Chapter 9: Not Taking Even a Needle or Thread from the People

Most of the contacts on Shang Que’s WeChat were work-related, including celebrities, directors, screenwriters she had collaborated with, and representatives from endorsement brands. Adults know how to respect boundaries, so unless there was something important, no one would casually message her.

However, ever since she accepted Ji Jingchuan’s friend request, she would wake up every day to see his messages.

[The World’s Number One Genius]: Awake now? People who wake up at this time are future stars and the backbone of the nation.

[The World’s Number One Genius]: Breakfast [image]

[The World’s Number One Genius]: I truly deserve the title of genius.

[The World’s Number One Genius]: Out for lunch. Nowhere near as good as my cooking—doesn’t even deserve a spot in my photo album.

[The World’s Number One Genius]: Dinner [image]

[The World’s Number One Genius]: Perfect in color, aroma, and taste. [Thumbs up] If you want to eat, just list three of this genius’s strengths, and you can bring your own bowl and chopsticks to come over for a meal.

[The World’s Number One Genius]: Or you can just order delivery.

From morning to night, he never missed a meal update, and there was no ignoring him. If she didn’t reply, Ji Jingchuan would bombard her with messages like:

“Shang Que, Shang Que, Shang Que!”
“What are you doing? What are you doing? What are you doing?”
“Do you have signal? Do you have signal? Do you have signal?”

So, Shang Que mastered a perfunctory way to chat with him:

[The World’s Number One Genius]: First meal of the day [image]

[Shang Que]: Pan-fried dumplings.

[The World’s Number One Genius]: Let me show you my top-tier cooking skills [image]

[Shang Que]: Shrimp.

[The World’s Number One Genius]: I must be the Greek god in charge of fire control [image]

[Shang Que]: Tomato-braised beef brisket.

[The World’s Number One Genius]: Went for a walk and saw this. Even small animals are drawn to my outstanding aura. [image]

[Shang Que]: Stray cat.

[The World’s Number One Genius]: ? Are you using AI image recognition?

[Shang Que]: Chinese characters.

With this back-and-forth dynamic, the week passed quickly, and soon it was Friday—the recording day for the second episode of Friendship’s Little Boat.

This time, the theme was outdoor camping. The transport vehicle dropped them off directly outside a supermarket.

“The production team has prepared tents for everyone, but the other camping essentials will have to be purchased by yourselves,” the director announced. “In a moment, we will distribute a starting fund to each team. You need to use this budget to buy everything on the provided checklist. The team that buys all the required items and has the most money left over will get to stay in the most luxurious tent.”

Lu Zhixu took the checklist from the director, and the others gathered around to look.

“Moisture-proof mat, sleeping bag, camping lantern—” Ning Sheng paused. “Does the arrow here mean that if we collect all three of these, we’ll get a mattress?”

“Yes,” the director explained. “There are a total of nine items on the list, divided into three groups. If you collect all the items in a group, you’ll receive an additional reward.”

A barbecue grill, charcoal, and seasonings would earn them vegetable and meat skewers, while snacks, fruit, and mosquito repellent could be exchanged for a set of foldable tables and chairs.

The contestants’ eyes lit up.

[Viewer Comments]:
“This just got interesting!”
“Who could resist such a great deal? I can’t even resist a free drink from collecting points at a bubble tea shop.”
“Where do I sign up? Can I join too?”
“Hahaha, this is ingrained in our bones—exchanging points for rewards. The production team really understands marketing!”

Jiang Yizhe couldn’t wait and asked, “Director, how much starting money do we get?”

“100.”

“100 per person?” Lin Jinyi frowned. “Are you kidding? What can we even buy with that?”

“It’s 100 per team.”

“What?” Everyone’s faces showed their shock. Shang Que looked at the director and confirmed, “Are you saying that we have to use just 100 yuan to buy all nine items—including a barbecue grill, a moisture-proof mat, and a sleeping bag—and then compete to see who has the most left over?”

