A Reality Show Star in a Melon Patch

Shen Wen is an ordinary photographer.

As a low-ranking nobody on the production crew, he diligently carries his camera and runs after the guests every day, just to earn enough to get by.

One day, several novels suddenly appeared in his mind, all about the love and hate between guests on dating shows.

Shen Wen was at a loss. He had no idea what use it was for a photographer at the very bottom of the food chain to know all this. He didn't dare speak up, so he could only grumble about the plots in his head.

The former Best Actor, a doting father to his son, came to inspect the show as Shen Wen's immediate superior.

Shen Wen grumbled inwardly: [Whoa, so this is the poor sap who's worn a green hat for over twenty years and raised someone else's kid?]

The former Best Actor: “...?”

The former Best Actor promptly left the scene to find the real culprit who'd made a fool of him.

The livestream viewers cried, “This is so exciting!”

The poker-faced CEO was having a spat with his sweet little wife from their contract marriage.

Shen Wen shook his head in disapproval: [What's with the act? You sneakily hold her and kiss her at night, so why pretend to be upright and aloof during the day?]

The two guests went “bang,” their faces turning bright red.

The CP fans squealed with delight.

A popular couple, a producer and a famous actor, appeared on the dating show and acted all lovey-dovey.

Shen Wen, filming nearby, wore a pained expression: [Do we really have to ship them? Doesn't anyone know this top is bisexual and wants to sleep with eight people a night?]

His thought left the whole set in stunned silence, and the fans nearly fainted on the spot.

Shen Wen was like a walking field of gossip. Whichever group he filmed, juicy secrets were soon flying everywhere.

The viewers watched with great interest,

while Shen Wen had no idea how much damage he was causing.

In his own eyes, he was always quiet and well-behaved, weak, pitiful, and helpless.

But for some reason, the big shots invited to the show were always hovering around him. His boss, the former Best Actor, insisted on giving him a raise. The promising new star kept feeding him snacks. The domineering CEO, who usually wore a stern expression and kept everyone at arm's length, actually bowed to him in earnest to say thanks...

And a hugely popular Best Actor, so handsome he was impossible to resist, insisted on being his friend.

Shen Wen scratched his head. He was just an ordinary photographer!

-

Huo Chen, a Best Actor famous around the world, suddenly returned to China to appear on a dating show.

His fans were both anxious and touched, thinking their guy had finally started worrying about settling down.

But it turned out Huo Chen was only there as a friend of the guests.

His solo fans had barely breathed a sigh of relief when they saw Huo Chen attend as a friend of the first pair of guests, then show up again as a friend or relative of the second, third, and fourth pairs...

He practically wanted to claim every single spot reserved for a guest's friends and family.

As for which group he'd visit, that all depended on which one the production crew's entertaining photographer was filming.

His intentions were as plain as day.

Watching the Best Actor show up again and again, Shen Wen quietly marveled to himself: [Wow, no wonder they call him Best Actor Huo. He has such a great social life, he's friends with every pair of guests.]

Huo Chen smiled.

The guests who'd been forced to become Best Actor Huo's “friends” two days earlier: [pained expression.jpg]

Reader's Guide:

1. One-on-one pairing, both leads are each other's first love. The receiver has only platonic friendships with the other guests.

2. The top appears fairly late and is extremely calculating. He's not a morally perfect character, so proceed with caution if that bothers you.

3. This is a livestream novel with lots of viewer comments, told mostly as a series of short episodic stories. There are side couples, and the logic is clichéd and melodramatic. Don't expect the author to write anything profound.

4. This is not a realistic entertainment-industry setting, so please don't read it as one. The dating-show rules are there to serve the plot.

Next book: Everyone's Fighting for Control of My Body

Blurb: Jiang Zhuo is a supporting character in a transmigration novel, a vicious, twisted omega who became this way after an injury to his gland.

His daily routine is to make life hell for his own father, his stepmother, and his omega younger brother, who is the protagonist.

The original author described him as foolish and vicious, yet undeniably beautiful.

Jiang Zhuo considered that description and decided that two out of three words seemed about right.

-

But then someone transmigrated into him.

Someone took over his body and set about “reforming” him, making him polite and gentle at every turn. They apologized to his parents, made peace with his younger brother, and even gratefully accepted the alpha his brother didn't want.

His family, who'd once looked down on him, finally “changed their opinion” of him, and the whole family got a happy ending.

-

After reading the ending, Jiang Zhuo was so angry he nearly had a heart attack.

Make him apologize? Not a chance!

In his fury, Jiang Zhuo actually seized control of his body again.

At that very moment, the alpha who'd once abandoned him was about to get engaged to his younger brother. The fake occupying his body was about to congratulate the pair and complete the first step of the “reformation” mission...

-

Host 109 had completed over a thousand quick transmigration missions and had long since forgotten his own name amid one task after another. At last, with just one more mission, he'd have enough points to return to his original world.

To 109, this was just one among thousands of missions.

As usual, he saw right through people but remained indifferent, watching coldly from the sidelines and only lifting a finger at the crucial moment to achieve his own ends.

-

Until he was about to offer his congratulations to the pair of NPCs getting engaged, completing one part of the “change their opinion” mission.

Then everything suddenly went black.

When he opened his eyes again, the two people in front of him were covered in wine, and his hand was still pressed against one of their faces. The air still rang with his loud curse: “A slut and a mutt, together forever!”

With everyone watching, the whole crowd stared at him in shock.

The System chimed: [Warning: mission progress has dropped by 50%. Current progress: -50%.]

109: “...”

Well, that was one hell of a successful “change of opinion.”

-

He'd thought it was just an accident.

109 focused his efforts on the next main mission.

This time, he was supposed to attend a banquet and wipe away the bad impression the original owner had left on everyone.

But while changing clothes and washing up, everything went black again.

When he opened his eyes, he was wearing a cockroach costume, sporting two pigtails, and crawling around the banquet hall.

109 laughed in disbelief. “...Great.”

-

As the road home grew ever more distant, 109 could only sigh and tap the little soul hidden inside his body.

“Want to talk?”

-

At first, 109 thought Jiang Zhuo was a pain, hopelessly clueless, and asking for trouble.

But later, inexplicable words began coming out of his mouth:

“You hit someone again. Does your hand hurt? Tell me next time. I'll take care of it.”

“He's just young and playful. What's he done wrong?”

“What I earn is his money too. He can spend it however he wants.”

“Go home? Not yet. What if someone bullies him while I'm gone?”

-

Years later, Jiang Zhuo left the Jiang family.

Everyone watched this beautiful but flawed omega. They learned that his gland had healed, but he bore an unknown pheromone mark that wasn't registered in any system, and his marital status was widowed.

People from the wealthy circles who'd once mocked him said they couldn't believe Jiang Zhuo had been marked by some rogue alpha and that his husband had died.

But soon afterward, word spread that the military's commanding general, who'd been injured during a mission and asleep for years, had suddenly awakened.

One of the few enigmas in the world wrapped his coat around Jiang Zhuo, lowered his head, and bit the beautiful omega's nape with an almost feverish devotion. He coaxed softly, “Good boy, a little more. Let's deepen the mark.”

Theme: Sincerity is the ultimate weapon.