“Xiao Yanyan is a newcomer under our company. As a senior, it’s only right for me to take care of her a bit. As for my sister, she’s very independent and excellent.” Kuaishu Ge
He then glanced at Jun Jiuli, who nodded in agreement. She added playfully, “I can take care of myself.”
“So that’s how it is. What about Yanwu?” Li Mochen asked with a hint of amusement.
“Haha, Sister Xiao and I are about the same age. I thought she would choose me, so I chose her.”
“Oh, then why didn’t you choose your sister?”
“Haha, my sister and I can’t stand each other.”
“This brother and sister are so real…”
“I also think my brother is incredibly annoying…”
Li Baiqie said, “I chose Xiao Yanyan because I thought they would both choose their respective sisters.”
“Heh, Mr. Li, the film emperor, is truly thoughtful and considerate of others.”
“How come I feel like Director Li is mocking my Xiao Baiqie.”
“It’s good that it was a close call. Everyone has their own reasons. If everyone had chosen Xiao Yanyan, the consequences would have been unthinkable.”
“Hahaha~ Then I suggest the three of them go see an ophthalmologist.”
“The commenter upstairs has a point. To ignore two great beauties and choose the most ordinary Xiao Yanyan is probably to avoid suspicion.”
“Alright, the teams are formed. Now, let’s play a game. The ranking in this game will determine the houses you will live in from now on.”
The staff handed each team a booklet, imprinted with ten required classical Chinese essays for high school, including "A Joyful Excursion," "The Palace of Epang," "Li Sao," "Ode to the Red Cliff," "The Ballad of the Pipa," and "The Hard Road to Shu."
At the same time, everyone’s mobile phones were confiscated and would only be returned after the filming of this episode.
“You will have 20 minutes to familiarize yourselves with these ten high school classical Chinese texts. Later, the broadcast will randomly recite six of them. Whichever sentence the broadcast stops at, the contestant who steps forward and recites the following four sentences will earn two points. The group with the highest score will have priority in choosing their houses.”
“Hahaha, we’re so lucky this round. Academic prodigy Xiao Bai, go, go, go!”
“Emperor Bai, please take good care of my younger brother Yanwu. Younger brother Yanwu is always in seclusion for training and competitions, so he must have forgotten most of this.”
“The person upstairs is talking a good game. Everyone knows your brother didn’t even finish high school. Director Li is doing this on purpose, isn’t he?”
“The person upstairs, don’t discriminate based on education. He still won awards without finishing high school, so why are you so bitter? Besides, with Emperor Bai here, my brother doesn’t need to worry at all.”
“I’m sorry, I spoke rudely. But I love watching this kind of ‘harem’ drama. I support Director Li!”
“Director Li, you are truly wicked. They all graduated from high school years ago, and they’ve chosen the longest ones, which are really hard to remember!”
Li Baiqie looked at Sun Yanwu’s pleading eyes and felt completely overwhelmed. Director Li Mochen hadn’t communicated with him beforehand; otherwise, he could have memorized them in advance.
This was clearly intended to make him stumble. His reputation as an academic prodigy was all marketing. He had returned these texts to his teachers ages ago and was sweating profusely with anxiety.
This was live broadcast, and it couldn’t be paused halfway. He could only cram for a bit. Li Mochen observed everything; he was doing this on purpose, and the car was destined to keep flipping.
“Time is up. Please be ready.” The staff stepped forward and collected the booklets.
Alas, how lofty! How precipitous! … For forty-eight thousand years, it has been cut off from human traffic, apart from the Qin frontiers.
The entire hall fell silent instantly, with only Jun Jiuli and Sun Nanyi raising their hands high.
“No need to raise your hands, just step forward and speak.”
Sun Nanyi politely yielded, and Jun Jiuli stepped forward to speak.
“To the west of the paramount peak, there is a bird’s path, which can traverse the summit of Emei. The earth collapsed, the mountains crumbled, and the mighty men died, after which the sky ladder and stone paths connected.”
“Correct answer. Congratulations on earning two points.”
