The ratio of men to women among the racing team fans was relatively balanced, and every now and then, a robust male voice could be heard shouting.
There was a slight Southeast Asian accent, but overall, it was still quite standard Chinese—
At first, it was just "Husband," but later it escalated, turning into the more complex "Husband Ling Ye, look at me."
Wen Wanning had never seen such a scene, and the corner of her lips couldn't help but twitch.
Looking at Ling Ye, who was at the center of the commotion, he seemed quite used to it and never showed any sign of impatience.
Wearing a sleeveless black T-shirt, his arms were long and sturdy, with beautiful veins faintly visible. His upper body was slightly tilted as he skillfully took the team uniform and hat handed over by a fan, signed them, and returned them.
Watching for over ten meters, Wen Wanning summarized Ling Ye's business principles:
His hand was very steady, and he showed a gentleness that was in stark contrast to his stern face; he would actually ask for the other person's name before signing.
He would sign not only the racing team uniform printed with his car number but also the team's cheering merchandise; things like helmets and car models were also fine.
He didn't answer many questions, except for those from kids.
Just as he approached the nanny van, a male fan suddenly shouted in English: "Ling, your watch is so cool!"
Due to his genes, men seemed naturally interested in watches and sneakers, and this was even more true for young male actors.
As soon as the words fell, Wen Wanning saw Xu Jiashu and Wei Yinghuai beside her look up in unison, gazing at Ling Ye's wrist through the car window.
A cold silver sports mechanical watch.
It was too far to see the model clearly, but the iconic square shape was eye-catching enough—it was a brand so expensive that it could hardly be described as just expensive.
She had heard about it before leaving Jiayue; it was said that the brand's public relations team was incredibly arrogant, and it was difficult for any male artist in the company to borrow items for events.
Xu Jiashu looked a bit mesmerized, his eyes filled with undisguised envy, while Wen Wanning's mood was somewhat complicated.
Although she had only briefly taken in Ling Ye for half a year, she had always felt that this kid was not hard to understand.
Having been used to poverty, his personality was sometimes like a puppy guarding its food, which was a bit infuriating.
But most of the time, he was straightforward, had little desire for material things, and wasn't fussy.
According to information from her younger cousin, Ling Ye had also been indifferent to yacht parties for the past few years, appearing out of place among a group of wealthy racers living in luxury.
With a guardian's mindset, even though she knew the watch was likely sponsored by the racing team, seeing the joy that appeared on Ling Ye's stern side profile made Wen Wanning's heart tighten again, fearing that he had truly changed.
The sunset over the tropical island was like water, outlining the young racer's messy hair with a golden edge.
Ling Ye was tall with long legs, standing out in the crowd, his gaze sweeping across this side.
With the crowd being noisy, he seemed to have misheard the shouting; he raised his other hand and naturally displayed the Cherry Maruko bracelet on his wrist.
Only then did he curl the corner of his lips slightly, "Thank you."
The fans holding their phones froze for two seconds, and then screams erupted.
Wen Wanning: ...
She didn't look at the expressions of the others in the car; she felt a bit of a heart attack herself and couldn't help but lower her head.
... Mishearing is one thing, but is being this oblivious a bit too much?
Pink and delicate, how old are you this year?
Is wearing something like that to work a glorious thing?
Qi Jiujiu remained silent throughout, and only after Ling Ye got on the car and sat obediently in the back row did she send her a message with great restraint: 【Did you give it to him? You're too good at this... 】
Wen Wanning: 【I am also shocked, there is no hidden story, don't overthink it】
Less than a second later, her phone vibrated again.
Qi Jiujiu clearly hadn't listened at all, as three golden, shining characters spun wildly: 【Teach, teach, me】
The homestay where the program group was staying was located on a private beach.
The budget was sufficient, and the environment was also perfect.
A butler in local attire had been waiting at the entrance for a long time and took them on a tour first. The fatigue from the long-haul flight vanished, and "wow" sounds echoed one after another.
Under the tropical flowers was a crystal-clear blue swimming pool, with log-style exterior walls and bright floor-to-ceiling glass windows. Standing anywhere, one could look out at the invincible sea view.
Unlike the previous season, this season's director team seemed exceptionally kind; they didn't decide the rooms based on the rankings of game duels but switched to a more relaxed game of rock-paper-scissors.
Wen Wanning had always had terrible luck; since she was a child, she had never even seen a bottle cap with "try again" on it. This time was no exception, and she was eliminated in the first round.
By the time everyone had chosen their rooms, only the attic was left.
She had seen it when she first arrived; other than being a bit small, the quality of life hadn't been forcibly lowered for the sake of the program's effect.
There were huge skylights on both sides of the roof. It would probably be a bit hot during the day, but thinking about being able to lie on the bed and watch the stars at night, Wen Wanning was still quite looking forward to it.
The cameraman held the machine and filmed her face for a long time, but didn't capture any of the expected disappointment, so he pulled back the camera lens in surprise.
The director seemed to have been prepared for her reaction and spoke with a smile.
"Everyone should have watched the previous seasons. Our 《Spontaneous Travel》 emphasizes randomness. Everything is possible, everything is allowed to happen. There will absolutely be no cliché scripts, and we won't let everyone sit around and be bored."
"First of all, thanks to the generous sponsorship from the Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 Team behind Ling Ye. Congratulations to everyone for receiving the most sufficient hotel budget in the history of the program, but accordingly, we also need to save money in other areas."
The twist came unexpectedly, and Qiao Li was clearly a bit stunned.
Wei Yinghuai was very quick on the uptake and actively raised his hand to ask, "I get it. The activities must continue, and the budget cannot be cut, so that means we have to earn the money ourselves?"
The director sat cross-legged on the sofa opposite them and cast a satisfied look upon hearing this, "Xiao Wei guessed half of it right. However, our planning teacher is still a group of very kind people; it's impossible to make everyone earn back all the money, so you don't need to be too nervous."
The director waved his hand, and the prop department brought over a stack of cards and placed them on the small round table.
"So, you have one minute to choose someone to draw lots on behalf of everyone to draw a card."
"Whatever is written on the card drawn, the program group will withdraw the budget sponsorship for that part, and everyone will have to work in groups to support yourselves."
The whole room was shocked.
The program 《Spontaneous Travel》 previously focused on a limited budget, watching how the guests tried their best to save money while planning their itinerary, creating sparks.
When they first moved into the homestay, they thought the budget for this season was explosive and they could experience the thrill of a wealthy person traveling without regard for cost, but it turned out to be a transition from budget travel to working abroad.
Qi Jiujiu completely understood the director team's dark humor and had a vague premonition in her heart, "What if it says electricity bill on the card?"
"Then we will cut the power now," the director's tone was very matter-of-fact, "The refrigerator and air conditioner will not be spared. When you earn enough money, it will be restored."
Wei Yinghuai: "Can I ask the very kind planning teacher a question? In such a luxurious villa, if we each hold a palm-leaf fan and fan ourselves in the dark, can't we just return the money for the swimming pool?"
The director didn't hesitate much: "It can chill coconut water and watermelon."
The young man's eyes widened, and Qi Jiujiu was amused, "If you really get heatstroke, we can soak you awake."
In the end, Teacher Jiang Yun brought the off-topic conversation back and, using poison to fight poison, nominated Wen Wanning, who had the worst luck in the rock-paper-scissors game, to draw the card.
The card was flipped over, and everyone let out a sigh of relief—
Food expenses.
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