"Musheng." The Village Head took out his treasured tea leaves, brewed a cup, and pressed it into Chao Musheng's hands. "Have some tea, have some tea."
Chao Musheng found the cup almost too hot to hold.
"Go on, take a sip."
"Uncle, it's a bit scalding." Steam from the tea wafted over his face as he brushed aside the damp strands of hair clinging to his forehead from the rain. "If you have something to say, just tell me directly."
"It's nothing major." The Village Head picked up a newspaper and fanned the tea to cool it. "It's just that the livestream audience is curious about you. Do you think you could…?"
"Me?" Chao Musheng pointed at himself. "I've never done a livestream before. Wouldn’t I just cause trouble?"
"No trouble at all, no trouble at all." Seeing no objection, the Village Head immediately pulled him in front of the camera. "Here, have some loquats."
The livestream viewership had already surpassed a hundred. Netizens, greeted by the sight of a strikingly handsome young man with slightly tousled hair and delicate features, erupted in excitement.
[!!!]
[Uncle, how could you hide such a perfect sales magnet from us?]
[Sisters, come quick—there’s a hottie!]
The viewer count skyrocketed, jumping from a hundred to two hundred, then surging past three hundred…
"Huh?" Chao Musheng noticed the chaotic stream of virtual gifts flashing on the screen. "Am I a beauty streamer now?"
"Everyone, please don’t send gifts, don’t send gifts." He quickly disabled the gifting function. "Hello everyone, this is an agricultural support livestream. We’re selling locally grown produce from our village."
He skimmed through the product descriptions on the table and began responding to the viewers’ questions.
[Host, you’re so handsome! Are you a full-time streamer?]
"I’m just a student visiting family. Not a professional host."
The Village Head beside him quickly added, "Musheng came back to spend time with his grandparents. He’s not a streamer, nor is he part of our village committee."
[Uncle, you really treat us like family, sharing such a looker with us. Just placed an order for loquats—can the handsome guy chat with us a bit longer?]
Chao Musheng glanced at the sales data—dozens of orders had already been placed.
If left on the trees too long after ripening, the loquats would shrivel, crack, and fall. He needed to sell as many as possible.
"What would you all like to talk about?" He smiled at the camera. "Let me see what you’re saying."
Netizens: !!!
With such a gorgeous face and such a pure smile, who could resist?
Certainly not them.
The Village Head and Village Party Secretary watched the sales climb with dizzying excitement.
They no longer had to worry about the fruit rotting in the fields.
Chao Musheng picked a loquat from the fruit tray, peeled it neatly, and held it up to the camera. "Our village’s loquats are plump, juicy, and naturally sweet. We eat them ourselves—no pesticides. They’ve basked in sunlight and rain, all to meet you in their most perfect form."
[Such slender, beautiful fingers—they look delicious! I mean the loquat!]
The livestream audience kept growing, surpassing five thousand at some point and still climbing.
[The host is so good-looking, and his voice is so soothing. Fine, I’ll buy the loquats!]
"They’re gone." The Village Party Secretary, eyes glued to the sales dashboard, nearly shrieked in excitement. "Folks, we’re sold out of loquats!"
"Thank you all for your kindness and support. Our loquats are completely sold out." Chao Musheng took a sip of his now-cooled tea, his eyes sparkling like stars. "Your help is the real ‘timely rain’ for us—especially on a night like this."
[His eyes are mesmerizing—my heart’s racing just looking at him.]
[Sure, he might look at a dog with the same affection, but he called me a ‘timely rain’!]
Not wanting him to log off, the viewers spammed the chat, urging them to sell something else.
Soon, the village’s peanuts, walnuts, and even handmade crafts found new buyers.
Outside the activity hall, Lone Man crouched in the shadows, chilled to the bone by the night wind.
Even though it was early summer, the breeze carried a biting cold. He glared at Chao Musheng inside, his eyes burning with hatred.
Three hours. He had been waiting here for three whole hours!
When would they finally leave?!
As his health points dwindled, his impatience grew—and so did his loathing for Chao Musheng.
Time dragged on, but the people inside showed no sign of wrapping up.
Eventually, the rain tapered off. Lone Man stared at the faint glow of dawn on the horizon and slowly pushed himself up from the wall.
A dagger materialized in his hand—a prized possession from a prison-themed dungeon.
Its original owner had been a serial killer. Lone Man had helped dismember victims in that dungeon, earning this weapon as a reward for his flawless performance.
Though only rated A-tier, the dagger had one unbeatable skill: Instant Kill.
A single scratch, no matter where, meant certain death.
After ending the livestream, the Village Party Secretary gripped Chao Musheng’s hand tightly. "Musheng, you truly are our village’s hope. Go get some rest—we’ll treat you to a meal tomorrow."
Having pulled an all-nighter, the Village Party Secretary and Village Head were practically glowing with excitement, beaming at Chao Musheng like proud parents.
The Village Head had already flooded the "Chaojiawan Love & Harmony" group chat with endless praise for him, every word brimming with exhilaration.
Not satisfied with just the village chat, he then opened the inter-village committee group and posted a screenshot of their sales figures.
[Village Head of Wangjiagou: ?]
[Village Head of Anzhouzhai: ?]
[Village Head of Guozigou: Did Chaojiawan fake their online sales?]
[Village Head of Chaojiawan: Oops, wrong group. Can’t retract after two minutes—my bad, my bad.]
[Village Head of Chaojiawan: @Village Head of Guozigou It’s all thanks to the viewers’ enthusiasm. Faking sales is fraud—we’d never do that.]
