Chapter 35: You Vicious Woman

The director, nearly having a heart attack from Yan Zhao’s eerie response, found the situation disturbing. He had heard rumors about the cold, beautiful man being obsessed with Lu Hui but had never seen how far it went.

When the production team had approached Yan Zhao before, they begged and coaxed, offering the best conditions possible, but he wouldn’t even let them enter the living room, his cold attitude freezing them out.

At that time, the director had doubted the rumors, thinking Yan Zhao’s aloofness wasn’t an act but a reflection of his cold and indifferent nature. How could someone like him act like a puppy, chasing after someone so desperately?

But seeing it firsthand, the director’s view had shifted. The words “I am” might have been a bizarre coincidence, but the fact that Yan Zhao was now carrying Lu Hui’s luggage suggested something was off.

After the guests went to their rooms to rest, the director called over the PD who had been following them all day, asking, “Did anything happen on the way here?”

The PD looked bitter, “Nothing at all. Lu Hui slept the entire way! She was so out of it, no amount of bumps could wake her up.”

There was a bumpy stretch of concrete road that almost made him throw up, but Lu Hui was still sleeping soundly like a dead pig.

“Weren’t they talking?” the director asked.

The PD shook his head, “Nope.”

“Did Lu Hui give him the cold shoulder?”

“No.”

“So what’s the point of all this?”

The excitement? The drama? It was all gone.

The PD almost felt sorry for the director. They’d gone through so much to get a good “newcomer” and created a scenario to stir things up, only to end up with nothing. The scenes they wanted to see? Not one of them happened.

“It’s fine,” the director said, “We still have four days to create some drama.”

“Good suggestion,” the director agreed, “If there’s no conflict, we’ll make one.”

There’s no argument too tough to start, and if there is, it just means they didn’t try hard enough.

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The director deliberately arranged for Lu Hui and Yan Zhao’s rooms to be next to each other. The soundproofing in the rural building wasn’t great, so even the slightest noise could be heard clearly.

Yan Zhao silently carried her large suitcase to the door of her room.

Lu Hui treated him like a temporary assistant for the show. Yan Zhao couldn’t expect that his small gesture of kindness would make her swoon.

She didn’t even say thank you, preparing to close the door when Yan Zhao’s hand stopped it, his veins visible in his wrist as he pushed the door back with force.

Lu Hui raised her eyes, ready to listen.

Yan Zhao said, “Get some rest.”

Lu Hui pushed his hand away and shut the door, signaling her response.

Yan Zhao stood rigidly at the door for a few minutes before turning around, and a strange figure entered his sight.

The woman had just finished showering, wearing a nightgown that clung to her slim waist and long legs, her fair skin glowing. The sheer nightgown wrapped her body in a way that hinted at her curves. Her face, flushed with warmth, seemed to be still carrying the steam from the bathroom, with water droplets hanging from her wet hair. She was like a lotus rising from the water—fresh and beautiful.

Ning Jiao smiled sweetly at him, her dimples shallow, her innocent and alluring look making her seem almost innocent, her voice soft and gentle. She asked, “Aren’t you asleep yet?”

Yan Zhao hadn’t seen such low-level flirting in years, with her pretending to be cute and pure—it was so fake it made him feel nauseous.

If it were in the past, Yan Zhao might have twisted this woman’s neck without even blinking.

Ning Jiao’s face reddened further, and she lowered her head, unable to resist looking up at him secretly, as if she was especially shy. She asked, “Can’t you sleep? Want to try some milk?”

She took two steps forward, the faint fragrance from her bath reaching his nose. She said, “I saw your photo online before, and you look even better in person. Your long hair is also really beautiful.”

Her words were indeed sweet, easily saying things to make people happy.

Ning Jiao, a rising star, had given gifts to everyone when she arrived last night, lowering her posture and maintaining a friendly demeanor. So, from the start of the recording this morning, the older celebrities treated her very well, while they were indifferent to Lu Hui.

The director was pleased with the subtle tension between Ning Jiao and Lu Hui, because if the show were too smooth and friendly, no one would watch it.

The audience loves drama—female stars fighting with each other, subtle jabs between male and female stars—the louder the clash, the higher the ratings.

The director said, “As you all know, the mission of our show is quite simple: to grow together with the kids.”

