Chapter 60 (Ahead of Schedule): "Our Big Brother's Here!"
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Chapter 60 (Ahead of Schedule): "Our Big Brother's Here!"
As the sun began to set, Ye Hantao led everyone onto the bus for the return trip.
She still sat side by side with Wu Xia.
As soon as Chen Xiaofeng sat down in the back row, he was met with Cheng Zhao's disdainful gaze, just as he expected.
He didn't care anymore, he was only looking forward to starting the car and gossiping with Cheng Zhao.
Don't think he couldn't guess; the sudden exposure of Ji Changtu's loan was undoubtedly due to Cheng Zhao's involvement.
After everyone was seated, Ye Hantao looked around and found that no one was missing.
No, there's still one missing, so the seat next to Su Yi'ang in the same group is empty.
Ye Hantao called out to the driver, "You can drive now!"
The bus drove away from the town under the orange sunset, heading towards the guesthouse.
Su Yi'ang touched his hair and pouted, "We're actually going back? I thought we were heading straight to the auction!"
"Of course we have to go back." Ye Hantao was counting her class expenses and answered him while multitasking. "We arrived at the station at 7:30, and we didn't have time to wash up at the hotel. It's a good opportunity to go back to the guesthouse to take a shower."
After being away from home for so long, covered in dust and grime, who wouldn't want to participate in the event looking clean and presentable?
Their afternoon was originally scheduled to be very busy because there was a step in making donkey-hide gelatin in the middle.
However, there was a problem with the workshop equipment, which caused them to finish the afternoon's process earlier than planned.
Su Yi'ang let out a wail and slumped back in his seat.
"If I had known, I wouldn't have gotten up so early to apply hair gel."
[Hahahaha, I said if I went into your live stream at 8 o'clock, you'd notice something was off, like you were using hair gel.]
[Not only that, she also secretly put on a face mask last night.]
[I can vouch for it, hahaha, he just threw the face mask on the bedside table after using it, and Wu Xia was the one who tidied it up this morning.]
[Flash, remember to bid on something at the charity auction, or your haters might use it against you.]
Is this some kind of moral blackmail?
Their participation in the auction was arranged by the production team! It's not like they didn't provide anything.
[If everyone starts making videos, what will Ye Hantao do?]
Yuan Kai sat in the car without saying a word, occasionally glancing at Ye Hantao, who was mostly blocked by Wu Xia.
The scene of Ji Changtu frantically begging Ye Hantao to sell his Shoushan ornaments before he left kept popping into his mind.
If Ji Changtu could produce something to this extent, that ornament is very likely an old mine glass-type jadeite!
Yuan Kai couldn't help but feel annoyed.
Cai Qiwei was severely embarrassed by Ye Hantao at a food tasting event, and was publicly humiliated.
This person couldn't stand being taken advantage of, so he went to him to make a deal.
They wanted him to have an affair with Ye Hantao on the show, and to smear Ye Hantao with accusations of being a homewrecker.
Cai Qiwei was quite generous, giving him 5 million for such a small matter.
Now, Ye Hantao has a former fiancé who is suspected of spending ten million yuan on jade ornaments, and he is someone Ye Hantao can't afford to offend.
She's supposedly her ex-fiancé, but what if they're still involved?!
After much deliberation, the guesthouse was finally within reach.
Ye Hantao looked at the scenery outside the car window and said, "Driver, this doesn't seem to be the route we took this morning."
She may have a terrible sense of direction, but she does have some recollection of the surrounding scenery.
The driver explained, "I took a side road because there was a multi-vehicle collision on the main road this afternoon, and my friend said it's all congested now."
The navigation map also shows that area as congested (red).
Ye Hantao exclaimed, "Your information network is truly impressive! If you had known that, we wouldn't have been able to get back in time."
"We can make it back in time," the driver said with a smile, "at most half an hour late."
Soon, the driver stopped the car at the fork in the road.
The car door opened.
Ye Hantao jumped out of the car and immediately started running like crazy, her cheerful voice carried on the wind.
"Sister Shiyue, I'm going to use the bathroom now!"
"?!!"
Jin Shiyue, clapping her high heels, chased after her, yelling, "Ye Hantao! Don't you know how to respect your seniors?!"
Reminded by Ye Hantao, Su Yi'ang realized that with a total of two hours, those who took a shower first would not panic.
