Chapter 69
After receiving the “research team’s” pigeon-carried message from the outside world, Shen Jinfeng finally relaxed.
He lay quietly on the beach, looking at the sky full of stars, boredly counting how many meteors would streak across the sky in the final hour.
This was the quietest his surroundings had been since he arrived in this retirement world.
Previously, Qin Ye had said that after they got out, he would buy or lease this deserted island and develop it into a tourist resort, or make it their private island.
Looking at it now, everything here was fake. Qin Ye’s dream was shattered.
But the technological level of this retirement world was pretty good.
Whether it was holography, dream control, or some other virtual reality technology, after he got out, he could buy this “little world” and turn it into a private space exclusively for himself.
If they could put in a little more effort and make the flow of time inside and outside the dream different, like in the dream-control world, that would be even better.
Without stepping outside, he could enjoy double or even longer a lifespan, and also “travel” to various scenes with all five senses restored. Once developed properly, one could imagine how huge of a business it would be.
He could lie down and live off it for the rest of his life.
Although this deserted island had bugs popping up everywhere, its prospects were promising.
Shen Jinfeng had almost already determined that this was a scientific research project.
Although the identity 888 had chosen for him now was rich and convenient, no one would complain about having too much money.
After he got out, he could invest in it, either with funds or technology.
Then he could lie flat and collect dividends every year.
Mm. Feasible.
Although he had come here to retire, this little bit of work was not troublesome.
Shen Jinfeng lay lazily, adding a bit of work to his own plate in his mind.
Oh my, he really was too hardworking.
He sighed emotionally, then continued focusing on counting the stars.
In the end, as he counted, he lasted at most half an hour.
Then he felt his consciousness grow hazy.
Realizing something, Shen Jinfeng did not resist.
Honestly, this research team was really unreliable!
They said one hour, so why was it gone after only half an hour?
They had no sense of time at all!
When Shen Jinfeng opened his eyes again, sure enough, the environment before him had completely changed.
What entered his sight was a transparent nutrition chamber full of technological aesthetics. It was so large that several more people could have lain inside.
The level still was not very good. So clumsy, and it took up space.
Ordinary households would not even have room for it, alright! And it could not even be carried around.
Shen Jinfeng swept a glance over it and silently picked out several more flaws in his heart.
He tilted his head slightly and looked out through the transparent nutrition chamber. Unexpectedly, he immediately saw Qin Ye and the others!
After coming out, they were still together?
Only, the atmosphere was not quite right.
Why was Qi Xiu crying so sadly?
And because Qi Xiu was crying, the group outside temporarily did not notice that he had woken up.
Shen Jinfeng frowned slightly, directly sat up, and pushed open the chamber door.
He walked out.
The staff member who had been guarding the data was startled and quickly came forward. “Big Boss, you’re awake!”
Shen Jinfeng waved his hand and walked forward a couple of steps. He directly lifted aside the person crouching in front of Qi Xiu and apologizing, who was probably the culprit behind Qi Xiu’s current tears.
“Qi Xiu, why are you crying?”
He glanced at the middle-aged man whose hair was sparse, whose belly was so round it got in the way, and who had just been dragged aside by him and now looked utterly dumbfounded, as if he had not recovered yet.
He had a comical appearance and looked like someone who smiled often.
His physiognomy seemed quite kind, but from the quick flash of shrewdness in his eyes after he reacted, one could tell that this person was not as simple as his face suggested.
Shen Jinfeng frowned and asked Qi Xiu, “Did he bully you?”
Qi Xiu’s crying paused for a moment, and surprise appeared in his tear-filled eyes. “Boss, you came out!”
He Erwang and the others immediately stood up. They had clearly only been separated for less than an hour…
Yet the group acted as if they had reunited after a long separation, so excited and warm it was almost overwhelming.
“Boss, you finally came out!”
“Wuwu, Boss, I missed you so much. I thought the production team was deliberately causing trouble and targeting you.”
The roomful of staff also exclaimed one after another, each greeting him.
“Big Boss, you came out!”
Sun Xinping patted the dust off his bottom from where he had accidentally sat on the floor and stood up as if nothing had happened.
He personally poured Shen Jinfeng a cup of tea. “Big Boss, you’re out. Have some tea!”
Shen Jinfeng swept his gaze over everyone. He did not know any of them.
Were they members of the research team?
These people all called him “Big Boss”?
