By the time he registered what he had just said, Lu Xingliang was in sheer disbelief at himself.
Qi Xiao hadn’t expected him to change his mind so quickly either. While he did want to eat more himself, he wasn’t greedy enough to be stingy over a single skewer. Besides, delicious food was meant to be shared! So he handed over a skewer of grilled sausage.
Lu Xingliang initially wanted to say never mind, but the moment he caught the younger man’s eyes twinkling under the light, he took it as if under a spell.
Taking a tentative bite, it wasn’t nearly as delicious as he had imagined, yet for some reason, he didn’t feel disappointed either.
Qi Xiao kept staring at him intently: “Is it good? Is it good?”
Lu Xingliang swallowed slowly and commented, “Not bad.”
“This place grills them super well—crispy on the outside, tender on the inside. I think it’s delicious!” Qi Xiao beamed.
Finishing the skewer, Lu Xingliang couldn’t resist asking, “Do you usually eat this much?”
It felt like the guy had been eating non-stop the entire day.
Feeling his professional ethics questioned, Qi Xiao protested, “How could I! Sister Su Mei usually never lets me eat stuff like this. I haven’t had any in ages.”
Lu Xingliang instinctively glanced down at his waist—it was indeed exceptionally slender.
Averting his gaze, he said, “I’m going to shower.”
By the time Lu Xingliang emerged from the bathroom, Qi Xiao was already half-asleep. Likely because a full belly naturally brought on drowsiness, he had burrowed straight under the covers.
Seeing this, Lu Xingliang asked, “You’re going to sleep?”
Qi Xiao let out a drowsy “Mm,” on the brink of drifting off into dreamland, when something suddenly crossed his mind.
Not long ago, the director had specifically instructed him to talk more about love lines with his roommate once they were back. After a brief thought, Qi Xiao asked, “Senior, do you have a target of interest yet?” Because his face was buried in the pillow, his voice sounded a bit muffled.
“No,” Lu Xingliang replied crisply. After a pause, he asked, “Why ask?”
“Just asking casually.” Qi Xiao felt so exhausted he could barely keep his eyes open. Hearing no further response after a while, he assumed the conversation was over and immediately fell fast asleep.
“What about you?” Lu Xingliang asked offhandedly—though that “offhandedly” came a full few minutes later.
Receiving no response for quite a while, he couldn’t help turning around.
Beside him, Qi Xiao was already deep in dreamland, hugging the blanket and sleeping sweet and soundly, a contented smile playing on his face—likely thanks to the late-night snack.
Lu Xingliang stared into the empty air in silence for a few seconds, then turned off the light.
The next morning, Lu Xingliang was woken up by Qi Xiao’s alarm.
A vaguely familiar male voice echoed repeatedly in his ears, yet the alarm’s owner remained utterly oblivious, sleeping right through it as if he hadn’t heard a single beat.
Moments later, finally pushed past his limit, Lu Xingliang sat up with a cold face, grabbed the phone, and shut the alarm off.
Only then did he realize that the ringtone sounded like a song by Zhou Chongyu.
His mood instantly souring even further, Lu Xingliang got out of bed and shot a glance at the person on the other mattress. Qi Xiao’s sleeping posture was anything but orderly—currently posed like a flying superhero, half his body exposed outside the blanket. A corner of his silk pajamas had rolled up to his waist, revealing a strip of milky skin.
A sudden thought crossing his mind, Lu Xingliang grabbed a nearby tablecloth and casually tossed it directly over the camera facing the beds.
He had always maintained a morning exercise routine. By the time he headed down to the hotel restaurant, it was already past eight in the morning.
The rest of the guests were already up, gathered around a table eating breakfast. Seeing Lu Xingliang arrive alone, they couldn’t help looking puzzled.
Shen Ye asked, “Where’s Qi Xiao? Isn’t he coming down for breakfast?”
Only then did Lu Xingliang realize the guy still hadn’t gotten out of bed.
What was even the point of setting an alarm that early?
Zhou Chongyu offered, “I’ll go wake him up.”
“No need.”
Lu Xingliang spoke almost on instinct. Perhaps because his morning grumpiness hadn’t fully dissipated, he even cast a slightly unchivalrous glance at the singer. “I have the keycard.”
Swiping into the room, sure enough, Qi Xiao was still sprawling in bed, having shifted to sleeping on his stomach.
Lu Xingliang stood by the edge of the bed: “Get up.”
The room remained dead silent.
Several seconds passed after his words fell, and he realized it had zero effect.
