The Love Reality Show's Big Boss and Little Sweetie - Chapter 43

Silence belonged to Mu Chi tonight.

[Ahhhhhhh! How could the male god do this?!]

[Mu Chi is indeed brave!]

[So fierce! The Demon King’s expression froze completely.]

[I kinda think the Demon King was deliberately being mischievous?]

[Poor Mu Chi, he’s stunned.]

[I want to see them kiss! Kiss for me!]

In the utter silence, Qi Liao silently stepped in front of Mu Chi, shielding him from all the peculiar stares.

The organizer laughed awkwardly: “Young people these days are really bold.”

The venue gradually grew lively again. The hot dancers started their next routine, but the gazes fixed on Mu Chi didn’t lessen, trying to see past Qi Liao’s tall frame to catch every nuance of Mu Chi’s expression.

Mu Chi was about to steam, shrinking behind Qi Liao, not daring to look up. Then Qi Liao reached out to his assistant, who handed him the helmet. Qi Liao placed the helmet on Mu Chi’s head, covering his entire head and face.

Mu Chi: “…”

Qi Liao didn’t know how to comfort him, only saying, “Don’t be afraid.”

Mu Chi wasn’t afraid; he was mortified!

Through the visor, Mu Chi glared angrily at Qi Liao. Under the night sky, Qi Liao naturally couldn’t see his eyes clearly, but from the downturned, slightly pouting pale red lips, he could tell his mood wasn’t good.

Qi Liao felt like pinching those lips. “You could hang an oil pot on it.”

“?”

“Your pout is so pronounced you could hang an oil pot on it.”

Mu Chi punched him.

On the abs. Didn’t hurt, felt like a tickle. Qi Liao couldn’t help but recall the scene of Mu Chi biting him. His Adam’s apple bobbed. Half teasing, half provoking, he said, “The bite mark you left is still there.”

Mu Chi didn’t expect him to bring this up now. The heat in his cheeks intensified. He lifted the visor and glared at him.

His clear, peach-blossom eyes shimmered with anger. His normally aloof features, tinged with embarrassed annoyance, took on a touch of gorgeousness. It didn’t seem like genuine anger, but rather an boundless romantic charm — captivating even without intention.

Qi Liao suddenly understood why Mu Chi’s fans always called him an immortal. With just this one look, how could one not feel worldly desires stir?

The summer heat was stifling. Soon, Mu Chi’s head was sweating under the helmet, so he had to take it off. Ignoring the surrounding stares, he focused on the event.

The hot cheerleaders entered the field holding signs labeled A, B, C, D, and E. Looking closely, the contestants’ names were written below the signs.

“Why are you in Group E?” Mu Chi asked, puzzled. Given Qi Liao’s skill, he should easily be in Group A.

Qi Liao crossed his arms indifferently. “Probably someone specifically arranged it, putting me in Group E to take me down a peg.”

“If they don’t want Xia Yang to win, why not arrange you in the same group? Wouldn’t it be better to have you kill each other off?”

Qi Liao smiled at him. “Getting smarter. If this race were solely controlled by the loan sharks, of course they’d try to arrange me and Xia Yang in the same group. But this is the Fisherman’s Festival. The organizers probably want to make the race more exciting.”

Mu Chi understood. “So the loan sharks are taking action themselves. If they can eliminate you in the preliminaries, great. If not, they’ll compete against you in the finals.”

“Mn.”

Mu Chi instantly grew worried again. “Will they use any underhanded tricks?”

“Nothing more than tampering with my car, cutting me off on the track, or throwing obstacles on the road,” Qi Liao said. “It’s fine. I’ve encountered it many times. I can avoid the first two; the last one requires on-the-spot reaction.”

“Gege, you need to be extremely careful!”

Qi Liao wanted to ruffle his soft, smooth hair, rubbed his fingers, and restrained himself. “Don’t worry. I have a protective talisman.”

“A protective talisman? When did you get one?”

Qi Liao just smiled without answering.

[Mama mia! The Demon King’s smile is so gentle!]

