Chapter 8: How Poisonous You Are! (Request Monthly Votes and Recommendations)

When he got home at night and lay on the comfortable bed, Qi Hao stared at the three options—Gao Yuanyuan, An Feng, Liu Dehua—and fell into brief thought.

It wasn’t that he was torn over which one to pick.

It was that he’d noticed a problem.

The system’s options were almost all recent celebrities he’d interacted with.

A few days ago, he met Liu Dehua at the press conference for *The Promise*.

This time, he encountered Gao Yuanyuan and An Feng.

As for Xu Jinglei, it was probably because there hadn’t been much interaction, so she didn’t become a system option.

Looks like in the future, whenever he meets good actors, he should interact with them more.

For the singing performance, Qi Hao planned to pass it off to Lao Tian later—after all, he paid him so much money every year just to make him do the grunt work, right?

Now it was his training time.

As for choosing between Gao Yuanyuan, An Feng, and Liu Dehua—who to spend the night with—there was no need to hesitate.

Obviously—Liu Dehua!

With eight hours of Liu Dehua’s time, Qi Hao could train a lot.

And Qi Hao noticed another problem.

That the previously selected “Zhou Xun” was still within the selectable range.

Anyone once selected seemed to be reusable in a cycle.

Like turning it into a card-collecting game.

Zhou Xun card, Dehua card…

As for which Liu Dehua film to pick, Qi Hao didn’t hesitate—he discovered he could briefly exit the training space and reselect the film.

He first chose the *Infernal Affairs* trilogy.

He could play any character who shared scenes with Liu Jianming.

According to the system, the training function was still in its early stage; as he completed more tasks, the system would upgrade.

For example, he could film movies within the training space.

He could arrange already-collected “cards” like Zhou Xun and Liu Dehua to all join in, letting Qi Hao train for ensemble scenes.

There was also “soul possession.”

While the training NPC acted, he could possess their body and feel the joy of performance.

Hmm, he had to be careful when picking scripts, or he might end up as the passive party in a porn film—could mess with his sexuality.

After finishing the *Infernal Affairs* training, he moved on to *The Accidental Spy*.

*The Accidental Spy* was one of Liu Dehua’s peak works, and Liu Qingyun’s performance was also excellent—not worse than Liu Dehua’s.

Liu Dehua had worked his way up through hardship and had immense acting experience.

Qi Hao gained a lot from acting opposite him.

And since he was a system NPC, he didn’t know how to hold back.

Of course, precisely because he was a system NPC, Qi Hao couldn’t ask for his bank card password.

Money lost could be earned again, but if you lost your conscience, you’d earn too much.

The next day, news of Qi Hao’s endorsement of spicy strips spread.

With so many crew members on set, keeping it secret was impossible, and since it would be announced eventually, there was no point hiding it.

Of course, Zi Wen had also helped stir the pot.

Look, Qi Hao is starting to self-destruct—he can’t even function without us.

Only we can save him.

This scandal made it easier for them to assign Qi Hao garbage endorsements.

Over these days, they’d gathered plenty of low-quality, overpriced endorsement deals.

Like hair growth tonic, fake liquor, and kidney-tonic health supplements…

As long as the money was high enough, even sanitary napkins and lipstick could be arranged.

At first, online there were many complaints about Qi Hao, saying he was becoming increasingly low-class.

Some criticized his agent for being unprofessional.

Others said he’d gotten arrogant after winning Best Actor and was now taking any trash money.

Everything was unfolding exactly as Zi Wen’s group had planned.

As one of the Four Young Leads and now a Best Actor, Qi Hao’s weight in the entertainment industry kept growing, making him an invisible thorn in many competitors’ eyes.

Rival companies began joining the chorus, eager to kick him when he was down.

Yet, somehow, the public opinion quietly shifted.

HuanLe: I feel Qi Hao was tricked. Looking at his career since debut, he’s clearly a sharp guy—he’s always picked good scripts and never endorsed such low-class products before.

FivePointStar: Now that you mention it, I think so too—maybe he didn’t voluntarily take the spicy strips endorsement.

Potato_Loves: Could someone really force him? Isn’t it all about the money?

Canglang Jushi: I heard his contract with Zi Wen is about to expire. In this industry, when contracts end and aren’t renewed, few part ways peacefully—I suspect Zi Wen here.

Gu Rong: Does anyone remember when Qi Hao made a cameo in *Li Mi’s Guess*?

Amituofo: You mean the one who got hit by Deng Zhao’s car?

An Feng Knows My Heart_CarriedDreamsToWestZhou: Not just hit by a car—he jumped off a bridge too. The production team even said Qi Hao didn’t use a stunt double; the wig on his head was knocked off by Deng Zhao.

Bei Yue Yaowang: I heard Deng Zhao actually suggested using a semi-truck. The director refused, fearing someone would die.

