After Becoming a Scummy Alpha, I Became a Slave to My Beloved Wife - Chapter 50

With the harsh winter behind them and the weather gradually warming, Jiang Nian trailed at the back of the group, dragging her suitcase as she watched Qiao Wenyu walking ahead in the front.

“Everyone, once we reach the forest entrance, you’ll need to hand over all electronic devices. Absolutely no phones allowed inside!” The director, holding a megaphone, made the announcement. “The show’s drones will be monitoring at all times, and any devices found will be confiscated.”

Everyone pulled out their electronics and placed them in the plastic bins provided by the production team.

After dropping off her phone, Jiang Nian glanced back and saw Jiang Fenyun chatting comfortably with several crew members. It looked like she was quite familiar with the entire team.

Once the prep work was finished, the cameras were all set up, and the director stepped to the front. “Alright, this marks the official start of Wilderness Survival: Season Two. We’ll assign groups shortly, and we look forward to seeing how each of you performs.”

“Jie, my agent said we might be grouped together!” Xia Xue said excitedly as she squeezed up next to Qiao Wenyu. If the cameras weren’t rolling, Jiang Nian could’ve sworn she would’ve gone in for a bear hug.

Jiang Fenyun noticed too. She walked over and nudged Jiang Nian with her elbow. “Oh dear, I smell jealousy. So sour—definitely aged vinegar.”

“How could I be that petty?” Jiang Nian replied, raising her hand and wiggling her fingers in front of Jiang Fenyun. “See this? Wedding ring.”

“Been saw it already. You’re glowing with smugness.” Jiang Fenyun clicked her tongue. “Your wife can’t wear hers, though, can she? If the cameras catch it, you two will have no choice but to go public.”

“She can’t wear it on her hand—but she’s wearing it around her neck.” Jiang Nian looked proud.

The director clapped his hands, signaling everyone to quiet down. “Listen up, everyone. After discussion with the crew, we’ve decided not to split into teams. This forest ranks among the top five largest in the world—there are steep cliffs, lots of wild animals, and insects. For safety, everyone will move as one group. Our cameramen will be accompanied by medics, and in case of emergencies, we’ll respond immediately.”

Jiang Nian turned to Jiang Fenyun with a sideways glance. “Didn’t you say this was just a regular survival show? This is way too intense.”

“How was I supposed to know? The director made last-minute changes. But hey, didn’t I come along just for you?”

While they talked, the director continued giving safety instructions. “There’s a danger zone at the northern edge of the forest—Deadman’s Gorge. There are cliffs there. Stay away from it. And once it gets dark, do not wander off alone. If anyone feels unwell, speak up early.”

When the briefing ended, the group began their hike into the forest.

The cast for this season included celebrities and elite professionals, led by seasoned wilderness experts who would guide them through the forest and teach them how to survive in the wild.

Jiang Nian watched from a distance as Qiao Wenyu interacted with Xia Xue. Though she wasn’t happy, she had no choice but to keep her feelings hidden. Their relationship hadn’t been made public, so they couldn’t act too close.

Jiang Fenyun noticed and casually asked, “Why aren’t you walking with your wife? Sticking with me the whole time?”

“You’re the one who told me to keep my distance in front of the media. Now you want me to hover around her? Make up your mind, girl.” Jiang Nian’s words carried a hidden warning. She had to keep an eye on Jiang Fenyun—just in case she tried to pull anything against Qiao Wenyu again.

If Jiang Fenyun dared to make trouble on this show, Jiang Nian wouldn’t let her off easily. Qiao Wenyu had already investigated the incident where her stunt double was injured—and she had solid evidence.

Still, Jiang Nian valued their past friendship and wanted to give Jiang Fenyun one last chance.

Just one.

After entering the forest, bugs flitted everywhere, and snakes could slither out at any moment.

Seeing Qiao Wenyu and Xia Xue leading the group, Jiang Nian grew concerned for her wife’s safety and pulled Jiang Fenyun up to the front of the pack.

“Hey, why are you two suddenly in front?” The survival expert turned around and saw his two VIPs moving up. The pressure on him instantly increased.

Jiang Nian walked while sweeping the path with her foot, clearing away overgrown grass.

Jiang Fenyun, always the social butterfly, made a pointed remark to the expert. “Someone wanted to play the role of a knight in shining armor, so here we are up front.”

The expert assumed Jiang Nian just wanted attention and nodded. “Alright then, but be careful—there are venomous spiders, snakes, and other dangerous critters on this trail.”

Under the expert’s guidance, the group finally reached the heart of the forest safely.

The production crew had already cleared out a plot of land in advance for the camp, and they had lowered the difficulty level of the initial survival tasks accordingly.

The survival instructor began assigning tasks for the first day, which included setting up camp and sourcing food and water.

“For this task, we’ll have to split into pairs,” he said. “Each pair will be responsible for gathering wood and leaves, finding food, or locating a water source. Both food and water must be boiled—otherwise, there’s a risk of parasites.” He picked up a few sticks of varying lengths from the ground. “You’ll draw sticks to determine your partners and assignments.”

One by one, everyone stepped forward to draw a stick. Jiang Nian noticed that Qiao Wenyu had drawn the longest stick and silently prayed that she would draw the same.

Maybe the heavens heard her—Jiang Nian ended up with a stick just as long.

“Alright, this group will gather wood and leaves. This one will search for food, and that group will look for a water source.” The instructor assigned the tasks, then began explaining to the latter two groups how to identify edible plants and safe water sources.

