Quan Jiu was still a little groggy when she saw Chu Rong's expression instantly turn grim, a sinister aura emanating from him. She quickly pressed Chu Rong's hand as if by reflex and asked softly, "What's wrong?"
The last time she saw Chu Rong wear such an expression, the person who angered him met a miserable end. That was also the first time Quan Jiu truly saw the darkness within Chu Rong's heart.
She knew he was not a kind person, even cold-blooded and ruthless.
But he was gentle with her. Even when he needed to transfuse blood for Jiang Mengran, he had asked her gently. Therefore, she couldn't bring herself to dislike him.
Quan Jiu silently soothed Chu Rong's emotions. If this demeanor were exposed, the stock price of Chu Corporation would likely plummet immediately.
Mai Su, who had already drawn near, stopped in her tracks upon seeing Chu Rong's cold and gloomy expression, her eyes widening in fear.
However, in the next moment, that expression instantly turned gentle, so quickly that she almost thought it was a hallucination.
Chu Rong smiled at Quan Jiu's hand. "Sleep a little longer, it's still early."
Quan Jiu sat up, glanced outside, and abruptly withdrew her hand. The photographer, perhaps because she was sleeping and had no footage, had wandered off somewhere. There were actually no cameras on the lawn at that moment.
Quan Jiu was dejected, her expression becoming distant again. She turned to sleep in another direction.
By this time, Mai Su was already close to the tent. Seeing Chu Rong's face darken again as he stared at her, she really didn't dare to step forward and court trouble. She could only change direction. "You're also taking a nap? I'll go take a nap too."
Only after Mai Su had walked away did Chu Rong's tensed brows relax. He picked up the fan again and slowly fanned Quan Jiu.
...
In the afternoon, organized by the production team, the five groups of guests played games as an icebreaker.
The games didn't end until five o'clock. Then, the production team instructed everyone to prepare their own dinner and informed them that there would be a review at seven o'clock sharp, after which accommodation would be assigned to each group.
The worst accommodation had only a sleeping bag, and no one wanted to choose that room. Therefore, compared to the laziness of noon, everyone was now full of fighting spirit. They even ran to find ingredients, pushing and pulling each other, the competition so fierce that the photographers had to run along.
Of course, there were exceptions. The photographer responsible for filming the two guests in group five slowly followed the two protagonists into the kitchen with his camera.
Washing vegetables, chopping vegetables, washing rice, and cooking rice, the two cooperated quite harmoniously. The photographer leaned against the kitchen door, recording it all. He thought to himself, at first glance, they looked like an old married couple, with no hint of theドキドキ (heart-pounding) ambiguity of just meeting. Did these two really not know each other?
However, as he thought, the sight of the handsome man and beautiful woman cooking together was quite pleasing to the eye. As he admired them, a crispy, golden fried fish came out of the pan.
...
As seven o'clock approached, the host reappeared.
Although the table was filled with dishes of various colors and shapes, there was one dish that stood out like a crane in a flock of chickens, instantly catching one's eye.
The host stepped forward, tasted a bite, and nodded in praise. "It has excellent color, aroma, and taste. This fried fish is comparable to restaurant quality."
Then, he tried the other dishes one by one. As if there was a pearl before them, the other dishes were somewhat difficult to describe, and his expression was obscure, but he still managed to give them ratings.
The two guests in group five were, without a doubt, ranked first and received room A. As expected, Qi Fei and Mai Su came in last place.
After dinner, everyone returned to their rooms.
Rooms A to E were in a row, with room A being the first. As Quan Jiu opened the door, the other four female guests curiously crowded around to take a look.
It was a luxurious single suite, complete with champagne and fruit platters. The balcony was like a small garden, looking incredibly beautiful, like a forest cabin – fresh and comfortable.
While the four female guests marveled with envy, they eagerly opened their own rooms. The first two were quite satisfied. The fourth, and especially the fifth, Mai Su, had a face as dark as the bottom of a pot.
She pointed at the empty room and rushed out, "There's really only a sleeping bag, and nothing else? How am I supposed to sleep?"
The other few guests curiously crowded around to see. Upon seeing a square, empty room with only a sleeping bag in the middle, and not even a pillow, the female guests, despite their best efforts to hold back, couldn't help but shake with laughter.
Mai Su stomped her feet in anger. "I'm going to find the production team. I can't sleep like this at all."
"It's no use even if you go. When you enter the mountains tomorrow, you'll realize your current place is already quite good," one of the female guests said with a smile.
Mai Su glanced at the photographer a little further away. After thinking for a moment, she had an idea. Carrying her suitcase, she walked to room A, opened the door, and called out enthusiastically, "Sister Quan, what are you doing?"
Quan Jiu, who was preparing to remove her makeup, asked, "What's wrong?"
Mai Su unceremoniously brought her suitcase into the room and looked at the comfortable queen-sized bed. "Sister Quan, can I sleep with you tonight? My place only has a sleeping bag and nothing else. I'm afraid to sleep alone. Or I can bring my sleeping bag over, you sleep on the bed and I'll sleep on the floor or the sofa. Please, please take me in." She looked incredibly wronged and pitiful.
The camera captured all of her expressions, actions, and words.
Mai Su thought to herself, this was going to be broadcast. You couldn't possibly act like a cold-blooded and heartless person, could you?
But before her thoughts could settle, she heard a not-too-loud, not-too-soft voice, "Since we are here to participate in the program, we must abide by the rules set by the production team. I am very sorry that you were assigned to room E, but I cannot disregard the production team's regulations. Moreover, if I really let you sleep with me, it wouldn't be fair to the other guests, would it?"
At that moment, the other female guests were also gathered at the doorway. Hearing this, one of them spoke up to comfort her, "It's just for one night. My room also only has a wooden bed, which isn't much better than yours."
Mai Su smiled, but it was full of sarcasm. "Then are you willing to switch with me?"
The female guest who was comforting her was retorted to and became displeased. "Your abilities only allow you to sleep in room E. If you can't get room A, why are you coveting my room D?"
It was quite sarcastic.
Mai Su looked at the camera and had to swallow her curse words before slowly going to pick up her suitcase. "Oh, why be so rigid? People should be flexible sometimes. Rigid people are too boring."
Quan Jiu smiled slightly and continued to remove her makeup. After tidying up and getting into bed, she made a video call to Wang Feifei. Wang Feifei would help take care of the two children while she was away for a few days.
"...I didn't expect Chu Rong to come too," Quan Jiu told Wang Feifei about what happened during the day.
After listening, Wang Feifei was puzzled. "A busy person like him wouldn't possibly participate in a dating reality show."
Quan Jiu said irritably, "Who knows if he's just bored. Perhaps one Jiang Mengran wasn't enough, and he wants to find another one."
However, Wang Feifei offered a different perspective, saying seriously, "From the situation at our wrap-up party last time, I think he's mostly here for you."
"Me? He already agreed not to fight me for the children. What else is there about me that's worth him hovering around?"
Wang Feifei on the other end of the phone pondered for a moment and then stated with certainty, "I think he mostly wants to snatch you back. Think about it, if he snatches you back, then my godson and goddaughter will also be snatched back. As expected of a businessman, this is too insidious."
Snatch her?... Quan Jiu recalled everything that had happened during the day, and her mind went blank for a moment.