Chapter 20: The Second Round Interview
Upon hearing Liang Shao'e's words, Li Sishi did not, as the onlookers expected, display the typical anger of a child whose dreams have been denied by their parents.
Instead, she maintained her seemingly resolute expression and tone, reiterating, "I've made up my mind."
Seeing Li Sishi like this, Liang Shao'e suddenly remembered the time when she took her to find a middle school.
At that time, she firmly chose Tseng Ting Poh So Secondary School, a band 3 school, and rejected my suggestion to take her to see other good schools.
At the time, Liang Shao'e thought that Li Sishi was not only sensible but also had a kind of independent thinking that was rare among young people. She knew how to save money for her elders and also made choices that suited her own situation based on the actual circumstances. But now it seems that this child is too "sensible" and too opinionated.
At the same time, this foreshadowing event also made me realize something profound at this moment—once this niece has made up her mind, no one can dissuade her.
Seeing that Zhou Jiaxian and Zhou Jiayun were already hesitant under Li Sishi's gaze, Liang Shao'e snorted heavily, turned around and went back to work in the kitchen, leaving a group of people with different expressions looking at each other.
“Sishi, your aunt is just…” Zhou Jiayun wanted to speak up and smooth things over, but he was always a clumsy talker who only knew how to bury himself in his work, and for a moment he couldn’t think of a good explanation.
“I understand, Uncle.” Li Sishi shook her head. “I know it was wrong of me to act first and inform you later, but participating in the Miss Hong Kong pageant has always been my dream. It started when I was a child, watching Hong Kong television programs with my mother, so this is the only thing I can do…”
Sometimes, it's not necessary to be too detailed or clear when speaking. Appropriate omissions can allow people to fill in the blanks in their minds.
“But you really hurt your aunt’s feelings this time. Your aunt has always loved you so much…” Zhou Jiaxian sighed helplessly.
Compared to her own mother, who was lost and confused about the future and had spent the past two years hiding like an ostrich in the tea restaurant helping out, Liang Shao'e, as her aunt, was more like a mother who could shoulder responsibilities and protect her children.
"I know my aunt loves me. I'm sorry for what I did to her. I'll find a chance to talk to her properly," Li Sishi quickly promised.
"Then you should talk to your aunt properly; she'll understand eventually." Seeing that Li Sishi's candidacy was a done deal...
The gossipy old folks around started talking, "The elders can never win against you kids. If you behave well these next few days, your aunt won't really blame your family. They don't hold grudges overnight..."
Li Sishi nodded repeatedly in agreement, and then waved goodbye to the two children, Zhou Huichang and Zhou Huiguang, who were busy with school and couldn't continue gossiping.
Afterwards, Li Sishi said goodbye to everyone and went to school.
Knowing that Liang Shao'e was still angry, the people in the tea restaurant found new topics to talk about. However, their eyes, whether they were holding newspapers and magazines as cover or chatting with their companions to hide their wandering thoughts, were always closely watching the situation in the restaurant.
I don't know what Li Sishi plans to do when she gets back, but the continuous thumping of the cleaver chopping meat in the kitchen is quite terrifying.
While those who remained in the tea restaurant were still worried, Li Sishi, who had gone to school, once again encountered onlookers and inquiries from those who had heard the news.
Of course, most students were both surprised and unsurprised by Li Sishi's participation: although Li Sishi's current age is just above the minimum age requirement for the competition.
It seems a bit "rushed"; however, their Diocesan Girls' Club has produced the first Miss Hong Kong, Sun Yingyin, and Chang Baoning, who currently holds the record for the best international beauty pageant results!
Therefore, it's not surprising that another Miss Hong Kong candidate would emerge under such a "beauty pageant tradition".
The only confusing point is that if Li Sishi makes it into the top 20 in the second round of interviews this weekend, she will be required to enter the Miss Hong Kong training camp for at least two months of "Miss Hong Kong training" - how will she balance her studies?
"If I do make it into the top 20 as everyone wishes, I'll consider taking a leave of absence from school for a while," Li Sishi explained with a smile. "But then I might need to trouble you to lend me my class notes."
After receiving assurances from a group of enthusiastic classmates that everything would be fine, Li Sishi chatted with them for a while before finally switching off her social mode and focusing on the lesson when the class bell rang.
To Li Sishi's amusement and exasperation, after class, several female classmates who usually got along well with her suddenly offered to escort her out of school to avoid being mobbed by paparazzi. So they formed a small circle around her and protected her at the very back. At first glance, it looked like...
