Chapter 112: Grouping and Pairing

After Lin Meinu’s detailed explanation, all the guests and staff present were more or less clear about the full background and sequence of events.

Most people agreed that Mo Shu had quite decent humanity—at least he knew how to give others some face in public.

A small minority, however, still harbored the mindset of crushing Mo Shu and regretted that this farce hadn’t escalated into a full-blown scandal.

Lin Meinu’s sudden change of attitude, offering both an apology and praise to Mo Shu, blindsided those eager for drama. Among them was none other than Sister Juan’er, the dedicated Follow PD of the King Zhang.

If there was anyone Sister Juan’er disliked, it was far from just Mo Shu, but Mo Shu happened to be the unlucky one to catch her disdain this time.

Sister Juan’er’s standards for judging people boiled down to three principles:

1. Was the person famous enough?

2. Did they have enough money?

3. Were they useful to her?

Her dream was to marry a wealthy and powerful man, indifferent to his virtue, appearance, or education; as long as he could bring her a life of luxury, he was, in her eyes, an exemplary “excellent man.”

Given her current understanding of Mo Shu, it was inevitable she underestimated him. But if she knew the stature of the Divine Racing Team Mo Shu belonged to, or the value of the upcoming new competition they were organizing, she would likely reverse her attitude completely.

People like Sister Juan’er were both pitiable and sorrowful. She seemed utterly blind to the amount of toil others had invested to reach their achievements, instead eagerly waiting for her ideal suitor to descend like a deity from the heavens and lift her out of the mundane masses.

True to form, Sister Juan’er forced a hideously insincere smile once more and began reporting the day’s game rules and procedures to King Zhang.

“Teacher Zhang, Brother Zhang, it’s an honor to collaborate with you again. Today’s game won’t be too difficult for you. There are five game tasks for you and your paired guest to complete. Only the first task, called ‘Celebrity Transport Team,’ is currently open. The other four will be unlocked one by one as you complete each task. Please don’t hesitate to let me know if you need anything. Don’t treat me as an outsider—I’m more than willing to be your Follow PD; you can even consider me your personal assistant.”

King Zhang nodded and returned a strained smile to Sister Juan’er.

He had long been accustomed to such eager staff. He wasn’t participating in just one reality show, nor did he have only a single Follow PD. Sister Juan’er’s flattery and sycophancy were so obvious that King Zhang didn’t even need to think twice to guess her true intentions.

As Sister Juan’er was about to continue her explanation, King Zhang waved her off, signaling that she need not trouble herself further.

“Celebrity Transport Team” was self-explanatory: presumably, five teams of celebrities would transport certain items, and whichever team completed the task fastest would advance to the next stage of the game.

This was a familiar format in recent years’ reality TV shows, a well-worn routine.

Seeing King Zhang’s somewhat indifferent attitude, Sister Juan’er didn’t press further and instead gestured for him to begin the draw for dividing the entertainment and sports celebrities into teams.

As the most senior figure, King Zhang naturally drew first. Ten celebrities stood before a round tray containing ten rolled-up flags.

There were five colors among the ten flags; those who drew flags of the same color would become teammates for today’s game.

King Zhang revealed his flag first—it was a bright, passionate red.

Next was Lin Meinu, who received a black flag. The dark color seemed at odds with her radiant appearance, and she furrowed her brow slightly.

Wang Liang, Sun Wan’er, and Wu Tianqi also unveiled their flags, which were green, yellow, and blue respectively—colors representing different rings of the Olympic emblem.

After the entertainment celebrities announced their colors, it was time for the sports celebrities, who couldn’t help but feel a mix of nervousness and anticipation. All ten had recently expressed their preferred teammates, and everyone wondered if fate would favor their wishes.

The first sports celebrity to reveal his flag was Zheng Xiongshi—red!

“Wow!” came the collective exclamation. The mutual respect Zheng Xiongshi and King Zhang had shown each other was well known. It seemed fate had smiled upon them by pairing these two titans together.

King Zhang’s face lit up with excitement, surprised at how swiftly his wish had been granted. He strode over to Zheng Xiongshi, and the two exchanged a vigorous high five, already striking a victorious pose.

“Is there any competition here?” everyone thought unanimously. The strongest king paired with the strongest sports star! The show’s director, Xiao Yao, even considered altering the rules, as this game now seemed a foregone conclusion due to the uneven distribution of talent.

However, when Sun Mina revealed her blue flag, Xiao Yao’s expression steadied somewhat.

Wu Tianqi was paired with Sun Mina—a rapper and a basketball ace. The combination was unexpected but certainly formidable.

Wu Tianqi was young and athletic; though not as muscular as Zheng Xiongshi, he was no pushover. Coupled with Sun Mina, a key player of the national women’s basketball team, the king’s team might not have as much advantage as initially thought.

At 180 cm tall, Wu Tianqi leapt up and high-fived Sun Mina, showing no trace of jealousy over her earlier admiration for King Zhang.

Next was Li Dai, the gymnastics star. No entertainment celebrity had selected him earlier, leaving him somewhat dispirited.

Yet when he unfurled his flag, it was the same green as Wang Liang’s, giving him a small spark of joy.

Wang Liang was a rising star in the music scene—beautiful, with graceful poise and an athletic yet curvaceous figure. She was the kind of beauty that men couldn’t help but glance at twice.

Though lacking in stamina, her looks more than made up for it, and Li Dai felt quite satisfied with the pairing.

That left four celebrities remaining: Lin Meinu and Sun Wan’er from entertainment, and Zhao Shuixin and Mo Shu from sports.

They exchanged glances, each silently calculating their prospects.

This time was different. Both Lin Meinu and Sun Wan’er were eager to be teamed with Mo Shu.

First, Mo Shu was male and naturally stronger than Zhao Shuixin.

Second, Mo Shu’s earlier restraint towards Lin Meinu had earned both female stars’ respect and favor.

Mo Shu, for his part, wanted to team up with Sun Wan’er, having been a small fan of her dramas.

Though he had reconciled with Lin Meinu, Mo Shu still regarded her as a capricious, temperamental star. Working with her would be stressful, and besides, with her slender frame and delicate limbs, she didn’t seem physically up to the task.

After all, the first game was called “Celebrity Transport Team,” and Lin Meinu, clad in high heels, hardly looked like someone fit for the role—a definite liability.

Zhao Shuixin was indifferent; her preferred partner Wu Tianqi had already joined Sun Mina, leaving the two glamorous female stars with diminished competitiveness regardless of their partners.

Zhao Shuixin casually opened her flag—it was yellow. She would be paired with Sun Wan’er.

This meant Mo Shu’s teammate was Lin Meinu, who held the black flag.

It was truly a clash of rivals forced to walk the same path, yet Lin Meinu felt pleased—her chosen partner was now Mo Shu.

Mo Shu, however, felt utterly disheartened, as if all hope had drained away. He longed to howl at the sky, lamenting how cruel fate had been to him.