After Transmigrating, I Joined a Dating Show with the Fake Heiress Actress - Chapter 18

Bai Man glanced around but saw nothing Su Qingwan had mentioned.

“It’s flying toward me!” Su Qingwan clung to Bai Man’s arm, burying her face as if hiding would ward off the danger.

Her fear made Bai Man wary. She scanned the surroundings carefully, but aside from a few mosquitoes, there was nothing else.

“Is it gone? Did it float away?” Su Qingwan’s voice trembled, torn between wanting to look and being too afraid. Her grip on Bai Man’s arm tightened.

Sensing something was wrong, Bai Man gently pushed Su Qingwan’s head back. She saw tears glistening in Su Qingwan’s eyes.

Just then, a voice called from the cabin: “Song Jie, why do you have wings?”

Why is everyone talking nonsense?

Bai Man whirled around. Three of the guests who had been sitting together had risen. They were either grinning foolishly or waving their arms wildly as they ran around the courtyard. The remaining guests, startled by the trio’s behavior, stood frozen in place.

Something was wrong.

As the realization struck her, Bai Man tried to stand, but Yu Meng rushed over, her eyes widening at Su Qingwan clinging to Bai Man’s arm. “What’s wrong with her?”

Bai Man tried to pull her hand away, but Su Qingwan refused to let go. “She’s probably been poisoned. Go tell the Director.”

Yu Meng, who had always cautioned herself to remain calm and avoid impulsive actions, frowned at the words. “Are you sure?”

“I can’t think of any other reason for now,” Bai Man replied. Seeing Yu Meng still frozen, she tried again to withdraw her hand.

The movement startled Su Qingwan, who began to tremble visibly. “Don’t hate me,” she pleaded. “I didn’t want this. I didn’t want this.”

“Take care of her,” Yu Meng said, already striding away. “I’ll go inform the Director and ask Cidan if there’s any way to help.” She broke into a run as she returned to the cabin.

Bai Man let out a small sigh of relief. Sensing Su Qingwan’s guilt and fear, she coaxed, “No one hates you. Those things you mentioned are gone now. I’ll take you to join the others.”

Su Qingwan slowly lifted her head, her eyes hazy, tears still clinging to her pale, delicate face. “Really?”

She shook her head vehemently. “No, you hate me. You still hate me.”

Bai Man frowned, continuing to soothe her. “I don’t hate you. I don’t hate you at all.”

Su Qingwan shook her head again. “No, Bai Man hates me. She hates me for stealing her life.” She crouched down in despair. “I’m a thief. I stole eighteen years of her life. She should hate me.”

Bai Man crouched down beside her. “It’s not your fault. She doesn’t truly hate you. She’s just—”

Before she could finish, Su Qingwan suddenly stood up and ran off before Bai Man could react.

Knowing Su Qingwan wasn’t thinking clearly, Bai Man hurried after her, watching helplessly as Su Qingwan ran to Yu Meng’s side. She neither cried nor made a scene, but moved step-for-step with Yu Meng, like a frightened child clinging to her parent.

Just hours earlier, Yu Meng would have reveled in this display of dependence. But now, she was too preoccupied with her own anxieties. On the way back to the cabin, she had been consumed by fear, convinced the mushrooms she’d gathered were to blame.

Only when Cidan assured her he had removed the poisonous ones did her anxiety ease slightly.

He then inspected the leftover stew and discovered the mushrooms hadn’t been cooked thoroughly. Undercooked mushrooms retain a mild toxicity, though not enough to be fatal.

Seeing Bai Man, Yu Meng spoke directly. “Cidan said we can induce vomiting to detoxify. The other guests who weren’t poisoned have already started. If you don’t want to end up like them, you should hurry too.”

Bai Man turned her gaze to Su Qingwan, said nothing, and joined the group inducing vomiting.

The cameraman, recognizing the unpleasantness of the scene, didn’t follow.

Livestream Chat:

This livestream is getting a bit… pungent. Are they all going to be okay?

