Exchange of Movie Queens - Chapter 4

Feng Tangtang looked at Xi Mo’s expression, which resembled someone who had just drunk pesticide, and hurriedly asked, “Ruan Ruan, is it that bad?”

“Not at all.” Suppressing the overwhelming nausea, Xi Mo gracefully swallowed the durian chicken soup and smiled serenely. “It’s quite delicious.”

Might as well drink pesticide and end it all!

Feng Tangtang sighed in relief. “That’s good. I know you love durian and durian chicken soup, but this time I had someone else prepare it for you. I was worried the method or timing might be off and it wouldn’t suit your taste. Glad you like it.”

Xi Mo glanced at Feng Tangtang. To avoid raising suspicion, she casually took a few more sips before setting the spoon back in the bowl.

Feng Tangtang’s eyes sparkled as she eagerly watched her hand holding the spoon.

Xi Mo: “…”

With no choice, Xi Mo steeled herself and took another sip.

Feng Tangtang continued staring.

Xi Mo: “…”

Unable to refuse such earnest hospitality, Xi Mo picked up the bowl and finished the “delightfully exquisite” soup.

Feng Tangtang looked thoroughly satisfied.

Xi Mo remained expressionless, though inwardly seething. However, she knew her sweet little assistant was completely unaware and only meant well. That wholesome, socialist-good-girl face of hers made it impossible to scold her. So, Xi Mo redirected all her frustration toward Ruan Yesheng.

If not for this inexplicable body swap with Ruan Yesheng, she wouldn’t be suffering like this.

And Ruan Yesheng loved durian—the very thing Xi Mo despised most.

Ruan Yesheng even adored this abomination of a dish: durian chicken soup, a monstrosity from the dark culinary arts.

Xi Mo imagined Ruan Yesheng as a durian in her mind. But then, the imagined “Ruan Durian” blinked seductively, flaunting its allure. The sheer horror sent shivers down Xi Mo’s spine. With this double dose of disgust, Ruan Yesheng officially claimed the top spot on Xi Mo’s blacklist.

“Tangtang,” Xi Mo said casually, pretending to search around, “is my phone still here? Did it get damaged in the fire?”

“It’s here! I was just about to return it to you.” Feng Tangtang handed Ruan Yesheng’s phone over from her bag. “When you and Sister Xi were rescued by the fire brigade, neither of you had obvious injuries, and your phone was mostly fine. I charged it for you—just this corner got a little scratched.”

She pointed out the damaged part to Xi Mo.

Xi Mo took the phone and examined it. “It’s fine. I’ll get a new one later. This will do for now.”

She fell silent, her eyes turning cold. Ruan Yesheng’s phone had no password, so she unlocked it effortlessly.

Her first move was to check the news online.

As expected, reports about the hotel fire were everywhere—speculations about arson, terrorist attacks, and more. The confirmed death toll stood at twenty-three, with 287 injured and hospitalized, many of whom had been trampled in the chaos.

Since the hotel had been hosting a press conference attended by the wildly popular diva Xi Mo, it drew swarms of reporters and fans, along with several other celebrities. Naturally, the entertainment world was in an uproar.

Xi Mo wanted to check the reactions on Weibo, only to find that Ruan Yesheng hadn’t saved her account. She had to log in with one of her alternate accounts and discovered five trending topics related to the incident—three of which were about her alone.

Topping the hottest trending list was:

#Explosion at Press Conference! National Goddess Xi Mo Suspected to Be Disfigured!#

Xi Mo: “…”

Which eye of yours saw me disfigured?!

The second hottest topic was:

#Stay Strong Goddess! Don’t Cry! Tonight We Are All Family of Goddess Xi!#

Xi Mo: “…”

Who the hell are you people?!

Since when are you my family?!

At least there was some consolation—her latest film A Spring Breeze had climbed to fourth place on the trending list thanks to the buzz. Online discussions about Xi Mo—whether old news, recent updates, film analyses, or even years-old gossip—were exploding like a boiling pot. The hype was skyrocketing across all platforms.

The most frenzied, of course, were Xi Mo’s fans.

Among the many A-listers in the entertainment industry, almost all had verified personal Weibo accounts—Xi Mo was a rare exception. Though her agency maintained an official account managed by assistants to post her latest updates, and her massive fanbase had set up countless support groups, none of these were truly her. They couldn’t possibly contain the sheer intensity of her fans’ devotion.

