The audience waited with bated breath as the host flipped the note over and turned it directly toward them.
“The candle-blowing challenge: blow out all the candles in the shortest time possible, with a one-minute limit.”
Song Xun stood to the side, thinking, Oh boy, Brother Green’s face is turning green again.
Zhao Song rarely exercised; he preferred striking a few poses for Weibo posts. Blowing out candles wasn’t difficult, but extinguishing so many within a minute was no easy feat.
If he failed, he’d be humiliated in front of everyone.
He loved playing the role of a fitness enthusiast, but in reality, he was all show and no substance.
Moreover, this event was being livestreamed, reaching far more than just the live audience.
Seeing Zhao Song frozen in place, the host also stiffened but quickly recovered, walking over to remind him.
Zhao Song forced a smile, revealing his newly done porcelain teeth, which nearly blinded Song Xun.
Putting on airs, he stood before the candles, thinking he could at least blow out half. With that in mind, he took a deep breath, filling his lungs, and blew out forcefully.
The result was predictable: only a few scattered candles went out.
The host hadn’t anticipated this either. She hurried over, smiling at the audience. “Oh dear, it seems the air here isn’t circulating well, so Teacher Zhao is having a bit of trouble.”
“Hahaha, yes, yes, exactly.”
Zhao Song immediately seized the excuse, clearing his throat and straightening up. “Just a little joke to lighten the mood, hahaha. But the event isn’t just about me—let’s invite the next person to draw!”
With that, he pulled Song Xun forward. The host panicked—their schedule was carefully planned, and they couldn’t just change it on a whim.
But Zhao Song ignored her completely. He wanted Song Xun to draw another challenge, catching him off guard, preferably something difficult.
Song Xun let himself be dragged forward like a doll, offering no resistance, though his face wore a troubled, pitiful expression.
“Quick, draw now!”
Zhao Song’s roar made Song Xun tremble. The host rushed forward, saying, “Teacher Zhao is so thoughtful and humorous! But shouldn’t we let Qina go first?”
Zhao Song completely ignored the host, treating her as if she were air. The host was on the verge of a breakdown—she was just an employee; why make things so difficult for her?!
The audience didn’t know the event had been rehearsed beforehand. Seeing Zhao Song’s aggressive demeanor, they thought he was about to rough up Song Xun, his expression fierce and menacing.
Song Xun, meanwhile, resembled a fairy-tale princess at the mercy of others, obediently drawing a slip and handing it to the host.
A strange light flickered in Zhao Song’s eyes. He couldn’t wait for Song Xun to make a fool of himself, seeking revenge for Song Xun constantly bringing up his age.
“Let’s see what Song Xun drew, everyone! It’s… singing a song a cappella!”
Compared to Zhao Song’s candle-blowing challenge, this was much simpler.
Zhao Song couldn’t believe it—how did Song Xun get so lucky?
But he wasn’t willing to give up. Song Xun was an actor who had never sung in public before.
Many in the industry were like this—if they had a talent, they’d flaunt it to everyone. Someone this low-key must have nothing to show.
Perfect. He had guessed correctly.
Song Xun had been tone-deaf since childhood, completely unable to find the right pitch. The most absurd part was that he couldn’t even tell, believing his singing was flawless.
But he wore a fearless expression, smiling as he addressed the audience, “I’m really sorry, but I’m not a good singer. I’m afraid I might disappoint everyone.”
Then, in a low voice, he added to Zhao Song, “Brother Zhao, thank you for giving me this chance to show myself. I’m afraid I might steal your spotlight.”
With that, he casually reached for the microphone the host was handing him, putting on an act. And just as he expected, Zhao Song snatched the microphone right out of Song Xun’s hands.
The host was utterly confused. Maybe you should just take over as the host, she thought, wondering if she should just step down.
“Brother Zhao?”
Song Xun feigned surprise, though he knew perfectly well what was going on. Zhao Song had recently been embroiled in a scandal and had barely managed to find someone to take the fall for him. Rumors were still circulating, though there was no solid evidence.
For this event, Zhao Song’s company had even pre-purchased trending hashtags, all to let him steal the spotlight, retain his fans, and dispel the “rumors.”
Zhao Song flashed a smile at the audience, showing off. Song Xun quietly stepped back. Fine, he thought, the stage is all yours.
“Since Song Xun said he’s embarrassed, let’s not put him on the spot. Let’s invite the next guest to draw the prize,” the host said, completely giving up. Whatever, she thought, let Zhao Song do as he pleases.
After that, the other guests took turns drawing prizes. Aside from a few who stood out, most didn’t succeed, but they all handled it with humor.
Once the event ended, Song Xun stepped off the stage. Xiao Deng handed him a bottle of water from the sponsor and fanned him, speaking bluntly, “Brother Song, what’s up with that green guy? This event was live-streamed, and everyone online was watching. How could he openly disrupt the flow like that?”
Song Xun shrugged. He knew how important this event was to Zhao Song, so it was easy to provoke him.
“Did Sister Zhang say what to do next?”
His eyes sparkled, a smile playing on his lips as he felt quite pleased.
Xiao Deng immediately understood what he meant and couldn’t help but laugh. “Yeah, the company has its own marketing team. They’ll release it through other channels.”
Song Xun nodded.
