While Guan Yu was swearing, Chuchu had already swum over to Cheng Zhirang, splashed twice, and "snatched" the last transparent ball.
Zhang Li and the others sighed heavily in disappointment.
She stayed there without leaving, flipping the ball over and over to inspect it, mumbling to herself as she tilted her head to look at the slip of paper inside.
"It’s a face powder!"
Cheng Zhirang didn’t even blink, playing with the turtle pig in his hand, nodding politely and distantly to her, indicating everyone got the point.
Since the ball was snatched, the result of the bet was already clearly visible.
Li Yang painfully calculated the number of points Lin Lian could receive: "My five points, Brother Huai’s three points, Zhang Li and Xu Cheng each five points, Brother Cheng’s ten points... Lin Lian, you earned a fortune with the least points!"
Lin Lian was in a good mood: "Thanks for letting me win."
"My five points..." Li Yang was still heartbroken, but when he turned his head to see Cheng Zhirang, the pain seemed bearable, "But then I think about Brother Cheng having to give away ten points, and I feel much better."
"What ten points?"
Mu Qiu and her group happened to walk past the poolside, overhearing his mumbling.
Shu Ran asked again: "What did you say about ten points?"
"Brother Cheng bet ten points on Mu Qiu and lost."
Mu Qiu immediately stood straight, staring at Cheng Zhirang with a "you’re such a squanderer" expression.
"Ten points, just given away like that? You should’ve told me you bet on me, I would’ve struggled a bit more."
Cheng Zhirang supported himself on the pool edge and sat up, gently helping her sit down, saying softly: "It’s better this way, tired from playing for so long, besides snatching that ball doesn’t matter."
Mu Qiu sat down, still looking pained, asked him: "Lost to whom? Who had such good foresight to bet on Chuchu?"
"Lin Lian."
Mu Qiu: "...Well done! That ten-point bet was really worth it! Benefiting the people and driving development!"
Cheng Zhirang chuckled.
She leaned closer and whispered: "You can’t split the lost ten points with Bai Shu and the others."
He pinched her hand: "Don’t worry, I have arrangements."
Over here, Chuchu had just learned that it was Lin Lian who bet on her.
She chatted away with Lin Lian, smiling as sweetly as possible, waving that transparent ball around, appearing both youthful and charming.
Unfortunately, Lin Lian wasn’t much of a talker, responding in concise words, answering two questions at once without splitting them.
Chuchu asked: "Why did you think to bet on me, Lin Lian? Did you think I could snatch the ball?"
Lin Lian: "Yes."
Chuchu: "Can I exchange the ball with you? I want to swap for a makeup remover, is it with you? Our group, Sister Guan Yu, hasn’t removed her makeup yet."
Lin Lian: "It’s not with me."
Chuchu: "Oh. How many points did you bet on me?"
Lin Lian: "Two points."
Chuchu: "...Two points?"
Lin Lian finally elaborated a bit: "Yes. I have a teammate, and before getting Sister Mu Qiu’s permission, I can’t use too many points."
The explanation was oddly similar to Shi Yuhuai’s.
However, the treatment of the two was completely different.
Shi Yuhuai was still enduring Guan Yu’s nagging, trying to cover his ears while she pried his hands away to continue scolding.
"Brother Huai, you’ve let me down; I was only worth three points. You don’t know I was planning to give it my all for you!"
Shi Yuhuai: "I don’t want to know."
"... You must know! I was exhausted but was still thinking of working hard for your trust, which was only worth three points! Three points! Look at Li Yang, they each bet five points!"
Shi Yuhuai: "No worries, Lin Lian only bet two points on Chuchu."
"... Do I need to compare myself to others?! Lin Lian is Lin Lian, you are you!"
Shi Yuhuai: ... So annoying, first comparing him to Li Yang, and now saying no comparison, a woman’s heart is inscrutable.
He sighed speechlessly, deciding to avoid this topic, changing the subject: "Didn’t you get the ball? Hurry and remove your makeup."
Guan Yu widened her eyes: "You think I’m ugly, don’t you?! In issues of trust, you only cared about my face!"
"..." He had to be truthful now, "Yes, you’re ugly to me."
Then he suffered a merciless beating from Guan Yu.
Shu Ran watched the scene beside them, unable to hide the satisfaction on her face.
Mu Qiu glanced occasionally, feeling sympathetic.
"Brother Huai is having a tough time."
Cheng Zhirang responded with an "Hmm," passing the turtle pig in his hand to her and called Zhang Li.
"Have you decided on the exchange with me?"
Zhang Li told Chuchu and Guan Yu about the bartering deal, received their consent, and eagerly took the face powder ball Chuchu snatched to exchange with Shi Yuhuai for an eyeshadow palette, then handed the eyeshadow ball to Cheng Zhirang.
"The eyeshadow palette you wanted, Brother Cheng."
Cheng Zhirang quietly explained to Mu Qiu in a couple of sentences, handed the makeup remover ball from his lap to Zhang Li, and took the eyeshadow ball.
"Money in one hand, goods in the other, deal done."
Zhang Li suddenly felt like he’d sold a child he’d raised, reluctantly handed the makeup remover ball to Guan Yu.
"Sister Guan Yu, go remove your makeup."
Guan Yu kissed the ball fiercely, gave Zhang Li a thumbs up: "You’re such a good person! I love teammates like you!"
Finished speaking, she held the ball aloft and jumped back into the pool, rushing towards the director.
"Makeup removal! Hurry! Makeup removal!"
Shi Yuhuai climbed out of the pool and sat down: "Finally getting the makeup off."
What’s with the relieved tone? Mu Qiu teased: "Be careful Sister Guan Yu hears that and turns around."
Shi Yuhuai shut up.
Li Yang sat nearby, hugging the precious ball, asked everyone: "No need to snatch anymore, right? Is the game over?"
Mu Qiu countered him: "Do you still want to snatch?"
He grimaced: "I’m tired. You don’t know how miserable it was being dragged around by Brother Cheng, I don’t want to go through it again."
"Of course, I know how miserable you were; I heard your scream loud and clear when Sister Guan Yu dragged you."
Li Yang: "...Shut up! Stop imagining!"
"Hahahahahahahahahaha!"
When Guan Yu returned after removing her makeup, humming a tune, everyone was out of the pool.
Guan Yu: "Is it over?"
Li Yang: "It’s over. Finally over."
Mu Qiu took the towel handed by the staff to dry her hair, saying: "His burning heart is getting cooled down."
Cheng Zhirang asked the staff for an extra large towel to drape over her, wiped her body, then let her wear it.
They seemed unwilling to continue, unofficially ending the game, staring at the director.
The director lifted the megaphone and asked: "You guys don’t want to play anymore? No one has spent sixty points yet, the game can continue."
"You want us to spend sixty points?! Counting five points at a time, that would mean falling into the water twelve times!" Shu Ran accused while drying her hair.
Shi Yuhuai couldn’t help but retort: "Do you think you haven’t gotten wet enough times?"
Shu Ran turned to glare at him: "Do you have to speak to prove you’re not mute?!"