CHAPTER 20 (PART 2)

Just as her pale little foot was getting ready to act, Wen Heng opened his eyes. Sleepy, but calm.

Their eyes locked unexpectedly.

Wen Heng: “What are you doing?”

Gu Sheng quietly drew her foot back. “Nothing. Time to start filming!”

…

Before Wen Heng and Gu Sheng even got up, the show of love among the other couples had already kicked off.

Song Qingzhi had racked her brain all night trying to outdo Gu Sheng and Wen Heng in the romance and sweetness department. She finally decided she and Qin Tian would go for a campus couple vibe. Drink milk tea, watch a movie—affordable and sweet.

So the next morning, the two got up early, went to a beach one kilometer from the hotel to watch the sunrise, then headed to a nearby university, holding hands as they strolled through campus.

At that hour on a weekend, only early-bird students heading to the library were around. Everyone was too busy rushing for seats to care about the couple.

The Qing Tian couple wandered around for a while, completely ignored, before they started running into other contestants.

They bumped into the Shan Lu couple outside the hotel and greeted them: “You guys are up early!”

Song Qingzhi smiled, “Tian Ge said he wanted to watch the sunrise together.”

Lu Yiyi dryly responded, “Wow.”

—But seriously, at sunrise, there weren’t even any viewers, right??

Yu Shanbei, on the other hand, didn’t think too much. He turned to Lu Yiyi and asked, “What do you want to eat?”

Lu Yiyi was broke, and super eager to please: “Whatever you want.”

Yu Shanbei waved his hand heroically. “Let’s go have dim sum!”

Lu Yiyi’s eyes sparkled: “Okay!”

After they left, Song Qingzhi and Qin Tian stood there, feeling the sting of their own poverty.

…They couldn’t even afford dim sum!

Gu Sheng and Wen Heng were the last to leave the hotel.

Even though it was a city-based trip, the show had set clear boundaries. The contestants mostly had to operate within a designated area.

As the two walked down the street, fans would occasionally shriek, whipping out phones and snapping photos like crazy. In no time, countless unfiltered but gorgeous candid shots flooded the internet, along with behind-the-scenes posts. Hashtags like #HengXing, #BackEcho, and #WenShengCouple were blowing up like it was the holidays.

They had a clear goal: heading straight to the show’s task location to earn money.

But Gu Sheng, still wanting to test whether Wen Heng actually had cash, thought for a second and pointed to a breakfast stand by the road. “I want soy milk.”

Wen Heng glanced over—it was just a tiny, no-frills breakfast stall. He seemed slightly surprised.

Soon enough, Wen Heng came back with the soy milk—and even took a photo with the stall’s auntie.

Gu Sheng took the soy milk, eyeing him suspiciously. “Don’t tell me you used your looks to get this?”

Wen Heng handed her a straw. “…Drink your soy milk.”

[Hahahaha I’m dying—“used his looks”? Seriously??]
[Sis is so down-to-earth I’m crying]
[Wait why’d Wen Ge only buy one cup? Is he out of cash?]
[No way. He totally pulled the jackpot. Maybe he just doesn’t like soy milk.]

Gu Sheng sipped through her straw.

With how casual Wen Heng was acting, he really didn’t seem like someone strapped for cash—at least not when it came to food.

That settled it for her!

—Gu Sheng promptly let go of that weird dream from last night and clutched her five thousand yuan even tighter.

The two walked toward Liancheng’s famous Luhai Square, the sea breeze bringing a light, salty scent that felt refreshing and gentle.

“Looks like it’s that way,” Wen Heng glanced at the signpost.

Gu Sheng nodded. “Fu Shan said if you follow the sea breeze, you’ll definitely get to Luhai Square. Looks like he was right.”

At the mention of that name, Wen Heng’s brow twitched ever so slightly.

Green tea?

[Aaaaah it’s a crossover! Just a reminder from Huisheng: Gu Sheng starred in Fu Shan’s MV lorful pa~]

[Fans, can you go do your promo elsewhere?]

[Shhh, shhh, look at Wen-ge’s expression hahahaha]

Wen Heng, in fact, had no expression.

But a face with no expression could still exude a certain coldness.

Finally, they found the Happiness Equation sign tucked into a corner of Luhai Square.

“Welcome to the ‘Mystery Drink Box’ game! This is a little bonus challenge prepared by the production team,” the staff member said with a smile, explaining the rules. “Each drink box corresponds to a different amount of prize money. Whichever you pick, you’ll get that amount—as long as you drink the whole thing~~”

[Doesn’t sound like anything decent is in there!]

[I’m calling it now: celery juice!]

[Go for the cheap ones, better chance they taste okay!]

