After Transmigrating, I Joined a Dating Show with the Fake Heiress Actress - Chapter 27

Those cloud-soft, warm lips, combined with the faint, moist breath that escaped them, instantly stole all of Bai Man’s reason. A voice deep within her screamed: Kiss her.

Su Qingwan’s thoughts were equally stolen. Her eyes widened, every sense heightened. She could clearly feel Bai Man’s eyelids fluttering. The surrounding clamor seemed to freeze, leaving only the frantic thumping of her own heart pounding in her ears, as if it would burst from her chest.

Liu Heng, who had been leading Su Qingwan by the hand, turned to see the two kissing. He gasped, covering his mouth with both fists, his eyes wide as copper bells, filled with nothing but excitement.

The weight of countless gazes snapped Bai Man back to reality. She immediately turned her head away, Su Qingwan’s lips following her movement. The lingering touch sent her heart into turmoil, leaving her unable to calm down for a long time.

If the circumstances were different, she thought, I would make this person pay for repeatedly disrupting my composure.

Su Qingwan’s rationality returned the moment her lips brushed Bai Man’s hair. She flusteredly stumbled back a step, her peripheral vision darting to the surrounding figures. She tried to appear composed, but the visible flush on her cheeks betrayed her embarrassment and disarray.

This is too awkward.

If she could, she’d dig a hole right there and bury herself in it.

In the live stream chat:

Ah… my god, what did I just witness? Su Qingwan kissed Bai Man! And it was such a romantic and tender eye kiss!

It’s over. Wanwan’s reaction says it all—she’s completely fallen for Bai Man.

Am I the only one who noticed Bai Man was flustered too? Given her usual composure on the show, she should have immediately turned away or stepped back. But she didn’t. She was probably completely stunned by the kiss.

Liu Heng, I forgive your clumsiness now. I wouldn’t mind seeing more of your impulsive actions in the future.

No escaping now! Enemies have truly become lovers!

Bai Man, you’re too soft! Pin her down and kiss her fiercely! Make Su Qingwan realize she can’t take advantage of you so easily!

The teasing words on Liu Heng’s lips vanished as he met Bai Man’s icy glare. He swallowed them down quickly, his feet scuttling crab-like to Song Jie’s side as he tiptoed over to arrange the fruit platter.

“Go collect your money. Don’t just stand there getting in the way,” Song Jie said dismissively.

“But—”

Song Jie tugged Liu Heng closer and lowered his voice. “Act like nothing happened, and you’ll be safe.”

Liu Heng remained skeptical, glancing nervously at Bai Man before slowly shuffling toward the cash register. When he confirmed that Bai Man had indeed stopped watching him, as Song Jie had said, he finally let out a sigh of relief.

Nearby tourists who had witnessed the exchange merely whispered a few words before collecting their drinks and leaving.

Twenty meters away, screams of excitement erupted.

A short-haired girl was hitting every piece of fruit with her rings. In no time, she had claimed half of the 54 fruits Yu Meng had placed on the table.

Normally, she wouldn’t have batted an eye even if all twenty-plus fruits were taken. But this was during a mission.

Shangguan Yu glanced at Yu Meng sitting beside her, finally unable to contain herself. “Mengmeng, if this keeps up, she’ll take all our fruits!”

Yu Meng was equally anxious, but she didn’t dare intervene. Not only would it alienate potential players, but she dreaded the backlash from online viewers if she actually stopped Bai Man.

Seeing Yu Meng’s silence, Shangguan Yu reluctantly shifted her gaze, propping her chin on one hand as she pondered a solution.

When she glanced up and saw the long queue forming at Bai Man’s station, her fists clenched involuntarily. If they succeeded, they’d definitely mock her relentlessly.

No, I can’t let them win.

“Mengmeng, I’m going to the restroom. Can you watch the booth for a bit?” With that, she rose and slipped through the crowd.

She deliberately glanced back at the cameraman’s position to confirm he wasn’t following, then secretly exhaled in relief.

Hengjie Garment Factory.

Wu Xi, monitoring the computer, slammed her hand on the table in anger when she saw trolls appearing in the live stream’s comment section. The sudden noise startled Zhao Xinghui, who was live-streaming, causing him to pause and glance over.

Realizing what was happening, Zhao Xinghui immediately leaned closer to his phone to read the disparaging comments about their clothing. Just as he was about to respond, a series of new comments began flooding the screen:

Where did these trolls come from? I received my order, and the quality is impeccable—I can hardly believe I only paid a little over 200 yuan for it!

I got mine too! I was worried about the down jacket’s quality at first, even though it was cheap, but when I held it in my hands, I realized it was no worse than the 1,000+ yuan down jacket my spendthrift daughter bought!

