Two days later, Yi Xing, carrying a travel bag, successfully boarded a flight to Jiangning City.
He sat in his assigned seat, looking at the seat in front of him.
Although his body was still on the plane, his mind had already wandered far away.
It wasn't until the plane landed again that he snapped back to reality, took a taxi with his belongings to the Broadcasting Building, and found a hotel nearby to stay.
Walking into the hotel, he saw a young man sitting on a nearby sofa, holding his phone and introducing himself into it.
It seemed he was also one of the applicants for tomorrow's program audition.
Yi Xing inadvertently glanced at him a few more times, as if to remember the appearance of his competitor, then went to the front desk and booked a room.
After checking in, he walked to his room with his bag.
As he passed the young man, the other person seemed to notice someone looking at him, raised his head, and their gazes met.
They both nodded slightly to each other as a greeting.
He entered the room, briefly tidied his luggage, and dumped all the computer and documents from his bag onto the bed.
He sorted out what he needed and put back what he didn't immediately use.
He opened his computer and continued playing past episodes of "Who is the Last Man Standing," noting down some knowledge he didn't understand.
He stayed in the room alone like this for a long time.
The sky outside gradually darkened, and soon only the light from the screen remained in the room.
He stretched, and touched his stomach, which was protesting.
He opened the door and left the hotel, finding a small restaurant nearby for dinner.
His two years abroad had made him deeply appreciate the vastness of culinary culture; no matter how small the restaurant, he could always finish every dish he ordered.
Yi Xing finished his meal feeling very satisfied, covering his mouth with his hand to politely burp.
He looked around at the other customers, and seeing no one staring at him, he pulled out a tissue from the side to wipe his hands and mouth, then stood up to pay and leave.
After returning to the hotel, he continued the afternoon's work until he felt a hint of drowsiness.
Then he washed up, turned off the lights, set his alarm, and fell asleep.
When he opened his eyes again, it was already eight o'clock the next morning.
He hastily scrambled out of bed and rushed into the bathroom.
With one hand, he picked up the toothbrush from the sink and brushed his teeth, while with the other, he slightly moistened his somewhat messy hair with water and vigorously pressed down the unruly strands.
With everything ready, he put the computer and documents from the book back into his bag, slung it over his shoulder, and headed to the adjacent Broadcasting Building.
He arrived at the audition venue according to the location provided in the text message.
Good heavens, there were so many people, an estimated twenty or thirty, making it look like a job fair.
Among the crowd, Yi Xing did not see the young man who was sitting on the sofa yesterday, pretending to audition.
He didn't know if he came too late or too early.
A staff member saw him and immediately walked over, asking, "Excuse me, are you here for the audition today?"
"Yes."
"What's your name?"
"Yi Xing."
"Please wait a moment, I'll check the list."
The staff member finished speaking and returned to his workstation, typing something on the keyboard.
After confirming, he stood in front of him again.
"You're here to audition as a contestant, right? Come with me this way."
Yi Xing followed behind the staff member and saw the person in front push open a door.
There were only a handful of people sitting inside.
And that young man was also there.
His heart settled down; it seemed there weren't too many competitors, at least far fewer than those outside.
"Is this the contestant audition area?"
"Yes, sit here for a while, I'll get you a form.
Fill in your relevant information on it, and then hand it to the interviewer."
The staff member was about to leave but was called back by Yi Xing, who turned to look at him.
"Okay, can I ask a question?"
"You can."
"What are those people outside auditioning for?"
"They are here to audition as audience members."
"Thank you."
"No problem, it's my job.
Do you have any other questions?"
"No."
While Yi Xing was still filling out the form, the door to the interview room suddenly opened.
Two people walked out, one dressed in casual clothes, and a woman in business attire, shouting to everyone present, "Next!"
His writing speed instantly increased significantly.
Those in front were particularly polite, all wanting the other to go first, and the woman was a bit impatient, urging, "Hurry up!"
At this moment, Yi Xing had just finished writing, and seeing that the others still had no intention of going in, he decided not to be polite.
Finishing the audition early meant he could eat earlier.
So, he strode to the front of the line and followed the woman into the interview room.
Inside, two people were seated, a man and a woman.
The female staff member closed the door as she entered, and she stood guard at the door like a door god.
"Hello, interviewers.
Here is some of my basic information."
Yi Xing walked forward and placed the completed form in front of the two of them, so whoever wanted to see it could pick it up.
"Your appearance is very good!"
The female interviewer praised him.
She had seen at least a hundred people these past few days, and Yi Xing was the best looking among them, someone who could make her eyes light up.
"Uh, thank you.
Do I need to introduce myself?"
"Begin."
"My name is Yi Xing.
Yi, as in easy, and Xing, as in excited.
I am 20 years old and currently studying Economics at Cambridge University, where I have received two scholarships during my time there."
"I've studied violin and dancing for a period of time.
In my free time, I enjoy playing games, listening to music, and driving around."
"Why do you want to participate in our program?"
"I heard that here I can meet many outstanding students from various universities or experts from other industries.
I want to experience their brilliant moves.
After all, it's been a long time since I tasted defeat."
This was a persona Yi Xing created for himself, to make others immediately know that this young man was arrogant, further piquing people's curiosity to know his true strength.
"Your ambition is truly grand!"
"Of course! Since I've signed up, I naturally want to spar with all the past masters and see if they are as formidable as they appear on the show."
"...We've learned pretty much all we need to.
Is there anything you want to know about our program?"
"Does this program have a question bank?"
Yi Xing asked the question he had been wanting to know for days.
Just by watching the show, one might think those people are amazing, knowing everything.
But upon closer thought, it becomes clear that it's impossible for anyone in the world to have such an extensive breadth of knowledge; one moment they're talking about high-altitude operations, the next they're discussing coal mining underground.
"Yes, there is a question bank.
Before each recording session, some questions will be drawn from it.
At the same time, we will also create some of our own questions to test the contestants' actual knowledge, with the ratio being roughly 70/30."
The male interviewer revealed the program's inside information without hesitation.
In his opinion, Yi Xing had enough qualifications to become a challenger and join the subsequent recordings.
He was handsome and had a selling point, arrogant enough to easily capture the audience's attention.
Who wouldn't want to see an arrogant young man get humbled?
"I understand.
When will the audition results be out?"
"I can tell you now: Congratulations, you've passed the audition.
I'll have a staff member add your email address shortly, and he will send you our question bank."
"Okay, thank you both.
I'll be leaving now."
"Mm-hmm." x2
Yi Xing calmed his excitement, opened the interview room door, and walked out without changing his expression.
When he reached the elevator, he received a call from a landline number with a Jiangning area code.
This should be the staff member the interviewer mentioned.
He answered without hesitation and communicated with the person on the other end, first exchanging email addresses.
Then, he learned about the specific recording schedule for the program, which would be communicated to him via text message and email.