SM Chapter 79

Chapter 79 Extra 5 (Reality Show 3)

The sun had already peeked out, and the last bit of cool morning mist had dissipated. The gray-blue sea surface was slowly painted with golden light, stretching all the way to Ye Lai’s eyes.

“It’s so beautiful here.” Ye Lai faced the sea, opened his arms, and tilted his head back to feel the sea breeze blowing on him.

Sheng Mingqian stood next to him, hands in his pockets, also tilting his head back like Ye Lai.

“It is beautiful,” he echoed.

The cameraman circled around the two of them, filming from every angle, already having in mind the subtitles he might add in post-production—

Husband sings, wife follows…

The three groups officially began to split up. Feng Hongyang discussed with Man Wenxuan about first making a harpoon themselves, and then going to the rocky beach to spear fish and gather shrimp.

Qin Zeyang and Ou Le seemed to really want to snatch their things, eyeing them from afar. When they found a pointed wooden stick, they were still staring at them menacingly.

When they approached, they even said “Good luck,” and then scared them by saying, “We’ll come find you later.”

Man Wenxuan tugged at Feng Hongyang, deliberately avoiding them, scared and running far away.

Qin Zeyang laughed as he watched their backs, while Ou Le urged him to act quickly, otherwise they wouldn’t have breakfast.

Ou Le then turned to Sheng Mingqian and Ye Lai: “Sheng Mingqian, Ye Lai, which area are you planning to go to?”

Sheng Mingqian looked up and gazed around: “We’ll go take a look at the island. There are coconut trees, and there should be other things too.”

The terrain on the island was undulating, with some places gentle, some steep, some with dense vegetation, and some with vertically protruding cliffs.

Sheng Mingqian found two wooden sticks, handing a smoother one to Ye Lai, and chose a gently sloping path.

The island was covered in tropical plants. Before long, Ye Lai saw a patch of wild pineapples, golden and ripe.

Ye Lai excitedly ran over: “It’s a Devil Fruit! Eating it will give you superpowers!”

Sheng Mingqian quickly followed, reminding him to be careful of the sharp leaves scratching his hands, and asked him, “What superpowers?”

“It’ll let you breathe fire and become incredibly strong.”

“Then let’s pick more,” Sheng Mingqian cooperated readily.

Ye Lai picked wild pineapples, and Sheng Mingqian plucked a few large leaves to hold them, gathering a total of four.

The two used the leaves to carry the wild pineapples down, wanting to find a place to store them first, and then go pick coconuts.

Before they had walked a few steps, two locals dressed as islanders approached, waving to them from afar, chattering away in some language.

Ye Lai couldn’t understand, put down the wild pineapples in his hand, and nudged Sheng Mingqian beside him: “Are there any customs on this island, like outsiders not being allowed to pick things on the island?”

Sheng Mingqian looked at the cameraman, who shook his head: “I’m not very clear either.”

“Will we get arrested?” Ye Lai asked.

“Don’t worry,” Sheng Mingqian said, “Let’s see what happens.”

The cameraman beside them just kept filming. When the two islanders walked over, they touched their chests and made a gesture of courtesy.

Although they couldn’t understand, they could guess it was friendly.

Ye Lai and Sheng Mingqian returned a polite smile, nodding slightly to them.

The other party said something again, which Ye Lai didn’t understand. He introduced himself and pointed to the wild pineapples on the ground, asking if they wanted to eat them.

Sheng Mingqian, who hadn’t spoken the whole time, suddenly opened his mouth: “They’re asking what we’re doing.”

Ye Lai exclaimed “Ah!” very loudly, turning to look at Sheng Mingqian, asking incredulously, “You can understand them?”

“I can’t.”

“Then how do you know?”

“I guessed.”

The two islanders were still saying something, and the cameraman was still filming them.

Sheng Mingqian said seriously: “Isn’t this supposed to be a deserted island survival show? If you film the islanders, that’s a major bug.”

The cameraman said with a smile: “It’s okay, we can edit it out in post-production.”

Sheng Mingqian went up to chat with them.

Islander pointed to the sky: “*£%*…$@#…”

Sheng Mingqian nodded: “The weather is nice.”

Islander looked at the sea: “#&%……°C&……”

Sheng Mingqian pointed with his hand: “We came from over there.”

Islander put his hands together: “*@%……#～￥……”

Sheng Mingqian smiled: “Thank you…”

Ye Lai eventually figured out that Sheng Mingqian really didn’t understand. He was just trying to keep the conversation going, nodding, smiling, and echoing every now and then.

Listening to the end, Ye Lai couldn’t help but laugh, and finally joined in, using both hands and feet, guessing and gesturing, the four of them talking at cross purposes, chatting happily for a long time.

“Sheng Mingqian, I understood the last sentence. They’re blessing us.”

Sheng Mingqian had been holding Ye Lai’s hand the whole time. Anyone with eyes could see their relationship. The four of them exchanged blessings for a long time.

“*@%……#～￥……”

“Smooth sailing.”

“*@%……#～￥……”

“Two dragons soar.”

“*@%……#～￥……”

“Three rams bring prosperity.”

“*@%……#～￥……”

“Peace in all four seasons.”

…

The cameraman next to them was laughing so hard his shoulders were shaking, thinking that even if this segment was a bug, it had to be edited in.

At seven o’clock in the morning, the three groups followed instructions and gathered by the beach.

