【That’s way too cool!!!】
【Yeah, Little Cat’s carrying hard! And it’s not just carrying—our Cat Cat sheriff could straight-up demolish the other side!】
【I thought Shen Li was actually gonna team up with him, but Shen Li got the rules and already knew how to shut it down [starry eyes]】
【Your worries are overblown. It’s just a Nighttime Game—even if they play together, it doesn’t mean anything, right?】
【But this Nighttime Game looks super flirty!!!】
Inside the spacious living room, the Announcement Screen flickered with a soft glow as the Butler System’s voice urged them once more.
“Please submit your applications soon. In ten minutes, if no applications are received, this Butler will assign teams via random draw.”
Zhen Tian stopped grinding his teeth, and Jiang Nan, who had been eyeing Lan Jinghai, raised an eyebrow with keen interest before glancing toward Shen Li.
Kris murmured a soft “wow,” while Li Weiwei’s face remained expressionless. She silently crossed her legs and took a sip of her coffee. Lin Xu and Ke Jiujiu, who had been tussling playfully in the distance, now crowded over and asked Shen Li.
“Brother Qian—is he really not coming back?”
Shen Li glanced at the Announcement Screen and said flatly, “Forget him. Let’s just play.”
“But how are we dividing teams…” Ke Jiujiu hesitated as she asked Shen Li. “Brother Shen, which team do you want to join?”
The public screen displayed the rules for tonight’s Nighttime Game:
Thrilling Minesweeper Event Announcement
【Event Time】: 20:30-22:30
【Team Formation】: To boost participation from the new guests, two new guests will each select teammates and lead a “Minesweeper Squad.” Each squad must have at least three members.
【Event Details】:
The activity area is divided into Zone A and Zone B.
Each zone contains a 99-grid minefield. Each Catfish Guest and their squad will choose either Zone A or Zone B to clear mines.
The goal for each squad is to clear all grids in their chosen zone without triggering any mines.
To probe a grid, two squad members must bind their wrists together with restraint bands and step into it.
If the grid is empty, the mine is automatically defused, and the squad earns one point.
If the grid contains a mine, the bound pair automatically receives a punishment and must choose between Truth Game or Dare—successfully completing the challenge defuses the mine and earns five points; failure triggers the mine, resetting the squad’s score to zero.
【Scoring】: Members of the higher-scoring Minesweeper Squad will receive bonus privileges in the next two days of live broadcasts.
【Special Note】: If you disagree with the captain’s choices, discuss a team switch with the captain or find the “Captain’s Armband” they’ve hidden somewhere in the estate to replace them.
Shen Li skimmed the announcement in one quick glance. He had nothing to say about it—honestly, he figured any team would do.
At its core, this game was just like the Truth or Dare from high school reunions, repackaged for TV. They couldn’t do drinking games on air, so they’d tweaked the rules. The real hook, the spectacle, lay in the punishments.
From the perspective of a divorced guy like Shen Li, well past the age of blushing over party games, it was all meaningless. Holding hands, sharing secrets—what did it matter? The show wouldn’t make them kiss on camera; the punishments were carefully moderated. So Shen Li didn’t care which team he ended up on because of the event rules.
That said, stripping away the irrelevant details, Shen Li had his own thoughts on the matter.
But then he remembered…
Qian Xingzhi’s jealous streak.
Ever dutiful, Shen Li glanced toward the girl surnamed Liu.
“Little Liu, does your team still need members?”
Before Liu Qingyan could respond, Lan Jinghai’s voice—clear as a mountain stream—chuckled suddenly. His tone lifted playfully, like flirtation straight out of some chuunibyou anime character.
“I never expected you’d fear me this much—”
Shen Li stared at him impassively, utterly unprovoked.
“You say so, sure.”
Shen Li rubbed his slightly itchy cheek, looking tired, with no intention of arguing.
Lan Jinghai, seated not far away, tossed his pen onto the table and stood. Clutching his team’s application form, he strode straight to the application station.
Liu Qingyan laughed too. “Great! Welcome aboard, big shot. So our team will be me, Kris, Sister Wei, Lin Xu, Jiujiu, and you. More people are fine—we’ve got enough for three on their side anyway, no rule violations.”
【Hahaha, that leaves Jiang Nan, Zhen Tian, and Lan Jinghai as the three.】
【You know, it actually has potential. Any hand-holding combo would be electric.】
【What if Qian Xingzhi suddenly comes back?】
【Probably gets auto-assigned by the system?】
Shen Li frowned but said nothing. He simply watched quietly as Liu Qingyan’s slender fingers picked up a pen and wrote slowly and carefully.
Shen Li’s thin lips parted—he was just about to ask if Liu Qingyan knew Lan Jinghai from before—when the Butler System’s announcement chimed in.
“Ding ding—Lan Jinghai’s application successful. Zone A members: Lan Jinghai, Lin Xu, Jiang Nan, Shen Li, Zhen Tian. Zone A has five members. Please gather at the application station to collect your Minesweeper gear.”
Everyone in the room: ???
The barrage exploded:
【?!?!?】
【Is this revenge-scattering all the ships???】
【All dudes selected lol】
Shen Li narrowed his eyes, his cool gaze sweeping toward Lan Jinghai. This guy really wasn’t afraid of online backlash—who knew what his motives were.
Ke Jiujiu’s bright, furious voice rang out in protest. “What the hell?! Why’d you sign us up without asking?”
Lin Xu chimed in. “Yeah, who wants to be on your team?”
But Lan Jinghai returned from the station without a hint of apology.
