We Are on the Road was a lifestyle variety show focused on leisure, changing locations with every episode. This time, the production crew chose a serene, secluded mountain village. To enter, one first had to endure the “eighteen bends” of a winding mountain road.
A drone soared overhead, capturing the lush green mountain scenery. From a bird’s-eye view, the twisting road looked like a silver ribbon coiled around the peak, while a motorcade drove neatly along it. These were the guests invited for this episode.
The perspective shifted inside the vehicles as each guest’s livestream went live. The production team had adopted a multi-camera live broadcast format, allowing viewers to choose any individual stream to watch. As soon as the screens lit up, countless waiting viewers rushed in.
[Wuhu! First!]
[They are here, they are here!]
[Hiss, look at this scenery! So we are going to be mountain village beggars this time?]
Though We Are on the Road was a lifestyle show, it was far from slow and heartwarming. The crew loved adding competitive elements to tasks. Consequently, it was common to see permanent cast members fighting over a single radish. To get a meal, guests were often left disheveled and covered in dirt, providing endless entertainment. Because of this, the show was affectionately nicknamed by viewers as We Are Begging.
Seeing the cars head deep into the mountains where resources were scarce, the audience knew the difficulty of “begging” for food would increase significantly. The “fun-seekers” were already anticipating the chaos. However, most viewers first swarmed into Yan An’s livestream.
[Omg, the guest star really is An An!]
[Yay! I have decided to curse at the director a few times less this episode, hehe.]
Each guest traveled in their own car. Yan An sat in the back seat, a ray of sunlight hitting his delicate face, making him look pure, bright, and almost glowing. However, his expression looked a bit strained.
“An An, what is wrong? Are you carsick?” a nearby staff member asked with concern.
Yan An gave a forced smile. “I am a little dizzy. It is okay; I took motion sickness medicine in advance.”
Staff: “Did An An know anything about our show before this?”
“Yes,” Yan An blinked and let out a playful smile. “Zhu Yu mentioned to me that in this show, you have to let go of your status and beg for food properly. I am already prepared to beg.”
Zhu Yu was one of the permanent cast members. Everyone in the industry knew that he and Yan An were close friends; it was not surprising they stayed in touch privately. The bullet chat was lively.
[An An is so down-to-earth, love it!]
[LOL, ‘beg for food properly.’ Zhu Yu, what kind of weird impressions are you giving An An?!]
The drive was long. To keep things interesting, the staff asked several more questions before saying mysteriously, “Speaking of which, we invited another secret guest this time. An An, can you guess who it is?”
“A secret guest? Without any information, it is hard to guess.” Yan An propped his chin up, looking troubled.
The staff smiled and gave a hint: “The secret guest shares the same surname as you.”
Yan An froze for a moment. Then, his eyes flickered with a hint of surprise. “The same surname. Could it be Second Brother?”
While Yan An was still guessing, the viewers who had already seen the “secret guest” in the other streams were exploding.
[I am seriously done. Why did the crew invite that person? Is this on purpose?]
[The crew will do anything for engagement. Are they not afraid he will pull more dirty tricks behind the scenes and cause an accident?]
[When will YMY finally leave the entertainment industry! Did he not terminate his contract with his previous company? How can he still be on this show? Does he have that much backing?]
[He is royalty. It would be strange if the young master actually left.]
[Just thinking about that copycat disgusting An An again makes me want to puke, yue!]
The production team had intentionally invited the notorious Ming Yi purely for the buzz. Seeing the viewer count skyrocket, they were not about to miss this golden opportunity. The staff quickly confirmed that the secret guest was indeed Ming Yi and asked with a smile, “It is said that the relationship between you and Ming Yi is not very good. Is the rumor true?”
“Of course not,” Yan An hesitated but shook his head firmly. “We are family. Small conflicts are normal. Second Brother, he just has a bit of a temper, but he is a good person.”
[Waaa, our An An is truly an angel. Even after being disgusted by that copycat, he still won’t say anything bad about him!]
[Seriously, some people really do not deserve such a good brother.]
[Rude, incompetent, and a bully. How did the Yan family raise such a person? He is a disgrace!]
In the other car, Ming Yi leaned lazily against the seat. The window was half-open, and a cool breeze brushed his face, bringing refreshing air. Ming Yi had a general idea of what the bullet chat would be saying, but his mood was not as gloomy as it used to be. Let them curse; it would not take a piece of his flesh. This time, he was just here to play. He was going to let go of everything and just be himself. Consequently, a relaxed smile played on his lips.
The staff member in the car was surprised by his state and could not help but ask, “Ming Yi, you seem to be in a very good mood.”
Ming Yi followed his heart and said, “Yes. It has been a long time since I breathed fresh air.”
