was still in the hotel lobby, and Xu Gui and Fu Xia were still sitting side by side.
The atmosphere in the lobby was somewhat restless. The guests who hadn't made it through the elimination rounds were inevitably a bit dejected, and envious glances occasionally fell on the ten who had advanced, including Xu Gui's.
However, compared to the first elimination round, there were far fewer hostile and resentful looks directed at Xu Gui this time.
Fu Xia hadn't made it through the elimination rounds either, but she didn't seem to care. She had always been clear about her role—she was just there for the fun of it all, and later she was even more of a slacker than Xu Gui.
And clearly, she was more interested in gossip than the results of the elimination rounds, because as soon as she sat down, she couldn't wait to ask Xu Gui, "Tang Baozhu's fiancé really hooked up with her best friend?"
Xu Gui nodded, "I predicted it, that's exactly what happened."
Fu Xia exclaimed, "I didn't expect Huang Yun to have kept it so well hidden..."
She revealed the gossip to Xu Gui, "You don't know, Tang Baozhu and her fiancé are a well-known golden couple in our circle. They're childhood sweethearts and engaged... When the news you broke this morning spread, our whole circle was in an uproar. Everyone's talking about it."
She opened her phone and showed Xu Gui several of her group chats—the members of which were all people in their circle. Xu Gui glanced at them and indeed saw that several groups were discussing this matter.
[Huang Yun really knows how to play the game], [Is the Tang family having a run of bad luck?], [The Tang and Huang families are probably going to have a major falling out this time]... A few of these comments vaguely caught Xu Gui's eye, but he looked away uninterestedly.
Fu Xia whispered, "I heard that the Tang family has already contacted the Huang family to break off the engagement. The Huang family is very anxious right now and is trying to plead with Tang Baozhu."
It's important to know that since Tang Baozhu and Huang Yun got engaged, the business ties between the Tang and Huang families have become much closer. If the engagement is broken off, their businesses will obviously be severed.
If things really come to this, the Huang family will obviously be the most anxious, since they rely more on the Tang family for their business dealings. Therefore, the Huang family is the last to want Tang Baozhu and Huang Yun to break off the engagement.
"I wonder what Huang Yun was thinking?" Fu Xia said with disdain, her tone quite dismissive. In her view, Huang Yun's actions were clearly digging his own grave. She scoffed, "Their business still depends on the Tang family, and he still dared to cheat."
Cheating was one thing, but the other woman was Tang Baozhu's friend! Based on Fu Xia's understanding of Tang Baozhu, she definitely wouldn't reconcile with Huang Yun, and their annulment was a foregone conclusion. After all, the power to dissolve the engagement lay with the Tang family.
There was no way around it; the Tang family was in a stronger position than the Huang family, and the Huang family had no right to refuse.
However, the main problem was Huang Yun's audacity. As the key figure maintaining the relationship between the Tang and Huang families, he clearly had no awareness of having to back down. Having Tang Baozhu as his fiancée, he still dared to cheat.
Oh, wait…
Fu Xia suddenly realized that Huang Yun wasn't entirely without the awareness to back down; otherwise, he wouldn't have been able to hide it so well. He probably just hadn't expected it to be exposed so suddenly.
According to what Xu Gui said at the time, his friendship with Tang Baozhu only came to light after he and Tang Baozhu got married… So the key to this matter actually lies with Xu Gui?
Fu Xia couldn't help but look at Xu Gui.
"What's wrong?" Xu Gui blinked and looked at her.
"Nothing." Fu Xia breathed a sigh of relief, then suddenly grabbed Xu Gui's arm, hugged it tightly, and rubbed it against her arm excitedly, exclaiming, "I just think, Xu Gui, you're so good."
Xu Gui: ?
"By the way, the child you rescued this afternoon, is she alright?" Fu Xia remembered this.
Xu Gui's attention was diverted, and she said, "I'm not too sure either. Although we rescued her, she developed a fever later, so we took her to the hospital. The doctor said that if it's just a simple fever, that's fine, but we're worried about infection."
Fu Xia asked curiously, "This child was really thrown into the water by her brother?"
Xu Gui nodded.
Upon hearing this, Fu Xia couldn't help but hiss, saying, "This kid is too ruthless! His sister is only three months old... How old is he?"
Xu Gui replied, "Nine years old..."
"Nine years old?" Fu Xia was shocked again—Xu Gui hadn't started the live stream afterward, so no one had seen Zhou Dabao, and Xu Gui hadn't mentioned his age, so Fu Xia only just learned that Zhou Dabao was only nine years old.
