Chapter 59
Perhaps it was because the atmosphere felt far too strange, but right after Lai Bingxuan asked that question, Qiu Chengye couldn’t hold back anymore—he charged straight into the rain, running wildly until his figure disappeared.
But not long after, his furious roar echoed across the entire island.
“Fuck!!!”
“The damn boats are gone!!!”
That made the others restless too. Some used leaves to shield themselves, some grabbed chairs, and they all rushed into the rain toward where Qiu Chengye stood.
Sure enough, the sea was completely empty. The two fishing boats that had been anchored there earlier were nowhere to be seen, and the entire production crew had vanished.
“Is this… also part of the filming?” Xu Shuangrong asked softly.
Qiu Chengye roared back, “Does this look like filming to you? The equipment—where the fuck is all the equipment? It’s all gone!!”
Xu Shuangrong flinched at his shouting, her body trembling as her eyes grew red.
Xiao Jingxi shielded her behind him. “Maybe there was an accident. The crew probably didn’t expect the sudden downpour—maybe they went back to repair the equipment.”
“They should’ve at least told us something instead of just abandoning us here, right?”
“They were probably too panicked.”
While they were arguing, Xie Mi scanned the surroundings, checking carefully to see if there were any hidden miniature cameras.
Shen Yanqing raised a hand to block the rain dripping down her forehead. “What do you think?”
“From my filming experience, there aren’t any hidden cameras around here. So this really is an accident.”
Xie Mi looked at them with a grave expression. “Everyone… we may have truly been abandoned on this island.”
The moment she said that, all of their faces turned pale.
Maybe it was because she usually acted so unserious, but her sudden solemn tone now made them instinctively believe her.
“Then what do we do? When will they come back to pick us up? It’s almost one already, and we haven’t eaten a thing since morning.” Xiao Jingxi frowned.
Xie Mi gazed at the sea before them, her face growing heavier. “I don’t think they’ll be back anytime soon.”
Qiu Chengye: “What?!”
“With this storm, the waves are huge. From my past sailing experience, it’s very likely Director Niu and the others didn’t leave on their own—they were swept away.”
At her words, Qiu Chengye’s legs gave out and he collapsed onto the ground. “Shit! I only came to film a variety show, what the hell is this?!”
“My preliminary guess is that we’ve encountered an accident. Instead of waiting endlessly for rescue, it’s better we start preparing ourselves now.”
After saying that, Xie Mi strode back toward the shelter. “Luckily, the food Old Shen Yanqing and I caught is still intact. I’ll share it with everyone, but this little bit won’t be enough for seven people. I’ll have to ration it carefully.”
Everyone’s eyes immediately turned toward her, as if they were gazing upon a savior.
She was glowing.
Only Liu Woxing rubbed her chin in puzzlement.
Filming experience? Sailing experience?
Xie Mi and Shen Yanqing carried the bucket of seafood into the woods to prepare it. Half an hour later, they came back with the food divided up.
Qiu Chengye stared at the sliver of sashimi in his hand. He opened his mouth a few times, wanting to curse, but in the end didn’t dare.
“I know what you’re thinking.”
Xie Mi stood before them and sighed. “The food isn’t enough, so this is the only way to divide it. Shen Yanqing and I are eating the same portions as you.”
“But…”
Lai Bingxuan frowned. She seemed to realize Xie Mi had become the de facto leader of the group, so she restrained her usual temper a little. “At this rate, we’ll starve first.”
“Yes. That’s why I’m taking everyone into the forest to look for food!”
Xie Mi declared passionately, “According to my wilderness survival experience, there are plenty of edible plants in this forest. We can absolutely last three days on them!”
“Then what are we waiting for? Lead the way,” Qiu Chengye said immediately.
They had already spent the whole morning in intense physical activity—especially diving, which was exhausting. With no food in their stomachs, some were already feeling faint. The moment they heard there was something to eat, they didn’t care about anything else and followed her.
Xie Mi remained steady and composed as she led them through the woods, digging up roots, gnawing on bark.
When anyone questioned her, she would only throw back one cold line, “Dignity or survival—pick one.”
And so, they all fell silent and chewed on bark like desperate animals.
“Come, my little ones! Charge with me!”
Xie Mi skipped merrily at the front, the others trailing behind her like she was the Monkey King leading a troop of little demons.
Until someone noticed something off.
Xu Shuangrong frowned. “Teacher Xie, why aren’t you eating?”
“Me? I’m already full—no, I mean, I’m not hungry… hic!”
“…”
With their hunger dulled by bark, their minds slowly cleared. And then they began to realize something was wrong.
Given the dire situation, why was Xie Mi… so cheerful?
Until suddenly, a cameraman in camouflage gear burst up from the ground shouting “Surprise!”—camera aimed straight at them. They all froze.
Qiu Chengye lunged forward, snatched the cameraman’s phone, and opened the livestream chat.
[Hahahahahahahahahahahahahaha]
[Rich sons and daughters gnawing bark together—what a legendary moment!!]
[Old Xie, could you at least act human?!]
Qiu Chengye: “?????”
Two hours earlier, back on the beach.
While Qiu Chengye and Xiao Jingxi were arguing, Xie Mi had scanned the area. With hawk-like eyes, she instantly spotted a pinhole camera hidden in the ground.
In the monitoring room, Director Niu flinched when her gaze met the lens. Just as he thought the hidden camera had been compromised, Xie Mi suddenly shifted her eyes away.
Then, putting on a grave expression, she told the others, “From my filming experience, there aren’t any hidden cameras around here. This really is an accident.”
After that, she and Shen Yanqing carried the bucket into the woods.
Why did it take them half an hour to “prepare” the food? Because the two of them had been squatting there cracking open oysters, eating their fill before going back.
And then she led the group to chew bark and grass roots…
Back to the present.
Xie Mi gave a devilish grin.
Last night while scrolling through short videos, she had happened to catch the weather forecast—it said there would be a storm today, but it would only last two hours.
There was no way the production team would plan a trip to sea without checking the weather. Which meant this storm was absolutely within their expectations.
As for the idiotic lie about “abandoning celebrities on a deserted island”? Only people faint with hunger would believe that.
Qiu Chengye pointed at her, eyes wide. “You, you, you—”
Shen Yanqing walked up beside Xie Mi, smiling silently.
Then Liu Woxing quietly stepped out from the group and raised her hand. “Sorry… I was an undercover too.”
Xie Mi had secretly shared some sea urchin with her earlier, even reminding her not to eat too many leaves.
Finally realizing the truth, Lai Bingxuan shrieked, “You tricked us?! No wonder you gave me chocolate! I asked where it came from and you said you made it from cocoa beans!”
Xu Shuangrong twitched her lips. “She gave you chocolate too?”
“Yeah!” Lai Bingxuan cursed furiously.
To this, Xie Mi only shrugged.
Well, this young lady did have hypoglycemia—couldn’t exactly let her faint.
