Washing the tableware for seven people wasn’t a huge task, and with Qi Xun helping out, they finished in no time.
Chen Yuxi followed Qi Xun back into the living room.
“Thanks for your hard work!”
“Thank you both so much!”
“Thanks for the hard work, handsome boys~”
Qi Xun offered calmly, “Don’t mention hard work, dinner is all on you guys.”
Chen Yuxi chimed in politely, “You’re too kind, it was just a tiny effort.”
Both spoke at the exact same moment; the second their voices trailed off, the room fell dead silent.
Then, a sudden burst of laughter erupted.
Amidst the cheerful laughter, Chen Yuxi successfully and quietly slipped back into the seating area, blending in to listen to the top stars chat and laugh.
Aside from Xu Qinghe, who had worked with him before, none of the other guests present were familiar with him.
As the most influential senior figure on set, Xu Qinghe had too many people trying to talk to him to look after Chen Yuxi.
Because of this, Chen Yuxi enjoyed a very peaceful time—so peaceful that he even began to feel drowsy.
He had dropped his habit of taking afternoon naps as soon as he received the show invitation. Missing a nap usually wouldn’t make him this tired; it was likely because the morning’s physical workload had been far too intense.
Surrounded by camera lenses on all sides, Chen Yuxi didn’t even dare to doze off.
He could only hold his teacup, taking advantage of moments when he lowered his head to either hide a yawn or pinch his own thigh.
Just as he pinched his thigh hard enough to send a sharp sting shooting up, he heard Qi Xun speak up—
“Just chatting is way too boring. Isn’t there any other schedule planned? How about a game?”
Everyone looked around:
“Did the production team even prepare a game?”
“Should we go to the courtyard to play badminton? I saw some badminton rackets out there.”
“Spending hours out in the field wasn’t tiring enough for you? You still want to play ball?”
“How about taking a stroll through the village?”
“I’m tired too, I can’t walk another step.”
“If we don’t go outside, what else is there to play?”
“Since everyone’s exhausted, let’s not go out,” Xu Qinghe made the executive call. “How about we play Pass the Parcel? This thing doesn’t require any skills—it’s all down to luck. Whoever gets caught either has to perform a talent or share a piece of gossip. You guys in?”
Everyone immediately perked up.
“Do we get to choose the gossip ourselves?”
“Will anyone cheat?” The youngest, Jiang Xinwen, asked dubiously.
“Yeah, what if someone cheats and brushes it off with a fake story?”
Xu Qinghe said, “We’ll all be watching with hawk eyes. If anyone tries to fool us with a bogus piece of gossip, we’ll force them to perform a talent instead.”
Hearing this, everyone agreed.
“Then let’s play!”
“No cheating allowed!”
“The camera’s right here, the whole country will be watching!”
Hearing that they wanted to play a game, the production staff hurriedly rushed off to find background music.
There were plenty of “Pass the Parcel” BGM medleys online, but for a recorded show, music copyrights had to be taken into account, making the search a bit slow.
Chen Yuxi feigned lowering his head to sip tea, masking yet another yawn.
Qi Xun suddenly turned to him: “Isn’t Teacher Chen in music?” He pointed toward the keyboard placed against the wall. “You play.”
Chen Yuxi jolted awake with a start: “Me?”
Xu Qinghe was taken aback, saying tactfully, “Yuxi is a guest too. If we make him work, the production team isn’t paying him extra wages.”
Qi Xun said coolly, “Even sitting here, Teacher Chen doesn’t say a single word for half the day. It’s better to let him play the accompaniment.”
Xu Qinghe gave a light chuckle: “That’s our fault for neglecting Yuxi. But once we start the game, that won’t happen—anyone can participate.”
In short, it was a no.
Qi Xun remarked coldly, “With his level of fame, even if the penalty lands on him, his segment will probably get cut anyway. It’s better to save everyone’s time.”
Xu Qinghe choked.