Xu Gui thought for a moment and then explained for Zhou Dabao, "It's probably because after his sister was born, his family paid less attention to him, so he became jealous of his sister..."
Fu Xia suddenly understood, "Oh, I see."
The two whispered among themselves, and the director standing above glanced at them several times, his lips twitching involuntarily.
The director wanted to say something, but seeing these two, one a "talented" player and the other a spoiled brat, he couldn't afford to offend either of them. After a couple of glances, the director simply decided to avoid the attention and looked away.
The viewers in the live stream noticed the director's actions and expressions and almost died laughing.
[The director's gaze...who understands? I only just realized now that the director actually has a bit of a sense of humor.]
[I'm so familiar with the director's gaze; it's the look he gives to a troublemaker, a mix of disdain and helplessness. My homeroom teacher looked at me like that too, heh.]
[I glanced in the direction the director was looking, and it seemed to be Xu Gui and Fu Xia there?]
[Our Gui Gui is doing well! Look, even the director is giving her a second look.]
[Is the girl in the previous post serious...?]
The live stream chat was lively, and Xu Gui and Fu Xia were chatting happily.
The director stood up, said some polite words, congratulated the ten guests who advanced, and expressed his regret for the twenty eliminated guests. Finally, he announced that the final episode of the show would be filmed in two months.
As for Xu Gui and the other guests who advanced, they could naturally go about their business for the next two months.
Xu Gui's first reaction upon hearing this was: Oh no, is my side hustle going to be unemployed?
As Xu Gui pondered, the official live stream ended, and the guests began packing to leave the hotel, awaiting their arrival two months later. Xu Gui didn't have much luggage—just a few clothes and shoes, enough for one suitcase.
Yuan Lu, as his assistant, was in charge of packing. Xu Gui wanted to help, but Yuan Lu stopped him, casually shoving the fish tank on the table into Xu Gui's arms, saying, "Teacher Xu, you just need to hold the turtle."
Xu Gui: ?
She glanced down at the turtle in the tank, picked it up, and looked at it, suddenly asking, "Have you gained weight? Do I have to put you on a diet later?"
The little turtle's beady eyes widened: ? Listen to yourself! Are you even speaking human language? Not even turtle language!
Xu Gui's new manager also arrived, having driven there, and could take Xu Gui to her place. While Yuan Lu was packing, Kuang Ming asked Xu Gui where she planned to go.
Xu Gui thought for a moment and said, "Let's go back to the company dormitory first."
Children in orphanages are required to leave after reaching adulthood. Of course, adulthood here doesn't mean turning eighteen, but rather that the children have the ability to live independently. Otherwise, they can't be allowed to starve to death outside.
Xu Gui left the orphanage after graduating high school because she didn't get into university and had to leave school to make a living. Xu
Gui felt that the main reason she didn't get into university was because she was a bit slow-witted back then (she didn't admit she was stupid), but if she took the college entrance exam now, she would definitely get in.
After leaving the orphanage, Xu Gui started renting a place to live. After she signed a contract with a company and became Rong Yi's agent, Rong Yi arranged for her to live in the company dormitory.
The company dormitory was a three-person room, meaning Xu Gui had two roommates.
"Ah." Just then, Xu Gui suddenly exclaimed. Under Kuang Ming's puzzled gaze, she said, "I remember who Su Ya is now. She seems to be my roommate."
She gently scratched her cheek, suddenly realizing, "No wonder she asked me before and I didn't remember her." So that's the reason.
Kuang Ming: "..." You can't even remember her? How can this roommate relationship be maintained?
Kuang Ming rubbed his temples and said, "You can stay here for now. I'll see if I can arrange a single room for you, or rent a new place for you."
As he spoke, Yuan Lu had already packed Xu Gui's things efficiently. The three of them went downstairs. When they reached the hotel lobby, Xu Gui suddenly remembered something, reached out and shoved the fish tank she was carrying into Kuang Ming's arms, asking him to hold it for her, while she quickly ran to the hotel kitchen.
Non-staff members are not allowed to enter the hotel kitchen. Although she was already quite familiar with the old woman, Xu Gui still obediently stood outside, calling out, "Auntie! Auntie..."
After calling for several seconds, the old woman came out, looking at her with annoyance, and asked, "Are you trying to call my soul from here?"
Xu Gui smiled and obediently said, "I'm here to say goodbye, Auntie. I'm going back to the company soon, and we won't see each other for two months."
She wasn't afraid of the old woman's stern face at all. She went over and hugged her, clinging to her like a teddy bear, and said reluctantly, "Auntie, I'll miss you so much."
Hearing Xu Gui's words, the old woman's expression softened, but her tone was still harsh. She said stiffly, "What, you're not planning to come back to see me after you leave?"
