Who Wants to Be the Affectionate Cannon Fodder?! [Quick Transmigration] - Chapter 31

Under the glow of the floodlights, the woods were as bright as day, with dust-like gnats scurrying through the air. Yu Lin squinted one eye, calmly aiming at the bullseye.

On camera, his profile revealed skin as smooth as mutton-fat jade, without a single visible pore. A beam of light caught the bridge of his straight nose, and his eyelashes trembled slightly like raven feathers or butterfly wings. The camera panned down past his elegant, slender swan-like neck to his fair arms, tracing the sexy, fluid lines of his tensed muscles as he exerted force.

The bullet screen immediately became lively, with those cursing him for acting pretentious and those brainlessly fawning over his looks split nearly down the middle.

“Even though Shen Xingzhuo’s character is trash, I could honestly lick this face for a lifetime. He’s so beautiful that even a passing ant would have to stop and compliment him.”

“Why do I feel like he’s been clinging to Ning Jinghe ever since dinner? Wasnt obsessively leaching off Jiang Shiyan’s hype enough for him?”

“Wife! I’m obsessed again!”

“Stop dawdling and just shoot. With such a long wind-up, I want to see how you plan to embarrass yourself this time.”

“A god-tier visual. I want to go down the slide on Shen Xingzhuo’s nose bridge. It doesn’t matter if you miss the target, just shoot straight into my heart.”

At the center of the whirlpool, Yu Lin seemed oblivious. He let out a faint breath and released his grip on the arrow’s nock with effortless grace. The arrow whistled through the air and, under everyone’s astonished gazes, hit the dead center of the target!

10 points.

“Oh my god!” “Is this some kind of blessing from the Goddess of Luck?” “We got played; I actually believed him when he said he didn’t know how to shoot.” Whispers of amazement broke out around them. Standing in the corner considering his tool selection, Jiang Shiyan also looked over in surprise, though he soon gave a dismissive snort.

Yu Lin said nothing. With pursed lips and a cold expression, he quickly snatched the next arrow from the table, nocked it, drew the bow, and fired a second shot without hesitation. The arrow buried itself deep into the bullseye. The target trembled from the massive force, letting out a low, humming thrum.

Yu Lin turned his head to glance at the camera, slowly closed his eyes, and repeated the previous movements. This time, however, he lowered the bow slightly.

Yu Lin asked, “Another 6 points should be enough, right?”

“Don’t mess around,” Ning Jinghe said. He paused, startled by his own words. The unthinking remark and the instinctively doting tone felt as though they had been spoken a thousand times, as if it were a long-held habit. But he had only met Shen Xingzhuo today.

Yu Lin pouted, aimed back at the center, and fired the third arrow. Shen Xingzhuo and Ning Jinghe’s team earned a total score of 56, surpassing the other three groups to take first place.

“The way he shoots is so hot. I’m suddenly falling for this arrogant young master persona.”

“I am officially notifying Shen Xingzhuo’s team to book him a historical drama right now. He’s perfect for a young general who can hit a willow leaf from a hundred paces, wild, flamboyant, and rebellious. I can’t imagine how good that would look.”

“Forget it. With Shen Xingzhuo’s acting skills and that skinny physique? A young general? He probably couldn’t even lift a spear.”

Yu Lin put down the bow and walked straight to the wooden table where the program crew had laid out the tools. At a glance, he picked out a folding saw in the far corner. He flicked the blade out and spun it deftly between his fingers. Very satisfied with this “new weapon,” Yu Lin looked up at Ning Jinghe, who had walked over to his side, and said, “I like this one. You pick the rest.”

However, as he measured the distance, it seemed Ning Jinghe was nearly half a head taller than him. Yu Lin discreetly stood on his tiptoes.

“Jiang Shiyan wasn’t very thorough when picking this body double.”

007 warned: “You’ve broken character again.”

Yu Lin asked nonchalantly: “So, are you going to forcibly control me again?”

007: “I do not have that authority.”

“Oh? Then how does this character repair function decide whether I’ve broken character, to what extent, and whether it should step in?” Yu Lin asked curiously.

007 remained silent. Seeing this reaction, Yu Lin pondered for a moment and already had a fair guess about this newly added feature. Aside from the very first time when he broke up with Jiang Shiyan, the character repair function hadn’t activated again, regardless of whether he was being snarky or shooting arrows. Although Yu Lin had found excuses for himself, it didn’t mean his out-of-character behavior didn’t exist.

So, this function likely only triggered when— “Shen Xingzhuo, come take a look.”

His thoughts were abruptly interrupted by Ning Jinghe’s voice. As the first-place team, they could randomly select eight tools. Ning Jinghe picked through the options and chose an emergency sleeping bag, matches, a mini medical kit, a compass, compressed biscuits, a flashlight, and a water purifier. For their route, he chose the one departing tomorrow morning at 7:00 AM that stayed close to a water source.

Yu Lin leaned over to take a look, had no objections, and turned to go upstairs to pack.

Shen Xingzhuo, for reasons unknown, had come to a wilderness survival show with clothing that, aside from a pair of decent hiking boots, was entirely comprised of over-designed, flashy outfits. Let alone outdoor activities, Yu Lin found them restrictive even for daily wear.

