Chapter Nineteen: The Guest Who Stirred My Heart

After Shen Jin finished speaking, the entire livestream erupted.

Lan Qing was momentarily stunned, a faint blush spreading over her earlobes—a subtle change that did not escape Shen Jin's notice.

Then Shen Jin said, “I’ll go with paper.”

“Okay.” Lan Qing nodded, a touch of shyness in her expression, and played scissors.

This round, Lan Qing won.

Shen Jin shrugged helplessly, spreading his hands as he said to Lan Qing, “I’m off to play rock-paper-scissors with Yan Ningsi now.”

“Alright.” Lan Qing nodded, quietly watching him walk away.

[Oh my god, these two are so sweet.]
[Wuwu, brother is really so good to Lan Qing.]
[If it weren’t for Sang Yijia, brother and Qingqing would have been together long ago.]
[Can we not bring up Sang Yijia at a moment like this?]
[Exactly, you’re killing the mood.]

On the other side, Sang Yijia and Lu Wenchuan played rock-paper-scissors—one round for the win.

Sang Yijia lost.

Shen Jin and Yan Ningsi played their round. He didn’t ask her directly what she would play, but he was gentleman enough to let Yan Ningsi win.

[Brother is just too nice.]
[Look over there, it seems Sang Yijia lost.]
[Damn! Did she lose on purpose after seeing brother lose?]
[This woman is honestly so annoying.]

Sang Yijia was caught off guard as Shen Jin walked over. “One round to decide it?”

“Of course.” Shen Jin had assumed Lu Wenchuan would let Sang Yijia win, but to his surprise, she lost.

Shen Jin glanced at Lu Wenchuan, then looked at Sang Yijia, asking, “Did you do that on purpose?”

“What do you mean?” Sang Yijia frowned, then realized what he was getting at. A faint, indifferent smile played on her lips as she countered softly, “Do I look like someone who can’t accept losing?”

“...” Shen Jin was momentarily stumped, unwilling to say another word to her. “Let’s begin.”

Rock-paper-scissors.

Sang Yijia played rock, Shen Jin played paper.

She lost.

“Eh,” Yan Ningsi had thought Shen Jin would let Sang Yijia win and was genuinely surprised. Seeing Sang Yijia start cleaning up, Yan Ningsi hurried over to help. “Jiajia, I’ll give you a hand.”

“Good thing there wasn’t much for lunch,” Sang Yijia remarked softly, glancing over. “Lunch is settled, but what are we doing about dinner?”

Given the show’s arrangements, Sang Yijia truly didn’t feel like she was here for romance—if anything, it felt more like a life experience.

Yan Ningsi scratched her head awkwardly, quickly admitting her fault. “My bad.”

“I’ll treat you to a meal next time.”

“No need.” Sang Yijia shook her head, refusing. In a few swift motions, she gathered the dishes and carried them out.

Noticing Yan Ningsi join in, Lan Qing realized it would seem unsociable not to help as well. “I’ll help too.”

“All the girls are off washing dishes—so what are we supposed to do?” Bian He’s gaze landed on the director. “Didn’t you mention a little activity earlier?”

The director, seeing the female guests had left, thought for a moment before deciding to split the groups by gender.

“Here’s the plan: now you’ll choose the guest you’re most attracted to. After the lunch break, we’ll hold the draw.”

“Before that, we want to see how fate brings our guests together.”

Bian He gave a little exclamation. “A guest you’re attracted to, huh?”

“Well, I already know who they’re going to pick.” He pointed at Shen Jin and Lu Wenchuan. “It’s been obvious from the start.”

“So I’ll have no one to pick.” Bian He spread his hands, “This is so unfair.”

[Hehe, who does He want to pick? Qingqing?]
[Don’t act like your Qingqing is some heartthrob, alright?]
[If not Qingqing, could it be Sang Yijia? Dream on!]

The livestream chat exploded into noise.

“Choose whoever you want,” Shen Jin replied coolly. In his mind, there was no way Bian He would pick Sang Yijia.

Bian He laughed. “But what if one of the girls doesn’t get picked? That wouldn’t be very nice, would it?” He winked at the camera.

[Girls, what are you waiting for? Screenshot it!]
[Ahhh, too fast, I missed it.]
[He is so handsome.]
[I’m dying!]

Lu Wenchuan had been silent the entire time. When the director handed out pen and paper, he quickly wrote down the name of his chosen guest without hesitation. The camera tried to catch a glimpse but failed and had to pull back, disappointed.

Bian He finished quickly too, looking up at the camera. “This round is a bit dull. When the girls pick their partners, that’s when things will get interesting.” He sealed his envelope with double-sided tape and handed it to the director. “No peeking.”

Shen Jin finished as well and happened to catch Lu Wenchuan’s eye. He frowned and asked, “Did you write Sang Yijia’s name?”

“That’s a secret.” Lu Wenchuan smiled faintly.

Shen Jin’s lips twitched. “It’s not much of a secret—everyone can see you have a special interest in Sang Yijia.”

“It’s normal to pay more attention to someone attractive, don’t you think?” Lu Wenchuan’s gaze was cool and detached as he lifted his eyes.

In that instant, Shen Jin’s brow furrowed deeper. His instincts told him that it was best not to provoke Lu Wenchuan or create any grudges.

Knowing when to advance or retreat, Shen Jin took a step back and said nothing more.

Meanwhile, the three girls quickly finished washing up. When they returned to the living room, the three male guests were already seated together.

Sang Yijia raised an eyebrow slightly—was this the little activity?

What was it about?

“Now that the ladies are back, it’s your turn to pick the guy you’re most interested in.” Bian He threw flirtatious glances at the three women without targeting anyone in particular.

The livestream viewers couldn’t tell who was meant.

Lan Qing frowned slightly, then looked at Sang Yijia, whispering, “If you also pick Shen Jin, one of us will be left out.”

“So you’ll pick someone else?” Sang Yijia pressed her lips together. “As long as you don’t pick Shen Jin and choose someone else, then everyone will have their chosen one.”

“...” Lan Qing fell silent.

After a while, she bit her lower lip and asked, “Didn’t you say you weren’t interested in Shen Jin?”

“If you pick Shen Jin now, that would make your earlier words look pretty bad.” Lan Qing still couldn’t figure out what Sang Yijia was thinking.

“What are you two whispering about?” Suddenly, Yan Ningsi leaned in, startling Lan Qing.

“Nothing,” Lan Qing avoided Yan Ningsi’s gaze, but then realized—why should she feel guilty?

“So, who are you picking?” Yan Ningsi asked Lan Qing before turning to Sang Yijia. “Is it Lu Wenchuan?”

“I just found out, Lu Wenchuan wrote your name,” Yan Ningsi said with a mischievous grin. “Are you going to pick him too?”

“And you?” Sang Yijia was a little surprised, though her expression didn’t reveal it. “You’re choosing Bian He?”

Yan Ningsi sighed. “You’re definitely not picking Shen Jin, and Lu Wenchuan picked you, so I’m left with Bian He.”

“But honestly, if it were up to me, I wouldn’t choose any of them.” She shook her head with a click of her tongue. “None of the three are really my type.”

“...” Sang Yijia fell silent, then pointed at the camera behind them. “They can hear everything.”