Chapter Ninety-Seven: Today’s Game Was Different from Yesterday

Before the program team announced today’s destination, each pair of guests had already begun drawing their own conclusions from yesterday’s trip and were quietly working out plans in advance.

“I have an international driver’s license.”

Zhang Chen tilted his head slightly, leaning closer to Ye Fangfei as he lowered his voice.

Ye Fangfei turned to look at him, not quite catching his sudden point. “And then?”

“How about, when it’s time to set off, we skip the driver and I drive instead?” Zhang Chen suggested with a grin. “When you’re out having fun, it’s much more flexible to drive yourself. You can take whatever route you want, adjust the speed however you like, and if we spot a beautiful view along the way, we can even stop and linger. What do you think?”

After finally being paired with Ye Fangfei, Zhang Chen’s one and only thought today was to stay with her for as long as possible. He had no interest at all in some best-pairing prize, and he did not want to be back at the hotel by eight in the evening. If he could, he would happily keep playing with Ye Fangfei until the next day before returning.

Buying time was the true purpose behind wanting to drive himself.

Ye Fangfei studied Zhang Chen for a moment. “How good are your driving skills?”

The moment Zhang Chen heard that, he knew there might be a chance.

“I think my skills are excellent!” he replied without hesitation, with all the self-praise of a merchant bragging over his own goods.

“Do you drive steadily?”

She asked on, half doubtful.

“Steady!” Zhang Chen answered instantly.

Ye Fangfei nodded. “If you drive steadily, then you can drive.”

Zhang Chen had gotten what he wanted and smiled with delight.

“Then it’s settled. I’ll take you out properly today,” he said with confidence.

Meanwhile, the other pairs nearby were not discussing whether to use a driver. Instead, they were talking about which route to choose.

“Yesterday, when you went to the crater lake, did you take the long route or the short one?” Qi Jiajia asked Lu Zhou.

“The long one,” Lu Zhou said.

“My route with Zhang Chen was the shorter one, and at that time the traffic was so bad I nearly questioned life itself. If the driver still lets us choose today, why don’t we go with the smoothest road?” Qi Jiajia said.

Lu Zhou had no objection. “Taking a detour on the longer route might mean arriving quite a bit later than the other groups. If you don’t mind being late, then we’ll choose the smoother route.”

“Arriving at the attraction a little later probably won’t affect the final result much, right? You and Fangfei were the last group to arrive yesterday, but you still ended up winning best pair later on. So being a bit late doesn’t seem to matter. It’s better than getting stuck in traffic halfway, trapped in the car and unable to move. That would be exhausting. What do you think?”

Qi Jiajia smiled brightly as she voiced her thoughts.

Lu Zhou nodded in agreement. “True.”

As for Li Jiayan and Wen Yiming’s pair, their dynamic was different again.

Wen Yiming had already experienced the jam at the first stop yesterday, and their arrival at the attraction had also been late, so this time he leaned toward choosing the route with smoother traffic.

Li Jiayan, on the other hand, had picked the longer route yesterday only to discover the journey was much farther than she had imagined, and it was only by having the driver speed along the whole way that they managed to be the first pair to arrive. Not long after they got there, Zhang Chen and Qi Jiajia, who had chosen the short route, caught up with them.

So after weighing it up, she felt that taking the long route if it stayed clear might not necessarily be more cost-effective than taking the short route with a risk of traffic jams. She was thinking that this time, perhaps they should try a short route instead.

The two of them did not agree.

But they did not argue either. They both decided to wait for the program team to announce the routes and only make a choice after seeing the actual map.

The beginning was still fairly harmonious.

Chu Yao and Xu Junze were a different matter.

She had wanted to discuss the route in advance with Xu Junze too, but Xu Junze thought they still did not even know today’s destination, and that talking about it now was pointless; he was unwilling to do busywork and chose to keep his mouth shut.

She, however, did not see it that way. She believed that discussing things ahead of time would buy them more time. Even if the actual situation turned out a little different from what they had planned, that was fine, because advance communication was like fighting a preparatory battle. If new circumstances arose, they would still quickly understand each other’s thoughts and be able to work out a solution they could both accept.

Chu Yao had thought that since Xu Junze had previously agreed to cooperate with her today so the two of them could win a prize together, his attitude toward her would surely be very good. Yet now it seemed things were not as simple as she had imagined.

He probably still had some resentment, perhaps because last night she had first chosen Zhang Chen, and only after being rejected had no choice but to pick him.

It was normal for a man to have a bit of temper. Chu Yao could only endure it.

Not wanting to fight with him over it, she let go of the matter of discussing the route.

“Everyone, attention!”

At that moment, a staff member’s voice interrupted the guests’ whispered conversations.

“Next, we will announce today’s travel arrangements.”

The staff member held a card in hand and spoke with a solemn expression.

The eight participating guests looked up at once and pricked up their ears.

