Chapter 25: Kid, You Really Want to Cross Me…

Qiao Yitong and Lu Cheng were still rapidly assembling the house.

Watching from a close distance, Lu Cheng felt that Qiao Yitong’s movements were a feast for the eyes.

He had gathered the timber from all over the place; much of it was just broken wood he had found lying on the ground.

The pieces were of varying sizes and irregular shapes.

It wasn’t that he didn’t want to find better, more suitable timber, but he simply didn’t have the ability.

To gather enough wood to build an entire house in just a few days, he couldn’t think of any other way besides scavenging and piecing things together like this.

However, since the raw materials were so poor, he was realistic about the outcome. He felt it would be good enough if this little house could just barely stand and provide him with a private space; he hadn’t expected it to look decent at all.

But to his surprise, these logs, which seemed crooked and problematic to him, seemed to have a spell cast upon them once they reached Sister Tong’s hands.

Different logs were interspersed at various angles. If a piece really didn’t fit, she would give it a few casual swipes with her machete, and it would suddenly fit perfectly.

This was incredible!

Lu Cheng’s eyes grew brighter and brighter, his expression filled with increasing adoration. His Sister Tong was truly the spokesperson for miracles.

A small house, finished in one hour.

Lu Cheng watched as Qiao Yitong slotted the final piece of wood into the roof. He saw her, with practiced ease, help him install simple doors and windows as well.

When the entire cabin appeared before Lu Cheng like a magic trick, his face flushed slightly with excitement.

The raw, brown timber and branches of various sizes were interwoven. It looked somewhat chaotic, yet it possessed a strange, casual, and natural beauty.

Standing in this undeveloped environment, leaning against Sister Tong’s emerald green Bamboo House.

Every detail of this fairy-tale wooden cabin was enough to make one feel thrilled and excited.

To describe his level of satisfaction with this cabin: put it this way, he hadn’t liked it this much even when his father gifted him a villa worth thirty million.

Lu Cheng was even beginning to plan in his head whether he could find a way to dig up this cabin and take it home once the show finished filming.

By the time they finished building, the sky had gradually begun to darken.

Compared to the previous few days, the evening seemed to carry a bit more of a chill.

“Go move some stones, about this big,” Qiao Yitong gestured to him.

“Okay.” Lu Cheng followed Qiao Yitong with mindless devotion.

Once Qiao Yitong gave an order, he didn’t ask a single question and went to find stones.

He carried them back trip after trip until Qiao Yitong said it was enough. Only then did he stop and ask, “Sister Yitong, what are these stones for?”

“Heavy rain tonight. Temperature will drop. You’ll be cold,” Qiao Yitong explained simply.

Those few simple words moved Lu Cheng so much that a mist formed in his eyes.

Sob, Sister Yitong was actually thinking of him. How could Sister Yitong be such a good person?

Qiao Yitong didn’t think much of it, nor did she pay any mind to his sentimentality.

She picked up the stones and walked into the cabin. In less than two minutes, she had stacked them into something resembling a floor hearth.

“Gather wood and start a fire. It’s safe to put it here,” Qiao Yitong said.

Although it was a wooden house, with this circle of stones for protection, there was no need to worry about a fire breaking out.

Moreover, under heavy rain, the wood would get damp, making it difficult for a fire to spread anyway.

“Sister Yitong, what about you?” Lu Cheng asked hurriedly.

“I don’t need it.” Leaving behind those words, Qiao Yitong turned and returned to her own Bamboo House.

The words Lu Cheng hadn’t yet spoken were cut short.

Sister Tong always had her own rhythm. When she returned to her own little house, it meant she didn’t want to talk to anyone. He was sensible enough not to disturb her.

The activity here had long since attracted the attention of their neighbors.

First was Brother Shisan and the others, who were swallowing hard in shock at Qiao Yitong’s clean, efficient movements. Every one of them stared toward the site in disbelief.

In just half a day, Qiao Yitong had continuously shattered their preconceptions.

They had watched with their own eyes as the small wooden cabin rose from the ground.

The skeptical words they had uttered not long ago now felt like slaps delivered squarely to their own faces.

Their faces stung.

It stung so much they didn’t dare face the reality.

As it turned out, Qiao Yitong’s Bamboo House really had been built by her, and in just those few short days.

Still, he wanted to roar a question: How exactly was this done?

