Rebirth 09: Starting from taking charge of Running Man on CCTV

Chapter 96. In front of the Vermilion Bird Tower, the crowd gathered.

Brother Hu was also laughing, his eyes crinkling with laughter.

Zhou Jianjun carried the camera, his hands trembling as he focused the lens on the scene.

It wasn't nervousness, it was trying not to laugh.

He had been a cameraman for twenty years, and this was the first time he had ever filmed a guest pinning the director to the ground and smearing him with mud.

After making a fuss for a full two minutes, Deng Chao finally let go.

Chen Yang stood there, and from head to toe, not a single part of him was clean.

His hair was covered in mud, his face was covered in scratches, his jacket was completely ruined, and his pants were covered in handprints.

He looked down at himself, then looked up at the seven smiling, mud-covered faces in front of him.

There was a three-second silence.

Then he laughed.

"OK."

He reached up and wiped the mud off his face, then flicked his fingers.

"I'll remember you all. I'll design the punishment segment for the next episode myself."

Deng Chao immediately raised his hand.

"Director Chen, I was just coerced by them."

"You were the first one to rush over."

"That's... an expression of respect."

I appreciate your respect.

Chen Yang nodded, "Don't worry, I'll repay you double."

Deng Chao's smile froze for a moment.

The audience burst into laughter again.

Chen Yang patted the mud off his clothes and picked up the megaphone from the ground.

"Filming for the third round is complete. Everyone, follow the staff to the shower area to wash up and change. We'll meet again in half an hour."

He paused, then added a sentence.

"Including me."

Fourteen clay figures followed the stagehands toward the scenic area's shower area.

Laughter filled the air the whole way.

Chen He moved closer to Deng Chao and lowered his voice.

"Brother Chao, that hug you just gave me was amazing."

Deng raised an eyebrow smugly.

"The team leader has to set an example."

Shen Teng followed slowly behind and interjected.

"It's good that you set a good example, but you'll also have to be the first to suffer the punishment next time."

Deng Chao paused for a moment.

"...He wouldn't really double it, would he?"

What do you think?

Deng Chao didn't speak, but the smile on his face noticeably faded.

Half an hour later.

The fourteen people washed themselves clean and changed into the short-sleeved team uniforms provided by the program team.

The Running Man team wore white, while the Chinese Paladin team wore blue.

The rest area is a spacious lawn in the scenic area, with a sunshade and several folding tables.

The boxed meals were delivered temporarily from a nearby restaurant; they included braised pork, shredded pork with green peppers, scrambled eggs with tomatoes, and unlimited rice.

Fourteen people sat together, shoveling food into their mouths as if they were starving.

Wang Baoqiang ate the fastest, finishing one box in three bites and then grabbing a second one.

"This braised pork is delicious, it tastes almost just like my mom's."

Chen He hadn't even put down his chopsticks, his mouth full of rice, and he was speaking incoherently.

"Baoqiang, does your mom's braised pork taste like a takeout box?"

"What do you know? This is the taste of home."

Yang Mi sat next to Liu Shishi, ate a couple of bites, then put down her chopsticks and picked up the paper slips in the brocade pouch, turning them over and over to examine them.

"What on earth is this drawing...?"

Hu Ge sat across from him, took a bite of rice, and glanced up.

"Don't think about it anymore, let's eat first. We'll definitely need it for the final round."

Huo Jianhua sat alone in the corner, eating quietly and ignoring everyone.

Yuan Hong brought over the boxed lunch.

"Brother Hua, are you still angry?"

"no."

"Then why don't you sit with us?"

I like quiet.

Yuan Hong wisely left.

Shen Teng leaned back in his folding chair, his lunchbox on his lap, taking a bite and resting for three seconds.

"Every muscle in my body is sore right now."

"Brother Teng, you stood by the mud the whole time, where did your sourness come from?"

Zheng Kai confronted him.

"Standing is tiring. It's mentally exhausting."

"You have such a big face."

Baby sat next to Deng Chao, eating scrambled eggs with tomatoes in small bites, occasionally glancing around and smiling.

The atmosphere was relaxed and warm, like a group of friends having a picnic.

When they were almost finished with their boxed lunches, a figure appeared on the other side of the lawn.

Director Chen.

He changed into a clean black polo shirt and dark casual pants. His hair was still a little damp, but he had regained his sharp and capable demeanor.

Then everyone was informed that the recording was to prepare for the final battle.

He led everyone onto the tour bus.

Come over in a bit.

We walked through a bamboo forest in the night and turned a corner.

We arrived at the Vermilion Bird Tower.

The three-story ancient building with its upturned eaves stands under the night sky, its entire structure bathed in the glow of red lanterns from all directions, resembling a fiery bird about to take flight.

In the square in front of the building, dozens of iron-framed lampposts cast warm yellow beams of light, illuminating the bluestone pavement in every detail.

The distant corridors, the nearby pavilions, and the overhead eaves were all covered with ribbons and palace lanterns.

When the wind blew, the ribbons fluttered and rustled.

Holy crap.

Chen He jumped out of the car, craned his neck to look for a long time, and then uttered two words.

Yang Mi stood next to him, raising her phone halfway before putting it down again.

"This set design... is more elaborate than what we use for filming movies."

Liu Shishi whispered, "So beautiful," and Tang Yan pulled her forward.

Deng Chao stood at the front of the line with his hands in his pockets, his gaze sweeping across the entire Zhuque Tower.

The place was brightly lit, with an antique atmosphere and a sense of solemnity that carried an indescribable sense of ritual.

His heart skipped a beat.

The more Chen Yang tries to put on a show, the less likely he is to get anything good out of him.

"Let's go, let's meet at the pavilion."

Deng Chao greeted him.

The fourteen people walked in twos and threes toward the octagonal pavilion in front of the Vermilion Bird Tower.

Shen Teng walked at the very back, his hands in his pockets, slowly scanning the surrounding scenery.

"Let me tell you."

His voice wasn't loud, but everyone heard it.

"The director must be up to no good to drag us here after we took a shower."

Zheng Kai turned around and glanced at him.

"Brother Teng, can you please stop jinxing me?"

"I call this based on my experience."

Shen Teng smiled and said, "Look at the way the lights are on, the silk is hung, the pomp and circumstance is set up. The more beautiful it is, the more dangerous it is."

Li Chen stood on the steps of the pavilion, arms crossed, and nodded.

"Brother Teng is right, let's be mentally prepared."

Baby stood behind Deng Chao and muttered something under her breath.

"Are we going to have to go into the mud again?"

"It's not that bad."

Deng Chao turned around and comforted her, "He just took a shower, he can't be so heartless."

The voice just fell.

"Whoosh—"

A sharp, piercing sound pierced the air.

Everyone instinctively shrank their necks.

An arrow shot out from the darkness on the left side of the pavilion and landed precisely on the red-lacquered pillar in the center of the pavilion.

The white feathers at the tip of the arrow were still trembling slightly.