Chapter 422 – The Movie Emperor’s Beloved Neighbor – Three Cute Little Creatures (05)
“Long time no see.” Bai Tang smiled, his eyes curving into crescents, his gaze sparkling like stars.
Heng Xingjian glanced subtly at Ke Liangong beside them. Pretending not to care, he sat down next to the boy and gently held his ankle, massaging it. “Tang Tang, how’s your foot? Does it still hurt?”
As the second young master of the wealthy Xingyu Yue Lai Group, it was impossible for Heng Xingjian not to have investigated Bai Tang’s recent activities. But he simply couldn’t stand Ke Liangong, and couldn’t help getting a little closer to the boy he liked—using his actions to quietly declare his claim.
“It’s much better now, it doesn’t hurt anymore~” Bai Tang said with a cheerful smile.
Because of Heng Xingjian adjusting Bai Tang’s leg, Qiu’er rolled out of Bai Tang’s arms and tumbled onto Xiao A.
“Woof—!” Does it hurt, Qiu’er?
Xiao A had been enjoying Bai Tang’s gentle petting, feeling so comfortable under the warm sunlight that he was almost dozing off. Suddenly, something dropped onto him, snapping him fully awake.
“Woof woof—!” Xiao A, sob… the male lead only has eyes for Tang Tang now, he doesn’t love me anymore…
“Don’t cry, Qiu’er. The male lead has always loved the host. He doesn’t like you, but I do. Don’t cry, don’t cry…”
Having gone through many worlds with Bai Tang, Xiao A had long grown used to watching male leads coax others, and had naturally picked up the skill.
As the saying goes, “Birds of a feather flock together.” Like master, like dog—what works on the big one works on the small one too.
With Xiao A’s comforting, Qiu’er quickly calmed down and ran off with him to bask in the sunlight.
‘Ah, life is so comfortable~’ Qiu’er thought lazily.
‘I hope it can stay like this forever.’ Xiao A looked at Qiu’er fondly, pressing down on his tail as he lay beside him.
Inside the room, the atmosphere gradually became awkward as Heng Xingjian focused solely on talking to Bai Tang. The other guests all wanted to strike up a conversation with Heng Xingjian—after all, as long as they could exchange a few words with him, their popularity would rise, and their teams would have material to hype.
The audience watched eagerly, but for a moment, even the bullet comments stopped. No one could figure out how Bai Tang knew Heng Xingjian. Even if they did know each other, they weren’t from the same company, and they had never worked together before—so how had they suddenly become so familiar?
[“Isn’t Bai Tang just relying on his good looks? He shows up and immediately seduces the Best Actor Heng—such bad character.”]
[“What do you mean Bai Tang is seducing him? Are you blind? Didn’t you see it was the Best Actor Heng who started talking to Tang Tang?”]
As the fans’ heated discussions continued, all the guests finally gathered in the waiting room, and the program host entered to explain the rules.
“Today’s lineup of guests is quite ‘diverse’—we have people from film, television, and music. But I wonder how your survival skills are? I’m sure you all learned about Wilderness Extreme before coming. As the name suggests, it’s about challenging your limits in the wild while trying to survive. Of course, the production team will follow along the entire time. If you need anything, you can exchange it with the supplies you find…”
The host introduced the rules with a touch of humor. Bai Tang listened attentively. Overall, the rules weren’t much different from before, but there were some changes—for example, each person could only bring three items. This meant that surviving in the wild would become even more difficult.
The male guests were fine with it, but the female guests were less pleased. The conditions in the wilderness were already harsh, and now they had to give up supplies—wasn’t that just making things unnecessarily difficult?
However, their complaints were useless. The production team’s intention was precisely to make things hard for them, capturing the guests’ breakdowns on camera.
Bai Tang had prepared a wide variety of useful items, but now he couldn’t bring most of them. It felt like a bit of a pity.
The host had been instructed by the director that Bai Tang might not stay long on the show, so they should give him more screen time early on to create buzz.
At that moment, the boy was crouched in front of his luggage, puffing out his cheeks. His fair, delicate face was filled with reluctance and distress.
“Bai Tang, what’s wrong?” the host stepped forward to ask. Before the official start of Wilderness Extreme, talking with staff wasn’t considered a violation.
Bai Tang looked at his bag regretfully. “Do I have to throw my things away?”
“No, of course not. The production team will keep them safe for everyone. Bai Tang, you should hurry and choose—time is limited, and you can only pick three items,” the host said.
Facing such a cute boy, the host simply couldn’t associate him with the person who had caused trouble at the police station half a year ago. Someone so well-behaved—how could he have gone to that kind of place?
Hearing this, Bai Tang visibly brightened. As long as he didn’t have to throw them away, it was fine—brand-new items would be such a waste otherwise.
“Thank you, Uncle Host. I’ll choose these.” Bai Tang picked out water and a tent from his bag, then packed everything else back and handed the bag to the host.
The host added, “You can choose three items, so you can still pick one more.”
Bai Tang hugged Qiu’er and Xiao A, looking at him with hopeful eyes. “Can I bring them with me? They’re very well-behaved. I don’t want to be separated from them~”
His moist, innocent, almost animal-like gaze—paired with the two little dogs looking at the host the same way—made all three of them irresistibly adorable. The host’s heart nearly melted.
And it wasn’t just the host—the viewers in the livestream were equally smitten. Just minutes ago, they had been cursing Bai Tang and telling him to get out of the entertainment industry. Now, they were clutching their chests, eyes full of hearts, begging the host to agree to his request.
