Everyone started chiming in to denounce Gu Zhan:
【 Teacher Gu needs to take responsibility for this! 】
【 I was scared to death! 】
【 Did you two form an alliance, Little Yi? 】
It was originally just a casual remark, but as soon as she said it, Wen Xin suddenly grew suspicious. “Wait, did you two really team up?”
“Just like last time, splitting the money fifty-fifty?”
Gu Zhan remained calm and composed, nonchalantly picking up his tea glass as if he didn’t have a care in the world.
Shi Yi cast a glance at Gu Zhan. “I can’t bear to share my gold coins with anyone.”
The subtext was clear: a partnership was impossible.
Wen Xin said, “Well, who knows for sure?”
Despite her words, she actually believed her.
【 Ooh, so Chiuqiu is actually this kind of person? 】
【 Wen Xin was terrified! 】
【 Hahahahaha, I’m laughing so hard I’m gonna throw up! Screenshot, screenshot, I need a screenshot—this moment of Fang Yanhang is an instant classic! 】
【 You’re so bad! 】
【 Pfft! 】
【 Miss Shi did such a great job setting up the scene! 】
【 Ahhh, I’m getting goosebumps! 】
【 May prosperity, democracy, civility, and harmony under socialism protect me! 】
【 I’m done for. I’m under my bed right now and I don’t dare to come out. 】
【 … 】
【 ???? 】
【 The teacup dropping out of nowhere, HA! 】
【 Ahhhhh, I fell right into your trap! 】
【 He’s obviously coordinating with his wifey! Feed me more sugar, open wide! 】
【 Goddess, don’t trust him! He’s a double agent! 】
【 They’re playing tag-team as a couple! 】
【 He’s lying! He did that on purpose! 】
【 AWSL—I’m dead from sweetness! 】
Unfortunately, the guests couldn’t hear any of the netizens’ wailing. At first, the guests would wonder when the live broadcast was running, but after a day, they realized the director was set on capturing their genuine, unprepared reactions without giving any hints whatsoever. So, they simply gave up worrying about it.
Forget it, why overthink it? Just treat it like a vacation.
To the netizens’ utter grief and dismay, the four guests ended up earning 4.5 gold coins for Shi Yi.
Fang Yanhang contributed 3 gold coins, while the 2 gold coins from the task card shared by Ming Qiuqiu, Wen Xin, and Xie Yixing were split evenly with Shi Yi. Thus, Shi Yi emerged as the biggest winner, walking away with 4.5 gold coins in total.
That’s right, Fang Yanhang drew the Red Card.
Questioning his very existence, Fang Yanhang’s gaze swept across the faces of the other guests one by one. “Be honest with me, did someone put a curse on me?”
Red Card: Please choose a guest of the opposite sex and swap clothes with them.
Wen Xin laughed so hard she started hiccuping. “You said it yourself that you have terrible luck. Just admit it—this is your true luck coming through.”
“Haha, the King of Stinky Hands!”
Fang Yanhang rejected the title and argued his case fiercely. “My last card was only a Yellow Card!”
A true King of Stinky Hands should draw the ultimate bad luck right off the bat.
“Is there really a difference?”
His previous two-point card was basically equivalent to a three-point card anyway.
Shi Yi recalled Fang Yanhang’s luck, then secretly glanced at Gu Zhan’s hands, silently making a comparison.
These two could genuinely consider holding a match to see whose luck was worse.
Gu Zhan tapped on his smartwatch. Underestimating me in your head?
Shi Yi’s electronic smartwatch vibrated silently. She stole a quick glance at it and shifted her gaze away with complete indifference.
—I helped you scare four people. How are you going to thank me?
Shi Yi naturally wouldn’t reply.
She wasn’t stupid. There was no way she was going to thank him. 🙂
All the gold coins were hers.
She was just that heartless.
Being a heartless villain felt great.
It was still inconvenient with people around.
Gu Zhan regretfully tapped his smartwatch and lowered his eyes. He’d deal with it tonight.
…Tonight, he would surround the entire room first.
Fang Yanhang tossed the Red Card onto the table as a sudden idea popped into his head. “Teacher Chen, can a Red Card be put back in after it’s drawn?”
“Discarding a card after just one draw is so boring.”
Teacher Chen Hongmei held her teacup, taking slow sips. “Nope, that’s not allowed.”
Fang Yanhang looked thoroughly disappointed. “What a pity. I wanted everyone to experience the joy of a three-point card.”
The guests cursed at him while simultaneously letting out a collective sigh of relief. Thank goodness it wasn’t allowed! Now that an unlucky African king had drawn a Red Card, they certainly didn’t want it thrown back into the pile.
Only Gu Zhan seemed to find it a bit unfortunate.
Huh?
Unfortunate??
Fang Yanhang doubted his own eyes.
Was Gu Zhan actually eager to draw a Red Card himself?
“Fang Yanhang, Young Master Fang, snap out of it! What are you daydreaming about?”
“Hurry up and do your task!”
Fang Yanhang withdrew his gaze and looked at Shi Yi with a look of deep sympathy. He felt he needed to let those people who called him shameless see what a true shameless scoundrel looked like.
He was merely a petty, superficial rascal.
The guy who looked like an untouchable flower on a high peak was hiding a massive, shameless beast underneath.
Shi Yi was completely baffled. Why was he looking at her like that?
Wen Xin raised an eyebrow. “Young Master Fang, are you thinking of inviting Little Yi to do the task with you?”
As soon as Wen Xin said this, Fang Yanhang felt several heavy gazes land on him at the same time.
