Seeing her disdainful expression, Wang Aitian raised her voice.
“128,888!”
“Did you accidentally add a few extra digits?” Liu Qingye asked, utterly stunned.
“Over one hundred and twenty thousand. I didn’t read it wrong.”
Wang Aitian excitedly rushed to the single-seat sofa beside Ji Liuyue’s bed and plopped herself down, grabbing her hand.
“Yueyue, this is straight out of a domineering CEO romance novel!”
Ji Liuyue could only laugh helplessly.
“……”
The expression on Liu Qingye’s face was quite something.
She knew that Xu Jinsi came from a wealthy family, but she had never imagined he would give such an expensive bracelet during the invitation segment of the show.
She muttered under her breath, “How do you know that? Is it even real?”
Seeing that she didn’t believe her, Wang Aitian waved her phone.
“This season’s third episode aired today. If you don’t believe me, go watch it yourself.”
“The viewers even dug up the brand. It’s a foreign luxury brand.”
Just three minutes earlier, Liu Qingye had still been making snide remarks to Ji Liuyue:
“Who knows? Maybe Xu Jinsi will see the new fifth female guest and become so captivated that he forgets all about the good friends he left behind in the house.”
What she had really wanted to say was:
Xu Jinsi had argued with you. Maybe he’ll turn around and hit it off with the new female guest instead.
Even if she couldn’t have him, Liu Qingye would still be happy to see Ji Liuyue suffer.
Who would have thought that Ji Liuyue would simply reply, with an indifferent attitude:
“Oh.”
Liu Qingye was so irritated that she put on an eye mask and decided to lie down for an afternoon nap.
Who knew that, not long afterward, Wang Aitian would come rushing in like a whirlwind?
Now, Liu Qingye was no longer in the mood for a nap. She stared at Ji Liuyue with a complicated look and asked instinctively:
“Do you regret it?”
Ji Liuyue was puzzled.
During the lunch break, the cameras were not recording conversations in order to protect the contestants’ privacy.
So she simply asked in return:
“Regret what?”
Liu Qingye glanced at Wang Aitian. After thinking it over, she decided that Wang Aitian posed no real threat.
She spoke frankly.
“Regret arguing with Xu Jinsi. He’s very domineering, and he prefers women who obediently listen to him. Since you argued with him, his impression of you must have dropped.”
“Now that a new female guest has arrived and chosen him for a date right away, maybe they’ll come back tonight as a couple.”
“Don’t you regret it?”
Ji Liuyue nearly burst out laughing after hearing this.
“Are you worried about me?”
Liu Qingye pursed her lips. She herself didn’t know what she was feeling.
Part of her couldn’t help feeling pleased at the thought of Ji Liuyue meeting with bad luck, while another part felt regretful and sorry about it.
If she and Ji Liuyue switched identities, she would definitely hold on to Xu Jinsi tightly.
Forget arguing with him—she would use every trick in the book, from acting coquettish to pretending to be vulnerable.
After all, a woman should be gentle and considerate.
Liu Qingye let out a soft snort.
“Who’s worried about you? I just think you’re stupid!”
Ji Liuyue smiled calmly.
“I don’t think so.”
Wang Aitian also realized that her friend was far too calm.
Not only was she completely unfazed by a crystal bracelet worth more than 120,000 yuan, she was equally indifferent to Xu Jinsi going on a date with the new female guest.
The comforting words Wang Aitian had planned to say remained unspoken.
In the end, all she could say was:
“Yueyue, I think Mr. Xu is pretty great.”
Ji Liuyue hit the nail on the head.
“Sure. Other than being stubborn, hot-tempered, and saying the opposite of what he really means.”
……
After Xu Jinsi’s bracelet worth more than 120,000 yuan set the standard, the gifts from the other male guests in the video looked rather plain and unimpressive.
Lu Nanxun invited Liu Qingye on a date and gave her a black fountain pen.
Ji Mingtian never got the chance to give his gift because Liu Qingye had already received an invitation. He returned to his room alone, looking utterly dejected.
