Their first paired activity

Shi Zhou planned to take this opportunity to show off a little.

He ran over to the fridge. Inside were Mud-Mud Fruit and a few basic ingredients for cookies and desserts.

That was enough.

With just a couple of glances, Shi Zhou knew what he could make.

He took out the chilled Mud-Mud Fruit. Despite its unappealing name, it served as the base for many desserts, with a dense, soft texture that was delicious and low in calories.

After a little preparation, he mixed several freshly blended fruit juices and cream into the chilled Mud-Mud Fruit, took out a large plate, and stirred it with a small kitchen spatula. His movements looked casual but were deft as he spread the blended pulp across the square white porcelain plate.

In just a few strokes, the scene took shape.

The live comments were stunned:

-Is that the spot under the tree in the garden earlier?

-Wow, as an artist, I'm green with envy. Zhouzhou's color mixing is so accurate, aaah! Not a shade off!

-Oh my god, what just happened in those few dozen seconds? I don't think I even blinked!

To make a painting convey the effect you wanted, mixing colors was one of the most basic and important foundations. Anyone who studied painting had a feel for colors; they were their closest friends.

But Shi Zhou mixed them so precisely, it was as if he were every color's own father.

Shi Zhou had never imagined that his little demonstration for the two guests would unexpectedly draw out so many viewers and earn him a whole new crop of casual fans!

Head lowered, Shi Zhou wielded the little spatula as naturally as an extension of his hand, blending several shades of green. He first laid down broad horizontal swathes, then added a few strokes that brought the faint grass on the ground vividly to life.

"Give us a close-up of his face," Director Zhang said with a smile.

Shi Zhou's eyes were lowered, his chin pointed and his lashes long. His fair, slender neck peeked out beneath his collar with each breath.

Suddenly, he lifted his head slightly and smiled. "Are you feeling any better?"

Even the production team, who were used to all kinds of beauties in the entertainment industry, were stunned by that upward glance.

After a few seconds of dazed silence, they switched back to a wide shot of the kitchen.

It was Su Yue.

Su Yue had come in for water. He seemed hot, his lips a little redder than usual and his handsome face almost sensuously lush, though his narrow eyes looked the same as always.

The day was a little chilly, yet he wore only a thin black jacket. A few strands of hair hung loose, and his prominent Adam's apple bobbed as he drained a bottle of water in two or three gulps.

It looked as though he had just gone to work out again.

Good grief, he had far too much stamina.

He had gone swimming in the middle of the night, then gotten up early to go out, and still kept exercising after he came back.

How was his future CP partner supposed to cope? Shi Zhou's mind went straight into the gutter.

But wasn't Su Yue's shoulder injured? That was why Shi Zhou had asked whether he was better. He shouldn't hurt himself again.

Su Yue didn't answer the question about whether he was better.

He simply walked over to Shi Zhou's side and asked naturally, one hand in his pocket:

"What are you making?"

The little spatula in Shi Zhou's hand never stopped moving, as though it were not a kitchen utensil but a paintbrush he had used for years. Beneath his wrist, the chilled Mud-Mud Fruit pulp in various colors was blended, textured, and scumbled. It was no longer mere spreading, but displayed the practiced ease of someone working the underlying texture of an oil painting.

"A dessert. It isn't very sweet. Want some?"

"...Done." Shi Zhou smiled.

Several peach blossom branches stretched diagonally across the center of the plate, with eaves made primarily from cocoa powder above and green ground made primarily from matcha powder below. A few faint streaks of gold powder looked like falling sunlight, perfectly framing a scene brimming with life.

A flash of wonder crossed Su Yue's eyes. He turned to look at Shi Zhou and said softly, "It's beautiful."

Shi Zhou was delighted, admiring the scenery on the plate with satisfaction.

"Of course it is."

Sure enough, getting out more was the way to find inspiration.

"I'm going to make blossoms for the peach tree now. It'll look even prettier in a bit!"

Seeing Su Yue studying the picture on the plate, he didn't want to leave him out, so he gave him a portion. After a moment's hesitation, Su Yue accepted the gloves and fruit pulp mixed with cookie ingredients.

It went fairly smoothly at first, but Su Yue's hands were too strong. When he pinched a petal into shape, one firm squeeze cracked the unbaked cookie.

Shi Zhou leaned closer to help him adjust it, chuckling softly as he complained:

"Be gentler. You've cracked it."

His voice was soft and low. Su Yue suddenly remembered how that waist had felt in his grip yesterday. Heat stirred inside him, and he crushed it again.

This time, the pieces couldn't even be pressed back together.

Su Yue pursed his lips. "I haven't really done this before."

He didn't know how, but he didn't want to leave either, so he stayed stubbornly beside Shi Zhou.

The production crew laughed:

"Look at him. He wouldn't even say a word to him at the beginning, and now look. Hahahaha."

"It's almost time for the afternoon activities. Should we go tell them now?"

Director Zhang waved a hand. "Go ahead."

Although he was a friend of Su Zhou's Father, he wouldn't make the preferential treatment too obvious. Agreeing to lend him a car was already generous enough.

The rest was up to each of them.

Shi Zhou was shaping blossoms when the production team came to say that the weather was nice outside and they could go out for some fun.

"This Hot Spring Resort is huge. It rained yesterday, but now that it's stopped, it's the perfect time to look around."

The production team had rented two hot spring pavilions in the northwest corner of the resort and closed them to outsiders. All the other facilities were still operating as usual.

Shi Zhou worked quickly, finishing the blossoms in a few deft motions and putting them in the oven before asking Su Yue for help.

"Could you put the plate in the fridge for me? Careful, it's a little heavy."

Su Yue picked it up with one hand and put it away.

As the production team announced the game assignments in the living room, everyone could smell the faint fragrance of sweet cream and strawberries filling the space.

"Wow, Zhouzhou, what were you making just now? It smells amazing!"

Lin Yuxi loved strawberries and was the first to respond. She was already swallowing hungrily.

Everyone liked the scent, and they all turned toward Shi Zhou.

Shi Zhou smiled. "I just made some cookies. They'll be ready to eat when we get back!"

The host said with a smile:

"We have four categories of places for you to choose from-"

The Mindnet projected the four types of recreational areas available at the Hot Spring Resort.

Naturally, the hot spring resort had water attractions, such as the Wave Pool, High-Altitude Rainbow Slide, Giant Beast Bowl, Spiral Slide, and High-Speed Rapids River.

The second category was indoors, with options such as billiards, board games, massage and moxibustion, karaoke, and more.

The third category was outdoors, where they could enjoy natural scenery through cycling, hiking, fishing, fruit picking, and so on.

The fourth category was art.

The production team had carefully designed this category.

It included painting, Pottery, handicrafts, and Scented Sachet Making.

The host gave a meaningful smile. Surely those who understood wouldn't want to miss out?

Her hair was pinned up, and her makeup was elegant and understated. She smiled at the guests and said, "This time, you're free to form your own groups. Discuss it among yourselves."

All the guests fell silent.

Choosing their own groups was actually the hardest option.

How could they gracefully pair up with the person they liked without inviting objections from the others or putting off the viewers?

They were filming a show, after all, so they still had to be mindful.

Su Yue suddenly spoke:

"Why isn't Brother Xie here?"

Yu Manman smiled. "You went out this morning, so you don't know. Brother Xie's temperature went up a little earlier, and the doctor put him on an IV. He won't be joining the afternoon activities for now."

But Su Yue had gone in to bring him a snack earlier. He had clearly seen it.

Everyone stared suspiciously at Su Yue from behind the cameras.

What was this guy up to?