A group of penguin chicks, huddled together, embark on an adventure.
After safely escorting Li Sishi back to the Lucky Tea Restaurant, the overly enthusiastic female classmates hurriedly left, seemingly afraid that Zhou Jiayun, their classmate's uncle, would bring them food. Everyone knew that "Meili's" family wasn't well-off, and now she was going to participate in a beauty pageant, which her family didn't really support. They wanted to leave quickly and give the family some space to communicate properly.
After tidying up and briefly greeting the people in the tea restaurant, Li Sishi carried her backpack upstairs.
Not long after he returned to his room and put down his schoolbag, Zhou Huichang came in carrying a huge pile of newspapers and magazines.
"Did you take all the stuff from those uncles and aunties at the tea restaurant downstairs?" Looking at the pile of newspapers and magazines that was almost half the height of Zhou Huichang, Li Sishi was both amused and exasperated.
"Not only that, I also went to my classmates to get a lot of newspapers and magazines from other places!" Zhou Huichang instructed Zhou Huiguang, who was walking behind her, to pile another stack of newspapers and magazines on the table. "Know yourself and know your enemy, and you will win every battle. I've brought back all the 'information' I could find on the market!"
"Cousin, why didn't you tell me sooner? That way I could have found time to make you a few more clothes..." Zhou Huichang put her hands on her shoulders and twisted them a few times, her tone full of dissatisfaction.
"I just went there to try it out, just to have some fun and see what it's like. Who knew I'd actually make it to the second round?" Faced with this question, Li Sishi immediately offered this particularly innocent yet convincing explanation.
Compared to those who blatantly lied about accompanying friends and getting selected, or those who had no intention of running but were signed up by people around them, the most genuine reason is "I wanted to try it out and see what it was like, and I didn't expect to actually be selected."
"Since that's the case, then I'll generously forgive you!" Zhou Huichang gave a soft "hmm," and then called Li Sishi and Zhou Huiguang to sort out the newspapers and magazines together, with the little scheme of digging up information on other potential contestants.
"Hey, you two have your high school entrance exams in a little over a month, and you still have time to look at this?" Although she was grateful for her cousins' concern for her, Li Sishi still put on a serious face.
"Oh well, it won't make a difference if it's just one or two nights. Cousin, you're in a bigger hurry!" Zhou Huiguang was already engrossed in the sea of gossip.
"This is the most pleasant thing you've ever said in my life!" Zhou Huichang retorted, not wanting to be outdone.
Seeing that the two had already gotten carried away, Li Sishi had no choice but to...
I joined in, feeling both amused and exasperated.
"Outrageous! This magazine dug up my cousin's background and said she was a 'fallen heiress'! She's nowhere near as good as Huo Chuying, the daughter of some plastic tycoon who claims to be a real 'billionaire heiress'!" Zhou Huiguang had only been looking at the magazine for a short while when he angrily shouted out.
"Hmm, I'll write this down. Looks like this will be a tough opponent for my cousin in her next interview!" Zhou Huichang quickly took notes. "And this professional model named Zheng Liaoying is said to have won second place in the 1991 Xinxiang, USA Model Competition!"
"There's a college student here who speaks multiple languages!"
"This girl is the same age as my cousin, she's also a model, and she's even appeared in quite a few music videos!"
After a thorough review and review of the records, the two siblings managed to identify quite a few "potential" competitors for Li Sishi—Li Sishi, who had already witnessed their potential once, didn't react much; however, Zhou Huiguang was somewhat surprised and uncertain, remarking that there were actually quite a few normal, beautiful girls in this year's class...
This poor child is probably traumatized by the unethical photos taken by those toxic Hong Kong media outlets.
Holding the thick list in her hands, Li Sishi felt speechless yet deeply touched.
When the three parents returned from packing up their shops, the mess on the table had long since been "destroyed." However, the atmosphere at dinner was quite different from before, when everything was harmonious and pleasant even in silence. Instead, it made everyone subconsciously feel awkward and restrained.
In the following days, the day of the second round of interviews arrived. After greeting the old neighbors of the tea restaurant, Li Sishi went over to Liang Shao'e, who was working hard in the kitchen, and then set off with Zhou Jiaxian and Zhou Huichang to catch a ride.
As Li Sishi's figure receded into the distance, the neighbors in the tea restaurant quieted down considerably—and the sound of chopping vegetables, which had suddenly stopped, could no longer be heard.
