The Fake Daughter Want to Be Villainess - Chapter 30

Jiang Shu pinched the two bills carefully and shook them lightly.

Then she looked up at the Director and asked, “Is this our entire budget for the day?”

Jiang Shu pressed on, “Does that include the ticket fees for the attractions?”

The Director shot her a glance, “What kind of silly question is that?”

With a smile, he retorted, “If it doesn’t include the ticket fees, why would it be called a travel fund?”

The guests fell silent, and the Director stroked his chin, slightly puzzled. “Weren’t you all just saying that time was tight? Why aren’t we heading out yet?”

That was a clear hint to hurry up. Qu Mei was the first to leave the meeting point, and Yu Zhen quickly followed her. Lin Hui and Wang Siyuan exchanged glances and left together as well.

Ren Lishu and Qiao Xian, however, stayed behind to discuss something together. Jiang Shu watched them for a moment, then reached out and tugged at Pei Wang’s shirt hem. “Brother.”

She pulled at the promotional flyer in Pei Wang’s hand. “Let’s first take a look at what attractions we have.”

Qing City has many attractions, but they are not evenly distributed, and the ticket prices vary widely.

They only had forty yuan, and they needed to cover the entrance fees for the attractions, transport, and lunch with that amount, while also trying to save as much as possible. This was not a simple task and definitely required prior planning.

Pei Wang naturally relaxed his grip, allowing Jiang Shu to easily pull the colorful flyer from his hands.

The flyer listed twelve attractions, only two of which were free, and they happened to be located at the north and south sides of Qing City, a full thirty kilometers apart.

Of the ten or so paid attractions remaining, most exceeded their budget, with only one mountain resort offering a relatively cheaper ticket, priced at ten yuan per person.

Jiang Shu pointed out these attractions to Pei Wang, looking somewhat distressed. “It seems like we can only go to these three.”

She flipped the flyer to the back, pointing to the color-printed map. “We are here. The first, Yu Qing Lake, is very close to us. We can walk there first, then take a bus to the mountain resort, and finally take the subway to Linyuan Reservoir?”

Jiang Shu calculated the expenses: “The bus costs two yuan per person, and the subway is four yuan per person—”

That left them with eight yuan for lunch.

What could eight yuan buy? Two bowls of instant noodles?

Jiang Shu unconsciously tightened her grip on the flyer, crumpling the corner. She didn’t hear Pei Wang’s response and bit her lip, looking up. “Pei Wang?”

Pei Wang answered, “Mm.”

“Let’s go to Yu Qing Lake first.” He led Jiang Shu toward the direction of the attractions, then tilted his head, pointing with his fingertip on the flyer, lightly tapping a spot. “We can check this place out.”

He was referring to a large amusement park adjacent to Yu Qing Lake.

Jiang Shu tilted her head to look at him. “But the ticket price for this is over two hundred yuan.”

Their combined travel fund for the four groups didn’t even amount to that!

“This ticket price might be a trap,” Pei Wang said, withdrawing his hand and subtly stepping away, shielding Jiang Shu on the inner side.

He explained, “The Program Team wouldn’t restrict the guests’ choices. They must have hidden something in the flyer.”

“Amusement parks generally have two types: one is an all-inclusive ticket that allows access to all the attractions after buying the ticket at the entrance. The other is a pay-per-activity ticket, where entry is free, but all the activities require additional payment.”

“I believe this should be a pay-per-activity amusement park; the ticket price provided on the flyer is the total cost of all the activities.”

Pei Wang turned to look at Jiang Shu. “It’s not too far anyway.” His tone was gentle, almost like he was coaxing a child. “Shall we go take a look?”

It would be great if they could save some money.Jiang Shu nodded, “Okay.”

They were not far from Yu Qing Lake, and as Jiang Shu looked around for the entrance to the attractions, she first spotted a row of yellow and blue bicycles.

“Shared bikes!” Her eyes instantly lit up as she tugged at Pei Wang, wanting to head towards the docking station. “Can we ride bikes to explore the attractions?”

Pei Wang gently grabbed her wrist and explained, “We don’t have phones; you need to scan a code to use shared bikes.”

Having never ridden a shared bike before, Jiang Shu let out a disappointed “Oh,” but quickly perked up again.

With wide eyes, she looked up at Pei Wang and seized the opportunity to tease him, “But I really want to ride.”

Pei Wang raised a hand to her nose, “Not allowed, Shu Shu.”

He had become quite skilled at managing the system’s points. Whenever Jiang Shu made a request or questioned him, the system would prompt a task that required him to reject her.

As long as he lightly turned her down verbally, the system would recognize it as completed, without caring if his actions were consistent afterward.

However, the look Jiang Shu gave him after he refused would always make him feel guilty, making him want to compensate her even more—

Pei Wang paused for a moment, “But we can ride later; do you want to bike around Qing City?”

He promised, “I can accompany you.”

“I don’t want that.” Jiang Shu quickly refused, feeling like a genius vicious supporting female character: “Biking around Qing City sounds too tiring.”

She poked Pei Wang’s arm and looked up at him, “How about you bike and take me along?”

Pei Wang lowered his voice, “Shu Shu.”

