Chapter 43: 043

Since the program crew had set up a tribal confrontation game, they naturally couldn’t leave the guests in the dark about the rules for judging victory or defeat.

As an important NPC, Chief Jie had to take on the role of guiding the guests.

“First of all, congratulations to all of you for becoming the first group of guests since the show’s launch to successfully trigger a tribe’s hidden quest. That night, if not for Chief Yue’s courage in the face of danger, facing down the overwhelming pressure of the entire tribe, she still managed in just a few minutes to see and hear everything clearly, devising brilliant strategies with her exceptional talent and beauty, her mind sharp as a tack…”

As the primary beneficiary of this game, Chief Jie was desperate to cling to Xi Tongyue’s golden thigh. Before he knew it, his words had devolved into nonstop flattery.

Qin Yi and Li Xingruo were Xi Tongyue’s biggest fans. Far from being annoyed by Chief Jie’s bootlicking, they stared at him intently when he brought up how Xi Tongyue had turned the tide that night, afraid to miss even the tiniest detail.

Song Guiya knew full well that such minor ripples couldn’t faze Xi Tongyue. Still, even as her expression remained cool and detached, as if it were none of her business, her ears perked up attentively to Chief Jie’s vivid recounting.

Only Xi Tongyue lifted her eyelids slightly, a hint of impatience coloring the edges of her eyes. “Get to the point.”

“Yes, yes, of course,” Chief Jie instantly reined in his sycophantic grin, though his tone still carried a wheedling note of flattery. “If we want to clear this, the rules are actually pretty straightforward.”

“You all know by now that the tribe’s power is divided among three ministers—the War Elder, the Agriculture Elder, the Affairs Elder—and the transcendent High Priest. Each of the three elders holds one token representing authority, which the Old Chief entrusted to them before he left, to assist me back when I was too young to inherit the tribe.”

“Those three tokens are actually three wooden plaques, each engraved with a totem symbol: the sun, the moon, and the star. We need to find a way to locate these three plaques and seize them all. That would mean we’ve gathered the power held by the three elders.”

Li Xingruo let out a breath of relief. “I thought it’d be way harder than that. The tribe isn’t that big, and we’re not restricted from moving around. How tough can it be to find a few plaques?”

Chief Jie wagged a finger from side to side. “No, no, no. It sounds simple, but actually doing it is a whole different story.”

The director had suffered repeated setbacks on the show, his “Wilderness Instructor” reputation hanging by a thread.

To salvage his dignity, he’d mobilized the entire program crew for an elaborate scheme designed to stump the guests. There was no way they’d let them find everything that easily.

And even if they managed to retrieve the tokens, that would only count as half the victory.

The other half rested in the High Priest’s hands.

Chief Jie continued, “Something that important—the three elders must have hidden their tokens extremely well, maybe even keeping them on their persons. Even if we know a token is with one of them, with our manpower, there’s no way we could just snatch it off them.”

Warriors guarded the three elders at all times. They might not even get close before being tossed out like chicks by those dark-faced bruisers.

And even if they did get an opening, they couldn’t very well have a bunch of girls charge in and start stripping the clothes off a group of “old men,” could they?

The mental image was too much—better not to dwell on it.

Li Xingruo realized the task was genuinely daunting and deflated a little.

Qin Yi linked arms with her reassuringly. “It’s okay. Who knows? Teacher Xi and Teacher Song might have a plan.”

The two of them gazed at Xi Tongyue and Song Guiya with wide, puppy-dog eyes brimming with hope.

Xi Tongyue propped her chin on one hand and said nothing.

Song Guiya glanced at them, her expression a touch awkward as she pulled a wooden plaque from inside her beast-skin garment and held it up before Chief Jie. “Is this what you’re talking about?”

The plain, unadorned wood had been polished into a palm-sized token, etched with dense, intricate ancient script. But the moon symbol at its center stood out bold and clear.

Everyone: ???

“That’s the token from the Affairs Elder! How did you… where did you get it?” Chief Jie took the token and examined it over and over, then stared at Song Guiya in disbelief.

It couldn’t be a prop from the Props Team, could it?

Guests had tried that sort of thing before, but the program crew never turned a blind eye to such blatant cheating. When it came out—and it always did—the guest and the Props Team both got the boot.

If that were the case here, they’d be down a person, and their odds of winning would shrink even further.

