Chapter 46

The Brat Comes Home Production Team's temporary dormitory.

Holding a script and hoping to confirm tomorrow's schedule with A-Yi and A-Er, Xiao Feng knocked softly on their door a few times, but received no answer.

Although he loathed the two men for pulling rank on account of their seniority, after the uproar at the banquet that day, there were still some formalities he had to observe.

That was how things worked in this circle. Although Lin Xiangnan was the Production Team's biggest financial backer, he wouldn't casually offend other people either.

What was more, Xiao Feng felt that when the other backer told him to bring the two men back, there seemed to be some other... meaning behind it.

"Where have those two great gods gone this time?"

He frowned and scratched his head. Just as he was about to head to the next guest's temporary dormitory, he saw Xiu Si's manager walking toward him.

Smiling, Jiang Ji gave Xiao Feng a light pat on the shoulder. "Hello, Director Xiao Feng. I actually have something I wanted to discuss with you."

"So, what President Chen means is..."

"Exactly what you're thinking. This opportunity... you two had better make the most of it."

The brothers A-Yi and A-Er exchanged a look, then stared at the project proposal in their hands in disbelief.

As long as their follower count reached four hundred thousand on the livestream, they might be able to join this B-Rank Variety Show!

For the two of them, who had spent years immersed in the singing-group scene and created countless songs, yet had only one hit that had lasted less than two months, this new project was a blessing dropped straight from heaven.

Especially since they were currently recording another show that would raise their public profile. This was a golden opportunity to turn things around!

A-Yi and A-Er were nearly middle-aged, and their good looks from their youth were long gone.

Not to mention that after internet celebrities covered their songs, even more people knew their music but not the men behind it.

They couldn't give up such a wonderful opportunity, no matter what.

Besides, they were in urgent need of money...

A trace of resolve flashed in both their eyes. A-Yi stared hard at the paper in his hand and asked in a low voice:

"So as long as I can prove our commercial value, there'll be a place for us on this show, right?"

Half her face hidden in darkness, the woman curled her red lips like a gorgeous venomous snake luring prey into its den.

"That's right."

"But that depends on just how much value you can offer... The more followers you have, the greater your chances of making the cut."

As soon as the woman finished speaking, the two singers, eager to regain their former popularity, signed their names without hesitation and hurriedly took their leave.

She knew perfectly well what calculations the two were making.

But in their haste to leave, they naturally failed to see another paper document the woman had just had beneath the contract, one bearing several indistinct figures.

The woman propped her cheek on her hand and gave a cold snort as she stared at the office door.

The atmosphere was just as tense, with swords drawn and undercurrents surging.

A genuine Shura Field.

"Time's up." The alarm had barely popped up on Bai Jike's phone before his lightning-fast fingers stopped it from vibrating.

"Aren't we doing it yet?" Qiao Huan frowned.

"This isn't the best moment." Zhuo Yang stared unblinkingly at a spot a short distance in front of him.

"An opportunity like this is hard to come by." Ye Yiwei's expression was grave.

"All right, then..." Zhuo Yang's Adam's apple bobbed, and he reached out at lightning speed. The muscles in his upper arm tensed like mountain ridges.

Whoosh—

A wave of hot steam rushed toward them.

At the same time, the aroma of Garlic Crayfish filled the dormitory.

Unlike every other entertainer,

eating was the most important thing in Dorm 404.

"Finally... I'm starving to death," Bai Jike muttered.

But when he looked down, a bowl and chopsticks had already been placed in front of him.

Ye Yiwei was handing out the tableware.

Bai Jike's ears turned red.

He hadn't expected Ye Yiwei to hear that little mutter.

He felt a little shy.

But another, unfamiliar feeling also welled up in his heart.

These past few days, the three older brothers had been almost too good to him.

He had always found it difficult to communicate with others, yet in this moment, his face stinging from the steam, he actually felt that living together like this wasn't so bad...

