The fact that she was badly beaten by Zhan Qingyue in the game didn’t leave her with any psychological trauma.

Instead, she began to feel dissatisfied with her current practice partner, Xiao Chi, who was as inexperienced as she was, and started pestering Zhan Qingyue to teach her.

However, she quickly regretted it.

Zhan Qingyue not only made her get familiar with her own profession but also with other professions and forced her to fight against different professions, leaving her feeling like crying every time she saw the game.

He showed no mercy at all.

Ning Qiuxiu complained, saying, “When you’re streaming, does your opponent let you win?”

“…” She wasn’t just streaming for fun; it was actually a competition.

The second episode of the Zhu Shu program was edited and ready for airing.

Ning Qiuxiu happened to be home, and when she saw the butler gathering everyone to watch it in the home theater, she finally understood the meaning of what the butler had promised last time when Lin Xitian and others came over and he suggested they watch in the home theater with a guaranteed top-notch experience.

Being watched by the entire family while they laughed at her and commented on her performance was certainly an immersive experience.

She couldn’t even bear to think about what she did in the last episode.

Seeing everyone excited, even Zhan Qingyue set aside his work to watch.

Ning Qiuxiu was smiling on the outside but was deeply embarrassed on the inside, wishing she could just turn off the power.

“Should we keep the bullet comments in simplified mode?” the technician asked before starting.

The butler looked at Zhan Qingyue, who glanced at Ning Qiuxiu’s mortified expression, and said, “No.”

Zhan Qingyue, who witnessed how rude some people could be in the bullet comments, didn’t want Ning Qiuxiu to see so many people criticizing and insulting her.

“Maybe… we should keep them on,” Ning Qiuxiu said weakly.

Having some bullet comments might help distract from the awkwardness.

Zhan Qingyue naturally didn’t argue with her.

This episode’s effect was much better than the last one, and the production team didn’t pair up people randomly.

Although there were still fans of Fang Jinran criticizing Ning Qiuxiu, whenever someone insulted her, there were also “Lawyer Letter Warning” comments.

Although somewhat sarcastic, it was much better than a screen full of insults.

As the show progressed, Ning Qiuxiu became more composed because she realized that she wasn’t the main embarrassment this time.

The real highlight was Song Chu, who, while milking cows, managed to create a hilarious segment.

The editing later was even more exaggerated, making everyone laugh uncontrollably.

Ning Qiuxiu’s performance of Huangmei Opera had impressed everyone.

Two days after watching the show, the fourth episode of the Bamboo Rat program began filming.

Due to the previous incident, there was some awkwardness between Ning Qiuxiu and Song Chu, even though they had resolved the issue.

When they met, they exchanged greetings and then each focused on their phones.

Today, Fang Jinran hadn’t arrived yet.

The director informed everyone that he seemed to be rushing from another engagement and had taken a half-day off, but would arrive in the afternoon.

Ning Qiuxiu felt a bit sympathetic towards him, considering his current situation.

In the second episode, due to Song Chu’s “outstanding performance” and the program team possibly thinking she had some special connection with their sponsor, she received more screen time.

Fang Jinran, on the other hand, remained silent and lacked humor, making him less outstanding and less talked about in the show.

His manager probably regretted getting him involved in such a low-profile, non-profitable reality show, as such situations usually didn’t occur.

However, the show had a popular guest star today, which didn’t affect the recording but actually enhanced it.

The guest was great at throwing and catching jokes, making the show even better.

In the evening, after a long day of recording, everyone chatted for a bit before going their separate ways to rest.

As Ning Qiuxiu was about to leave, Song Chu tugged at her sleeve.

Ning Qiuxiu looked at him with some confusion, and Song Chu mouthed to her, “Wait a moment.”

“…” Once everyone had left, Ning Qiuxiu sat back down and asked, “What’s up?”

Song Chu looked a bit awkward and asked, “Are you feeling better from your cold?”

“… It’s been almost a month, little brother.”

Song Chu realized his question seemed a bit silly, but he was stubborn and said, “I’m just asking out of concern. Is that a problem?”

“Sure, it’s so thoughtful of you. I’m glad,” Ning Qiuxiu teased him.

“… Hmph!” Song Chu turned his head proudly and said, “I have something to tell you.”

“What is it?”