The thought made cold sweat bead on Chief Jie’s forehead.

Song Guiya said nonchalantly, “This morning, the Affairs Elder was standing right next to me.”

Chief Jie stared at her blankly. “So?”

He had been there at the time, but he hadn’t seen any interaction between the two of them.

Besides, Song Guiya hadn’t even known the game rules back then. How could she have realized the token was the key?

Even if she had guessed the rules ahead of time, and the Affairs Elder just happened to be standing beside her, how had she managed to swipe something that big without anyone noticing?

Could it be that the one who’d been bribed wasn’t the Props Team, but the Affairs Elder himself?

Xi Tongyue shot her a glance tinged with faint surprise.

It was unclear whether she was astonished that Song Guiya possessed the skill to pilfer something from another person right under everyone’s noses, or because the Affairs Elder had spoken rudely to Xi Tongyue that morning—so Song Guiya had deliberately tripped him up as payback, and ended up with the token by sheer coincidence.

Seeing that everyone was still puzzled, Song Guiya rubbed her elegant brow bone and offered a vague explanation. “That elder has a habit of gesturing animatedly whenever he talks, even more so when he gets worked up. And every time he finishes speaking, he subconsciously pats the bulge at his waist, like he’s checking to make sure whatever’s inside hasn’t fallen out. People in the tribe don’t usually carry anything unrelated to tribal matters, so I figured he must have been acting on the director’s orders, dropping a hint for the guests.”

Director Wang: I didn’t do that! I absolutely didn’t! Don’t go spreading lies!

Chief Jie’s face twisted in shock. “So when the Affairs Elder nearly stumbled and you went to steady him, that’s when you swiped it?”

Song Guiya dipped her head slightly, tacitly confirming his guess.

She had indeed noticed the Affairs Elder’s habitual gesture earlier, but her claim that the program crew was trying to clue in the guests was pure invention.

In truth, the Affairs Elder had spoken to Xi Tongyue in a sharp tone back then, which had irritated Song Guiya deep down. But with the cameras rolling and her position to consider, she couldn’t very well dress him down in front of everyone.

Instead, just as the Affairs Elder was heading out the door, Song Guiya had flicked a pebble at the back of his knee. Seizing the moment, she relieved him of the apparently important item tucked there.

She’d only meant to leave him flustered—or better yet, earn him a scolding from the director and a taste of his own medicine.

She never imagined it would pay off so handsomely.

Once she’d finished explaining, Song Guiya happened to catch Xi Tongyue’s probing gaze. A faint blush crept up her earlobes once more.

It was as if she’d been caught red-handed in some mischief; she swiftly averted her eyes, though her expression remained calmly aloof, betraying nothing.

Xi Tongyue seemed to see right through it all. In high spirits, she curved her lips into a knowing smile.

Qin Yi caught the whole exchange, her mind roiling like a storm-tossed sea as a daring suspicion took shape.

Li Xingruo was utterly awestruck to learn that Song Guiya had pocketed a token without a sound. She was just about to ask for the details when Qin Yi quietly held her back.

With a subtle glance toward the camera, Qin Yi smoothly changed the subject. “Now that the Affairs Elder’s token is missing, the other two elders are sure to be on high alert. We probably won’t get close to them so easily from here on out. So how do we snag the remaining two?”

Snatching the token of authority from the Affairs Elder had been pure luck. The rest would demand a meticulous strategy.

Song Guiya had already sketched out a rough plan in her head, though a few crucial steps hinged on Chief Jie’s cooperation.

She lifted her gaze to Xi Tongyue, whose brows bore the weight of weariness.

Understanding at once, Xi Tongyue turned her attention to the young chief. Her red lips parted languidly. “That all depends on how well Chief Jie performs.”

With the plan settled, everyone headed back to their own huts to make preparations for retrieving the tokens.

When the group emerged from Xi Tongyue’s hut, Li Xingruo—who had been sitting all afternoon—let out a massive yawn and stretched her arms high overhead. In that moment of daze, it suddenly hit her that she’d forgotten something important.

The sun dipped toward the horizon, painting the sky in brilliant crimson hues.

Atop the Sacrificial Altar, three unsteady figures were shrouded in the gathering dusk.

Come nightfall, no one had remembered them.

And so Chi Huo, Du Difeng, and the Husband Rooster dangled there like wind-dried carcasses, strung up for the entire night.