[Hahahaha why is their group so funny today?!]
[Shen Wanwan is toxic, toxic, toxic! Damn it, I actually find her a little cute now!]
[Hahaha I seriously suspect she’s intentionally getting back at Brother Ye. I have proof!]
After Shen Wanwan took revenge at her dear brother, she immediately felt refreshed. Suddenly, she heard the man beside her chuckle softly.
His voice was as clear as a spring, and even though he deliberately lowered his volume, it still made her ears tingle.
She hesitated for a moment and glanced sideways.
The man was backlit, his handsome features softening with a smile.
She nodded politely at him, then gracefully walked back to stand beside Shao Yuye.
At that moment, 001 suddenly remembered something—
{Oh no, you didn’t fight with your brother, he didn’t get cyberbullied, and public opinion online is even improving—then the romance plot between him and the female lead can’t progress at all!!!}
Shen Wanwan raised an eyebrow. “So?”
001 : {So shouldn’t you maybe…}
Shen Wanwan finished for it: “I should piss him off, drive him crazy, get into a public feud with him, and have the whole internet tear us apart?”
001 : {Ahem, theoretically speaking… yes…}
Shen Wanwan wanted to roll her eyes, but rolling eyes wasn’t very ladylike. She took a deep breath and enunciated clearly to the glowing orb, “And what exactly does it have to do with me if their relationship can’t develop?”
001 was a little bewildered by the question, its voice carrying a hint of uncertainty:
{…Aren’t you supposed to help steer the plot back on track?}
That’s what most of the hosts it had encountered would do.
But clearly—
Shen Wanwan was nothing like those other hosts it had met before.
After hearing what it said, she merely replied with a calm “Oh,” her face full of disdain, blatantly reading ‘Who the hell does the female lead think she is, needing help just to fall in love?’
“Is my Brother the male lead?”
001 : {No.}
“Then what’s the point?”
Shen Wanwan explained logically to the glowing orb:
“Let me ask you this: helping my Brother become some woman’s lovesick simp, and ruining both our reputations in the process, how does that benefit me in any way?”
001 froze. For a moment, it actually started wavering.
Huh? When you put it like that…
There really is no benefit, huh?!
{But, but you could gain the female lead’s favor, and your luck might gradually improve…}
“You mean I should first ruin my public image so everyone hates me, and then suck up to her to turn things around?”
Shen Wanwan gave 001 a look full of pity : “Are you brain-damaged, or am I brain-damaged?”
{…}
001 was speechless.
That… that’s actually right?!
When the game session ended, the production team gathered the female contestants in a room to chat.
Tomorrow would be the final day of the first stop. The lowest-ranked team would be eliminated, and the rest would get a chance to reshuffle.
This time, it wouldn’t be random draw, it would be mutual selection among contestants.
“I actually want to team up with Shao Yuye.”
Chi Tian smiled shyly. “I feel like I’d feel really safe teamed up with him.”
Jialu teased, “So you mean teaming up with me doesn’t make you feel safe?”
Chi Tian waved her hands. “No no! It’s just… you know that kind of feeling? That with Shao Yuye, he can handle everything on his own, and all you have to do is stand by and cheer him on.”
“It’s like… ah, I’m afraid to say it, his fans might come for me. But I really feel like he exudes major boyfriend energy. Teaming with him just seems so effortless.”
Barrage comments: [No no, you’re totally right!]
[Chi Tian is saying exactly what I was thinking! Brother Ye really does radiate top-tier boyfriend energy!]
[Now I kinda want to see Chi Tian and Brother Ye as a team!]
[Ah, but it feels like Shen Wanwan and Shao Yuye’s relationship has gotten a bit better too…]
“I think everyone wants to team with Shao Yuye. I want to team with him too.”
Jin Xiaoyu said, and then glanced provocatively at Shen Wanwan.
Only Shen Wanwan would dare act like Shao Yuye wasn’t a big deal!
Shen Wanwan was too busy complaining to 001 in her mind.
“Shao Yuye’s really popular, huh?”
001 : {…Get a grip! Your brother is tall, handsome, and has that ‘beautiful, strong, and tragic’ male lead aura. In any other romance novel, he’d be top-tier lead material!}
Seeing Shen Wanwan stay silent, Bai Ling thoughtfully chimed in: “Shao Yuye probably doesn’t work well with opinionated partners, right?
“I think Wanwan would probably prefer Su Tingxuan. His personality is more easygoing.”
Shen Wanwan: ?
Picking a fight?
She gave Bai Ling a serious look, her cool and pleasant voice a little sharp.
“Who told you I wanted to pick Su Tingxuan?”
Bai Ling froze.
Wasn’t that the case?
Didn’t Shen Wanwan join this variety show just for Su Tingxuan? That’s what Su Tingxuan told Bai Ling himself.
“I thought you…”
Shen Wanwan interrupted her: “I also thought you were more inclined to choose Su Tingxuan.”
Bai Ling’s face turned red, and she immediately started to stammer.
“N-no… I still want to be with Xiaoyu…”
Shen Wanwan bluntly exposed her: “But before we came back, when Su Tingxuan talked to you about mutually picking each other, you didn’t refuse, did you?”
As soon as she finished speaking, Jiang Qianfan and Jin Xiaoyu both turned to look at Bai Ling.
[Wow! Is this going to turn into a catfight?]
[Ugh, I really don’t like Shen Wanwan. So aggressive. Even if Bai Ling and Su Tingxuan had an agreement, it’s not a big deal. She’s such an ungrateful snake—Bai Ling helped her and Shao Yuye through tough times, and this is how she repays Bai Ling?]
[But if what she’s saying is true, then Bai Ling’s words earlier were pretty manipulative, huh?]