His tone grew a bit firmer, laced with obvious reproach and a refusal.

But Jiang Shu ignored him, just wide-eyed and meeting his gaze, and then within two seconds, she heard Pei Wang say, “After the recording ends, I’ll ask the secretary to buy a bike.”

That was a promise.

Jiang Shu was taken aback, gazing blankly at Pei Wang for a moment before looking away, lost in thought.

Yet, even when they arrived at the entrance of Yu Qing Lake Scenic Area, she couldn’t figure out which part of their plan had gone wrong.

It seemed Pei Wang hadn’t really refused her, but she could hear the system’s ringing sounds echoing in her mind.

Jiang Shu blinked and decided to temporarily set that matter aside as she pulled Pei Wang into the scenic area.

Yu Qing Lake was a small, water droplet-shaped lake that bloomed with half-lake lotus flowers.

They took photos by the lake and checked in, then followed the route listed on the flyer, taking a small loop around the lake until they reached the entrance of the amusement park.

At the entrance of the amusement park was a large colorful sculpture fountain, home to a pond full of koi fish, with a pile of coins below them—clearly tossed in by people making wishes.

Jiang Shu leaned over the fountain’s railing, “Pei Wang.”

She stretched out her hand, whimsically suggesting, “Can we pick up the coins in the pond and use them?”

Pei Wang, standing next to her, chuckled lightly, “No.”

Jiang Shu tilted her head to look at him, “Can I toss a coin in and make a wish?”

“Not allowed either.” Pei Wang pointed at her pocket, “We don’t have any coins.”

“Ugh.” Jiang Shu shook her head in disappointment, “If this isn’t allowed, then what about that?”

She tugged at Pei Wang’s sleeve, “Why don’t you ask the amusement park if they have an all-inclusive ticket? That should work, right?”

Pei Wang didn’t brush Jiang Shu’s hand away; he led her towards the entrance, “Not necessary.”

He explained, “There isn’t even a ticket check here; it’s obviously a single ticket system.”

The first building inside the amusement park was a castle, with a pointed roof, decorated with European-style tiles and some climbing greenery on the walls, giving it a middle-age vibe.

Jiang Shu walked forward with curiosity, then read the words on the wooden sign hanging outside the haunted castle—

Haunted Castle [Real-life Escape Room].

She pulled her head back and took two steps back, “Let’s check in here, shall we?”

They quickly took the photo, and Jiang Shu held on to Pei Wang’s sleeve. “Since we still have time, can we go to that free attraction this afternoon instead?”

She unconsciously leaned forward, “Let’s explore this amusement park, okay?”

The little girl’s voice trailed on, wrapping her arms around his, adopting a slight pleading posture.

Pei Wang hesitated for a moment, then withdrew his arm and sat down on a bench for visitors.

He felt a bit guilty for giving up ten points but found himself unable to say the words to refuse.

Pei Wang softly said, “Go on.”

Jiang Shu quickly reacted, like a freed bird, running a few steps away before suddenly turning back, half-squatting in front of Pei Wang, tilting her head with a puzzled expression, “Aren’t you coming with me?”

Pei Wang shook his head, “No—”

Jiang Shu grabbed his arm and directly pulled him toward the next ride, her other hand raised to block her ears, “I’m not listening, not listening.”

The next attraction was a massive roller coaster with a long line. The roller coaster whooshed by constantly, the screams echoing in the air almost continuously.

Jiang Shu leaned over the railing, eagerly watching them.

She wasn’t unfamiliar with amusement parks and had even gotten tired of many attractions, but—

When the moment came where she couldn’t ride them, everything suddenly seemed so tempting.Jiang Shu ultimately stopped after visiting just two attractions.

She looked at Pei Wang with some concern, “Are you tired? How about we go eat something?”

Jiang Shu recalculated their money, “This afternoon we have to go to that free attraction, which is four yuan on the subway per person, so we still have thirty-two yuan left—”

Pei Wang turned his head to glance at her and reminded, “After visiting the attraction, we need to return to the meeting point.”

Jiang Shu sighed sadly, “Then we only have twenty-four yuan left.”

Jiang Shu paused, uncertain as she looked at Pei Wang, “What kind of meal can we afford for twenty-four yuan?”

Twenty-four yuan isn’t enough to eat at a scenic area.

Pei Wang thought for a moment, “There’s a halal noodle restaurant on the way here.”

That sounded quite plain.

Jiang Shu pursed her lips, a bit disappointed as she fluttered her eyelashes, then she followed Pei Wang as they walked out of the amusement park.

It was almost noon now, and there was a parade with flower cars in the amusement park, featuring a bunch of cartoon characters, all surrounding a princess figure in the center.

The princess wore a flower crown and held a megaphone shaped like a flower basket.

The megaphone continued to sound—

“Today marks the 520th day since Cardy Amusement Park opened! Surprise feedback! Surprise feedback! All couples who arrive at Cardy Restaurant before 11:52 will receive a complimentary couple’s meal!”

Jiang Shu grabbed Pei Wang’s arm, “Brother.”

She turned to look at him with excitement, “Do you want to save another twenty yuan?”

Let’s pretend to be a couple and score that meal!