With each step, a few white-and-green cowlicks bobbed on his head. He spread his arms wide like he was sincerely apologizing in a musical—zero regard for others’ feelings, pure cringe.
“Sorry, everyone. Since I have the right to pick teammates, I’m choosing everyone I want. After all, I came here to romance you charming gentlemen~”
【?】
【Huh?】
【Urp urp urp!】
【Charming gentlemen??? What is he even saying???】
【Lmao it’s like one of those ancient eunuchs who specialized in snipping balls [lol]】
On camera,
Lin Xu yelled, “Get lost, I’m not gay!”
Jiang Nan feigned indignation. “Did you even get our consent? Yeah, you have the authority, but shouldn’t you at least ask?”
Li Weiwei muttered, “Should we hunt for the Captain’s Armband?”
Kris shook her head. “The whole estate is massive. No time—five minutes left till cutoff.”
A faint, cold smirk tugged at Shen Li’s lips, though his deep eyes held no mirth.
He coolly glanced toward the entryway and fell silent.
Lin Xu whined and scooted closer, sniffling.
“This sucks! Aaaah, Shen Li!!” Lin Xu hollered.
“Aaaah!! Shen Li, I really don’t wanna hold hands with dudes. Can I pair with you?”
Shen Li furrowed his brow in disgust. “What kind of talk is that?”
Lin Xu clung to his arm. “I don’t mean you don’t seem like a guy—I mean, you’re a guy, so it’s fine. Wait, no, I mean…”
Before he could finish, Shen Li’s long hand snatched an unpeeled orange and clapped it over Lin Xu’s mouth.
“—Enough. Don’t say another word,” Shen Li said.
It hadn’t been a big deal before.
But keep going, and nothing would turn into something.
“So you’ll pair with me, right?!” Lin Xu mumbled around it.
Shen Li sighed helplessly. Compared to the other three he really didn’t want to deal with, he nodded. “Fine. Go grab the gear.”
Lin Xu scampered off happily.
But then Shen Li felt a force press from behind. A large hand brazenly grabbed his wrist, wordlessly looping a restraint band around it. The touch slithered like a snake’s tongue over his skin—
Shen Li’s hairs stood on end. His iron grip clamped down on the intruder’s wrist bone.
In a flash!
Shen Li instinctively countered, twisting to pin the offending wrist.
But the arm he’d seized was two shades darker than his own—not Lan Jinghai’s porcelain skin at all. Those protruding veins and achingly familiar muscle lines…
Shen Li whipped his head around—
At the same moment,
the Butler System chimed, “Ding ding—”
“Regular member Qian Xingzhi has located Catfish Guest Lan Jinghai’s hidden ‘Captain’s Armband.’ He automatically becomes captain of Zone A and has changed the Zone A members to: Shen Li, Qian Xingzhi, Lan Jinghai, Jiang Nan, Zhen Tian.”
Everyone: !!!
Barrage: 【666】
【Lmao I knew it!】
【Qian Dog, you ghost—turns out you were handling business!】
【How’d he find it? Wasn’t it hidden across the whole estate? That easy?】
【X-ray vision? Or did he pull strings?】
Shen Li frowned and lowered his gaze. He slapped away Qian Xingzhi’s hand with a smack, his tone icy.
“I thought you wouldn’t find it.”
Qian Xingzhi stepped to his side from behind, casually replying, “‘Establish, remove, enter, break, complete, dry.’ Today is a breaking day—head toward the Qian direction, northwest, and boom, found it.”
Shen Li: …
He’d expected logical deduction, but…
Shen Li could only shake his head helplessly.
“Speaking of which, that new guy Lan Jinghai brought tarot cards. Couldn’t put my finger on what felt off about it.”
“Tch,” Qian Xingzhi snorted a laugh. “I was watching the live stream the whole time outside. He might not know how many times I’ve reeled you in with that stuff.”
Shen Li: …
Shen Li’s fine brows knitted. He didn’t bother arguing.
Lan Jinghai shot them a cold look.
After twice striking out against the couple, his cheerful smiles had vanished.
The live audience was losing it.
【Qian Xingzhi spouting cryptic stuff again—only Shen Li gets it orz】
【Their brainwaves really sync only with each other…】
【Help, Qian Xingzhi’s barely been tapped—how’s he both dom and loyal dog? Which is the real him???】
【Have Shen Li write a ‘Qian Xingzhi User Manual’】
【Help, I instantly thought dirty… Use it where?】
【Yeah, it’s super easy to get the wrong idea!!! Look at Qian Xingzhi and Shen Li’s Minesweeper speed—no way they could have that kind of chemistry without spending at least ten years doing it together!!!】
On the screen, Qian Xingzhi and Shen Li moved in perfect sync, their division of labor crystal clear. Compared to Zhen Tian, Lan Jinghai, and Jiang Nan, who had dawdled half the day without clearing a single room, the pair hadn’t uttered a single word of nonsense since the game began.
Step on a square, unlock it. Step on a square, unlock it.
Whenever they hit a mine, whether they drew a “Truth Game” or a “Dare,” they carried out the most intimate actions without a hint of hesitation. Their movements were so swift and mechanical, it was almost like assembly-line work.
Until…
Shen Li got pretty good luck this time and drew a question.
His brows suddenly furrowed tight. The right hand clutching the paper trembled slightly, and his gaze drifted slowly over to Qian Xingzhi.
Qian Xingzhi noticed he wasn’t answering right away, so he leaned in for a look.
There, boldly written on the “Truth Question” slip in very adult fashion, was this:
“When was the last time you two spent the night together?”
