Chapter 3

Bai Xiaoxu remembered that they were still livestreaming, so he turned toward the camera and put on an aggrieved expression. ــــــــــــــــــــــﮩ٨ـ ❤︎ 【Aaaaaah, poor Xiaoxu! He has to carry such a heavy bag. Come here, let big sister give you a hug!】 【What the hell? How could he make our Xu-xu carry something that heavy? No wonder Xu-xu has always looked down on him.】 【Let his fans keep living in their own fantasy world. They're always going around calling other people simps, but apparently their idol doesn't even care about him. He volunteers to carry the bag, then acts all wronged when he has to do it. I'm dying.】 【Didn't he literally offer to carry the luggage himself? What are you people freaking out about? Brain-dead fans will be brain-dead fans. If you ask me, Bai-whatever is just pretending to be an innocent little white lotus.】 ــــــــــــــــــــــﮩ٨ـ ❤︎ The livestream comments were a chaotic mess, with people saying all sorts of things. But one thing was obvious. Jing Shan's behavior had been completely at odds with the rumors that had circulated before—rumors claiming that he obeyed Bai Xiaoxu's every word and was hopelessly devoted to him. Jing Shan placed the suitcases he'd been carrying in the spot designated by the staff. Bai Xiaoxu entered the house as well. Compared with Jing Shan and Xie Yichen, Bai Xiaoxu was only a little over 170 centimeters tall. He was slender and thin. The hiking backpack that wasn't particularly small for Jing Shan looked absolutely enormous on him. With the backpack in his arms, most of Bai Xiaoxu's body disappeared behind it. He struggled to poke his head out and make sure the camera could still see him, deliberately putting on an exhausted expression. "Brother Jing, it's so heavy!" As he spoke, Bai Xiaoxu looked at Jing Shan with an utterly pitiful expression. He had imagined that looking this delicate and helpless would surely awaken Jing Shan's protective instincts. It didn't. Instead, Jing Shan felt a chill run down his spine. Once again, he was convinced that the original owner's taste in men had been terrible. He liked strong men. There was absolutely no way he'd be interested in a weakling like this. And then— The instant Jing Shan finished complaining internally, a startled cry came from behind him. He turned around. Xie Yichen was holding a small bag. Somehow, he'd apparently caught his foot on something and was about to fall. Jing Shan reacted instantly. He shot out an arm and caught the young man around the waist, pulling him safely into his arms. Xie Yichen looked genuinely shaken. He lifted his head and said gratefully, "Thank you, Jing Shan. Otherwise, I definitely would've fallen." Jing Shan pursed his lips. After steadying him, he casually took the bag from Xie Yichen's hand as well. "Why didn't you wait for me to carry it?" he asked with a frown. Jing Shan had apparently forgotten that he'd just been thinking about how much he disliked weaklings. He took the feather-light little bag from Xie Yichen, his expression still faintly disapproving. As though the mere idea of Xie Yichen carrying his own belongings was somehow unacceptable. The double standard was almost impressive. Xie Yichen blinked. He could sense the subtle concern in Jing Shan's words, and a trace of amusement appeared in his eyes. "It's not heavy. And thank you for carrying my luggage." As he spoke, his gaze seemingly drifted past Jing Shan to Bai Xiaoxu, who was still struggling beneath the enormous backpack. The corners of his lips lifted ever so slightly. His eyes quietly took in the tall, straight figure of the man who had already turned around to carefully put away his bag, followed by that handsome face which happened to fall precisely within Xie Yichen's personal definition of perfection. For the first time since he'd been forced to participate in this ridiculous show, Xie Yichen felt genuinely pleased. ــــــــــــــــــــــﮩ٨ـ ❤︎ 【AAAAAH! My usually ice-cold brother actually smiled!】 【Yichen looks so good when he smiles. Big sister wants a hug~】 【The person above is so creepy. No hugs for you! Brother is mine!】 【Okay, but... is it just me, or do Jing Yingdi and Yichen actually look kind of good together...?】 【Jing Shan fans, get out! That disgraced celebrity better not come anywhere near our Yichen!】 ــــــــــــــــــــــﮩ٨ـ ❤︎ Xie Yichen was in a good mood, and the moment his beauty-obsessed fans saw him smile, the livestream filled with people practically licking the screen. Only Meng Letian, who had been silently watching everything from behind, wore an expression that could only be described as complicated. Bai Xiaoxu was irritated too. Seeing that Jing Shan had completely ignored him, he glanced toward Meng Letian. But Meng Letian seemed distracted as well, apparently lost in his own thoughts. In the end, Bai Xiaoxu needed the staff's help before he could get the heavy hiking backpack properly put away. Once everyone had entered the house, the director wasn't cruel enough to immediately put them to work. Instead, he had the staff prepare tea and snacks and invited everyone to sit down and rest in the main hall. The games and activities wouldn't begin until later. Jing Shan had no objections. He simply found a quiet corner and sat down. The moment Bai Xiaoxu saw this, he immediately walked over, intending to sit beside him. But before he could get there, a tall figure swept past him. Taking advantage of his long legs and height, Xie Yichen reached Jing Shan in just a few steps and sat down beside him. Bai Xiaoxu pursed his lips. Then he looked toward Jing Shan. The man didn't even spare