The difference from the first round was that the voting results were now displayed, which meant everyone could start using the process of elimination. This was absolutely not good news for Jiang Xiao.
The vote distribution this time was still not fragmented. Besides Jiang Xiao, a random vote for He Chen was thrown in—probably someone’s careless pick.
With a “click,” the lights in the media room automatically turned on, as if someone was controlling it from the backend. Then, the broadcast sounded again:
[Has everyone seen the results clearly? In ten minutes, we will begin arranging tomorrow’s dates. We request Si Lin, He Chen, and Lu Moxing to stay. The others, please wait in the living room.]
The program contract stipulated that on workdays, guests could complete their work at the cabin without going out. Weekends, however, would feature dating activities.
Tomorrow just happened to be Saturday.
But no one knew how the production team would arrange the dates. Jiang Xiao got up and walked out of the room. At that moment, someone walked to his side. Jiang Xiao sized up his white shirt, then his face, and paused briefly before saying, “Doctor Ji.”
“Just call me Yanli.” Ji Yanli said with a smile. He seemed to be smiling all the time, looking very easygoing. “You seem to have a question you want to ask?”
Jiang Xiao hesitated: “…No.”
“Every time you stare at me, it looks like you want to ask me something, but you never say anything in the end.” Ji Yanli said. “Instead, it’s made me curious. What exactly do you want to say?”
Jiang Xiao shook his head: “Really, nothing.”
“Were you going to ask about the voting?” Ji Yanli’s words were even more incisive than Lu Moxing’s. “I was just discussing this matter with He Chen this afternoon.”
Jiang Xiao was silent for a few moments, then said, “I am a little curious, but not to the point where I absolutely must know.”
When alone with Ji Yanli, the flow of air itself seemed slower than usual. Ji Yanli’s smiling gaze was like poison coated in honey. Jiang Xiao didn’t even want to touch it.
“Brother!” Si Mingyu ran over from behind, catching up to Jiang Xiao and grabbing his arm. After a hostile glance at Ji Yanli, he said cheerfully, “Want to play darts?”
And so Jiang Xiao was stumblingly pulled away by Si Mingyu.
Ji Yanli walked behind them, unhurried, showing no displeasure at being ignored.
When alone with him, all the fur practically stood on end. Was he really that scary?
He glanced at himself in the side mirror; nothing was out of place. Ji Yanli felt he hadn’t said anything strange to Jiang Xiao, but among all these people, Jiang Xiao maintained the strongest sense of boundaries with him, as if wanting an entire galaxy between them.
The two reached the living room. By now, the sky outside had completely darkened. It was still raining. The moist scent of rain mixed with the earthy smell drifted in gently through a window cracked open, quite refreshing actually.
Someone, not sure who, had turned on the CD player; a light music piece was playing.
Si Mingyu dug out the darts and handed them to Jiang Xiao. Jiang Xiao had never played this before and threw one clumsily, missing the board.
Si Mingyu went to pick up the darts for him.
Playing darts seemed to inherently spark a desire to win. Jiang Xiao grew increasingly enthusiastic. Si Mingyu just watched him play. After a while, Ji Yanli also came in, carrying a bowl of mixed fruit, telling them to share.
It had been a long time since lunch. Jiang Xiao was a bit hungry, so he scooped a small bowl to eat.
Tonight, Lu Moxing and Ji Yanli were supposed to cook, but the plan had been disrupted. Only now did Ji Yanli start washing vegetables. With Ji Yanli present, Jiang Xiao felt somewhat distracted. Si Mingyu leaned close to him, seemingly having thought for a long time before asking reluctantly, “Brother, what exactly did you and Si Lin… do?”
Jiang Xiao was taken aback: “…Nothing much.”
“Nonsense.” Si Mingyu immediately retorted. He wasn’t a fool. Seeing that Si Lin had the highest CP support rate, he immediately realized that Si Lin must have done something to Jiang Xiao behind his back too.
Si Mingyu was both jealous and hateful, but because Jiang Xiao had already rejected him once this afternoon, he couldn’t show it too obviously. He could only resentfully hurl darts at the wall.
His movements were fast, yet exceptionally accurate. Each dart hit the bullseye dead center. The target board was nearly pierced through.