Xu Gui protested, "How could I? I like you so much, how could I not come to see you?" She wasn't that kind of heartless person. It was all slander.
Hearing this, the old woman's lips curled up slightly, and she said, "Since that's the case, then what's there to be reluctant about? Anyway, transportation is so convenient now. If you want to come see me, you can just take a taxi. It's not like I'm not here."
Xu Gui nodded, feeling less reluctant to leave. She let go of the old woman's arms, straightened up, and said, "My manager is waiting for me outside. Should I go?"
"Wait a minute!" the old woman said, turning and going into the kitchen. A moment later, she came out of the kitchen with a pre-packaged bag in her hand. She handed the bag to Xu Gui, saying, "These are boneless chicken feet I made these past two days. Take them home and eat them."
Xu Gui took the bag and looked inside. She saw several disposable transparent takeout boxes. Through the lid of the top box, she could see chicken feet soaking in broth.
Xu Gui looked up, her eyes bright as she looked at the old woman.
The older woman felt uncomfortable under their gaze, and her tone became even harsher. She said dryly, "Alright, you can go now." She rarely had someone like Xu Gui who wasn't afraid of her and was so close to her; it was quite unusual.
Xu Gui spoke a few more sweet words to her before picking up her things and walking briskly away. As she left, a tall, slender figure brushed past her. After a few steps, the person suddenly stopped and glanced at Xu Gui's departing back with a puzzled look.
*
It took more than an hour to get from the hotel to the company dormitory. By the time Xu Gui and the others arrived, it was already 10:30 PM.
At this hour, the people in the dormitory were still awake; the lights were still on. When Xu Gui and the others entered, they saw someone sitting in the living room, holding a book.
Hearing the noise, the person looked towards the door. Seeing it was Xu Gui and the others, her expression showed surprise, and she silently stood up.
"Xu Gui, you're back," she said.
Xu Gui looked at her, rummaged through her memory, and called out uncertainly, "...He Yuan?"
He Yuan smiled and came over to help. Together, they tidied up Xu Gui's things. After they were done, Kuang Ming and Yuan Lu left, leaving only Xu Gui and He Yuan in the dormitory.
Xu Gui glanced at the third room; the door had been closed since she entered.
"Hasn't Su Ya come back?" she asked He Yuan.
He Yuan shook her head: "No." Actually, she hadn't expected Xu Gui to return at this time.
Xu Gui stood in the living room, looking around curiously—although she had lived here before, she hadn't actually lived here properly for very long before being taken away to film a program.
The two stood in the living room, silent. He Yuan seemed a little awkward and said, "I watched the show, you did a great job."
Xu Gui looked at her and thanked her, "Thank you... Oh, right! I have some boneless chicken feet here, let's eat together."
She suddenly remembered the boneless chicken feet her aunt had given her. With the hot weather, food was best eaten sooner rather than later. She tossed He Yuan a sentence, "Wait a minute, I'll go get them from inside!"
He Yuan: "Huh?"
She was about to refuse, but in the blink of an eye, she felt a gust of wind rush past her, and when she blinked again, no one was there.
Five minutes later, He Yuan looked at Xu Gui sitting opposite her, then glanced at the two open boxes of boneless chicken feet on the table, feeling a sense of disorientation.
Although they were in the same company and even shared a dormitory, the three of them weren't actually very close. Before Xu Gui participated in "360 Trades," the three of them were just ordinary people in the entertainment industry, busy traveling around during the day, so they only saw each other at night.
But after a long day, who has the time to chat at night? Naturally, everyone goes to sleep. So, although they've been roommates for almost half a year, this is the first time they've sat facing each other to eat.
Hmm, it's a strange feeling.
Seeing her sitting there motionless, her mind seemingly wandering elsewhere, Xu Gui couldn't help but say, "Eat up, don't be shy! This was a gift from an auntie who really, really likes me!"
Saying "really, really likes me," her expression was full of pride—yes, she was indeed that lovable.
"...The auntie's cooking is amazing, you should try some." Xu Gui used her gloved hand to grab a chicken foot and put it on He Yuan's plate.
He Yuan snapped out of her daze, quickly thanked her, put on her own gloves, and started eating the chicken foot.
After taking a few bites of the boneless chicken foot, her expression froze for a moment, then she looked at Xu Gui and exclaimed with delight, "This chicken foot is so delicious!"
She had tried other boneless chicken feet before, but they always had their flaws—either too fishy or not flavorful enough. This boneless chicken feet, however, was both fragrant and spicy.
