Everyone Is Spending Money to Push Me Into A Center-Position Debut - Chapter 5

“Chi Rui… did you really leave the industry? Is it impossible for you to make a comeback in the future? Actually, I still really want to see you on screen. Those anti-fans who scold you for lacking skill are just being sour. Don’t take it to heart. Every time I listen to you sing, I feel so happy! Please don’t give up, okay…”

Chi Rui thought for a moment. Her participating in a talent show was not exactly something shameful anyway, so she simply told You Xiaotao.

“Ah! Really? You’re going to participate in National Girls!”

“Shh, that was a little loud.” Chi Rui made a gesture for silence and winked at her.

You Xiaotao immediately covered her mouth. Chi Rui was speaking to her in such a soft voice, as if the two of them were sharing some little secret. And looking at her face up close, it was far too delicate! Oh my god, was she dreaming? She felt as if she was about to faint in the next second!

“I’ll definitely work hard to vote for you!”

Chi Rui had originally thought this was just a small interlude. But that night, while she was showering, the system that came online intermittently suddenly popped up again.

[Detected that target subject You Xiaotao’s money-spending index has increased by 5,236. Congratulations! Host, please keep up the good work!]

“What did you say?” Chi Rui nearly choked on the shower water.

Hadn’t she specifically told that girl in the afternoon not to spend money recklessly? How had another five thousand-something yuan been spent on her for no reason?

At that moment, You Xiaotao, who had just placed an order for fifty physical albums: Spending money makes people happy! Ahhhhhhh! A Chi Rui this good—I absolutely won’t leave the fandom! Once the client pays the final balance, I can spend money on another hundred albums!

Of course, Chi Rui did not know that her words that afternoon had had the opposite effect on You Xiaotao. She quickly called the system and told it to list a detailed profile of You Xiaotao.

Chi Rui: “Remember to remove things like measurements.”

System: “Received!”

Because You Xiaotao was an A-rank target, the related information the system could list was extremely detailed.

Just by browsing through those densely packed words, Chi Rui could imagine the kind of completely unreserved love this girl had for the original owner. Buying albums and fighting for concert tickets were only normal operations. Charting, boosting data, controlling comments under Weibo plaza posts, and fighting anti-fans took up most of You Xiaotao’s rest time.

Perhaps it was because Chi Rui was a little older, but she did not quite understand this passion that came from nowhere. Her biggest confusion was this—was the current her worth You Xiaotao doing all this for?

Chi Rui wanted to understand You Xiaotao’s thoughts, so she read her profile in greater and greater detail. As she continued reading, Chi Rui suddenly recalled her own past experience chasing a star—although it had been a completely different way of chasing a star compared to You Xiaotao.

Volunteers would occasionally come to the welfare home. Most of them were university students. They would help clean and cook, and some who were more capable would also donate supplies to the welfare home. Chi Rui had long grown used to those things. But on a certain weekend, the director suddenly gathered all the children and had them change into identical, neat uniforms. On the cafeteria menu, there were also chicken drumsticks and fish soup that were rarely seen even once in several months. There were even people busy hanging a welcome banner at the entrance—under normal circumstances, that was a scene that only appeared during the New Year.

The young Chi Rui grew curious about the volunteer coming that day. During the lunch break, she secretly ran out of the cafeteria and hid in the pile of grass near the entrance to observe.

She heard that the person who came that day was a very famous star. A luxurious car, a beautiful long-haired woman, the flattering smile on the director’s face—all of these were unfamiliar to her.

“Little friend, aren’t you going to eat?” Even many years later, Chi Rui could still remember the warmth of that person’s palm as it covered her cheek.

Looking at the face that normally could only appear on screen, little Chi Rui felt that it was very unreal. What was strange was that, apart from the director, she rarely expressed closeness toward others or took the initiative to speak. Yet that day, that woman was an exception.

