Chapter 75: Daily Life (4)
When Shen Xiu appeared, both Shang Yu and Song Chengwang, who had already felt uneasy, instinctively tensed up. Neither of them had expected Shen Xiu to show up at this moment, and for a moment, they were stunned, their minds blank, forgetting to speak.
Their expressions when they looked at Shen Xiu were filled with unease.
As soon as Shen Xiu stepped out, he was immediately stared at by both Song Chengwang and Shang Yu, and the pressure doubled instantly.
Shen Xiu: “…”
Shen Xiu struggled to endure for five seconds, yet no one spoke.
What on earth was going on? Didn’t they get tired of staring?
Or… perhaps Song Chengwang and Shang Yu had developed some strange competitive desire in this situation?
Shen Xiu couldn’t summon any competitive spirit when it was just his eyes against theirs, and neither of them were his enemies.
In an attempt to sound more natural, Shen Xiu first directed his gaze at the doorknob, paused for two seconds to relax, and then politely shifted his gaze to Shang Yu and Song Chengwang.
Finally, he spoke: “It seems… my appearance wasn’t at the right time.”
Shang Yu and Song Chengwang’s posture and movements… hmm… was there some kind of conflict happening? Were they about to fight?
The thought of fighting made Shen Xiu recall some unpleasant memories, and he frowned slightly.
Although Shen Xiu didn’t think fighting was a good idea, it was ultimately Shang Yu and Song Chengwang’s own business. As an outsider who didn’t know the details, it would be better not to intervene.
Shang Yu: “…”
Song Chengwang: “…”
When Shen Xiu stepped out of the holographic game room, he saw the two of them standing by the study door. His sharp gaze first landed on the doorknob, then moved to them.
Finally, he stared at them, speaking in a cold tone.
His words carried a deeper meaning.
Not the right time to show up?
This… it must be sarcasm. Shen Xiu is clearly unhappy, and because he’s annoyed that they’ve been snooping around the study, he’s starting to act all passive-aggressive!
The dangerous, cold gaze and the frown on his face were all clear signs of his displeasure.
As expected, Shen Xiu didn’t want others to know what was in the study.
Shang Yu immediately jerked his hand back from Song Chengwang’s, and at the same time, Song Chengwang took his hand off the doorknob.
The two exchanged a look, and Shang Yu’s face became awkward when he met Shen Xiu’s cold gaze.
Shang Yu stiffly tugged at the corner of his mouth: “So, um… I can pretend this never happened. Once we step out this door… no, even if we’re still here, I won’t remember anything.”
In other words — he hoped Shen Xiu wouldn’t stay angry!
Song Chengwang shrugged and casually explained: “I just came over, and the moment I did, Shang Yu’s hand landed on mine, and then you showed up.”
The implication was that Shang Yu stopped him, so he couldn’t have seen anything!
Please, stop frowning and staring at him with that icy look — the pressure was really too much!
Hearing Shang Yu and Song Chengwang’s words, Shen Xiu thought for two seconds and finally understood.
Shang Yu’s meaning was clear — he wasn’t going to fight with Song Chengwang, and he hoped Shen Xiu would keep the fact that they almost fought to himself, treating it as though it never happened, leaving the matter buried in their minds.
As for Song Chengwang, he was indicating that the two hadn’t had the chance to fight because he had interrupted them the moment he showed up.
In short, both of them didn’t want the fact that they had almost had a fight to be remembered. They didn’t want it to spread, nor did they want the other people who had come along to find out. They wanted the whole situation to end right there.
Shen Xiu thought for a moment and could understand very well.
According to the program’s rules, there were nine debut spots, and now the entire training camp had only the nine of them left as trainees.
There was a 99% chance that the nine of them would be in the same team.
If conflicts arose before their debut and became known to other teammates or more people, it would indeed have a negative impact.
Shen Xiu nodded, and to show his seriousness, he looked earnestly at Song Chengwang and Shang Yu.
He spoke sincerely: “I didn’t see anything.”
Upon hearing Shen Xiu’s words, both Shang Yu and Song Chengwang let out a sigh of relief.
Thank goodness, Shen Xiu wasn’t angry anymore!
Shang Yu thought about the secret he had witnessed. He had originally thought Shen Xiu wouldn’t forgive him, but after hearing his explanation and assurance, Shen Xiu had easily forgiven him.
Shen Xiu… was even more caring for them than he had imagined!
