Chapter 81

Chapter 81

And so, a makeshift family of three was born.

Ning Xi ate while contemplating who the next unlucky victim-no, mission target-should be.

“Whatever, I’ll just grab whoever I see when I head out!”

Ning Xi hopped off her barstool, ready to go on a random hunt.

Click. The crisp sound of a camera shutter rang out.

Shen Yibai appeared out of nowhere and snapped a photo of Ning Xi’s sundae.

Ning Xi: ?

Avoiding Ning Xi’s gaze, Shen Yibai calmly took a photo of the sundaes Fu Zhi and Xie Lanchen had placed on the table.

Then, under everyone’s watchful eyes, he posted to his Moments: “Eating sundaes.”

[Good heavens, your friends are my content.]

[Shen Yibai: Passionate about living other people’s lives.]

[Shen Yibai’s attitude toward doing the Hidden Mission is truly hardcore.]

Silence was the theme of the evening.

Fu Zhi was the first who couldn’t hold back, blurting out, “Your mission wouldn’t happen to be taking photos of other people’s-”

Shen Yibai decisively stuffed a spoonful of sundae into Fu Zhi’s mouth.

Fu Zhi immediately shut up.

Seeing Shen Yibai deliver himself right to her, Ning Xi instantly locked onto him as her second Hidden Mission target.

Her approach toward Shen Yibai was much more direct than it had been with Fu Zhi and Xie Lanchen.

She bought a sundae, placed it in front of Shen Yibai, and said, as if checking off a task:

“Try it and see if it’s sweet.”

Shen Yibai followed her lead and picked up the sundae. Before even taking a bite, he said calmly, “It’s sweet.”

The whole process was smooth and seamless, but…

It lacked the romantic atmosphere the Program Team was trying to cultivate. It felt more like there were no emotions, only the mission.

[Doing a mission with Fu Zhi is like causing a ruckus with a foul-mouthed best friend; with Xie Lanchen, it’s like the sweet push-and-pull of a young couple’s flirting phase; with Shen Yibai, it’s like an old married couple-no passion, just pure unspoken understanding.]

[You know what? You’re actually right.]

With the mission complete, Ning Xi felt instantly relieved.

Watching Shen Yibai stare at the sundae in his hand with a look of hesitation and scrutiny, she couldn’t help but say:

“If you don’t like it, give it to me.”

Otherwise, it would be such a waste if he threw it away without taking a single bite.

Shen Yibai glanced at Ning Xi, then at her already empty sundae cup.

Finally, he lowered his head and took a tiny taste, then looked at Ning Xi calmly.

It was as if he were saying: Since I’ve already eaten some, I can’t give it to you.

Ning Xi: Fine then.

Watching this scene, Fu Zhi muttered under his breath, “Hmph, what a load of nothing…”

“How much has she eaten today?” Xie Lanchen suddenly asked in a low voice.

Fu Zhi looked at Xie Lanchen and arched an eyebrow. “You’re asking me? You think I’d tell you?”

Was he even that close with Xie Lanchen?

“She sometimes eats without restraint, doesn’t she?” Xie Lanchen continued.

Fu Zhi’s expression finally shifted as he looked at Xie Lanchen.

He hadn’t expected Xie Lanchen to notice even this.

After all, most people would just think Ning Xi had a better appetite than the average person.

They wouldn’t think of it in terms of binge eating disorder.

But Ning Xi’s condition was a bit different; she simply ate twice as much as a normal person, and she didn’t feel the regret typical of binge eaters afterward.

As a child, Ning Xi’s eating habits had been normal. It was only after the kidnapping case that she developed the habit of eating without restraint.

“Maybe. Anyway, just give her a reminder if she eats too much in the future,” Fu Zhi said somewhat reluctantly.

Only after saying it did he realize: Why am I telling Xie Lanchen this?

Once the variety show finished filming, Ning Xi and Xie Lanchen would have no further contact.

Just as he was thinking this, he saw Xie Lanchen take the initiative to walk toward Ning Xi.
“Could you help me pick out a suitable outfit?”

