FLME Ch19: Advantage

Yu Wen dashed back to the safe zone faster than lightning, feeling secure, and his expression relaxed.

Xi Su strode over, looking menacing, with his eyebrows tightly knitted, his face dark as if seeking revenge.

Tong Li, who had never seen him like this, took a step back, surprised, “Xiao Xi… why are you suddenly angry?”

Xi Su remembered they were still recording a show.

He took a couple of deep breaths, raised his eyebrows, and toned down his expression, but there was still a hint of frustration lingering.

“Teacher Yu, just now in the restroom…” he hesitated.

Yu Wen feigned ignorance, “Restroom, you were in the restroom too? What a coincidence.”

Xi Su: “Can we talk alone…”

Yu Wen: “Ah, borrowing tissue is such a small thing, no need to be so secretive, here you go.”

He pulled out a pack of tissues from his pocket and tossed it to Xi Su from a meter or two away, then immediately slipped behind Chu Han, looking like he had narrowly escaped a disaster.

Xi Su looked like he wanted to curse.

At this moment, the director called them to gather through a loudspeaker, interrupting Xi Su.

The climb up Luming Mountain was about five kilometers, but there wasn’t just one route. The mountain had many edible wild plants, and the nearby residents often picked them, creating small paths everywhere.

The production team set up four supply points from low to high altitude, with decreasing points rewards based on arrival order. Picking wild plants also earned points.

The director didn’t require them to move in groups, but moving as six would be inefficient. Tong Li, holding the exchanged map, quickly divided the members into three groups, assigning each to areas rich in wild plants.

Yu Wen was about to part ways with Chu Han. Before leaving, he gave Chu Han a long, complicated look.

Chu Han couldn’t take it anymore: “… Did you take the wrong medicine?”

Yu Wen looked at him with an understanding, forgiving gaze, “Sometimes ignorance is bliss.”

He patted Chu Han on the shoulder, gave a discreet glance at Xi Su, and said seriously, “Remember, I risked my life to save your reputation.”

He dared not look at Xi Su, fearing he might want to silence him again, and slipped away like an eel after saying this.

Song Chenglei and Yu Wen were assigned to a shady area of the mountain, cool and pleasant. Yu Wen grabbed a large, unknown leaf and put it on his head, looking around.

Tong Li had assigned them to gather bamboo fungus, a type of edible mushroom.

Yu Wen, not skilled in manual labor or recognizing crops, and being a picky eater, was not reliable. But Song Chenglei, with years of variety show experience, crouched down and held a snow-white mushroom, teaching him how to recognize it: “This is bamboo fungus, easy to recognize. The stem is snow-white, the top has a dark green cap, and it’s also white inside when peeled. This is actually the spore of the bamboo fungus. When you peel it, you’ll know by the texture…”

Yu Wen followed his instructions, took it, and peeled the thin cap, revealing the white flesh inside.

Song Chenglei guided him to pick a couple more, and Yu Wen gradually got the hang of it.

Carrying a small bamboo basket provided by the production team, he transformed into a little mushroom picker.

“Xiao Yu, your shoes.” Song Chenglei kindly reminded, “Your shoes are muddy.”

Yu Wen looked down, seeing mud on his white shoes, which was quite obvious. “It’s fine,” he said.

Since they were in the mountains, he didn’t want to fuss over a bit of dirt.

Song Chenglei: “White shoes are hard to clean when dirty. You should wipe them. My daughter is like you, always getting her shoes dirty, and she loves white shoes. It gives her mom and me a headache.”

Song Chenglei’s tone was like a parent scolding a mischievous child, so Yu Wen obediently took out a tissue and squatted to wipe his shoes.

After playing around for a couple of minutes, Yu Wen was called again, “Xiao Yu, your shoes—”

Yu Wen squatted to wipe his shoes, looking distressed.

He muttered, “I shouldn’t have worn white shoes, what a bother…”

Song Chenglei laughed heartily, “Sorry, sorry, we old folks worry too much. Don’t mind us.”

Yu Wen shook his head and continued picking mushrooms.

—What a bother, another “gold thief.”

Why do they all pick on him!

When he identified Xi Su, he wasn’t sure about the exact method of stealing points, but with Song Chenglei repeatedly telling him to wipe his shoes, he was almost certain the production team exploited a loophole. The complete task card should be: (So-and-so) directly touches (so-and-so’s) (body part), (so-and-so) gains points.

The specific references in the parentheses were still unclear, but it was certain that the task cards were filled out before the points tally started. Otherwise, the “gold thief” could change things at will, and the other members would be at their mercy.

