Chapter 1: The Strange Live Stream Room

"Ding ling ling..."

Early in the morning, the alarm dragged An Luo out of a sweet dream and back to reality. With half-open eyes, she groggily fumbled for her phone on the bedside table.

After turning off the alarm, she tapped open Duo Yin.

Mm, she needed to take ten-odd minutes to scroll through some live streams and wake herself up.

The moment she tapped in, she saw an ancient-style scene.

"Wuwuwu..."

"Great-grandmother, don't sleep!"

An old woman with a head of grey-white hair lay on the ground, surrounded by several women. From their hairstyles, some were married, and some were... not yet of hairpin age?

Every single pair of eyes looking at the old woman was filled with worry, wishing they could take her place.

"Pomo, wake up!"

"Grandmother, you have to hold on!"

Beside them knelt a little girl with two small tufts tied on her head, estimated to be three or four years old. But right now the tufts were loose and scattered, with quite a few bits of grass stem stuck in them, her face and body filthy, yet her big eyes were dark and glistening.

An Luo pressed a hand to her chest.

She really had been touched!

That cry when she first entered the live stream room had come from her.

"Great-grandmother! Don't sleep!"

Something seemed off?

An Luo first exited, then tapped back in, and took a careful look.

That's right, this is a live stream.

So, are live streams already this competitive now?

Speaking of which, does this count as a live stream or a short drama?

Filming as it broadcasts?

That bold?!

That confident?!

Looking at that teary little figure, An Luo nodded.

"Setting aside the director's blind confidence, this little actress is really well chosen, so cute, I really want to pet her!"

"What are you doing!"

Two men who looked like yamen runners came over, the whips in their hands lashing toward the group. The other women shielded the old and the young, taking several lashes themselves, and stubbornly refused to let them suffer a single injury.

Seeing those whip marks seeping with blood, An Luo stared in astonishment.

"That's pretty realistic!"

A young woman gritted her teeth and stood up, her face full of fury.

On An Luo's screen, a line of text appeared above this young woman's head:

Second Miss of the Second Branch of Pingnan Marquis Residence, Cheng Qiuluo.

An Luo:!!!

Add chicken legs for the backstage crew!

"My grandmother needs to see an Imperial Physician!"

The Jiedai let out a snort of laughter.

"A mere exile criminal, and you think you're worthy of seeing an Imperial Physician?!"

Cheng Qiuluo clenched her fists.

"If anything happens to my grandmother, even if it costs me my life, I will drag you down with me!"

Soon, a woman stood up, patted her shoulder soothingly, then looked toward a certain spot.

Her identity appeared on the screen once more:

Pingnan Marquis's Wife, Meng Shi.

"In the previous battle, although my Cheng Family lost, the Cheng Family still has three hundred thousand troops garrisoned at the border. The Emperor's grace is vast, sparing the lives of the Cheng Family's women and exiling us to Bei Huang. We've only just left the Capital a few dozen li. If anything happens to the Cheng Family's Old Madam, I'm afraid it won't be easy for you to explain either!"

A middle-aged man dressed differently from the other Jiedai came over. He signaled those Jiedai to put away their whips, then looked at the unconscious Cheng Old Madam, thought for a moment, and shouted to the crowd.

"Rest here on the spot for one shichen!"

Then he looked toward Meng Shi.

"It should be sunstroke, but out here in the wilds, I'm afraid it won't be easy to find an Imperial Physician. Wu recalls that Lady Da is also quite versed in medicinal lore. I can send people to take you to gather some herbs."

"Then I'll go too!"

Cheng Qiuluo shouted.

"I want to go too!"

A childish voice rang out.

Wu Xiaowei looked at the little girl raising her hand.

"What are you going for?"

Not only would she be no help, they'd have to look after her, and if something happened, the Cheng Family people would surely make a fuss again!

The little fellow lowered her head and said softly.

"I also want to help gather herbs for Great-grandmother, and I need to use the privy."

"Go then! Your family's child, keep an eye on her yourselves!"

Wu Xiaowei said impatiently, pointing out two Jiedai to follow them, but the Jiedai all made various excuses—in any case, they just refused to go. With no choice, Wu Xiaowei had to personally take the three into the Lin Zi to gather herbs.