Everyone: “…”
Is that something you can just say out loud?
Everyone turned their eyes toward Chen Yuxi.
Chen Yuxi bit the bullet and laughed awkwardly: “Haha, it’s really fine! I’m just a songwriter anyway, screentime doesn’t mean much to me—let’s just follow whatever the production team arranges.”
Fortunately, the staff members found a music medley just in time and rushed over to save the day, allowing the tense situation to pass smoothly.
Xu Qinghe casually grabbed a throw pillow to serve as the “flower,” and the game officially began.
Jiang Yunhai was the first to draw the short straw. Having only risen to fame a couple of years ago, he didn’t dare drop any industry gossip on a TV show, so he chose to sing.
However, he was an actor; his singing abilities were… questionable.
He had barely sung two lines before the staff urgently dug out the track’s instrumental accompaniment to back him up.
However, the playback equipment had been brought over on short notice and wasn’t hooked up to a main audio output. While it sounded okay on set, if it were to air on television…
A staff member secretly gestured to Chen Yuxi.
Chen Yuxi glanced at the high-profile stars who were busy egging each other on, then slipped out of the camera’s frame.
A moment later, he turned toward the digital piano against the wall.
After two gentle key presses, smooth music seamlessly slid into the background accompaniment.
Jiang Yunhai, who was still singing, suddenly realized his vocal timing felt vastly easier—he looked toward the origin of the sound in surprise.
The rest of the group noticed too, turning their heads in unison.
Sitting at the piano, Chen Yuxi offered them a small smile and continued playing the accompaniment.
Jiang Yunhai smoothly finished a section and put down his phone, which he had been using to check the lyrics.
Everyone immediately burst into applause and cheers.
Jiang Yunhai gave a slight bow toward Chen Yuxi: “Thank you, Teacher Chen, for the accompaniment.”
Xu Qinghe added with a smile, “You really ought to thank him. Worried you’d lose the beat, Teacher Chen practically hammered out the heavy rhythm notes for you.”
That served as a subtle explanation for the audience as to why Jiang Yunhai was thanking Chen Yuxi.
Chen Yuxi smiled bashfully, stood up, and returned to his original seat.
The game of Pass the Parcel resumed.
This time, the “flower” landed on Xu Qinghe.
“I won’t be dropping any gossip, I’m afraid the production team’s hearts can’t take it,” he poked fun at himself. “Since Yuxi is right here, I might as well take this chance to promote Undercurrent—I’ll trouble Yuxi to play the accompaniment for me again.”
Chen Yuxi agreed cheerfully: “No problem at all.”
He sat back down at the digital piano once more.
Smooth, melodious notes flowed naturally into the air. Xu Qinghe closed his eyes and began to sing softly and tenderly.
…
With a first and a second case established, everyone who got caught in the subsequent rounds ended up choosing to sing as well.
Wang Lanyin wanted to sing a nostalgic classic from decades ago, asking Chen Yuxi: “Yuxi, do you know how to play this one?”
Chen Yuxi replied: “I do. It’s a wonderful song, Sister Lanyin has great taste.”
Jiang Xinwen asked for a fairly popular foreign track.
Chen Yuxi: “No problem.”
Not only did he play the notes, but he also softly hummed along to give Jiang Xinwen vocal backing.
Duan Xirui requested a folk tune from his hometown.
Chen Yuxi: “No problem.”
After going around in circles—even Chen Yuxi himself ended up singing a short verse—the music medley finally came to a stop on Qi Xun.
Everyone watched in eager anticipation:
“Teacher Qi, sing one too!”
“What song are you going to sing, Teacher Qi?”
“Teacher Qi, with a voice like yours, I recommend singing one of Teacher Li Xiang’s tracks!”
Chen Yuxi also took the initiative to stand up: “What would you like to sing, Teacher Qi? I’ll accompany you.”
Qi Xun swept a glance over him, then turned toward the others: “Who said I was going to sing? Can’t I just tell a piece of gossip?”