“Why…” Si Mingyu grew angrier the more he thought, until it all turned into bitter, aggrieved juice. “He once forcibly kissed you against your will, and you even slapped him. After that, you disappeared completely. Does Big Brother think Si Lin is some pure, good person? Those are all fake!”
Jiang Xiao looked at Si Mingyu in shock, the bowl of fruit nearly dropping to the floor.
Si Mingyu gnashed his teeth fiercely: “You think he couldn’t do something like that? I saw it with my own eyes. What couldn’t he do? If you don’t believe it… just go ask him.”
“That’s impossible…” Jiang Xiao murmured.
Si Mingyu also started sulking. He continued throwing darts silently. The only sound in the entire room was the “thud, thud” of darts hitting the board.
After a long while, he finally said in a low voice, “If it weren’t for Si Lin, we would have been together long ago. After that, you disappeared. We couldn’t find you anywhere.”
So that was the emotional entanglement they were talking about? Jiang Xiao was still digesting this unbelievable fact when a “buzz” sounded—the broadcast turned on.
[Please Si Mingyu, Jiang Xiao, and Ji Yanli choose gifts to decide tomorrow’s date partners. Before the date, please be sure to keep it a secret to preserve the surprise.]
On the table appeared four beautifully wrapped gift boxes: blue, white, pink, and green. The center of each gift box had a transparent glass layer, showing the item inside.
Ji Yanli also came out of the kitchen. His sleeves were casually rolled up, making him look less like a meticulously crafted mannequin and adding a touch of everyday life. He leaned over and examined the gift boxes with interest.
“Why are there four boxes?”
[One of the gift boxes is a discard option. The guest who selects this gift will spend the dating day alone.]
“So it’s a ‘Thanks for playing’.” Ji Yanli scanned the boxes, appearing lost in thought.
[The number one CP ranking pair enjoys priority dating choice.]
The broadcast sounded again.
This meant Jiang Xiao could pick first.
The blue gift box contained a notebook with a small whale drawn on the cover.
The white gift box contained a snow globe. Inside the snow globe was a dancing figure.
The pink gift box contained a movie disc. The cover looked like a romance film.
The green gift box contained a potted mimosa plant. Slightly shaking the box made the mimosa close its leaves.
What were all these? They didn’t correspond to anyone at all! Jiang Xiao was utterly baffled and could only start thinking seriously.
Movie… should be He Chen, right? They had watched a movie together.
Notebook, whale, snow globe, and mimosa—Jiang Xiao had absolutely no clue.
But the remaining options were Si Lin, Lu Moxing, and “Thanks for playing.”
What should he choose?
Jiang Xiao certainly planned to go out and look around. After all, apart from dating day, the production team seemed unwilling to let them leave. But the choice of person left him somewhat indecisive.
To play it safe, choosing the movie would naturally be best. But He Chen didn’t seem to know anything; he couldn’t get information from him.
The mimosa also seemed a bit like He Chen. Jiang Xiao couldn’t imagine a scenario where Si Lin or Lu Moxing would choose a mimosa.
After hesitating a moment, Jiang Xiao chose the blue little whale.
Ji Yanli didn’t hesitate much and chose the mimosa.
He was so decisive. Jiang Xiao was puzzled: “Did you guess who it is?”
“Probably guessed.” Ji Yanli laughed. “This color suits him quite well, too.”
Jiang Xiao: “??”
Si Mingyu chose the white box with a sullen face.
The pink box was left untouched.
Afterward, the other three also returned. No one exchanged information. Then Lu Moxing started making hot pot with Ji Yanli. CEO Lu, knowing he hadn’t even made it onto the CP chart, was like a murderous god. He chopped vegetables with a cold face, “swish swish swish,” the cutting board clattering loudly. His speed was incredible, as if he was cutting not vegetables, but a certain heartless person.
Hot pot was indeed easy to make. Though simple, everyone was hungry and sat down to eat. The taste was surprisingly delicious.
“CEO Lu’s knife skills are outstanding.” Ji Yanli, a kindred spirit, picked up a slice of potato, surprise flickering in his eyes. “Do you cook often at home?”