Current knowledge:

(Song Chenglei) directly touches (Yu Wen’s) (hair), (Xi Su) gains points.

(Yu Wen) directly touches (Yu Wen’s) (shoe/foot), (Song Chenglei) gains points.

The person being touched was the one being exploited.

Having more than one “gold thief” was indeed a trick the production team could come up with. Realizing his suggestion had a flaw, Yu Wen had been reflecting on it and then thought that the phrase “add an insider” could also be played up.

He only mentioned “adding an insider” without specifying the original number of insiders.

If the production team initially planned for one insider, adding another wouldn’t be… wait.

Yu Wen had an epiphany.

There could be more than two.

He covered his head, letting out whimpering cries that only he and the lapel microphone could hear, “Am I the only good person today…”

“Xiao Yu, what’s wrong?” Song Chenglei, having walked a bit ahead, saw him suddenly squat down and called out with concern, his voice echoing through the woods.

Yu Wen stood up, smiling, “I’m fine, fine.”

–

While Song Chenglei went to the restroom, Yu Wen sat on the stone steps, counting on his fingers how many points had just been stolen.

“Once, twice, three times… eight, or nine?”

The camera was right in his face, and Yu Wen turned to ask the PD following him behind the camera, “I pretended to wipe the last time but didn’t actually do it, so that shouldn’t count. So, it’s about eight times, right?”

The PD following him didn’t speak.

In fact, he was quite surprised that Yu Wen could so quickly identify Song Chenglei’s role. When writing the script, several assistant directors had thought the rules were overly complex. “Mountain Courtyard” wasn’t a detective reality show, and the unpredictable rules could collide with the MCs to create new sparks. But if they were too unpredictable, going beyond what the MCs could handle, it would just be a solo show by the production team.

In post-production, it would look very dull.

But Yu Wen was like a beacon, easily unraveling the truth from the details, leaving no place for the moles to hide.

He even gave the production team a sense of crisis.

The PD didn’t miss this excellent material, zooming in on Yu Wen’s porcelain-smooth profile, and asked, “Why do you think Teacher Song is also a ‘gold thief’?”

Supporting his chin, Yu Wen thought for a moment. It was a long story, so he started from Xi Su, laying out his thought process.

“… None of them were exposed by just one point; it was piecing together subtle clues and reverse-engineering their behaviors that revealed their action patterns. Besides, I’ve watched previous episodes and know the production team likes to play with words. They would break down my suggestion from start to finish, analyzing where they could exploit loopholes. Once you have the formula and values, getting the result is easy.”

The PD almost wanted to applaud.

While Song Chenglei hadn’t returned, the PD seized the moment to ask Yu Wen’s opinions on the other members’ identities. Yu Wen boldly made predictions and was almost entirely correct.

“Brother Xi Su and Teacher Song are definitely moles. Chu Han is a good person; if he were a villain, his timid behavior would be obvious. So now I can confirm there are two people each in the good and mole camps. As for Teacher Tong Li and Sister Ling Yun, if one of them is a mole, it must be Teacher Tong Li. Sister Ling Yun is young and easily nervous. If she were a mole, she wouldn’t be so natural today.”

His phone vibrated in his pocket, and Yu Wen discreetly peeked at it. An unfamiliar avatar was requesting to add him as a friend.

Applying at this time must be for work. Yu Wen didn’t think much and accepted.

The first message from the other party chilled him to the bone.

[Teacher Yu, remember not to leak that recording.]

Good heavens! It was Xi Su!

Thinking about that horror-movie-like blue-haired figure in the restroom still gave Yu Wen the creeps.

He turned off the screen and pretended to be dead.

But the other party was relentless, buzzing his phone like a motor.

The PD kindly said, “If you have something to do, you can take a ten-minute break.”

Yu Wen gave a fake smile, walked to the side, and reluctantly took out his phone.

Xi Su was crazily using the “tap” function to poke him, making Yu Wen wonder if the others weren’t picking mushrooms. How did he have so much time to bombard him?

He sent a polite smiling emoji and then said: [Teacher Xi, I’m here.]

Xi Su: [You finally decided to respond.]

Yu Wen: [Mute for years, now miraculously cured. I can speak now! Thanks to Teacher Xi’s great kindness!]

Xi Su: […Do you always talk like this?]

Yu Wen: [Can’t you tell I’m being sarcastic?]

Xi Su: [6.]

Yu Wen was the ultimate chatterbox, able to flatter his superiors and mock others with ease.

