With a helicopter, which was practically a cheat code, Jiang Zhiwu and Jiang Yanzhou arrived at Yunqi Viewing Park in just over ten minutes.
To keep a low profile, they had turned off their body cameras. Jiang Yanzhou jumped down first to steady himself, then turned around to help Jiang Zhiwu.
The path in the park was paved with gravel. Jiang Yanzhou glanced at his sister’s high heels three times before finally managing to say, “Maybe… I should carry you?”
Jiang Zhiwu looked down at her heels and laughed. “It’s fine, this little distance won’t stop me.”
“I shouldn’t have let you come on this show with me…” Jiang Yanzhou’s voice sounded somewhat muffled.
“Why?”
“Doing the tasks is exhausting.” Jiang Yanzhou said, “And I have so many haters, you always end up getting scolded along with me.”
“What nonsense are you talking about? Do you think I care about gossip?” Jiang Zhiwu stopped walking and turned to look at him. Sunlight filtered through the leaves, dancing on her eyelashes. “I’m always so busy with work. I’m actually very happy to take a few days off to spend time with you.”
Jiang Yanzhou paused in his steps, his fingers twitching slightly at his sides.
The breeze carried the scent of flowers, gently blowing away the words he hadn’t said out loud, leaving only the faint redness on the tips of his ears.
When they reached the destination, the director and crew were gathered around the monitors discussing something.
The staff looked up at the sound of footsteps, and a walkie-talkie clattered to the ground. Even the cameraman holding the large camera forgot to press the record button, pointing the lens blankly at the two people who had appeared out of nowhere.
“Y-you guys?!” The director pushed his glasses up from the tip of his nose, his voice full of disbelief. “You… you got here way too fast!”
The moment they appeared on screen, the live chat exploded:
[Huh?! Did I see that right? Is that Jiang Zhiwu and Jiang Yanzhou? Didn’t they leave later than everyone else?]
[Their stream went black for about ten minutes, and when it came back on they were already at the finish line.]
[That speed is insane! Did they grow wings and fly here?]
[Is it possible they took a shortcut?]
[But even with a shortcut, you can’t teleport from one end to the other in ten minutes!]
Just then, the sound of shared e-bike bells jingled from outside. Li Bo and Li Lele arrived panting at the gate, beads of sweat covering their foreheads.
Seeing Jiang Zhiwu and Jiang Yanzhou already in the yard, both of them opened their mouths wide in shock.
“Sister Jiang… how did you get here?”
They had pedaled so hard their bikes were practically smoking, yet they weren’t the first ones?
Jiang Zhiwu picked up the freshly brewed tea and took a sip, her eyes sparkling with mischief. “It’s a secret.”
Li Bo and Li Lele were momentarily stunned by her smile.
Sister Jiang was beautiful when she was serious, but she was even more stunning when she smiled!
Shen Yu’s studio was initially overjoyed by his skyrocketing popularity, preparing to buy press releases and push hashtags like “Fictional Male Lead Comes to Life”. However, they were soon stunned by the sudden trending topics.
#ShenYuFails #ShenYuSwearsAndThrowsPhone dominated the entertainment charts. Combined with the clip of him angrily smashing his phone, the carefully crafted image of a noble gentleman completely collapsed.
In stark contrast, #JiangYanzhouAndSisterArriveInFlash was firmly sitting at the very top of the trending list.
[Oh my god, Sister Jiang gives off such a mysterious, master vibe. She predicted the club would be closed, then finished the task like she was cheating the system.]
[Now I see why the Jiang siblings don’t like Shen Yu. This guy shows his true colors the moment things go wrong. Swearing like a street thug is so cheap.]
[I used to think Shen Yu was classy, but he lost his temper just because he lost face, throwing his phone and cursing? What terrible manners. My filter is shattered.]
[Yeah, poor Zhihe having to comfort him so gently.]
[Zhihe even went with her brother to borrow a second-hand car. She’s so emotionally stable.]
[Truly the best pair. Their relationship is enviable.]
…
Meanwhile, Old Master Shen happened to check on his son’s situation and nearly fainted from anger.
This useless son couldn’t handle the family business and wanted to enter showbiz—he agreed.
For years he remained mediocre, constantly asking for money and resources—he agreed.
When Shen Yu called begging for a spot on this variety show, he not only agreed but even pulled strings to get Wen Jing involved to return a favor. And this was how Shen Yu disgraced the family!
Patting his chest to calm down, he called his son: “Shen Yu! I sent you on that show to make us proud, not to throw phones and curse in front of the entire nation!”
Shen Yu replied irritably, “When you get angry, you can’t control it.”
The old man’s temper flared up even more, his voice rising sharply: “You dare talk back? You’ve been spoiled rotten! To think you got outdone by that orphan boy from the Jiang family. You’re useless compared to him!”
Shen Yu was humiliated and angry. “If you’re not going to help, don’t stand there talking nonsense! When things go wrong you only know how to scold me. If you’re so capable, why don’t you get these trending topics removed?!”
“Idiot!” Old Master Shen laughed out of anger. “Remove them? That only treats the symptoms! You’d be better off diverting the attention to someone else, use their topic to suppress yours.”
Father and son were two of a kind. With just that hint, Shen Yu immediately understood.