An Luo held her phone in one hand and stroked her chin with the other.

"So it's an exile script."

Just then, the alarm went off again.

"Oh no, oh no, I'm going to be late!"

She hurried off in her flapping slippers toward the Chu Fang, planning to grab some milk and bread before heading to the shop.

While the milk was heating, she kept watching the Zhu Bo.

The little one followed beside Cheng Qiuluo, solemnly tapping and prodding through the grass with a wooden stick.

Big eyes blinking on and off, staring fixedly at the ground, not missing a single inch of earth.

"Yu'an, be careful. Tap a few more times—don't let any snakes or bugs bite you."

Xiao Yu'an nodded heavily and answered in a milky little voice.

"Little Aunt, I know!"

Suddenly, a snorting sound came through.

Xiao Yu'an froze on the spot.

Some ten meters away, a wild boar stood there, watching fiercely.

"Holy—!"

An Luo's heart clenched.

It was a real wild boar!

Cheng Qiuluo stared hard at the boar, then turned her head and spoke to the little one behind her.

"Yu'an, Little Aunt will hold it off here—run! Go find someone to help!"

Yu'an heard this and took off running.

An Luo was so anxious she kept scratching her head.

"You really don't have to be that dedicated—run too!"

Call the police?

But what would she even say?

She didn't even know the address.

Right, right, right—since it's a Zhu Bo, there must be staff watching the comments.

She tapped the bottom-left corner and quickly typed a line:

【Staff, what are you doing? Go help, hurry and call the police!】

She didn't notice that after those words were sent, Yu'an's body trembled; in his panic his foot caught on a stone, and his little body went *thud* flat onto the ground.

But the little one quickly climbed back up. His palm was scraped and he only pouted his lips, his big eyes red-rimmed and brimming with tears.

He also carefully tucked the Small Wooden Token exposed at his neck back inside his clothes.

An Luo's fingers flew, still typing away.

【Don't you check the set before filming? The child's so young—if something happens, who can take responsibility?!】

But after she finished scolding, where in the Live Stream Room was Xiao Yu'an?

The scene also stayed frozen at the spot where Yu'an had fallen.

An Luo:???

Did the stream end, or did something happen?

An Luo, a slice of bread clamped in her mouth, jabbed the screen hard twice and walked out of the Chu Fang.

But the next moment, the bread in her mouth dropped straight to the floor, and her phone went *bang* onto the floorboards.

She pointed a trembling hand at the small figure in the Ke Ting.

"You… you…"

The one in the Ke Ting was none other than Xiao Yu'an, who had just been filming the scene in the Live Stream Room!

Hearing her voice, Yu'an's big dark eyes lit up.

Wasn't this the voice that had appeared in his head just now?

The little one stood up straight and proper, and solemnly gave a bow with clasped hands.

"Hello, Elder Sister. My name is Cheng Yu'an."

As he spoke, his little face creased with worry.

"Thank you, Elder Sister, for your protection. But could you send me back? My Grandmother is ill, and Little Aunt is fighting a wild boar—I'm very worried."

An Luo pointed at her while backing away.

"You… just stay right there! Don't come over, and don't move!"

She retreated step by step to the sofa, with nowhere left to go. Her foot caught on the sofa leg and she tumbled onto the cushions, landing on the remote. The TV switched on, and the drama she'd been following resumed playing.

On the screen, the male lead held the female lead and flew onto the head of a massive black dragon; the dragon carried the two of them through the sky…

Seeing this scene in the black glass, Xiao Yu'an gaped, his mouth hanging wide open.

Oh my!

Flying, riding a dragon—could this be the world of immortals?!

The little one whipped his head around, fixing An Luo with a burning gaze.

Then that Elder Sister must be a fairy too!

An Luo had just turned off the TV when she heard a *thud*—the little one was kneeling on the floor, hands pressed together in prayer, eyes brimming with tears.

"Fairy Sister, please save Little Aunt, please save Grandmother!"

An Luo sighed helplessly and reached out to help the little one up.

"Get up first."

Zaituan, I do want to help you, but Elder Sister really doesn't have the ability to take on a wild boar solo!