He Yuan hadn't had much of an appetite before, but now the chicken feet had whetted it. She took off her disposable gloves and said to Xu Gui, "Wait for me!"
She turned and ran into the small kitchen in the dormitory, grabbing several bottles of chilled beer from the small refrigerator, along with some side dishes and braised meats she had stored there for tomorrow's lunch.
"What's this?" Xu Gui's gaze fell on the beer. He Yuan
glanced at it, waving the beer bottle in her hand, and said, "Beer? Haven't you ever had it?"
Xu Gui sat there, looking obedient, and said, "No."
He Yuan gave her a playful smile, placed a bottle of beer in front of Xu Gui, and said, "In the summer, chilled beer goes perfectly with a late-night snack. Do you want to try some?"
Xu Gui nodded vigorously, "Yes!" without the slightest hesitation.
"Snap!"
The beer cap was ripped open, and a little beer foam bubbled out.
Xu Gui took it, put her mouth to it, and sipped it like a child drinking soda. Then, her face scrunched up, and she looked at the beer in her hand with disgust.
He Yuan was amused by her expression—how come she had never noticed how funny Xu Gui was before?
"How does it taste?" she asked Xu Gui.
Xu Gui shook her head, scrunching her face, and said, "It's not good, the taste is too weird."
He Yuan said in a knowing tone, "Beer isn't something you drink like that. You have to drink it like this, in big gulps, while eating some snacks. That's how you enjoy it."
She demonstrated for Xu Gui, taking a big gulp of beer, and exclaimed, "Refreshing!"
On a hot summer day, a mouthful of ice-cold beer felt incredibly refreshing.
Xu Gui watched her movements, frowned, and tried again. Then, her face scrunched up again, and she pushed the beer can aside with obvious disgust.
He Yuan, seeing her actions, smiled and pushed over a can of cola she had just grabbed, saying, "Since you don't like beer, then don't drink it. You can have this, cola."
Xu Gui had drunk cola before, so she accepted it well.
And so, the two of them, one drinking cola and the other beer, began their late-night snack. Half an hour later, as the number of beer bottles on the table increased, He Yuan became quite drunk, her face flushed.
"Waaah..."
Suddenly, the drunken He Yuan started sobbing, tears streaming down her face.
Xu Gui, holding the cola can, looked at her in surprise.
He Yuan looked at her, slurring her words, "Tell me, why is this world so unfair? I've been in this industry for so many years, filmed so many dramas, but I'm still just a nobody. Nobody knows who He Yuan is."
"...You know, I recently finally landed a role with a name. I put in so much effort for it! I read the script over and over, studied the character meticulously, but someone else took it away with just one sentence."
Her eyes reddened as she looked at Xu Gui, asking, "Tell me, in this industry, is it true that if you don't have connections, no sugar daddies, you can't become famous? Nobody respects you?"
She choked back tears, "Before, I could confidently say that I would definitely make it in this industry, that I would definitely become a big star! But now, I don't know anymore... I don't know if I should continue."
"My mom called me yesterday and said that so-and-so earns so much money a year, but what about me? I've filmed so many dramas, but I'm nothing. She said she's embarrassed to even say I'm her daughter!"
"I know, she thinks I'm shameful, useless, and can't make money… She said other girls this age are already married, and she wants me to go home, obey her and my dad's arrangements, and obediently get married."
"But, but I just don't want to get married! I haven't become a big star yet, I haven't become a movie queen."
As she spoke, He Yuan burst into tears again, sobbing uncontrollably. She cried, "I know I'm useless, but I really don't want to give up…"
She rested her head on her arm, closed her eyes, and murmured, "Maybe I'm really not cut out to be a star, I should have given up long ago, sob sob sob."
Xu Gui watched her slowly quiet down, only an occasional sob remaining, and gently called out, "…He Yuan?"
He Yuan's breathing was even and quiet.
Xu Gui went over and gently poked her face. She only frowned slightly but didn't react.
"Are you drunk?" Xu Gui murmured, looking around. Not finding anyone to help, he could only reach out and help He Yuan up, leading her into the house and putting her to bed.
After lying in bed, He Yuan sobbed twice more. Although she was asleep, tears were still streaming down her face, and she looked extremely sad.
Xu Gui looked at her, wiped away her tears, and pulled the blanket over her, afraid that she would catch a cold if she lifted it. He also kindly tucked her into the blanket.
After doing all this, Xu Gui left satisfied to clean up the mess outside. By the time she finished, it was already late, and Xu Gui was exhausted. After washing up, she buried herself in the blanket, pulled it over herself, and fell into a deep sleep.
The next day, she was woken up by a loud banging on the door