"Th-thank you."
Zhou Niannian got up from the ground, her limbs feeling weak, but seeing the other person's frail state, she forced herself to stand.
She quickly wiped away her tears, wanting to pretend nothing had happened.
But the violent hiccups almost made her want to burrow into the ground.
So embarrassing!
She had boasted about going out to find herbs, only to get lost in the forest and require Jiang Fan to come looking for her.
This was simply, simply...
Zhou Niannian hiccuped and blushed with shame.
However, the sense of loneliness from before seemed to cling to her. If she were to be truly separated from Jiang Fan now, she couldn't bear it.
Biting her lower lip, Zhou Niannian forced herself to put the matter aside.
Jiang Fan saw that she seemed to have calmed down, but her hiccups sounded both pitiful and amusing, and a faint smile appeared on his face.
This smile brought a throbbing pain to his head and a strange sensation in his throat, leading to a violent coughing fit.
"Cough, cough, cough... cough, cough—"
His constitution was already weaker than average, and a cold required proper rest.
But he had no time to rest at all.
If Zhou Niannian hadn't been gone for so long, Jiang Fan would never have come out to search for her.
He had caught a chill while looking for her, and now he felt like he was coughing up blood.
This coughing fit dispelled Zhou Niannian's grievances and despair. She quickly checked on Jiang Fan's condition, then remembered the herbs she was holding.
"This! I've collected the herbs. I'll boil some medicine for you first."
"I'm sorry."
Zhou Niannian tried to help Jiang Fan up, but he held her back.
After leaning against a tree and coughing for a while, he finally recovered.
Due to the severe coughing, his complexion was now ruddy, making him look much better than before.
He nodded at Zhou Niannian.
"Let's go."
"Wait, I'll lead the way."
Seeing him like this, it was clear he would have trouble walking. Zhou Niannian could no longer just follow.
Despite getting lost, she hadn't given up on becoming someone capable.
She absolutely couldn't be a burden!
With renewed determination, Zhou Niannian gripped her military knife, pursed her lips, her heart pounding.
"Tell me which way to go, and I'll lead."
Her demeanor was entirely different from the easily angered woman of the day before.
Even though this was just a competition, something felt different to her.
Jiang Fan merely looked at her with surprise, then nodded and pointed in a direction.
"Then, that way."
"Okay!"
Zhou Niannian encouraged herself inwardly, holding her military knife and recalling how Jiang Fan had led the way before.
Not haphazardly hacking, but with purpose, clearing a path to the side.
Every step had to be firm and steady, and her mind had to be clear.
While moving forward, she also had to pay attention to recognizable landmarks around her to orient herself.
She tried her best to emulate Jiang Fan's actions, her pathfinding moves looking quite professional.
After walking some distance, Zhou Niannian breathed a sigh of relief.
Her panicked heart slowly calmed down, and she felt more confident.
Just as she thought this, she noticed that Jiang Fan behind her wasn't keeping up immediately, which worried her.
"Jiang Fan, are you there?"
Jiang Fan's voice came from behind a thicket of bushes.
"You've gone off course."
"..."
Zhou Niannian choked for a moment, then took several deep breaths.
Don't be upset, don't be upset.
Her poor sense of direction had been evident from the start. It was okay to be directionally challenged.
She could just correct her course.
Despite telling herself this, she couldn't suppress her annoyance.
Zhou Niannian, puffing up like a pufferfish, headed towards Jiang Fan.
Just as she was about to bypass him and move straight ahead, she was called back again.
She turned her head and saw Jiang Fan suppressing a smile, pointing to his side.
"This way."
"Aaaargh!!!"
Like a cat that had been thoroughly provoked, she bristled, glaring at him with her military knife for a moment.
Nothing happened.
But she felt much better inside.
Zhou Niannian walked towards Jiang Fan expressionlessly, appearing reliable.
"Let's go."
Watching Zhou Niannian's retreating figure, a glint flickered in Jiang Fan's eyes.
It was like a star rising slowly, then sinking into a calm lake.
On the surface, there was no ripple.
He didn't mock Zhou Niannian aloud.
But the live stream was almost exploding with laughter from their interactions.
Zhou Niannian was unaware that ever since she was rescued, they had been switched to the main live stream.
Tens of millions of people had witnessed her getting lost and then getting worked up by herself.
"Hahaha, isn't this Sister Zhou, who never breaks down no matter what game she plays? She's fallen so hard after only a few days?"
"The person above, you're making me laugh so hard. People with no sense of direction are truly unsuited for the jungle. She's going to be the death of me."
"Brother Jiang's quiet smile is so cool! Can I get a teammate like this, strong and silent? I want one too!"
"Strong and silent? Isn't that Brother Wang?"
"??? Did the person above mean that? A streamer who morally blackmails and acts condescendingly, failing to bully Sister Zhou, and now trying to ride her coattails?! Have some shame!"
"Words are cheap. He only took some of their surplus supplies with Sister Zhou's permission. You guys saying that is going too far, isn't it?"
The main live stream was a mix of people.
Fans from various camps were present.
Naturally, Wang Jun, whom Jiang Fan had disciplined before, also had many fans.
But seeing them, fans from all camps felt disgusted.
Especially Lin Yang and Zhou Ye, Zhou Niannian's fans, who found Wang Jun repulsive.
"Are these fans brains scrambled? They have to drag Wang Jun into everything. Don't they know this makes them so unpopular?"
"What if... it's intentional? As long as they can pull people over, they're confident they can turn other fans into their own?"
Zhou Ye, hearing Lin Yang's complaint, calmly articulated the intentions of this group of fans.
After all, they had previously edited Wang Jun's parody videos, and these fans had attacked them for it.
He had a very bad impression of Wang Jun's fans.
He frowned and clicked into Wang Jun's live stream to check.
As expected, the chat was filled with curses.
Especially the fans who had been dragged in. Seeing Wang Jun annoyed them, and they had deliberately come to curse him.
"What kind of garbage is this? Bragging about how amazing their streamer is outside, only to be a loser who hogs other people's achievements."
"This guy is so disgusting. Every time another streamer is about to catch prey, he goes and messes with them. What kind of person is he?"
"I watched this person's stream before, and he wasn't like this. Why is he acting so differently in the competition?"
"Don't question it. Questioning it means you're jealous of my Brother Wang's excellence. You guys are the disgusting ones, all of you disgusting people, unworthy of watching my Brother Wang!"
In the live stream, there were many questioning comments, but more were the brainless fanatics defending him.
Seeing the chaotic live stream, Zhou Ye couldn't help but show a look of disdain.