The Rose Festival’s Stakes

“It’s not that he can’t be invited, but I simply don’t want him to participate.”

Ning Ran subtly lifted her chin, her arrogance returning in full force. Her words carried a willful edge as her dark eyes fixed on Jiang Zhe, who sat opposite her. The tight line of her lips clearly indicated her sour mood.

Her emotions shifted with the unpredictable whims of a child, truly proving the old adage that a woman’s heart is as unfathomable as a needle lost at the bottom of the sea.

Jiang Zhe, however, was far from deterred by Ning Ran’s theatrics. Instead, he smiled with a glimmer of interest. He was no longer the clueless Jiang Zhe of before; intimately familiar with the game’s plot, he naturally understood the nature of the Rose Festival.

He had merely assumed that the ‘little swan’ Ning Ran would readily agree. Her vehement opposition, therefore, came as quite a surprise.

After all, if Ning Ran secured the title of Rose Queen this time, she would ultimately receive Madame Marie’s ruby necklace, a treasure that promised immense wealth.

Madame Marie was not only renowned abroad but also held considerable influence within the country.

This legendary figure, famous for her stunning beauty, captivating allure, and eccentric disposition, had ascended to the fifteenth spot on the global rich list purely through her personal assets, rather than relying on family wealth.

This ranking didn’t even account for the assets of her husband and children.

Perhaps wealth led to boredom, or perhaps it was Madame Marie’s own peculiar sense of mischief. This year, she had invited young men and women for a one-day trip to her private Rose Island.

Each guest would receive a specially crafted golden rose, engraved with their name.

The charm of the female contestants and their companions served as the competitive stakes. If one was captivated by a participant’s allure, they would present their rose to them, thereby voluntarily forfeiting their own eligibility to compete.

It was worth noting that companions brought by contestants also had the right to bestow roses. However, once a companion gave their rose to someone, they could no longer campaign for their contestant and could only observe from the sidelines.

By the end of the evening banquet, the person who had collected the most golden roses would be crowned the Rose Queen.

Winning Madame Marie’s necklace was not merely about gaining fame. More importantly, Madame Marie had long since announced that the Rose Queen would also receive Rose Island itself, an island rich in oil resources.

This was a free, exclusive mining right.

Consequently, the announcement of the Rose Festival had only been out for two months, yet it had already garnered countless eager female applicants. Many men, in contrast, expressed deep regret, feeling that Madame Marie was exhibiting gender discrimination by only having a Rose Queen and no Rose Prince!

Among the numerous applicants, Ning Ran and Ye Qing naturally wouldn’t be absent.

“Oh-ho, Ranran, you’re being disingenuous again! I know Jiang Zhe is too handsome, and taking him to Rose Island will surely make him the center of attention, making those women green with envy.

“But you must believe in your own strength! Can’t you protect Jiang Zhe?”

While Ning Ran was stubbornly arguing, Ye Qing was busy undermining her. She glanced at Jiang Zhe, noting that Ning Ran’s words hadn’t hurt him, and immediately felt that their friendship was no accident.

Indeed, it was difficult to find such a gentle, generous, and carefree good man like Jiang Zhe in the world today!

Any other man, subjected to Ning Ran’s sharp tongue, would have long since fled in embarrassment. Instead, Jiang Zhe remained utterly unconcerned, leisurely and at ease.

Though the term ‘friend’ might warrant double quotation marks, Ye Qing felt such details were unimportant.

What truly mattered was that Ning Ran, besides herself, now had a new friend. This gave Ye Qing a feeling akin to a parent watching their child finally take a step forward, venturing out of their cozy nest to face the world.

Suddenly, she felt an impulse to cry.

Just for this, she resolved to be a good wingwoman, to facilitate her best friend’s… ahem, to foster a more harmonious and intimate friendship.

Lost in her thoughts, Ye Qing suddenly chuckled to herself. Ning Ran, upon seeing this, immediately shot her a death glare.

Having known Ye Qing for so many years, it wasn’t difficult for her to guess what her friend was thinking.

Ning Ran wanted to explain that she and Jiang Zhe were truly just friends, and that Ye Qing shouldn’t misunderstand. But realizing Ye Qing’s tendency to automatically jump to conclusions, she ultimately gave up on the explanation.

