The Film Queen Is Cold and Ruthless, Only Sends Money - Chapter 19.2

Everyone took a piece, including Liu Yangran and Ye Ying. When they’d eaten it themselves earlier, they hadn’t realized it might actually be good. Now that it had been validated, they had to taste it again.

Su Yun still had her doubts. She looked at Jing Chaochao. “You’re telling the truth?”

Jing Chaochao nodded earnestly. “It’s just a bit spicy. Drink some water afterward, and you’ll be fine.”

Jing Chaochao had always left a good impression, she wasn’t the type to play pranks or lie. Hearing this, their suspicions were completely dispelled.

Until everyone took a bite.

Lin Yan: “Is this attempted murder? It has to be attempted murder!”

Xu Zhi and Jiang Zhi had taken smaller bites, but they still immediately grabbed their water glasses, as if a dozen chili peppers were dancing in their mouths.

Su Xue, after eating, turned to Jing Chaochao, who was wiping the fine sweat from her forehead. “You really endured a lot just to trick us into eating that.”

With acting skills like that, why bother singing? She should switch careers.

Jing Chaochao blinked innocently. “Isn’t it good for you to have a new experience?”

Lin Yan gasped for air, trying to expel the taste of tofu and chili from her mouth. Even with her tongue burning, she managed to retort, “No! Chaochao, you’ve lost our trust!”

Su Yun: “…”

If she had to give an evaluation, she’d say this red oil tofu fell somewhere between delicious and disgusting.

Disgustingly bad.

It turned out her earlier unease wasn’t just her imagination!

[Hahahaha, so it was all Chaochao’s scheme.]

[Q: Why did Chaochao trick the others into eating it?

Chaochao’s answer: I thought this spicy tofu wasn’t good, but I couldn’t be the only one suffering. Everyone deserves their own punishment.]

[Chaochao isn’t actually quiet every word she says carries weight!]

Liu Yangran and Ye Ying, the ones who personally crafted this “dish,” now understood the judges’ earlier silence.

Exchanging a glance, they thought so what if they didn’t earn any points?

At least, on the surface, their dish was the one that got cleaned out the most.

They won.

–

The director, having enjoyed the spectacle enough, asked them to hand over their remaining funds for the final tally.

Su Xue looked bewildered: “There’s supposed to be leftovers? We’re lucky we didn’t end up in debt!”

Liu Yangran, however, fished out a coin from her pocket: “We have fifty cents left. There really wasn’t anything else we could buy at the time.”

Lin Yan’s group had nothing left either. She remarked, “Seems like we’re all big spenders.”

Hearing this, Jiang Zhi replied coolly, “It’s not that we’re big spenders. It’s just that you don’t have much money, so you’re under that illusion.”

Su Yun also pulled out a single bill from her jacket pocket.

Even if it was just one yuan, they were still in first place.

[Hahahahaha, Jiang Zhi’s got a point. They only had thirty yuan, no matter how they spent it, there wouldn’t be much left.]

[Commenter above, I get it now. It’s not that I spend recklessly, it’s just that my monthly salary is low, so no matter how I save, I still feel this way.]

[Hey! We have no beef, why am I getting roasted just watching a show?!]

As night slowly fell and the sky darkened, the judges emerged with their scores.

Given the limited ingredients, the dishes were hard to rank. To preserve the guests’ dignity, the judges decided to start scoring from 9.

Liu Yangran’s group: 9.1.
Su Xue’s group: 9.3.
Su Yun’s group and Lin Yan’s group: both 9.4.

[Hahahahaha, if 9 is the baseline, then Liu Yangran’s group actually scored a 1?]

[Su Yun’s prediction was spot-on, it really was around three or four points. The judges just forgot to round up, huh?]

Director: “Su Yun’s group and Lin Yan’s group tied in points, but Su Yun’s group had more leftover funds. So first place goes to Su Yun and Jiang Zhi, and second place to Lin Yan and Xu Zhi.”

Su Yun happily high-fived Jiang Zhi beside her. “First pick of the rooms!”

Director: “Everyone’s total points for today are now finalized. I won’t repeat them. You can all grab your luggage and head to your assigned rooms!”

After a day of tasks that had battered both body and soul, the guests practically floated away at the director’s words.

Well, except for Liu Yangran and Ye Ying.

They stayed seated, reviewing the day’s events, trying to delay their inevitable stay in the fourth room.

Liu Yangran: “Tell me, did we really not win a single round today?”

Ye Ying: “If we had, would we still be sitting here?”

Liu Yangran slumped into her chair even this was more comfortable than that wretched bed.

But then she remembered why she’d joined the show and rallied herself. “We’ll do better tomorrow. We’ll aim for first place.”

Ye Ying mercilessly exposed her: “You said the same thing to me before the show today.”

Experience had taught her not to trust Liu Yangran’s words.

–

Su Yun and Jiang Zhi, who had successfully secured the first room, nodded in satisfaction as they surveyed the interior.

Though it couldn’t compare to their bedrooms at home, happiness was all about perspective. In fact, when Su Yun thought about the fourth room, she felt this one was practically perfect.

Since they were on a variety show, they hadn’t packed much in their suitcases, so they finished unpacking quickly.

Su Yun sat on the edge of the bed, watching Jiang Zhi place the last piece of clothing into the wardrobe.

Perhaps because the space was smaller, Jiang Zhi’s presence felt much more pronounced than it did in their spacious bedroom at home.

Jiang Zhi turned around and noticed Su Yun spacing out. She asked, “What’s on your mind?”

“Nothing,” Su Yun shook her head, dismissing the inexplicable thoughts before relaxing again. “Let’s go see what the others are up to.”

Jiang Zhi hummed in agreement and followed her out, casually remarking, “I bet you’re most curious about Liu Yangran’s group, right?”

Su Yun, caught but unashamed, blinked at her. “Don’t tell me you’re not curious about them fixing that door?”

Jiang Zhi: “I am.”

[Honestly, same. Hehe.]

[Looking at them walking together like this, they’re such a perfect match!]

There were no tasks scheduled for the evening, a rare act of mercy from the production team.

Even so, as soon as Su Yun and Jiang Zhi stepped out of their room, they ran into the other two groups.

No words were needed everyone’s eyes immediately landed on the two figures in the courtyard.

Su Xue raised an eyebrow at Jing Zhaozhao. “See? I told you. There’s no way we’re the only ones here for the show.”

As they approached, they witnessed Liu Yangran and Ye Ying bickering.

Lin Yan had pulled up a chair and sat beside them, feigning ignorance. “Why aren’t you two inside yet? The crew even lit the lights for you, how thoughtful!”

The four rooms were adjacent single-story houses, and a quick glance revealed the state of each one.

Under the dim lighting, the fourth room looked even more dilapidated, with the door that had been blown down by the wind earlier still lying flat on the ground.

Ye Ying: “We just think the scenery here is nice at night. Wanted to admire it a little longer.”

As soon as she said this, Liu Yangran nodded vigorously and looked up at the sky.

The night was a deep, clear blue. He Rong County lacked the city’s dazzling lights, but that also meant the faint, flickering stars were clearly visible.

Su Yun: “Don’t tell me you’re also thinking this would be a great place to sleep?”

She had seen right through them.

Su Xue: “I do think it’s a great spot for sleeping, but I doubt the director would agree, right?”

She deliberately glanced at the director.

Director: “Our show would never leave our guests without a place to sleep! Yangran and Ye Ying can start getting ready to move in!”

The director’s words sealed their fate.

Liu Yangran shot Su Xue a resentful look. “Xuexue, when we teamed up earlier, I never pegged you as a sneaky little black sesame dumpling!”

How could such an adorable girl be so cunning even roping in the director to force their hand!

Su Xue still wore her sweet smile: “Hehe, I was just worried you wouldn’t have a place to stay!”

[Hahahahaha, what a great view indeed! I bet the fourth room’s view is equally spectacular!]

[You three groups really love stirring the pot! By the way, when are they starting to fix the door?]

Liu Yangran and Ye Ying, having failed in their resistance, could only take the toolbox to the fourth room’s doorway.

Six little tails followed closely behind.

Su Yun said earnestly, “I just want to see how you fix the door. Might come in handy as a skill someday.”

Definitely not there to laugh at their misfortune.

The toolbox was fully equipped with nails, hinges, hammers, and more professional-grade stuff.

Surrounded by all these professional tools, Liu Yangran and Ye Ying held the nails and hammers in their hands. So, what was the first step?

At this moment, the other guests seemed exceptionally kind and helpful.

Lin Yan: “Shouldn’t you attach the hinges first? Then prop the door up and assemble it?”

Xu Zhi was also clueless in this area and couldn’t offer much advice.

But it was Jing Chaozhao who spoke up then, her tone steady and confident: “I think you should prop the door up first to get a general idea of the positioning? Then attach the hinges?”

She sounded so sure of herself that Liu Yangran’s heart leaned toward her suggestion.

However, given Jing Chaozhao’s earlier prank of tricking the guests into eating spicy tofu, Liu Yangran and Ye Ying hesitated should they trust her?

Before they could act, Su Xue asked, “Have you done this before? I didn’t know you had this skill.”

Jing Chaozhao: “Not really. But when my music studio was being renovated, I think I saw them do it this way.”

“Not really,” “I think,” “this way.”

The hands that were about to move froze.

[Such lively discussion, yet it amounts to nothing.]

[Ye Ying’s been holding that nail for five minutes and still hasn’t dared to move, hahaha!]

[I wonder if they’ll actually manage to install the door in the end?]

[I just asked my family elders about Lin Yan and Jing Chaozhao’s methods, both are wrong.]

With no other options, Liu Yangran turned to Su Yun.

Receiving the pleading gaze and the weight of responsibility, Su Yun said, “Are you asking if I’ve ever installed a door before?”

Liu Yangran nodded, and Ye Ying set down her nail to look at her too.

Su Yun: “I really haven’t. But maybe you could combine Jing Chaozhao and Director Lin’s suggestions? Like, prop the door up first to check the position, then attach the hinges, and finally install the whole door. As long as it doesn’t fall over in the end, it should be fine, right?”

It sounded perfectly logical and professional.

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