At this moment, Pei Yue and Sun Yuanni were still struggling on the acupressure mats when a sudden gust of wind swept past them. They looked up to see a man sprinting past like the wind, striking the gong of victory.
Cheers of celebration erupted behind them as the task was successfully completed.
The first thought that popped into the minds of the two still on the mats was: "Why him!?"
Du Li was a regular on the show, already accustomed to the pain of the acupressure mats, and he was a man—why was he competing against them?
Then, they turned around and saw their two teammates at the horizontal bar, who had been responsible for lifting during this game.
The production team hadn’t specified that female guests had to complete this task.
In previous episodes, it had become an unspoken rule that female guests handled this segment because of their lighter weight.
After all, only three people were needed for this round.
If they felt it was unfair, they could always let their male teammates take over while they did the lifting instead.
Pei Yue and Sun Yuanni: "..."
Never mind.
So they resigned themselves to their fate, screaming as they continued running on the acupressure mats.
Meanwhile, Gu Ran high-fived Du Li as he returned from completing the task, then both turned to look at the stunned director.
She wasn’t particularly strong—her success was largely due to Liu Xiaolin putting in most of the effort. Plus, Du Li was small, agile, and lightweight, making him even more suited for clearing the horizontal bar than the female contestants.
The director, whose script had just been thrown out the window, mentally cursed a string of "xxxxxx (censored)" before signaling that the host team had succeeded, securing first place in this round.
Gu Ran had started the game with a triumphant opening, realizing that filming the show was easier than she’d expected, which eased her nerves.
The first segment of Celebrity Rush was held indoors at the hotel. Since it started late, filming wrapped up by noon, and everyone had lunch at the hotel before moving outdoors for the afternoon games.
Today’s shoot wasn’t a secret, and with the outdoor location, crowds of onlookers were inevitable. As soon as Gu Ran stepped out of the hotel, she saw fans and photographers waiting outside, mostly there for Yan Zhun and Pei Yue. The crowd grew even larger at the competition site, erupting in screams every time Yan Zhun and Pei Yue appeared, while the photographers frantically snapped pictures.
These two were major celebrities in the entertainment industry, and their fans were far more fervent than her own small following.
When the fans noticed that Yan Zhun and Pei Yue were wearing the same color and assigned to the same team, their screams grew even louder.
The outdoor game area had already been set up by the production team.
If the previous round tested speed, this one would be all about strength.
A classic Celebrity Rush challenge: Celebrity Wrestling.
This round was a single-team elimination match, with each team sending out members one by one for head-to-head bouts. Three rounds in total, and the team with the most wins would take the victory.
It was time for pre-game preparations, with dozens of cameras capturing the three teams huddled together.
In the third team—the female streamer group—Liu Xiaolin was naturally quiet, while Du Li, as a regular cast member, was already coaching Gu Ran on wrestling techniques: "Keep your stance low and steady. The moment you spot an opening, strike fast and hard. The goal is to pin your opponent to the ground..."
"All three of you are first-timers, but if you remember what I said, Gu Ran, you’ll do fine."
Gu Ran nodded at Du Li’s advice, then glanced at the other two teams, who were chugging energy drinks and warming up their muscles.
Yan Zhun from Pei Yue’s team was tall and long-legged, with wrestling being his specialty. Meanwhile, Han Xudong from Sun Yuanni’s team was built like a tank, representing the show’s strongest contestant.
The three rounds were arranged by weight class—female contestants in the first, mid-tier in the second, and the strongest in the last.
Yan Zhun and Han Xudong were both scheduled for the final round.
Gu Ran studied the other teams’ powerhouses, then turned to her own team’s final-round representative: Liu Xiaolin, a slightly chubby, cute-faced rookie singer.
Silence.
Du Li handed out energy drinks, insisting they take a few sips for stamina.
Even though their team’s chances of winning looked slim, underdogs needed all the preparation they could get.
Gu Ran noticed the director already scripting their "never-give-up" underdog storyline.
