The system had no idea that it was leaving all the gossip-loving netizens hanging in suspense. It went on celebrating.
“That lunatic Gu Xiaozhi deserves the same fate as Sun Yu!!”
“Oh, right,” the system started spilling more gossip to Yu Jiaojiao. “Host, do you know what the relationship is between Gu Xiaozhi and Chen Yizun?”
Yu Jiaojiao didn’t respond, but the barrage exploded with even more comments.
【What? Is Chen Yizun having an affair with Gu Xiaozhi too??】
【Oh my god, this circle is such a mess!!】
【No way, no way? Is Chen Yizun really that popular?】
【I feel like a badger standing in a melon patch…】
【I declare that I’m going to stay in this livestream permanently! This is so much easier than running around the internet trying to find gossip on my own!】
Just as the gossip-loving netizens thought that Gu Xiaozhi might also be one of Chen Yizun’s affairs, the system finally revealed the answer.
“Gu Xiaozhi’s young female star best friend is the fiancée of Chen Yizun’s brother-in-law—well, ex-brother-in-law.”
The relationship was indeed messy. Yu Jiaojiao finally had a reaction—something called speechlessness.
The bullet comments, however, seemed a bit disappointed.
【Hmph, I thought those two had a thing too.】
【I feel like this ‘streamer’ wouldn’t bring up an unrelated person for no reason. They’ve mentioned Gu Xiaozhi’s young female star friend several times now. Could the later parts of the manhua be related to her?】
【Right, who is that young female star anyway?】
【Let me just give a hint: post-00s, public persona is a rich and beautiful young lady. Her fans’ favorite lines are—‘Our XX is perfect on her own, stay away’ and ‘XXX is just a has-been Best Actress, how dare she even be mentioned in the same breath as our XX?’】
【Damn, instant decode!】
【So it’s her. Pfft, how disgusting! After gaining popularity by promoting a CP, she turned around and told the guy to stay away, copied Li Feifei’s path, and still had to step on her.】
【Who is it? Stop with the riddles! Those of us who don’t follow domestic entertainment are crying in the bathroom】
【Don’t worry, the gossip manhua will reveal it soon enough /patpat】
Because the show was being filmed, the system didn’t have time to keep talking to Yu Jiaojiao after revealing the answer.
The seven guests were arranged at a table with four buzzers in front of them.
Under the director’s direction, the stagehand announced the rules for this episode.
“The tasks for this episode consist of two parts. The first, as mentioned earlier, is to avoid being recognized by passersby. If you’re recognized, you’re eliminated. The second task is to use the funds provided by the production team to purchase supplies and set up a stall. Your rankings will be determined by the net profit you earn.”
“There are also requirements for the stall supplies: you must have no fewer than two items. Additionally, within the next half-minute, you must come up with a four-character idiom that includes both of the items you’ve chosen. Your items cannot overlap with anyone else’s.”
“Please use the buzzers in front of you to answer. After buzzing in, each group will have ten seconds to think. Three, two, one, go!”
The seven guests were instantly energized. Yu Jiaojiao, Wang Jiajia, and Fei Xiang were closest to the buzzers, and they immediately slammed their hands down on them.
In the first round, Wang Jiajia managed to buzz in first. Without a second thought, she blurted out, “A speedy birth of a noble child!(Zǎo Shēng Guì Zǐ)”
Anyone who’s ever been to a wedding knows what those four characters refer to—Red dates (Hóngzǎo), peanuts (huāshēng), longans (guìyuán), and lotus seeds (liánzǐ).
“Successful answer. Second round, three, two, one, go!”
“Smack!”
This time, Fei Xiang buzzed in ahead of Yu Jiaojiao.
Fei Xiang and Peng Xiyuan exchanged a glance. A few seconds later, Peng Xiyuan had a flash of inspiration. “Good luck and great fortune!(Dà Jí Dà Lì)”
Representing orange (júzǐ) and lychees (lìzhī).
“Successful buzz. No need to buzz for the final round. Yu Jiaojiao and Wen Qiang, your group, please answer.”
Losing the first two rounds to other groups left Yu Jiaojiao quite displeased.
She sulked for a few seconds. Wen Qiang looked at her soothingly.
Wen Qiang thought Yu Jiaojiao hadn’t come up with anything, and was just about to blurt out her own idea—“Safe and sound(Píng Ān Yī Shēng),—representing apples (Píng) and probiotic drinks—but Yu Jiaojiao suddenly looked up and answered: “Seasonal prosperity.” (Sì Jì Fā Cái)”
The atmosphere went silent for a second.
