Chapter 136: Trial Couple

The truth-or-dare session in the phone booth left everyone immersed in their own private thoughts, though all struggled to project a veneer of calm to mask their inner turmoil.

"After the one-way confession of your truths, I believe you now have a certain degree of grasp and judgment regarding your own feelings and the feelings others hold for you."

"Since that is the case, the choices you are about to make should become much simpler."

Once the phone booth session concluded, the staff member’s voice echoed once more.

The group was stunned. "The choices we are about to make"??? What kind of game was this now?

"Today, we are launching the 'Half-Day Love Experience.' The male and female guests who successfully match through mutual choice will act as our experimental couples for the day. From this afternoon until evening, you will have your 'couple’s' date trial. We will provide a fixed budget, and the experimental couples are to discuss and plan their own date activities."

"Spend today happily in your own private world with your 'experimental romantic partner'! Follow the human instinct for love, strive to seize every moment of heartbeat and romance, let go of your inhibitions, and enjoy the present to the fullest! Perhaps you will gain a whole new perspective!"

"Our production team has also provided luxury, romantic couple’s suites for each pair tonight. The evening is yours as well. For this 'Half-Day Love Experience,' we have dispatched elite photographers who will use invisible filming techniques; they will absolutely not interfere with you."

"Next, let us explain the rules for matching experimental couples."

The staff member rattled off the long instruction in one breath before turning to the next card.

The group: "?!"

Having heard the announcement, the eight guests remained in a state of bewilderment and shock. What? A half-day love experience?! And a romantic suite to spend the night together?!

Meanwhile, in the live stream—

[This is exciting!]
[The format is completely different from last season; it's insane.]
[Spending the night together! Woohoo!]
[Since it's a couple's experience, does that mean kissing, hugging, and carrying each other is allowed???]
[Director, are you sure the night part is even broadcastable?]
[Your imaginations are running wild.]
...

"Since this is a half-day love experience, the premise must, of course, be mutual consent."

The staff member's voice resumed, detailing the matching rules. All guests were to return to their rooms and write down the name of the guest of the opposite sex they most wanted to date that day—this would be their first choice.

After filling out the card, they were to drop it into the exclusive mailbox at their door and return to their rooms to wait for the results. Two guests who chose each other as their first choice would automatically be matched as experimental partners for the day.

If the first round of matching was unsuccessful, they would need to fill out a second choice, repeating the process until a match was found.

Upon hearing the rules, Zhang Chen’s expression turned grim. He knew clearly that this rule had been designed by the production team to bridge the distance between him and Ye Fangfei... but dammit, with the current state of the show, this lousy format might very well serve as a powerful assist for someone else.

Staff: "Please make your choices individually based on your true feelings; do not decide hastily."

Under the staff's direction, all guests returned to their hotel rooms. On the way back, Zhang Chen quickly caught up to Ye Fangfei, who had become inexplicably serious, and whispered to her:

"Don't be silly. The show has given us such a great opportunity; let's try being together one more time, shall we? If the experience really isn't good, and you feel it's truly not working, then at least there’s nothing more to say. It’s a good explanation for everyone, don't you think?"

Ye Fangfei snapped out of her thoughts, looked up at Zhang Chen for a moment, but gave him no answer.

*Yes, such a good opportunity, what harm could it do to try?* The thought flickered through her mind.

At the same time, Li Jiayan took the chance to move half a step behind Lu Zhou. She reached out and tugged at the corner of his shirt to catch his attention. Lu Zhou turned back to look at her, puzzled.

"Can you choose me today? I have so much I want to say to you in private." Li Jiayan’s eyes curved, her expression soft and tinged with a hint of pleading.

Just as Lu Zhou was about to speak, the staff cleared their throat loudly: "Time waits for no one. Please return to your rooms quickly."

Li Jiayan reluctantly released his shirt, smiled at him, and turned into her room.

Everyone was given half an hour to deliberate in their own rooms before they had to submit their first choice. For most, it didn't take half an hour.

Zhang Chen wrote "Ye Fangfei" in bold characters the moment he entered his room and dropped it into the mailbox.

Ye Fangfei, however, stared at her card for a while with a pen in hand before slowly and carefully writing the two characters: "Lu Zhou." She admired her own handwriting for a moment and smiled. She had always loved doing crazy things. With a flick of her finger against the card, she headed out to drop it off.

