novelraw Chapter 33 Song Ze deliberately lost the game
Chapter 33 Song Ze deliberately lost the game
When the agreement was presented to him, Song Ze did not hesitate, and with a stroke of his pen, he made two copies.
The deal is done.
The appearance fee was generous, which perfectly filled his plan to save money after retiring from the entertainment industry.
Next Tuesday, the VIP lane at Shanghai Airport will be cordoned off.
Four bodyguards from Xingyao Public Relations Department stood on either side, with flashes of light coming from a distance.
Song Ze wore a fitted black shirt, tucked into dark-patterned trousers, and a watch on his wrist, a new gift from the sponsor.
Once the money is received, the packaging has to keep up.
The last time he was photographed with messy hair and Crocs, the brand almost deducted half of his payment.
Xia Ziming walked on his left.
The knee-length sun-protective clothing covered her completely, the brim of her sun hat was pulled down to the lowest point, and a mask covered half of her face, revealing only a pair of black-rimmed glasses.
The live stream chat started scrolling.
"Song Ze's waistline today is absolutely stunning."
"Who's that next to you? They're all wrapped up so tightly."
"Dr. Xia's sun protection is so thorough."
"Putting these two together creates quite a contrasting style."
Song Ze heard someone whispering behind him, but ignored it and continued walking.
On Wuzhizhou Island in Hainan, the production team booked a detached villa halfway up the mountain.
Pushing open the living room door, a blast of cold air hits you.
Lin Shishi stood up from the fabric sofa, wearing a white halter dress that showed off her clean collarbone.
Her gaze first fell on Song Ze's face, then swept over the silver medical kit with a cross mark on it in his hand—a prop arranged by the production team, who insisted that Song Ze carry it for Xia Ziming to create a so-called character contrast.
She paused for two seconds, then forced a standard smile.
"You've arrived! It must be quite hot outside."
She stepped forward, opened a can of iced cola, and handed it to Song Ze.
The original on-screen couple was her and Song Ze. The last episode went well, and the company gave their approval.
A medical student who wasn't a professional was suddenly inserted into this episode. She didn't understand why, and she didn't understand why Song Ze cooperated so naturally.
The director raised a megaphone: "Welcome everyone to the Heartbeat Hut. This episode's theme is—All-Day Binding Trial. Over the next 24 hours, team members will work together to complete all tasks. The team with the lowest score will sleep in tents tonight."
At 2 PM, the outdoor temperature was 35 degrees Celsius.
The beach volleyball court was set up with nets, and the sand was scorching hot from the sun.
Zhang Hao took off his short-sleeved shirt, revealing his well-developed chest muscles, grabbed a volleyball, walked to the net, and waved to Song Ze.
"Teacher Song, shall our two groups practice first?"
The show requires competition, and climbing to the top by stepping on someone who's popular is the fastest shortcut.
Song Ze glanced at him, walked to the beach chair by the side of the field, lay down directly, and pulled his straw hat over his face.
"I had meniscus surgery, so I can't run or jump." A muffled voice came from behind. "Xia Ziming, you go first."
It's not worth it to stand in the sun for a few points.
After recording this episode, he still needs to save his energy for the audition at Hunan TV.
Xia Ziming took off her glasses and put them away, then removed her sun protection clothing.
She walked to the center circle of the court, bent her knees slightly, and raised her arms to the sides, assuming a standard receiving posture.
"bring it on."
Zhang Hao leaped up and slapped the volleyball with his palm.
The ball is moving very fast.
Xia Ziming moved, but her feet couldn't get any leverage in the soft sand. Her left foot tripped over her right ankle, and she fell straight into the sand pit, choking on a mouthful of sand.
The comments section went wild.
"A top student's brain, a struggling student's legs!"
"Song Ze, aren't you going to do something about this?!"
"I'm impressed by their athletic ability."
Song Ze took the straw hat off his face and sat up.
He sighed, got up, stepped over the fence, and stepped directly into the sand without even taking off his shoes.
Zhang Hao served again, with a tricky angle, heading straight for the baseline corner.
The system panel silently lit up at the edge of his field of vision.
Dance: Proficient, 460/1000. Activated.
Song Ze pushed off the ground with his right foot, his body leaped into the air, and his core steadily held in place.
He swung his arm in a wide arc and chopped down with his palm.
The volleyball followed a very low, straight trajectory, hitting the sandy area near Zhang Hao's feet and kicking up a cloud of sand.
Zhang Hao held his hands in mid-air, but didn't even touch the ball.
There was a moment of silence.
The cameramen all zoomed in at once.
The person who was just lying there doing nothing is now standing on the sand with one hand in his pocket, breathing steadily.
The staff members whispered among themselves.
"That brief moment of suspension...didn't they say he had meniscus surgery?"
Song Ze scored five points.
He barely moved, relying on anticipation and body control to return all of Zhang Hao's smashes, placing each ball in the most difficult position to receive on the backhand.
As the sixth ball came flying in, he glanced at the camera position on the sidelines out of the corner of his eye.
