Chapter 43 Part 1

Qian Xingzhi was rarely kissed by Shen Li.

If he wasn’t mistaken, this was only the third time.

Shen Li’s lips were cool to the touch.

That sudden brush felt more like placation or enticement than a proper kiss.

It was a strategy.

Or rather, every time Qian Xingzhi was kissed, it struck him as a long-premeditated probe—one that had taken real courage to execute.

Thus, even as Shen Li’s face remained as impassive as frost, utterly rational and flawless on the surface, beneath it ripples stirred in a frigid pool, faint cracks spidering through the ice—

Shen Li was genuinely starting to feel desperate.

Desperate to uncover why, all those years ago, he’d chosen to divorce Qian Xingzhi.

Qian Xingzhi’s expression darkened, and after a moment, he released his hand from Shen Li’s abdomen. Instead, he drew Shen Li into the lightest of embraces.

In a low, husky voice steady and composed—as if he’d prepared for every contingency—he murmured his assent:

“Alright. I will.”

Shen Li narrowed his eyes, scrutinizing him with a furrowed brow, but said nothing more.

Just when Qian Xingzhi thought Shen Li would pull away, Shen Li leaned in neck to neck, gently stroking his hair before finally releasing his hold.

In that instant, a spark crackled like a tungsten filament snapping.

All at once, years of pent-up heat seemed to collapse inward.

It fused their unspoken words into a hiss echoing through crystalline fractures.

Meanwhile.

In the online interaction zone, the barrage of comments slowed noticeably. Even the posting rate in the discussion threads dropped.

Some viewers had even started idly chatting:

【Ugh, this is so boring. Here’s a [red envelope]—it’s hot out, grab yourself a fruit tea, darling—what? Didn’t get it? Of course you didn’t. This isn’t WeChat, and you’re not my darling.】

【Roast the guy above’s ass [candle]】

【Roast the guy above’s ass [candle]】

【Roast the guy above’s ass [candle]—————(firewall)】

Half a second later.

As the bathroom door creaked open with a pale, slender hand pushing it wide, the metal knob trembled faintly in his grasp.

Qian Xingzhi’s tall frame appeared, one hand braced against the top of the doorframe as he stepped aside to let the other man pass.

In the fleeting moment their shoulders brushed, Qian Xingzhi’s distinctively knuckled palm hovered just three inches from the small of Shen Li’s back.

The surveillance feed captured only Qian Xingzhi’s bowed back, its taut, sharp lines; the hard edge of his clenched jaw; and Shen Li’s swift passage across the frame as he hurried to his bedside, as if eager to avoid any impropriety.

The viewers, who had been scratching their heads in agony for nearly five minutes, exploded:

【Aaaahhhhhhh!】

【Hand!!! Look where Qian Xingzhi’s hand is!!!】

【Wtf are they doing?! Did they throw down or hook up in there?!】

【Holy shit?! I knew those two thuds weren’t my imagination!】

【Damn… that must’ve been intense [cracking up]】

【So was it Qian guy who got too rough and pinned our Little Li against the door for a makeout?!】

【Checked the timing: full 4 minutes 41 seconds, plus cleanup? Matches the three-minute rumor pretty well [smirk] Very possible [smirk]】

【Felt like forever staring at the screen [sweat] But now that you mention it, seems super quick [sweat]】

【Hahahahaha I’m dying—bet someone posts “Hubby’s too quick” or “sexual life disharmony” later lololol】

【Use your brain: no way. Even if it was three minutes, Little Li’s too classy for that [munching melon]】

Shen Li returned to the table, where the conflict cards came in two varieties:

Red-bordered cards, just one per set: had to list the most frequent divorce reason from the pre-recording questionnaire stats.

Blue-bordered cards, multiple per set: at least two conflict points, which could overlap with the questionnaire or draw from everyday arguments.

Shen Li filled his out meticulously, sticking entirely to what he’d written on the questionnaire.

They’d been simple answers, but he’d given them serious thought—they were utterly genuine.

【Red Card: Long-Distance Relationship】

【Blue Card: Personality Clash】

【Blue Card: Lifestyle Differences】

His handwriting was neat and elegant, carrying a certain scholarly grace.

But Shen Li worried his entries were too terse—maybe he needed more details. He glanced at Qian Xingzhi.

Qian Xingzhi was writing on his cards as if composing modern poetry…

His script was blocky and precise, neither especially handsome nor ugly.

On the blue card he was currently filling, he’d first written a centered title-like phrase in four bold characters.

Below it, the detailed content began, each line neatly aligned:

【Financial Issues (centered)】

【Disagreements on Money Management: Partner insisted on separate accounts for salary and assets, wanted divorce】

【Debt Responsibility Clash: Company facing bankruptcy and massive liabilities, wanted divorce】

Qian Xingzhi’s pen paused as he glanced at Shen Li.

Shen Li’s clear, serene gaze met his squarely. Qian Xingzhi didn’t look away. He finished the card and handed it over, as if sharing case file notes.

Shen Li took the blue card without a flicker of reaction, his eyes lowering to read.

