WS - Chapter 89
Chapter 89
When Song Shiyue had been pulling the iron cable from one end, Guan Yongyi walked across even more steadily than Captain Yang.
Now without Song Shiyue pulling the iron cable taut, Zhuang Jiachuan was naturally not as steady as Guan Yongyi. But with both of them on the iron cable at once, it didn't sway too badly. At least it was much better than they had imagined.
Climbing the tree had also been difficult, but at least there was no time limit, so they could control their movements at a pace that felt right. Walking the iron cable was different—difficult and timed. Zhuang Jiachuan was already drenched in sweat after just a few steps.
Fortunately, Song Shiyue just stood still in the middle of the cable, silent, without any urging or encouraging words; otherwise, Zhuang Jiachuan would have been several times more anxious.
Although his speed was far inferior to Guan Yongyi's, Zhuang Jiachuan at least managed to inch his way over to Song Shiyue.
"Steady yourself." Song Shiyue paused after speaking, then let go of the iron cable and grabbed the safety rope instead, slowly crouching down.
As soon as Song Shiyue moved, the iron cable swayed a bit more than before.
Luckily, Zhuang Jiachuan wasn't moving, and with Song Shiyue's reminder, he straightened his body and tried hard to keep his balance, so he wasn't greatly affected.
Song Shiyue moved with practiced efficiency: release, crouch, pull, grab—and when she stood up, the envelope was already in her hand.
"Hand." Song Shiyue prompted.
"Oh, oh." Zhuang Jiachuan nodded nervously, slowly releasing one hand from the iron cable and lowering it.
Soon the thin, stiff envelope was pressed into his hand. Zhuang Jiachuan gave a slight pull, and the envelope tore free from the string.
"I'll go on over then." With the envelope in hand, Zhuang Jiachuan had at least completed two-thirds of the task, so he felt a bit more relaxed now.
"Wait, steady yourself." As she spoke, Song Shiyue edged another small step closer to Zhuang Jiachuan.
They were already standing side by side; with this step, their arms were almost touching.
Already extremely tense on the iron cable, Zhuang Jiachuan stared dumbstruck at Song Shiyue's movements. For a moment, he could barely feel his own hands and feet resting on the two cables.
It wasn't any romantic notion; it was simply that when someone is already extremely nervous, an unexpected event can be a bit too much to take.
Thankfully, Song Shiyue moved quickly. After drawing close, she placed one hand on the upper iron cable, used the other to unhook her safety clip and re-clip it behind Zhuang Jiachuan's safety clip. Then she arched her body back, swung her foot in a wide step, and before Zhuang Jiachuan could react, she had moved from his left side to his right.
"All right, go on. There's still time. Don't rush." Song Shiyue spoke quickly after steadying herself, then resumed her silence and stillness, as if she were a fixed component on this iron cable.
Zhuang Jiachuan: "..."
Who am I? Where am I? Who are you? Where were you just now?
Their plan had only been a vague concept; when Song Shiyue actually executed it, it made the person involved want to kneel in admiration from the bottom of their heart.
By the time Zhuang Jiachuan stepped onto the platform where Captain Yang was, the shock of the two of them swapping positions in a second or two still hadn't worn off...
It wasn't until Captain Yang announced "two minutes, seventeen seconds" that Zhuang Jiachuan came out of his daze.
Right, the biggest difficulty of Method Two wasn't how to keep both people balanced on the iron cable, but how to switch positions.
Only when he actually walked it did Zhuang Jiachuan realize that inching forward step by step was already difficult enough. When he thought he would need to step past Song Shiyue, he had gritted his teeth and steeled his face, ready to force the attempt... not even considering the safety clip...
Thankfully, in the end he didn't have to take that big step that would have made it sway the worst.
The world is full of capable people.
All kinds of abilities let them maintain an edge in various fields or at various times.
That's normal, just how things are.
But capable people who can also be so humble, friendly, and even considerate to this extent... are truly rare.
At the very least, Zhuang Jiachuan felt that the consideration he received on the bridge didn't seem like an act put on for a reality show.
Song Shiyue... this young woman is really...
Zhuang Jiachuan looked again at Song Shiyue, still stopped in the middle of the iron cable waiting for the next person, his heart filled with complex emotions.
Once Song Shiyue had sent one person across, that person's business was done, and her attention naturally focused entirely on the next.
