WS - Chapter 43

Chapter 43

Before this, whether to handle the knife and pot or to wash various items, pretty much everyone around the stove had already been to the stream.

The stream was very clear. Whether at the place where they landed or the stream here at the noon rest stop, there were hardly any decent small fish. Occasionally one or two would swim by, but the biggest was less than a finger-length long and half a finger wide, like toothpicks, not worth chasing at all.

This dog, however, seemed to have some luck.

The little fish that fell on the ground and could still flap a couple of times was a full finger-length long and nearly two fingers wide. Though it was just a tiny bit of meat that would vanish with a press of the tongue, it was already much bigger than anything they had seen in the stream.

"I said so, this dog is a hunting dog." Song Shiyue looked at Yu Nianbing with a hint of pride, but caught the latter's somewhat shocked gaze and couldn't help but call out again, puzzled, "...Teacher Yu?"

Honestly, Yu Nianbing couldn't quite figure out which was harder to accept: stealing the dog's food or stubbornly insisting it was a hunting dog.

But no matter what, what kind of hunting dog catches prey but then droops its ears, tucks its tail, and keeps backing away...

"A hunting dog?" Ning Chuyang overheard the conversation and leaned in to look. "Doesn't look like one. Not just the size, but a hunting dog should be somewhat sturdy. Look at the little belly fat..." Ning Chuyang pointed a finger at the dog's belly.

At these words, everyone looked at the little dog, including Song Shiyue.

Poor dog. Although it cleverly chose to give up the fish the moment it dropped, its cautious, slow retreat cost it the chance to escape immediately.

Where is that person looking...

The dog trembled on its four little paws and instinctively sucked in its belly.

"Could it really be the production team's emergency food supply?" Song Shiyue muttered, looking at the dog's definitely somewhat round belly.

"No... it's just that nowadays variety shows like to have pets along, so they prepared this dog." Zhuang Jiachuan couldn't hold back. Although his earlier attempt to smooth things over with Captain Yang had just barely started before being completely derailed by the sudden appearance of this dog, he had to say a few words now, or else things with the production team would only get more strained.

Yu Nianbing nodded in agreement.

"Even if it's not a hunting dog, the production team wouldn't plan on eating it — it's so cute, that'd be cruel." Ning Chuyang then pointed at the little fish on the ground. "But since it brought it, why don't we treat it as prey delivered by a hunting dog?"

"So tiny, how can we eat it?" Guan Yongyi looked bewildered.

Mu Xingzhou, sitting beside him, pointed at the stone pot that was bubbling and fragrant. "Rinse it and toss it in to cook together?"

While they were talking, the dog had silently retreated quite a bit; it seemed that in two more steps it could just roll down the slope.

Song Shiyue shook her head, objecting: "If it's not a hunting dog, then this fish is just by chance. If we accept the fish it caught and eat it, that means we've accepted it as a companion. Then if later... I mean if, we ever run short on food, because it's a companion, we'll have to share our food with it and can't ignore it."

"That sounds... like forming a contract in a hot-blooded anime." Ning Chuyang tilted her head, thought for a moment, then said, "But it does seem to make a lot of sense."

"Committing to give the dog a share no matter how much food we have just because of such a tiny fish seems like a bad deal..." Guan Yongyi stared at the fish on the ground that hadn't flapped for a while and spoke his honest thoughts.

What's with you people...? Song Shiyue and Ning Chuyang were one thing, but Zhuang Jiachuan couldn't believe Guan Yongyi was a veteran of several variety shows.

A cute little animal! A little animal meant for guests to show love and care!

Even if it looks kind of silly and has a potbelly, even if it can't hunt and isn't a hunting dog, even if all it caught was a fish that would vanish with a finger pinch...

You can't just say you're unwilling to share food with it just because it can't do anything!

Of course, you could not share in practice — the production team won't let the dog starve — but why say it out loud!

Zhuang Jiachuan really wanted to say some words of rebuttal, like, a dog doesn't eat much, just feed it casually since it's so cute. He believed that if he said that, the livestream would show it and it'd be a chance to gain fans. If his company played it up, he could get quite a few positive labels: animal lover, dad-power, lover of all things fluffy...

But, he couldn't.

Because up until now, he was just a freeloader...

So infuriating!

Zhuang Jiachuan couldn't help but look at Yu Nianbing. Yu Nianbing, who had contributed edible plants and seemed much more reliable than the others, would surely come out and refute something!

