WS - Chapter 100

Chapter 100

It takes seven days to form a new habit.

Most people have sipped this particular cup of motivational chicken soup.

And a considerable number of them have taken more than one sip.

Director Zhang had always lived as he pleased, unwilling to even properly manage his emotions, let alone something as inconsequential as a habit.

Whether seven days could actually form a new habit, he had no idea—but the process of forming one was truly detestable.

"..." Director Zhang opened his eyes and silently stared at the culprit who had woken him up—the person inside the tent putting on pants.

It was barely light outside. Wang Daming, hunched over, finished dressing; when he turned his head, he saw Director Zhang, still lying down, eyes open and staring straight at him.

"Director Zhang, you're awake! Want to get up and have breakfast? I'll call Zhao Da and the others to go get it together." Wang Daming smiled warmly and amiably.

Director Zhang shut his eyes and waved a hand. "...Go on."

Wang Daming responded with a string of 'okay's and left the tent.

Only then did Director Zhang open his eyes again, and after a long pause, heaved a sigh.

So annoying!

Ever since arriving on this Wilderness Planet, he kept having nightmares. If it weren't for that, he wouldn't have to cram into a tent with Wang Daming every day even though he had his own single tent.

As for this Wang Daming, he didn't know what to say about him. His perceptiveness came and went. He was fine as a yes-man, but when left to his own devices, his actions always left something to be desired. What was most annoying was how much noise he made getting up in the morning. Director Zhang had already told him twice in the past two days, yet every morning the noise was just as loud. He wondered if the dog had eaten his memory.

Sigh...

If the two assistants were both male, Director Zhang would have long since stopped sharing a tent with Wang Daming.

Director Zhang checked the time on his wristband, dawdled a bit longer in the tent, then got up and stepped out.

Because of what he had planned last night to arrange for the participants today, the production crew had all gotten up quite early. Yet over at the participants' camp, even though the sleep privacy period was nearly over, there didn't seem to be much movement.

Director Zhang yawned, stretched, and looked around. The ground was clean, with no foreign objects. The annoying bats from yesterday had swooped by but ultimately hadn't left any even more irritating traces.

Still, it was ultimately because... Director Zhang cast a glance toward the participants' camp on the right and rubbed his chin thoughtfully.

Just as Director Zhang had finished stretching and freshening up, Wang Daming and Zhao Da and Zhao Er returned, carrying a few cardboard boxes.

"Today's breakfast is a mix of Chinese and Western—Director Zhang, come eat while it's hot!" Wang Daming said cheerfully as he set the boxes on the folding table.

Zhao Da and Zhao Er also called out to Feng Qianqian and Ni Jinghe.

Once they had laid out breakfast on the table, Director Zhang craned his neck for a look and saw that it was indeed abundant.

Each person got one bowl of sweet congee and one bowl of savory congee, a breakfast burger, a sandwich, a box of scrambled eggs with sausage hash browns, and a salad.

Director Zhang reached for a bowl of century egg and lean pork congee and, without using a spoon, just brought the bowl to his mouth and gulped down a couple of mouthfuls.

After two mouthfuls of congee, Director Zhang's gaze wandered between Feng Qianqian and Wang Daming, ultimately landing on Feng Qianqian. He spoke: "Feng Qianqian, keep an eye on the participants' side in a bit. If someone comes out, go tell them that the production crew will cover their breakfast today. Once they're all up, we'll deliver it to them; they don't need to make their own."

Wang Daming, who had been gnawing on a pork-and-egg burger, hurriedly swallowed the food in his mouth and even had to strain his neck before he could get his question out: "Didn't we say last night that because they picked up too many benefits on the zipline route, the segment we prepared for them to earn breakfast by retrieving benefits again after returning to camp was scrapped, and we moved it to this morning to let them earn breakfast? Why skip the segment and just give them breakfast?"

"Mm." Director Zhang nodded and, seeing Wang Daming's expression that he still wanted to ask more, set down the congee bowl he had been about to drink from again and added, "Last night those things came through, and no one slept well. Let's skip the morning segment; otherwise, they'll be drenched in sweat again."

Wang Daming paused, then nodded in agreement, though the surprise in his eyes hadn't entirely faded.