“What happened? Why isn’t Xiao Bai moving at all? I clearly saw him reciting along. Now it’s a game, and everyone is in a competitive relationship. Don’t be a gentleman, get up and compete! Otherwise, will you and your brother sleep on the street?”
“The person upstairs is too excited. Xiao Bai might just be taking a moment to process. We’ll definitely win the next round.”
“Believe in my Xiao Bai.”
Li Mochen said, “I see that Emperor Bai Baiqie’s fans are excited. Are they not reacting yet?”
Li Baiqie smiled sheepishly, “Yes, I haven’t reacted yet. Ladies first, let Xinming and the others win this round.”
“Heh, then don’t keep letting them win. I think the two girls have strong fighting power.”
“Naturally.”
“What about your team, Xianming?”
“I haven’t memorized this one.”
“Xianxian is as honest as ever. If you don’t know, you don’t know. Hahaha~”
“The person upstairs, don’t leave! I suspect you’re subtly criticizing my brother.”
“Xianxian is the best, Xianxian is the most handsome.”
“What about you, Xiao Yan?”
“I just suddenly forgot. I’ll pay more attention next time,” Xiao Yanyan said with a bright smile, exuding confidence and radiance.
“This young lady is also good! She looks really cute when she smiles. I’m a fan now!”
“It seems everyone didn’t react in the first round, which led to the awkward situation where only one group answered. Let’s start the second round immediately.”
With a long sigh, I covered my face, lamenting the hardships of the people’s lives… Regretting not observing the path carefully, I lingered, expecting to turn back.
Jun Jiuli stood up and ran towards the microphone, with Xiao Yanyan following closely behind.
Before Jun Jiuli could speak, she looked like she was about to cry from distress. The three male guests present were somewhat displeased.
Zhao Xianming spoke first, “Little sister, let Yanyan speak first. You’ve already taken the lead by two points.”
“Yes, yes,” the other two followed suit unconsciously.
“What kind of values is this?”
“Zhao Xianming definitely has a problem. No matter how much he wants to promote a newcomer, outsiders should step aside when it comes to his own sister, shouldn’t they?”
“You’re not allowed to say that about my brother! He has his reasons.”
“The person upstairs is a brainless fan.”
“Brother just doesn’t want to live in a dilapidated house. Haters, don’t misinterpret!”
“Oh, oh, oh. Your brother doesn’t want to live in a dilapidated house, but do the two young ladies want to?”
“Xiao Bai and Xiao Sun are also not acting normally. They’re siding with the person surnamed Xiao too.”
“What the heck, I almost forgot if you hadn’t mentioned it. Come clean, what’s the deal with this woman?”
“Could it be another rich young lady on vacation? That shouldn’t be right. Her background is even more formidable than the Zhao family’s???”
“Little friend, do you have many questions?”
“Found it, found it. She’s just an ordinary civilian who used to work in a coffee shop. I wonder what kind of rotten luck she had to sign with Zhao’s company.”
“Holy crap, this relationship must be complicated!”
Li Mochen asked, “Xinming, are you going to let her?”
“Damn, Director Li is really stirring up trouble! At this point, shouldn’t you just let Miss Xin Xin speak?”
“I suspect Director Li is up to something.”
“Suspicion +1.”
After Jun Jiuli consulted with Sun Nanyi, they unanimously agreed to let Xiao Yanyan speak first. Xiao Yanyan’s eyes were red with gratitude.
She spoke in a voice as faint as a mosquito’s hum, “Returning my carriage to the road, as I was lost and not far… Riding my horses through the orchid marsh… speed… to the fragrant hills and halting there to rest.”
“Your pronunciation is unclear. Please say it again.”
Xiao Yanyan felt so embarrassed that her toes curled. Zhao Yuming quickly noticed her predicament and pulled her back.
“Let my sister speak. Yanyan didn’t remember it clearly.”
Jun Jiuli enunciated clearly and deliberately slowed her speed by half: “Returning my carriage to the road, as I was lost and not far. Riding my horses through the orchid marsh, speed to the fragrant hills and halting there to rest.”