"Where did these crayfish come from?" Zhuo Yang's hands moved so fast that before long, one of his cheeks was bulging slightly.

"Sister Fan Hui drove them over and dropped them off downstairs."

"She also said Constantine went into the fields and caught them for us himself, and insisted that we cook and eat them tonight." Qiao Huan smiled helplessly, then picked up his phone, took a picture, and sent it to Fan Hui.

Just as the group was digging in, Jiang Ji suddenly knocked. He stood in the doorway, which was open a crack, and looked at them with a solemn expression.

None of them had particularly high body fat, and ever since their official debut, they had all secretly kept themselves on strict body-management regimens.

Yet under Jiang Ji's probing gaze, they all felt a little inexplicably guilty.

This feels just like sneaking to the Mess Hall at night to trade liquor for eggs, only to run into the Military Police. Zhuo Yang's heart trembled.

The air conditioner's blowing from the other side. He probably hasn't smelled it yet. Ye Yiwei secretly clenched a fist and, in the same motion, tapped out a string of Morse Code to Qiao Huan.

Qiao Huan, who was closest to the door, immediately stood up without drawing attention to himself, neatly blocking Jiang Ji's view and buying the others time to destroy the evidence of their crime.

"Brother Jiang, what brings you here at this hour?"

"Well, there's an announcement I needed to tell you about in person. What's wrong? Is this a bad time?"

"The floor's a little messy. They're tidying up." Accustomed to working undercover, Qiao Huan squeezed sideways through the doorway, speaking without a blush or a racing heartbeat.

It was a race against life and death now, and the three men inside moved fast.

Zhuo Yang cleared away the bowls and chopsticks, Ye Yiwei put the lid on the pot, and Bai Jike, moving with quick, nimble precision, simply hid the pot beneath his bed.

As Ye Yiwei opened the window, he also breathed a sigh of relief.

"All right, come on in, Brother Jiang," Zhuo Yang said with a smile.

As Qiao Huan came in, he discreetly gave them a thumbs-up.

In the time it had taken him to exchange just two sentences with Jiang Ji, they had completely hidden the evidence of their crime.

"Were you... cooking in your dorm?" Jiang Ji sniffed.

His gaze shifted slightly, and he spotted the short section of pot handle Bai Jike had hidden beneath his bed.

Qiao Huan: ...

He'd forgotten that one of them wasn't an undercover agent. Sure enough, his hands and feet weren't so nimble.

"Um..."

Bai Jike's eyelid twitched, and he discreetly kicked the pot farther in.

He raised his harmless-looking face, and the words Jiang Ji had been about to say stuck in his throat.

The three men: ...

It was good to be young.

"Brother Jiang, I brought the pot. The food in the cafeteria is too heavily seasoned, and I'm not quite used to it." Zhuo Yang smiled and scratched his head.

Jiang Ji was long accustomed to seeing the group cover for one another. He didn't take it to heart, and instead said with a cheerful smile:

"Filming is halfway through now, and the Brat Comes Home preview has already aired. The audience has pretty high expectations for you."

As Jiang Ji spoke, he held up his tablet and pointed out the two curves showing attention and discussion levels.

A few days ago, the attention figures had still been unremarkable.

But after they sent the scoundrel to the police station, quite a few casual viewers who disliked his livestreaming style had taken a keen interest in the show.

"The Production Team is negotiating with the relevant departments now. I don't think it'll be long before the broadcast date is settled. And the livestream that day went well."

"So after discussing it with the directors, I decided to hold a livestream to boost your viewership."

Jiang Ji looked around at the young men and, unsurprisingly, was met with a moment of silence.

"I know you all have your own ideas, so before the livestream starts... I still wanted to ask for your opinions first."

"If you don't think it's a good idea, I can go back and discuss it with the directors."

Jiang Ji spoke sincerely, and Qiao Huan felt a little grateful that he had met a manager who wouldn't force them into anything.

He didn't mind using a livestream to boost their popularity. It was just that...

