Stop, no more reveals. I admit I was wrong

Jiang Lan's heart tightened at those words. "Wasn't it supposed to be anonymous?"

Wen Zhiyan looked at Jiang Lan's slightly unnatural expression. Rather than join the others in teasing him, he said frankly:

"It was anonymous. They only announced how many votes each person received."

Only then did Jiang Lan secretly breathe a sigh of relief. He walked over to the sofa, sat down, and asked casually:

"Who came first?"

Xu Can wasn't upset that Wen Zhiyan had spoiled the setup. Grinning, Xu Can said, "I was hoping to trick Jiang Lan into telling us who he voted for. Looks like that's not happening now."

Jiang Lan hadn't seen the voting results, but the viewers who had joined the livestream early that morning had seen them perfectly clearly.

[Why did I see a flicker of panic in Lan-ge's eyes?]

[Hahahahaha, you're not alone. He voted so quickly last night, he clearly had someone in mind already. I was so excited I couldn't sleep all night. Now I want to know even more.]

[You're all focused on the voting results. Am I the only one focused on what handsome alphas look like when they wake up?]

[Me too! I'm dying. My Lan-ge really keeps it real. The other guests washed up and did their skincare first thing, putting layer after layer on their faces. Among the alphas, never mind Qiao Xin putting on makeup—even Pei Du at least used some toner, lotion, and serum. Only Lan-ge went into the bathroom with a bird's nest on his head and came out in under five minutes.]

[Speaking of which, we have to mention President Wen. Absolutely gorgeous, seriously. When the camera was on him this morning, he looked so clean and pretty the moment he opened his eyes. Even as an omega, I was dying of envy.]

[I feel like President Wen always looks like he smells good. I really want to know what his pheromones smell like.]

[Don't get sidetracked. Back to the votes. I just got here-did any of you girls take a screenshot? Send it over.]

[New arrivals, gather here!

Jiang Lan: 3 votes

Wen Zhiyan: 2 votes

Qiao Xin, Ye Qiunian, Xu Can, and Lin Ziyou: 1 vote each

Tan Duoduo, Pei Du, and Yu Nan: 0 votes]

[Holy shit, see? I told you it had to be my Lan-ge!]

[Wait... something's wrong.]

[What's wrong?]

[There are nine people here, and only five omegas and betas combined. Jiang Lan and President Wen already account for five votes between them. Qiao Xin is an alpha too, so where did her vote come from?]

[In other words, if Qiao Xin's vote came from an O or a B, then something else slipped into Lan-ge's and President Wen's votes...]

[???]

[Who? Which lunatic voted randomly?]

If the viewers could notice it, someone among the nine people present could notice it too.

Soon, Ye Qiunian was the first to raise the same question.

At that, everyone exchanged looks and fell silent.

Jiang Lan and Wen Zhiyan exchanged a glance, then quickly looked away.

Wen Zhiyan coughed lightly. "Maybe it was a system bug."

But that explanation clearly failed to convince anyone.

Except Pei Du.

"How come even Qiao Xin got a vote, but I didn't? This is obviously a bug."

Qiao Xin rolled her eyes. "Why can't you ever look at yourself for the problem when something happens? No wonder nobody voted for you."

Lin Ziyou thought for a moment, then said with a smile, "Don't argue. If nobody minds, we could reveal who we voted for on the first day. Then we can see whether it really was a system issue."

He paused, then added, "But it's just a suggestion. If anyone really minds, pretend I didn't say anything."

Everyone exchanged looks again.

After a while, Qiao Xin said, "I don't mind. I chose Xu Can."

After all, to put it plainly, this wasn't the final choice. If it were, and someone's interest was one-sided and the other person hadn't chosen them, they would have to worry about saving face when it was revealed.

Right now, these were only first impressions. Voting for someone didn't mean liking them, so there was nothing embarrassing about revealing it.

Only Jiang Lan and Wen Zhiyan said nothing.

But everyone's attention was on the voting results and revealing their choices, so nobody noticed their expressions.

And so, everyone took Jiang Lan's and Wen Zhiyan's silence as consent.

Seeing how straightforward Qiao Xin was, Pei Du quickly said, "I don't mind either. I voted for Qiunian."

Ye Qiunian shrugged. "I voted for Jiang Lan."

The tips of Yu Nan's ears reddened as he said, "President Wen."

Sitting on the sofa with his head propped on one hand, Lin Ziyou looked at Yu Nan without speaking.

If they waited until everyone had revealed their votes, certain secrets would be difficult to conceal.

Seeing Wen Zhiyan sitting silently with his eyes lowered, Jiang Lan knew the silly boy had voted for him. So he stepped in, waving a hand to interrupt this dangerous round of revelations:

"Stop, no more reveals. I admit I was wrong."

Everyone turned their attention to Jiang Lan's face, and Wen Zhiyan also looked up at him.

But Jiang Lan didn't seem particularly bothered.

He rubbed his nose. "My mistake. I voted for myself."

Everyone froze for a moment at his words, then fell silent.

Wen Zhiyan raised his eyebrows slightly, putting on a suitably stunned expression.

Although Qiao Xin didn't know Jiang Lan personally, he was so famous that she had seen some of both his screen work and the variety shows he had appeared on.

In the past, whenever Qiao Xin saw Jiang Lan, even someone in fashion circles like her would be a little impressed by his taste in clothes.

She had even remarked that Jiang Lan's stylist must have cost a fortune.

But from yesterday's baggy shorts and oversized tank top to today's old-cadre polo shirt paired with completely mismatched knee-length athletic shorts, Jiang Lan's outfits were a far cry from his usual style.

Qiao Xin felt she was beginning to understand Jiang Lan's intentions.

Somewhat speechless, she said, "Honestly, I guess I'm not all that surprised."

Lin Ziyou spread his hands. "Looks like none of us made much of an impression on Lan-ge yesterday."

Xu Can glanced at Lin Ziyou. "It was only the first day, after all. If you don't know who to choose, you choose yourself. Isn't that perfectly normal?"

Lin Ziyou pursed his lips and said nothing.

Yu Nan pressed his lips together. "But does that count as breaking the rules?"

After all, first place had the right to choose a bedroom. If everyone voted for themselves in future just to pick their bedroom, the vote would lose its meaning.

Jiang Lan leaned back against the sofa. "I broke the rules. I'll give up my right to choose a bedroom and hand it over to second place, Mr. Wen."

Once he said that, nobody had any objections.

Wen Zhiyan, however, caught the emphasis Jiang Lan placed on "second place."

He was inwardly amused. He simply felt that Jiang Lan was still the same as before in many ways, especially when it came to this inexplicable competitive streak.

Now Wen Zhiyan had the right to choose, but a new problem arose.

The three single rooms were currently occupied by Jiang Lan, Tan Duoduo, and Ye Qiunian.

Tan Duoduo and Ye Qiunian were both betas. In this world, most people's ingrained view was that omegas came first, followed by betas, with alphas last.

They were filming a show. If Wen Zhiyan directly asked to swap rooms with Tan Duoduo or Ye Qiunian, he would inevitably seem ungentlemanly.

But if he were to swap with Jiang Lan...

Never mind whether he could bear to do that-just thinking about Jiang Lan sharing a room with someone else to sleep made Wen Zhiyan uncomfortable all over.

So, just as he was about to speak and give up his right to choose, Ye Qiunian suddenly said:

"President Wen, would you mind swapping with me?"