The production team didn’t reveal any information to the guests beforehand, but upon arriving at the filming location, Berlin roughly guessed the type of challenge.
The car stopped in front of an outdoor sports stadium; the production team had booked the entire venue to ensure the recording wouldn’t be interrupted or disturbed.
The site was set up beforehand, with three targets at varying distances.
A young man holding a bow and arrow stood with the host, nodding politely to Skye in front of the camera, his words few.
After brief polite greetings, the host smoothly recited a long opening speech, mainly thanking the sponsors.
This show was known for its fast pace. The host went straight to the point: “Today, we have invited Mr. Li Guangmin. Mr. Li has won a silver and a bronze medal at the World Archery Championships. After retiring, he became a self-media blogger, developing many interesting challenges.”
“Today, he has prepared three challenges for our guests, ranging in difficulty from low to high. Let’s have Mr. Li introduce them in detail.”
Li Guangmin took over, having remained mostly silent until now. Once in his familiar territory, he visibly relaxed. He raised his bow and arrow: “The World Archery Championships use recurve bows; today’s challenge is with compound bows.”
Skye’s position wasn’t fixed; he moved around at will. Berlin was originally at the back of the group, furthest from Li Guangmin. From the moment Li Guangmin started explaining, Berlin decisively jogged from behind his teammates to the front, leaning forward to listen attentively.
His teammates could hear clearly from a distance, but Berlin couldn’t hear well from far away.
Jiang Shu’ran, standing beside Li Guangmin, thoughtfully moved half a step to the side, making room for Berlin.
Berlin quietly thanked Jiang Shu’ran for allowing him to “cut in line” and then focused his attention on Li Guangmin.
Catching Berlin’s curious and inquisitive gaze, Li Guangmin couldn’t help but smile, reminding him of a good student who would run to the podium to ask questions.
He originally planned to just give a brief explanation, but since someone was engaged, Li Guangmin’s motivation increased. His tone was no longer monotonous, becoming more expressive: “Compound bows are more suitable for beginners than recurve bows. The pulley system saves energy and increases the maximum draw weight by about double. For example, a five-pound draw weight becomes equivalent to ten pounds with the pulley system.”
His teammates didn’t react much, but Berlin nodded to show he understood: “Twice the efficiency. With greater strength, the arrow can fly farther.”
Li Guangmin smiled: “Yes, that’s the principle.”
In fact, Berlin knew his teammates weren’t not listening attentively, but you can’t expect non-humans to have received nine years of compulsory education, nor can you expect them to understand the difference between five and ten pounds of draw weight – explaining the pulley system to a mermaid/vampire/demon/werewolf, telling them it saves effort, is like showing off to a blind person, or discussing Beethoven with an orange cat.
Berlin continued, his eyes sparkling: “What’s this?”
Li Guangmin answered every question: “A release aid. This is another beginner-friendly feature of compound bows compared to recurve bows. It increases stability, naturally improving accuracy.”
The responsibility of a teacher often depends on the student’s attitude.
Li Guangmin had watched several episodes of the show before coming. While it was entertaining, it was still a variety show, not a competition. The guests’ attitudes varied; few took it seriously, mostly appearing serious initially, but once the frustration set in, they gave up and became a control group, humbling themselves and praising the talented individuals.
This was safe, but Li Guangmin didn’t like being a tool; he preferred those who dared to challenge themselves, whose first reaction wasn’t to back down but to eagerly try.
There was no shame in getting paid for appearances; Li Guangmin thought he’d just spend an afternoon fooling around with the stars and call it a day, not expecting too much. Editing could be manipulated, viewers would watch for fun, stars would gain publicity, and he’d earn money to support his hobby – a win-win situation.
All this changed after Li Guangmin saw Berlin.
Berlin was like a walking “Ten Thousand Whys,” asking a lot of questions, showing great enthusiasm, and clearly absorbing the information. Encountering such a studious student, Li Guangmin felt a surge of relief and accomplishment.
He unconsciously put in more effort, gradually becoming more enthusiastic, demonstrating as he explained.
“…Like this.”
His breathing was steady, his hand didn’t shake when he drew the bow, aiming and releasing in one fluid motion.
The sound of the arrow was barely audible, flying straight and hitting the bullseye.
Berlin exclaimed: “Wow!!”
Each guest had a dedicated follow PD recording individual shots. The cameraman filming Berlin saw his amazed and excited expression on screen, the corners of his mouth slightly turned up: For the first time, he’d seen such an enthusiastic and supportive guest, every expression and movement upward trending.
The director in the small room watching the nine-grid screen also smiled. He had worked with Skye on other projects before, and Berlin was indeed the same as before. To see a guest genuinely eager to learn, not just pretending, made the director happy.
Berlin, expectantly raised his hand: “Mr. Li, can I try?”
