He leaned in to take a look at the monitor, just in time to see the last kid, Dazhu, confidently reciting the alphabet to the camera. He wasn’t much to look at, but his voice rang out clear and loud. After finishing the last few letters, he skipped over to the young girl sitting nearby, eyes full of anticipation as he stretched out his hand.
Qingli placed a thick stack of something into it.
The little boy walked away beaming, cradling his prize like he’d just won the whole world. ◎
The director asked in a low, serious tone, “What happened? Those three kids just listened and behaved?”
One of the crew whispered back, “They didn’t have much of a choice. Jiang Qingli won all their slingshots and collectible cards. Every time one of them started crying, she’d threaten to toss one of their toys. One tear, one toy gone. Eventually, no one dared cry…”
The director’s voice shot up. “She won all their toys? When did this happen?! Why didn’t you tell me?!”
“Just earlier,” the crew member replied sheepishly. “You said to only report if something unusual happened. I didn’t think this counted. She didn’t cheat—won fair and square.”
After a pause, the crew couldn’t help but add admiringly, “She’s good at it.”
Every marble rolled perfectly into the target hole. Every flip of the card was spot-on. She’d won so many rounds that the kids ended up bawling.
The directive to make Jiang Qingli struggle had only come from the director—none of the other staff knew the plan. Naturally, they didn’t see anything wrong with what had happened.
But for the director, especially hearing the awe in his staff’s voice, it was like cold water pouring down his back. Just from the reactions around him, he could tell how well Jiang Qingli had performed in this livestream.
Finishing the task wasn’t the issue. The problem was—
She wasn’t supposed to have a breakout moment on the show.
Frustrated, the director pulled out his phone and opened the livestream. The chat was flooded:
【This pretty sister is OP!】
【LMAO, those poor kids! Moral of the story: never gamble!】
【Gamblers never prosper. This girl’s the GOAT!】
One comment stood out:
【Came here from the trending page. Man, if I had someone like her as a kid to win back all my cards… I used to lose everything and had to beg my parents for more money.】
Trending?
The director flinched and immediately exited the app to check. Sure enough, the show was ranked #13 on Weibo’s trending list:
#PrettySisterIsASkillBeast
And it was climbing.
The video clip was a neatly edited montage of Jiang Qingli handling the three kids. It was clean, fast-paced, and perfectly timed—she looked like a charismatic “kid boss,” dominating the scene while the rowdy children could only whimper in defeat.
The top comments were glowing:
【OMG, she’s amazing!】
【I thought she was just a dainty girl, but the way she slaps down those cards—terrifying and awesome! Even the kids didn’t dare cry.】
【That sword trick was legit! Has she trained before?】
【PLEASE, I beg you, give me her full profile!】
【Talk about a redemption arc. She’s only sixteen, loaded, and wears a hair clip worth tens of thousands. Yesterday she threw a tantrum after arriving at the village, but today? She apologized, and now she’s wrestling wild children just to treat the old man to a big dinner. Go check it out!】
【Poor thing, her palm looked red from slamming those cards. I dragged her in the comments yesterday, but I take it all back—deleting my posts now.】
The director felt the blood drain from his face.
This wasn’t the plan at all.
They had banked on Jiang Qingli failing the task. If she did, the Xu family would have had a pitiful dinner that night. Jiang Qingli, spoiled and pampered, wouldn’t be able to handle that—
Perfect fuel for new drama and backlash:
#SpoiledHeiressTurnsHerNoseUpAtGrandpa’sHard-CookedMeal
#TantrumPrincessGetsOldMan’sFamilyIntoTrouble
But now…
The director turned to the props coordinator, his voice sour:
“Send them two self-heating beef hotpots. Use the sponsored ones. Might as well turn it into an ad.”
Just then, Jiang Qingli’s voice came through her assigned camera mic:
“Mission accomplished! I’m heading back to tell Grandpa Xu not to cook tonight—save room for a feast!”
The director froze.
Was that… a threat?
He quickly switched back to the livestream. Earlier, viewer numbers weren’t anything special—most preferred highlight reels. But thanks to the trending page, viewership had now passed 100,000. The chat lit up:
【Aaaaaah, Grandpa Xu finally gets to eat something good!】
【Can’t wait for that fancy dinner!】
【I’m not leaving this stream till we eat together tonight!】
The director felt like he was choking.
Jiang Qingli’s “threat” was exactly what audiences loved.
He had never considered the possibility of her completing the mission, so the reward dinner wasn’t something he planned for. Certainly not a moment of harmony and heartwarming satisfaction in front of the camera.
Even if Jiang Zheng hadn’t given special instructions, this still wasn’t how the show was supposed to go.
Across the village, three teenage delinquents were still struggling to connect with their host families!
The prop lead, hearing Jiang Qingli’s voice through the monitor, hesitated:
“Are we sending them hotpot? I mean, can the elderly even eat that? We might get backlash.”
The director’s face twitched. He snapped irritably,
“Fine. Use your judgment. Just make sure they get something decent to eat.”
Just wait.
He was going to revise the entire plan—
and crank up the difficulty for her from here on out.
Sam Williams On TYMIMA Chapter 152