The next was Yu Nianbing.
In theory, the order was well arranged—not as uncertain as going first, nor as pressured as going last. It nicely reflected the other two pairs' gratitude toward Song Shiyue.
Unfortunately, when Yu Nianbing saw Song Shiyue standing next to Zhuang Jiachuan and unhooking her safety clip with one hand, her heart leaped into her throat and wouldn't come back down.
As expected, when they only worried about the time of day, the hastily thought-up method lacked time to be thought through properly—too many holes.
Yu Nianbing didn't know how the others felt, but she truly hadn't thought about needing to swap the safety clip positions like that...
Even if there was one hand still holding on, it was far too dangerous.
Yu Nianbing's gaze darkened slightly. She didn't rush onto the iron cable, but instead turned back to glance at Ning Chuyang and Mu Xingzhou.
"Unclipping the safety buckle in midair like that is too dangerous. Let's go with Method One instead." Yu Nianbing knew that by speaking up, she was practically stripping Ning Chuyang and Mu Xingzhou of their chance to get blankets. But... she couldn't stay silent.
Song Shiyue really doesn't take her own safety seriously.
Let her be the bad guy.
As she spoke, Yu Nianbing's gaze grew increasingly resolute.
"Right, it's too dangerous." Ning Chuyang also looked disapproving. "It's several meters up. A little blanket isn't worth the risk. Worst case, we still have clothes."
Mu Xingzhou hesitated briefly, but seeing Yu Nianbing's solemn expression and Ning Chuyang's clear agreement, he eventually nodded along.
"You two go ahead. Song Shiyue was being too reckless. I'll have some water to calm down." Saying this, Yu Nianbing stepped back a few paces, clearing the iron cable behind her, and began to rummage through her waist pack.
"All right, we'll go first." Ning Chuyang agreed readily, then turned to Mu Xingzhou. "You first or me first?"
Mu Xingzhou glanced at Yu Nianbing, then at Ning Chuyang, and without changing expression extended his hand toward the iron cable in a 'go ahead' gesture.
"Okay, I'll go first." Ning Chuyang didn't stand on ceremony. She walked straight to the edge of the iron cable and yelled to Song Shiyue, "Song Shiyue! We changed our minds! We're going with Method One! Go back to that end and help pull the cable!"
Song Shiyue, standing in the middle of the iron cable, was a bit puzzled.
Guan Yongyi and Zhuang Jiachuan had each tried the two methods, and the pros and cons were already clear. Why were the people behind choosing the worse one...
"What's going on? Go with Method Two, you get blankets with Method Two. Come on up." Song Shiyue turned back, frowning.
Ning Chuyang wasn't swayed. She waved her hand and said, "One, One, we're picking One! It's getting late, pick One!"
What does 'it's getting late' have to do with picking Method One...
Song Shiyue glanced at the sky. Fine, it was indeed getting darker. She had no idea when Captain Yang would call a stop.
If they wanted Method One, then fine. It was their choice. Song Shiyue had already warned them; there was nothing more she could say.
Watching Song Shiyue start moving toward the opposite platform, Ning Chuyang, burdened with responsibility, breathed a sigh of relief.
Thankfully, Song Shiyue hadn't pressed the issue. Otherwise, Ning Chuyang wouldn't know how to explain why they were giving up on Method Two, which had looked so promising...
After all, they couldn't tell the truth. What they saw as unsafe probably didn't seem like a big deal to Song Shiyue; otherwise, she wouldn't have done it earlier.
Rather than scrambling to come up with an excuse Song Shiyue might believe, it was better to stick to their guns with no reason—since Song Shiyue didn't seem like the type to keep shouting back and forth.
Ning Chuyang's choice was correct. Soon, Song Shiyue returned to the platform where Captain Yang was, crouched down, and tightened the iron cable.
"I'm going." Ning Chuyang turned back and said to the two remaining.
Yu Nianbing and Mu Xingzhou both nodded back, but the things in their gazes were quite different.
Ning Chuyang's movements weren't as deft as Guan Yongyi's, but she was better than the trembling Zhuang Jiachuan.
Unfortunately... Ning Chuyang lingered near the envelope for a while, trying to hook it with her foot and attempting to crouch, but all failed.
