【Mine lagged too, sob, glad it recovered. This show was never this exciting, don’t wanna miss a second!】
【The ‘ordinary people’ invited this time are all so good-looking, pleasing to the eye. And they don’t seem controlled by the production team at all. Was it CEO Lu who smashed the camera? I actually find it totally reasonable. How dare you mere mortals spy on this king’s every word and deed!】
【The cutie is from the gaming section? His voice is so nice. Gotta follow him— Whoa, the cutie plays either jump-scare ghost games or brain-burning suspense games? I thought he’d just play Plants vs. Zombies or something. Suddenly like him even more, what to do?】
【Three million followers! Cutie is awesome. I’m a Xiao fan now too!】
【Si Lin?! It’s actually THAT Si Lin! He actually came on a dating show! I always thought he was completely insulated, that romance could never happen to him…】
【Why do I feel like Lawyer Si is kinda jealous? He doesn’t talk, but he’s growing mushrooms in the shadows. I’m a sucker for this trope!】
【CEO Lu is setting flags again. In the end, if CEO Lu doesn’t fall in love, I’ll live stream eating yuanxiao!】
【Have some ambition up there! Let me eat the yuanxiao first, hehe~】
Beyond the newly appeared door was a passage wide enough for only one person. Jiang Xiao was about to enter when Si Lin raised a hand to stop him.
“Me first.”
Jiang Xiao vaguely felt that Si Lin had a natural, protective instinct towards him, but he couldn’t find any concrete proof.
Every time he met Lawyer Si’s calm, cold, dark eyes, all of Jiang Xiao’s thoughts would just vanish.
Up until now, no one had brought up the straight man issue. It was instead Jiang Xiao constantly dwelling on it, making himself overly sensitive to the others.
Si Lin’s tall, slender figure disappeared into the darkness. The passage beyond the door seemed very long. At a glance, it was pitch black, with nothing visible.
Jiang Xiao followed him in.
With a click, the door automatically shut behind Jiang Xiao.
Lu Moxing wasn’t in a hurry to search for clues. He paced a few circles in the room, then took out a card.
The card’s content was simple, explaining his identity this time and informing him that there was a [Straight Man] mole on the show. His task was to find the mole. If he failed to complete the task before the show ended, it would be judged as death.
Lu Moxing scanned it, his face devoid of expression. He lifted his hand and tore the card to shreds, casually tossing it. The scraps of paper fell to the ground.
He pushed the door again.
The door opened easily this time.
Lu Moxing pondered for a moment, then also stepped into the darkness.
The passage was indeed very long, utterly devoid of any light, making it completely impossible to find one’s bearings. What’s more, only Jiang Xiao’s footsteps could be heard.
“Lawyer Si?”
Jiang Xiao’s voice gradually dissipated in the air.
No one answered him.
Jiang Xiao continued walking forward. He reached a fork in the path, completely clueless. He had no choice but to randomly pick the left path and keep going. He passed through quite a few forks. In the end, he couldn’t even remember how long he’d walked or where he’d ended up.
Until a door appeared before him, faint light seeping through from the other side.
Jiang Xiao pushed the door open and let out a slight sigh. Time to start solving puzzles again.
Compared to the other rooms, this room was decorated more warmly. The wallpaper was pale yellow, the sofa was soft, and there were several squishy cat plush pillows. It also had two doors.
But unlike the other rooms, there was a very large screen in the center, currently black. Jiang Xiao tapped the screen, and it lit up, displaying:
【Currently no participants in game. Please wait.】
Jiang Xiao: “???”
What game?
Jiang Xiao swiped around on the screen, but trying to click on other items only produced strings of incomprehensible garbled code. He repeated this a few times before giving up.
While waiting for others to “play the game” with him, Jiang Xiao didn’t stay idle. He habitually searched the room, but only found a few optical discs.
The moment he saw the disc covers, Jiang Xiao hurled them away like hot potatoes.
The covers showed two men kissing, or locked in postures of doing unspeakable things. Clearly, the content inside wouldn’t be anything proper either.
