“That level of difficulty is a bit much.” Lin Wang tapped his chair and looked at the person opposite him. “How about we share a portion?”
Chi Yuan drawled an “Oh,” neither agreeing nor disagreeing, and nodded meaningfully. “Got it. Because I did not drink the orange juice.”
As soon as he said this, everyone present understood the subtext. They exchanged knowing smiles, and Miao Qinghe even chimed in with several “Wow” sounds to stir up the atmosphere.
Lin Wang also looked at Chi Yuan and smiled. His fingers tapped the chair a beat faster. He pursed his lips, craving a cigarette as he thought. “Let me think about it. Give me a few seconds.”
Song Mintan chimed in, “Brother Lin, you can actually think of the answer? Do not worry about seconds, take a few minutes.”
“Thanks.” Lin Wang glanced at Chi Yuan. “I have got it. I saved you a few minutes.”
Lu Mingsheng wrote these nasty questions purely to increase the difficulty; he never imagined a guest could actually answer them. Seeing Lin Wang looking for the camera, he cooperated and asked, “Lin Wang, what is your answer?”
Lin Wang waved the piece of paper. “One sip. XX Soy Milk. Just one sip.”
Lu Mingsheng asked, “Are you sure?”
Lin Wang nodded, saying very apologetically to the sponsor, “Sure. He drank one sip and never touched it again. He is not used to this brand.”
Lu Mingsheng tried to lead him on, “There is still an entire afternoon. What if he drank it while you were sleeping?”
Lin Wang remained unmoved. “He ate a lot of fruit at lunch, the mineral water in the room has not moved, and right now…” Lin Wang looked at Chi Yuan. “His lips are a bit dry. He did not drink any water this afternoon.”
Su Xi covered her mouth in surprise. “Oh my god, Detective Lin Wang.”
Lu Mingsheng was also impressed. “Correct. The Chi Yuan and Lin Wang team scores one point.”
After Lu Mingsheng finished speaking, Lin Wang did not go to get the points card; he looked at Chi Yuan first.
Chi Yuan was leaning on the chair’s armrest with his hand supporting his face. Receiving Lin Wang’s gaze, his eyebrows twitched, and his fingertips rubbed lightly against his lips.
Lin Wang withdrew his eyes, pressed down the arc of his mouth, and read the second paper: “What was the first thing Chi Yuan said when he entered the room?”
Lin Wang thought for a moment, looked up at Director Lu, held back a laugh, and mimicked Chi Yuan’s tone: “He said, ‘The TV is broken. Is Lu Mingsheng poverty-stricken?'”
The whole room burst into laughter at the remark, and the live stream chat was flooded with “Hahahaha.”
Director Lu laughed along too. “Great. I am indeed very poor, but Lin Wang answered this correctly. Two points. Lin Wang is now the first to answer two questions correctly after Fang Yue. Come, let us look at the results of Boss Chi, who has quite a few opinions about me.”
Chi Yuan’s back-stabbing was exposed, but he did not feel the slightest bit embarrassed. Leaning against the back of his chair, he read the first paper: “How many minutes did Lin Wang spend in the shower?”
Lin Wang could not help but laugh. “What kind of question is this?”
Chi Yuan did not even look up as he said, “Eight minutes. Excluding washing his clothes, the clothes took five and a half minutes.”
“Chi Yuan answers one correctly,” Lu Mingsheng shouted through the megaphone. “Staff, take note: the wall clock in Room 3 can be taken out. Boss Chi is a human timer and does not need a clock.”
Chi Yuan scoffed at him and read the second question: “Why did Lin Wang blow-dry your hair?” He did not hesitate for a second: “Because I look good. Is there a problem with that?”
Lin Wang added, “None at all.”
Tao Yunqing covered her face and giggled. “The questions their team gets are so twisted. I love it, ha-ha-ha-ha…”
The questions drawn were more absurd than the last, yet Chi Yuan and Lin Wang managed to get the only perfect score of the show, which forced the audience to overthink things.
Setting aside the trolls, the live stream chat had already shifted from “Lin Wang threatened Chi Yuan” to “If they are fake, then I am fake too.”
Lin Wang was not a picky eater. When it came time to trade coupons for food, he let Chi Yuan go. Chi Yuan chose two spicy dishes and two mild ones. For the complimentary household item, Lin Wang chose an air conditioner, and Lu Mingsheng said he would have it installed shortly.
At seven o’clock, Lu Mingsheng announced it was time to eat, specifically emphasizing “no sharing between groups.” Miao Qinghe was so hungry that he could only back-to-back them and eat pitifully.
After eating, it was free time again.
The night view by the fishing village beach was beautiful. In a place untouched by industrial pollution, the stars littered the sky. With the deep blue sea and people familiar or unfamiliar around him, to avoid the cameras, they had to lean in close to whisper. No matter what, it was excellent material for the show.
If you asked what they did today, it felt like they did nothing at all. Walking along the damp sand, Lin Wang still felt a bit tired. Heart-tired.
