Chu Wei was thinking about who to send his message to.
Shen Fu was still mad at him, so the chance of her sending to him was low.
If he sent to her one-sided again, his dignity would really take a hit.
Might as well mutually choose one of the other female guests and take the punishment together.
Xu Tiaotiao and he were a couple on the surface, but in private they didn’t even count as friends, at most, a business relationship.
It was Gu Qingshuang who had interacted with him more over the past two days.
Gu Qingshuang was also staring at her phone, tangled.
Send it to Jiang Shu?
But she couldn’t read what was on his mind.
Today she hadn’t been chosen by anyone, and was about to become one of the fringe guests among the group. This was completely different from her pre-show fantasy of male guests fighting over her.
Right now she desperately needed to create some buzz to attract the attention of other guests and viewers.
The two of them pressed the send button at the same time.
The barrage shrieked: 【Holy sh*t it’s mutual hahaha!】
【And they’re the first pair to make a move, what’s up with these two? Because neither of them managed to get a date today so they’re huddling together for warmth?】
Chu Wei’s text to Gu Qingshuang was: “The new hairstyle suits you ∩?∩”
Gu Qingshuang’s text to Chu Wei was: “Would I be lucky enough to taste the cake you made? (ノへ￣、)”
【Holy sh*t the cake was for Gu Qingshuang???】
【Wuwuwu Shuang Mei finally has a romance arc.】
Zuo Mei didn’t hesitate at all and sent hers to Wen Zhenghan: “Thanks for the drive.”
Wen Zhenghan, however, still hadn’t pressed the send button.
【Is he trying to send it to the Film Empress but doesn’t want her to get punished? We get it.】
Xu Tiaotiao, always straightforward, directly sent hers to the one who made her heart flutter, Xiang Lingyun: “You were really dependable in the haunted house.”
Xiang Lingyun received the message, but without reacting, he swept a glance with his peripheral vision toward Shen Fu, who sat opposite him.
The program added the tick-tock ticking of time passing, and the barrage was tense to death.
Within just ten minutes, analysis posts were already flooding the show’s official forum: 【Blind guess this round will still have a lot of mutual selections. It’s impossible for the male guests to avoid picking their crushes just because they’re scared of punishment, right? What kind of man would that be?】
But the moment this analysis post went up, the remaining guests’ messages appeared:
Xiang Lingyun → Shen Fu
Wen Zhenghan → Shen Fu
Jiang Shu → Shen Fu
The barrage: 【……】
《What Kind of Man》
Shen Fu’s phone chimed three times in a row, and all the guests at the table immediately turned to look at her.
Zuo Mei’s expression darkened instantly.
Not just hers, Xu Tiaotiao and Gu Qingshuang also couldn’t help glancing at Shen Fu a couple more times.
A bunch of fans collectively choked on air, nearly dying of anger on the spot.
【??? Did I read that right? The other three male guests all sent theirs to Shen Fu?】
【What the h*ll, I’m about to screech like a groundhog, Shen Fu again??】
【I can understand the Film Emperor not wanting the Film Empress to be punished, but what’s up with Xiang Lingyun? Even if he likes Xu Tiaotiao and doesn’t want her punished, why couldn’t he send it to Gu Qingshuang??】
【Did none of you notice D? This is already his second time picking Shen Fu, holy cr*p.】
The barrage was full of confusion, and Wen Zhenghan didn’t understand either.
Holding his phone, he glanced at Xiang Lingyun, frowning, feeling that something didn’t seem quite right.
Not only Wen Zhenghan, Xiang Lingyun also didn’t understand. He looked back at Wen Zhenghan.
This guy was practically in harmony with Zuo Mei already. Shouldn’t he not be afraid of punishment? Why send a message to Shen Fu?
The most confused was Chu Wei.
What are they staring back and forth at each other for?
It’s baffling, anyone who didn’t know better would think they were Shen Fu’s exes too.
Jiang Shu’s expression had never looked good; he simply put on sunglasses so he wouldn’t see and wouldn’t be annoyed.
The barrage’s attention shifted slightly at his move: 【Hahaha aren’t the sunglasses actually the Crown Prince’s true form?】
【What’s there to fuss about? The three male guests just don’t want the punishment, so they all picked her.】
【So now no matter who Shen Fu sends hers to, she’ll probably end up paired, right?】
Rong Xiaozhen and a group of small fans who’d been stomped on for so long were finally feeling a bit smug.
The initiative is with our Shen Fu, choke on it.
Only Shen Fu’s choice was left.