[Actually, I kind of like Shen Wanwan’s vibe—she’s doing her own thing and won’t let others control her. I think I might be becoming a fan lol.]
Bai Ling’s face flushed even more. She turned to Jin Xiaoyu and explained, “At the time, he just brought it up. I did hesitate a bit, but I later told him I wanted to team up with you.”
“Alright then.”
Jin Xiaoyu responded blandly.
Jiang Qianfan rolled her eyes skyward.
Su Tingxuan, that bastard—useless in the team, and now he’s even trying to make other plans behind her back.
Tsk.
Bai Ling asked Shen Wanwan, “So Wanwan, who do you want to choose?”
Now that was a question everyone wanted to ask.
Shen Wanwan was so picky, didn’t get along with Shao Yuye, and had already ruled out Su Tingxuan—so who would she choose?
[Please, not God Zhou…]
[Or Jiang Yuan.]
[Don’t pick Zhang Yiran.]
[Don’t pick…]
The live comments were filled with anxiety. Everyone was terrified this ‘deadweight’ might latch onto their favorite idol.
Shen Wanwan’s eyes seemed to sparkle.
“You guess~”
Bai Ling : “…”
Live comments : […]
[Shen Wanwan really knows how to keep people in suspense!]
[I swear, she’s driving me nuts. Always saying “guess”—who wants to guess?! I don’t even care who she wants to choose, hmph!]
[But I care!! Who does she want to pick?! I won’t be able to sleep tonight!]
…
Meanwhile, the male contestants were also discussing tomorrow’s team reshuffling.
Zhang Yiran said, “If it’s free choice, of course I’m picking a girl.”
His partner Li Yan added sarcastically, “Yeah, who wants to hang out with stinky dudes? Chilling with girls is way better, okay? Who actually comes to a show like this to compete?”
Shao Yuye : “…”
[LOL! These two clowns!]
[Omg look at Shao Yuye’s face! ]
[I’m laughing to death. Brother Ye looks stabbed.]
Jiang Yuan lightly patted Shao Yuye on the shoulder:
“You’re really not teaming up with Shen Wanwan?”
Zhang Yiran chimed in, “Shen Wanwan is seriously gorgeous!”
As soon as she was mentioned, Su Tingxuan’s ears perked up.
Li Yan agreed, “If you’re not teaming up with her, I’m gonna pick her. A gentleman never leaves a beauty behind!”
Su Tingxuan said coolly, “But she’s basically a ‘pretty useless person.’ Don’t expect her to do any work.”
Zhang Yiran and Li Yan : “So what?”
To the guys, that wasn’t even a flaw.
In fact, in some ways, it satisfied their sense of pride.
All she needed to do was look beautiful.
As for the exhausting, dirty work during the challenges, they were more than happy to handle it.
Su Tingxuan : “…”
Wow, he thought, you guys are really immune to logic, huh.
Li Yan concluded, “This is the joy of carrying girls to victory!”
“Unlike with stinky guys, where all you get is a ‘bro you’re awesome.’”
Shao Yuye : “…”
[OMG I’m gonna die laughing tonight!]
[It’s a world where only Brother Ye gets hurt!]
[LOL Shao Yuye: “Could you at least make fun of Zhang Yiran specifically, not me in general?”]
As the conversation strayed further and further, Shao Yuye tried to pull it back. “So none of you are here to actually compete?”
Zhang Yiran and Li Yan both shrugged.
Su Tingxuan awkwardly looked away.
“…I am.”
Qi Luozhou lazily crossed his long legs, a hint of nonchalance in his clear voice.
Their eyes met.
Shao Yuye was silent for three seconds, then couldn’t help himself: “Get lost.”
The comment section erupted in laughter.
[Brother Ye : Who can relate? Only a sworn rival would be just as obsessed with winning as I am.]
[kdl kdl1! Why does it feel like God Zhou is being a little bit doting (*joking)?]
[So why did they become sworn enemies anyway?]
[Good question, Sis! Actually, the reason’s super simple—it’s because God Zhou once told Brother Ye : “There’s no such thing as Ultraman in this world!”]
[Huh?! No way!]
[Yep! That day, Brother Ye posted several Weibo rants dissing God Zhou, LOL!]
But the friendly banter was quickly drowned out by the two fandoms going at each other’s throats.
The ‘Xiao Chuan2‘s thought Shao Yuye was rude and ungrateful.
The ‘Yu Yu3‘s thought Qi Luozhou was deliberately provoking him.
The fan war was absolute chaos.
In the room, Shao Yuye turned to look at Jiang Yuan.
Jiang Yuan raised both hands and confessed honestly, “If any girl’s willing to team up with me…”
Shao Yuye : “……”
He let out a snort of laughter in disbelief.
[LOL Brother Ye : What a bunch of hopeless men with no dreams!]
[Seriously, I’m dying—Brother Ye is single purely on merit!]
And with that, the livestream officially ended.
As everyone joked and headed back to their rooms, Shao Yuye’s phone dinged.
He glanced down and casually unlocked the screen.
It was a text from an unfamiliar number:
[Brother, Dad says we’re having a family dinner this weekend. Can you come pick me up from school tomorrow?]
Just one glance, and the smile at the corner of his lips froze.
- In Chinese internet slang, “kdl” is short for 嗑到了 (kè dào le), which means “I just saw/heard/read something sweet/cryptic that proves how sweet my ship is!” ↩︎
- 小船 (xiǎo chuán), literally means little boat. I think this is Qi Luozhou’s fandom name. ↩︎
- 鱼 (yú) means fish, used double. I think this is Shao Yuye’s fandom name. ↩︎