“Today, you will travel to the other side of Country M—the beautiful Southern Province. The charming Magani Beach is waiting for you.”

The staff member announced the new destination.

On hearing this, Zhang Chen, Ye Fangfei, and Qi Jiajia all raised their eyebrows in surprise. Southern Province???

Qi Jiajia could not help interrupting, muttering, “Southern Province? That’s so far!”

Lu Zhou was not familiar with the geography of the states in Country M. Hearing Qi Jiajia’s words, he realized she seemed very familiar with the general layout of the country and asked curiously, “How far?”

“If you drive there, you won’t even make it today...” Qi Jiajia’s lips twitched twice. Looking at the staff member, she asked, “You wouldn’t be so insane as to make us go there by car, would you...?”

Hearing that, Zhang Chen suddenly wanted to take back what he had just said to Ye Fangfei about him driving. If they really had to drive to Southern Province, his life would be over.

“So in your eyes, our program team has such a terrible image?” the staff member teased.

Li Jiayan rubbed the still painfully sore muscles in her thighs and replied, “Not terrible exactly, just not the least bit gentle.”

Her offhand remark made everyone laugh.

The staff member said, “Being gentle and considerate is not something our program team should be doing in the first place. If we took on all the acts of tenderness, then the male partners would have no room to show themselves. How else would their charm come through?”

Li Jiayan: “...” Somehow that made a little sense?

Chu Yao chuckled. “If, as you say, the male guests’ charm lies in being considerate, then what is the female guests’ stage for showing their charm?”

The staff member thought for two seconds and said, “Probably... acting weak?”

Live-stream barrage:

[Sir, you seem very knowledgeable about women]

[Oh dear, poor thing, wants hugs]

[Above, I just threw up last night’s dinner]

[So, is Li Jiayan deliberately acting weak?]

[No, Li Jiayan is just purely bad at physical endurance, haha]

...

Hearing the staff member’s answer, Ye Fangfei raised an eyebrow. “You may have some misunderstanding about women.”

The staff member laughed. “Just a joke.”

The topic returned to the main point, and the staff member continued announcing today’s task.

“Everyone, rest assured. Our program team is still capable of showing some concern for people.”

“Today, we will provide each pair with a certain amount of funding. You may allocate it according to your own circumstances and take a plane to Southern Province.”

“The specific flight route is to be decided by each pair through discussion. The program team will no longer provide you with an exact itinerary. Please note that you must arrive at Magani Beach in Southern Province before three o’clock this afternoon.”

“Anyone who fails to arrive on time because of overtime will have their opportunity to compete for tonight’s best-pairing prize revoked!”

Once this information was out, some of the guests who had hoped to win that benefit immediately turned serious.

No one had expected the program team to play by a completely different set of rules today. The guests who had previously agreed in advance on what kind of route to take all felt that their earlier discussion had been unnecessary.

Xu Junze turned to glance at Chu Yao without speaking, but his eyes seemed to say: See? I told you there was no need to discuss that stuff.

Chu Yao could not help feeling that he was being rather smug, yet she had to admit that in some critical moments he was still rational enough.

After announcing the details and distributing the funds, the staff member looked at the watch on his wrist.

“It’s getting late. Hurry and set off!”

At the command, all the guests sprang into action.

They slung their bags over their shoulders and went to the roadside to hail taxis to the airport.

Lu Zhou stopped a cab and got in with Qi Jiajia.

“Driver, please take us to Post Airport. We’re in a hurry, so if you can, drive as quickly as possible,” Qi Jiajia said fluently, naming the place and their request.

She was an English interpreter, and in this country she had no difficulty communicating at all.

Without a phone and unable to check flight routes, they could only make a decision after arriving at the airport and asking there.

But Qi Jiajia had some idea based on her memory. “There probably isn’t a direct flight from Post Airport to Southern Province. We’ll likely need to transfer.”

“Mm.” Lu Zhou estimated the time and said, “We’ve got less than seven hours to work with.”

“Yes. From the task requirements, I’m guessing there’s more than one transfer airport, and there’s probably a loophole in the budget. We’ll likely need to weigh both cost and time,” Qi Jiajia said.

Lu Zhou turned to look at her, a faint smile appearing at the corners of his mouth.

Qi Jiajia caught it, and her cheeks grew warm. She pressed her red lips together lightly, flicked the short hair near her ear, and said a little awkwardly, “You... why are you looking at me?”

Hearing this, Lu Zhou looked surprised and raised an eyebrow. “Huh? So I’m not allowed to look at you? Then should I turn my head away?”

“No...” Qi Jiajia realized she had misspoken and faltered. “I, I didn’t mean it like that. I just meant... are you smiling at me because I said something wrong just now?”

“No. I think everything you just said made perfect sense. You considered it very thoroughly, and it makes me feel that having you as my partner today should save me quite a bit of trouble,” Lu Zhou said honestly.