When the woman was leaving, Chi Rui, who had been standing in the line, ran out, slipped past the tall, strong bodyguards in black suits, and grabbed the hem of her skirt. “Big Sister, can I see you again?”

Thinking about that answer now, it was of course “no.” But at that age, Chi Rui was stubbornly determined to get the answer she wanted. So much so that she ignored the director’s attempts to pull her away and stared fixedly at the smiling woman.

“Yes.” The woman did not get angry. Instead, she smiled, crouched down, and rubbed her head. “As long as you want to.”

That woman was the first and only “star” Chi Rui ever chased—the light of her life.

Many years later, after she grew up, she was lucky enough to receive a movie festival ticket from a senior at her company, allowing her to watch that woman’s award ceremony live.

Only then did Chi Rui finally sit below the stage in satisfaction, watching the person onstage accept the trophy and bloom into a confident, elegant smile. Then, with an excited heart, she sincerely gave her congratulatory applause. When the woman said, “Thank you to my fans for always accompanying and encouraging me,” she seemed to meet Chi Rui’s eyes below the stage. That joy of tacit understanding made the two of them seem less like fan and idol and more like old friends whose hearts understood each other.

She is outstanding, so I choose to follow her—not put the cart before the horse.

This was something Chi Rui had always remembered in her heart. That was why she had ignored all attempts to dissuade her and trained without ever stopping, only waiting for the day when she could fulfill that promise of “as long as I want to, I can see you.”

It was just that the times were advancing. The methods and speed of information transmission were changing. The internet could accelerate and magnify happiness and praise, but it could also double malice and slander.

The games between capital were always bloody in a way that showed no blades or swords. Overnight popularity created through shady operations could be found everywhere. Bad money driving out good money was no longer some rare or unheard-of thing. This atmosphere had also been brought into fan circles. Being a free fan had become a kind of “sin.” Your love for your idol had to be measured with money.

System: Host, let me remind you that You Xiaotao’s occupation is freelance illustrator, former employee of a well-known animation company, with an annual income of over two million. And taking ten thousand steps back, the money is her own. She can spend it however she wants. Rather than that… why don’t you worry about yourself first?

Chi Rui caught the key point: What’s my annual salary?

System: Have you forgotten that you’re currently unemployed?

Such a solid knife stabbed fiercely into Chi Rui’s chest. Even someone as strong as her felt her eyes sting a little at this moment.

Just as Chi Rui was frantically thinking of words to strike back at the system, the bathroom light suddenly went out. Chi Rui noticed that no light was coming in through the crack under the door either. In other words… a power outage?

The electricity was out, but the water was not. In the pitch-black environment, warm water from the showerhead washed over her smooth skin, from the top of her head down to her ankles. It gave Chi Rui the illusion that she had sunk to the bottom of a lake and was surrounded by flowing water. A belated fear brought with it a faint sense of suffocation.

She quickly turned off the water and wiped the droplets from her face. Her eyes, which had gotten water in them, felt a little sore, but she still tried hard to open them wide. For some inexplicable reason, she had remembered a ghost story she had heard when she was little: late at night, when you closed your eyes in the bathroom, there would be a ghost staring at you.

Because she did not have the habit of bringing her phone into the bathroom, Chi Rui had nothing for lighting on hand. She could only rely on memory to pull a bath towel from the rack and hold it in front of herself, then tiptoe on her bare feet and jog in small steps toward the door.

She remembered that there seemed to be emergency items like flashlights and candles in the cabinet beside the shoe rack.

Just as she was feeling her way through the dark and moving toward the entrance at a turtle’s pace, when she was about to reach her destination, the door lock made a crisp sound. Someone pushed the door open from outside.

“Who’s there!” Chi Rui’s voice tightened slightly.

To say she was not afraid at all in this situation would definitely be a lie. It was late at night, the room had lost power, and on top of that, she was currently in a state where she was barely covered and extremely lacking in security. Then, all of a sudden, a stranger had broken into the room.

