Fu Yi froze on the spot, taking a long while to process the words before pointing at herself.
“Me?”
What did Ye Xunshu mean by this? Wasn’t she usually the most clingy? Why was she taking the initiative to push her away?
Since the words had already been said, Xu Lanxi was the first to jump out. “I don’t agree!”
Fu Yi gave a mental sneer, thinking: Even if you were willing, I wouldn’t want to.
The little rabbit was likely still angry and only said such words out of spite. Fu Yi didn’t know why Ye Xunshu was upset and felt uneasy, but she suddenly felt a pang of guilt and stole a secret glance toward her.
Unexpectedly, Ye Xunshu happened to be looking at her as well, and their gazes met for a split second.
Before Fu Yi could look away, Ye Xunshu said with a beaming smile, “Sister Fu Yi, if you don’t want to either…”
“Ah, Xun… Xunshu…” Fu Yi felt as if she could see the little rabbit’s long ears drooping in disappointment. She hurriedly said, “Miss Xu and I are both Alphas. If we were paired together, it would violate the rules of the program.”
After a thought, she added, “We must follow the rules.”
These words were effective for Ye Xunshu. People here respected etiquette, and rules were not things to be broken lightly.
Ye Xunshu nodded, lowered her head, and murmured, “Oh.”
Fu Yi patted her head. “Good little rabbit.”
“Sister…” Ye Xunshu’s face turned bright red, and she looked away.
Shen Yiyi truly couldn’t stand it anymore. She thought to herself: You two need to have a limit. What happened to “freedom of love”? Is this a permanent lock-in before we’ve even started?
Meanwhile, a round of comments had already drifted through the live stream.
[The head pat! Thank you, Teacher Fu Yi, for teaching me how to train my little Omega at home.] [Fu Yi actually called Miss Ye ‘little rabbit’ hahaha. Does she raise her as an obedient pet?] [The little rabbit blushed after the head pat. Miss Ye looks quite cute when she’s shy.] [The little rabbit completely ignored Xu Lanxi. Hahahaha, look at Xu Lanxi’s face; it’s practically green.]
After a sudden wave of public affection filled the room, Shen Yiyi picked up the pace.
The Alphas moved to another room to wait. The atmosphere was exceptionally subtle. Fu Yi had reason to believe that if Yun Manman weren’t here, Xu Lanxi would have glared her to death.
“Miss Xu, I haven’t introduced myself yet. My name is Yun Manman. You can call me Manman.” Yun Manman stood in front of Xu Lanxi and extended her hand with a smile. Due to years of swinging a cleaver, her palm was covered in rough calluses.
Xu Lanxi crossed her arms, glanced at the hand, gave a light snort, and turned to sit down on the side. She showed no intention of getting to know her.
Yun Manman clearly saw that Xu Lanxi was unwilling to be friendly. Feeling a bit awkward, she slowly lowered her hand and scratched her head. Since she didn’t speak, the room fell silent.
Fu Yi frowned slightly and looked at Xu Lanxi.
Xu Lanxi chuckled and said, “Sister Fu Yi, why are you glaring at Lanxi like that? We are all Alphas; it is normal for us to find each other disagreeable.”
“Does Sister intend to force Lanxi to hold hands with this person?”
Yun Manman, who had been waiting with her head down, heard them talking about her and looked up. “Don’t argue…”
“It wasn’t a glare.” Fu Yi smiled, though a cold intent flickered in her eyes. “I just feel that Miss Xu should pay more attention to her propriety in speech and action.”
She leaned down slightly, blocking the recording water mirror behind her, and reminded her in a low voice, “It is a live broadcast.”
“However, the image of the Eldest Miss Xu is known to all the citizens of Yangzhou. I suppose you don’t care about this bit.”
Xu Lanxi suddenly remembered they were live. It was the truth, but hearing it from her rival’s mouth was truly unpleasant.
She snorted. “Sister Fu Yi, don’t forget. Your reputation and mine—isn’t it obvious whose is higher or lower at a glance? At the very least, I don’t go around flirting with everyone!”
“Is that so?” Fu Yi looked at her, made a shushing gesture with a finger to her lips, and smiled coldly with a sinister tone. “I hope that by the end of the program, you will still be able to speak like that.”
Once everything outside was ready, Fu Yi and the others left the room.
Three figures stood behind the screen, their silhouettes visible. To ensure the fairness of the selection, the production team had placed height-increasing stools under all three guests. It was difficult to tell who was who.
Shen Yiyi said, “Now, the other end of each red string in front of the screen is held by an Omega or Beta behind it. Alphas, please choose the silhouette that feels like an ‘old friend’ in your heart and take that red string.”
Looking at the silhouettes behind the screen, all three were standing. Fu Yi remembered that Ye Xunshu still had an injury on her leg; back in the carriage, she couldn’t even stand steadily.
“Sister isn’t choosing yet?” Xu Lanxi walked in front of her, picked up a red string, and smiled. “Then Lanxi will choose first.”
Fu Yi followed the red string in her hand and cast a deep look at the figure behind the screen. Could it be Ye Xunshu?
“Miss Fu, you choose first,” Yun Manman said. “I’m fine with any of them.”
Shen Yiyi broke into a cold sweat off-camera, looking at Fu Yi awkwardly, but as the director, she couldn’t interfere with a guest’s choice.
There were two left. Fu Yi’s gaze moved between them, unable to decide. In truth, none of the three behind the screen were easy to get along with, but at least Ye Xunshu was more obedient.
She only wanted to choose Ye Xunshu.
Under the pressure of everyone’s eyes focused on her, Fu Yi walked to the center screen, leaned down, and picked up the string. “I choose this one.”
