Who Wants to Be the Affectionate Cannon Fodder?! [Quick Transmigration] - Chapter 32

Ning Jinghe did not know what kind of game he was playing.

Just yesterday afternoon, the boy had been so pampered that he wouldn’t even give anyone a proper look. Touching an oar seemed to cost him half his life, and his stinking expression suggested he wanted to be ten thousand miles away. Yet by evening, he had suddenly become affectionate.

It was unlikely he had suddenly grasped the true meaning of “repaying a life-saving grace with a gushing spring.”

Ning Jinghe truly could not understand the trigger for Shen Xingzhuo’s transformation. After mulling it over, he felt the most likely possibility was that the other had enlightened himself and wanted to use this to get closer to him to increase the show’s popularity. Although Ning Jinghe had stayed abroad for a long time, he was well-versed in the recording routines of most variety shows.

Even so, at the thought of Shen Xingzhuo calling him “ge,” and that moment of disappointment on his face when he received no response, Ning Jinghe couldn’t help but feel a persistent, scratching itch in his heart.

And so, with his thoughts racing, he slept fitfully until the next morning.

He thought waking Shen Xingzhuo up would be another chore, but as soon as he propped himself up in bed, the person curled up beside him snapped his eyes open.

Yu Lin’s sleeping posture had always been good; he always curled himself up like a shrimp, with his back toward whatever object provided cover. However, on the narrow bed, being right next to Ning Jinghe made it look as if he were deliberately burrowing into the man’s arms.

Ning Jinghe’s propped-up hand was right by his nose, and his upper body was slightly arched due to the sudden awakening. Ning Jinghe’s face was inches away. Yu Lin, enveloped in the shadow of his upper body, could even feel his breath.

Yu Lin looked at him through heavy eyelids, his voice still carrying a hint of morning hoarseness: “Are we leaving?”

The camera in the room turned on with a beep.

Ning Jinghe belatedly realized their posture was inappropriately intimate. He gave a casual “Yes” and quickly flipped out of bed. As Yu Lin followed suit and prepared to get up and change, Ning Jinghe quickly covered the camera lens.

“The camera is still rolling.” He turned around and saw that Yu Lin had already taken off his pajamas. His lean upper body was exposed to the air, and the morning light pouring in from the window fell on his shoulders like white jade.

Live Comments:

What is there that my VIP membership can’t see? Ning Jinghe, don’t be so stingy!

Damn, did I just see that right? From that angle, it looks like a lingering post-coital morning. Ning Jinghe propping his head up to ask the Shen Xingzhuo in his arms, “Does it still hurt?” Thanks for the invite, Mom, I’m shipping this forbidden pairing again.

I got up early for this live stream specifically for the bleary eyes and bare shoulders. Why did you cover it? Let me see!

“Hm, there’s nothing much to see in a pile of white meat, is there?”

Ning Jinghe: “…”

Yu Lin nonchalantly grabbed his tracksuit and pulled it on. The size difference between him and Ning Jinghe was obvious. The tracksuit looked oversized on him, leaving a large portion of his collarbone exposed, shimmering under the light.

Ning Jinghe pointed to his own neck and reminded him expressionlessly, “There is a drawstring here. You can make the collar smaller.”

Yu Lin tilted his head in confusion: “Eh?”

Ning Jinghe had no choice but to step forward and personally pull it up for him, covering all the skin that shouldn’t be shown.

Soon, the two had changed, freshened up, and were ready to head out.

The departure times for the four teams were different, as were the lengths and difficulty levels of their routes. Consequently, when they walked out of the cabin to the “shooting range” from yesterday, they didn’t see a single soul. There was only a sign set up by the production team in the center.

It read: “Limited-Time Treasure Hunt. Find the ‘Final Destination’ based on the special points on the map. The first team to arrive will win a one-day, one-night ‘Paradise Island’ vacation trip.”

This was a rule that hadn’t been announced yesterday at all.

It was unclear if this was a long-planned scheme by the production team or a whim.

However, Yu Lin wasn’t very interested, because in the original plotline, no one had enjoyed the “Paradise Island” vacation reward.

Ning Jinghe glanced at Yu Lin. Seeing his lack of interest, he didn’t say much and simply called out, “Let’s go.”

The two began to head deep into the forest.

Except for some clothes and the knife Yu Lin had taken a fancy to yesterday, the rest of the equipment was in Ning Jinghe’s backpack.

Yu Lin didn’t feel belittled; his mind was just constantly wondering how someone like Ning Jinghe eventually fell in love with Jiang Shiyan.

The horror level was comparable to Lin He falling in love with Xu Ze’an. Just thinking about it felt absurd and skin-crawling.

Moreover, the act of finding a substitute when one couldn’t have what they wanted was inherently disrespectful to the original owner. In the original plot, Ning Jinghe was cold and proud. It was hard to imagine him accepting such a thing.

But it just so happened that the object of his deep affection this time was Jiang Shiyan, so the same method from the last world couldn’t be used.

The follow-up drone hummed above their heads. Yu Lin was annoyed by the noise after only a few steps. Occasionally, it would even hover extremely close. The sound of the rotating blades felt as if it were right by his ear, ready to slice off a layer of flesh at any moment.

It wasn’t until they broke through the woods to an open creek that the drone lowered its height to get a clearer shot.

