Qin Wei scowled, not saying a word.
Sun Dan, afraid that the atmosphere would continue to be awkward, said to Xin Ya:
"It must have been tiring rushing all the way here. After we eat, the production team still has a little competition they want us to participate in, so this bit of calories will be burned up in no time."
Xin Ya looked embarrassed:
"Teacher Sun, how can I eat this? I just threw it all up earlier."
Lin Qiqi helped smooth things over for her:
"Never mind, it's okay. You're controlling your weight, that's understandable. Anyway it's just one bowl, no big deal."
This segment wasn't aired later. Xin Ya's company had spoken with the production team in advance - she wouldn't actually be eating during the meal, just one close-up shot would be enough, and it needed to be kept secret.
Sun Dan also didn't want to make things too difficult for the other party, but she also wanted to end this part quickly, so she waved her hand to cue the director to move on to the next segment.
The staff quickly came over to cue the next part of the production.
Because there was a surprise guest, the production team provided additional funding, but this money wasn't given freely - it required all the celebrity guests to complete a task together.
And everyone was already sick of the corn husking competition segment, and the audience probably didn't want to keep watching it either, so the director had pulled an all-nighter preparing a project that would surprise everyone.
"Volleyball??"
Hearing the staff's announcement, everyone exclaimed in unison.
"That's right."
The director nodded, very satisfied with their looks of surprise.
It all started last night...
...
For the sake of the show, he had staked it all. Using his personal connections, he had specially contacted movie star Shen Kai. Although they had only worked together once, Shen Kai had left a good impression on him, so this sudden call didn't irritate him either.
"What does Qin Wei hate the most..."
Shen Kai pondered,
"There's a lot she hates, I can't think of it off the top of my head, but I remember I spoke with others in the industry, and for now no one should use her for any projects. Does Director A have some dissatisfaction with me?"
Director A wiped the sweat from his brow, thinking that Shen Kai was quite frank, daring to say something like suppressing Qin Wei so lightly. But a celebrity of his status really had nothing to fear.
Who would offend the wildly popular movie star Shen Kai for the sake of a passerby-level unpopular former star like Qin Wei?
"Master Shen, I can explain this matter...it's because..."
"She hates competitive sports the most, soccer, basketball, volleyball, won't go near them."
Shen Kai suddenly interrupted the director's explanation,
"But it doesn't matter either. Even you show producers just invite her to watch her make a fool of herself! Otherwise you wouldn't ask me this."
"I guess...that's true..."
Shen Kai laughed lightly:
"Then that's that. Director A knows better than me what should be said and what shouldn't be said. I'll remember you, look forward to working together next time."
Beep beep beep——
Director A stared blankly at the lit up screen of his phone, unsure whether he had asked the right person.
"Should be right, huh? He's the only one of Qin Wei's rumored boyfriends that she's publicly acknowledged, so he should understand Qin Wei, right!?"
Director A came to his senses, looking at the monitor, and said to a staff member beside him:
"Follow closely, whether today's show is good or bad might just come down to this."
...
The yard was still under development, with a large open space. The production team quickly set up a net and marked off an area to use as the game court.
Qin Wei was already wearing athletic clothes, and Xin Ya had already changed before the meal. The two of them stood in the yard warming up.
Qin Wei didn't take the initiative to speak to her, but Xin Ya couldn't help but go over to chat.
Xin Ya pretended to be mysterious as she sidled over:
"Weiwei, do you know volleyball?"
Qin Wei looked at her as if she were stupid:
"Of course I know, how could you not know?"
Xin Ya wasn't annoyed, instead letting out a "hee hee" laugh:
"Then during the game later, if you accidentally get hit by the ball, you're not allowed to get angry!"
This segment was aired. Those who understood the implied meaning made the following comments:
【Facts - Sis Yu was once the ambassador for promoting volleyball matches in Shanghai. As a result, during the livestream she couldn't distinguish which ball was the volleyball, and since then everyone has said that Qin Wei doesn't recognize volleyballs.】
【Can't really blame her entirely though. There were so many people at the livestream, and she just took whatever the staff handed her. Plus she's never participated in these kinds of ball sports before, being talked about like this for so long has been miserable for her too.】
【Going off topic for a bit - the above poster said she's never participated in ball sports before, which means she doesn't know how to play volleyball. So what competition is she doing now?】
【She's been so restrained these past few days of filming. No use restraining herself today though. Come on xdm, let's watch her make a fool of herself together!】
...
To demonstrate that the production team had no intention of deliberately making things difficult for these amateur contestants, the competition rules were greatly simplified - 3 vs 3, a point would be lost each time a team didn't catch the ball after it was served over the net.
Other than that, no further restrictions were made.
The drawing to divide into teams finished quickly.
Team 1: Xin Ya, Lin Qiqi, Daniel
Team 2: Shen Qingqing, Su Xiaoxiao, Li Hanming
Sun Dan wasn't participating in the competition due to a waist injury.
Chen Mo and Qin Wei got the longest two sticks during the draw, so they could sit out for now.
But Director A had no intention of letting Qin Wei off easily. After all, he had gone through so much trouble for the sake of making Qin Wei participate.
"Teacher Qin and Teacher Chen should also prepare a bit - you'll need to substitute in later."
...
The 1st Peach Blossom Spring Volleyball Tournament officially began.
Xin Ya retreated back a few steps, took a short running start, then jumped up to serve the volleyball, smacking it cleanly over the net. It hit Su Xiaoxiao right on the head.
"Ow..."
Although the volleyball was light, smacking someone on the head with force still wasn't completely painless. Su Xiaoxiao just clutched her head without catching the ball.
"One point for Team Xin Ya!"
Sun Dan, acting as referee, marked down the score.
Next was Li Hanming's serve. He hit the ball over the net and Xin Ya caught it and batted it back, once again smacking Su Xiaoxiao right on the head. She was a little aggrieved, her eyes instantly turning red.
But Xin Ya didn't care in the slightest, and even had a tiny bit of smugness. Facing the other side of the net, she said loudly:
"It's a competition! Show some sportsmanship - getting hit by the ball is totally normal, isn't it?"
Lin Qiqi had disliked Su Xiaoxiao for a long time, and had complained about her a lot to her good friend Xin Ya, so of course Xin Ya would take Lin Qiqi's side. Taking the opportunity of the competition to vent some frustrations for her.
Su Xiaoxiao didn't dare say anything, pursing her lips to continue the match. But Xin Ya and Lin Qiqi became even more relentless, always hitting Su Xiaoxiao seemingly by accident.
Both Lin Qiqi and Xin Ya had gone the route of sunny and healthy images, and had served as spokespeople for some sports brands too. Normally their companies were very attentive about managing their images, regularly having them take various sports lessons.
Although they weren't at a professional level, bullying and crushing some amateur opponents was still very easy.
By halftime, Su Xiaoxiao's team had only gotten one point, and she finally couldn't hold back her tears anymore.
Xin Ya laughed and said gently, "Xiaoxiao, it's just a competition. We can't control where the ball goes. Just now Lil Bro Li's serve hit my shoulder too, and it didn't even hurt."
Rather than comfort Su Xiaoxiao, Lin Qiqi instead chimed in, "Right, Xiaoxiao, Xin Ya didn't do it on purpose. Also, we already have 18 points, so you should keep working hard too!"
