Chapter 7

     When Shi Xi’s short video of the little monk received more than 2 million likes, the teahouse released two other ancient-style videos, which received good responses, and Shi Xi’s three-no account continued to gain followers.

     Shi Xi originally thought that the teahouse had updated all the videos shot that day. In the next period of time, if there were no new original videos, this wave of popularity would recede like a tide.

     Unexpectedly, a fan-created video pushed her to the top again.

     This blogger cut the footage of Shi Xi’s ghost-hunting live broadcast and the footage of the little mage together.

     Shi Xi, wearing a mask and holding a shovel, walked towards the camera with long legs, handed over the shovel and said “You come”, and the scene turned, and the little monk Shi Xi caught a sword and danced with the sword in the voice-over of “Come on”.

     This video has a greater contrast than those costume change videos of the teahouse, and one person plays two roles, with silly actions and dialogues.

     Shi Xi wanted to laugh when she saw it herself.

     “Let me see who has such a big imagination.” Shi Xi clicked on the blogger’s homepage and found that her profile had a Weibo account. It was the photographer “Random Shot” who had mistaken her for a tea artist before.

     In the comment area of this short video, the blogger pinned his comment.

 

   【I have been a huge fan of Xiao Shi recently. I discovered that she actually has two faces through archaeological research, so I came up with the idea of having Xiao Shi, the corpse digger, and Xiao Shi, the monk, talk to each other. Let me show you Xiao Shi’s Weibo. Everyone, go watch her ghost-hunting live broadcast. Xiao Shi, the corpse digger, will definitely not let you down! 】

 

     Shi Xi felt like she was being carried away by her fans, and this cute girl has carried her away twice.

     After she forwarded this video, her Douyin account and Weibo account began to increase in followers, and her Douyin account had 150,000 followers.

     After the little monk became popular, she received many job offers, including catering brands with similar positioning to the teahouse, well-known Hanfu stores, original short dramas, and even idol dramas that actively extended olive branches.

     The audition results haven’t come out yet, Shi Xi wants to take a short-term job first, so she starts to select carefully.

     Before she chooses a result, Jia Ming contacts her.

     Jia Ming: 【Transfer 30,000.00 to you.】

     Shi Xi widens her eyes and replies: “Why do you suddenly send money?”

     Jia Ming: 【This is the income from two live broadcasts, rewards and profits, 30,000 yuan per person after splitting, this is what you deserve, feel free to accept it.】

     The income from this live broadcast is quite considerable, but those two live broadcasts can be regarded as phenomenal, which is hard to come by.

     After Shi Xi received the money, Jia Ming sent a new message.

     Jia Ming: 【Transfer 170,000.00 to you.】 

     Shi Xi: “?”

     Jia Ming: 【Thank you for saving my life, this is a little gift from me. The limit is today, please send me your bank card number. 】

     Shi Xi counted 0s and asked him speechlessly: “How much more do you want to give me?”

     Jia Ming: 【I am now leaving home to start my own business. My finances are tight. I plan to give you 500,000 first, and then pay you 500,000 in installments. 】

     The words revealed a naive second-generation rich atmosphere.

     With his naivety, Shi Xi had reason to believe that this 500,000 was all his current savings.

     Shi Xi returned the money: “I also became popular because of your live broadcast, so I don’t need to pay you. We can cooperate again if we have the opportunity in the future.”

     Jia Ming: 【There is one now. There is a live broadcast variety show that wants to invite us to go together. Are you interested? 】

     “What variety show?”

     Jia Ming: 【It’s a live escape room variety show co-organized by the live broadcast platform I signed with and Hamigua TV. It will start the day after tomorrow. They want to invite us to participate in an episode. The remuneration is 10,000 yuan per person. It will take about half a day to record, and there seems to be a bonus for the first place.】

 

   【New task: Recording variety show;

     Details: You’re invited to be a guest on exciting new live variety show, “Boys and Girls, Don’t Be Afraid”.Get ready to put your escape room skills to the test!

     Reward: Performing talent +5%;

     Punishment: Can’t laugh (one day). 】

 

     The old task has not been completed yet, and the new task has appeared again. This punishment is still unethical.

     Shi Xi replied to Jia Ming: “I’ll go.”

     Shi Xi and Lin Wenyi reported that they would not take other jobs for the time being, and they would talk about it after recording the variety show.

     After confirming to participate in the recording, Shi Xi added the WeChat of the program staff and received specific work details.

     This live variety show only has a permanent host, and different guests will be invited in each episode. Because the main theme of the escape room is supernatural, they want to invite some guests who love supernatural, such as actors who have filmed supernatural movies, ghost-hunting anchors, up masters who explain supernatural movies, etc.

     Although this variety show has a low budget, it has been prepared for a long time. The guest list for the first episode has been prepared long ago. However, their two ghost-hunting live broadcasts were so successful that they attracted the attention of the program team. The director decided to add people temporarily.

     In order to create a tense and exciting atmosphere, the broadcast time is set at the transition between day and night.

     This variety show has no script, and the guests are required to act in their true colors. The program team hopes that Shi Xi will participate in the recording as a corpse digger, and they also said that they will prepare a wig and a shovel for her.

     At 4 pm on the day of the recording, Shi Xi and Jia Ming met at the recording site. This is a large escape room venue. The exterior is an abandoned hospital, which is deliberately made old and splashed with blood. From a distance, it looks like a scene in a horror movie.

