Ch 168: The Cannon Fodder Won’t Play Along Anymore [QT]

Qin Song was also stunned for a moment.

But he reacted quickly, his expression natural as he said: “Alright then, Mu Xing. If you want me to call you that, then I’ll call you that. Even though we’re divorced, we’re still friends.”

At least, in front of the cameras they had to be friends.

Otherwise, how could he maintain his magnanimous public image?

But Mu Xing had no intention of cooperating.

Why should the young master of the Mu family suppress his displeasure? Why should he cooperate with Qin Song to build his persona?

Mu Xing gave him a strange look, then shook his head: “There’s really no need. When we divorced, it was already made clear—our paths would never cross again, nothing to do with each other. I don’t want to be friends with you.”

He looked straight at Qin Song: “If you had any heart at all, you’d take advantage of this live broadcast to draw a clear line with me in front of your fans. That would be the best way to protect me.”

Then he looked seriously into the camera: “Qin Song’s fans, did you hear that? I’m divorced from your brother, and there’s no connection whatsoever. I guarantee I won’t bother him again. So stop cursing at me under my Weibo posts—though I wouldn’t read them anyway.”

“Pfft!” Fu Chen couldn’t hold back his laughter. When the camera swung toward him, he quickly coughed twice, signaling he’d only choked on his own saliva and definitely hadn’t meant to laugh.

Gu Jiani and Zhou Qiongyu were dumbfounded too, though more reserved than Fu Chen—they just lowered their heads, hiding their “my jaw just dropped” expressions.

In the director’s office, the director slapped his thigh and let out a “Holy shit.”

“Awesome,” he couldn’t help sighing. “So this is the confidence of a rich young master? Confronting them head-on during a live stream, snapping at Jiang Shengyu, at a movie king, even at the fans.”

Completely unconcerned about his reputation, refusing to fake harmony just because of a live broadcast.

But… it was so damn satisfying to watch.

When would he have the guts to talk back to his own stupid boss like that?

Still, the director was thrilled. The show had barely started and the guest already dropped a bomb—who could worry about ratings now?

Meanwhile, the live chat scrolled furiously:

【What the hell? Just trying to show off, can we stop giving him screen time?】
【Damn, he’s just stepping on my brother to boost himself. Who was that pathetic fool fawning over him before?】
【Mu Xing get lost, disgusting.】
【Does the production team not want to run this show properly? Bringing in a troublemaker like this.】
【Nothing but a clown, who does he think he is?】
【……】
【??? Wow, are these Qin fans coordinating their comments?】

【But I don’t think Mu Xing said anything wrong? What are you Qin fans so upset about? Isn’t cutting ties exactly what you wanted?】
【Yeah… I’m not even mad, but the kid really is reckless. Offending Qin Song like that—does he even want to survive in showbiz?】

【Am I the only one curious why he’s so different from the rumors?】
【I rewatched some of his old variety clips last night—you could see he really adored Qin Song, couldn’t take his eyes off him. But now, in this live, he’s cold as ice.】

【Confused +1. Feels like there’s a story here.】
【Just a passerby, but I’ve never understood: Mu Xing and Qin Song only just divorced, right? Then why were the Qin Song–Jiang Shengyu rumors already everywhere? Don’t tell me they fell for each other within two weeks, plus all that “substitute” nonsense… I mean, even if Qin Song’s marriage was loveless, the marriage certificate was real, wasn’t it? What were those CP fans even shipping? Adultery fanfic?】

【I don’t get CP fans’ logic +1】

【Hahaha I’m different. I don’t care about anyone’s feelings—I just want drama! I declare Mu Xing the treasure of this season. Xingxing, keep going! More fights! Let the storm rage harder!】

【Fu Chen’s expression killed me, trying so hard not to laugh but nearly cracking up. Too hard 23333】

…

Jiang Shengyu realized the atmosphere had soured, so he quickly said: “We’re recording Dream Pastoral right now, let’s not drag in irrelevant personal stuff. Come on, let’s get breakfast going, I’m starving.”

Fu Chen and the others worried that if Mu Xing spoke any more, the show might collapse entirely, so they rushed to smooth things over:

“Yeah, yeah, food is most important.”

Gu Jiani asked: “So what’s for breakfast? Noodles?”

Zhou Qiongyu: “I can help wash vegetables! Or tend the fire!”

【Nooo, who cares about cooking! Xingxing keep arguing!】

Mu Xing looked at Jiang Shengyu trying to change the subject and almost laughed. Then he glanced at the silent Qin Song, shook his head, and thought of how unfair it was for the original self.

See? This is the person you liked—the one who cost you everything.

If you’d just opened your eyes a little and stood up for yourself, what was there to be afraid of?

In the end, everyone cooked breakfast together.

Mu Xing handled the wok, the two girls washed vegetables, Qin Song and Jiang Shengyu tended the fire, while Fu Chen darted about delivering ingredients and bowls, full of energy.

But while eating, they discussed seriously that they couldn’t let Mu Xing do everything—they’d learn recipes step by step too.

The live comments cracked up:

【As an office worker, why do I suddenly feel emotional: to fight for your rights, you gotta speak up.】
【The guests all seem a lot more polite to Mu Xing now.】
【Lmao, he snapped at both Qin Song and Jiang Shengyu. Of course they’re being polite—who’d want the fire aimed at themselves?】

【Refreshing, really refreshing.】

【Even so, I still think Mu Xing is too young and hot-headed. You’re enjoying yourself now, but what about when the show ends? In front of the cameras, people hold back, but after recording, they’re still your seniors. Do you not want to survive in this industry?】

【Can we have less of that kind of lecturing? Life is already hard enough. Finally, we get to watch something satisfying on a livestream, and you’re here nagging—give me a break.】

【This is exactly what I like to see. Livestreams are great—who wants to watch carefully edited fake harmony?】

At this moment, netizens had already clipped Mu Xing’s classic remarks from today and turned them into memes.