[Hao Wenrou is silently shattering into pieces…]

[That’s how Leos are. They only show their soft side to the ones they like; they’re as hard as iron the rest of the time.]

[I raise the banner high for the Fire & Water CP!]

The host gave a passionate speech: “Thank you for this night, thank you for the Fisherman’s Festival, bringing us together on Pomegranate Island. I declare the race officially begins!”

Sporadic applause sounded below. The referee walked to the center of the track with the starting pistol and called out loudly, “Group A, on your marks!”

Xia Yang’s red hair was conspicuous even at night, forming a sharp contrast with his sky-blue sports car. He drove to the starting line, and the other variously colored sports cars slowly took their positions beside him.

Thousands in the stands cheered. The hot girls swayed their seductive figures to the side, cheering for the contestants.

The referee raised the starting pistol. When the virtual minute hand on the screen hit 12, a BANG echoed in the night sky—

Five cars shot off simultaneously. After a certain distance, the track situation could only be seen on the monitor screens.

The commentator said excitedly: “Currently leading is Contestant No. 1, Xia Yang! As expected of last year’s champion, his performance this year is also outstanding. Can he win the championship again? Let’s wait and see.”

The blue sports car was far in the lead. But soon, it was overtaken by a yellow sports car—the very one Mu Chi had seen outside Xia Yang’s house, one of Xia Yang’s friends.

On the racetrack, there are only enemies, no comrades. Xia Yang’s car began to accelerate. A serpentine overtake on a bend made everyone exclaim: “This is Xia Yang’s绝技(signature move)!”

Making the sports car move rapidly like a snake, surpassing all obstacles, pushing the control of the car to the extreme—one could say it was comparable to a professional racer.

Qi Liao looked up at the blue sports car on the screen, a trace of appreciation fleeting in his eyes.

Mu Chi didn’t understand racing and asked, “Gege, what do you think?”

“Not bad,” Qi Liao said. “I have a friend who also likes ‘dark crawling’*.”

“…”

(*Likely a playful, slightly mocking term for a specific driving style, perhaps implying sneaky or unconventional maneuvers.)

[Hahahaha ‘dark crawling’ works, I guess?]

[Holy crap, the red-haired guy really has some skills!]

[Mu Chi clearly wanted to applaud but put his paws down when he saw Qi Liao, hmph!]

[What does some outside guy matter? Of course Gege is more important! /sly grin]

At the large circular turn, Xia Yang displayed his racing talent once more, executing a major drift that won everyone’s applause.

As expected, Xia Yang won the Group A championship. His friend got out of the car, bumped fists with him, and laughed, “Congratulations, Brother Xia!”

Xia Yang walked over with a indifferent expression. His gaze crossed with Qi Liao’s and Mu Chi’s. Qi Liao had no reaction. Mu Chi secretly gave a thumbs up. Xia Yang couldn’t help but think of the middle finger Mu Chi had given him during their first meeting.

Qi Liao still noticed the thumbs up. Mu Chi immediately retracted it and smiled ingratiatingly.

Qi Liao冷哼(snorted) but didn’t say anything.

Mu Chi looked at the impassive Little Black and the lively Diyi Shuai at his feet, then at Qi Liao and himself. So similar. One tsundere, one enthusiastically pressing a warm face against a cold backside—trying hard to please someone indifferent.

Mu Chi started considering whether he should give Xia Yang the middle finger again to salvage a bit of his image…

Announcer: “Congratulations, Xia Yang! Please take a seat here, have some water to replenish your energy, and prepare for the final sprint!”

Referee: “Group B, on your marks!”

One after another, the Group B racers set off. This group didn’t have anyone as stunning as Xia Yang. A slightly overweight man won the group championship and sat down next to Xia Yang.

Referee: “Group C, on your marks!”

A fashionable man with many facial piercings won. Netizens called him Brother Piercings.

Referee: “Group D, on your marks!”

Mu Chi: “The referee is like a robot.”

Qi Liao: “That ensures fairness.”

The Group D winner was a female contestant. She looked petite and delicate, but her driving was fierce , directly scaring her group members from trying to overtake her. Everyone called her Sister Mengmeng.

