Chapter Ten: Disgrace

"Xianxian didn't do it on purpose; she was just hungry and probably didn't think it through."

Jiang Ke's words prompted her fans in the livestream to express their sympathy.

[Our sister is even speaking up for Jiang Xian to maintain the Jiang family's image. My heart aches for her.]
[When is Jiang Xian going to change her last name?]

"She's the only one who's hungry? We aren't? Selfish is just selfish."

"A wild phoenix is just a wild phoenix; no matter what, she'll never be as good as the real deal!" Lai Bingfu joined the chorus of criticism against Jiang Xian. Although he liked beautiful women, he wasn't indiscriminate; he was selective. With women like Jiang Ke or Li Jiale, he was more than happy to show off his masculine charm. But as for someone like Jiang Xian—a fake heiress and a wild girl of unknown origins who lacked basic etiquette—he had no intention of being a gentleman.

Everyone present understood that Lai Bingfu was mocking the fact that Jiang Xian was not a true daughter of the Jiang family. Originally, everyone had been keeping quiet about this, but now Lai Bingfu had brought it out into the open.

"Exactly. Maybe she doesn't have much money left in her pockets and was worried about not having lunch, so she rushed to eat all the fruit and snacks, planning to skip lunch entirely!"

"You're right, that's actually very likely." Lai Bingfu and Li Jiale began to play off each other.

Seeing everyone criticizing Jiang Xian, Jiang Ke secretly smiled to herself. This was the effect she wanted. She suddenly felt that the grueling rowing hadn't been in vain; at the very least, the netizens would see her as being more grounded and sincere.

Zheng Jin couldn't stand it anymore. Ignoring the repeated warnings his father had given him before the show, he spoke up directly: "Your words toward a girl are so mean-spirited; it doesn't make you look like a noble person. I think Jiang Daxian did nothing wrong. She arrived first, so what's the big deal if she eats some of it because she's hungry?"

"Zheng Jin, you really are a professional suck-up. What, you're busy fawning over CEO Sheng while defending Jiang Xian? You're going to end up with nothing if you keep this up!" Li Jiale held Jiang Xian's behavior in utter contempt. To think he was already chasing after Sheng Ya and still had the energy to defend Jiang Xian—he was truly greedy, looking at the pot while eating from the bowl.

"Young Master Zheng, here's a piece of advice: girls don't like 'central air conditioners' [players who flirt with everyone]," Lai Bingfu said, glancing at Sheng Ya.

"Jiang Daxian and I are just good buddies. Our minds aren't as filthy as yours."

"Is that so? Why don't you ask Sheng Ya if she believes that?"

Zheng Jin looked at Sheng Ya nervously. In his heart, he truly considered Jiang Xian a good friend and a buddy. Sheng Ya was the one he liked most among all his romantic interests, and he hoped his judgment hadn't been wrong.

Everyone's gaze turned to Sheng Ya, waiting for her answer.

In the past, Jiang Xian wouldn't have believed in pure friendship between men and women either. However, while the original owner and Zheng Jin really had nothing going on, their relationship was less like "buddies" and more like master and apprentice. Back then, Zheng Jin hadn't been such a playboy who fell in love with everyone he met; he had been quite pure-hearted, having loved a girl for three years only to find out she was only after his money. He was drowning his sorrows in a bar when the original owner took an interest in him. She had intended to tease him, but upon discovering he was a hopeless romantic, she led him down the path of becoming a serial flirt, from which he never returned.

"The CEO of my company and I are good buddies. Is there a problem with that?"

Sheng Ya didn't say this to defend anyone in particular; she and her company's president were indeed good friends. Furthermore, he was already married with children, and she got along very well with his wife, who trusted her implicitly and even asked her to keep an eye on him to make sure he didn't get bewitched by any vixens.

Zheng Jin hadn't expected Sheng Ya to say such a thing. His eyes lit up like a puppy's; if he had a tail, it would certainly be wagging now.

"Did you hear that? Pure friendship exists. We all have pure friendships. Who are you to judge?" Zheng Jin lifted his chin triumphantly.

[Sheng Ya actually likes Zheng Jin a little, doesn't she?]
[I don't believe in "pure friendship." How can there be such a thing between men and women?]
[I have a good buddy, and it really is pure. I don't like him, but we have the same interests and are quite similar as people.]

"Whether you have a pure friendship is your own business, but it's a fact that Jiang Xian selfishly ate the fruit and snacks."

Seeing the focus shift, Rong Fan felt like he was leading a team of idiots. They were supposed to be talking about Jiang Xian eating the snacks prepared for everyone, so how did they end up arguing about the purity of male-female friendships? If they kept going, the issue of her eating the snacks would be forgotten. Rong Fan wasn't about to let that happen; after all, he had been humiliated by Jiang Xian at the very beginning of the show, and he had to regain his dignity.

Reminded by Rong Fan, Li Jiale realized they had strayed from the topic. "That's right! We're talking about how she ate all our snacks. How are we going to settle this?"

"Settle it?" Hearing this, Jiang Xian found it truly laughable. She raised an eyebrow and asked in return, "Before we settle anything, let me ask you: did the staff tell you that these snacks were prepared for all of you?" She remembered the staff clearly saying these were prepared for the first-place finisher.

How had it turned into something prepared for everyone to share in their version of the story?

Jiang Xian's words made Li Jiale subconsciously think she was trying to exploit a loophole—that because the staff hadn't explicitly said it, the snacks weren't meant for them.

"Aren't things left here meant for us to eat? Do you think they were meant just for you? Jiang Xian, where do you get the nerve?"

Just then, a staff member spoke up quietly: "Everyone, these snacks were indeed prepared for the first-place finisher. Teacher Jiang arrived first and is the first-place finisher, so these snacks were prepared for her."

In truth, the staff member only needed to say that the snacks were for the winner, but for some reason, she felt compelled to say this much, repeatedly emphasizing that the food was meant for Jiang Xian.

Once these words were out, an atmosphere of embarrassment gradually filled the air. For a moment, no one spoke.

They might have been silent, but the livestream was buzzing.

[I have to say, after what the staff member said, those people's expressions are quite ugly. Being so aggressive over a bit of food—are you sure these are wealthy people?]
[I really have to stand on Jiang Xian's side this time. I remember the staff saying those were for the first-place winner.]
[I'm cringing for them through the screen. By the way, are Jiang Ke, Li Jiale, and Lai Bingfu already planning their escape? Once the construction is done, they can move in!]
[Doesn't anyone else think Jiang Ke is a "green tea" [manipulative/fake]? Every time she speaks, she tries to lead people into a negative impression of Jiang Xian.]
[Are you sick? How is Xiao Ke manipulative? You haters are everywhere. Is it wrong for her to kindly remind Jiang Xian?]
[Remind? Are you sure you're not a brainless fan?]
[At the beginning, I thought Rong Fan was a gentle, wealthy young master. I didn't expect him to be someone who stirs up drama either.]

The comments in the livestream took up half the screen, with every guest being repeatedly singled out for criticism. Some even started fighting among themselves—it was as chaotic as it could possibly be.