Chapter 35 – Barbecue
Seeing Bai Jinyan’s serious explanation, Qiao Huaiyao couldn’t help but chuckle lightly.
Bai Jinyan glanced at him with lowered eyes, and Qiao Huaiyao immediately tugged at the corner of his mouth, unwrapping a lollipop and eating it.
He ate the candy and innocently looked at his brother.
Bai Jinyan raised his hand to ruffle his hair and then turned to arrange daily necessities.
“Brother, I’ll help,” Qiao Huaiyao said, eating candy as he brought bottles and cans into the bathroom.
These were products given by sponsors of the variety show.
Qiao Huaiyao didn’t need them, but they needed to be placed prominently.
The strawberry-flavored lollipop had the aroma of fresh strawberries and was not overly sweet, with a delightful sweetness reminiscent of fresh strawberries with a hard candy texture.
The lollipop looked no different from ordinary ones, rather unremarkable in appearance. But the taste when eaten was truly astonishing.
“Brother, what brand is this candy?” When Qiao Huaiyao opened it earlier, he casually threw away the wrapper without looking closely.
Instead of mentioning the brand, Bai Jinyan asked, “Is it delicious?”
Qiao Huaiyao nodded, and Bai Jinyan smiled lightly.
“I won’t tell you.”
“Huh?” Qiao Huaiyao was taken aback.
Bai Jinyan continued, “I’ll give you some next time.”
As they were talking, a loudspeaker downstairs sounded.
“All guests participating in this recording have arrived. All guests, please come downstairs now to the first floor lounge for the release of the game task by the production team.” Director Zhao Jiamo’s voice came through the loudspeaker, sounding a bit distant and slightly distorted, like it carried an undertone of electricity. It repeated the same sentence over and over.
When Qiao Huaiyao and the others went downstairs, there were only two other guests and their families.
Ji Zhenqi waved at Bai Jinyan and said, “Hello, everyone.”
The child he was holding echoed, “Good morning, big brother.”
Qiao Huaiyao smiled and greeted them. It seemed everyone had a general understanding of the participating guests, saving the time for self-introduction.
Once everyone was present, Zhao Jiamo finally spoke through the loudspeaker, adjusting his tie and checking his appearance before continuing. “Now that everyone is here, let me inform you about a small accident. For this variety show, we were supposed to have five groups of guests with their families, but there was a problem with Nie Yihang’s arrival, so he might have to come tomorrow.”
He continued, “So, for now, we have only four guests, and today’s game task will proceed as usual. It’s almost noon, and I hope everyone can strive and earn yourselves a dinner. Remember, you have to rely on your abilities to have lunch and have enough.” While Zhao Jiamo’s face carried a smile as he spoke, his words sounded like he was setting up a challenge.
No guest responded. Zhao Jiamo continued, “The production team has prepared fishing equipment. There’s a pond behind the village, so… for lunch today, whether you can eat or eat to your fill depends on your skills!”
Qiao Huaiyao raised an eyebrow, “Brother, can you fish?”
Bai Jinyan replied, “It probably won’t be that simple.”
As Zhao Jiamo’s announcement concluded, he shouted, “Alright then—no time to waste. Everyone, head out with your families now!”
The village wasn’t big, and it took only ten minutes to walk to the back.
Qiao Huaiyao hadn’t quite understood Bai Jinyan’s words, but when he saw the fishing equipment prepared by the production team, he had a rough idea.
There were no fishing rods or lines.
They only had spears for catching fish and buckets to put the caught fish in.
The equipment looked heavy, making it almost impossible to use in the water.
“…”
Even waterproof pants were lacking, although they did provide thick rubber boots.
Zhao Jiamo rode a tricycle, arriving louder than they did. “Why are you standing there? One set per family, don’t be polite. Our production team isn’t short on money.”
They only had one set of equipment.
Qiao Huaiyao hesitated, “Brother, I…”
“Stay on the shore.” Bai Jinyan brought the spear over directly, “Don’t come down.”
Other families also had their celebrity members enter the water.
Apart from Su Yijia, her brother went directly into the water with a spear.
“Be careful,” Qiao Huaiyao said as he helped his brother into the water.
Whether they could catch fish or not was secondary; safety came first.
“Yeah,” Bai Jinyan replied.
As Bai Jinyan walked deeper into the water, and the water touched his waist, it didn’t rise any further, easing Qiao Huaiyao’s tension.
However, his gaze continued to follow Bai Jinyan closely.
He became too absorbed in watching, and when he noticed something amiss, he turned to find Ji Zhenqi’s child squatting beside him.
The child was eating a lollipop, and the sleeves of his left hand were puffed up.
Qiao Huaiyao blinked and instinctively changed the orientation of the lollipop in his mouth.
In the live chat:
[“Okay, I can feel Bai Jinyan’s boyfriend material.”]
[“I knew it wasn’t just me who noticed this detail! He intentionally walked over to him, handed the spear over so closely—I mean, Bai Jinyan might have a bad temper, but he’s really gentle and considerate toward Qiao Qiao.”]
[“…The cuteness overload! ‘Adult’ goes down to catch fish, ‘kid’ stands on the shore eating candy.”]
[“Exactly! I’ve been searching all the shopping apps, but I can’t find the lollipop that Qiao Qiao’s eating! What brand is it?”]
…
There were plenty of fish in the pond, but they weren’t densely packed.
Without being able to see underwater, stabbing with the spear blindly didn’t guarantee a catch.
With four people moving in the water, it was easy to disturb the fish, making it even harder to catch them.
Bai Jinyan stopped moving around after entering the water, instead staying in one spot and waiting for an opportunity.
After gaining some experience, he could catch a fish almost every time he struck down the spear.
Once Bai Jinyan caught the first fish, his hand was unsteady, but he quickly gained experience and could catch fish reliably.
When Bai Jinyan handed the spear over to Qiao Huaiyao again, Qiao Huaiyao took the fish from him but didn’t return the spear.
“Brother, I think that’s enough. Let’s go up.”
There were around twenty fish in the bucket; the fish caught with the spear weren’t going to last long.