Under Zhuang Jiachuan's silent expectation, Yu Nianbing did speak up, but not in the direction he had hoped.

"Mm." Yu Nianbing nodded and added, "Since the production team brought the dog, they probably brought its food too. Let's first work hard to earn meals for the coming days, then talk about keeping a pet."

Zhuang Jiachuan found it somewhat unbelievable. After a dazed moment, he belatedly realized that it wasn't just Song Shiyue — Yu Nianbing was the one who had silently and completely given up on the production team. If she still had some goodwill toward them, how could she say something like "earn meals for the coming days"?

Song Shiyue, who had openly clashed; Yu Nianbing, who had soundlessly taken the opposing side; and Ning Chuyang, who had argued with Captain Yang several times... Already half of the group wouldn't cooperate with the production team in the short term.

Was this still a situation he could salvage? Zhuang Jiachuan sank into deep thought.

Since the majority supported it and the rest didn't voice opposition, they were counted as abstaining. Song Shiyue beckoned to the dog, gently saying, "Come here~ come~"

Slowly backing up, one hind paw already on the empty space of the downhill slope, the dog froze.

The meaning of those two simple syllables was not unfamiliar to a trained dog.

But knowing was one thing; doing it was another.

The escape route was right behind. If it moved back just half a body length, it could get away from this person and run toward happy freedom.

But... would that happiness be eternal?

The dog's simple mind thought a lot, but in the end it still submitted to that terrifying aura.

Obedience. Humans all like obedience.

Don't resist, don't provoke...

Trusting its experience, the dog defied its instinct to seek good and avoid harm, and obediently trotted back to the campfire.

"Good girl, here you go. Eat your own catch." Song Shiyue picked up the little fish from the ground and tossed it toward the dog that had stopped two steps away.

The dog just stood there dumbly, letting the small fish smack against its nose.

"Hahaha, is it stupid?" Ning Chuyang couldn't hold back her laugh. "This interesting? Where did the production team find such a silly fat dog."

Song Shiyue, also with a slight smile, stood up, walked the two steps to the stiff dog, picked up the fish from the ground, blew off the dust, and shoved it into the dog's mouth, then patted its head and said, "Go on, eat it and go play."

After seeing this several times, Yu Nianbing began to see a pattern.

She had a feeling that this dog seemed to be afraid.

Afraid of what? Song Shiyue?

Why would it be afraid of Song Shiyue? Yu Nianbing couldn't help but think deeper.

But just then, she saw the dog, fish crammed in its mouth, walking away with a stiff body and its legs moving in unison, going with a stiff gait.

Really... Yu Nianbing couldn't help but laugh too, and for a moment her tangled thoughts scattered.

Distracted by the dog, if Yu Nianbing hadn't kept some attention on the skewered snake, the skewers would have overcooked and burned.

Now that the dog had marched off like a strange soldier, Yu Nianbing said nothing more, picked up the grilled snake skewers, and handed one to each person.

Led by Mu Xingzhou, everyone thanked Song Shiyue, peeled off the lemongrass wrapped around the skewers, and began gnawing on the fragrant grilled snake meat.

Zhuang Jiachuan looked at the glossy, firm, aromatic snake meat in his hand, feeling somewhat torn.

That dog had come at the worst time.

The talk of reconciling with Captain Yang had barely started, not even reaching Zhuang Jiachuan's expected outcome, before it was forced to an abrupt halt.

If he brought it up again now, it seemed a bit too late.

Everyone had already started eating; if he brought it up, he'd have to share some of the skewer in his hand with Captain Yang.

Being a little hungry for a meal or two wasn't a big deal. But he worried that doing this would make him stand out too much, like a traitor...

Song Shiyue, Ning Chuyang, and Guan Yongyi were won over by Yu Nianbing's grilled snake meat skills, with compliments flowing endlessly like a stream. Mu Xingzhou also offered a few words of praise while burying his head in the meat. No one noticed Zhuang Jiachuan's dilemma, except Yu Nianbing.

Should he choose the image of a good person who repays malice with kindness in the audience's eyes? Or should he be someone with a clear head who cherishes a companion's labor?

Yu Nianbing, who had already chosen the latter, thought that Zhuang Jiachuan would probably still choose the former.

