The livestream chat erupted in laughter.
[God Zhou is busy picking an eyelash off Shen Wanwan!]
[Hahaha, Xiaoyu, why don’t you go wander around somewhere? Let ‘WanZhou’ chat a little longer!]
[Xiaoyu: If I’d known she was coming, I wouldn’t have come~]
Of course, Jin Xiaoyu couldn’t see the comments.
She simply found it a little strange.
She stood up and walked in the direction Qi Luozhou had gone. By sheer coincidence, she ran into Shao Yuye and Bai Ling, who had just arrived.
They had already claimed the bed reward and were now here to do the lamp mission.
Seeing her alone, Shao Yuye raised an eyebrow in surprise.
“Where’s your partner?”
Jin Xiaoyu spread her hands helplessly.
“God Zhou went off to do a task. I was tired, so I stayed here to wait for him.”
Then she muttered, “But the mission’s already finished. I don’t know why he still hasn’t come back.”
Shao Yuye chuckled maliciously.
“He definitely got lost.
“That guy’s got zero sense of direction!”
Bai Ling froze.
She never expected the great God Zhou to actually have such a terrible sense of direction.
Even the ‘Xiao Chuan’s in the livestream were shocked.
[Seriously? How come I never knew that?]
[Are you sure you’re talking about God Zhou?]
Jin Xiaoyu didn’t believe it either.
“What are you talking about, Brother Ye!”
Shao Yuye simply smiled without answering. He patted her shoulder earnestly.
“When you’re looking for teammates in the future, find someone more reliable.
“Like me.”
Jin Xiaoyu rolled her eyes.
“I’d love to team up with you, but would you even pair up with me?”
“Fair point.”
Shao Yuye nodded in satisfaction, grinning broadly.
“Can’t help it.
“My little sister needs me.”
Ignoring the camera, Jin Xiaoyu gave him an exaggerated eye roll before quietly complaining to it, “I’m seriously speechless with a certain someone.”
[Hahaha! Brother Ye, say that again seriously, who exactly needs whom?]
[Friendly reminder: Wanwan is doing just fine all by herself!!]
[Xiaoyu, why not go find Song Song? He’s all alone over there too.]
But Zhang Song’s situation was completely different from Jin Xiaoyu’s.
Jin Xiaoyu had chosen to stay behind.
Zhang Song had been forced to.
The mystery stage Shen Wanwan and Zhang Song had selected required one teammate to become the wager.
One person had to remain suspended five meters above the ground, while the other searched the surrounding area for the scattered shards of a broken vase.
Only after collecting every piece and repairing the vase could they exchange it for the final reward.
Fortunately, the production team’s design was fairly considerate.
The high swing came with a plastic seat beneath the rider, so Zhang Song wasn’t left hanging painfully by the harness alone.
Still, the cold wind howled relentlessly.
Before long, his exposed hands, gripping the ropes, had turned bright red from the cold.
His fans watching the livestream felt terrible for him.
Standing in the wind, Zhang Song’s eyes stung from the gusts, and his emotions were in turmoil.
Would she come back?
Had she discovered his deception?
Would she deliberately leave him hanging here longer as punishment?
Everything had been going so smoothly.
He had successfully created countless highlight moments and naturally won over many of the show’s longtime viewers.
Everyone praised him.
Everyone liked him.
…It was only Shen Wanwan who had seen through his little schemes.
So why…
Why did the mere thought of her cold, indifferent gaze feel like a heavy stone pressing against his heart?
Shen Wanwan was already exhausted.
Although the story’s restrictions had loosened and her physical stamina was far better than before, she’d still done far too much walking today.
The first stretch had been sandy ground, where every step sank into the sand, forcing her to expend much more energy.
Qi Luozhou noticed the restraint on her face.
He took out an item card and turned toward the production crew.
“I’m using a card.
“For her.”
Normally, any card used on another contestant in this show was a debuff.
The audience hadn’t even had time to protest before the camera zoomed in, revealing the card’s name.
[Summon Helper]
The livestream instantly exploded again.
[AHHHHHHHH!]
[AHHHH! God Zhou! You spoil her so much!]
[‘WanZhou’ together! ‘WanZhou’ together! ‘WanZhou’ together!]
[God Zhou is so attentive! He actually noticed Wanwan was tired!]
Everyone expected to see Shen Wanwan moved by the gesture.
Instead, the young miss accepted the favor while teasing him.
Raising the corner of her eyes, she said playfully.
“Qi Luozhou, you think one card is enough to trade for my secret pouch?
“Dream on.”
It was rare to see her looking this lively.
The corners of her lips curled upward, and the icy distance she usually carried melted away considerably.
Qi Luozhou laughed softly and played along.
“So… that’s a no?”
Shen Wanwan nodded.
With practiced ease, her fingers flipped through her own stack of item cards.
“I’ll give you one back.”
Smiling brightly, she selected an atmosphere-type card for him.
[Flower Petal Shower.]
The live chat had been speculating over what kind of card Shen Wanwan would use. Most people thought that using a punishment card would be a bit too much, but if she used a beneficial card… well, that didn’t seem like something Shen Wanwan would do.
