ASPWL Ch82: I Just Found Out

The summer wind carried a hot, humid scent from the lake, but it still felt stifling.

Ye Leyao tightly held Qin Yao’s hand, laughing all the way. Every now and then, he’d glance back past Qin Yao, his gaze landing on the guests who were still standing in place behind them.

The moment his gaze returned, Ye Leyao’s eyes curved into a bright, radiant smile.

The sunlight was perfect. As he ran, his hair danced lightly in the wind, making him look dazzling.

At that moment, Qin Yao suddenly became aware of his own heartbeat pounding like a drum in his chest.

In the distance, Huo Yan’s exasperated voice could still be heard, shouting—

“When did they get together? How did they get together? Ye Leyao is still so young! And Qin Yao just went and whisked my little brother away?”

“I don’t approve! I absolutely don’t approve—”

Ye Leyao turned back just in time, about to say something, when he suddenly noticed Qin Yao taking a big step forward, coming up beside him and continuing to run with him. Smiling, Qin Yao said, “Ignore him.”

Ye Leyao nodded with a laugh. “Mm.”

【Ignore him, my second brother’s just jealous!】

Huo Yan nearly passed out from anger when he heard that.

Jealous?! What was there to be jealous of?!

He disagreed with Ye Leyao and Qin Yao being together—what did that have to do with jealousy?

Unfortunately, the only person on the scene who was righteously opposed was Huo Yan; the other guests all had the expression of onlookers enjoying a spectacle.

Interesting.

This show was really getting more and more interesting.

Originally, they thought they were there to watch the drama between Li Siyuan and Duan Tingyan, but as it turned out, Ye Leyao ended up revealing he was with Qin Yao.

Liu Yan couldn’t help but lean over and ask Huo Yan, “When did Ye Leyao and Qin Yao get together?”

Just earlier in the car, Ye Leyao had looked completely confused.

Could it be that they missed something again?

Huo Yan really wanted to ask the same question!

He had just gone upstairs to take a shower and came back down quickly.

Nothing happened during that time, and he hadn’t heard any other thoughts from Ye Leyao.

So how did Ye Leyao suddenly figure it all out?

Huo Yan furrowed his brows and remained silent for a long time.

Zhou Zijian was about to step in and offer some advice to Huo Yan when Wen Huai took a step forward.

Huo Yan turned his head in confusion.

Wen Huai reached out and patted him on the shoulder, his gaze falling on Zhou Zijian as he said blandly, “Now you should be able to empathize with me, right?”

Wen Xiangyue: “…”

Zhou Zijian: “…”

Huo Yan looked at Wen Huai, then at Zhou Zijian and Wen Xiangyue.

He opened his mouth but ultimately said nothing.

Song Zhehan burst into laughter.

Liu Yan and Shen Chong were trying hard to hold back their laughter, and just when they were about to succeed, a faint chuckle came from behind them.

Huo Yan and Wen Huai turned around to find the production crew and all the staff struggling not to laugh.

One staff member barely managed to compose his expression, but when he looked up, he accidentally made eye contact with Huo Yan and Wen Huai.

The next second, the staff member cracked.

As soon as he laughed, everyone else followed.

Song Zhehan and the others stopped holding back too, and the scene erupted into cheerful laughter.

Indeed!

Who said there was no real empathy in this world?

Isn’t there right now?!

How could Huo Yan not understand Wen Huai’s feelings now?!

Seeing everyone laugh even more freely, Huo Yan clenched his teeth. “Damn it, I’m going to call the police and have you all arrested!”

In response, there was another wave of laughter.

Some staff members even egged him on:

“Do you want me to lend you my phone?”

The group laughed harder, completely ignoring how Huo Yan felt at the moment.

Meanwhile, Ye Leyao and Qin Yao jogged all the way back to the villa.

In the living room, Ye Leyao let go of Qin Yao’s hand, threw himself onto the sofa, and couldn’t help but laugh. “Teacher Gou Shi must be furious with me!”

The more Ye Leyao thought about it, the funnier it seemed. He grabbed a cushion, hugged it, and kept laughing.

Qin Yao’s gaze lingered on Ye Leyao’s face for a few seconds before he reluctantly looked away. He sat down next to Ye Leyao and asked, “So, Yaoyao, when did we get together? I just found out.”

Hearing this, Ye Leyao’s laughter abruptly stopped. He sat up, turned to look at Qin Yao, and furrowed his brows slightly. “President Qin, are you saying you’re not planning on being with me?”

Ye Leyao’s tone was serious, and Qin Yao could immediately tell he was genuinely confused.

