"Ah Fei, wake up."
In the warm yet dimly lit room with two layers of thick curtains, he was calling softly with his head down.
"What?" Half a face peeked out from under the covers, eyes still sleepy. "What time is it?"
It's seven o'clock.
"So early."
The person in the blanket reached out, grabbed Saman's collar, and dragged him back into the warm blanket, leaning against him, wanting to take a nap: "Sleep with me for a while this weekend."
Samantha lay on the bed, one elbow resting on the soft mattress, the other holding his still-sleepy and extra-soft lover. If he hadn't been preoccupied with other matters, he would have already agreed.
Taking a nap after waking up is truly a blessing.
Ren Yifei closed his eyes, stretched his neck to sniff him, found the best spot, and reached out to hug him, looking like he was about to fall asleep.
It was only after living together for a year that Samantha discovered that Ah Fei suffered from skin hunger, and that hugs made him feel at ease. Although Samantha himself did not have this desire, he also enjoyed the sense of satisfaction that hugs brought him.
"Wake up, the production crew is here."
Ren Yifei had been covering his head with the blanket, thinking, "I'm not listening, this is just nonsense," but the second half of the sentence woke him up.
"The production crew? So early?"
"I didn't expect that either," Samantha said with a smile, leaning in to give her a good morning kiss. "Good boy, get up."
The program they were referring to was a rural variety show where participants would visit each other's homes.
Because it was a new program, in order to make a splash, they had to find a heavyweight guest for the first time, so they chose Ren Yifei, who had never participated in variety shows.
"Teacher Ren can bring her friends to participate."
Ren Yifei initially disagreed; he was stubborn and unyielding, and even the capital couldn't do anything about him.
However, the production team pulled out their trump card – this is a travel variety show with official backing and a public welfare purpose, which will not harass the guests, will not set up games, and will provide three meals and accommodation.
So, with so many rural variety shows on the market, what makes their production teams stand out?
According to the production team, the purpose of their show is not to torture the guests, but to bring traffic to a certain impoverished mountainous area. It would be even better if the guests could find one or two highlights for the village in the process.
Basically, the villages chosen by the program team are those that have achieved considerable success in poverty alleviation.
Despite their poverty, these villages each possess unique characteristics, whether it's the abundance of a particular ingredient or product, or the stunning scenery. They all have great potential, but simply lack attention.
This variety show is just trying to bring some traffic to the villages. Their focus has never been on the guests or the money, but on the villages themselves.
After listening, Ren Yifei felt that if the guests weren't tortured and games weren't arranged, and everything was left to the guests to improvise, this variety show wouldn't be a hit.
So he agreed to this job with the idea of helping the poor in mind, and he didn't even ask for an appearance fee.
And since there's no chance of anything happening recently, this is practically a paid trip. I can bring my family and up to ten friends, and it includes three meals and accommodation, which is a great deal.
After he took on the variety show, the wealthy Boss Lin immediately increased his sponsorship, but did not ask for improvements to the guests' living conditions, as neither he nor Afei needed such things.
He chose to provide the production team with their company's latest wristband-style live-streaming fly.
That's right, it's the one from Saman's original world.
His gaming company has recently been dabbling in tech products, and the live-streaming fly is just one example. Others include exoskeletons to help disabled people with missing or diseased body parts resume normal life, and special fireproof and heat-insulating materials for firefighters.
If it weren't for Saman still working hard to restore the horror game of the desolate corner, Ren Yifei would have thought he had changed careers and stopped being a small game merchant.
Ren Yifei reluctantly got up and went to the bathroom to wash up. When he came out, the messy bed had been tidied up, and even the clothes he was supposed to wear had been taken out of the closet, still carrying a faint sweet scent of pineapple.
He quickly changed his clothes—a white T-shirt, jeans, and white shoes—exactly the same as what Saman was wearing, casual and youthful, making him look a few years younger.
Ren Yifei's hair was short and fluffy right now, sticking up everywhere without any styling. He often couldn't understand why his hair, which was straight and smooth when it was long, became so unruly and rebellious when it was short.
"Want some mousse?" Saman asked, pulling out a bottle of styling spray.
"Forget it, I heard the village we're going to isn't well-off either, what's the point of all this? I don't make a living off my looks. By the way, are Shanchuan and the others here too?"
Now fully awake, Ren Yifei was no longer limp from his half-asleep state; his mind was as calm as his face. He remembered that he had invited his friends from the desolate corner, as well as Crane Lord and Peacock.
The show's producers originally intended for him to bring some friends from the entertainment industry, but Ren Yifei doesn't do those superficial things; if they're friends, they're definitely real friends.
Oh, the peacock was just a side effect, because it was too bothersome.
"There's still half an hour until our agreed time, it'll be soon, right?" Thinking of those guys who came to drop by every now and then, a vein throbbed on Saman's forehead.
Fortunately, I didn't bring that evil god friend along, otherwise, if the two of them started talking, he, as a human, would have been completely out of the picture. Although, this kind of program wouldn't allow such a colossal being with built-in mental-disrupting effects to appear.
"let's go."
