After Dumping the Scumbag Top, I Was Relentlessly Chased by a Top-Tier Idol - Chapter 38

Lin Yizhou raised his hand, grasping the edge of the megaphone in Shen Xu’s hand.

Perhaps because it had been sitting in the sun, the surface of the megaphone was slightly warm. The sea breeze was gentle, carrying a salty scent. At this moment, Lin Yizhou finally felt a sense of reality regarding his own existence; the heart that had been hanging in his throat finally seemed to settle back into his chest.

He lifted his eyelids, his gaze flickering between Shen Xu and Pei Yutai. His pale blue-grey pupils gradually took on a warmer hue.

Taking in the subtle change in his expression, Shen Xu’s doting smile reached his eyes. “Captain, that was great.”

“Exactly! Really amazing!” Pei Yutai chimed in, stretching his limbs. “Captain, do you usually play these kinds of puzzle games?”

Lin Yizhou shook his head slightly. “No, today was the first time.”

Pei Yutai’s movements froze instantly. His neck stiffened, and his face crumbled into an expression of immediate regret. “Captain, I promise I won’t ask you questions like that ever again. You make me feel like I’m just an NPC in this world.”

He stared intently at Lin Yizhou, as if expecting something.

Whoosh—

Only the sound of the waves responded.

Lin Yizhou blinked and asked, “What is an NPC?”

Hearing exactly what he wanted to hear, Pei Yutai breathed a sigh of relief and cleared his throat. But before he could speak, Shen Xu, standing beside them, beat him to the explanation: “An NPC is a ‘Non-Player Character’ in electronic games. They primarily exist to handle plot dialogue and functional roles.”

Lin Yizhou began walking toward the director’s team, saying, “I see. I’ve learned something new. Thanks.”

Shen Xu walked alongside him. “My pleasure.”

Pei Yutai stood stunned for two seconds before realizing what happened. He chased after them, shouting, “Brother Xu! How could you steal my chance to show off in front of the Captain?”

His expression was one of pure indignation.

Shen Xu stopped and looked at him with a half-smile, raising an eyebrow slightly. “And why exactly do you want to ‘show off’ in front of the Captain?”

Pei Yutai: “…”

His inner monologue screamed: My Brother Xu is definitely the reincarnation of a jealousy demon!

Having said his piece, Shen Xu caught up with Lin Yizhou, not particularly caring for an answer. Pei Yutai punched the air a few times before quickly following them.

[Live Chat Comments]

User A: Is the “Vase” starting to put on an act now? Everything someone asks him, he says it’s his “first time” just to look impressive. Pei Yutai is totally a plant, right? Going from hate to fanboy—what a performance.

User B: Exactly. Who knows how many times he practiced in private? Remember when he said he’d never been in a relationship, then a secret child was leaked?

User C: That “secret child” was debunked ages ago! It was a relative’s kid. Whose dog are you, anyway? You just open your mouth to talk trash.

User D: Lin Yizhou’s lapdog fans are barking again.

When Lin Yizhou returned to the director’s area, Wen Yue immediately gave him a thumbs-up. “Great job.”

Shen Xu added, “Truly superb!”

Pei Yutai followed suit instantly: “Super-duper-mega superb!”

“Tsk, it’s a bit of a pity.”

Suddenly, a voice cut through the harmonious atmosphere, sharp and disruptive. “Seeing certain people looking pathetic is actually quite entertaining.”

The atmosphere froze instantly.

“Since President Song likes ‘pathetic’ looks so much,” Shen Xu said, a smile on his lips but his tone icy, “I believe that one day, President Song will see that very look on himself.”

Song Chizheng sneered. “The word ‘pathetic’ will never exist in my dictionary.”

“Good, very good.” Shen Xu gave a mock-approving clap. “I hope President Song stays true to his word.”

Song Chizheng immediately caught the underlying threat. Since Jiang Siyuan was still present, he didn’t say anything more. He glanced at Lin Yizhou out of the corner of his eye and said indifferently, “Naturally.”

What he didn’t realize was that Jiang Siyuan saw that glance clearly.

About twenty minutes later, there was movement within the director’s team. Nan Qiguang had finished the Number Klotski puzzle with a time of 47 minutes and 8 seconds.

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Although they lost the round, Nan Qiguang’s teammates still welcomed him back warmly. Nan Qiguang greeted them briefly before walking straight to Lin Yizhou. “Yizhou, how were you so fast? Do you play this often?”

“It was my first time. I almost got myself confused.”

Pei Yutai, acting as if he were Lin Yizhou’s spokesperson, answered for him: “Nope! It’s my Captain’s first time too. Isn’t he amazing?”

