Chapter 12: A Different Kind of Trouble Every Day…

Ji Jingchuan was truly furious.

That evening, while setting up his tent, he didn’t even call Shang Que for help. Instead, he grabbed his materials, found the farthest available spot from her, and put together a tent that looked barely stable.

After the live broadcast of the variety show ended, everyone used the available resources to wash up quickly before crawling into their respective sleeping spaces.

The mountain forest was tranquil, enveloped in the deep hues of night. The sky, a rare inky blue unseen in cities, was adorned with a web of twinkling stars, mirroring the scattered warm yellow glow of the camping lanterns below.

It was already nearing midnight, and everyone was deep in slumber when suddenly—

A loud crashing sound shattered the silence, immediately followed by Jiang Yizhe’s startled exclamation:

“Holy crap, is that an earthquake?!”

His outburst jolted everyone awake. One by one, tent flaps rustled open.

Ning Sheng peeked out. “What happened?”

“So noisy.” Lin Jinyi yawned, sounding annoyed. “What’s going on in the middle of the night?”

Jiang Yizhe crawled out of his tent and looked around. “Something seems to have collapsed.”

That’s when everyone noticed—a tent had apparently been knocked over by the night wind and had collapsed onto Jiang Yizhe’s tent.

Lu Zhixu got up and stepped forward to help Jiang Yizhe lift the fallen fabric. Beneath it, bundled snugly in a sleeping bag, was Ji Jingchuan—completely unaware of the chaos around him.

Only when the glare of the camping lantern hit his face did he frown in irritation and mumble, “What’s going on?”

The moment he opened his eyes, he was met with the sight of Lu Zhixu and Jiang Yizhe staring down at him, their expressions eerily solemn—almost as if they were about to offer a ceremonial bow and bid him farewell.

Ji Jingchuan shot up into a sitting position, still groggy, and looked around in confusion.

Jiang Yizhe explained, “Your tent collapsed.”

“…”

Seeing his embarrassment, Lu Zhixu, with an utterly serious expression, quipped, “A tent is a kind of house too, right? So technically, you just experienced a ‘house collapse’ scandal.”

The others burst into laughter at his joke. Encouraged, Lu Zhixu suggested, “It’s too late to set up another tent now. Why don’t you share with someone for the night?”

Jiang Yizhe offered, “You can stay with me. My tent just needs a little fixing.”

Ji Jingchuan frowned, about to refuse, when a tent flap was suddenly yanked open from a short distance away.

Shang Que, her face full of drowsy irritation, glared at them. “Are you guys going to let people sleep or not?”

“We’re almost done, go back to sleep, Shang Que-jie,” Jiang Yizhe assured her before turning back to Ji Jingchuan. “So, you—”

Ji Jingchuan swiftly climbed out of his sleeping bag. “Where’s your tent?”

“Over here. Hold on, let me fix it first.”

One of the corners had been slightly crushed, but it wasn’t too serious. Jiang Yizhe quickly secured the pegs back into place, dusted off his hands, and grinned. “All set.”

With the matter settled, the rest of the group returned to their tents. The campsite fell silent again, save for the occasional rustling of birds in the trees.

Hearing the constant shifting beside him, Jiang Yizhe turned over and asked, “Can’t sleep?”

Ji Jingchuan froze for a moment before letting out a muffled “Mhm.” He wasn’t used to having someone sleep next to him, and being woken up earlier had completely thrown off his sleepiness.

“I’ll chat with you for a bit then,” Jiang Yizhe said after a brief pause. He then started talking about his younger sister.

“You know, when I was in my first drama, I played this super minor role—so small you’d miss me if you blinked. But my sister watched every single episode, just waiting for my appearance. The second I showed up, she’d excitedly point at the screen and tell my parents, ‘That’s my brother!’”

“She was still in elementary school back then and could only watch half an hour of TV per day. To finish my show, she actually negotiated with my parents—offering to do a whole month of chores just so she could extend her screen time.”

Ji Jingchuan gradually fell silent. Lying on his back, he stared up at the ceiling of the tent and suddenly asked, “Are you and your sister close?”

Jiang Yizhe thought for a moment. “It depends. She can be really annoying sometimes, but when she’s being sweet, it’s impossible to stay mad at her.” He scratched his head. “You probably… wouldn’t understand that feeling.”

“Why wouldn’t I?” Ji Jingchuan scoffed. “You’re not the only one with a sibling—I have an older sister too.”

“You do?” Jiang Yizhe sounded surprised. “I’ve never heard you mention her. Are you two close?”

“Of course we are!” Ji Jingchuan’s expression brightened. “When we were kids, she always had jasmine tea candy in her pocket because she knew I liked it. Every time I was upset, she’d give me one to cheer me up.”

Jiang Yizhe made a noise of recognition. “Oh, jasmine tea candy? Shang Que-jie gave me one before.”

He had found the taste a bit strange, so the memory stuck with him.

Ji Jingchuan, however, suddenly froze. His expression darkened. “Shang Que gave you that candy?”

“Yeah. She gave some to a bunch of people in the crew, but most of them didn’t like it—it’s kind of bitter because of the tea.”

Jiang Yizhe noticed his sudden silence and asked in confusion, “What’s wrong?”

Ji Jingchuan huffed angrily. “Nothing. Go to sleep.”

“You can sleep now?”

