Rustic Pickup Lines

Jiang Ning's smile immediately livened up the strange atmosphere. The female host promptly joked, "Did someone step on your shoe? I told you those steps were a little high. Every time I come up, Brother Zhang has to hold me before I dare."

By then, Wen Shuang had successfully retrieved his shoe and slipped it back on neatly. A camera was shoved right in front of him, seemingly trying to catch even a trace of irritation or pretense on his face. But Wen Shuang misunderstood the intention and smiled openly.

"Hello, everyone. My name is Wen Shuang."

His features were naturally clean-cut, but when he smiled, the red mole on his right earlobe stood out at once, as if spring had spread through the air around him. The camera trembled slightly, as though whoever operated it had lost control for a moment.

The female host eagerly asked, "Could you be more specific?"

"Wen as in renowned, Shuang as in frost and snow."

It was a very elegant name.

When it came to appearance, the outer shell came second; temperament came first. Wen Shuang drew the camera's attention, making the guy behind him who had been stirring up trouble look like an overeager fool. He tried several times to cut in, but the camera ignored him completely. He stared at Wen Shuang's back as if he wanted to bore a hole through it, and unfortunately for him, that resentful expression was captured with perfect clarity.

The man behind them was called Wu Tan. He introduced himself with a smile, but the host merely nodded, showing no intention of asking further questions.

Wu Tan lowered his head and returned to his own artist, only to hear Peng Shanshan curse softly, "Embarrassing."

Peng Shanshan and Wu Tan were both artists under Fengsheng Media. She had already been unhappy that President Zhao had forced such a troublemaker into the show. Wu Tan had his heart set on becoming wildly famous, and all he did every day was cling to President Zhao's bedside and talk about such matters. Peng Shanshan had been sick of him for ages, yet he still had to pull this kind of stunt after coming onstage.

Wu Tan heard her clearly, and his heart sank. He regretted targeting Wen Shuang just now.

With both the celebrities and ordinary participants onstage, the next part involved several small games. Since the following episode would be filmed outdoors, the completion rates of these games would determine the supplies the guests could bring with them. In order to torment the celebrities and make their fans feel sorry for them, the production team would do anything. The celebrities naturally did not want to suffer, so every one of them was fully alert.

Each guest received a set of interlocking rings—six rings in total, tangled together. They had to separate and display all six rings individually within one minute. The rewards for first and last place differed, and anyone who failed would face punishment in the next episode. It was also a test of the guests' reflexes. Two of the celebrities had always marketed themselves as calm and intelligent. The production team would certainly help them out a little to avoid offending them, but if they fell behind, then once the episode aired, the haters would inevitably swarm them.

As it happened, Chen Zong was one of those people.

The timer began. Wen Shuang did not rush to untangle the rings. Instead, he carefully examined them first. Once he had figured them out, his hands moved like lightning. Even though this world was riddled with dangers, his mind was still his own. Some established things—"rules"—could not bind him. He had reached the final ring and only needed to pull it apart gently. Wen Shuang swept his gaze around and found that no one else was moving that quickly. The camera was focused on Jiang Ning, who only had two rings left. Wen Shuang made a snap decision, pushing his own rings toward Chen Zong before taking Chen Zong's set, which only had one ring separated. The host stood with her back to them in front of their table, providing excellent cover.

Zhu Lian had been watching the situation over there, ready to send her assistant onstage at any moment to swap Chen Zong's rings with a nearly completed set. She had not expected Wen Shuang to react so quickly.

Zhu Lian let out a deep breath. Chen Zong was somewhat hard to manage—put bluntly, he had become full of himself after getting famous. She had quite the headache dealing with this artist and was always following after him. This was the first time Zhu Lian had felt as though she was not fighting alone.

When Wen Shuang promised to lend a hand, it was never an empty joke. Since childhood, he had understood one principle well: honor your promises.

Chen Zong relaxed, and his complexion visibly improved. He quickly separated the last ring and was about to press the button by his hand when a beep sounded—someone had been faster.

It was Jiang Ning.

Wen Shuang looked at Jiang Ning with some admiration. Jiang Ning was the other person who had built an image around being clever, and unexpectedly, he truly lived up to it.

Chen Zong clenched his fist and struck the button, clearly unconvinced, having completely forgotten that he had not solved the rings himself.

Wen Shuang pretended not to notice. The rings were all identical anyway. He timed it so that he finished with ten seconds left on the countdown. Among the ordinary participants, that was actually quite fast, and he had not stolen the celebrities' spotlight either. Perfect!