One belonged to Shi Yi.
One belonged to Teacher Chen.
And another landed on him with crushing weight, making him intensely fidgety and uncomfortable.
Fang Yanhang: “Are you kidding? How would I dare?!”
Before Wen Xin could express her confusion, Fang Yanhang gestured for everyone to look at Shi Yi. “Sister Little Yi is wearing a dress!”
Shi Yi was wearing a one-piece dress today.
The dress was a lovely shade of green, falling just to her knees. A few simple leaves were delicately embroidered along the hemline, and the sleeves were made of sheer green chiffon. A thin chiffon sash was tied around her waist, accentuating her slender figure, oozing elegance from its simple design.
Even if you took Fang Yanhang apart, he wouldn’t fit into that dress.
Pfft.
Everyone understood immediately.
Feeling the pressure lift off his shoulders, Fang Yanhang felt relieved, though his mouth couldn’t help twitching.
Heh, some men…
Not wanting to cause any more complications, Fang Yanhang sized up what Ming Qiuqiu and Wen Xin were wearing.
Logically speaking, since everyone had chosen their CP partners, they usually had to cooperate with their assigned match—even if they weren’t planning to date, they still had to earn those 50 gold coins.
But this time, Fang Yanhang felt he simply couldn’t do it.
Ming Qiuqiu’s outfit wasn’t any better than Shi Yi’s. She was Petite, the shortest among the three female guests, and was wearing a tight-fitting vest…
Fang Yanhang turned to invite Wen Xin instead. “Teacher Wen, do me a favor?”
Wen Xin was wearing a sun-protective jacket—the loose, oversized kind made of sheer fabric that didn’t cling to the body at all. The only reason Fang Yanhang had initially thought swapping clothes for the Red Task would be easy was because of this jacket of hers.
Wen Xin still remembered how Fang Yanhang had mocked her earlier. “Ha, me?”
“What’s in it for me?”
“Name your terms.”
“Out of the remaining 1.5 gold coins, you get 0.5 and I get 1.”
Fang Yanhang gritted his teeth and agreed.
Wen Xin pulled off the sun-protective jacket in one smooth motion, revealing a white tank top underneath. “Go change then.”
Once Fang Yanhang took off his t-shirt later, she could just throw it on.
Fang Yanhang flashed an OK gesture.
Gu Zhan withdrew his gaze, continuing to casually spin the cup in his hand as he listened to Shi Yi, Wen Xin, and the others chatter.
The wooden cabin had one flaw: it wasn’t soundproof at all…
Ming Qiuqiu was currently doing a Truth task.
The prompt asked whether she had any intention of getting married.
Ming Qiuqiu: “No.”
She was speaking the truth.
Ming Qiuqiu didn’t believe in love; she viewed feelings as a fleeting product of hormones, doomed to fade with the passage of time. Pursuing a relationship destined to vanish was far inferior to pursuing material gain.
“…”
Fang Yanhang returned looking utterly drained of his soul. He held the tank top over his chest and asked Wen Xin, “Why is your sun-protective jacket so see-through?”
Was its actual color a lie?
The laughing guests all turned to look at him.
Because the jacket had no buttons and was sheer, Fang Yanhang had tied the bottom half into a huge knot over his chest, exposing half of his midriff.
It was wildly hilarious.
Wen Xin immediately burst out laughing. “What kind of outfit is that? Are you trying to kill me with laughter?”
Ming Qiuqiu covered her face to hide her giggles. “A crop top?”
Shi Yi couldn’t help smiling either, her eyes curving delightfully.
Gu Zhan glanced at where Shi Yi’s gaze landed, silently picked up a throw pillow, and tossed it to Fang Yanhang. “Cover up.”
With a body that didn’t even have a single visible abdominal muscle, he shouldn’t be flaunting it around.
Fang Yanhang was flattered and pleasantly surprised. “Thanks?”
—
When Gu Zhan told his story, he kept his eyes fixed on Shi Yi the entire time.
His first sentence on stage was, “I have a secret.”
The man’s tone was calm, but the expression on his face was vastly different from usual. The corners of his lips bore a faint smile as his gaze swept right past Shi Yi.
The guests’ interest was piqued in an instant.
Shi Yi felt her scalp go numb under his gaze, her heartbeat involuntarily speeding up.
Gu Zhan: “Someone won’t let me tell it.”
He paused, offering a reserved nod right under Shi Yi’s intense stare, looking as if he were merely uttering the most casual statement. “I’m having a hard time holding it in.”
Shi Yi: ??!!
The guests: !!!
Spill it! They could sense a huge piece of gossip incoming!
While Shi Yi kept her expression serene on the outside, waves were crashing wildly in her heart.
Both the guests and the netizens were drawn into the tense atmosphere Gu Zhan created, their hearts brimming with anticipation.
Having teased their appetites to the absolute limit, under their eager and longing eyes, Gu Zhan crossed his hands casually. “Forget it. I’ll listen to her and refrain from saying it.”
The guests: ????
The guests: !!!!
Their hearts, which had been raised to the absolute throat, plunged right back down. The guests began questioning their lives: You’re not gonna tell us after hyping it up like that?! Gu Zhan, are you even human?!
The moment Shi Yi’s heart landed safely back in her chest, she couldn’t help grinding her teeth in frustration.
Under the murderous glares of everyone present, Gu Zhan motioned for them to check their smartwatches. “You lost.”
Five red signals—not a single person was spared.
The guests: “…” ???
F*ck!!!