Qin Yao sighed helplessly in his heart, his gaze softening. He smiled and said, “I want to be with you,” desperately, so Qin Yao wanted to ask clearly, “I’m just curious—how did you suddenly figure it out?”

When Qin Yao said this, the live stream’s comment section exploded again.

Netizens and fans were equally puzzled and confused.

Yes, they really wanted to know too—when did Ye Leyao and Qin Yao get together?

They had been watching the live stream the whole time, and even after arriving at the villa, Ye Leyao hadn’t been alone with Qin Yao. How did they end up together?

And based on Qin Yao’s words, it seemed even he didn’t know when he and Ye Leyao got together.

Now that was interesting.

So not only did Ye Leyao make an official announcement on his own, but he also announced his relationship with Qin Yao unilaterally?

Who dates like that?

Ye Leyao’s actions were even more absurd than Li Siyuan, who had an online relationship without asking the other person’s gender—

Mentioning Li Siyuan again, the comment section erupted into intense discussion.

—”Absurd, absolutely absurd! Who could have predicted that three minutes ago I was still caught up in the drama between Li Siyuan and Duan Tingyan, and now suddenly I’m watching Ye Leyao and Qin Yao!”

—”Don’t even mention it. My brain is completely scrambled right now.”

—”Same here! I can’t even digest one piece of gossip before there’s another one, and I’m getting dizzy from it all!”

—”But speaking of Li Siyuan, I really can’t hold it in anymore. Online dating is one thing—there are plenty of people who do that nowadays—but in their case, one didn’t ask about sexual orientation and the other didn’t ask about gender. I mean, come on, don’t be ridiculous!”

—”Hahahahahahaha! Duan Tingyan: So that’s why you kept calling me Tingting.”

—”Hahahahahaha, I can’t take it. I’m laughing so hard I might puke.”

–”Congrats to mu husband for earning a new nickname!”

—”Tingting, for crying out loud, Tingting, this is too funny.”

—”Oh my god, now that I think about it, we’ve really had a lot of gossip to chew on today!”

—”No kidding, we really have…”

Netizens started counting, and when they tallied it up, they were shocked.

From the moment the guests arrived, there was the strange tension between Li Siyuan and Duan Tingyan, followed by Wen Huai not caring about his stepfather Zhou Zijian’s well-being, turning their family of three into a “loving unit,” and then Shen Chong and Liu Yan, whose relationship was obviously problematic.

But just when everyone let their guard down, Ye Leyao suddenly asked Qin Yao what “liking” meant and why netizens said he liked Qin Yao.

Next came the scene where Li Siyuan punched both his manager and Duan Tingyan, followed by their negotiation, and then Ye Leyao’s sudden unilateral announcement…

By this point, even casual viewers who didn’t normally watch variety shows were shocked, exclaiming, “Wait a minute, isn’t this variety show supposed to be a travel show?”

In response, the livestream audience seriously replied, “No, our show’s other name is ‘Let’s Go Eat Melons,’ also known as the Gossip Variety Show. But now I think it’s more like a dating show!”

This comment quickly gained a lot of likes and support from other netizens and viewers.

—”Honestly, is there any other dating show where more couples end up together than on our variety show?”

—”Forget about the couples, just look at the gossip. Any random episode from the first three could instantly top all the others!”

—”Hahahahaha, exactly! The guests on other shows know how to be polite, but the guests on our show? They don’t hold back at all!”

—”They don’t even bother pretending! If they want to stir up trouble, they do it directly.”

—”@Song Zhehan, Teacher Gou Shi, this one’s for you.”

—”@Ye Leyao, Ye Leyao, do you have anything to say?”

The barrage of comments continued noisily, but eventually, the topic circled back to the main question—

So, when exactly did Ye Leyao and Qin Yao get together?

—”Ye Leyao, say something!”

—”Hurry up, hurry up, we’re begging you to say something!”

—”Could it be they really just got together now?”

It had been a full half-minute since Qin Yao had asked the question.

The audience in the livestream had long lost patience, but Qin Yao, on the other hand, was incredibly patient. Not only did he not rush Ye Leyao to answer, but he even got up to pour Ye Leyao a glass of water.

When the glass was handed to him, Ye Leyao drank half of it before smiling and saying, “Actually, I figured it out when I got out of the bus.”

Qin Yao was just about to pour himself some water when he froze at this. Suddenly, he remembered what Ye Leyao had said when he got out of the bus.

At the time, Ye Leyao said he was thinking about something. Qin Yao asked if he had figured it out.

