Chapter 16: Although the Short Essay Arrived Late, It Finally Came—Qianbao Seems Destined to Be Beaten by You! 【Please Vote】

The next day.

Due to his drunkenness, Lu Ming slept until nearly noon. When he woke, a notification from the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China popped up on his phone—a transfer deposit message. Still a bit drowsy, Lu Ming instantly became alert and hurriedly unlocked his phone to check.

"[Your card ending in 5499 received a transfer of 11,000,000.00 yuan at 9:52 AM on May 11. Current balance: 11,025,800.00 yuan. (Industrial and Commercial Bank)]"

"Finally, I’m rich!" Lu Ming felt a profound sense of triumph, as if a peasant had suddenly become a landlord.

Though he had anticipated this, the moment such a massive sum truly landed in his account was entirely different from yesterday’s emotions.

The first thing Lu Ming did was clear all his loans.

With no debts weighing him down, there was still over ten million yuan left in his account. Just that surplus alone could sustain him for a long time. At least until he could break free from Huayue’s control and start his own venture, he no longer needed to worry about money.

In high spirits, Lu Ming quickly freshened up and, without even bothering to order takeout, habitually grabbed two bottles of chilled beer from the fridge.

He tilted his head back, bit the bottle’s neck, and shook it vigorously from side to side!

The beer inside spiraled into a tornado-like swirl and vanished within eight seconds!

[Ding! Detected host is drinking 'Snow Beer'; "Constitution" +1!]

After a short rest, Lu Ming grabbed another beer and spun it around again.

This time, not feeling as well, he downed it in nine seconds!

[Ding! Detected host is drinking 'Snow Beer'; "Constitution" +2!]

Two bottles totaled 1000ml. Even water would take a while to drink that fast, but Lu Ming finished both beers in under a minute.

If any onlookers witnessed such a brutal scene, they would surely be stunned. After all, as a popular idol, most stars are extremely mindful of their image and cautious about their public persona.

But here was Lu Ming, blessed with a stunning, almost divine face typical of Chinese entertainment, who loved drinking—and more importantly, behaved like a common drunkard you'd find on the street.

His style was down-to-earth to the extreme!

Lu Ming walked to the mirror, lifted his shirt, and examined himself. Compared to two days ago when he appeared on Mushroom House, his abdominal muscles were now more defined. While most people grow weaker the more they drink, Lu Ming seemed to grow healthier.

Not just healthier—he even had a clear outline of the coveted eight-pack abs many idol stars dreamed of. If he kept this up, he might one day rival the disciplined peak idol Yu Yan.

Yu Yan was disciplined in fitness and diet; Lu Ming was disciplined in drinking, eating whatever came to hand.

No complaints there!

After indulging in a moment of self-admiration, Lu Ming took out his phone and logged onto Weibo to check how the netizens were doing with their debt collection efforts.

Opening the trending topics, his expression suddenly changed.

Yesterday, the hashtag #SisterZhengRepayDebt# had been pinned at the top, but overnight, the list had been totally replaced. Now, all the trending topics were about new developments related to Mushroom House.

#MushroomHouseIncident 2.0!#

#We'veAllMisunderstood Lu Ming!#

#GuestsGoCrazy, Teacher Huang Suffered Abuse!#

#Let Lu Ming Handle It, This Time It'll Be Perfect!#

#Great! The Five Tigers Are Here, Variety Shows Are Saved!#

#@WesternPoison Ouyang Ming, Complete Defeat!#

#Old Chef Still the Most Toxic!#

#Good and Evil Have Their Rewards, The Way of Heaven Cycles! Teacher Huang's Poison-Making Finally Caught Up With Him!#

#MushroomHouse’s Happiest Episode with Returning Guests!#

#Only Teacher Huang Got Hurt!#

#Teacher He: This Time, I Refuse to Join Your Laughter.#

#SisterZhengRepayDebt!#

#…#

Lu Ming’s feelings were complicated.

The good news was he was still trending, and the heat seemed even more intense than before. The bad news was, netizens stopped urging Sister Zheng to repay her debt and had all shifted to the latest Mushroom House drama.

"This won’t do!" Lu Ming casually clicked into one hashtag to see what exactly was going on.

Although he wasn’t surprised by Teacher Huang’s antics, once he learned the details, he couldn’t help but laugh aloud in front of his phone.

"Old guy, you really know how to stir things up!"

Feeling inspired, Lu Ming went backstage and quickly drafted a heartfelt message:

[Teacher Huang!]