In the thermal storage boxes at this camp, besides the production crew's dinner from last night, there had also been breakfast for both the crew and the participants for today.

Originally, according to the production crew's plan from the start, by last night the participants would have largely used up their food supplies. This breakfast was meant as a change of pace for them.

But last night, Director Zhang saw that the participants still had some food left, so he waffled for a long time over whether to provide breakfast. Only quite late did he decide: they would give it to them, but they'd have to earn it through the unused backup climbing puzzle segment from yesterday.

However, after a night's sleep, Director Zhang's mind had changed again.

Feng Qianqian was also surprised that Director Zhang had changed his tune today. Still, the change was for the better, so she didn't say much, simply nodding in agreement.

Having received Director Zhang's instructions, Feng Qianqian took her sweet congee of red dates, red beans, and longan and walked a few steps toward the participants' camp, sipping slowly in small mouthfuls.

As far as she could tell, at least inside Song Shiyue and Yu Nianbing's tent, the people were already awake.

A small single tent, stuffed with two people: whenever they moved a little too vigorously, the tent would sway, which was quite easy to see.

Just as Feng Qianqian was watching the tent at the front and thinking Song Shiyue and the other would probably be the first to emerge, Director Zhang spoke up again from behind.

Director Zhang had gulped down an entire bowl of century egg and lean pork congee, then tilted his head back and tapped the bottom of the bowl to shake the last shred of meat stuck to the rim into his mouth. He also grabbed a pork-and-egg burger and took a bite, before furrowing his brow slightly and turning to Wang Daming: "When you went to get breakfast just now, did you see the participants' breakfast? I recall their portions weren't very large, right?"

Wang Daming nodded. "On the participants' side, it's just one bowl of century egg and lean pork congee and one pork-and-egg burger per person. Didn't we say during the meeting that we shouldn't provide them too much? If they get too full, they won't have enough drive at noon."

"Mm." Director Zhang recalled a bit now. He nodded, but then looked at the pork-and-egg burger in his hand again.

These breakfast burgers were a whole size smaller than regular meal burgers. Though they tasted quite good, the pork patty inside was very thin, only one egg was included, and there wasn't even a slice of cheese—just a bit of sauce.

For someone with Director Zhang's appetite, one bite just now had polished off nearly half the burger. The whole thing would be gone in about three bites.

"Here's the thing: take the eggs from the other participants'..." Director Zhang said, then hesitated, and amended, "Take the pork patties out of the other participants' burgers and put them into Song Shiyue's burger."

Wang Daming: "..." A head full of question marks left him momentarily speechless.

A few steps away, Feng Qianqian, who was drinking her sweet congee, nearly spat it out and looked back with equal astonishment.

However, Zhao Da, Zhao Er, and Ni Jinghe, who had taken their breakfasts and gone to eat a bit farther away, hadn't heard Director Zhang's remark and thus remained unperturbed.

"No need to rush. When they've all gotten up and you go to fetch their breakfast, you can handle it then." Director Zhang, as if entirely unaware he had just said something shocking, continued instructing with a calm expression.

"All... all five of the other participants' patties taken out?" Wang Daming collected himself before managing to ask.

"Yes. What, do you have an objection? Or are you planning to put your own meat and egg into Song Shiyue's burger?" Director Zhang was holding the box of scrambled eggs and sausage hash browns, shoveling food into his mouth as he asked.

"No no no..." Wang Daming shook his head frantically.

As their physical activity increased day by day, their appetites grew better and their food intake larger. The first boxed meal had left plenty of leftovers, but by last night's dinner, Wang Daming had basically finished everything except a small portion of rice.

The breakfast here now looked varied, but Wang Daming felt he could finish it all himself; why would he want to give it up to stuff into Song Shiyue's burger?

"Good, no objections then." Director Zhang picked up a bowl of white fungus and lotus seed congee and tipped a mouthful into his mouth. He added, "They love sharing. When you go, remember to tell them: everyone eats their own, no sharing allowed. It's a welfare breakfast—finish it on the spot, no taking it away."

Feng Qianqian blew on her still-hot sweet congee and couldn't help but marvel that when Director Zhang set his mind to being meticulous, he was indeed thorough, even thinking of this.