I came here specifically to snag a down jacket today. With this price and quality, not buying several to stock up would be a loss!

I’m stocking up too! These styles will stay timeless for years.

Just joined and already seeing trolls? You must be from…

Finally, someone with a brain! These petty haters are so narrow-minded.

Zhao Xinghui understood the earlier comments, but the later ones left him puzzled.

If Zhao Xinghui didn’t understand, Wu Xi certainly wouldn’t either. She grabbed someone to cover for her and left.

Xu Mengjie exclaimed, “You mean Manman offended someone on the Production Team, and they’re sabotaging our livestream by spreading false rumors about the quality of our clothes?”

Wu Xi nodded vigorously. “Exactly! We can’t let that spoiled Little Princess get away with this. I have to tell Sister Man right away—she’ll know what to do.”

Xu Mengjie quickly grabbed her hand. “Wait! Don’t tell Manman yet. Didn’t you say some of her fans might have stumbled upon the stream? Maybe they’ll give up if their plan fails.”

Bai Shanheng stroked his chin and nodded. “Let’s observe the situation first. Right now, it’s all just speculation on our part. We have no concrete evidence.”

Wu Xi puffed up like a pufferfish, stomped her foot, and stormed off.

Back at her computer, she opened Bai Man’s Weibo account. The number of followers had suddenly surged from around twenty thousand to over two hundred thousand. Her hands trembled uncontrollably—Sister Man was about to become famous!

“So, there’s still hope for their clothing business, right?”

Although the trolls never stopped their attacks, the livestream had gone relatively smoothly overall, with sales reaching over 8,000 items.

Zhao Xinghui and Wu Xi estimated that nearly half of their seasonal clothing had already been sold, and the remaining stock of down jackets was also dwindling. If they could just hold out for another week, their inventory should be almost completely cleared.

The combined follower count across their three accounts had now surpassed 200,000—a twentyfold increase from when they bought them. With continued growth, they should be able to break 400,000 followers. At that point, selling the accounts could net them a substantial profit.

In that moment, Wu Xi realized Bai Man was truly a business genius. After a quick calculation, she estimated that if all three accounts reached 400,000 followers, they could earn close to a million yuan just from selling them, which would partially offset their losses.

Even if they didn’t sell, these three accounts could serve as their fallback plan.

Spring City.

Bai Man’s stall was surrounded by a crowd, leaving no room to move.

An auntie stood with one hand on her hip, “My daughter got food poisoning from your fruit yogurt! She’s been vomiting and having diarrhea!” She pointed at the juicer on the counter. “You’re operating without a license! If you don’t give me a satisfactory explanation today, I’ll sue you!”

Before they could respond, the auntie spat on the ground. “Pah! So-called celebrities! You’re just a bunch of shameless, immoral stars!”

Liu Heng and Zhang Jiale moved to confront her, but Song Jie quickly stopped them, turning to Bai Man to see how she would handle the situation.

Su Qingwan, equally anxious, instinctively looked at Bai Man. “What do we do?”

Bai Man gave her a reassuring glance and stepped forward. “We admit we don’t have an operating license, but we guarantee that both our production process and ingredients are clean and hygienic. If you don’t believe us, you can watch the video. There’s no need to worry about us faking anything—we livestream everything, recording every detail.”

Auntie straightened her back, her voice ringing with indignation. “After all this talk, you still refuse to take responsibility!” She glared at Bai Man, her teeth clenched. “Fine! If you won’t take responsibility, I’ll find someone who will listen to reason!”

Bai Man remained unfazed. “Then I’ll accompany you. I’d like to see the patient myself.” She turned to the photographer standing under the eaves, tripod in hand. “From that angle, you can capture the face of every tourist.” The implication was clear: if your daughter truly came to buy a drink, there would be a record.

Auntie’s shrewd eyes darted around twice before she abruptly plopped down on the ground, kicking her legs and wailing, “My poor daughter! How could you be so unlucky? Just trying to enjoy a trip and buy a drink, and you run into these unscrupulous vendors!” She raised her voice, addressing the gathering crowd of tourists. “See for yourselves! They’re hiding behind their celebrity status to avoid taking responsibility. Offering to ‘accompany me’ is just a thinly veiled attempt to bribe me and protect their precious star image!”

Zhang Jiale finally snapped, shaking off Song Jie’s hand and stepping forward. “What do you mean we don’t want to take responsibility? We do want to! But have you even given us the chance? You said your daughter was in the hospital and couldn’t come here,” he nodded. “Fine, we understand. You said you wanted to find someone reasonable to talk to, and we offered to accompany you. Then you accused us of trying to bribe you.”

