After Divorcing the Scummy Alpha Movie Queen, I Became Extremely Popular - Chapter 18

I Choose You to Be My Partner

Park Soo-ah unzipped her woven bag and gestured inside. “Jingyun, I still have some space here. Why don’t you put your things in my bag?”

Luo Jingyun poked her head over to take a look. Park Soo-ah’s bag was indeed about a quarter empty, enough to fit all her various bottles and jars.

“This… it’ll take up your space. It feels a bit inappropriate.”

“It’s fine. I’ve already finished packing my things, and the space is just sitting empty anyway.”

“Then thank you so much.” Luo Jingyun didn’t overthink it further and placed the jars into Park Soo-ah’s bag. “This sunscreen of mine has amazing protection! I’ll share it with you later. If you’re missing anything, just come find me. If I have it, it’s yours.”

“Okay, thank you.”

After tucking the last of her items away, Luo Jingyun clapped her hands. “Hey, you helped me first; we don’t need to keep thanking each other.”

Park Soo-ah was about to say something more when a voice rang out from behind them.

“Are you two ready yet? We’re about to head out.”

Park Soo-ah pulled the zipper shut, turned around, and said politely, “I’m very sorry for delaying the seniors. We’ve finished packing and can leave now.”

Tan Jizhu said pointedly, “It’s fine. Being able to correct one’s mistakes is already a good thing.”

Luo Jingyun didn’t even need to look at Tan Jizhu’s expression to know the woman was standing aside waiting to laugh at her. Little did Tan Jizhu expect that Luo Jingyun’s kindness would be rewarded by meeting someone as helpful as Soo-ah.

What was the saying? After leaving the umbrella Tan Jizhu held over her, she realized it wasn’t even raining outside.

Wait, that’s not right—Tan Jizhu had never held an umbrella for her to begin with!

Liu Yuqi confirmed that everyone was ready and moved to the next part of the process.

“Alright, everyone is packed. Let’s move out toward Tongxi Village.”

Luo Jingyun dragged her heavy woven bag at the back of the group. Coming out of the hotel, she looked around; she didn’t see any professional RVs, but she didn’t even see any normal cars. Surely, they weren’t expected to walk there?

“Alright, these are the vehicles taking us to Tongxi Village. Everyone, split into two groups and hop on.”

Everyone followed Liu Yuqi’s finger, only to see two blue-green “three-wheelers” (tuk-tuks) parked there.

“This…” Luo Jingyun looked on in shock. They were both green—could she choose the green train from before instead?

Liu Yuqi joked, “I told you it wouldn’t be a donkey cart.”

“Haha,” Luo Jingyun couldn’t even force a laugh, standing frozen and lamenting her bitter fate.

Park Soo-ah thought Luo Jingyun was struggling to lift the bag, so she hurried forward to help. “I’ll help you.” With a surge of strength, she heaved Luo Jingyun’s luggage onto the nearest three-wheeler, then tossed her own up.

“Let’s go.”

“…” Luo Jingyun looked at Tan Jizhu and Chen Shidong already seated. The former had a playful, mocking smile in her eyes.

If she climbed up now, wouldn’t it be exactly as Tan Jizhu said—playing hard to get? But if she didn’t, she’d have to struggle to haul her bag back down, which was far too much trouble.

Luo Jingyun hardened her resolve and tried her best to block out Tan Jizhu’s gaze. She gave the warm-hearted Park Soo-ahan awkward but polite smile. “Soo-ah, thank you. Let’s get on.”

Climbing onto the three-wheeler in a very ungraceful manner, Luo Jingyun had just stood up and taken two steps forward when something on the floor tripped her. She lost her balance and tumbled in one direction.

“Careful!”

Park Soo-ah rushed to grab one of Luo Jingyun’s hands. Nearby, Chen Shidong made a motion to stand up and help, but Luo Jingyun fell squarely and unmistakably into Tan Jizhu’s arms.

“Tsk,” Tan Jizhu, acting as a human cushion, spoke in a flat tone. “What’s the matter? You can’t even stand straight. Should I put you in a woven bag too?”

“Hmph, that was an accident! I definitely won’t trip next time!” Luo Jingyun scrambled up, thanked the other two, and sat in the corner furthest from Tan Jizhu, hugging her legs and staring at the scenery.

Tan Jizhu glanced at Luo Jingyun; Chen Shidong looked at Tan Jizhu; Park Soo-ah looked between the three of them. Everyone seemed to have something they wanted to say, but because the cameras were rolling, they swallowed their words.

The three-wheeler rattled and creaked along the dirt road. Luo Jingyun gripped the handle for dear life. It wasn’t that she was afraid, but every time they hit a pothole, she jolted so hard she feared she might fall apart mid-journey.

Finally, they reached the entrance of Tongxi Village. Luo Jingyun was so shaken she couldn’t tell north from south. After getting off, she spun around twice before finally finding the camera position.

Liu Yuqi let them rest briefly before starting the next segment.