“When I’m angry, everything gets cut fast.” Lu Moxing said succinctly. After speaking, he glanced at Jiang Xiao. The implication was unmistakable.
Jiang Xiao: “…”
Hot pot was indeed a great thing for fostering feelings. The steam swirled, and the spicy, numbing, aromatic scent rushed straight into the nostrils. The seasoning was really good, just too spicy.
Jiang Xiao loved spicy food but couldn’t handle much. After eating some, he started gulping water. The broth moistened his lips, making them appear an extraordinarily alluring red.
Countless gazes at the table seemed to fall faintly upon his lips, though he didn’t know it.
Jiang Xiao was sweating from eating. Someone beside him handed over a napkin. He casually said thanks, only then realizing it was Ji Yanli.
So his movement to take the napkin paused slightly.
Jiang Xiao had just randomly picked a seat, not expecting Ji Yanli to sit right next to him. Jiang Xiao was somewhat wary, but later, busy eating, he gradually forgot the person’s existence.
“Need a cold drink?” Ji Yanli smiled, pointing remotely, and said softly, “Your face is all red.”
Jiang Xiao: “No, no need.”
Ji Yanli seemed to just casually mention it, then started a new topic:
“Now, can everyone talk about the voting results?”
With these words, the dining table instantly fell silent.
“What do you mean?” Si Mingyu said rudely, “So concerned about this, are you the mole?”
“I’m not the mole, but if everyone just votes blindly, it will only lead to one result: split votes.” Ji Yanli said unhurriedly. “What’s more, finding the mole is a matter of immediate urgency now. If no one shares clues, the mole will just keep hiding.”
“Furthermore, if we don’t find the mole by the last day, everyone should know what the result will be.” Ji Yanli said calmly. “I don’t want to die in this place yet.”
Regarding the mole in the show, no one had mentioned it until now. This topic was like a time bomb; once brought up, it would cast a shadow over everyone’s hearts.
“If the results are made public, won’t the mole know too?” He Chen put down his chopsticks.
“There’s only one mole.” Ji Yanli said. “He can’t control everyone’s voting rights, can he?”
“How do you know there’s only one?” Lu Moxing said coldly.
Jiang Xiao froze. The fact that there were two moles in the show… only Jiang Xiao and the other mole should know. How did Lu Moxing know?!
“I don’t want to suspect anyone, but if there are two moles, CEO Lu should be one of them.” Ji Yanli said. “However, the vote ended, and nothing happened, right?”
Lu Moxing gave a cold laugh, clearly disdaining the idea.
The atmosphere grew oppressive again. An argument seemed on the verge of breaking out.
Si Lin pushed a glass of orange juice towards Jiang Xiao and said calmly, “I voted for He Chen.”
“Me?” He Chen seemed a bit surprised. “Why?”
Si Lin glanced at him: “Gut feeling.”
“I voted for… Jiang Xiao.” Ji Yanli said.
Jiang Xiao: “And why did you?”
“I’m a Scorpio.” Ji Yanli’s eyes curved slightly. “You always avoid me. I was a little unhappy.”
Jiang Xiao: “…”
What kind of lousy reason was that!
“CEO Lu, and you?” Ji Yanli asked again.
Ever since discovering that Si Lin and Jiang Xiao were “messing around” in his bedroom, Lu Moxing’s mood had been perpetually foul. If one of his subordinates saw him like this, probably no one would dare speak to him.
“I voted for myself.” Lu Moxing said indifferently.
Everyone: “…”
Jiang Xiao had a complicated expression: “CEO Lu, you’re not the mole, right?”
Lu Moxing: “My assistant filled out the form wrong. I don’t like men. What, is there a problem?”
Everyone: “…………”
Even the corner of He Chen’s mouth twitched uncontrollably.
Clearly a matter of life and death, yet with Lu Moxing it seemed like child’s play, completely indifferent?
He Chen thought for a few seconds and said, “I voted for CEO Lu.”
Si Mingyu: “I also voted for Lu Moxing.”
Now, only Jiang Xiao hadn’t spoken.
Jiang Xiao’s feelings were complex: “Then I guess I should say… I also voted for myself?”
So far, there was still one vote for Jiang Xiao himself that remained unclaimed.
Someone had lied.