Finally, with a sense of resigned abandon, she declared, “Then let’s bring him along to the Rose Festival!”

Looking on the bright side, Jiang Zhe’s outstanding looks meant bringing him to the competition was like wielding a sharp blade. In a team of weaklings, he would be invincible, unstoppable.

The chances of victory would significantly increase!

Most women participating in the Rose Festival were merely there to broaden their horizons, with no intention of truly contending for the top prize. Only less than a fifth were genuinely determined to compete.

If Ning Ran hadn’t been troubled by an arranged marriage, she too would have been part of the sightseeing group, observing alongside Ye Qing. Alas, to sever her engagement in the future, she had to enter the fray and fight.

Once she secured the oil mining rights to Madame Marie’s island, the sole beneficiary would be herself. At that point, no matter how much the other members of the Ning family schemed, they wouldn’t gain any advantage.

Of course, this alone wouldn’t completely free Ning Ran. She still needed to continue accumulating capital.

But it was a driving force forward. If she could, Ning Ran didn’t want to spend her entire life abroad. She loved richly flavored food and living in an environment where everyone spoke the same language.

And she also favored men with black hair and black eyes.

“No, I don’t think so. I have no experience attending banquets. If I make a mistake, it would bring you shame. It’s better for me to stay at school, study hard, and strive for a good score on the monthly exam.”

Just as Ning Ran finally relented, Jiang Zhe shook his head and refused.

Though he had already decided to participate in the Rose Festival to alter the game’s plot—preventing Ning Ran from being publicly humiliated by the protagonist Su Lianlian on Rose Island and confined at home for a week, losing her life if she couldn’t gain affection points within three days—there was more to it.

He also needed to prevent Su Lianlian from becoming the Rose Queen and increasing her social standing. This would avoid her returning to school puffed up with pride, making grand promises to make him, Jiang Zhe, one of her many admirers.

Yes, it was all talk. The oil mining rights couldn’t be transferred immediately; they required a three-year transition period.

Su Lianlian, leveraging the convenience of the Rose Queen’s reward, successfully shed her commoner status, connected with various male leads and supporting male characters, and gained the capital to contend with Ning Ran.

Jiang Zhe’s impression of Su Lianlian wasn’t particularly good. If she truly obtained the Rose Queen’s reward, given her obsession with the game’s male leads, she would undoubtedly come to bother him.

Therefore, the best way to prevent trouble was to cut off Su Lianlian’s ladder to this fortuitous encounter.

Jiang Zhe’s participation in the Rose Festival wasn’t just for Ning Ran; it was also for himself. However, he needed Ning Ran to be genuinely willing, not merely grudgingly agreeable. Otherwise, he would be constrained and unable to act effectively.

So, after refusing, Jiang Zhe immediately stood up, deciding to leave.

He wanted Ning Ran, this ‘frazzled cat,’ to experience the tormenting sensation of restless nights, tossing and turning, until she fully understood that she was begging him to participate in the Rose Festival, rather than her generously showing him the world.

“I have other matters to attend to. I’ll be leaving now.”

Jiang Zhe smiled at Ning Ran and Ye Qing, ignoring Ye Qing’s seemingly unspoken plea. He turned and walked towards the door, intending to return to his dorm and check for any differences between foreign languages in the game and in reality.

The contestants on Rose Island were not only from within the country but also from other nations.

He had to prepare as early as possible.

However, before Jiang Zhe could take more than a few steps, his hand was suddenly gripped.

This made Jiang Zhe stop. He looked down to see Ning Ran gazing up, her dark eyes filled with stubbornness, her grip on his hand surprisingly firm.

Now that she had calmed down, she realized that to achieve ultimate victory, Jiang Zhe was indispensable.

But her previous words had already been spoken and couldn’t be retracted. How was she to make Jiang Zhe stay?

“Is there something else?”

As Ning Ran was inwardly conflicted, Jiang Zhe, in contrast, was in a good mood. He wasn’t displeased by her silence. Instead, he cooperatively leaned closer, preparing to secure some benefits for himself.