him half a glance. Instead, he simply turned his head toward Xie Yichen. Fortunately, Ou Fangfang patted the empty chair beside her, giving Bai Xiaoxu an easy way out. Bai Xiaoxu sat down. But he wasn't about to leave things alone. Looking at Jing Shan, he casually said, "Brother Jing, I mentioned in passing that I was coming on this show. I didn't expect you to come too. What a coincidence." He said what a coincidence. But the truth was that he'd deliberately said it in front of the cameras because he wanted to establish the impression that Jing Shan had joined the show specifically because of him. The original Jing Shan had indeed been pursuing Bai Xiaoxu. But they were both in the entertainment industry, and Bai Xiaoxu's career was only just beginning. Afraid that his pursuit would cause trouble for the younger man's career, the original Jing Shan had always been relatively restrained. The only things that had ever been photographed were a few pictures of them appearing together. Jing Shan had also publicly expressed his admiration for Bai Xiaoxu. Other than that, there had never been any hard evidence of a relationship. Later, however, Shen Tianzong had fabricated numerous scandals accusing Jing Shan of harassing his costars and had unleashed an army of online trolls. Those things Jing Shan had once done to show special consideration toward Bai Xiaoxu were suddenly reframed as having sinister motives. If Jing Shan hadn't joined the show, Bai Xiaoxu's next move would have been to manipulate both Jing Shan and the audience. He would subtly hint to Jing Shan, coax him into confessing his feelings on camera, and then publicly reject him. The purpose, of course, would be to generate buzz while simultaneously raising his standing in Shen Tianzong's eyes. Jing Shan immediately saw through what he was trying to do. His voice remained cold. "Sorry, but the director invited me two months ago. I had no idea who else would be on the show when I agreed to come." He paused. "If you really want to call it a coincidence, then go ahead." Two months ago. That meant Jing Shan had almost certainly been one of the earliest confirmed guests—probably long before Bai Xiaoxu. No one knew why he'd failed to appear in the first episode, but his response was so blunt that the meaning couldn't have been clearer. Bai Xiaoxu was being completely self-important. Everyone was caught off guard by the answer. Even Meng Letian, sitting behind them, gave Jing Shan a suspicious look. Jing Shan hadn't lied. The original Jing Shan had known the director quite for some time, which was why he'd received the invitation so early. Even after the scandal broke, the director had continued to trust his character. The previous season of Pastoral Life had been a huge hit, and Director Liu had connections of his own. He wasn't afraid of the Shen family's threats. That was why he'd repeatedly encouraged Jing Shan to join the show. He wanted to give him a helping hand. If possible, he also hoped the show could help clear up the rumors surrounding Jing Shan and Bai Xiaoxu and salvage at least some of Jing Shan's reputation. Remembering this, Jing Shan silently made a note to himself. He owed Director Liu a favor. Sure enough, the director immediately nodded from behind the cameras, confirming Jing Shan's statement. The livestream comments erupted again. ــــــــــــــــــــــﮩ٨ـ ❤︎ 【HAHAHA, I'm dying. He was acting like Jing Yingdi came here specifically for him, and it turns out Jing probably doesn't even remember who he is!】 【How does it feel to get slapped in the face? To all those delusional White Lotus fans who keep claiming their idol is the center of everyone's universe—how's that going? You really think you're the sun and the whole earth revolves around you?】 【Jing Shan fans are the delusional ones. Stop celebrating. You can't whitewash attempted coercion!】 【Exactly! The only reason that creep Jing even came on the show is because he had ulterior motives toward our Xiaoxu!】 【What do you mean, "attempted coercion"? If you don't know how to speak properly, maybe don't. There are so many unanswered questions here. Only idiots blindly follow the crowd.】 【Exactly! White Lotus fans are the most brain-dead. They were attacking my favorite actress before too. Shameless.】 ــــــــــــــــــــــﮩ٨ـ ❤︎ Bai Xiaoxu hadn't been famous for very long. Most of his fans had come from his previous survival show appearances, along with a few idol dramas and web series. They were generally quite young. There weren't that many of them, but young fans could be remarkably combative. Whenever Bai Xiaoxu deliberately hinted that someone had ignored or bullied him, his fans would immediately swarm that person with abuse. So after hearing Jing Shan's answer, fans from other fandoms quickly piled in to mock Bai Xiaoxu. The comment section descended into a full-scale war. Bai Xiaoxu himself was stunned by Jing Shan's response. He couldn't understand what had happened to the man who had always treated him with such care. Not only had Jing Shan made him carry that ridiculously heavy bag, he'd now openly contradicted him. It was true that the only person Bai Xiaoxu genuinely loved was Shen Tianzong. But Jing Shan clearly had considerable value to him as well. He wasn't willing to let that resource go. Could it be because he'd rejected Jing Shan yet again recently? Had Jing Shan finally realized he had no chance and decided to give up? No. Impossible. Just a few days ago, Bai Xiaoxu had heard from someone close to Jing Shan that the man was preparing to give him a substantial portion of his assets. With that thought, Bai