“Everyone, welcome to Tongxi Village! Because of its unique geographical advantages, this place is perfect for growing fruits and vegetables. However, the loss of young labor in the village has made it impossible to plant and harvest in time, preventing the village’s economy from forming a healthy cycle.”

“It is now the golden month of September. Our first task today is to help the villagers pick apples. Besides being sold directly, these apples can be processed into apple jam and other derivatives.”

The staff handed everyone a basket. Liu Yuqi cheered them on, “So, everyone, please do your best!”

While walking toward the orchard, Luo Jingyun looked at the intricately woven basket in her hand and said to Park Soo-ah, who was closest to her, “This basket is quite nice. It feels similar to the woven bags at this year’s Fashion Week; it’s just missing a logo.”

“True,” Park Soo-ah looked it over. “The quality feels better than those big brands.”

“Yeah, I might buy two to take back to my mom’s.”

Park Soo-ah reminded her, “Let’s focus on picking first. This show has a competitive element. If we pick too few, I don’t know if there will be a penalty.”

Luo Jingyun asked back, “But a competition needs a judging standard, and the director didn’t mention one.”

“It’s definitely about who picks the most,” Park Soo-ah said as if it were obvious. “I guess selling them might be our task later.”

Luo Jingyun shrugged. “Who knows. Let’s just pick apples for now.”

The trees in the orchard were lush, and the branches were heavy with fruit. Luo Jingyun touched this one and poked that one; out of a whole tree of fruit, she only picked three.

Turning into the next row of trees, Luo Jingyun collided head-on with someone. Because of the impact, both their baskets flew out of their hands. Since Luo Jingyun had picked so few, her apples didn’t even fall out. The other person was less fortunate; nearly half a basket of apples scattered.

“Oh, I’m so sorry! Let me help you pick them up.”

Luo Jingyun hurried to gather the scattered apples. She reached out to grab an apple a bit further away, only to find the person opposite her reaching for the same one. Their hands overlapped.

“I’m sor—” Luo Jingyun started to apologize again, but as she looked up, she saw Tan Jizhu’s expressionless, cold face.

“…”

Tan Jizhu was the first to snatch the apple and put it in her basket. In a definitive tone, she said, “Luo Jingyun, you’re faking an accident.”

“I am not!”

“Hmph,” Tan Jizhu sneered. “You’ve only picked a few apples. Are you trying to trick a few out of my basket?”

“?” Luo Jingyun was shocked. “How does your brain even work?”

“Heh, I caught you.”

“Caught my foot! Who wants your stupid apples?”

While the two were bickering, Chen Shidong and Park Soo-ah hurried over.

“What happened?”

“Senior! Jingyun, are you okay?”

Tan Jizhu didn’t seem to want others to know about their conflict and said casually, “It’s nothing, we just bumped into each other.”

Chen Shidong vaguely sensed the reason but didn’t press further. She changed the subject. “Eh, Jingyun, why have you only picked these many apples?”

Before Luo Jingyun could answer, Tan Jizhu chimed in, “When we were kids, we went on field trips to pick apples. The young lady here went on study tours abroad; she’s different from us.”

Chen Shidong kindly suggested, “Does Jingyun not know how to pick them? I happen to have picked a lot; I can give you a few.”

“Ah, it’s not that I don’t know how,” Luo Jingyun said, pushing Tan Jizhu aside with annoyance. “I just felt that only these three apples on that tree were good-looking. They’re big, round, and red.”

Chen Shidong: “…”

Park Soo-ah: “…”

“Well, these ones of mine are okay too. Do you want them to make up the numbers?” Chen Shidong sorted through her basket and pulled out a few high-quality ones.

Luo Jingyun waved her hands hurriedly. “Thank you for the kindness, Sister Shidong, but you worked hard for these. I can’t take them. Don’t worry, I’m not stupid; I can pick them myself!”

Tan Jizhu interrupted, “Senior, you don’t need to worry about her.”

Luo Jingyun treated that like background noise. “I’m going back to picking. You guys should do your best too!”

Despite seeing the sheer volume of apples the others had, Luo Jingyun continued at her own pace, only picking the “pretty” apples that caught her eye. By the time the segment ended, she had only picked half a basket.

Park Soo-ah looked at the pitifully small amount in Luo Jingyun’s basket. “Do you want me to give you some?”

“No need.”

“But you have the least. What if they punish you?”

“It doesn’t matter! Whether there’s a penalty is just your guess anyway. Maybe this is just a normal activity.”

Park Soo-ah was once again stunned into silence by Luo Jingyun’s “Zen” mindset.

Gathering at the meeting point, everyone placed their baskets on the ground.

Liu Yuqi spoke as the off-screen narrator, “After experiencing the joy of the harvest, every guest has achieved great results. But results alone aren’t enough; what matters is whether these can be converted into profit. Next, we have invited the village chief of Tongxi Village to judge everyone’s results.”

A plainly dressed woman walked in front of the camera and started speaking in a local dialect.