The stagehand blinked. “And what does this represent?”
Yu Jiaojiao gave him a ‘are you stupid’ look. “Have you never heard of green beans (Sì Jì Dòu) and money trees (Fā Cái Shù)?”
Feeling his intelligence insulted, the stagehand pouted and said, “Answer accepted.”
“Hahahaha…” The other guests nearly doubled over laughing.
After they finished laughing, though, everyone found the combination Yu Jiaojiao had come up with a bit odd. They had all thought of complementary items that went together, but green beans and a money tree?
They soon couldn’t laugh anymore, because the production team was providing startup capital based on the previous episode’s rankings.
“The first-place group from last episode, Yu Jiaojiao and Wen Qiang, receives a startup fund of 4,000 yuan. The second-place group, Gu Mi, Wei Luting, and Wang Jiajia, receives 3,000 yuan. The third-place group, Fei Xiang and Peng Xiyuan, receives 2,000 yuan.”
A crew member handed the cash to each group.
“You may now move freely,” the stagehand instructed.
“Huh??” Everyone looked confused. “We have to buy the supplies ourselves?”
“That’s correct,” the stagehand said matter-of-factly.
None of the guests had the slightest clue about purchasing supplies.
Yu Jiaojiao’s eyes were also spinning in circles. Only Wen Qiang, having done all kinds of work to save up money for her mother’s medical bills, knew how to go about it. She took Yu Jiaojiao’s hand. “Come on, let’s head to the wholesale market first.”
“Wholesale market?”
“Oh, right! The wholesale market!”
The other guests were instantly enlightened by her.
They all quickly took out their phones, provided by the production team, and started navigating.
According to the online maps, there was a large wholesale market nearby. No wonder the crew had chosen this location for filming.
Followed by cameramen, the three groups left the restaurant and headed toward the wholesale market.
As it turned out, the disguises worked quite well. Although the cameramen following them drew plenty of stares from passersby, none of them were recognized.
The ones with the highest rate of turned heads were Yu Jiaojiao and Wen Qiang.
Both of them were dressed as young men—one cool, aloof, fresh, and handsome; the other gentle, refined, and elegant like a jade tree. And Wen Qiang had forgotten their current disguises. After leaving the restaurant, she habitually took Yu Jiaojiao’s hand.
The sight of two young men holding hands on the street was quite rare. The two of them didn’t look anything like brothers. Many passersby—especially young girls—who saw them began to stare with sparkling eyes.
Seeing the cameras following them, the people around realized this must be some kind of show being filmed.
Many wanted to figure out what was being shot and started trailing behind them.
That is, until they walked into the wholesale market.
Wen Qiang smiled at Yu Jiaojiao and approached a wholesale shop owner. Just as she was about to ask where to find green beans and money trees, she suddenly remembered their disguises. Right before speaking, she deliberately lowered her voice.
“Boss, could you tell me where I can buy green beans and money trees wholesale?”
When her voice came out, it sounded clear, gentle, and androgynous. Yu Jiaojiao’s eyes widened instantly as she looked at Wen Qiang.
The system tried to spark her competitive spirit. “Hear that? That’s the female lead’s unique talent. Later, she’ll apprentice under a renowned opera performer and master the complete technique of altering her voice—changing it however she wants. That’ll completely open up her acting range and leave big-name directors scrambling to work with her~”
“Host, do you want the female lead to make you look completely unremarkable, leaving you no future in the entertainment industry?”
Yu Jiaojiao finally showed some curiosity. “Which opera performer?”
“His name is Yue Qingfeng. Host, are you thinking of taking the female lead’s opportunity for yourself? That way, you can crush her~”
Yu Jiaojiao said, “No.”
In her mind, she began to calculate how much money it would take to hire Yue Qingfeng to come and teach the female lead ahead of schedule. Wen Qiang’s voice transformation already sounded so good; Yu Jiaojiao couldn’t even imagine how beautiful her voice would be after she learned the full technique.
She wanted Wen Qiang to learn it so that she could talk to her every single day.
The bullet comment, however, latched onto something else:
【There’s that term ‘female lead’ again!】
【Based on my experience reading countless novels… this is getting scarier the more I think about it.】
But the system’s next words quickly drew their attention away.
“Gu Xiaozhi has finally finished her makeup! Now she’s wearing a high-fashion dress worth millions, intending to make a stunning appearance in front of you all… She’s walked into the lobby, and the director told her that you’ve all left and gone ahead with the mission.”
“Gu Xiaozhi’s face has turned black with anger, hahahaha…”