Wanping Youth Challenge

Zhao Tianhua doesn't seem to be here!

He hasn't shown up yet!

Zhang Xuezhou followed Wang Haoran and others into the venue of the Youth Challenge.

The simplest way to counter Zhang Xuezhou is with flat and narrow terrain. By launching a surprise attack at close range, there is a small chance of defeating him before Zhang Xuezhou resorts to intimidation or suppression.

Zhang Xuezhou felt that the competition venue was quite good; the more terrain and obstacles there were, the slower others would sprint towards him, and the safer he would be.

He glanced at it a few times and then stopped paying attention to the competition venue, instead focusing his gaze on the podium where important figures were present.

On the platform, only two burly men were playing rock-paper-scissors; the loser would get slapped across the face.

After three rounds of rock-paper-scissors, the sound of slaps in the face suddenly rang out.

"Committee Member Wang is here!"

"There's still half an hour before the curtain falls. Chairman Wang, would you like to play a local drinking game with us?"

Upon seeing Wang Haoran and the others file in, the two burly men quickly stood up.

"Zhou Bo!"

"Zhao Meng!"

Two burly men were the first to invite Wang Haoran. Seeing Wang Haoran's ambiguous smile, they then pointed to themselves and introduced themselves.

"Did the two of you decide who would go to Western Capital City to serve as a commissioner through a rock-paper-scissors game?"

Wang Haoran did not directly accept their invitations, but instead changed the subject by mentioning his qualifications as a member of the Western Capital City Sequence Committee.

His question caused Zhou Bo and Zhao Meng's expressions to change slightly.

Two peaches can kill three warriors, but when there is only one peach, it is clearly a fight between two tigers.

"I think rock-paper-scissors is a great way to avoid injury," Qin Wenhan said with a smile. "It's fine for young people to compete, but at our level, it's better to be peaceful!"

Wang Haoran brought it up, Qin Wenhan quickly added insult to injury.

Wang Haoran and his group had done their homework before coming to Wanping Province and were familiar with some of the important figures in Wanping Province.

He casually provoked a fight, pushing the rock-paper-scissors game of slapping each other directly to the order committee members for a contest, which made Zhou Bo and Zhao Meng, who wanted to use the rock-paper-scissors game to teach them a lesson, look embarrassed.

Clearly, playing rock-paper-scissors and slapping each other is fine, but when it comes to competing for a seat on the committee, they value individual ability more.

"Want to play a game?" Qin Wenhan said, "After you've determined your positions as sequence committee members, let's play rock-paper-scissors, and the loser will lose their seat!"

"Are you... are you kidding me?!"

When Zhou Bo saw Qin Wenhan pull out his Sequence Committee member badge to play rock-paper-scissors, he felt awkward.

Zhao Meng turned his head away.

Wanping Province has direct access to Western Capital City and holds a seat on the official committee, an opportunity that is unprecedented since the establishment of the Scarlet Alliance State.

This means that one can move in without military merit, political achievements, or strict requirements such as being in the sixth or Seventh Sequence; as long as one is recommended by Wanping Province, one can move in, thus bringing countless benefits to the Lineage.

This kind of thing can't be solved by playing rock-paper-scissors.

If they were to give away such an opportunity as a joke, it wouldn't be surprising if they were condemned and scorned by everyone.

Even the two of them, who were quite daring, wouldn't dare to do that.

"Coward!"

Jong Jin-jin muttered a curse under his breath.

He could tell that the two of them wanted to show off and embarrass Wang Haoran and the others, but before they could even put on a show, Wang Haoran and Qin Wenhan shut them up with a few words and they didn't dare to lift their heads. Even when he added insult to injury with a few more curses, Zhao Meng and Zhou Bo didn't say a word.

Qin Wenhan and others can make decisions, while Zhao Meng and Zhou Bo cannot, which means that the two sides have completely different power dynamics.

Even though there was a high probability that Qin Wenhan was joking, neither of them dared to respond.

However, judging from Zhao Meng and Zhou Bo's attitudes, Wanping Province's attitude towards Western Capital City is indeed very lukewarm, which explains why Wang Haoran and Qin Wenhan confronted each other so directly upon meeting.

