SH – Chapter 10

“Teacher Jian, you…?” Wen Xi folded down a finger, at a loss for words before finally blurting out the question on everyone’s mind: “How are you two neighbors?”

Winning the game was one thing, but the gossip was more important right now.

The production team couldn’t help but lean closer to the monitors, their gossipy little ears perked up. Quick, Jian You or Yun Chu, either one, just say it already so we can ship… I mean, listen!

Yun Chu hadn’t expected Jian You to just come out and say it. She was stunned for a moment and was about to deny it when she heard Jian You say, “It’s quite a coincidence, isn’t it? I think so too.”

Yun Chu: “?”

The other guests: “?”

Wait, did they just detect a hint of… bragging?

It had to be their imagination, right?

The guests thought back. Even at the awards ceremony for Best Director, when Jian You spoke about the work she was so proud of, her tone had been utterly calm, betraying no joy or sorrow. What was there to be so proud of about being Yun Chu’s neighbor?

“Wait,” Pei Wan said, setting down her glass. “Doesn’t that mean you two knew each other before this?”

“Oh, right,” Zhu Wan’er added.

How was it that everyone else was starting from the same point, getting to know new people, while these two had not only secretly gotten a head start, but might have already locked in their CP pairing?

“No, you’ve misunderstood,” Yun Chu said quickly.

“Misunderstood what?” Meng Zhaozhao asked.

Yun Chu glanced at Jian You.

Jian You was still sitting in the same position, her expression placid. Her long fingers circled the stem of her wine glass. She lifted it, swirled it, and drained the last of the mango juice before asking Yun Chu, “Misunderstood what?”

Yun Chu faltered for a second, then explained, “Teacher Jian and I didn’t know each other before. I don’t go back to that house very often, so I only found out we were neighbors the day before we came here.”

Zhu Wan’er rested her chin on her hand. “Xiao Chu, how many houses do you have…”

Yun Chu: “…”

Was that the point?!

Wen Xi and Meng Zhaozhao exchanged a look.

Meng Zhaozhao stepped in to smooth things over. “Well, this doesn’t have anything to do with the game. Should we continue?”

Wen Xi slapped the table. “Yes, let’s continue the game!”

The game continued.

Everyone except Jian You folded down a finger.

Next to Jian You was Zhu Wan’er. She propped her chin on her hand, tapping her cheek with a finger as she thought for a moment. “I’ve climbed to the top of Mount Qian just to take a picture of the sunrise!”

“I’ve been there too,” Jian You said.

Zhu Wan’er: “?”

“And you say you’ve seen Kissed the Deep Sea seven or eight times,” Pei Wan said. “The place where the main character, Jiang Ting, first attempts suicide was filmed on Mount Qian.” She smiled at Jian You. “I went there too after watching the movie.”

Zhu Wan’er looked at the others. “Don’t tell me you’ve all been there too?”

“I’m afraid of heights,” Yun Chu offered as consolation.

Wen Xi: “…Sorry, I went on my graduation trip.”

Meng Zhaozhao: “Yeah, me too.”

Yun Chu’s face fell. “Am I the only one folding a finger?”

Zhu Wan’er beamed and grabbed her hand, wrapping Yun Chu’s index finger in her palm and giving it a little shake. “Fold it, fold it!”

Jian You glanced over and said, “Fold it.”

Yun Chu pouted. “Fine, it’s folded.”

Next to Zhu Wan’er was Meng Zhaozhao. She thought for a moment and said, “I’ve had a girlfriend.”

The production team was thrilled. Excellent! A natural way to get them to talk about their relationship histories! Let them get to know each other! The audience loves this kind of drama. Everyone’s micro-expressions are worth analyzing right now.

Pei Wan raised an eyebrow.

Zhu Wan’er let out an “ooh.”

“I’ve dated before too,” Wen Xi said.

Yun Chu silently folded down another finger, saying with a touch of sadness, “I’m the last one to go. Don’t tell me I’m going to be out before it’s even my turn?”

Though she sounded sad, her mind was completely elsewhere. She snuck a glance at Jian You’s reaction, her heart in her throat.