Nan Qiguang’s expression stiffened for a split second before he recovered his usual smile. “Is that so? As expected, Yizhou is truly excellent.” He turned to Pei Yutai. “When you said your Captain was an all-rounder, I completely agree.”

Shen Xu watched him, noting the flicker in his expression, and frowned slightly.

Pei Yutai snapped his fingers, his voice upbeat. “I think so too.”

After the group rested for a while, Director Tu picked up a large megaphone and gathered the guests.

“Congratulations to Lin Yizhou’s team for winning the first round!”

“To stimulate everyone’s competitive spirit, I will now reveal the prize for today’s winning team.” Director Tu walked over to an object covered by a white cloth and whipped it off. “Ding-dong! The Food Grand Prize!”

A crate of oysters, two chickens, three plates of green vegetables, six servings of rice, six desserts, and six drinks.

“Please, tell me loudly: How tempting is this prize?”

The blue-haired singer stared unblinkingly at the white rice, looking ravenous. “I haven’t eaten white rice in four days, boohoo…”

Xiang He’s eyes gleamed. “Pastries, pastries.”

She usually couldn’t eat desserts to maintain her figure, but since she’d been practically fasting for days, it wouldn’t hurt to have two servings, right?

Pei Yutai eyed the chickens hopping in the coop and leaned toward Lin Yizhou. “Captain, do you know how to make roast chicken?”

Lin Yizhou: “Yes.”

Pei Yutai was instantly filled with fighting spirit. “I will fight to the death to win this game!”

Lin Yizhou said calmly, “Safety first.”

Pei Yutai saluted. “Orders received, Captain.” He then turned and shouted to Director Tu, “Director, let’s start the next event! I can’t wait to eat roast chicken!”

“Fine.” Director Tu covered the prize back up and sat down. “Second event: Captain Rescues Teammates.”

Members will be hoisted into the air by ropes one by one. The order will be determined by drawing lots. There is a one-minute interval between each member. This means the first person up will be five minutes higher than the last person.

Pei Yutai looked at the wooden bridge built over the sea at some unknown time, his expression mournful. “How high can you go in one minute?”

Director Tu said casually, “Five meters.”

Pei Yutai counted on his fingers. “So the first person will be hoisted fifteen meters high… that’s about five stories…”

“And that’s not all. The ascent speed for the first five minutes is 5 m/min,” Director Tu said with a grin. “Once everyone is up, the game countdown officially begins. At that point, the speed changes to 3 m/min. The final height will reach 108 meters.”

The Captain needs to solve related problems on a tablet. Each member corresponds to a task, with difficulty levels randomly locked by the staff and displayed to the audience.

While the Captain solves the problems, the members’ height continues to rise. The Captain can freely choose which member’s task to solve first. Once a task is completed, the corresponding member will be lowered immediately.

The team that rescues the most members within the time limit wins. Any members not rescued by the end will be dropped into the sea.

Time Limit: 3 hours.

[Live Chat Comments]

User E: Wow, this is interesting. It’s like the classic “If your mom and girlfriend both fell into the water, who would you save first?”

User F: If it were me, I definitely wouldn’t save my ex first. Or just don’t save him at all let him go to heaven. Or the sea, that works too.

Pei Yutai’s mental state crumbled after hearing the rules. “108 meters? Are you trying to make me one of the 108 Outlaws of the Marsh? Director, why don’t you just throw me in the sea to feed the fish?”

Wen Yue patted his shoulder. “Why so pessimistic? We haven’t even drawn lots. Besides, the Captain knows you’re afraid of heights; he’ll definitely save you first.”

Pei Yutai crossed his arms over Lin Yizhou’s shoulders and rested his chin on the back of his hand, looking pitiful. “Captain, will you save me first?”

Lin Yizhou was about to answer when he was interrupted. Song Chizheng said coldly, “Don’t forget the tasks have difficulty levels. For the sake of the team’s victory, they should be solved from easiest to hardest.”

As the words fell, Lin Yizhou tilted his head and lightly patted Pei Yutai’s head. “Don’t worry,” he said firmly. “I will definitely finish your task first.”

Pei Yutai flashed a triumphant look at Song Chizheng, then wrapped his arms around Lin Yizhou in a hug. “Captain, you’re the best.”

Immediately, his shoulder was tapped. He turned to find Shen Xu staring at him with an icy gaze.

Helpless, he let go of Lin Yizhou and whispered into Shen Xu’s ear, “Brother Xu, can’t we make a deal? Don’t be jealous of me. You know where my heart lies.”

Shen Xu raised an eyebrow, grabbed the boy’s shoulders, and pushed him back two steps. “Then should I go give your ‘friend’ a hug and lift him high too?”

“No!” Pei Yutai blurted out, then realized something.