She took the energy drink, pondered for a moment, then suddenly said to her teammates:
"I have a bold idea."
...
The classic Celebrity Rush wrestling match officially began.
A professional wrestling mat was laid out in the center of the square, surrounded by barriers. Inside the barriers were the production crew, while outside, crowds of spectators and fans gathered.
Lights flashed, cheers erupted, and the contestants made their entrance one by one.
First up: Pei Yue, her hair in a perky bun, jogged out and waved at her screaming fans.
Next, Sun Yuanni, dressed for action, strode out with confident determination.
Then, the spotlight turned to the third team.
With fewer fans in attendance, the cheers were quieter, though the crowd still gave enthusiastic applause.
Under the spotlight, the first contestant from the third team dashed out, waving excitedly.
Du Li blew kisses at the spectators: "Thank you, everyone!"
Everyone stared in confusion as Du Li, instead of a female contestant, led the third team’s lineup.
Next came the second round, where each team’s mid-tier contestants were supposed to step forward—until the crowd saw the third team sending out Liu Xiaolin, whose weight gave him an undeniable advantage.
The confusion only grew.
Finally, it was time for the last round—the powerhouse showdown.
The lighting grew even more dramatic.
Yan Zhun strode in with his long legs, flashing a confident smile at the camera, while Han Xudong, who had been doing push-ups backstage, flexed his biceps for the crowd.
Then, the camera panned to the third team.
Gu Ran, the only woman in the group, jogged out, waving cutely at the camera and even forming a heart with her hands above her head.
As the contestants lined up in order, everyone—including the director still scribbling the underdog script—finally realized what was happening.
Then… stunned silence.
This wasn’t a wrestling match—this was a goddamn strategy play!
The third team had pitted Du Li, with his male strength advantage, against the other teams’ female contestants. Liu Xiaolin, with his weight advantage, faced their mid-tier opponents. And Gu Ran, with no obvious strengths, was left to "gracefully lose" against the other teams’ strongest members.
The sight of Gu Ran standing beside Yan Zhun and Han Xudong, waiting for her inevitable defeat, made the entire production team’s expressions twitch.
They immediately called an emergency meeting.
The show had always stipulated one-on-one matchups, but it never explicitly required the weakest to face the weakest and the strongest to face the strongest.
Although, until now, everyone had followed this unspoken rule when playing the game.
That was, until a certain female streamer casually remarked during preparations, "I have a bold idea."
After an emergency meeting, the producers returned to their positions and announced the decision:
"Group Three has not violated any show rules. The competition will proceed as scheduled."
Pei Yue and Sun Yuanni from Groups One and Two nearly lost their composure when they saw Du Li, sent by Group Three as their opponent.
"......"
What had they done to deserve this?
The referee’s whistle blew, and the wrestling match officially began.
Though Du Li wasn’t particularly tall, his natural physical strength as a man gave him an advantage. He effortlessly took down Pei Yue in the first round and then carefully subdued Sun Yuanni in the second.
In the second round, Liu Xiaolin, though not the most agile, leveraged his weight to secure two hard-fought victories.
Gu Ran, watching from the sidelines, jumped up and cheered, "Yes!"
Best two out of three—their team had won! Another first place!
Just as Gu Ran was celebrating, she noticed the referee waving at her.
She glanced around, confused.
Why was the referee signaling her?
The producer, whose script had once again been thrown out the window, approached her with a deadpan expression. "It's your turn now."
"Best two out of three means the third match still needs to happen."
"Go on. Your opponent is waiting."
The producer pointed to her challenger.
Gu Ran’s expression froze as she looked across at Han Xudong, who stood silently waiting for her—his muscles so defined it looked like he could crush her with one hand, towering over her by a full head, and with wrestling skills that were practically unbeatable.
"......"
Gu Ran’s composure shattered.
She had been too busy celebrating her teammates’ victory and patting herself on the back for her clever strategy, forgetting that as the weakest member of her team, she still had to face the strongest opponents from the other two groups.
