You're Still Too Green to Take Me On

The live chat fell silent for a few seconds.

[Do you even hear yourself?]

[The whole hierarchy just got flipped upside down!]

[Hahahahahahaha I'm fucking dying.]

Ruan Feng genuinely had no comeback for that. After freezing for a few seconds, he said, "Looks like I'm getting old. I can't understand young people's jokes anymore."

Xie Mi delivered a tactful response. "You're not old. When it comes to taking me on, you're still too green."

Ruan Feng: "?"

Someone failed to hold back a laugh.

Xu Shuangrong was the first to speak up in his defense. "Xie Mi, what are you saying? He's a respected senior."

Xie Mi shot back smoothly, "So you think he's old too?"

Xu Shuangrong was momentarily speechless.

[What a sharp-tongued girl. I like her.]

[Shuangrong was kindly trying to smooth things over for her, and instead of appreciating it, she lashes out. There's a reason I hate Xie Mi.]

[Whatever happened, she shouldn't disrespect a senior. No class.]

[Wasn't Ruan Feng the one who took a snide jab at Xie Mi first? What's wrong with her hitting back?]

[Ruan Feng called her rude because she actually is rude. Talking back just proves it. Some people can't recognize their own flaws and only make excuses. Haha.]

"Unbelievable."

Ruan Feng shook his head in disappointment. "Since no one ever taught you to respect your elders and mentors, I'll teach you myself. Xie Mi, apologize. Now."

Xie Mi remained unmoved, merely watching him with calm composure.

Ruan Feng's face hardened. "If you don't apologize, I'm done filming this show."

Director Niu, who had been enjoying the spectacle, immediately panicked. They still had so much of the schedule left to get through. They couldn't afford a delay.

"Ms. Xie, maybe you should..."

"Exactly, Xie Mi." Xu Shuangrong also took Xie Mi's arm and tried to persuade her.

"Just apologize to Mr. Ruan. If we stay at this impasse, it's not just us guests whose time you're wasting. All these crew members are stuck waiting too. You wouldn't want everyone to work overtime..."

"Exactly, Mr. Ruan."

Xie Mi deftly turned the argument around. "Shuangrong's right. You've already been paid to appear on this show, but now you're throwing a tantrum and refusing to cooperate with filming. It's not just us guests whose time you're wasting. There are all these crew members too. You wouldn't want everyone to work overtime, would you?"

Xu Shuangrong: "???"

At that, the live chat, which had been insulting Xie Mi, suddenly caught on.

[Right, appearing on a show is a celebrity's job. If he's already been paid and suddenly refuses to film, isn't that acting like a diva?]

[How is he acting like a diva? Didn't you hear Ruan Feng? He's teaching Xie Mi to respect her elders and mentors. As a senior, he's looking out for a junior, okay? You're criticizing him for that too?]

[What respect? He's just using the whole crew to pressure Xie Mi into apologizing. He's certainly dressing it up nicely.]

[Fuck, this chat is unreadable. Why are there so many paid Xie Mi shills? How much do you get per comment? Share the wealth.]

[Can't win the argument, so you're having a meltdown, girl?]

"Director Niu, I'm done with this show!"

Ruan Feng's face was cold. "I only came out of respect for you, but certain people on this show are utterly shameless. I really can't cooperate anymore. I'll return my appearance fee. Find someone else."

Director Niu panicked.

Wait, this isn't just about the appearance fee. You signed a contract! This is a breach of contract!

In a flash, Xie Mi planted her foot on the hem of Ruan Feng's trousers.

Whoosh-

Ruan Feng's trousers fell down, exposing bright red thermal underwear.

The skintight kind, no less.

"Mr. Ruan, is this your zodiac year?"

Xie Mi let her gaze drift downward, then curled her lips. "Small ones are cute too."

Gasp-

Everyone sucked in a breath.

"Xie Mi!!" Ruan Feng completely lost his composure, exploding with rage. "What the hell are you trying to do?!"

"Reminisce with you."

Smiling, Xie Mi walked up to him and blocked his path. "You've been targeting me since the moment you walked in, so I couldn't help thinking back. When exactly did I offend you?"

"Could it be... when we worked on that last production, and you insisted on coming to my room in the middle of the night to rehearse alone with me, only for me to slap you and kick you out?"

"No, you immediately paid for articles afterward claiming I acted like a diva on a show and disrespected my seniors. You got your revenge right then."

"Then could it be... when you added a kissing scene with a young actress without authorization, deliberately messed up take after take so you could grope her, and I later caught you threatening her?"

"No, that doesn't fit either. You immediately threatened me too, saying you'd ruin me if I dared tell anyone and that you had a hundred ways to kill me."

"How strange. What exactly did I do to offend you?"

Xie Mi feigned a headache, then her eyes curved again as she smiled brightly at Ruan Feng. "Why don't you tell me yourself, then, sir?"

The entire room fell deathly silent. No one dared speak.

Ruan Feng's breathing quickened, his pupils trembling violently, but he had weathered enough storms to force himself to calm down quickly. "Malicious slander. Expect a letter from my lawyer."

[Has Xie Mi lost her mind?!]

[Shit, that scared me. I almost thought it was true, but Ruan Feng looks so calm that it's probably made up.]

[Ruan Feng is famous for being a devoted husband. How could he possibly harass younger actresses? What a joke. At least make up something believable.]

"But I have evidence."

Ruan Feng's breath caught.

Xie Mi took out her phone. "I accidentally recorded your conversation with that actress that day. The contents are seriously explosive. I'll play it so everyone can..."

"Enough!"

Ruan Feng suddenly lunged forward and smashed Xie Mi's phone to pieces. "Stop spouting nonsense!!"

His face was full of fury, but a hint of excitement lurked in his eyes now that he had destroyed the evidence.

Yet the way everyone else looked at him had changed.

Shock, doubt, disgust.

Ruan Feng froze, suddenly realizing something, and hurried to explain. "I only stopped her because I didn't want to hear her keep spreading lies..."

"But you didn't need to smash my phone." Xie Mi folded her arms and tilted her head, looking at him with an expression that practically begged to be punched. "Unless you've got a guilty conscience?"

People in the entertainment industry were shrewd, and netizens were modern-day Sherlock Holmeses. None of them were fools.

It wasn't hard to guess what Ruan Feng's actions meant.

As hard as it was to believe...

Xie Mi might have been telling the truth.

[Holy shit!!]

[Doesn't smashing her phone prove he's guilty? That's solid proof!]

[I seriously can't believe Ruan Feng is that kind of person. Was his devoted-husband image fake too? I'm going to puke.]

[He was clearly lashing out in panic when he smashed her phone! What a scheming old man!]

[Now that I think about how he targeted Xie Mi the moment he came on the show, he was obviously trying to pressure her. So disgusting.]

[Now I understand why you can't judge a book by its cover. You can only believe half of any celebrity's public image.]

[So half the dirt on Xie Mi came from him? Then maybe she really isn't that bad.]

[I'm siding with Xie Mi on this one! Ban this disgrace of a celebrity for good!!!]