Miss Cousin is Always Busy

MCAB – Chapter 161

Jun Zishu’s current body was very flexible. Although the original owner had never received any professional training in dancing, she had danced a little when she was in school, and she also paid close attention to her physical training. So, Jun Zishu had no problem executing both front and side splits.

After snapping out of her daze, Yu Fanshu also did both splits easily.

When it was the boys’ turn, all three managed to do front splits, but only Jiu Xi managed to do a side split. Jiu Xi had long legs, so he didn’t even flinch when he did the side split.

“Wow, isn’t your flexibility unreal?” Lemon exclaimed as he pulled Jiu Xi up by the waist.

Meanwhile, Jun Zishu noticed the expression Lemon made out of the camera’s view, so she couldn’t help but grow a little interested.

Millie had said to do side splits, so Tang Tongtong and Lemon had failed the round, and both of them had to retract a finger.

When it was Jun Zishu’s turn, everyone else self-consciously retracted one of their fingers after she casually said the following three words:

“I can cook.”

It was a feat that nobody else present dared to challenge.

Following Jun Zishu, Yu Fanshu smiled and said, “I became a Film Empress before.”

“We retract in respect.”

Everyone apart from Yu Fanshu retracted one of their fingers.

Although Tang Tongtong was an actor, he mainly played in idol dramas aimed toward a younger crowd. Whether it was his acting skills or popularity, he was nowhere close to winning a Film Emperor title yet. As for Lemon and Jiu Xi, the two of them were members of boy bands. They hadn’t starred in any movies yet, so they were even further away from the title of Film Emperor.

“I worked as a volunteer in Africa,” Tang Tongtong said, his words instantly attracting everyone’s attention. Then, he explained, “There was once an epidemic outbreak there. My aunt worked as a medical volunteer there. My aunt has a huge influence on me, so I signed up for volunteer activities there as well.”

“Awesome!”

Everyone applauded in praise.

Although Tang Tongtong had described his decision nonchalantly, everyone knew that he must’ve taken a lot of risks to go through with such a decision.

After the first round ended, Jiu Xi still had seven fingers extended, the most among them. Meanwhile, Lemon and Millie only had five remaining, and Jun Zishu, Yu Fanshu, and Tang Tongtong had six remaining.

“Wow, I actually have the least!”

Lemon was shocked. He had initially thought that he would be the winner.

“It’s your turn again. Go ahead.”

“Hmm, let me think…” Lemon said with a pondering look. Then, he said, “I know ventriloquism.”

“Ventriloquism? The kind that was mentioned in our high school textbook?”

“Yes.”

“Come, come, come! Give us a show! I didn’t think you would have such a skill hidden!” Millie said.

Ventriloquism was an art that typically only old artists could do, and young people nowadays have rarely seen it being performed. If it wasn’t part of a classical text that they needed to learn during high school, many people wouldn’t even know what ventriloquism was.

Jiu Xi also turned toward Lemon. Lemon would wear a carefree look on his face most of the time. At this moment, however, he had put aside his frivolous behavior and put on a serious expression.

A moment later, the sound of a singing bird came out of Lemon’s mouth. If everyone wasn’t watching him perform in person, they would’ve thought that the sound was actually pre-recorded and being played from a device.[1]

“Amazing!”

“No, no. I only learned a tad bit from my grandfather,” Lemon said, his expression looking a little down when he finished speaking.

Seeing this, Jiu Xi hesitated for a moment before placing a hand on Lemon’s shoulder.

“It’s your turn, Jiu Xi.”

“I know how to play the leaf.”

“Wow.” Lemon whistled, behaving improperly.

“Everyone’s so talented nowadays. It’s tough to stand out without learning a few special skills,” Jiu Xi said, shrugging.

The TV crew had long since prepared a clean leaf for Jiu Xi. As soon as Jiu Xi finished speaking, a crew member promptly placed the leaf in front of him.

A melodic tune quickly filled the living room when Jiu Xi started his performance. Although nobody knew what song he was playing, it sounded quite pleasant to the ear.

“I lost, I lost,” Tang Tongtong said in surrender.

“Ahhh!!! I only have three lives left!” Lemon exclaimed, suddenly realizing the severity of the situation.

“Ah, me too!”

Millie wore a frantic look on her face. Moreover, it was her turn next.

“I can break an apple in half with my bare hands,” Millie said. She couldn’t really think of anything else she could do that the others present couldn’t.

“Are you giving us a free point? I didn’t take you for such a nice person.”

“Do you think I want to do that? I really can’t recall any special skills I have!” Millie said with a tearful expression.

Afterward, the crew member brought six apples to the coffee table, and Millie twisted one into two halves in the blink of an eye. Then, she stuffed one half to her partner Tang Tongtong while taking a bite out of the other half.

Unsurprisingly, all three boys managed to replicate Millie’s feat. Jun Zishu, however, couldn’t do it, and Yu Fanshu also shook her head.

Next was Yu Fanshu’s turn. Although she didn’t want to show off, she couldn’t think of anything else to say, so she said, “Hmm… I graduated from MIT Sloan School of Management with a master’s degree. Does that count?”

“Wow! An academic tyrant!”

Most of the people in the entertainment industry weren’t scholars. Some even had below-average grades in school. Yu Fanshu was a true winner in life with how many fields she was talented in and her family background.

“I think it might be a big loss for the business circle for you to work as an actor, Goddess,” Millie said.

“I only chose what I like,” Yu Fanshu said with a light smile. In reality, she was more than capable of returning to the business circle. However, there was her father and her elder brother to manage her family’s business. Her parents didn’t want her to exert herself, either.

When it was Jun Zishu’s turn, she said, “Let’s see… What else can I do? Does sword dancing count?”

