Because the director was reckless and foolish, they still didn't get enough single rooms, so they drew lots to decide who would get one. Since they didn't trust each other, they specifically asked He Jun to write the lots and ensure there was no cheating during the drawing process.
Director: "I don't really understand you guys."
Why is the lottery so solemn?
Everyone thought they were just playing a variety show game, except for the people involved themselves.
In the end, Wenli and Chen Shen shared a room, Shanchuan and Ke Bei shared a room, and Butterfly was lucky enough to be alone. They dragged their luggage to their respective lodgings, and although Butterfly still had a blank expression, her steps seemed lighter.
"I hope everything is alright." With this hopeful thought in mind, Ren Yifei went with Saman to the house where they would be staying for two days.
The homeowners are a warm-hearted middle-aged couple. The wife is in poor health and uses a wheelchair, while the husband takes care of everything at home. However, when they talk about their life, they are still full of joy and anticipation.
"My daughter Nannan is studying at university now. She's so excited to know you're coming. Could you sign an autograph for her?" The man wiped his hands and pulled a piece of paper from his pocket.
"Okay." Ren Yifei took the paper, and Saman handed him a pen. He signed his name on the paper and wrote down words of blessing, such as wishing her health, happiness, and a bright future.
The man was so happy he didn't know what to do with his hands: "Okay, okay, thank you."
Afterwards, Ren Yifei and his companion moved their luggage to the guest room.
The guest room wasn't large, with two single beds squeezed together, covered with snow-white blankets and pillows. A small bedside table separated the beds, presumably placed there by the production crew. Saman went over, dragged out the bedside table, and pushed the two single beds together.
The viewers in the live stream laughed knowingly.
Everything went very smoothly for them, but other places were encountering one problem after another. Even Crane-kun, who was initially very easy to deal with, had a minor mishap.
"No down comforter," he said seriously to the staff. "I'm not used to covering myself with other birds' feathers; it would look strange."
The staff member blankly took away the specially prepared soft goose down pillow and quilt: So what's strange about it?
"What are you doing holding the blanket?" This staff member's colleague saw it and was very curious.
"It's like this." He explained the whole story about changing the blankets. "I'll go get a thin cotton blanket. Even though it's summer, it's still easy to catch a cold with the air conditioning on."
"You're doing alright, it's just a matter of changing a blanket. It's a real hassle for me," the staff member sighed.
"What do you mean?" passersby asked curiously. "Could it be that a fight has really broken out?"
"No, not at all." The man shook his head. "You would never guess how they decide who sits by the window."
Everyone was even more curious: "What kind of method? Arm wrestling? Rock-paper-scissors?"
"None of those," he said, his face showing a mixture of emotions. "They recite the Analects backwards, and whoever makes a mistake first is eliminated."
For a moment, everyone looked bewildered: "Recite it backwards?"
Isn't it just reciting it backwards?
Players in the Wasteland Corner come from different worlds with the same cultural background. The closer to modernity, the greater the differences, but many ancient things are interconnected. Therefore, everyone is basically familiar with ancient books like the Analects, which is the premise for the competition between Shanchuan and Kebei.
However, generally speaking, people compare reciting the poem forwards, not backwards...
"Awesome plus, I can't even recite it backwards. By the way, did anyone check if there were any mistakes? They recited it too fast and I couldn't keep up." The viewers in the live stream of these two guests were experiencing a surge of adrenaline, even more nervous than the two smiling guests themselves.
"No mistakes. These two are terrifying, so fast and accurate." An audience member who happened to have a copy of the Analects on hand watched intently.
"The legendary ability to recite it backwards is astounding. Just how bored must these two be to recite the Analects backwards for no reason?"
The audience was also puzzled. These days, there aren't many people who can recite the Analects of Confucius by heart, let alone recite it backwards... Is the game not fun enough, or is the video not easy to watch?
"Wait! There's a mistake! Someone mispronounced a word, and the results are in."
The results are in.
Shan Chuan stopped reciting, smiled slightly, picked up his suitcase and placed it next to the small bed by the window: "Thank you for your kind offer."
Ke Bei knew where he went wrong. He knew it as soon as he spoke: it was a polyphonic character with a different pronunciation in this context. He often mispronounced this character; his teacher had always taught him to pronounce it that way when he was a child, but he only realized he was wrong during a test.
However, this word represents his abandoned past, which Ke Bei has never forgotten. He constantly recalls and reinforces the memories of that time, drawing energy of hatred from them.
The hatred that abandoned him, destroyed him, and mocked him—the powerless hatred of the past—is the nourishment for his current growth.
"I lost," he said bluntly.
Ke Bei's decisiveness surprised Shan Chuan: "I didn't expect you to make a mistake here."
"I knew it was wrong, but I never corrected it."
"Why?"
Ke Bei raised the corners of his mouth, but he didn't answer, only using his smile to cover everything up.
Seeing this, Shan Chuan didn't ask any more questions. Everyone who comes to the desolate corner has a story, but usually, they are unwilling to share these stories with others, nor are they interested in listening to others' stories.
If it weren't for our frequent contact over the years, Shanchuan wouldn't even ask "why".
As for Chen Shen and Wen Li, they didn't have any disagreements because one preferred a window seat and the other preferred a door seat. However, they weren't like typical girls traveling together who would chat, share snacks, or gossip.
Wenli took a book out of her bag and placed it on the bedside table, while Chen Shen took out his phone and began browsing the news. The room was quiet, with only the sound of turning pages and breathing; the atmosphere was heavy.
Until it's time to eat.
A large round table, painted with clear varnish, was surrounded by five long benches, each seating two people. The guests sat down casually, their eyes scanning their surroundings.
The gathering was held in a large courtyard surrounded by newly built houses. This appeared to be the village's newly constructed cultural center, with plaques hanging on the buildings.
