“Hm?” Lin Xiaoman didn’t understand her intention.
“Make them give an explanation!” Wei Qinghuan looked at her firmly. “We must resolve this malicious editing issue!”
Lin Xiaoman was somewhat surprised. They weren’t very close, but she understood Wei Qinghuan’s actions. Wei Qinghuan was always straightforward and couldn’t stand people talking behind others’ backs.
But now Wei Qinghuan wanted to cause trouble with the production team. Wasn’t she afraid of being implicated?
Seeing Lin Xiaoman’s silence, Wei Qinghuan thought she was scared and comforted her: “Don’t worry, I’ll help you. If they refuse to resolve this properly, I’ll make this public.”
Her eyes, bright as spring dew, gazed at Lin Xiaoman, sincere and genuine.
Lin Xiaoman’s heart stirred, and a smile appeared in her eyes: “Thank you, I already have a solution for this matter, so don’t worry.”
Wei Qinghuan’s gaze showed some confusion.
Lin Xiaoman gave her a playful smile: “Trust me, it will be resolved.”
The next day, the morning live game involved dividing twenty people into four groups for team-based competition, with the winning team receiving a reward. However, this wasn’t important. What mattered was that this was the last live broadcast before the final, and everyone wanted to gain attention in front of the camera and use this last opportunity to win more audience favor.
So while everyone appeared harmonious on the surface, turbulent undercurrents were brewing beneath.
After changing into game T-shirts and shorts, Lin Xiaoman walked out with Ning Yumu. Seeing Zhang Jiajia approaching, she casually draped her arm over Ning Yumu’s shoulder: “Sister Yumu, do your best.”
Ning Yumu was unsure of her intentions, but heard her whisper: “Although we’ve had some small conflicts before, we’re still sisters. I definitely hope you can advance.” She glanced at the nearby camera and gave a sweet smile, “Let’s work hard together.”
Ning Yumu also saw the camera and quickly put on a professional smile, “Okay, let’s do our best!”
The bullet comments began scrolling rapidly:
— Weren’t they supposed to have a bad relationship? Why do they seem so close?
— Yumu, if you’re being held hostage, blink twice and we’ll call the police immediately.
— Yumu has such a good temper. If it were me, I wouldn’t even talk to her.
— Lin Xiaoman is so shameless, still coming up to talk like this. I think Yumu was just shocked moments ago.
— Team tyrant Lin Xiaoman, don’t mess with her…
Regardless of the comment section’s arguments, Lin Xiaoman saw Zhang Jiajia’s ugly expression and knew her plan was working. Later, she found an excuse to return to the changing room and approached Zhang Jiajia, deliberately speaking in a provocative tone: “Thanks for helping my sister. I was worried she’d be criticized because of the video, but now everyone’s targeting me, so she won’t be scolded.”
“Stop your fake kindness,” Zhang Jiajia rolled her eyes. “That video was you, right? You won’t be playing any tricks.”
“Oh, about that,” Lin Xiaoman pondered, “This wasn’t my doing. I’ve already explained everything to my sister. Otherwise, how would I know that you were behind the malicious editing?”
Zhang Jiajia was stunned, realizing only Ning Yumu knew about her plan to target Lin Xiaoman. She was both angry at Ning Yumu for betraying her and tried to bluff: “So what? I did it. Want to cause trouble? That’ll only make you look worse!”
“How could that be? Didn’t I say I’m here to thank you?” Lin Xiaoman smiled softly.
“Because of you, the misunderstanding between my sister and me is resolved. She even said this live broadcast will restore my reputation.”
Zhang Jiajia began to feel uneasy. If Ning Yumu wanted to clear Lin Xiaoman’s name, she would have to reveal the malicious editing, which might ultimately expose her.
“Don’t try to trick me. Yumu would never do such a thing,” Zhang Jiajia’s voice wavered.
“Why wouldn’t she?” Lin Xiaoman tilted her head, provocatively smiling. “We’re sisters. What about you two? Why would she help someone who hurt her sister?”
“You…!” Zhang Jiajia was provoked.
Lin Xiaoman gave her a mocking glance, knowing she had achieved her goal, and waved as she left the changing room.
After the competition, Lin Xiaoman swept the entire field with a record of victory in every battle, and after changing her clothes, she stood on the stage again.
While listening to the host praise her skills, she felt somewhat ashamed. Fortunately, she still remembered her previous fitness postures and could adjust at any time. As long as she didn’t fall, most people would automatically drop after a few seconds.
Her fellow competitors made her look good.
Afterward, a Q&A competition followed, and this time Lin Xiaoman chose to play dumb.
Even when she knew the answers, she didn’t respond. She just stared fixedly at Zhang Jiajia. Whenever Zhang Jiajia was about to raise her hand to answer, Lin Xiaoman would either answer first or pick up the points after a wrong answer.
Throughout the process, Zhang Jiajia looked at Lin Xiaoman with resentment. Lin Xiaoman just gave her a slight, provocative smile.
The last game was a zombie game, with two-person teams, one team as humans and the other as zombies. The zombies had to be blindfolded and catch humans within a specified area in five minutes. If humans survived after five minutes, they would win; otherwise, the zombies would win.
Lin Xiaoman’s group drew humans, while Zhang Jiajia’s group was zombies, and the two teams began their first confrontation.
Lin Xiaoman focused on Zhang Jiajia, using her tall and agile body to move around her, sometimes playfully tapping her head. Zhang Jiajia could only blindly reach out, always in vain. After several teasing attempts, Lin Xiaoman moved around and used her voice to lure her, “I’m over here.”
From a program effect perspective, it was very funny, and the studio cut more camera shots to the two of them.
However, the blindfolded Zhang Jiajia was unaware. She was determined to catch Lin Xiaoman, quickly lunging toward any sound, but always missing and causing laughter around her.
Already uneasy from being blindfolded, the laughter made her feel even more humiliated. Her previous anger combined with current embarrassment made her increasingly furious.
“Time’s up!” the host shouted.
At this moment, Lin Xiaoman deliberately lingered near Zhang Jiajia, letting her catch her. When pulled into her embrace, she softly said, “By the way, my sister has already had your friend expelled. After doing such a thing, they can’t stay in the program team.”
“What did you say?” Zhang Jiajia tightly gripped her arm, as if trying to break it.
Lin Xiaoman winced in pain but maintained a smile, “If we’re settling scores, none of you can stay.”
Her voice was sweet, as if discussing something interesting, but Zhang Jiajia was provoked and pounced on her, not even removing her blindfold.
“Then I’ll make sure you can’t stay either!” she said while pulling Lin Xiaoman’s hair.
Lin Xiaoman just dodged, looking aggrieved and raising her voice, “Isn’t it enough that you had someone edit footage to blacken my name? What else do you want?”
“You bitch!” Zhang Jiajia gripped her with immense strength, her seemingly delicate appearance now incredibly powerful, with others unable to pull her off.
When Lin Xiaoman broke free, her arm was covered in bruises. She had teary, pitiful eyes, fighting back tears.
In fact, she could have avoided the attack, but without some visibly shocking injuries, people wouldn’t see how terrible Zhang Jiajia was or feel sympathy for her.
In the entertainment industry, having the moral high ground doesn’t guarantee victory. The weak always gain sympathy.
So, direct confrontation was best kept private. On the surface, she remained the pitiful victim.
