sincerity really is the ultimate trump card!
It could already picture Duan Mingfei jumping up and down in anger after seeing Shen Xiu’s reply.
Duan Mingfei must think Shen Xiu is mocking him, right? If the system didn’t already understand how Shen Xiu’s brain works, even it would think Shen Xiu was throwing direct, face-to-face shade at Duan Mingfei in public.
Little did he know, Shen Xiu genuinely just thought Duan Mingfei’s actions and comments were completely absurd.
On Weibo.
Upon seeing Shen Xiu’s repost and comment, Shen fans were both shocked and thrilled—they finally felt vindicated.
Even the bystander netizens weren’t fools. If a common everyday outfit could be labeled as “plagiarized,” that was way out of line.
Unfortunately, Duan’s fans had clearly lost it and weren’t listening to reason.
Veteran gossip netizens had seen plenty of celebrities hiding behind their fans, using them like weapons while staying out of the spotlight themselves. It was rare to see a celebrity charge straight into the front lines of the drama, refusing to coddle anyone and facing the issue head-on.
Especially with Duan Mingfei’s passive-aggressive posts manipulating fans, treating them like ammunition and aiming Shen Xiu as the target.
In contrast, Shen Xiu was brutally straightforward, standing side by side with his fans and facing everything head-on—a stark contrast.
As a result, the comments under Shen Xiu’s repost were either laughing out loud or joining him in roasting Duan Mingfei.
— LMAO, y’all. This is epic. The simplest words, the most satisfying takedown. Peak-level sarcasm. Demon King Xiu is too spicy! Cult of Xiu forever!
— He just so happened to start a shady livestream the moment Xiu-baby announced his endorsement? That level of scheming is too nasty. Who would’ve thought a common outfit could now be labeled as plagiarized? So you can wear it but others can’t? Are you a puppy marking your territory? ROFL—what’s next, applying for a national patent?
— What Xiu-baby really meant was definitely something like: “This kind of overdone, dime-a-dozen outfit is being accused of plagiarism? Duan Mingfei’s brain has a kind of… defective beauty—aka he’s out of his mind.” But Xiu-baby is naturally indifferent. He couldn’t even be bothered to write a long response to refute DMF because DMF simply isn’t worth it! That simple ‘Are you okay?’ may look casual, but every word hits home. It perfectly expresses how little Xiu-baby thinks of DMF’s behavior—pure disdain! Maximum sarcasm! Xiu-baby is so cool! He said exactly what I wanted to say to DMF!
— Damn, sister upstairs must have a PhD in Xiuology! That’s gotta be the truth. Xiu-baby is so thoughtful and considerate. With how warmhearted he is, I’m sure DMF must be deeply moved… though, just curious—did he not check in with his coworker LJS before trying to throw shade at our cold and ruthless Demon King Xiu?
— LJS: Once upon a ti… (angrily flips table) What “once upon”? Don’t remind me of the humiliation of being completely ignored and dismissed by Demon King Xiu. No consultations allowed!
After posting the timeline video, Duan Mingfei didn’t end the livestream—he kept it running to keep selling his sob story.
Seeing the comment feed full of people comforting him, Duan Mingfei was satisfied.
It didn’t matter who the stylist was—that wasn’t the point. He just wanted to see whether VG would still use a “tainted” and “controversial” artist.
The reason he did the photo shoot as school bully Jiang Ming from That Summer was to attract Kaiser’s attention and try to land a spot as the face of VG’s summer collection.
Now VG had announced their brand ambassador—not only was it not him, but it was Shen Xiu, wearing almost exactly the same outfit.
Shen Xiu had taken the endorsement he’d been aiming for—by wearing his style.
And that, Duan Mingfei just couldn’t swallow.
Whether or not Shen Xiu had copied him, the fact was that Shen Xiu’s outfit was posted earlier. Matching clothes wasn’t a big deal—but the identical black ring on the index finger? That detail made Duan Mingfei refuse to believe that neither Shen Xiu nor the VG stylists and photographers in charge of his shoot had seen the set of photos he had previously released.
But Duan Mingfei’s satisfaction didn’t last long—he suddenly saw the livestream chat being flooded with the same line, repeated over and over:
[Are you okay?]
[Are you okay?]
[Are you okay?]
Duan Mingfei: “?”
What the hell was that supposed to mean?
Had something happened while he was streaming that he didn’t know about?
His assistant, standing silently across from him (since the livestream was still running), didn’t dare speak out loud. Instead, he wrote something on a piece of cardboard and held it up for Duan Mingfei to see.
Xiao Gong: Brother Ming, can you pause the livestream for a moment? Shen Xiu just reposted your Weibo. You’d better check it out first.
Shen Xiu reposted his Weibo?
The moment he heard that, Duan Mingfei perked right up. He was eager to see Shen Xiu try to defend himself like a stubborn dead duck with its beak clamped shut.
“Sorry, everyone—tonight’s been a bit overwhelming. I’m feeling a little shaken, so I’ll end the stream here. See you next time. Good night, my loves.”
Even as he ended the livestream, Duan Mingfei made sure to squeeze in one last pitiful-sounding line. His voice weak and trembling, he closed the stream.
The moment the livestream ended, his frail act disappeared entirely. He leaned back in his chair and snapped at his assistant:
“Give me the tablet.”
“…Okay.”
As he handed the tablet over, Xiao Gong secretly wished him luck: Hope Duan Mingfei can stay that calm after reading Shen Xiu’s repost… and Xiu Cult forever…
Wait—why was he acting like a Xiuologist again?!
Three seconds after Duan Mingfei got the tablet in his hands, he finally understood what all those “Are you okay?” spam messages in the chat had meant.