However...

Feng Qianqian glanced over at the participants' camp and, seeing that no one had come out yet, turned back to the table where Director Zhang was, picked up a sandwich but didn't eat it right away. Instead, she looked at Director Zhang and asked, "Is this... to help Captain Yang divide the participants?"

"Divide the participants? Why would I want to divi..." Director Zhang frowned, his retort cut off halfway as something occurred to him. He turned to Wang Daming and said, "When you go, tell them that theirs are egg burgers. The pork patties in Song Shiyue's pork-and-egg burger are a reward from the production crew for her brave deed last night in clearing the bats from camp."

So that was it.

As soon as Director Zhang said this, both Wang Daming and Feng Qianqian felt a sudden understanding.

No wonder—Director Zhang suddenly acting so kind, canceling the strenuous breakfast-earning game segment and even giving all the good stuff to Song Shiyue... so this was the reason.

It made sense, after all. Although the production crew had two bodyguards, after the bat swarm passed, they merely came out here and there to check if everyone was all right and that was it. As for the bats on the ground—whether stunned or dead—Zhao Da and Zhao Er indicated they could just be left alone. After all, people were in their tents, and even if the bats weren't dead, they'd leave when they woke up, unable to bite anyone, so no need to bother.

Ni Jinghe said bats carried many viruses and those on the ground should be removed. But Zhao Da and Zhao Er didn't take it seriously, just laughing and reassuring, "It's fine, it's fine, go back to sleep."

After all, bodyguards... weren't nannies. Whether these stunned bats posed a safety threat was a matter of opinion, and one couldn't force Zhao Da and Zhao Er to deal with them.

For some reason, Director Zhang hadn't come out of his tent that whole time, and the others couldn't get Zhao Da and Zhao Er to budge. Feng Qianqian and Ni Jinghe had initially thought, forget it, the three of them would just clean up the camp themselves. But then Wang Daming had a reluctant, dawdling look on his face...

It wasn't until Feng Qianqian went to knock on Director Zhang's tent that he, from inside the tent, gave the order for Wang Daming to go help clean up.

As for Zhao Da and Zhao Er, Director Zhang didn't bother calling them either.

Just as the production crew was playing hot potato with the bat cleanup, Song Shiyue came over from the other camp, flashlight on and two branches in hand. Without much talk, she gave a brief nod in greeting and then silently began picking up bats.

Even after Feng Qianqian and the others joined in, Song Shiyue insisted on going over the production crew's camp inch by inch, clearing every last one.

Feng Qianqian had thought Director Zhang wasn't aware of this.

She hadn't expected him to actually take it to heart.

Given how the production crew had been acting the past couple of days, what Song Shiyue did was truly generous—one could even call it returning good for evil.

And her heart was genuine; it wasn't for show. After all, late at night, Song Shiyue was just a pixelated mosaic on the StarNet livestream page, not saying a word; the viewers likely had no idea what she was doing wandering around camp.

Director Zhang's desire to give Song Shiyue extra food now was something Feng Qianqian could understand.

At least the other participants still ended up with an egg burger and weren't stripped down to a bun with sauce by Director Zhang, so Feng Qianqian didn't feel the need to say anything further.

The fragrance lingers on the hand that gives roses.

Pick up bats, trade for patties.

No one knew that part of the reason Song Shiyue cleared the camp was for hygiene, but the vast majority was to keep Yu Nianbing from seeing those... birds.

Even though Song Shiyue knew what those flying things were—ultimately she couldn't keep it from Yu Nianbing—but not seeing them was still better than seeing them.

She never expected to end up with a 'Big Mac' reward for it.

Since she couldn't share it and couldn't take it away, Song Shiyue just... ate it.

The other participants didn't feel any resentment either. Never mind that Song Shiyue had single-handedly swept the production crew's camp last night—she deserved it. Besides, most of their food and drink these past two days had been thanks to Song Shiyue, so seeing her get an extra bite now, they should be happy for her.

Zhuang Jiachuan in particular, who had remembered Song Shiyue's appetite last night, felt more at ease eating his 'egg burger,' which he kept thinking carried a hint of meat flavor, than he had during the previous night's meal.

But while the people involved were broad-minded, the fans on StarNet weren't necessarily.