Zhu Lian could not help reevaluating Wen Shuang. This show was an enormous opportunity. Including Wen Shuang, there were only three genuine ordinary participants; the rest had used connections to get in and try their luck. Faced with such temptation, this was the first time she had seen someone as absolutely rational and clear-headed as Wen Shuang.

Jiang Ning came first and Chen Zong came second. Chen Zong glanced at Jiang Ning and let out an extremely soft "hmph" through his nose. Only Wen Shuang, who stood nearby, heard it.

Wen Shuang: ...You really can't afford to lose, huh.

Wen Shuang rather liked Jiang Ning. He secretly glanced over, only to meet Jiang Ning's eyes directly. Jiang Ning smiled and blinked quickly at Wen Shuang.

Kindred spirits.

The next segment would be decided by drawing cards. The female host gave the opportunity to Jiang Ning, who had come in first earlier. Anyone who knew the business even a little could tell that this was extra screen time for Jiang Ning.

Jiang Ning shyly drew a card. Four large characters were written on it: Rustic Pickup Lines.

The smiles on everyone's faces stiffened awkwardly.

From left to right came lines like, "You seem a little strange today—strangely adorable," and "Don't complain. Hold me instead." Beneath the calm exterior lay faint traces of pain. Wen Shuang wanted to dig an underground palace with his toes.

The production team was delighted. When the guests were happy, they were happy; when the guests were unhappy, they were even happier.

Jiang Ning spoke into the microphone. "You are a grain of sand, and I am a horse. Put us together, and we become a sandhorse cake."

"Ha ha ha!" For some inexplicable reason, the words "sandhorse cake" struck Wen Shuang right in the funny bone, and he burst out laughing.

Jiang Ning heard him and turned to look at Wen Shuang. The camera followed, and so did the female host.

Wen Shuang said, "...Ha ha."

The female host was exceptionally good at handling people. She bypassed the other two groups and went straight to Wen Shuang, handing him the microphone. "You look so happy laughing. Give us one."

Wen Shuang casually glanced at Zhu Lian and saw her nod encouragingly.

Wen Shuang spoke with an awkward expression. "Today, a laborer scolded me."

The female host said, "Huh?"

"He said the cement I mixed was too watery. The foreman smashed my shovel and asked whether I did not want to be paid. I did not dare argue. What he did not know was that I had not added extra water. I just missed you while I was mixing the cement."

Everyone fell silent.

Jiang Ning said, "Ha ha ha!"

Wen Shuang did not hear a single word of what anyone else said afterward. His ears buzzed, his face flushed crimson, and from the corner of his eye, he saw Zhu Lian hugging her female assistant as she laughed so hard she could barely catch her breath.

The first recording session ended quickly. Even after Wen Shuang left the studio, the heat in his body had not faded. Zhu Lian needed to follow up with Chen Zong, while Wen Shuang returned the way he had come. He had just entered the elevator when someone stepped in before him. Black sweatpants, a black windbreaker, and a baseball cap. A slender hand lifted the cap, revealing a handsome face with a smile on it.

It was Jiang Ning.

"Can I go with you?" Jiang Ning asked.

Wen Shuang nodded. "Of course."

Three assistants entered. Jiang Ning took the water they handed him, stuffed the first bottle into Wen Shuang's hands, then opened another for himself and drank more than half of it in one go. He complained, "My mouth is dry from all that talking."

Wen Shuang smiled. "Because of the rustic pickup lines?"

The two froze for a moment, then burst out laughing in perfect unison. It was rare for their sense of humor to be on the same wavelength. The assistants looked utterly confused. What had happened?

"Ding~" The elevator doors opened, and two people stood outside.

One wore a perfectly tailored suit and stood tall and straight. The other wore casual white clothes and radiated a roguish air. Both were exceptionally striking. Wen Shuang and Jiang Ning spoke at the same time.

Wen Shuang said, "President Xuan!"

Jiang Ning said, "Brother!"

Xuan Zhe raised his brow slightly. He knew Wen Shuang had come here to record a show, but he had not expected him to come out with Jiang Ning. As for Jiang Suqing, he saw someone familiar standing beside his younger brother, chatting happily with him. He instinctively scrutinized the man, and then it hit him. Jiang Suqing narrowed his eyes, recognized Wen Shuang, and immediately pulled Jiang Ning to his side as though Wen Shuang were some kind of living virus.

Wen Shuang: ...