Rise and Slay: From Scandal Queen to Academic Genius
Chapter 20: She Arrives with an Elite Team!

Chapter 20: Chapter 20: She Arrives with an Elite Team!

In the cornfield, the four guests had been picking corn for a while, but Ji Xizhi still hadn’t arrived.

Zhu Xiu’an couldn’t hold back any longer and complained, "Is Ji Xizhi a turtle? Even crawling wouldn’t take this long!"

Fang Zhuyue, who had communicated with Ji Xizhi the most, instinctively explained in front of the camera, "Sister Xi Zhi has something to do, she’ll be here soon!"

"Something to do? What could it be! It’s been ten minutes! If she’s any later, we won’t have anywhere to stay!" Zhu Xiu’an’s expression showed a hint of grievance!

"Come on now, Xi Zhi hasn’t done this work before, so she won’t be as quick as us. It’s okay if she’s a bit late," Zhong Yulu quickly chimed in to persuade.

She actually hoped Ji Xizhi wouldn’t come!

At this point, Ji Xizhi coming to replace Qin Yutian was just an attempt to build a helpful image. This way, Ji Xizhi’s inactivity in the morning could all be offset! Once the company starts marketing, they’d clean her image, gain fans in one go, and she’d instantly go viral.

A hint of sourness rose in Zhong Yulu’s heart.

Next to her, Zhu Xiu’an paused after listening to Zhong Yulu’s words.

He was a fan of Zhong Yulu, and he should have been happy that she comforted him.

But for some reason, after hearing Zhong Yulu’s words, he couldn’t help but feel a bit uneasy. Although he complained about Ji Xizhi, it was just a habitual grumble, but Zhong Yulu’s words felt strange, as if she was supporting Ji Xizhi, but on closer thought, they felt off.

Zhu Xiu’an blinked hard, looking at Zhong Yulu not far away with her gentle and intellectual demeanor, and thought maybe he was overthinking.

It was too sunny today; he was dazed by the sun, actually doubting Lu Lu!

Zhu Xiu’an gathered his spirits and mumbled, "Fine, I’ll wait another half hour. If she still doesn’t show up, I’ll go complain to Director Wang!"

[Pfft! Zhu Xiu’an, are you a grade-schooler? Going to tell the grown-ups!]

[Ugh, can the show dismiss someone like Ji Xizhi who avoids work? It’s really frustrating to watch!]

[Just now, when Qin Yutian got hurt, she offered to help. I thought she was quite enthusiastic, but now it seems it was just talk!]

[Exactly, she dodged work all day, why would she want to come!]

[If you can’t handle the job, don’t take it on. At least show some effort, act it out, but no, not even a proper attitude. No wonder she’s irrelevant!]

Even though Zhu Xiu’an had stopped talking, the fans in the four live streams were becoming more active.

After all, Ji Xizhi had agreed to the group activity, and now it’s all about who does more work and who does less. Ji Xizhi delaying her arrival only added to the burden of the other four guests!

The fans, feeling sorry for their beloved brothers and sisters, vented their anger with comments flooding the live stream.

Suddenly, the camera in the live stream panned, showing a group of people approaching on a path not far from the cornfield.

The crowd formed a pyramid shape, moving towards them. Some wielded knives, others carried hoes, and some pushed carts, a bunch of burly men all following a little girl from behind.

The girl leading them was Ji Xizhi.

[?? This scene, it’s like the grand entrance of a female boss from a Hong Kong film!]

[So cool! With this shot, I might become a fan...]

[She’s here, she’s here, and she’s brought an elite team! Hahahaha]

[I’m dying of laughter, an "elite team," seriously. Why does Ji Xizhi always play by her own rules? I just switched back to see how my Yueyue was doing, now I want to switch back again, what did Ji Xizhi do?!]

[I’d do it differently. Though I’m a fan of Xiu, with that traitor just now, I’ve decided to hang out in Ji Xizhi’s live stream instead!]

On the path, Ji Xizhi had brought the entire Ping’an Village with her.

The villagers were experienced at working. Earlier in the morning, they even watched and rated the guests poorly. Coming back now, the other guests thought it was another evaluation, so they worked more diligently.

As the guests were focused on their tasks, the villagers brought by Ji Xizhi suddenly all got to work, armed with their own sickles and gloves, starting to help out.

Zhu Xiu’an: "...What on earth? How did Director Wang allow the villagers to help? Ji Xizhi, how did you manage this?!"

Ji Xizhi, holding a sickle, replied to Zhu Xiu’an, "Hmm? Director Wang never said villagers couldn’t help, did he? You guys didn’t know?"

Zhu Xiu’an: "!" What kind of reverse thinking is this! How did I not think of it!

Zhu Xiu’an’s eyes widened, watching the villagers skillfully at work, cutting one corn stalk at a time with speed and precision.

Seeing this, he almost wanted to ask for their techniques.

But looking up at the villagers’ expressions.

Zhu Xiu’an: "." Never mind, it’s too intimidating!

Most people in Ping’an Village have rarely, if ever, left the countryside, and this was their first time seeing a live stream. They’re not adept at managing expressions, so when they work, they just work, and their faces naturally seem more serious.

Added to that, from when they first arrived in the village, Zhu Xiu’an begging for help but no one choosing him was a fixed impression.

Zhu Xiu’an figured it was normal they were a bit hard to approach.

Ji Xizhi was much more familiar. Just last night, she shared the first half of a "Today’s Law" case with everyone, and today she was ready to tell the second half.

She wasn’t shy either, standing in the center of the villagers, speaking clearly, her voice neither loud nor soft, "Last time we talked about, the police tracking the culprit turned out to be the eldest grandson of the Zhang Family!"

"Why did the Zhang Family’s eldest grandson want to kill his own grandfather? It traces back to an old incident decades ago when the Zhang Family’s eldest grandson was just two years old..."

As Ji Xizhi narrated the story, her hands with the sickle never stopped.

Her pace at work wasn’t much slower than the villagers, not only working efficiently but also injecting rhythm into her storytelling.

Even the staff from the program were enthralled.

Fang Zhuyue and Zhu Xiu’an, unknowingly, edged closer to Ji Xizhi, while the staff on the field all crowded around a camera to listen attentively, even Director Wang in the yard couldn’t help but sit up from the sun lounger to watch.

After all, the ending of the story yesterday was unexpected, and the subsequent old story narrated by Ji Xizhi now was gripping.