His cold gaze quickly swept past the gentle and quiet Huang Zhihe, finally settling on Wen Jing, who had always been indifferent to him.
The four guests who had arrived early waited for another hour before they heard the rumbling sound of an engine in the distance.
Shen Yu and his group arrived driving an old, second-hand manual car, which wobbled unsteadily to a stop at the gate. The body was covered in dust, looking quite aged, with several noticeable scratches on the doors.
Shen Yu got out of the driver’s seat first, looking exhausted with veins slightly popping on his forehead, clearly worn out from battling the old gearbox the whole way.
His clothes were wrinkled, his hair messy from the wind. His disheveled appearance stood in sharp contrast to Jiang Zhiwu and the others, who were sitting comfortably drinking tea in the yard.
Seeing them relaxing and chatting while he was suffering through a late penalty, Shen Yu’s face was filled with resentment.
The director cleared his throat, breaking the awkward atmosphere: “Alright, since everyone is here, let’s announce the next mission.”
He paused, looking around at the guests. “Next, we are going to experience how hard it is to earn a living—for the next half day, everyone must earn their living expenses with their bare hands.”
Li Bo’s eyelids twitched. He raised his hand to ask, “Director, what exactly do you mean by ‘with bare hands’?”
The director explained: “It means the crew will not provide any items for you to sell. You cannot use your own money, nor can you ask friends for help. You must earn it entirely by your own skills.”
“Director, do you know how hot it is outside?!” Li Lele shouted dramatically. “We just rode bikes all the way here, our arms and legs are about to fall apart, and now we have to work?”
The director gave her a thumbs up. “Fighting! I believe you can do it.”
Shen Yu, who was already furious, let out a cold snort.
Wen Jing acted as if she heard nothing, silently applying sunscreen to her arms and face.
Li Bo and Li Lele were veteran variety show guests and full of ideas. They only complained for a moment before quickly coming up with a plan and heading to the busiest area of the park to perform.
Li Lele was bold and stood there shouting encouragement, while Li Bo danced. They actually managed to attract quite a crowd of tourists.
Huang Zhihe and Jiang Ting’s group chose to work part-time at a nearby Chinese restaurant. Jiang Ting carried plates, while Huang Zhihe stood at the entrance welcoming guests, occasionally wiping sweat from her brother’s forehead. The comments were filled with praise for their sibling bond.
On the other side, Wen Jing silently scanned the surroundings. Her eyes landed on a shop with a sign that read “Pet Paradise” and walked straight in.
Soon after, she could be seen brushing dogs and cleaning cages. Her movements weren’t very skilled, but she looked very serious.
Shen Yu stood there with a frown deep enough to kill a mosquito. He glanced at Wen Jing working in the pet shop, then towards the direction of the music, his face full of impatience. In the end, he could only stiffly follow her inside to help.
The sun rose higher and higher, and the temperature soared.
The Li siblings were sweating profusely, their t-shirts completely soaked. Unable to bear the heat anymore, they ran to seek shade under the eaves of the restaurant where Huang Zhihe was working.
Li Lele wiped her sweat with her sleeve and looked around, muttering in confusion, “It’s so hot… Where are Sister Jiang and Jiang Yanzhou?”
“Sister Jiang has such delicate skin, I wonder if she can handle this sun.” Li Bo looked worried.
Li Lele also started sighing, infected by his concern.
Huang Zhihe had just seen off a group of customers and came out with a kettle to refill water. Hearing this, she turned around with a warm and generous smile, her voice full of understanding: “They probably found a place to rest. It really is unbearably hot today.”
She wiped the sweat from her forehead and added casually, “But it’s okay anyway, since the money we earn will be pooled together in the end. It doesn’t really make much difference who works more or who works less.”
On the surface it sounded like she was being generous, but the Li siblings exchanged glances, feeling that something was off though they couldn’t quite put their finger on it.
However, the audience in the live stream were outraged:
[The money gets pooled together? That’s so unfair! Everyone is working their asses off, why should they split it equally with people who didn’t do anything?]
[Agreed! The Jiang siblings haven’t even been seen yet. If we have to share, why would anyone bother trying? Strongly suggest everyone keeps their own earnings!]
While the comments were arguing fiercely, Li Bo accidentally spotted a crumpled flyer near a trash can.
He didn’t pay much attention at first, but a gust of wind blew it open, revealing colorful writing inside.
He picked it up and read: “Local Tour Guide. Services include English Translation / Luggage Handling / Route Planning. Bonus: Handsome Guy Companion!” Especially the words “Handsome Guy Companion” were written in bold red marker three times.
It was truly eye-catching in broad daylight!
Li Bo was wondering who would throw away such a thing, when he was distracted by the sound of conversation nearby.
Looking in that direction, he saw Jiang Zhiwu standing among a group of blonde tourists. Her fair fingers tapped lightly on the map as she spoke fluent, clear English introducing the scenery.
Jiang Yanzhou was holding their luggage in one hand and an umbrella in the other, silently blocking the sun for his sister, while trying to keep a straight face and endure being flirted with by the foreign ladies.
Li Bo suddenly realized what was going on and twitched his mouth.
Wasn’t this exactly the “Handsome Guy Companion” service written on the flyer?