10 – Oреn Сhеаting
In hеr рrevious lifе, Jiаng Ning hаd drаwn Нe Ziyu, leаving Gu Сhi to be рlacеd in а sоlо grоuр, and hе rеmаinеd alonе until the end of the shоw.
Jiаng Ning reасhеd fоr thе woоdеn stiсks in the direсtоr’s hand.
Shе knew which stick hаd Gu Chi’s nаme on it. As hеr fingers brushеd pаst thе one with Нe Ziyu’s namе, shе раused for а mоmеnt, silеntly aрolоgizing to Hе Ziyu in her hеart.
With Ye Сhen and Jiang Zhi рrеsеnt, she соuldn’t leave Gu Сhi’s side.
Оthеrwise, she wоuld oncе agаin bе сontrоlled by thе World Cоnsсiоusness and forced to act in wауs she didn’t want to.
Hеr dеlicate fingеrtiрs landed on another wooden stick. Jiang Ning took a deep breath and said, “This one.”
She pulled it out and unfolded the paper tied to the stick.
The fans were dying of curiosity.
“Ahhh, I’m so curious about who the goddess picked!”
When the director asked Jiang Ning who she had chosen, Gu Chi, who had been looking down, raised his head again, his eyes fixed intently on her.
He Ziyu, on the other hand, looked like a big puppy, his eyes filled with anticipation.
Jiang Ning didn’t keep everyone in suspense. She directly flipped the paper over to show everyone.
“Thank goodness, it’s Gu Chi, my junior brother.”
She deliberately used this relieved tone to make everyone think she was socially anxious and afraid of being paired with someone she didn’t know.
After seeing who Jiang Ning was paired with, everyone reacted differently.
The fans were heartless, acting like scoundrels. Just moments ago, they were shipping Ye Chen and Jiang Ning, but now they immediately switched to shipping Jiang Ning and Gu Chi.
Who wouldn’t love seeing two peak beauties paired up and giving out candy? Even if it was fake, plastic candy, everyone was happy to indulge—it was like watching a drama.
“Ahhh, I’m switching ships!”
“Sis, take me with you!”
While the fans were wildly shipping couples, the actual participants…
Ye Chen frowned with obvious displeasure, He Ziyu looked pitiful as if he had been abandoned, and Jiang Zhi was immersed in the joy of being paired with Ye Chen.
As for Gu Chi…
He turned his head away from the camera, his eyelashes lowered, but the light in his eyes was dazzling.
If it weren’t for the fact that he couldn’t be too obvious on the show, the brilliance in Gu Chi’s eyes would have been displayed before Jiang Ning without hesitation.
Jiang Ning didn’t miss the barely concealed smile when Gu Chi turned away.
Was he really that happy?
A trace of helplessness flashed through Jiang Ning’s heart.
Since she needed his help to resist the protagonist’s aura, if being good to him made him happy, it seemed she could treat him even better.
Leading their respective teammates, everyone set off for the haunted house.
The haunted house set up by the production team was different from the usual ones in terms of scariness. It focused more on atmosphere, without the typical red and green lights.
Upon entering the haunted house, it was pitch black inside, with only a faint, dim tungsten bulb. The surroundings were so quiet that you could almost hear a pin drop.
The director announced from outside, “There are four passages in total. Please, male guests, lead your teammates and choose one of the passages to proceed. Note that each group must choose a different passage.”
He Ziyu immediately cried out in despair, “Ah, doesn’t that mean there’s no way out for me?”
As everyone knew, He Ziyu was timid and afraid of the dark.
The fans felt sorry for him while also laughing heartily.
Jiang Yunhai and his wife were the first to choose the leftmost passage.
Ye Chen and Jiang Zhi also chose a passage. Before entering, Ye Chen looked at Jiang Ning and said gently, “Be careful. If you’re scared, you can request to withdraw. At worst, you’ll just fail the mission.”
How could Jiang Ning not know what Ye Chen was up to? He was just trying to build his image in front of the camera.
The fans were probably going crazy right now, thinking he was doting on her.
Acting? Who couldn’t do it?Jiang Ning looked at him gently. “Yes, I will. Brother Chen, you be careful too.”
Seeing Jiang Ning’s trusting expression toward Ye Chen, Gu Chi opened his mouth but ultimately said nothing, silently lowering his head instead.
After Ye Chen and Jiang Zhi entered the passage, Jiang Ning and Gu Chi went into another passage together.
He Ziyu watched everyone go in, crying and cursing the director while creeping forward timidly.
The fans were dying of laughter.
“Hahaha, Ziyu really has it rough.”
“To be fair, Ye Chen is so doting on Jiang Ning baby.”
“Jiang Ning baby also really can’t bear to part with Ye Yingdi, wuwuwu, the director deserves to die.”
The fans went wild, and then the split-screen livestream showed each group’s situation.
Of course, each fanbase focused on their own idol.
The director kept an eye on the online situation at all times.