The bedroom door opened, and a movie star with a bare face and tousled hair walked out. Approaching thirty, he looked like a college student in his outfit. People in the entertainment industry age gracefully, but Ren Yifei's youthful energy was the most natural.
Samantha brought tea and snacks from the kitchen, much to everyone's surprise and delight.
Ren Yifei also spotted the familiar livestreaming fly. He smiled and waved to the program crew and the livestreaming fly, saying, "Good morning, sorry I overslept."
"No, we're just too early," the production crew quickly explained.
They were all very grateful to Ren Yifei for joining the team without any compensation despite no one having any faith in him, and for bringing along an excellent sponsor who only provided financial support without saying a word.
"Ding-dong." The doorbell rang, and two blurry figures appeared on the video remote control on the wall. Ren Yifei walked over and pressed the start button, saying to the production crew, "My friends are here. Hmm... they're a bit special."
The crew members found it strange that the Best Actor said his friend was a bit special. What was so special about him?
Ren Yifei didn't want to say more: "You'll find out later."
No sooner had he finished speaking than the door opened, and two men entered through the entrance hall.
The crew members peeked out, equally curious about what the actor's ordinary friends, whose private life was previously unknown, were like. They glanced at him, their eyes widening, unable to look away.
For the first time, they felt the true meaning of otherworldly elegance from a man dressed in a modern black suit; they felt that even glancing at him would be a desecration.
But then, this person nodded at them.
The immortals suddenly descended to earth, and the staff's hearts were like fireworks soaring into the sky, exploding one after another.
Beside this man was a young master with five different colored highlights in his hair, exuding an air of wealth. Although he was strikingly handsome and had multicolored hair, the young master's aura completely suppressed any ostentation.
Even though he was wearing a shirt and casual pants with no discernible brand, the staff were certain: this must be a high-end custom order, and this person must be from a wealthy family.
"My friends, Crane Lord and Peacock." Ren Yifei turned to look at them and asked, "Have you had breakfast? Want to eat together?"
"What time is it? You haven't eaten yet." Peacock walked over casually and chatted directly with the production crew. "Is this the person who invited us to travel around? We'll be troubling you all for the next few days."
The young master's appearance and aura were exceptionally captivating, making the staff blush and repeatedly say, "You're welcome."
As for He Jun, the staff member neither dared to look at him too much, yet couldn't help but look at him too much, sneaking around shyly, just like a little fan who had met her idol.
"Tch." The peacock blocked their view of Crane Lord, its expression fierce.
"Huh?" The staff member looked enlightened: "Oh, I see, another couple?"
As soon as they arrived, everyone in the room became more reserved and mindful of their appearance, except for Ren Yifei and his companion. They had already started eating their breakfast.
The bread just needed to be steamed after being taken out of the refrigerator. Samantha went to the milk box by the door and got the pasteurized milk that had just been delivered that day, then heated it up a little after opening the lid. Ren Yifei was in charge of getting the bowls and chopsticks, as well as crushing the shells of the hard-boiled eggs and peeling them.
Their breakfasts are very simple, but nutritious.
This wasn't the first time He Jun and his companion had come to this world, but each time they found it magical. This era, where everyone could eat their fill and stay warm, was the most beautiful thing that ancient humans could imagine.
A small fly that was flying around in the room flew close to He Jun. He Jun stretched out his hand, and the fly obediently landed on his palm.
"What is this?" He rolled the little thing with his fingertips, unaware that the audience on the other side were also blushing and rolling around in a ball on the bed.
The audience was completely captivated by this naturally beautiful woman: "That little devil from the official team, they actually resorted to such despicable tactics—a honey trap! Okay, I accept it, I admit I'm a bit out of control. Within ten minutes, I need to know He Jun's zodiac sign, constellation, blood type, and measurements. Don't force me to kneel down and beg you!"
However, even the official representatives were completely bewildered, experiencing a sense of surprise, like getting a genuine product for free with a buy-one-get-one-free offer.
No, no, it's not buy one get one free, it's buy one get three free! That young man with the swagger of a spoiled rich kid and that domestic CEO have clearly attracted a lot of viewers. Didn't you see all the little flies on the live stream shunning the staff and focusing on these few guests?
They could all imagine how the audience felt at that moment: they wished they had only one pair of eyes so they could see all the beautiful faces in the room at the same time.
"Ding-dong." Just then, the doorbell rang again, and several black heads appeared on the video remote control on the wall—from a top-down perspective, all you could see were heads.
Samantha stood up, pressed the switch, and casually said, "Coming."
Ren Yifei swallowed the milk in his mouth: "These are some of my other friends, they're a bit special, I'll introduce them to you in a bit."
The staff member nodded and said okay. He thought to himself, surely there won't be another beauty overload; he can handle it.
The door opened, and five employees from the desolate corner appeared, dressed in their own clothes. Each of them was tall and had long legs, with outstanding temperament, like spring flowers and autumn moon, summer lotus and winter snow. It was as if the most outstanding beauties of each type had walked in front of them, and the light in the room suddenly became a little dazzling.
The staff held their breath for a moment, suddenly feeling a sense of unreality, as if they thought, "Is this something I can see without spending any money?"
"Teacher Ren, when you say 'special,' do you mean 'especially beautiful'?"