He took a breath. “Auntie, if you want money, just say so. Why make such a fuss?”

The surrounding tourists agreed with Zhang Jiale, their voices overlapping.

“Something’s fishy here. I only came over because there was a crowd. So many people bought food earlier without any problems. How come only this auntie’s daughter got sick?”

“Demanding responsibility right away? They haven’t even seen the patient or figured out what happened. What responsibility? What if it’s a scam? We’d just be suckers.”

“I bought their juice yesterday and it was fine.”

“This is clearly a scam. All this talk about suing and calling the police—if they were serious, they wouldn’t back down. What else could it be?”

The auntie ignored the murmurs around her, throwing her head back and wailing at the top of her lungs, “This is outrageous! My poor daughter! Why did you have to suffer like this…?”

Director Xu, hearing the commotion, rushed over as quickly as possible. After struggling through the crowd for what felt like an eternity, he finally reached the auntie. “Madam, please get up,” he said, extending a hand to help her. “If you want someone to take responsibility,” he pointed to himself, “I’m the person in charge. You can speak to me directly. I was just about to check on the patient myself. Could you show me the way?”

The auntie dodged Director Xu’s outstretched hand. “Take you where? To upset my daughter even more? She’s already in so much pain. If something happens to her because of you, will you take full responsibility?”

Director Xu hesitated. He couldn’t make such a promise lightly.

“I will,” Bai Man interjected. By now, she was certain this was a case of attempted extortion. The motive behind the woman’s unreasonable behavior remained unclear.

Her words stunned not only Director Xu but also Su Qingwan and the other guests present. After all, matters of health and well-being were notoriously difficult to resolve definitively.

The auntie hadn’t expected Bai Man to be so decisive and froze in place for a moment.

“Everyone here, including the viewers watching the livestream, has heard this,” Bai Man said, extending her hand to the auntie. “You don’t need to worry about me regretting this.”

The auntie snapped out of her daze and slapped Bai Man’s hand away with a sharp crack that Su Qingwan, standing several people away, could clearly hear.

Bai Man withdrew her hand, her eyes growing colder. “Since you don’t trust us,” she turned to Director Xu, “call the police.” Her gaze swept over the auntie, whose eyes flickered with panic. “If this is slander, I’ll pursue this to the end.”

Director Xu understood immediately. He sighed, pulled out his phone, and began tapping the screen.

The auntie could no longer remain seated. She huffed angrily and scrambled to her feet. “I… I’m going to check on my daughter. And later, I’ll bring the police back here myself. You won’t get away with this!” She pointed at the surrounding people. “All of you just keep buying! You deserve whatever happens to you!”

Blocked by the crowd, she cursed and shoved her way through. “What are you staring at? Move aside! I need to see my daughter!”

The woman, shoved by Auntie, stumbled to regain her balance and retorted, “If your daughter really has a stomachache, you should be at her bedside, not here causing a scene. It’s all a fake act. Now that you’ve been exposed, you’re making excuses to check on her. I bet you’re just trying to sneak away.”

Auntie, feeling exposed, glared at the woman, spat out a curse, and stormed off.

Even after Auntie left, the crowd of tourists remained, though they showed no immediate interest in buying drinks.

Bai Man sensed their hesitation. Turning to Song Jie, she said, “I’m a bit thirsty. Could I have a yogurt smoothie?”

Liu Heng and Zhang Jiale, though unsure of her plan, also ordered two smoothies. They hadn’t had a drop of water since setting up their stall.

Song Jie worked quickly, handing Bai Man her smoothie and then offering one to Su Qingwan as well.

Su Qingwan, understanding Bai Man’s intention, stood to the side, leisurely sipping her drink.

Director Xu, seeing them enjoying their drinks, ordered one for himself—without paying.

The tourists, who had been watching cautiously, noticed the group drinking freely and began to relax. Their doubts eased, they spontaneously formed a line to order drinks.

Seeing this, Su Qingwan’s anxiety finally dissipated. Everyone was brimming with confidence about the day. If this incident were to undermine their efforts, their enthusiasm would be severely dampened.

The incident had already washed away her initial nervousness and shyness. She set down her cup and noticed the redness on Bai Man’s hand. “That must hurt,” she said, quickly rising. “I’ll get some ice for you.”

Bai Man immediately protested, “No need, it doesn’t hurt.” With that, she moved to Song Jie’s side and relieved Zhang Jiale.

Judging by the Auntie’s reaction, her goal wasn’t to demand compensation but to discourage tourists and disrupt their enjoyment.