FlameStar1: Holy shit, having Deng Zhao hit Qi Hao? Someone really wanted him dead—is Zi Wen this ruthless?

Mei Shuibiao: Cough cough, we’re negotiating a deal with Zi Wen about Qi Hao’s endorsement—our product is Kidney Treasure… you get it!

NianYiBuHuoBanShengLiangBo: Holy shit, you’re an insider! Zi Wen went too far this time.

XiaoLouWasRegisteredForTwentyYears: Qi Hao’s starred in many hit dramas and earned high endorsement fees—he made Zi Wen a fortune. You don’t keep someone like this by forcing him into trash endorsements.

Online discussion quickly ignited a firestorm.

Fans all assumed Zi Wen was exploiting and tormenting Qi Hao, and they condemned Zi Wen as heartless.

Zi Wen had no defense.

If you didn’t force him, why would a top star possibly endorse spicy strips?

If you didn’t force him, who in their right mind would jump off a building and then hire a rival who hated him to run him over with a semi-truck?

Suddenly, Zi Wen became the target of everyone’s anger.

This sudden PR crisis was something Zi Wen’s own company never anticipated.

And they were innocent too.

Yes, they’d planned to assign Qi Hao garbage endorsements—but they’d only thought about it, never even started implementing.

How did this shit pile land directly on their heads?

Qi Hao’s cameo in *Li Mi’s Guess* had nothing to do with them.

The spicy strips endorsement was Qi Hao and his agent’s own decision.

But no matter how they explained, netizens didn’t believe them—even some industry peers hinted at their guilt.

Some big bosses even called Zi Wen’s chairman directly, pleading for mercy for this poor kid.

The chairman was furious too.

Qi Hao isn’t some unknown rookie—how could you treat a top star like a minor artist?

The damage to the reputation is terrible now!

Let him go. There might still be future opportunities to work together.

At this moment, Qi Hao and Lao Tian were eating spicy strips in his living room, along with one cat.

The cat was picked up by Qi Hao in his neighborhood a year ago.

He posted lost-cat notices for half a month, found no owner, so he kept it.

The cat’s name was Ao Bai.

Just from the name, you can guess its appearance.

Previously, his assistant came daily to feed it and clean the litter box.

Now that the assistant was gone, he entrusted it to a neighbor.

“Why not just throw away what’s left?” Qi Hao really didn’t want to eat any more—saving food isn’t done this way.

“I agree!” Lao Tian promptly dumped all the spicy strips into the trash.

“Were those online rumors bought PR posts?” Qi Hao gulped down a soda and let out a comfortable belch.

Though he acted cold and aloof in public, privately he loved carbonated drinks—just as a star, he could only have them occasionally.

“Definitely not. I’d already prepared myself for half-dead status.” Lao Tian was utterly baffled—he’d already accepted his fate.

Who could’ve predicted the public opinion would turn like this?

Zi Wen became the villain, while Qi Hao became the victim, winning sympathy from the entire internet.

“Zi Wen’s boss Ma is actually quite decent. Why not issue a statement to explain?”

Qi Hao didn’t want to burn bridges.

Over the years in the entertainment industry, he’d always been kind to others and maintained excellent relationships.

“Fine, but the effect is hard to predict.” Lao Tian chuckled.

Issuing a statement now, claiming the cameo and spicy strips endorsement were Qi Hao’s own decisions, with no company involvement—

Just see if netizens believe it.

They certainly think this statement was forced upon Qi Hao by the company.

“Sigh, we have to show our stance, or else we’ll be seen as tea girls,” Qi Hao sighed.

“You…”

You know damn well you’re being tea.

“Oh, by the way, help me find a commercial performance—preferably one where I sing a single song and leave.” Qi Hao remembered his third task.

Find a place, pick up a guitar, and perform on stage.

Playing the guitar wasn’t a problem—Qi Hao had learned it as a child, and over the years, whenever stress weighed heavy, he’d play a little. Though his skill was amateurish, among non-singing celebrities, it was already decent.

The problem was the concept of street singing.

The system required him to appear on any kind of stage, hold his guitar, and sing a song—but that didn’t mean he could just climb onto an empty stage and sneak past the requirement.

The system’s requirement was street singing.

If it’s selling, there must be an audience and compensation.

Either street performance or commercial gig.

If the system had loaded fully back in 1997, street performance would’ve been the obvious choice—it could bring some income and possibly boost his fame.

But Qi Hao was now a major star; street singing could easily cause a stampede.

So he planned to ask Lao Tian to find him a commercial event.

What was known as “zouxue.”

In the past, to maintain his aloof image, Qi Hao rarely participated in such events; now, to complete the task, he had no choice.

“I realize…” Lao Tian stared wide-eyed at Qi Hao, murmuring: “I realize how ruthless you are.”

First came cameos and spicy strips, now you’re going to zouxue.

Ziwen is truly chasing you to the brink.