Ch 8: The Cannon Fodder Won’t Play Along Anymore [QT]

The viewers: ???

[No, no, no, I do think this has everything to do with today’s stream! I just want to look at your face!]

But the audience’s shouts didn’t affect Mu Xing.

He leaned closer, seemed to take something from the cameraman’s hand, and all the viewers saw was a full-screen, flawless close-up of his face—gone in a flash.

[Holy crap, I heard Yunduo was onboarding some super-handsome celebrity streamer today. Before I came in, I thought, “How handsome can he be?” Then I clicked… yeah, he’s that handsome.]

[I came in ready to roast him, but now that I see Mu Xing, I can’t really bring myself to… And I’m wondering—was he always this good-looking?]

[+1 to wondering. How stone-hearted must I have been before, to call someone with that face a useless waste?]

[Wuwuwu, close-up his skin looks so soft, I want to pinch it.]

[My bad. I used to laugh at you for using heavy beauty filters. Now I’m thinking—not only filters—you must’ve had plastic surgery in the last six months, right?]

[Good things should be shared—don’t hog such a great plastic surgeon all to yourself.]

[Tsk, if you knew such a good doctor, why didn’t you do it earlier? If you’d looked like this a year ago, you wouldn’t have so many haters.]

[Some people are going too far—do you think our Xingxing doesn’t have fans? Go watch his videos from two years ago—his face is exactly the same, okay?]

[As a fan, I’ll admit—not exactly the same. Xingxing’s clearly grown up a bit, and gotten even better-looking, hehe, bet that stings for the haters.]

…

What Mu Xing had taken from the cameraman was a straw hat. The cameraman was a guy from the town’s delivery station, “borrowed” temporarily. When Mu Xing went to pick up his filming equipment, he’d casually asked if there was anyone in town who knew how to handle a camera. The young delivery guy had volunteered, saying he was free to help, and so Mu Xing hired him.

Mu Xing glanced at the viewer count—it had already passed 400,000 in just a short while, and was still climbing fast.

Looking at the comments, he saw an argument breaking out again.

Seeing people spreading rumors that he’d had surgery, he couldn’t help rebutting: “I can accept some viewers criticizing my lack of skill—because my stage performances were weak before. But accusing me of plastic surgery is too much. I may not think I’m especially good-looking myself, but I can say without a problem that I’ve been handsome since I was a kid.”

[…]
[…]
[…]

[Joke of the day: “X Cloud thinks money isn’t important.”]
[Joke of the day: “Mu Xing thinks he’s not his own type.”]
[Wow, so you’re the Year’s #1 Humblebrag Master.]

[Just came in from the launch screen—what kind of stream is this? Damn, the host is really handsome!]

Mu Xing happened to see that one and quickly responded: “Today’s livestream is to show you my hometown, and share the mountain scenery with everyone.”

As he spoke, he started walking forward, explaining: “This road leads up the mountain. For the past half-year living here, I’ve walked into the mountains every morning. It’s beautiful here, and the air is great.”

The comments were puzzled:

[So he’s actually streaming his hometown?]
[I’m confused—I thought the host would be showing off his looks, doing a talent performance, and maybe slipping in a casual sob story. You’re really not following the script? (doge)]

[Replying to the one upstairs—I suspect you’re shading that certain ‘barefaced’ female celeb from a few days ago (doge).]

But slowly, the chat quieted down.

The weather was perfect, sunlight poured down from the sky, filtering through layers of dense forest, creating dreamlike patterns of light and shadow.

The ground was already covered in a golden layer of fallen leaves that crunched underfoot. Wild purple flowers dotted the messy roadside grass, and somewhere in the distance, birds called in irregular patterns.

Time seemed still and beautiful in that moment.

[This is gorgeous.]
[This really hits me. I’m from the mountains too, but I’ve been away for over a decade. As a kid I’d run up the mountains every day and thought everything was fun and beautiful. Now, when I go back every few years, it’s always by car—rush in, rush out. I haven’t walked up like this in so long.]

Just then, Mu Xing, who was ahead, stopped. “There’s an orange tree here—let’s pick one and try it.”

He plucked an orange, peeled it to reveal pale yellow flesh, and popped a segment into his mouth. His features immediately scrunched up. “Ah, not ripe—way too sour, way too sour.”

[Hahaha, that moment was so fast, but I still managed to screenshot six or seven frames—did I do good, sisters?]
[Hhhh, new reaction pics acquired.]
[To those saying he had surgery—show me a plastic surgery job where the face can scrunch up like that.]
[Xingxing looks so happy—like genuinely relaxed and joyful from the inside out. I never saw him like this back in MRC.]
[Yes, yes! I’d been wondering why he seemed so different lately, but looking closely, his features haven’t changed. I finally get it—it’s his aura, his energy. Totally different.]