Checking the data—
Wow.
Jiang Ning’s split-screen directly crashed from overload.
The viewership for Ye Chen’s group wasn’t even half of Jiang Ning’s.
The director clicked his tongue. “As expected of a top star. Inviting her was really a huge win.”
Jiang Ning wasn’t afraid of the dark—Gu Chi knew that. He understood all her preferences, though, of course, only from what he’d learned online.
Afraid that something scary might suddenly appear, Gu Chi still walked in front of Jiang Ning.
Alone with her, Gu Chi had many things he wanted to say to Jiang Ning, but he knew that every word spoken here would be exposed to the audience.
He tried his best to restrain himself.
The scary things came quickly.
The production team was ruthless—for each group, the frightening elements only appeared after the guy had walked away.
The staff member dressed as a ghost was hiding in a recess in the wall.
As soon as Gu Chi in front took a step forward, he immediately jumped out.
So a ghostly face instantly appeared on camera.
To be honest, the production team did a very realistic job. The actors’ makeup was done by special effects makeup artists. The ghost that suddenly jumped out had its mouth sewn shut, oozing traces of blood, and its eyes were completely white.
He suddenly jumped out, making a “heh heh” sound, nearly scaring the audience out of their wits.
Something appearing and making noise in darkness and silence is extremely frightening.
The director watched the screen, anticipating the scene of the goddess screaming. He had even thought of the headline:
“Shocking! The entertainment industry’s number one goddess scared out of her wits, image completely ruined!”
However, the scene he hoped for did not appear.
Jiang Ning was, after all, a sanda champion, and besides, this was her tenth time participating in this show—she wasn’t scared at all.
So when the “ghost” jumped out, her instinctive reaction was to respond with force.
Thus, the scene played out like this:
The ghost jumped out with a “wah,” Jiang Ning sidestepped to avoid it, pulled and pushed, and used a grappling move to press the ghost against the wall. It was Jiang Ning’s martial arts-trained physical reaction, executed with extreme speed.
Then the ghost let out an “ah” of pain, and only then did Gu Chi in front and the audience react.
The audience’s experience: just as they were scared but hadn’t had time to scream, the scene turned hilarious!
Taking advantage of the darkness to hide it, Gu Chi gazed intently at Jiang Ning—she was just as formidable as when she saved him that year.
The comments gradually turned funny.
“Scared me so much I quickly touched my husband’s abs to calm down.”
“Holy crap, the goddess is amazing. I almost forgot my goddess is a sanda champion.”
“Ahhh, Ningningzi is so awesome, so cool and manly.”
“Brother Chi wanted to protect the goddess but suddenly became the one being protected, lol.”
“Ghost: If I’ve sinned, please let me scare someone else, not have someone beat me up. So embarrassing…”The staff member playing the ghost was truly pitiful, clinging pitifully to the wall and wailing, “Ouch, ouch, ouch.”
Jiang Ning hadn’t meant to do it at all—it was purely a reflexive reaction.
Hearing the staff member’s plea for mercy, she snapped back to reality, quickly let go, and bowed in apology. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean it.”
The ghost actor was actually a fan of Jiang Ning. Seeing his goddess bowing to apologize to him, he was so startled that he immediately covered his aching hand and bowed back, saying it was fine. “Ah, Goddess, it’s my fault. I shouldn’t have scared you.”
The scene looked eerily like a wedding ceremony.
The director thought of a new title: The Goddess and Her Ghost Groom.
Gu Chi also had this same impression and, feeling slightly displeased, went over to talk to Jiang Ning.
“The goal of the mission is to find the murderer of ‘Ah Kai.’ He should be Ah Kai.”
“Ah, right, I’m Ah Kai,” the ghost actor blurted out, only realizing afterward that this was information he wasn’t supposed to reveal.
So he silently covered his mouth, his ghostly face staring “innocently” at Jiang Ning with his white eyes.
Jiang Ning and Gu Chi both looked at the ghost actor, simultaneously realizing something: when he had said “goddess,” he must be a fan of Jiang Ning’s.
Jiang Ning coughed lightly and softened her voice to ask him, “Then who killed you?”
The goddess being so gentle and captivating—the fan couldn’t resist.
So “Ah Kai” opened his mouth and said, “It was Ah Kai’s father. Catch him, and you’ll clear the level.”
After saying this, Ah Kai immediately covered his mouth and ran off. “Help, I didn’t say anything.”
Having easily obtained the “secret,” Jiang Ning and Gu Chi exchanged a glance. Jiang Ning held back a laugh, while Gu Chi watched her with a smile.
The fans were already dying of laughter.
“I’m dying, the ghost actor being the goddess’s fan is just too much.”
“The goddess openly cheating, but it’s somehow so adorable.”
“Does anyone else think the cool older sister and the puppy-like younger brother are so shippable? Ah, I’m dead. The way Gu Chi looks at the goddess with that adoring gaze is giving me life.”