0713: You who shine in the parallel world

After sneaking around and inquiring about the other teams' goals, Wang Yuexin returned with a cryptic smile on his face.

Chen Chusheng couldn't help but smile at the smile on his face: "What's wrong?"

Wang Yuexin didn't answer immediately. He made a shushing gesture until he ran back to He Zhancheng's side, spread his arms to signal the three of them to come closer, and then said, "Come on, let me tell you. I just sounded out the five teams, and they all think our first choice is 'Bird's Nest.' Except for Xiao Zhi's side, which was vague and didn't give a direct answer, the other four groups all said they wouldn't compete with us for it."

At this point, he glanced around, lowered his voice to the lowest level, and continued, "As for our real first choice, 'Interview with the Vampire,' they aren't very interested in rock music; at least, they didn't react when I casually mentioned it. On the other hand, I reckon that's also Little Ma's first choice."

On the surface, Wang Yuexin put on a sincere and open-hearted act, saying things like, "Let's get our teams talking first to avoid wasting too much firepower." After visiting each team, she did achieve some results. Regardless of whether the other teams were telling the truth or not about the songs they were interested in, at least they did mention one or two songs.

Given Wang Yuexin's personality, he believed his acting was pretty good, so even if he didn't believe 100% of what others said, he believed 90%. As for Ma Boqian, he was 100% sure they would choose "Interview with the Vampire," since their group had the youngest average age, two rappers, a band lead singer, and Roger and Ma Boqian, two potential rock singers who could sing without any pressure, making them a perfect match for the song.

Just as almost everyone thought "Bird's Nest" belonged to Chen Chusheng's team, "Interview with the Vampire" also seemed to be specially prepared for Ma Boqian's team.

"The premise that the other four groups said they wouldn't compete with us for 'Bird's Nest' is that they think their firepower is lower than ours, right?" After several team leaders encouraged Cai Guoqin to join Chen Chusheng's team and ruin the 0705 reunion during the first public performance, Yu Yu didn't think that this season's song selection would be as harmonious as the second season. In fact, from the first public performance until now, the undercurrent of tension has never dissipated.

Given this premise, although others thought they would choose "Bird's Nest," they probably wouldn't let them buy the song for just 10 yuan to try it out.

"Really? They were so confident when they told me that?" Wang Yuexin was a bit too much of a江湖 (jianghu, a term referring to the world of martial arts and chivalry) type, and always thought that others wouldn't lie to him.

Yu Yu patted his head: "You didn't tell them the truth, so how can you be sure they weren't acting?"

Upon closer examination, Wang Yue suddenly realized that this made perfect sense. Perhaps the other teams weren't telling the truth either; perhaps they would inflate the price when bidding for "Bird's Nest." If that were the case, then...

"That's perfect, no, even better. I like being lied to, I hope they lie to me, hehe." Looking at Yu Yu's bright and innocent smile, Wang Yuexin grinned mischievously.

Chen Chusheng looked at his two brothers, who were in cahoots, and couldn't help but shake his head with a smile.

Indeed, in the current situation, it would be terrible if they didn't compete with them. They would be better off fooling Wang Yuexin and letting her lower her guard, and then all of them should participate in raising the price. Good songs deserve good prices, after all.

What? You're saying that as the captain and the eldest brother, how could he lie? No, this isn't deception; it's just a strategy.

"That's great! We can buy 'Bird's Nest' at a low price, and the firepower points we save might be used for other things on stage later." He Zhancheng suddenly raised his voice slightly, just loud enough for the people around him to barely hear, and said happily.

Upon hearing this, Wang Yuexin almost burst out laughing, but thankfully he quickly covered his mouth and gave He Zhancheng a thumbs up.

I never expected that you, this foreign friend with thick eyebrows and big eyes, who can't even speak Mandarin properly, would be such a cunning and ruthless character.

Soon, after the ten-minute discussion, Wang Yuexin will know whether what the others said about "not grabbing" was true or false.

The auction for the first song, "Bird's Nest," has begun.

"Any of you brothers want to bid?" Qi Sijun looked around at the brothers below the stage, then fixed his gaze on the four members of Chen Chusheng's team.

There was a few seconds of silence from the audience; no one bid at first.

"If you want it, don't be shy," Zhang Yuan shouted across the room, urging his brothers to hurry up and stop dawdling.

Yu Yu glanced at Wang Yuexin, who immediately raised her sign: "10".

My uncle hugged his knees and looked at them sideways: "Your chosen songs are only worth ten yuan? That's not fair."

Tang Yuzhe understood and deliberately joined in the fun, raising his paddle to help his uncle raise the price: "30".

Lin Zhiying followed closely behind: "50".

Hu Yanbin, also embracing the idea that participation is more important, chuckled and said, "60."

Ma Boqian turned around and exchanged a glance with his teammate. Shell chuckled and poked him in the back, prompting Ma Boqian to hold up a sign: "65".

Yu Haoming immediately added, "80."

Seeing him shouting so enthusiastically, Wang Yuexin retorted to her old friend without any politeness: "Hey, you're adding so readily, can your firepower be higher than ours? 200!"

The momentum was just right. Yu Yu nodded inwardly. People who already thought they would choose this song would probably be even more certain of their determination for "Bird's Nest".

Yu Haoming retorted, "Anyway, we still have money now, 210."

"Then go ahead and add it. Anyway, we'll only have 10,220 more than you guys." Wang Yuexin curled her lips disdainfully, deliberately adding 10 yuan at a time, as if she were provoking Yu Haoming.

Anyway, the two of them are a pair of bickering lovers. The other brothers who got to know them through this show are used to their banter. Don't be surprised that they are at odds now; in reality, their relationship is more affectionate than anyone else's.