[Village Head of Chaojiawan: With so many orders, any tips on how to pack them all quickly?]
The other village heads chose silence, thoroughly annoyed by the spam.
Yawning, Chao Musheng headed for the door but remembered his grandfather’s thermos and doubled back to fetch it.
Lone Man’s strike missed. He watched Chao Musheng turn around abruptly, his gaze seething with murderous intent.
"Musheng, wait." The Village Party Secretary stopped him, wrapping half a bag of tea leaves in newspaper and tucking it into his arms. "Your grandpa loves this tea—take it for him."
"Thanks, Uncle." Too drowsy to care what was handed to him, Chao Musheng turned and walked out again.
At the doorway, the chilly morning wind hit him full force, making him recoil. "Ugh, the temperature really dropped last night. This wind is freezing."
"Here, take my coat." The Village Party Secretary, unwilling to let the village’s hero catch a cold, called him back once more and draped a jacket over his shoulders. "My son bought this for me—haven’t even worn it yet."
"Oh ho, it’s a brand name too." The Village Head of Wangjiagou noticed the tag still attached to the jacket. "This isn’t cheap—your son really spared no expense for you."
Chao Musheng recognized the brand as well—Dinosaur Men’s Wear. A while back, its overly flashy ads had earned it the online nickname "The One and Only Brand to Withstand an Army of Thousands."
But this was a gift from his child, a token of filial piety. Chao Musheng felt too embarrassed to wear it.
"What’s the harm in wearing it for a bit?" The Village Party Secretary stopped Chao Musheng from taking it off. "You’ll be heading back to school in a couple of days—can’t afford to catch a cold."
"Then I’ll return it to you this afternoon." Unable to refuse the Village Party Secretary’s kindness, Chao Musheng reluctantly kept on the jacket—the same one advertised as capable of deflecting falling meteors—and stepped outside.
As soon as Chao Musheng left, Lone Man followed silently behind him, his face expressionless. When they reached a secluded corner, Lone Man raised his dagger and stabbed viciously at Chao Musheng’s back.
The moment the blade made contact, an immense force repelled Lone Man, sending him flying backward.
A breeze rustled through the grass. Chao Musheng paused and glanced over his shoulder.
Had something just brushed against his back? Maybe he was just too tired and imagining things.
"Woof! Woof! Woof!"
A chubby little yellow dog burst out of the grass, circled Chao Musheng’s feet a few times, wagged its tail, and then dove back into the undergrowth, sniffing and digging around.
"Da Huang, how’d you sneak out of Sister Ling’s house again?" Chao Musheng plucked the dog from the grass. "Come on, I’ll take you back."
"Whimper, whimper." Da Huang tried to nuzzle into Chao Musheng’s arms but was promptly held at arm’s length. "No dirtying the new clothes."
Lone Man lay sprawled on the ground, watching helplessly as the man and dog walked away. His face, scratched up by the dog, was twisted with despair and hatred.
Why… why couldn’t the dagger hurt Chao Musheng?
[Player Poison Man has been attacked. Due to the negative effects of Canine Toxin, HP is continuously decreasing.]
[Warning: Your HP has fallen below 10. Please complete the dungeon mission as soon as possible to exit promptly.]
A dewdrop slid off a leaf and landed on Lone Man’s face.
He remembered the conversation between the elderly couple beside Chao Musheng yesterday at noon.
"Precious… precious…"
Chao Musheng…
They’d all been fooled by the dungeon. Maybe Chao Musheng was the real oss of this scenario!
[Warning: Your HP has fallen below 5. Please complete the dungeon mission immediately to exit.]
[Ding!]
[Player Poison Man’s HP has reached zero. Player has been erased by the dungeon. Remaining players, proceed with caution and cherish your lives.]
Poison Man?
The other players, jolted awake by the system alert, broke out in a cold sweat. They’d been in the same dungeon as the infamous Poison Man?!
Poison Man was a notorious killer. For the sake of mission rewards, he would slaughter every other player in the same dungeon. His reputation among players was vile.
And yet, even Poison Man had died so effortlessly in this dungeon. How were they supposed to find a way to clear it?
"Stay in the yard and don’t run off again," Chao Musheng scolded as he shut Da Huang inside Sister Ling’s courtyard. "Or I’ll break your legs."
"Woof… whine." Da Huang wagged its tail pitifully. Seeing Chao Musheng unmoved, it sulkily slunk back into its doghouse.
Satisfied, Chao Musheng turned to leave. On his way home, he ran into two tourists out for a stroll. Having just helped the village sell fruit, he was in high spirits and greeted them warmly. "Good morning."
"Good morning." Fatty noticed the rain boots on Chao Musheng’s feet. "Out for a walk too, handsome?"
"No, I just came back from the activity room." Chao Musheng smiled brightly, his gaze disarmingly friendly.
Activity room…
Fatty stiffened. That was the direction Poison Man had sneaked off to last night.
Fatty stared intently at the space above Chao Musheng’s head—still no affinity indicator, no key NPC marker.
The sun had risen, yet an icy dread seeped into him from all sides.
"What are you looking at?" Chao Musheng asked. "Is there something strange on my head?"
He was so tired. All he wanted was to sleep.
When their eyes met, Fatty realized—Chao Musheng’s pupils were unnervingly dark, like bottomless abysses.
Chao Musheng: Don’t spread rumors. Don’t believe rumors. I’m just sleepy and want to nap!