Ye Leyao didn’t answer then but had responded with a question instead.

Qin Yao’s grip on the water glass tightened slightly, but he soon relaxed and smiled suddenly.

So it had been that early.

He had indeed sensed something unusual at the time, but Qin Yao hadn’t dared to dwell on it.

Because waiting takes time, and he couldn’t let his patience run out too soon.

Fortunately, Ye Leyao hadn’t made him wait too long.

Qin Yao put down the glass, tilted his head slightly, and asked softly, “So, are we officially boyfriends now?”

His voice was low, deliberately subdued, and the ending tone felt like a little hook, gently sweeping through Ye Leyao’s heart.

Ye Leyao pursed his lips and extended his hand politely to Qin Yao: “Hello, boyfriend.”

Qin Yao’s gaze fell on Ye Leyao’s outstretched hand. Slowly, he reached out, took hold of Ye Leyao’s fair hand, and gave it a shake.

Just as Ye Leyao was about to pull his hand back, Qin Yao applied a bit of force, pulling him directly into his arms.

Caught off guard, Ye Leyao nearly dropped the water cup in his hand, but Qin Yao swiftly steadied the cup with his other hand, took it from him, placed it on the coffee table, and wrapped one arm around Ye Leyao’s waist, pressing him firmly against his chest with the other.

Their chests were touching, and they were incredibly close.

Ye Leyao’s chin rested against the crook of Qin Yao’s neck, and if he turned his head just a bit, the corners of his lips could brush against Qin Yao’s face.

Ye Leyao pursed his lips and stayed still.

Sensing the stiffness in the person in his arms, Qin Yao chuckled softly and explained, “Yaoyao, I’m really happy.”

A bit too happy, which was why he couldn’t resist pulling Ye Leyao into his arms under the watchful eyes of countless cameras.

It was hot in the summer.

Even with the air conditioning on, Qin Yao’s body temperature could still be felt.

Ye Leyao closed his eyes, feeling like the empty space inside him had finally been completely filled.

It was a strange feeling, a mix of emotions swirling together, even making his nose tingle and tears well up in his eyes.

Suddenly, Ye Leyao thought of the dream he had in the bus.

The dream had been incomplete, but after he got out of the car, the explanation he hadn’t heard in the dream came back to him—

Mama Huo had said, sometimes love is wanting to have someone, and sometimes it’s letting go. Love is a simple feeling but also a complex emotion. But no matter what, love is the purest and most beautiful feeling a human can have.

Regardless of the kind of love, it always makes you want to be close and makes you long for someone.

Just like Ye Leyao always wanted to taste the oatmeal milk Qin Yao made again.

The hug between them lasted quite a while, long enough for the viewers in the livestream to scream through several rounds.

Long enough that they didn’t even notice when the door to the villa opened.

It wasn’t until Li Siyuan’s exaggerated voice rang out, “Wait, what are you two doing?” that Qin Yao finally let go.

But to his surprise, Ye Leyao didn’t pull away. Instead, he rubbed his head against Qin Yao’s neck and casually said, “Hugging, can’t you see?”

Li Siyuan stood at the villa entrance, completely dumbfounded.

Hugging?

Huh?

Li Siyuan’s confused expression was priceless, and the viewers couldn’t help but laugh out loud:

—”Hahahahahahahahaha! No way, does Li Siyuan really still not know what’s going on?”

—”I can confirm he has no clue. After all, he punched Duan Tingyan and went to talk to his manager.”

The conversation between the artist and manager wasn’t something that could be aired, so the camera crew had filmed from a distance.

After talking with his manager, Li Siyuan looked much better and then returned to the villa, only to see Ye Leyao and Qin Yao hugging. How could he not be confused?

“Wait, hold on, you two…”

Before Li Siyuan could finish his question, another surprised voice chimed in, “What are you two doing—?”

Both Ye Leyao and Qin Yao turned to see that Duan Tingyan had returned.

Li Siyuan had not gone easy with his punch, and Duan Tingyan’s nose was already swollen after a short while.

After Li Siyuan finished talking with his manager, Duan Tingyan went to treat his injury. The doctor gave him a quick treatment and handed him an ice pack to reduce the swelling.

Now, standing at the door with an ice pack pressed to his face, Duan Tingyan glanced at Li Siyuan, silently asking what on earth was going on.

Weren’t these two just watching the commotion earlier? How were they suddenly hugging—?

Li Siyuan didn’t even want to look at Duan Tingyan. He turned and walked toward the living room, but instead of going upstairs, he plopped down on the nearby sofa.