The odds of winning are too high; continuing the fight could easily lead to trouble.
He deliberately slowed down by half a beat, and when he jumped, he twisted his arm, causing the volleyball to deviate from its direction and hit the sunscreen standee of the sponsor on the side of the court.
The signboard fell to the ground with a snap.
He shook his wrist.
"I used too much force and got a cramp."
After saying that, she turned around, grabbed Xia Ziming's arm, and walked out.
"Abstain, sleep in a tent."
His movements were clean and efficient, and he left without looking back.
Zhang Hao won the game, but all the cameras were focused on Song Ze's back.
He stood on the court, unable to utter a single word.
4 PM, water sports area.
Two-person motorboats were neatly moored beside the pier, with waves lapping against the piers.
The instructor drew a safety route on the blackboard and explained the operating procedures.
Song Ze leaned against the railing and yawned three times in a row.
This mechanical operation didn't interest him at all.
Xia Ziming, standing next to him, held a notepad and wrote down details about turning angles and throttle control in two pages.
Lin Shishi changed into a tight-fitting surfing suit and walked over.
"Ms. Song, I didn't get enough of the volleyball game just now." She stopped in front of him. "How about a lap around the water track?"
From the moment she entered the room in the morning, the program's cameras were focused on Song Ze and Xia Ziming, and her position was marginalized.
She needs to actively create opportunities to appear in the same frame as others.
Song Ze glanced at her. "Okay."
He patted the jet ski seat and climbed on.
The starting gun fired.
In an attempt to salvage his reputation on the volleyball court, Zhang Hao twisted the accelerator all the way to the floor with his right hand.
The engine roared, and the motorboat shot forward.
A huge wave crashed over him, but he didn't slow down.
The car's front end was airborne, and upon entering the water, it veered off course and crashed directly off the track marked by the red buoy.
Seawater poured into the exhaust pipe, the engine sputtered twice, and then stalled.
Zhang Hao and Lin Shishi sat on the swaying boat, waiting for a rescue ship.
The live stream chat was flooded with comments like "What a disaster!"
Song Ze maintained a steady speed of 40 miles per hour, dodging wave after wave, and drove smoothly.
A dark wave crashed in from the side, causing the boat to rock violently.
Xia Ziming lost her balance and instinctively reached out her arms to hug Song Ze's waist.
Song Ze did not turn around, but slowed down the car slightly.
The hull became more stable.
He let Xia Ziming hold him.
Lin Shishi's breath hitched.
She waited for Song Ze to adjust his posture to avoid the hug, or at least turn around and say something to turn the action into a joke.
But Song Ze did not turn around.
The hull became more stable.
Lin Shishi turned her face towards the sea; the sea breeze was too salty.
At night, a bonfire was lit on the beach.
A long table was set with barbecue and beer, and six people sat around it in a circle.
The camera crane at position three was lowered very low, facing Song Ze, Lin Shishi, and Xia Ziming—the center of attention all night.
The assistant director held up a cue card from outside the set.
Truth or Dare: Whoever gets the empty bottle spun on has to answer.
The bottle spun rapidly on the table and then stopped.
The bottle opening pointed at Xia Ziming.
Zhang Hao was the first to speak, placing his hands folded under his chin.
"Dr. Xia, netizens are all curious," he said, staring at her, "did you have a crush on Song Ze back in high school?"
The campfire crackled.
The camera zoomed in, giving Xia Ziming a close-up of her face.
Song Ze leaned back in his chair, twirling a string of barbecue skewers in his hand, his expression unchanged.
Xia Ziming took a sip of water from the paper cup and put it back on the table.
"yes."
Two words: crisp and clean.
"I did have a crush on Song Ze in high school. I also had crushes on Wang Lihong, Hu Ge, and the top three contestants from that year's talent show."
Zhang Hao's face turned red.
The barrage of comments exploded.
"That's an amazing answer."
"If you call your crush 'idol worship,' no one can find fault with it."
"Zhang Hao dug a hole and buried himself."
When the event ended, Song Ze walked ahead.
Lin Shishi stopped a step as she passed by him, her voice very soft.
"Your brotherhood is more convincing than that of real lovers."
Song Ze turned his head and glanced at her.
He didn't reply.
Xia Ziming followed behind, head down brushing the sand off her skirt, seemingly oblivious to what was happening.
Lin Shishi smiled, turned around and walked away.
The recording ended at 11:30 p.m.
Song Ze leaned back in the rattan chair on the balcony, the sea breeze making his shirt billow slightly.
With no cameras around and no need to maintain a persona, the surroundings finally quieted down.
He was calculating how much traffic his performance today would translate into and how much money he would ultimately pocket.
The phone on the small round table kept vibrating.
The screen lights up; a new email has arrived.
Sender: Hunan TV's "I Am a Singer 2017" program team.
The bottom of the text is stamped with a red official seal of the Taiwan authorities, and the background is printed with a top-secret watermark.
"Mr. Song Ze, please check the attached document, 'Detailed Audition Process and Confidentiality Agreement.' We look forward to your arrival on September 5th."