After Being Blackened All Over the Internet, I Ruled the Military Variety Shows-Chapter 97 Leaving the Jungle

The next morning, everyone was still in their dreams when they were awakened by the sound of a helicopter’s engine.

Jiang Lingxi emerged from the tent and glanced up at the helicopter hovering mid-air for several seconds before looking away.

They hadn’t utilized a helicopter for drops before; now having one to pick them up somewhat made up for a small regret in her heart.

"Director Li really went big this time," Jiang Kaiyuan said, not forgetting to tease the panda cub finally willing to snuggle into Jiang Lingxi’s arms, "Just wondering if this helicopter will take us to the village at the jungle’s edge, or directly fly us to the airport."

With such a huge machine roaring overhead, nobody was in the mood for breakfast. They packed their luggage briskly, ready to board the aircraft at any time.

Though the jungle scenery was beautiful, after over a week, they were experiencing a bit of aesthetic fatigue.

The thought of soon returning to a bustling, convenient city had everyone eager to leave.

Jiang Lingxi initially wanted to bid farewell to the mysterious turtle in the lake, but now it seemed she had to let it go.

She would have to wait for another chance to revisit in the future.

Fortunately, the helicopter didn’t disappoint their eagerness; a rope ladder soon unfurled from the helicopter door, hanging all the way to the ground.

Accompanying the ladder was a safety officer, responsible for safely guiding people on the ground up to the plane.

Once on the ground, he asked directly, "Who wants to go first?"

Everyone exchanged glances, and Jiang Kaiyuan blurted out, "Ladies first?"

If it weren’t for a phone screen in between, his mother would have wanted to cover her son’s mouth.

Was ’ladies first’ applicable in this situation?

Xu Ai chuckled, "Then I’ll go first."

With that, she grabbed the rope ladder with both hands, declined the safety officer’s assistance, and steadily climbed up at her own pace.

When she reached about halfway, Jiang Lingxi watched from below and felt she had learned enough. She also declined the safety officer’s help and grabbed the ropes on both sides of the ladder.

It wasn’t that she was deliberately being stubborn, but she wasn’t used to having a stranger, especially one she had never met, touch her.

The first few steps were a bit shaky, given the helicopter wasn’t perfectly still above. However, she grew more adept as she climbed.

Once aboard the helicopter, Jiang Lingxi felt like she could do it again.

It was actually quite fun.

With the bold demonstration by the two women, even the men who feared heights were too embarrassed to ask for help and climbed up, gritting their teeth.

In the end, the only ones who required the safety officer’s assistance were the eldest, Qi Chen, and the panda cub who couldn’t use the ladder.

Once everyone was aboard, the door closed, and the helicopter made a slow circle in the sky before flying towards the sunrise.

Jiang Lingxi looked back through the helicopter window at the shrinking lake below and silently bid it farewell in her heart.

They had walked for over a week to get there, but the return took less than an hour.

Still landing back where they had initially departed, the helicopter slowly descended. As everyone disembarked in turn, they were greeted by Li Shuo’s bright, slightly expectant smile.

"Congratulations to our guests for successfully passing the first episode of Wilderness Survival!"

As he finished speaking, applause erupted from all around.

The applause came from the behind-the-scenes crew who hadn’t appeared on camera.

The guests worked hard shooting the show, but so did the staff behind the scenes.

The filming crew had to carry heavy equipment and follow the guests over hills and rivers, tracing every step they took.

The medical team had to stay close behind, ready to respond immediately in case of any accidents.

Even the tech team left in the village had to ensure smooth live streaming in this area with poor signal, working in two shifts of twelve hours to handle any unexpected situations during the broadcast.

In short, no one could take it easy.

The applause continued, joined by another round of clapping.

Standing next to Jiang Lingxi, Jiang Kaiyuan, after a brief pause upon hearing the applause beside him, joined in clapping, shouting towards Li Shuo and the behind-the-scenes staff, "Thanks for the hard work, Director Li and everyone!"

The morning audience eagerly opened the live stream to see the guests and crew applauding each other.

—"Why does this somehow make me emotional?"

—"Seeing this moved me a bit. I always saw how the guests struggled, but never really noticed the crew’s hard work. Now seeing them applaud each other, is this what you call a mutual effort?"

—"Uh, that term is somewhat fitting here."

—"Am I the only one who doesn’t want the show to end so soon? The first episode ends today, and I can’t even eat breakfast thinking about what show I’ll watch with my meals in the future!"

—"Although I’m reluctant, we should empathize with the guest and crew; this week has indeed been exhausting. Looking forward to the second episode!"

—"Didn’t get enough. Hope the next episode features the same guests and faces."

—"Same here. Although we’re one guest short now, if they invite another, they should be cautious. Don’t invite those who can’t endure hardships and drag everyone down, it’s not entertaining and frustrating."

—"If they invite more female guests, they should be like Jiang Lingxi."

—"Looking forward!"

Amidst a flurry of expectations in the comments, the applause gradually faded.

Li Shuo cleared his throat, "During the days we stayed in the village, based on audience feedback from the live stream, we’ve come up with a few awards to hand out before the show ends, as a kind of fulfilling conclusion for our program."

Upon hearing there were awards, Jiang Kaiyuan instantly played along, "What awards do we have, Director Li?"

Although Li Shuo had been speechless countless times with Jiang Kaiyuan during filming, he was quite satisfied with this role and eagerly revealed the answer: "There are seven awards in total."

Jiang Kaiyuan quickly reacted, "There are seven of us guests; does this mean one award for each?"

Li Shuo: "..."

Actually, you didn’t have to respond that fast this time.

He pretended not to hear and continued, "The seven awards are: Audience’s Favorite Award, Most Surprising Guest, Best Atmosphere Creator Award, Most Reliable and Competent Award, Best Newcomer Award, Best Personal Responsibility Award, and Best Duo Award!"

Spitting it all out in one breath, Li Shuo was about to catch his breath when Jiang Kaiyuan already started helping with assigning awards to the guests.

"The Audience’s Favorite Award wouldn’t be for me, would it?"

Li Shuo: "..." freeweɓnovel.cøm

Where does this kid’s confidence come from?