Perfect.

Weren’t Ye Leyao and Qin Yao enjoying the show earlier when he was chasing Duan Tingyan around? Now it was his turn to watch the drama unfold.

Li Siyuan sat down with a grin on his face.

Duan Tingyan, after a moment of silence, pulled out his phone. “Where’s everyone else?”

Did they know about this? Should he send them a message?

Just then, Ye Leyao suddenly pushed Qin Yao away.

Qin Yao was puzzled.

Ye Leyao quietly thought to himself:

[Forget it, forget it. They just argued about their relationship, so as someone who just got into a relationship, I shouldn’t provoke them.]

Huo Yan, who had just reached the doorway, paused. “…”

What did he mean by “someone who just got into a relationship”? Hadn’t Ye Leyao just gotten a boyfriend?

And how had Ye Leyao managed to provoke Li Siyuan?

Could it be—

Huo Yan’s thoughts ran wild as he quickly entered the villa and walked into the living room. Upon entering, he saw Duan Tingyan standing not far away, Ye Leyao and Qin Yao sitting close together, and Li Siyuan sitting across from them.

It seemed… nothing was out of place?

Sensing Huo Yan’s gaze, Qin Yao looked over at him.

Huo Yan immediately glared fiercely at him.

Qin Yao, unbothered by the threatening look, calmly turned his attention elsewhere.

By this time, the other guests had begun to enter one after another.

Seeing the scene with Ye Leyao, Qin Yao, Li Siyuan, and Duan Tingyan, their expressions instantly became… interesting.

Li Siyuan, sensing something odd, looked at Song Zhehan for help.

Receiving his silent plea, Song Zhehan said, “Can’t you just check online?”

Li Siyuan: “…”

What kind of comment was that? He had just punched both his manager and Duan Tingyan, and now they expected him to go online?

While Li Siyuan wasn’t afraid of netizens criticizing him—he was confident in his ability to handle it—that wasn’t the issue!

It wasn’t a problem for him to punch Duan Tingyan, but now the entire internet knew that he and Duan Tingyan had an online romance that ended badly!

Li Siyuan’s face turned from pale to flushed, creating an amusing display of emotions.

And the viewers in the livestream couldn’t help but laugh at this, especially Li Siyuan’s fans.

They knew Li Siyuan well. Of course, he wouldn’t care about being criticized, as he’d faced plenty of haters before. What he really regretted now was that he had been too impulsive and accidentally revealed his past with Duan Tingyan.

Li Siyuan dreaded that netizens would never forget this and would tease him about it forever!

And indeed, that’s exactly what happened. Not only did his fans remember, but the whole internet did too. After all, the trending topic of Li Siyuan and Duan Tingyan was still sitting at number two on the hot searches. And for the record, the number one spot belonged to Ye Leyao and Qin Yao.

Seeing Li Siyuan’s increasingly colorful expression, his fans could no longer hold back:

—”Hahahahaha, Li Siyuan, are you regretting it now?”

—”Hahaha, he’s probably regretting it so much! Maybe after this episode finishes recording, he’ll write a new song about it!”

—”A new song? Will he diss his fans or Duan Tingyan?”

—”Of course, he’ll diss Tingting!”

—”Hahahahahaha, omg, stop calling him Tingting! I crack up every time I hear it.”

—”Careful what you say, fans! Or Li Siyuan might use his fists on you just like he did on Tingting!”

While fans and netizens laughed without mercy, the atmosphere in the villa suddenly became quiet, with a touch of awkwardness.

This episode was like the previous ones; the show had prepared ingredients for the guests, and they were expected to cook together.

Zhou Zijian, feeling that he couldn’t just sit around anymore, suggested that he go to the kitchen to start preparing dinner.

Wen Xiangyue wanted to help, but Wen Huai stopped her, saying with a light tone, “Speaking of which, when I first met Zhou Zijian, he said he was good at cooking. We’ve known each other for so long, and I still haven’t tasted anything. I’d love to see him in action today.”

Wen Xiangyue fell silent.

Ye Leyao couldn’t hold back and burst into laughter.

The other guests didn’t hide their amusement either, although they were cautious. After all, they’d been relying on Zhou Zijian for food every episode, and they’d tasted his cooking before Wen Huai did. So, their laughter was restrained.

Zhou Zijian didn’t dare refuse and hurriedly responded, “Don’t worry, I’ve got it covered!”

Wen Huai remained noncommittal.

But while Wen Huai could comfortably direct Zhou Zijian, the other guests weren’t as shameless.

