Canned Souls 11

The final grouping results: Yan Xianchuan and Lu Mingqiu were a team, A Qi and An Ning were a team, and Dordona and Xie Chuxiao were a team.

Honestly, no matter how the remaining four were grouped, it was bound to be drama. It was hard not to suspect the show had deliberately invited them together.

Lu Mingqiu usually wore dresses to events, favoring plain, elegant tones. But since they were heading outdoors this time, she'd changed into easy-to-move-in pants and a scratch-resistant denim jacket.

She braided her hair and appeared bare-faced before the camera, looking fresh and simple. Her bone structure was showcased to perfection.

The clear breeze and bright sun were the best ornaments. Stripped of external embellishments, her brows and eyes were full of affection, her pupils like the sea, her nose straight and delicate, her lips full, and the corners of her mouth naturally curved into a smile.

She was as clear as a mountain spring, a swaying orchid, or the most crystal-clear pearl on a crown. Her beauty was so rare it couldn't blend into the world; it had to shine in the most prominent position.

"Where do we need to go now?" Lu Mingqiu tilted her head. The hovering camera zoomed in on her face.

While the audience went wild over such pure, natural beauty, Yan Xianchuan swept her gaze around, looked at the direction in which the grass bent, and pointed north. "This way. Follow me."

She paused, then added, "Dear."

The lawn here was planted with specially selected grass seeds that only grew to ankle height. The leaves were tough, and stepping on them caused them to sink slightly. When she lifted her foot, they immediately rustled and stood back up, leaving only inconspicuous traces, almost exactly like before.

The grass connected to the dense forest. Yan Xianchuan walked in front, pushing aside branches. Just as she was about to let go, she suddenly remembered someone was following behind, so she lifted the thin branch in her hand a little to the side.

Anyone who'd come from a survival game was a master of acting. If Yan Xianchuan really wanted to pretend, it was uncertain who would win between her and Lu Mingqiu.

But she didn't want to make things too difficult for herself by taking on extra. What she was doing now was just right.

The forest was harder to walk through, with shrubs and various weeds sandwiched between large trees of varying thickness.

Yan Xianchuan was responsible for clearing the way. She chose the easier gaps. After a few steps, she turned around and asked, "Did you bring gloves?"

Lu Mingqiu shook her head.

She pulled a pair of thin leather gloves out of her pocket and handed them over. She hesitated, wondering whether to help put them on since it would be more in line with her current identity, but she didn't really want physical contact with others.

While she was thinking, Lu Mingqiu took the gloves and asked softly, "If you give them to me, what about you?"

"I don't need them," Yan Xianchuan said.

— Great, no need to struggle anymore.

"Are we looking for something?" Lu Mingqiu put her fair, delicate hands into the gloves and pretended to be ignorant.

"If the program team wanted to hide the tools, they must have come in here. We just need to follow the path they took to find what we want," Yan Xianchuan said, picking up a small broken twig. "Look, the break is fresh."

"Ah Chuan is amazing. I didn't notice that at all." Lu Mingqiu approached in surprise and leaned in to look, her face showing admiration, as if he was the best person in the world, a brave warrior who could slay dragons, a brilliant detective.

— Of course she had already noticed, and she even knew the direction the other wanted to go, turning right ahead.

Yan Xianchuan skirted a bush and headed right.

— Because on the ground there was a broken wildflower.

The two, both highly skilled actors, displayed excellent cooperation at this moment.

Yan Xianchuan thought that Lu Mingqiu indeed lived up to her name, delicate and fragile, knowing nothing. She could fight a hundred of her with one hand. But she did have high emotional intelligence and spoke well. Getting along with her was quite comfortable. No wonder she had a good reputation.

But in Lu Mingqiu's heart, a layer of doubt surged.

Yan Xianchuan thought that this family marriage was an accident. In fact, this person was carefully chosen by her. How could she not have investigated?

Yan Xianchuan was weak in character, had no opinions, no competitiveness, and couldn't be helped. Even the small company assigned by the family started losing money within half a year of being in her hands. She was a piece of trash that could only wait for the family to feed her. Even if others mocked her sarcastically, she would only lower her head timidly, not daring to speak back or contradict.

After their brief encounter last time, she felt that the other person was likely someone who bullied the weak and feared the strong. When facing other members of the family, she would only give in, but when facing her, another abandoned person like herself, she would become tough.

Lu Mingqiu did not take this change to heart. She could control the other person at any time. Choosing someone who was not valued and not involved in real consortium matters was more convenient for her free movement.

But could a waste in everyone's eyes have such sharp observational skills?

She had a plan in her mind, acted without hesitation, and displayed a strong sense of self in her words and actions.

It was as if she were a completely different person.

Yan Xianchuan stopped under a thick tree, looked up, and saw a white plastic bag hanging on a branch, swaying gently in the breeze.

"Wait for me," she said, then climbed up the straight tree with hands and feet, like a nimble monkey. In a few swift moves, she reached the fork and walked on a slightly thinner branch. Her movements were as nimble as a tightrope walker in a circus.

