The five minutes felt excruciatingly long for the guests on set.
Gu Jingchuan hoped the viewers would vote for him and Lin Mo.
He had something to say to her.
With no rules restricting her, Lin Mo could finally act as she pleased.
Li Huanyu’s gaze swept over Xie Guanyan several times.
She was confident that if given a chance to be alone with him,
Xie Guanyan would fall for her!
Though she and Jiang Wan were friends, ambition knew no bounds—she wouldn’t let this opportunity slip away!
Shen Sizhan was pacing anxiously, pleading inwardly for the viewers not to vote for Gu Jingchuan and his "sister" to cook together.
He genuinely couldn’t handle it!
Lin Mo sat stiffly like a soldier, but her mind chanted: "This devotee has balanced meat and greens all her life—Bodhisattva, spare me from being paired with that walking red flag!"
Xie Guanyan remained seated alone on the upright sofa.
He’d removed his gold-rimmed glasses, holding them in his right hand while his left flipped through a finance magazine.
Every movement was deliberate, almost picturesque.
No one noticed his gaze never actually left the lenses.
Gu Jingchuan found his act pretentious and muttered pointedly, "CEO Xie really loves reading, huh?"
Xie Guanyan ignored him.
After three awkward seconds, Gu Jingchuan grabbed a book too. "I’m also a fan," he declared, mimicking the pose.
Until Li Huanyu whispered, "Your book’s upside down!"
Gu Jingchuan: "…"
—"Gu Jingchuan’s such a clown! I’m wheezing—laughed so hard I pissed three feet, chugged wine, and ascended to the afterlife!"
—"This dating show’s brutal for couples. Barely any cross-gender conversations today."
—"Shen Sizhan’s yapped nonstop though!"
—"Cooking takes an hour? A whole baby could be born in that time!"
Bored, Jiang Wan asked Lin Mo, "Weren’t you in school? I remember you mentioning it."
Lin Mo smiled. "Took leave."
Li Huanyu, seated nearby, narrowed her eyes.
The memory of Lin Mo humiliating her still stung.
Seizing the moment, she interjected sweetly, "Skipping class for a show? That’s irresponsible. Education should come first."
After all, she’d graduated from a top-tier university—a rare feat in entertainment circles!
With prime-time viewership peaking,
the livestream neared 20 million concurrent viewers.
—"Lin Mo’s a student? She’d ditch studies just to go public with Shen Sizhan?"
—"Riding his fame into showbiz, obviously. What’s the point of degrees nowadays?"
—"Not everyone’s as accomplished as our Huanyu. Bet Lin Mo’s at some diploma mill!"
—"Those schools are full of pretty faces who skip lectures for clout!"
—"Hold up—check the trending searches! Netizens dug up Lin Mo’s past: 2014 Beijing gaokao top scorer, Tsinghua University fought over her with scholarships!"
—"Wait what? I blinked and missed the tea!"
—"Knew she looked familiar! Wasn’t she the one who ‘died’ in a crash? I even left memorial flowers!"
—"Forum threads confirm she survived an 11-year coma, returned to high school, and aced last month’s exams!"
—"Eleven years bedridden and still top of class? I’m a farmer, but even I can see—this girl’s a genius!"
—"Qinghua’s a diploma mill now? Li Huanyu stans, explain yourselves!"
—"OMG MORE TEA! That old interview resurfaced—Lin Mo’s really Shen Sizhan’s sister! Little 11-year-old him did backflips in the background!"
—"LMAO just watched it! Baby Shen was such a dork!"
—"Told y’all she’s family! Sis even reimbursed my flight and hotel when I met her!"
—"So today makes sense—Shen Sizhan’s the ultimate loyal simp!"
Chaos erupted across Weibo and live comments—
but the clueless cast remained oblivious.
Their phones were confiscated… except Xie Guanyan’s.
Yet he respected the show, never glancing at his screen on camera.
Lin Mo bared her teeth at Li Huanyu’s remark. "I don’t care what you think. I decide what’s best for me."
Li Huanyu: "…"
—"Lin Mo, step on me!"
—"Gorgeous AND a genius? No one here’s on her level."
—"Shen Sizhan’s smug face: ‘See? Told you she’s royalty.’"
Director Wu Gui, unaware of the trending storm, approached with the voting results.
All eyes burned into him.
A seasoned variety producer,
he now felt the weight of a thousand pounds on his shoulders.
Daring not to meet Xie Guanyan’s gaze,
he envied Shen Sizhan’s fearless audacity.
After a deep breath, he announced:
"Time to reveal the first challenge’s winning pair for the cooking task. The highest votes go to… Xie Guanyan and Lin Mo."
