Chapter 48: Who’s More Handsome?
11 PM.
Keke dropped Shen Xi off at the villa.
And then… she realized she was locked outside the villa’s gate?!
Keke had planned to watch Shen Xi enter before leaving, but when she saw Shen Xi just standing there without going in, she got out of the car.
“What’s wrong, Xixi? Did you forget your key?”
Su Kexin jogged over, looking confused. Shen Xi frowned and pressed the video doorbell. While waiting, she awkwardly smiled at Keke.
The villa’s outer gate was a smart automatic door. Gu Hanling had never given her a key, just had Butler Wang register her fingerprint. But today, for some reason, her access was locked.
“Madam, you’re back.”
The video call connected, revealing Butler Wang, who greeted her with his usual warm smile.
“Uh… I’m still outside.”
“Apologies, Madam. This is Mr. Gu’s rule. The gates are locked after 8 PM.”
Butler Wang replied without any change in expression. What he didn’t say was that this rule had only started today.
Hearing this, Keke was stunned. She never thought Xixi had such a hard time living in a wealthy family. Was Mr. Gu’s house rule always this strict?
Shen Xi softened her tone, hoping to appeal to their shared experience as working people to get an exception.
“Can you make an exception? Just this once?”
“Apologies, Madam.”
Butler Wang hesitated for a moment but still refused.
“You’ve got to be kidding me…”
Shen Xi almost cursed. If she really couldn’t get in, she could just sleep at Keke’s place. Although it was very likely that she would run into the male and female leads again the next day.
Don’t ask why, it’s just the twisted logic of the storyline… Damn plot causality!
Left with no choice, she pulled out her phone to call Gu Hanling.
She hesitated. What if he was busy? Would he deduct her pay for disturbing him?
After thinking it over, she decided to just send him a message instead.
[Hello, handsome and charming Mr. Gu. I was only a tiny bit late getting home. Could you please ask Butler Wang to open the gate? I’d be forever grateful!]
She thought she’d have to wait a while, but surprisingly, a reply came within seconds.
[Oh? Then tell me, who’s more handsome, me or Shi Jingyan?]
Huh? What kind of question is this?! Is that really the point here?
Shen Xi stared at the message, wondering if she was seeing things.
Why would a big boss like him even compare himself to Shi Jingyan?
He could just take a selfie and settle this himself.
Sure, Shi Jingyan was the male lead, the author's golden boy. But even he needed Gu Hanling’s guidance to level up. How could he even be in the same league?
But Shen Xi hesitated to reply. This felt like a trap. If she said Gu Hanling was more handsome, wouldn’t that imply she didn’t like the male lead as much?
She could already picture Gu Hanling’s smug, capitalist smirk as he said, ‘Wrong answer, Madam. I’ll have to dock your pay.’
Cursing him a thousand times in her heart, she casually replied.
"Boss, you’re the most handsome when you’re throwing money around."
In the end, Shen Xi did get inside the house, but not because of that "compliment."
Her lower abdomen started hurting again, so much that she could barely stand.
Luckily, Keke supported her, and Butler Wang informed Gu Hanling of the situation, which finally got the gate opened.
After saying goodbye to Keke, Shen Xi dragged her exhausted body back to her room and collapsed onto the sofa.
Tonight, it wasn’t just her lower abdomen hurting, her waist was aching too. After taking the painkillers the doctor had prescribed earlier, Shen Xi finally felt a bit better.
After a warm shower, she lay down on her bed, staring at the empty space beside her. Feeling so “sad,” she started scrolling through her phone.
"Ah, finally, no one’s here to control me. Feels so nice~"
Browsing through short-video platforms and the Masked Singer production group chat, she saw that the show had already started its promotional campaign, and the first episode was currently being recorded.
Now that she thought about it, wasn’t it weird that this show had somehow ended up with the exact same name as a talent competition from her previous life? The original novel didn’t call it that.
Shen Xi was scheduled to make a surprise appearance in the semifinals, but since she was an unknown contestant, she had to go in early for rehearsals and extra training. In less than a week, she’d be heading out.
The trip would take three hours one way, six hours round trip, so she’d have to temporarily move out of the villa and stay in the hotel arranged by the production team.
This competition followed a PK elimination format: contestants had to battle each other, and once eliminated, they’d reveal their identities and leave the stage. Most participants were either once-famous but now forgotten artists looking for a comeback or moderately successful singers and actors seeking more exposure.
The more wins, the more publicity, but at the end of the day, this was still a variety show. Even if someone won the championship, it didn’t necessarily mean they’d become more popular than those who got eliminated early.
The Masked Singer format, with its mystery and suspense, made the show a hit online. The discussion buzz was already high, thanks to the promotional efforts.
Among the hot topics was her.
The video of “Yinhai Feiyu”—no, correction—An Yufei’s alt account, where she sang acapella, had reached over 8 million likes.
The comment section was a mix of praise and skepticism, which was inevitable with rising popularity.
Some netizens were blown away by her voice, speculating that she was an industry-backed powerhouse singer, newly signed by a big company.
Others questioned whether the video had been edited and auto-tuned, suspecting it was just another internet celebrity’s team trying to manufacture a star.
However, the top-liked comment was…
User: “Wow, this sounds amazing! What’s the song called?”
Yinhai Feiyu: “I know.”
User: “Huh???”
Yinhai Feiyu: “The song’s name is ‘I Know’.”
User: “I know you know, but tell us the name!”
Yinhai Feiyu: “Oh~ I get it. I know.”
User: “Wait, what do you get? So what’s the song’s name?!”
Some people genuinely didn’t know, while others were in on the joke that the song was literally called I Know.
Shen Xi chuckled. Looks like even in this world, people were starting to play with this meme.
In Masked Singer’s promotional materials, the show had officially confirmed that “Moonlight Goddess” was the mysterious guest making a surprise appearance halfway through the season.
Right now, her popularity online had already reached the peak of what an internet celebrity could achieve. If she created a new account, she’d probably hit a million followers effortlessly.
And all of this was thanks to a certain shameless man’s so-called "sleeping companion” deal, giving her a starting point miles ahead of others.
But that also meant immense pressure.
Her foundation was weak, and in this era where popularity ruled and public opinion was as sharp as a blade, one wrong step could send her crashing down from the clouds.
"I can only rely on my own strength."
While browsing trending topics, she suddenly noticed something at the bottom of the list: news about the fake Susie.
Under the Gu Corporation’s international jewelry branch, the genius designer “Susie” had secured a deal with the European royal family for an astonishing 900 million yuan. The diamond featured in the transaction had now become the most expensive single gemstone ever sold.
Shen Xi frowned at the overwhelming flood of reports and promotions.
Great. So her previous warning to that man had been completely useless.
"What’s his purpose here? Overthrowing the Gu family?"
She shook her head, mocking herself. Gu Hanling alone had a net worth in the hundreds of billions. Compared to the Gu family’s vast empire, this 900 million yuan deal was just a drop in the ocean.
But no matter what motives were at play or what tricks were being used. She, the real Susie, was still here.
She imagined the normally calm and composed big bro frowning over some unknown crisis in the future.
Then she, Shen Xi, considering her 'sworn sibling' relationship with her big brother, stepped forward, turning the tide, preventing the mansion from collapsing, and heroically declaring:
"No worries, I’ve got this!"
Heh. Just thinking about it made her a little excited.
After snapping out of her daydream, she refocused on her upcoming schedule.
With the competition venue so far away, she figured she wouldn’t run into the male and female leads this time… right?