My cousin asked me to go to Wuha, and Hanikezi stuck to me.

Chen Yi put one hand in his pocket, freeing his right hand to reach into the cardboard box and pull out a red billiard ball.

Old Wang turned to look at Hanikezi.

Hanikezi took a deep breath, reached into the box and rummaged around for a bit, then took it out and looked at it.

Red!! Σ(⊙▽⊙"a

Chen Chichi and Deng Chao immediately erupted in cheers, clearly enjoying the spectacle.

"Old Wang, is your box full of red balls?!" Chen Chichi shouted, pointing at the lottery box.

"Absolutely fair and just!" Old Wang clarified through a megaphone, "Congratulations to Chen Yi and Hanikezi on becoming a Red Team partner! For the next forty-eight hours, please maintain a physical distance of no more than three meters!"

Chen Yi turned his head and looked at Hanikezi beside him.

Hanikezi, holding the red ball, took a half step back and bumped her back directly into a wooden pillar in the courtyard of the inn.

Two minutes later, a red soft rope was looped around the left and right hands of the two people, leaving a three-meter slack in the middle.

"Today's task is self-sufficiency," Lao Wang announced. "The Red Team will be fully responsible for the lunches of the resident guests; this is your combined budget!"

Old Wang stuffed a tattered coin purse into Chen Yi's hand.

Chen Yi opened it and glanced at it; there were two twenty-yuan notes and one ten-yuan note.

"Let's go to the ancient town's market!" Chen Yi put his coin purse in his pocket and walked towards the gate.

The rope taut instantly, and Hanikezi stumbled as she was pulled, forced to follow reluctantly.

The two walked side by side on the cobblestone street of the ancient town, with more than a dozen cameras following them at a distance, without disturbing the filming.

Passing by a stall selling roasted milk fan, Hanikezi stopped and stared at the grill, which seemed to glow green.

The rope taut again, and Chen Yi stopped.

"Buy one! (*╹▽╹*)" Hanikezi pointed at the stall.

"Old Wang gave me fifty yuan for groceries." Chen Yi turned to look at her. "After buying the milk fan (a type of cheese), are we going to eat air for lunch?"

"I just saw you stuff your money into your pocket!" Hanikezi accused him defiantly.

"That's my money," Chen Yi said calmly.

"Now we're partners! We share a wallet!" Hanikezi took a step forward.

Chen Yi took out ten yuan from his right pocket and handed it to the stall owner. He then took a roasted milk fan and stuffed it directly into her hand.

"He who eats another's food is bound to do his bidding." Chen Yi watched her take her first bite of the roasted milk fan, then posed the core contradiction of this chapter, "Now you can talk? What was the second half of that WeChat message?"

Hanikezi almost burned her tongue.

"I already said it's hard to explain in words!" She swallowed the milk fan, her eyes darting around.

"Now that we're face to face, speak." Chen Yi took a step closer, shortening the rope.

"The closed training for the film crew is too tiring! I forgot what I was going to say!" Hanikezi turned and left.

"Forgot?" Chen Yi followed up. "It's okay if you forgot, I have plenty of time to help you remember."

Half an hour later, the two returned to the guesthouse villa carrying a bag of ingredients.

The first floor features an open kitchen connected to a huge living room, where other guests are sprawled out on the sofas waiting for their meal.

Chen Yi took off his white windbreaker, removed his hat, casually rolled up the sleeves of his black shirt, and walked straight into the kitchen.

Hanikezi followed closely behind, the red string on her wrist swaying between the two of them.

Chen Yi washed his hands and poured all the ingredients onto the kitchen counter.

"Wash the green peppers!" Chen Yi said without even looking up.

Hanikezi walked to the sink and turned on the tap.

Chen Yi picked up the cleaver, and the sound of him slicing potatoes into shreds was extremely even and fine.

The incredibly fast knife work made Deng Chao, who was peeking out from the living room, gasp in surprise.