Duan Mingfei: ??!!
This was sarcasm, right?! Shen Xiu had to be mocking him!
Staring at Shen Xiu’s Weibo profile, Duan Mingfei was fuming—practically breathing fire. His hand gripping the tablet was trembling with rage, and his face had turned the color of raw liver.
His assistant watched him shaking all over, looking like he might actually faint from sheer fury at any second. Just as he was hesitating over whether to call an ambulance, a furious roar nearly pierced his eardrums:
“How dare he!”
‘He obviously stole my look—how could he have the nerve to mock me to my face?! Just because he’s backed by capital, he thinks he can do whatever he wants?’
Duan Mingfei’s hands were trembling so badly he could barely type. His heart was pounding furiously, and his head was spinning.
Assistant: “…”
Well, he’s still talking, so I guess he’s not literally dying of rage yet.
Xiao Gong silently switched back from the emergency call screen to the Weibo interface. He had no idea what Duan Mingfei was typing—and didn’t dare ask.
@DuanMingfei: Originally, I didn’t know anything and didn’t want to say anything. But this has gone too far—you’re just bullying me now. I can’t disappoint my fans, so I have to stand up. Shen Xiu, if you’ve got the guts to mock me and change the subject, then how about explaining how exactly you copied this outfit during your shoot? Dare to answer?
//@ShenXiu: [Original post content]
— That’s right! Go, Brother Ming!
— Okay, let’s be real. This outfit is what I wore back in middle school when I was pretending to be a wannabe badass. It’s exactly the same as yours. If anything, I looked more like it than Shen Xiu did. What now, did I plagiarize your look seven years ago? Don’t be ridiculous.
([Attached photo])
— Got the nerve to copy but not the guts to explain?
— Can the fake “neutral” bystanders stop muddying the waters? You think you can compare yourself to our Brother Ming? Who even saw what you were wearing seven years ago? Brother Ming’s photo has tens of millions of views—you think yours even comes close?
Just as Duan Mingfei, in a fit of rage, hit “post” on his angry Weibo rant—
Shi Buwen finished editing the surveillance footage pulled from both Professor Jiang’s house and the training camp onto his laptop.
When it came to making Duan Mingfei eat dirt, no one was happier or faster than Shi Buwen. He edited that video at lightning speed.
Since it wasn’t convenient to post it from his own account, Shi Buwen sent the finished clip to the assistant director, instructing them to post it from the official account of Youth Unstoppable and tag Shen Xiu in it.
While the assistant director was editing the post and attaching the video, Shen Xiu saw a notification—he’d been tagged by Duan Mingfei.
After spending about three seconds reading Duan Mingfei’s post, Shen Xiu: “?”
When had he ever mocked anyone? He had simply asked a sincere question! And why on earth would he be afraid to respond?
Shen Xiu looked genuinely confused—he didn’t understand Duan Mingfei’s thought process at all.
After reviewing the comment again, he could only conclude that: maybe Duan Mingfei really was mentally unwell.
Shen Xiu hadn’t even had time to properly dry his hair—he’d just roughly rubbed it with a white towel. Still damp, he didn’t dare sit on the bed. Instead, he made his way to a chair by the floor-to-ceiling windows.
Sitting down, he cradled his phone and began to type.
When he had gone to shower earlier, he had absentmindedly turned off the bedroom lights. Now, the only illumination came from the silver moonlight streaming through the window, outlining the furniture in pale contours.
As he typed, the light from the screen reflected on Shen Xiu’s face, highlighting the focused, serious look in his eyes.
@ShenXiu: Speaking honestly: Regardless of who wears it, this outfit is extremely basic and common. It’s not plagiarism. If we’re going to get technical—I wore it first.
//@DuanMingfei: [Original post content]
— As expected, when it comes to calmly delivering maximum damage with the lightest, most indifferent words, no one does it like our cold-blooded Demon King Xiu!
— Demon King Xiu: Let’s be honest—you’re just sick.
— Let’s give a round of applause to Duan Mingfei for achieving a double KO!
— As expected of our Shen Xiu—he never spares anyone. Poison-tongued Xiu is back online! Honestly, the outfits were practically identical, but why does DMF look like the budget version, while Xiu-baby is clearly the premium one? And he still dares to ride Xiu-baby’s coattails? What a joke.
— Sister, you’re really brave saying that—don’t you fear for your life? Be careful or Duan Mingfei might crawl through the internet cables to get you in the middle of the night.
— I fear nothing! If he comes, I’ll greet him with Xiu-baby’s three holy words: “Are you okay?”
— Duan Mingfei (coughs up three liters of blood): Shr-shrimp-hearted! You cruel people have no heart!
Right after Shen Xiu clapped back at Duan Mingfei’s tag, he noticed a notification from the official account of Youth Unstoppable. He clicked it—and there it was: the timeline verification video.
Shen Xiu: “!”
Seeing that Weibo post made Shen Xiu’s heart skip a beat.
He had already left the show and didn’t want to inconvenience the crew again. He had been planning to visit the teacher’s house the next day to retrieve the surveillance footage to clear his name.
He hadn’t expected the production team had been silently keeping tabs on the situation—and stepped in to help him without being asked.
The same could be said of the fans and netizens.
Everyone was just so good to him.
@ShenXiu: Thank you.
//@YouthUnstoppableOfficial: If this kind of common outfit can be accused of plagiarism, we’re speechless. When we release this timeline video—how exactly will you respond, sir?
Not even three seconds after shutting down Duan Mingfei, Shen Xiu reposted the official clarification video from Youth Unstoppable.