Gu Sheng was thinking the same. They didn’t lack money anyway—no need to take the risk.

But Wen Heng nodded calmly, glanced downward, and went straight for the mystery box marked 100 yuan.

Gu Sheng: ?? Okay then. Respect.

Even the staff didn’t expect Wen God to go all in and pick the highest one right off the bat. His hands trembled slightly as he pulled the box from beneath the table.

Wen Heng’s long fingers opened it. Inside the semi-transparent plastic cup was a drink of indescribable color—part green, part yellow, with some floating particles. It looked… dark. Not like something of this world.

Gu Sheng was horrified just looking at it.

Wen Heng, however, remained calm. He took a sip, expression unchanged, even raising his brows slightly.

Gu Sheng was curious: “? What does it taste like?”

Wen Heng handed it to her. “Sweet—”

Gu Sheng looked at his expression. He seemed fine, so she took the cup and tried a sip.

Wen Heng: “—is absolutely impossible.”

Gu Sheng: “Pfft—!”

She spat it straight onto Wen Heng’s face.

Drip, drip.

The yellow-green liquid trickled down his pale face.

A few seconds later, he took out a tissue and slapped it onto his face.

The comedy effect was maxed out. The livestream comments went wild:

[Hahahahahahahaha]

[LOL these two are literal grade schoolers]

[Why are they always hurting each other hahaha]

The staff member added with a smile: “That one’s called ‘Freshly Juiced Fish Mint Cilantro Coconut Delight.’”

…

The “Make Romance” segment had barely begun, and the Wen-Sheng couple had already blown it up.

Gu Sheng and Wen Heng sat separately.

A full eight feet apart.

One had been tricked into drinking something awful.

The other got that same awful drink spat in his face.

Each held their own grudge.

Though the stars themselves were in no mood, the viewers were absolutely loving it. Fans and non-fans alike all swarmed into the livestreams after hearing what happened.

[What’s going on?? Did they fight??]

[Ahhh Wen-ge what are you doing! Don’t make your wife mad!]

[Gu Sheng literally spat the drink in his face though!]

[Hehehe bystander here: fight! fight!]

[Fight! FIGHT!!]

Seeing the situation, the poor cameraman didn’t dare get close. He set up the shot from a distance, keeping both of them in frame. Honestly, with their killer auras and emotionless faces, arms crossed, no one would dare get near.

[Girls, we’re trending hahahahaha]

[I just saw it!! —#WenHengGuShengFight#]

[Wow, so this is top-tier celebrity energy huh? Trending in minutes]

Luhai Square was already bustling with locals and tourists. Two celebs filming with a camera crew had already drawn a crowd. Add in all the online viewers, and it rocketed onto the trending charts. Everyone was just here to watch the drama.

You couldn’t blame the netizens for being intrigued, either. In the public’s eyes, Wen Heng wasn’t someone who ever got into fights. Outside of his acting roles, Wen Heng always appeared emotionally neutral, distant, cold. That “iceberg flower” image didn’t come from nowhere.

So, naturally, people couldn’t imagine him bowing his head to anyone.

Gu Sheng still had that horrific taste of fish mint juice in her mouth.

She thought, Drop dead! You damn man!

I hope you eat crap the next two days—!!

On the other side, Wen Heng sat quietly for a bit, then let out a sigh and got ready to go over and apologize.

After all, he had started it.

Just as he stood up—

Beep—

Wen Heng: “……”

Was that… a little too coincidental?

Moments later—

Everyone watching saw it through the corner of the frame: Wen Heng was standing in front of Gu Sheng, saying something with his head lowered.

The weather was clear, sea breeze damp and gentle across the square, pigeons fluttering overhead.

The girl’s skirt fluttered softly in the wind, and the man’s figure stood tall and calm. His lowered black hair brushed his brows, making him look tender and full of affection.

The trending tag went from [HOT]to [EXPLODING]—

[AAAAAAHHHHH!!!]

[“In this lifetime, I only bow to you”—absolute perfection]

[Help, I’m dying, this quiet deep devotion is my kryptonite]

[I’m crying who else gets it 😭]

“I…” Wen Heng stood in front of Gu Sheng, eyes closed, taking a slow breath. “…I apologize to you.”

And for once, Gu Sheng didn’t hold a grudge. She waved it off with uncharacteristic generosity, stepping back dramatically: “It’s fine, I forgive you!”

Just don’t touch me, okay hahaha.

Because she too had just heard the system’s prompt—

—— “The 21st Pain of Love: Cervical Spine Agony.”
—— “Pain Level: 9.”

Gu Sheng spoke gently and with concern: “It’s okay, just lift your head!”

“……”

Wen Heng: Truly can’t lift his head.

His neck felt like it was about to snap.

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