Yan Xianchuan took down the bag as if picking a bunch of grapes hanging from a vine.

She jumped directly from a height of several meters. Her hair lifted and fell. She casually brushed away the stray strands that fell in front of her eyes. She opened the bag and took out a sharp knife.

"Do you want fish for lunch?"

Lu Mingqiu's gaze landed on her relaxed and carefree face. Her lips curled into a gentle smile. "Sure. You know I'm not picky."

"Once we find the lighter, we'll head to the beach," Yan Xianchuan said.

She put the dagger away into her pocket, determined the direction, and immediately continued on.

At the same time, the other two teams were not as smooth.

Xie Chuxiao was A Qi's ex. Originally, A Qi had planned to marry him, but it turned out Xie Chuxiao was an emotional swindler. While sweet-talking A Qi, he was also entangled with other omegas.

Dordona, being A Qi's close friend, had no good expression toward this scumbag who had deceived her friend.

She had a strong background and was not afraid of underhanded tricks. She had no intention of being insincere. She wore a mocking face the whole time and opposed everything Xie Chuxiao suggested. After all, the program team could not let her starve to death there. Making Xie Chuxiao upset immediately became her primary goal.

She could freely put on a sour face, but Xie Chuxiao could not. He had established a persona of a gentleman who was polite and upright. How could he act as freely as Dordona did? Moreover, he did not have the background of being connected to a chaebol as a support.

If he wanted to go east, Dordona said they should go west. If he said to look for wild fruits, Dordona said he could not recognize them and might pick poison.

Facing Dordona's provocations, Xie Chuxiao had to maintain his poise on the surface, but in his heart, he was gnashing his teeth in hatred.

They dawdled for a long time, not getting far into the forest, and had found nothing so far.

Unexpectedly, the show had sparks flying from the start. Hot searches immediately popped up. The live stream's popularity soared, and the comments section was in heated conflict.

Xie Chuxiao's fans said she was disrespecting her senior, arrogant and imperious. Dordona's fans immediately fought back, saying that their idol was just outspoken and blunt. Besides, one was a singer and one was an actor; why was there any senior-junior distinction? They were not even in the same circle.

The entire live stream was chaotic, with everyone fighting endlessly.

The team of A Qi and An Ning seemed relatively harmonious.

An Ning was indeed simple-minded. She had been well-raised at home. In the group, she was also the pampered one. She saw everyone as good. But A Qi felt a bit uncomfortable. They were peers, but the other had suddenly become the stepmother of his friend. No matter how he looked at it, it was awkward.

A Qi had originally wanted to find a suitable marriage partner before reaching marriageable age, so he had found Xie Chuxiao, who was in the same industry.

He did not want to leave the entertainment industry. He wanted to continue acting. He thought that Xie Chuxiao, who was also an actor, would support him, because Xie also loved acting so much.

Unexpectedly, this person was a big liar.

No wonder his parents always said that his judgment was wrong, that he could not pick the right person, and that it was best to let the elders choose. After all, his parents truly loved him and would not let him suffer.

But what if he also had to marry an old man more than ten years older...

A Qi's thoughts suddenly became as messy as willow catkins.

One of them was full of energy, looking left and right, while the other was absent-minded, going wherever he pointed. They were polar opposites.

But luck was something no one could stop. An Ning pointed at a bush ahead in surprise. "Look! It's a rope!"

****

Finding the lighter was not difficult for Yan Xianchuan, but considering Lu Mingqiu's constitution, she considerately slowed down. For some of the easier-to-reach items, she cleared away obstacles and let Lu Mingqiu retrieve them.

The latter was indeed happy and felt a sense of accomplishment.

She did not know why, but she felt Lu Mingqiu was very approachable. The longer she stayed by her side, the more comfortable she felt, as if she carried some kind of affinity halo.

Seeing Lu Mingqiu so excited gave her the feeling of watching a kitten roll around.

Along the way, they had collected quite a few items: a lighter, a dagger, a compass, a small water filter, even a pack of seasoning and a pot. The latter was hidden in a tree hole, discovered because a squirrel was tapping above, making a pop-pop-pop sound.

After all, this was not true wilderness survival. The program team wanted the guests to be flustered, making mistakes and being a mess that was full of laughs, not to truly let them eat wind and drink dew like savages.

Yan Xianchuan snapped a branch about as thick as a thumb, cleaned off the extra twigs, and sharpened one end with the knife. That was a simple harpoon.

She went to spear fish, and Lu Mingqiu was not idle either. She went to pick up some dry branches that had fallen on the ground. The two had a clear division of labor, perfectly harmonious.

【Qiuqiu is so beautiful. My heart beats for you thousands and thousands of times!】

【Don't you think this Alpha is also quite handsome? She's very capable.】

【Really. Is she part monkey? She climbed that tree way too fast.】

【Isn't it normal for an Alpha to have a physical advantage? What's there to brag about?】

【By the way, who is this person exactly? I can't find anything about her.】

【Is fish really that easy to catch? Anglers get betrayed again.】