Consequently, when Ning Jinghe followed him upstairs, he saw Yu Lin sitting behind an open suitcase with a pile of disarrayed clothes strewn in front of him. Ning Jinghe glanced over. He hadn’t intended to say much and planned to walk straight to his own suitcase. However, out of the corner of his eye, he saw Yu Lin sitting cross-legged with his hands down, tilting his neck back to look at him with a gaze full of frustration and grievance.

Ning Jinghe glanced casually at the camera. He told himself this was only for the producer’s sake and the presence of the lenses. He asked, “What’s wrong?”

Yu Lin said gloomily, “I can’t find suitable clothes.”

Ning Jinghe was silent for a while before slowly walking over and crouching in front of Yu Lin. He looked over the tassels and silver chains on the clothes, thinking to himself that “unsuitable” was an understatement. “You don’t have any other casual clothes?”

By comparison, the comments on the bullet screen were much more blunt.

“The young master thinks he’s here for a luxury tour. Bringing so many bright red and green clothes; is he really not afraid of being bitten by bugs in the wild, or is he just not afraid of tripping over himself?”

“Even Tang Mo and the two idols in the next room knew to bring tracksuits. My god, does Shen Xingzhuo think he’s in a beauty pageant? Or is he planning to hold a concert here? I’m so tired of watching him drag Ning Jinghe down.”

“I don’t know who it was that just shot three consecutive bullseyes. It’s not clear who is dragging whom down yet. Although it is wilderness survival, they didn’t say people aren’t allowed to want to look good.”

“Hilarious. Even in survival, you have to live with dignity, right?”

Yu Lin nodded helplessly and looked at Ning Jinghe pitifully. “But maybe if I modify a few of these, I can make do.”

Ning Jinghe frowned, thought for a moment, and then said, “If you don’t mind, you can wear mine.”

Yu Lin: “Eh?”

Meeting his blank gaze, Ning Jinghe instinctively turned his head away and said, “I brought a few extra sets.”

Yu Lin immediately beamed. “Okay! Thanks, Brother Ning.”

“What exactly are you trying to do?” 007 felt that since arriving in this world, Yu Lin’s behavior had become strange. Even in the last world when facing Xie Zhirang, whom he had spent months with, he wouldn’t show his emotions like this. It couldn’t be that he had been possessed by someone else too.

Yu Lin replied heartlessly: “Take a guess?”

At this moment, he was back to the normal Yu Lin again.

The bullet screen started cursing Shen Xingzhuo for being inconsiderate and making Ning Jinghe clean up after him, telling him to stop hovering around Ning Jinghe for clout. Yet, no one noticed that Ning Jinghe walked to his suitcase with somewhat stiff movements. He rummaged through and pulled out two sets of clothes, handing them to Yu Lin without even looking back.

He didn’t realize that Yu Lin was taking in his every move, staring intently at the back of his neck and earlobes. Yu Lin asked, “Brother Ning, have we met somewhere before?”

This sentence sounded exactly like a low-effort pick-up line. Even though Yu Lin’s tone lacked any hint of lust, the viewers in the livestream all assumed he was moving on to a new target after failing to leach off Jiang Shiyan for years.

Ning Jinghe turned back, his brow furrowing instinctively as he thought. “This should be our first time meeting.”

“Is that so?” Yu Lin lowered his eyes, hiding a flash of loneliness that even he hadn’t realized was there. “But I find you very familiar, as if I’ve seen you many times.”

Before Ning Jinghe could respond, he heard Yu Lin let out a light laugh, his eyes curving. “Perhaps it was in a dream.”

Whether it was an illusion or not, Ning Jinghe felt his heart being tugged, a wildfire flaring up instantly. But looking at Yu Lin again, his eyes were deep and entirely devoid of emotion. It seemed all that touch was merely his own wishful hallucination.

“Crap! I shouldn’t have had any fantasies. Shen Xingzhuo is definitely flirting with Ning Jinghe. Get the hell away from my high mountain flower!”

“Feels like he’s intentionally trying to create a CP. Shen Xingzhuo couldn’t be trying to bind himself to Ning Jinghe to wash his reputation? But for some reason, I’m kind of shipping it. I’m a sinner.”

“Tell us in detail what kind of dream it was. It wasn’t ‘this and that’ kind of dream, was it? Hehe.”

“Am I the only one who noticed that several of the clothes Shen Xingzhuo brought are the same styles Jiang Shiyan wears? Good grief, leaching off Jiang Shiyan while flirting with Ning Jinghe. Who dares say Shen Xingzhuo has no brains? He’s incredibly shrewd.”

The space in the wooden cabin was limited. Guests in the same group had to sleep in a bedroom of only ten square meters, which only fit one narrow bed. Once all the guests had finished packing, the livestream ended. After checking that the equipment in the room was completely shut down, Ning Jinghe sat on the edge of the bed. Yu Lin had already found a spot against the wall, his hands resting on his abdomen over the quilt. Sensing Ning Jinghe’s gaze, he blinked curiously, looking both obedient and innocent, like a cat.

Ning Jinghe took a few deep breaths and asked, “Did you say those things on the livestream on purpose?”

Yu Lin looked at him without speaking. Ning Jinghe took his silence as a guilty admission and continued, “I don’t like this. I hope you’ll stop while you’re ahead. If you want to push a CP, go find someone else. I hate being used as a tool.”

Suddenly, he heard Yu Lin call out: “Brother.”

Consequently, his originally calm heart was tossed into waves once more, leaving him tingling and numb.