Li Guangmin shook his head: “The production team said no practice beforehand, as they need to record the number of attempts from the first time a complete novice draws a bow until they complete the challenge.”
“Oh, oh.” Berlin nodded, grasping the key point: “Then let’s begin!”
Li Guangmin chuckled: “Don’t rush, let me explain the rules.”
In the small room, the director watching the screen exclaimed: “When I first met him, I thought Mr. Li was the unsmiling type, but he smiles quite a bit.”
Skye was a guest suggested by the assistant director. He smiled and sipped his tea: “That’s right, even an iron tree will bloom when our Xiao Lin is around.”
The director choked: “Your tone sounds like Berlin’s father.”
The assistant director: “I wish Berlin were my son…”
He paused, cautiously adding: “No ulterior motive.”
The director twitched his mouth: “…”
He seriously suspected the assistant director had personal feelings when selecting guests.
While the two were joking around, Li Guangmin had already explained the first challenge.
The arrow must first pass through a coin hole suspended 15 meters from the starting point, and then hit a die placed 30 meters from the starting point – three cube-shaped dice stacked, requiring the precise hitting of the middle die, with the remaining two remaining stacked and not falling off a five-centimeter-diameter platform.
This was the easiest of the three challenges.
Truly, as the show’s name suggested, it was almost an impossible task.
High-speed cameras were already set up to accurately capture images, with a frame rate of 250 frames per second, allowing for slow-motion playback at any time.
Berlin’s eyes widened slightly after listening.
Li Guangmin couldn’t help but tease him with a serious expression: “Scared?”
Berlin’s eyes were bright, and he answered without hesitation: “It’s so interesting! Success proves I’m amazing, and failure isn’t embarrassing.”
The silent staff were stunned.
Used to seeing guests shocked by the challenges, their expressions cracking for comedic effect, repeatedly shaking their heads, backing down, or smilingly expressing their breakdown, creating a contrast with the skilled individuals; Berlin’s straightforwardness and eagerness to try was unique.
It wasn’t difficult to understand. Established artists often had baggage, thinking more, setting more limits for themselves. They worry about embarrassing themselves, about contradicting their persona, about appearing overconfident and failing later, about appearing unconfident and looking dull.
Berlin didn’t care about any of this.
After asking his teammates if they wanted to try first, they gestured for him to go first, and Berlin took the compound bow from Li Guangmin.
Remembering what he had just learned, Berlin adjusted his grip and stance, without hesitation, directly drawing the bow.
The staff on site felt their adrenaline surge, their heartbeats accelerating.
Everyone seemed to see in Berlin the unique fearlessness of youth.
Adults think too much, young people laugh and run towards the sun.
Berlin drew the bow and aimed. The entire motion was smooth, he drew the bow fully, calmly closing one eye to adjust the direction –
The arrow, like a swiftly passing meteor, sharply flew forward.
His draw was clumsy and unprofessional, but earnest.
Han Yuze’s lazily half-open eyes narrowed as he looked at Berlin.
In his vision, Berlin’s soul was like the unapproachable sun in the night sky, dazzling and radiant.
Human weakness lies in their numerous fears.
Han Yuze had never tried to understand humans; they fear so many intangible things, care about others’ opinions, whether their choices conform to the majority, fear standing out, unwilling to be unique, worrying about attracting unwanted attention.
Every soul is initially different, but humans strive to look exactly like those around them.
The human growth process is largely about painting the unique aspects of oneself with a uniform color.
Not everyone has the courage to simply let the arrow fly.
The arrow left an arc, falling after traveling a certain distance, finally clanging to the ground.
The arrow didn’t hit the coin, passing it obliquely.
Berlin scratched his head, curiously clenching his fingers: “Archery is so cool!”
Li Guangmin, expecting Berlin to be embarrassed or disappointed, was taken aback, his smile widening: “Right? Nothing to be afraid of.”
Mental fortitude is also crucial in archery and shooting competitions. Many strong athletes, because of a poor mindset, become so nervous in competitions that their minds go blank, and their fingers uncontrollably tremble.
Slight changes can affect the outcome, even a tiny tremble can cause the arrow to deviate.
Li Guangmin thought, this principle is simple, but many can’t do it.
Berlin held the bow, whispering to Wu Hengyao, who was watching him: “Want to try?”
The production team had prepared enough compound bows, and the field had enough targets for Li Guangmin and the five members of Skye to practice simultaneously.
Wu Hengyao, arms crossed, leaned towards Berlin’s ear, whispering: “I can try, but I can’t accurately control the strength. I can’t guarantee this arrow won’t travel across Eurasia from here.”
Berlin’s eyes widened, and he decisively tightened his grip on the bow: “…Let me do it!”
Author’s Note:
Here it is! Tomorrow earlier qwq
Thank you to the little angels who voted for me or watered nutrient solution between 2022-11-16 23:16:312022-11-17 23:07:09 oh
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