Everyone: “!”
Chen Yuxi stopped in his tracks to look at him.
Xu Qinghe grew nervous too: “Watch your step here. If the production team doesn’t edit it out, you… Oh well, whatever, it’s not like you’re afraid of offending anyone anyway.”
Duan Xirui threw his hands up: “Teacher Qi can afford to offend people, but our production team certainly can’t!”
Xu Qinghe countered: “Then you guys can just cut it out in post! What are you afraid of?!” He then turned eagerly to Qi Xun, “Hurry up and spill, what juicy gossip do you have?”
The faces of the others were similarly filled with a mix of tension and excitement.
Qi Xun looked around the room, then changed his tune: “Forget it, I’ll just sing.”
Everyone: “…”
Xu Qinghe: “Bah!”
Chen Yuxi didn’t mind either way. Sitting back at the digital piano, he asked, “What would you like to sing, Teacher Qi?”
Sitting in his seat, Qi Xun looked across at him past Jiang Xinwen: “Is any song fine?”
Chen Yuxi smiled gently and replied: “Name one and I’ll see.”
Without a moment’s hesitation, Qi Xun said: “Qin Lang’s It’s You, how’s that?”
Everyone looked blank.
Xu Qinghe asked: “Teacher Qin has a song by that name?”
Duan Xirui and Wang Lanyin were equally puzzled: “Never heard of it.”
Qi Xun replied: “Yeah, an old track.” His eyes remained fixed on Chen Yuxi. “Do you know it?”
Chen Yuxi nodded: “I can play it… Do you need me to transpose it up an octave? This song is quite low, it might be tough to sing.”
Qi Xun: “No need.”
Without further ado, Chen Yuxi’s fingers glided across the keys, and a upbeat melody flowed forth.
Everyone: “???”
Xu Qinghe was the most direct: “Little Xun, is this really your style?”
Qi Xun: “…”
Ignoring him, Qi Xun launched straight into singing.
…Not a single word was on key.
A cheerful set of lyrics was forcibly rendered by him into something that sounded like a stern, iron-blooded battle hymn.
Yes, rendered like a spoken-word chant.
Everyone wore bizarre expressions.
Chen Yuxi hurriedly added a drum beat rhythm to the sheet music.
Qi Xun was entering on beat perfectly fine, he just couldn’t land on the actual pitch.
Chen Yuxi began singing softly, using harmony to guide him along.
Qi Xun’s gaze landed squarely on his face.
As he sang, Chen Yuxi instinctively nodded along, looking back at him with an encouraging expression.
Qi Xun just watched him like that until he finished the verse, then stopped and said, “Alright, if I keep singing, the production team will just cut it anyway. Let’s not waste our breath.”
Chen Yuxi: “…”
He played a quick ending cadence to conclude the song.
Trying his best to smooth things over, he added: “Teacher Qi has wonderful breath control, and his mid-to-low frequencies are very full. You could try singing Teacher Tu Lie’s songs in the future.”
Qi Xun stared at him: “You think I sang well?”
Facing everyone’s bizarre, contorted expressions, Chen Yuxi offered a insincere smile: “It was pretty good, I quite liked it.”
Purely representing his personal opinion, of course.
Qi Xun nodded in satisfaction: “As long as you like it.”
Chen Yuxi: “…”
That wasn’t the point!
Xu Qinghe let out a few dry coughs and couldn’t resist chiming in: “Little Xun, I quite liked it too! Try to sing a few more times in the future!”
Qi Xun replied: “No thanks. Using singing to gloss over Pass the Parcel is too boring. Bring on the next event.”
Xu Qinghe: “…”
All the guests: “…”
Returning to his seat, Chen Yuxi—whose drowsiness had long passed—looked left and right, quietly playing the part of an invisible spectator.
Fortunately, the awkward silence lasted only a few seconds before Duan Xirui caught on and immediately picked up the conversation, transitioning to the next item on the schedule.
