Admitting defeat

For a moment, the expression on Song Yunxing's face became impossible to describe.

They wanted him to take a picture of Shen Yanci "sliding onto his knees with a bouquet"! Over his dead body!

At that moment, Song Yunxing was locked in an intense internal struggle.

Director Guo was in no hurry at all. He leisurely took a sip of hot tea.

"Fine! I'll do the Daring Challenge, okay?" Song Yunxing said, giving up.

It was just looking at him, anyway. It wasn't going to kill him!

"Great. Then please take your seats!" Director Guo casually pointed to the two chairs beside him.

The two beige chairs had a gap of less than thirty centimeters between them. Their cushions were practically touching!

Song Yunxing glanced at the staff behind the cameras. Not one of them dared meet his eyes. They all shuffled whatever they were holding, looking terribly busy.

"Hah." Song Yunxing gave a cold snort, crouched down, and tried to push the chairs apart.

Song Yunxing: Why won't they move?

Song Yunxing's brows knitted tightly. Even with all his strength, he couldn't budge the seemingly lightweight chairs.

[Hahaha!!! I can't, let me laugh for a minute!]

[Production team, thanks for all your hard work. Those chair legs are solid!]

[Hahaha! Stop struggling, Xingxing. You're not getting out of this Daring Challenge today!]

"What are you doing?" The man rose languidly, both hands in his pockets.

Shen Yanci strolled over to his side, picked up the slip of paper on the table, and skimmed it.

His lashes fluttered faintly as his fingers rubbed the paper.

The chairs simply wouldn't budge! Song Yunxing gave up. "Whatever. Let's just start like this!"

Shen Yanci set down the slip without a word.

Song Yunxing sat in one of the chairs, his back pressed firmly against the backrest.

Shen Yanci quietly sat in the other. Their gazes missed each other, and an unusual silence settled over them.

The livestream camera deliberately zoomed in on the heart rate monitor.

One read 92, the other 101.

[Holy shit, you two still have the nerve to call yourselves sworn enemies! Your heart rates are already through the roof, and you haven't even made eye contact!]

[It's over. I have a feeling these two are going to fail.]

"Well? Ready to start?" Director Guo waved his phone in front of them. "If you want to give up, say so now!"

"Let's start!" Song Yunxing lowered his gaze and blinked, trying to relax his eyes.

Shen Yanci nodded.

"All right, I'm starting the timer." The director tapped the timer on his phone.

Ding! The timer sounded, and the Daring Challenge officially began.

They raised their eyes at the same time, their gazes meeting.

An inexplicable current seemed to flow between them, numbing Song Yunxing's limbs to the bone.

Song Yunxing's lashes trembled. His whole body felt ill at ease.

"That's one, Song Yunxing! I'll let it slide this time!" Director Guo warned from behind the camera.

The warm indoor lighting fell over the man, casting a sheen in his ink-dark eyes.

His features were deeply sculpted, his dark eyes veiled in a honeyed glow. They were like a trap laid to lure in prey; one more look, and Song Yunxing would fall into the net he had cast.

The atmosphere between them gradually grew charged.

The pounding in Song Yunxing's chest quickened, and a flush crept over his ears.

He desperately wanted to look away, but his competitive streak had taken over. He refused to be the first to admit defeat.

Shen Yanci gazed at the young man with an openness that bordered on greed.

Those familiar features, amber eyes, a beautifully defined nose, full, rosy lips...

He had traced that face countless times, yet it still never felt like enough.

He had never changed. From boyhood to young adulthood, he remained as breathtaking as ever.

The man's eyes shifted slightly, and his lashes fluttered once.

Director Guo wanted to say something, but Shen Yanci's movement fell within the normal frequency of blinking.

The heart rate monitor nearby, however, clearly recorded every flutter of their hearts.

Song Yunxing's heart rate had already reached triple digits and still showed signs of climbing.

The number in Shen Yanci's heart rate display was even more startling. It had passed 110 and was continuing to rise.

He could clearly hear his own heart pounding, fast, chaotic, and erratic.

The young man had a pair of alluring eyes, now veiled in mist, making him look even more captivating.

That young man had appeared in his dreams many times.

In those hazy dreams, amid intimate entanglements and rising passion, the young man would gaze at him through tear-filled eyes.

His voice, praised as heavenly, would rise like song and weeping, lilting and moving.

Shen Yanci exhaled heavily. His elegantly curved jaw and neck tensed, and his Adam's apple bobbed.

Without his realizing it, a faint sheen of sweat had appeared on his forehead.

As Song Yunxing gazed at Shen Yanci, his ears seemed to grow even hotter.

A faint scent of alcohol drifted through the air. His head felt light, as though he were about to become drunk on the man's eyes.

Only a few seconds had passed, yet it felt like ages. Each breath seemed to stretch endlessly.

Under the warm lighting, the two stunningly handsome men held each other's gaze.

The man's hands hung stiffly at his sides, as though he were struggling to restrain something.

The young man's ears were impossibly red, his lashes trembling, his gaze already a little dazed.

The lingering, charged atmosphere spread through the set. Many of the staff watched the monitor intently, their cheeks flushed.

The fans in the livestream were even more excited.

[Aaaaah! Help me! I can't breathe!]

[An absolutely gorgeous shot!]

[Aaaaah, you still dare say there are no feelings involved! Please, just kiss!]

[The tension in this shot is insane! They can't take their eyes off each other!]

[Holy shit, zoom in on the blurred heart rate screen in the back! Shen Yanci, you're so in love!]

On the blurred screen, Shen Yanci's heart rate had already passed 120, the highest live reading at that moment.

The band on his wrist let out a piercing alarm. Breathing rapidly, he looked away, visibly flustered.

"Challenge failed!" Director Guo announced gleefully.

Song Yunxing also released a relieved breath and turned his face away.

His face burned fiercely, his heart pounding away in his chest.

The screen on his wristband displayed his ECG as his triple-digit heart rate began to fall slowly.

What was wrong with him? It was only a simple staring contest, so why had it been so unexpectedly difficult?

If Shen Yanci hadn't cracked first, his own wristband would have gone off next!

"Shall I give you another chance?" Director Guo asked with a smile.

Song Yunxing felt as though someone had suddenly clenched his heart in a fist. His entire body froze.

He should have agreed, but the words lodged in his throat, refusing to come out.

"Director, that's not fair! You said one try, so it should be one try!" Lu Yiyi finally found an opportunity to complain. "We all had to finish our tasks in one go!"

"All right, all right!" Director Guo rolled his eyes impatiently.

How had he not noticed before that this female guest was such a busybody?

"Fine, then. Song Yunxing and Shen Yanci failed the challenge. Their budget for the next episode will be halved."

Neither Song Yunxing nor Shen Yanci objected. They silently returned to their original seats.