Yu Lin stepped on a rock and looked directly at the machine above. He picked up a piece of rubble, tossed it in his hand, and finally threw it forward. It happened to brush past Ning Jinghe, who had finished fetching water, and exploded into a splash on the surface of the creek.

Ning Jinghe asked him, “What’s wrong?”

Yu Lin shook his head: “I was just thinking, if I knock it down, if I can exchange it for something with the production team.”

Ning Jinghe didn’t know where his bizarre ideas came from and almost laughed. He suppressed the twitch at the corners of his mouth and handed the soft water bottle to Yu Lin.

“No. They would probably just use the excuse of making you pay for it to confiscate our only tools. It’s been treated. Thirsty?”

Yu Lin looked at him suspiciously: “Didn’t you tell me to find someone else yesterday? Why are you being nice to me today?”

Ning Jinghe didn’t know how handing over water counted as being “nice,” let alone expect Yu Lin to mention his words from yesterday so bluntly. His tone became a bit stiff: “You are my teammate. We should look after each other.”

Yu Lin blinked, scanning his unnatural expression. He didn’t know what he was thinking, but for no reason, he let out a faint smile, took the water bottle, and squeezed it into his mouth.

There were many mosquitoes on the island. It was unclear if he had been bitten last night or this morning, but two or three bumps were on Yu Lin’s neck. The bright red spots on his clean neck were exposed to the sunlight and the camera as he tilted his head back, looking remarkably like intimate hickeys, strangely erotic.

Ning Jinghe turned his gaze away unnaturally, his finger guiltily brushing his nose as he cursed himself for having such thoughts.

The live comments had obviously noticed this as well.

Live Comments:

I suddenly have a feeling they did something last night. Why can’t I understand what they’re saying anymore? Haha, Mom, I’m shipping it again.

My baby is so cute. After reviewing for a night, I’ve turned from a passerby to a fan. My baby who has perfect aim and wants to knock down a drone.

When I was on Weibo last night, I found someone had already created a CP super topic. Someone even spent all night writing a 20,000-word smut fic based on the archery session. You fujoshi are truly terrifying.jpg

Just came over from Jiang Shiyan’s group. Why does it feel like their routes are about to overlap?

Jiang Shiyan’s group was the second to pick their route. Unlike the route Ning Jinghe chose, which was close to water but involved crossing the forest with many scattered rocks, Jiang Shiyan’s group chose a formerly abandoned dirt road. They departed earlier, and while the distance was longer, it occasionally intersected with water sources. The advantage was that they wouldn’t waste too much energy while trekking.

One of the parts that intersected with water happened to be a pond, and it was right on Yu Lin and Ning Jinghe’s path.

The trek through the forest was long and boring. Yu Lin directly started a topic and asked about the past between Ning Jinghe and Jiang Shiyan. He wasn’t really curious; he just found the direction of the original plot hard to understand.

Perhaps he really didn’t understand this “unforgettable” love and hate.

Whether he was mindful of the camera or truly thought that way, Ning Jinghe’s answer was very simple: “High school and university classmates. We rarely kept in touch after going abroad.”

It was even colder than Jiang Shiyan’s attitude toward Shen Xingzhuo, as if they were truly just ordinary classmates with no other thoughts.

Yu Lin said pretentiously, “Hm, Jiang Shiyan must have been very popular during his student days? After all, he can write and sing, and he is also… good-looking.”

Ning Jinghe said flatly, “I’m not sure. Why are you so concerned?”

“Don’t you go online?”

Ning Jinghe: “?”

Yu Lin read out robotically without emotion: “They all know I entered the industry to chase Jiang Shiyan, and they curse at me every day for riding his coattails.”

Hearing this, Ning Jinghe let out a light laugh: “You didn’t look like you were chasing him when you snapped at him yesterday.”

But a reminder came from the system’s backend:

[Deep Affection Value +5, Contributor: Ning Jinghe.]

“Maybe it’s love turned to hate, or maybe I’m deliberately trying to get his attention. Which one do you guess it is?” Yu Lin said nonchalantly, stepping over the tangled tree trunks in a few strides.

The view suddenly opened up.

A pool of green water was like a mirror. The sunlight shone down, and the clouds and sky both fell into the water’s surface. On the opposite bank, the low trees drooped. A dirt road emerged from behind them and ended abruptly at the edge of the pond.

Two men with rolled-up sleeves stood one behind the other in the pond. They were submerged in the water below their knees. One was holding a thrashing fish in his hands, and the water splashed by the flicking tail covered his face.

It was Jiang Shiyan and Pei Yixing.

At the same time, the drone overhead sent instructions from the production team: “The Pond Battle will begin in five minutes. The winner will be determined by the number of fish caught within ten minutes. The winner can obtain a ‘Final Destination’ clue fragment x1, as well as all the fish caught by the opponent.”

Yu Lin squinted, looking at the drone circling over the pond and the scorching sun in the sky. He brushed his finger across his empty stomach.

In the original plot, because Shen Xingzhuo couldn’t shoot an arrow at all, his and Ning Jinghe’s group came in last in the points ranking. Naturally, they didn’t choose this route.

But they had encountered a similar battle, which ended with Shen Xingzhuo deliberately losing for the sake of love.

But—

“Now it is love turned to hate.”

Let the bitterness of an empty stomach be left for Jiang Shiyan.