Actually, Shen Xu’s situation was the same as his; not knowing the other person’s feelings, it was better to guard against everyone. No, actually, Shen Xu was in a much better position—at least he could express his feelings openly.

He lowered his head dejectedly. “I promise, I’ll be careful from now on.”

Seeing him look like a kicked puppy, Shen Xu frowned slightly and said, “From what I see, that friend of yours feels the same way about you. I don’t know his character well, but if he starts to hate the Captain because you’re always clinging to him, I don’t think that’s a scenario you want to see.”

Pei Yutai’s head snapped up. “No way, he couldn’t possibly like me…”

He wanted to repeat the explanation he gave Wen Yue, but Shen Xu cut him off. “Nothing is impossible. I don’t believe for a second that a civilian came to this show just for fun. Besides, this isn’t exactly ‘fun.'”

Thinking of something, Shen Xu asked, “Is his family short on money?”

Pei Yutai shook his head.

“Then stop being so thick-headed and think more about the details of how you interact.” Shen Xu paused. “Also, since you know you like men, you should maintain boundaries with other men when you have someone you like. Don’t give me that ‘I see the Captain as a brother’ talk; that’s just wishful thinking on your part.”

“I don’t want to say this a second time. Do you understand?”

Pei Yutai met his eyes, shivered involuntarily, and nodded like a woodpecker. A jealous man is terrifying!

Director Tu raised the megaphone. “If there are no objections to the rules, members of both teams come forward to draw lots from the box. The mission is about to begin.”

“There are five white ping-pong balls in the box, numbered 1 to 5. The number you draw is your turn to go up.”

“As for who draws first, that’s up to your Captains.”

The guests all looked toward their respective Captains.

Lin Yizhou didn’t hesitate. “Let fate decide. Everyone, Rock-Paper-Scissors.”

The teammates followed suit. Simultaneously, the staff randomly assigned tasks to each guest based on the results.

Pei Yutai had great luck, winning the first round with “Rock.” He was the first to draw, followed by Wen Yue, Jiang Siyuan, Song Chizheng, and finally Shen Xu.

Pei Yutai stood before the box with his hands clasped in prayer for thirty seconds before reaching in, muttering “Please, please.” The moment he pulled it out, he covered his eyes and thrust his hand toward Lin Yizhou. “Captain, tell me, what’s the number?”

“1,” Lin Yizhou said directly.

The joy of winning Rock-Paper-Scissors vanished instantly. Pei Yutai’s face turned ashen. He refused to give up and looked at the ball himself he should have known the Captain wouldn’t joke with him.

His face sagged. Looking like he was about to cry, he opened his arms toward Lin Yizhou for a comforting hug. But a split second before the embrace, Shen Xu’s cold face flashed through his mind.

!

Pei Yutai slammed on the brakes, hugged himself instead, and retreated. He backed up to Shen Xu’s side, let go of himself, and hugged Shen Xu instead, burying his head in Shen Xu’s shoulder. “Brother Xu, why am I so unlucky? I don’t want to go first! I’m afraid of heights! I’m going to die up there!”

Lin Yizhou: “?”

Shen Xu exchanged a confused look with Lin Yizhou and shrugged, indicating he didn’t know what was going on either. Or rather, he hadn’t expected things to develop this way.

He raised a hand and mercilessly pushed the boy’s head away.

Pei Yutai’s crying worsened. He grabbed Shen Xu’s arm to lean back in, but the person he grabbed showed no mercy and pulled his hand away.

Without looking up, Pei Yutai stayed in his pose and stubbornly reached out again. Once he grabbed someone, he held on tight as if afraid they’d run away. He opened his mouth to wail, only to be cut off by a cold voice: “Shut up.”

Pei Yutai froze. He looked up to see Jiang Yi’s smooth jawline. He blinked for a second and then sprang away.

“Why is it you?”

Compared to his shock, Jiang Yi was calm. “Why so surprised? Is there any version of you I haven’t seen?”

Pei Yutai stood up straight and cleared his throat. “That’s true.”

Jiang Yi glanced at him, then slowly looked away, patting his own shoulder. “If you want to cry, just lean here. I’ll lend it to you.”

Pei Yutai said cautiously, “Is that okay?”

“?” Jiang Yi raised an eyebrow in confusion. “You usually lean on me enough. Why the sudden shyness?”

Pei Yutai: “…”

That was when I could guarantee you wouldn’t find out how I feel!

Now… as soon as that night’s episode airs, I’ll be put on trial. How am I supposed to be natural…

Watching the two of them, Shen Xu looked thoughtful. He leaned toward Lin Yizhou and whispered, “Captain, if you ever realize you’ve fallen for me, make sure you tell me, okay?”

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