Xiaoxu became even more convinced that Jing Shan couldn't possibly have been telling the truth about not knowing Bai Xiaoxu would be on the show. This had to be some kind of reverse-psychology act. Jing Shan was deliberately playing hard to get. The thought immediately made Bai Xiaoxu feel much better. It seemed he'd simply have to find an opportunity to show a little vulnerability and give Jing Shan a tiny taste of sweetness now and then. That should keep him hooked. "Yichen looks much more energetic today than he did yesterday," Ou Fangfang said with a smile. Director Liu's mouth twitched. More energetic? Yesterday they hadn't even given the guy any real tasks. The moment this guest arrived, he'd sprawled out in his room and barely stepped outside the entire day. Jing Shan's attention was drawn to Xie Yichen at the mention of his name. He remembered that there was supposed to be a character like him in the novel. Jing Shan searched through the book in his mind more carefully. And sure enough, Xie Yichen was there. He simply hadn't remembered him because Xie Yichen's appearances were so brief. He'd only shown up briefly at the beginning of the variety-show arc. According to the original plot, in another couple of days, Xie Yichen would supposedly "bully" Bai Xiaoxu. That would earn him the hostility of both Jing Shan and the male lead, Shen Tianzong, turning him into the perfect contrast against the protagonist's supposedly kind and gentle nature. He would then be subjected to a wave of online abuse, eventually leaving the show halfway through. After that, he'd vanish completely from the entertainment industry. But Jing Shan had already seen through Bai Xiaoxu's true nature. There was no way he believed that so-called "bullying" had really happened. He hadn't missed the jealousy in Bai Xiaoxu's eyes when the younger man looked at Xie Yichen just now. With his extraordinary looks and natural presence, Xie Yichen clearly had everything it took to become a rising star in the entertainment industry. Instead, his career would be ruined because of the protagonists. The thought of everything Xie Yichen was about to go through stirred an inexplicable sense of anger in Jing Shan's chest. And, for some reason, he felt sorry for him. But now that things were different— Jing Shan would never let Bai Xiaoxu use him as a weapon against someone else again. "What's wrong? Are you feeling unwell?" A clear, pleasant voice sounded beside him. Xie Yichen was quietly asking him a question. Jing Shan shook his head and pulled himself out of his thoughts. Under the host's guidance, everyone began introducing themselves. Jing Shan listened quietly while the others took their turns. Besides Meng Letian and Cheng Zimeng, who had arrived on the same bus as him, the two guests who had come a day earlier were Mo Bin and Ou Fangfang. Mo Bin was a veteran actor in his fifties who had spent his entire career playing supporting roles. He was humorous, perpetually cheerful, and seemed like an extremely easygoing person. Ou Fangfang was one of the entertainment industry's current top young actresses. She was strikingly beautiful, with a glamorous, almost aggressive kind of beauty. Yet despite her appearance, she spoke with a playful, lively energy. Everyone did their best to showcase their personalities during their introductions. When it was Jing Shan's turn, however, he only said a couple of brief sentences. After all, he intended to leave the entertainment industry once the show was over. There was no reason to put much effort into his introduction. But the person who came after him was even more extreme. Xie Yichen simply gave his name. That was it. He was somehow even more perfunctory than Jing Shan. Director Liu, standing behind the camera, hurriedly stood up and gestured frantically, silently urging him to say a little more. Xie Yichen ignored him completely. Then he noticed that Jing Shan was looking at him. After a brief pause, he added, "I really like Jing Shan's work." And that was it. Nothing else. Everyone present reacted differently. For a moment, Ou Fangfang couldn't even control her expression. Was this guy insane? Jing Shan was currently being hated by practically the entire internet. And Xie Yichen had just openly announced that he liked Jing Shan's acting. Wasn't he afraid of getting dragged into the scandal? Of course, everything Ou Fangfang was thinking had also occurred to Jing Shan. He was genuinely happy that the man beside him liked his work. But why did he have to be so damn fearless at a time like this? Then again, Xie Yichen was only in his early twenties—several years younger than Jing Shan himself. He'd never heard anything about the young man having some powerful family background either. He must have entered the entertainment industry by chance, just like the original Jing Shan, and fought his way forward on his own. It probably hadn't been easy. Jing Shan remembered the scene from earlier, when Xie Yichen had pushed open the door with that cold expression written plainly across his face. The young man really did seem almost painfully straightforward. Perhaps that was precisely why Bai Xiaoxu had been able to manipulate him so easily and drive him out of the entertainment industry. Jing Shan looked over. Xie Yichen was watching him too, those pale eyes carrying a faint smile. Jing Shan's expression softened. He felt helpless. And, somehow, touched. He had received Xie Yichen's goodwill. Since this young man had caught his eye so thoroughly, then if something really did happen later... Jing Shan would simply find a way to lend him a hand.