Chapter 59: Chapter 059: Shen Yan’s Proposal Chapter 59: Chapter 059: Shen Yan’s Proposal Liu Qiang’s tumble was not unjustified, nor was it without dramatic flair.
By 3 p.m., Liu Qiang had been sent off the island.
Director Li breathed a sigh of relief and publicly claimed that Liu Qiang had caught a high fever from falling into the water and would be temporarily exiting the recording of the program.
The netizens, upon hearing this, instantly knew what was going on.
It was clear she had been kicked off.
The netizens weren’t fools—to get sick from a dip in the warm water, how weak did one have to be?
Then they all teasingly said that Director Li had quite the talent for dramatics, calling it a “high fever,” when it was clearly a “high stir” that was more accurate!
The recording continued.
The original partner teams remained unchanged, and Tao Rongye completed the task alone.
The task load had also been reduced.
Unsurprisingly, by evening, Shen Yan and Wen Yan’s team won.
The first day brought no novel gameplay; the netizens were there purely for the sake of supporting the guests.
Aside from Liu Qiang’s scandalous exit, the rest of the show met with lukewarm reactions.
Seeing the bountiful gains from Shen Yan and Wen Yan’s victory, Director Li felt his headache return.
The evening meal was still served in the form of a campfire.
Shen Yan and Wen Yan’s table was the most generously stocked.
Without Liu Qiang’s gloomy presence, Chu Jinghe looked around and said with a laugh to Shen Yan, “Shen Yan, you’re amazing, always winning over us with ease.”
Her words could easily lead to speculation by the audience.
Shen Yan winning with ease each time just didn’t seem right.
In the live broadcast’s chat, a flurry of messages demanded “fair and unbiased treatment of all guests” and similar questions about the program’s integrity, stopping just short of outright accusing Director Li of having an affair with Shen Yan.
Seeing these messages, Director Li almost smoked with anger.
With the whole thing broadcast live, were they blind to the reality?
The same routes, the same games—how could he cheat for Shen Yan?
Shen Yan didn’t even give Chu Jinghe a glance and said, “It’s because you’re all too weak.”
Chu Jinghe’s smile instantly froze on her face.
The others: “…”
Caught in the crossfire for no reason.
“Shen Yan, Jinghe was complimenting you. How can you speak to her like that?” Mu Jincheng couldn’t stand hearing aggressive words towards Chu Jinghe.
“Did I say something wrong?” Shen Yan gave Mu Jincheng a meaningful look.
Mu Jincheng immediately thought of the embarrassing moment when he revealed too much and his face turned dark in an instant, “That’s because you were just lucky.”
“That’s right, I’m always the lucky one, and you’re all just unlucky.”
Mu Jincheng: “…”
“Shen Yan, it’s my fault, I shouldn’t have said those words. Jincheng, stop arguing with Shen Yan,” Chu Jinghe said, making herself look like the culprit, which utterly moved her fans.
[Fake Princess should roll out of here. Hehe kindly compliments her and she bites back immediately, just as nauseating as in the first episode.]
[Shen Yan, get out of the entertainment industry.]
[Exactly, Chu Jinghe didn’t say anything harsh. Is it wrong to compliment now? Chu Jinghe is just too kind.]
[Chu Jinghe has such a good temper. If it were me, I would have turned the Fake Princess’s table over.]
“Jinghe, it’s not your fault; you have nothing to apologize for,” Mu Jincheng flared up with indignation, “The one who should be apologizing is her. Shen Yan, don’t think that just because you win every time, you can look down on everyone. Apologize to Jinghe.”
The atmosphere suddenly tensed because of Mu Jincheng’s words.
Chu Jinghe, looking at Mu Jincheng standing up to shield her, felt her heartbeat speed up.
The way Mu Jincheng looked at her started to grow warm with a fervent heat.
No matter how many people coveted Mu Jincheng, she alone enjoyed this kind of treatment from him.
No matter how pretty Shen Yan was or how many victories she had, no manipulation could make Mu Jincheng like her.
On the contrary, it made him dislike her even more.
Tao Rongye, as a newcomer observing the scene, gave Shen Yan a strange look, her gaze flickering.
“Please tell me what I did wrong to insult everyone, as I don’t even know where I offended Mr. Chu and can’t properly apologize.”
As Shen Yan spoke, she continued to eat her barbecue, comfortably leaning back in her chair, watching them with an unhurried gaze.