Director Jian’s movie officially wrapped up, and the entire crew was thrilled, celebrating with a dinner at a private club.
“No, no, I really can’t drink,” Song Xun said, knowing Jian Mo wasn’t the type to force drinks at the table, so he refused without hesitation.
“Hahaha, alright, alright. How about tea then?”
“Of course.”
Several people toasted with tea instead, leaving the expensive imported liquor untouched as mere decoration.
Although Jin Yirui was an investor, he had other important matters to attend to and didn’t show up, which made Song Xun feel much more relaxed.
After several rounds of dice games, Song Xun had great luck and didn’t lose a single round, so he didn’t drink a drop of alcohol.
But he had drunk too much tea and felt the urge to use the restroom. Song Xun went with another male actor from the crew whom he got along well with.
“The decor here is so fancy, why didn’t they put a restroom in the private room?” the actor grumbled.
The restroom wasn’t exactly close, and the two of them wandered around for a while, feeling like they were in a maze.
The other actor finished quickly and waited outside for a bit. Song Xun took a little longer, and just as he finished flushing and was about to leave, he heard noises outside.
“Hahaha, Xiao Chu, if you stick with me, I won’t treat you poorly.”
The voice was deep and somewhat husky, sounding like it belonged to an older man.
“No, no, President Ning, we’re in public. I’m afraid someone might see us.”
Song Xun’s eyes widened—wasn’t that An Chu?!
He must have stumbled upon some kind of transaction. The male actor was still waiting for him outside, so with no other choice, Song Xun sent a message saying he had a bit of a stomachache and asked the actor to go back first. Only after receiving the actor’s reply did he feel at ease.
Actually, these mutually agreed-upon unspoken rules in the entertainment industry weren’t anything unusual. Last time, he had even seen Xin He’s sugar daddy, who was even more handsome than the male celebrities. The way he treated Xin He didn’t seem like he was dealing with a lover—more like he was serving an ancestor.
But… the situation outside seemed different.
“Xiao Chu, you need to understand—since I can pay your penalty for you, I can also take it back anytime.”
The man wasn’t actually potbellied. He was under forty, wearing glasses, refined and scholarly, looking less like a businessman and more like a teacher. Dressed in a suit and wearing cologne, he appeared elegant and amiable.
Ning Chen disdainfully lifted An Chu’s delicate chin, looking down at him from above. He had seen plenty of people like this—most of them pretending to be unyielding, even playing hard to get. Then, when he had already lost interest, they would come crawling back to fawn over him.
An Chu fit his aesthetic perfectly—an innocent, well-behaved appearance, yet cunning and scheming, making him far more interesting than the average person.
It wasn’t that Ning Chen hadn’t extended an olive branch to An Chu before, but he had refused. Ning Chen wasn’t unaware—at that time, An Chu had another target in mind, though who it was, he couldn’t say.
“President Ning, you’ve misunderstood. I would never mean that. Since I’ve agreed to you, I naturally won’t go back on my word.”
An Chu clenched his fists tightly. If it weren’t for that lousy show and the company now pushing newcomers, who would even care about him?
With no other choice, he had to turn to this man who had once intended to keep him.
Seeing the person before him obediently trying to please him, Ning Chen was quite satisfied. He wrapped an arm around An Chu’s shoulder, about to steal a kiss, while An Chu braced himself, suppressing his disgust and deliberately playing along.
“Thud.”
A cleaning lady suddenly barged in. The two instantly pushed each other away, pretending to straighten their clothes, acting as if nothing had happened.
The cleaning lady didn’t recognize either of them, so she didn’t pay much attention. She pushed the trash cart in and emptied the bathroom waste into it.
After a while, the two were about to leave when the cleaning lady stood in front of one of the stall doors, puzzled, and gave it a push.
“Is someone in there?”
An Chu’s face paled, and he walked back in, terrified that someone might discover them and spread it online.
But no one in the stall responded, and no matter how hard the cleaning lady tried, she couldn’t push the door open—it was clearly locked from the inside.
Crouched on the toilet, Song Xun’s legs had gone numb. He didn’t even dare breathe too loudly, afraid that the two outside would discover their transaction.
Just when he thought they were about to leave, the cleaning lady had to show up and catch him off guard.
“What’s wrong?”
Ning Chen followed them in, only to see An Chu standing stiffly outside the stall door, not saying a word, just staring blankly behind the cleaning lady.
He didn’t have as many concerns as An Chu. Finding a little lover was no big deal to him—if word got out, it would just be a romantic anecdote. But for An Chu, it would be a disaster.
An Chu pointed at the door, steadying himself.
“It seems like someone inside was eavesdropping.”
Ning Chen raised an eyebrow, leaning close to his ear to whisper, “Isn’t that exciting?”
An Chu broke out in goosebumps all over. He wasn’t in the mood to flirt with Ning Chen right now.
Since the aunt couldn’t open the door, she didn’t bother with it further and went back to her own tasks. But An Chu wasn’t about to let it go. He pushed the door hard a few times, and after being warned by the aunt to be careful not to break it, Ning Chen walked over with interest. He looked up at the gap between the cubicle and the ceiling, then turned to An Chu and said,
“Baby, what do you think—if we climb up and look down, would we find someone hiding in there?”