Yu Xiaxing practically rolled her eyes. “Could you stop overthinking it? I just happen to need it for myself!”
The only reason I’m pulling you along is because I’m afraid I’ll have no competition left!
Yu Zheng wasn’t stupid. If she truly wanted him eliminated, if she really had no mercy whatsoever for her own brother, the right thing to do would have been to poach Hengan privately instead of tying them down with a contract and helping him resolve his renewal problem.
Yu Zheng reached out and pinched her cheek. With utmost solemnity, he said, “All right. I’ll remember that. If I win in the end, we’ll split the family fortune fifty-fifty.”
Yu Xiaxing’s eyes shifted. A moment later, she put on a bashful smile. “Listen to you, acting like we’re strangers… Still, words are cheap. We should sign a pledge. You promise that if you win in the end, you’ll give me half the family fortune.”
“…”
Yu Zheng was speechless for a moment, then laughed. “Fine. We’ll sign it. I’ll have the lawyers draw it up first thing tomorrow.”
Yes! One more layer of security!
Yu Zheng was visibly moved and seemed about to say something else embarrassingly mushy.
Yu Xiaxing immediately let out a huge yawn. “I’m exhausted. I’m going back to bed right now. Tomorrow I’ll get up and compete with you!”
With that, she ignored his reaction and slipped straight back to her room.
She really was tired, and she really didn’t want to listen to any more of those sappy declarations.
Dealing with genuine feelings was seriously exhausting.
—
She slept like the dead and didn’t wake up until Sunday afternoon.
Dian Dian was curled up beside her pillow, its little belly rising and falling. It was sleeping even more soundly than she was, giving off the warm, popcorn-like smell of a puppy.
Still groggy, Yu Xiaxing groped for her phone and turned on the screen.
The messages in the Shengde parents’ group had exploded. New ones were still popping up nonstop.
Yu Xiaxing opened the group and took a look.
“Did anyone attend yesterday’s trial class for the arts entrance exam program? How was it?”
“How should I put it? I thought those teachers were incredibly arrogant. My child and I both disliked them.”
“Exactly! I thought so too. Their teaching is only so-so, yet they were already discouraging the kids before anyone had even signed up! Who do they think they are?”
“The outside academies are still better! They build our children’s confidence and know how to discover their talents!”
“And the Shengde teachers actually said that the arts entrance exam isn’t a shortcut. If it’s not a shortcut, then why would I spend so much money signing my child up? Isn’t taking a shortcut exactly the point?”
“But I think they really know what they’re doing. They seem more reliable than those outside academies that immediately promise admission to top schools. I’m planning to enroll my child.”
“I was planning to sign up tomorrow too, but now that everyone’s saying this, I’m starting to hesitate.”
“I’m not signing up!”
“Me neither! With reviews like these, anyone who signs up is an idiot!”
“…”
The more Yu Xiaxing read, the brighter her eyes became.
From what she could tell, only two or three parents had decided to enroll. Everyone else was cursing the program!
Yesterday, she had personally witnessed how fully booked the trial classes were and seen how seriously the teachers took their work. She had even been worried that the arts program was about to take off.
Who would have thought the trial class would have gone over so badly?
Every parent had noticed that the teachers had a terrible attitude! They discouraged the children and showed no respect for the parents!
See? Her plan had been right all along. How could an actress like Shen Zhi—someone with real ability but no access to major opportunities—possibly flatter parents with grand promises the way those outside academies did?
She clearly wasn’t sweet-tongued and didn’t know how to play up to people.
And Ms. Liang and the others were all so arrogant. Who would have the patience to coax a bunch of children?
Sure enough! Everything was going according to plan!
She immediately switched to her alternate account and started fanning the flames.
Dian Dian’s Mom: “I think everyone should be cautious. The school suddenly starting an arts entrance exam program is already a risky move. My child has been so discouraged that they’ve lost all confidence and don’t even dare go to school anymore!”
Dian Dian’s Mom: “Even with the fifty-percent discount, don’t act impulsively. You get what you pay for! When investing in your child’s future, you absolutely mustn’t choose something just because it’s cheap!”
The parents chimed in one after another. “Exactly!” “That’s right!” “No way am I going!”
Yu Xiaxing was thoroughly satisfied.
Who would have thought? Yesterday she had been in total despair, and today the situation had taken such a dramatic turn!
Tomorrow was Monday. She would go talk to Jiang Tinglan again about ending the partnership with Qizhi Lab…
The future was full of hope!
—
Early Monday morning.
The sky had only just begun to brighten.
Outside the entrance to Shengde’s Arts Education Support Center, a middle-aged woman peeked half her head around a corner.
She looked left, then right. Only after confirming that no one was paying attention did she grab her son and sneak toward the registration desk.
Her son had been forced to get up early and looked utterly bewildered. “Mom, why are we walking like we’re committing a crime?”
The woman lowered her voice. “You just don’t understand.”
“I don’t.”
As she dragged him forward, she whispered, “I attended the class yesterday. There was absolutely nothing wrong with it.”
“The teachers were a little blunt, sure, but which part of what they said wasn’t true?”
“At those outside academies, the teachers praised you every day, saying you had natural talent, camera presence, and the look of someone destined for a top school.”
“But yesterday, Teacher Shen Zhi said one sentence that completely woke me up.”
“She said your biggest problem right now is that whenever you perform, you pay too much attention to whether you look handsome. It comes across as incredibly greasy!”
Her son stared at her. “Greasy? I’m only seventeen!”
“That’s right! Admitting that your own son is greasy is genuinely painful… But every time you mug at the camera, you really do look greasy! The other arts teachers never said anything, and I had no idea what was wrong. The moment Teacher Shen pointed it out, I understood!”
“All right…”
He was a little hurt, but at least it was good to know where his shortcomings lay.
His mother continued, “And once you study the arts at school, it’ll connect directly with your regular academic classes. Think of how much time that’ll save!”
“With those outside academies, you have to travel back and forth and don’t get home until midnight.”
“Now you can attend classes on campus. It’s safe and convenient, the contract is legitimate, and the refund policy is laid out clearly!”
“And current students get fifty percent off!”
Seeing the calculating gleam on his mother’s face, the boy couldn’t help saying, “Then why were you cursing the program so fiercely in the group last night?”
His mother immediately responded with righteous conviction, “That was strategy. If I hadn’t cursed it last night, other people would have rushed to sign up!”
“With prices this low, teachers this reliable, and classes scheduled so conveniently after school, of course people would be tempted.”
“I stirred everyone up and told them not to come because I was afraid they’d compete with us for a spot!”
“Those parents have no idea. I played every one of them for fools—hahahaha! Come on, let’s hurry and queue up at the registration desk!”
She was still laughing when they rounded the corner of the arts center and nearly ran into another parent.
They both recognized each other. Both had declared in the group the night before that they absolutely would not be signing up.
They were both startled and immediately took half a step back. After exchanging an awkward glance, they each covered their mouths with a half-clenched fist, snickered, and then ran a hand through their hair…
The two parents kept fidgeting, trying to ease the awkwardness.
The first parent gave an awkward laugh. “I thought you said you were going to wait and see?”
The second parent laughed just as awkwardly. “I thought you said you weren’t signing up?”
They fell silent again for two seconds.
Then, in perfect unison, they turned around and sprinted toward the registration center.
As they ran, they shoved and jostled each other the whole way.
By the time they arrived at the registration desk, panting and out of breath, they were completely dumbfounded.
