After the Scheming Girl Joined a Dating Show - Chapter 9

Su Qin has a very disciplined posture, her back always held perfectly straight. She has many “posture fans”; that blend of integrity and elegance is truly unique in the entertainment industry.

At this moment, her back stiffened even straighter. She didn’t move for a long time, her face remaining as expressionless as ever.

However, her ears were gradually being dyed red.

Xia Mozhu realized she had blurted out something incredible again. Not knowing what to do with her hands and feet, she quickly added: “Ah, I mean, just based on your face—no, even if you don’t look at your face, just your eyes, your nose, uh… just looking at your hands, it’s so beautiful it makes people lose their sense of direction.”

Su Qin’s throat moved slightly. She flipped a page in her book as if she hadn’t heard Xia Mozhu at all.

“I… oh, dear!” Xia Mozhu felt the more she tried to fix it, the weirder it became. She simply gave up. “Anyway, if there’s ever an annual ‘Top 10 Most Seductive’ poll, I’m definitely casting all my votes for you.”

Su Qin suddenly snapped the book shut with a loud clack and stood up. “Let’s go downstairs.”

Xia Mozhu followed behind looking dejected and full of regret. Will Su Qin’s impression of me turn into some sort of weirdo creep who speaks in riddles?! What on earth is this broken mouth of mine saying at such a critical moment!

Downstairs in the living room, An Nuo was the first to see them come down. She said with concern, “Little sister Xia, are you alright?”

Xia Mozhu looked up, smiled, and said, “I’m fine, I just got a bit dizzy earlier.”

In this line of work, because long-term caloric intake is lower than that of the average person, many people suffer from low blood sugar. The others didn’t make much of a fuss.

Song Yanran said in a whining tone, “You guys are finally down. With no one around, I was nearly bored to death.”

An Nuo, who had been sitting right next to her: “…” Is there any point in insulting people so indirectly?

Xia Mozhu looked toward the door and asked, “Aren’t Qi Tian and the others coming over?” She smiled jokingly. “If no one falls in love in a dating show, how am I supposed to watch the drama?”

Song Yanran said, “Ji Ming sent me a message saying they’ll be over in a bit. They seemed to have gone out to buy some things.”

Xia Mozhu nodded.

Su Qin glanced at her and suddenly asked, “Is staying with me very boring?”

“Huh?” Xia Mozhu was stunned by the question. She had no idea why Su Qin would ask that so out of the blue.

Su Qin: “Never mind.” But her face was clearly showing a bit of displeasure.

Xia Mozhu immediately began to recall where she might have offended Su Qin. Was it because she shouldn’t have called her “seductive”? Since her debut, the media usually described Su Qin as “pure,” “ethereal,” or “aloof.” Could she think “seductive” was a negative word?

Xia Mozhu scooted closer to Su Qin and secretly tugged at her sleeve, saying, “I was just talking nonsense earlier. You aren’t seductive at all. Just treat it as the rambling of a child.”

Su Qin’s expression didn’t improve; instead, it darkened further, becoming blacker than the soot at the bottom of a stove.

Xia Mozhu pursed her lips and obediently shut up. Or, perhaps, there was a possibility that Su Qin simply didn’t like her talking so much.

Thinking of this, she hung her head dejectedly and let out a long sigh, her boneless body slumping onto the empty spot on the other side of the sofa. Her arms happened to touch Song Yanran on that end.

Song Yanran patted Xia Mozhu’s head and asked, “Are you feeling unwell again?”

Xia Mozhu sat up abruptly. “No, I just have a sudden case of ‘lazy-itis.'”

The moment she remembered her monk-like manager’s repeated warnings not to slouch on the show, her “lazy-itis” was cured instantly.

Just then, several male guests entered carrying bags of all sizes, and the living room became lively.

“Bamboo sister, look what I brought for you!” Qi Tian had already designated Xia Mozhu as his fellow comrade in the Su Qin fan club. If he had anything good, she was the first person he thought of.

“What is it?” Xia Mozhu asked.

Qi Tian: “Ta-da! Wang Zai Xiao Xiao Su (Little Crispy Snacks)! Su-Su-Su!”

Xia Mozhu understood his terrible pun on Su Qin’s name. Her face was full of “I don’t know what to say” disdain, but finally, she clapped and said perfunctorily, “You actually knew I liked Xiao Xiao Su? That’s impressive!”

She felt that with Qi Tian’s IQ, it was unlikely he could be developed into an ally for sabotaging Su Qin’s romance.

While giving Xia Mozhu the snacks, Qi Tian leaned in and said mysteriously, “Sister Qin has been looking at me this whole time. Could she be charmed by how cute I am? Do you think I still have a chance?”

Xia Mozhu patted Qi Tian’s shoulder and encouraged him: “I think you have a huge chance. Whatever you do, don’t let the competitors get an opening.”

Qi Tian’s eyes welled up with tears. “Thank you for the encouragement! I’ll work hard!”

Xia Mozhu nodded: “Go for it.”

Su Qin got up to head upstairs but was stopped by a staff member.

The staff member looked at Su Qin with eyes full of anticipation and asked tentatively: “Teacher Su, someone suggested playing Truth or Dare. Could you stay downstairs a little longer so we can record a few more shots?”

“Truth or Dare?” While Su Qin was thinking, her brow arched slightly. The staff member was instantly struck in the heart by that small expression, their health bar dropping rapidly. Looking at her from this distance, her face was 360 degrees without a single bad angle. Even while filming, all they wanted to do was worship her and let her do whatever she wanted.

Su Qin stood face-to-face with the staff member for a moment, finished her deliberation, and said, “Alright, let’s record it.”