Jiang Nian and Qiao Wenyu were assigned to gather wood and palm leaves. Their job was relatively straightforward: find tree trunks of suitable thickness and some broad palm fronds.

“You two take these tools and head out first,” the instructor said, handing them each a small survival knife.

Jiang Nian took the knife and set off with Qiao Wenyu in search of palm trees.

After walking for about ten minutes, Jiang Nian spotted a small grove of palm trees.

“Jie—uh, Wenyu, let’s go check it out?” Jiang Nian quickly corrected herself, remembering the cameras trailing behind them. She didn’t even dare use a term of endearment.

Qiao Wenyu looked a bit awkward too, clearly aware of the filming. She kept her distance, not daring to get too close.

The cameraman, meanwhile, was diligently filming every step.

Under the palm trees, Jiang Nian looked up at the leaves, then down at the knife in her hand.

“I’ll climb up and cut the leaves.” Naturally, she couldn’t bear to let Qiao Wenyu do the hard work. She volunteered and quickly scaled the tree, slicing off several large fronds and tossing them down.

“Be careful, Xiao Nian,” Qiao Wenyu called out from below, watching her closely.

After gathering about two large bundles of palm leaves, Jiang Nian jumped back down but then hesitated—they were too bulky to carry all at once.

“I could make a trip back to camp first?” Qiao Wenyu offered.

Jiang Nian shook her head. “No, it’s too dangerous to split up. We only have one cameraman following us.”

“Then let’s head back together and look for tree branches near the camp to build the shelter’s frame,” Qiao Wenyu suggested.

After weighing the options, Jiang Nian agreed that it was the safest approach. She bent down, gathered an armful of palm leaves, and walked over to Qiao Wenyu.

“Jie, if I hold the leaves like this… the camera probably can’t catch our faces.”

“Yeah,” Qiao Wenyu replied, picking up another bundle from the ground.

Jiang Nian, seizing the moment, leaned into a blind spot and planted a quick kiss on Qiao Wenyu’s cheek. She then grinned triumphantly. “Got you.”

Qiao Wenyu’s hands trembled, nearly dropping all the leaves.

The oblivious cameraman, noticing only Qiao Wenyu’s flushed face, kindly asked, “Miss Qiao, are you feeling alright?”

“No, I’m just feeling a little warm,” Qiao Wenyu replied, nearly biting her tongue in the process.

Jiang Nian walked ahead, feeling quite pleased with herself. But the bundle of leaves in her arms blocked her view, making it harder to walk.

In the dense jungle, wild grass grew in thick clusters, and the towering trees had branches that frequently obstructed the path.

Jiang Nian was looking down at the ground when she suddenly heard Qiao Wenyu shout behind her. The next thing she knew, Qiao Wenyu had tackled her to the ground.

The two of them tumbled across the dirt, then sat up, staring at each other wide-eyed.

Jiang Nian: Huh? So bold, Jie?

Qiao Wenyu turned her head slightly and pointed to a patterned snake slithering away on the ground. “There was a snake on the branch above your head.”

“Oh…” Jiang Nian replied, suddenly feeling a little disappointed.

Qiao Wenyu gently patted her shoulder. “Be careful.”

They gathered the scattered leaves and started making their way back to camp.

Once they returned, the survival instructor took one look at the palm leaves and shook his head, clearly dissatisfied. “This isn’t enough. These leaves won’t even cover the roof. It rains a lot here at night—getting wet is the least of our problems. If the fire gets doused, we’ll be in real danger.”

So, Jiang Nian had no choice but to take Qiao Wenyu back into the forest for more leaves. After three or four trips, they finally gathered enough to meet the instructor’s expectations.

Next came the framework. Near the camp, they found several trees with suitable branches and began chopping them down with their knives.

“Jie, back home I never thought about this, but right now… this really feels like our married life. You know, the kind with firewood, rice, oil, and everyday chores,” Jiang Nian said softly.

Qiao Wenyu couldn’t help but laugh. “Well, it’s definitely not your average domestic life.”

The cameraman held the camera steadily, but couldn’t hear a word of what they were saying. He just looked on, puzzled, as the two shared a knowing smile.

Before sunset, all the groups had successfully completed their assigned tasks.

“There’s about an hour of daylight left. We need to get these shelters built before nightfall,” the instructor announced, urging everyone to build the frames. “Quickly finish the structures, then lay the palm leaves on top for the roof.”

Xia Xue, having grown up in the countryside, moved swiftly and efficiently. After completing her own part, she squatted next to Qiao Wenyu and enthusiastically began helping her.

Jiang Nian didn’t like what she saw. Her own background wasn’t much better—she was no stranger to hard labor—but she deliberately pretended to be clumsy so she could get Qiao Wenyu to help her.

“Wenyu, I’m… not really sure how to do this,” Jiang Nian said, feigning helplessness.

Qiao Wenyu immediately perked up and came over. “Where exactly?”

“Everywhere… I’m just not good at this,” Jiang Nian lied.

Hearing this, Xia Xue turned around proudly and flaunted her progress. “Look, I’m almost done. President Jiang, why don’t I help you instead?”

“No need—Wenyu’s help is all I need.”

Qiao Wenyu believed Jiang Nian really didn’t know how to do it, so she bent down to help. But before her hand could even reach for a branch, Jiang Nian swiftly picked it up and, with practiced ease, assembled the frame. She even laid the palm leaves perfectly across the top in one smooth motion.

When Xia Xue turned back again, she was stunned.

Huh? That fast?

Support