Although he thought this body’s original owner could indeed be called a big boss, calling him that still felt very strange!
He ignored Sun Xinping and only kept a cold face, looking rather unapproachable.
He vaguely felt that something was off.
Very off.
Why did he still not have memories of participating in some experimental project after coming out?
Seeing his confusion, Gu Shengsheng explained from the side, “Boss, because you were too amazing on the deserted island, everyone likes you a lot and calls you Big Boss.”
Shen Jinfeng nodded, and the confusion in his heart eased a little.
He looked at Qin Ye and pointed at Qi Xiu. “What happened just now?”
Qin Ye was also completely puzzled. He hesitated and said, “I don’t know why Qi Xiu started crying. He probably wasn’t bullied just now?”
The intern from earlier also looked panicked. Qi Xiu seemed to have suddenly started crying after hearing her blessing? She had not said anything, had she?
She apologized repeatedly in confusion. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry. Just now, Little Qi was chatting with me. Maybe I said something wrong.”
But she also felt wronged. She had not said anything, right?
She had only praised Qi Xiu for being capable and wished for his wish to come true.
The intern hesitated and said, “Is it because Little Qi’s sect inheritance can’t be known by outsiders like us? He also said before that in real life, he doesn’t tell others he does fortune-telling…”
Then when he realized they all knew, he broke down?
That seemed a little far-fetched.
Sun Xinping wanted to speak, then stopped. For the time being, he said nothing.
Shen Jinfeng rubbed Qi Xiu’s head, lowered his head, and asked with his eyes, “Mm?”
Qi Xiu tried hard to hold it in, but failed, and cried even louder.
He hugged Shen Jinfeng’s waist and cried for a while, feeling that tears and snot were about to pour out.
Qin Ye, watching from the side, frowned slightly and took out a handkerchief he carried with him, handing it to him.
“Thank you, Brother Ye.” Qi Xiu took the handkerchief and, although his body trembled from crying, he still politely thanked him.
As he wiped his tears, he sobbed intermittently and said in grievance, “Boss, my master died.”
“The wish I made can never come true…”
Shen Jinfeng froze.
He knew about Qi Xiu’s master.
After all, after so many days on the deserted island, whenever Qi Xiu mentioned someone from reality, what he mentioned most often was how his master was, what his master had said.
When he received the huge payment from He Erwang for fortune-telling, what he thought of was being able to let his master eat, drink, and live well.
When he mentioned all the skills he had, he proudly said his master taught him.
But despite his skills, he also had to listen to his master’s words and not rely on them to make a living in the future.
Qi Xiu had depended on his master since childhood. They were like father and son.
Or rather, this kindness of raising him from a former stranger carried an extra layer of grace compared to that of a biological father.
It was clear that Qi Xiu’s worldview and personality had all been shaped by the master he spoke of.
His final wish on the beach, made to the meteor shower, had been to hope that his master lived a long life and that he would have the chance to repay him a little…
The others, who had spent so many days on the deserted island with Qi Xiu, also knew how important Qi Xiu’s master was to him.
Yet the master Qi Xiu had spoken of constantly on the deserted island had already passed away?
The intern from earlier froze too.
She finally understood why Qi Xiu’s emotions had suddenly collapsed.
“I’m sorry, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean it.” She apologized repeatedly, and her eyes almost instantly reddened as well.
Shen Jinfeng reached out and gently patted Qi Xiu’s back. After hesitating, he said softly, “We’ll stay by your side.”
Qi Xiu’s body stiffened, and he buried his face deeply into Shen Jinfeng’s clothes.
“Mm, mm.” He nodded in a muffled voice.
The atmosphere at the scene quieted for a while. Mo Fan and the others also gathered over, patting Qi Xiu’s back and comforting him.
At times like this, wordless comfort was the warmest.
After Qi Xiu’s emotions gradually calmed down, Shen Jinfeng quickly turned the matter over in his mind.
He asked, “Was your memory altered?”
He Erwang reacted and glared angrily at Sun Xinping. “Your production team is way too much, right? What right do you have to tamper with Qi Xiu’s memories of his family?”
Sun Xinping’s expression turned bitter.
Wasn’t their show always like this?
The guests participating in the show were also one willing to hit and one willing to be hit. The production team implanted a persona and memories similar or close to the person themselves. It was not as if he had forced anyone to join the show.
It was just that He Erwang was a big shot, and the production team could not bully him.
