Volume One, Chapter 29: Sometimes It Takes a Villain to Deal with a Villain

Hearing this, the pretty boy stopped in his tracks, turned around, and pushed his sunglasses down with his middle finger.
"Are you talking to me?"
His voice carried a hint of effeminacy.
Jiang Yu sneered. "Whoever acts like a big shot, I call them out."
He had no intention of indulging this group.
But Liu Bin began to panic, tugging gently at Jiang Yu's sleeve and whispering, "Yu, we can't afford to mess with him. It's nothing serious, maybe just let it go?"
Jiang Yu hadn't replied yet.
The pretty boy let out a cold laugh. "Let it go? Do you know who I am? You block the entrance without looking, and you dare insult me?"
"How do you know I was talking about you? Did I call your name?" Jiang Yu rolled his eyes and pulled Liu Bin towards the hotel.
"Stop right there!" the young man roared.
His bodyguards immediately stepped up to try and block Jiang Yu's way.
As soon as one of them touched his arm, Jiang Yu collapsed to the ground.
"Oh dear, he hit me! Which celebrity told their bodyguard to attack someone?"
His antics stunned everyone present.
"Just because you're a star, you think you can hit people? We may not be famous, but we're contestants too. Are you trying to clear the field of competition? Oh, what a world! Assault right in front of everyone—does no one care?"
Liu Bin thought the bodyguard had really hurt Jiang Yu and rushed over. "Yu, are you okay?"
Jiang Yu wailed loudly, signaling with his eyes, and whispered, "Idiot, hurry up and record this on your phone. Oh, look, a celebrity ordering his bodyguard to hit someone!"
The lightbulb went off for Liu Bin. He immediately whipped out his phone, face full of righteous anger. "I'm recording this! How can you just hit people?"
At that, the effeminate young man's expression darkened. He snapped at the bodyguards, "He's filming me! What are you doing just standing there?"
The bodyguards froze for a second, then, after the shout, came to their senses and stepped forward to block the camera.
Liu Bin cried out, "Hey, what are you doing? Not only did you hit someone, now you're trying to take my phone?"
Jiang Yu, lying on the ground, nearly broke character—this Liu Bin had potential. If given the chance, he'd help him out in the future.
Meanwhile, the staff broke into a cold sweat, uncertain what to do. They tried to help, but Jiang Yu wouldn't budge.

They were used to all sorts of contestants, both celebrities and newcomers, but none had ever pulled a stunt like this.
"You faker—"
The pretty boy seethed, about to step forward, but just then his assistant appeared.
"Gui Gui, stop it. There are cameras everywhere and so many people watching,"
The assistant's warning reached his ears. The pretty boy clenched his fists, looked at all the onlookers drawn by the commotion, and forced himself to swallow his anger.
"Step aside, let me handle this," the assistant said, then went over to the staff and whispered something.
A staff member approached Jiang Yu.
"Contestant, why don't we go back to your room to rest? I'll call a doctor for you. The other party has agreed to cover all expenses."
Liu Bin chimed in, "Yu, the staff is right. The ground is damp, you'll catch a chill. Why don't we go back to the room?"
"Oh, the room?" Jiang Yu, face twisted in pain, looked at the pretty boy. "Fine, but I feel so dizzy I can't get up. I want him to help me up himself."
"Me?" The pretty boy pointed to himself, half-laughing in disbelief.
"What? You won't help?"
Jiang Yu scowled. If I don't squeeze every last drop out of you today, I won't rest!
"Ohhh..."
At the sound of his groaning, the pretty boy felt a twinge in his teeth. After a moment's hesitation, he reluctantly gritted his teeth and said, "I'll help!"
He clenched his jaw, walked over, lowered his head, and awkwardly helped Jiang Yu to his feet.
"See? Wasn't that easy? All right, back to the room. Bin, I'm in so much pain, help me."
"I'm coming, brother. Poor thing, let's get the doctor to check you over."
"Mm..."
As the two walked away, the pretty boy ground his teeth and turned to his assistant. "Find out who that guy is."
"No need," the assistant replied, also watching the two leave. "That's Jiang Yu."
"That's Jiang Yu?"
At the mention of the name, a flicker passed through the pretty boy's eyes and his brow furrowed. Before coming, his boss had already briefed him on Jiang Yu—he was the very contestant they were determined to eliminate.
He hadn’t expected to cross paths so soon.
"No wonder he's so arrogant, picking a fight with me! I won't let this go."
No one noticed that, on the other side of the hotel, an extraordinarily beautiful girl was watching the scene unfold, a smile playing on her lips.

Beside her stood another woman, amused. "That Jiang is really a scoundrel. Xiaoyu, was he always like this in high school?"
Su Muyu shook her head with a bright smile. "I've never seen him act this way."
"What on earth has he been through?" Su Ling couldn't help but laugh. "Xu Kun is also with Starshine Entertainment. Should we contact the show about this?"
Su Muyu shook her head. "I believe he won't lose to anyone."
"But if there's underhanded business, shouldn't we nip it in the bud..."
"If he really gets bullied, I'll step in."
......
Meanwhile, Jiang Yu and Liu Bin had returned to their room.
Liu Bin burst out laughing, collapsing onto the bed, clutching his stomach, equal parts pain and delight.
"Yu, you were savage! I nearly died laughing."
"The only way to deal with people like that is to fight fire with fire. Only a scoundrel can handle a scoundrel."
Jiang Yu scoffed. "Who was that guy anyway, acting so high and mighty?"
Liu Bin sobered up. "His name is Wang Linkai, goes by Gui Gui, pretty popular—he's signed with Starshine Entertainment, only debuted recently."
"Starshine Entertainment, Gui Gui?" Jiang Yu frowned.
Liu Bin nodded. "He's gotten quite hot lately, probably has over a million followers."
A million fans, but even Su Muyu with her tens of millions never made such a scene!
But thinking it over, there was no way a major company like Starshine Entertainment wouldn't participate in a show this big.
What surprised him was that the grudge hadn't started on stage, but before the competition even began. No matter—it was only a matter of time.
For now, all he needed was to rest up and be at his best for the stage.
So he flatly refused Liu Bin's attempts to keep discussing "Zhu Xian."
Seeing how excited Liu Bin had been at the stall earlier,
If he let him start, there'd be no sleep tonight!