But who could have imagined she’d pull out this card?!
[Pfft hahaha! God Zhou: No good deed goes unpunished!!]
[LMAO! As expected of Brother Ye’s little sister! Even when her Brother’s rival shows genuine goodwill, she shows absolutely no mercy! Think she’ll go brag to Brother Ye tonight? “Look, I roasted your rival twice today!”]
[Probably not, but if Brother Ye finds out, he’ll be so smug he’ll float into the sky. Just imagining it is making me laugh! Hahaha!]
Qi Luozhou pressed his tongue against the inside of his cheek, disbelief evident in his voice.
“So this is how you’re repaying me?”
Shen Wanwan nodded and blinked innocently at him.
“It should look really nice.”
She said it with complete seriousness, making Qi Luozhou laugh out of sheer exasperation.
Soon, everyone arrived.
Four ‘human props’ dressed in black suits and sunglasses, along with two staff members carrying flower baskets.
Both effects lasted ten minutes.
Using the ‘human props’ to help her search, Shen Wanwan quickly gathered every remaining shard of the broken vase throughout the gallery.
Meanwhile, Qi Luozhou had to walk all the way back under the special effect of an artificial ‘scattering flowers.’
By the time he appeared, Jin Xiaoyu had just finished talking with Shao Yuye and was dramatically rolling her eyes.
Tilting her head back, Jin Xiaoyu caught what seemed to be a glimpse of Qi Luozhou from the corner of her eye.
But…
What was surrounding God Zhou?
Her pupils practically had an earthquake.
When she lowered her head and turned to look at Qi Luozhou properly, her pupils shook even harder.
—Oh my god!
Bai Ling was no less stunned.
Against the cold, bleak winter scenery, he alone was a splash of brilliant color.
Petals bloomed above his head, making his naturally affectionate peach blossom eyes seem even more tender.
Behind him, the two staff members diligently tossed handful after handful of flower petals into the air. With every upward sweep of their arms, crimson petals drifted everywhere.
The effect was gaudy—almost tacky—but somehow, on him, it didn’t look cheap in the slightest.
Of course, that peaceful scene was quickly shattered by an untimely snort of laughter.
Unable to hold it in any longer, Shao Yuye burst out laughing.
“How old are you? Still playing live-action Q.Q Show1?”
Qi Luozhou was both irritated and amused.
He didn’t even spare Shao Yuye a glance, merely signaling Jin Xiaoyu to head back to the mission point.
“Let’s go.”
Trying hard not to laugh, Jin Xiaoyu looked at the petals scattered all over the ground and tactfully chose not to ask why.
Maybe it was just some celebration effect the mission rewarded him with.
Meanwhile, God Zhou’s fans were desperately trying to salvage his dignity in the live chat.
[To be fair, God Zhou actually pulls this style off really well!]
[Aside from being a little cringe, there’s nothing wrong with it!]
[I’m laughing to death. This is honestly worse than killing God Zhou. Shen Wanwan is an absolute genius, hahahahahaha!]
As they passed Shao Yuye, one of the staff members scattering petals quietly whispered, “Shen Wanwan used this prop card on God Zhou!”
Shao Yuye froze for a moment.
Then he clutched his stomach and exploded into earth-shaking laughter.
“Hahahahahahahaha!
“Qi Luozhou! So you do have a day like this!”
—What kind of incredible little genius is my sister?
A mood-enhancing atmosphere card, when used on Qi Luozhou, instantly became a public humiliation card.
Qi Luozhou’s footsteps paused.
Silently, he ground his back teeth together.
His voice remained calm, revealing almost none of his emotions.
With the corners of his lips curled into a faint smile, he said coolly, “Not bad.”
Shao Yuye thought, If it were really not bad, you wouldn’t be standing there giving me that fake smile.
The very next second, he watched Qi Luozhou calmly pull out another identical card, expressionless, and say to the director, “Use it on him.”
Shao Yuye: “…”
Very soon, a beautiful shower of flower petals began falling over the heads of both top stars.
Shao Yuye: “…Damn it.”
—I hate you!
Ever since his debut, Shao Yuye had built his image around being the cold, aloof cool guy. Later, he became famous for his explosive temper.
But now, neither ‘cold’ nor ‘hot-tempered’ seemed to fit him anymore.
Because the colder his face looked and the darker his expression became while walking through the scattering flower effect, the harder the livestream audience laughed—
[Hahahahaha!]
[I’m laughing to death. One of these days this variety show is literally going to make me laugh to death!]
[When God Zhou wears this effect it’s 100% funny. When Brother Ye wears it, it’s 1,000,000,000% funny!]
[Hahahaha! I could watch you two love-hate ‘Rivals’ for a hundred episodes!!!]
- Q.Q Show refers to the digital avatars used on the popular Chinese messaging platform QQ. Users can dress up and customize these avatars with various outfits and effects. Comparing the “artificial flower effect” to a “real-life Q.Q Show” is a way of calling it childish, tacky, or like a low-quality digital filter applied to a real person. ↩︎