Chapter 47
Under the astonished and fearful gazes of the others, Xie Mi strutted into the group with her head held high and chest puffed out, confidence radiating from every step. She bumped her shoulder against Shen Yanqing’s.
“How do I look? Am I pretty?”
“Too pretty. Stay away from me.”
Xie Mi flipped him the middle finger.
Shen Yanqing’s smile widened. “My bad, my bad.”
“Before today’s official journey begins, we have another new guest joining us!” Director Niu’s booming voice rang out. “Everyone, please turn your eyes to the right—”
Everyone looked in unison.
On the distant beach, a dazzling figure slowly walked toward them, accompanied by the resonant notes of a cello.
What a pretentious entrance.
Xie Mi suddenly remembered—the show was indeed supposed to add two more guests midway through filming. Just like many traditional dating shows, this one followed a 6+2 guest format.
If she guessed right, then the one appearing today was…
“Hello everyone, my name is Lai Bingxuan, daughter of the Lai Corporation. Rather than calling me ‘Teacher,’ I’d prefer you address me as Miss Lai.”
The girl’s chin was lifted high like a swan’s. Her delicate features, rosy lips, and sculpted nose were framed by a proud, confident smile. Every inch of her radiated the aura of a spoiled heiress.
She was the “vicious supporting actress” from the novel—the arrogant rich girl who constantly clashed with Xu Shuangrong.
And also, Xu Shuangrong’s high school classmate.
Sure enough, Xu Shuangrong’s face paled slightly. She subconsciously hid behind Xiao Jingxi.
Xiao Jingxi noticed her movement. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing.”
Xu Shuangrong raised her head, forcing a smile onto her pale face. “Maybe I didn’t rest well last night. I feel a bit unsteady.”
Xiao Jingxi paused, then said gently, “If you’re unsteady, you can lean on me. I don’t mind.”
After that mushroom-poisoning incident, when they stayed in the hospital for a couple days, he had seen the trending searches online—he had also seen the sorrowful look Xu Shuangrong showed in the garden after he left.
Though the internet called him a scumbag for it, he didn’t blame Xu Shuangrong.
On the contrary, he was unexpectedly touched to realize she actually felt so deeply for him—even though their CP was just for show…
That stirred some guilt in him. So, he decided he should take better care of Xu Shuangrong when he could.
“Thank you.” Xu Shuangrong’s face softened a little.
From the side, Xie Mi watched the whole thing with relish.
In the original novel, when Lai Bingxuan appeared, Xiao Jingxi and Xu Shuangrong’s relationship on the show was already rock solid. So naturally, Lai Bingxuan set her sights on Xiao Jingxi, immediately creating a love-triangle battlefield.
But now the plot had shifted. Xie Mi was curious to see how it would all play out.
Eating melons up close was always the most fun.
After everyone exchanged greetings, Lai Bingxuan joined the group. When she passed Xu Shuangrong, she gave her a provocative glare.
Xu Shuangrong ducked her head even lower.
[Why do I feel like these two have history?]
[What’s going on? Shuangshuang has never looked like this before. She’s always been the gentle, radiant little sun. What happened today?]
[This Lai-whatever doesn’t look easy to deal with. Don’t tell me she’s the type to bully people just because she’s rich.]
[First impression is terrible.]
Today’s schedule was a seven-person aquarium date. The guests rode a heart-shaped tourist bus to the local aquarium, then followed Director Niu on a guided tour.
They walked along a corridor surrounded by seawater. Through the ripples and splashes, schools of brilliantly colored tropical fish swam gracefully—beautiful and mysterious.
But Xie Mi wasn’t in the mood to admire. Her eyes were locked on the back of Shen Yanqing’s head, still thinking about that “Liu Liu” she’d heard last night. Was it a dream?
If it was real, it was far too bizarre.
How could someone from inside a book know things about her real life?
But if it was fake, why did it feel so vivid? Especially his voice—it had clearly whispered right in her ear…
Tsk. Drinking really messed things up.
“Hey, you over there. Staff, come help me.”
“Hey! I’m talking to you!”
Xie Mi’s arm was grabbed. She turned and met Lai Bingxuan’s impatient eyes. “Don’t you understand Mandarin?”
“Excuse me, but by ‘staff’… you mean me?” Xie Mi pointed at herself.
“Aren’t you a local? You look exactly like one of the temporary workers the production team hired. Come on, help me. These heels are killing me. No one said we’d be walking so much today…”
Listening to this arrogant young lady rant, Xie Mi felt her makeup skills had just been deeply insulted.
Seriously? Was her “tanned hot-girl” look really that hard to recognize?
Just as she was about to snap, Miss Heiress pulled a stack of bills out of her designer bag and tossed them over. “You heard me. Help me walk.”
Xie Mi darted forward in one step, supporting her arm. “This humble servant obeys, my lady!”
Walk a few steps and earn ten thousand? This wasn’t a bratty heiress—this was her God of Wealth!
From the front, Xu Shuangrong kept glancing back. At last, she seemed to gather her courage and stepped forward.
“Miss Lai, your attitude is too harsh.”
“Even if you’ve treated me poorly before… I could endure that. But you can’t treat others this way. Xie Mi is an independent person, not your slave!”
Her voice wasn’t too loud or too soft—just enough for everyone to hear.
Immediately, all eyes turned toward Lai Bingxuan with disapproval.
[Knew it. The new guest just had to stir up drama the moment she arrived.]
[So rude. I’m not even a Xie Mi fan and I can’t stand this.]
[Why bully Xie Mi? Does she think this place is her house?]
Xie Mi clicked her tongue.
As expected.
Lai Bingxuan and Xu Shuangrong had held a deep grudge since high school. Coming onto the show this time, Lai Bingxuan was here precisely to make life miserable for Xu Shuangrong.
In the original story, Xu Shuangrong eliminated her by deliberately sowing discord between Lai Bingxuan and the other guests, making her the public enemy.
Eventually, the wealthy and powerful guests united to bring down the Lai family, and Xu Shuangrong reaped the benefits as the fisherman.
Lai Bingxuan’s ending was tragic indeed.
Originally, Xie Mi hadn’t planned to interfere. She just wanted to watch the show unfold. But now—
Anyone who threatened her God of Wealth… must die!!
“I won’t allow you to say her attitude is bad!”
With the loyalty of a lapdog, Xie Mi declared righteously, “She gave me ten thousand yuan. What’s bad about that? Don’t even think about driving a wedge between us!”
She wasn’t about to be Xu Shuangrong’s pawn.
The moment Xie Mi said this, the live comments exploded with realization.
[Wait—people are mad about this? Ten thousand just to lend an arm? If it were me, I’d kneel and kowtow a few times too, or else I wouldn’t feel worthy of that money.]
[Lai Bingxuan may have princess syndrome, but she can afford it. The key is—she actually pays up!]
[This is mutual consent. How is it bullying? Some of you pretending to be Xie Mi fans should stop causing trouble. Real Xie Mi fans haven’t said a word.]