Shouting loudly was clearly not his style. After a few seconds of silence, Lu Xingliang stepped forward and gave the blanket in the younger man’s arms a firm tug.
“What are you doing.” Qi Xiao was sleeping so soundly and hated being disturbed most of all. Frustrated, he yanked it back with force, hugging the blanket tight without letting go, like a drowning man clutching his only lifesaver.
“Get up,” Lu Xingliang repeated.
Because his brain wasn’t fully awake yet, Qi Xiao momentarily forgot he was filming a show in a hotel, assuming he was back in his own home. And at home, only one person would wake him up every day—his older brother.
He had a whole set of tricks to deal with his brother, so he rolled over, whining drowsily, “I don’t want to.”
Lu Xingliang grew impatient: “Get up, now.” Standing here for a few minutes was already at his absolute limit.
Qi Xiao agreed readily enough: “I’m up, I’m up,” before continuing to lie on the bed, completely motionless.
Lu Xingliang glanced back at the camera, confirming it was still covered, then took half a step forward and forcefully pulled the blanket completely off him in one swift tug.
Deprived of his cover, Qi Xiao instantly felt uncomfortable sleeping. After tossing around for a moment longer, he finally couldn’t help opening his eyes.
He was met with the sight of a man standing before his bed with a stony, expressionless face.
Qi Xiao rubbed his eyes and asked, “Senior, why are you at my house?”
Lu Xingliang couldn’t resist stepping forward and giving his cheek a gentle pinch.
Just as he had imagined, it was incredibly soft and squishy.
Is this guy made of dough?
“Awake now?” He said.
Even though his tone sounded stern, for some reason it wasn’t terrifying at all; instead, it felt strangely familiar to Qi Xiao.
After thinking carefully for a moment, Qi Xiao finally realized where that familiar feeling came from.
Blinking his eyes, he said, “Senior, you sound just like my dad.”
Lu Xingliang: “?????”
By the time all the guests finished breakfast and styling, it was nearly ten o’clock. The director came over to announce today’s itinerary: they were going to play on a nearby small island.
To reach the island, they could either take an oversea cable car or a speedboat, leaving the choice entirely up to the guests. While it seemed like a simple choice of transportation, it effectively meant the eight of them would be temporarily split into two groups.
Shen Ye took the lead: “I’m good with either. You guys pick first.”
He clearly intended to observe everyone else’s choices before making his move.
Qi Xiao declared, “I want to take the speedboat!” He thought to himself that the cable car sounded boring—the speedboat would be way more fun.
Lin Zhiyao followed, “I choose the speedboat too.”
Zhou Chongyu: “Speedboat for me.”
Seeing that there was only one spot left for the speedboat, the remaining five guests fell into a brief silence.
“Um,” Liang Yi spoke up softly, “I, I want to take the speedboat too.”
Naturally, no one objected.
Thus, the remaining four automatically formed the group taking the cable car.
Boarding the speedboat, Qi Xiao and Zhou Chongyu sat in the front row, Lin Zhiyao and Liang Yi sat in the second row, while the camera operator and field director sat at the very back.
Lin Zhiyao suddenly asked, “Does anyone want their palm read?”
Qi Xiao was instantly curious: “You know how to read palms?”
“Just a little bit, not super proficient yet. I just wanted to practice on you guys!”
“Read mine!” Qi Xiao offered. “But don’t tell me the bad stuff—just tell me the good parts.”
“Then give me your left hand,” Lin Zhiyao said.
Qi Xiao complied, reaching his hand out toward the back row.
Since their seats were arranged one behind the other facing forward, twisting his neck continuously felt a bit uncomfortable, so Qi Xiao only turned his head back to glance at her occasionally.
Feeling Lin Zhiyao trace a couple of lines on his palm, he then heard her let out an exclamation of awe: “Ah, your marriage line is remarkably distinct!”
Hearing her say that, Qi Xiao suddenly felt a wave of nervousness: “Then what does that mean?”
“Hmm, the other half destined for you seems to be far, yet right before your eyes.”
“Huh?” Qi Xiao was utterly baffled. Could there actually be his future life partner among the show’s guests?
“Alright, that’s all I’m going to say—mysteries of fate aren’t to be spilled so easily!” Lin Zhiyao adopted a mysterious tone as she reached out and gently closed his palm. “Next, please, next!”
His head completely filled with confusion, Qi Xiao was just about to speak when he suddenly felt his palm pressing against a cool, ring-shaped object.
Ehh???!!!