“The director for the male lead in ‘My School Bully Girlfriend’ has picked me. We’ll make an official announcement in a few days.”

Ning Qiuxiu: “???”

This news was so… explosive that Ning Qiuxiu had trouble processing it.

She blinked and said, “Chu Chu, are you still not giving up on your mom?”

“Not at all!” Song Chu quickly denied, giving her a glare and saying, “Don’t get ahead of yourself!”

“…” Who’s making her get ahead of herself?

Ning Qiuxiu felt more wronged than Dou E.

He confessed his feelings and then asked her to be his on-screen partner, and now he blames her for being self-important!

She felt like kicking him!

Moreover, she teased him as “Kid” every day and thought of him as a son, so having to act as a couple…

She was afraid she might end up looking too motherly.

And if Zhan Qingyue found out he was cast as the male lead, it would probably be quite the show.

“So,” Ning Qiuxiu changed the subject and asked, “how did you end up wanting to play this role?”

Actually, Song Chu had professional training and good acting skills, but he wasn’t very famous.

If Ning Qiuxiu was at level 18, he was at level 28.

Song Chu looked proud: “Because I have connections!”

“???” As expected from her friend, being proud of using connections.

“I’m going back to take over the family business,” Song Chu continued, “I’ve realized that without money, you can’t even protect the ones you care about, so there’s no need to be at odds with money.”

Ning Qiuxiu deeply agreed with this.

After experiencing several worlds, her only conclusion was: Money is all-powerful.

“So, after taking over the family business, can you still act?”

Song Chu looked at her strangely: “Why not?”

“… Don’t you need to learn how to manage things?” Ning Qiuxiu was surprised; this wasn’t what she had expected.

“My dad can still hold on for 10 or 20 years. Why should I rush?” Song Chu replied.

“… Goodbye then.”

At this moment, Ning Qiuxiu’s phone beeped with a new WeChat message.

It was from Zhan Qingyue.

【Black-hearted Onion: Call me when you’re done with training.】

Ning Qiuxiu: “…”

It seemed that Zhan Qingyue’s old eSports dreams were reignited.

He was now more enthusiastic about training than she was.

He made her do military-style training for 2-3 hours every night, unless she was out of town for work or working late.

He didn’t miss a day, rain or shine, and it was exhausting.

Ning Qiuxiu said, “Alright, I’m done chatting with you. I need to go for my devilish training. See you tomorrow!”

Although she was reluctant about the training, playing with Zhan Qingyue was enjoyable.

The experience was different from their real-life interactions—novel and subtle.

Watching their characters interact in the game made her smile goofily, and even getting beaten in the game felt oddly satisfying.

Even the fierce female warrior character seemed more endearing.

“What devilish training?” Song Chu asked curiously.

“It’s a game I’m endorsing. I’ll be live-streaming it in a few days. I can’t afford to embarrass myself, so I have to go,” Ning Qiuxiu explained.

“Wait!” Song Chu stopped her, “What game? I’m a pro at games. I’ll come and help you.”

Ning Qiuxiu was now wary of the term “professional.” To avoid being arranged by both Zhan Qingyue and then Song Chu, she pretended not to hear and said, “Oh, what? The wind is too loud; I can’t hear you. I’m leaving now. See you, and you should rest early too.”

Song Chu: “…”

Ning Qiuxiu returned to her room and started up the game on her laptop.

Since the game was a quick, casual type, it wasn’t very detailed and had a small client, so even a slightly better laptop could handle it smoothly.

Zhan Qingyue was already in the game, and Ning Qiuxiu sent him a team invitation.

Since he didn’t respond, she figured he might be offline and sent him a WeChat message saying she was online.

She then went to find his character in the game.

They usually stayed within a small area, so Ning Qiuxiu quickly located him.

However, she saw that he was surrounded by a character in the game’s only attractive fox girl class.

To cater to the tastes of wealthy players, the fox girl had fox ears and a tail, with a large chest and a curvy figure—extremely seductive.

The fox girl was flirting with Zhan Qingyue, and nearby chat messages kept popping up:

[Nearby] Xiao Fu Die Die: “Hey, your gear looks so shiny and cool~”

[Nearby] Xiao Fu Die Die: “Do you need a healer? Look at me, I have a big chest and will be your little healer~”

[Nearby] Xiao Fu Die Die: “Qaq, you’re ignoring me.”