In the end, mindful of Mu Xingzhou behind her, Ning Chuyang gave up in time and stepped onto the platform at Captain Yang's side at two minutes and twenty-one seconds.
"What happened? Why did you suddenly change your mind?" When Ning Chuyang came over, Song Shiyue couldn't help but ask.
"Thought it was better this way, in case I'd be unsteady." That was the excuse Ning Chuyang had thought up while on the iron cable.
Song Shiyue: "..." Something feels off, but unfortunately there's no proof.
"Next up is Mu Xingzhou. Teacher Yu is drinking water." Ning Chuyang looked around and began to change the subject.
But the subject change didn't go very well.
Because as soon as Ning Chuyang finished speaking, Yu Nianbing stepped onto the iron cable.
The story goes back two minutes. As Ning Chuyang was about to step onto the platform over there, Mu Xingzhou glanced at Yu Nianbing, who was putting away her water bottle, slowly raised a hand to open his waist pack, and said, "Teacher Yu, you go first later. I'll have some water too."
Yu Nianbing: "..."
Mu Xingzhou acted as though he didn't notice the deeper meaning in Yu Nianbing's eyes. As he slowly pulled out his water bottle, he smiled and said, "Teacher Yu, are you afraid that if you go first, I'll go back on my word and choose Method Two?"
"Of course not." The corners of Yu Nianbing's mouth also slowly curled into a smile. "All right, I'll go first then."
If Song Shiyue were here, she might once again praise Teacher Yu's fake smile acting as increasingly improved.
But Mu Xingzhou wasn't Song Shiyue. Whether he saw that Yu Nianbing's smile was merely another form of confrontation was hard to say.
Yu Nianbing's smile was fake, no doubt, but she had indeed conceded.
Earlier, when she had spoken up on the spur of the moment to make the two change their minds—setting aside how Ning Chuyang felt—it now seemed that Mu Xingzhou wasn't especially pleased.
But this displeasure, Yu Nianbing still couldn't tell whether it stemmed from her proposal leaving them with no way out or other choices except to change course, or because of the little blanket they'd lose by switching...
Yu Nianbing felt it was likely the former.
After all, it was Song Shiyue offering help, and it was her who proposed they abandon the promising Method Two. From Mu Xingzhou's perspective, that could be seen as overstepping.
Yu Nianbing could understand Mu Xingzhou's unhappiness.
After all, at this level of celebrity, who isn't a spoiled baby?
Besides, what she had done was indeed a bit...
Precisely because it was understandable, Yu Nianbing accepted the hidden meaning in Mu Xingzhou's words.
He wasn't wrong; those sips of water she had earlier were indeed optional.
Having made the first move, she couldn't blame someone who saw through it for countering.
But Yu Nianbing didn't regret it.
Who told Song Shiyue to be such a fool!
Perhaps because Yu Nianbing was too preoccupied and had too many thoughts when stepping onto the iron cable, her progress wasn't slow, but the cable swayed rather widely. And this was with Song Shiyue pulling on the other end...
When she reached the envelope, Yu Nianbing naturally stopped to try.
She had watched Guan Yongyi and Ning Chuyang attempt it. Hooking the string with a foot was very difficult. Especially for a girl of not very tall stature, it was really a bit awkward—you had to forget about your hands while worrying about your feet.
Yu Nianbing tried her foot once, then quickly gave up that approach. Instead, she tried to imitate Song Shiyue: letting go of the upper iron cable, grabbing the safety rope, and slowly squatting down.
But where in the world could there be a second Song Shiyue?
Earlier, both Guan Yongyi and Ning Chuyang had only used one hand on the upper iron cable while trying to lower their bodies to reach the envelope, not like Yu Nianbing, who only held the safety rope.
Holding the safety rope, Yu Nianbing got halfway down and then couldn't go any further. She hung there in a half-crouch, swaying, stuck in an awkward in-between.
Careless... Yu Nianbing decisively abandoned the attempt to crouch further and get the envelope. She decided to forgo the envelope; walking across and safeguarding Song Shiyue's little blanket was the priority.
But some things aren't as easy to give up as they are to try.
Going down is easy, coming up is hard. Yu Nianbing tried to stand and found it truly hard to exert force in that posture. Plus, the safety rope in her hand was nothing like the iron cable above; it swung violently. Standing back up was far harder than squatting down had been.
