[It wasn't just He Jinyuan. Zhao Xizhou had also lied about his height.]
Chu Xiyue turned to assess Zhao Xizhou's height, then discreetly glanced at his shoes in confusion. "Zhao Xizhou doesn't look like he's wearing height-increasing insoles."
[Zhao Xizhou hadn't inflated his height. His actual height was 192 cm, but being that tall made it difficult to create chemistry with actresses in dramas, so he had reported himself as 4 cm shorter.]
[Li Fan'er was the same. Her official height was 168 cm, but her actual height was 171 cm. Female idol group members above 170 cm weren't popular with the market, so she had reported herself as 3 cm shorter.]
Chu Xiyue:!
No wonder Li Fan'er had seemed half a head taller when they stood together just now!
Was this what it meant to be exes? They were unexpectedly in sync about this sort of thing.
Up ahead, He Jinyuan sensed a threat to his life. The dopamine his body produced blocked out the pain, and he sprinted away at a hundred-meter-dash pace, gradually widening the distance between himself and the geese.
The big white geese chased after him aggressively. Seeing the man who had recklessly run his mouth getting farther and farther away, the goose that had summoned the flock honked twice toward the sky, then spread its wings, took a powerful running start, and flew... flew into the air!
Chu Xiyue's eyes widened. She hadn't expected the geese here to be able to fly!
That goose was a full size larger than the others, with a longer neck and whiter feathers. Unlike ordinary geese, which merely flapped a few times when flying, it spread its wings and leaped easily to a height of nearly two stories. With another flap, it flew toward He Jinyuan.
After running for a long time, He Jinyuan suddenly felt a shadow fall over his head. He hurriedly looked up and discovered the big white goose diving down at him from midair like a cannonball.
He Jinyuan:!!!
He experienced the terror of being dominated by a goose. Panicking, he accidentally stepped on a smooth, round goose egg and fell flat on the ground! In that instant, the big white goose swooped down from the sky, its sharp beak landing squarely on target!
When Chu Xiyue saw where the goose had struck, she immediately sucked in a breath and wore an expression of utter inability to bear the sight.
"Ah!!!"
A scream pierced the sky. Everyone present instinctively clenched up, and the scene fell deathly silent.
Someone's phone ringtone began playing leisurely—a familiar song: "Withered chrysanthemums~ wounds cover the ground~ your smile has faded yellow..."
It was strangely fitting.
The phone's owner quickly silenced it, and everyone snapped back to their senses. They grabbed sticks from the roadside and rushed forward, hoping to save He Jinyuan from the goose's beak.
Before those people could arrive, the big white goose pecked He Jinyuan several more times. After stepping on him and honking twice, it finally left refreshed and satisfied, calling its companions as it swaggered away.
By the time they reached the scene, the culprit goose had already vanished without a trace.
They helped He Jinyuan up and looked him over, wanting to ask if he was hurt. Then they remembered that the area he had been attacked might not be convenient to mention in public, and the scene fell into an extreme silence.
Even more silent than the scene was the livestream chat.
Thanks to the production crew's long-focus cameras, the viewers had also clearly witnessed the entire attack on He Jinyuan.
This scene would have been utterly explosive in any variety show. It could easily rank among the top ten iconic variety show moments.
A topic called #TheOneSheLovesMostHeJinyuan# quietly appeared near the bottom of Weibo's trending list. Thinking it was another variety show's marketing ploy, people clicked in calmly, then left looking thoroughly bewildered.
Was this really not some absurd joke news?
They took another look!
Half an hour later, related topics had climbed into the top three trending searches.
He Jinyuan had gotten his wish and made the front page of the trending searches. He was famous now, though he probably hadn't wanted to trend in this way.
The livestream ended early because of the accident. He Jinyuan was helped to his feet—the Director had initially wanted someone to carry him back, but He Jinyuan refused.
Gritting his teeth, he said, "I'm fine!"
In the end, He Jinyuan was still helped back to the villa. Chu Xiyue reluctantly withdrew her gaze and followed the production crew to eat.
After showering and changing clothes, He Jinyuan emerged with a grim expression and went to find the Director. "I don't care how you do it. Catch that damned goose and stew it for me!"
The Director looked troubled. "That... may not be possible."
He Jinyuan's expression darkened further. "What? With so many of you, you can't even catch one goose?"
The Director handed him his phone. "Some netizens just discovered that goose isn't an ordinary big white goose. It's a wild White Swan, a nationally protected Class II animal. It just ate itself fat, so it looks a little like a big white goose, but it really isn't one. We can't catch it, much less eat it."
This had already made the trending searches. If they caught that White Swan, they definitely wouldn't be able to keep it under wraps. Then it would no longer be as simple as making entertainment news.
He Jinyuan's face darkened even more.
Chu Xiyue, who was eating at a villager's house and listening to the system's broadcast, snorted with laughter.
Li Fan'er sat beside her and looked at her in confusion. "What's wrong?"
Chu Xiyue said solemnly, "I suddenly remembered something happy."
After their group finished eating and returned to the villa, Chu Xiyue saw He Jinyuan sitting on the sofa. He seemed not to have
Wan Zhen glanced at He Jinyuan. As though concerned for a junior, she casually asked, "Xiao He, is your body feeling better?"
He Jinyuan raised his eyes to Wan Zhen. Their gazes met for a moment before shifting away. He nodded gently. "Thank you for your concern, Sister Wan. I'm much better now."
Wan Zhen lowered her eyes and smiled as she linked arms with Xu Wenchong. "That's good. Everyone was very worried about you just now."
He Jinyuan smoothly changed the subject as well. "Thank you, everyone, for your concern."
The system analyzed the two's microexpressions and said to Chu Xiyue, [Tsk, tsk, tsk. Wan Zhen looked like she was asking about He Jinyuan's health, but she was actually asking whether he could still go to the little woods tonight.]
Chu Xiyue was shocked. "He Jinyuan can still go to the little woods tonight after that?!"