Wake Up, This is Not a Dating Show! Chapter 11.2

Part 2

As luck would have it, Yin Tianhan really did miss both shots. Showing a look of guilt, he said, “Sorry about that, haven’t played in too long, I’m out of practice.”

Before the next play started, Yi Xingzhi suddenly called out to Pei Ze, an unprecedented move.

Pei Ze responded and came over. He only heard him say, “Keep a close eye on Yuan Lei, just don’t let him move too easily.”

“Understood.”

Finally having a task and no longer idle, Pei Ze immediately skated over to Yuan Lei. Wherever the opponent went, he followed, staring at him fiercely.

Yuan Lei: “…”

Yi Xingzhi: “…”

It really was “keeping a close eye”, technically correct.

With one less person blocking his way, Ye Nai gradually found his rhythm again, and his coordination with Yi Xingzhi grew increasingly tacit. The two scored consecutively, smoothly securing the victory.

“The winner is the Red Team!” the host announced the results. “The reward for this match is a piece of crucial information. Please proceed to the collection area, Red Team.”

The three walked over to the prize area. The staff sitting there handed them a poster. It was for the classic movie, Infernal Affairs.

After a moment of silence, Pei Ze looked thoughtful. “I know what this means.”

The three exchanged glances, all arriving at the answer, and spoke simultaneously.

Pei Ze: “We have to execute a secret mission next!”

Ye Nai, Yi Xingzhi: “Each team has an undercover agent.”

Pei Ze: “?”

Weren’t these two participating in a reality show for the first time? How did they know more than him?

So who was the undercover agent on the Red Team?

Pei Ze scanned the two of them suspiciously, only to find their gazes fixed entirely on him.

“Are you suspecting me?” Pei Ze widened his eyes innocently.

“Not suspecting,” Ye Nai corrected. “Concluding.”

“Why?” Pei Ze recalled his performance on the court just now, feeling a pang of guilt himself. “I don’t know how to play basketball. You can’t just say I’m an undercover agent because of that, right?”

“You’ve been on so many variety shows. Could you possibly not understand what Infernal Affairs means? Stop playing dumb,” Ye Nai ruthlessly exposed him.

“He might not be faking it. He could genuinely…” Yi Xingzhi paused, “not have understood.”

Pei Ze: “…”

Thank you for defending me. Next time, don’t.

Ye Nai looked at Yi Xingzhi. “Then you think it’s me?”

Yi Xingzhi’s eyes were indifferent, revealing no emotion. “I just wanted to say, don’t jump to conclusions before there’s absolute proof.”

Thinking about how they had been working together perfectly just a few minutes ago, only to start suspecting each other over a mole in the blink of an eye, Ye Nai found it somewhat ironic.

But thinking about it calmly, Yi Xingzhi’s words made sense, so he didn’t say anything more.

When the three went to collect their prize, they were still in high spirits, but when they returned, they were all harboring their own thoughts. The Blue Team looked confused, not understanding what was going on.

“Ouch,” Pei Ze suddenly cried out. “Hiss, it hurts!”

Everyone followed the sound, only to see him clutching his left hand, frowning in pain. “I might need to go to the hospital.”

Yin Tianhan looked concerned. “What’s wrong? Did you get hurt during the game?”

“Seems like it. I don’t know when I got scratched, but it’s bleeding.”

With his eyes half-drooping, Ye Nai looked at the nearly invisible tiny cut on Pei Ze’s hand, and the tiny speck of dried blood that hadn’t even fully seeped out. He said indifferently, “I advise you to bring a microscope, otherwise the doctor won’t be able to find the wound to save your life.”

Yuan Lei couldn’t hold back a laugh, and Yi Xingzhi’s lips also curled up slightly.

“Doctor.” Fu Tingyuan suddenly raised a hand. “Someone over here needs a bandage.”

Even the production team hadn’t decided whether to dispatch the medical team, yet he acted first, calling over one of his assistants.

Pei Ze was usually very afraid of pain and had a habit of exaggerating. But now, with someone actually preparing to treat him seriously under the live broadcast cameras and everyone’s watchful eyes, it felt rather awkward. “Uh, actually a bandage might be unnecessary…”

The doctor looked at his boss, seeking his opinion.

“Handle it as you see fit,” Fu Tingyuan said.

So the doctor, upholding a professional and responsible attitude, first rinsed Pei Ze’s hand with saline.

This step actually stung a bit. Normally, Pei Ze would have grimaced and bared his teeth. But now, with the live cameras rolling and so many people watching, he remained unusually quiet.

Afraid of causing too much delay, Pei Ze told everyone not to worry about him and to proceed with the next segment as usual.

