Chapter 5

When Qin Ye’s face appeared on the screen, the live chat froze for a moment.

Long after, someone asked with uncertainty: [This person seems to have Qin Ye’s face (shocked.jpg)]

[Holy crap, am I seeing things? Is that Qin Ye? Is that the award-winning actor Qin Ye? Is that President Qin? Is that my "white moonlight" who retired from the industry so early?]

[I came here based on his reputation, and I’m stunned. It really is a massive surprise!]

[I was wondering what kind of big shot would lead Director Sun to buy a trending search spot, and the official "How You Act" Weibo account kept teasing that the sixth guest would be a huge surprise. I didn't believe it, so I came, but now I’m completely convinced.]

[I’m bowing down. Director Sun—oh, wait, I mean, Director Sun is amazing! How did he manage to get Qin Ye?!]

[Is this the first variety show Qin Ye has ever done since his debut?]

[You’re wrong, the person above. It’s not just since his debut; it’s since his debut and retirement.]

[Silence. I almost forgot Qin Ye had retired, sob.]

[Wait, when did Qin Ye ever say he retired? He just said he had no plans to take on any roles for the time being, right?]

[ "For the time being"... it’s been over three years, going on four. That’s a pretty long "time being."]

Qin Ye, a legendary figure in the entertainment industry. He entered the industry at twenty-two, and with just a few photos, he went viral across the internet, praised for his god-like beauty. In four years, he starred in only three films, yet he swept the "Three Golds" awards for Best Actor—a feat unprecedented and likely never to be repeated.

At the time, everyone was discussing whether Qin Ye was the legendary "star" of the entertainment world. Then, right after accepting his Best Actor trophy, Qin Ye casually mentioned he was retiring. The scene was in an uproar; fans were stunned and caused a massive commotion on his Weibo, with some irrational young fans even threatening to drop out of school or commit suicide. Qin Ye, feeling helpless, clarified on Weibo that he just had "no plans" to take on new roles for the time being. Then, he vanished completely into the ebb and flow of the entertainment world's noise.

The next time netizens saw him on the public web was in a business magazine. That was when everyone learned that Qin Ye was the only son of the Qin Group’s chairman, and he had gone home to inherit the family business.

Then, in just over three years, netizens saw Qin Ye’s name in an unexpected place: Qin Ye’s personal wealth had landed him in the Forbes Top 10. Before and after his name were a list of household-name tycoons. And yet, Qin Ye was only twenty-nine this year. Perhaps due to the dual boost of his entertainment popularity and his status as a billionaire, Qin Ye was even selected for the list of the "100 Most Handsome Faces in the World" last year. With all these halos surrounding him, no one dared to look at him like an ordinary celebrity anymore.

Yet today, everyone saw the long-absent Qin Ye on the live stream of the variety show *What Kind of Person Are You*.

Sun Xinping watched the explosion of discussion in the live chat with a smile, checking the comments and the trending searches back and forth. Xiao Li stood by, reporting in real-time: "Director, the number of viewers has increased by one million!"

"Three million!"

"Five million!"

"Ten million!"

The numbers kept climbing; Qin Ye’s drawing power was terrifying. Sun Xinping stroked his non-existent beard with satisfaction. "As expected of my second trump card. With Qin Ye here, it’s hard for this season not to be a hit."

If the traffic brought by He Erwang earlier had surprised him, he was not at all surprised by the even greater traffic brought by Qin Ye. After all, when Qin Ye was in the industry, he was a top-tier actor with real substance. Most importantly, he retreated at the height of his career, becoming a "white moonlight" for countless people. He was also a business tycoon, capable of attracting netizens who weren't interested in entertainment but were curious about the private lives of billionaire moguls. Plus, this was his first variety show. Qin Ye wasn't a god descending from a mountain; he was someone people had always looked up toward.

With all these gimmicks, *What Kind of Person Are You* was guaranteed to rake in a fortune. Moreover, Qin Ye was truly worth liking. Sun Xinping couldn't help but sigh that he had been incredibly lucky to land such a big shot. Although, there were special reasons why this big shot "agreed" to participate.

Looking at the scene, among so many guests, Shen Jinfeng’s initial persona was that of a team leader, so dividing the food was fine. Of course, even he hadn't expected his "selfless" persona to be so effective that Shen Jinfeng would actually be willing to distribute all the food. But the other guests, who were in the same physical state, didn't hesitate to accept their shares. Only Qin Ye refused, insisting on giving half of his portion to Shen Jinfeng!

Clearly, the others were stunned by this scene. He Erwang had already torn open the package and taken a big bite of a compressed biscuit; seeing the back-and-forth between Qin Ye and Shen Jinfeng, his mouth stopped moving. He looked at the empty-handed Shen Jinfeng, then at the larger half of the bread Qin Ye was handing over, and finally at the large chunk of biscuit remaining in his own hand. After hesitating for only two seconds, he broke off half of his own biscuit and handed it to Shen Jinfeng. His voice was muffled by the food still in his mouth: "Boss, I’m so hungry... take half. I’ll give you this half so you can have it with the bread for a change of taste."

The live chat was shocked.

[This is a development I never expected. Shen Jinfeng gives away all his food, Qin Ye refuses to accept it out of consideration for others, and Qin Ye had noticed early on that Shen Jinfeng only had five portions of food but didn't stop him from sharing; he only chose to give up his own share when it was his turn. And then their selfless behavior moved He Erwang to share his food too!]