"This village is newly built, so it's not really suitable for developing tourism. As for the other bamboo forests, streams, and valleys, we'll have to see them to know." Overall, Ren Yifei believes that this village doesn't have much potential for tourism development, so focusing on handicrafts is a very reasonable approach.
This can be considered adapting to local conditions. If you live near the mountains, you live off the mountains; if you live near the sea, you live off the sea; and if you live near bamboo, then you live off bamboo.
"Director, can I visit them this afternoon to see how they make bamboo products? Will they kick me out if I try to learn from them?"
The director was eating at another table, and his staff were also dining there.
"I couldn't be happier. I'd even pay you to teach me," the director replied. Everyone says Ren Yifei is aloof and socially inept, but looking at him now, isn't he quite alright?
The director was eager for them to meticulously showcase the process and results of making bamboo products to a wider audience. He hoped that any viewers who were interested would place an order.
Wherever there is bamboo in the south, there are bamboo craftsmen. Although the bamboo products here have their own unique characteristics, it is hard to say whether they will be successful in the market.
"The food is served." Plates of authentic farm-style dishes were brought out: braised fish, stir-fried pickled vegetables with golden tofu (deep-fried firm tofu), stir-fried bean sprouts...
The production team is truly refreshing and unpretentious. They call it farm-style cuisine, and it really is farm-style cuisine. The portions of each dish are very generous, and the cooking doesn't focus on too many details. It's bold and straightforward, with a strong sense of local life.
Ren Yifei picked up a generous portion of stir-fried tofu. It was a triangular piece of fried tofu with a golden-brown outer layer, which had been stewed in a salted vegetable and dried bamboo shoot soup until it was fully infused with flavor. Every little bubble was filled with a spoonful of the rich salted vegetable soup flavor.
The mild flavor of the tofu perfectly balances the strong taste of the pickled vegetables, and the addition of the bamboo shoot's fragrance makes each bite burst with subtle broth, making it an excellent accompaniment to rice.
In addition, there are common home-style dishes, such as steamed salted duck eggs. The tender and white salted egg white, like milk tofu, surrounds a round and warm yellow salted egg yolk. They can be eaten separately or on their own.
Ren Yifei only liked salted egg yolks. When he was a child, he would always secretly throw away the egg whites of the salted eggs he broke during the Dragon Boat Festival.
Thinking about it, I really feel sorry for the teacher, since it was the teacher who made the contribution. Unfortunately, after entering junior high school, his school life missed this extremely important Dragon Boat Festival activity.
"Eat slowly, have some soup." Samantha ladled him a spoonful of loofah and egg soup. The loofah was lush and green, the egg shreds were pale yellow, and the soup was clear. Although it was hot, it tasted 'sweet' and refreshing after drinking it.
"Loofah helps to reduce internal heat," Ren Yifei said.
"And then?" Saman felt there must be something more to that question.
"My internal heat has subsided, can I have some iced cola to balance it out?"
Loofah soup cools you down, iced cola makes you feel hot, add one and subtract one equals zero, logic makes sense. The new generation 'health guru' Ren Yifei has started his bizarre practice of soaking goji berries in grape wine.
"…No, you'll get osteoporosis and won't be able to walk." Samantha retaliated by ladling him another spoonful of loofah soup.
The peacock watched secretly for a long time, and after watching, he nodded to himself: I've learned something.
He had intended to turn the braised fish around to earn some points, but whether it was a brain fart or he was too nervous, he actually scooped a spoonful of loofah soup into He Jun's soup bowl and even mimicked Saman's words: "Eat some loofah to cool down."
Crane Lord: "...?"
Peacock:"...!"
"..." Crane Lord silently pushed the small bowl in front of the peacock, "Grass, you eat it." This 'grass' is a real plant.
He Jun's favorite foods are dried small fish, snails, and shrimp. He eats aquatic plants because he has no choice but to maintain a balanced diet. Of all the dishes on the table, he only took a bite of the braised fish twice, and only picked up a small piece of each dish to taste.
Loofah soup is a delicacy for humans, but for Crane, it's more like a bowl of weed soup. I really don't understand why the peacock would bring him weed soup.
The peacock on the table blushed, wishing time could turn back, while the others continued eating as if nothing had happened.
The players in the desolate corner weren't picky eaters; they could eat even more unpalatable dishes without batting an eye, let alone this table of food, which was quite well-prepared. The viewers in the live stream watched as they devoured the entire table of food, leaving only the soup behind.
"I'm finished eating." Ren Yifei placed his chopsticks on his bowl, then turned to the director and asked, "Where is the factory here? Or is everything made at home?"
The director told him the address.
"Little rabbit, wait a minute, I also want to see how bamboo products are made." Wenli put down his chopsticks and wiped his mouth.
Everyone else looked at the director as well.
"Is the old village still there? I'd like to see it."
"Are there any ancient legends about this village?"
Where are the animals most abundant in the area?
...
"He who eats another's food is bound to him; he who uses another's money is bound to him." It's not right to take a publicly funded trip lightly. However, not everyone was interested in making handicrafts. Some said they wanted to walk around the village, while others wanted to learn about the village's ancient legends.
There is more than one way to promote this place.
"Can we take a walk in the nearby mountains and forests?" He Jun also put down his chopsticks, wanting to see if there was any scenery that would catch his eye.
"Sure, of course!" The director was overjoyed. He hadn't expected these guests to be so dedicated.
As the chief director and person in charge, he originally hoped that each guest would have a route so that the audience could appreciate the beauty of the small village along with the guests.
The purpose of this variety show has never been to improve the personal careers of the guests, but to increase the visibility of the village.
"But you must be careful, as there are reportedly poachers in the area."