This year’s village gala had an apocalypse theme. Jiang Cai’Er was in charge, with Yao Yao, Zhao Xueqing, and Lei Xiaohui assisting. Their plan was incredibly detailed, and they were fully prepared for anything.

Originally, Yao Yao was supposed to take the lead, but Jiang Cai’Er’s vacation started early, didn’t it? If she wanted to be the boss, who could stop her?

Besides, Jiang Cai’Er’s Superpowers were unique: Memory Palace, Quantum Computer, Imaginary Number Corridor... Not to mention her god-like intellect, her methods were simply inconceivable. She possessed the world’s most powerful brain, allowing her to masterfully strategize and arrange everything in perfect order.

In this regard, the three "underachievers"—Yao Yao, Zhao Xueqing, and Lei Xiaohui—felt they couldn’t compare.

So Yao Yao proactively stepped aside. She was very tactful. In other words, she had high emotional intelligence, and Zhao Xueqing and Lei Xiaohui were no different.

In this respect, however, Yao Yao, Zhao Xueqing, and Lei Xiaohui had the upper hand over Jiang Cai’Er. When the three of them joined forces, they could effortlessly talk her into a state of pure delight (making her completely pliable), leaving Li Xiang utterly amazed.

’Holy crap, you can do that?’ Li Xiang felt that Jiang Cai’Er’s main disadvantage was her lack of social experience. Her IQ was off the charts, but her EQ was lagging by more than just a little.

Of course, the main issue was her inability to withstand flattery—a few casual compliments and she’d completely lose her bearings.

However, the three women’s skill in flattery was top-notch. It was subtle, yet every word seemed to come from the heart, leaving no trace of sycophancy. Never mind Jiang Cai’Er; even Li Xiang sometimes found himself getting carried away.

Taking advantage of the village gala, Yao Yao and Zhao Xueqing both brought their younger brothers and cousins. Most of them were quite young, with the oldest only in the eighth grade. They wanted to look out for their younger relatives, letting them meet Li Xiang in advance to make an impression. Perhaps when they grew up, they could be given important roles.

As for Lei Xiaohui, a dozen or so people from Lei Family Gully had joined the team, and with her own brother, Lei Jiaming, among them, those people were naturally close to her. If the other two didn’t bring anyone, they felt they would be at a disadvantage and be overshadowed by Lei Xiaohui in the future.

Luo Feifei didn’t come. As a top actress and "national goddess," she had received countless invitations from TV stations to participate in New Year’s Eve galas. Aside from CCTV, many New Year’s Eve shows were pre-recorded. But even for CCTV, she had to attend rehearsals and the like, leaving her no time to come to Li Family Village.

Luo Feifei called Li Xiang to apologize.

"It’s fine, just come next time you’re free." Li Xiang secretly breathed a sigh of relief. During a rehearsal with Jiang Cai’Er, the little rascal had privately seemed to be spoiling for a fight, saying that if Luo Feifei came, she would challenge her to a contest to see who was more powerful!

Li Xiang didn’t know who was more powerful either, but if they really fought, it would be utter chaos. They might as well cancel the gala. It would become a laughingstock across the entire internet.

Hearing that Luo Feifei wasn’t coming, Jiang Cai’Er was quite disappointed.

She had already learned from the internet that Li Xiang and Luo Feifei had been in India together, posing as Divine Envoys, appearing inseparable. While they might have fooled outsiders, they couldn’t fool her. She was furious inside.

Originally, the role of the Divine Envoy should have been hers, but she had school and didn’t have the chance to go gallivanting around.

Jiang Cai’Er now naturally knew that Luo Feifei was an Extraordinary Being, and a powerful one at that. She could be considered her greatest threat.

Jiang Cai’Er thought to herself, ’You have 20% of the shares, but I have 80%! What’s Brother Xiang’s is mine. Even if marital assets are split fifty-fifty, that’s still 40% of the shares—still more than you have, Xiaoluo Feifei.’

A cool night breeze blew. The number of people who had come to join the fun was estimated to be over ten thousand.

Not only was the plaza packed, but the distant hillsides, rooftops, and even the trees were full of people.

Oh, and animals too.

On the rear Bamboo Mountain, Tuantuan, Huanhuan, and Lele had climbed up high, watching the lively scene with rapt attention. Yuanyuan, being pregnant, had become lazy and sleepy, so she didn’t join the fun. She was lying comfortably in a net hammock, munching on sugarcane.

As for Tuantuan’s mother, she wasn’t very interested either and was eating bamboo in her den.

At this year’s gala, the other animals—the Little Red Fox, Er Huang, the kittens, the goslings, the hedgehog, the big rooster—all had acts, but the pandas didn’t. Tuantuan’s heart itched with anticipation. ’When will it be my turn to go on stage?’ it wondered.

They were national treasures. If he put them on stage to perform, Li Xiang had his reservations. He was afraid of being canceled online, accused of training and abusing pandas. Circus animal training more or less involves "abusive" methods; otherwise, it’s hard to get results. The power of online outrage is immense, and even Li Xiang wasn’t willing to challenge it lightly.

This time, there was no need for Jiang Jianguo to handle the filming. Jiang Cai’Er was simultaneously controlling eighteen drones for the shoot, changing between the eighteen camera positions and switching angles at will. She had also taken complete control of the livestream and everything related to it.

Jiang Jianguo was simply sitting in the front row with his wife and a group of relatives, watching the gala with everyone else.

Although the crowd was huge, the "VIP seats" in the front row were naturally reserved for family and important figures. For instance, several county leaders had also been invited to attend.