But thinking about it, the security in this residential complex was so good. Cars had to register their license plates when entering and leaving, and there was even a fingerprint lock on the first floor. Even food delivery people could not come up unless she opened the door. What kind of thief had such extraordinary abilities?

“It’s me.” Bai Chang probably had not expected that when she came home to pick up something she had left behind, she would be questioned in the tone of someone catching a thief. Seeing that the room was dark, she subconsciously asked, “Power outage?”

Chi Rui finally let out a breath of relief. “Yes. I don’t know if the breaker tripped.”

Bai Chang nodded to indicate that she understood. Then she took out the phone in her pocket and turned on the flashlight, planning to change her shoes.

But the instant the light turned on, she froze.

The first reaction in her mind was: When did Chi Rui dye her hair red? It actually suited her quite well.

Only afterward did she realize that the other party was currently in a state that was not very convenient for communicating with others.

Although the two of them had dated before, they had never been intimate with each other so frankly. Suddenly running into Chi Rui in this appearance, even someone as calm as Bai Chang quietly reddened at the tips of her ears.

“Why did you come out without putting on clothes? Aren’t you cold?”

“I couldn’t see inside, so I came out to look for a flashlight.”

Chi Rui had lived in a large shared dormitory at the welfare home since she was little. When they showered, more than a dozen girls would be in the communal bathhouse scrubbing each other’s backs. So she did not feel that appearing like this in front of someone of the same sex was anything inappropriate. Besides, when she came out just now, she had brought a piece of cloth to cover herself. And the light from the phone was not that bright, so in the dimness, she did not notice Bai Chang’s unusual expression.

Seeing the other person lowering her head and not moving, Chi Rui opened her mouth and urged her, “Since you happen to be standing there anyway, help me get the flashlight from the cabinet.”

“Mm?” Bai Chang responded softly, a little slow to react. “Flash… flashlight?”

It was also quite strange. In the eyes of her fans, this person was practically an immortal who rarely had worldly emotions and desires. Yet after running into Chi Rui, she almost turned into a stammerer who could not even speak smoothly.

Fortunately, Bai Chang reacted quickly enough. Before Chi Rui could voice the ridicule in her mouth, she quickly pulled open the cabinet door, felt around, took something out, and handed it over. “Here.”

Chi Rui narrowed her eyes and accepted it. “Ms. Bai, did you forget to bring your glasses? If you changed your mind and decided to hand me a candle instead, why don’t you also hand me a lighter while you’re at it?”

Only then did Bai Chang realize that what she had handed over just now was a candle. She hurriedly searched again and found the flashlight, licked her dry lips, and turned her head aside as she passed it over.

Chi Rui noticed her series of unnatural movements and felt a little baffled. Since when was this plague god so thin-skinned?

It was only after she returned to the bathroom with the flashlight and saw her body in the mirror that she understood. There was not much else to say. Although little Princess Chi was not that old, her body had developed quite well. She had a slender waist and long legs. She looked thin, but the places that should have flesh were not lacking at all.

By the time Chi Rui had dressed neatly and came out wrapped in the dampness of the bathroom, the electricity had already returned. The high heels Bai Chang had worn at the entrance had also disappeared without a trace.

It seemed she really had only come to pick something up before leaving. She had no intention at all of catching up with her future ex-wife.

Chi Rui did not care either. After locking the door from the inside, she flopped onto the bed, spread her legs to both sides into a full side split, and rested while stretching her ligaments.

After the system activated during the day, tens of thousands of personal profiles had appeared in the so-called database. All the profiles were arranged in order according to rank, and the ones in gray indicated that they had already left the fandom.

Chi Rui swiped through it. Good heavens, it was an ocean of gray. As for the remaining ones, nine out of ten were face fans… It seemed little Princess Chi had truly been courting disaster left and right, successfully driving away almost every kind of fan she had.