Their stall wasn’t harming the interests of nearby vendors, except for those afraid of competition.

Twenty meters away, Shangguan Yu had been discreetly observing the situation. She couldn’t understand why people were still willing to buy their drinks after such a commotion.

Yu Meng, who knew Shangguan Yu well, was now certain that Shangguan Yu was behind the incident.

Realizing Shangguan Yu had acted out of concern for her, Yu Meng decided to let it go.

The short-haired girl who had been so skilled at ring toss earlier, realizing she had won far more fruit than she could carry, left with her spoils without using all fifty rings.

Now, she had replenished the fruit in the basket. Although the number of visitors trying their luck remained roughly the same as before, combining the thirty fruits lost earlier, they were still far short of the task’s requirement.

They needed to think of another strategy.

It was a cloudy day, and darkness fell earlier than on clear days. As night descended, the street emptied of people.

Zhang Jiale stretched, glanced at the empty basin on the table, and, as if struck by an idea, immediately turned to Liu Heng. “How did we do today? How much did we sell?”

Liu Heng scratched his head, looking slightly embarrassed. “I… I haven’t had time to calculate it yet.”

Song Jie chimed in, “Rough estimate?”

Hearing this, Zhang Jiale’s fatigue vanished instantly, and he excitedly slammed his elbow on the table. “That’s fantastic!”

“Take the remaining supplies back first,” Bai Man instructed. “I’ll clean up here and join you shortly.”

Su Qingwan borrowed two brooms from the shop owner and began clearing the mess alongside Bai Man.

Livestream Chat:

Just for this, I’m going to follow Bai Man’s Weibo. She’s so conscientious!

What do you mean? She came back yesterday to clean up the trash before leaving, unlike Yu Meng and her group who just dusted themselves off and left.

Exactly! Details reveal character.

Did anyone else find that Auntie who caused the scene today a bit odd? I have a feeling someone orchestrated it.

Speaking of that, it really pissed me off! I finally managed to find Bai Man’s livestream account, only to see trolls spewing nonsense about the poor quality of her clothes. A bunch of buyers came out to defend her, but the trolls kept coming in waves, turning the whole chat into a toxic mess.

It’s definitely the Little Princess of the conglomerate behind this. Whether it’s the trolls in Bai Man’s livestream or the Auntie who made a scene, they’re all connected to her.

I agree. I saw the Little Princess leave for at least half an hour before reappearing on camera. She probably used that time to find someone to cause trouble.

If that’s the case, it’s truly despicable. If you lose, just admit defeat! What’s the point of scheming behind the scenes?

What do you think? She’s just trying to save face.

Does Bai Man know the Little Princess was behind it?

By the time Bai Man and Su Qingwan had finished tidying up, it was completely dark. The daytime bustle had faded into silence, and the streetlights cast a dim yellow glow, gradually lengthening their shadows.

As they turned into a narrow alley, the streetlights here were dimmer than before, shifting their shadows from the ground onto the walls on either side.

A gentle breeze rustled through, lifting Su Qingwan’s stray hairs. As she brushed them aside, she suddenly noticed a strange bulge in Bai Man’s shadow.

Was that her elbow?

To test her theory, she raised her hand slightly. Sure enough, her hand appeared in Bai Man’s shadow.

She raised her other hand, forming a “2” with both hands. Bai Man’s shadow now sported two horn-like protrusions.

A ragdoll cat with horns—how adorable!

Just as she was about to shape her hands into a snake, Bai Man suddenly turned around. “Having fun?”

Su Qingwan avoided Bai Man’s gaze, feigning ignorance. “What?”

“Giving me rabbit ears.”

Su Qingwan hadn’t expected Bai Man to notice her little gesture, and she flushed with embarrassment and panic. “I… I just wanted to try it. If you don’t like it, I won’t do it again.”

Bai Man felt a pang of helplessness. Su Qingwan’s reaction made her feel like she was bullying her.

“I’m not scolding you. Why are you so flustered?” She took Su Qingwan’s hand and continued walking.

Su Qingwan lowered her gaze to their clasped hands, a sweet warmth spreading through her heart. A faint smile curved her lips.

Unbeknownst to her, Bai Man noticed her reaction, and a subtle smile tugged at her own lips.

For the first time, the thought flickered through her mind: Staying here might not be so bad after all.

System 388: Host, is this a date? A stroll through a narrow alley, illuminated by streetlights… Host, you truly understand romance.

Bai Man’s thoughts were interrupted by System 388’s voice. She asked mentally, What’s the situation with the original host now?