Sometimes he even got extra jobs because of his emotional intelligence.

Xi Su: [I saw you recording in the restroom today.]

Yu Wen: [Absolutely not.]

Xi Su: [I saw it.]

Yu Wen: [You saw wrong.]

Xi Su: […]

After a moment of silence.

Xi Su: [Denying it is useless, I saw it.]

Yu Wen stared at these words, suddenly amused, doubting Xi Su’s educational background.

Oh, that’s right, when he researched Xi Su, this blue-haired guy seemed to have a low educational background, even mocked by rivals for it.

If he remembered correctly, Xi Su started working after high school due to family difficulties. He got a bit famous through a talent show and probably didn’t have the desire to further his education in the short term.

Yu Wen: [Okay, go ahead and report me.]

Yu Wen: [Lying flat.jpg]

Xi Su: [??? Why would I report you? I’m just telling you not to leak it.]

Yu Wen: […] [Shouldn’t I be the one saying that? You have the recording. If you give it to the media, Chu Han and Gao Kaiyu’s reputations will be ruined together. Even if it takes time to restore the original version, they won’t be able to clear their names completely. They’ll both be kicked out of the entertainment industry. How can you tell me not to leak the evidence?]

Xi Su sent a series of question marks: [??? Why would I send it to the media?]

Yu Wen: [Why did you edit it like that if not to create hype?]

Xi Su: [I’m going to give it to Feng Chengzhou and blackmail him for money.]

Yu Wen: […]

Wait, what just flew past his eyes?

Yu Wen stood there for a good five minutes.

Messages kept coming from the other side.

Xi Su: [I bought the recording from a private investigator for 100,000. I edited it to make it more serious, planning to ask Feng Chengzhou for a million. I’m telling you this so that if you also want to blackmail Feng Chengzhou, we can do it together. Otherwise, if you reveal another copy after I’ve sold mine, it’ll make me look untrustworthy.]

Xi Su: [If we split the money, it’ll be 70-30. I get 70, you get 30, since I paid the initial cost.]

…

What an absurd world.

What an absurd entertainment industry.

Yu Wen didn’t even know what kind of complex feelings he had when he typed: [Aren’t you the illegitimate son of the Feng family, Feng Chengzhou’s brother?]

Xi Su: [Damn! How do you know that!]

Yu Wen felt something swaying in front of his eyes, as if his logical thinking had flown away.

He realized that his judgment of Xi Su had been wrong.

Cutting off Xi Su’s endless questioning, he said: [We need to talk in person.]

The first supply point was not difficult to climb. Yu Wen and Song Chenglei brought their baskets full of bamboo fungi to the supply point to settle. Members of the other groups arrived one after another, and the dispersed three groups reunited.

Yu Wen glanced at Xi Su across the crowd, just as Xi Su was also looking at him. Both had expressions of speechless helplessness.

“Xiao Yu, what’s wrong?” Song Chenglei, seeing him weak and listless, tried to cheer him up, “You’re not a ‘gold thief,’ are you? Didn’t steal any points, so you’re down?”

Yu Wen was greatly shocked, looking at him in disbelief.

You stole my points and now accuse me?!

His emotions were too transparent, causing Song Chenglei to pause and then start to suspect. He probed, “Do you know who the mole is?”

Yu Wen stared at him, expressionless, and shook his head.

“You don’t know? Do you have any suspects?”

Here it comes, the confusion from the mole.

Having just been hit hard by Xi Su, Yu Wen didn’t have the energy to deal with these ‘schemes’ for now. He followed the topic blandly, “Does Teacher Song have any suspects?”

Song Chenglei carefully observed his expression. After that brief moment of exposure, Yu Wen showed no obvious emotions, perhaps it was just his own imagination.

Song Chenglei slightly relaxed and lowered his voice a bit.

“I suspect Xi Su.”

“…” Yu Wen was silent for a second.

“That’s reasonable.” He said.

The blue-haired guy was indeed a mole.

Song Chenglei: “This morning, he asked me to help you with your hair. Did you notice that? It was very suspicious. If physical contact isn’t fixed between ‘thief’ and ‘victim,’ this hair-touching could be his action pattern.”

Song Chenglei spoke seriously.

Throwing out some rule clues, redirecting suspicion to others, and gaining teammates’ trust is a common tactic in deduction-type reality shows.

No member has yet broken the inertia of thought to guess the complete action pattern. He just needs to muddy the waters, directing it towards the outstanding Xi Su or the intelligent Tong Li to perfectly hide until the end.

This move.

Advantageous to him.