Because of the Pass the Parcel interruption, it was already past four o’clock, which meant they could head straight into dinner preparations.
Due to the time rush at noon, not all the ingredients had been used; they had simply whipped up a quick plate of stir-fried pork with bitter gourd, a dish of country-style stir-fried pork, and a large bowl of steamed egg custard to make do.
Dinner, however, couldn’t be brushed off—this was a countryside variety show after all, and cooking was a core highlight.
The group moved to the main kitchen, using the minced meat prepared at noon to stuff chili peppers and bitter gourds.
Since they weren’t catering a full banquet, there was no need for all seven people to crowd around stuffing meat fillings.
Chen Yuxi stepped aside on his own initiative: slicing bitter gourds, cutting chili peppers into strips, crushing garlic, and peeling ginger…
All the way until dinner finished, he remained in a semi-transparent state, occasionally chiming in on a couple of Xu Qinghe’s remarks or answering a question or two from the hosts, Wang Lanyin and Duan Xirui.
Xu Qinghe pulled him into the spotlight several times, trying to get him to actively participate, but he simply wasn’t the type to fight for screen time. Coupled with the fact that a giant Film King like Qi Xun was sitting right there being completely silent, Chen Yuxi felt that keeping a low profile wasn’t a big deal at all.
And just like that, a whole day of filming wrapped up smoothly.
It was only when it came time to sleep that he began to feel uncomfortable.
Not because of the people.
The courtyard had several rooms, which were more than enough for everyone. He shared a room with Jiang Yunhai, each sleeping in their own single bed.
The May weather was neither too cold nor too hot. The countryside air was fresh, and the soft chirping of insects outside created a peaceful atmosphere.
The problem was his useless body—he couldn’t sleep in an unfamiliar bed.
He didn’t even dare toss and turn too much for fear of waking up his room’s occupant.
After a long day of tiring labor, he could barely keep his eyes open, yet sleep completely evaded him; he only drifted off into a hazy daze in the second half of the night.
Just as dawn broke, he heard the creak of the wooden door outside opening as someone went out to wash up.
Chen Yuxi reached for his phone and glanced at the screen: 6:20 AM.
Filming had wrapped up around 10 PM last night. Even though there were enough bathrooms, everyone was only done washing up by around midnight. Who on earth was up this early?
Having not slept well, and with the production team requiring no early wake-up call, he just listened to the sounds outside and drifted back into a daze.
Until a dull thud echoed near his ears.
Startled awake, Chen Yuxi opened his eyes and looked over.
Jiang Yunhai, in the neighboring bed, looked back at him with an apologetic smile: “Did I wake you? I slipped up and dropped something… sorry about that.”
Chen Yuxi reflexively put on a smile: “It’s alright.”
He stayed lying still.
Jiang Yunhai turned back to continue packing up, casually adding: “It’s past eight now, looks like everyone else is already up.”
That was a subtle hint for him to get out of bed.
Chen Yuxi’s smile widened slightly: “Okay, thank you.”
However, he remained lying on the bed with his eyes closed.
Jiang Yunhai glanced at him a few times, noticing he was holding his phone and not actually sleeping. Assuming he was just closing his eyes to rest his mind, Jiang Yunhai didn’t think much of it and stepped outside.
Chen Yuxi waited for him to leave before continuing to lie in bed for quite a while before finally crawling out.
He changed clothes at a leisurely pace and washed up slowly.
While washing up, he ran into Qi Xun, who happened to pass by the bathroom.
Seeing him through the mirror, Chen Yuxi put on a smile to greet him: “Good morning.”
Qi Xun took two looks at him and knitted his brows: “Did you go out stealing chickens in the middle of the night?”
Chen Yuxi: “?”
Baffled, he asked, “No, why do you ask?”
Qi Xun stared at him for a good while, then walked off with a frown.
Chen Yuxi: “…?”
After finishing his wash, he returned to his room for makeup.
