Chapter 36: World Two – 6

Xu Yin’s frown deepened. He couldn’t think of any way to excuse his behavior during the day; he could only hope the post-production editing wouldn’t give this incident much screen time and, more importantly, wouldn’t drag Shao Qing into it.

But it was obvious that Xu Yin’s silent prayers were completely ineffective.

After confirming no one had been harmed by the waves, the director finally let his hanging heart settle. He told the cameramen to keep their cameras steady and capture as much supplementary footage as possible.

“Director, how’s the situation with Teacher Yu’s group? Won’t their campsite get hit by the waves?” Zheng Xingxing, having recovered his senses, casually ran a hand through his hair and started angling for screen time.

“Teacher Yu and her group’s camp is on a flat area on a gentle slope. The waves, even a few meters higher, couldn’t reach that spot,” the director said. “They’re perfectly safe.”

“That’s good. It would be terrible if the other teachers had also encountered the high tide.” Zheng Xingxing patted his chest, looking relieved. “Thanks to the director and the staff members for waking me up in time. Once the recording is over, I’ll treat everyone to a meal.”

“Actually, I wasn’t the first one to notice something was wrong. It was Teacher Shao.” The staff member on duty scratched the back of his head, guiltily admitting his mistake. “I’m sorry. It was a dereliction of duty on my part; I failed to notice the situation by the shore in time.”

“One month’s bonus is docked. If you make another mistake like this, then go home and rest,” the director said with a stern face, issuing a warning.

Slacking off at work was inevitable, but there was a time and place for it. If Shao Qing hadn’t given a timely warning today, not only would the staff member on duty be in trouble, but the entire production team would be in serious hot water.

“Yes, Director. Don’t worry, there absolutely won’t be a second time!” the staff member promised, secretly sighing in relief. His monthly bonus wasn’t much anyway; this was a relatively minor punishment with a big warning.

“So it was Teacher Shao who saved us.” Zheng Xingxing slapped his forehead. “Then after filming wraps, I definitely have to treat Teacher Shao to a big feast!”

Liu Chang smiled wryly. “I was too careless earlier. Teacher Shao’s analysis was spot on. Twenty meters seems far, but the height difference was just too small. The tide only needed to be a bit fiercer than usual, and our chosen location became unsafe.”

Liu Chang exhaled softly, seemingly in self-mockery but still not forgetting to maintain his public persona. “It seems I still have many shortcomings and need to study more. I forgot to consider that the moon’s gravitational pull changes with the lunar phases, hence I failed to predict the tide would be so strong tonight.”

“This was also an unexpected situation. Teacher Liu, you’re still very skilled,” Zheng Xingxing promptly provided Liu Chang with an out. “If you hadn’t picked coconuts for us during the day, I would’ve run out of water long ago.”

“I share responsibility for this. I’ll apologize to Teacher Shao in a moment,” Liu Chang said.

Jolted awake in the middle of the night, Liu Chang’s mind was exceptionally clear. In a few words, he crafted a persona of someone who admits mistakes and seeks to learn humbly, barely managing to compensate for his earlier error.

In comparison, Xu Yin had been very quiet from the start. His persona meant he couldn’t gloss over his mistake with cheerfulness and naivety like Zheng Xingxing. Nor could Xu Yin, like Liu Chang, admit fault on camera and apologize, and even less could he bow his head to someone whose Fortune he had stolen, like Shao Qing.

“Director, can we borrow a place to stay tonight? Or give us three more tents, and we’ll go join Teacher Yu’s group,” Xu Yin spoke, steering the topic away from the waves.

“We do have spare tents, but I’m afraid Teacher Yu’s site can’t accommodate setting up that many more…” Before the director could finish, he saw Shao Qing and her two companions walking over, flashlights in hand.

“Teacher Yu, Teacher Shao, Teacher Li.” Zheng Xingxing, with his sharp eyes, took the initiative to greet them, his tone especially enthusiastic.

“Teacher Shao, thank you for saving my life. If not for your timely warning, I reckon I’d have met the same fate as the tents down there.” Zheng Xingxing expressed his gratitude, his gaze towards Shao Qing filled with clear admiration and thankfulness.

“I just happened to get up in the middle of the night and noticed the waves were quite loud, so I mentioned it to a staff member,” Shao Qing said politely. “The main credit goes to the production team’s quick reaction; they activated the contingency plan in under three minutes, preventing an accident.”

“Teacher Shao, I’m very sorry. I apologize for my behavior during the day. I was overly confident then, thinking myself quite experienced, and didn’t take your reminder seriously.” Liu Chang stepped forward and directly bowed at a ninety-degree angle.

Shao Qing continued her polite act, waving a hand and stepping aside. “No, no, Teacher Liu, there’s no need for that. It was just a lucky guess; I happened to have read a bit of useful information beforehand.”

“If Teacher Liu truly believes it’s to my credit, then just use the coconuts from before as repayment,” Shao Qing gave both of them an out, playing the role needed for the production’s editing material.

