Chapter 63
Blank task
The next day, the wind was gentle and the sun was warm.
"Today we will begin our solo missions, and the two guests will act separately."
"Single-player mission?"
Xu then asked the production team, "Do we have to do the tasks separately?"
"Could the two of you work together to complete the mission?"
The production team flatly refused: "It must be done alone."
Without further ado, the staff began issuing task cards.
"Please read the contents of the task card carefully and go to different locations to complete the task. The first person to complete it will receive a special reward."
What is the special reward?
The staff member smiled mysteriously: "It's a secret."
"Time begins, let's get started, both guests."
Xu was completely unguarded with Jiang Fengyi: "My task is to go to the market to find an intangible cultural heritage inheritor named Bai Mengran, learn basic tie-dyeing from her, and successfully dye a square scarf."
The director coughed loudly behind the monitor to remind him, but he still couldn't stop Xu from spilling everything to Jiang Fengyi without holding back.
What is your mission?
Xu was already thinking about helping Jiang Fengyi with her mission before he had even started his own.
"If you're also looking for someone, I can help you with that."
Jiang Fengyi's task card was blank; the production team had not assigned her any tasks.
A staff member off-camera loudly reminded, "Both guests must complete the task independently; helping others is not allowed!"
He paused for a moment, then continued to add.
"You are not allowed to inquire about the other guests' tasks either!"
Jiang Fengyi sent Xu Que away, saying, "Go to the market and find someone first. My task doesn't require finding anyone."
Xu hesitated, then said, "You seem a bit strange. Why are you trying to get rid of me, just like the production team?"
She muttered softly, "Actually, you've been acting a little strange since last night."
Jiang Fengyi was startled and wondered if she had been too obvious.
"I'm just worried about taking up your time to do your task."
However, Xu didn't think much of it: "Then I won't let you have it. I'll do my best to get the special reward!"
The two then parted ways.
Only after Xu left by car did the program crew speak to Jiang Fengyi.
“Teacher Jiang, you’re not entirely without a task. You need to use the funds you win to prepare a birthday surprise for Teacher Xu before she finishes her task.”
"I see."
Jiang Fengyi prepared to make a birthday cake for Xu Que herself.
She found a DIY cake studio and, under the guidance of the staff, began making her first cake.
First, take out the egg and gently tap it along the rim of the glass bowl.
Two knocks.
The egg cracked open, and the egg white and yolk slid down the inside of the glass bowl.
"Next, we need to separate the egg whites and yolks."
"The cake flour needs to be sifted; this will make the cake more delicate."
Jiang Fengyi patiently followed the shop assistant's instructions step by step. Although her movements were not very skilled, she put her heart into every step.
“Very good, now let’s get rid of the egg whites…”
*
Vehicles sped by, kicking up a carpet of yellowed leaves.
Xu sat inside the car, gazing intently out the window.
He was wondering what Jiang Fengyi's task was, and whether it would be difficult.
The market was not far from the hotel where we started, and it only took about ten minutes to reach our destination.
After getting off the bus,
She then realized that her task was not simple at all. There was a workshop at every turn in the market, and the number of tie-dye intangible cultural heritage inheritors gathered here was far more than Xu Que had seen in the first half of her life.
Where is Bai Mengran?
Do you know Master Bai Mengran?
Xu asked everyone she met, but unfortunately, the people in the market had been informed in advance by the production team and wouldn't tell her directly.
Apart from the name, Xu had no clue whatsoever; it was like searching for a needle in a haystack, with a slim chance of success.
An NPC arranged by the production team appeared at the right time and awkwardly recited the lines given to him by the production team.
"If you want to see Bai Mengran, you must first prove that you have discerning eyes."
Xu knew that the NPC was about to give her a quest.
"Oh? How do you prove it?"
As soon as he finished speaking, the person in front of him turned around.
A set of tie-dye tools had been prepared on the long wooden table, and the production team also brought out a display board at the same time, which clearly showed the basic tie-dye patterns.
These are sun pattern, stripe, and cloud pattern.
The person in front of him spoke to Xu.
"You now have three classic patterns in front of you. Please choose one and, within two minutes, use the tools on your table to try to replicate the pattern you see."
"If you can successfully replicate the pattern, it will prove that you have a discerning eye, and I will tell you the location of Master Bai."
Xu readily agreed.
She quickly glanced at the display board and chose to have the simplest stripes printed on it.
The tools on the wooden table stumped her; she stared at the display board, completely clueless and unsure where to begin.
"Just a reminder, the time limit is two minutes, and thirty seconds have already passed."
Xu didn't have time to think much. He unfolded the folded cotton square scarf, dipped a wooden stick in indigo dye, and began to trace patterns on the pure white scarf, following the pattern.
Blue stripes appeared under the stick, and Xu's eyes lit up. Using the stick as a paintbrush seemed feasible!
She would look at it once and draw a stroke, meticulously comparing it to the original, not allowing herself to make any mistakes.
The NPC who gave her the quest shook his head as he watched.
Ignoring the rules of the game, I couldn't help but whisper something in her ear.
"Tie-dye... tie-dye... tie-dye..."
