I Swear I Don’t Want to Be Everyone’s Favorite - Chapter 9

When the broadcast announced the Yellow Team’s successful completion of the assessment, Ning Fuguang was working on her final task. Hearing the notification, she glanced at her watch, exactly one hour and fifty-eight minutes had passed since the guests began their tasks.

A dangerously close time limit.

She sighed regretfully, “I thought I’d be the first to finish.”

[I was on edge, and then the Yellow Team just finished? Is this scripted?]

[I told you it was staged, but no one believed me. Are you happy now that the game’s ruined for everyone?]

The barrage of comments was a chaotic mix, long accustomed to bickering among themselves, unseen by the guests. But this time, when faced with the topic of “Jiang Luoyue’s script,” Ning Fuguang responded to the comments for the first time: “Losing is about skill, not some script. What does that have to do with anything?”

[Even Fu Yunqing said it was scripted!]

Ning Fuguang scoffed. “At least make your fake comments believable.”

If Fu Yunqing lost, her first reaction would definitely be to blame Ning Fuguang, who had tailed their team followed by Zhao Mei. What did Jiang Luoyue have to do with it?

Her brief rebuttals didn’t convince many, and Ning Fuguang couldn’t be bothered to correct everyone’s misconceptions one by one. She kept her eyes on her watch. Nearly five minutes after the broadcast ended, a staff member finally arrived to explain the new rules.

“Next, each team will select a mode of transportation based on the number of tasks they’ve completed, to proceed to the final mission location.”

The rules were straightforward, but there were hidden complexities.

For instance, each team only had two chances to choose. If a team’s selection matched a previous team’s choice, the program would remove one of the remaining unselected options, forcing the team to pick from the remaining three.

If both attempts failed, the team would lose their transportation and have to find their own way to the mission site or forfeit.

Soon, four transportation cards were displayed before Ning Fuguang: car, subway, bicycle, and shared bike.

[I get the logic, but since when is the subway owned by the show?]

Ning Fuguang raised an eyebrow, and the staff member weakly explained, “Choosing the subway grants you a metro card with a ¥20 balance. Please don’t misunderstand.”

[¥20? That’s barely enough for two people to make one round trip. How stingy can you get?]

[The car must’ve already been taken by the Yellow Team, right? Anyone watching their livestream confirm?]

[Their stream ended right after the mission.]

[The show’s being cautious, afraid viewers will leak info.]

Ning Fuguang studied the four cards and, without much hesitation, chose the electric scooter.

Like the commenters, she assumed the car was likely already taken, selecting it would waste an attempt and increase the difficulty. The subway was a trap; if the mission location was remote, they might need to transfer, and for stability’s sake, she wouldn’t pick it.

The shared bike was too slow choosing it was practically giving up.

After weighing the options, she had indeed made the best choice.

Still, as she boarded the program’s shuttle to the main gate, Ning Fuguang couldn’t resist commenting, “Only having these few options is so dull. You need creativity to make it interesting.”

The director happened to be in the car and humbly asked, “Such as?”

“Skateboards, hoverboards, tricycles…”

Ning Fuguang listed them one by one. The first few suggestions were reasonable not only did the staff nod in agreement, but even the commenters could vividly imagine the guests using such modes of transport.

Just as the atmosphere was warm and cheerful, Ning Fuguang suddenly shifted the topic, her tone tinged with regret: “It’s a shame you’re all so poor. Otherwise, a helicopter would have been nice.”

Everyone in the car:

[Forget whether we can afford it even if we could, could you even fly one?]

[LOL, I’d sooner believe I just landed on the moon than trust Ning Fuguang can fly a helicopter.]

[I can operate an aircraft carrier. Venmo me 50 for the tutorial smart people need not apply.]

[Did a quick search Ning Fuguang posted photos of her piloting a helicopter on Weibo three years ago. What’s with the doubters in the comments?]

The netizens who were about to mock her: ???

Practice reveals the truth. Many immediately opened Weibo and discovered the hashtag #NingFuguangHelicopter had already trended.

The original post contained only a short video with the caption:

[Not hard, not high, not scary.]

In the image, the woman wore noise-canceling headphones, casually pushing up her glasses with one hand, her gaze fixed ahead with rare solemnity, exuding an unattainable aura of beauty.

From the high-altitude view, the scenery below gradually shrank until it became no larger than grains of rice.