Or rather, was this something a human being could actually do?

“Brother Shisan, do you know how to build a house like that?” someone nearby asked.

To be honest, they were truly envious.

Shisan was on the verge of a breakdown.

“I’m just a survival blogger, not a carpenter or an architect!” he snapped.

The others stopped holding out hope. They could only cast another envious glance at the pair’s small houses and convince themselves to accept a “free” life with the sky as their blanket and the earth as their bed¹.

Yet in the silence, someone’s voice rose weakly.

“But, Qiao Yitong is just an actress, not a carpenter either…”

Shisan: “…”

Seeing Shisan made awkward by the stark comparison, Peppa Lamb quickly jumped in to change the subject.

“She probably studied it specifically to join this show. We’re not like her.” Peppa Lamb instinctively tried to steer the narrative again.

But this time, the others weren’t buying it.

“It’s a bit strange, though. Why was she suddenly in such a hurry to build a house today?”

“I was over there picking up firewood earlier and I think I overheard their conversation. They said there’s going to be a rainstorm tonight.”

Tonight, there would be a rainstorm.

As soon as those words came out, everyone immediately grew alert.

They were currently on a Deserted Island, which was nothing like being at home. any natural disaster on the island could claim their lives at any moment.

One could only say they had been lucky over the past few days, as they hadn’t encountered a heavy storm yet.

Otherwise, these ten people might not have remained unscathed.

So, hearing this news now, everyone instinctively felt a sense of dread.

“No way, the sky doesn’t look like there’s a storm coming.”

“Yeah, isn’t it quite clear? There’s even a sunset.”

“She probably just said it in passing. Let’s ignore that for now and keep looking for food, just in case.”

Regarding whether there would actually be a rainstorm tonight, the viewers had their own opinions.

“Even though I trust Sister Tong completely now, I also feel like the sky doesn’t look like it’s going to rain at all. Could Sister Tong have made a mistake in judgment?”

“Hard to say. I’ve lived on an island before, and all I can say is that coastal weather is more unpredictable. It can change in an instant, so it might be true.”

“But you’d need a weather forecast for that. They have no way to communicate with the outside world, so how could they get the news in advance?”

“Have you people been brainwashed by Qiao Yitong? Just because she says there’s rain, you actually believe it? Fans are just ridiculous.”

…

The bullet comments were filled with all sorts of talk. This time, looking at the vast, clear sky, even Qiao Yitong’s “believers” were starting to lose their confidence.

Meanwhile, in the monitoring room, PD Wei was also feeling confused.

“Director Song, did we receive any news about a rainstorm tonight?” He pulled out his phone and checked the weather forecast, feeling unsure of himself. The forecast didn’t mention anything.

Director Song glanced at him but didn’t respond.

He was already starting to regret choosing this man as a partner; he talked too much.

Over the past few days, PD Wei had figured out Director Song’s personality. He was truly a man who practiced the philosophy that silence is golden to the very end.

PD Wei could only mutter to himself while switching between different weather apps to confirm the conditions.

It wasn’t until he saw a 40% chance of rain on an obscure little app that he finally let out a sigh of relief, as if he had found the correct answer.

But as soon as that breath left him, he suddenly felt a jolt of alarm.

How had he unknowingly become one of Qiao Yitong’s believers as well?

If it differed from what Qiao Yitong said, he felt doubtful.

If it matched her, he felt he had found the right answer?

This was bad, very bad.

It was affecting his fairness and objectivity as a program PD.

PD Wei reflected on this in his heart. Meanwhile, as the sky gradually darkened, the noise brought by Shisan and the others on the beach began to fade.

“Let’s sleep here tonight. We’ll still stay around the campfire to keep warm,” Shisan told the others after they had restarted the fire.

No one objected.

This was how they had spent these past few days, and they had grown accustomed to living with the sky as their blanket and the earth as their bed.

In fact, today was better than the previous days.

At least they didn’t have to fill their stomachs with snails or go to sleep every night with a nauseating feeling in their guts.

With the food they had eaten, their stomachs were full, and their bodies had regained some energy.

Today could be called the best day since they arrived on the island.

Before the storm hit, many of them were still thinking this.

But this beauty only lasted for half an hour. When a cold wind swept through, whipping their campfire and sending tongues of flame flickering to the side, everyone was startled awake.

“What’s going on?” someone asked in a panic.