At this moment, the system did not forget to come online and stab her again: The hosts I’ve had before could walk two steps down the street and see at least one B-rank or above fan. That’s the popularity a top traffic star should have. You really are too flopped.

Chi Rui admitted this too. Yes, how could she not be flopped? It had taken an entire month, and only when she participated in a commercial performance did she finally run into a You Xiaotao and barely manage to activate the system. That was truly rough enough.

Chi Rui: Help me filter out the ones who haven’t left the fandom.

She planned to read through these fans’ profiles before sleeping. Reading tens of thousands of profiles was unrealistic, so she might as well pick some to look at. Since the ones who had already left the fandom meant there would be very little chance of contact later, she could temporarily ignore them.

System: Actually, you don’t need to do homework in advance. Like this afternoon, when you encounter a target subject, I’ll automatically transmit the information to you.

Chi Rui: It’s fine. I just want to understand them.

In truth, the day of entering the dormitory for filming was coming soon, and Chi Rui was a little nervous.

For commercial performances, she could still muddle through using her previous stage experience. But reality show cameras were something she had never faced before.

She simply wanted to look at these fans’ profiles, understand the step-by-step experiences through which they had accompanied the original owner, and understand that completely unreserved love. Looking at those numbers and feeling the weight of the hope entrusted to her shoulders made her feel as though she was not fighting alone.

There was a piggy bank placed at the side. After Chi Rui finished reading one profile, she tossed a coin inside. By the time she finished, she had saved a total of one hundred and eight yuan.

She lifted the bank, shook it, and listened to the crisp sound of coins colliding. This was her warning bell. Every day from now on, she had to work even harder than before. She had to make the coins inside this bank worth something.

……

That night, You Xiaotao immediately logged into her long-abandoned main star-chasing account and posted the edited group photo and signed photo.

Taozi Loves Beauty Rui Most: Ahhhhhhhhhhh! My luck was off the charts today! I went to an offline event and not only got a photo with Ruirui and a personalized autograph, she even encouraged me! She actually remembered every gift I ever gave her, and she was as familiar with the contents of my letters as if she had memorized them! Final preview: Ruirui’s gorgeous fancam from this afternoon is uploading now. Her professional skills were incredible! She sang and danced with a handheld mic and didn’t pant the entire time! Wuwuwuwu, our Ruirui really has been practicing seriously. I’m so touched! [Image] [Image] [Image]

You Xiaotao’s account had around eighty thousand followers. Even though she had not updated it in a long time, there were still quite a few comments after this post went out.

[Ruirui doesn’t dislike taking photos? Taozi, how did you get the chance?]

[Red-haired Rui is too stunning! My mom asked why I was drooling at my phone! This face fan is so happy!]

[Rui baby actually obediently went to a commercial performance?]

Of course, there were also professional anti-fans who came over to argue. And because their numbers were huge, they quickly buried the few comments of praise.

[She already left the industry, but big fans are still manufacturing buzz for her? Putting everything else aside, who doesn’t know Chi Rui is a dance idiot who can’t even remember her movements? And now you’re talking about professional skills? Do you really think netizens have no memory?]

[Memorizing fan letters? Chi Rui? Are you joking? Suddenly starting to manufacture such an exaggerated fan-spoiling persona—don’t tell me she’s making a comeback. Back then, she left the industry so proudly. Now that she ruined herself, she wants to turn back and beg for a meal?]

Very soon, You Xiaotao’s fancam video finished uploading. The cover image she had chosen was of Chi Rui tossing her hair, and her expression was truly seductive. Even passersby who were not fans, upon seeing such a beauty, could not resist clicking in to see what was going on.

And after clicking into the video, not only the anti-fans, but even old fans were so shocked their mouths would not close. Had Chi Rui spent the year she disappeared cultivating in seclusion? How could her ability have improved this much!

Right now, their minds were full of one sentence:

Beauty, who are you?