Ji Jingchuan turned his back to him in a rage. Who cared about sleeping—he was about to pass out from sheer fury!

Shang Que actually gave his candy to other people? Unbelievable!

His mind spiraled: if today she could share his candy with others, then tomorrow she could replace him entirely!

The more he thought about it, the angrier he got. The next morning, his face remained gloomy.

The others assumed he was still sulking over the tent incident and, not wanting to embarrass him further, refrained from asking.

After breakfast, the live broadcast resumed. The director stood outside the camera frame and announced the day’s activity.

“See that forest behind you? Earlier, the show placed three beacons inside for geological research. Your task is to retrieve them.”

“Before you set out, we’ve prepared some helpful tools—a map, a compass, and insect repellent pouches.”

“The map shows the approximate locations of the beacons, the compass will help you navigate, and of course, the insect repellent is essential since you might run into some bugs along the way.”

Everyone turned their heads in unison, looking at the dense, towering forest stretching across the hillside. The branches and leaves intertwined, forming a vast green canopy that blocked out most of the sunlight. Only a few slivers of morning light managed to pierce through, flickering on the forest floor as the wind rustled the leaves.

Jiang Yizhe cheered, “Yes! A jungle adventure! Director, where are the tools? Do we start now?”

Lin Jinyi rolled her eyes. “No way it’s that simple. The show must have a trick up its sleeve.”

【Haha, the young miss is finally getting wise.】

【She’s been fooled enough times to learn. Unlike little Jiang, who keeps falling for it over and over.】

The director defended himself, “How can you call it a trick? This is all for the sake of strengthening your friendships!”

No one responded.

Seeing the lack of reaction, he chuckled awkwardly. “Alright, fine, no more suspense. You just have to complete some small tasks to earn the tools.”

“The first one—the map—can be obtained by complimenting each other.”

【Oh, I see. Another challenge targeted at Shang Que and Ji Jingchuan.】

【Compliment each other? They’d rather explain quantum mechanics again than praise each other!】

“Because if something can be solved, there’s no need to worry. And if it can’t be solved, worrying is useless.”

Jiang Yizhe finished explaining, then thought for a moment before adding seriously, “Lin Jinyi is a good person. She may seem cold on the outside, but she has a kind heart. Plus, she always works hard and takes responsibility in every task.”

【Little Jiang’s unique way of giving compliments—”XX is a good person.”】
【In other words, his philosophy is: “Well, I won’t die anyway. And if I do, so be it.”】
【These two really remind me of ‘Mindless’ and ‘Unhappy,’ haha.】

Lin Jinyi was momentarily stunned by his words, furrowing her brows as she fell into thought.

Next, it was Shang Que and Ji Jingchuan’s turn. Just as they were about to speak, the director, anticipating trouble, reminded them, “The map is very important. The forest is huge. Without a map, there’s a high chance you’ll get lost.”

Their open mouths promptly closed again.

Shang Que tilted her head. “You go first.”

“No way. You go first. How do I know you won’t just stay silent after I say mine?”

Shang Que retorted, “Then how do I know you won’t do the same?”

Ji Jingchuan frowned, thinking for a moment, then said, “Say ‘Anyone who lies is a puppy.'”

【Hahaha, the trust level here is rock bottom.】
【You two might as well sign a contract at this point.】

Shang Que looked utterly unbothered. “Anyone who lies is a puppy.”

Ji Jingchuan shot her a sideways glance before finally speaking with great skepticism, “Shang Que is good-looking… must be thanks to good genes!”

As soon as he finished, he urged, “Alright, your turn now.”

Shang Que acted clueless. “What do you mean, my turn?”

“Shang Que!” Ji Jingchuan glared at her. “I just complimented you on your looks, and you—”

Shang Que interrupted, “Thanks. You also look like a normal person.”

Ji Jingchuan: “…?”

【Shang Que is beautiful, and Ji Jingchuan is… human-shaped.】
【You fell for it again, Ji Jingchuan. A new day, a new trick, never the same one twice.】

Shang Que looked innocent. “Why are you staring at me like that? Didn’t I just compliment you?”

Ji Jingchuan refused to accept it. “That counts as a compliment?”

“Ask the director if it counts.”

The director, afraid they would argue endlessly, quickly smoothed things over. “It counts, it counts! Congratulations, each team gets a copy of the map. Next up is the compass, which you’ll earn by taking a photo symbolizing friendship.”

Lin Jinyi and Jiang Yizhe were already familiar with this. Back in the first episode, they had finished last in a rowing competition and had to take a photo holding hands and making a heart shape.

So, when the camera turned to them, they instinctively recreated the same pose, forming a large heart above their heads.

Lu Zhixu and Ning Sheng, after a quiet discussion, extended their hands in front of them to make a small heart when it was their turn.

Then, the camera moved to Shang Que and Ji Jingchuan.

The cameraman counted down, “Three, two, one—”

Ji Jingchuan, following the previous group’s example, unconsciously formed half of a heart in front of him.

Meanwhile, Shang Que… firmly gave a thumbs-up.

With a click, the moment was captured.

Everyone struggled to hold back their laughter.

【Shang Que: Respectfully declining.】
【Hahaha, they both look so confused. Shang Que probably didn’t expect him to make a heart either.】
【In the end, only Shang Que stayed true to the “archenemy” dynamic. Pure rivalry war god Shang Que!】