“The wind picked up all of a sudden. I can feel the humidity rising too.”

“It’s not really going to rain, is it?”

Dark clouds were approaching in the distance, carrying a suffocating sense of pressure over the surface of the sea.

The atmospheric pressure was dropping.

Every detail seemed to be forecasting that a rainstorm was imminent.

“Brother Shisan, it looks like the storm is really coming. What should we do?” Everyone was awake now, feeling somewhat helpless under the vast night sky.

“First, find something to protect the campfire, or at least keep a spark alive, otherwise…”

Before he could finish, a bolt of lightning in the distance seemed to split the night sky, illuminating everything around them for an instant.

Thunder followed immediately after, exploding in everyone’s ears.

The seaside, a lonely island, thunder, and a rainstorm.

A sense of terror surged in everyone’s hearts. In the face of nature’s power, humans were so small and insignificant.

About twenty seconds after the thunder stopped, pitter-pattering raindrops began to fall from the sky. They grew larger and larger, turning into a torrential downpour in less than two minutes.

The fire they had lit was extinguished, and everyone was soaked to the bone. The icy rain hit their bodies, chilling them to the core.

The dark clouds were drawing closer, pressing down bit by bit, making it hard to breathe.

The constant flashing of lightning also seemed capable of shattering and tearing everything apart.

“Maybe we shouldn’t stay by the sea,” Qi Qing said, feeling a level of fear she hadn’t experienced since arriving on the island.

“Quick, leave this place! Run inland! We’re too close to the lightning here!”

“You can’t run inland! Don’t you know you shouldn’t be under trees during a thunderstorm?”

“Don’t any of you run off blindly! If something happens while we’re too far apart in the middle of the night, no one will be able to help!”

…

Everyone was in a state of chaos, as helpless as headless flies².

“Don’t run around! Keep your shoes on to avoid conduction! Take small steps! Move away from the shore and head further in, but don’t go near the forest!” Shisan roared.

In this crisis, Shisan was their only pillar of support.

Finally, the scene was somewhat brought under control.

Following his instructions, everyone went to a relatively safe spot and sat down.

But this “relative safety” was merely a psychological comfort.

In a thunderstorm, exposed outdoors by the sea, every clap of thunder made people tremble.

After the campfire was doused, everything before their eyes was pitch black.

The fear stemming from the power of nature was nearly enough to swallow them whole.

Death seemed to linger right beside them. They didn’t know which bolt of lightning might come down and completely take their lives.

The fear was suffocating.

“!!! It really is a thunderstorm!”

“This is the first time I’ve seen a thunderstorm from such a direct, close perspective. It’s terrifying. Isn’t it dangerous for them to be directly exposed to the lightning?”

“I really didn’t expect it. The weather was so good in the afternoon, how did it turn into this all of a sudden?”

“It’s a bit scary. Help, if I put myself in their shoes, I’d feel like I was going to die. I’m especially afraid of thunder. If you dropped me in that environment… I’d rather just die.”

“I was planning to go to sleep, but now I’m completely wide awake. Is the production crew really just going to stand aside and do nothing? What if the guests really encounter danger? Getting hit by lightning isn’t a joke; you could actually lose your life.”

[What kind of joke is this? In this situation, at least give the guests some space to hide from the rain!]

[Argh! I’m going crazy! What kind of variety show did Jing Bao’s company sign him up for? This is literally life-threatening! If something happens, can the company take responsibility?]

[Sister Tong said there would be a rainstorm earlier, but none of them believed her. They didn’t prepare in advance, and now who’s the one suffering? Talk about a slap in the face. I’ll just say they deserve it. Also: those who believe in Sister Tong gain eternal life!]

…

The threat of the thunderstorm filled everyone with dread.

This terror lasted for a full half-hour. Finally, the thunder gradually faded, leaving only a pitter-patter of light rain that continued to fall incessantly.

Everyone’s faces were pale, but they finally breathed a small sigh of relief, feeling like survivors of a disaster.

However, no one could bring themselves to be happy.

Under the repeated shocks of fear they had just endured, no one knew what their future held for the next twenty-odd days.

Trembling with lingering fear and gasping for breath, they instinctively looked toward the small houses belonging to Qiao Yitong and Lu Cheng.

In stark contrast to their own miserable state, that area was very quiet. Amidst the storm, it possessed a peculiar sense of tranquility.