"Wu Xia, me too—wait, what?!" Su Yi'ang turned his head and saw that Wu Xia was nowhere to be seen. Instead, the figure running behind Ye Hantao looked remarkably like Wu Xia.
Aaaaaaaahhhhhh!!
Tao Tao has made Wu Xia smarter!!!
He took off running, yelling, "Wait for me! Wait for me!!!"
Chen Xiaofeng stole a glance at Cheng Zhao.
They were in a public bathroom, sharing a room with Su Yi'ang and Wu Xia, a total of four people.
Both of them have run away, he can't slow down!
Cheng Zhao is a person who pays a lot of attention to his image in public, so he definitely wouldn't—
Cheng Zhao strode past him.
Cheng Zhao started running as he was walking, and then he overtook Su Yi'ang, and then he overtook Wu Xia.
Chen Xiaofeng was left standing there, bewildered and disoriented in the wind.
Holy crap?!
How did he end up in last place?!
For a moment, the courtyard was filled with the sounds of chickens and ducks.
This group includes elegant people, casual people, and people with social anxiety.
Now, under Ye Hantao's "instigation," they are all acting completely differently from their usual selves.
Especially Cheng Zhao, you actually climbed over the door?!
[Hahahaha, no wonder they're soldiers trained by Ye Hantao!]
[You guys can even make a show out of a simple shower routine, hahaha.]
[Damn! Cheng Zhao climbed over the wall into the yard and even put the bolt back on!]
No, no, no, it's not his fault. The first person to do that was Ye Hantao. She ran into the yard and closed the gate, and Cheng Zhao then put the bolt back on.
These two are laughing so hard!
Fortunately, they weren't in the same group.
[Cheng Zhao, don't listen, it's a curse!]
The production team was also very efficient.
The scene of everyone running for the bathroom, accompanied by cartoon images of chickens and ducks squawking, and the caption #BathroomBattle#, was included in the behind-the-scenes compilation of "My Classmate is Here".
The previous montage was a video of Jin Shiyue kicking Ji Changtu, captioned #A decorative item caused “bloodshed”#.
In just a few hours, the number of likes exceeded ten million.
The agent is particularly worried that Kim Si-wol will lose fans because of this.
Although Kim Si-wol is usually arrogant and pretentious in public, this is the first time she has slapped someone in front of the camera!
Unexpectedly, as the number of likes on her videos skyrocketed, Jin Shiyue's social media accounts, both domestic and international, gained followers.
broker:"?"
Last month, a foreign media outlet published an article criticizing Kim Si-wol for lacking basic professional respect at a fashion show.
I just published a long article praising Kinshiwol as the most upright and charming person.
broker:"."
Ye Hantao is Shi Yue's lucky star.
Ye Hantao rushed into the guesthouse first, and also rushed into the bathroom first. Just as she turned on the shower, she heard Jin Shiyue knocking on the bathroom door.
"Ye Hantao! You're not allowed to deliberately dawdle in there, do you hear me?!"
"Don't worry, Sister Shiyue." Ye Hantao wet the soap, creating clumps of white foam. "I'll shower quickly!"
Kim Shi-wol believed this.
Having lived together for a few days, Ye Hantao's showers only lasted about thirty minutes, unlike hers, which always took almost an hour and a half.
Jin Shiyue listened to the sound of water coming from the bathroom, turned around to go to the wardrobe to pick out clothes, took two steps, and stopped.
She spends a lot of time showering because she uses hair masks, essential oils, and face masks—she can't do without any of them.
Ye Hantao only uses one medicated soap.
She had previously suspected that Ye Hantao's allergy was related to the medicated soap, but if the Ye family could resist selling the ornaments worth tens of millions, would they allow Ye Hantao to use cheap, unregulated medicated soap?
When Dr. Ke was introducing traditional Chinese medicine, Ye Hantao recognized the difference between the two grades of angelica, indicating that Ye Hantao's great-aunt would not usually choose inferior medicinal materials.
While pondering the medicated soap, Jin Shiyue picked out clothes from the cabinet.
She brought a pink strapless gown to the charity auction that evening, along with matching pink diamond jewelry, and a handbag—
Um?
Jin Shiyue's thoughts were interrupted by a pink bag in the closet.
"I didn't bring it with me this time, did I?"
Kim Shi-wol picked up the bag with a puzzled look. The first thing she felt was the delicate texture of crocodile skin, with a clear leather grain and a bright silver clasp.