As for Xu Xuan and Zhang Youyou, even though they were from Sichuan Province, they didn’t get to sit down. They were also part of the staff, fully involved in running the show, and were too busy to even think about taking a seat.

The businessman from Yunnan Province, He Zhixiang, had of course also come to the event. He brought a few of his most capable subordinates, who proactively helped out by running around and handling various odd jobs.

There were also quite a few relatives from Jiang Cai’Er’s maternal grandmother’s side, as well as relatives of Yao Yao, Zhao Xueqing, Lei Xiaohui, and the families and friends of the young women from the shops. Just these friends and family alone numbered several hundred.

When six-thirty arrived, the gala began.

With a tremendous "WHIRRR~", more than five hundred and eighty drones ascended simultaneously. In an instant, they formed a three-dimensional projection of an "Underground City Entrance" above the stage, while Li Xiang used his Earth Superpower to virtually create a Crystal Stone Tunnel.

Jiang Cai’Er activated the "Mirage Realm" Attribute of her Purple Mirage Armor, adding a snowflake effect to create the fantastical illusion of an apocalyptic Underground City emerging onto the stage.

At the same time, Li Jinyu recited in the style of Sichuan Opera: "The Apocalypse is nigh, but civilization will not perish! Witness tonight’s gala, honoring the old and heralding the new!"

Although the old village chief was elderly, last year he had sung a famous aria from the Peking Opera classic "The Case of Chai Mei." His performance of Bao Longtu’s "Yang Ban" aria was passionate and majestic, showing he had lungs of steel and was as vigorous as ever. He delivered these lines with a powerful, resonant voice, full of worldly experience and a natural reverb, creating a first-class stage effect.

Damn, the moment this opening show started, it completely captivated the entire audience!

The live audience was silent for several seconds, and so was the livestream chat. Everyone was stunned.

Then, both the live audience and the livestream erupted in a cheer as loud as a nuclear explosion, a chaotic uproar of excitement.

Seeing this energy, Yao Yao’s wild side came out again. She jumped onto the edge of the stage and started going "WOOOO~~~~!", cupping her hands around her mouth and screaming, jumping and twisting her body to hype up the atmosphere.

The livestream chat was scrolling endlessly.

"Whoa, what are these special effects? How can they be so realistic?"

"How much money did they spend to get this effect?"

"This must’ve cost millions, right? You couldn’t get this effect otherwise."

A certain veteran of stage design commented: "Let me put it this way, CCTV spends two or three hundred million, and their results are only about this good."

In reality, seen through the livestream, it was on par with CCTV’s production. But if you were watching it live, CCTV’s special effects couldn’t even come close to the Li Family Village gala.

The audience members at the venue felt like they were truly there. These weren’t special effects; it was as if the real Apocalypse had arrived. They were truly seeing an Underground City.

Moreover, this Underground City wasn’t the Shelter they were currently building in Li Family Village. That Shelter was just a rough structure, undecorated both at the entrance and inside. What was being displayed now was a concept rendering of how it would look when fully furnished, filled with an apocalyptic, sci-fi aesthetic.

A collision of the future and the present.

Seeing the reaction from the live audience and the livestream—the endless stream of likes, Little Stars, and gifts—Jiang Cai’Er couldn’t help but feel secretly smug. ’So what if you, Luo Feifei, are good with Water and Ice Element Superpowers?’ she thought. ’Even without Water or Ice Element Superpowers, I can still create the special effect of a heavy blizzard.’

This blizzard effect was extremely realistic, to the point that people could even feel a biting chill. And yet, for the past several days, Sichuan Province had been having nothing but clear, Sunny Days.

Some people looked up at the sky, wondering if it was really snowing again. Someone even reached out to catch a snowflake, only to discover they had grabbed at empty air.

Although Luo Feifei wasn’t there, she had timed it right and took a moment to open her phone and glance at Li Xiang’s livestream. Seeing this "holographic projection opening show," she couldn’t help but purse her lips slightly. ’So they’ve completely left me out of the picture, huh?’

But she really didn’t have the time; she just couldn’t go. Her mother had accepted a lot of jobs for her, and to make her mom happy, she had to do them. In truth, she was still a minor, and her mother was not only her agent but also her legal guardian.

As for Li Jinyu’s Sichuan Opera-style recitation, "The Apocalypse is nigh, but civilization will not perish!"—nobody believed it. Even Li Jinyu himself thought it was just some wild idea Li Xiang and the others had cooked up as a gimmick.

After all, there were countless doomsday-themed movies and novels on the internet, as well as all sorts of apocalyptic prophecies. No one would actually believe it.

Speaking of which, when Li Jinyu had rehearsed these lines earlier, he found them so funny that he broke character and laughed several times. But during the actual opening, he felt his performance was pretty good.

The first host to take the stage was still the old village chief. With his sharp, articulate voice, he began the announcement: "Next, please enjoy the ’Woven Bamboo Light Show’ presented by the Zhangjiawan bamboo artisan team."

The passionate sound of the suona horn resounded as the Zhangjiawan team took the stage. A giant zodiac dragon lantern, over ten meters long, danced across the platform. Meanwhile, Jiang Cai’Er controlled the drones to project the Thousand-Mile River and Mountain Painting, creating the magnificent tableau of a "Dragon Soaring Over Rivers and Mountains."

The drones alone wouldn’t have been quite enough, so she secretly used her "Mirage Realm" to make the special effects even more dazzling. The light and shadows shifted and transformed, creating what could only be called a visual feast.

The live audience and the livestream were once again whipped into a frenzy. Comments and gifts flooded the livestream chat.

And this was just the appetizer, the very first warm-up act.