From the corner of his eye, Qiao Huan glanced at Bai Jike's tightly clenched hand.

Does he want to seize this opportunity?

That makes sense... With his personality, it really hasn't been easy for him to hold on and make it this far.

The waters surrounding this company ran too deep. If the three of them uncovered the truth about any one thing, it could seriously wound the company.

Before that happened, they still needed to give more thought to this child who had been innocently dragged into it.

These days, Xiao Bai had become a little too absorbed in chatting with the children at Huixin. One child had even written to them, asking Brother Bai to stop teaching them how to use computers because they had no time for anything else...

"I agree," Qiao Huan said, the first to speak after thinking it over.

"I have no objections," Zhuo Yang said.

"Me neither," Ye Yiwei added.

The three exchanged a knowing look, each seeing in the others' eyes the determination to make Bai Jike a star.

Their fighting spirit surged, and a feeling of burning passion filled the room.

?

Bai Jike noticed the sudden change in atmosphere. He didn't understand it, but thought it seemed impressive, and felt a warm current sweep through his chest.

When did these three older brothers form such a united front?

Still, since all three had already spoken, and he knew full well that they still saw him as a Trainee, he could only add his agreement.

"I don't... have a problem either."

"And if... everyone really doesn't like showing their faces on a livestream, we can use, um... the livestream room's built-in filters."

Bai Jike had clenched his fists at some point, and he spoke in a low voice.

He really does want to seize the opportunity, the other three thought in unison.

Before the Brat Comes Home recording livestream officially began, Xiao Feng made a point of playing some of the troublesome things the brats had done earlier, along with their interactions with the guests.

That way, their appearance on camera later would contrast sharply with how they had been before, raising the audience's anticipation for the main show once again.

At eight in the morning, fans began trickling into the livestream room.

"They're here, they're here! Xiu Si is finally live!"

"I give up. Everyone else streams at night, but X4 starts this early. Why?!"

"Emmm, maybe they want us to get into the good habit of waking up early?"

At that moment, Qiao Huan was standing somewhere the cameras couldn't yet see, drawing Constantine close and whispering in his ear:

"Remember, if I call you later, you have to come back to my side..."

Across from them, A-Yi and A-Er were having their makeup touched up. Although they didn't know what Qiao Huan was whispering to Constantine, they both narrowed their eyes slightly as they watched him, clearly hatching some underhanded little scheme.

The preview ended, and the livestream officially began.

Jiang Ji and their own cameraman, whom they had poached from Deserted Island, also picked up the company's dedicated livestreaming equipment, ready to focus on filming Qiao Huan's two groups looking after the children once they split up.

The clapperboard snapped, and the four groups of substitute parents lined up neatly at the edge of the field.

"Substitute parents, today your task is to search for tonight's ingredients within the area designated by the Production Team and marked off with blue tape."

"Today, the Production Team will not provide any ingredients. Whatever you find is what you'll eat, and before twelve noon, you must make a proper parent-child meal."

The director had barely lowered his megaphone when the brothers A-Yi and A-Er, who had fattened the rolls around their waists but not their brains, began to lose their composure.

"The wheat here has just been harvested! The fruit in the woods isn't ripe yet. How are we supposed to find anything?!"

After looking around, A-Er's expression also turned sour.

Netizen A: Tch, this tired routine again, making the kids cook. I'm sick of watching it. There are so many cute things about children. Can't you make a proper effort to bring them out?

Netizen B: Isn't this just the parent-child edition of wilderness survival? They'll definitely have an argument first, then let the kids act cute to ease the tension.

Netizen C: How many times have they used this formula? Can't they come up with something new?

Before the director could reply, Qiao Huan and Ye Yiwei, who considered the task already assigned, had begun to act out of instinct and habit.

As the members of Xiu Si led their respective children into the woods nearby, they didn't forget to put sun-protection masks on them and straighten their clothes.

Even the female entertainer Xiao Yue's team had crouched by the roadside to search for the wild vegetables that were edible at this time of year.

