After Being Hopeless at Singing and Dancing, I Exploded in Popularity Due to My Appetite - Chapter 64

On the way to the hospital, Lin Qianman finally had time to ask Tao Nian exactly how and where she was hurting.

Tao Nian had no idea where anything was. She held up her phone, lifted her shirt to expose her pale stomach, and pointed to her stomach, telling Lin Qianman: “It hurts right here.”

Lin Qianman: “…”

She gave up trying to communicate with Tao Nian and started asking Xiao Nan what Tao Nian had eaten today.

Upon learning that Tao Nian had just eaten a dozen ice creams in the afternoon, and then barbecue and fried chicken in the evening, Lin Qianman’s face turned green.

Before, she only knew Tao Nian ate a lot, but back then, her snacks were all given by herself, and Tao Nian couldn’t eat that much in a day. Who would’ve thought that as soon as she was on her own, she’d eat so much ice cream in one go?

Lin Qianman wasn’t unaware of what the person who bought Tao Nian the ice cream was thinking.

They were all working people, and perhaps they had seen other celebrities who dared not eat to maintain their weight but still wanted to, so they’d buy a lot and only take one bite from each. When she bought for Tao Nian, she probably thought the same thing. A very simple idea: buy a lot, and let Tao Nian take a bite of each to taste them.

But she didn’t expect Tao Nian to be such a sweet, simpleton and eat them all in one go.

She had a terrible headache and asked incredulously: “Didn’t you feel uncomfortable when you were eating?!”

Ever since Lin Qianman’s expression changed, Tao Nian was perceptive enough to stop whining about her stomach ache. Instead, she clutched her stomach, huddled to the side, endured the pain, and dared not speak.

Now, she was still being reprimanded by Lin Qianman.

Tao Nian braved it and whispered: “Just a little toothache.”

She made a tiny gesture with her finger.

Eating a dozen ice creams in one go, sweet and cold, her tooth had been chipped last month, and now that it had just recovered, she abused it like this. It would be strange if it didn’t hurt.

Lin Qianman closed her eyes, repeatedly reminding herself in her mind not to get angry, not to get angry. Tao Nian was just a young Taotie who had just reached adulthood. She had never eaten ice cream before, and now that she saw it, she wanted to eat it. It was normal for children to lack self-control, very normal.

But looking at Tao Nian’s pitiful appearance, she still said very sternly: “That’s probably gastroenteritis. You can’t eat so many cold things anymore.”

Tao Nian: “…But it’s hot now.”

The person who bought her the ice cream said exactly that: it’s hot, and eating ice cream makes summer complete.

Lin Qianman: “But it will give you a stomach ache. And you’ll need injections.”

“Injections?!”

Tao Nian’s voice trembled.

“Yes,”

Lin Qianman looked at Tao Nian’s pale face: “Didn’t you just say you wanted to throw up? What if you take medicine for gastroenteritis and throw it up? Of course you’ll need an injection. Maybe even an IV drip.”

Tao Nian: “What’s an IV drip?”

Lin Qianman scared her: “It’s when they poke a needle into your hand, and it stays there until all the medicine is injected. It’s super painful.”

Tao Nian’s eyes immediately reddened. Her emotions flared up, and combined with the bumpy car ride, she felt a bit nauseous again. But thinking of what Lin Qianman said—if she vomited, she’d have to get an IV drip—she could only suppress it, pretending nothing was wrong.

Lin Qianman looked at Tao Nian on the phone, wanting to pat her back to make her more comfortable, but they were in two different cities; she wasn’t by her side.

She could only tell Xiao Nan: “Tell the driver to drive steadily, Nian Nian is a bit dizzy.”

Tao Nian indeed had gastroenteritis, but she didn’t need an IV drip. She simply got some medicine and went back.

Around 1 AM in the middle of the night, after spending about forty minutes at the hospital, the unfortunate Taotie was photographed by a paparazzi.

It was in the hospital parking lot when they arrived.

The paparazzi crouched in the darkness, watching a taxi pull up, and then a person got out. It was late at night, and there was no one else around. When someone finally appeared, the paparazzi turned their head to look.

Then, they watched as this person got out of the car, bent down, and helped a woman draped in a black coat out of the car.

