Chapter 206 In His Heart and Eyes, There Is Only Her
Candice knew Vesper well enough to see right through what she was thinking.
But she couldn't be bothered to pay her any attention.
Ulysses also treated Vesper like she was invisible, completely ignoring her.
Pearl and the others, however, curiously asked Ulysses, "I'm really curious too, Uly, how did you guys do today?"
Ulysses was willing to give face to the others.
He answered honestly, spreading his hands and saying, "We didn't make any money."
"How is that possible?"
Everyone looked surprised, finding it hard to believe that Ulysses hadn't made any money.
Sawyer, who was closer to Ulysses, joked, "Don't tell me you didn't do the task and just took your sister sightseeing around the village?"
Ulysses put his arm around his shoulder, laughing as he said, "Do I look like someone who slacks off? We did the task in the morning, but in the afternoon, we were indeed drinking coffee and admiring ceramic collections."
At this, the others laughed, "Really? Didn't you say you could go hungry yourself, but couldn't let your sister go hungry?"
Hearing this, Vesper's pride was practically overflowing.
They really were first in their group!
She felt that her loving interactions with fans on site today had gone well, and this would definitely gain her more followers.
As long as she performed well next, she might even win over Uly's fans.
That was her real goal this time!
Xavier's fans as a small-time idol were ultimately unstable.
Even one small flaw could make many fans leave.
But Uly's fans as a superstar were the most stable.
His fans were almost all die-hard supporters.
If she could ride on Uly's popularity, her status would definitely rise to a new level.
Vesper desperately needed popularity right now.
As for Candice, she was just an orphan who somehow got to know Uly by chance and got him to be her brother.
If she could also get him to be her brother, wouldn't she have access to any resources she wanted?
Thinking this, Vesper said in a soft, affected voice, "It's okay if you didn't make money, Uly. The moment I saw you, I felt like you were my brother. Our side made a lot of money, and we bought plenty of food on the way back. Our two groups can cook together later."
Hearing her words, Candice's brow furrowed immediately, her displeasure almost becoming tangible.
Vesper was truly disgusting.
Ulysses was her brother. What did Vesper mean by trying to get close like that?
Ulysses was obviously disgusted too, his tone cold as he said, "No need. And I only have one sister, and that's Candice!"
The distaste in his tone was barely concealed.
Vesper's expression became somewhat awkward.
She instinctively explained, "Sorry, I just thought this way I could help you."
Uly's tone was flat, "I don't think we're that close."
Vesper's expression stiffened, becoming more awkward and a bit at a loss. She said, "I'm sorry, I just thought since we got first place today, I wanted to share the food with you guys!"
When she said this, Xavier's fans online started getting upset.
Although they had earned three hundred dollars today, basically all the work was done by Xavier.
Whether it was dancing or performing with instruments, he was the one working hard.
Vesper made it sound nice, saying she was singing.
But her singing was barely on key, with no emotion whatsoever.
Plus, she didn't sing for long before she started slacking off to avoid the sun.
Now, she was being so generous, acting like the host, as if the money was all hers.
Many people were criticizing her.
[Why does she seem to be playing the victim?]
[Vesper is kind of funny, actually claiming first place. If Uly and Candice say they're first for today's task, no one should object, right?]
[No objections!]
[Great, my secondhand embarrassment is acting up again.]
[I'm already embarrassed for her!]
[Hilarious, does she think she can just cozy up to Uly like that? Got shut down by Uly, didn't she?]
[But there's nothing really wrong with what she said, right? Uly being so harsh is a bit disrespectful to the girl.]
[Uly's sister is right there, and Vesper is openly trying to take her place. What's Candice supposed to think? Pearl is younger than Uly, too, but we don't see her sucking up to Uly like that. Two-faced is two-faced, but some fans still won't admit it.]
While everyone was discussing, Ulysses was still shutting down Vesper.
The mockery in his eyes became more obvious, "You're that sure your group got first place?"
Vesper paused, then smiled and said, "Isn't it obvious?"
Ulysses scoffed, "People should be more humble."
Vesper couldn't quite figure out his attitude.
She felt there was nothing wrong with what she said.
Perhaps Uly was upset about losing to them, his pride getting in the way, making him a bit defiant?
But it made sense that Uly would be unhappy!
After all, his status was special. He'd always been someone others looked up to in the industry. Rarely performing this poorly, he must feel embarrassed.
However, just as she was thinking this, the other crew members on site were looking at her with strange expressions.
Vesper was confused by these looks.
The other guests also seemed to sense something was off.
But before they could think it through, the production team came to announce the results.
"First, we'll announce starting from second place. Let's congratulate Phaedra and her mom. Although they didn't make much money today, they performed classic songs, which counts as promoting traditional song culture! They completed the hidden task of promoting traditional culture-related content."
"Third place goes to Sawyer's group! Although they went fruit picking, in the afternoon at the fruit farmer's house, after lunch, they helped the family make paper-cuts."
"Paper-cutting is one of the traditional folk arts with a long history, also related to our variety show's theme. Plus, they made quite a bit of money, so they rank higher!"
"Next is Pearl. They made handmade umbrellas. Although they were just small handmade umbrellas, the craft of handmade umbrellas is also part of traditional culture! It's also related to the hidden task! But they made less money, so they rank lower!"
This announcement from the production team was unexpected for all three teams.
They had thought they were sure to lose.
Unexpectedly, things turned around.
They actually got such high rankings. Everyone immediately became happy.
Vesper, nearby suddenly felt something was wrong.
There was a hidden task?
She frowned slightly, then thought again, no matter what, their group couldn't possibly lose to Candice, right?
After all, they made the most money!
However, just as Vesper was feeling extremely confident, the production team began announcing fifth place.
When the staff's eyes fell on her, Vesper had a bad feeling for some reason.
She heard the production team announce, "Xavier's team gets fifth place in this round! Also, the last place!"
Vesper looked incredulous, almost blurting out, "Why? How can we be last?"
People from the other teams on site were also surprised.
"It's not Uly's team in last place?"
Everyone was confused.
So Vance spoke up, "Although Xavier's team had high earnings today, when you were doing the task, it completely didn't align with our variety show's concept."
Vesper couldn't hear the rest.
She couldn't accept that she actually lost to Candice, and with a last-place result!
She couldn't help asking, "Then did their task align with it?"
Because her jealous emotions were somewhat out of control, Vesper's tone was a bit aggressive when she said this.
Candice looked coldly at Vesper, her expression calm.
She knew very well why Vesper was so agitated, she simply couldn't accept losing.
Not far away, Brandon was also watching this scene, his brow furrowed.
He naturally saw Vesper's behavior too.
He hadn't paid much attention before and hadn't noticed that Vesper was so detestable.
Now, watching Vesper's expression, he suddenly felt disgusted!
Finnian was also complaining nearby, saying, "Brandon, when Aunt Brielle wanted Vesper to marry you before and you refused, that was truly a very wise choice!"
"Shut up!"
Brandon frowned, his tone stern as he clarified, "I have absolutely nothing to do with her!"
Seeing his expression so serious, Finnian didn't dare tease anymore and immediately changed to flattery, "Yes, you only like Candice now, she's the only one in your eyes, other women can't catch your attention."