To Shang Yu, this had once just been a fleeting encounter, but Shen Xiu treated him with sincerity at all times. How was he so good?
Shang Yu looked at Shen Xiu with even more intense admiration.
Song Chengwang’s thoughts were similar to Shang Yu’s, but he wasn’t good at expressing himself. After swallowing a few times, he ultimately said nothing. Like Shang Yu, he gazed deeply at Shen Xiu.
Shen Xiu: “…”
He had just kept the secret about their near fight. Was it really necessary for them to be so moved?
Wait… although they had a conflict and almost fought, deep down, they really cared about team unity and the opinions of the other members. That’s why they were so touched!
They truly… cared so much about, and valued, the team’s bonds!
Snap…
The door to the holographic game room was opened from the inside once again.
As soon as Xiang Yueting opened the door, he was startled by the sight of the three of them facing off: “What… what’s going on here?”
The three of them exchanged a glance, and without saying a word, they silently agreed to keep their shared secret.
“Nothing!”
Xiang Yueting scratched his head. “Everything looks pretty neat.”
Song Chengwang, speechless, asked, “What are you doing out here?”
“Ah, I’m thirsty, and everyone else is too. I came out to find some water.”
At this, Song Chengwang and Shang Yu exchanged a look, both seeing the same thought in each other’s eyes: The perfect excuse to escape!
Shen Xiu looked awkward. As the one who had borrowed the room, he had no idea where the kitchen was without the system: “Sorry, I…”
Before Shen Xiu could finish, Shang Yu interrupted him, pulling Xiang Yueting toward the elevator: “I’ll take them to my place to get some water!”
“Shen…” Xiang Yueting had wanted to invite Shen Xiu.
Before he could finish his sentence, Song Chengwang and Shang Yu, in perfect unison, covered his mouth and dragged him into the elevator: “Mmm…”
As the elevator doors closed, Shen Xiu heard Shang Yu’s voice: “By the way, I’ll take you to my place to see the snake!”
Xiang Yueting immediately shut up, his expression obedient.
Shen Xiu: “…”
In the past, he just didn’t understand everyone’s thoughts, but now… he couldn’t even understand their actions!
Oh well, it wasn’t like this was the first time he hadn’t understood.
Shen Xiu stopped dwelling on it, shifting his gaze to the spot where Shang Yu and Song Chengwang had been standing before, his hand resting on the doorknob. He twisted it and opened the door…
—
In the elevator.
Looking at the mirror-like shiny elevator walls, Xiang Yueting, standing in the middle, heard Shang Yu and Song Chengwang both let out a loud sigh of relief the moment the elevator doors closed.
Xiang Yueting: “?”
Xiang Yueting looked in confusion at Shang Yu on his left, then at Song Chengwang on his right.
“What’s up with you two?” he asked.
Shang Yu glanced at Xiang Yueting and smiled. “You wouldn’t understand.”
If Shen Xiu didn’t care about them, he’d seriously suspect they’d be assassinated!
Song Chengwang tugged at the corner of his mouth. “You definitely wouldn’t understand.”
Hah! He didn’t even see anything and almost got frozen to death by Shen Xiu’s glare—he was the real tragic victim here!
Xiang Yueting: “…I know I don’t understand. That’s why I’m asking you two! What I mean is—if I don’t understand, you can just tell me!”
Instead of both of you playing some weird guessing game.
Shang Yu: “Not telling.”
Song Chengwang: “Not saying.”
Xiang Yueting: “…Heh!”
As if remembering something, Shang Yu pulled out his phone. “Let me show you a picture.”
Even though he was clearly being left out of the loop, Xiang Yueting, while pretending to be annoyed, was still very honestly curious as he leaned toward Shang Yu’s phone.
“What’s there to see? Isn’t it just a—”
He hadn’t even finished venting when he saw the Weibo image Shang Yu pulled up. He grabbed Shang Yu’s phone in excitement, utterly shocked:
“It’s Lady Lanyue Qingfeng with over a million followers!”
“She drew Shen Xiu!”
“Aaaahhh I’m so jealous!”
“Ughhh it looks so cool! Especially the eyes—so accurate, so well done!”
…
The elevator doors opened. Shang Yu’s phone was still in Xiang Yueting’s hands, and Xiang Yueting’s mouth hadn’t stopped running.
