Chapter 12: The Show Officially Begins—How to Get By Is the Real Challenge

"Now, may I ask all our guests to log in and authenticate your software accounts for registration by the production team."

It was just as Ji Ya had suspected. The show started with product placement right away, assigning each person a brand-new smartphone from Huashang—so-called "miles ahead of the rest."

What astonished Lin Yu was that the production team had thoughtfully pre-installed the same online game on every phone.

"Before the program began, we conducted a survey and found that everyone unanimously chose to play 'Arthur's Glory.' To foster interaction among the guests, we've downloaded the game onto each phone. In your free time, we encourage you to play together. Of course, this won't affect the elimination process. But please remember: friendship first, competition second—let's avoid any unpleasantness because of the game."

Lin Yu couldn't help but laugh. The production team certainly had their hearts in the right place. But how could anyone play this game and not go a little mad? When all your teammates have died, the retreat key is practically worn out. You always run into those overconfident fools who insist on taking on five opponents alone, and then blame their team when they die. Or the single-minded ones who spend the whole match chasing the enemy, completely ignoring their own team.

Given all this, Lin Yu genuinely doubted whether such a game would bring people closer together—or just speed up the process of elimination.

After all, the status gap between celebrities could be vast. If someone got carried away during a game and accidentally said something offensive, wouldn't they be torn apart by the other's fans? In that case, quitting the show might not even be a choice for a newcomer.

So, really, this rule was still connected to elimination.

Though these thoughts circled in his mind, Lin Yu didn't show any of it. He was simply too hungry now—he just wanted to deal with dinner as quickly as possible. He was prepared for this. Since the show didn’t provide dinner, he headed upstairs to fetch the instant noodles he’d brought with him.

The two goddesses from Ji Fei’s company, upon seeing Lin Yu take out his noodles, instantly realized one thing: this guy truly had no intention of looking after them at all. Not only was he eating instant noodles by himself, but he hadn’t even bothered to ask them if they wanted any!

The two women were fuming, though they kept their smiles for the cameras. As a man, did he have not the slightest bit of gentlemanly grace?

"Lin Yu, did you forget something?" Ji Ya had originally planned to turn a blind eye.

All the while, she kept telling herself—it’s just a bowl of instant noodles. As the heiress who grew up with a silver spoon, she must maintain her noble, aloof demeanor. But as the aroma of beef wafted through the air, mingling with the sound of Lin Yu slurping his noodles, she could no longer remain composed. Her sudden outburst startled Lin Yu so much that he nearly dropped his bowl.

He instinctively turned to the two women. Oh—his mistake. How could he forget these two ladies?

"If you want some, just say so," he replied. "If you don't tell me, how am I supposed to know you want it?"

The staff: ...

Director Lin: ...

Just look at him. Lin Yu’s clueless and cheeky remark really made it seem he was tired of living.

Meanwhile, in the livestream chat:

"Honestly, is this just the three of them starving together?"
"What a man! Women only slow down his sword-drawing speed!"
"Wait, I thought everyone would bash him for being insensitive, but you all like his honesty? Well, hands off, I’m already at the registry office!"
"But seriously, such high-calorie food—don’t celebrities care about their figures?"
"Yeah, instant noodles… Hmm… Suddenly I understand why that one star tweeted about how hard the job is. If you can’t cook, all you can eat is instant noodles!"
"Can’t they just order delivery? Guess they really are in the middle of nowhere…"
"I strongly suspect this is staged, or product placement—the way this is going, it’s just an ad!"
"Doesn’t seem likely. The guy’s noodle-eating technique and the way his eyes light up—he looks genuinely hungry."
"My goddess is being fed junk food—does he have a death wish?"

Most people believed that Ji Ya, the owner of Ji Fei Agency and heiress worth over ten billion, would never eat instant noodles. But they didn’t know that, for all her feigned indifference, what Ji Ya really wanted right now was to snatch that bowl and finally taste the legendary deliciousness of instant noodles—a treat she’d never tried, growing up as a pampered heiress.

But her impulse was overtaken by reason. In the end, she quietly swallowed her saliva, turned her head away as if nothing had happened, and continued watching a gourmet TV show.

Still, she couldn’t help sneaking glances at Lin Yu, who was eating so heartily. So…what did it taste like? She wanted some, desperately.

Since the two goddesses had declined his offer, Lin Yu felt free to continue eating without restraint. The slurping sounds he made were, in his mind, the highest respect he could pay to the noodles.

The two goddesses, both starving, were now utterly distracted. It was the kind of thing where, even as you pretend not to care about temptation, it’s impossible to ignore when it’s right under your nose.

Lin Yu was truly enjoying himself. The noodles were springy, the beef flavor rich. Even though he’d eaten them nearly every day in his previous life, some things never got old—especially when you were starving and broke. Instant noodles were a lifesaver: cheap and delicious.

Watching him eat with such relish, the two women, who had never tasted instant noodles, couldn’t help but keep swallowing. What magical spices gave off such a heavenly aroma? And how sophisticated must the process be to produce such a mouthwatering dish?

While Lin Yu was eating at his leisure, he noticed the two women heading into the open kitchen.

"Boss, shall we try hotpot?"

The ingredients left behind by the production team were all scraps and odds and ends. Neither woman could cook, so throwing everything into one pot seemed the simplest method. Hotpot is the easiest way to cook—if the soup base is right, anything tastes good.

The problem was, the two heiresses didn’t know that the hotpot base needed to be sautéed with oil first. Instead, they simply boiled water, threw in the base, and then dumped in all the ingredients haphazardly.

Shortly after Lin Yu finished his last bite of noodles, a strange smell began drifting from the kitchen. He went over to have a look.

Good grief.

Were they making pig slop? Everything had been tossed in at random—the hotpot base undissolved, chunks of it and some grapefruit floating on top. Some vegetables hadn’t even been washed, so flecks of dirt clung to the oily surface, and white scum from unwashed meat drifted through the broth.