Reborn as an Ugly Wife in the Countryside

The host was quite skilled in motivating everyone, continuing to say, "Do you guys want to know what the prize for tonight’s winner is?"

"We do!" The response was overwhelming, even louder than before.

This heightened atmosphere left the event host very satisfied, "This year’s event is organized by the largest silver jewelry store, Silver Pavilion, in our County, so the prize is different from previous years."

Once the crowd heard it was organized by a silver jewelry store, they erupted with excitement.

"Oh my god, it’s actually from that silver jewelry store, the prize must be lavish? It might be worth a lot of silver."

"Yeah, yeah, it must be. Otherwise, such a big jewelry store wouldn’t offer a small prize, it wouldn’t be presentable."

"..."

"..."

The discussions among the crowd revolved around the prize, and they were all the more interested in getting a glimpse of it.

At this moment, the host held a tray in his hands, covered with a red cloth.

He spoke, "The prize is this, a newly released pair of jade hairpins from the silver jewelry store!"

As he said this, the red cloth was lifted, revealing a beautiful pair of jade hairpins to everyone.

In the dark of the night, the jade hairpins shone with extraordinary brightness under the glow of the lanterns.

This elicited gasps from the crowd.

"Oh my, such beautiful hairpins, and made of jade, they must be very valuable."

"This silver jewelry store has really gone all out."

"But with such a grand gesture, it seems this year’s riddles are going to be really tough."

"..."

"..."

Someone even shouted at the host, "Hurry up and start."

The host motioned for everyone to quiet down and then continued, "Everyone, please don’t rush. You’ve all seen this year’s prize; it’s quite valuable, so not everyone can participate in this event."

These words left everyone puzzled, suggesting that such a good prize cannot be an opportunity for everyone to participate.

The host went on to say, "As you can see, these jade hairpins come in a pair. You all understand what a pair means, right? One is worn by a man and the other by a woman, so participants need to be a man and a woman teaming up."

This was indeed a first, as in previous years it was mostly scholars who participated, mostly men, with women just watching from the sidelines, not wanting to stand out. This year, however, women are required to team up and participate, which is truly a novelty, unheard of before.

Curiosity piqued, someone asked, "Do women teaming up also have to guess the riddles?"

With someone asking, the host explained, "Listen up, everyone. Even after forming a male-female team, you may not necessarily be able to participate in the riddle-guessing contest. Because there are so many people, and definitely many who want to participate, we will use a lottery system. You see over there?"

He pointed to a spot, then said, "In that box over there, there are 100 slips of paper. Those who want to sign up should queue up there for the lottery. If you draw a slip with words on it, you can participate. If there’s no text, you cannot. There are ten slips with words, so ten pairs of men and women compete for this pair of jade hairpins."

As the host spoke, people had already started lining up in front of the box, fearing they’d miss the opportunity, since there are only 100 slips, those who line up late might not even get a chance to draw.

"First, we’ll decide by lottery, and after drawing, I’ll explain the other competition rules."