Having been here once before, Chu Zhi was already familiar with the way. He took the little three-wheeler on his own, no need for anyone to come pick him up, and found his way to the Mushroom House.
Inside and out, the place was quiet. Only Da Kong was there.
Chen Mei and Ban Ke had been part of the first guest group, so it made sense for them to be gone. But Min Jeongbae was supposed to stay for two weeks. Why wasn't he around either?
"Da Kong, where is everyone?" Chu Zhi asked.
Zhou Dakong replied, "Teacher Kun had something to take care of on the back hill, and Teacher Lan took brother Min and Xiao Mei out for a morning run."
A morning run sounded good. But judging from Zhou Dakong's answer, why hadn't he gone? Chu Zhi didn't even need to ask. Da Kong explained on his own.
"I was supposed to go too, but Teacher Kun asked me to feed the cows." Zhou Dakong looked aggrieved, like the only kid left behind to clean the classroom while the whole class went on a field trip.
"Brother Jiu, let's feed the cows together. It's really fun," Zhou Dakong invited.
"Nope." Chu Zhi shook his head without hesitation. "I'm kind of scared of chickens and cows."
"Scared of cows? Why!" Zhou Dakong couldn't understand. "I mean, I get being afraid of bugs or snakes, but chickens and cows? We eat them all the time."
"Oh, Da Kong." Chu Zhi slung an arm around his shoulder. He was about 183 cm tall, while Da Kong stood around 179, so the gesture came naturally.
"There are some things in this world," Chu Zhi said, "that are better left unknown."
"But…" Zhou Dakong tried to speak again, but Chu Zhi's look stopped him. So, he went off with a bundle of hay to feed the cows alone.
Why would someone like the Emperor Beast be afraid of chickens and cows?
Back when he was a kid, Chu Zhi had spent some time in foster care at his hometown. He couldn't remember whether he'd provoked it or not, but one day a chicken had pecked his big toe hard enough to draw blood, and then a big yellow cow had bumped into him.
Which explained why, both before and after transmigrating, Chu Zhi's favorite food had always been chicken and beef.
He turned and entered the Mushroom House, returned to the room he had stayed in two weeks ago, and put his things down. Back in the Mushroom House once again.
Wandering aimlessly around the room, he remembered Director Luo Xunyuan's whispered reminder to give some airtime to their sponsor. Like the Xiao Du smart assistant from Baidu… correction, smart device.
About the size of a radio, it had a built-in screen and sat on the living room shelf. Most of the time, it just showed the time. It was called the [Xiao Du Smart Display], priced around two or three hundred yuan.
"Is this the Xiao Du that can answer any question?" Chu Zhi recited the sponsor's lines. Then he continued, "Xiao Du, Xiao Du, search for information on the artist Chu Zhi."
[Chu Zhi, born September 9, 1998, in Fuling District, Shancheng City. A singer, actor, and music producer in mainland China. Member of the presidium of the Chinese Musicians Association. Debuted through The Son of the Future, becoming—]
Xiao Du began reading off his Baidu Baike profile. Chu Zhi genuinely felt it was pointless. He scanned the room. Still no one around.
He used the quiet moment to mull over the latest issue from his agency team. Should he spend time recording a Russian album, casually releasing three singles like Opera, Opera 2, and Lullaby? Or release a full formal Japanese album?
Tough decision. He had quite a few songs, especially with the Conan soundtrack box set in his possession.
As an adult, he wanted both. But time was tight this year. It was already mid-August and he hadn't even finalized the theme of the new album, let alone written anything.
On camera, Chu Zhi stared blankly into the distance, eyes filled with anxiety. His cameraman Lao Zhan couldn't help but feel a bit sad.
The Emperor Beast wasn't supposed to look sad. His thoughts jumped around too easily. He started with the Russian vs Japanese album dilemma, then leapt to wondering what theme his third album should have.
Maybe a classic love ballad collection? Something like Goodbye Kiss, Love Like Tides, You Make Me Drunk. He had enough songs in his library to make a truly iconic album.
Then again, maybe now wasn't the right time for a love song collection...
About ten minutes later, Lan Wuyi, Min Jeongbae, and Tan Lu returned from their morning run. Lan the Chef was soaked in sweat. Xiao Mei was gasping for breath. Only Min Jeongbae looked totally fine, not even panting. Clearly, he had slacked off again for the sake of the show.
"Xiao Jiu, back from Seoul?" Lan Wuyi asked. "When does filming there wrap up?"
A smooth segue into Chu Zhi's new drama. A well-played favor.
"Should be done by next week. My scenes are almost finished," Chu Zhi replied. "It'll probably air around Christmas."
"I'll definitely watch and support it," Lan Wuyi said.
"If I had your face, I'd be filming movies every day," Min Jeongbae joked. "You could totally coast on your looks. Why insist on using talent too? What are people like me, who only have talent, supposed to do?"
"What nonsense, brother Min," Chu Zhi said. "You obviously rely on your looks too."
Min Jeongbae chuckled. That kind of praise, he had no choice but to accept.
Tan Lu trailed behind the others. When she got within fifty meters of her idol, she lowered her head.