Seeing that he was indeed fine, the host introduced the personal mission, “Invaluable”.

“You have half an hour to find an item of high value in this park and bring it back to the site. The person who finds the most valuable item wins.”

“We don’t have a dime on us. What are we supposed to use to trade for other people’s things?” Yuan Lei wondered.

“And we have to bring it to the site.” Even variety show regular Yin Tianhan found the task absurd. “Why would anyone give us something that valuable?”

“In the end, everything will, of course, be returned to their owners,” the host explained. “It just depends on whether everyone can get the owner’s consent to borrow the item.”

To put it bluntly, wasn’t this just relying on celebrity status to score favors? If an ordinary person tried to borrow something, who would pay attention?

Ye Nai was very averse to these types of segments, but since he was already here and couldn’t just walk out, he immediately felt annoyed.

Wearing a sour face, he went to search for an item. Having no clue at the moment, he wandered around blindly and was quickly recognized by passersby.

“Nyle!” Two girls called out to him excitedly. “Are you filming Battle of the Defending Champions? Are you doing a mission?”

“Yeah.” Ye Nai’s expression softened a bit, but his tone remained stiff. “Do you have anything valuable on you?”

“What for? A robbery?” The girls found it amusing.

After Ye Nai explained the mission, thinking these two young ladies wouldn’t be carrying any valuables and preparing to look elsewhere, one of the girls lifted her bag. “Does this count?”

It was a luxury brand bag, probably costing tens of thousands.

“It counts.” Ye Nai nodded. Thinking for a moment, he said, “Are you free? Rest here for a bit. If I haven’t found anything more expensive in half an hour, I’ll come back for you.”

“Free, we’re super free!” the girl agreed instantly.

However, Ye Nai hadn’t taken two steps when he realized they didn’t stay put, but were following him from a short distance, whispering to each other.

Completing the mission was the priority. He didn’t bother them and continued walking forward.

With a cameraman and two girls trailing him, it was hard not to attract attention. Before long, the crowd of onlookers grew. Some held up phones to take pictures, and others spoke loudly to him.

Ye Nai glanced at the gathering crowd, sensing a good opportunity to take the initiative. He informed everyone of the ongoing mission and asked, “Does anyone have something a bit more expensive to lend a hand?”

Everyone eagerly offered ideas all at once, but the items they could produce were just jewelry, nothing exceeding the value of the designer bag.

“Nyle!” Suddenly, a boy who looked like a college student raised his hand, pointing at the man standing next to him. “My brother drove a Bentley here. Does this work?”

Ye Nai’s eyes lit up. “It absolutely works.”

Indeed, there was strength in numbers. He hadn’t even thought of counting a car.

However, he didn’t want to accept help for nothing. He said to the car owner, “If there’s anything I can do for you, just say it, as long as it’s within my power.”

“You better ask my brother,” the man laughed. “He’s a huge fan of yours.”

The boy was already excited, but after being nudged by his brother, he became flustered. Scratching his head, he said, “It’s nothing big, I just want a picture with you.”

Truth be told, Ye Nai really disliked taking pictures.

He had no problem singing in front of countless cameras and even had great camera sense. But whenever he had to take a static photo, he completely lost his touch. No matter what pose he struck or expression he made, he always felt it looked incredibly fake and weird.

But facing a fan’s photo request, he generally wouldn’t refuse, especially when he needed their help right now.

“Sure, let’s do it.”

Ye Nai stood over with one hand in his pocket. Seeing the boy was too shy to get close, leaving a massive gap between them, he took the initiative to reach out, intending to drape his arm over the other’s shoulder to show it was okay to lean in.

The car owner took out his phone to snap the picture. Ye Nai looked towards the camera lens, but unexpectedly met the gaze of the person standing behind the car owner.

He didn’t know when Yi Xingzhi had arrived, standing head and shoulders above a large crowd. While everyone’s gaze was focused on him, Yi Xingzhi’s gaze pierced through the crowd and landed on Ye Nai.

Even though Yi Xingzhi’s eyes were as calm as water, unrippled and serene, Ye Nai faltered under his stare. His hand, about to rest on the boy’s shoulder, inexplicably hovered for a second before turning into a loose hover.

Translator’s Note:

• The Infernal Affairs (無間道) reference is to a famous Hong Kong crime thriller about a police officer deep undercover in a triad and a triad member secretly infiltrating the police force.
• “Mascot” is used to humorously describe Pei Ze’s lack of contribution.
• “6” is a Chinese internet slang used to praise someone or something as impressive, smooth, or cool (derived from the word 溜/牛).
• “CP fans” refers to “Coupling” fans, fans who enjoy shipping two characters or celebrities together.