A Star Reborn: The Queen’s Return

Luo Luo, Xia Ling, and Xia Yu were tied to three maple trees by lace ribbons.

Not far from the maple trees, there was a “crocodile pool” made of special effects which was actually a large pit. There were three narrow swinging wooden bridges above the pit. Below the bridges, there were more than a dozen staff members wearing cartoon crocodile suits “swimming around.”

Xia Ling was speechless. Why did this show have such bad taste? The host was prancing around in a clown costume as he spoke to the camera. “A very long time ago, there was a demon king who lived in the maple forest. He trapped a beautiful princess in the maple forest. To avoid people’s attention, he also turned two squirrels into princesses. This means that only one out of the three girls tied to the trees is a real princess. Who is it?”

Starting from Xia Ling, the camera slowly swept past the three of them.

The clown let out a big smile and continued. “Next, let’s welcome our three knights!”

Rong Ping, Bai Murong, and Zheng Chenhao stood opposite the three girls at the other side of the crocodile pool. With a confident smile on his lips, Bai Murong wore an exaggerated and gorgeous shirt and looked very noble. Meanwhile, Zheng Chenhao looked very tough and had a firm gaze. And lastly, Rong Ping looked gentle and refined. No one could see through his emotions.

“Now, I will announce the first phase of the mission. Three knights, each of you has only one chance to choose the real princess in your mind. After that, you will cross the crocodile pool and save your princess by bringing her to the other side of the pool. Remember, each of you only has one chance to choose. Whether the girl you choose is the real princess or a squirrel is up to your discretion and luck. Good luck!”

The clown emcee said with much emotion.

Sunlight streamed into the forest. Xia Ling’s hands and feet were tied with ribbons, leaving her quite uncomfortable. Absent-mindedly, unpleasant memories of her imprisonment in her previous life started to flash in her mind. She had to put in a lot of effort to control herself from reopening those wounds and forcefully distracted herself.

Knight?

She looked at the three men across the crocodile pool in a trance-like state. How… could anyone of them be her knight? None of them could save her from the shadow of her past. The reason why she could stand here today, participate in this show, and not madly scream after being tied to the tree… was because she probably she had met the true knight in her life.

Li Lei was her power and sunlight.

As soon she thought about his smiling face, all of the darkness in the world did not feel so scary.

She breathed deeply and looked more focused as she faced the camera.

“Ye Xingling’s acting is so realistic.” The director told the cameraman. “Shoot her a few more times.” There was suppressed fear and grief on her face, but she still looked like she was trying to maintain the pride of a princess. Her acting was so life-like that people could not help but be immersed in the show.

After looking at Luo Luo and Xia Yu, the audience could clearly see that they were watching a variety show.

However, looking at Xia Ling was different. With her expression now, anyone would think that she was the real princess. They were captivated by her action.

“Who is the real princess?” The director asked the assistant.

“I don’t know.” The assistant immediately replied. “Isn’t it like what you said? The reality show has to be realistic. The real princess is randomly chosen. It depends on which of the three actresses has the ability to win the game.”

The director looked closely at Xia Ling again.

“Give her a little more appropriate screentime but don’t make it too obvious.” He hoped that Xia Ling would win the title of the true princess because she had the most princess-like temperament out of the female stars. Luo Luo looked too much like a girl-next-door. And Xia Yu? Although she seemed weak and pitiful, she lacked the proud and rebellious nature of a captured princess.

However, they could only give her a little more help. It would be up to Xia Ling to seize the opportunity. If she could not grasp it, then the title of the real princess would still be won by one of the other girls.

The assistant softly acknowledged him and discreetly instructed the other staff members.

At the other side, the one to make the first move was Bai Murong.

Before the show started, he had already formed an alliance with Luo Luo and naturally found it his obligation to rescue Luo Luo. He agilely walked on the wooden bridge to get across the crocodile pool to untie princess Luo Luo. He carried her romantically, and under the focus of countless cameras, he crossed the swaying wooden bridge and returned back to the other side.

“Wow! Wow! Wow!” The clown applauded. Dwarfs surrounded both of them and started to throw flowers and cheer.

Although she had debuted for more than a year, it was the first time Luo Luo was so close physically to a man. Unknowingly, her face turned rather red, and her heart raced. Luckily, the redness was covered by her thick makeup and no one could see it.

“Let’s do an interview. Knight Bai Murong, why did you choose Luo Luo? Do you think Luo Luo is the real princess?” The clown expectedly handed the microphone to Bai Murong.

Bai Murong still had a confident smile on his face, and he answered the question very aptly. “She is very beautiful. I was fascinated the first time I saw her, so my heart told me, ‘Go, Bai Murong, she is the real princess.'”

The clown and the dwarves erupted in laughter. Even Rong Ping and Zheng Chenhao started to laugh as well.

Xia Ling also smiled. Suddenly, she felt that both of them were quite a good match.

One wooden bridge was taken away from the crocodile pool.

The initial “crocodiles” who had gathered under Luo Luo’s bridge started to crowd around Xia Ling’s and Xia Yu’s bridges. In an instant, the number of “crocodiles” below their bridges increased by a lot. They moved slowly and knocked the shaking wooden bridges, making the bridges more difficult to cross.

“Rong Ping and Zheng Chenhao. Have you two knights made a decision? Which princess are you going to save?” The clown tried to make the show more dramatic. “It seems that the difficulty gets harder the later you start. The bridges are now more challenging to cross. Can you bring the princess back safely?”

Zheng Chenhao looked pretty dignified. He had no confidence in his own skills. Even if he could cross the wooden bridge himself, it would be impossible for him to carry a princess back like Bai Murong.

As he took half a step in Xia Yu’s direction, he then stopped in his tracks and thought hard.

Rong Ping noticed his hesitation.

“What a coincidence.” He told Zheng Chenhao. “I also think that Xia Yu is the real princess. How about we cooperate and save the real princess?” The show’s team only specified that each knight could only choose one princess, but did not say that they could not choose the same princess. Rong Ping did not plan on choosing Xia Ling because that girl did not care much about him. Before they started working together, he wanted her to experience some hardship so she would know who was the dominant one.