Ning Xiaoyu’s shot instantly shocked quite a few people.

Xu Cheng was eliminated before he even had time to react. Could it be that Ning Xiaoyu just got lucky? She fired a random shot and took him out.

Aside from luck, was there any other explanation for her landing that hit so easily?

Xu Cheng’s teammate, Ning Yuwei, remained expressionless. In that moment, her impression of Xu Cheng plummeted.

If she had known earlier, she wouldn’t have chosen Xu Cheng but Ling Zige instead. Who would have thought that Xu Cheng would be eliminated so quickly? Now, wouldn’t she have to fight alone?

Xu Cheng looked apologetic. “Sorry, Weiwei.”

Ning Yuwei gave a cold “Mm” in response. Remembering that the cameras were still rolling nearby, she suppressed her impatience and reluctantly added, “It’s fine.”

────ρя


After landing that shot, Ning Xiaoyu had no intention of stopping.

Whether she eliminated others or got eliminated herself, she didn’t care. She just wanted to finish the game as soon as possible.

From what she knew, a standard real-life CS match typically lasted for hours. However, the version they were playing was already a simplified one, different from what regular tourists experienced. Even so, she still wanted to wrap things up quickly.

But that didn’t mean she was going to throw the match on purpose.

Lacking skill and getting eliminated was one thing; deliberately getting taken out was another. While she wasn’t particularly ambitious, she also wouldn’t intentionally ruin her teammates’ gaming experience.

Just then, Ning Xiaoyu caught sight of Ning Yuwei poking her head out, clearly preparing for a sneak attack.

Without hesitation, Ning Xiaoyu executed a clean flick shot, eliminating Ning Yuwei on the spot.

The instructor’s calm voice rang out across the field, “Team B, Ning Yuwei, eliminated!”

【???】

【!!!】

【Has our salted fish queen suddenly come alive? Is this really Xiao Yu? Could this truly be Xiao Yu? Is this still the same Xiao Yu I know?!】

【Is this still the same salted fish queen who would rather lie down than sit, and rather sit than stand?!】

【So this is what our salted fish queen looks like when she gets serious. Damn, she’s so cool!】

【Ahhh! She can be both laid-back and badass! The movie king is just a mascot!】

In just five minutes, both members of Team B were eliminated.

No matter how much Ning Yuwei refused to believe it, she still met the same early elimination as Xu Cheng.

How could this be?

Perhaps because she had eliminated two people in quick succession, the other players realized that Ning Xiaoyu was highly skilled at real-life CS and started focusing their attacks on her.

However, Ning Xiaoyu was agile and had an excellent sense of the battlefield. As the game of cat and mouse unfolded, many players were taken out— everyone except for Ning Xiaoyu.

Her recoil control was steady, her flick shots crisp and precise. Dressed in camouflage, she looked effortlessly cool, as if a top-tier FPS pro had stepped into reality.

Meanwhile, Ning Xiaoyu’s fans in the livestream were going wild.

【She’s got the laziest face but does the wildest things.】

【She doesn’t slack off because she can’t— she slacks off because she’s just that good!】

【Salted Fish Queen: That’s it? That’s all you got?】

By the end, only three people remained on the field.

Ning Xiaoyu, Lu Jingdu, and Shen Yueyue.

Shen Yueyue was Ning Xiaoyu’s closest friend on 《Hi, My Friend》, so Ning Xiaoyu didn’t take the shot herself. Instead, she left the opportunity to Lu Jingdu.

Lu Jingdu, who had been playing the role of a team mascot up until now, did not disappoint. He steadied his gun, aimed with his left eye while closing his right, and executed a perfect shot— eliminating Shen Yueyue.

The next second, the instructor’s voice echoed again, “Team D, Shen Yueyue, eliminated. The winners of this match is Team A, Ning Xiaoyu and Lu Jingdu.”

【Ahhh, no surprises! Our salted fish queen took first place!】

【She was absolutely incredible today!】

【Feels like we’ve discovered a whole new side of Xiao Yu.】

While Ning Xiaoyu’s fans continued celebrating, she quickly reverted to her usual lazy state the moment the match ended.

She wasn’t particularly interested in the rewards for winning. After all this time, she was simply hungry. All she wanted now was a hot meal. As for the match? It was over, so why think about it anymore?

────ρя


After the real-life CS game, the show’s staff and guests went to a nearby restaurant for dinner.

But before eating, they needed to wash their hands.

Ning Xiaoyu, feeling sluggish, slumped into her seat and didn’t want to move.

However, she had spent the entire afternoon running around, and her hands were covered in dust.

While the other guests headed to the restroom to wash their hands or use the toilet, Ning Xiaoyu turned toward a dog resting in a corner of the restaurant and beckoned to it. “Border Collie, come here.”

【???】

As soon as she spoke, the black-and-white Border Collie, which had been sitting obediently in the corner, slowly trotted over to her.

【Did…… did the dog just recognize that it’s a Border Collie?!】

【No wonder they say Border Collies are the geniuses of the dog world. It actually understood!】

【Border Collies are seriously smart.】

Seeing the dog approach, Ning Xiaoyu pointed to a nearby table. “My bag is over there. Can you bring it to me?” After a pause, she added, “If you help me, I’ll give you lots of meat later.”

【Hahaha, is this bribery?】

【Border Collies are smart, but can it really understand such a complicated command?】

As it turned out, the Border Collie really could understand.

Perhaps its owner had trained it regularly. In any case, the Border Collie accurately followed Ning Xiaoyu’s command and successfully brought her bag over.