It wasn’t until they were riding in the car sent by the Shang family, on the way back to the Shang residence, that Xiang Yueting finally stopped talking.
Still feeling guilty for having uncovered Shen Xiu’s secret, Shang Yu said, “I have an idea…”
—
Third floor.
Shen Xiu turned the handle and opened the study door, taking in the setup inside.
By the time he registered what was happening, he had already slipped smoothly into the room and locked the door behind him.
The study was spacious, with an entire wall at the back taken up by a grey wood-textured bookshelf that seemed to blend seamlessly into the wall.
In front of the bookshelf, in the center of the room, was an oversized black desk. Several monitors were open and running on the desk, and on the wall in front of it was an even larger screen—currently displaying flickering numbers and brightly colored red and green candlestick charts…
Ding—
A soft sound came from the computer on the left side of the desk. Shen Xiu instinctively looked over and saw that an email had arrived from someone named Qin Mo.
The email opened automatically. Shen Xiu reflexively began to read it, but after glancing at the first line, he remembered: the system allowed them to enter any room in the house, but not to go snooping around.
He quickly averted his gaze, forcing himself to stare only at the lower half of the screen.
When Shen Xiu moved, he accidentally bumped the keyboard in front of the screen, and his heart jumped as he quickly glanced back at the email.
To his relief, the computer sent out an automatic reply on its own, without anyone touching it, and then the email closed by itself—clearly unaffected by him.
Looks like the keyboard was just for show. Shen Xiu let out a quiet sigh of relief. With the email now closed, he finally dared to look directly at the screen.
The desktop background was a deep-sea image. On the desktop were several encrypted files with unrecognizable names, and some program icons Shen Xiu had never seen before on the market.
Shen Xiu’s gaze fell on another monitor nearby, where only a single program was currently running.
When he saw the name of the running program, Shen Xiu’s eyes showed confusion.
“Shen?”
A few seconds later, the confusion in his eyes faded.
This was the system’s home, after all—of course everything here was being controlled by the system behind the scenes.
Now he got it. The reason he could move around freely in this place was definitely thanks to that program named “Shen” written by the system.
While Shen Xiu was thinking this over, the computer kept making soft ding-ding-ding sounds as new emails arrived. Thanks to his earlier experience, Shen Xiu didn’t even need to look to know—they would open and reply automatically.
Since the system had treated him so well, he felt it would be wrong to pry into its secrets. He didn’t look at the other monitors and decided to leave the study.
As he closed the door behind him, he heard the ding-ding-ding of new emails coming in again from inside, and couldn’t help but marvel at the system’s abilities once more.
He’d previously wondered where the system got the money to buy a house, but now he understood: the system wasn’t just keeping him alive—it had a side hustle making money!
Just from the constant flow of incoming emails, he could tell how busy it was.
No wonder it was offline so often. No wonder it hadn’t been back online since he came in. Based on what he’d just seen, Shen Xiu figured the system must be busy running and managing all those programs, with no time to respond to him.
—
“Assistant Qin.”
On the 68th floor of Keta Corporation, Qin Mo stepped out of the elevator. The assistant seated at the front desk stood up respectfully and greeted him.
“Mm,” Qin Mo responded with a nod and walked straight to the deputy director Jing’s office, raising his hand to knock on the door.
Before he could knock, the door swung open from the inside. Deputy Director Jing greeted him with a cheerful smile: “Assistant Qin, I’ve been waiting a long time for you.”
“Mm.” Qin Mo walked in as he placed the file on the desk. “These are the documents submitted by Department Three. The directives just came in. On page three, there’s a section marked with an ‘X’—go over that data carefully and see what the problem is.”
Qin Mo was certain: if there weren’t an issue, it wouldn’t have been marked with an ‘X.’
After all, he never did anything meaningless.
As the office door closed, the newly transferred assistant standing beside Assistant Wen asked curiously, “Assistant Wen, it’s understandable for us to treat Assistant Qin so respectfully, but why do even deputy-level executives treat him just the same?”
Assistant Wen smiled. “He’s like the emperor’s most trusted chamberlain. Get it?”
—
At Shang Yu’s home.
Shang Yu had all his necessary belongings moved over.
Looking at the garments in the closet—though minimal in fabric, they were crafted with such exquisite detail and lavish embellishments—Song Chengwang was stunned: “That’s the haute couture piece from K Brand’s Ancient Egypt runway show earlier this year! I’ve been wondering who beat me to it… so it was you!”