Staff: “The mountain road is so winding. Are you not carsick at all?”
Ming Yi said calmly, “I used to take winding cars like this often. I am used to it.”
“Eh? How so?” The staff member was even more surprised. Sensing a potential scoop, she immediately followed up, “Can you elaborate on that?”
Upon hearing their conversation, the unfriendly voices in the bullet chat increased instantly.
[Here we go, the copycat is adding drama to his life again.]
[Haha, YMY standard operation.]
[Key words: mountain road, car. Bold guess: the Young Master went to Mount Akina to be a street racer.]
[Bullying, drag racing. Alright, my stereotype of rich kids has increased, except for angel Yan An.]
Ming Yi did not know what the chat was saying. Hearing the question, he froze for a moment, suddenly dazed. Before being found by the Yan family, Ming Yi lived in an underdeveloped rural village. His foster parents did not treat him well, and to survive, Ming Yi suffered a lot. He had always felt that it was a disgraceful experience, so he never mentioned it to others, unwilling to let anyone know about his impoverished past. He wanted to surpass Yan An, to be as dazzling as him; how could he have a stain on his past?
Only those within their social circle knew that the Yan family had found him. To prevent people from gossiping about Yan An, the family never publicly revealed that Yan An was the fake young master, allowing him to remain the third young master of the Yan family. Therefore, the returned Ming Yi inevitably became a topic of gossip, constantly compared to Yan An. Ming Yi was fourteen when he was found; no matter how hard he studied, he could never catch up to Yan An’s achievements. Naturally, the country bumpkin was quickly excluded from social circles. Because he had been mocked for being a bumpkin, Ming Yi was ashamed to mention where he came from.
But now, Ming Yi thought, None of that matters anymore. He would no longer hide, nor would he rack his brain to come up with a hundred excuses for the sake of empty pride. Secrets he once thought he would never speak were now casually revealed.
“Because I used to live in the countryside. To get to the city, I had to take a one-hour bus ride.” Ming Yi looked out the window. “Half an hour of that trip consisted of mountain roads like this.”
As soon as he said this, not only was the staff member stunned, but the bullet chat was filled with question marks.
[???]
[Young master, what are you saying? You are the second young master of the Yan family, how could you live in the countryside?!]
The staff member acted as the voice of the audience. After regaining her composure, she hurriedly asked, “How is that possible? I remember your home and An An’s home are both in the capital?”
Hearing Yan An’s name, the smile on Ming Yi’s lips faded slightly. “Oh, we are not biological brothers. I was only brought back by the Yan family when I was fourteen.”
Not biological brothers? Brought back at fourteen? Everyone smelled a massive scandal! Ming Yi’s livestream was instantly swarmed by viewers, and the numbers skyrocketed!
[What does he mean? Is it what I think it is? The True and False Young Master trope?]
[It must be fake! The Yan family never said An An was a fake young master.]
[Do not believe it. YMY is definitely acting again! Throwing dirt at Yan An like this, he really has no shame!]
[More, more! I love this kind of wealthy family drama. Say more!]
The chat flashed by quickly. The staff member had not expected to uncover such a bombshell. Receiving instructions from the director, she continued, “There are rumors that the relationship between you and An An is not good.”
“Yes, our relationship is not good,” Ming Yi said directly. “I hate him. I hate him very much.”
Seeing the staff member’s shock, Ming Yi stopped pretending, letting the frustration in his chest turn into words. He had a smile on his face, but there was no joy in his eyes. He asked the staff member bluntly, “If it were you, and you were finally brought back home by your biological parents thinking your suffering was over, only to find they always favored the thief who occupied your life and did not care about you at all, would you like that thief?”
The staff member opened her mouth but found herself speechless. The audience was also stunned by his directness. Was Ming Yi crazy? How did he dare say that?
[No way, is this for real?]
[If it really is like that, I can actually understand why he hates Yan An. If it were me, I would probably want to kill someone.]
[But what does that have to do with An An? He did not choose to be the young master on purpose; he is also innocent!]
[What a dramatic show! Is this made up? I need someone to find out if this is true!]
Soon after, the hashtag #TrueAndFalseYoungMasters trended. Curious bystanders clicked in and were splashed with drama. This scoop was intense! Livestream data for Ming Yi soon far outpaced the others. The staff member, seemingly overwhelmed, stopped asking questions. Ming Yi, however, felt a sense of ease in his chest; a lightness he had never felt before. He had suppressed himself for too long, pretending to be someone else and swallowing grievances to please others.
Now he could say whatever he wanted. After all, his life had only one month left. A month later, his mouth would never speak again. While he still could, he might as well say his piece! This freedom felt amazing! After dropping the bombshell, Ming Yi went back to admiring the scenery. If you want to feel good, you really have to go a little crazy.