[Holy crap, He Erwang’s "willing to help others" persona wasn't just for show. The way he looked at that biscuit was like he was looking at a lover, and he was the first to step up and show support.]

[It’s all thanks to Qin Ye’s leadership!!!]

[First time seeing such a harmonious team on "How You Act." It looks like the others are going to give up their food too.]

True to the chat's prediction, seeing the actions of Qin Ye and He Erwang, Qi Xiu followed suit and shared his half of the bread. "Boss, this is a different flavor of bread."

Shen Jinfeng: "..."

Mo Fan followed suit, breaking off half his compressed biscuit. Seeing Shen Jinfeng wouldn't take it, he found a perfect excuse. "We don't know how long we'll be on this deserted island; we need to ration our food."

Finally, only Gu Shengsheng remained. He was clutching his own compressed biscuit, not having taken a single bite yet, and had already broken it into two halves. Seeing everyone’s gaze fixed on him, Gu Shengsheng hesitated, his expression conflicted: "I’m so hungry, half a biscuit won’t fill me up."

Mo Fan frowned deeply. "We were all washed up on this island together. Are you the only one who’s hungry?" His tone was a bit aggressive, and Gu Shengsheng was startled, but he quickly steadied himself. "This was given to me by Shen Jinfeng. He hasn't said anything, so why are you?"

Shen Jinfeng spoke up at the right moment: "No need to give it to me. One biscuit won't be enough to fill you up; you should eat it first."

Before Gu Shengsheng could nod, He Erwang disagreed. "But the initial distribution was unfair. It was divided among us five, and the Boss has nothing left. Now, each of us is giving up half so the Boss can get full first. The rest can be re-distributed." When he said the first "Boss," he sounded awkward, but after saying it a few times, it started to sound natural.

Gu Shengsheng felt there was some logic to it, but he couldn't help but feel that giving away the biscuit he already had in hand was too big a loss. The situation reached a stalemate. The netizens watching the live stream were stunned again by the turn of events.

[Just when it looked like there would be a harmonious and selfless conclusion, a troublemaker like Gu Shengsheng had to show up.]

[I can only say, it’s just like him.]

[He can be ungrateful to the mentor who discovered him, so why expect him to be grateful to a team leader?]

[But Gu Shengsheng’s initial persona is selfish and self-interested, so his behavior isn't out of character. I advise some people not to stand on a moral high ground and criticize him—ask yourself what you would do in this situation first.]

[Gu Shengsheng’s persona is damn accurate, but... have you all forgotten what Mo Fan’s persona is?]

Mo Fan’s persona? A bit hot-tempered? Ready to fight if he sees something he doesn't like? Damn!

Sure enough, on the screen, Mo Fan looked at Gu Shengsheng with utter impatience. After a brief tug-of-war, he angrily snatched the half-biscuit from Gu Shengsheng’s hand and stuffed it back into the packaging.

[!!! What is Mo Fan doing?]

[Damn, he really just starts a fight if he’s unhappy! He’s not going to hit Gu Shengsheng, is he?]

[Wait, this doesn't seem to warrant a fight, right?! This is too scary!]

Just as the live chat was filled with shock and speculation, Mo Fan, under Gu Shengsheng’s startled gaze, made another move—he broke his own biscuit into two halves again. "Here!" He said, his attitude not exactly friendly as he handed half to Gu Shengsheng. "If you’re not full, I’ll give you half of mine. You selfish brat, I promise you, on this deserted island, as long as I have a bite to eat, you’ll have your half."

Gu Shengsheng stared at him blankly, the other half of the biscuit in his hand falling to the ground in fright.

[??? What just happened? Is there something wrong with my ears?]

[Mo Fan looked like he was about to start a fight, I even closed my eyes and couldn't bear to look, and then he... he... he just... stopped?]

[Who gets it? I’m actually starting to ship them (sorry, I’m toxic, I’ll see myself out).]

[Is this him being unhappy? Is this what they call a hot temper?]

[It really is... he couldn't stand Gu Shengsheng’s behavior, so he snatched the biscuit back for Shen Jinfeng, but then gave away his own half.]

[Wait, what is the logic behind his behavior?]

On the screen, Mo Fan said viciously: "Don't let me see you being this selfish again."

[...]

[Showoff.]

Even Shen Jinfeng hadn't expected this development. His lips twitched, and he finally spoke up: "Stop being so modest."

"Do you think I'm a fool? That I'd let myself starve to death just to feed you?"

This was the first time he had encountered such a group of foolish teammates, or rather, he had rarely had teammates before. These people were nearly starving, yet they were still agonizing over how much to eat and how much to share—foolish to the point of being adorable.

He thought for a moment and added, "I was the first one to wake up."

The others breathed a sigh of relief, assuming this meant Shen Jinfeng had already eaten. After the earlier "modesty," they were truly starving to the point of lightheadedness. Now that the mental burden was lifted, they all started eating obediently.

Shen Jinfeng watched for a moment, then stood up, preparing to head toward the beach. After walking a few steps, he realized Qin Ye hadn't eaten and was actually following him.

?

Seeing him stop, Qin Ye tilted his head in confusion: "What's wrong?"

Shen Jinfeng pointed to the bread that had been put back into the packaging: "You're not eating?"

Qin Ye shook his head. The deserted island was filled with dangers, and food was precious. While they still had energy, it was better to see what else they could find to eat. "I’ll save the bread for later."

Shen Jinfeng’s expression was a bit strange as he looked away: "Oh."

What did "save it for later" mean? Was he worried that Shen Jinfeng wouldn't find food, so he wanted to have some in reserve to share?