“Great.” The staff member’s heart was beating so fast they had lost their wits. After getting Su Qin’s affirmative answer, they returned to their post like a marionette.

Everyone sat around the dining table—eight people, sitting in pairs facing each other. Su Qin sat directly opposite Xia Mozhu.

Su Qin and Liang Shu were the type of people who almost never posted on social media. Usually, you could only see them on film sets or at public events. The media had never been able to dig up any scandals regarding them.

If two such people could reveal some personal preferences during a game, the view count for this episode would definitely be very high.

“We’ll spin the bottle. One person spins at a time. Whoever the bottle points to must unconditionally answer a question or choose a punishment,” the talkative Qi Tian naturally took on the role of host. “Then… let’s start with Sister Qin.”

Su Qin reached out efficiently. As she applied force with her fingers, the joints of her wrist moved, and two thin blue veins bulged on the back of her hand. Her fingers were long and powerful; the heavy glass bottle spun many times before coming to a stop.

The mouth of the bottle pointed straight at Xia Mozhu.

“Ooh! Little Bamboo hit the first grand prize!” Song Yanran cheered. “Truth or Dare?”

Xia Mozhu: “Truth.”

Song Yanran smiled expectantly. “Teacher Su, what question do you want to ask little sister Bamboo?”

Su Qin: “No questions.”

“…”

Seeing that the scene was about to turn cold, the loyal follower Qi Tian immediately spoke up: “I have a question! Let me ask!”

He cleared his throat and looked at Xia Mozhu. “What is your ideal type?” In a dating show, naturally, only romance-related questions were worth watching.

The question wasn’t explosive, but it wasn’t easy to answer either. If some fan group projected a celebrity onto the answer, Xia Mozhu would inevitably be flamed by mindless haters for “clout-chasing.”

Xia Mozhu thought for a bit and said, “Someone in the same industry, so we have more common topics.”

“That’s it?” Qi Tian was clearly unsatisfied with the answer. “At least describe your favorite look.”

Xia Mozhu scratched the corner of her mouth and continued, “Then… someone who looks a bit seductive. Mmh… white skin, long legs, and I like people with nice hands.”

She might as well have said nothing. Most stars who made it to the front ranks of the entertainment industry possessed those qualities.

“Alright, alright, I’ll let you off the hook.”

“Next, Teacher Liang, you spin.”

The next few people who were spun all chose Truth, but since it was only the second day of filming, no one was particularly close. No one dared to ask anything too excessive, so most questions passed rather blandly.

Until Xia Mozhu spun the bottle and it pointed to Su Qin.

An Nuo, who hadn’t spoken much, smiled and said, “Teacher Su and little sister Xia really have fate. You both spun the bottle toward each other.”

Song Yanran rolled her eyes. “Are you afraid people will think you’re mute if you don’t speak?”

An Nuo ignored her and asked, “Teacher Su, Truth or Dare?”

Su Qin looked at Xia Mozhu: “You choose for me.”

Xia Mozhu, the one who was supposed to ask, was caught in a bind. After stalling for a long time, she said, “Then Truth it is.” Who among them would dare make Su Qin do something out of line for a Dare?

“So, what do you want to know about Teacher Su?” An Nuo looked very curious.

Xia Mozhu thought and thought, really not knowing what to ask. Just then, she saw Qi Tian winking at her. Taking the hint, she spoke: “Then… I’ll ask, would Teacher Su accept a pursuit from someone younger than her?”

Qi Tian gave her a thumbs-up.

Su Qin was famous for never answering relationship questions in interviews. Although everyone present was curious, no one held much hope that she would actually answer.

Sure enough, Su Qin remained silent after Xia Mozhu asked the question.

Xia Mozhu spoke tentatively: “If Teacher Su doesn’t want to answer—”

“Age is not important,” Su Qin said. That served as her answer, and everyone present was shocked.

Age is not important—did that mean she would consider it?

Xia Mozhu noted the answer and glanced at Qi Tian, reaching a new conclusion: Brother’s love rivals +1.

Next was Su Qin’s turn. Uncannily, it pointed to Xia Mozhu again.

Su Qin: “Why were you curious about that question just now?”

Without waiting for the others to cue the process or giving Xia Mozhu a choice, she asked a Truth question directly.

Xia Mozhu went “Uh…” for a long time before saying: “It’s because I have a friend who really likes you, and I wanted to see if he still has a chance.”

She didn’t dare look Su Qin in the eyes, but even with her head down, she could feel Su Qin’s gaze lingering on her. Every second was agonizing.

“My question is finished.” Su Qin finally looked away, allowing the game to continue.

Xia Mozhu patted her chest. Her hair had almost stood on end just now. She shouldn’t have been curious about such questions.

She stole a glance at Su Qin and found the other looking back at her. Frightened, she immediately shifted her gaze.

Everyone present was an expert at playing “Tai Chi” with the media, and they were very good at deflecting relationship questions. Seeing that they wouldn’t get anything more even after a few more rounds, the crew ended the recording for this segment.

At least they had dug out the answer that Su Qin could accept someone younger—that would be a great hook for the teaser trailer.

In the evening, Xia Mozhu returned to her room. Although her bones felt like they were falling apart, she had to complete the task her manager assigned: a live stream with her fans.

Of course, she enjoyed chatting with her fans too.

Seeing someone in the comments ask how she was getting along with the others on the show, Xia Mozhu said to the screen: “Sister Yanran, Sister An Nuo, and… the others are all very nice to me.”

Just then, a voice came from off-screen: “Am I that bad to you?”

So I can only be classified as ‘the others’.

The speed of the fans’ comments suddenly accelerated. A comment asked: Was that voice just now Su Qin?!