Chapter 105

Chapter 105

Never Be a Sycophant Again: “No need. It’s so far away that by the time you get here, we’ll already be done shopping.”

Never Be a Sycophant Again: “[Rose][Spinning]”

After that, Shen Yibai didn’t say anything else.

Ning Xi hadn’t really been looking at her phone. By the time she saw the group chat messages, they had already finished browsing the supermarket and were in the car back to Ling Village.

So she didn’t take it to heart.

“It is seriously so sunny today.” Jiang Sheshe took a bottle of sunscreen spray from her bag and started spritzing away.

Ning Xi’s ears perked up. In an instant, she went from listless to fully revived. “Where’s the handsome guy?”

Jiang Sheshe: …

[Peak mishearing master Ning Xi]

[The most handsome one is clearly right beside her]

[Xiao Xie, come out and take a walk]

“What handsome guy? If you want to look at one, just look at Xie Lanchen.” Jiang Sheshe clicked her tongue.

Ning Xi was bored enough that she actually took Jiang Sheshe’s advice. Propping up her cheek, she began studying Xie Lanchen beside her.

Xie Lanchen paused. Then the corners of his mouth curved into a faint smile, letting Ning Xi stare at him as much as she liked.

“Xiao Xie really is good-looking.”

Ning Xi looked straight at Xie Lanchen’s face and couldn’t help praising him.

She had been in the entertainment industry for so many years, but she had never seen anyone better-looking than Xie Lanchen.

And he had a good personality too. He even smelled nice…

Ning Xi’s eyes held nothing but pure admiration and wonder.

Until her gaze inadvertently landed on the corner of Xie Lanchen’s lips.

Xiao Xie’s lips curved softly at the corners. Their color was very pale, and they looked soft, like jelly. If she kissed them, they would probably feel cool too…

The thought popped into her head, and Ning Xi startled herself. How could she think something like that?

Ning Xi quickly looked away, but in her panic, her eyes met Xie Lanchen’s again. He was still smiling faintly at her, his dark eyes seeming to be soaked in ink, carrying an unusual sort of focus.

In that instant, Ning Xi felt as if her heart were a butterfly’s wings, fluttering lightly once.

A tingling current seemed to pass through her, and her heartbeat pounded like a drum.

The sound struck her eardrums again and again, vibrating, echoing.

Even the air around her seemed to grow thin.

Pretending to be calm, Ning Xi withdrew her gaze and started staring at the front seat.

But out of the corner of her eye, she could still always catch sight of Xie Lanchen.

“Then who do you think is better-looking, Xie Lanchen or Shen Yibai?” Jiang Sheshe’s gossipy voice came from the front seat again.

Xie Lanchen’s smile paused almost imperceptibly. Then he held his breath and waited for Ning Xi’s answer.

“It’s…” Ning Xi got stuck.

If it had been before, she would definitely have cheered for Xiao Xie without hesitation.

After all, in her eyes, her friend was definitely the best-looking.

But ever since that strange thought about “Xie Lanchen’s lips would be very nice to kiss” had popped up, she didn’t know why, but the words suddenly felt a little hard to say.

The feeling was odd.

It pulled her out of her comfort zone and made her feel unlike herself.

So instead of answering, Ning Xi asked, “Why don’t you add your Wei Xuan into the comparison too?”

Jiang Sheshe chuckled. “I just want to know who you think is better-looking, Shen Yibai or Xie Lanchen.”

Brother Xuan was definitely the most handsome in her eyes, but if he were compared against Xie Lanchen and Shen Yibai, two powerfully handsome visual kings like them, his audience appeal would probably be just a tiny bit narrower.

“I think Feynman is better-looking.” Jiang Sheshe cupped her face, smiling like a lovestruck fangirl.

That Shen Yibai was cold as ice and didn’t like talking to anyone, which made her feel a little scared.

Although Feynman didn’t like talking to her either, strangely enough, she wasn’t afraid of him.

Maybe it was because… Xie Lanchen would smile at Ning Xi, while Shen Yibai rarely smiled even when he was facing Ning Mingyue.

“I think so too,” Ning Xi replied vaguely.

The corners of Xie Lanchen’s mouth, which had been tense, suddenly relaxed.

He returned to his usual lazy, effortless composure.

And yet these were details Ning Xi had rarely paid attention to before. For some reason, they were magnified in her senses at this moment.

Xiao Xie had actually been nervous because of her answer?

Did he care that much?

That strange feeling in Ning Xi’s heart came back again.

…

At the same time.