After taking the bag, Ning Xiaoyu patted the dog’s head and said, “Sit next to me, and I’ll feed you some meat later.”

Hearing Ning Xiaoyu’s words, the Border Collie obediently sat down beside her.

Ning Xiaoyu took out wet wipes and alcohol-based hand sanitizer from her bag. First, she sprayed her hands with the sanitizer for disinfection, then wiped them clean with the wet wipes.

After cleaning her hands, all she had to do was wait for dinner.

At this moment, the other guests returned from the restroom.

Just as Ning Xiaoyu had expected, dinner was quite a feast, with both fish and meat.

She kept her word and gave the Border Collie a large drumstick.

Seeing her generously give away her own drumstick, Mu Jiajia couldn’t help but comment, “You’re really generous.”

Ning Xiaoyu didn’t reply but instead turned to the dog and said, “Border Collie, give this auntie an early New Year’s greeting.”

The dog had just received a drumstick and was in a great mood. Upon hearing her words, it stood up on its hind legs, waved its front paws, and barked— a perfect New Year’s greeting for Mu Jiajia.

Mu Jiajia was immediately left speechless.

【Hahahaha, this is too much!】

【This trick is savage, hahaha!】

【Xiao Yu didn’t even take Mu Jiajia’s drumstick. Why is she acting so passive-aggressive?】

【Who cares? She’s probably just jealous that Xiao Yu has been so popular lately. She’s totally bitter!】

By giving away her drumstick, Ning Xiaoyu naturally had none left for herself. But she didn’t really crave drumsticks, so she didn’t mind. Just as she picked up a bite of greens with her chopsticks, a drumstick suddenly appeared in her bowl.

She instinctively looked up and saw the movie king holding the communal chopsticks.

Seeing her gaze, Lu Jingdu explained, “I don’t really like drumsticks, so you can have it.”

〖Love System: Ahhh! How could anyone not like something as delicious as a drumstick? The movie king is obviously just making up an excuse to give it to you! It’s just like how moms love their children. They lie and say they don’t like drumsticks and prefer the chicken head instead!〗

Ning Xiaoyu blinked. She took the communal chopsticks from Lu Jingdu’s hand and split the drumstick in half, giving a portion back to him.

Since they had already shared the green tea pastries before, sharing a drumstick this time felt natural to her.

Lu Jingdu accepted it just as naturally.

After all, things became easier the second time around.

While eating, Ning Xiaoyu didn’t forget about the Border Collie and gave it some fruit as well.

By the end of dinner, she had completely bonded with the dog.

After the meal, while the show’s production team was busy uploading the guests’ photos online for the audience to vote on the best one, Ning Xiaoyu lounged on a reclining chair, snacking on fruit while petting the dog.

Longans had both shells and seeds. After finishing one, she turned to the dog and said, “Border Collie, bring me a trash bin, please. Thanks.”

She had run out of the trash bags she had brought earlier, so she had to rely on the dog for help.

The Border Collie tilted its head, stuck out its tongue, and gave her a cute, playful look.

The moment Ning Xiaoyu saw the dog staying put, she knew it was pretending not to understand. There was no way it could comprehend all the long commands from earlier but suddenly fail to understand this simple one.

She lifted the fruit in her hand and said, “I’ll give you some strawberries later.”

With a reward offered, the Border Collie barked once and immediately ran off to fetch the trash bin.

【Wait, this works?!】

【As expected of the salted fish queen. She won’t miss any chance to put others to work!】

【Genius Border Collie, hello!】

【I’m dying of laughter! This clever dog has been completely outplayed by Xiao Yu!】

【Is this what you call a mutually beneficial relationship? The Border Collie gets delicious food from Xiao Yu, while Xiao Yu gets it to do chores so she can continue slacking off. A win-win!】

【Truly a perfect win-win situation!】

Meanwhile, the photos had already been uploaded online.

There were a total of eight pictures, two from each group.

For Ning Xiaoyu’s group, one photo showed her and Lu Jingdu dressed in traditional red wedding attire, gazing at each other from a balcony. The other depicted Lu Jingdu leading a horse with Ning Xiaoyu on it.

For Ning Yuwei’s group, one photo was a group shot of the four of them in front of a teahouse, while the other captured them eating green tea pastries.

For Shen Yueyue and Xi Rui’s group, one picture featured them making a peace sign at the camera, and the other showed them strolling through the park.

For Shi Chao’s group, one picture captured them playing rock-paper-scissors to determine the final winner, while the other creatively used lighting and shadows on rocks to mimic the legendary journey to the West of Tang Monk and his disciples.

Fans swarmed onto Weibo in an instant.

【Ahh, honestly, Shi Chao’s group had great creativity. I love their concept, but I still have to vote for Xiao Yu’s group!】

【Their recreation of Tang Monk’s journey was spot-on! But still, I just love the movie king as a live-in son-in-law too much to not vote for Xiao Yu’s group!】

【Ugh, I can’t decide! I want to vote for the photo of the movie king as a live-in son-in-law, but I also love the one where he’s leading Xiao Yu’s horse. I guess I’m just a greedy woman.】

【Who isn’t greedy?】

While the netizens were struggling to decide which photo to vote for, Ning Xiaoyu remained immersed in the joy of petting the dog.

“Well done, Border Collie. Here, have some strawberries.”

【Awesome! While all the other guests are busy rallying for votes, Ning Xiaoyu is just chilling and playing with a dog! Truly worthy of being the salted fish queen!】