“But… there are two dogs,” the host said, not forgetting to create a moment for the show—though it was unclear how effective this would be as a highlight.
“The rules say we can choose three items. Qiu’er and Xiao A are both dogs—they’re the same species, so that counts as one,” Bai Tang argued. He pointed at Li Manpei, who was stuffing bottles of mineral water into her backpack—more than just one.
While packing the water, Li Manpei playfully winked at the camera. “Water is the source of life—you’ve got to bring more. Survival in the wild consumes a lot of energy, and the guys might not have enough to drink. Two bottles for the Best Actor, two for Senior Ke…”
[“Protect our most thoughtful Peipei—she’s truly so considerate.”]
[“Peipei is clearly so delicate, yet instead of thinking about herself, she’s thinking about her teammates. I want a friend like that too.”]
Bai Tang looked at Li Manpei eagerly. The host followed his gaze and looked over as well. Logically speaking, if Li Manpei could bring an entire backpack of water, then Bai Tang should naturally be allowed to bring two small dogs.
Perhaps their stares were too intense—Li Manpei turned her head and saw both Bai Tang and the host looking straight at her. Their gazes carried no obvious meaning, yet it was precisely that lack of meaning that made them the most unsettling.
With a guilty conscience, a trace of unease showed on Li Manpei’s face.
Before she could even speak, the boy suddenly moved. Hugging the little husky, he turned to the host and began to act coquettishly.
“Uncle Host, please let me bring them. I’ll take care of their food myself. If it feels unfair, I don’t have to team up with the others—I can manage on my own with the two dogs. Please…”
A cute “little squirrel” acting spoiled was lethal—even a child of destiny couldn’t resist it, let alone a host who was just an NPC within the story.
The host was defeated on the spot and nodded repeatedly. “Okay.”
“Uncle, you’re the best.” The boy gave a sweet smile, and the host completely fell for it.
[“Protect the best Tang Tang in the world. That’s right, I’m just here for his looks—I love his face, so what?”]
[“You can have Bai Tang—I’m taking the dogs.”]
[“Kids make choices, adults take everything. Bai Tang and the dogs are all mine.”]
[“Nonsense, they’re obviously mine.”]
Even before the show officially began, Bai Tang had already gained a group of fans drawn to his appearance. This episode of Wild Extreme became popular before airing, and the hashtag #BaiTangAndTheDogs climbed to third place on the trending list within just two hours.
By the time Liu Lingfan finished selecting her items, Bai Tang was already playing with the two dogs in his arms.
The boy’s carefree expression made it seem less like he was about to participate in a variety show, and more like he was heading off on vacation.
One by one, everyone finished choosing their luggage. There were eight guests participating this time: Best Actor Heng Xingjian, the “vase” (pretty but talentless) Bai Tang, popular young actress Li Manpei, rising star Liu Lingfan, retired Best Actor Ke Liangong, top martial artist Gu Xinrong, powerful vocalist Xuan Xiuxian, and dual film-and-music star Yi Haoguang.
According to the rules, they needed to form groups and begin this wilderness survival challenge as teams.
The guests were free to form teams as long as there was mutual agreement.
As soon as the host announced the start of team formation, many people turned their attention to Heng Xingjian. Even if they couldn’t “survive” to the end, just teaming up with the Best Actor Heng would significantly boost their visibility.
Li Manpei had always been ambitious. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have used Bai Tang to enter the industry, only to abandon him completely when he got into trouble—not only refusing to help, but even kicking him while he was down.
Her gaze toward Heng Xingjian was particularly intense. Everyone present glanced at one another, already itching to make a move.
Li Manpei walked toward Heng Xingjian. “Best Actor Heng, can I team up with you?”
[“Peipei is so cute—Best Actor Heng, hurry and agree!”]
[“She’s so pretty. If you don’t agree, you’re not a man.”]
[“Just a passerby here, but I think the Best Actor Heng will choose Bai Tang.”]
[“Agreed with the comment above.”]
The livestream chat was as noisy as ever. A faint smile lingered at the corner of Heng Xingjian’s lips, while Li Manpei lowered her head slightly, a light blush rising on her face.
As a gentleman, one shouldn’t let a lady lose face.
Just when everyone thought Heng Xingjian would agree, an unexpected turn occurred.
The smile in the man’s eyes deepened, and his low, pleasant voice sounded almost heavenly. “Sorry, I can’t team up with you.”
Li Manpei, who had been imagining a beautiful scenario with her head lowered, froze. The blush on her face faded instantly. “I—I really admire you. I’ve always hoped for a chance to work with the Best Actor. And forming a team doesn’t stop others from joining us…”
She still wanted to try. With things already said to this extent, Heng Xingjian—who usually gave others plenty of face—surely wouldn’t reject her again, right?
“Sorry.” Heng Xingjian refused decisively. He had already calculated it: there were eight people in total, just enough to form pairs of two. That meant he could team up with Tang Tang.
Having made up his mind, he turned to Bai Tang beside him and invited him, “Tang Tang, can I team up with you?”
The livestream audience was stunned. Li Manpei was so angry her face twisted. Liu Lingfan decisively stepped to Bai Tang’s side, while the other guests could only think: [“666.”] (an expression of amazement or hype)
Author’s Note:
I’ve got my eye on a keyboard that goes on sale at midnight tonight. The quantity is limited, and a lot of people want it. If I manage to grab one and get my hands on the new keyboard, I’ll post an extra update—consider this a promise!