Shen Xingcan paid no mind to Xie Linchuan's tone. "Not embarrassed? Since you're not embarrassed, it's happily settled, then."
Xie Linchuan: "..."
In an excellent mood, Shen Xingcan took the initiative to pick up the chain. It was about three meters long, with a small, finely crafted silver lock at each end.
"Do we get the keys too?"
Song Tiantian said, "Of course not. The keys are only there so you can adjust it to fit your wrists."
Shen Xingcan looked thoughtful. "Then what if I can open the locks without a key?"
Song Tiantian smiled. "Your points will be reset to zero. You wouldn't cheat, would you, Xingcan?"
Shen Xingcan sounded perfectly upright. "Of course I wouldn't do something so wrong."
Mm-hmm. It definitely wasn't because his points would be reset.
The very well-behaved Shen Xingcan carried his twenty points over to Xie Linchuan. "Give me a hand, new partner. I want it on my right wrist."
Xie Linchuan stood and took the chain without a word. With a faint click, the little silver lock opened.
Shen Xingcan readily placed his wrist inside the chain.
The exposed section of the young man's wrist was smooth and fair, his fingers long and supple. The silver chain around his wrist added a distinctive touch to that beautiful hand.
Xie Linchuan's breath caught, and his gaze shifted several times, but his hands never hesitated. He quickly fastened the little silver lock around Shen Xingcan's wrist.
Shen Xingcan shook his wrist. Once he felt that the length was just right, he picked up the other end of the chain.
"Come on, your turn."
Xie Linchuan held out his hand.
Shen Xingcan held the chain up to measure it, then muttered, "Why are you so big? You actually need two more notches than me?"
He was clearly born a whole hour later!
Why could everyone else grow tall, while he had to be stuck at 175 centimeters? Damn it.
Looking at Shen Xingcan, who was a head shorter than him, Xie Linchuan's lips curved upward almost imperceptibly, though his tone remained calm. "Picky eaters don't grow tall."
Shen Xingcan: "..."
Was he really that picky? There were just a few more things he didn't like eating, okay? People like Xie Linchuan, who had no preferences about food whatsoever, were the odd ones.
Shen Xingcan snorted. "So what if I'm short? It's not like I ate your family's ri-"
Shen Xingcan stopped abruptly halfway through, because he suddenly remembered that he had eaten plenty of the Xie family's rice.
Was being tall so impressive? Tch.
With a cold expression, Shen Xingcan secured the chain around Xie Linchuan's wrist. "The chain's three meters long in total. Sorry for the trouble, Film Emperor Xie, but you'll have to stand beside me for a while."
Xie Linchuan said, "Why do I have to stand beside you for a while, rather than you standing beside me?"
Shen Xingcan smiled. "Because I'm shameless, and young people like you need to respect their elders."
An hour older still counted as older!
Xie Linchuan said, "'Respect your elders' is followed by 'care for the young.'"
Shen Xingcan said, "You said it yourself, that comes after respecting your elders. Come on, stop struggling, Film Emperor Xie."
With that, Shen Xingcan headed straight back toward his spot, without caring at all whether the person behind him had followed.
In the end, Xie Linchuan followed him.
Shen Xingcan wasn't surprised in the slightest.
Xie Linchuan was certainly stronger than him, but there was no way Xie Linchuan would let him get hurt.
Shen Xingcan brought Xie Linchuan back to his seat, while Xie Linchuan stood at his side.
One was radiant and gorgeous, the other handsome and aloof. They were two utterly different men, yet together they made an exceptionally harmonious, beautiful picture.
[These two together are seriously a treat for my eyes.]
[Why did Shen Xingcan stop halfway through saying "ate your family's rice" just now? That pause was suspicious. Could he really have eaten the Xie family's rice?]
[I understand their relationship less and less... Rather than sworn enemies, they seem more like a couple having a spat.]
[What's there to guess? Obviously, they fell out over some misunderstandings before, but neither wanted to back down. This time, they both decided to back down, so those old conflicts were easily resolved. They're still a little awkward because they haven't spent time together in so long. By my reckoning, once this show ends, they'll be as close as ever.]
[Then our show should be renamed See You Again, Friends.]
Jiang Yifeng said, "I wanted to pick the chain too, but our youngest and our captain picked it first, so we'll have to choose something else... These bracelets look good. They're worth fewer points, but we can stay ten meters apart."
Bai Lin smiled. "Let's go with those, then."
Damn Shen Xingcan. If Shen Xingcan hadn't deliberately clung to Xie Linchuan to drum up publicity, he would have been the one paired with Xie Linchuan now.
Ye Ran and Lin Cen also quickly stepped forward and chose a prop that suited them: a pair of gloves worth fifty points that restricted their fingers' movement.
Song Tiantian spoke again. "Our ship will reach Chongshan Island in another twenty minutes. There are countless reefs around Chongshan Island, so our guests must row to the island themselves. Because the rubber dinghies have limited carrying capacity, each guest may bring ten types of items aboard."
Shen Xingcan said, "...Do those ten types of items include clothes?"
Song Tiantian said, "Of course. They even include underwear and phones. Guests may only put the items they want to bring into their backpacks. If any guest is discovered attempting to conceal items, they will be penalized ten points per item."
Shen Xingcan: "..."
Should he be glad it was summer? Otherwise, a single outfit would consist of more than ten items.
"Now, the three teams should each follow a staff member to sort through their luggage. Everyone will gather on deck in fifteen minutes."
Shen Xingcan sighed. "Why couldn't I be a better swimmer?"
Jiang Yifeng asked curiously, "Why do you want to be a better swimmer?"
Shen Xingcan sighed ruefully. "If I were better, I wouldn't need the rubber dinghy."
He really had sacrificed far, far too much for Xie Linchuan.
Jiang Yifeng: "..."
Bai Lin spoke with apparent curiosity. "Xingcan, didn't you know what kind of show this was before coming?"
Shen Xingcan sounded perfectly matter-of-fact. "Why should I know?"
He had come to get back together with Xie Linchuan, not for anything else.