The comments section lit up:

【Wait, isn’t this supposed to be anonymous?! Y’all aren’t even hiding it?!】

【What’s to hide? They just said at dinner they’d tackle the kid issue together~】

【Hahaha no way it’s about dog custody, right? Can’t read it clearly!】

【All I caught was the blue border! It flashed by!】

【I screenshotted!! [image].JPG Can kinda make out a “wealth” character—definitely money-related [munching melon]】

【Hiss!!! Nooo QAQQQ They had money fights?!】

Even the audience hadn’t anticipated Shen Li’s reaction.

His fingertips pressed hard against the paper, nails whitening, brows knitting deeper.

Qian Xingzhi had never breathed a word of these matters.

Shen Li forgot all about fleshing out his own cards and peered at Qian Xingzhi’s next blue one.

It read:

【Original Family Opposition (centered)】

【Parents threatened suicide, demanded divorce】

Shen Li’s eyes sharpened—

Full of shock, yet something felt off, indefinable.

He’d long known Qian Xingzhi’s parents opposed them.

But even during their fiercest resistance—in senior year of high school—they’d never resorted to threats of suicide.

At worst: they’d frozen all of Qian Xingzhi’s cards, cutting off even meal money; forced a school transfer and changed his enrollment records; maliciously ditched his cat; or even pressured him—the pursuee—with connections to revoke his independent admission to a top university—

Their playbook was predictable: torment Qian Xingzhi primarily, him secondarily.

People accustomed to power rarely risked their own interests.

In Shen Li’s mind, Qian Xingzhi’s parents—however viciously controlling—had never stooped to using their own lives as leverage.

So why, after seven years of marriage, had suicide threats emerged?

Shen Li’s expression blanked for a moment; he was about to check the next card.

But Qian Xingzhi had already stood, apparently uninterested in detailing the final one. With a flick of his wrist, he tucked the red card firmly beneath the two blues.

—No peeking.

As if to say: You know anyway.

Shen Li’s gaze flicked sensitively to the nearby camera. He agreed the topic wasn’t fit for broadcast and didn’t press.

At that moment, Qian Xingzhi’s wrist bone sliced across the table. His long fingers tapped the surface, his tall frame casting a shadow in the light:

“Hand me the cards. I’ll turn them in together.”

Shen Li: …

【Shen Li stays silent, just sighing endlessly [smirk]】

【Shen Li stays silent, just indulging him!!!】

【Omg!!! No different from a novel?! Am I watching campus fic come to life?! Ice-king top student domming the lazy slacker into turning in homework!】

【Upstairs you’re such a top stan statue fan, give it a rest! How’s our Little Li a slacker?!?!】

【Can we skip to the mutual grilling, fight, brawl, tears stage?!】

【Upstairs… you’re too real… watch your back from the mob lol】

19:55.

The eight guests in the cottage gathered before the large screen for announcements, each clutching an iPad.

Shen Li’s legs were still uncomfortable, so he claimed one of the few available seats—a wheeled armchair with armrests.

Qian Xingzhi fetched three chairs on his own, handing two to the women before placing the last half a meter behind Shen Li and sitting down.

Five minutes later.

At exactly 20:00.

The announcement screen lit up right on cue, displaying the second phase’s detailed rules:

“Ice-Breaking Operation” Event Notice

【Event Time】: 20:00-22:00

【Participation】: Pairs

【Task Flow】:

1) Use personal funds to draw “Conflict Cards” (500 per draw, unlimited draws)

2) Each pair’s card pool is independent—no duplicate draws

3) Red Cards drop 5x more often than Blue Cards

4) Discuss conflicts on drawn cards within pair, devise solutions

5) Submit solutions by 22:00 for nationwide reveal and netizen scoring

【Scoring Rules】:

1) If over 50% of netizens deem solution perfunctory → no score, 3000 deduction per team member

2) If submitted solution uses Conflict Cards NOT generated by your own guests → final votes = audience votes × 0.5

3) If submitted solution uses Conflict Cards generated by your own guests → final votes = audience votes × 2

【Event Rewards】

1) Top two in total votes → Unlock couple magazine photoshoot

2) First place → 10,000 yuan per person

The notice dropped, leaving the cottage guests wide-eyed and rereading for ages. Online, discussions erupted:

【Why are reality show rules always novels?! Don’t wanna read em~】

【Huh?! I love the rule-reading parts in variety shows—they’re fun!】

【This card-draw bit is giving me gacha PTSD!! They pay 500 per pull in fake cash; my 500 for ten pulls IRL ain’t much happier [smirk]】

【Didn’t fully get the rest? They gotta pull their own cards to double votes at the end? Others’ cards get halved?】

【Bingo~ This is so much fun!!! So they might even have to spend some money just to draw their own six cards!】

【Whoa, could they end up short on funds and forced to bunk together tonight~】

【Yay yay yay! I thought Qian-Shen were being so reserved and there’d be no chance of them sharing tonight! Now it’s on—keep drawing, keep drawing!】

【Hold on, I just realized something… If there’s a weighting factor, won’t the audience know exactly which cards each group wrote after the votes are in? So that “anonymous card submission” thing was just to get them to spill their real conflicts without holding back?】

【Whoa! The Strongest Brain up there!】

【Yes! I really wanna know what Qian Xingzhi and Shen Li wrote QAQ】

The guests in the cabin had all sorts of reactions once they finished watching.