After arriving at the Qingshuitan TV City again by car, Li Sishi saw even more reporters staking out the place than in the first round of auditions: No wonder, after the target of staking out the place changed from hundreds of people to 60 people, it was obviously much easier to stake out the place.
Moreover, the target is much easier to identify this time because, under normal circumstances, family members will start to "escort" the interviewees into the room during the second round of interviews.
This time, Li Sishi was still surrounded by a lot of people, but it was clearly not as much as the "billion-dollar heiress" Huo Chuying on the other side. Although in terms of looks, Li Sishi was undoubtedly the No.1 in the room, given the Hong Kong people's usual tendency to be materialistic and picky about appearances, the 17-year-old girl was still quite naive.
She's just a little bit different from a white-collar woman in her early twenties, who's in the prime of her youth.
Only Wan Jiamei, whose figure is completely unlike that of a 17-year-old, managed to grab some screen time among the two popular predicted contestants with her mature and glamorous style that goes against her age.
As for the other contestants who were categorized by the media as semi-popular or temporarily ordinary without any highlights, the reporters simply swarmed around them and snapped a few photos as usual. This was a stark contrast to their attitude towards the two main favorites, where they would gather around and not want to leave.
It wasn't until the second round of interviews began and all the qualified contestants entered the waiting room that the group of reporters finally quieted down, dispersing in twos and threes. It was unclear whether they went back to work on their articles or continued to stake out the interviews until they were over for another round of interviews.
Li Sishi maintained the same lone wolf approach as in the first round of auditions. After entering, she walked around in front of the camera, gave a simple yet skillful response to the judges, thanked everyone, and then politely left.
Compared to the first round, which focuses on whether the real person matches the photos and information, the key in the second round is whether they are photogenic and whether they are stage-frightened.
It can be simple in some ways, and difficult in others—for example, based on her experience, she identified certain contestants who were at a disadvantage on camera and others who were overly nervous. The former basically had no hope, and the latter would definitely be eliminated if they didn't perform well on the day...
But these are just appetizers; the time when every word and action will be under the scrutiny of many people has not yet truly arrived.
Until I received the invitation to be among the top 20, and then decided to enter the Miss Hong Kong training camp.
Seeing Li Sishi packing her luggage, Zhou Huichang felt reluctant and sad: "Cousin, are you really sure about this?"
If you decide to enter the Miss Hong Kong training camp, you will have to leave home for the next two months and go to a villa in Kowloon Tan with 19 other candidates for training.
"Okay, you have to be good during this time. I hope that when I come back, I will see news that you and Guangzai have both achieved good results..." Li Sishi said while packing.
"Cousin, why did you interrupt my emotional journey?!" Upon hearing this, Zhou Huiguang felt like he was about to cry.
“Your uncle has already called a taxi. Our whole family will take you there tomorrow.” Zhou Jiayun still couldn’t speak, but her efficiency was top-notch.
She also subtly nudged Liang Shao'e, who hadn't spoken to Li Sishi for several days, with her elbow.
Take good care of yourself
"If anything happens, just call home. Your family will support you..." Zhou Jiaxian wiped her eyes.
No matter how reluctant she was to part with her, she had already realized that her daughter had grown up by the night she jumped ship to escape the disaster.
Unable to sleep all night, Zhou Jiayun greeted the waiters at the tea restaurant early the next morning and then helped Li Sishi load her suitcase into the trunk of the taxi.
Looking out at the bus that was already waiting at the entrance of the TV station, Li Sishi gripped the handle of her suitcase tightly and hugged her four family members goodbye one last time.
"Since you're going, then do your best and strive for excellence. Don't let yourself down!" Just when everyone thought Liang Shao'e wouldn't say anything, she suddenly spoke stiffly to Li Sishi, who was about to turn and leave.
Li Sishi paused in her turn, then looked back at Liang Shao'e, whose expression was still complicated, and a genuine smile slowly appeared on her face: "I understand, bye-bye, Auntie!"
With the blessings and instructions of her family, Li Sishi pulled her luggage and slowly walked towards the bus in front of her, facing the group of reporters who were waiting by the bus.
This is a staircase leading to the shared dream of most girls in the port city. Perhaps in the future, some will use this opportunity to embark on various paths such as performing arts, hosting, and singing...
But regardless of whether the future holds soaring success or a return to ordinary life, it will likely remain a shared experience for the 20 young women involved in this endeavor in the long years to come.
The most unforgettable memories in a life where courage was once mustered.
And now she has come here again, hoping to rewrite a new chapter in this brand new life.
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