Of course, now, in front of the guests, he could not say it that way.
Sun Xinping was indeed in the wrong too.
“I’m sorry, Little Qi. This matter was indeed something our production team failed to consider properly.”
“We can discuss compensation. On behalf of the production team…”
Qi Xiu poked his head out and stopped him. “No need.”
His fingers still gripped Shen Jinfeng’s clothes tightly, and his whole person shrank among his teammates.
He explained the sequence of events. “This matter can’t be blamed entirely on Director Sun.”
“My master passed away on June 24. He had no other family, only me.”
Qi Xiu’s tone paused. Before joining this variety show, he had only had the old man as family too.
“Because my master was fated to lack money, I told you all before. So after I cremated him, I had no money left.” His tone was extremely low. “Master left suddenly. I didn’t expect him to leave so soon. He passed away the day after he learned my gaokao score.”
“Before, he even said that he had never been to university and wanted to send me to university so he could walk around the campus. He said that although I wasn’t his biological child, I had still helped him bring glory to the family.” As he spoke, another layer of crystalline tears appeared in his eyes.
In the end, he was only a young man who had just stepped out of high school.
“But he left the very next day after saying that.”
Qi Xiu’s voice was low. At this moment, he was working hard to control his emotions and not embarrass himself like earlier.
But that forced calmness made him even more pitiful.
More than half of the staff present could not help having tears gather in the corners of their eyes too.
Passing the imperial examination, then losing one’s closest family member. It truly was two extremes of joy and grief.
When a young man was just about to leave weakness behind and step into adulthood, this was far too great a blow.
When an elder had been full of expectation, waiting to watch the younger generation enter his dream university and plan for the future, yet could not see it with his own eyes—it was also too great a regret.
Qi Xiu said, “Although Master said before that after he died, I could do whatever I wanted with his ashes.”
“But I still wanted to buy him a better, more impressive grave. When he was alive, he had no money. I wanted him to live in a big house after he left.”
The old man had said before that when a person died, the lamp went out.
As for ashes, scattering them to the wind was fine, scattering them into the fields was fine, even throwing them into the sea was fine. There was no need to be attached.
But after a person died, if there was not even a grave, where could the living place their grief?
Pfft.
When Gu Shengsheng heard Qi Xiu say this, his expression became strange.
They had discussed this topic on the deserted island before. He remembered that he had brought it up.
He remembered that a slightly better, small grave plot would cost at least a few hundred thousand, right?
So this was why Qi Xiu had joined the show?
Sure enough, Qi Xiu continued, “I originally planned to work part-time as a tutor during summer break. That was the best way to earn money that I knew. My classmates and teachers introduced several students to me, but the money still wasn’t enough…”
That was indeed the case. It was too expensive.
Shen Jinfeng also remembered this matter.
Hundreds of thousands, even millions.
Even ordinary people who were already working in society would not know how many years they needed to save up enough.
Let alone a student.
Qi Xiu shook the tortoise shell he carried with him.
He pointed his finger at Sun Xinping. “That day, after I came out of a student’s house and was eating noodles at the night market, I made a divination. It told me that Director Sun could help me. If I found him, my master could live in a good grave, and I would have money for university tuition too.”
He explained the whole sequence of events, then lowered his eyes. “So I was the one who came to him. We used each other, and now we’re even.”
“Sorry. I got emotional just now.” After Qi Xiu finished speaking, he sincerely apologized to all the staff members. Then he turned toward the teammates he had met on the deserted island and said with a tearful smile, “But I gained a blessing out of misfortune and met all of you. My master would definitely be happy for me too!”
Seeing that he had calmed down, the others finally relaxed.
Sun Xinping, who had been mentioned: “?”
What kind of wording was that?
How was that “using each other”?
“Little Qi, don’t worry. During this period, I’ve been keeping an eye out for your master’s grave plot. Uncle promised to help you arrange your master’s funeral, and I definitely won’t break my word.” His face was full of closeness and kindness as he tried to get closer to Qi Xiu.
He Erwang scoffed lightly and said impolitely, “That’s nowhere near enough. For just this bit of money, he got played around by you, making him full of joy on the show, only to have such a huge emotional drop after coming out.”
Who would believe the production team did not do this on purpose?
Sun Xinping was sweating heavily.
He noticed that what made him more fearful than He Erwang’s impolite tone was actually Shen Jinfeng’s gaze.