It was Tao Nian.

She had clearly rushed out of the hotel, wearing white disposable slippers on her feet, pink and white striped pajamas underneath, and her hair was a mess. She got out of the car, seemed unstable, swayed a bit, and then made a dry heaving motion.

Dry heaving?

Coming to the hospital in the middle of the night with a man?

This déjà vu.

The paparazzi immediately aimed their camera at Tao Nian.

Tao Nian bent over, clutching her chest for a moment, then slowly walked forward. For some reason, her figure looked a little hunched, and her hand was still pressed against her stomach.

The paparazzi was originally there because a celebrity had been injured during filming recently and was hospitalized there. Seeing that they were about to be discharged, he came to get first-hand gossip. Unexpectedly, he didn’t photograph the injured celebrity but instead captured Tao Nian?!

This was big news.

Tao Nian had just trended yesterday, and many people were paying attention to her right now. He had actually discovered such big news himself.

He was going to get rich now.

It was already almost 1 AM. He had been a bit sleepy before, but now looking at the photos he had taken, and thinking about his future, he couldn’t help but beam with joy; all drowsiness was gone. He waited another forty minutes until Tao Nian returned.

Tao Nian was still looking listless, her face pale as she pulled up her slightly falling coat, closely following the man into the nanny van.

—They had been in a hurry to get there, and Xiao Nan hadn’t gotten his driver’s license yet, and couldn’t wait for the driver to arrive, so they had to take a taxi first. While they were at the hospital, the driver had driven over.

The paparazzi was even more delighted, wanting to aggressively photograph the nanny van.

This was concrete proof!

He was really going to make it big. Tao Nian’s popularity was soaring right now, and as long as he put out a preview, Tao Nian’s side would definitely pay for these photos! Otherwise, Tao Nian’s future would be ruined! For such big news, he could surely ask for at least five hundred thousand yuan, right?

Tao Nian, unaware that she was being coveted for five hundred thousand yuan, got into the nanny van.

This was the vehicle the AD Girls’ Group always used.

The interior was spacious, meticulously decorated for the nine girls, warm and comfortable, with fluffy pillows. There was no alcohol smell from the hospital, nor the cheap air freshener smell of a taxi, only the scent of sunshine on the pillows.

Tao Nian felt a little more comfortable. She held her thermos cup and took her medicine.

She took a picture of herself making the best of a bad situation to show Lin Qianman: “It’s medicine! No IV drip! No injection!”

Even through text, Lin Qianman could sense Tao Nian’s exhilaration in that sentence.

She should have been relieved.

If she hadn’t just thought about whether Tao Nian, as a non-scientific entity, could get gastroenteritis.

But when Tao Nian was registering to see the doctor, and Lin Qianman, being a bit busy, hung up her call, Lin Qianman thought of a very important thing.

If a dog bites Tao Nian, would Tao Nian need a rabies vaccine?

If Tao Nian rubbed her eyes without washing her hands, would she get inflammation or infection?

So, if a Taotie eats ice cream and then barbecue, would it get a stomach ache? Would it be gastroenteritis?

She had never heard of a Taotie getting gastroenteritis before. Was it because Taoties truly couldn’t get it, or because no one was watching, so if they did, they could only endure it?

Lin Qianman felt that ever since Feng Jun enlightened her, she had suddenly become strangely curious.

She had probably transformed from a serene and tranquil human encyclopedia into a “why-why-why” machine hovering between the scientific and the non-scientific.

Anyway, despite so many puzzles, one thing was certain.

Tao Nian couldn’t keep eating like this. Otherwise, she might really become the first Taotie to suffer from stomach problems.

So Lin Qianman pretended to be nonchalant: “What kind of medicine is it?”

Tao Nian then picked up the medicine and showed it to Lin Qianman one by one.

They were all medicines for digestion and strengthening the spleen and stomach.

Lin Qianman nodded: “You must keep taking them.”

Then she asked: “Did the doctor say anything about dietary restrictions?”

He did.

The doctor clearly hadn’t imagined that a person, a normal teenager, could eat a dozen ice creams and then barbecue. He looked at Tao Nian with reproach, sternly telling her to strictly adhere to dietary restrictions. She couldn’t eat anything else for a few days, only a big pot of congee for two days, and at most, a small bowl of noodles.