Ning Qiuxiu: “……”

What’s going on here?

Fuming, Ning Qiuxiu immediately challenged the fox girl to a duel.

As a melee class, she wasn’t very strong in dealing damage, and since the fox girl was a healer, she felt a bit uneasy.

Seeing that Zhan Qingyue wasn’t paying attention to her, the fox girl, who thought Ning Qiuxiu was a low-level character, happily accepted the challenge.

However, Ning Qiuxiu quickly defeated her.

Wait?! Ning Qiuxiu was stunned by how easily she won. Was she really that strong?

[Nearby] Xiao Fu Die Die: “You’re so fierce~”

[Nearby] Gu Yuan: “… I’m actually a girl.”

And couldn’t she tell that the male warrior she was flirting with was called Chi Yu and that her name was Gu Yuan? The couple names were so obvious!

It wasn’t that Ning Qiuxiu and Zhan Qingyue chose couple names on purpose.

The game company provided them with these couple accounts, which were set up by their testing staff.

[Nearby] Xiao Fu Die Die: “Shameless, using good gear to bully people. Aren’t you embarrassed?”

Ning Qiuxiu: “……”

“… Your attitude changed so quickly,” the friend commented.

[Nearby] Pool Fish: “Your gear is better, but you still can’t win against her.”

Oh, Zhan Qingyue is back.

Ning Qiuxiu happily walked over to him and discarded the small butterfly emoji.

The game’s network protection made people bolder, and the more they interacted with her, the more excited she felt.

[Nearby] Little Butterfly: “Are you guys together?”

[Nearby] Pool Fish: “Spend less time gaming and more time studying. Natural shortcomings can be compensated for with effort.”

Ning Qiuxiu: “…”

Big shots, why do your insults feel so different from ours?

[Nearby] Little Butterfly: “Don’t think I’m afraid just because your gear is better. Don’t leave, I’ll get my friend to teach you a lesson!”

Ning Qiuxiu wasn’t interested in a “friend” battle, but it was too late.

Little Butterfly’s friend arrived quickly—a shiny archer with top-tier, high-spending gear in the game.

Though Ning Qiuxiu’s account was also high-level, it wasn’t as good as that.

[Nearby] Zone 3 Dragon Ao Tian: “Who’s bullying my dear? Come out and die!”

Ning Qiuxiu again: “…”

Dude, you might want to check if there’s a green tint above your head. Your dear was just trying to be my little bottle.

At this point, Ning Qiuxiu’s WeChat beeped with a voice message from Zhan Qingyue. She answered it.

“Don’t be afraid, fight him,” Zhan Qingyue said.

“But I can’t reach him; his gear is so much better,” Ning Qiuxiu, a melee fighter, said.

The archer, with long-range attacks and superior gear, could easily defeat her.

Zhan Qingyue encouraged her: “Trust me, you can beat him. If not, I’ll help you.”

Zhan Qingyue’s encouragement was so convincing that Ning Qiuxiu said, “…Alright, if I can’t win, you have to help me get revenge.”

Ning Qiuxiu accepted the PK challenge. Zhan Qingyue had trained her on how to fight archers, so she carefully followed his instructions: positioning, dodging skills, controlling, and output.

She discovered that the opponent’s reactions weren’t as quick or tricky as Zhan Qingyue’s.

Taking advantage of the opponent’s lack of ultimate skills, Ning Qiuxiu managed to defeat him.

“…Wow,” Ning Qiuxiu was astonished, “When did I become so strong?”

Zhan Qingyue chuckled, “After training you for so long, if you couldn’t beat him, I’d be a terrible teacher.”

qaq, has anyone told you how charming and handsome you are, Zhan Qingyue?

The opponent, unwilling to accept defeat, challenged her again and lost, then lost again.

After losing three times in a row and with more spectators watching, he eventually left in embarrassment.

More players started challenging Ning Qiuxiu.

Except for a few high-level players who had a natural advantage or were exceptionally skilled, she found she rarely lost!

Just after a week of training, Ning Qiuxiu felt like she was on fire, ready to show off her skills in the livestream and dominate.

However, the next day, while she was still recording a program, a topic quietly climbed to the trending searches:

#Fallacious Dominant Quixiu’s Girlfriend Power, Brutally Beating Up the Third Party#