If Western Capital City hadn't offered the enormous lure of the Sequence Committee, these people would most likely have remained local tyrants, completely ignoring Western Capital City's various administrative measures.

The current situation also proves that Western Capital City's measures are extremely effective.

These two people wouldn't back down without some vested interest to dictate their actions.

Are all the people in Wanping Province this robust?

Zhang Xuezhou looked around and saw that everywhere he looked were burly, strong men.

Even though Zhang Xuezhou is nearly 1.8 meters tall and has a very well-proportioned body, he appears extremely short and thin next to these people.

Thinking of Zhao Tianhua, who was 2.23 meters tall, Zhang Xuezhou felt that the soil and water in the Northwest were too nourishing.

"The poor die of poverty, and the rich die of wealth," Wang Haoran replied in a low voice. "Those with money and resources here are all this size, while those without money or resources are shorter and thinner than the average person back home!"

"Too!"

Zhang Xuezhou recalled the gaunt young men from Zuomuqi who robbed people on the road, and felt as if he were in the Jiangdu Royal Palace, where there were burly men and weak, emaciated people everywhere in the city.

As times have progressed to the present day, this difference and comparison has surprised even Zhang Xuezhou.

"The ideas instilled in Wanping Province are somewhat problematic. If it can develop peacefully and be willing to accept knowledge, ideas, and personnel from other provinces and cities, it may take ten to twenty years for things to change," Wang Haoran said in a low voice.

"I never imagined our Alliance States be in this situation!"

"There are huge regional differences!"

Is it the same in Qing'an Province?

"Almost!"

Wang Haoran nodded.

"How could this problem have been delayed for so long?" Zhang Xuezhou asked.

"Think about the way you came from!"

Wang Haoran replied with a pointed remark.

Using modern tools, Zhang Xuezhou took an Airbus, a long-distance bus, and even borrowed a patrol car and an aircraft, and it still took him two days to reach Fengdu City.

In the days when transportation was underdeveloped, this distance was an insurmountable barrier, let alone the ability to govern the local inhabitants.

Even though Song Fengying had always been selling goods, she had never considered a region like Wanping Province.

Effective governance of Wanping Province is virtually impossible at present; the only option is to rely on local forces to maintain control, while also hoping to change the mindset of these force leaders.

When interacting with the leaders of these forces, the best approach is to choose direct and forceful suppression.

Wang Haoran sat upright, talking to Zhang Xuezhou with his head down, ignoring Zhao Meng and Zhou Bo.

The two looked embarrassed; they didn't know whether to leave or stay.

"The athletes from Wanping Province are entering the stadium! My goodness, the team leader is so tall and strong, at least two heads taller than me!"

Zhao Meng and Zhou Bo breathed a sigh of relief when Song Fengying's voice came over the loudspeaker.

Just as the clock struck the last minute, the main figure from Wanping Province appeared.

Leading the group of young people into the venue was Zhao Tianhua, who was over eighty years old.

Although Zhao Tianhua presents himself to the public as 85 years old, he looks at least in his forties, and his tall and strong physique is very imposing.

"The young lady's broadcast is excellent. I often watch your live streams. Welcome to Wanping!"

Zhao Tianhua entered the venue.

He waved his hand, and the many young people who had followed him immediately scattered and found places to sit at the edge of the venue, leaving only eight tall, strong middle-aged and elderly people dressed in gorgeous clothes behind Zhao Tianhua.

Zhao Tianhua took more than ten steps closer to Song Fengying, then lowered his head and grabbed Song Fengying's microphone.

Before Song Fengying could react, the microphone was already in Zhao Tianhua's hand.

In Zhao Tianhua's hands, the microphone was just like a normal person holding a pen.

He held the seemingly miniature microphone and then waved to Wang Haoran and the others on the stage.

"I've brought the top eight contestants to you. The champion of Western Capital City, come down and make your appearance!"

Compared to other provinces and cities that select eight finalists to provide a reference for Western Capital City contestants, Wanping Province did not select in this way, but directly determined the eight finalists.

It's even highly likely that Zhao Tianhua and others have been pre-selected as alternate members of the committee.

Once the champion from Western Capital City steps down, it will be the Wanping Province people's turn to perform.