[Viewer Comments]:
“Hahahaha, I knew the production team had something up their sleeves!”
“Shang Que: Look me in the eye.”
“That murderous glare cannot be hidden.”

“That’s right,” the director said, enduring their sharp glares. He added, “And you can’t use your own money, nor can you accept money from passersby or fans. You also can’t make money through autographs, photos, or singing performances.”

With that, all their potential loopholes were closed. The director handed out envelopes containing the starting funds and quickly announced, “The timer starts now! Hurry into the supermarket—you have one hour to buy everything you need for camping!”

Ning Sheng glanced at the list again and said with certainty, “There’s no way we can buy all nine items with just a hundred yuan. The barbecue grill alone would cost more than half of that.”

Lin Jinyi opened the envelope, and sure enough, inside were only ten ten-yuan bills. She curled her lips, the impatience in her eyes visible even behind her sunglasses. “So what do we do now?”

“Forget it,” Ji Jingchuan turned to leave. “Let’s just go buy two ice creams and call it a day. Who needs camping anyway?”

“Ji Jingchuan, come back,” Shang Que called after him. “Three, two—”

Before she even finished counting, Ji Jingchuan, who had only taken a few steps, hesitated, turned around reluctantly, and walked back. Though his expression remained sullen, his obedience was enough to shock the netizens.

[Viewer Comments]:
“??? Since when did he become so obedient?”
“During a previous group variety show, someone pissed off Ji Jingchuan, and when he said he was quitting, he really quit. By the time the production team managed to reach him, he was already home eating dinner.”
“Looks like he’s finally met his match.”
“If the group variety show’s director had known how powerful Shang Que was, they should’ve invited her as a guest too.”
“Hahaha, but that was a boy band show.”

“If a hundred yuan isn’t enough to buy all nine items, what about three hundred?” Shang Que suddenly asked.

The others were momentarily stunned. Lu Zhixu explained, “She means we should work together—all three teams—to complete a single checklist.”

“Exactly. As long as we get everything on this list, we’ll earn all the rewards. Plus, the leftover money will be split among us, which means every team would have the most remaining funds and get to stay in the big tent, right?”

[Viewer Comments]:
“!!!”
“Shang Que, you’re a genius!”
“The director was clearly trying to make them compete, but there was a win-win-win solution all along!”

The others finally caught on.

“Oh yeah! We only need one barbecue grill. There’s no need for every team to buy one,” Jiang Yizhe realized. “So the real goal of the production team was to make us collaborate, right?”

“Well, the show is called Friendship’s Little Boat,” Lu Zhixu teased before analyzing further. “The barbecue grill and sleeping bags will be the most expensive, but we’ll have to check the prices inside. Snacks, condiments, and fruit, though—they never specified how much we need to buy.”

Everyone exchanged glances and nodded in understanding. “One pack of spicy strips counts as snacks, a bag of salt is a condiment, and for fruit… just buy one apple.”

“Buy grapes instead. A single grape is lighter.”

[Viewer Comments]:
“??? Shang Que, you really have no fear. If you tried to weigh just one grape where I live, people would think you’re picking a fight.”
“They don’t seem to find anything wrong with it at all. They’re even debating whether a single grape or a single plum is cheaper.”
“Grapes are lighter, but plums have a lower unit price… Damn, now I’m curious too.”

Now that they had a strategy, they divided into groups. Lu Zhixu and Ning Sheng went to check the price of sleeping bags while also picking up condiments and fruit. Lin Jinyi and Jiang Yizhe searched for the cheapest barbecue grill and grabbed mosquito repellent and a flashlight—since anything that emits light could technically count as a camping lantern.

As for Shang Que and Ji Jingchuan, they were in charge of getting snacks, barbecue charcoal, and a moisture-proof mat.

The supermarket was huge. They headed to the nearest snack aisle first. As Shang Que compared prices along the shelves, she suddenly heard a rustling sound behind her. She turned around, puzzled, only to see that their shopping cart had somehow filled up with snacks. Ji Jingchuan was holding a bag of chips, about to toss it in.