“?” Luo Jingyun was completely confused. She asked Park Soo-ah, “What is the village chief saying? Do you understand her?”

Park Soo-ah tried her best to decipher it. “Something about size? Color? Processing? I can’t follow anymore. Hey, why is Senior Tan looking at us?”

“No,” Park Soo-ah shifted her position and came to a more accurate conclusion. “She seems to be looking at you.”

“Huh?” Luo Jingyun observed that the other guests were also in a daze. She met Tan Jizhu’s gaze and found that the woman was indeed looking at her.

She wasn’t delusional enough to think Tan Jizhu was looking at her with affection; she assumed the woman was powering up for a fresh round of mockery. Married for three years, and after the divorce, they ended up like this—how pathetic.

Liu Yuqi said, “I remember Teacher Chen Shidong’s hometown is near here. Could you help us translate what the village chief just said?”

Chen Shidong said, “My family is indeed from this province, but not this city. The dialects are a bit different, but I’ll do my best to translate.”

“The village chief means she wants to thank everyone for helping pick the apples. However, apples are a very common fruit grown in many places. If we only sell the apples as they are, we can’t create a competitive advantage. So, the village plans to create unique features for Tongxi Village’s apples.”

“First, they classify them by size and color. Those with the best appearance will be packaged and sold directly, while those with a slightly poorer appearance will be juiced or made into jam.”

As soon as Chen Shidong finished speaking, the village chief brought out a wooden board and a color card, saying another string of words.

“This is the tool the village uses to identify size and color. The person with the highest number of ‘qualified’ apples is the winner of this round.”

Liu Yuqi said, “Alright, everyone please bring your apples forward for the villagers to inspect.”

The villagers of Tongxi Village came to help, and the apples picked by the eight guests were quickly tested.

Liu Yuqi followed the script. “The results are about to come out. Everyone, please stay calm.”

Park Soo-ah walked over to Luo Jingyun. “Jingyun, I think you might win. I thought it was about quantity, but it turns out it’s about quality.”

“Hehe, the results aren’t out yet. Even though my quality is okay, my quantity is low. Maybe someone else has both.”

After another moment, the director said, “Alright, after counting, the final winner is…” Liu Yuqi intentionally left a cliffhanger—this part would likely be where an ad was inserted in post-production.

“Luo! Jing! Yun! Congratulations!”

Luo Jingyun pointed at herself. She hadn’t expected to stumble into first place. What luck!

Suddenly, one of the guests raised an objection. “Director, you didn’t say it was about size and color before. We all thought it was quantity.”

Liu Yuqi explained, “Classifying apples by appearance and selling them specifically is a strategy the villagers developed after a lot of trial and error. The goal of our show is to help the village, but there is no ‘standard answer’ for how to help; we all have to ‘cross the river by feeling the stones.’ So, the first segment was also to tell everyone that often there is no exact standard, and you need to jump out of the box and act freely.”

This explanation satisfied the guests. Liu Yuqi continued, “Alright, since the villagers’ selection method has been announced, you will need to classify the apples during the next harvest. For better efficiency, guests will be split into pairs. Based on the number of qualified apples just now, Luo Jingyun took first place and has the right to choose her partner first.”

“I get to choose?”

“Yes, you choose. After you, the second-place winner, Tan Jizhu, will choose. If you choose Tan Jizhu, then the third-place winner, Chen Shidong, will continue the selection, and so on.”

The second-place Tan Jizhu raised her hand to ask, “Director, if someone is chosen, can they refuse?”

“No, they cannot.”

Luo Jingyun sneered inwardly. She knew exactly what Tan Jizhu meant—the woman was afraid of being picked by her. How conceited!

She scanned the other six guests. Aside from Chen Shidong and Park Soo-ah, she didn’t know any of their names. Those four were either looking at the sky or the ground, doing anything to avoid eye contact with Luo Jingyun. Their behavior clearly showed they didn’t want to be on her team.

It made sense. Everyone came to the show hoping to increase their popularity. To do that, they needed screen time, but the production team would naturally focus the cameras on the famous guests. So, they all definitely wanted to be paired with Chen Shidong or Tan Jizhu.

However, it seemed that as long as she didn’t pick Tan Jizhu or Chen Shidong, Tan Jizhu—being second—would definitely pick Chen Shidong. After all, Chen Shidong was the “goal” Tan Jizhu was striving for.

Of course, all of this was based on the premise that Luo Jingyun wouldn’t pick Tan Jizhu or Chen Shidong. But what if she intentionally wanted to annoy Tan Jizhu? What if she wanted revenge?

Luo Jingyun’s provocative gaze swept over Tan Jizhu and, sure enough, she saw the woman’s face cloud with displeasure. Her mood instantly brightened.

Liu Yuqi reminded her, “Jingyun, have you decided who you want as your partner?”

Luo Jingyun hesitated for a moment, then pointed at one of the guests.

“I choose you to be my partner!”