Xie Ji narrowed his eyes and pushed Lu Xunji's hand away. "None of your business."
Lu Xunji rubbed his fingertips together, the smooth, warm feel of Xie Ji's skin lingering on them.
He sneered in a low voice. "Stop looking so desperate you'd take anyone. Don't disgrace the Xie Household."
"Sure, big brother. I'll look at you next time." Xie Ji pursed his lips, then turned and left after that sarcastic jab.
He was doing everything he could to protect him from scumbags, yet Lu Xunji was getting jealous of him?
Hadn't he only taken a couple of extra looks?
For a little all-shou, he was pretty possessive of his food.
Xie Ji sighed.
He felt as wronged as Sun Wukong getting kicked out by his master after striking the White Bone Spirit three times.
[System notification: Target [Lu Xunji]'s favorability toward you +2. Current favorability: -189.]
Xie Ji: "..."
The way Lu Xunji's favorability rose was even more baffling than the way it dropped.
Could getting insulted actually have felt good to him?
Whatever. Xunji's heart was a needle at the bottom of the sea. An increase was a good thing.
Since Lu Xunji and Xie Ji's team had reached the island first, they had the right to choose their room before everyone else.
Of the six rooms, one was actually fully renovated. It had been intended as the reward for first place all along.
Naturally, both Xie Ji and Lu Xunji chose that fully renovated bedroom.
Lu Xunji stood in the doorway with his arms folded and said coldly, "Move."
Xie Ji clung to the door without yielding an inch. "No."
Neither would give way in the doorway. Lu Xunji looked at Xie Ji and raised an eyebrow. "Aren't I your dear big brother? Didn't you say you'd protect me? Is this how you protect me?"
Xie Ji said seriously, "So what? I can protect you, but giving up the room? No."
Lu Xunji pulled the black card from his pocket between two fingers.
Xie Ji's gaze was instantly drawn to it.
Lu Xunji waved the black card up and down, and Xie Ji's gaze followed its path.
Finally, Lu Xunji narrowed his eyes, his gaze tightening slightly, and sent the black card flying past Xie Ji's cheek. "Fetch!"
With an instant "Awooo!" Xie Ji lunged after the black card and swiftly scooped it into his arms.
Lu Xunji seized the opportunity to enter the bedroom and slammed the door shut.
Xie Ji wiped the black card and rubbed it against his cheek. Just as he turned around, he heard that cold, heartless slam of the door.
Xie Ji: "..."
What a bastard.
Little Black poked his head out. "I think you two really are alike sometimes."
Xie Ji had no choice but to pocket the black card and enter the half-renovated bedroom next door.
Once the bedrooms were assigned, everyone gathered again in the downstairs living room.
"What kind of fucking dump is this? There's nothing here. How is anyone supposed to live here?" Irritated, Ji Shi wanted badly to kick something to vent, but when he lifted his foot, it met only a passing breeze. There was nothing to kick.
Shang Yan took out his task booklet and adjusted the rimless glasses on his nose. His low, husky voice was richly magnetic. "Why don't we start by planning what we need to accomplish over the next two months? Everyone's tasks are divided by area. I'm responsible for the greenhouse section... What about you?"
Xie Ji glanced at his task booklet and said, "Livestock area."
The livestock area had three whole sheds, all currently empty.
The guests would have to work hard and use the startup funds they earned to redeem young livestock of various kinds at the store, along with feed, medicine, and other supplies needed to raise them.
The production team also had two fields with a combined area of over six mu.
Since the fields were so large, two people had ultimately been put in charge of crop cultivation: Ji Shi and Zhou Heyu.
Mu Yao was responsible for the enormous fishpond.
Meanwhile, Lu Xunji had received the easiest task: repairing and completing the villa's renovations to provide a five-star lodging experience for the farmstay.
[Director He sure knows how to assign roles. Making the sea king Mu Yao raise fish... how is that not putting his expertise to use?]
[The most impatient one, Ji Shi, got paired with the most laid-back one, Zhou Heyu. It's hard not to wonder whether Director He did that on purpose!]
[Are they serious about making Shang Yan grow vegetables? Our Young Master Shang would fuck the heavens, the earth, and the air itself. He should never have anything to do with the word "weak"!]
[I can't even imagine how many trending topics these assignments will generate...]
[Shang Yan feels like the calmest person here, ahhhhh! Does anyone get it? My strength-worshipping DNA is stirring!]
[Is it really okay to have Xie Ji raise livestock? Our little golden cupcake is so delicate. I feel like he could totally swap tasks with Lu Xunji. Don't make our little money pouch sit in the sun, or our little golden money pouch will turn into a little black money pouch...]
[I feel like Xie Ji is the type to slap a cow and tell it to grow up to be worth more.]
Once everyone knew which area they were responsible for, they went off to complete some basic tasks and earn startup funds, so they would at least have somewhere to sleep that night.
Holding his task card, Xie Ji headed toward the livestock sheds, deep in thought.
Seeing that no one was around, Little Black, who had been holding back for ages, finally poked his head out from Xie Ji's chest to read the tasks on the card with him.
"Clean the cowshed: 1,000 in startup funds," Little Black said. "The livestock sheds are empty right now. Most of the later tasks will require animals in your sheds. With that thousand in startup funds, you can buy a calf at the little store, then complete the [Own a cow] task and get another 2,000 in startup funds. Things will be a little easier after that..."
Rubbing his chin, Xie Ji stood in front of the cowshed and pondered for a quarter of an hour before saying, "Do I have to buy one at the store to [Own a cow]?"
Little Black paused. "...What are you planning?"
He kept getting a feeling that made a snake uneasy.
Holding the map, Xie Ji made two circuits around the villa.
Besides them, there were other NPCs running businesses here. Xie Ji stopped in front of a cowshed.
The owner soon noticed Xie Ji and quickly came outside. "Would you like to come into the cowshed and give it a try, sir?"
Xie Ji looked up. "May I?"
"Of course." The cowshed owner smiled, his eyes narrowing. "My youngest son is working inside. He can teach you."
Xie Ji saw a boy of eleven or twelve sitting in the cowshed, apparently milking a cow.
Just as he was about to enter, the owner stopped him. "Sir, the experience costs fifty yuan per person."
Without another word, Xie Ji turned and left.
The cowshed owner did not stop him. He was only here to play an NPC anyway, not to make money from this. As long as he played his role well, the production team would pay him.
After returning, Xie Ji immediately cleaned the livestock sheds and earned two thousand in startup funds.
But a calf cost 10,000 yuan at the store.
Just as Little Black was fretting over which other early-stage tasks they could complete to scrape together that ten thousand,
Xie Ji returned to that cowshed and readily paid the fifty-yuan experience fee.
Little Black asked in bewilderment, "You're such an iron rooster you won't part with a single feather. Why are you being so generous today?!"
Xie Ji stroked Little Black's head and said solemnly, "You'll understand."