Rebirth: I have Monopoly System

Chapter 162: Chapter 162: Welcome Party (Middle): Little Red Car’s Sponsorship

The acts chosen for the university’s orientation gala were of a pretty high quality. The three song and dance performances that followed all received their fair share of applause and cheers from the students in the audience.

Just as a dance number celebrating youth concluded, the male and female hosts walked onto the stage.

"Hey, Wang Liang, have you heard of Little Red Car?" Li Ling asked, looking at him with a curious expression. It was as if the two of them weren’t on stage, but just having a casual chat.

"Of course I have! It’s the bike-sharing company that started right here in Rongcheng! I even paid their three-hundred-yuan deposit!" Wang Liang let out a laugh.

Li Ling smiled gracefully and turned to the audience. "We’d also like to thank Little Red Car for their generous sponsorship of our orientation gala!"

"Who would have thought that the Little Red Car headquarters is in the industrial park right across from our campus!"

"When our External Relations Department was looking for sponsors, the head of Little Red Car’s marketing department personally invited them to their headquarters to discuss the details. They were very eager to sponsor our orientation gala and even set up some special prizes just for us!"

Wang Liang picked up the conversation. "That’s right! Students, have you all seen the QR code on the back of the chair in front of you? Scan it to download the Little Red Car app. Once you register, you’ll be entered into the prize draw, regardless of whether you pay the deposit!"

"Oh, right! Any students outside the athletics field who are interested can join in too! Just scan the code held by one of the nearby staff members! And if you’ve already downloaded the app, you can still participate by scanning the QR code in front of you."

Li Ling said with a smile, "Go ahead and start downloading, everyone! Now, please enjoy our next performance, a skit titled *First Day of School*!"

...

Backstage, Wu Yun listened to the hosts’ lines with a faint smile. He turned to answer a question from Wen Meng, who was standing beside him dressed in the costume of a Tang Dynasty court lady.

"I suggested the idea for this promotional plan a while back, but I haven’t been involved in the specifics. According to the report from our general manager, we’re not just sponsoring our university. The plan also covers orientation galas in five other cities, plus universities in some of the provincial capitals we’re expanding into."

"Ah, doesn’t that cost a fortune!?" Wen Meng exclaimed, pained at the thought of the expense. She straightened her sleeves and pointed to a few Little Red Car banners in the distance.

Wu Yun gazed at Wen Meng’s face, which looked all the more enchanting with its Tang Dynasty-style makeup. He felt an urge to pinch her cheek, but he resisted, not wanting to mess up her makeup.

"Not that much. It’s ten thousand yuan per school! A real bargain for this kind of promotion. Though, our university got a little more."

’Besides, the users will end up paying for it all anyway. We’ll make it back in no time.’

Of course, Wu Yun couldn’t say that to Wen Meng. It wasn’t that he didn’t trust her, but the fewer people who knew, the better.

"Anyway, enough about that! Wen Meng! Come on, let’s get a picture together! You look even more beautiful today! I love it! You look just like someone!"

Wu Yun pulled out his phone, switched to the front-facing camera, and found the perfect angle, freezing the mix of modern and ancient styles on the screen.

He snapped a few selfies, then asked Lai Yi to take a couple of photos of them together. Only then, unable to contain her curiosity, did Wen Meng finally ask Wu Yun a question.

"So, who do I look like?"

Wen Meng leaned in, resting her hands on Wu Yun’s right shoulder and whispering close to his ear. The wisp of her breath tickled him. That, combined with the brush of her costume against his skin, sent an involuntary shiver down his spine.

In response, Wu Yun blew softly into her ear.

"Hey! That tickles!" Wen Meng yelped, pulling away.

"Hehe, come on back. I’ll stop teasing you, I promise!" Wu Yun said with a laugh, looking at Wen Meng, who was now keeping a safe distance from him.

"No way!" Wen Meng didn’t believe his lies for a second. She’d fallen for his tricks too many times before, and it was always the same.

Wu Yun didn’t give her a chance to refuse. He lunged forward and wrapped his arms around her waist. "My dear consort, you will wear this to my chambers tonight!"

The other students waiting backstage watched the two of them fool around, their faces a mixture of expressions.

...

"Everyone, wasn’t that last skit fantastic!?"

Li Ling walked back on stage, asking the audience with a professional smile.

Fortunately, she wasn’t met with silence. Cries of "It was great!" came from below the stage.

"Well, what’s coming up next is even more exciting! We’re about to begin the first prize draw of the night! We’ll be drawing twenty-five lucky winners, who will receive three months of free rides, with no deposit or rental fees required."

Li Ling took out her own phone, opened the Little Red Car app, and navigated to the screen to begin the draw.

"Okay everyone, open your Little Red Car app! You should see a prize draw screen!"

After a few seconds’ pause, Li Ling continued, "Okay, now let’s all count down from ten, and then we’ll all hit the draw button together!"

"Ten... nine... eight... three... two... one!"

"Haha! I won!" A somewhat effeminate-sounding shout came from the same section that had been cheering the loudest just moments before.

"I won too!"

But most people were met with the four words: "Thank you for participating."

Li Ling reassured the crowd, "Don’t worry, everyone. After a few more acts, we’ll be drawing another five lucky winners!"

"Next up, please enjoy a shadow puppet performance of *Seven In and Seven Out* by Liu Hui from Class One of the Chinese Language and Literature department! Please give him a big round of applause!"

Due to the specific lighting required for shadow puppetry, Liu Hui chose to perform off to one side, where he wouldn’t interfere with the light source, projecting the performance onto the large screen on stage.

The classic sound of clashing gongs and beating drums rang out from the speakers. On the screen, a small figure began to brandish its long spear, its movements synced to the rhythm of the music.

You had to admit, the university was full of talented people. A niche art form like shadow puppetry was something most people had likely only ever seen in documentaries or on television.

Drawn in by the novelty of it all, as the music reached a crescendo and the hero on screen thrust his spear into an enemy’s body, some of the girls in the audience involuntarily covered their gaping mouths with their hands.

As the final enemy puppet fell, the sound of a gong reverberated across the athletics field.

Enthusiastic applause and cheers erupted. Liu Hui and the classmate who had assisted him bowed to the audience, props in hand, before packing up their equipment and exiting the stage.

A reporter hired by Little Red Car faithfully recorded the scene. ’I thought it was just going to be the usual song and dance numbers,’ he thought, ’I didn’t expect such a pleasant surprise. This crop of university students is seriously talented!’

The subsequent guzheng, martial arts, and even acrobatics performances made the reporter feel like he’d hit the jackpot. ’I just came to kill some time,’ he mused, ’I never thought I’d get to see such outstanding acts.’

After several more performances, the male host, Wang Liang, conducted another prize draw for twenty-five lucky audience members.

The winners inevitably shouted with joy, causing most of the students around them to look on with envy.

Time flew by, and amidst thunderous applause and cheers, the Shida University orientation gala slowly drew to a close.

Many of the new students were still buzzing from the excitement of the previous acts when they heard the host’s voice, as energetic as ever.

"...and now, to welcome all our new first-year students, let’s see a performance from the third-years of the Classical Dance department’s Class One! They will be performing *Beauty’s Walk*!"

The moment the announcement was made, a deafening roar of applause and screams erupted from the audience.

The stage lights strobed several times before suddenly going dark. As the audience’s vision momentarily failed them, they could just make out a curtain descending from above, obscuring one half of the stage.