Tao Nian’s mouth was so pouted it could hang an oil bottle.

Lin Qianman: “No choice, just do as the doctor says.”

Tao Nian originally thought Lin Qianman would tell her that eating a little less would be fine and she wouldn’t have to drink congee all day, or that she would secretly give her snacks and milky bread, just like when she lost her tooth last time.

She didn’t expect Lin Qianman to say that.

Tao Nian: “…”

Her previously somewhat improved complexion now visibly saddened again.

Lin Qianman was both annoyed and amused: “Let’s see if you dare to eat so much junk food again.”

Tao Nian definitely wouldn’t dare.

She had to eat congee for two whole days, and the medicine alone cost over a hundred yuan.

…Speaking of over a hundred, she suddenly remembered when she thought she was going to die and wondered if she was going to die, she might as well have bought the dress earlier.

Tao Nian felt that she had experienced life and death as a Taotie and should be detached from material possessions.

It’s just four hundred ninety-nine, buy the dress!

Lin Qianman waited for a while but received no reply from Tao Nian, so she sent a questioning “?”.

Tao Nian still didn’t reply. She had clicked into Taobao, found the dress.

She was just about to click “buy.” But looking at the price, her heart started to ache again…

The registration and medicine cost a total of one hundred and twenty yuan. The cost of four medicines could buy one dress.

It didn’t seem that expensive anymore.

In the end, even after returning to the hotel, she couldn’t bring herself to buy it.

Lin Qianman waited for about twenty minutes and then received a message: “The medicine cost 120, so expensive.”

Yes, the dress costing four times the medicine wasn’t expensive; it was that the medicine, which was enough to buy fifteen jianbing, was still too expensive.

Lin Qianman: “…You should get some rest quickly.”

Fortunately, there were no announcements the next day. Tao Nian went back, drank some hot water, and fell asleep again.

She slept until 9 AM the next morning.

When she opened her eyes, there was a large pot of pumpkin millet porridge.

Xiao Nan, the Qingnan Mountain god who had only been down the mountain for less than two months, had now perfectly integrated into modern society. He woke up at 7 AM this morning and went out to buy porridge for Tao Nian.

Tao Nian looked at the thick, bright yellow pot of porridge, her brows furrowed. She haggled with Xiao Nan: “I want to eat youtiao (fried dough sticks).”

Such good porridge, it would be a pity without youtiao.

Xiao Nan’s smile was gentle: “No.”

Tao Nian: “I want to eat it.”

Xiao Nan had always been unable to dissuade Tao Nian. He pulled out his trump card: “Go ask Elder Lin. If she says yes, then you can.”

Tao Nian: “You used to call her my master.”

When they were on the mountain, Xiao Nan was also like this. Every time she wanted to do something that wasn’t allowed, he would tell her to ask Elder Feng Jun, and only if Elder Feng Jun said yes, could she do it.

Now that they were down the mountain, it had become Lin Qianman.

Tao Nian looked at Xiao Nan.

Xiao Nan’s expression didn’t change: “You can call Elder Lin.”

No need to ask, Lin Qianman wouldn’t let her eat it.

So Xiao Nan was really detestable! How did he know whose words were effective?!

Tao Nian was very unhappy. She angrily ate three large bowls of pumpkin porridge. She didn’t feel full at all. She still had to drink hot water and take medicine, filling her stomach with water, making it uncomfortable to lie down.

Tao Nian curled up in her quilt, lying there uncomfortably despite feeling unwell.

She lay there until noon, then Xiao Nan called her up again to drink oatmeal and milk porridge.

Meanwhile, the paparazzi, who had only returned home at 3 AM, was now also awake.

He slept soundly until noon, then woke up, ate his meal, and lazily scrolled through the photos he had taken last night. He heavily watermarked the photos, ensuring nothing could be seen, then posted them on Weibo.

“Big scoop alert! Top female star allegedly pregnant before marriage, rushed to hospital late at night with male companion for examination.”

He couldn’t help but whistle. Now, everything was easy.

He just had to wait for Tao Nian’s side to contact him and pay for the photos.