In Lu Cheng’s small hut specifically, the glow of a bonfire could be seen flickering through the gaps in the small window.

It was a warm place.

A place that inspired longing.

Yet, it was utterly out of reach.

At this moment, a thought uncontrollably surfaced in many of their minds.

If they hadn’t isolated Qiao Yitong back then, but had instead protected her and stood by her side from the very beginning, would they also have a small house of their own now?

Would they have avoided being completely exposed to the elements during the thunderstorm?

But there was no medicine for regret³ in this world.

And there were no “ifs”…

Inside the house, Lu Cheng had originally been resting, but he was jolted awake by the first clap of thunder.

“Holy crap…” Lu Cheng muttered instinctively as he watched the wind and torrential rain outside.

It really rained.

As expected, Sister Tong’s judgment was never wrong.

In the afternoon, Sister Tong said there would be a rainstorm at night, and when night came, the storm truly arrived.

He caught a glimpse of the miserable group outside through the window and suddenly shuddered.

If it weren’t for Sister Tong, wouldn’t he be facing the same fate as them right now?

Fortunately, he had Sister Tong.

Lu Cheng looked around his little house with satisfaction. The spot where he sat had been carefully lined with a layer of wood, so he wasn’t in direct contact with the ground.

So, while it was a bit cool, it wasn’t uncomfortable.

With the bonfire burning slowly in front of him, even that bit of chill was dispelled, radiating a quiet warmth.

The house made of timber remained motionless in the gale. When he touched the wood, it felt slightly damp to the touch, yet not a single drop of rain managed to leak through the joints.

On this isolated island, amidst the wind and rain, this small house gave Lu Cheng an unprecedented sense of security. It was truly wonderful.

A feeling of warmth and happiness welled up in Lu Cheng’s heart.

His desire to share this was higher than ever before.

Finally, Lu Cheng pulled out the special edition GoPro from his backpack. It was a tool the director had given to everyone to record footage for the audience when they wanted to explore on their own.

Lu Cheng turned on the GoPro. After a brief delay, his image appeared clearly in the Live Stream Room.

“Hello everyone! This is the first time I’m using this thing to say hi. I don’t know if anyone is watching, but whatever, I’ll just act like there is. Let me show you my little hut.” As Lu Cheng spoke, he panned the GoPro around the room.

“This is where I’m living now. Doesn’t it look especially warm and satisfying? I know you’re jealous, but don’t be jealous yet. Sister Tong built this for me with her own hands, so your jealousy is useless anyway…”

Deep of night, by the sea, a rainstorm, a secure hut, and a warm bonfire.

When all these elements were combined, the envy of the viewers practically solidified into something tangible.

[Argh! Don’t stop me, I’m going to beat him up! I never knew this guy was so annoying before!]

[Seriously, this is the first time I’ve felt that Lu Cheng’s smug face is so damn punchable.]

[Sob, honestly, I’m really jealous. It looks so atmospheric, I want to participate too.]

[Forget it, just look at those eleven people outside. Personally, I’d rather stay alive.]

[Aside from everything else, we finally get to see the internal structure of the small house. I thought it looked impressive from the outside, but the inside is even more amazing. It’s so smooth!]

[The key is that Sister Tong didn’t use any real tools to make this. With just a crude machete, she could build a house so exquisite. Too cool, simply too cool!]

[Help, I still want to ask, who exactly is Qiao Yitong? It feels like she knows how to do everything!]

[Exactly. She can use throwing knives, she’s strong, she knows how to identify so many types of plants and fruits, she can build houses, and she can even predict the weather. Are these all things an actress should know? Is this reasonable?]

[So she really is a secret agent or something! Only secret agents in novels need to be all-rounders!]

[Secret Agent: No, don’t talk nonsense. We can’t do that. Don’t make things difficult for us.]

Every time a crisis arrived, it unsurprisingly caused the bullet screen to be flooded with praise and discussion regarding Qiao Yitong.

At the same time, every time Qiao Yitong displayed her abilities, it made the heart of the man in the Ink Palace tremble.

Especially when he saw people analyzing that she wasn’t just an actress, he would nod in deep agreement.

Right, how could such a person be just an actress?

She must have some other identity.

He watched the live stream and took out his phone to contact the FEI members.

“Are there results for the person I told you to investigate?” the man in the Ink Palace asked, his eyes fixed on the screen.