Hordes of distraught fans flooded the agency’s official account—some pleading for updates on Xi Mo’s condition, leaving prayers for her safety; others demanding why the agency hadn’t released any information yet, accusing them of hiding the truth; and still others cursing the company for failing to protect her properly.

And of course, there were those who bluntly asked:

“I don’t care about anything else! Just tell me—did my goddess really get disfigured?! Urgent! Waiting online!”

Countless replies piled up beneath.

Xi Mo: “…”

She then checked the Weibo accounts of a few industry friends who appeared relatively close to her. Their latest posts were bombarded with comments asking about her. Likely warned by Lu Qingming, none of them had commented directly on the incident, only expressing hopes for Xi Mo’s well-being. Their engagement metrics were skyrocketing, their comment sections completely overrun.

Where there were friends, there were also sworn rivals.

Shen Qingbie’s Weibo was instantly besieged by Xi Mo’s fans overnight. Shen had never posted anything about Xi Mo before—her latest update was an elegant afternoon selfie with a cup of tea, bathed in sunlight, accompanied by her usual sickeningly sweet caption that made Xi Mo’s teeth ache with irritation:

“Just want to be a quiet, peaceful woman.”

Suppressing her disgust, Xi Mo scrolled through the comments. Her fans had taken over:

“Oh, a ‘quiet woman’? Do you even know what’s happening to my goddess Xi Mo?!”

“How dare you post about being ‘peaceful’ when my goddess is in trouble! Do you have no conscience?!”

“Pfft. ‘Quiet woman.’ Get lost!”

Shen Qingbie was, after all, another top-tier diva riding high on popularity, and her fans were naturally fierce. Seeing her Weibo suddenly flooded with attacks, they swarmed in to join the battle. The fans of both sides clashed violently in the comments, practically ready to leap through the screen and fight it out.

Shen Qingbie’s fans fired back with: “Hah! All we know is that your goddess got disfigured!”

“Hah! All we know is that your goddess got disfigured!”

“Hah! All we know is that your goddess got disfigured!”

Xi Mo: “…”

The phrase had successfully drilled into her brain like a cursed earworm.

She closed Weibo and switched to browsing Tianya.

The entertainment gossip section of Tianya had already piled up thread after thread about her—supporters, haters, all tangled in an unprecedented frenzy. In the tallest thread, her fans were once again locked in a feud with Shen Qingbie’s.

Frustrated, she skimmed through a few pages, only to stumble upon an old post analyzing Ruan Yesheng’s films. Likely dug up by some of Ruan Yesheng’s lingering fans, it had been bumped to the top.

“Ruan Ruan?” Feng Tangtang, watching Xi Mo scroll through her phone with an unchanged expression but an aura so terrifying it could split rocks, had already internally shattered several times.

“Just checking what people are saying online,” Xi Mo replied with a faint smile, setting her phone down. “Bored, that’s all.”

Feng Tangtang clapped her hands. “Bored? How about another bowl of soup?”

Xi Mo: “…”

Meanwhile, Ruan Yesheng had finished browsing the related content on the tablet Lu Qingming handed her.

She knew Xi Mo was popular, but this was the first time she truly felt the extent of it. After the incident, it seemed the entire world was suddenly talking about Xi Mo.

And no one knew she had been at the hotel.

No one discussed her.

She was past her prime—that was a fact. Yet seeing Xi Mo so wildly famous, she actually felt… relieved.

The corner of Ruan Yesheng’s lips curled slightly.

Lu Qingming took back the tablet and said, “Just skim these reports—don’t let them affect you. Ignore the disfigurement rumors. The more they talk, the better for us. It’ll even earn sympathy points. When the time’s right, the company will release a statement, and once you make your appearance, it’ll spark a whole new wave of buzz.”

Ruan Yesheng thought to herself—this was truly the essence of a high-level, vampire-like agent, playing every angle.

She mimicked Xi Mo’s usual icy demeanor and replied indifferently, “I know. Just killing time.”

Lu Qingming nodded in satisfaction. “Xi Mo, you’ve always handled this well. I trust you.”

Ruan Yesheng stayed silent, her gaze cool.

If you’re going to act the part, you’d better commit.