System 388: Host, you’re asking the impossible! I’m just an independent system, only capable of detecting other systems within the same base station. But don’t worry, Host. Since the original host has already bonded with the Career Woman System, she’ll definitely follow the system’s assigned tasks.

System 388: (Whispering) Let me tell you a secret: the Career Woman System is super domineering! If the Host doesn’t follow its missions, they’ll face severe penalties. Unlike me, who’s so gentle? But Host, you have no sense of chivalry! You’re always threatening to cripple people at the slightest provocation!

Though Bai Man didn’t get a direct answer, she deduced from System 388’s words that the original Host wouldn’t have been intimidated by those people’s tactics. Even if she were afraid, her inherent nature, as dictated by the System, would have prevented her from compromising.

Zhang Jiale, who had just reached the doorway, turned to see Bai Man and Su Qingwan walking hand-in-hand toward him. He immediately raised his hand to cover his face and retreated quickly before they could spot him, successfully reaching the courtyard center. He glared at Liu Heng.

Liu Heng feigned innocence. “What’s wrong? I asked you to pick up two girls, and you’re acting like it’s the end of the world.”

Zhang Jiale made a shushing gesture. “Can you keep it down?” He jerked his chin toward the door. “Go check it out yourself—quietly.”

Liu Heng smelled gossip in the air. Ignoring Song Jie’s warning glances, he rushed to the doorway. As he turned, he found Bai Man staring at him with a blank expression.

“Where am I?” Liu Heng feigned ignorance, scratching his head and trying to slip away. “Song Jie, what was I supposed to be doing?”

Su Qingwan saw through his act immediately. She knew they had noticed her holding hands with Bai Man.

Her cheeks flushed slightly, and a hint of embarrassment crept into her expression.

Seeing this, Bai Man hesitated, unsure what to say. Su Qingwan was so easily flustered, blushing at the slightest provocation.

Yet the two rosy blushes on Su Qingwan’s cheeks only enhanced her allure, revealing a hint of the alluring and delicate charm that she usually kept hidden, making her even more captivating.

Song Jie cleared his throat. “Let’s eat first. After we finish, I’ll announce today’s results.”

Zhang Jiale waved his hand dismissively. “I’m full from the fruit salad. Just tell us the results now.” He pulled out a chair and sat down.

Liu Yue and Wen Yi also gathered around, waiting for Song Jie’s answer.

“Today, we sold 550 servings, earning a profit of 8,500 yuan after deducting costs. We only need to sell 1,500 more to complete our mission.”

Zhang Jiale and Liu Heng groaned in unison. “How could this happen?”

Liu Heng clenched his fist in anger. “If it weren’t for that auntie causing trouble, we would have completed our mission today.”

The outcome was roughly as Bai Man had predicted. Though some tourists still came despite the auntie’s commotion, their numbers dwindled compared to the initial rush, influenced by the rumors spread by nearby vendors.

“Director, can we change locations tomorrow?” Zhang Jiale asked Director Xu humbly, hoping for his approval. “I heard the scenery at Wetland Park is stunning. We were planning to finish our mission today and visit there tomorrow.”

Director Xu, still shaken by the day’s events, pondered for a moment. “It’s not impossible, but you’ll have to arrange transportation for your stall equipment yourselves.”

Before Zhang Jiale could respond, Liu Heng immediately declared, “No problem.”

After Director Xu left, Bai Man suggested, “Tomorrow, let’s prepare the ingredients and let the tourists DIY their fruit cups.”

Su Qingwan considered the idea and nodded. “I think that’s a good approach. People are generally quite conscientious these days. The cups we provide are only so big, limiting the amount of fruit they can hold. Still, just to be safe, we should prepare a little extra fruit.”

Liu Heng slapped his thigh. “Let’s do it! Making money while having fun—this is the life!”

With the plan settled, everyone dragged their weary bodies back to their rooms.

Bai Man retrieved her phone from her assistant. As soon as she turned it on, several messages from Wu Xi popped up.

Wu Xi: Sister Man, the event went great! But Shangguan Yu hired trolls to sabotage our livestream. It’s infuriating!

Wu Xi: Don’t tell CEO Bai I told you this, but they wanted me to inform you. I just think you should know about something this big.

Wu Xi: Sister Man, great news! Your Weibo followers just surpassed 250,000! You’ll be a million-follower influencer in no time!

Wu Xi: Sister Man, you really need to watch out for Shangguan Yu. She might have orchestrated that Auntie’s disruption today.

After reading the messages, Bai Man’s round eyes narrowed slightly. Shangguan Yu had finally made her move.

If she didn’t give Shangguan Yu a gift, she would be betraying all the effort Shangguan Yu had put in.