She had cried for days after the trending news from earlier that week. Facing Chu Zhi again, she was afraid the same grief might overwhelm her.
She was the sentimental type, often crying while listening to other people's stories. And this was her idol. She wrote songs by channeling emotion.
"If I ever felt that wronged, I'd want the whole world to know." That was what Tan Lu thought.
She felt her idol was just too naive. But maybe that was exactly why she adored him so much.
Once the greetings were done, Lan the Chef waited for Teacher Kun to return from the back hill before preparing breakfast. The menu: a local specialty, rice noodles known as er si.
Er si looked a little like rice vermicelli. If you'd never eaten it before, that was a good enough comparison.
Bellies full, the six of them lay on rocking chairs, swaying gently. There was a saying: "Sit in a row, eat melons." Now it was more like "sway in a row." The moment had its own simple beauty.
But beautiful moments never lasted long.
Half an hour later, Lan the Chef snapped everyone back to reality with a job: carry a hundred jin of bananas back to the Mushroom House.
The main labor force was Chu Zhi, Zhou Dakong, and Tan Lu. A hundred jin didn't sound like much split three ways—just over forty jin per person.
But without proper lifting techniques, by the time they got the bananas from the plantation to the house, their shoulders felt like they were falling off.
Tan Lu wasn't very strong, so Chu Zhi and Da Kong took on more of the load. The whole job took over an hour.
"So tired. My love for bananas just dropped dramatically," Zhou Dakong groaned. Chu Zhi and Xiao Mei didn't say anything, but it was obvious they felt the same.
After a break, the clock ticked to around ten. That familiar moment arrived. The phone rang.
Everyone rushed to the living room. Teacher Kun picked up and turned on speakerphone. Everyone leaned in, ears perked. Min Jeongbae confidently said they had nothing to worry about—he was the master of prediction.
"Mushroom House? Is this the Mushroom House? Come in, come in." A deep male voice. He was clearly forcing it lower.
"Mushroom House here. Loud and clear," Teacher Kun answered, playing along.
The man said, "We're placing an order. Grilled chicken wings and steam pot chicken. Message delivered. Over and out."
Lan Wuyi thought the voice sounded oddly familiar. He racked his brain trying to match it, but couldn't. His brow furrowed in confusion.
"How many people?" Teacher Kun asked, still not sure who the caller was.
"Two. Just two." The voice didn't waste any time. Before anyone could ask more, the call disconnected.
Not much to go on.
Who could it be? Teacher Kun turned a questioning look to Min Jeongbae, who had just guaranteed results.
"Too few lines. If they'd said one or two more things, I'd definitely have figured it out," Min Jeongbae said.
Yeah, sure. Who believed that?
"What is steam pot chicken?" Kun Yun saw an opportunity and slipped in a plug. "Xiao Du, Xiao Du, what is steam pot chicken?"
The artificially retarded Xiao Du read out the encyclopedia entry again, and even displayed a photo of the dish on screen.
"Steam pot chicken? That requires special cookware. Are they trying to make things difficult for me?" Lan Wuyi began to wonder how they were supposed to fulfill the guests' request. "Looks like we'll have to borrow one from the neighbors."
"Da Kong, go greet the guests," Kun Yun instructed.
"I'm coming too," Min Jeongbae said, standing up. "I want to see who managed to use a fake voice and still slip past my ears."
Tasks were divided. Chu Zhi and Xiao Mei went to a villager's home to borrow the steam pot. Kun Yun helped Lan the Chef prep ingredients, while Da Kong and Min Jeongbae headed down to the village road to meet the guests.
The nearest neighbor's home wasn't far, just a few hundred meters away by the roadside. It doubled as a tiny convenience shop. They sold cigarettes, drinks, and a few snacks—nothing fancy.
The shopkeeper was a woman in her fifties, with curled hair and a long purple floral dress. She didn't look pleased. Her expression resembled a famous meme: the grumpy cat face.
Asking to borrow something from a stranger was always awkward, especially when you weren't even sure they had it. If they said no, the embarrassment would sting.
Tan Lu often felt the same way even when asking friends for help. She'd blurt out the request, then quickly follow it up with, "But it's totally fine if not, haha."
She was still figuring out how to phrase it properly, wondering how she and Chu Zhi could coordinate the ask.
But before she could say anything, Chu Zhi stepped forward.
"Auntie, hello. We're making steam pot chicken, but we don't have the right cookware. Would you happen to have one? If so, could we rent it from you?"
So direct? Tan Lu was stunned. No small talk? No subtle lead-in like browsing the shelves first and letting the shopkeeper start the conversation?
"Rent? Nonsense, you can borrow it," the woman replied, scanning the two of them with a sharp eye. Her gaze lingered on Chu Zhi for a long moment, and then it seemed to click.
"You're that singer who sang The New Drunken Concubine, aren't you?"
"You've heard my song, Auntie? Did you like it?" Chu Zhi asked.
The woman nodded. "It was good."
"Since you're lending us the steam pot, I'll sing a little something for you." Chu Zhi offered it on his own and launched straight into a few lines from the chorus of The New Drunken Concubine.