[Why is no one talking now?]

[Probably preparing for their moon landing.]

The netizens who had been mocking Ning Fuguang moments ago were thoroughly humbled.

Everyone thought you were just bluffing, who knew you could actually do it?!

When the Blue Team received the notification, Fu Yunqing and Zhao Mei were on their way to find the last inheritor.

Upon learning they had lost, Fu Yunqing stopped in her tracks. Her first reaction was to remove the blue wristband. Her expression was visibly irritated, as if she wanted to toss it aside, but after her assistant whispered something to her, she reluctantly threw it into their hands.

Unlike Ning Fuguang, who always remained composed and unreadable, Fu Yunqing wore every emotion on her face.

Zhao Mei, afraid of being caught in the crossfire, quickly distanced himself: “Fu-jie, the mission was just too difficult. We all did our best. Don’t overthink it this is just the preliminaries. There’s still a chance to win.”

Now, every time Fu Yunqing saw Zhao Mei, she was reminded of his question, ‘What’s peppers?’ Even an elementary schooler could answer that how could he even ask?

She couldn’t be bothered to respond to his platitudes either, summing up the recording for the cameras in one sentence: “My expectations were too high.”

She didn’t specify where those expectations lay, but everyone watching instinctively knew it wasn’t anything flattering.

When presented with four vehicle cards by the staff, Fu Yunqing’s thought process aligned almost perfectly with Ning Fuguang’s.

With two choices, they couldn’t waste them on a car. Bicycles were too slow, subways too crowded, and as for the electric scooter.

Fu Yunqing was actually interested, but the moment her gaze lingered for a few seconds, Zhao Mei nervously interjected, “This might not be the best choice, right?”

If they really picked this, Fu Yunqing would undoubtedly be the one driving. What if she kicked him off halfway? He deeply doubted her character.

Fu Yunqing scoffed coldly and pointed at the subway.

But then, the staff reminded her, “This vehicle has already been chosen.”

As she spoke, right in front of everyone, she casually removed the ‘car’ card that everyone had assumed was already taken.

Fu Yunqing:

“Wait” She frowned. “The car wasn’t taken?”

The staff nodded, equally puzzled. This should have been the first choice for all the guests, yet both Ning Fuguang and Fu Yunqing had completely ignored it.

[The Yellow Team didn’t pick the car? Seriously?]

[“They were the first to complete the task, so they might have had other options. It’s normal if they didn’t choose them.”]

The production team didn’t announce the specific rankings, but in Fu Yunqing’s mind, given their team’s progress earlier, they should have been in second place.

Yet, just as she took a deep breath and chose the electric scooter

The staff member once again gave her a regretful look.

“This vehicle has also already been selected. The Blue Team has lost their right to choose and will need to make their own way to the task location.”

Fu Yunqing:

When Fu Yunqing incredulously asked about their team’s ranking, many netizens in the main livestream couldn’t sit still either.

[What about the Red Team? Why haven’t we seen any footage of them?]

[Trust me, not showing the Red Team is to protect your eyes.]

[The guide probably only has the bicycle left to choose, right? But with her attitude of not taking the audience seriously, she deserves to lose.]

[The Red Team’s livestream is moving! It’s moving! Xiao Lin is back! I knew spamming ‘1’ would work!]

[Who’s Xiao Lin? Are we even watching the same show? Why can’t I understand anything you’re saying?]

Inside the museum, Xiang Fan and Fang Yuan, having finished examining all the artifacts, were finally ready to leave.

The moment they stepped out, they received the notification that the Yellow Team had completed their task.

“That fast?” Xiang Fan raised an eyebrow, surprised.

When Jiang Luoyue had asked about the two-hour completion reward earlier, she like many others had assumed it was just for screen time. But who would’ve thought the Yellow Team would actually pull it off?

Faced with the four-option choice, Xiang Fan didn’t hesitate: “The car.”

The long-neglected car was finally selected, and the staff member, moved by this development, couldn’t help but ask, “Why?”

As soon as the question left her lips, she noticed the Red Team’s cameraman frantically signaling at her from behind the two.

Staff member: ?

Was this some kind of taboo question?

“Of course, it’s because we never planned on winning from the start,” Xiang Fan replied, giving her a strange look. “According to the rules, shouldn’t you be removing one of the vehicle cards now? Why are you just standing there?”