“So... that’s it...”

Being praised, Qi Jiajia felt her cheeks grow even hotter. She lowered her eyes slightly, and the corners of her mouth could not help curving upward.

“I... I actually didn’t think it through that thoroughly. I just travel for work a lot, so I’m fairly familiar with Country M.”

“How come you seem a little stammering today? Are you nervous?” Lu Zhou did not quite understand and felt that Qi Jiajia’s performance today was somewhat different from before.

Qi Jiajia blinked. She really was nervous. She had never felt this way when dating Lu Zhou before. But now the atmosphere had changed; he merely looked at her and gave a light smile, and her heart would be beating like a startled deer.

How hopeless.

But she absolutely could not admit she was nervous because of him. She still had her pride!

“It is a little nerve-racking. I’m afraid we’ll be late and miss it,” Qi Jiajia said with a smile, concealing her true thoughts.

“When you’re out having fun, be more relaxed. If you miss it, you miss it. At worst you just lose the chance to compete for the prize—nothing serious.” Lu Zhou then thought of something else. “Of course, if you care a lot about that prize, then pretend I didn’t say anything.”

Qi Jiajia saw that he seemed to have misunderstood her and hurriedly explained, “No! I don’t care about it.”

I only care about having a happy time out with you today. Of course, if we can also pick up the best-pairing prize along the way, that would be ideal. If not, she did not mind.

She kept that thought hidden in her heart, saying nothing aloud.

The road to the airport was not close, and there were occasional stretches of congestion along the way. The car swayed gently, making Lu Zhou feel somewhat sleepy.

“I’m a little sleepy. I’m going to nap for a bit. You don’t mind, do you?” he asked.

“It’s fine. If you’re sleepy, then sleep,” Qi Jiajia replied with a warm smile.

Lu Zhou actually folded his arms across his chest, leaned his head against the car window, and closed his eyes.

Once he was asleep, Qi Jiajia could finally look at his sleeping face openly.

His features were sharp and three-dimensional, the lines of his profile firm yet smooth. Honestly, he was really very handsome.

Qi Jiajia leaned against the seatback, resting one elbow on the window frame and supporting her chin with her hand, gazing at Lu Zhou with great interest.

She had become utterly absorbed, so absorbed that she forgot they were being livestreamed.

At that moment, the live-stream barrage read:

[Help, I feel like she’s about to drool]

[That’s me, no doubt]

[I’m so afraid she won’t be able to hold back and kiss him]

[Qi Jiajia’s gaze has already betrayed her thoughts]

[I vaguely remember that the night after her first date with Lu Zhou, she didn’t even send him a text]

[What changed her, and turned her into Lu Zhou’s fangirl?]

[Probably the transformation of a girl who used to chase idols...]

...

Qi Jiajia admired Lu Zhou’s sleeping face for so long that even the driver in front could not help glancing at her twice through the rearview mirror.

Realizing her own impropriety, she hurriedly sat up straight and looked ahead.

But after a while, seeing that the road ahead curved a little, she could not help adjusting her posture again and leaning her body as far as possible toward Lu Zhou’s seat.

She had a fantasy that the driver might make a sharp turn, causing the sleeping Lu Zhou to sway unconsciously toward her side. Perhaps he would rest his head on her shoulder and keep sleeping.

Thinking of that scene, Qi Jiajia could not help smiling.

However, Lu Zhou sat as steady as a mountain. Even when they reached the airport entrance and the taxi came to a stop, his sleeping posture had barely changed at all...

Well then... beautiful and romantic fantasies really were unrealistic.

The scenes in television dramas were all lies.

“Are we here?” Lu Zhou woke, looking out through the car window.

“Yes, we’re here.” Qi Jiajia paid the fare and smiled at him. “You slept so soundly. The ride was so bumpy, and you still never woke up.”

Lu Zhou gave an embarrassed smile. “I didn’t sleep well last night.”

The two of them got out of the car, slung their bags over their shoulders, and headed straight for the airport ticket counter.

Arriving almost at the same time were Li Jiayan and Wen Yiming.

Seeing Lu Zhou and Qi Jiajia walking hurriedly ahead of them, Li Jiayan could not help quickening her own pace as well.

Wen Yiming hurried after her in a few quick steps. “Looks like your body clears lactic acid pretty fast?”

“Huh? What?” Li Jiayan looked at him blankly.

“Earlier this morning, you were crying out in pain after only a few steps. Now, after sitting in a car and resting, you’re walking much more briskly. Your lactic acid metabolism must be pretty good, which means you can probably tolerate a higher training intensity.”

Li Jiayan: “...”

She had only forgotten about the muscle soreness once her attention had shifted elsewhere.

Thanks to the reader who sent four hundred starting coins.

Thanks to Love of This Lifetime for sending one hundred starting coins.