“Alright, but two coconuts aren’t enough. Once it’s light out, I’ll climb and pick eight more for you, Teacher Shao!” Liu Chang declared, his tone generous and spirited.

Seeing his two companions had both expressed their stance, Xu Yin couldn’t continue playing dead. He had to step forward and say a few dry words.

Xu Yin: “We owe much to Teacher Shao’s reminder this time. It’s just a pity I don’t have many supplies on me right now to express my thanks. After daybreak, if there’s any way I can be of use to you, Teacher Shao, just say the word.”

“Alright, then I won’t stand on ceremony when the time comes,” Shao Qing responded with a smile, appearing very magnanimous before the camera.

After this mutual performance, the previous problem resurfaced: how to arrange accommodation for Xu Yin’s group of three.

The production team’s selling point was authenticity. Directly providing the three with temporary shelter would seem unfair. After all, the staff were staying in hastily assembled metal huts, not tents. Yet making them choose a new location and set up tents again—no one knew what time it’d be when they finished—would make the production team seem too rigid and unfeeling.

“We don’t have much spare space over at our camp, but there should be room for at least one more tent,” Li Liming took the initiative to speak after understanding the situation.

“How about we squeeze in a bit tonight? One teacher can share my tent, and the remaining two can share another tent?” Li Liming proposed a very feasible solution. “If we all pitch in, setting up one tent is just a matter of a few minutes.”

“But… wouldn’t that disturb the other two teachers’ rest?” Liu Chang said, sounding a bit embarrassed.

“It’s fine, I went to bed early, so a dozen minutes more or less won’t make a difference,” Yu Hongjun said with a smile.

Shao Qing added, “My situation is similar to Teacher Yu’s. And my sleep quality is quite good; once I’m asleep, it’s hard to wake me.”

—

[Do you want to know who I was bound to before you were?]

After Shao Qing had changed back into her pajamas and lain down, Jing Ke’s voice appeared in her consciousness.

“It’s Xu Yin, isn’t it?” Shao Qing closed her eyes, starting to let sleepiness brew. It wasn’t even 3 a.m. yet. If they got up at seven, she could still sleep for four more hours.

[You guessed? I hadn’t revealed that before, had I?] Jing Ke sounded slightly surprised.

“The fact you’re proactively asking this question now means your previous partner is one of the five other guests.” Shao Qing explained with her eyes closed.

“When exactly Xu Yin became famous, you should know better than I do. With such obvious clues delivered right to me, if I still didn’t know the answer, there’d be no point in me staying in this industry.”

[You are correct.] [Do you need me to do anything for you? I can intercept the content from the cameras and let certain segments accidentally leak out.]

“You can even do that?” A hint of fluctuation entered Shao Qing’s voice. “That sounds quite impressive.”

Was this a skill Ghosts could possess? Was this keeping up with the times?

[I can infiltrate nearby networks. As long as information is transmitted through a network, I can copy and save it.]

“Very impressive, but I don’t need that for now. Releasing that kind of video wouldn’t affect Xu Yin much. He didn’t commit any major offense; he just seemingly stated facts based on what he saw, saying a few words.”

Shao Qing’s voice became calm again. “Could I trouble you for a bit more rain sounds? I’m having a little trouble falling asleep again.”

[Okay.] Jing Ke started playing the sounds as requested and fell silent, allowing Shao Qing to rest properly.

—

At seven in the morning, Shao Qing opened her eyes before Jing Ke’s wake-up call service.

After switching off the night light emitting a faint glow by her bed, Shao Qing neatly changed her clothes, grabbed her toiletries, and walked out of the tent.

[Good morning. The time is now 7:05 AM. You are the second guest to wake up. The first was Li Liming; he got up at 6:30 and is currently jogging along the coast.] Jing Ke provided information immediately.

“Good morning, thank you.” Shao Qing thanked her politely and headed to the designated area to wash up.

After Shao Qing finished washing her face and brushing her teeth, the other four also emerged from their tents one after another, greeting each other. Relying on the coconuts Liu Chang had picked yesterday, plus a bit of leftover noodles from last night, a simple breakfast was prepared.

The production team gave the guests some free rest time and only announced the day’s tasks around 8:30 AM.

“We will provide fishing equipment at designated spots. For every five fish a guest catches, they can claim one as a reward for completing the task. This task is non-mandatory; guests participate voluntarily.”

“Furthermore, we have placed no fewer than fifty small supply points across the island. Each point has different supplies. Guests can try their luck freely searching the island or use items specified by the production team to exchange for clues.”

The director shouted through a megaphone, “The materials the production team needs today are fish, wood wider than 8 centimeters and longer than 2 meters, and marine debris weighing over 10 kilograms. Any of these can be exchanged for clues to the supply points. First come, first served; each clue is unique.”

With seven days of wilderness survival, there was no fear of lacking footage to film. Therefore, all tasks arranged by the crew were non-mandatory, essentially a case of ‘the willing rise to the bait.’

If the guests didn’t take the bait, they could, but that would inevitably lead to a significant drop in their food quality and standard of living. Generally, guests followed the production team’s script.