The staff member choked, then shot back, “Of course, it’s because… from the start, this vehicle card was never chosen in the first place.”

The teasing expression on Xiang Fan’s face froze.

She turned to Fang Yuan, who returned her gaze with equal bewilderment. Only one thought surfaced in both their minds:

Change of plans, time to compete for… the win?

Once all teams had selected their vehicles, the production team finally announced the final task of the journey:

“Head to Tiancheng Tower, recite the show’s slogan at the highest point, and upload the video to social media.”

Tiancheng Tower stood at a staggering 499 meters tall, with 100 floors, making it the largest commercial center in Q City.

And coincidentally, the subway station just 300 meters outside Gule Street had a direct line to the tower.

At this point, what the Yellow Team had chosen was self-explanatory.

Countless netizens flooded into the Yellow Team’s livestream, only to be met with the words: [On Break].

[This is rigged! Rigged! Rigged! Rigged!]

[Are the people spamming ‘rigged’ brain-dead? The production team already said the first team to finish would get task hints. Choosing the subway is the most logical move.]

[Then how do you explain Jiang Luoyue being so familiar with the route and the task?]

[Production team of Please Hate Me, give us a proper response! If you can’t be fair, why even make a show? No more silent treatment! Demand fair treatment for all artists! Especially show kindness to Zhao Mei!]

[Guessing you’re searching for: peppers.]

Before the official Weibo account of Hate Me was flooded with protest banners from countless fans, the screen in Team Huang’s live broadcast finally lit up.

The two people chatting seemed quite far from the streaming equipment, but with careful listening, their voices could still be made out.

“Ready?” The woman’s voice was soft and sweet, almost coquettish.

“Not sure.” The reply carried a hint of caution, as if she were doing this for the first time. After studying the device for a while, she finally moved the camera away from her palm.

A subway train roared past, and for a brief moment, the window reflected the figures of Jiang Luoyue and Yu Jingtang standing by the platform.

Yu Jingtang wore a cap and held the streaming device, while Jiang Luoyue stood close to her, intently watching the screen in the other’s hand.

“Hello, everyone,” Jiang Luoyue greeted quietly. Most of the responses were the usual barrage of insults and accusations, but among the hundreds of comments, spotting one or two supportive replies was enough to make her eyes crinkle with a smile. “We’re at the subway station now, about to set off.”

After watching the barrage of comments for a few more seconds, Jiang Luoyue turned her head slightly. “There are fans saying hello to you.”

“Hello, everyone,” Yu Jingtang replied stiffly, unsure of what else to say, and glanced down at Jiang Luoyue. Jiang Luoyue chuckled softly and translated, “Xiao Tang says thank you, everyone. We’ll do our best to win the match and not let down your support.”

This translation struck a chord with many of Yu Jingtang’s fans, and half the screen instantly lit up with her name.

Yu Jingtang pressed her lips together, and Jiang Luoyue guessed she might be feeling a little shy, so she smoothly shifted the topic.

By the time Yu Jingtang looked down again, all she could see was the crown of Jiang Luoyue’s head. Tiny flecks of light scattered through her hair, like pink sprinkles on ice cream. After staring for a few seconds, Yu Jingtang suddenly reached out and lightly tousled Jiang Luoyue’s hair.

The touch was gentle, but Jiang Luoyue still instinctively looked up. At first, she thought it might have been a passerby, but the crowd hurried past, leaving only Yu Jingtang standing beside her, expressionlessly lowering the screen a little further.

Jiang Luoyue asked uncertainly, “Did you just touch my head?”

The live stream wasn’t focused on their faces, and no one else was around. Confident that Jiang Luoyue had no proof, Yu Jingtang denied it. “No.”

“If you don’t believe me, you can hold it yourself.”

Jiang Luoyue had barely taken the phone when, less than fifteen seconds later, she felt her hair being lightly touched again.

She turned abruptly, catching Yu Jingtang before she could withdraw her hand.

Jiang Luoyue stared at Yu Jingtang, who met her gaze with an air of nonchalance.

Noticing that Jiang Luoyue didn’t seem angry in fact, there might even have been a hint of amusement in her eyes Yu Jingtang suddenly reached out again and lightly poked her forehead, as if prodding a lump of playdough. “You’re too close to the screen. It’s bad for your eyes.”

Caught completely off guard, Jiang Luoyue: And you still deny it was you!