Just then, something round suddenly fell from above and landed on Mu Xing’s shoulder, making him yelp instinctively.

The camera tilted up, but only caught the shaking treetop.

[What was that?]

Mu Xing looked down—it was another orange, but with yellow skin and noticeably bigger than the one in his hand.

He crouched down and picked it up.

[An orange falling from the sky? What kind of good luck is this?]

Mu Xing saw the cameraman looking a little nervous and about to come over, so he shook his head lightly. “I know who it is.”

Meeting the cameraman’s puzzled gaze, Mu Xing said mysteriously to the camera, “You’re in luck today—want to see a new friend I met after coming back home?”

He motioned for the cameraman to step back, farther away.

The cameraman did as told. The camera Mu Xing bought was high-resolution, so even twenty meters away, the picture stayed perfectly clear.

[Who? Some other celebrity cameo?]
[Don’t think I’ve heard of Mu Xing being close to any celebs. Maybe a relative?]
[I call dibs on this smug little smile of Xingxing’s—it’s too cute!]

The chat was clearly interested in this “new friend” Mu Xing mentioned, guessing wildly who it might be.

On screen, Mu Xing casually sat cross-legged, tilted his head up, and waved toward where the tree branches had just shaken.

[??? What, someone’s up in the tree?]
[That tree’s like ten meters tall—that’s dangerous.]

Suddenly, the camera fixed on a point among the dense leaves. A dark shape slowly emerged.

The first thing to appear was a furry hand, and then—a furry face.

[????]
[???]
[Holy crap!!]

A half-human-tall monkey cautiously poked its head out from the branches. Seeing Mu Xing smiling at it, it relaxed, swung down, and in a few quick hops landed beside him. It sat down politely on its haunches.

The camera zoomed in for a close-up of man and monkey. Mu Xing peeled an orange, popped a piece into his mouth, and squinted with a smile. “So sweet.”

He offered the other half to the monkey. “You have some too.”

The monkey didn’t take it. It just looked at Mu Xing, its expression seeming happy, and chattered twice while waving its hands. Then it suddenly turned and called loudly up into the tree.

Soon, thunk thunk thunk, several big oranges were tossed down from above, followed by two more monkeys—one big, one small.

The two monkeys sat obediently beside Mu Xing, just like the first one. The smaller one nimbly peeled an orange for itself.

Mu Xing shook hands with each of them in turn and thanked them.

Then he turned to the camera: “These are my friends, wild monkeys from the mountain. The one on the left is Dahei, her husband is Erhei, and this is their son, Xiaohei.”

The moment he said that, the screen filled with question marks.

[Oh my gosh, these monkeys are adorable—and smart!]
[Dahei? Erhei? Xiaohei? That’s… quite the casual naming method.]
[Wait, so earlier when you ate that sour orange, they saw it and went to find you sweeter ones? That’s so thoughtful!]

[Heh, how much did the host pay for these trained monkeys? You must’ve prepared for this for a long time—feels so staged.]
[Yeah, staged +1. Do you realize what gave it away? Wild monkeys on a mountain wouldn’t be this friendly with humans.]
[??? Haters, shut up. I think this footage is great. Staged or not, I’m enjoying it.]

[Think, people—this is a live stream. Even humans can slip up during a livestream, and you think monkeys could be trained this well? Plus, judging by Dahei’s family’s attitude toward the host, it’s obvious they’re genuinely close to him.]

Mu Xing finished the orange and stood up.

The three monkeys also stood and trailed after him.

The cameraman was still marveling at the scene, and when he stepped forward to follow, the monkeys all turned sharply toward the sound, chattered warily, and in a flash Dahei grabbed Xiaohei and the whole family vanished into the dense forest.

Mu Xing explained, “They’re a bit shy—if they see anyone else near me, they won’t come out.”

[So these monkeys aren’t just tame—they’re only friendly with the host?]
[These monkeys have better acting than some idols—they even remember to stick to their ‘wild monkey’ persona. (doge)]

Without looking at the chat, Mu Xing said, “Let’s keep going.”

They had barely walked a few steps when something small landed on his shoulder.

This time it wasn’t an orange—it was alive. A little sparrow.

The sparrow hopped happily along his shoulder.

The cameraman, intrigued, moved closer, catching a perfect close-up of the sparrow gently pecking Mu Xing’s cheek.

In the shot, Mu Xing seemed to find it ticklish, tilting his head and laughing.

The screen went quiet for a split second—then exploded.

[That smile… I’m done for.]
[Holy crap, I don’t even know if I’m jealous of the sparrow or of Xingxing…]
[Obviously the sparrow! At this moment I’d trade places in a heartbeat! I want to kiss that face too!]
[This close-up is unreal—you can see every feather on the sparrow, but not a single pore on Mu Xing’s face. He’s so white it’s like he’s glowing!]
[To the ones saying it’s a beauty filter—what kind of divine filter is this?]

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