Wang Yaoqing, who had been watching the game from the sidelines for a long time, finally couldn't sit still any longer. As if he couldn't stand these two childish guys who were both three years old wasting their time by raising the price so little, he, as a mature "domineering CEO", sighed, frowned and raised his sign: "550".

According to Wang Yuexin's calculations, this should be the highest price they can offer, and also the maximum they can raise the price to.

So far, apart from Lin Zhiying's team, which had previously hinted at wanting the song, all the other teams that had vowed not to compete have made bids.

Wang Yuexin looked at Wang Yaoqing, seemingly stunned by his sudden high price, and did not raise her paddle immediately.

Zhang Yuan pursed his lips, shrugged, and looked away, glancing down at his knees, as if feeling guilty for Wang Yaoqing, who seemed so confident and self-assured.

Although he knew this was Captain Wang Yaoqing's strategy to deplete the other teams' firepower, he couldn't help but worry: what if things went wrong? Their first choice was "X-Song"! Most importantly, Sheng Ge had Yu Yu on his side, and that Yu Yu, like Allen Su, was cunning and scheming. With him around, things definitely wouldn't be so simple…

Of course, Ma Shi also had some ideas about this song, mentioning that it could be used for modern dance or something, so filming it would be... not bad?

It has to be said that they are truly good brothers. Zhang Yuan really understands Yu Yu. Even though he hasn't figured out what they're up to, his intuition tells him that things definitely won't go according to the normal script of being overcharged.

As expected, Zhang Yuan's concerns were justified.

Qi Sijun, on the host's platform, began the countdown.

Yu Yu leaned back, resting his elbow on the edge of the steps behind him, and Wang Yuexin, who was standing behind him, understood what he meant.

Without a trace of regret or heartache, he spoke rapidly, "Alright, since you really want this song, I'll give it to you, Uncle."

As she spoke, Wang Yuexin plopped down on her chair.

"Pfft..." Zhang Yuan couldn't help but clapp his hands and stomp his foot, bursting into laughter.

Wang Yaoqing was dumbfounded, Hu Yanbin was completely impressed by their move, and his uncle and Ma Boqian burst into laughter after a slight pause. Zhang Yuan and Boyuan's laughter was particularly loud above theirs, and Lin Zhiying felt both incredulous and a little amused.

"You young people really know how to have fun," sighed Teacher Cai from Lin Zhiying's team next door.

"Not at all, thank you for your cooperation." Wang Yuexin cupped her hands in greeting to Cai Guoqin, and especially to Yu Haoming beside Cai Guoqin.

Amidst the chaos, Wang Yaoqing regained his senses and looked at Qi Sijun: "Does this song just belong to us like this?"

Xiao Qi, suppressing a laugh with professionalism, nodded seriously and in a heavy tone: "Yes, Captain Wang Yaoqing, you just won the bid for 'Bird's Nest' with 550."

"No, we only bid for the sake of the show." Wang Yaoqing wanted to back out and withdraw his bid.

He only wanted to deplete Chen Chusheng's team's firepower to raise the price. After all, their firepower was likely greater than theirs, and they had plenty of room to continue bidding. Who would have thought that they would give up at the crucial moment, allowing Wang Yaoqing to shoot himself in the foot.

Aside from one instance in the first season of "The Big Bang Theory," the production team generally does not allow bidders to back out after winning an auction.

However, rules are rules, but people are flexible. While it is not allowed in principle, the final interpretation of the "principle" belongs to the production team.

Just as Qi Sijun was about to refuse Wang Yaoqing's request to cut it all out and start over, a staff member suddenly ran over and whispered something in his ear. A strange look flashed across his face, then he nodded. After the staff member left, he said to his brothers:

“Brother Wang Yaoqing, in principle, the transaction is completed after the hammer falls, but if you don’t actually want this song but just want the effect, then with the consent of the other brothers, we will start the auction for this song again.”

The production crew had already given hints, so what was there to hesitate about? Unsurprisingly, everyone present nodded in agreement, and the bird's nest was put back up for auction.

Wang Yaoqing then sat back down with satisfaction, glancing at Chen Chusheng's group before taking his seat.

So what if they try to sabotage him with underhanded tactics? The production team will still side with him.

Yu Yu didn't care what the other party was subtly gloating about. When the price was raised again, he raised his hand and shouted, "0".

"What is 0? Can you start bidding from 0?" Guan Zhibin hadn't expected this kind of operation.

"I didn't say no." Yu Yu shrugged and turned to Lin Zhiying's group. "Brother Zhiying, it's your turn."

If they had started with 10, after what Wang Yaoqing did, the other teams might not have continued to raise the price. But if they wanted to get "Bird's Nest" for free, it would have made Lin Zhiying's group, who also wanted the song, feel a bit tempted and uneasy.

Lin Zhiying hesitated for a moment, then tentatively asked, "10?"

"Alright, how could we not give face if Brother Xiaozhi personally offered the price? 'Bird's Nest' is yours!" Yu Yu clapped.

Chen Chusheng, Wang Yuexin, and He Zhancheng also clapped. Chen Chusheng, the team leader, hadn't participated at all during the bidding, completely letting Yu Yu and Wang Yuexin, who were good at game theory, do their own thing. Now, however, he was clapping enthusiastically, with a bright smile, as if he was very happy and proud to have two such smart brothers.

Now that others can confirm that Chen Chusheng's group really doesn't want the song "Bird's Nest," what are they going to choose?

"Wow, Wang Yuexin, you were just so confident that you wanted 'Bird's Nest'?" Shell felt that Wang Yuexin had hurt his feelings for his late-night snack buddy. "You're such a good actor."

Wang Yuexin curled her lip smugly and said, "Well, look, he's an actor who's acted before, okay?"