Duan Tingyan stood up first. “I’ll help too,” he said. As he passed Song Zhehan, he glanced at Li Siyuan and asked, “Are you coming?”

Song Zhehan got up and nodded, following him to the kitchen.

Shen Chong said, “I’ll join too. I just learned a new dish recently; I’ll make it for you to try.”

The last sentence was directed at Liu Yan.

Liu Yan’s face turned red, and she glanced nervously at the camera, but couldn’t help but instinctively nod her head.

Suddenly, there were three more people in the kitchen.

Qin Yao turned to Ye Leyao and said, “I’ll go help too.”

Ye Leyao nodded, preparing to go with Qin Yao.

Just then, Huo Yan suddenly grabbed Ye Leyao’s arm. “Wait a second.”

Ye Leyao was puzzled. “Hmm?”

Huo Yan looked at Qin Yao, his tone displeased. “I need to talk to him about something. You can go help by yourself.”

Qin Yao smiled. “Okay.”

After saying that, he also went into the kitchen.

Ye Leyao glanced at Qin Yao, then quickly turned his gaze back to Huo Yan, sitting down next to him. “What do you want to talk about, Second Brother?”

[If you’re going to say something, just say it quickly. Why does it sound so formal?]

[Could it be that Second Brother wants to date because he sees me dating?]

Huo Yan: “…”

Qin Yao opened the refrigerator and couldn’t help but chuckle softly.

Huo Yan huffed loudly.

What did he want to date for? He simply couldn’t stand seeing Qin Yao standing next to Ye Leyao!

Also, could the messages in the group chat stop flooding in?!

Huo Yan pulled out his phone, opened the group chat, and started to deal with the barrage of questions from his parents.

Ye Leyao waited patiently for a while but didn’t hear Huo Yan say anything, making he feel somewhat confused.

[Huh???]

[Second Brother said he wanted to talk to me, but why is he playing with his phone?]

Huo parents urged him in the group chat to let Ye Leyao and Xiao Qin chat. 

But Huo Yan refused.

Not only did he disagree, but he also directly muted the group messages.

Then he wrapped an arm around Ye Leyao’s shoulder. “Let’s go play cards.”

Ye Leyao was utterly baffled. “Huh?”

Wen Huai also waved at Ye Leyao. “Come on, let’s play cards.”

Ye Leyao: “?”

[What is going on?]

Ye Leyao was pulled by Huo Yan to sit across from Wen Xiangyue, with Huo Yan and Wen Huai beside her. The four of them actually started playing cards together.

The scene looked somewhat bizarre yet oddly harmonious.

Li Siyuan couldn’t hold back any longer and stood up, walking into the kitchen. “What’s going on here?”

Song Zhehan glanced at Qin Yao and smiled without saying anything.

Zhou Zijian swallowed hard, unable to think of anything to tease himself with, so he chose to remain silent as well.

Shen Chong considered that although everyone seemed easygoing, his manager had warned him to speak less, especially since he had almost let something slip earlier. So, he remained tight-lipped.

Li Siyuan looked at Qin Yao again.

But Qin Yao didn’t even glance at Li Siyuan.

At that moment, Duan Tingyan cleared his throat. “I just checked the trending topics.”

Li Siyuan’s face showed some annoyance, but he still glanced at Duan Tingyan.

Duan Tingyan said, “The trending topic says Ye Leyao and Qin Yao are together.”

Li Siyuan was shocked. “What?!”

His voice was loud enough for those outside the kitchen to hear.

Qin Yao helplessly turned back. “Can you keep it down in front of the people involved?”

Li Siyuan quickly covered his mouth and then smiled. “When did this happen? This is good news!”

Song Zhehan passed the chopped vegetables to Zhou Zijian, nodding. “Yeah, it seems like it has nothing to do with you, Mr. Single Dog?”

Duan Tingyan immediately turned his sharp gaze to Li Siyuan. “Siyuan, as long as…”

“Absolutely not! Get lost!” Li Siyuan yelled, fuming.

Duan Tingyan pursed his lips and sighed in silence.

At that moment, Li Siyuan angrily looked at Song Zhehan again. “You’re speaking as if you’re not a single dog yourself! Among us, it’s just Brother Zhou, Qin Yao, and Shen Chong with Liu Yan in confirmed relationships, right?”

As soon as he finished speaking, Shen Chong’s smile instantly brightened. “Right…”

The moment that word slipped from his mouth, his expression changed.

At the same time, a scream echoed from the kitchen door. “Shen Chong!!!”

How dare you say anything at all!