After Qi Xiu finished speaking, Shen Jinfeng had been looking at him thoughtfully.
His eyes were dark. He had almost never seen such a cold gaze from Shen Jinfeng on the livestream screen, as if he were contemplating something!
It was even more terrifying than when he had stared at that pack of wolves.
“Director Sun?”
Shen Jinfeng’s tone was unusually calm, but for some reason, there was a hint of doubt in it. “Director?”
He finally realized what felt wrong.
From the moment he woke up until now, the words of the staff, Qi Xiu, Gu Shengsheng, and the others had connected into one string, forming an unbelievable, earth-shattering fact.
Production team.
Director.
Everyone likes you a lot on the deserted island.
All the staff members were excessively enthusiastic toward him…
This was a show?
During the past days, while he was completely unaware, he had been recording a show?
Shen Jinfeng’s heart was filled with stormy waves.
But looking at He Erwang and the others, they clearly knew they had been recording a show.
What was going on? This did not make sense.
Why was he the only one who did not know?
Sun Xinping heard his voice and smiled in response. “Yes, I’m the chief director.”
“Big Boss Shen, we met only briefly before, so you might not be familiar with me yet. We’ll become familiar after meeting more in the future, hahaha.”
He awkwardly made small talk.
He thought Shen Jinfeng did not remember him.
Because Shen Jinfeng had previously been pulled in to be cannon fodder and a villain.
He had only met him once when signing the contract and had been extremely perfunctory…
During these many days, he watched Shen Jinfeng on livestream every day and had become familiar with him.
But it was normal for Shen Jinfeng to find his ordinary face unfamiliar.
Sun Xinping swiftly found himself a reason.
“Big Boss Shen, your performance on the show was unbelievably good. You’re the most explosively popular guest in all three seasons of our What Kind of Person Are You! These days, my old pals in the industry have all come to congratulate me, saying I’m lucky that a superstar appeared in my show.”
This was partly flattery, partly a reassurance pill for Shen Jinfeng, who had just come out of the show and was unclear about the situation, and partly a hint that his show had made Shen Jinfeng famous.
After all, regarding this season’s persona setup—
In fact, the most outrageous one was Shen Jinfeng’s.
He had purely done a bad thing with good results.
The key point was that he was panicked. Maybe he had also done a bad thing?
Perhaps Shen Jinfeng had been quietly conserving his strength, but because of his show, he had accidentally been exposed, ruining the other party’s plans or something.
Mm, that was right.
This was the mindset produced by watching too many bullet comments these days.
But Shen Jinfeng’s focus was: “Explosively popular?”
Sun Xinping smiled and nodded. “Yes. Our livestream data this time…”
He repeated the praise he had just given Qin Ye and the others.
This time, he was not the only one praising him.
Qin Ye and the others, who had already heard it once, had remembered it too. From time to time, they added a few words and even helped ask about the details.
However, Shen Jinfeng was no longer in the mood to listen.
He slowly sat down on the sofa and held a cup of tea.
His vision was almost dazed.
Nationwide livestream?
From the moment he arrived in this retirement world, he had been livestreamed?
It was not the research team he had thought it was. The ones watching him from outside all day long were the production team and all the viewers across the internet!
The fingers Shen Jinfeng used to hold the cup turned slightly white from force.
That scam system 888!
If he could see 888 again, this time, no matter what, he would not soften his heart. He absolutely had to file a severe complaint with the Quick Transmigration Bureau!!!
Wasn’t this supposed to be a retirement world?
His retirement world had turned into this?
In the future, he would have to arm himself in eighteen layers just to go out. This was not his ideal life!
Most importantly, he had been manipulated harshly while completely unaware.
Of course, he knew.
888 definitely had not done it on purpose, but it had definitely dropped the ball!
Shen Jinfeng took a deep breath. He really had overestimated 888.
That useless system became worse the longer it lived. It could even crash while doing the most basic task of bringing a host through a small world!
Sun Xinping was wracking his brain, trying to subtly guide the topic toward continuing filming.
“The contract we signed was for two months of filming. Now only twelve days have passed, and we had no choice but to stop because Big Boss Shen was too amazing.”
He smiled bitterly and helplessly, but his words were full of compliments.
“Right now, the viewers are furious. They’re all angrily scolding our production team for being too useless. We have to admit that.”
“But the show can’t just stop recording, right?”