What the hell!
Jiang Xiao felt like he’d suffered a critical hit and would need a very long time to recover.
“Ding-dong—”
A loud notification chimed.
【Two people have matched for a game. Accept?】
What kind of game could three people even play? Jiang Xiao glanced at the disc covers, a bad premonition rising in his heart. He first hid those discs, then clicked “Yes.”
But fortunately, what appeared next wasn’t anything inappropriate for children. It was a multiple-choice questionnaire.
What color do you like?
Jiang Xiao chose “Black.” The other two people chose “White” and “Black,” respectively.
The “White” answer was marked with a red X.
Do you like men or women?
Jiang Xiao naturally couldn’t out himself, so all three chose the same answer.
What food do you like?
Jiang Xiao chose “Rice.” The other two chose “Rice” and “Chicken Wings,” respectively.
The “Chicken Wings” answer was marked with a red X.
Jiang Xiao found the pattern. This game was likely a test of unspoken understanding; both people had to choose the same answer.
Do you have any romantic history?
Jiang Xiao chose “Yes.” The other two both chose “No.”
Both answers were marked with red Xs.
Jiang Xiao had been trying to guess the test-maker’s logic for his answers. He hadn’t expected the other two to be so honest, which made him sweat a little.
Should he have chosen “No” too?
If your lover betrayed you, you would choose to—
Jiang Xiao thought, What kind of questions are these? He selected “Speak frankly and talk things out clearly.” Then, the other two people’s answers appeared.
They chose “Lock them up” and “Kill them,” respectively.
W-Were these two serious?
Were these kinds of answers really okay?!
Jiang Xiao had initially approached this with a playful attitude, but the answers from the other two just got weirder and weirder.
If you liked someone, but they didn’t like you back, you would choose to—
Jiang Xiao cautiously selected “Respect their choice.” And the other two people’s answers did not disappoint him.
One chose “Boil a frog in warm water.”
The other chose “Force sexual acts. After doing it enough, they’ll start to like it.”
Jiang Xiao: “…”
So the creepy thing wasn’t the questions on the big screen, but the people answering them.
What kind of answers were these?! These weren’t normal views on love! Was it really okay to answer like that?
There were things even worse than Lu Moxing’s “perverted sex maniac”!
After answering over a dozen questions in a row, the last one was an open-ended question.
On this show, what kind of lover are you hoping to find?
Jiang Xiao typed two words: Gentle.
Jiang Xiao had just filled it in randomly. After all, he didn’t like men in the first place, so he just picked an answer that couldn’t go wrong. He was about to see what the other two had written when the screen suddenly flickered, then went black.
What’s happening?
Jiang Xiao was stunned for a moment, then heard the sound of the door automatically opening.
It opened just like that? Jiang Xiao actually felt a bit panicked and instinctively kicked the optical discs further under the sofa.
The person had already entered the room. He seemed slightly surprised to see Jiang Xiao, then smiled warmly, extending a hand toward him.
His fingers were slender and long, his nails neatly trimmed and rounded, his knuckles distinct. They were very beautiful.
“Nice to meet you. I’m He Chen.”
The young man had a gentle demeanor, wearing a cream-colored sweater under a dark blue jacket. He looked warm and genial. The slightly old-fashioned black-framed glasses perched on his nose made him seem even younger and utterly non-threatening.
Jiang Xiao stared at his face—still couldn’t remember it. But the black-framed glasses were a very clear marker.
But Jiang Xiao didn’t shake his hand.
He was like a small animal with a keen intuition for danger, any hint of trouble enough to spook him. And now, he wasn’t even sure if the person who had walked in was the one who chose “Kill them.”
He didn’t really want to shake hands.
The other man clearly noticed Jiang Xiao’s hesitation. He withdrew his hand and smiled. “Those answers just now… I was just picking randomly. I figured it wouldn’t matter. Did I scare you?”
…He didn’t look like someone who picked answers randomly!
