Shen Yueyue had initially intended to ask Ning Xiaoyu for help applying some of the repellent powder.

She still had plenty of the repellent powder provided by the production team, but after the incident with Mu Jiajia, her trust in it had significantly diminished.

However, upon seeing the way Ning Xiaoyu applied the powder to Lu Jingdu’s hands, she decisively dismissed the idea.

To treat the movie king’s hands— those beautifully sculpted, artwork-like hands— as if they were pig trotters…… probably only someone like Ning Xiaoyu could do that in this world.

At the very least, Shen Yueyue knew that if it had been her, she could never have remained so calm and natural. If she had held the movie king’s hands, she would’ve definitely blushed a little, just to show some respect.

This was Lu Jingdu! The top-tier visual of the entertainment industry, the man crowned ‘Most Kissable Male Celebrity’ for two consecutive years!

How could anyone treat his hands like pig trotters?

But thinking of pig trotters made Shen Yueyue suddenly realize that she was hungry.

Once she returned to Friendship House, she swore she’d eat a whole pig trotter! She didn’t even care if it made her gain weight!

────ρя


Lu Jingdu lowered his gaze to his hands.

At that moment, his hands carried the faint scent of repellent powder. It wasn’t exactly pleasant, but it was tolerable.

Although Ning Xiaoyu’s movements weren’t particularly gentle— and in fact, showed a distinct tendency to treat his hands like actual pig trotters— Lu Jingdu accepted it without complaint.

Seeing him inspecting his own hands, Ning Xiaoyu held back her heartache and added a brief explanation, “Once it’s on, you’ll be safe.” With the scent as a deterrent, even if the powder wasn’t applied elsewhere, venomous snakes would instinctively avoid him.

Lu Jingdu lowered his hands and smiled slightly. “I know.” Then he added, “I like it.”

【Ah, that damn familiar vibe of getting soft rice again.】

【The movie king is getting more skilled at being pampered.】

【Honestly, with his looks, he’s really well-suited to being pampered. Doge.jpg】

【Movie King: Top-tier pretty boy. And that’s a compliment.】

Now that the love mission was completed, Ning Xiaoyu said, “Let’s head over and check it out.”

None of the other guests had any objections.

They all wanted to see how Mu Jiajia was doing.

When Ning Xiaoyu, Lu Jingdu, and the others reached Mu Jiajia, the medical team had only just arrived and were treating her wound with saline solution.

There was a clear bite mark on Mu Jiajia’s lower leg.

Her injury looked horrifying. It was slightly blackened, obviously critical.

Tear streaks covered Mu Jiajia’s face as she muttered desperate pleas for help.

The accompanying doctor from the medical team immediately took out an anti-venom serum. Just as he was about to administer it, Ning Xiaoyu interjected, “The venom looks strong. Are you sure your anti-venom serum will be effective?”

Had it not been for the love system assigning her a mission earlier, Ning Xiaoyu would’ve quietly watched the doctor give Mu Jiajia the anti-venom injection.

And she would’ve fully trusted the production team’s preparations.

But because the love system had not only given her a mission but also mentioned Mu Jiajia in the task context, Ning Xiaoyu now knew that the serum likely wouldn’t work.

The love system might have no tact and assign missions at the worst times, but in some ways, it was useful.

Like now.

If the anti-venom was ineffective, there would only be one outcome for Mu Jiajia.

Which meant that tiny detail the love system had casually mentioned might actually determine Mu Jiajia’s life or death.

The doctor froze briefly at Ning Xiaoyu’s question, then answered seriously, “The anti-venom serum I have is effective against most snake venoms— except for the king cobra.”

Mu Jiajia hadn’t seen what kind of snake bit her, and even if she had, she might not have recognized it.

But hearing the doctor’s answer, Ning Xiaoyu was certain. With confidence, she declared, “She was bitten by a king cobra.”

Since the love system had already revealed that the production team’s anti-venom wouldn’t work on Mu Jiajia, then regardless of the reason, using this serum wasn’t safe.

The love system had never lied to her. And it had no reason to, especially about something like this.

Mu Jiajia was still in critical condition.

【What? She even knows that? What kind of terrifying creature is the salted fish queen?】

【She really is chill when it’s time to chill, but when it counts— she’s solid as a rock.】

【Aaaah! Our Xiao Yu is so cool!】

【Okay but serious question: How the heck did the salted fish queen know it was a king cobra?!】

【Sobbing. I’m head over heels for her now.】

【Nooo! Someone already claimed the spot at the salted fish queen’s thigh!】

【I wanna hug the salted fish queen’s leg too and cry, “Big Sis, I don’t want to try anymore!”】

Hearing Ning Xiaoyu’s statement, the production crew, medical team, and other guests were all stunned.

Especially Mu Jiajia— her emotions were on the verge of collapse.

She cried out, “Take me to the hospital! Hurry!”

But the nearest hospital was over thirty minutes away. Everyone knew Mu Jiajia wouldn’t make it that long.

The director looked heavy-hearted. “Xiaoyu, how did you know it was a king cobra?”

Ning Xiaoyu had pieced it together from the clues dropped by the love system, but she obviously couldn’t say that. So she casually replied, “Based on the traces in the grass and the size of the wound. But that’s not important right now.”

【Ladies, she really knows her stuff!】

【Ahhhhh, too cool!!】

The director was completely taken in, nodding quickly. “Right, right, that’s not important. What matters is the anti-venom!”