After saying this, he carefully looked at everyone’s expressions.
He Erwang actually did not react much.
Although he had been forced by his manager to come, recording variety shows was part of his job. If he could record a variety show with Boss and the others, he felt it was not impossible.
These days on the deserted island, he had simply been too happy!
Gu Shengsheng and Mo Fan, on the other hand, had long been accustomed to being in a weak position in the entertainment industry. Since there was a contract, they could not possibly breach it.
Qi Xiu only sat close to Shen Jinfeng.
He also did not express his position.
Only Qin Ye frowned slightly and looked at Shen Jinfeng. “Little Captain, are you still willing to continue participating?”
He could tell that Shen Jinfeng’s mood had not seemed very good since he came out.
His expression was overly cold.
Shen Jinfeng looked at Sun Xinping. “How would it continue?”
He glanced at the nutrition chamber not far away and probed without revealing anything. “Connect our consciousness back to that deserted island?”
“Alter our memories again?”
He hit the core of the issue immediately.
Sun Xinping was guilty to death.
He put on a flattering smile and continued, “We can discuss this. We also need to ask for your opinions.”
“Everyone can continue entering the previous deserted island, or we also have a backup setting, which is a desert oasis.”
“Because we didn’t expect the interruption in the middle, if everyone enters again, we were thinking that you can retain your real-life memories, or retain the memories and personas from the previous round on the deserted island that our production team arranged.”
Seeing that everyone’s expressions were indifferent, Sun Xinping gritted his teeth and stated his bottom line. “Or, if anyone has a persona they want, or any memories they want to possess, you can communicate with our technical team. If it can be done, we’ll do our best to satisfy it.”
This was equivalent to allowing everyone to DIY and create their own personas.
If the outside world knew about this, it would practically be the greatest “black curtain” in What Kind of Person Are You.
“Memories and personas?” Shen Jinfeng softly repeated.
He asked the others, “Do you know what your memories and personas were?”
Qin Ye keenly sensed something wrong and leaned close to his ear, asking softly, “Is there something else wrong?”
“Are you feeling uncomfortable somewhere?”
Shen Jinfeng raised his eyes slightly. Seeing the concern in the other party’s expression, he pursed his lips and did not answer.
He could not very well say that he now suspected his own memories still had problems, right?
“What memories and persona did you have? Were they very different from your reality?”
Qin Ye looked at him deeply and felt somewhat uncomfortable.
The biggest difference was that on the deserted island, he had been carrying a heart that wanted to fall in love.
Damn it.
Yun-nüshi’s doing.
But when something turned from false to real, there was actually no need to mention it again.
Qin Ye wisely shook his head. “Not much difference. It’s just that my memories of the few years I spent in the entertainment industry were concealed before.”
Mo Fan said gently, “My memories changed. In reality, I’m an actor, but before, I thought I was a programmer. In fact, I know nothing about programming. But my circumstances were more or less similar to my situation in the entertainment industry.”
“Also, on the deserted island, I often felt a bit agitated, and my temper became quicker.”
He pointed out the key issue sharply. “Memories can be sensed by oneself, but when it comes to personas, it’s actually hard to detect accurately. One gets influenced imperceptibly.”
He asked Sun Xinping, “Director, can you let us see what each of our personas was? I remember previous seasons had them.”
Mo Fan’s voice was neither hurried nor slow, like a gentle spring breeze.
But his tone was clear-headed and persistent.
When Sun Xinping heard this request, ten thousand alpacas galloped through his heart.
With the relationship between these people, if they saw Gu Shengsheng, Shen Jinfeng, and Mo Fan’s personas, could they still give the production team a pleasant face?
Shen Jinfeng narrowed his eyes slightly and looked at this chubby director, whose microexpressions and body movements were all resisting.
He supported Mo Fan and asked, “Director Sun, is that possible?”
Sun Xinping was sweating like rain.
Meeting Shen Jinfeng’s clear gaze, which seemed to see through everything, he swallowed.
Although, once the guests got out, as long as they picked up their phones and connected to the internet, they would know everything.
Early death, early reincarnation. After hesitating, he nodded. “Of course.”
“But each person’s persona was not completely disclosed to the public. Why don’t our staff privately tell the corresponding guest, and then you can decide whether to share with each other?”
He looked at Shen Jinfeng and smiled ingratiatingly. “Big Boss Shen, could we speak privately for a moment?”