[Another pink bag, hahaha.]
[Sister Jin, this bag doesn't match the dress you just picked out!!!]
But its price is what it is!
[Its price is alright; Jin Shiyue once carried a white house at an event.]
The White House? That's a really strange name.
Listen to the price again, it's no less than two million (smile.jpg)
Is it just the angle? Jin Shiyue's crocodile skin bag looks a bit big.
At that moment, the bathroom door was pushed open from the inside.
A steamy aroma carrying the fragrance of jasmine wafted out of the room and permeated the air.
Ye Hantao used a towel to press down her still dripping hair with one hand and held a hair dryer in the other. "Sister Shiyue, you go in and wash your hair first. I'll dry my hair in the bedroom."
Suddenly, Ye Hantao noticed the pink bag in Jin Shiyue's hand. "Shiyue, is this your bag or mine?"
Audience: [???]
Jin Shiyue slowly turned her head, a knot forming between her brows. "This bag...did you bring it?"
Ye Hantao nodded, "Yes."
"Sister Shiyue, look." Ye Hantao stepped forward and took the bag from Jin Shiyue's hand. "Compared to the bag you brought last time, this bag is the same except it's a bit bigger, right?"
Jin Shiyue met Ye Hantao's bright eyes and didn't know what to say for a moment.
Although there was the Shoushan ornament before her, she believed that Ye Hantao's family was not poor, but only a few distinguished guests at the very top of the global pyramid could own this bag.
The only two Chinese people among them have no relation to Ye Hantao.
“…Yes,” Jin Shiyue said, “except for being a size bigger.”
At least the crocodile skin she touched was genuine, and Ye Hantao didn't emphasize that it was the same brand.
Ye Hantao's gaze swept over the camera in the bedroom, and the corners of her mouth curled up slightly. "I have many bags like these at home, more than I can carry."
[The disease has progressed to 70% (critical threshold), and the character setting is currently maintained at 3/3.]
[Currently, the character setting is maintained at 3/3 (completed), and the disease progression has been updated.]
Is Jin Shiyue now helping Ye Hantao lie?
[One bag costs over 800,000 yuan, and you're saying you have many more at home?]
[What are you questioning? Ye Hantao even owns a glass-type jadeite ornament; it's normal for her family to be very wealthy.]
[Let's put it this way, I believe Ye Hantao's family is somewhat wealthy, perhaps around the A8 price range, but could they possibly own more than they could carry all of her Hermes bags? Forgive my bluntness, but even Liao Jiayue, the true heiress of Hengsheng Technology, wouldn't dare say that.]
Even Kim Si-wol couldn't do that.
【Excuse me, didn't Tao Tao herself say this bag is a Hermes bag? If she really wanted to pass it off as a Hermes bag, she wouldn't have pointed out that it's a size too big! If she wanted to act rich, wouldn't she know that Hermes doesn't make a large size for this bag?】
[Put aside your prejudices and look at the two bags again. Can you see any difference? When Kim Shi-wol took it just now, I didn't see any of you questioning whether it was a fake bag.]
[Where could they have bought that high-quality replica? Oh my god, Ye Hantao has recommended so many things to me! I still haven't heard where they bought that 39 yuan T-shirt!]
I have a bold suspicion: the 39 yuan white T-shirt was Ye Hantao's biggest lie!
Ye Hantao was unaware that a single bag had sparked countless speculations throughout the live stream.
Thinking about the feedback she just received on her character design, she hugged her pink bag and kissed it. You're just like me!
Ye Hantao put her bag away and sat on the edge of the bed to blow-dry her hair.
The last rays of the setting sun streamed in through the window, casting her shadow on the wall. Amidst the whirring of the hairdryer, Ye Hantao made a heart shape with her hands in front of her reflection on the wall.
The next second, a barrage of "(heart.jpg)(heart.jpg)(heart.jpg)" filled the screen.
Other audience members: [...]
Ye Weizheng smiled so hard his eyes narrowed. "Wife, our Tao Tao's live stream is getting more and more harmonious."
There were some criticisms in the comments, but they were overshadowed by the overwhelming amount of praise.
Looking again, Ye Weizheng was incredibly proud to see that Tao Tao's popularity in the live stream was second only to Su Yi'ang and Jin Shiyue. "Tao Tao is truly outstanding!"