Shen Yibai, who was discussing tomorrow night’s performance venue with Director Qin, suddenly felt his heart being torn at.

But in just an instant, Shen Yibai’s expression returned to normal, and he continued,
“Then for tomorrow night’s venue, we’ll set it on the open space diagonally across from Room 4. For the villagers watching the performance, let’s tentatively cap it at one hundred people and choose from the villagers who’ve appeared on camera before. That way, we can guarantee the livestream effect…”

Director Qin nodded repeatedly. “Right, right, exactly.”

The look he gave Shen Yibai carried a little more appreciation.

Of the four guests, aside from Wei Xuan, Shen Yibai was the steadiest.

He might be a little quiet and a little aloof, but when it came to responsibility, he was absolutely reliable.

Originally, these were all things he was supposed to discuss with Ning Xi, the Team Leader, tonight. But after Shen Yibai returned from outside at noon today, he didn’t even go rest. Instead, he took the initiative to discuss all of this with him.

“Oh, it’s on the trending searches again.” Director Qin was scrolling through his phone when he suddenly slapped his forehead and laughed.

“#Xi-Lan Flower’s Gazes Are Pulling Threads# Look at this trending topic, hahahaha.” Director Qin laughed as he handed the phone to Shen Yibai.

He had spent most of the day discussing things with Shen Yibai and hadn’t really watched the other group’s livestream.

But even without watching it, he knew it was fake.

After so many years producing reality dating shows, he could tell at a glance who liked whom.

Take Ning Xi, for example. She clearly didn’t like anyone and had no intention of developing anything with anyone. She was purely here to coast through the reality dating show for fun.

But after watching the cut of Ning Xi and Xie Lanchen exchanging glances in the car, Director Qin fell silent.

That atmosphere… There was obviously a bit more spark than in their previous interactions.

Could this CP actually become real?

“It’s shot pretty well…” Director Qin looked up and smiled at Shen Yibai.

Then he froze.

Why had Shen Yibai’s face suddenly turned as white as paper, as if he had suffered some devastating blow?

“Are you feeling unwell?”

“Mm. I’ll head back first.”

Shen Yibai’s voice even seemed to tremble slightly.

With that, he walked toward his own house.

Director Qin watched Shen Yibai’s retreating figure and, for some reason, thought back to Shen Yibai and Ning Xi’s first date.

At the time, someone on the team had reported that Shen Yibai and Ning Xi interacted very naturally. His eyes would drift toward Ning Xi from time to time too, giving them a rather strong CP vibe.

The camera didn’t lie.

Back then, he’d even thought that Shen Yibai and Ning Xi might have more interactions after that date, and he had planned to follow up on that storyline.

But after that date, the two of them had no private contact at all, just like before.

So he had dropped the idea.

…

Shen Yibai didn’t know how he made it back to the house.

His mind was completely blank. He braced himself hard against the wall, and only then did his leaden legs regain a little strength.

He understood better than anyone what that look in the video meant…

Ning Xi might not understand it yet, but he had known her for decades. Perhaps he understood her even better than she understood herself.

Ning Xi liked Xie Lanchen. Even if it wasn’t quite love yet, there was definitely attraction between a man and a woman.

It felt as if a pair of huge hands were tearing at his heart. Every organ in his body throbbed with pain, raw and bloody.

From the moment he decided to let go after being reborn, he had already prepared himself for a complete parting.

But watching this scene unfold before his eyes still hurt unbearably.

It hurt even more than dying in A Ning’s arms in his previous life, filled with endless reluctance and regret…

“What are you doing?”

Ning Mingyue had been about to help Shen Yibai tidy the documents on his desk. When she heard Shen Yibai’s voice, seemingly layered with ice, she shuddered in fright.

“I brought you pork bone soup. I saw no one was in the room, so I thought I’d help tidy up…” Ning Mingyue hurriedly explained.

“Get out.”

Shen Yibai’s voice was light and airy, as if he were exhausted to the extreme, but the implicit intimidation in his tone made Ning Mingyue afraid to say another word.

But she had a temper of her own too. Seeing Shen Yibai act like this, she simply picked up the pork bone soup and left.

The room fell silent once more.

Boundless loneliness spread through it.

Shen Yibai covered the camera with a piece of clothing and slowly walked to the desk.

His phone lit up soundlessly. It was a message from his special assistant:

“President Shen, the detailed files on the child trafficking case in Xiangcheng twelve years ago have been sent to your email.”

“Also, Dr. Musk, whom you asked me to contact, has replied. He’ll be available next month and can come to Xiangcheng to meet with you.”