🎵 "I am the new noble concubine, drunk on the spring breeze..." 🎵
"Wonderful. Even better than what I heard on TV," she said with a smile.
With the pot secured, the two of them began heading back.
On the walk home, Tan Lu had something on her mind, but wasn't sure how to start.
"Xiao Mei, do you want to tell me something?" Chu Zhi noticed and asked.
"Brother Jiu... it just feels like... you don't see yourself as a celebrity," Tan Lu said. "Just now, I mean, most stars wouldn't offer to sing like that. They wouldn't take the initiative."
"A celebrity... I think of it as just a job," Chu Zhi said. "The spotlight belongs on stage, or in film and TV. It doesn't belong in everyday life among ordinary people."
Their side of things went smoothly. Meanwhile, Min Jeongbae and Zhou Dakong waited beneath a tree at the edge of the village. This episode's guests were quite a surprise.
Before long, two middle-aged men stepped off a tricycle. Both had a refined maturity about them.
From a distance, Da Kong recognized them immediately. The guests were Zhang Xiaodong and Li Cheng.
Li Cheng was a household name in both acting and directing. He was also a highly successful producer.
He founded his own company, Nanfang Lianzhong Media, back in 2003. While it was still a small player compared to the top 20 film and television companies in the mainland, it had never produced a loss-making project.
Li Cheng was best known for his work in spy thrillers, both directing and acting. Many of his pieces were considered masterpieces. Online, fans called him "The Godfather of Espionage Drama."
The other guest, Zhang Xiaodong, was well known for his war films. But not the cliché, over-the-top ones. His work focused on high-quality, patriotic cinema.
"Teacher Zhang, Teacher Li, I really enjoy your films," Zhou Dakong rushed forward to greet them. "I'm Zhou Dakong, but you can just call me Da Kong."
He offered to carry their luggage.
Min Jeongbae already knew the two men and greeted them casually. Though they had never worked together, they were all on friendly terms.
"Bet you didn't expect to see me on this show," Li Cheng said.
"I guessed it was you," Min Jeongbae replied confidently. "I'd recognize your voice anywhere, even if you turned into ashes. That phone call couldn't fool me."
"Ah, but..." Li Cheng grinned. "That call earlier? It was Xiaodong who made it."
Only one person here wasn't embarrassed—and that was Li Cheng. The awkwardness belonged to someone else.
But Min Jeongbae wasn't embarrassed at all. Instead, he turned to Zhang Xiaodong.
"Then why didn't you make the call?"
"?" Zhang Xiaodong blinked.
"..." Li Cheng was speechless.
"Let's go, back to the Mushroom House," Min Jeongbae said.
Da Kong led the way enthusiastically, dragging the suitcase behind him.
With the guests welcomed, it was just about lunchtime.
"Little Jiu just created another tourist attraction by accident," Kun Yun said as he chewed on a chicken wing, tossing out the topic casually.
"That thing with the back hill, right?" Lan Wuyi chimed in, then commented on the food. "The honey-glazed wings are great. Flavor's there, but they were a little overcooked. Just a bit too dry."
"Yeah, it was about that." Kun Yun nodded. "The village chief is thinking about renovating the trail up the back hill."
"The chief's a trendy guy," he added. "He often livestreams to help villagers sell their fruit. Lately, on the Menghan town website, a lot of visitors have been asking if that little hill where Firefly was sung is actually in Manyuan Village."
The moment had gone semi-viral.
Chu Zhi had sung Firefly on that hill. By all logic, it should have been the song that gained traction. Just like other popular variety shows in the past, full of iconic moments, yet none had sparked real-world tourism like this.
Somehow, an ordinary hill had become a fan pilgrimage site. Even Chu Zhi couldn't quite understand how it happened.
"Manyuan Village doesn't really have tourism resources," Lan Wuyi said. "I helped with pre-production. The whole village is just 2.8 square kilometers, with only 80 households and fewer than 500 residents. Of course the village chief wants to seize this opportunity."
Kun Yun nodded. "That's why I only suggested fixing up the path to the back hill. No need to do more than that."
"Wait, so this is the new attraction? Where exactly is it?" Da Kong asked.
Everyone at the table—Zhang Xiaodong, Li Cheng, Xiao Mei—turned to him with puzzled expressions.
===
Hey everyone!
Guess what? My body is completely fine now!
It's been about 2 or 3 days without any foggy brain, laggy thinking, or body aches.
Ha ha ha, finally!
I've made it through all those stacked cosmic events—Sura, lunar eclipse, Earth shifting, Lion's Gate— you name it. (｀∀´)Ψ –
And here's the best part: just yesterday, I translated 100 chapters of The Villainess Refuses to Repent in one single sitting!
Usually after my last update of my condition, I could manage maybe 10-15 chapters at a time or per day for one novel… but now? One hundred chapters in a row! Wow.
Thank you so much for your concern and your prayers. I'm feeling completely healthy and healed again, and I'm super excited to keep going full speed ahead~
Stay tuned for more, and thanks for sticking with me!
— Your happy, fully charged translator, Reiya (ﾉ◕ヮ◕)ﾉ*:･ﾟ✧