Seeing that few comments in the live stream believed that the Hermes bag Tao Tao brought was genuine, Zhou Ti felt relieved and finally at ease.
"By the way, when is Mingsheng going to deliver the plaster to Taotao?"
She saw Tao Tao and Ming Sheng talking on the phone in the morning.
Ye Weizheng: "His message at noon meant that he would deliver the gift while Tao Tao and the others were attending the auction, so that it would be delivered at the same time."
Zhou Ti was relieved.
Although none of the neighbors and friends around them have been able to contact Ming Sheng and Maze over the years, they prefer to avoid trouble.
At the same time, a taxi stopped on the side road outside the gate of the courtyard.
The shadows of trees swayed on both sides of the path, and the willow branches danced in the wind.
Zhou Mingsheng pushed open the door and got out of the car, then took out a 100-yuan bill from his wallet and handed it to the driver.
The brown wallet had some faint signs of wear on the edges, but Zhou Mingsheng had no intention of replacing it.
This was a birthday gift that Tao Tao bought for him with her first pocket money when she was in junior high school.
The driver chuckled and, while giving change, said, "It's rare to see a young person like you not scanning a QR code."
"You want to scan the code, but you don't have a charging cable in your car," Zhou Mingsheng's expression grew increasingly cold.
He felt that things hadn't gone smoothly along the way.
I got stuck in traffic for over an hour due to a car accident, and my Bluetooth headphones ran out of battery.
Just a few minutes later, the phone also warned that the battery was about to run out, and now it only had 3% battery left to barely survive.
He doesn't usually look at his phone, but these past few days he's been watching live streams on a tablet at the base.
If I take my phone out with me, it usually has more than 80% battery left after a whole day, so I don't have the habit of carrying a power bank when I go out.
After the traffic jam cleared, we headed back to town, but there wasn't even a place to rent a power bank.
"It's okay," Zhou Mingsheng thought to himself. After leaving the things with the production crew, he left and could continue watching Tao Tao's live stream when he got back to the hotel.
Zhou Mingsheng turned to the side and looked at the guesthouse at the end of the path.
Red bricks and gray tiles, with large red lanterns hanging under the eaves, it's no different from what you see in the live broadcast room.
"Sir, please wait here for ten minutes." Zhou Mingsheng took out another hundred-yuan bill and handed it to the driver.
The driver's eyes widened in disbelief.
"No, no, take it back. It's only a few minutes, why would I need a hundred?" The driver reluctantly pushed the hundred-yuan bill away. "When I drive for Didi, I can arrive early and wait for the customer a little longer. Why would I charge you?"
Zhou Mingsheng didn't say much. He threw the banknotes into the car through the window, then picked up the bag containing the plaster and medicine and walked towards the guesthouse.
The driver shouted through the car window, "Then I won't charge you the fare on the way back!"
Zhou Mingsheng has already walked away.
Along the way, we saw quite a few camera positions and more than a dozen staff members coming and going.
Zhou Mingsheng was surprised that the production team was quite responsible; Tao Tao and the others were already on their way to the provincial capital, but there were still quite a few people left here.
While Zhou Mingsheng was calmly observing his surroundings, some staff members were also quietly observing him.
The main reason is that this person's appearance and temperament are too outstanding.
It's a top-of-the-line model that doesn't need much styling and can be launched directly from the factory configuration!
"Is this a new talent that some company is launching?"
"Could it be to replace Ji Changtu?" he whispered to his colleague. "After I finished packing Ji Changtu's luggage, I heard Director Wan on the phone talking to the leader about the follow-up, saying that Yuan Kai was going to bring a new classmate over."
Ji Changtu was taken away by the police on the spot, leaving behind a pile of luggage at the guesthouse, which was cleaned up by the staff.
As the two were talking, they saw Xiaohe run over and push open the courtyard gate.
"Hello."
Zhou Mingsheng looked at a girl wearing a work badge who was approaching and said calmly, "I'm Tao Tao's older brother. I'm here to deliver something to her."
Xiaohe smiled and said, "I know, Taotao told me!"
As she spoke, Xiaohe looked up at Zhou Mingsheng's face.
Oh my god, Tao Tao is right, Big Brother is really so handsome!
Xiaohe has met many male celebrities on the show.
She dares to say that among these male celebrities, those who can compare to Brother Tao Tao in terms of looks, height, and temperament can be counted on one hand!
