The answers on the answer board were all correct, so the points were directly added.
After calculating the scores, Zhao Jiamo clapped the quiz card in his hand and cleared his throat, saying, “It’s the fourth question now.”
“This question is also directed at both sides. Write down your own answer above and your partner’s intuitive response below.”
“So, the question is—Who do you chat with most frequently on your messaging app?”
While asking the question, the director added, “If it’s someone outside the circle and you can’t reveal it, you can use a pseudonym.”
Qiao Huaiyao pondered this question.
While he did have a group and occasionally contacted his roommates, the person he chatted with the most should be Bai Jinyan.
But… who did his brother chat with the most?
His assistant?
Or someone in the entertainment industry?
Perhaps Bai Jinyan’s mother, Auntie Meng?
Qiao Huaiyao couldn’t come up with an answer in the moment.
“Three, two…”
Seeing the director starting the countdown, Qiao Huaiyao simply wrote down his own name. He had been chatting quite frequently with Bai Jinyan recently.
Zhao Jiamo said, “Alright! Let’s reveal your answers.”
The answers matched.
Qiao Huaiyao sighed in relief, “I almost wrote down Director Zhao Jiamo.”
After all, this involved show content, and Bai Jinyan should have coordinated with the director beforehand.
Zhao Jiamo raised an eyebrow, “What? You were going to write me? Do you know how your brother talks to me?”
“Hmm?” Qiao Huaiyao understood the hidden meaning in his words, but from the tone of the director’s voice, it seemed he wasn’t too happy about it.
Nevertheless, the situation had already unfolded. Zhao Jiamo took out his phone directly, saying, “Come on, let’s show everyone.”
He opened the chat history with Bai Jinyan.
Zhao Jiamo sent a message, and after an hour, Bai Jinyan replied with [” . “] (ellipsis).
Scrolling upwards, Zhao Jiamo exclaimed in frustration, “He didn’t even reply with a period!”
The live chat caught this moment, and bullet comments started pouring in.
[“Laughed so hard, Director, don’t be upset. It’s probably because you and Brother Bai are too close.”]
[“I thought they knew each other before joining the entertainment industry. It’s normal for good friends to do this.”]
[“This fits Bai Jinyan’s character. Well done, his image is stable.”]
[“True, his replies are time-efficient, but it’s a bit wasteful of friendship.”]
…
Bai Jinyan remained unfazed, his tone casual as he said, “It’s the assistant who replied.”
Qiao Huaiyao blinked, looking surprised at Bai Jinyan. The assistant replied to messages, then who were those that he had been chatting with—
Before he could say anything, Bai Jinyan clarified, “It’s not him.”
The words Qiao Huaiyao was about to ask froze on his lips. Faced with Bai Jinyan’s earnest explanation, he burst into light laughter. But sensing the situation and the scene, he tried to suppress his smile.
Zhao Jiamo’s mind was buzzing from Bai Jinyan’s words.
Despite experiencing Bai Jinyan’s tenacity when negotiating contracts, he understood how much Bai Jinyan valued Qiao Huaiyao.
Replying to a chat message was perfectly normal. It’s just that he hadn’t expected that with his family background, he still didn’t have that kind of prestige.
Zhao Jiamo sighed, put his phone away, and moved on from these thoughts, continuing with the next question, “The fifth question. This question is connected to the previous one.”
“So, tell me, who do you think is the recent person your family member has been chatting with the most?”
Zhao Jiamo knew he had messaged Qiao Huaiyao, so he added, “I don’t count. I’m just notifying about the game time. Other than me, who have you been contacting recently?”
Qiao Huaiyao raised half of his eyebrow playfully. This question… he silently looked at Bai Jinyan.
Seeing his reaction, Zhao Jiamo said, “Hey, no communication. Write your own answer.”
Qiao Huaiyao chuckled lightly, not needing much thought. He calmly wrote down his and Bai Jinyan’s names. It was quite coincidental, they had been chatting with each other recently. Just before, in fact.
As the answer boards flipped, Zhao Jiamo was left bewildered, “Both of you… You’re not sharing a twin room, are you? There’s only about ten centimeters between your beds, and even less than fifteen centimeters. You still need to message each other on a chat app?”
“I need to confirm this.” Zhao Jiamo couldn’t be certain. It just seemed highly unlikely. In such a small space, where would you not be able to just call out to the other person instead of sending a message?
Qiao Huaiyao recalled his chat history with Bai Jinyan. Most of the messages were images and emojis. He opened the chat window and showed it to Zhao Jiamo, saying, “Here.”
Zhao Jiamo leaned over, looking closely. “Wow… it’s true.”
Looking at Bai Jinyan’s side, he had mostly retained the chat with Qiao Huaiyao, and there were no other recent contacts listed. Upon closer inspection, Zhao Jiamo noticed something odd. It seemed to be a different account. There was no overt issue with it, but it hadn’t escaped the scrutiny of the live stream viewers.
[“Hahaha, did you all see the profile pictures above? There’s no time stamps, which means Bai Jinyan replies instantly.”]
[“‘Assistant replied’ and ‘It’s not him.'”]
[“Bai Jinyan’s sending head pats in secret chats! It’s really hard to notice.”]
[“Calm down, those are for Qiao Qiao. The ellipsis is the only thing the assistant sends.”]
[“Hey, look at their profile pictures. One is a roasted fish and the other… a glass teapot with a lemon?”]
[“They look so familiar. I feel like I’ve seen them somewhere.”]
[“Wait a minute! Aren’t these the roasted fish and Qiao Qiao’s lemon tea from the open-air barbecue in the afternoon?!”]
[“Partner, matching, profile, pictures! The fans are having a field day!”]
…
Zhao Jiamo grumbled, “The answers to the fifth question match, one point each.”
“The game is over, you earned a hundred points for the quiz, plus an extra thirty-five points. Your total score is temporarily ranked first.”
Saying it’s temporary, Zhao Jiamo felt it would be quite challenging for anyone to surpass this score.
“Thank you both for your hard work during the joint recording tonight,” Zhao Jiamo got up and said, “You can go back and rest now.”
Qiao Huaiyao said, “Thank you, Director.”
Zhao Jiamo sighed dramatically, feigning wiping a tear, “It’s not hard. Life’s hard.”
Although he said so, Zhao Jiamo was just making a small joke. “Knock on the wall next door when you go upstairs. The next group is there, so I won’t send them a text.”
Qiao Huaiyao agreed, “Alright.”
After half an hour of busyness, compared to the recording work, getting up at night to participate in the recording was the most demanding. Qiao Huaiyao stretched lazily.
It was almost eleven o’clock, and he had just woken up. Yet, he wasn’t really feeling sleepy. This time of night was somewhat awkward. Changing into his sleepwear, he thought about finding a textbook from his major to pass the time.
Bai Jinyan came over and handed him a glass of milk, saying, “Drink this.”
When they lived together, Bai Jinyan would always prepare milk for him before bed. Qiao Huaiyao was used to it, so he took the glass and took a sip of milk.
But then he paused, “Um…” He belatedly remembered that he wasn’t allowed to eat his own snacks during the recording. Milk probably fell into the same category. Although there were no camera teachers present at the moment, it still counted as recording time.
“It’s fine,” Bai Jinyan seemed to sense Qiao Huaiyao’s concern and casually said, “Zhao Jiamo said that kids aren’t bound by this rule.”