On the table was a handmade pixel-bead mosaic he had spent more than three hours making. It depicted a black-haired Disney princess who looked remarkably similar to Liu Qingye.
Then, when the video showed Cen Yu knocking on Ji Liuyue’s door, the audience calmly declared:
Got it!
[So when Cen Yu said that day that he wanted to make sweet-and-sour pork too, he really was making it for Ji Liuyue.]
[Of course. The heart-flutter text he sent that day was for Ji Liuyue too.]
[Wahhh, is our Sweet Rain CP really going to break up?]
[It’s obvious now. Two male guests are interested in one female guest…]
“Sorry, but I already have plans.” Ji Liuyue shook the pink crystal bracelet around her wrist.
The comments immediately went off in a different direction.
[Ah! So this is the bracelet our Mr. Xu gave her! It really is expensive—er, I mean, beautiful!]
[You can practically smell the money. Damn it, when will I ever meet a domineering CEO?]
[Go on a dating show, kid.]
[Not every dating show comes with an Mr. Xu. Heartbeat House has filmed three seasons, and this is the first time they’ve pulled an SSR!]
After being rejected, Cen Yu smiled with impeccable grace.
“No problem. Then I hope you have a wonderful date tomorrow.”
Ji Liuyue smiled back.
“Thank you. You too.”
The scene changed.
After Cen Yu was rejected, he did not go looking for Wang Aitian as the audience expected. Instead, he went to find Zhang Weiyi.
“Yiyi, are you free tomorrow?”
“Mm.” Zhang Weiyi nodded somewhat blankly.
The next second, Cen Yu handed her the gift bag.
“Then will you reject me?”
Zhang Weiyi accepted it without the slightest hesitation.
With a bright, cheerful smile, she replied, “Why would I reject you when there’s a gift involved?”
Cen Yu smiled as well.
“Great. See you tomorrow.”
“See you tomorrow.”
After Cen Yu left, Zhang Weiyi opened the bag. Inside was a pink instant camera.
He had clearly put a lot of thought into the gift.
However, after being compared with Xu Jinsi’s bracelet, the comments sounded like this:
[Ah… It’s just an instant camera. I was expecting something more.]
[Enough already. Chef Bro didn’t give her a frying pan, so his emotional intelligence is already pretty high.]
[Hahahaha, after seeing Dr. Lu give Liu Qingye a black fountain pen, I was honestly terrified that Cen Yu might give her a complete cooking recipe set or something…]
[Actually, Ji Mingtian’s pixel-bead mosaic was really pretty too, and he put a lot of effort into it. It’s just a shame that Dr. Lu got there first.]
[Stop talking, everyone! I still like Mr. Xu’s pink crystal bracelet best.]
[The person above doesn’t like the bracelet. You like the money.]
Just as everyone was laughing and the comments section was filled with a cheerful atmosphere, the video suddenly cut to the second-floor balcony of the house.
Wang Aitian sat alone in an outdoor rocking chair, looking lonely, her eyes filled with sadness.
She looked rather pitiful.
Then Liu Qingye appeared, handed her a blanket, and began her demonic chant.
“Tiantian, are you all right?”
“Tiantian, I actually think you’re sweet-looking and lively. A lot of people should like you, so I’m really surprised that you didn’t receive an invitation.”
“If I were your good friend, I’d be heartbroken for you. At a time like this, I should be staying by your side instead of playing games with the male guests downstairs.”
[Our Yezi is so beautiful and kindhearted. She still came to check on Wang Aitian at a time like this.]
[Exactly! Ji Liuyue said she and Wang Aitian were besties. Yezi even came to comfort her at a time like this, so where is she now?]
[Probably downstairs playing games with the male guests. Tsk, tsk.]
Still, some sharp-eyed viewers noticed that something was off about those remarks.
[Don’t you think Liu Qingye is trying to sow discord?]
[It’s not just that I think so—she absolutely is!]
[Liu Qingye, are you okay?]
Zhang Xiaotao really couldn’t stand it anymore and quickly posted a message of her own: [Liu Cuicui, are you okay?]
What followed was an entire row of messages saying:
[Liu Cuicui, are you okay?]
[…]
