Knowing the rules was already a major bug in Qin He's mind.
She took a small step to the side, widening the distance between herself and Zhang Caiyu.
Zhang Caiyu didn't notice this detail and whispered to Qin He, "The staff will be here in a moment, and the first competition will begin. It's meant to be a surprise, and it will directly eliminate over a hundred people down to fifty-two."
After speaking, she looked at Qin He with some pride, "Did you expect it to be this brutal? Because of you this time, the entire internet's anticipation is very high, and the traffic is enormous. So, the program team has invested a considerable amount of funds in the organizing committee, and correspondingly, the pressure has increased. The media needs these gimmicks to attract more viewers."
Qin He was a little surprised, "You seem to know a lot about these things."
"I don't know too much, just that after being in society for a long time, you need to know a bit about everything to get by."
Zhang Caiyu smiled, then looked at Qin He with feigned concern, "Miss Qin, if you can just get through this round, it's equivalent to entering the rankings. Some moderately famous perfumers find it difficult to even enter the top fifty in such a grand competition."
Qin He smiled and nodded.
Seeing Qin He's lukewarm attitude, Zhang Caiyu cursed inwardly: "What's so arrogant about you? Just because you have a good family background? You won't even pass this round anyway!"
When Zhang Caiyu saw that Qin He was no longer paying attention to her, she stood there with her pride and didn't bother to engage further.
However, the girls around were still chattering and whispering about Zhang Caiyu. Zhang Caiyu, already annoyed by Qin He's presence, immediately turned and started arguing with that girl.
The girl, unable to argue back, was berated by Zhang Caiyu, her finger pointed at her nose.
"If you don't have the ability, don't talk nonsense. You say I can't come back to participate in the competition. The organizing committee has no such rule. When you enter society later, are you also afraid to compete with your seniors? Do you think society is your mother, who will always let you have your way?"
Zhang Caiyu's words were harsh, but they had some truth to them. The people around them fell silent. The girl couldn't help but sob.
Qin He's eyes showed a hint of mockery.
Zhang Caiyu's words sounded reasonable, but in reality, she had already obtained the competition rules.
This was the most unfair part.
Someone wanted to speak up for the girl but was glared back by Zhang Caiyu.
Fortunately, the organizing committee members soon arrived. The staff who arrived first looked at everyone.
"Everyone, please be quiet for a moment."
The staff member smiled at everyone.
"First, I will introduce a few people to you."
The staff member pointed to several cars parked nearby.
Someone stepped forward and invited a middle-aged man, who looked about forty or fifty years old, out of the first car. The man wore a plaid baseball cap and had a benevolent look on his face.
The staff member smiled, "This is our chief director for this live broadcast."
Next was the chief director's speech, which was about which platforms the live broadcast would be on, that it would be broadcast live throughout, and that everyone should pay attention to their image, and so on.
After introducing the chief director, the staff member then introduced several judges from the organizing committee.
These judges were all big names in the industry, not on the same level as Zhang Caiyu at all.
Qin He now had a rough idea of the judges' lineup. It seemed unlikely that Zhang Caiyu could sway all the judges to her side, even if she wanted to pull strings.
After the judges were introduced, the sponsors were the grand finale.
The staff member smiled, "There are four sponsors for this perfume competition. Now, we will invite them one by one and sincerely thank them for their investment in this competition."
Qin He's heart skipped a beat. Her gaze fell on one of the cars. That car looked ordinary, but the subtle patterns on its body faintly revealed a "Gu" character, which was the Gu family's crest.
"The first to appear is Qian Group from Jiangcheng. The representative from Qian Group is Mr. Qian Zimo, the General Manager of Qian Group."
Qin He's thoughts were pulled back. Several young girls around her exclaimed in low voices.
"Qian Zimo is the eldest young master of the Qian family."
"I heard that Qian Zimo is also the Qian family's only son. If you could date him, that would be truly—"
"Rich and handsome, but unfortunately not healthy."
A girl from Jiangcheng whispered, "I heard Qian Zimo is sickly. He's been unhealthy since he was a child. Would you be willing to marry him? He's so ill, he might not even be able to satisfy you in certain 'bedtime' activities."
Qin He couldn't help but chuckle at this remark. This was exactly what Di Shishi and Qian Zimo should hear. The former would probably gloat and laugh heartily, while the latter would be extremely angered.
She smiled with her eyes curved and looked up to meet Qian Zimo's gaze. Sometime when she didn't know, this young master had already walked up to her, a gentle smile on his face.
"What is this contestant smiling about?"
Qin He's expression turned serious. Qian Zimo was pretending not to know her.
That was right. Their relationship really couldn't be known to outsiders.
Qin He replied politely, "Mr. Qian, I just remembered a joke."
"Oh? What joke? Tell me when you have time." Qian Zimo said with a smile.
Qin He heard faint voices of girls behind her.
"Young Master Qian is so gentle too."
Gentle, my foot, Qin He muttered inwardly and looked up at Qian Zimo.
The scoundrel today looked completely different from the healthy and shrewd appearance he had at the restaurant yesterday.
He was wearing a light white suit today, his hair slicked back without any hair wax. His soft hair, combined with his harmless face, made him look like a handsome young scholar from an ancient painting when he smiled gently.
He appeared gentle and harmless, and his frail physique made one lament the unfairness of fate.
Yesterday, Di Shishi was right in her criticism, Qin He thought to herself.
Fortunately, Qian Zimo didn't make things difficult for her for too long. After talking with Qin He, he turned and walked to the staff members. He gave a long speech, probably about how the Qian family was very optimistic about the future of perfumes, and wished everyone a promising future. In short, it was all pointless platitudes, and Qin He was tired of listening.
As Qin He stood lazily in place, others' gazes also frequently fell on her.
"Why was Young Master Qian talking to her alone? Do they know each other?"
"Of course not. But even if they don't know each other, they must have seen photos or something, right? After all, Qin He is very famous online, and Young Master Qian is the only son of the number one wealthy family in Jiangcheng."
"Alas, fairy tales are indeed deceptive. Princes usually end up with princesses."
"How realistic are wealthy families nowadays? How many princes are willing to find a Cinderella? It's always about a strong alliance. I think Qian Zimo might be interested in Qin He."