Teams are divided into groups of two or four.
Two people were responsible for buying decorations, and four people were responsible for buying ingredients.
Upon seeing the results of the draw, Zhuang Yan and An Xinrong were grouped together. Seeing the lot in her hand, An Xinrong couldn't hide her joy and cheered herself on in her heart.
She had so much to say to Zhuang Yan, but she had never found the opportunity until now.
Lu Yan was also going out, but in the opposite direction from Zhuang Yan. It was windy and cold outside, and she didn't like wearing a scarf, saying that it would hurt her neck. Zhuang Yan watched her put it on and saw that she wore the scarf crookedly, so he reached out and straightened it for her.
"Where are the gloves?"
"You need to wear gloves too?"
"Don't you carry bags when you buy things? Your hands get cold if they're exposed."
The two's intimate actions were caught on camera during the live stream. Despite feeling that their current status was mismatched, people were still stunned by the scene. Such a peaceful and serene moment made people not want to disturb it.
"Zhuang Yan, are you done yet? I'm leaving." It was An Xinrong who broke the silence.
"You're here." Before leaving, Zhuang Yan reminded Lu Yan, "Be careful on the road."
"Okay, you too."
Having filmed for so long and received so much care here, the director asked the six of them to buy more vegetables and host a feast for the villagers.
Zhuang Yan carefully calculated how many people there would be. The population wasn't large; he could invite twenty or thirty people. Adding the six of them and the staff, that would require at least ten tables.
This is no small amount, so Zhuang Yan wrote out a list of ingredients and told Lu Yan and the others to buy according to it so that they wouldn't make any mistakes.
Of the six people, only Zhuang Yan can cook, and since he is the head chef, everyone listens to him.
Once on the street, Zhuang Yan went through all the items he needed to buy.
An Xinrong followed quietly behind him. The current An Xinrong no longer needed the "child psychology" approach. She didn't need to be praised. She would do whatever he asked her to do.
Time flies. After a busy afternoon, An Xinrong rubbed her arm. She didn't say anything, but she was definitely tired.
There happened to be a milk tea stall on the street, so Zhuang Yan bought a cup of milk tea and an egg pancake.
"Have something to eat."
How did you know I was hungry?
"I saw you rub your stomach a few times."
She hadn't expected Zhuang Yan to be so observant; he noticed even her smallest movements. So, he wasn't completely oblivious to her, was he? He was somewhat interested in her after all…
An Xinrong took the milk tea and egg pancakes from his hand. Seeing that she didn't touch them for a long time, Zhuang Yan assumed that she thought they were too high in calories.
"Milk tea is low in sugar, and egg pancakes are not high in calories, so you can eat them without worry."
"Thank you." An Xinrong smiled happily, took a big sip of milk tea, and then ate a big bite of egg pancake.
After eating, she regained her energy and began to think about how to talk to Zhuang Yan.
"Is there another date?"
Zhuang Yan shook his head: "I'm not sure, the director didn't say."
“You’ve already gone on a date with Lu Yan and Jiang Ning once. If there’s another date, can you go with me?” An Xinrong looked at Zhuang Yan nervously, waiting for his answer.
"I don't want to go on a date. If I really have to go on a date, I'll go with Lu Yan."
An Xinrong felt her heart tremble uncontrollably, and after a long while she finally asked, "Why...why don't you want to go on a date with me?"
Zhuang Yan said seriously, "Because I like Lu Yan, would you be happy if I dated someone else while I was thinking about someone else?"
She was unhappy, but she was also unwilling to give up.
Zhuang Yan seemed to have forgotten that there was a live broadcast camera nearby. He hit a straight shot, shattering An Xinrong's illusions.
An Xinrong looked like a child who had done something wrong, with her head down and a milk tea straw in her mouth. She stared at the tips of her shoes, avoiding the camera, afraid that the tears in her eyes would be exposed.
“In the past two months, Fang Chen has been visiting my dad frequently. My dad admires him and says he’s quite capable, having founded a game company with a professional team at such a young age.”
“My dad has praised me more times over the years than he praised Fang Chen when we first met. In his eyes, I am the most disappointing one. I am not as educated as my sister, nor as smart and capable as my brother… In the whole family, I am the least likable. Even my brother looks down on me.”
“I’ve loved singing and dancing since I was little, but they insisted that I learn piano and painting, and they enrolled me in math olympiad classes. I tried to please them and study hard, but I just couldn’t learn what I didn’t know. My dad thought I was hopeless and didn’t want to waste too much energy on me.”
"The year I took the college entrance exam, I secretly applied to an art school, met a talent scout, and then entered a talent show."
“My dad called me a useless actress, my sister looked down on me, but my mom didn’t say anything to me. She just told me to be obedient and go back home, and not to have those unrealistic dreams.”
“Everyone thought I couldn’t do it, but I was determined to prove them wrong. I debuted as a member of a girl group without relying on my parents; I relied entirely on the votes of my fans.”
"On the night of the group's formation, all my teammates' families came, but my family didn't. When I went home, they wouldn't let me in. I didn't have a celebration party or a coming-of-age ceremony. On my 20th birthday, I waited from day to night, but I didn't receive a single blessing from them. Later, after the limited-time group ended, I started acting, and more people got to know me, but there were also more haters because I was ridiculed by the whole internet for my bad acting skills."
"When my brother turned ten, I bought him a game console that he had always liked but no one had ever bought for him, thinking that I would give it to him to make him happy."
"When we got to his doorstep, he stopped me from going in. He looked at the game console in my hand and laughed at me, saying that I was still the same as before, only knowing how to eat, drink, and play and not good at anything else. He said he hadn't played games for a long time, and that this was his home, so I wasn't allowed to go in and not embarrass him because my acting was so bad that it went viral, causing him to lose face at school. He looked down on me..."
An Xinrong recounted many of her stories in one breath, things she had never said in public since her debut.
Since her debut, she has been known as the "Second Miss of the An Family." Netizens say she is a capitalist who brings her own investment to film productions and bullies others.
But in reality, she got to where she is today entirely on her own merits. She didn't rely on the An family's influence at all, and her journey wasn't smooth sailing. There are far more people who criticize her than those who praise her.
She used her spoiled and willful nature to mask her inner inferiority complex. The arrogant and sharp-tongued heiress became her persona. Although she was not likable, no one would bully her.
“After participating in this program, my dad started paying more attention to me. After getting to know me a little, he thought Fang Chen was a good match. In his eyes, an actress like me with so many blemishes wouldn't find a good husband.” An Xinrong’s voice was hoarse, and you could hear the sob in it if you listened carefully. “Zhuang Yan, do you think someone like Fang Chen… is someone I can marry?”
"You shouldn't ask me; you should ask yourself."
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