Among the male guests on "Classmates Are Here," only Cheng Zhao and Su Yi'ang are comparable to Tao Tao in terms of looks.
But Su Yi'ang isn't as tall as Tao Tao's older brother!
Zhou Mingsheng continued, "I know Tao Tao isn't here, so I'm giving the things to—you."
Before she could finish speaking, Xiaohe turned and shouted towards the house, "Taotao!!! Your older brother is here! Come out and see him!!!"
This was something Tao Tao specifically instructed her to tell her immediately if her brother came.
After Xiaohe finished speaking, she smiled at Zhou Mingsheng and said, "You came at just the right time! They would have left in half an hour if you had been any later."
"..." Zhou Mingsheng's already cold and handsome face was now completely expressionless.
Without a word, he shoved the things into Xiaohe's hands and was about to leave—
"elder brother!!"
Before he could even finish calling out "brother," Ye Hantao had already gracefully pounced on him like a little butterfly.
Zhou Mingsheng was embraced tightly.
Ye Hantao was overjoyed, "Why did you arrive early?!"
Zhou Mingsheng looked down at Tao Tao's beaming face, then glanced at the camera not far away, "..."
Why is Tao Tao staying at the guesthouse?
"I had something to do tomorrow, so I came early," he replied.
The cameraman who was filming them also came out.
Viewers in Ye Hantao's personal live stream all saw Ye Hantao hug someone.
The camera wasn't focused on the person's face; only the area below the chin was visible.
But just looking at what's in the frame—
Tall and upright, with a cool complexion and a clear, light voice.
[Ahhhhhh, he must be handsome!!!]
[That height difference, bro!]
[Is he my older brother? Is he my older brother? Is he my older brother?! Ye Hantao looks like this, so his older brother must be very handsome too!]
[Production team! Please let the eldest brother's face be on camera!!!]
Despite the audience's shouts, the camera didn't move up at all.
It wasn't that Ye Hantao had said beforehand that family members weren't allowed to appear on camera, but rather that Director Wan understood the audience's psychology too well.
Director Wan specifically instructed the cameramen and directors, "Apart from the front view, you can cut to any other angle."
In front of the window on the second floor.
Cheng Zhao, with his short, slightly damp black hair, stood behind the window, his gaze fixed on the two people in the courtyard.
The distance wasn't far, and he could clearly see what Tao Tao's older brother looked like.
Cheng Zhao searched his memory but couldn't recall it.
Zhou Mingsheng glanced at the doorway where no one else was coming out, then looked back at Tao Tao and whispered, "The instructions are all marked inside. Pay close attention and don't make a mistake."
Ye Hantao smiled and said, "Don't worry! I've used all these plasters and powders before, and I know them."
“Okay, I’ll be going now,” Zhou Mingsheng said.
Ye Hantao grabbed his arm, "Brother, since you're already here, let me introduce you to the other people."
Is this something that can be seen?
Zhou Mingsheng didn't think anyone would recognize him now that he wasn't disguised. However, Su Yi'ang was a variable, so it was best to avoid him if possible.
Zhou Mingsheng: "I asked the driver to wait at the intersection so that people wouldn't have to wait too long."
That was indeed too much to ask, so Ye Hantao could only say, "I'll see you out."
Zhou Mingsheng wanted to say no, but instinctively felt it was best to leave as soon as possible. "Okay, I'll just drop you off at the courtyard gate—"
"Tao Tao! I'm here! I'm here! I'm here!"
Su Yi'ang's voice is extremely penetrating.
He dashed out of the house with lightning speed, leaving even Liao Jiayue, who had brought the news, behind.
Su Yi'ang ran so fast that he kicked up a cloud of dust.
He had only just spotted two people in the yard, and before he could even make out their faces, he shouted, "I heard from Jia Yue that our eldest brother is here!!!!"
Ahhhhhh, Spring Ivy's brilliant move! He met her in real life right away!!!
With a mix of excitement and exhilaration, Su Yi'ang eagerly took a closer look—
Holy crap.
Su Yi'ang's ankle suddenly twisted, and with a loud "thump," he landed squarely on his buttocks.
Help.
Is he experiencing low blood sugar and blurred vision after just taking a shower?
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Author's Note: Angang: Pinching the philtrum, pinching the philtrum, pinching the philtrum...