The barrage held its breath; in an instant, thousands of eyes were on Shen Fu again.
Xu Tiaotiao’s phone suddenly vibrated.
She was delighted at first, then remembered that Shen Fu’s and Gu Qingshuang’s phones had already buzzed four times combined, the male guests should’ve all sent theirs already.
So who sent this to her?
The message read: “Your purple dress looks amazing.”
Wasn’t that what Shen Fu told her when they got on the bus?
Viewers in front of their screens were losing their minds laughing: 【Shen Fu sent it to a female guest?? Oh my god how did I not realize that was an option??】
【Right! The rule announcement didn’t say they couldn’t send it to the same sex.】
【Hahaha look at Xu Tiaotiao’s surprised, complicated, ever-changing expression.】
The filming crew was covered in black lines.
What is up with Shen Fu and Young Master Jiang, always finding loopholes in the rules.
The director wiped his sweat: “Next time remember to add the rule that it can only be sent to the opposite sex.”
Seeing Xu Tiaotiao’s indescribable expression, Jiang Shu roughly guessed who Shen Fu had sent hers to, and finally felt slightly better.
His expression improved a little, but when he looked up, he saw the three men across from him also looking like they’d breathed a sigh of relief.
Jiang Shu: “……”
D*mn, now his mood was cloudy again.
The show didn’t drag things out. Keeping the pace tight, they announced the results on the spot: “Teacher Chu Wei and Teacher Gu Qingshuang will need to accept punishment, and Teacher Zuo Mei, Teacher Xu Tiaotiao, and Teacher Shen Fu may receive rewards.”
Xu Tiaotiao had always despised people who were wishy-washy, so she directly and straightforwardly looked at Xiang Lingyun: “I pick the walk.”
【Even though Xu Tiaotiao and the top star make a good CP, she and Chu Wei were hyped as a CP for almost a year, was that all fake? I’m speechless.】
Zuo Mei glanced at Shen Fu.
Shen Fu sent her message to Xu Tiaotiao, surely she didn’t intend to hold hands with Xu Tiaotiao for a whole day, right?
She knew perfectly well that the hand-holding option would definitely be the one left over, so Zuo Mei became generous and slowly smiled: “Let Shen Fu pick first, I’m fine with anything.”
【Why is Jiejie never fighting for herself, my heart hurts.】
Shen Fu hurriedly raised her hand: “Then I pick +1 point.”
【Hahaha little Shen is really so career-driven.】
【You’re praising that? Why don’t you look at how she never voluntarily yields anything?】
Zuo Mei got the hand-holding just as she wished, and she glanced at Wen Zhenghan with a smile.
Right in front of the camera, Wen Zhenghan’s expression almost cracked.
【Hahahaha I’m dying, this is too good】
【Hand-holding for a whole day ahhh】
【A long-held wish finally realized on a cr*ppy variety show, unbelievable. Limited-Time Heartbeat, I declare you my father.】
The show’s ratings stepped on Wen Zhenghan’s misery and shot up yet again.
Someone from the crew felt something was off and whispered: “Why does it look like the Film Emperor’s expression doesn’t seem good? Did we set the gimmick segment too harshly?”
The director smoked, looking world-weary: “What do you know? If not for Miss Zuo, how would we have invited the Film Emperor? He came on this show for Miss Zuo. Right now he’s probably thrilled inside, but with his status he can’t show it, he has to stay composed.”
“So that’s how it is…”
The director patted his shoulder: “Once this show wraps, we’ll definitely have climbed the Film Emperor’s big tree. Tomorrow, focus the shots on their hands holding each other. Once they end up together, our show counts as the matchmaker, and I’ll reward you with enough chicken legs to explode.”
Chu Wei and Gu Qingshuang chose to wear mascot costumes.
A whole day with no camera time was better than cleaning.
Frog-jumps didn’t even need to be mentioned, your image would be destroyed.
Once the mutual-text segment ended, the group finally began eating, each with different expressions.
Cameras were everywhere, and according to the rules they couldn’t discuss the text messages just now. Even with a stomach full of questions, none of them could ask.
Jiang Shu had chosen Shen Fu for the second time.
He wore sunglasses even indoors, no one could tell what he was thinking.
But this undoubtedly created a sense of crisis for the other three.
If rivals had rankings, then this Jiang guy was definitely the SSSS demon-king tier.
Privileged background, trendy racecar driving, “if he doesn’t work hard he’ll have to inherit the family business,” perfect features, even if he had a bad personality, with that foundation it didn’t matter.