“This season, the parent-child pairings will not be decided by lottery, but through active matching.”

“In short, just tell me which kid you want to pair up with.”

After explaining the rules, the show officially began.

Lu Hui, not caring about face or manners, stepped forward when others hesitated, suggesting she choose first.

As soon as she spoke, she was targeted.

“Why don’t we let Ning Jiao choose first? She’s the new one, after all.”

When an older, respected celebrity spoke, a newcomer with any sense should yield. But Lu Hui wasn’t that kind of person. She bent down, poking half her body out and grinned, “Teacher Zhang, I’m also a newcomer, heh heh.”

Her laughter sounded a little annoying and irritating, making Zhang Yuanming’s face turn green. He hadn’t been embarrassed publicly in many years and wasn’t used to it.

Ning Jiao stepped forward to smooth things over, “How about we let the teachers go first?”

Zhang Yuanming relaxed his tense expression, “Alright, let’s go by the current standing order.”

It was decided.

Lu Hui ended up with one of the last picks, which wasn’t a good position for her.

When the matches were settled, the child she had to take care of was a spoiled, chubby little prince with a good family background. It was said that this little prince had been sent there for forced reform by his uncle to experience hardship. He had a terrible temper.

When the little prince saw Lu Hui walking over, his brows furrowed, and his expression was full of disdain. He threw the whale plush toy in his hand at her, “Go away!”

He was quite the brat.

The others stood by watching, eager for the drama.

Lu Hui crossed her arms and stared coldly at him.

The little prince wasn’t intimidated, treating her like a servant, bossing her around, “You, pick up my toy.”

Lu Hui smiled, thinking this little brat needed a good lesson.

The little prince shouted loudly, “Hurry up!”

Lu Hui muttered, “Fine,” but turned and walked to the kitchen. After a quick search, she couldn’t find anything suitable, so she grabbed a feather duster from the corner of the living room and slowly walked over to him.

The little prince puffed out his chest, “Don’t think you can scare me, I wasn’t raised like this!”

Lu Hui raised an eyebrow, “Pick it up yourself.”

The little prince ignored her, “No! You won’t dare hit me, hitting kids is illegal.”

“Is it?”

“You better watch out, my grandparents love me. If you hit me, you won’t get away with it.”

Lu Hui remained smiling, and then, in front of everyone, gave him a smack on the bottom.

The guests usually treated the kids gently on this show, taking the kind and understanding older sibling route. No one expected Lu Hui to hit a child right off the bat. The director was stunned.

The little prince was frozen for a few seconds, his face turning bright red with humiliation. He cried loudly, his voice hoarse, but Lu Hui didn’t go over to comfort him.

The little prince picked up the whale toy from the floor, ran to her, and threw it at her again in frustration, “I hate you!”

Then he cried and demanded to change partners.

His soft, round face was swollen from crying, a sight he had never encountered before.

Ning Jiao crouched down in front of him, offering him a lollipop, “Don’t cry, little one. Sister will give you some candy.”

The little prince stopped crying, but after a few seconds, he threw the candy on the ground with a glare, suddenly exuding a fierce attitude.

“Auntie, don’t try to please me.”

Lu Hui almost couldn’t contain her laughter. Ning Jiao was foolishly trying to set herself up as the caring, nurturing type. But with brats like these, and with scumbags like the men in her life, the same rule applied: don’t pamper or tolerate them, or it would only encourage their arrogance.

Ning Jiao swallowed a lump in her throat, almost choking. She forced a smile and carried a little girl in her arms as she walked off.

The little chubby boy, after being punished, cried himself to sleep. By noon, hunger woke him up. He sat on the bed calling out for a while, but no one came to help him put on clothes or shoes, so he was forced to do it himself. He made a mental note to get back at Lu Hui—when he went home, he would definitely complain to his grandparents and make sure she paid for it!

He waddled down the stairs, sniffing the air and smelling a rich, delicious scent. His stomach rumbled.

Lu Hui said, “Come and eat.”

The little chubby boy unwillingly climbed onto the chair, seeing the noodles in front of him. He turned his head in displeasure. “I don’t eat vegetables or eggs, take them away and make me something else.”

He was going to go on a hunger strike!

Come on, someone please comfort him.