Trending Again – Chapter 11
by Little PandaYou Can Hit Me, But You Can’t Hit My Wife
Hearing this, Zhang Biliang couldn’t hold back. He lunged forward, ready to tear that green tea1‘s mouth apart. If Shen Zhiyi hadn’t grabbed him, he would have succeeded.
“Let go! Let me go teach that green tea a lesson!” Zhang Biliang roared.
“Only an impulsive idiot like you would rush in. Do you want to get Si Meng targeted online?” Shen Zhiyi, stung by the shouting, dropped his usual genteel tone.
“What do you mean?” Zhang Biliang was baffled. How was he hurting Si Meng?
“This is the internet age. The production team thrives on conflict. Who do you think the brain-dead fans will believe? A righteous victim, or someone lunging at people like a wild animal?” Shen Zhiyi genuinely wondered how this man’s brain was wired. How could he not understand something so simple?
“So we just sit here and do nothing?”
“You think everyone’s as stupid as you?”
“You…”
“Relax. They’ll handle it themselves.”
Meanwhile, at the center of the crowd, Bai Lu grew even more smug. Si Meng, oh Si Meng—you D-list nobody, what do you have to fight me with? Your fan count is probably in the single digits.
Si Meng hadn’t expected Bai Lu to be this provocative. It was just a variety show—did she really have to fight to the bitter end? But Si Meng had never been one to back down. Back in the day, her nickname in the entertainment industry as the queen of black material2 wasn’t for nothing. Her personal motto: If people don’t offend me, I won’t offend them; if they do, I’ll leave no bone intact.
Si Meng stepped forward to face Bai Lu head-on. At 1.7 meters, she stood a full head taller. Even with her height-increasing insoles, Bai Lu still had to look up at her. When Si Meng was serious, she dropped her usual slacker demeanor. Her grave expression carried the commanding pressure of someone accustomed to authority, making Bai Lu feel like nothing more than a buffoon.
Bai Lu was furious. She pointed at Si Meng’s nose, but before she could open her mouth—slap—Si Meng batted her hand away.
“Didn’t your mother ever teach you that pointing at people is rude?” Si Meng crossed her arms, radiating authority, giving the other woman no chance to get a word in.
“Are you upset about the awful food you made? Believe it or not, I could cook better with my feet.” Si Meng’s eyes showed a glint of contempt as she gave a slight nod. “Or do you think the audience is as blind as you are? You want to smear the production team as incompetent—do you really think I could cheat right under everyone’s noses?” Si Meng fired back with equal righteousness, as if “the light of justice” were stamped across her forehead in giant letters.
Since Bai Lu dared to sling mud at her, she didn’t mind heaping praise on her in return. Bring it on—let’s trade blows. She was a D-lister anyway. Who cared about losing fans? Laughable—she didn’t have any fans to lose.
On the road of life, barefoot fears not the shod3—past, present, or future.
Si Meng stared into Bai Lu’s guilty eyes and said with righteous authority, “If you’re not satisfied, we can compete again. I’ll give you a one-hand handicap.”
“You… who wants to compete with you? Even if you won the competition, you… you didn’t go find your own ingredients, so… so you still have to be punished.” Bai Lu stammered, genuinely afraid Si Meng would challenge her to a rematch.
Bai Lu turned to the Producer for help. Her uncle had invested a lot of money to get her onto this show—she couldn’t afford to embarrass herself!
The Producer shot her a meaningful look and stepped forward to defuse the situation, inwardly cursing Bai Lu for dragging him into this mess.
“The rules are the rules. For fairness, Si Meng wins this round. However, Si Meng must still accept the punishment. Does anyone have an objection?” the Producer said.
“No objection.”
“I have an objection.” Lin Hanyue shot the Producer a cold glance and stepped in front of Si Meng, shielding her slender frame behind her own. She frowned. “Si Meng and I are a team. If there’s a punishment, we take it together.”
“This…” The Producer was already breaking out in cold sweat. Punish the Movie Queen? He wouldn’t dare even with a hundred times the courage. In the distance, the Director was growing impatient, clearly dissatisfied with how he was handling things. He gritted his teeth and decided to just push through.
But Si Meng cut him off first. “This is genuinely my issue. I’ll accept the punishment on my own.” She turned back and gave Lin Hanyue a reassuring smile.
Lin Hanyue suddenly understood. She was both angry and moved. This fool—what was she trying to prove?
The Producer breathed a sigh of relief. Thank goodness Si Meng chose to take it alone—things would have gotten ugly otherwise.
But he didn’t dare go too hard on Si Meng either. She was, after all, a rising star of sorts, so he planned to just go through the motions. Bai Lu, however, had no intention of letting such a perfect opportunity slip. She sneered inwardly: the punishment draw was already rigged. Let’s see how Si Meng could possibly dodge it.
“In that case, let’s do the punishment draw.” The Producer wiped the sweat from his forehead, relieved that he’d had someone swap out the more dangerous punishment games beforehand.
Si Meng reached into the box and opened her palm. The slip of paper read: “Rubber Band Snap to Face.” The Producer’s expression stiffened. That was the most dangerous punishment of all.
“Maybe… draw again?” the Producer said weakly.
Si Meng reached into the box a second time. The second slip also read: “Rubber Band Snap to Face.”
“What, you’re not trying to weasel out of it, are you? Drawing and drawing…” Bai Lu smirked.
“Of course not. This one’s fine.” Si Meng’s expression didn’t change.
The Producer agonized over who should administer the punishment—either way, he risked offending both sides.
“I’ll do it, obviously. The men here can’t exactly do it, and Movie Queen Lin is on the same team, so naturally she should recuse herself.” Bai Lu spoke as she picked up the rubber band. She had specifically instructed them to use the most, most, most resilient rubber band available.
Bai Lu could barely contain her glee. “Ten times, right? I certainly won’t…” She had no intention of going easy.
Snap. The sharp sound pierced through the camera’s microphone. The audience flinched. That had to hurt!
A red mark appeared on Si Meng’s face, stark against her fair skin. Then, one after another, the snaps came with increasing force. Soon, another red welt appeared.
Footnotes
- 'Green tea' is Chinese internet slang for someone who appears innocent and sweet but is actually manipulative and calculating.
- Showbiz slang for someone notorious for scandals and controversies; literally 'gang boss of black material.'
- A Chinese idiom meaning those who have nothing to lose are not afraid of those who have something to lose.
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