Then he nodded to himself, “On second thought, it makes sense. I’m openly flashy, but you—you’re secretly flashy.”
Shang Yu turned his head with a smile: “If you stop talking, no one will mistake you for mute.”
—
To prevent anyone from discovering the system’s secrets, Shen Xiu stayed put on the third-floor sofa and didn’t leave.
About ten minutes later, the elevator doors opened.
Hearing movement, Shen Xiu instinctively stood up from the sofa. Then he saw a stream of people entering in single file, carrying things in.
That wasn’t the problem—the problem was, they were all unfamiliar faces. Shen Xiu stiffened up, unsure how to greet them.
Weren’t they just going to get water?
Why are clothes and cosmetics being moved in?!
Standing there frozen in awkward silence, Shen Xiu once again despaired at how completely out of sync he was with his friends’ thought processes.
Someone save him!
After finishing that desperate prayer in his heart, Shen Xiu saw Shang Yu, Song Chengwang, and Xiang Yueting walk out from inside the room the very next second.
Shen Xiu: “!”
He was saved! Only God knew how happy Shen Xiu was to see familiar faces among a crowd of strangers!
As soon as Shang Yu stepped out of the elevator, he saw Shen Xiu standing in front of the black sofa, lips tightly pressed together, giving him a cold stare.
Shang Yu quickly walked over and apologized, “Sorry, I forgot to tell you.”
As he spoke, Shang Yu pulled out his phone, opened the homepage of Lanyue Qingfeng, and held it up to Shen Xiu.
“This was drawn by a ‘Xiuologist’—a fan who likes you.”
‘A fan who likes me?’
Hearing that, Shen Xiu instinctively looked at the image on Shang Yu’s phone. As someone who could draw himself, Shen Xiu could instantly tell that the artwork was skillfully done.
He sincerely praised it: “It’s really well-drawn.”
Then he remembered this was something a fan had drawn for him, and he was touched.
‘Fans are way too nice!’
Seeing Shen Xiu’s reaction, Shang Yu seized the moment and opened the comment section: “Everyone wants to see you recreate this look. What do you think?”
— Aaaah it’s amazing! Let me @ Demon King Xiu too!
— Xiu-baby (shy) can I dream a little? @ShenXiu
— Xiu-baby (winking wildly) oh no, my eye’s twitching! @ShenXiu
…
So many people were tagging him. Shen Xiu, who didn’t have the habit of checking gossip or notifications, finally took out his own phone a beat too late—and was immediately met with a flood of private messages and mentions.
Reading through the comments, Shen Xiu could clearly feel just how openly and fervently everyone liked him.
A fierce, indescribable emotion began brewing in his chest, making it feel like even his breathing carried a sweet, aching joy.
Shen Xiu stared silently at his screen. Sensing his hesitation, Shang Yu asked again, a little nervously, “Want to film it?”
Shen Xiu responded without hesitation: “Let’s do it.”
How could he possibly deserve such passionate affection? The fans had finally asked something of him, and it was such a simple thing—how could he say no?
Shang Yu let out a breath of relief. As compensation for accidentally discovering Shen Xiu’s secret, he quickly brought in a professional makeup artist and videographer.
Whether it was a photo or a video, it had to be done in the most perfect condition.
Shang Yu had a strong feeling—this would definitely earn Shen Xiu another wave of fans.
And, just as he suspected, Shen Xiu was the type who seemed indifferent on the surface but quietly remembered everything in his heart.
Someone like Shen Xiu, who looked cool on the outside but was soft on the inside, would never treat fans with the arrogance typical of many big-name celebrities—thinking themselves above their supporters and unwilling to do anything to please them.
“Then I’ll take care of everything from here!”
Shen Xiu looked at Shang Yu with gratitude. “Thanks for the trouble—thank you!”
The people in the holographic game room came pouring out after Xiang Yueting shouted once inside.
Seeing everyone gather, Shang Yu—always thoughtful and considerate—spoke up: “Each of you gets a makeup artist and a videographer. The outfits are downstairs—you can go pick yours up.”
Shang Yu knew Shen Xiu wouldn’t refuse, but still turned his head to ask politely: “Can we borrow your place?”
Shen Xiu nodded. “Of course. My friend already said yes.”
Hearing Shen Xiu calmly push the “blame” onto his “friend,” Xiang Yueting and the others couldn’t help but break into smiles.
