Xie Chengyu was the second guest to arrive at the filming location. He had previously been a musician working primarily behind the scenes, and his face was relatively unfamiliar to the audience.
He sported a slightly longer, middle-parted mullet hairstyle. His looks leaned toward a classical, sculpted type of handsomeness—thick eyebrows, a high nose bridge, and fuller lips that gave him an artistic, aesthetic appeal. Quite a few viewers were drawn to him and tuned into his personal livestream.
When Xie Chengyu arrived, the area in front of the house was completely empty—not a single person in sight.
“Am I the first one here?” He hesitated for a moment, then turned to look at the cameraman following him.
The cameraman didn’t respond. Xie Chengyu wasn’t bothered by it—he just smiled and was about to say something else when he suddenly heard a clattering noise coming from behind the house.
He was just about to go check it out when a delighted voice came from behind him.
“Hey there, friend over there!”
He turned toward the sound and saw a sunny, handsome young man jogging over.
Xie Chengyu quickly stepped forward to greet him, leaning in to take a closer look for a few seconds.
The newcomer had a flaxen-colored, softly parted curtain fringe. His skin was very fair, and all his features carried a natural softness that, when combined, gave him an innate youthful, boyish charm—the kind of “puppy-dog” look that was currently very popular among female fans.
He quickly recognized the other person. “Hello, I’m Xie Chengyu. You’re Wu Liuyi, right?”
“Hi, Chengyu-ge! Just call me Liuyi. Looking forward to your guidance over the next six months!” Wu Liuyi flashed a wide grin and shook Xie Chengyu’s extended hand vigorously.
“Of course, of course.”
The moment Wu Liuyi appeared, the bullet comments in the livestream immediately surged.
[Ahhhh hubby, long time no see]
[The styling today is way too good, the relaxed vibe is off the charts]
[Who on earth wouldn’t love a happy puppy like this!]
[Two handsome guys in one frame—thank you, this is great for my eyes]
Before the two could finish their pleasantries, another person walked over. When the camera cut to his face, the bullet comments paused for a moment, then exploded at lightning speed.
[Damn, where did the show find all these hidden gem handsome guys]
[Three minutes! I want all the info on this handsome guy!]
[The Domestic Entertainment Industry’s restocking speed is way too fast lately]
Wu Liuyi and Xie Chengyu were both momentarily stunned when they saw the newcomer—and for good reason. He truly had a face that made people gasp in admiration.
Light brown hair lay neatly across his forehead. His eyes were clear like a fawn in the forest, his skin fair and luminous, and the corners of his mouth carried a slightly shy smile.
[Mom, I just saw an angel!]
[Wuwuwu so handsome, I want to invest in him]
“Hello, my name is Duan Zhijie.” As he spoke, he gave a slight bow to the two of them, looking very well-mannered.
“Hi, I’m Wu Liuyi, and this is Chengyu-ge, Xie Chengyu.” Wu Liuyi was the first to react, quickly introducing himself and gesturing to Xie Chengyu beside him.
[Duan Zhijie? Why does that name feel a bit familiar?]
[Because this isn’t a new house in the Domestic Entertainment Industry—it’s an old neighborhood renovation]
[Huh? Elaborate, person upstairs]
[You guys don’t know Duan Zhijie? Has this guy already become a relic of his era?]
[Five years ago he was a top-tier star! His singing was amazing, everyone called him the Nation’s Little Brother—he sang “Future,” that one]
[Ohhh, I remember now! He was really popular back then, but why did he suddenly disappear afterward?]
[It seems like she had vocal cord issues and went to recuperate]
“I know you! When I first started college, my whole dorm loved your song ‘Future’!” Wu Liuyi quickly caught on as well. “Teacher Duan, I basically grew up listening to your songs.”
At that, Xie Chengyu couldn’t help but laugh, but Duan Zhijie froze, his eyes widening slightly, looking a bit at a loss.
The already awkward atmosphere seemed to grow even more so.
After a long pause, Duan Zhijie let out two dry laughs. “Hahaha.” Then he tried to ease the awkwardness by changing the subject. “So this is where we’ll be staying?”
He raised his hand and pointed at the house behind them.
But to be fair, the tactic worked pretty well.
Wu Liuyi and Xie Chengyu’s attention shifted to the dwelling behind them, and their expressions immediately stiffened. Anyone would have a hard time keeping a straight face seeing those living conditions.
Just then, that clattering, banging sound came from behind the house again.