Then came Group E. Seemingly the last group, but actually the grand finale. After all, this group had a professional racer in it.

“A professional racer. Even if you win, it’s not exactly honorable, right?” Brother Piercings seized the microphone and said maliciously.

Qi Liao didn’t respond. He led Mu Chi to the car and put the helmet back on his head.

Mu Chi: “?”

Brother Piercings: “Hey, that professional racer! Anything to say about competing against us amateurs?”

Mu Chi glared angrily, about to retort, but Qi Liao grabbed his hand. “Ignore him. Just a pitiful person who will never make it onto the world racing circuit.”

Brother Piercings suddenly stood up. “What did you say?!”

Mu Chi said with aloof sarcasm: “Instead of wasting time gossiping here, you should work on improving your own skills.”

“Who do you think you are, lecturing me? Do you know who my father is?”

“If you don’t even know who your father is, how should I know?”

“…”

The organizers didn’t want trouble and spoke to Brother Piercings pleasantly and reasonably. Brother Piercings still refused to let it go, demanding, “You must increase the difficulty for the professional racer! Otherwise, it’s unfair!”

Before the organizers could speak, Qi Liao said, “I’ll take a passenger.”

The organizers were startled. “Take who?”

Qi Liao looked at Mu Chi. “You are my protective talisman. Willing to ride in my car?”

[???]

[Mama mia, is this really not a proposal?]

[So romantic ahhh!]

Mu Chi was overwhelmed by the flattered. With the helmet on, he looked like a big head, dumbfounded. Qi Liao knocked on his helmet with a bent finger—thump. ” Stunned? I’ll take you to experience real racing.”

Mu Chi nodded solemnly. “Okay.”

“Group E, on your marks!” the referee shouted, holding the starting pistol.

Mu Chi sat in the passenger seat of Qi Liao’s car. Perhaps because he had ridden in it for several days, he felt no tension at all, only light and floaty. Adding his weight increased the car’s load and could distract the driver; the difficulty was indeed increased.

“Gege, can you handle it?” Mu Chi asked quietly.

Qi Liao’s car was already ignited and running. Gripping the steering wheel, he said affirmatively, “Don’t worry. Sit tight.”

They were betting with two lives on the line. He absolutely could not make a mistake.

The starting pistol’s BANG exploded) in the night sky. The red sports car shot out like an arrow from a bow, sweeping all before it, unstoppable.

The green-haired guy and his buddies hadn’t even reacted before Qi Liao’s car was gone, only slightly slower than a rocket. They were furious! There was no way to catch up like this, let alone block him!

Mu Chi truly felt light and floaty—it wasn’t an illusion, but the weightlessness brought by the high-speed flight. The entire track seemed to belong only to them.

This was the gap between professional and amateur.

Mu Chi laughed exuberantly: ” So awesome!”

The live audience watching the screens went crazy. Netizens went crazy too. The live chat was a sea of screams, all captivated by the red sports car’s elegant demeanor.

[LOL, the green-haired guys’ cars look like crawling turtles.]

[The Demon King is too daring, instantly reached top speed.]

[Even people who get carsick find this satisfying, how is that possible?]

[In martial arts, only speed is invincible. Seems racing is the same!]

[No flashy techniques, just pure overwhelming skill. The Demon King is too awesome.]

[This is someone tempered on the world racing circuit.]

[I’m about to faint from how cool this is. Truly, a car is a man’s second wife.]

[And this is the car the Demon King drove when he was fifteen. It shows how incompetent they are.]

None of the seemingly cool cars on the track could reach the speed Qi Liao achieved. Even if they managed to reach such speed, they would nearly lift off, which was very dangerous.

But Qi Liao’s car steadily gripped the ground, its four wheels incredibly solid, the engine’s torque output like thunder and torrential rain, fully capable of handling such speed.

A racer not only needs to know how to drive but also how to modify, leveraging strengths and avoiding weaknesses, transforming each of their cars into its most suitable form.

Qi Liao had never told outsiders that even the smallest screw in his car was hand-picked by him. He spent three years as a part-time mechanic, studying automotive physics, and repaired all the cars in his team.