     The program team took them to do makeup and hair. Shi Xi only needed to put on light makeup, a wig and a mask, and a prop shovel, and it was done quickly.

     Jia Ming’s makeup is more complicated, because his most popular look is the one with black finger marks all over his body.

     Shi Xi was strolling with a shovel, and she ran into Tang Niannian, who had interviewed for “Phantom” with her before. She was wearing a school uniform, a ponytail, and blood on her trouser legs, as if she had just stepped out of a campus supernatural movie.

     Tang Niannian seemed to have filmed a supernatural movie, but Shi Xi couldn’t remember clearly.

     Tang Niannian recognized Shi Xi at a glance and waved to her enthusiastically: “Xiao Shi, we meet again! Your look is so classic.”

     Shi Xi was also very happy: “We are quite predestined. We haven’t become colleagues in movies yet, but colleagues in variety shows first. I want to ask, which movie is your role in?”

     “It’s “01 Middle School”. I became famous because of that movie. Speaking of which, I recently saw your little monk video. I didn’t expect that you could also work part-time while auditioning!”

     Tang Niannian met Shi Xi on that day, so she was more deeply touched than others when she saw those scenes: “Those videos were shot very well, and they have a dust-free feeling.”

     Shi Xi curved her eyes: “I wanted to refuse, but the teahouse manager said he would provide a working meal for 3,999 yuan.”

     Tang Niannian laughed: “You are so funny. I heard that the casting of the movie will be decided in two days. Whether we can be selected together or not, I hope to make friends with you.”

     “My honor,” Shi Xi looked at Tang Niannian’s school uniform, and an inspiration about live broadcast flashed in her mind, and her eyes lit up: “I have an idea, let’s go to the director to communicate.”

…

     At 5:30 in the evening, “Boys and Girls Don’t Be Afraid” officially started.

     Viewers entered the live broadcast room one after another.

     The live broadcast room sounded “tick-tock” and an abandoned hospital shrouded in dusk appeared in the center of the screen. The peeling pale tiles, the spreading dead vines and the blood-stained walls gave the abandoned hospital a spiritual atmosphere.

     The camera cuts into the hospital lobby and shows Jiaming, who is holding a live broadcast device with a horrified look in his eyes: “Welcome to the ghost-hunting live broadcast room, I am Jiaming, and I really encountered a supernatural event this time…”

     “Let’s get to the point,” Shi Xi moved the camera to herself. She wore a mask, revealing only her black and white peach blossom eyes and the iconic red teardrop mole: . “I’m Xiaoshi. Jiaming and I were exploring a haunted house when a mysterious force transported us to this space. This should be an abandoned hospital, and all the exits have been sealed.”

     “In addition to us, thirteen citizens have been transferred here. There are many familiar faces here, and what’s even more weird is that there are people from different worlds…” She moved the camera to Tang Niannian : “Girl, what’s your name? What were you doing before you came here?”

     Tang Niannian glanced timidly: “I’m a student of 01 Middle School, my name is Nian Nian. At 11 o’clock tonight, I finished my evening self-study and left the classroom, but found blood everywhere in the corridor. A bloodstained person crawled out of the classroom. I was so scared that I ran away… I came here in the blink of an eye. Where is this place? Who are you? Am I being pranked?”

     “No, you traveled through time,” Shi Xi said: “In my world, you are a character in a supernatural movie.”

     Tang Niannian froze: “Are you kidding?”

 

   【What she said is true, I can prove it, I have seen that movie, the name is “01 Middle School”! 】

   【I can also prove it, and I can also give you a spoiler. The one who crawled out of the classroom and chased you is actually you after death!】 

   【I thought it was an ordinary live variety show, but I didn’t expect the setting to be so exciting! Whose idea was this opening? The production team should give them a thumbs up~】

   【Don’t rush to praise the first part. This is just an 18th-tier variety show. The guests are all internet celebrities and obscure celebrities. Only Tang Niannian is relatively well-known. I think it will fail sooner or later.】

   【What the above person said makes sense. Aren’t there many live variety shows that fail these days?】

   【Who is this guest wearing a mask?】

   【She is a corpse digger. Her ghost-hunting live broadcast with Jiaming became popular a while ago, and it was also very popular on a certain audio platform.】

 

     Other guests appeared in Shi Xi’s camera one after another. Da Hu, the ghost hunting anchor on the same platform as Jia Ming, crossed his hands with an arrogant expression: “I am Da Hu, known as the number one ghost hunting brother in the world. I have seen more ghosts than you have eaten salt. No matter where this is, as long as you hold on to Brother Hu’s thighs, I will definitely take you to fly.”

     “Is it your turn to fly here?” The supernatural game anchor whistled: “I have played 800 kinds of supernatural games, and no routines and levels can escape my eyes.”

     Shi Xi pointed the camera at the next guest, a girl in a light yellow dress: “Girl, introduce yourself.”

     The girl turned her eyes away, her expression a little unnatural: “My name is Lu Lanlan.”

     Shi Xi touched her chin: “This name is a bit familiar.” It seems that she has heard it somewhere.

     The girl’s eyes widened, and she asked in disbelief: “You don’t know me?”

     Jiaming answered: “I know, you are the ghost’s sister in the supernatural micro-film “Midnight Song”!”

 

   【She doesn’t know Lanlan, Tang Niannian and Lanlan are the most popular here, okay? 】

   【Come for Lanlan~ Lanlan’s wife is so beautiful~】

   【Why doesn’t this Xiao Shi take off her mask? Can we only see her eyes?】