The moment she stepped out, she found Lu Zhou exiting his room to do the same. They shared a silent look, exchanged a smile, placed their cards, and retreated into their rooms.

Lu Zhou had not hesitated, even with Li Jiayan’s reminder. The half-day love trial was the key to stabilizing his heart; he had to be by *her* side today.

Others were quick as well. Li Jiayan wrote "Lu Zhou." Qi Jiajia and Chu Yao also filled in "Lu Zhou" without much thought. Wen Yiming, upon entering his room, wrote "Li Jiayan."

Xu Junze was the only one who pondered for a long time. Who did he truly want to experience this with? It was a difficult question. He used the process of elimination: Chu Yao was definitely out, and he had no rapport with Ye Fangfei, so there was no need to consider her. That left Li Jiayan and Qi Jiajia.

One of them clearly didn't have her heart set on him. Finally, Xu Junze wrote down "Qi Jiajia."

The first round of matching was about to be revealed. When the knocking started, Lu Zhou was the first to be called. He pulled the note from his mailbox: "Congratulations, your mutual selection was successful!" Though he knew the answer, his lips couldn't help but curl upward.

Qi Jiajia was next. She opened her note with trepidation: "We regret to inform you that your first choice has successfully matched with another female guest. Please make your second choice." She tapped her forehead in embarrassment and sighed. She had expected this. She wrote "Xu Junze" as her second choice.

Chu Yao was third. She was calmer, as her hopes were slim. She wrote "Zhang Chen" as her second choice.

Wen Yiming was fourth. The note read: "We regret to inform you that you did not match with your first choice, but she is still in the pool of available guests." He realized Li Jiayan must have chosen Lu Zhou, and since it didn't work out, she was entering the second round. His mood improved, and he wrote "Li Jiayan" again.

Li Jiayan was the fifth. Her hands trembled as she opened the mailbox. Back in her room, she read the words "We regret to inform you" and her eyes turned red. She hadn't matched with Lu Zhou! *So he chose another woman.* Her intuition told her it was Ye Fangfei. She felt like a heavy stone was pressing on her chest. She wanted to tear the paper, but she maintained her gentle image for the cameras. She sat on the sofa, mocking herself. *Fine, men.* She decided she wouldn't show discouragement; she would maintain her persona. She wrote "Wen Yiming" for her second choice.

Zhang Chen was sixth. He gnashed his teeth at the failure. He had spoken to her, yet she hadn't picked him! *Absurd.* He filled in "Li Jiayan" as his second choice. *Fine, Lu Zhou, let’s hurt each other!*

Xu Junze was seventh, and he calmly wrote "Qi Jiajia" again.

Ye Fangfei was the last. She felt a rare moment of nervousness. She had seen Li Jiayan whisper to Lu Zhou earlier, and she wondered how he would choose. She reached into the mailbox and opened the note: "Congratulations, your mutual selection was successful!" A faint smile appeared on her lips.

In the second round, Li Jiayan and Wen Yiming, as well as Xu Junze and Qi Jiajia, matched successfully.

Zhang Chen received another rejection and learned Li Jiayan had matched with someone else. He was stunned. *Her second choice wasn't me? Who then?* He felt a sense of irony. He ended up writing "Chu Yao" as his third choice. Chu Yao, having also failed, chose "Zhang Chen" again. This time, they matched.

The experimental couples were: Lu Zhou & Ye Fangfei, Zhang Chen & Chu Yao, Wen Yiming & Li Jiayan, and Xu Junze & Qi Jiajia.

After two hours of preparation, everyone met at the hotel entrance.

Li Jiayan saw Lu Zhou looking fresh, young, and handsome, and her heart ached. Then, Ye Fangfei emerged, wearing a sleeveless, form-fitting, beige silk dress, her chestnut waves cascading over her shoulders. She looked like a princess from a painting. Lu Zhou was momentarily stunned.

In the live stream:
[I found a blind spot! If Lu Zhou takes off his jacket, they are wearing couple outfits!]
[Ahhh! It's true!]
[This terrifying telepathy! They have to be together!]

Qi Jiajia looked at the two of them and felt like a fan girl. They looked like movie stars. She felt a sudden sense of inferiority, finally understanding why Zhang Chen acted like a "dog" for a woman. *Good heavens, who wouldn't crave that?*

Zhang Chen, meanwhile, clenched his fists.

Without a word, everyone boarded their assigned vehicles and departed, each lost in their own thoughts.