Chapter 61

After eating and drinking to his heart’s content, Gu Si, sitting next to Ning Qingyan, heard her praising Wen Shijin. He raised an eyebrow and lazily collapsed onto Ning Qingyan’s lap, where she was sitting cross-legged on the ground. His voice was languid as he said:

“Xiao Yan~ I’m too full to walk. You have to carry me back.”

The fragrance and softness in his arms made Gu Si internally curse himself while simultaneously indulging, taking a deep breath as if intoxicated by opium, completely immersed in satisfaction.

Green Tea System: “Gu Si’s affection level +5.”

Wen Shijin, who had just maintained a composed expression, furrowed his brows upon witnessing the scene. He grasped Ning Qingyan’s wrist, pulling her up as if wanting to say something, but thinking about Ning Qingyan’s secret, he held back, his thin lips pressed tightly together in restraint.

Gu Si, forcibly removed from the warm embrace, didn’t show any signs of anger. He glanced at Wen Shijin, who was looking righteously serious, and narrowed his long, fox-like eyes. Taking off his earpiece, he said lazily:

“Jealous? I’m just doing what some people want to do but don’t dare to. Since we all have the same thoughts, why pretend to be so righteous?”

Wen Shijin gazed at him deeply, his voice low:

“One may say the wrong thing, but one should not speak nonsense.”

The meaning was clear—he was implying that Gu Si was talking nonsense. Gu Si was indifferent, just about to retort when Wen Shijin interrupted:

“Go wash the dishes.”

Since Wen Shijin had built the stove, prepared the meat, and Ning Qingyan had cooked, while the others had only done minor tasks, it was only fair for them to wash the dishes.

Since that was the arrangement yesterday, Wen Shijin, after speaking, simply took Ning Qingyan’s hand and walked away.

Gu Si watched their retreating figures, his expression unreadable before he suddenly chuckled.

What a ridiculous situation. In his lifetime, he had actually developed feelings for a “brother” whom he had always considered as his own. That was already crazy enough, but just when he managed to sort out his emotions and decided to go with the flow and let the future take care of itself, he discovered that everyone around his “brother” was a love rival.

Forget the women—after all, his “brother” liked girls. But why the hell were the men acting the same way as him?!

Huo Qi was like a past version of himself, confused and struggling. Wen Shijin, on the other hand, seemed even more enlightened than him, effortlessly accepting his own orientation without any hesitation.

Could it be that he had always been gay?

As these thoughts swirled in his mind, the stares from the other participants snapped him back to reality. The female guests were looking at him with expressions of shock, curiosity, and disbelief.

His conversation with Wen Shijin had certainly been suggestive. Though he had removed his earpiece so the live-stream viewers couldn’t hear, the female guests had heard everything.

Their expressions were colorful, as if they had just stumbled upon a major scandal.

Xu Ruanruan’s inner thoughts: No wonder I could never flirt with him successfully. It’s not because I lack charm—it’s because he likes men! What a pity. Ning Qingyan is my CP (couple pairing), so will I be targeted by the male leads now?

Sheng Mingzhu’s inner thoughts: I transmigrated into this novel planning to befriend the male leads, but I ended up liking a side character instead! And now, the male leads also seem to like this side character? My taste is just too good!

Qiao Li’s inner thoughts: So both of them are interested in Qingyan? And if I think about how only Qingyan gets special treatment from Huo Qi… he’s probably involved too. I thought letting go of Huo Qi and liking Qingyan was a good decision, but now I have not just three female love rivals but also three male ones?

Lin Qingqing’s inner thoughts: I originally liked Wen Shijin because I admire gentle and warm-hearted guys. But after getting to know him, I realized the warmth I truly seek is like Ning Qingyan’s—real and tangible. No wonder the male leads treat him differently. Who wouldn’t like a gentle, shy, brave, and kind little sunshine like him?

The four female guests had countless thoughts racing through their minds, unable to control their emotions.

Gu Si, however, remained unfazed. He swept a casual glance over the group before confidently grabbing his and Ning Qingyan’s dishes and heading toward the beach to wash them.

Only when the women saw his glance did they realize their emotions had been too obvious. Quickly, they calmed themselves down.

After all, they were all in the entertainment industry—who would want to offend someone who was destined to stand at the top of the industry pyramid, create miracles, and have billions of fans in the future?

Sitting in the corner, Huo Qi pursed his thin lips, his expression dark. Watching Gu Si’s arrogant departure, his long, fox-like eyes were filled with… pity.

Live-stream Chat:

“What’s with the male guests lately? Why do they keep taking off their earpieces?! Damn, looking at the female guests’ shocked expressions, I really want to know what crazy thing Si-dog just said!”

“Yi Gu Qingcheng CP fans: It’s time for a celebration! Today, we gather to rejoice that Yi Gu Qingcheng is REAL!”

“I’ve never seen Wen Shijin talk back like this before! Well said! ‘One may say the wrong thing, but one should not speak nonsense!’”

“So what insane thing did Si-ge say this time?!”

“OMG, Gu Si’s smirk is so devilishly handsome! I’m losing my mind!”

Meanwhile…

After pulling Ning Qingyan away, Wen Shijin only let go after they had walked quite a distance.

In the past, he would have let go immediately. But today, for some reason, he held on for an unusually long time.

Was it because he was provoked by Gu Si’s words? Ning Qingyan lowered her eyes, contemplating.

Just as she thought, Wen Shijin’s mind was indeed disturbed by Gu Si’s remark.

Did he pull Gu Si away simply because he knew Ning Qingyan’s secret and was concerned about propriety between men and women?

If not… then what?

Gu Si’s words echoed in his mind again—“I’m just doing what some people want to do but don’t dare to. Since we all have the same thoughts, why pretend to be so righteous?”

What did he mean by “the same thoughts”?

What was Gu Si thinking? And what was he thinking?

What did he want to do? Lie in Ning Qingyan’s lap like Gu Si?

He had never considered such a thing before, but now that the idea had been planted, he realized he didn’t reject it at all. In fact, a seed of desire, buried deep within, seemed to sprout—just waiting for nourishment to grow into a towering tree.

But what was this desire? Wen Shijin didn’t know.

He only knew that he wanted to protect her secret, help her out of difficult situations, and didn’t like seeing her getting too close to other men… That was all… right?

Lost in thought, he was startled back to reality when Ning Qingyan waved a hand in front of his face.

“Ge, are you okay? I called you twice, but you didn’t respond.”

Hearing her voice, still carrying a hint of femininity despite being deliberately lowered, Wen Shijin narrowed his phoenix eyes and solemnly said:

“You need to rest. You were exhausted yesterday and worked hard all morning. If you don’t recover, your body will only ache more. At worst, you could experience muscle spasms or even—”

Before he could finish, Ning Qingyan hurriedly interrupted: “I get it, ge! I’ll rest now, so stop scaring me.”

After saying that, she glanced at him before slipping into her tent to sleep.

From outside, Wen Shijin stood guard like a soldier at attention, but his heart was anything but calm.