Ji Chi copied him, lowering his voice and bringing his face close to his cheek as their gazes crossed. "Oh... what would be wrong? I don't know~"
Wen He's chest rose and fell faster. He reached out to push away the face trying to come closer and said in a soft, husky voice, "Let's eat. I'll explain after we finish..."
Across from them, Xie Zhengci looked up and met Ji Chi's eyes. A second later, both looked away.
Ji Chi reached across the table to put a generous chopstickful of braised spare ribs into Wen He's bowl.
Xie Zhengci followed suit, giving Zhou Siyu a piece as well. Sitting beside him, Zhou Siyu was overwhelmed by the unexpected favor. At business dinners, he would sometimes help him get food he couldn't reach, but that was work... this was a dating show...
Zhou Siyu looked worriedly at Jiang Ye, who sat on Xie Zhengci's other side, unsure whether he would misunderstand.
Far away in the corner, Jiang Yu quietly watched their romantic battlefield.
He had already figured out the situation...
The newcomer was clearly interested in Zhou Siyu... Ji Chi still had his sights on Xiao He, and those two beside him were already showing some signs... anyone with eyes could probably tell Jiang Ye was interested in Wen He? And Zhou Siyu was interested in Jiang Ye.
What was this... a five-way romantic battlefield?
As for himself... he now seemed to be the one most left out.
[I suddenly feel a little sorry for male lead two...]
[The person he's interested in is interested in his wife.]
[I'm going to spend all night studying that sentence you posted.]
[Blind spot, I've discovered a lifetime.]
[? What does that mean? That one sentence has me completely lost? Are we still in the same country?]
[Whose wife? What wife? Jiang Yu's wife? Who's male lead one? Isn't he a bottom himself?]
[You people have me going in circles. Since when was male lead one male lead two's wife? Isn't he male lead five's wife?]
[Bruh, isn't he Lawyer Jiang's wife?]
[Your ship and my ship don't seem to be the same~]
[The Hygiene ship is so sweet~ just standing out from the romantic battlefield like that~]
[You people really have a unique way of naming things. Now there's even a Hygiene ship.]
[That's none of your business.]
[That year, when the dating show opened fire on every ship, I hid in the Hygiene ship's arms and escaped disaster.]
[All right, all right, stop arguing. Keep watching.]
Wen He stopped paying attention to Ji Chi and ate the food the other man had piled into his bowl.
In a very good mood, Ji Chi kept serving him dishes he himself liked.
Seeing how happy he looked, Wen He couldn't help wondering whether he had looked like this when serving Zhang Shengsheng food yesterday too. Had he been this happy?
Ah... the food in his mouth suddenly didn't taste good anymore.
His chopsticks stirred the food in his bowl, but not a single bite went into his mouth.
Seeing him like this, Ji Chi assumed he was full and withdrew the hand that had been serving him food.
He propped up his chin and gazed at the worry in his brows and eyes.
"Leave it if you can't finish it. We'll take it back for Little Yellow later."
After last night, Ji Chi had thought everything over carefully again.
He didn't care what his feelings for Wen He were, nor did he care what Wen He felt for him.
Once he, Ji Chi, had set his mind on something, it couldn't escape his grasp even if it ran. Everything else was false; having Wen He by his side was what was real.
Once he had him, he would have plenty of time to figure out what he felt for Little Wooden Head.
There were too many bad things out there now, including several in the house. If he didn't keep a firm hold on him, what if someone lured him away?
Only he could protect him properly. Yesterday's haunted house was a perfect example.
Zhou Siyu and Wei Xun were both useless trash!
Wen He's little face had gone deathly pale from fright. When had he ever been so weak before?
Getting there first mattered. If he hadn't been one step too late, how would Jiang Ye have gotten a chance?
Ji Chi looked at the rib on his plate and ate it in one bite. Only once food was in his own stomach could he feel at ease.
The same went for Wen He.
After the meal, Ji Chi accompanied Wen He to the backyard again, where they put the leftover food into Little Yellow's dog bowl.
For some reason, Wen He kept feeling weighed down inside... he wasn't in the mood to play with Little Yellow now, so he could only wave goodbye to him.
Seeing his lack of interest, Ji Chi followed him.
"What's wrong? Don't you want to play a little longer?"
The midday sun made it hard for Wen He to keep his eyes open. He put it down to sleepiness and shook his head.
"I'm a little sleepy... I want to sleep."
Ji Chi stood behind him, using his shadow to shield him from the slightly glaring sunlight.
"Then let's go back and sleep."
Little Wooden Head got up so early every day. He really ought to catch up on sleep with a nap.
Taking him by the arm, Ji Chi strode toward the house, leaving only Big Yellow wagging his tail furiously at their retreating backs.
Watching his youngest grandson suddenly get a clue on the screen, Grandpa Ji was so delighted that his dentures fell out.
"That little brat! He's finally figured it out!"
The butler beside him hurried to add, "Yes... it certainly wasn't easy. At this rate, once the show ends, you'll get to see the young master bring his partner home!"
"Hahahahaha! Good!" Grandpa Ji stood up excitedly and turned in a big circle.
Wen He was awakened by a knock at the door.
He got up and opened it with his hair looking like a bird's nest. Jiang Ye stood outside, seemingly having changed his clothes, holding a card with "Date invitation card" written on it.
He handed the card to the still somewhat dazed Wen He and spoke first.
"I won this yesterday. I'd like to invite you on a date with me this afternoon... do you have time?"
Wen He hadn't fully woken up from his nap, and his head was still a little foggy. Drowsily, he took the card Jiang Ye offered and gave a slight nod.
Seeing him accept it, Jiang Ye inwardly breathed a sigh of relief. He smiled and said, "Then take your time getting ready. I'll wait downstairs at four this afternoon. We'll drive there."
Then he left, leaving Wen He standing there at a loss.
Jiang Ye had gone to such lengths to win the game not for the card itself, but for a reason-a legitimate reason to invite him on a date.
He had left both Wen He and himself a way out. If Wen He had refused just now, he wouldn't have asked again, even though this was a card the production team had granted the right to "not be refused."
But he would rather respect Wen He's choice.
Luckily, he had agreed...
First of all, thank you all for reading~
About Ji Chi: he grew up pampered and loved. He doesn't lack love, so he doesn't understand love either.
And his only way of learning about other kinds of love was through Quan Chongnian's love for his pet, Xiao Guai. So when he first became interested in Xiao He, he assumed it was love for a pet, when it actually wasn't.
That's also why his love was somewhat warped at first, but these are all things he'll need to understand and change himself later.
There are no side couples here. More precisely, other ships are inevitable in a dating show, but they won't take up much space. Most of that will still go to the two male leads from the original dream. They're connected to our two protagonists, so they may get a little page time.
Personally, I'm absolutely going to dote on our Xiao He and Ji Chi. I hope you all like them too.
You can ship couples, and ship other people's couples, but Ji Chi is definitely the male lead...
Finally, thank you all for reading~ I hope you'll interact and comment lots. Love you all~