Moreover, she had been so flustered while squatting that she'd stopped counting. She didn't know how much time she had wasted... Thinking of Song Shiyue's little blanket, Yu Nianbing grew even more anxious to stand.
In a place that required guts, skill, and careful caution, the most dreaded thing was panic and confusion.
Once you panic, things go wrong.
In fact, when Yu Nianbing let go of the upper iron cable and switched to the safety rope to squat down, Song Shiyue sensed trouble.
But at that moment, Song Shiyue couldn't shout or let go; she could only silently pray that Yu Nianbing wouldn't be too daring.
Unfortunately, that hope was in vain.
Song Shiyue was trapped by the need to keep the iron cable taut to support Yu Nianbing, until Yu Nianbing, in her panic and haste, slipped and fell. Only then was Song Shiyue freed, and she immediately rushed onto the iron cable.
"I'm coming. It's all right. Don't move. I'll pull you up." Song Shiyue held nothing back; she used her full ability, quickly reaching the spot where Yu Nianbing had slipped, and said soothingly as she looked down.
Hanging below on the safety rope, after the initial fright, Yu Nianbing was left with only "..."
This time, I was truly too careless.
Admittedly, part of it was because Mu Xingzhou's provocatively tinged words earlier had left her a bit angry even as she tried to accept them.
But a big part was that Yu Nianbing was somewhat eager to prove she wasn't someone who needed Song Shiyue to take care of her in every way to repay a debt...
Too... impatient.
Well, look at this now.
I'm indeed the person who's done for the moment she's more than a few meters away from Song Shiyue!
Hanging from the safety rope, swaying beneath the iron cable, Yu Nianbing thought self-deprecatingly. But as she swayed, her eyes, unconsciously glancing downward, suddenly widened a little.
At that moment, Song Shiyue's efforts bore fruit, and Yu Nianbing was quickly pulled up.
"Are you okay?" Once Yu Nianbing had steadied herself, Song Shiyue anxiously tried to check her hands.
But Yu Nianbing now seemed to have rekindled hope, as if she'd come to her senses a bit.
"Is there still time?" As she asked, Yu Nianbing threw herself at Song Shiyue.
"?" Before Song Shiyue could answer, someone soft had thrown themselves onto her, and even when she heard the noise above, her reaction was half a beat slow.
At least I can still do something. Yu Nianbing clipped her safety clip back onto the iron cable, giving herself that bit of encouragement.
Without further words to Song Shiyue, she hurriedly began moving quickly toward the next platform.
Song Shiyue, on the other hand, hadn't even felt the warmth rush to her face before it was scared white by Yu Nianbing's smooth and surprising sequence of actions.
Song Shiyue no longer cared whether both of them walking at once would make the cable sway too much. She hurried after her, shouting, "Wait, let me check if your safety clip is fastened right! Wait for me!"
"It's fastened. Don't move, it's really swaying." Yu Nianbing moved swiftly, without looking back.
But the slight grievance and complaint in her voice were quite evident.
Song Shiyue was scared, angry, and also couldn't help wanting to laugh. What's with this person? Her courage is growing by the day, isn't it!
She climbs trees over and over, and now on an iron cable in midair, she actually dares to unclip her safety buckle. Her guts are fat enough to serve as a dish.
Yu Nianbing was walking fast, but if Song Shiyue chased with all her might, she could certainly catch up.
But after what Yu Nianbing had just said, Song Shiyue feared making it sway too much... She could only stop and strain to look at the safety clip, half hidden behind Yu Nianbing's hand.
Fine. It looked properly fastened, but Song Shiyue's heart rose and fell with every step Yu Nianbing took, like it was about to give her heart disease.
"Two minutes, twenty-eight seconds." Captain Yang announced without expression.
Yu Nianbing, who had relied on sheer willpower to get this far, suddenly went limp and sat down on the ground, prompting the other three to quickly gather around and check on her.
Though she didn't need rescuing, Song Shiyue returned very quickly as well. Seeing the soft heap on the ground when she landed, Song Shiyue felt a mixture of bitterness, speechlessness, and a bit of pride—it was complicated.
Even though this was a peaceful world, people who worked hard with a touch of stubbornness always earned a bit more appreciation.
But this emotion, which in the apocalypse would have been purely appreciation, was inexplicably tinged with heartache and bitterness now. Song Shiyue couldn't yet discern the reason.