[My dear Teacher Huang!]

[Our warm and loving moments feel like just yesterday. I even dreamed I was learning from you how to stew a pot of non-toxic green beans, but when I woke, my respected role model was being bullied like this!]

[The Mushroom House guests really have no sense!]

[Teacher Huang only wanted your life, and what good did it do you to give it?]

[Teacher Huang is our respected mentor, our revered senior, and now such a solemn teacher is publicly humiliated before the whole nation—this tramples on our hornet’s dignity! Truly satisfying!]

[Here, I call upon all hornets everywhere to seek justice from those who bully Teacher Huang!]

The next page of messages poured in:

[And there are still people comparing me to Teacher Huang.]

[How dare a firefly compete with the bright moon?]

[Compared to Teacher Huang, you, Ming, are nothing!]

[Counting Teacher Huang’s 'Seven Great Poisonous Skills,' I once thought it was an unbreakable milestone in entertainment history, but overnight, it has been surpassed!]

[Only a weakling like me remains stagnant; true strength always seeks new breakthroughs!]

[Teacher Huang only needs a slight move to reach heights I could never chase in a lifetime.]

[Why was Huang born, and then Ming?]

[Though Huang’s cooking skills are far above mine, I still feel sorry for him!]

[Honestly, Huang was born into a harmonious society, or such a gifted talent would have been buried.]

[If Huang had been born in a wuxia world, figures like East Heretic Huang Yaoshi or West Venom Ouyang Feng would be his juniors!]

[Teacher Huang’s poison skills are unrivaled; to eliminate enemies amid feasts of meat and fish, he would be the undisputed martial arts overlord!]

[…]

Within three minutes, Weibo’s comment section exploded.

“Teacher Huang only wanted your life, so what if you gave it? Do you even hear what you’re saying?”

“Guests: If he wanted me, I’d give it?”

“You look up to Teacher Huang and call for fans to seek justice? I can’t help but laugh.”

“Dreaming of learning to stew non-toxic beans from Teacher Huang, really?”

“Burnt out!”

“This guy is way too much!”

“Laughing my head off. I knew Lu Ming must have been asleep last night; otherwise, with all this chaos, he’d definitely have some new drama.”

“Better late than never for the little essay.”

“If only he put his talent for role reversal into cooking, why would the nine-turn intestines taste like death?”

“You said it. Would you rather eat nine-turn intestines that taste like death or a deadly mushroom stew? Apologies to anyone who doubted Ming’s cooking—it only targets your stomach, but Teacher Huang really wants to take your life!”

“If I had a choice, I’d eat nothing!”

“Reversal: One plan harms three sages? No! One plan eliminates three harms, yes!”

“Bee, Meggie: Are you being polite?”

“I have a disease where I laugh every time I see Lu Ming speak online.”

“Slaying enemies amid feasts of meat and fish—I’m dying laughing!”

“This guy’s got some serious talent!”

[…]

Meanwhile,

At the hospital,

The entire Mushroom House cast lay side by side in a multi-bed ward, all hooked up to IV drips.

Sun Li rushed overnight to care for her husband. As she fed Deng Chao fruit, her eyes kept darting toward Teacher Huang, filled with murderous intent.

Deng Chao scrolled through short videos on his phone, his face flushed from embarrassment at the many shocking clips.

Chen Chichi curled up, still shaken.

Thinking back to last night’s reckless dive into the pigsty, he was inexplicably fearful.

If he had gone in, he’d truly have needed a new planet to live on!

Wu Qian and Li Changfeng couldn’t even look Teacher Huang in the eye. Thinking of the sins they’d committed the night before, they dared not make a sound, fearing Huang’s wrath.

The ward was quiet and tense.

At lunchtime, the assistants brought meals over. Unsure how to interact, everyone tacitly began eating.

Teacher Huang, bored, opened his phone and saw a flood of private messages from Weibo. Curious, he clicked and found that the infuriating Lu Ming had tagged him again and posted a little essay.

Though he knew the brat probably had no good intentions, curiosity compelled Teacher Huang to read every word.

Moments later, his previously calmed mood ignited like gasoline.

He exploded in anger!

“Damn it!!!”

Furious, Teacher Huang leapt from the bed and kicked the small tray table flying.

Li Changfeng, quietly eating with his head down, was hit and screamed in agony, holding his head.

Everyone turned to look.

Teacher Huang, enraged, smashed his porcelain rice bowl on the floor and cursed loudly.