“Sir, she is just an actress. She has no other identity.”

“An actress? Impossible. It’s absolutely impossible that she’s just an actress. Keep investigating. Also, step up security recently. Exposing such a person directly to the public eye must have a purpose.”

“…Understood, sir.”

Lu Cheng sat inside the small house, incessantly prattling to the camera about his overwhelming sense of happiness.

Of course, the happiness he spoke of was never more than three sentences away from mentioning Qiao Yitong.

“So, you all understand now, don’t you? Being able to stay by Sister Tong’s side, being useful to her, and earning her favor… it’s the most wonderful thing in the world.” Lu Cheng’s lips curled upward, his pride impossible to suppress.

“Alright, that’s enough talking to you lot. I’m going to get some rest in this warm house. Goodnight!”

After one final jab to irritate the audience, Lu Cheng switched off the camera.

He lay back down on the floor with his hands tucked behind his head, a thick layer of joy still lingering in the corners of his eyes and across his brow.

Yes, he was lucky. It was only because he had seized the initiative from the very beginning that he’d had the chance to be accepted by Sister Tong.

After spending these few days with her, he had begun to understand her personality.

She was cold and distant, naturally keeping people at a certain length.

If he hadn’t taken advantage of her being alone at the start to wedge himself in, and if he didn’t possess a few traits she happened to like, he probably wouldn’t have stood a chance. He’d likely be just like the others right now, looking like a drowned rat.

Therefore, he had to guard Sister Tong every second of every day. He couldn’t give anyone else even the slightest opening.

Wait, what was it exactly that Sister Tong valued in him?

The praise Qiao Yitong had given him that afternoon surfaced in Lu Cheng’s mind.

He was clean.

He was healthy.

He could make weapons.

He was good-looking…

As he thought about it, the smile on Lu Cheng’s face stiffened slightly.

In the heat of the moment that afternoon, he hadn’t overthought it; he had simply been lightheaded from her compliments.

Looking back now, something felt off.

Clean?

Once that group of people had water to wash themselves with, anyone could be clean.

Healthy? That was just a matter of food. Once they were well-fed and exercised, anyone could be in peak condition.

As for his specialty in weapon-making, it didn’t seem like Sister Tong really needed it that much.

And as for being good-looking…

Well, he had always known that this world was never short of attractive people.

So, if someone even better-looking showed up later, would they be able to push him aside?

When he looked at it that way, he didn’t have a shred of competitive edge at all!

Lu Cheng felt his entire world start to fracture.

His mind was flooded with images of someone else hovering around Sister Tong in the future.

He was spiraling.

Once the thought took root, it became impossible to suppress.

Every one of the other eleven people on this Deserted Island became a potential rival in his mind.

Moreover, the more he thought about it, the more it seemed like every single one of them had some sort of competitive advantage.

The constant sense of crisis—the fear that his position as “Sister Tong’s sidekick” could be usurped at any moment—gnawed at Lu Cheng, preventing him from getting a wink of sleep all night.

It wasn’t until the next morning, when he stepped out of the house with bloodshot eyes and heard a familiar voice, that he truly felt himself break. In fact, he practically exploded.

“Sister Tong, everything I just mentioned, I guarantee I can make it happen once we’re off the island. Would you consider a partnership?”

Deng You’s voice carried clearly to Lu Cheng’s ears.

Lu Cheng, who had been sluggish from lack of sleep, was instantly jolted awake. His hair practically stood on end.

Deng You! You brat, you really are determined to make my life difficult, aren’t you!

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Translator’s Notes

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1. sky as their blanket and the earth as their bed: A literal translation of the Chinese idiom ‘tian di wei bei’ (以天为被以地为席), which describes sleeping out in the open. While it can sound poetic, in a survival context it emphasizes the lack of shelter and vulnerability to the elements. ↩
2. headless flies: A common Chinese metaphor (wutou cangying 无头苍蝇) describing people acting in a state of blind panic, chaos, or confusion. It suggests a lack of direction or leadership during a crisis, where individuals rush about aimlessly. ↩
3. no medicine for regret: A literal translation of the Chinese idiom ‘meiyou houhuiyao’ (没有后悔药), which refers to the impossibility of undoing past mistakes. It is a common saying used to emphasize that once a choice is made and the consequences are felt, there is no way to reverse time or ‘cure’ the regret. ↩