Hanikezi washed the green peppers and turned to hand them over.

Chen Yi had just put down the kitchen knife when he reached out and took it from him. The two of them didn't say a word, and their actions were seamless.

Hanikezi picked up the garlic cloves next to her and started peeling them.

Chen Yi heated the oil in the wok, and the flames instantly shot up. He tossed the wok with one hand while extending the other hand behind him.

Hanikezi immediately handed him the condiment tray containing salt and soy sauce.

Chen Chichi sat on the living room sofa, holding up his phone to record a video of the kitchen.

"Old Wang, are these two treating our show like a slow-paced dating reality show?" Chen Chichi complained as he filmed.

Lu Han leaned closer and glanced at the phone screen. "Their level of compatibility is so high, it's hard to believe they haven't lived together for at least three years."

Chen Yi turned off the heat and took the pot out. He placed a plate of shredded pork with green peppers on the countertop, turned around, and braced his hands on the edge of the countertop, encircling Hanikezi between his arms and the countertop.

This happens to be a blind spot for the camera.

"After running for a month, now you're tied to a rope," Chen Yi said in a low voice. "Are you still going to run?"

Hanikezi dropped the unpeeled garlic cloves onto the table.

"I was in closed training!" she whispered, trying to justify herself.

"Sister Hong spoke to me on the phone; the crew wrapped up filming at 8 p.m.," Chen Yi bluntly exposed.

Hanikezi's face instantly turned bright red.

"What are you afraid of?" Chen Yi leaned forward half an inch. "Afraid that if you say it to their faces, you won't be able to handle the situation?"

"Who's afraid!" Hanikezi retorted, sticking her neck out.

"If you're not afraid, just say so."

"There are too many people now!" Hanikezi pushed his arm. "Chen Chichi is still outside taking pictures of us with his phone!"

Chen Yi straightened up and took the empty plate from her hand.

"Okay, I'll wait until tonight!" Chen Yi carried the dishes out.

After dinner, the villa opened for free time.

Old Wang had someone turn off the main light in the living room, leaving only the projector light shining on the screen to play an old-fashioned comedy.

Due to distance restrictions, Chen Yi sat on the left side of the two-seater sofa, while Hanikezi could only sit on the right.

After a long day of running around, plus the late-night flight yesterday, Hanikezi's eyelids started to droop.

She forced herself to watch for a while, but then her head began to droop little by little.

The comedy was reaching its climax when Deng Chao and Chen Chichi burst into laughter in the living room.

Hanikezi was startled and opened her eyes. She was confused for two seconds, then closed them again.

Chen Yi looked at the big screen, but his peripheral vision was entirely on his right side.

Hanikezi's head lost all support and tilted to the left, resting directly on Chen Yi's shoulder.

Chen Yi's breathing stopped for three seconds.

He didn't push her away; his right shoulder bore the weight of the girl's head.

Chen Yi lowered his body slightly, adjusting to an ideal angle so that her head could rest more steadily.

He freed his left hand, took the cushion next to him, and used it to support her lower back.

Seeing this, Chen Chichi, who was sitting diagonally opposite, immediately reached into his pocket for his phone.

Lu Han reacted quickly and grabbed Chen Chichi's wrist.

Chen Chichi turned and glared at him.

"Stop filming." Lu Han lowered her voice and gestured with her chin toward the sofa. "Let them have some peace and quiet."

The projector's light and shadow constantly shifted on Chen Yi's face.

He leaned back on the sofa, listening to the even breathing sounds around him.

The two were less than ten centimeters apart, and the answer that he had "thought it through" seemed to no longer need to be sent in words.

In the darkness, Old Wang hid behind the monitor, watching the beautiful scene on the screen, rubbing his hands excitedly.

"Prepare the wake-up call cards for tomorrow morning," Old Wang ordered into his walkie-talkie. "We've already given them so much; if we don't give them a little push, we'll be wasting this triple pay!"