After confirming with the love system that it couldn’t just conjure up effective anti-venom, Ning Xiaoyu said, “I’ll go find the tribe leader from the native village. He might have a way.”

“Yes, yes, yes, go find him!”

“The locals will definitely know what to do!”

Ning Xiaoyu motioned for the medical team to place Mu Jiajia on a stretcher and followed alongside her.

Mu Jiajia cried with tears streaming down her face. She gripped Ning Xiaoyu’s hand tightly and said in a trembling voice, “Xiaoyu, I haven’t always been nice to you before. I was wrong. It was all my fault! Thank you so much this time. No matter what the outcome is, I accept it.”

Ning Xiaoyu patted her hand. “It’s okay.”

Perhaps it was the calmness in Ning Xiaoyu’s voice that had a soothing effect. Though Mu Jiajia still wept, her emotions gradually settled.

When the group arrived at the entrance of the tribe, they nearly startled the natives again.

At that moment, Ning Xiaoyu brought out everything the show crew could still offer— flashlights, compasses, GPS devices, sleeping bags, lighters, various food supplies, and more.

This had been discussed on the way over— something she had negotiated with the director.

If they wanted help from the natives, it wouldn’t be right to offer nothing in return.

Seeing Ning Xiaoyu take out so many supplies, the leader stepped forward and muttered a few words in his native tongue.

Ning Xiaoyu couldn’t understand him.

But understanding wasn’t necessary.

She pointed to Mu Jiajia’s injured leg, then used her arms and palms to mimic the slithering motion of a snake.

Her gestures were vivid and expressive, making it easy to grasp her meaning.

She was explaining that Mu Jiajia had been bitten by a snake.

【The salted fish queen’s gestures are incredible! Even I could understand her!】

【Mu Jiajia, you owe our salted fish queen big time— remember that!】

【I don’t know whether to feel happy or furious. Happy because our salted fish queen is genuinely trustworthy, furious because— hello? Is the production crew just here to eat and watch? When something serious happened, they were useless!】

【Production Team: At least we provided the supplies. Doge.jpg. Thinking about it that way just makes it even more ironic.】

【Yeah, the production team’s usefulness ends there.】

The leader stepped forward to take a look. When he got a clear look at Mu Jiajia’s wound, his expression grew particularly grim.

【Uh-oh! Judging by the leader’s expression, it’s definitely a king cobra bite!】

【If not for the salted fish queen, even with the anti-venom serum the show crew had, Mu Jiajia would’ve been done for!】

【That’s basically saying the salted fish queen saved a life!】

【Let’s not celebrate too early. We’re still not sure if the natives can treat her!】

Everyone anxiously waited for the leader’s reaction.

After observing Mu Jiajia’s condition, the leader signaled to a young boy behind him to fetch something. Before long, the boy returned with a vial of anti-venom serum specifically for king cobra bites.

This serum had been provided periodically by local authorities to protect the tribespeople. The bottle even had instructions printed in two languages.

After reading the directions, the doctor exclaimed with excitement, “This is it! We can use this!”

Due to strict storage requirements, the tribe didn’t have many vials. If multiple people had been bitten today, they wouldn’t have had enough serum to go around.

Fortunately, only Mu Jiajia had been bitten.

The doctor who had read the directions administered the injection.

Once the anti-venom was administered, everyone breathed a collective sigh of relief.

Mu Jiajia also began to calm down.

Afterward, the production team arranged for her to be transferred to a local hospital specializing in snake venom treatment for further care.

An hour later, the guests received good news.

The snake that bit Mu Jiajia had indeed been a king cobra. And because her wound had been treated in time and she received the appropriate anti-venom serum, her life was not in danger. With a bit of rest, she would make a full recovery.

On the phone, the director sounded overwhelmed with gratitude and repeatedly thanked Ning Xiaoyu.

If not for Ning Xiaoyu’s kind reminder, and if Mu Jiajia had only been given the serum provided by the show crew, her condition might have taken a turn for the worse. Had something happened to Mu Jiajia, the production team would’ve been in deep trouble.

Ning Xiaoyu, wearing her usual blank expression, calmly accepted the thanks.

────ρя


Due to this unexpected incident, the guests of 《Hi, My Friend》 delayed their return. It wasn’t until six hours later that they finally boarded the plane home.

The moment they got on, Shen Yueyue shouted, “We’re finally going home!”

Most of the others felt the same.

This survival trip had been truly exhausting, and Mu Jiajia had narrowly escaped death.

Though the other guests weren’t injured, they were still shaken. The image of Mu Jiajia’s desperate cries for help was burned into their memory.

Since being accused by Mu Jiajia, Ning Yuwei has remained quiet. Even after getting on the plane, she said little, sitting silently in her seat with Xu Cheng keeping her company.

Every now and then, Xu Cheng would gently comfort her, “Mu Jiajia must’ve been mistaken. Don’t overthink it, Weiwei.”

Ning Yuwei gave a soft nasal “Mm” in reply.

Because of what happened to Mu Jiajia, the cast of 《Extreme Survival》  would be heading to a new location next.

Everyone felt a swirl of emotions. Even though their bodies were screaming with fatigue, none of them could fall asleep.

At that moment, the salted fish queen had already dozed off in comfort. In a world full of troubles, sleep reigned supreme!

And sitting behind her, the movie king who was protected by repellent powder didn’t have to worry about venomous snakes. After a chaotic day, he too shut his eyes and drifted off.

Other Guests: Jealous.jpg

Whether it was the salted fish queen or the movie king, they were deeply, sincerely envious.