Lin Dan looked at the group of strangers who suddenly visited him and became wary. One of them quickly looked around the environment she lived in, stared at her face for a while, and then showed a look of satisfaction. He only regarded Lin Dan as an ordinary village woman, so he didn't even bother to control his expression. There is no doubt that the purpose of their trip is not as simple as filming a variety show as they said.
"What is 'The Naughty Kid at Home'?" Lin Dan asked tentatively.
"Ms. Lin, let's go inside and talk." The leading man smiled politely, but he seemed to be taking the initiative.
Lin Dan immediately put the leeks into the basin, rubbed his hands pretending to be stiff, and then invited a few people in.
The wooden house was very old, and the furniture was placed in a disorderly manner without any aesthetic appeal, making it look very messy. It is not difficult to tell from the condition of the house that the owner's condition is equally bad. While several people were observing the surrounding environment, Lin Dan was also silently observing their actions and expressions to judge their purpose.
Although she had lost her memory, she still had her experience, and she understood at a glance that these people were probably up to no good. So she didn't even bother to pour the tea, and asked directly: "What do you want from me?"
"Ms. Lin, it's like this. We are the staff of XX Channel, and we would like to invite you to participate in a parent-child variety show we are about to start filming, called "The Naughty Kids at Home". Have you watched the very popular "Dad and I Go Traveling" a few years ago?" The leading man sat reluctantly on the shabby sofa, with the word "disgust" written all over his face.
"I haven't seen it." Lin Dan shook his head.
"You haven't watched such a popular show? We have reached the fifth season, and the ratings are always the best in China. Even if you haven't watched it, you must have heard of it, right? The show we are going to shoot is similar to that one, but the guests invited are not children, but celebrities and their parents. This time we are commissioned by Miss Bai Zhilan to find you. She is interested in participating in our show, but she is not sure if you will agree, so she asked us to ask for your opinion. If you agree, she will join our filming." The man looked at Lin Dan with certainty, thinking that as long as she heard the three words "Bai Zhilan", she would immediately sign a contract with them.
But Lin Dan is not so easy to fool. She is not the original owner, who would lose her judgment because of missing her daughter so much. While silently observing, she was also evaluating the pros and cons in her mind.
Variety shows are very good at attracting fans and are also a powerful tool used by many celebrities to whitewash themselves. As long as you perform well in the show, you can turn your life around. But Lin Dan didn't think that his participation in this variety show would bring much benefit to Bai Zhilan.
Firstly: she is not the original owner, and she does not have many feelings for Bai Zhilan, so she cannot pretend to be a loving mother; secondly, the image of the original owner is so bad that it will cause great discomfort to the audience. Although reality shows are all about authenticity, things that are too real often cause disgust.
Just imagine, if other stars’ parents were all good-looking, knowledgeable, and humorous, but Bai Zhilan’s mother was skinny and looked miserable, how would the audience react? They would definitely not appreciate this. Instead, they would compare Bai Zhilan's mother with the parents of other celebrities, and then belittle her as worthless, and also laugh at Bai Zhilan's background.
What's more subtle is that Bai Zhilan and Bai Zhu are engaged in a war of public opinion, and the focus of their arguments is on each other's mothers. Liu Manni is a person who knows how to package herself very well. Not only does she look young and beautiful, she also does charity work every year. On the other hand, what did the original owner have? She has never been to school, never been abroad, and has spent her entire life farming in this small mountain village.
If her miserable appearance were broadcast on the show, the audience might sympathize with her, but after a long time, they would inevitably think in their hearts: Is Bai Zhilan's mother so bad? She has neither looks nor education, no wonder Bai Pengfei wants to divorce her and marry Liu Manni, who is excellent in all aspects. If it were me, I would make the same choice. In this way, Bai Zhilan will completely lose this war of public opinion.
Human beings are such complex creatures. They pity the weak but admire the strong even more. However, pity is only temporary, while strength has a lasting appeal.
Taking all factors into consideration, participating in this program will not benefit either Lin Dan or Bai Zhilan. Lin Dan only took a few seconds to make a decision: "Sorry, I can't participate in this show."
"Why? Is it because you can't adjust the time? We can cooperate with you." The producer persuaded.
Lin Dan's eyes flickered slightly, and she felt more and more that she could not participate in this show. She is just an ordinary village woman. Apart from her daughter Bai Zhilan, there is nothing interesting about her. The program team has no reason to adjust her schedule.
Thinking of this, Lin Dan did not answer but asked: "Who are the invited celebrities?"
The producer replied with a twinkling look in his eyes, "It has not been confirmed yet, because this is the first season to test the waters, so we want to invite the hottest stars recently. Your daughter Bai Zhilan is one of our most promising guests. She has been surrounded by negative news recently. If you can participate in this show, let everyone see how you and your daughter get along. I think the audience will be moved by your true feelings. Participating in variety shows is the fastest way to whitewash an artist."