“That bastard Lu Ming is impersonating fans online, shamelessly leeching off my traffic?!”

“Damn it!”

“If I actually knew poison skills, the first to go would be that conniving Sun thief!”

Deng Chao: “…”

Chen Chichi: “…”

Li Changfeng: “…”

You gave us hallucinations, yet you don’t know poison skills?

Teacher Huang was livid.

“He even calls me ‘dear’! Disgusting! I’m itching all over just from looking at the screen!”

“I want to punch that newborn brat so badly!”

He jumped off the bed, grabbed the terrified Wu Qian, and asked excitedly:

“Tell me, should we beat up that Lu Ming?”

“Yes, we should!”

Recalling the essay’s contents, Teacher Huang punched the chest of the popular idol in front of him, ignoring the pained screams.

“First, he says he respects me and looks up to me, then he calls me hypocritical. Is that right?!”

Wu Qian: “That’s not right, Teacher Huang!”

Bang!

“Then he says you’re trampling on the hornet’s dignity, followed by saying it’s satisfying justice. Is that right?!”

Wu Qian was stunned and hurriedly backtracked.

“From what I hear, he probably meant ‘bad heart,’ as in siding with you, Teacher Huang!”

“He must’ve read some books to say a firefly can’t compete with the bright moon,” Teacher Huang fumed. “And you, defending Lu Ming?”

Wu Qian: “???”

Before he could speak, Teacher Huang’s iron fist landed solidly on him…

“Fake fan, huh?” Bam! “Calling out hornets, huh?” Bam! “Can’t catch up, huh?” Bam! “Not worthy, huh?” Bam! “Deadly, huh?” Bam! “Unrivaled, huh?” Bam! “Martial arts overlord, huh?” Bam!

Teacher Huang raged like a mad gorilla, growing more excited with each blow, paying no mind to Wu Qian’s reactions. He pinned him to the bed and pounded his still-IV-needled arm with relentless fists.

Wu Qian teared up, sobbing, “Help… help…”

“Help, huh?” Hearing those words, Teacher Huang was further provoked and hammered like a rainstorm.

“I’ll beat you, you newborn East Dawn!”

Teacher Huang howled fiercely.

“Lu Ming, I’m coming for you!”

“Stop!”

“Teacher Huang, what are you doing?!”

“He’s not Lu Ming, he’s Qian Bao!”

“Let go! Qian Bao’s about to get knocked out!”

Everyone hurried to intervene.

Teacher Huang looked confused, then incredulous as he looked at the nearly unconscious Wu Qian.

“Sorry, I’ve been too stressed lately. Look at my old eyes, I even mistake people…”

Wu Qian looked at Teacher Huang, exhausted, gasping, “No… no death…”

Fortunately, the nurse arrived just in time to prevent disaster. Though Wu Qian took a serious beating, Teacher Huang was also hurt badly—his violent movements caused the IV needle to shift, leaving him tearful.

As the tension thickened, Teacher Huang’s phone suddenly rang.

“Hello, who is this?”

“A variety show? I’m half dead in the hospital because of variety shows. I’m not doing any more! No variety shows for me!” Teacher Huang snarled. “Variety stars are no good!”

Just as he was about to hang up, the caller added something that froze him solid.

Deng Chao, Chen Chichi, and the others looked on in surprise.

“I’m going,” Teacher Huang suddenly changed his tune, eyes gleaming with excitement.

“You don’t need to say more. I’ll have my assistant book the tickets now. The appearance fee doesn’t matter; I just want to make more friends through variety shows!”

After hanging up, everyone in the ward gave Teacher Huang strange looks.

Soon after, Wu Qian’s phone rang.

“Go on a variety show? I’m nearly beaten to death by Teacher Huang in the hospital; no way I’m going!” Wu Qian’s voice cracked with emotion. “I’m telling you, impossible, no way, no matter how much they pay!”

Just as he finished, he seemed to hear shocking news. His eyes widened instantly.

The next moment, the resolute Wu Qian changed his mind.

“I won’t go on other shows, but this one—I have to go!”

His face full of hatred, he spat, “Money doesn’t matter. The main thing is—I’m going with that damn Lu Ming. What kind of level does he have to be on the same gig as me?”

“The past isn’t over. Just now, I took another beating because of that Lu Ming. Thinking of him singing and dancing online makes my heart crawl with ants! I want him dead!”

After the call ended, the ward fell silent.

…