Perhaps it was because the cameras were always following, and every word and action had to be carefully monitored. Lin Wang did not mind for himself, but he felt it was not worth it if he did something inappropriate and dragged Chi Yuan down with him.
By eight o’clock, the sky was completely dark.
The production team had placed artistic little lights along the beach at intervals, illuminating small patches of yellow.
Chi Yuan and Lin Wang were walking side-by-side, not too close, not too far. Even though the microphones had been removed, for a moment, neither of them spoke.
Ten meters behind them, the cameras followed, recording raw footage since the live stream had ended.
The wind on his face felt comfortable. Lin Wang broke the silence first: “Poor appetite? I noticed you did not eat much.”
Chi Yuan rested his hand on the corner of Lin Wang’s clothes and swatted away a small moth. “Should I not be the one asking you that?”
Lin Wang was stunned for a moment. He looked down at the insect flying toward the light and laughed. “What is wrong with me? I ate so much.”
Chi Yuan stopped, looked into Lin Wang’s eyes, and after two seconds, said, “Why are you always so tense?”
Lin Wang laughed without thinking. “When have I been tense? I am so relaxed I could almost fall asleep.”
“Then sleep,” Chi Yuan walked in front of Lin Wang, keeping a distance of half a step, and looked down at him. “Sleep in front of me.”
Lin Wang did not know how to respond for a moment. He wanted to look back and see how far the cameras were, but Chi Yuan blocked his face with the back of his hand and called his name: “Lin Wang, look at me.”
He emphasized the word “me.”
Lin Wang took a breath, paused, and looked up helplessly. “Mm, I am looking.”
“Avoiding me?” Chi Yuan asked.
Lin Wang did not think he was being that obvious. He wondered if Chi Yuan was just sensitive or if he had slipped up somewhere.
Since he was cornered and asked, Lin Wang decided to admit it: “You could say that.”
Chi Yuan did not need to ask further. Once he opened the door, Lin Wang continued.
He patted Chi Yuan’s shoulder to make him take a small step back, his fingers rubbing together as he wished for a cigarette. “Just treat it as me being shy. At this age, it is still so embarrassing.”
“What age?” Chi Yuan grabbed his wrist, then let go, standing still. “25? 28? Or 30?”
Lin Wang’s body was firmly 25 years old, making Chi Yuan’s question sharp. Lin Wang did not lie, nor did he answer directly; he started a new topic. “Let me adjust for two days. I will be over it soon.”
“Do it when you are done adjusting, and avoid me when you are done,” Chi Yuan bent over, his face suddenly getting close. With a half-smile, he said, “Lin Wang, are you playing hide-and-seek with me?”
If he did not give an explanation today, Chi Yuan would likely continue with “This thing is not over.” His fickleness made it impossible for Lin Wang to tell if Chi Yuan would be calling him ‘Brother’ with downcast eyes the next second, or pinning him down and telling him not to move.
When he could not see through someone, Lin Wang would usually be wary and keep them at a distance. But when that person was Chi Yuan, Lin Wang was actually quite… willing to watch.
He had been avoiding him because he was used to handling and digesting things on his own, compounded by unexplainable feelings and realistic reasons. Now that Chi Yuan had seen through it, Lin Wang decided to lay it all out.
“Playing hide-and-seek? Am I not right in front of you every day?” Lin Wang said, his hands in his pockets in a very relaxed posture, joking slightly. “My eyes are all on you. I cannot even move them away.”
Chi Yuan leaned in closer. Lin Wang could almost feel his breath as he heard him say, “Then do not just peek. It is just the two of us in the villa. Who are you hiding from?”
Lin Wang leaned his upper body backward. “Be mindful of the image; we are recording.”
Chi Yuan watched him for a while, then stood up straight.
Lin Wang reached into his pocket again and saw two chairs not far away. As he walked toward them, he said, “What kind of relationship would allow you to stare directly at someone’s face? It is not polite.”
Since they started talking, the cameras had been far enough away that they could not pick up the audio.
Chi Yuan followed behind Lin Wang. When he sat down, his knees brushed against Lin Wang’s legs. He put his arm on the armrest of Lin Wang’s chair and leaned his upper body toward him. He stared into Lin Wang’s eyes, maintaining an overly intimate distance, his lips almost touching Lin Wang’s chin, and said very slowly and softly, “Does a relationship where we have touched inside and out count?”
“Damn!” Lin Wang tilted his head and laughed out loud, his shoulders shaking. It took a long while before he could speak. “People’s hearts are cruel. You kid, do not tease me.”
Chi Yuan lowered his eyelashes and brushed the tip of his nose against Lin Wang’s chin. His voice remained very soft, rustling against his ear: “How many years younger am I than you, calling me ‘kid’?”
Lin Wang’s smile faltered. He looked at Chi Yuan, the emotions in the depths of his eyes dimming, becoming somewhat silent. It took a long time before a faint, shallow smile touched the corners of his lips.
“Six years,” he said softly.