Because they could see the production crew's livestream, the viewers all knew where the extra pork patties in Song Shiyue's burger had come from, and they also knew that the others' burgers hadn't started out as just egg burgers.

Giving Song Shiyue extra meat was something the audience was happy to see.

But when that extra meat was taken from the people they were fans of, it didn't sit so well.

For a while, the danmaku on StarNet was chaotic.

Some criticized the production team; some said Song Shiyue couldn't count the patties and ate with a clear conscience; others lashed back at the other participants' fans for being ungrateful. The various fan groups brawled.

Interestingly, the exclusive icons for the StarNet livestream page had just been launched. Not only could you see the inter-fandom melee at a glance, but there was also infighting within each fandom—it was truly lively.

With the emergence of this new topic, the earlier morning conversation—where upstanding Little Moons, Little Ice Buckets, and Mooncakes had woken up to discover that Song Shiyue and Yu Nianbing had been 'imagined into a car scene' by danmaku late at night, and were condemning those people for excessive 'sugar consumption' and overstepping bounds—was thus instantly drowned out by the multi-fandom brawl...

This was a moment that demonstrated the advantage of having removed the participants' StarNet clients.

The viewers and danmaku on StarNet didn't disturb their good mood while enjoying breakfast in the slightest.

Though it was just one bowl of congee and one burger, at least it was an extra acquisition, sparing them from dipping into their stored rations one more time; they were quite happy about that.

The congee tasted pretty good too, with generous ingredients. The distinctive aroma of century egg and the savory flavor of shredded pork blended into the rice gruel; one bite was no less satisfying than the big pot of stewed meat soup from the morning before. The burger's bun was soft and fluffy, the sauce rich with spices but not overwhelming, paired with a half-cooked egg—truly delicious. Hmm... it also carried a faint, elusive hint of black pepper and seared meat fragrance, which was special.

Seventy percent full—just right.

The participants ate happily, and Director Zhang, nibbling on his salad in a desultory fashion, watched them with satisfaction.

Especially Song Shiyue, who didn't waste his goodwill in the slightest. She just openly ate that burger stuffed with six meat patties and one egg, which greatly pleased Director Zhang.

On this rare morning when both the production crew and the participants were fairly happy, a solitary person lay in his tent for a long time, with a net pouch beside him—made from vines he had gathered in the woods last night after he became a mosaic.

Except this one was much larger than the one he had used to catch frogs the day before.

In just two days, Captain Yang had lost all interest in continuing to lead these people, and he didn't even want to keep filming.

Like right now, the sounds outside the tent told him the production crew was eating breakfast.

But... no one would call him.

That Director Zhang probably really wants to film me passing out from hunger, just to make a big sensation.

Thinking this, Captain Yang's eyes grew ever more determined. He slowly reached for his backpack.

And the participants over there, they were probably lighting a fire and getting ready to cook by now.

With rice, vegetables, and meat... they're probably dying to see me starved and feeble.

Captain Yang gripped the box inside his backpack.

Do those people think that everything I did in front of the cameras before was just for show?

I, for the sake of survival, for the sake of living, just so you people won't laugh at me—I can eat anything.

Captain Yang opened the box, grabbed a handful, and squeezed hard. The squirming in his hand gradually ceased.

The earthy, rank smell...

In a daze, Captain Yang seemed to recall some unpleasant experiences from his youth.

But soon, he shook his head and cast those scattered fragments aside.

Now, he owned a professional wilderness team-building company. He had employees who admired him, and wave after wave of clients, regardless of profession or status, who had to follow his orders.

He was no longer the one who would be isolated.

Absolutely, never again.

Some are happy, some are sad.

Some have calmed their hearts, while others grow ever angrier.

The world is so vast; we can never know, at this very moment, just how many events are unfolding that will change people, or how many people are undergoing transformation in an instant.

On Mingtan Planet, in a storage room not far from the basement home theater of a villa, Ye Liu had been lectured by the housekeeper auntie for nearly half an hour.

"So have you properly memorized the area you're responsible for now?" The housekeeper auntie asked again, her expression stern.

"Yes, I have!" Ye Liu, without the slightest sign of impatience, obediently nodded yet again, her head seeming about to fall off from all the nodding.