Buying clothes?

Ning Xi understood immediately: this was likely Xie Lanchen’s Hidden Mission.

She slapped Xie Lanchen on the shoulder like they were best buds. “Leave it to me! I’ll give you a ride on my bike!”

At the mention of a “ride,” Xie Lanchen’s expression became subtle.

“If you’re giving him a ride, where am I supposed to sit?” Fu Zhi asked, clearly displeased.

[Sit right between them!]

Ning Xi was genuinely confused. “Why are you following me?”

Fu Zhi was momentarily choked up by Ning Xi’s cold, heartless attitude.

“You cold-blooded, heartless person! I’ll never forgive you!” he fumed.

He turned to leave, clutching his sugarcane.

However, after just one step, he realized his foot was snagged by something.

Fu Zhi’s lips curled upward uncontrollably. “Regretting it now? Since you’re so sincerely inviting me to go shopping with you, I’ll show some mercy and-”

“Um…” Ning Xi hesitated.

Fu Zhi turned around, only to find that Ning Xi hadn’t reached out to stop him at all.

Then…

Fu Zhi looked down and saw that his shoelaces had somehow been tied to the leg of a chair. He clenched his fists. “Ning Xi!!!”

That brat definitely did this!

Ning Xi covered her face, not daring to look at Fu Zhi as she explained to Xie Lanchen, “I was just bored earlier and tied them. I forgot to undo it.”

Xie Lanchen gave a slight smile. “I see.”

Ning Xi ruffled her hair and looked at Fu Zhi, who was puffing out his cheeks like a blowfish. “Fine, fine. You can come along. Stop making a scene!”

Only then did Fu Zhi’s temper simmer down.

But three people and one bicycle created a new problem: who would ride and who would walk?

Ning Xi looked at Xie Lanchen. “You sit on the back rack.”

Xie Lanchen agreed with a smile. “Alright.”

Fu Zhi grumbled, “On what grounds-”

Ning Xi pointed at Fu Zhi. “You’re responsible for pedaling.”

Fu Zhi: ?

Xie Lanchen: ?

Ning Xi thought this solution was absolutely perfect.

With her hands behind her back, she simply walked away.

She left Fu Zhi and Xie Lanchen standing there in stunned silence.

[Ning Xi, the Master of Balancing (Incredible!)]

[Ning Xi said it before: if you can’t make everyone happy, then make everyone unhappy.]

[You can’t even hate on this. She really knows how to balance things.]

[The Bike: Sometimes I just want to rot in the factory.]

The clothing store was only about a hundred meters away.

Ning Xi snacked and shopped along the way while enjoying the scenery, arriving in just a few minutes.

“Huh? Why are those two slower than me even with a bike?”

Ning Xi was perplexed.

As soon as the words left her mouth, she saw the two of them appearing in the distance-one holding a sugarcane, the other pushing the bicycle.

Ning Xi stared at this bizarre scene in confusion. “What are they doing? Is this some kind of performance art?”

They had a bike and weren’t even riding it.

When Xie Lanchen pushed the bike to the storefront, Ning Xi looked directly at Fu Zhi and questioned him.

“Why didn’t you give him a ride?”

Fu Zhi didn’t want to speak.

Ning Xi then looked at Xie Lanchen. “If he wouldn’t pedal, why didn’t you? You could have given Fu Zhi a ride instead.”

Xie Lanchen: …

“If you guys didn’t want to ride, you should’ve said so earlier! I would have ridden it!” What Ning Xi regretted most was missing out on the ride herself.

Fu Zhi couldn’t take it anymore and hissed under his breath, “Stop talking!”

He felt like everyone was staring at him and Xie Lanchen.

He really didn’t know what kind of madness Ning Xi was possessed by every day!

He hadn’t just had enough; he was beyond done.

[I didn’t expect Fu Zhi to have a thin skin too.]

[Mainly because nobody can keep up with Ning Xi’s train of thought.]

[Nothing can defeat her!]