Damn it.
Gu Ran was about to ask if she could skip the match since her team had already won, but the producer handed her a small note that read: You came up with this tactic. Now suck it up and finish the match.
Gu Ran: "......"
Now she understood why the producers had so generously approved her "bold idea" without worrying about fairness.
While Du Li had an advantage against the two female contestants, she, as part of the same team, had to face the two strongest male competitors from the other groups.
Perfectly balanced.
Suppressing the urge to flee, Gu Ran stepped onto the platform under the cheers of the crowd, trembling as she bowed to Han Xudong.
On the wrestling mat, Han Xudong looked at his opponent and rubbed his temples.
Gu Ran’s frame looked like she wasn’t even half his size—her thighs thinner than his arms. The contrast between them was comedic gold, both in humor and artistic effect.
The referee, maintaining perfect professionalism, blew the whistle to start the match.
Knowing escape was futile, Gu Ran gritted her teeth and committed to the spirit of sportsmanship—if she was going down, she wouldn’t go down without a fight.
She recalled the wrestling techniques Du Li had taught her, summoning every ounce of strength to try and trip Han Xudong. For a brief, delusional moment, she even imagined herself winning, her face flushed red in the camera’s view.
But her limits were what they were. No matter how hard she pushed, it was like an ant trying to topple a tree. Han Xudong remained immovable, watching her strained efforts before shaking his head.
After three minutes of struggle, Han Xudong finally made his move—using less than twenty percent of his strength, he effortlessly flipped Gu Ran onto the mat.
Exhausted, Gu Ran lay on the ground, experiencing true helplessness for the first time.
Just as she thought it was over and started to get up, she saw Yan Zhun stepping forward.
Gu Ran suddenly remembered.
Oh crap. There’s another one.
Her teammates outside the ring cheered her on, praising her "great sacrifice" for the team’s victory.
On the verge of tears, Gu Ran took less than ten minutes to recover before facing Yan Zhun.
Yan Zhun was a rising star, and wrestling inevitably involved close physical contact. The moment they engaged, screams from his fans nearly shattered eardrums.
Gu Ran mustered all her strength again, struggling against Yan Zhun for two minutes. Yan Zhun looked down at her efforts, equally exasperated, and shook his head.
Once she’d exhausted herself, he hooked his foot and easily swept her legs out from under her.
Gu Ran hit the mat for the second time, staring blankly at the sky in despair.
Just then, as Yan Zhun turned to leave, he accidentally tripped over Gu Ran’s outstretched leg.
She felt a sharp pain in her calf, and the next second, she found herself in an uncomfortably close face-off with Yan Zhun.
Yan Zhun barely caught himself, hands braced on the ground to avoid collapsing directly onto her, then quickly scrambled up.
He pulled Gu Ran to her feet, apologizing hurriedly, "Sorry about that."
At that moment, the screams from Yan Zhun’s fans reached deafening levels, nearly rupturing Gu Ran’s eardrums.
She forced an awkward laugh and immediately took a step back for self-preservation. "No worries."
......
Backstage, in the staff area.
A variety show of this scale kept everyone busy every minute—producers logging every highlight, lighting technicians adjusting beams, makeup artists touching up Pei Yue between matches.
Xu Hui, having just gotten off work in the afternoon, had coordinated with the crew in advance and quietly entered backstage with Ji Shiyu.
The two watched the wrestling match from behind the scenes.
Standing behind Ji Shiyu, Xu Hui’s expression darkened the moment he saw their former "little canary"—now their "little ancestor"—engaged in close-contact wrestling with a young, popular male star.
By the time the male star accidentally tripped and nearly fell onto Gu Ran, accompanied by the fans’ ear-splitting screams, Xu Hui was covering his eyes in horror.
Only when the screams died down did he dare lower his hand, then hesitantly glanced at the back of the man in front of him.
He didn’t even want to imagine Ji Shiyu’s current mood—or his expression.