Executing a drift on a turn, on the return leg, he encountered the anticipated obstacle.

It was the cars of the green-haired guy and his buddies. Knowing they couldn’t compete with Qi Liao’s car to reach the finish line first, they opted for mutual destruction. Four cars lined up blocking the track, completely blocked.

The green-haired guy thought viciously, *Let’s see you get past this now, unless you want to crash and die with us.*

The audience gasped.

Netizens watching the live stream also watched the screen with bated breath.

The red sports car drew closer and closer to the green-haired blockade alliance—BANG!

It collided, but didn’t send the green-haired cars flying. Instead, it flew directly over their roofs!

A breathtakingly elegant arc. The red sports car landed steadily and continued towards the finish line, like a cluster of fire in the dark night.

[Ahhhhhhhhhh!]

[I’m so excited I’m crying!]

[This is the first time I’ve felt the charm of racing!]

[The Demon King is too cool!!!]

Not just the netizens, even Mu Chi in the passenger seat was about to scream. Only when the car landed did his heart in his mouth finally settle as they crossed the finish line.

“Ahhhhhh!!” The audience’s cheers were even more excited than for the previous groups. The commentator forgot how to speak.

A large crowd surged forward. Xu Wuxing was so happy he was dancing and talking incoherently: “Brother Qi, you’re so cool! Damn, so cool!”

Mu Chi was spacing out. The helmet was removed by a pair of large, bony hands. “Scared?”

Mu Chi snapped back to reality, looking dazedly at Qi Liao. “We won?”

“Mn.”

“Haha, great!” Mu Chi wanted to hug Qi Liao but was held back by the seatbelt. “Ah.”

Qi Liao finally couldn’t resist raising his hand to ruffle the soft hair on his head. “I told you I would win.”

While everyone was immersed in joy, Brother Tie in the shadows looked malicious, and the green-haired guy’s face was ghostly pale.

A ten-minute half-time break followed before the finals.

Mu Chi brought Qi Liao tea and water, even snagging a chocolate bar from Xiao Tian. “Eat this. Replenish your energy.”

Qi Liao smiled. “Hunger can make the mind clearer.”

“Then just eat a little.”

Qi Liao slowly drank water and ate a piece of chocolate, his mouth filled with sweet fragrance.

Ten minutes passed quickly. This time, Qi Liao didn’t let Mu Chi ride shotgun. The difficulty and danger of the finals multiplied.

Zhu Yinhang also came over and said to Mu Chi with a smiling insincerely expression: “An extra person adds extra danger. You don’t want to distract Qi Liao, right?”

Mu Chi had no choice but to watch Qi Liao get into the sports car alone for the final race against the other four winners.

Very unfortunately, Qi Liao’s position was arranged on the edge of the track, right next to Brother Piercings.

Before getting in the car, Brother Piercings exchanged a glance with Brother Tie and made a mutual hand signal. Mu Chi saw this, ran up to Qi Liao, and said, “That pierced guy and the hooligan from last time are in cahoots. Be careful.”

Brother Piercings, who happened to be walking over: “…” He gave Mu Chi a malicious look.

Qi Liao pulled Mu Chi close, raised his fist.

Mu Chi understood, bumped fists with him. “Be careful. It’s okay if you’re not first.”

Qi Liao smiled. “I’ll win it for you to see.”

Referee: “On your marks!”

Mu Chi reluctantly returned to the first row of the stands, keeping an eye on the track situation at all times.

The starting pistol exploded in the night sky once more.

Qi Liao’s car was still the first to shoot out. However, those beside him had all emerged victorious from their five-person groups; their strength was not to be underestimated, chasing closely behind his car’s tail.

Sister Mengmeng’s pink car broke through the first line of defense, driving side-by-side with Qi Liao.

[Such a pink car, yet so fierce!]

[But not as fierce as the Demon King!]

Sure enough, Qi Liao just slightly veered towards the pink car. Although the other driver dared a head-on clash, ultimately not wanting to lose her life, she could only fall back a step, unwillingly continuing to try and overtake.