But guys like him were always fickle, he was probably just briefly attracted by Shen Fu’s face.
Wen Zhenghan originally thought if anyone were to pick Shen Fu earlier, it would likely be Chu Wei, but he never expected Xiang Lingyun to jump out.
What was Xiang Lingyun thinking?
He and Shen Fu should have zero interactions, they hadn’t even greeted each other on the earlier red carpet.
Was it really just to avoid a mutual pick with Xu Tiaotiao, so he randomly picked Shen Fu?
Of course, the urgent matter now was figuring out how to deal with tomorrow’s full-day hand-holding.
On the surface Wen Zhenghan still looked calm as still water, but his whole body radiated displeasure.
He had agreed to pave the way for Zuo Mei, but he didn’t promise this far.
Chu Wei’s thoughts were even more tangled.
He wasn’t worried about Xiang Lingyun, he was probably just avoiding a mutual pick.
But what exactly was the relationship between Wen Zhenghan and Shen Fu, and what did they need to talk about privately in the storage room?
The cake he’d put in the fridge was originally meant for Shen Fu, but now, feeling a bit petty, he was wavering.
Especially since Gu Qingshuang’s text mentioned the cake, surely the viewers saw it too.
If he didn’t give it to Gu Qingshuang, not only would it make things awkward for her, but viewers would question his gentlemanly manners.
Chu Wei grew more irritable, shoveling food faster.
Shen Fu was immersed in the joy of earning another ten million and decided to reward herself with another bowl of rice.
She stood up to get a refill, then sat back down and cautiously checked which dishes still tasted good.
The seafood she had painstakingly caught herself was already down to half a plate.
Were these people all foodies? Did entertainers not need to diet?
Unable to help herself, Shen Fu turned the lazy Susan in the middle of the long table.
She tried to look natural while turning the seafood toward herself.
Wen Zhenghan lowered his lashes and saw the plate of pasta quietly rotated in front of him, and the gloom in his heart suddenly cleared a bit.
Shen Fu remembered he didn’t like seafood, so she deliberately turned the pasta to him?
He lifted his gaze at Shen Fu, his expression easing slightly.
Chu Wei watched Shen Fu’s movements at the table constantly. How could he not notice any change in the plates?
With his peripheral vision he caught Wen Zhenghan seemingly glancing at Shen Fu.
What were these two doing with little secret gestures?
Did they really know each other beforehand?
Chu Wei grew more and more restless, feeling like he could barely swallow another bite.
Zuo Mei looked at the rotating table too and thought: B*tch.
Eight people eating, yet it was so quiet a pin drop would be audible.
Gu Qingshuang felt that something was off everywhere, everyone’s gaze seemed to hold something she couldn’t decipher, but she couldn’t put her finger on it.
Trying to draw attention, she smiled and praised, “The seafood today is nice, I heard it was caught by you all during the one-day date segment?”
Zuo Mei smiled: “If you like it, have more.”
Saying that, she turned the seafood back, placing it in front of Gu Qingshuang.
Shen Fu: “…”
She barely got two bites.
“What are you turning it for?” Jiang Shu, sitting beside Shen Fu, turned it back again.
Zuo Mei: “……”
Xu Tiaotiao peeled her crab and lightly snorted.
Shen Fu caught the seafood, she and Xiang Lingyun made the soup, hearing Zuo Mei speak like some gracious host? Anyone who didn’t know better would think she did all the work.
Xu Tiaotiao licked the oil on her fingertips and smiled: “I heard Mei Jie only caught two shrimps today, and the rest were all caught by Shen Fu?”
Zuo Mei’s face instantly turned awkward.
【I’m dying laughing, why are Xu Tiaotiao and Shen Fu so fruity? Shen Fu picked her just now, and now she’s helping Shen Fu clap back.】
【What’s wrong with Xu Tiaotiao? D*mn, my goodwill is almost gone.】
【As expected of the vase faction】
Because of Chu Wei, Xu Tiaotiao’s fans had always lightly stepped on Shen Fu, but now seeing Zuo Mei’s fans bossing around in the barrage, they had no choice but to team up with Shen Fu’s fans.
【Bleh bleh bleh, being pretty is enough, let it piss off a certain washed-up actress’s fans.】
Gu Qingshuang didn’t expect the topic she finally came up with to actually stir trouble, so she calmly watched the show unfold.
Shen Fu finished eating first, and practically couldn’t wait to go back to her room.
Chu Wei never expected her to move so fast; he hadn’t even had time to think through who the cake he’d spent the whole afternoon making should go to.