"Don't blame me for being too strict. You'll get into trouble wandering around like this. This time I saw you, but these days the Second Young Master comes by often. If either the First or Second Young Master sees you coming down here, you'll be settling your pay and leaving. With your education, don't even dream of finding another job with such good treatment." The housekeeper auntie once again stressed the seriousness of the matter.

Ye Liu couldn't help but sigh deeply in her heart. Oh heavens, this was already the umpteenth time she'd heard these words.

This housekeeper's essence was definitely a reinforced model of a looping repeater!

It was all because of that whoever! Giving her an identity practically illiterate... now she couldn't even talk back.

Of course, even if she could talk back, Ye Liu wouldn't for the time being.

After all, her work here... wasn't finished yet...

"Auntie Sun, I was wrong, I really was. I just dropped an orange and it rolled down here. After I came down, I saw the door slightly open and took a curious glance. I had barely looked when you arrived." Ye Liu put on a coaxing, fawning expression. "Really, I won't come down here again."

"Address me as Housekeeper." Though Auntie Sun's face remained stern, she was at least not quite as severe now. After grumbling a few more words at Ye Liu, she finally let her go back up.

Once out of Auntie Sun's sight, Ye Liu rubbed her neck and, with a look of utter despair, turned the corner into the bathroom. She put in her earpiece and opened the StarNet client.

The video call request was quickly picked up on the other end.

On the screen, first there was a white wall. Two breaths later, a human head slowly rose from the bottom of the frame upward.

Long hair, somewhat disheveled, covered half the person's face. Even though the woman on the screen was quite beautiful, this entrance truly resembled something out of a horror movie...

Ye Liu was long used to this. She merely frowned slightly and began typing: "Fell asleep on the desk again? Didn't you say that while I'm out working, you'd sleep properly at home? Do you want me to come back right now?"

"Finished investigating?" The woman in the frame casually ran her fingers through her hair a few times, and it miraculously turned smooth and sleek. She then rubbed her face, which flushed with color, her complexion immediately improving. Looking at her now, she seemed quite normal, no longer resembling a female ghost at all.

"No, I'm just expressing my displeasure that you slept on the table all night again." Watching the woman's pale knuckles flicker in and out of the black strands as she combed through her hair, Ye Liu's eyes dimmed slightly, but she continued typing: "Today I went to the home theater room I mentioned before. On the coffee table, I saw a few sheets of paper—they seemed to be files on participants from The Wilderness Journey."

"The cast?" The woman sat up straight.

"And the production crew on Wilderness Planet." Ye Liu wrote again, "I only had time to look at two: one was Feng Qianqian's, one was Captain Yang's. The ones on top seemed to be Song Shiyue and Yu Nianbing's, but I didn't get a chance to read them."

The woman frowned and said nothing.

"Song Shiyue and Yu Nianbing's files had question marks, but I was discovered by the housekeeper before I could read them. From the ones I saw for Feng Qianqian and Captain Yang, the information was very detailed, covering major life experiences from childhood onward, plus background checks—they even had personality and behavioral analyses. I wonder who they hired to do that." Ye Liu glanced at the woman on the screen, whose frown deepened, and smiled inwardly before continuing to type, "They even dug up something like Captain Yang being ostracized by classmates as a child. Don't you find that ridiculous?"

"Ye Liu." The woman leaned back, her brow gradually relaxing somewhat, but her words carried a hint of helplessness. "Are you deliberately trying to make me anxious?"

Ye Liu lowered her eyes, her fingers pausing over the input box for a moment.

"Fine, I'll remember to sleep in the bed." After a brief silence, the woman conceded a step.

"Feng Qianqian and Captain Yang's files don't seem problematic; they even had checkmarks on them. Only the top ones for Yu Nianbing and Song Shiyue have question marks. I'll find another chance to go down and see what the issue is. Hello, President Yao, goodbye President Yao!" Ye Liu quickly finished typing and hung up the video call.

"You..." Yao Yuxi's final words—telling her to be careful, and to forget it if it was really too risky—hadn't even left her mouth before the StarNet video was cut off from the other side.

Get instant access to all chapters now.

Previous Table of Contents Next