The new rules used five dice, shaken by the referee. Three or more dice showing a number greater than three were considered high, and the rest were low. If both sides guessed high, they would continue to guess the number of dice greater than three. If both guessed incorrectly, they would be punished together.
When guessing three or four or five, the second player could not repeat the first player's guess.
The wine was poured, and the duel began.
At the crowd's suggestion, Su Caiwei was finally chosen as the referee.
Su Caiwei's eyes flickered as she glanced at Ye Hua. She picked up the dice cup with her slender hands and gently shook it.
*Clack!*
The dice cup landed.
"Please guess."
"You go first," Zhou Kai said magnanimously, waving his hand.
He was a frequent visitor to this KTV. After getting to know the owner, he learned the secret – all the dice were specially treated, and the probability of rolling low numbers was slightly higher.
This was related to the deliberately shifted center of gravity during the dice production. Although it was not guaranteed to be a low roll 100% of the time, the probability could reach about seventy percent!
"I bet low. You can ask for more updates and even customize novel content you like," Ye Hua said without hesitation.
Zhou Kai was stunned. He didn't expect this person to bet low right off the bat! He secretly calculated: I'll pretend to lose this round, and then I'll deal with you slowly...
"I bet high!" he said with a deep, feigned smile, announcing loudly.
Since they bet differently, the game could begin.
Su Caiwei held her breath, gently lifted the dice cup, and looked down. Her expression was dejected as she shook her head at Ye Hua.
The numbers rolled were high, and Ye Hua had guessed incorrectly!
Zhou Kai was momentarily bewildered. He had intended to let Ye Hua win the first round, but he had accidentally won! He rejoiced inwardly: It seems your luck has run out, kid!
Ye Hua glanced at the result, pouted, and downed his drink readily.
Little did they know, Ye Hua and Zhou Kai were on the same page. They had both intentionally lost the first round!
Of course, there was another reason… he was genuinely thirsty. After playing for so long, no one had managed to make him lose a round, and he had become parched without even a sip of water!
"Again!" Ye Hua said energetically, putting down his glass.
Su Caiwei looked at him with concern and picked up the dice cup to shake it again.
*Clack!*
This time, it was Zhou Kai's turn to guess first. He smiled confidently, "Low!"
After he spoke, everyone's eyes turned to Ye Hua.
"Low!"
Ye Hua no longer held back. Using his Blue Spirit to see the numbers, he confirmed it was indeed low and bet low as well.
Someone suggested: "Since we're betting the same, let's guess the specific number."
Ye Hua had seen the number three earlier, so he said, "Three!"
Zhou Kai pondered for a moment and announced, "Four!"
When the dice cup was lifted, Ye Hua had guessed correctly!
Zhou Kai glumly downed a glass of wine.
"Just lucky!" he gritted his teeth inwardly.
"Next round!"
The second round began.
"Low!"
"Low!"
"Three!"
"Five!"
"Open!"
Zhou Kai shouted.
The third round… Zhou Kai drinks!
The fourth round… Zhou Kai drinks!
The fifth round… Zhou Kai drinks!
In the blink of an eye, nearly two bottles of Brandy had gone into Zhou Kai's stomach. The group stared at Ye Hua, dumbfounded. They were all stunned.
This luck was too absurd!
*Gag!*
Zhou Kai couldn't hold it in and vomited on the spot.
"Oh, Zhou Kai, you're so disgusting! Why didn't you go to the bathroom to throw up?" He Min, who was closest to him, jumped up and complained with disgust.
Lu Xiaopeng looked at the drunken Zhou Kai, feeling anxious and angry. Wasn't the plan to make Ye Hua look foolish? Why is he the one making a fool of himself!
Because of Zhou Kai's state, everyone lost interest in singing. It was getting late, so they packed up their things and left the KTV.
Since everyone had been drinking, they had to call for designated drivers.
When Ye Hua returned to his residential compound and got to the downstairs of his building, he overheard two girls walking towards another building, chatting.
"Hey, did you see the notification in our group? Fanfan's new album is coming out tomorrow morning."
"I saw it! I'm all ready. We'll just wait for the album to go online tomorrow, and then we can buy it from there."
"The platform for boosting rankings is called iTunes, right?"
"That's right. They originally said they'd boost several platforms, but it feels like other platforms aren't very useful. iTunes is the most authoritative music chart in America, so boosting this one is enough."
"I see some well-known singers don't have particularly high sales on that platform?"
"There aren't many foreigners! Tomorrow, we'll let foreigners feel the joy of being dominated by us, hahaha!"
"That's true. Our Wu Yifan will not only be famous domestically but also internationally!"
The two girls walked away, chatting and laughing, but Ye Hua frowned slightly.
It matched his memory. The Wu Yifan they mentioned was the idol artist who had recently gained widespread popularity through the variety show "China Has Hip Hop."
This idol could sing, dance, and act, possessed creative abilities and athletic talent, and had striking looks. Some media even praised him as an all-around artist.
However, Ye Hua remained skeptical of such evaluations.
He had heard Wu Yifan's singing and seen his dancing, and the experience was hardly commendable.
He had also watched Wu Yifan's recent movie, and honestly, any extra actor in the film had better acting skills than him.
What disgusted Ye Hua the most was Wu Yifan's performance as a mentor on "China Has Hip Hop," where he perfectly embodied the act of pretending to know what one doesn't.
In the show, most of the trainees were as capable as him, yet he always put on a mentor's airs to give them pointers.
If netizens voted for the most disliked artist, Wu Yifan would surely be on the list.
From the conversation between the two girls just now, Ye Hua learned that Wu Yifan would release a new album tomorrow, and his fans seemed to be preparing to boost him on a certain chart.