But immediately after, a dark horse emerged. Xia Yang’s car caught up, and Brother Piercings’ car also closed in.

Only the fat guy’s car lagged far behind, seemingly having already given up competing for the final championship.

At the turn, the most critical overtaking point, overtaking here could likely secure the lead. Thus, the four cars chased each other, like a broken lotus root, its fibers constantly adhering.

Yet no one could overtake on the bend. The red sports car still firmly held first place.

If nothing unexpected happened, this car would be the first to reach the finish line.

The closer it got to the final critical moment, the more everyone watched the big screen nervously, not daring to breathe heavily.

Mu Chi couldn’t help but clasp his hands, silently praying: *Greatly Merciful, Greatly Compassionate Guanyin Bodhisattva, please protect Qi Liao and let him reach the finish line safely.*

But right at this moment, the red sports car suddenly made a *嘭* sound, and the entire vehicle shook violently!

The cars behind stopped one after another.

But the red sports car didn’t stop. At extreme speed, the moment it stalled, it lost control. After swaying, it crashed into the bridge railing like a headless fly.

The railing shattered under the violent impact. The sports car *嘭*ed as it flew into the sea!

The sound of hitting the water, shattering glass, and everyone’s screams blended into the most terrifying colors of the night.

The world before Mu Chi’s eyes shook violently. As he was about to fall, someone supported him. He couldn’t see the outside scenery; his eyes held only the image of Qi Liao’s car plunging into the sea.

He ran over disheveledly, urgently, despairingly—

So this was the feeling of falling from heaven into hell.

He sprinted down the track. No one could catch up. Only the surveillance cameras silently recorded him at this moment. Tears burst forth. He fell, got up, obsessively running towards one place.

“Qi Liao—!!”

“Gege—!!!”

He shouted heartrendingly, his voice scattering in the wind, his tears also carried away by the wind. He seemed to have lost everything.

Xia Yang ran out of his car, wanting to stop him from approaching the shattered railing, the roaring and surging sea, but it was futile.

*Boom——* The car’s explosion in the sea was extremely brilliant, just like the fireworks he and Qi Liao had seen walking on the mountain path.

Every day, he liked Qi Liao more than the day before.

Mu Chi walked dazedly towards the explosive flames. Water and fire could clearly coexist.

“Mu Chi!”

Mu Chi’s tears fell, not into the sea, but onto someone’s face.

“Gege?” Mu Chi knelt by the bridge edge. “Qi Liao?”

Qi Liao was hanging by one hand from the bridge’s edge, straining until the veins in his arm and neck bulged. But what made his heart unable to bear it even more was Mu Chi’s tears, heavy enough to crush him.

“Step back,” Qi Liao said with difficulty. “Let me up.”

Mu Chi’s legs were weak. He crawled to the side. Qi Liao exerted strength in his hand, gripping the concrete and broken railing, leaped up in one, and collapsed beside Mu Chi.

Mu Chi held him as if holding a recovered treasure, choked up and unable to speak.

Qi Liao also held him, soothing his back with his palm for a long time. “Stand up.”

“Can’t stand up,” Mu Chi said with a tearful voice. “Legs are weak.”

Qi Liao laughed softly, picked him up in a princess carry, and ran towards the finish line.

Mu Chi’s tears were wiped on Qi Liao’s clothes. His body felt light, ready to fly. His sins were forgiven; he was back in heaven. Wherever Qi Liao was, was his heaven.

Everyone was taken by surprise. Under such circumstances, Qi Liao actually carried Mu Chi to the finish line.

Qi Liao carefully set him down, pulled down the checkered flag representing the race’s end, and draped it over Mu Chi’s head.

Mu Chi’s panicked eyes weren’t soothed; he was still afraid of losing the person before him again.

Qi Liao pulled the checkered flag towards himself, lowered his head, and under the flag’s cover, planted a kiss on Mu Chi’s forehead.

Mu Chi’s eyes widened. All the gorgeous colors faded. Only the Qi Liao before him was his sole real sensation.

“Sorry. Don’t cry.”