Behind the screen, Ye Xunshu looked at the red string in her hand and tightened her grip.
“Then I’ll take this one.” Yun Manman ran to the left and smilingly picked up the last string.
Shen Yiyi tapped her head with her script. Fu Yi sensed something from her expression. Her back felt cold; she had an ill omen.
“Next, we will remove the screens one by one starting from the left.” At Shen Yiyi’s command, the staff moved the first screen.
Yun Manman was paired with Zhou Zhou.
Yun Manman waved with a smile. Zhou Zhou found it hard not to respond, though the smile on his face was clearly forced. Fu Yi took note of his reaction. People of his, Zhou Ying’s, and Xu Lanxi’s social standing likely looked down on ordinary citizens like Yun Manman.
Next, the middle screen was removed. The unease in Fu Yi’s heart grew more intense. Please don’t let it be Zhou Ying.
As the screen was slowly moved away, Fu Yi felt a total sense of despair when she saw the person.
Seeing it was Fu Yi, Zhou Ying immediately smiled from ear to ear. “Sister Fu Yi, it seems we are truly destined.”
Fu Yi mentally covered her face and cried: Destined my foot!
That meant Ye Xunshu was ultimately paired with Xu Lanxi. Given Xu Lanxi’s spoiled temper, she probably wouldn’t be able to stand Ye Xunshu’s habit of crying at every turn.
Fu Yi shuddered, not even daring to look at the expression Ye Xunshu would give her once the last screen was removed.
“Alright, everyone has chosen their outing partner for tomorrow.” Director Shen stole glances at Fu Yi and Ye Xunshu. “It’s getting late. Everyone, please pack your things and move into the house.”
“Since this is your first day on the program, tonight’s dinner will be provided by the production team.”
The implication was that if they wanted to eat in the following days, they would have to earn it themselves. Fu Yi thought to herself that this was a classic romance show trope.
Rubbing her nose guiltily, she instinctively looked toward Ye Xunshu. Ye Xunshu was just finding a place to sit down. She met Fu Yi’s eyes, then looked away, her eyes rimmed with red.
Fu Yi: ” ”
Her leg hadn’t healed yet.
Xu Lanxi already disliked Ye Xunshu’s delicate personality, and because she disliked Fu Yi, she disliked Ye Xunshu even more by extension. Although she was an Alpha, she was treated like a little princess at home and never had to do manual labor, let alone help an Omega move things.
Yun Manman enthusiastically helped Zhou Zhou carry his things to their respective rooms. Seeing this, Xu Lanxi said sarcastically, “Sister Yun, I have quite a lot of things here. Could you…”
“Of course I can.” Yun Manman scratched her head with a laugh. Since Xu Lanxi was taking the initiative to talk to her, it meant she didn’t hate her, and Yun Manman was more than happy to help.
Ye Xunshu was left all alone on the side.
Zhou Ying held her bundle and called out, “Sister Fu Yi…”
Ye Xunshu looked up alertly, casting a gaze from afar that felt like a cold blade stabbing into Fu Yi.
Fu Yi: ” ”
“The Omegas and Betas should be staying through here, then the second room on the left.”
Zhou Ying’s intention was for Fu Yi to help her with her things. Seeing that she didn’t catch on, she picked up another bundle and approached. “Sister, I have quite a lot of things too. Could you…”
“A girl as capable as Miss Zhou can surely make a few extra trips herself, right?” Fu Yi mitigated the damage in time. “You see, Xunshu has injured her leg and it’s inconvenient for her to carry things. If you really can’t manage, I can help you after I finish moving things for Xunshu, okay?”
Zhou Ying froze on the spot, holding her two bundles.
Fu Yi was also stunned. She seemed to see a trace of a smile in Ye Xunshu’s eyes. But when she looked closer, that smile had long disappeared without a trace. She thought she had misseen; the little rabbit was still angry, so how could she be smiling?
Zhou Ying’s face turned pale with anger. “No need, Sister. Miss Ye has an injury on her leg, so naturally, she must be prioritized for help.”
She spoke with great force, suppressing a surge of anger with nowhere to vent. Having said that, she indignantly carried her two bundles toward the house, glaring at Xu Lanxi before she left.
Fu Yi let out a breath, adjusted her state, and gave a slight smile in Ye Xunshu’s direction. It had the sharpness of an Alpha, yet it was filled with tenderness.
[Ahhh, Sister Fu Yi’s smile is killing me!!!]
[Sister, look at me, ugh. Since we agreed on freedom of love, can I also have a free romance with you?]
[Zhou Ying is so petty. She can’t even carry this much stuff; she’s not even as good as Yun Manman.]
[Is this the Fu Yi I know? She can’t see Zhou Ying’s obvious intent? Is it because Ye Xunshu is there?] [Is Fu Yi henpecked at home? I’m okay with a henpecked Alpha!!]
[To the person above, supposedly Fu Yi doesn’t like ugly people.]
[Is there a ‘black curtain’ behind the guest selection!! Zhou Ying likes Fu Yi, Fu Yi only has eyes for Ye Xunshu, Fu Yi and Xu Lanxi are rivals, so she seizes the chance to snatch Ye Xunshu??? A four-person ‘crematory field’?!] [Hahaha, a four-person struggle. Am I the only one who wants to see the interactions between the butcher Manman and the sobbing little Omega Zhou Zhou.]
[Miss Fu is still Miss Fu. Only she could think of this new way to find an O.]
[How are people being fooled by Fu Yi so quickly? Have you forgotten what kind of person she is? This is all an illusion!!]