The sun was high, the sunlight intense. The six of them had been busy all morning, going into the sea and onto the island, and had worked up quite a sweat.

Feng Hongyang held a large coconut leaf in his hand, using it to shield Man Wenxuan from the sun.

Ye Lai’s face was covered in sweat, the beads trickling down his cheek. Sheng Mingqian did the same, wiping it off with his hand, and also tore off a large leaf to shield Ye Lai from the sun.

Qin Zeyang looked at Ou Le: “If I don’t wipe your sweat and shield you from the sun, will people say we’re getting divorced after it’s edited?”

Ou Le moved his face closer to Qin Zeyang: “Quick, wipe me.”

Qin Zeyang also wiped the sweat from Ou Le’s face, and also tore off a large leaf, holding it over his head.

Everyone else laughed.

Sheng Mingqian realized they were teasing him. He tore off another leaf, shielding the side of Ye Lai’s face, blocking his flushed cheeks. The cameraman didn’t capture the reaction on Ye Lai’s face, but did capture Sheng Mingqian’s ringed ring finger, hooking under Ye Lai’s chin.

That touch in the sunlight was infinitely doting.

The host counted the things the three groups had found. Ye Lai and Sheng Mingqian had picked cactus fruit, coconuts, and wild pineapples, and also found a wooden hammer and a fruit knife on the beach. They had not only found food but also the tools to eat it with.

Qin Zeyang and Ou Le had a fishing net, a lighter, a discarded bottle, a clean soup pot that could be used to boil soup, and three small fish and two small crabs. They had the tools, but not much to eat.

Feng Hongyang and Man Wenxuan had the most to eat, a dozen large crabs, all kinds of strange-looking fish, and a full bucket of shellfish, but they didn’t have any tools.

“Still too young. No matter how much you have, you need the tools to eat it,” Qin Zeyang looked around at their seafood and clicked his tongue.

The two of them then realized this, looking at the director team and pleading, “Director, isn’t the program supposed to provide tools? Where did Brother Qin and Brother Ou get their lighters?”

“Doesn’t matter,” the director said.

Finally, the three groups looked at each other and said in unison: “Then let’s just eat together.”

—

—

Breakfast ended, and it was already past noon. The six of them were wilting from the sun. The host then handed over new task cards.

The task for the afternoon was to find their accommodations for the night, following the route map provided by the program team.

The three accommodations were different, with conditions ranging from heaven to earth, from a simple tent made of wooden sticks and coconut leaves by the sea, to a small wooden house on the island, and a bright and luxurious villa.

The competition would decide which group drew the route cards first.

A blindfolded piggyback ball-carrying race. The rules were simple: one person in each group was blindfolded and carried the other person on their back. The group that carried the most balls in the same amount of time would win.

This was a couples’ reality show. What mattered wasn’t the competition, but the piggyback ride.

That was what the audience wanted to see most.

Among the three groups, Sheng Mingqian was the most serious about the game. His eyes were blindfolded, and Ye Lai was directing him from his back.

The other two groups had already fallen several times. It was on the beach, so there was no danger. The cameraman filmed them falling.

Sheng Mingqian ran the fastest and carried the most balls at the beginning. Halfway through, the other two groups came over to interfere. The most serious group drew last, but they were also the luckiest, actually drawing the villa.

The other two groups regretted their actions. Sheng Mingqian led Ye Lai away, quitedéyì – (adj) proud of oneself, pleased with oneself; (adv) complacently and even jokingly invited the other two groups.

The director team spoke up this time.

Game rules.

Not allowed.

In the evening, Ye Lai lay on a comfortable big bed, and Sheng Mingqian massaged his cervical spine.

Ye Lai hummed comfortably, and suddenly said, “I kind of want to sleep in that beach tent.”

The next night, Ye Lai got his wish and lay with Sheng Mingqian in a shed made of coconut leaves.

Wind was blowing in from all sides, and Ye Lai immediately regretted it.

Fortunately, the program team was still somewhat humane, providing two blankets at night. Sheng Mingqian pressed his coat on top of the blankets.

Ye Lai closed his eyes and snuggled into Sheng Mingqian’s arms, humming twice, it was unclear what he was saying, but it was clearly being affectionate.

Ye Lai was a bit cold, sticking both hands into Sheng Mingqian’s clothes, warming his hands against his stomach. He also rubbed his head against his chest, closed his eyes, and kissed Sheng Mingqian’s chin, then kissed him on the lips, feeling it wasn’t enough.

Finally, he said “Good night” in a daze. This sentence was clear.

After saying good night, Ye Lai lay in Sheng Mingqian’s arms, completely quiet.

He was so sleepy that he had forgotten that the cameraman was still there. Sheng Mingqian pulled the blanket covering the two of them up higher, wrapping it around Ye Lai’s neck, cupping his hand behind his head and rubbing it, then kissed the top of Ye Lai’s head.

Unconsciously, the corners of his lips turned up.

A particularly pure smile, because of a goodnight kiss from his lover.

The night sky was full of stars, the sea breeze blowing, there was the sound of waves, and the coconut leaf tent had gaps, letting in moonlight.

The cameraman naturally wouldn’t let go of such a big dog food scene, thinking that as long as this clip could be edited in, the audience would definitely love it.

“Good night, tomorrow is the last day…”

In his dream, Ye Lai was still thinking about the next day. The task for the third day was a surprise journey—

On this island, the three groups of guests would bury “surprises” for each other.

But they had to find these surprises themselves.