Only during makeup did he realize—Qi Xun seemed to have been wearing makeup just now, and he wasn’t wearing his baseball cap either. Had the makeup artist arrived already?
Sigh, he felt a little guilty earning that 80,000 yuan fee.
When he finished getting ready and stepped outside, a staff member guided him to eat breakfast.
Hearing that he was the last one to eat breakfast, Chen Yuxi quickly apologized: “I’m sorry, am I too late? Is it affecting everyone’s filming?”
Having filmed for a full day, he had grown somewhat familiar with this staff member. The person smiled and replied: “Not at all, there were no group call times scheduled for this morning anyway. We’re recording the guests individually—whoever wakes up gets filmed first.”
Breathing a sigh of relief, Chen Yuxi asked curiously while eating breakfast: “Who was the earliest?”
Staff member: “Teacher Qi. He was up running at 6:30 AM.”
Chen Yuxi: “…No wonder he’s so successful. That kind of energy is something ordinary people just can’t match!”
The staff member couldn’t help but laugh.
Since filming was still ongoing, even though no one knew how much footage would be kept, the staff member fell silent.
Chen Yuxi finished his breakfast quietly, tidied up, and returned to the living room.
After sitting together and chatting for a bit, Duan Xirui began cueing the schedule, mentioning a local handicraft from the village: the back-baskets everyone had been carrying yesterday.
After various displays and explanations, the seven of them moved to the courtyard to learn bamboo weaving together.
The bamboo strips had already been prepared, so they could start learning directly.
After weaving for over an hour, each person completed a small bamboo basket of a unique shape, bringing this segment to an end.
Next came lunch.
Today’s lunch was provided by the production team.
Without the need to rush around preparing meals or doing heavy labor, everyone finally enjoyed a peaceful meal.
With full bellies and nothing left to do, and plenty of unspent energy remaining, people easily grew sentimental.
Duan Xirui took the lead, recounting his first impressions of everyone and his thoughts on their two days together. As he spoke, his eyes began to redden.
Qi Xun wore a look of utter disgust: “Everyone here can afford internet bills, and our phones also—”
“Right, right, right, let me know whenever you’re around,” Xu Qinghe hurriedly cut him off. “I’m usually in City A. Whenever you come to City A, hit me up for dinner. Let me know, relationships stay strong when people keep in touch.”
Wang Lanyin gave Duan Xirui a gentle nudge to steer the topic away: “Haven’t we added each other’s contact info yet? Let’s hurry up and add everyone so we can stay in touch regularly.”
Xu Qinghe suggested: “Why don’t we create a group chat?”
Naturally, no one objected.
After creating the group and joining in, everyone exchanged their upcoming schedules and plans, clamoring to match up their free time for get-togethers.
Even Chen Yuxi agreed to get afternoon tea in City A with Xu Qinghe and Wang Lanyin.
Chen Yuxi had originally wanted to extend an invitation to Qi Xun, who had taken good care of him yesterday, but Qi Xun’s face had been dark since early this morning—even joining the group chat and adding contact info had been done under Xu Qinghe’s pressure.
He didn’t dare walk up and touch a nerve.
With the socializing wrapped up, the two-day recording came to a final close.
The production team transported their group by car to the city’s only airport, where they parted ways at different boarding gates to return to their respective lives.
Chen Yuxi, Xu Qinghe, and Qi Xun were all returning to City A on the exact same flight.
Once on the vehicle, Xu Qinghe started a video call, calling out “baby” and “little darling,” followed by a phone call in a sweet, gentle tone—anyone listening could tell he was speaking to his partner.
Naturally, Chen Yuxi couldn’t interrupt, so he turned to look at Qi Xun—the latter had pulled his baseball cap down over his eyes again, sitting completely motionless.
Tsk, the early bird catches the worm, but it certainly gets sleepy.
…Since there was no need to socialize… Chen Yuxi pulled out his eye mask as well, leaned back against the seat, and began catching up on his sleep.