Seeing Shen Fu stand up, he quickly said to Gu Qingshuang beside him: “Qingshuang, I made a cake, it’s in the fridge, later…”
He’d been watching Shen Fu’s expression the whole time.
But Shen Fu didn’t even look at him. Before he even finished speaking, she directly left the table.
Chu Wei: “……”
When the barrage saw that the cake was actually being given to Gu Qingshuang, they let out a collective sigh of relief: 【My Ge is finally not fixated on Shen Fu anymore, I can relax.】
【So this proves that earlier today he was only worried Shen Fu wouldn’t get picked so, 】
Before that line even finished appearing, Chu Wei said to Shen Fu again: “Right, Shen Fu, you have one too. If you get hungry tonight you can eat it.”
Barrage: 【……】
Gu Qingshuang: “……”
Chu Wei’s fans were about to explode: 【Ge what is wrong with you?!】
A passerby watching burst out laughing: 【I still remember what your fans posted this afternoon, something like ‘My Ge has a very strong sense of pride.’】
Chu Wei’s fans: 【……】
Shen Fu froze for a moment.
Her speed retreating back to her room became even faster.
Chu Wei had originally intended to annoy Shen Fu a little, but when he realized he couldn’t get a reaction out of her, he panicked.
Shen Fu responds to softness, not hardness.
He better not push her further away.
Gu Qingshuang didn’t say anything, but her mood was clearly souring.
Jiang Shu also left the table coldly.
The entire meal was eaten in disarray, and only Wen Zhenghan remained elegant, using his fork to eat the spaghetti Shen Fu had turned toward him, his mood still relatively good.
After dinner the production team informed him to go for his post-interview.
Normally in this kind of dating variety, the guests would do post-interviews every day.
But considering the high status of these guests, and that scarcity might create better hype, the team decided to only interview one person per day, taking turns.
Before the show began, Jiang Shu had outright refused both pre- and post-interviews, so for the sake of ratings, the team decided to start with Wen Zhenghan.
“Zheng Ge, you can sit here. After the interview, we might have you enter the livestream room to interact with your fans for a bit, is that okay?”
Wen Zhenghan rarely did public appearances, but he had a reputation in the industry for being famous yet gentle, never throwing his weight around. To maintain that persona, he neither accepted nor rejected it, just nodded: “Mm.”
The official show account had also hyped it on Weibo, saying there would be a solo livestream with Wen Zhenghan at 10 p.m.
So as soon as the stream started, tens of thousands of his fans poured in.
It was full of praise, and Wen Zhenghan didn’t read it carefully, only answering some of the questions with a slight smile: “Why am I participating in this variety show? Mm, let’s put it this way, mainly to relax a little. You all know I’ve been very busy these past few years…”
Mid-sentence, he suddenly noticed a fan named “Aizheng Big White Rabbit” send a message: “Ahhhh Zheng Ge look at me! I’m your number one fan! Also, also, I even collected the trophy you won at the Gona Film Festival, wuwuwu please notice me!”
“Trophy?” Wen Zhenghan smiled and said, “If I remember correctly, besides the little golden statuette, the festival also gave a diamond brooch. Both are still in my home. Did this fan buy a fake? If you’re young, be careful not to spend money on me.”
“Fake?” The fan “Aizheng Big White Rabbit” hadn’t even recovered from the joy of being noticed before she was struck down. She nearly cried: “There’s no way it’s fake, right? I paid a really high price!”
Wen Zhenghan said, “Contact my studio’s official account. I’ll have someone help you handle this.”
The livestream chat immediately flooded with emotion: “Zheng Ge is really so kind, I’m about to cry.”
“All these years and he still treats every fan like family.”
……
Once the livestream ended, Wen Zhenghan went back to his room, took off the camera, and called his agent: “What’s going on? I gave my trophy and brooch to Shen Fu, they should still be at her place. Was that fan scammed? Someone dared to fake my trophies and sell them?”
His agent didn’t respond, as if struggling to speak.
Wen Zhenghan frowned: “What happened?”
Only then did the agent stammer: “Zheng Ge… we contacted the fan and confirmed it. The trophy and brooch seem to be real.”
Wen Zhenghan: “???”
Agent: “She said she bought them on Xianyu. We checked… it’s Miss Shen Fu’s alt account.”
“…And not just those. Several other things you gave her are also listed as ‘dirt cheap, must sell fast.’”
“……”
Wen Zhenghan finally understood, nearly losing his breath on the spot.
Shen Fu listed everything he gave her on Xianyu???
