Chapter 54: The Counterattack of the Transmigrated Supporting Woman, Part 5

This next challenge also took place at the cliffside, but unlike the previous secret chamber, this time the contestants faced one question after another. They needed to answer quickly—each correct answer caused the wall in front to retract, allowing them to move forward. However, if they delayed too long, the wall behind them would spring back into place.

It was almost a question per second, so the key test here was the contestants’ speed in answering. The questions themselves were challenging: based on a given hint, contestants had to use four or five provided consonants and vowels to assemble the name of a three-character object.

For example, if the hint was “household appliance” and the consonants and vowels provided were d, an, f, ao, b, i, the answer would be “rice cooker” (in pinyin, dianfanbao), only missing one of the “an” vowels. The difficulty was compounded by the time pressure; at most, they had only one or two seconds to answer. With b, i, j, en as the provided sounds and the hint “stationery,” the answer would be “notebook.” With d, an, in, e and the hint “bird,” the answer would be “red-crowned crane,” and so on.

In reality, if given time, the task wouldn’t have been too hard. The real challenge lay in the constant audio reminders that time was nearly up; once flustered, people’s minds often turned to mush. Fortunately, throughout the ordeal, Mu Yin remained calm, as if the looming stone walls threatening to push her off the cliff didn’t exist. She answered each question in two seconds, got all ten right, and cleared the challenge. Qi Zhen, who advanced effortlessly alongside her, remarked, “Boss, do you need a leg pendant? A somewhat famous one, at that.”

“Congratulations to Liu Tao’s team for clearing the challenge and winning the grand prize of two million yuan.”

“Wow!!”

“They did it! They did it!”

“Our show has run seven or eight times, but this is the first time anyone has conquered the final challenge.”

“Mu Mu, you’re amazing!” As soon as the announcement came, Liu Tao’s group in the studio erupted in joy. Even Liu Tao himself was visibly excited, since as one of the team members, he would also receive a share of the prize money.

When the two returned to the studio, they were greeted with enthusiastic applause and congratulations. Even Li Wen’s group wore beaming smiles, though whether those smiles were sincere, no one could say.

The filming of this episode took the entire day and would certainly be edited into several installments. After it wrapped up, Lan Lu came to pick up Mu Yin and asked, “How did it go? Was everything smooth on the show?”

“It went well,” Mu Yin nodded. “By the way, did you get your matter sorted out?” Lan Lu had originally waited in the studio but had left for an urgent matter.

“Yes,” Lan Lu nodded.

“What happened, Sister Lan?” Mu Yin noticed her mood seemed off and couldn’t help but ask. She remembered the company had summoned Lan Lu back.

“It’s nothing. The company suddenly assigned me another person.” Lan Lu replied, figuring that Mu Yin would find out eventually.

“Oh, so I’ll have another junior sister? She’s a girl, right?” Mu Yin nodded. She knew Lan Lu’s background—a former top agent who had launched an international superstar, but later fell out with her artist and lost much of her reputation. There were even rumors of her acting as a madam for her artists. After leaving her old company for Hengtian Entertainment, few artists were willing to work with her, and her value plummeted. When Mu Yin was choosing an agent, she had met several candidates before picking Lan Lu because she sensed Lan Lu was upright.

Mu Yin had a good eye for people, having survived the social quagmire of the apocalypse, and she didn’t believe Lan Lu would willingly pimp out her clients. The details of the past were unknown to her, though.

“She’s a girl, only seventeen, supposedly the daughter of the company’s boss,” Lan Lu answered.

“The boss’s daughter?” Mu Yin suddenly found the identity familiar. Wait, wasn’t the protagonist of the transmigration novel she’d read also the daughter of an entertainment company boss? Could it really be that coincidental? She recalled that the transmigrated heroine had taken over the agent who was originally supposed to help the main character become Best Actress—the very agent who had been suppressed. She rubbed her forehead, realizing she had inadvertently snatched the transmigrated heroine’s agent.

“What’s wrong, does your head hurt?” Lan Lu noticed Mu Yin suddenly touching her forehead.

“It’s nothing, I just remembered something,” Mu Yin shook her head.

“Alright then, go home and get some rest. The day after tomorrow, you’ll be heading to the talent show,” Lan Lu said, taking her to dinner and filling her in on the show’s details.

“Okay,” Mu Yin nodded.

“This time, it’s a major talent competition specifically for trainees from various companies, showcasing their skills. There’s no final group debut; just focus on preparing. Our company is sending three rookies, including you. Your new junior sister will participate as well.” Lan Lu explained that, unlike last time when Mu Yin debuted as a member of a group show as a complete outsider, this time she was joining as a trainee.

“I understand,” Mu Yin replied. After dinner, Lan Lu drove her home. Upon entering and turning on the lights, Mu Yin saw Mother Zhang on the living room sofa.

“You’re back. How was it?”

“Mom, why aren’t you asleep yet?” Mu Yin blinked at her mother.

“I was waiting for you. It’s late, go to bed,” Mother Zhang said with a yawn before heading to her room.

Mu Yin pressed her lips together, washed up, and went to bed. She had asked for leave from her livestreams, so the next day, she resumed her usual routine: morning run, physical training, practicing music, chess, calligraphy, and painting.

Afterward, she livestreamed for an hour. Previously, she had streamed to earn money, since she couldn’t work outside and needed funds for university. Now, she continued primarily for her fans.

Mu Yin didn’t mention participating in a variety show—she’d wait for the official announcement. She knew little about the industry and preferred to keep a respectful distance until she learned more.

A few days later, she entered another variety show. This one focused on showcasing talents, but within the scope of their professions as actors, singers, and trainees. Thus, the talents displayed were mainly singing, dancing, acting, musical instruments, songwriting, composition, even scriptwriting and directing—anything related to the entertainment industry.

To be honest, most of these were manageable, but Mu Yin wondered how the directing ability would be judged in the preliminary round. She did know, however, that among the nearly two hundred contestants, there were seven or eight with majors in directing.

For her preliminary performance, Mu Yin opted for a self-composed song, accompanying herself on the pipa. She was learning Western instruments as well, but had only just begun.