And then the Yu Nianbing sitting on the ground looked up and said to Song Shiyue with a smile, "Thankfully, there was still time. We saved your little blanket."
Blanket is just blanket. Why say 'little blanket' in such an adorable way! Song Shiyue wanted to retort, but her heart felt as if something had struck it hard.
Song Shiyue didn't answer immediately. She unconsciously glanced at the distant sky a couple of times, as if checking the weather, then turned back and smiled at Yu Nianbing. "If I'd known you could walk that fast, I should have grabbed an envelope for you. Then you could have a little blanket too."
Yu Nianbing smiled, but didn't feel regret.
This is fine. People shouldn't be too greedy.
After all... that moment just now was already quite warm.
"By the way..." Yu Nianbing suddenly thought of something, but just as she was about to speak, she saw Mu Xingzhou on the other side already clipping his safety buckle onto the iron cable, ready to start. She changed tack. "Never mind, let's talk later. You go pull the cable first."
Yu Nianbing's words could wait, but the StarNet viewers' danmaku couldn't be held back for a second.
"Holy moly, when Little Ice Block fell, I almost forgot there was a safety rope. My heart was pounding harder than on a roller coaster."
"This iron cable bridge is really too hard for the guests. Without Sister Song, how would they even manage?"
"As much as the production team is annoying... hardship shows true feelings. That bit of sweetness just now... never mind, I'm going to drink some water. cough... cough..."
"You candy-eaters, don't you think it was a little out of line for Yu Nianbing to make Ning Chuyang and Mu Xingzhou give up Method Two, which could get them blankets?"
"Don't think so... Who's that? A little star?"
"Probably a little star. Ning Chuyang looked like she would have switched to Method One even if Yu Nianbing hadn't said anything. Probably not a little sunshine."
"Hard to say. Maybe a little sunshine felt sorry for Ning Chuyang not having a blanket and asked that."
"Seeing everyone guessing whose fan asked, let me answer. Not! Out! Of! Line! Say it with me: 'Not out of line at all!'"
"Exactly, how is it out of line? Sister Song doesn't owe the team anything. Lending a hand is out of kindness and loyalty, not an obligation to risk her life to get blankets for others."
"Right. Whether you're a fan or a passerby, before asking, go watch the replay. If not for Sister Song, how many more times would the guests have been screwed by the production team, missing out on things? Don't you know?"
"Besides, what's wrong with us candy-eaters? Eating your candy? Even without shipping CP, as ordinary teammates, wasn't Yu Nianbing's remark fair? Just because someone gives more, is it okay to take it for granted?"
"Heh, said the fair thing, but in the end she still needed Song Shiyue to go back and save her. — Yeah, I'm a Little Star, so what?"
"Hahaha I admire that Little Star ahead. I can already see your ending."
"Sorry, the person ahead only represents themselves. They don't represent the vast, harmonious majority of us Little Stars who are grateful to Sister Song."
"Hahaha, if that's the case, the ending might be even worse."
"Forget everything else, just based on Yu Nianbing unhooking her own safety clip later, I'm a lifelong Little Mooncake. Because I really can't call this just teammate love..."
"Really! I cried at that moment! Little Ice Block, no, Little Hot Water is just too warm!"
"Our Little Ice Block might have slipped a bit, but her heart is truly upright. No regrets in this life being an Ice Bucket... well, Hot Water Kettle works too."
"The system actually didn't record a tag for that hug just now. So not smart! How will the show's traffic go up? It still depends on us true-love editing gangs!"
"Hahaha, right as the person above said that, the system refreshed it. A row of [Hug 1] appeared in the sidebar of Song Shiyue and Yu Nianbing's livestream pages."
"??? Does this count as an official pairing?"
"Seems the candy is really sweet. Even the system couldn't resist taking a bite."
"Hahaha, that little blanket is really cute too. Why so cute!"
"Yes!"
"Hahaha, probably touched by the scent of love. Even though we haven't seen that little blanket, I feel like... it's pink!"
"Little Blanket: ???"
...
The StarNet audience, moved by the people on the screen, rode an emotional roller coaster.
And the people on the screen themselves were probably not very calm either.
Who could have guessed? Mu Xingzhou, the last one to step onto the iron cable, walked near the envelope, stretched out a leg to try hooking it, and then... his foot slipped too, and he fell...
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