Xu knew that she had nothing to do with tie-dyeing anymore, but today was her first time encountering this intangible cultural heritage, and she couldn't possibly use the tools on the table correctly.
Her goal is to complete the task, regardless of the method or process, as long as she achieves the desired result.
The production team started the countdown.
"10 seconds left, 10...9...8......"
There was still a large blank space on the handkerchief, indicating that it was clearly unfinished.
"Time's up!"
"Unfortunately, the challenge failed."
The NPC who knew about tie-dye, whom the production team found, held back for a full two minutes before finally having a chance to vent: "This isn't tie-dye at all!"
Xu smiled sheepishly and said, "I'll wait until I find Master Bai and learn real tie-dyeing from her."
She raised her hand high towards the production team: "I choose to take on the challenge again!"
She was full of confidence: "Give me another chance, believe me, I'll definitely pass this time!"
Production crew: "The second challenge begins now!"
Are you coming again?
The random NPC simply turned her head away, refusing to watch Xu Que paint. She was afraid she wouldn't be able to resist helping him properly tie the dye.
Xu made a move almost the instant the staff pressed the timer.
He was much faster than last time, and the striped pattern was already deeply etched in his mind. He barely looked up, just kept his head down drawing lines.
"Ten seconds left..."
"alright!"
The photographer panned the camera in that direction.
The square scarf in front of Xu Que was covered with unevenly distributed, crooked lines, like wriggling caterpillars that would crawl out of the scarf at any moment.
The camera paused for a few seconds, then panned past Xu Que and focused on the correct tie-dye stripes on the display board.
The stripes on the display board are neatly arranged, with consistent spacing between them, and the indigo dye naturally seeps into the cotton, leaving gentle traces.
Are these two the same pattern?
Xu nodded firmly: "Of course! The handkerchief on the display board has twenty-eight blue stripes, and so does mine!"
The production team questioned, "Besides the quantity, what else matches up?"
"It looks about right to me." Xu was eager to see Bai Mengran and finish the mission as soon as possible to return to see Jiang Fengyi. "I guess I've cleared the level now. Take me to Master Bai."
"I want to learn the real tie-dye technique!"
Production team: "This..."
A local who knows tie-dye couldn't help but speak up: "Let her have it. Once she finds Bai Mengran and learns tie-dye, she'll know how ridiculous it is to use a stick dipped in dye to poke out patterns."
The production team reluctantly announced: "Congratulations to the guest for successfully completing the challenge."
"Let's go, let's go," the NPC waiting on the side couldn't wait any longer. "I'll take you to see Master Bai and let her teach you what tie-dye really is."
"In order to complete the task," Xu apologized to the other party, "I am not familiar with tie-dyeing, an intangible cultural heritage. If I have offended you in any way, I apologize."
"It's not that I'm offending, it's just that I simply can't stand looking at it."
"That uncomfortable feeling is like watching someone button their shirt wrong, and not only can you not help them, but you're also not allowed to say anything to remind them, and you have to keep watching."
"That must be very uncomfortable."
Her analogy made Xu immediately understand.
"Thank you for holding it in until now."
Upon arriving at Bai Mengran's studio, the NPC, who seemed so lifelike, began to stiffly recite his lines again.
"Master Bai is inside. Guests need to learn basic tie-dyeing from her and successfully dye a square scarf."
"The lines you memorized are exactly the same as the text on my task card. The production team is really lazy; they didn't even write an extra set of lines for us."
The NPC nudged her, saying, "You should go inside now."
Inside the house.
Bai Mengran, with her back to Xu Que, was tying up the cotton cloth in her hands. On the indoor display stand were her unique dyed products.
From small hair ties and handkerchiefs to large items like dresses and shawls, every piece of fabric has a unique pattern.
Xu then introduced himself.
"Hello Master Bai, I am Xu Que, here to learn tie-dyeing techniques from you."
After slowly finishing what she was doing, Bai Mengran turned to look at Xu Que.
Remember the program team's instructions and try to delay the process as much as possible.
She neither used her hands nor instructed Xu Que to do anything; she simply explained the theoretical knowledge of tie-dyeing to Xu Que verbally.
The tone of voice was deliberately slow and drawn out.
"Tie-dyeing is a dyeing method in which fabrics are partially tied up during the dyeing process to prevent them from being dyed. The general process consists of four steps: soaking, tying, dyeing, and rinsing."
"The fabric is bound, sewn, tied, sewn, sewn, and clamped using tools such as yarn, thread, and rope before dyeing. The most basic and simple methods include binding, clamping, and wrapping..."
"Master Bai, why don't we try it out first?"
"I need to help you understand the characteristics of tie-dyeing, appreciate its charm, and feel its natural beauty first."
Master Bai continued speaking.
at the same time,
Jiang Fengyi has already prepared a four-inch cake for two people.
"I only finished half of the other gift I prepared for Xu Que last night, and I want to finish the other half." Jiang Fengyi asked the production team, "What's the progress of Xu Que's task?"
The production team confidently replied, "The task over there has only just begun, and it will be a long time before it is completed."
Jiang Fengyi returned to the hotel and brought out the leaf lamp that she had secretly made halfway through the night before, without Xu's knowledge.
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