So Shen Xiu really did care about them. Look at him—earnestly cracking a dry joke just to make them laugh.
“Heehee, I’m shooting by the pool!”
“Me too—wait for me!”
“You guys are just trying to show off your abs. How could you not include me in such a sneaky move!”
…
Everyone gradually left, and the third floor was soon empty except for Shang Yu, Shen Xiu, two makeup artists, and two videographers. As for the program crew, there was so much material to process that they were running up and down the building, completely swamped.
After the makeup artists finished replicating the look from Lanyue Qingfeng’s illustration, and Shang Yu himself had completed his own makeup, he lifted the black cloth on the table and opened the reptile tank. Reaching in, he gently took out a coiled black king snake.
Before calling everyone over, Shang Yu had already informed them that the shoot would involve a snake. Fortunately, both the makeup artists and videographers were reptile enthusiasts. When they saw the beautiful, glossy black king snake Shang Yu had raised, their eyes lit up with affection.
Shen Xiu stared at the black snake in Shang Yu’s hands, his pupils visibly trembling behind the golden cat-eye contact lenses.
‘Shang Yu… is so bold!’
‘Such a long, massive snake—and he wasn’t afraid at all?’
‘Wait a second… why is everyone looking at it with so much love?!’
Shen Xiu realized, miserably, that he was the only wimp in the room.
Shang Yu walked toward Shen Xiu with the snake in hand. Seeing Shen Xiu’s calm face with no hint of fear, he wasn’t surprised.
“Its name is Xiao Bai. It has a really gentle temperament.”
Shen Xiu responded with difficulty, “…Okay.”
A snake that’s pitch black, shimmering with an iridescent dark luster, named Xiao Bai (Little White)?
‘Hilarious. Shang Yu, you’re so funny.’
When Shang Yu placed the snake on him, Shen Xiu’s body stiffened completely. He was so terrified that he didn’t dare move a muscle—especially when he saw the black king snake flicking its dark tongue right next to his ear. His internal fear level hit its peak.
After settling the snake in place, Shang Yu looked at Shen Xiu’s calm expression and said, “I’ll leave Xiao Bai with you. You guys shoot your part—I’m off to shoot mine.”
Shen Xiu was shaking inside, but stubbornly replied, “…Okay.”
Everyone else here looked so calm around the snake. If he showed fear, he’d probably get some very strange looks, right?
In order to maintain what little dignity he had left, Shen Xiu forced himself to cooperate with the cameraman, doing his best to ignore the cold, slippery sensation coming from the snake on his body.
“Let’s do another set. Just look wherever the camera is pointing… Yes, yes, that’s it…”
“Ah, perfect! That expression is amazing!”
“Alright, now don’t look at the camera—look over there instead…”
“Help! This is so seductive!”
“What kind of god-tier visual is this?!”
As the shoot progressed, the vibe gradually started heading in a more and more questionable direction.
Sitting on the black couch, Shen Xiu listened to the conversation between the cameraman and the makeup artist, and by the time filming wrapped up, his head was full of question marks.
…
At 6 p.m., the group went to Shang Yu’s home for dinner.
After dinner, they hung out at Shang Yu’s place for another two hours before finally heading back to the training camp at 8 p.m.
Since it wasn’t quite midnight yet, and to ensure the trainees got a good night’s rest, the production crew came by early to collect their phones.
After a day of complete relaxation and fun, everyone returned to the dorms and went to bed early.
…
The next morning, 9 a.m.
Seeing everyone again after a day apart, Xue Yi noticed that none of the trainees looked the least bit sad and raised an eyebrow slightly. “Looks like you all had a good time yesterday.”
Thinking back to the day’s activities, everyone broke into satisfied smiles.
“Good time? It was amazing!”
“+111111”
“Totally agree!”
“Teacher Xue, once our vlog comes out, I guarantee it’ll blow your mind!”
Xue Yi played along with their joking: “Then I’ll be looking forward to it.”
The livestream audience was practically scratching their heads in curiosity.
[Damn it, what on earth is this amazing content?!]
[I’m begging you with my whole heart, show it now, production team!]
[You had the guts to film it, now have the guts to release it!]
After the teasing ended, Xue Yi coughed twice and returned to a serious expression.
“Alright, settle down, everyone. Now, I’ll be announcing the rules for the finals.”