"Yes," another staff member added, "Ms. Bai Zhilan's career has been hindered recently, and the main reason is you. If you can stand up and show the public your mother-daughter relationship, it will also be a help to her."
Lin Dan lowered his eyes and listened, seemingly seriously, but in fact his heart was as calm as water. The harder these people tried to persuade her, the more alert she became. Can participating in this program help Bai Zhilan clarify the negative news? That absolutely does not exist. Given her current state, it was good enough that she didn't discredit the other party.
"Sorry, I can't join." She refused again, her tone firm.
"We will pay you for the performance." The producer pulled out his trump card: "Do you think two hundred thousand is enough?"
"Sorry." Lin Dan still said the same thing.
"Three hundred thousand?" The producer raised the price.
"Sorry, I'm very busy now and don't have time to entertain you." Lin Dan made a gesture to see the guests off.
The producer had to stand up and said in a gentle voice: "Ms. Lin, I hope you can think about it carefully. This is my business card. Please keep it. If you change your mind, you can call me at any time. How long has it been since you last saw Miss Bai Zhilan? If you participate in this program, you can find your lost daughter. Don't you want to?"
If the original owner were still alive, these words would surely hit her soul hard, causing her to collapse in an instant. Regardless of whether there is a trap full of sharp knives ahead, she will jump in without hesitation, even if she will end up with wounds all over her body and blood dripping...
But Lin Dan was not her, and could not understand her love for her daughter, so she shook her head indifferently: "No, thank you."
The producer looked at her in disbelief for a long moment, then walked away dejected.
Lin Dan locked the gate, cooked a pot of rice porridge for herself, drank half a bowl of it, and boiled a bowl of medicine to treat stomach problems, then went to bed. In the fog, she saw an old face, which kept mouthing "Save her, save her" and then led her into the depths of the fog.
In the changes of light and shadow, Lin Dan watched a person's life, and an indescribable sense of sadness accumulated in his heart. It turns out that this person is the original owner who has grown old. Her soul has come back for some reason and is leading her to foresee the future.
She was not as determined and clear-minded as Lin Dan, who immediately rejected the producer's invitation. Instead, she agreed without thinking. Her bad image was indeed ridiculed by many netizens and also brought a lot of embarrassment to her daughter. She doesn’t know how to dress herself, how to speak in social situations, and she doesn’t even know the most basic common sense. The only thing she knows is how to grow flowers and plants, but what’s the use of that? Today's audiences are more avant-garde than each other and cannot appreciate her life and career at all.
After a few episodes of the show, the audience's sympathy for her had long since disappeared, replaced by disgust and aversion. They said she was old, ugly, stupid and clumsy, so how could she be worthy of the handsome uncle Mr. Bai? The normal course of the story would be for Mr. Bai to marry Liu Manni. They compared her with other celebrity parents, and made fun of her for being old-fashioned and ugly, and also attacked Bai Zhilan's background.
However, this is not the worst case scenario. During the filming, Bai Zhilan's agent found the original owner privately and said worriedly: "Aunt Lin, you see Lanlan has lost a lot of weight recently. Does it look like she's taking drugs? She always locks herself at home, doesn't answer anyone's calls, and I don't know what she's doing. I'm very worried about her now, but I can't ask her. You're her mother, why don't you ask for me?"
The original owner became anxious when he heard this, and found Bai Zhilan during the break in filming and asked her if she had taken drugs. Bai Zhilan had a hot temper and started arguing with her immediately, making the situation extremely embarrassing. They all thought the microphone had been turned off, but it wasn't, so this private argument was broadcast on the Internet, causing huge controversy.
Bai Zhilan repeatedly denied that she took drugs, but her agent and her mother didn't believe her, and her sudden weight loss seemed to confirm the accusation. Netizens began to boycott everything about her, and the program team quickly terminated her contract. She went from being a rising star to a target of public condemnation overnight. She went to the hospital for a urine test, but the public did not acknowledge the test results and questioned whether she had bribed the doctor. Her reputation was destroyed by the original owner, the "good mother", and nothing was left except the mess on the ground.
Online violence ensued, nailing Bai Zhilan to the moral pillar of shame. One day, she committed suicide by jumping from a thirty-nine-story building at the age of twenty. She was like a butterfly with broken wings, burying herself in the wind.
Her negative information was dug out one by one by the internet army hired by Bai Zhu, including her chaotic private life, fighting, bullying classmates... The Bai family was unwilling to let her go even in death, and netizens poured basins of dirty water on her head, saying that she died a good death, that her death was not unjust, etc. However, only the original owner who received her daughter's suicide note knew that she was clean and did not take drugs. She just suffered from depression like her mother.
The original owner was in great pain, but it was too late. Even if she published her suicide note, no one was willing to believe it. She also wanted to commit suicide by jumping off the building, but she was the culprit who killed her daughter. How could she have the face to go to the underworld to meet him? So she could only stand by her daughter's grave every day, repeating the same words over and over again: "I'm sorry, Mom was wrong..."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