Ye Hua couldn't help but shake his head. With Wu Yifan's singing skills, releasing another album was simply a disgrace to the title of singer.
Returning home, Ye Hua set Wu Yifan as his next assessment target and began searching for his relevant information within the System.
......
The next day.
Artist Assessment Institute.
"Brother Ye, did you see the entertainment news?" As soon as Ye Hua walked into the office, Fatty thrust his phone over.
"What's up? What news is there now?"
"Today, Wu Yifan released his new album, and it directly topped the music sales chart. He even suppressed the new songs by Ariana Grande and Lady Gaga!"
Ye Hua narrowed his eyes and took the phone to examine it closely.
The news reported that Wu Yifan released his first solo album, "Heteares," this morning, which was simultaneously launched worldwide. In less than three hours, it had topped the charts for America's iTunes Overall Album, Overall Single, Hip-Hop/Rap Album, and Single categories. All 14 songs on the album also entered the top 80 of the iTunes Overall Chart, even surpassing the new songs by popular American singers "A-Mei" (Ariana Grande) and Lady Gaga.
Seeing this news, Ye Hua seemed to sense something and asked, "Are there Chinese netizens discussing it?"
"Discussing it? Many fans of A-Mei and Lady Gaga have come to curse, saying that our Chinese artist is manipulating charts and acting unethically and against the rules."
"Are netizens in China arguing with them?"
"Some are cursing each other, but most are Wu Yifan's fans."
At this moment, Luo Qin also chimed in, "With Wu Yifan's singing skills, besides his brainless fans, who would believe his songs could top the sales charts?"
Gong Ming added, "Moreover, this chart manipulation is too obvious. Almost every chart is topped. I remember the last time it reached this level was Michael Jackson."
"Indeed, these fans are shamelessly boosting! It's one thing to do it domestically, but they're even doing it abroad. Are they afraid foreigners won't know how mindless Chinese fans are?"
Ye Hua suddenly sneered, "Fans?"
Fatty was taken aback. "You mean it wasn't fans who did it?"
"It was fans, but he directed it from behind the scenes," Ye Hua replied.
"? That's too shameless, isn't it?" Fatty exclaimed.
"Not only is he shameless, but he's completely disgraced China this time too!" Luo Qin also said.
Ye Hua didn't say anything further. He walked to the computer and quickly typed.
Not long after, the Artist Assessment Institute's Weibo account published a new post regarding Wu Yifan's assessment results, with a special note added to the "Nationality" item.
Assessed Artist: Wu Yifan
Nationality: Canadian
Moral Cultivation Score: 50
Professional Attitude Score: 40
Professional Skills Score: 40
Negative Impact Deduction: 20
Comprehensive Score: (50+40+40-20)/3 = 36 points
Assessment Result: Failed
Current Level: F
Current Title: Seventh-tier artist
Maximum Salary: 200,000 yuan
"Huh? The Artist Examination Institute updated Weibo again!"
"The artist being assessed this time is the recently popular Wu Yifan!"
"Wu Yifan is Canadian? Is that true?"
"That's right, he is indeed Canadian, but it hasn't been publicly announced, so many people don't know."
"What's going on? Why is the score only 36?"
"Why are the scores for Professional Attitude and Professional Skills so low?"
"If I'm not mistaken, these are the lowest scores since the Artist Examination Institute started releasing ratings!"
"How were these scores calculated? How is my idol's professional attitude lacking?"
"Professional Skills refer to acting and singing, right? Let's not talk about acting, but Wu Yifan's singing is okay, isn't it? Is 40 points too low?"
"Think about it, if his singing wasn't good, why would the show invite him as a mentor? And how could his new album top the music charts? It shows he definitely has talent!"
"Talent? Don't be ridiculous! Besides his fans, who doesn't know the show hired him for his traffic? As for the charts, they were clearly manipulated, do we even need to ask?"
"I agree with the previous comment. I've been fed up with Wu Yifan for a long time, always acting like he knows everything. His singing is terrible, and his rap skills are even more amateurish, yet he has the nerve to be a mentor!"
"You're talking nonsense! Why are you slandering my idol like this!"
"Hahaha, the fans are starting to get anxious!"
Artist Assessment Institute.
"Brother Ye, there's a car outside!" Fatty said in surprise, looking out the window.
"What car?" Luo Qin also came to the window to look when he heard the commotion.
"Huh? It looks like a Hongqi!"
"Hongqi? Coming here?" Gong Ming, upon hearing this, hurried over.
Ordinary people rarely buy Hongqi cars, and they are usually used by leaders.
"That's right, it's a Hongqi, parked right at the entrance."
"Look, someone's getting out… Doesn't that person look a bit familiar?"
Luo Qin squinted, trying to recognize the elder getting out of the Hongqi. Suddenly, his eyes widened in surprise.
Fatty and Gong Ming didn't recognize the old man, but Luo Qin did. He had seen him once when he accompanied Ye Hua to report on work at the Central Troupe.
"Brother Ye! Old Guo is here!" he hurried into the office to inform Ye Hua.
"Who?" Ye Hua didn't react immediately.
"Old Guo! Old Guo from the Central Troupe!"
Fatty also reacted and was startled. "Central Troupe? My goodness!"
Ye Hua naturally knew Old Guo; he was the founder of the Artist Assessment Institute, but he was puzzled.
Old Guo came here in person?
This was the first time!
However, he wasn't worried. Although his achievements in work weren't outstanding, he had at least produced some results. Old Guo wouldn't have come all this way just to criticize him.
"Let's go out and see."