Chapter 54: Let’s Take the Civil Service Exam

Chapter 54

Qiao Peipei watched as Nian Suian set fire to the draft paper they had been working on earlier, tossing it into the fireplace. She clapped her hands together and remarked,

“You sure don’t leave any traces.”

Once everything had been reduced to ashes, Nian Suian patted her hands together and stood up. DiiScôver new stories on no/v/e()/lbin(.)c/o/m

“Exactly, I’ve eliminated all possibilities of it being seen by others.”

The directorial team seemed to be playing coy, giving no tasks since the first day and leaving the guests to their own devices. The viewers of the live broadcast had clearly cooled off, most of the casual viewers had already left the chat.

Casual viewers came for entertainment, with nothing exciting to see, they naturally didn't want to stay.

But traffic was not what Nian Suian cared about, her main reason for joining the show was to spice things up. If she couldn't do that, she wouldn’t coerce herself. She'd consider it a vacation.

“Why don't we take a stroll through the village? It’s kind of boring staying in here all day,” Nian Suian suggested.

“Sounds good. Let’s call Qiao Yan and Gu Zhijing along.”

Five minutes later, the four of them were out the door.

“Do they really have to follow us around?” Gu Zhijing turned to glance at the cameramen trailing them. He still wasn't used to the constant filming.

“That’s their job,” Qiao Peipei reassured him, “Don’t worry, just pretend they're not there.”

They wandered aimlessly. It was afternoon, and most villagers were working in the fields, so they didn't encounter many people.

The busiest place they found was the village activity center, where a number of elderly men and women were seated. Some played chess or cards, while most were engaged in conversation.

Nian Suian turned to the group and asked, “Do you know where we are?”

“The activity center. Isn’t it written over there?”

“Not quite,” Nian Suian wagged her finger, cryptically stating, “This place, according to tales, is the village information center. All the gossip from this and neighboring villages converges here!”

The live stream chat started requesting Nian Suian to join the gossip, an idea she was already considering.

“Shall I join them? Are you coming?” Nian Suian asked the group.

“I'm in!" Qiao Peipei was curious. She hadn’t heard of any 'information center' before and wanted to see what the fuss was about.

“I'll pass,” Qiao Yan decided. Being a CEO of a listed company, sitting around to gossip with elderly folks seemed inappropriate. If his employees saw him, he'd lose credibility.

"What does your boyfriend do?"

Nian Suian was a bit stunned. They came to hear the gossip, but how did they become the subjects?

"My boyfriend is an entrepreneur, he runs his own company," Qiao Peipei said while munching on a peanut.

Unexpectedly, the grandmother frowned, "Starting a company is not good, it's unstable. Did your man graduate from university? Let him take the civil service exam!"

The other elderly folks echoed, "Yes, yes, Granny Qian has a point."

Thinking of Shen Huaizhi, and his efforts to prepare for the civil service exam, Nian Suian laughed out loud.

"Stop laughing! Isn't your husband an entrepreneur too?" Qiao Peipei insisted.

"Yes, but my husband can no longer take the civil service exam, he's over thirty-five," Nian Suian said, laughing.

"Oh my, your husband is so grown up, do you guys have any children?"

"Granny, this is my son!" Nian Suian pointed at Gu Zhijing.

"Nonsense! My eyesight isn't failing in my old age, where did you give birth to such a grown-up son? You're pulling my leg."

"Hahahaha, I was just teasing you, granny. He's my younger brother, I'm planning to have him take the civil service exam in the future." Nian Suian didn’t mention that she was his stepmother, otherwise, the conversation would never end. So, she reluctantly referred to Gu Zhijing as her younger brother for the moment.

The elders, hearing this, were very pleased. They all began to offer Gu Zhijing food, saying, "You must study hard! It will be good for your sister if you pass the exam!"

〈Hahahahahaha〉

〈This is hilarious, a civil servant〉

〈35 years old and taking the civil service exam, what a joke hahaha〉

〈Why doesn't Nian Suian say she's his stepmother? Is she embarrassed?〉

〈To the person above, if she was really embarrassed, she would not have come on the show. Believe me, if she said she was his stepmother, they would talk about nothing but that for the rest of the afternoon.〉

〈The person above is correct...there's a girl in our village who married a divorcee. Even after more than ten years of marriage, she's still the talk of the town〉

"Granny, why are we only talking about us? You should also share some stories about the village.”

Nian Suian hadn’t forgotten why she was here and tried to steer the conversation back.