Watching the data climb, Director Chen’s mouth was nearly splitting from smiling. Inviting Ming Yi was definitely the right decision! Look at that; the show had just started and a massive scandal had already broken out. The ratings for this episode were guaranteed! Director Chen was already looking forward to the scene when Ming Yi and Yan An finally met.
After about a thirty-minute drive, the guests finally arrived at their destination: Wuqing Village. This village in the mountains was actually a niche tourist spot, marketed for its fairytale-like misty scenery. It was not over-developed, retaining its ancient bluestone paths and charming old buildings.
The guests got out one by one and gathered at the village entrance. The winding roads and long drive had left most of them carsick. They complained about the crew, providing great variety show effects. There were four permanent members of We Are on the Road, often joked about by fans as the “Old, Weak, Sick, and Disabled” group:
Old: The veteran award-winning actor, Ji Zhanyun.
Weak: The popular singer, Zhu Yu, who earned the title after fainting twice in the sun.
Sick: 沈盼 (Shen Pan), a former girl group member who allegedly had OCD.
Disabled: 纪年 (Ji Nian), a popular young actor who was “hand-disabled” in the kitchen; his cooking was always a disaster.
When Yan An stepped out of the car, the four permanent members cheered in surprise. Zhu Yu greeted him enthusiastically. When Ming Yi appeared, the atmosphere stiffened. Everyone in the industry knew their relationship was poor; for them to appear together was inevitably awkward.
Ming Yi ignored the looks, gave a polite greeting, and walked to his position. As if the crew was trying to cause trouble, Yan An happened to be standing right next to Ming Yi.
“Second Brother, what a coincidence that you are also on this show,” Yan An initiated the conversation, smiling at Ming Yi as if he did not mind any previous unpleasantness.
Ming Yi stared at Yan An’s bright face, suppressed the sudden malice in his heart, and said calmly, “It is not a coincidence. The production crew intentionally called me here.”
Yan An had not expected Ming Yi to be so blunt. He was not used to this new style and was momentarily stunned. In the past, at least in front of the cameras, Ming Yi would force a polite face. But this time, why was he not playing by the rules?
As Yan An stammered, unsure of how to respond, Zhu Yu saw this and assumed Ming Yi was bullying him again. Frowning, Zhu Yu stepped in and swapped places with Yan An, making his protective stance very clear.
[Oho, look at that protection! My ship is real!]
[I am done. An An was talking to him nicely, why is he being so aggressive!]
[Please, Ming Yi just said he hates Yan An. Who would be nice to the thief who occupied their life?]
[Said it a hundred times, An An did not do it on purpose. Did he send Ming Yi to the countryside? An An is also a victim!]
The crew was happy to see the audience arguing; the louder the noise, the higher the popularity. The True and False Young Master topic was always a hit; the heat likely would not die down until the show ended. Zhu Yu’s move was so obvious that the other guests could not help but stare. Ji Zhanyun remained composed and silent. Shen Pan looked like she wanted to speak but held back because her OCD was acting up; the line was not arranged by height. Ji Nian curled his lip secretly.
Ji Nian did not like Yan An, not just because Yan An had once parachuted into a role Ji Nian wanted, but also because he felt Yan An was too perfect. Too perfect to be real. And then there was Zhu Yu; Ming Yi had not even done anything, just said one sentence, and Zhu Yu was already shielding Yan An. It felt so fake.
The small wave of tension passed quickly. As per tradition, the crew started the first segment.
“Grouping again?” Ji Nian frowned warily. “Do not tell me it is another grouping competition!”
Director Chen said with a laugh, “Guests are free to form teams of three. A friendly reminder: your teammates’ cooking skills will directly affect your standard of living for the next few days!”
“Ah?” Ji Nian wailed in despair. “How am I supposed to survive being hand-disabled!”
Hearing this, Zhu Yu immediately grabbed Yan An. “An An, join a team with me. I am good at cooking.”
Yan An nodded with a smile, then looked at Ming Yi with a look of concern. “Second Brother, you do not know how to cook, right? Do you want to join us?”
Ming Yi refused firmly. “No need. I can cook.”
Ji Zhanyun teased, “Young man, do not be overconfident. They do not use gas stoves here. You have to burn wood. Do you know how to use a wood-burning stove?”
“Yes. I used to use them often when I was a child.”
No one knew better than Ming Yi how to cook with an earthen stove. The others did not believe him, of course. Everyone knew Ming Yi was the second young master of the Yan family who never lifted a finger; how could the Yan family let him do that?
Only Yan An’s gaze froze. Why was Ming Yi suddenly talking about the past so openly?