The veins on A-Yi's and A-Er's foreheads throbbed, but even if they wanted to flare up now, they had to take the livestream cameras already set up around them into account.

The other groups had all started looking for ingredients without complaint. If the two of them kept making excuses, they might ruin their own plan...

At that thought, A-Yi simply picked up the little girl in their care and held her in his arms.

Although his face wore a gentle smile, his words carried a hint of threat to the child's ears. "Behave yourself. If you hold us back..."

The girl in A-Yi's arms nodded hurriedly, a trace of terror appearing in her eyes.

As though wiping sweat from her face, A-Er also wiped away the glistening drop at the corner of her eye.

In the livestream room.

"What? It's actually a freshly harvested field and a river! Hahaha, the directors are really going through with it."

"Whoa?! Weren't these supposed to be rich kids? How come the one in this shot looks more agile than the adults in the other groups?"

"Isn't that the kid with the most troublesome temper in the preview? But now it looks like he actually gets along pretty well with his substitute parent!"

"I clicked on this show to kill time, and Xiu Si is in it! I'm already looking forward to it, haha..."

Under the blazing sun, the entertainers watched by countless pairs of eyes paid close attention to their appearance, just as they did on other shows.

With the livestream cameras beside them, even A-Yi and A-Er smiled more than usual.

But when the camera switched, the scene with the other four was completely different.

With the experience of farming last time, Qiao Huan and the others searched for food in the muddy pools and woods, rolling up their trouser legs where needed and tucking their shirts into their waistbands.

To get a clearer look at what was nearby, Qiao Huan, Zhuo Yang, and Ye Yiwei simply bent over, leaving not a single face visible on camera.

Only Bai Jike remained, gazing into the distance with a bewildered expression.

If no one had said this was a show, the way they were dressed made them look just like a group of young farmers.

Apart from a few diehard fans, most people in the livestream thought the sight was a little dull.

"Is this just for show? Why won't they even show their faces? If we wanted to watch farmers work the fields, couldn't we just go watch by the roadside?"

"Is this another day when we only get to see Xiao Bai?"

"A-Yi and A-Er's group is more entertaining. Looks like that little girl gets along pretty well with both of them."

"Why do I get the feeling the little girl seems a bit restrained? She keeps avoiding looking at her surrogate parent."

"Maybe the child is a little nervous in front of the camera..."

Qiao Huan and Zhuo Yang took Constantine with them and soon gathered some wild fruit and dry firewood.

Sharp-eyed Zhuo Yang saw that the riverbank wasn't beyond the red line and immediately sent Ye Yiwei a message in Morse Code.

Ye Yiwei understood and poked Xiao Bai. "You can swim, right?"

Xiao Bai: "Huh?"

Twenty seconds later, a tremendous splash drew everyone's attention, along with the cameras.

And just like that, Bai Jike plunged into the water and openly... caught fish.

The three exchanged smiles. This had to be his moment to shine, right?

But judging by their own hunting skills, they had somewhat underestimated the fact that Xiao Bai had only ever played Fishing Master on a computer.

Two minutes later, Zhuo Yang watched Bai Jike being run in circles by the fish and finally couldn't take it anymore.

Before the camera could even catch a glimpse of him, the agile Zhuo Yang had already scooped up a fish and shoved it straight into Bai Jike's hands.

"Take it!"

Holding the fish, Bai Jike's sixteen-core brain crashed on the spot.

Brother Zhuo... why have you started treating me so well too?

"Ding Ding! You take one too. Remember, Brother Bai caught these fish, not Uncle Zhuo. Understand?"

Zhuo Yang emerged from the water and shook his short hair, sending droplets scattering in the sunlight.

His gleaming, wheat-colored skin looked even more dazzling in the sun, making an instant contrast with the excessively pale Bai Jike beside him.

And when the camera switched over, it caught that very scene—

The clothes the production crew had handed out clung tightly to Zhuo Yang, outlining every detail of his powerful physique.