#MuXing, I have nothing to do with Qin Song#

#MuXing, I don’t give face to anyone#

Several related hashtags shot up onto the trending list.

Mu Xing’s poor little Weibo account also suddenly gained tens of thousands of new followers.

Of course, Qin Song’s fans didn’t stop scolding him because of his declaration. Original translation at HololoNovels dot com. On the contrary, they thought he was deliberately using Qin Song’s popularity to get attention, and they cursed him even more fiercely.

But Mu Xing didn’t see any of it.

At the office, Mu Lin, who had taken a moment to watch the livestream, received a message from Huo Jing.

【Huo Jing】: Your brother is pretty interesting.

Mu Lin curved his lips.

【Mu Lin】: He’s very good.

After breakfast, the guests set off for a village two kilometers away from the villa to “earn daily necessities.”

The program only provided ingredients for the first breakfast.

Starting from lunch, all necessities had to be obtained from this “Dada Village.”

They had no money and couldn’t buy anything. They had to rely on their own ingenuity to earn (or swindle) the supplies.

When the guests left the villa, they naturally split into three groups.

Zhou Jieyu and Gu Jiani, the two girls, stayed together. Qin Song and Jiang Shengyu paired up. Mu Xing was originally walking alone, but Fu Chen somehow tagged along.

Seeing Mu Xing’s puzzled expression, Fu Chen scratched his head awkwardly:

“I have zero life skills. I’d be hopeless on my own. Can I stick with you? I’ll be your little follower.”

Mu Xing: “…Do as you please.”

【Help, why is Fu Chen so goofy?】

【I feel like Mu Xing is a bit cold. He’s polite, but it seems like he’s keeping a wall between himself and the others.】

【Yeah, I get that too—he comes across as arrogant.】

Soon they arrived at Dada Village.

At the entrance, there were more than ten little stalls, each with someone sitting in front—elderly folks, children, young people.

Every stall displayed different items: vegetables, noodles, beef, and so on.

The guests had to negotiate with the stall owners; if they could satisfy them, they could take whatever they wanted.

Mu Xing scanned the scene.

Qin Song and his group were bargaining with an old man in charge of meat.

Zhou Jieyu and Gu Jiani were chatting with a woman who handled seafood.

Mu Xing didn’t join either group. Instead, he went to the nearest stall—a middle-aged woman in charge of vegetables.

He greeted her and pulled up a stool to sit down.

“Auntie, it’s so hot today and you’re still out here running a stall?”

The woman laughed. “I’m working for the program team.”

The villagers were all locals. Strictly speaking, the show Dream Pastoral provided them with an extra way to earn money.

As “stall owners,” all they had to do was sit there, and they got 200 yuan a day—better than their usual jobs. And since most of the stall owners were stay-behind women, children, and the elderly, earning easy money like this made everyone happy.

The livestream cut between multiple scenes.

Qin Song and Jiang Shengyu were trying to convince the old man to give them meat but got firmly rejected.

Zhou Jieyu’s group was tasked with cleaning a huge basin of crayfish.

Meanwhile, Mu Xing was chatting with the vegetable-seller.

【Cleaning crayfish? Tragic. I’d be terrified just seeing those pincers.】

【Gu Jiani’s face has gone pale.】

【Jiang Shengyu is killing me—trying to trade his autograph for meat, but the old man doesn’t even know who he is.】

【What’s Mu Xing doing? Does he really think he can score vegetables just by chatting?】

By now, Mu Xing had already warmed up the conversation with the auntie:

“Your granddaughter’s in fourth grade? Schoolwork must be tough these days, right?”

The auntie sighed. “Yes, the teacher makes us parents check homework, but I’m not educated. Her parents aren’t around either. It’s worrisome.”

Mu Xing smiled. “Isn’t she on summer break now? I’ll be here for a week. How about I tutor her for two hours every day in exchange for a week’s worth of vegetables?”

The woman hesitated.

Mu Xing added quickly: “I graduated from a top-10 university in the world. Opportunities like this are rare.”

Without another word, the auntie agreed.

“I’ll call my granddaughter Tiantian over right now.” She happily made the call.

【666, what an unexpected solution】

【Top-10 university in the world—is that for real?】

【He’s not lying. Mu Xing’s academic record is verifiable. He’s the real deal.】

【Amazing—why be a celebrity with that education?】

【Because being a celebrity pays fast if you make it big.】

While waiting for the auntie’s granddaughter, Mu Xing strolled over to the next stall.

This one was run by a boy of about ten.

When he saw him, the little boy looked wary: “I don’t want tutoring!”

Mu Xing: “…”

He raised an eyebrow, plucked a few blades of grass from the roadside, and sat down.

The cameraman didn’t know what he was up to, but zoomed in—only to see Mu Xing’s long, slender fingers moving nimbly, twisting and folding. In less than two minutes, a lifelike little grass spider appeared in his hand.

【Wow! That’s amazing!】

【This little spider is so cute—can he sell it?】

The camera shifted again, revealing that the little boy had already squatted down beside him.

Mu Xing pinched one of the spider’s legs and smiled at him: “Want it?”

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