Shang Que stared at him. “What are you doing?”

“Buying snacks,” he replied casually.

“My eyes work just fine,” Shang Que frowned slightly. “I’m asking why you’re buying so much. We’re over budget—we don’t have enough money.”

“If we don’t have enough money, I’ll just use my face card,” Ji Jingchuan said nonchalantly.

“Who taught you to solve every problem by flashing your face?” Shang Que glared at him. “Ever heard the saying, ‘Not even a needle or thread should be taken from the people’? Put it back.”

[Viewer Comments]:
“Why does this livestream feel more patriotic the longer I watch?”
“Ji Jingchuan, take a look at Shang Que. She spent over a decade abroad and still has this level of awareness. Now look at yourself.”
“Hahaha, to be fair, Ji Jingchuan understands variety show rules. He knows the production team would cover for them. Last time, a fan gave him money during a group variety show, and later he specifically asked his assistant to add them on WeChat to pay it back.”

Ji Jingchuan was about to argue when suddenly, a child’s voice rang out behind them.

“I don’t care! I want it! I want it!”

Both of them turned toward the sound.

Near the next aisle, a little boy, about four or five years old, was lying on the floor, using his head as the center while his legs spun like a compass.

[Viewer Comments]:
“Whoa, this kid has some serious street dance skills.”
“Strap a mop to him, and the cleaning staff wouldn’t even need to mop that section.”
“Ji Jingchuan, maybe you should try rolling on the floor too. See if Shang Que lets you buy the snacks then.”
“If he actually does that, Shang Que will probably just walk away in disgust.”
“Also, this aisle is way too narrow for that move to work.”

Ji Jingchuan glanced at the floor, then looked up and met Shang Que’s gaze. His expression flickered, but then he puffed up his chest and stubbornly declared, “I don’t care! I want to buy it!”

The two stared each other down. Then, suddenly, Shang Que turned away and started grabbing items from the shelves. Chips, jelly, spicy strips—whatever she saw, she tossed into the cart, clearly trying to out-buy him.

Seeing her reaction, Ji Jingchuan instantly deflated like a bird that had lost its tail feathers.

“Stop it. Fine, I won’t buy them,” he muttered.

Shang Que ignored him and kept piling things in.

Ji Jingchuan hurriedly pushed the cart, following her step by step, putting everything she grabbed back onto the shelves.

Finally, Shang Que stopped and turned around expressionlessly.

Ji Jingchuan immediately straightened up and declared, “I won’t buy it! I’ll put it all back right now!”

Before Shang Que could say a word, he quickly wheeled the cart away, diligently returning all the snacks he had taken.

In the end, only a single bag of plain chips remained in his hand. He pursed his lips, looked at Shang Que, and said firmly, “Just this one. Shang Que, this is my final bottom line—don’t push me too—”

Shang Que turned and walked away, silently giving her approval.

Seeing this, Ji Jingchuan hurriedly grabbed another pack of jelly and sneakily hid it under the chips.

Just as he was about to chase after Shang Que, a girl peeked out from the nearby shelves and whispered excitedly, “Ji Jingchuan, over here!”

She ran over, barely able to contain her excitement. “I’m your fan! I was just watching the livestream. Are you short on money? I have some!”

[Viewer Comments]:
“??? Is this a stalker fan? She just barged in while they’re filming!”
“No, no, this is staged. I heard the exact same thing in Lu Zhixu and Ning Sheng’s section.”
“It’s an undercover staff member. But why did she wait for Shang Que to leave before appearing?”
“Because Shang Que is too hard to fool, hahaha.”
“Uh-oh, can Ji Jingchuan pass this test?”

The undercover staff member pulled out 200 yuan. “Here, use it! Keep up the great work on the show—we’ll always support you!”

She looked at him expectantly, her voice full of sincerity.

But Ji Jingchuan didn’t even glance at the money. He simply waved her off and said, “No need. Not even a needle or thread should be taken from the people.”