Sure enough, after a brief hesitation, Zhuang Jiachuan finally spoke while the grilled snake meat was still warm: "I'll go ask Captain Yang. See if the production team has arranged lunch for him."

The people engrossed in eating glanced at him but didn't stop him.

After all, asking now was different from the earlier mention of sharing with Captain Yang.

As for the skewer Zhuang Jiachuan was holding, it had already been given to him; in principle, he could do whatever he wanted with it.

As it turned out, Yu Nianbing had worried for nothing. She had thought Song Shiyue might lose control and say something unhappy, and had even prepared a remark to change the subject. But Song Shiyue just looked up at Zhuang Jiachuan once and went back to gnawing on her meat.

"If only we'd had some cooking wine when marinating." Yu Nianbing tasted the grilled snake meat; it was a bit like grilled chicken but chewier, yet she felt it wasn't fragrant enough.

Compared to the discerning Yu Nianbing, Song Shiyue was already fully satisfied. She quickly swallowed the meat in her mouth and licked the oil from her lips. "This is already really delicious, not fishy at all, and cooked just right. It's truly the best..."

Yu Nianbing looked at Song Shiyue.

Song Shiyue thought for a moment and honestly said, "Mm... the second-best grilled meat."

The snake meat had only been marinated with scallions, ginger, and lemongrass, lacking cooking wine and other spices, and salt had been used sparingly. Yu Nianbing herself thought it was just passable... but when Song Shiyue said that, she couldn't help but feel a trace of disappointment.

Yu Nianbing's hand gripping the branch tightened slightly as she strove not to show that disappointment.

"I think it's already really good. I've never had such fragrant grilled snake meat." Ning Chuyang, with a piece of snake meat in her mouth, gnawed as she asked curiously, "Where did you eat the best meat? Oh right, you can't say now, it'd be advertising. Tell me along with the name of that jerky shop after the show ends!"

"I can say this one now." Song Shiyue glanced at Yu Nianbing. "The best grilled meat was eaten at someone else's home."

Yu Nianbing's heart stirred slightly, but she felt it was unlikely.

"Huh? A friend's place? A really amazing friend?" Ning Chuyang sounded a bit disappointed. "Well then there's no helping it..."

A friend, huh...

Song Shiyue smiled, but didn't look at Yu Nianbing again, only said, "Very amazing. The grilled meat that day and the chicken soup I had the next day were both the best."

This person...

So the best and second best... were both herself... Even though Song Shiyue and the others had just praised the grilled snake meat over and over, it was this line that only the two of them understood that made Yu Nianbing feel a bit hot, forcing her to scoot back a little farther from the campfire.

On Beichen Planet, Wang Mancang, who was eating fried chicken while typing danmaku on Director Zhang's livestream page to curse at the production team, heard the conversation coming from Song Shiyue's livestream page that he had open with the sound on. He couldn't help but grin with the fried chicken wing in his mouth and shake his head.

This girl, she really knows how to sweet-talk. He had originally worried that because of the previous confession, her interactions with Yu Nianbing would be awkward. He hadn't expected the two of them to actually become friends, and seemingly on pretty good terms. They'd only been in the group for two or three days, and already a CP fan organization for them had popped up outside.

In this world, when some people are happy, others are worried.

While Wang Mancang was deeply gratified by the two's friendly relationship, on the other side of the same Beichen Planet, Ouyang Hui smashed yet another cup.

"I told you to come see me — why are you so slow? Did you ask the production team? Why can you tolerate Zhang Jianshi and the others being so harsh on the guests? Also, you had someone investigate Song Shiyue's situation over the past half year — still not done?" Ouyang Hui leaned against the bed, looking at the floating StarNet video screen, her face full of anger.

Just as she was in full fury, a soft knock on the door interrupted her.

Ouyang Hui turned her angry gaze.

A middle-aged woman holding a child said weakly, "Madam, it's time to feed the baby."

Ouyang Hui glanced at the swaddled baby in her arms but didn't quell her anger: "Wait a minute."

After saying that, Ouyang Hui looked back at the video screen and continued, "First, tell me everything about your communication with the production team."

The middle-aged woman stood at the door holding the child for a long while, during which the baby cried twice from hunger and earned Ouyang Hui's glares. But as time ticked away, Ouyang Hui showed no sign of stopping. The middle-aged woman finally sighed softly, turned, and walked away with the child.

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