Chapter 772: Chapter 771: Don’t Her Parents Care About Her?

Pei Wenda was surrounded by quite a crowd; everyone knew that “The Voice of the Best,” the show Lu Xinnuan was currently participating in, was the hottest talent show at the moment.

Lu Xinnuan had gone from obscurity to modest popularity, gaining quite a few fans along the way, and she was one of the dark horses in the competition, boasting both talent and popularity.

That day, Pei Wenda publicly promoted Lu Xinnuan and had also encouraged the other contestants in his program to pay attention to her. They had a good impression of Lu Xinnuan–sweet image, lovely singing voice, and she had formed an affectionate sibling bond with Pei Wenda.

So, they were all willing to chat with Lu Xinnuan for a bit, considering it a way to relax before the competition.

“Xinnuan,” Pei Wenda called out.

The group behind him also greeted her, “Hi!”

Lu Mian squinted slightly, gently retracting her gaze, and immersed herself in her own world with her phone, not joining the lively scene.

Lu Xinnuan smiled somewhat shyly at the other end, “Bro, are you in the rest area?”

“Yeah, these are all my friends, and I took the liberty of starting a video call with you. Are you busy now?”

“I’m fine, I’m practicing singing,” Lu Xinnuan said sweetly with a smile, “My brother’s friends are my friends too, you all have to do your best!”

The people immediately felt comforted and nodded repeatedly.

“Thank you, Xinnuan, and good luck to you too!”

“With your talent, you’re bound to win the championship!”

After a round of mutually complimentary banter, Pei Wenda looked up to see Lu Mian sitting alone in a corner, and he hesitated.

He was always a comprehensive person who liked to be in control, and he waved to Lu Mian.

“Come on over! Don’t be shy!”

Pei Wenda, at that moment, didn’t know the relationship between Lu Mian and Lu Xinnuan. Previously, the Pei family and the main branch of the Lu family had no interaction at all, basically no connection, so Pei Wenda just thought Lu Mian was reserved and too shy to come over, hence he warmly invited her.

Lu Mian lifted her eyelids slightly and realized that he was speaking to her.

“No need,” Lu Mian declined coldly.

The other contestants exchanged glances, knowing she was known for her sharp tongue, able to retort viciously, not even sparing the hosts. They had not expected that this wasn’t just for show; Lu Mian was indeed this aloof and arrogant in private.

She did have some talent, but she was too difficult to approach, giving off an air of arrogance.

But weren’t all those who remained in this competition prized talents?

“Forget it, it’s a buzzkill,” someone muttered.

Pei Wenda felt a bit awkward.

Lu Xinnuan across the screen inquired with concern, “Bro, what’s wrong?”

One of the male contestants replied, “We’re all here having a happy chat with you, but someone doesn’t want to join!”

Lu Xinnuan paused, “Is it… Lu Mian?”

“You’ve been watching the show too?” Pei Wenda, holding his phone, attempted to turn the camera toward Lu Mian.

Lu Mian seemed to notice and coated herself with a layer of hostility, got up from the sofa without expression, and left the room.

Pei Wenda felt even more awkward, “She really is quite the loner.”

Lu Xinnuan gave a slight smile, “Bro, it’s okay. You guys should get ready for the competition. I’m going to practice singing a bit more. When there’s a chance, I’ll come visit you all on set!”

The group of contestants instantly cheered up, especially welcoming her idea.

“Yeah, great, we’re looking forward to you coming!”

“You should just become our show’s cheerleading guest, everyone would love it! It’d be a surprise!”

“Then our show’s ratings are sure to skyrocket!”

Pei Wenda smiled and advised Lu Xinnuan on a few things to pay attention to before hanging up the phone. Looking at the ten contestants who remained around him, both male and female, he shook his head.

With a personality like Lu Mian’s, there was no way she could make it to the end.

So, there was no need to build a relationship.

—-

After leaving the resting room, Lu Mian asked a staff member and then headed to the restroom area.

She played with the water leisurely at the washbasin, washing her hands.

Inside the restroom, a few quiet discussions could be heard.

“Once the live show starts, don’t forget to give contestants number three and six extra close-up shots, especially when they’re competing onstage. Show more of them.”

“What about the others?” another person asked.

“Just give them some shots, that’s enough. There’s a lot of intricacies here; just follow the plan.”

“Alright, alright.”

Lu Mian overheard their conversation and thought about it for a moment.

Contestant number three seemed to be a girl named Zhai Qingtong, and number six was Pei Wenda, who had previously succeeded in challenging the show.

She found it uninteresting, turned off the tap, shook the water droplets off her hands, and leisurely made her way back.

After she left, the voices in the restroom continued.

“Make sure to tell the host in advance to ask Lu Mian a few more questions this time. Although she speaks rather coldly, the effect on the show is quite good, and some viewers really like her tough and reticent persona.”

“Got it.”

“This time Lu Mian is getting a bargain. She has no ties to the production team and hasn’t made any gestures of goodwill, yet she’s getting so much screen time. She would be laughing in her dreams.”

“Indeed, you could say she’s young and lacks social experience, but don’t her parents care about these things at all? They really don’t know how to play the game…”

One of them shook their head, sounding quite emotional: “Among the twelve contestants, whose family has shown any gestures?”

Another laughed mysteriously, “Just see who stays in the end, and you’ll roughly know, won’t you?”

“Hahaha, I’m too naive…”

A contestant like Lu Mian was destined to be cannon fodder for the production team.

The production team was merely making the most of her now, using her to generate hype.

—

Lu Mian was oblivious to all this. By the time she returned to the resting room, a staff member had already come to give instructions.

Upon hearing the door open and seeing it was Lu Mian, his expression became much colder.

“Before going onstage, don’t wander around. We have arrangements at any time here. It’s very troublesome if we can’t find people,” the staff member said.

Lu Mian responded with a cool “Hmm.”

In her mind, though, she was thinking that Yuanyuan was probably getting ready to watch the show by now.

—

Lu Mian was scheduled to be on a program tonight, and Xiao Jianli, after figuring out the broadcast time of “Extreme Brain,” had been waiting in front of the TV well in advance.

But just doing that wasn’t enough; after eating dinner early, he started calling each of his old buddies one by one.

He reached Buddy A.

“Hello, remember to watch ‘Extreme Brain’ tonight. My granddaughter-in-law is in it!”

Then he called Buddy B.

“Right, it’s on Wucheng Television Station. My granddaughter-in-law is definitely the best!”

He sent a voice message to Buddy C via a chat app.

“Eight o’clock, eight o’clock! How many times have I emphasized it? Don’t miss a single one!”

Mo Si brought over the teapot that the old man liked and placed it on the coffee table beforehand.

He also set out some seeds, fruits, and other snacks.

“Old Master, don’t you dislike these kinds of programs?”