She knew Jian You hadn’t dated anyone in college, but what about when she went abroad for advanced studies? Although she was always in the public eye during those years, her private life was very well protected.

Who she had met, who she had seen, whether there was mutual affection, whether she had been in a relationship—Yun Chu knew none of it.

Her heart pounded with anxiety.

Jian You folded down her index finger. “Continue.”

Yun Chu’s eyes lit up.

“Teacher Jian has never been in a relationship?” Wen Xi asked the question Yun Chu was dying to know.

“Mm,” Jian You confirmed. “No time.”

Everyone understood.

It made sense. After all, relationships were time-consuming and draining. Jian You had always been busy making films, so it was perfectly normal that she wouldn’t have time to date.

Of course, the most excited of all was the production team.

The director jumped up and down on the spot. “YES! YES! We have more than enough material for this episode! This will definitely blow up online!”

In past interviews, whenever Jian You was asked this kind of question, her answer was always “no comment.” Later, she simply had her assistant communicate with the media beforehand to forbid any questions about her private life.

But gossip is human nature. The more you forbid something, the more curious people become. With someone of Jian You’s temperament, if she didn’t want you to know something, you couldn’t even find a shadow to grasp at, making it impossible to start rumors out of thin air.

But now, Jian You had admitted it herself!

She had never been in a relationship!

Her first love!

Would happen on this show!

While the director was ecstatic about the potential ratings, Yun Chu’s game had already ended in the dining room. The fingers she had folded back were now a fist, which she rested lightly on the table. “I had zero game experience,” she said, exasperated.

Wen Xi clutched her stomach, laughing without a care for her image. “Hahahahahaha, you played, but you didn’t really play, hahaha!”

Yun Chu couldn’t help but laugh along with her. “Just my luck! You guys go on.”

The game continued. In the end, Jian You won with one finger still up. She wasn’t arrogant in her victory; after winning, she simply went back to eating her hot pot.

The others, needing to watch their figures, all left the dining room.

Yun Chu’s penalty was to wash the dishes. She wasn’t in a hurry to leave, so she sipped her juice while waiting for Jian You to finish eating. The mango juice had been freshly squeezed by Zhu Wan’er. It was sweet and refreshing, and Yun Chu couldn’t help but remark, “This mango juice is really good. Wan’er is actually pretty amazing.”

Jian You’s eyes flickered. She took a bite of a quail egg and said, “I can make it too.”

Yun Chu thought she had misheard. She paused, then asked hesitantly, “Then could Teacher Jian make some for me next time?”

“Mm,” Jian You replied.

A thrill shot through Yun Chu’s heart. She couldn’t resist showing off to Zhou Zhitao, only to find that her friend had replied to her earlier message: Don’t overthink it. She probably just said she wanted to eat with you so she could wash the dishes and not owe you a favor.

Yun Chu: That’s not important anymore!

Yun Chu: My wife is so amazing

Taozi: ? Are you sick??

Yun Chu: She can make juice!

Taozi: What’s so amazing about that…

Yun Chu: You don’t get it! And she said she’d make it for me! If you round up…!

Taozi: ?

Yun Chu: She has a crush on me!

Taozi: …………

Taozi: [Hehe.jpg] That’s a bit of a stretch, don’t you think?!

Yun Chu: [MyWifeIsSoCute.jpg]

Taozi: Blocking you

Yun Chu: Don’t

Taozi: ?

Yun Chu: I haven’t shown off our love for today yet!

Yun Chu: Hehe

System: Your message was sent, but rejected by the recipient.

Yun Chu: ?

System: Your message was sent, but rejected by the recipient.

Yun Chu: “…”

Oh well. She glanced at Jian You, who was still slowly eating her hot pot, and thought to herself that she shouldn’t bother with people who didn’t appreciate the beauty of a pretty older sister.

The pretty older sister put down her chopsticks. “Yun Chu.”

“Hm?”

The pretty older sister’s tone was light. “Why haven’t you ever been in a relationship?”

Yun Chu: “!!!”