“Am I surrounded by bigshots?” Millie asked in exasperation. While she was aware that there was such a segment in the show, none of them knew what each other was going to say. So, this was her first time hearing about what everyone was capable of. Meanwhile, each subsequent revelation was more shocking than the other.

The original Jun Ling naturally didn’t know how to sword dance. However, Jun Zishu knew how to.

In the first world Jun Zishu transmigrated to, her elder cousin was a little general who loved to dance with swords and spears. She would play the guqin during those times while Ning Qinghuan would perform her dance. Although her memories of those times have been diluted, some of those memories remained in her mind.

Her little cousin general had also taught her how to sword dance, the other party guiding her through the movements by the hand one time after another. Jun Zishu had even gone out of her way to practice those movements again before lunch to relive those feelings.

“Give us a show! Give us a show!”

“Should I change my outfit to set the mood?” Jun Zishu asked as she pointed at the casualwear she wore.

“Sure.”

“But I don’t have any suitable clothes,” Jun Zishu said, realizing the flaw in her suggestion.

“We can prepare it for you,” the director interjected, to which everyone else nodded.

“We’ll assume you know how to do it for now, then. We’ll postpone this activity until after we decide who will do the dishes.”

“Okay.”

In reality, the clothes were already prepared in Jun Zishu’s room. However, after discussing it with the director, they decided to postpone the dance until after the game to avoid making it look like this activity was scripted.

“It’s your turn, Tongtong.”

“I’m under a lot of pressure right now. Let me think…” Tang Tongtong said, frowning as he racked his mind. “I climbed Mount Everest before.”

“Did you go all the way up?”

“No. My altitude sickness got too severe, so I had to withdraw halfway up. But at least I have climbed it partially.”

“You seem to have a rich life experience.”

“I used to love playing around and visiting places a lot in the past.”

When the second round was over, Millie had already lost. Lemon, Jun Zishu, and Yu Fanshu still had one life remaining, Tang Tongtong had two, and Jiu Xi had three.

“Fine, I’ll go do the dishes. Make sure to let me see your performance once I’m done.”

Millie’s words were directed to Jun Zishu, and Jun Zishu responded by gesturing an ‘OK.’

Yu Fanshu had watched Jun Zishu practice, so she wasn’t worried that Jun Zishu wouldn’t be able to live up to her words. Instead, she looked forward to Jun Zishu appearing before her in Hanfu.

…

With a prop sword in hand, Jun Zishu started executing the sword moves Ning Qinghuan had taught her when the music started playing. Although there were some gaps in her memories, Little Fairy had filled in those missing gaps for her.

Jun Zishu’s costume was a red dress. She gave off a heroic and vibrant image with her sharp eyebrows as she danced under the illumination of a stage light.

When the song ended, everyone applauded enthusiastically.

Meanwhile, today’s filming session also came to an end along with Jun Zishu’s dance. However, the guests still couldn’t leave since they needed to shoot the show’s next installment tomorrow morning.

They had always arrived on set close to noon thus far, so they had always filmed afternoon scenes. Meanwhile, the program’s third episode was designed to be the morning scene of the second day. So, the six of them needed to stay behind and shoot the first half of the third episode the next morning.

“As a couple, it is only right that you choose each other’s clothing and help each other dress up for the second morning,” Jun Zishu recited the contents of the card she received.

None of them had expected the TV crew to come up with such a game.

“I think this game is designed specifically to trouble me,” Tang Tongtong said as he turned toward Lemon and Jiu Xi. Then, he turned toward Millie and said, “…Millie, you mustn’t scold me if I ruin your hair tomorrow!”

Lemon and Jiu Xi were both men, so it was easy for them to set their hairstyles for each other. Clothing wasn’t a problem, either. Meanwhile, Jun Zishu and Yu Fanshu were both women, so it’d be simple for them to handle each other’s clothing and hairstyle as well. But Tang Tongtong and Millie…

“It’s fine. If we’re going to die, we’ll die together,” Millie said with a sweet smile, causing everyone to laugh.

When the camera stopped rolling, everyone more or less breathed out a sigh of relief.

Although the TV crew had arranged for everyone to spend the night with each other and resume filming the next morning, everyone was granted a lot of freedom in between.

For example, Tang Tongtong had promptly left the shooting venue after filming ended, while Jiu Xi and Lemon had promptly picked up their phones and started work-related conversations with their respective managers.

Unlike the boys, though, Jun Zishu, Yu Fanshu, and Millie weren’t as busy. After removing their makeup and reporting their situation to their respective managers, they didn’t have anything better to do.

…

After the TV crew packed up their equipment, they retired to the villa next door to rest. After ending their calls, Jiu Xi and Lemon had also retired to their room.

“Going on dates is a must-do to learn how to fall in love. So, let’s go out for a stroll under the stars,” Yu Fanshu suggested.

They were in a somewhat rural area, so the air here was clean, and one could see the stars in the sky. Jun Zishu had already planned to go out and take a look at the starry sky initially, so she nodded to Yu Fanshu’s suggestion without hesitation.

Afterward, the two of them held hands and walked out into the courtyard.

“Hm? Are you two going out on a date?”

Millie’s figure was hidden in a dark corner, and only the scarlet glow sandwiched between her fingers indicated her location.

“That’s right,” Jun Zishu said.

Yu Fanshu had originally wanted to refute Millie’s question out of consideration for Jun Zishu. However, she didn’t think Jun Zishu would openly admit their actions.

“Haven’t you smoked a lot today already?” Jun Zishu asked as she looked at the cigarette butts on the ground.

“I’m upset, so, of course, I need to do something that makes me happy. Have fun on your date.”

…

TL Notes:

[1]ventriloquism: I think the ventriloquism mentioned here is different from western ventriloquism. Here’s an example of the ventriloquism mentioned in this chapter:

Link: