Surprise Bonus Update

Hu Ying had been hesitating for a long time.

When she got Zhai Xingchen's invitation card, she was actually pretty surprised.

Sure, she'd joked around with Zhai Xingchen about having him invite her on a date tomorrow, and the Production Team had said you could invite someone you like or a good friend—but Zhai Xingchen inviting her was most likely just because the two of them were close.

But doesn't Zhai Xingchen like Duan Yihua?

She figured the card was hard to come by, the date slot was rare, and she should only use it as a friendship card when she didn't have someone she liked.

Could Zhai Xingchen actually like her?

That wasn't impossible.

After all, she'd been a Ten Thousand Admirers her whole life.

She thought about it seriously and figured she couldn't exactly deny her own charm.

Maybe she saw Zhai Xingchen as a good sister, but Zhai Xingchen was dying to get with her.

Hu Ying was worried she'd gotten too close to Zhai Xingchen lately, hadn't kept proper boundaries, and might've given him the wrong signal.

Zhai Xingchen was so good—she didn't want to hurt him, didn't want to hold him back.

But that was just one possibility.

Maybe she was overthinking it.

Pure narcissism plus reading too much into things.

But no matter what, Hu Ying figured—since she treasured this friendship, she had to take it seriously and be straight with Zhai Xingchen.

So she left her room and went to Zhai Xingchen's.

Zhai Xingchen had just gone to bed.

"What's up?" Zhai Xingchen sat up and asked.

Hu Ying walked into his room, glanced at the bedroom camera, and beckoned with her hand.

They got to a spot the camera couldn't catch.

"What is it?" Zhai Xingchen asked.

"Why'd you give me the invitation card?" Hu Ying asked.

Hu Ying was completely bare-faced, looking especially fresh and pretty—lips curved in a smile, but her eyes serious.

"You don't want to go?" Zhai Xingchen asked.

"No, I just want to ask—are you..." The words were right at her lips, but Hu Ying got shy again. "Why didn't you give it to Duan-ge?"

Zhai Xingchen laughed.

Hu Ying asked, "What are you laughing at."

Zhai Xingchen kept laughing.

Hu Ying's face went redder. She pushed at him and said, "Stop laughing."

Zhai Xingchen got a little more serious. "I gave it to you because we're close. Tomorrow just think of it as two good friends grabbing a meal. I don't mean anything else—don't worry."

This was exactly what Hu Ying had been hoping for, but hearing Zhai Xingchen say it out loud, she actually felt a little disappointed.

But the feeling vanished in an instant. She smiled and said, "Alright, looks like I was overthinking it."

"Aren't we just pure friendship?" Zhai Xingchen said with a smile.

Hu Ying smiled and said, "I just think this is actually a great chance to get close to Duan-ge. You haven't had any time alone with him these past few days, right? Giving that up just like that is kind of a waste."

The two chatted about this and that in the hallway. "We'll figure it out tomorrow."

"Are you picking the place or am I?" Hu Ying asked.

"I'm treating you, so of course I'm picking. But if I'm paying, it's definitely not gonna be some fancy restaurant."

"Didn't you say last time you'd treat me to the food stalls at your Dance School? I'm not picky—street vendor's fine."

"Would the Queen eating at a street stall feel like a comedown?"

Hu Ying snorted a laugh. "I'm not bantering with you anymore. I'm going, gotta sleep—have to crash now or that face mask was a waste."

After Hu Ying left, Zhai Xingchen went back to his own bedroom, thought it over, and found it pretty funny.

Hu Ying really was a good person.

He understood what Hu Ying was thinking—she was afraid of affecting their relationship, that's why she'd come down to ask him directly.

Now that they'd cleared the air, they were both more comfortable. They could be real good sisters from now on, and his wingmanning could be more convincing.

He no longer had any thought of competing with the three main guys for anyone's affections.

Sigh, forget it, forget it. His capital was way too thin.

How could a cannon-fodder side character ever turn things around?

He figured Wen Nu could be crossed off the Ten Thousand Admirers list too.

His build was a little weak.

Think of Huo Cheng doing the water jet board—needing the Production Team to censor him. Think of Yan Zhi's nickname. Then think of Pei Xu's 'pillar holding up the sky.'

Anyone who could handle a male lead had to be a strong bottom!

The night was deep.

Most everyone had gone to sleep.

Of the eight guests, only Zhai Xingchen and Wen Nu were most cooperative with the Production Team—they never covered their bedroom cameras when they slept.

As for the other six tall, rich, handsome types, their camera feeds were already pitch black.

Even though they couldn't see anything and there was no sound, the Production Team could tell some of them probably hadn't fallen asleep yet.

Lin Qingning kept replaying the beach PK in his mind.

After knowing him for so many years, this was the first time he'd gotten this close to Pei Xu, this close a contact.

He'd been pinning Pei Xu's leg down, and every time Pei Xu sat up, they almost touched. Pei Xu's expression was so calm, his eyes didn't even look at him—but Lin Qingning's own heart was pounding.

Pei Xu was really too handsome, his coldness too tempting. All his youthful feelings were being stirred up now.

Pei Xu had never dated anyone.

He probably still had his first kiss.

Ah.

Duan Yihua was thinking about Zhai Xingchen.

Thinking of him cooking at home, of him rolling up his T-shirt on the beach to show his abs.

Thinking of the heartbeat message he'd sent him, of his care for him.

Sigh.

Wen Nu was also thinking about Zhai Xingchen—about how he'd always taken care of him, his thoughtfulness, his warmth.

He turned slightly on his side, clutching the blanket, and closed his eyes.

Sigh.

Hu Ying was thinking about tomorrow's date.

She realized that of the seven people, a date with Zhai Xingchen was the most full of possibilities. With the others, she could picture exactly where and how the date would go—but not with Zhai Xingchen.

It seemed like it would be more fun, full of possibilities.

Tch.

The guys downstairs were tossing and turning even more.

Those little hums Zhai Xingchen had made—all of them had sunk into their hearts, igniting a blaze in their young hearts.

But in the warm glow of the bedside lamp, the Pink Rose Zhai Xingchen had sent was so vivid and beautiful.

In their eyes, this rose was no longer just a rose—it was Zhai Xingchen's almost-confession to Hu Ying.

It was ice and fire crashing together, making them both cold and hot.

Huo Cheng suddenly sat up in bed and went to the bathroom again.

Yan Zhi, still carrying the chill of a cold shower on his body, had rubbed his neck so raw it was red, and his eyes were red too.

Rubbing his neck was both a conscious and unconscious act for him—the pain could relieve his surging emotions or anxiety.

Zhai Xingchen's hums were stuck in his brain, and the things he'd suppressed for years collapsed all at once. This civilized armor could no longer cage it.

But the one most stimulated was still Pei Xu.

His emotions and desires were like Antarctic glaciers, frozen year-round. He'd never even watched a dirty video. Unlike Yan Zhi, who was burning inside but deliberately suppressing it.

Rather than saying he was cold inside and out, it was more accurate to say he was blank.

His threshold could be said to be the highest of anyone, or the lowest of anyone.

So today's Zhai Xingchen had made the blood in his body surge like a spring flood breaking the ice.

Today he was especially restless, hot.

He sat on the bed in just his shorts, lamplight falling on his lean, solid chest. His ears were a little red, his cheeks a little red too.

His sensitive body and mind were both awakening.

Pei Xu sat on the bed, looking at those roses.

Actually, from the moment he'd seen Zhai Xingchen come back with the flowers, Pei Xu had realized the Production Team was up to something.

But he didn't care how the Production Team mocked him.

He wasn't even afraid of being slapped in the face anymore—why would he fear this?

He still remembered all the things he'd said before.

The disdainful, cold flags he'd set up were really too many.

If only these flowers had been for him alone.

Not for everyone.

His possessiveness was gradually becoming clear.

If they'd been for him alone, even if they withered he wouldn't throw them out. He'd dry them and keep them in his home forever.

Pei Xu stared at the pink flowers and absently pinched a Rose Flower petal.

The petal got crushed, the flower's juice stained his fingertip, and he sniffed it.

His lips were a little dry.

He was thinking of Hu Ying on the beach, of Wen Nu looking at Zhai Xingchen with teary eyes, of Yan Zhi and Huo Cheng at each other's throats, and of Duan Yihua, who had been lying in wait all along.

As Pei Xu thought, he plucked off a few petals, shoved them in his mouth and chewed them up. The pink flower juice turned bright red, staining his slightly dry lips. His usually mild eyes suddenly revealed a hint of obsessive darkness.

As for Zhai Xingchen.

He'd been too tired today. He'd lain down and was snoring away in no time.