“Is the production crew doing something back there?” Xie Chengyu once again tossed the question to the cameraman, who only shook the camera left and right to indicate he didn’t know.
He wanted to ask more, but at that moment, the last male guest arrived.
He was a young man, probably only nineteen at most. His features leaned toward the fierce side—slightly hooded eyes, a high-bridged nose, and sharp, angular facial lines. He was the kind of cool, aloof handsome guy many people would be drawn to.
[Sorry, fam, but this one I genuinely like]
[Didn’t expect a cool guy!]
[The show gathered this many handsome guys to farm for us to watch—director, you deserve a shrine in the imperial temple!]
The young man walked up to the three of them and parted his thin lips briefly. “Qiao Xingjie.” Then he clamped his mouth shut, seemingly with no intention of saying more.
The relatively amicable mood among the other three instantly cooled with his interjection. After each of them introduced themselves in turn, silence fell again.
But the bullet comments didn’t stop:
[All four guys are here now—is there still a girl coming?]
[Four men, one woman—how exciting!]
[Keeping everyone waiting for her alone—what an entrance. Don’t tell me she’s another rich daddy’s ugly kid?]
[I really want to know who the last one is too]
[Just came back from watching the other livestream—let me quietly clarify, it’s not that she hasn’t shown up]
The people on site naturally couldn’t see the bullet comments. After a few more minutes of waiting with no sign of the last arrival, Wu Liuyi broke the silence.
“Isn’t there supposed to be one more girl who hasn’t arrived yet?”
“Seems like it. Maybe she got held up on the way—let’s wait a bit longer.” Xie Chengyu kindly helped explain.
Beside him, Duan Zhijie also nodded. Only the young man who had caused the awkwardness curled the corner of his mouth and let out a cold snort. “Hmph.”
At that, the atmosphere grew even more strained.
“Bang—” A heavy object hit the ground behind the house.
Xie Chengyu couldn’t contain his curiosity any longer. “How about we go check out the back first?”
No one objected.
The four of them then circled around from the side of the house to the back to see what was going on.
And the moment the scene behind the house appeared on camera, both the viewers in the livestream and the four people on site were caught off guard.
Zhao Biezhi jumped down from the ladder, patted off a bit of dust that had landed on her, and frowned at her palms stained black from the roof tiles. She was just about to ask the cameraman whether the house had running water when she suddenly heard footsteps approaching.
Turning around, the four boys’ figures happened to appear not far away. The five of them looked at each other, momentarily at a loss for words.
The atmosphere seemed to freeze.
“Uh, hello everyone, I’m Zhao Biezhi.” Zhao Biezhi raised her hand to greet them, then realized her hand was now covered in black grime, so she quickly put it down.
“What happened to you?” Duan Zhijie hesitated before speaking.
“Oh, when I arrived, the tiles on the roof had fallen off. I figured everyone wouldn’t be gathered for a while anyway, so I went up and fixed the tiles first.” Zhao Biezhi pointed at the neatly stacked tiles on the roof.
The four of them and the viewers in the livestream all fell silent.
They all felt like something was off, but couldn’t quite put their finger on it.
Just then, the barrage comments suddenly started flooding in again.
[Hello teacher, in the future our Biezhi won’t be participating in events like this. She doesn’t seem too happy—she clearly worked hard to get things done, yet she’s being misunderstood as being late and acting like a diva. So from now on, we won’t be participating in these kinds of events. Sorry for the trouble, teacher, thank you. Goddamn it, I’m calling the police right now to have you locked up!]
[Hello Biezhi’s mom, it’s like this—as you know, our Biezhi is quite kind-hearted. When she saw the roof was damaged, she thought she’d help fix it. Everyone didn’t mean to exclude her, so please don’t misunderstand, parent.]
[When will I ever stop laughing at this Zihan’s mom meme…]
[Enough, I said enough! (forehead in hand, wry smile)]
Meanwhile, Wu Liuyi was the first to react, clapping his hands in praise: “Wow, Teacher Zhao, so you’re actually this skilled.”
Seeing this, the others followed suit and clapped, except for Qiao Xingjie, who remained frozen in place.
But at that moment, the other three’s gazes all converged on him.
Qiao Xingjie furrowed his brow, seemingly reluctant, but after a tense standoff, he helplessly joined in as well.
Zhao Biezhi watched this row of applause machines completely devoid of emotion, like an audience at an elementary school talent show, and couldn’t help scratching her head.
Why did it feel like things had gotten even weirder?