Chu Jinghe gently tugged at Mu Jincheng, forcing a smile and said, “Let it be, Jincheng. Shen Yan indeed didn’t say anything harsh to me. It’s just that her bluntly calling everyone weak was a bit improper. Perhaps it was because everyone took care of you, being the youngest, by intentionally giving way.”
Shen Yan really wanted to applaud Chu Jinghe.
“Then I’m really so grateful to all the seniors! Mr. Chu didn’t mention it, so I had no idea that was the case. I’ll clarify with Director Li later that no concessions should be made. Increase the difficulty, and it’s best if there’s a hefty penalty for not completing the task. Teacher Tao, what do you think of my suggestion?” Shen Yan looked with a smile toward Tao Rongye, who seemed to be enjoying the show from the sidelines.
Tao Rongye: “…”
He was just there to watch the drama, so why was he being dragged onto the stage?
“Ahem, I think it’s not bad.”
“What about Director Li?” Shen Yan asked again with a smile towards where Director Li was.
Director Li: “…”
He was already in a tough spot; don’t make things harder for him.
Under the watchful eyes of everyone, Director Li gave a forced smile and asked Shen Yan perfunctorily, “Do you have any good suggestions?”
“Does Director Li really want to hear my opinion?” Shen Yan chewed and finished the last piece of meat, looking casually at Director Li with a smile.
Seeing that smile, Director Li felt uneasy for some reason and regretted throwing the question back to Shen Yan.
Since the words were already out, Director Li could only nod his head determinedly: “Go ahead.”
“We’ve been playing on land this whole time, which isn’t very exciting. How about we play in the river?” suggested Shen Yan.
“In the river?” Director Li thought Shen Yan would come up with something shocking, but it turned out to be just going down the river; it scared him to death.
Shen Yan: “Diving to survive, Director Li, doesn’t that sound more thrilling?”
Chu Jinghe, who suffered from thalassophobia, turned pale.
She hadn’t felt anything about the shallow river, but if it involved diving…
She simply couldn’t do it.
She stared intently at Shen Yan.
She suspected that Shen Yan knew about her condition all along and thus made this proposal on purpose.
This was her vulnerability; she couldn’t publicly display it for everyone to see.
Director Li paused.
The production team had considered a diving segment before, but they opted for a simple survival mode because they were worried about the guests’ safety.
Shen Yan’s suggestion was not out of the question.
After all, they were prepared with diving equipment.
However…
Director Li looked toward Tao Rongye.
Tao Rongye said with a smile, “This sounds good, I agree.”
“I agree too!” Qin Dingyue, who was eager to try, raised her hand.
“I have no problem with it either,” surprisingly, Wen Yan, who couldn’t swim, did not refuse.
Wen Yan’s inability to swim was well-known, and if he agreed, how could others fall short in comparison?
Zhou Jingming casually agreed as well.
Mu Jincheng, who could swim, didn’t mind joining the production team for some fun. Plus, this mode of play was more exhilarating and might even stir up more buzz online.
Now, only Chu Jinghe was left.
Chu Jinghe forced a stiff smile, feeling a bit parched, “I, I agree too.”
She didn’t understand how things had gotten to this point.
She merely wanted to smear Shen Yan.
Instead, she ended up dragging herself down.
Mu Jincheng secretly edged closer to her and said, “Jinghe, I’ll protect you, don’t worry.”
“Thank you,” Chu Jinghe forced a smile.
“Don’t mention it. When we’re underwater tomorrow, I’ll find an opportunity to vent for you,” Mu Jincheng’s voice grew even lower.
Chu Jinghe looked at Mu Jincheng and then quickly lowered her gaze, “Jincheng, actually, you don’t need to do this for me. I know Shen Yan dislikes me. She just says a few words that don’t hurt or itch; I’m okay.”
To Mu Jincheng, seeing her like this just made his heart ache even more.
It was all because of Shen Yan that Jinghe had to suffer like this.
Mu Jincheng looked at Shen Yan coldly.
But Shen Yan was blatantly looking at him, returning his gaze with a smile that wasn’t quite a smile.
A look of disgust flashed through Mu Jincheng’s eyes.
The audacity to stare at him so brazenly, Shen Yan really had no shame.
Tao Rongye watched the undercurrents among the three of them from the side, looking at Shen Yan with a meaningful glance.
Perhaps, he could use Mu Jincheng to give Shen Yan a taste of her own medicine.