Jiang Xiao looked at him a few times and said, “My name’s Jiang Xiao. I’m a streamer in the gaming section.”
“Jiang Xiao… I’ve watched your streams.” He Chen thought for a moment. “You’re pretty famous in the suspense game section.”
Jiang Xiao straightened up slightly in his seat.
He Chen was the first to mention recognizing him. Could he be one of the people he’d had a romantic entanglement with?
“Just now, you chose…” Jiang Xiao wanted to confirm his identity.
“I like white,” He Chen said.
Oh… so he was the one who wasn’t quite so perverted. Jiang Xiao relaxed a fraction.
“Have we met before?” Jiang Xiao pondered, probing. “You look a little familiar.”
This was essentially Jiang Xiao testing the waters. If he confirmed it too bluntly and was wrong, not only would it be awkward, but it might also expose certain things.
“I’m fairly ordinary-looking. A forgettable face,” He Chen smiled. “It’s normal to think I look familiar.”
It was the first time Jiang Xiao had met someone so casually self-deprecating about their looks. He fell silent for a second before saying, “Actually, you’re very handsome too, no need to be modest.”
Jiang Xiao was offering purely commercial flattery. In his eyes, even a heavenly immortal had a forgettable face. The line between handsome and not seemed to have blurred.
But He Chen played along smoothly: “When I watched your streams before, I liked you a lot.”
Jiang Xiao: “Thanks.”
He didn’t take it personally.
“Did you come from the secret rooms too?” Jiang Xiao scratched his head. “I was originally going out with Si… with someone else, but I ended up wandering here by mistake.”
He Chen nodded. “The other person answering the questions is the one I met inside the room. But he probably can’t get in now.”
A nerve in Jiang Xiao’s brain seemed to be plucked. “You can also see… his answers?”
“No,” He Chen shook his head. “I can only see my own answers.”
“Oh…” Jiang Xiao said. “So, the person who was with you, what kind of guy is he?”
Jiang Xiao just wanted to stay far away from that person.
He Chen’s gaze rested on Jiang Xiao’s face, then shifted. His smile seemed to fade slightly. “You seem more interested in him than in me?”
Jiang Xiao quickly said, “No, not at all. You’re great too.”
After the obligatory polite remark, he continued looking at He Chen with an earnest, expectant face, waiting for his answer.
He Chen seemed a bit helpless. He thought for a moment, then said, “He’s a doctor. I didn’t interact with him much. I don’t know the specifics.”
“A doctor…?”
Jiang Xiao only felt it was even more dangerous.
“Seems like you’re a bit disappointed it wasn’t him who came in,” He Chen said again.
An acidic scent seemed to unconsciously permeate the air.
Jiang Xiao waved his hands dismissively. “I don’t mean I’m interested in him! Quite the opposite. It’s a good thing you’re the one who came in.”
“Are you telling the truth?” He Chen seemed to feel a little better at this sentence.
“Of course.” Jiang Xiao suddenly remembered. “Right, you still haven’t told me what you do.”
He Chen: “I work in a field related to computers.”
“A programmer?” Jiang Xiao said casually. “You dress pretty well then.”
“No,” He Chen shook his head. “I’m a hacker.”
“Eh? Then why did you join a dating show? Were you looking for a boyfriend?” It was the first time Jiang Xiao had heard of such a high-end profession in person. His gaze towards He Chen changed.
“That was one aspect. The other was that the show invited me to do a project, and I agreed,” He Chen said slowly. “But unfortunately, the project failed.”
He Chen didn’t seem inclined to elaborate. He turned to search for clues in the room. However, even after searching for a while, the two of them found no clues on how to leave the room.
“We must have missed some clue,” He Chen mused.
Jiang Xiao: “…”
He Chen sharply noticed Jiang Xiao’s hesitant look. “What’s wrong?”
Jiang Xiao was indeed conflicted. “Uh…”
Could the clue to leave this room be on… those explicit DVDs?
Jiang Xiao really, really didn’t want to watch those kinds of films with another man!