Speaking from experience, they’ll be fine. Even without inducing vomiting, a good night’s sleep will clear it up by morning.

This dating show is something else. Making the guests survive in the wilderness is one thing, but food poisoning everyone at dinner?

When it really matters, you can always count on my Mengmeng! Mengmeng, I’ll always love you!

The commenter above needs to get a grip. If Bai Man hadn’t suggested it, and Cidan hadn’t locked himself in his room after eating, everyone would have been sick.

Here’s a question: why did some people get sick from the same dish while others didn’t?

The onset time varies for everyone. You’re not suggesting this is all staged, are you?

Has anyone else noticed that Bai Man and Yu Meng aren’t fighting anymore? They’re actually working together!

Are you dense? When lives are at stake, everyone knows what’s important.

As viewers in the live stream shared their opinions and observations, Bai Man finished inducing vomiting and returned to Yu Meng’s side. “I’ll keep an eye on things here. You go first.”

Yu Meng nodded, pressing her lips together, and turned to Su Qingwan. “Qingwan, wait for me here. I’ll be back soon.”

Su Qingwan shook her head firmly. “I want to go with you.” When she saw Bai Man, she shrank back, hiding completely behind Yu Meng before whimpering, “I’m scared of her. She’ll bully me.”

Even knowing Su Qingwan wasn’t thinking clearly, Bai Man felt a surge of irritation. When have I ever bullied her?

Yu Meng suppressed a smile and stopped trying to persuade Su Qingwan, taking her along to induce vomiting.

Bai Man watched Yu Meng’s smile and sudden change in strategy, her lips curving slightly. So, she’s switching tactics now?

This could get interesting.

Once the guests who had induced vomiting themselves returned, they discussed how to help the others who were already showing symptoms.

Yu Meng and Bai Man were assigned to Su Qingwan. Sensing danger, Su Qingwan resisted fiercely. Given her fear of Bai Man, Bai Man was tasked with monitoring Su Qingwan’s movements, while Yu Meng would induce vomiting by gagging her.

Inducing vomiting on herself hadn’t been so bad, but the thought of doing it to someone else left Yu Meng with a complicated expression.

Suppressing her discomfort, Yu Meng carefully reached into Su Qingwan’s mouth. Before her fingers could reach the throat, Su Qingwan bit down hard.

Yu Meng recoiled in pain, turning to Bai Man. “Maybe you should take over?”

Bai Man nodded. Seeing Su Qingwan try to retreat, she barked, “Stand still!”

Su Qingwan immediately froze, her eyes brimming with tears.

Bai Man shifted her gaze slightly, softening her tone. “Open your mouth.”

Su Qingwan pressed her lips tightly together, refusing to comply. But when she saw Bai Man’s stern expression, she reluctantly opened her mouth, whimpering.

Bai Man seized the opportunity, inserting her hand into Su Qingwan’s mouth. “No biting,” she warned.

The warning worked. Bai Man successfully reached Su Qingwan’s throat, triggering an immediate urge to vomit.

To avoid being splattered, Bai Man swiftly dodged aside.

It took two more attempts before Su Qingwan finally emptied her stomach.

When Su Qingwan regained consciousness, her throat felt raw and burning. The night wind carried the acrid stench of vomit, and she instinctively covered her nose, glancing at Bai Man’s furrowed brow. “What happened?”

Yu Meng answered, “You were poisoned. There’s water on the table—go drink some.”

Su Qingwan’s eyes widened. “Poisoned?” She turned to Bai Man. “Then you two…”

Yu Meng cleared her throat. “Your symptoms are manifesting early.”

Bai Man hummed in acknowledgment, brushed past Su Qingwan, and headed toward the courtyard. Remembering Yu Meng was still there, she turned back to Su Qingwan. “You should rest now.”

Su Qingwan murmured, “Oh,” and finally took a step. Glancing at the tooth marks on Yu Meng’s fingers, she realized she might have caused them. “I’ll go get a bandage.”

“I can manage myself. You’re not looking well,” Yu Meng glanced at Bai Man. “Listen to Bai Man and go rest.”