Sunlight spilled down behind him, softening his rugged features. As he watched Constantine run toward him, a trace of tenderness appeared in his eyes.

In that instant, it wasn't just the viewers in the livestream—even Constantine couldn't help staring in a daze as he looked up at Zhuo Yang!

The boy before him, the big brother before him, was just like the robot he admired most, brimming with a sense of power!

The cameraman tactfully moved closer to capture the shot, making the livestream comments erupt in screams. They didn't care who had caught the fish at all; their attention had gone completely astray.

"Wow... it's been so long since I've seen a handsome guy like this!"

"Do muscles like that really exist?"

"Idols these days will do anything to get famous, eating protein powder until they look like that. Tsk, tsk, tsk..."

"Haters, can you go away? His profile says it perfectly clearly: Zhuo Yang works out every day, and even the Qinglong instructor has publicly said how impressive he is! There's nothing over the top about him having muscles like that!"

"Uncle Zhuo!" Stars sparkled in Constantine's eyes as he rushed straight into Zhuo Yang's arms without another word.

After spending the past few days with the little guy, Zhuo Yang had long since become well practiced at handling his cannonball attacks. "Quick, thank Brother Bai!"

He held the fish he'd caught in one hand and supported the little guy's bottom with the other, settling him securely on his arm.

Constantine looked perfectly well-behaved. "Thank you, Brother Bai!"

Bai Jike: "Huh?"

What just happened???

But in the viewers' eyes, the scene was pure gap moe.

They had all seen how much of a little terror Constantine was in the preview, yet here he was in Zhuo Yang's arms, thanking someone so obediently!

"See that? What protein powder can give someone that kind of power!"

"Boo-hoo, we want a male mom! We want a male mom!"

"Even if that child is light, he must weigh thirty or forty jin, right? He can hold him that steadily with one hand! As someone who works out, I know I can't do that."

"Has nobody noticed that Xiao Bai went to catch fish..."

"(Interrupting) Ahhh, he's strong and good with kids, what kind of god is Zhuo Yang!"

Qiao Huan and Ye Yiwei stole a glance at the scrolling comments and involuntarily frowned in unison.

Hey, what are the comments even paying attention to?!

"This won't do. Luckily, we have another plan."

"Yeah, that guy Zhuo Yang is too impatient."

The two rapidly exchanged messages in code, complaining furiously.

"Are we not having crayfish tonight?" Only after they returned to the edge of the woods did Constantine notice that Zhuo Yang was carrying fish he didn't recognize. A trace of disappointment passed through his eyes.

Zhuo Yang: ...

This kid's temperament has improved a lot, so why is he still so fixated on crayfish?!

Still unaware of how he had just ruined the entire "Make Xiao Bai Famous, Plan A," Zhuo Yang was still thinking about the night he'd eaten crayfish in the dorm.

Mm.

Crayfish are poisonous in themselves. Assessment complete.

Qiao Huan forcibly suppressed the urge to Photoshop a big duck pear onto Zhuo Yang's head. He carefully surveyed the area the film crew had cordoned off, and a plan came to mind.

A strange light flashed in his eyes. Smiling, he tugged at Constantine's stray tuft of hair.

"Of course we are. But... we have to go over there!"

"Yay!"

Meanwhile.

Xiu Si appeared on camera once again. Now that they had gained a little fame, they soon attracted quite a few fans into the livestream.

When A-Yi and A-Er heard how the livestream was going, they could no longer sit still.

If they lost the popularity contest on this livestream, their hopes of becoming popular again would be completely dashed!

Their eyes rolled, and they both looked at Constantine, who was following Qiao Huan and clutching his sleeve tightly.

However.

Constantine suddenly noticed their gazes and turned straight around to look at them.

His IQ of 140 was about the same as A-Yi's and A-Er's combined, and they felt a chill run down their backs.

His eyes were filled with naked contempt and... pity.

As though he were saying, "Planning to target me again? Don't you two have any new tricks?"