Chapter 181
The Gathering of Good Friends was a famously healing, slow-paced variety show.
In past episodes, it was always just a few pairs of friends sitting together, chatting, playing little games, and happily wrapping things up.
The show prided itself on being genuine, never pulling gimmicks.
But this time, the production team broke tradition.
Having finally invited the recently trending pair, Xie Mi and Qiu Chengye—the so-called “crazy father and son”—the crew decided to “when in Rome, do as the Romans do” and pull a prank tailored to their personalities.
Since there had never been such a precedent before, Qiu Chengye didn’t suspect a thing, only urging impatiently:
“Make it quick!”
“Sorry, sorry. The production crew’s car is right behind us. We’ll just go grab some tools and fix it up right away.”
The PD smiled apologetically, talking with staff in the trailing van over the walkie-talkie while hurrying off with the driver.
Now only Xie Mi and Qiu Chengye remained in the car.
And the confused viewers quickly learned, through another camera feed, about the crew’s prank plan.
[Prank? Love it, I’m in.]
[Friend Gathering, you’ve changed—you never used to pull stunts.]
[Flashback to episode one of Love Detective, weren’t these two the ones who got hit with hidden cameras back then?]
[Hahahaha I remember! That waiter, that brat—hahahaha]
[Got it, this is a tribute to the classics.]
Inside the car, the atmosphere was dead silent. Qiu Chengye was pressed against the window, hardly daring to breathe.
He regretted not just following the PD out.
Being stuck with this time bomb Xie Mi—what if she suddenly flipped out and slapped him?
He’d seen the hot search that afternoon about her thrashing Xiao Jingxi.
His hand groped for the car door handle, ready to bolt—when Xie Mi suddenly spoke:
“Doesn’t seem like there’s a car behind us, right?”
Qiu Chengye flinched, then looked over in confusion. “What?”
“Since we turned onto this road, did you see any car following us?”
Her window was fully down, her elbow resting lazily on the sill as she peered back.
Qiu Chengye hesitantly rolled down his own window to look.
…Nothing.
Pitch-black emptiness. No car in sight.
“If it’s far enough that we can’t see it with the naked eye, why not just wait for them to catch up instead of walking back? Wouldn’t that be faster?” Xie Mi’s voice was still lazy.
Qiu Chengye frowned.
“You mean… they’re messing with me?”
Before Xie Mi could reply, a rustling came from the front of the car.
Someone who had been fiddling under the popped hood now closed it, walked over, and slid into the driver’s seat.
“Sorry to keep you waiting.”
Seeing it was the driver, Qiu Chengye’s tense nerves eased. He snapped, “What took you so long? I almost thought you were messing with me.”
“My apologies.” The driver ducked his head, then started the car.
The van got back on the road.
Qiu Chengye kept grumbling, while the driver took the scolding in silence.
Xie Mi stared into the rearview mirror for a while, then suddenly said:
“Hey, pull over ahead. I need to make a call. President Zhang from my company needs me—urgent.”
The driver hesitated, then stopped.
Xie Mi got out and walked off.
The moment she left, Qiu Chengye—who’d been seething but too afraid to voice it—finally dared to vent.
“Women are such a hassle. No sense of time at all. Doesn’t she know she’s wasting everyone’s time? Seriously—”
He was still muttering when his phone buzzed.
A message from Xie Mi.
[Madwoman]: [Forwarded a news article]
Frowning, he opened it.
It was a report about a serial killer in the area, warning residents to be careful. Below was the killer’s photo.
“Psycho,” Qiu Chengye muttered, dismissing it. He was about to swipe it away when another message popped up.
[Madwoman]: Didn’t you notice the PD never got back in?
Qiu Chengye: “?”
What was she trying to pull?
Assuming it was just her usual crazy talk, he ignored it—until the next message made cold sweat run down his back.
[Madwoman]: Look in the rearview mirror.
Qiu Chengye: “……?”
Something felt very wrong now. Hesitant, he slowly raised his head.
And locked eyes with a pair of sinister, gleaming eyes in the mirror.
The driver had been watching him the whole time. And that scar at the corner of his eye was identical to the one in the news photo.
“AAAAHHHHHH—!!”
A piercing scream split the air.
The next second, Qiu Chengye scrambled out of the van, tripped, fell, but didn’t dare pause for a breath—rolling, crawling, running for his life.
Then he spotted a familiar figure ahead, like grasping at a lifeline.
“Xie Mi! Xie Mi! Hurry, save me—!”
Clutching the arm of “Xie Mi,” he suddenly realized something felt wrong.
Yanking it around, he found himself staring into the twisted face of a scarecrow.
“AAAAHHHHHH—!!”
The scream cut short. Qiu Chengye’s eyes rolled back, and he fainted dead away.
From the shadows, the PD and cameraman rushed out.
“Prank plan, total success! We didn’t expect Xie Mi to catch on so fast, but she didn’t blow our cover—she even helped prank Qiu Chengye instead. Her variety instincts are amazing.”
Though they hadn’t tricked Xie Mi, Qiu Chengye’s reaction was gold. The PD was satisfied.
Smiling, she patted the “Xie Mi” standing silently with their back to her.
“Teacher Xie, why aren’t you saying anything? Too excited to react… ah!!!”
The scarecrow mask turned around—another twisted face.
The PD’s eyes rolled back, and she fainted too.
Only then did the real Xie Mi stroll out from behind a tree, flashing a V sign at the camera.
“Prank plan, total success.”
[You thought Teacher Xie was playing at level two, but she’s already in the stratosphere.]
[Old Xie used to counter-prank the other guests. Now she’s pranking the crew too.]
[Peak variety gold!!]
[Scared me half to death, then had me laughing to death.]
[Knew it, Consort Xie always brings surprises.]
[Pranks aren’t her comfort zone—they’re her domain.]
[Friend Gathering: First time pulling a prank, and we hit a brick wall. I really have to thank her.]
#XieMiPranksTheCrew
#XieMiTheQueenOfPranks#