“But—”

Yu Meng cut her off. “I’m not that delicate. Don’t worry.”

Hearing this, Su Qingwan finally relented, drooping her head as she retreated to her tent.

Sensing her concern, Bai Man spoke up. “You rest first. I’ll take a bandage to her.”

“You don’t look well either.”

“It’s just a bandage. It’s no trouble at all.” With that, Bai Man ducked into her tent, retrieved the unused bandages she’d gotten from the production crew earlier, and emerged.

By the time she stepped out, Yu Meng had already returned. Her gaze landed on the bandages in Bai Man’s hand, and she chuckled softly. In the blink of an eye, her expression turned serious. “Bai Man, sometimes I really can’t understand you.”

To prevent the cold wind from seeping into the tent, Bai Man bent down to zip up the entrance a bit before straightening up to meet Yu Meng’s gaze. “Instead of trying to figure me out, why don’t you focus on yourself?”

Sensing the hidden meaning in her words, Yu Meng took two steps forward. “What do you mean by that?”

Bai Man remained silent, stopping in front of Yu Meng and offering her the torn-open bandage. “Do you want to do it yourself, or should I?”

Yu Meng’s refusal died on her lips when she saw Bai Man’s expressionless face. She extended her bitten finger. “You do it.”

Bai Man didn’t object, aiming the bandage precisely over the bite mark.

The viewers in the live stream erupted into a frenzy at this scene.

Am I seeing things? Bai Man is putting a bandage on Yu Meng?

Ah… I’m so curious about what Bai Man meant by that.

I’m genuinely worried Bai Man might have tampered with the bandage.

Upstairs, are you paranoid? Do you really think Bai Man would do something so stupid?

I can’t figure Bai Man out. If she likes Su Qingwan, her eyes don’t show it. But if she doesn’t like Su Qingwan, why does she always protect her?

This proves it: Bai Man is a strange creature.

After applying a bandage to Yu Meng’s cut, Bai Man didn’t even glance at her before turning and entering the tent.

The night’s commotion had kept everyone up late.

Director Xu, anxious about potential complications, paced outside the tents all night. Only when his assistant confirmed that the male guests were mostly unharmed did he finally breathe a sigh of relief.

After this incident, he dared not let the guests cook for themselves again. He immediately instructed Cidan and Axida to prepare porridge early in the morning so everyone would have something to eat upon waking.

Bai Man woke up at exactly ten o’clock. Before leaving her tent, she glanced at Su Qingwan’s room to confirm there was no movement before stepping outside.

Hearing sounds from the cabin, she quickened her pace. When she arrived, everyone was already seated at the table, enjoying the porridge.

Seeing her, Su Qingwan touched the bowl of porridge and stood up. “The temperature is perfect,” she said.

Through Yin Xiao, Su Qingwan had learned that Bai Man was the first to notice something was wrong, suspecting they had been poisoned. If not for her quick action in inducing vomiting, they might all have ended up in the hospital.

In that moment, Su Qingwan felt a sudden clarity. Bai Man wasn’t as malicious as she had imagined.

She vaguely remembered Bai Man saying she didn’t dislike or hate her. Though the words might have been meant to placate her, Su Qingwan couldn’t help but feel a flicker of hope.

Bai Man walked over and sat beside Su Qingwan, lifting the bowl of congee to take a sip.

The congee was thick and fragrant, its rich rice aroma drawing her back for another spoonful, and then another.

Seeing the bowl emptied, Su Qingwan asked, “There’s more in the pot. Would you like some?”

Bai Man shook her head. “No, I’m full.”

Before Su Qingwan could respond, Director Xu’s voice cut through the air. “Since everyone seems to be doing better, let’s resume our mission.”

Director Xu made a reassuring gesture. “Today’s task is simple. Axida and Cidan will be our guides, leading us to explore the mountain scenery.”

Liu Heng eyed him skeptically. “Is it really that simple?”

Director Xu’s gaze flickered. “Of, of course.”