RSDH CH20

Sunday early morning.

Beep—

The official livestream room of Companionship Along the Way opened right on schedule.

“I woke up earlier than the roosters today!”

“Newbie checking in! Lu Ye Shu Huai is way too addictive.”

“Is the streamer there? Where are they? Where, where, where?”

Cheng Duzhou turned on the phone camera and placed a finger to his lips, making a “shh” gesture toward the chat.

Viewers were caught completely off guard:

“Ah! A visual critical hit first thing in the morning!”

“President Cheng’s outfit looks so handsome today too!”

“His voice is so quiet, Teacher Duan isn’t awake yet, right?”

Cheng Duzhou flipped the camera from the front lens to the rear.

Inside the room, the Venetian blinds were drawn, casting a dim light. A pure white bed occupied most of the space, a mound bundled under the duvet revealing only the back of a head, its hair tips highlighted with wisps of milky white. As if intentionally keeping him out of sight, the camera swept past quickly, settling on the messy scatter of suitcases, cardboard boxes, and clothing piled on the floor.

The gentle murmur of sea waves drifted in from the distance.

Cheng Duzhou hitched up one trouser leg, squatted down, and prepared to pack the luggage strewn across the floor.

Waking up this morning, he had seen a message in the group chat stating that due to weather conditions, the return trip originally scheduled for tomorrow morning had been moved up to this evening, heading straight to the airport as soon as filming wrapped.

As the phone’s camera angle lowered, viewers could see the open suitcase spread out before him.

“This is definitely President Cheng’s suitcase—there’s barely anything in it.”

“As expected of packing personally handled by the clumsy beauty; poor President Cheng, how did he survive these past two days haha.”

“President Cheng: Having you is truly my greatest blessing.”

Still holding the phone, Cheng Duzhou saw the comments and lowered his voice in the quiet room: “He packed the luggage very well. Please stop calling him a clumsy beauty.”

Cheng Duzhou’s tone was flat, but held no irritation.

Viewers felt a surge of sweetness, taking it as blatant protective husband behavior.

Cheng Duzhou, however, casually picked up the cobalt-blue dress shirt from the suitcase that he had worn once during the banquet: “Why have you all been saying I dressed so well these past two days? It was all styled by your Teacher Duan. For this island trip, the clothes he packed for me matched the environment here perfectly in both color and texture, the temperature was suitable too, and the accessories…” His finger traced along the brooch on the shirt, displaying it clearly for the stream. “Doesn’t it look like a sail? I had forgotten I even owned this, yet he managed to dig it out for me.”

The stream was taken aback.

If Cheng Duzhou hadn’t gone out of his way to showcase and explain it, viewers would never have known that Duan Xingye, seemingly so forgetful on the surface, had actually put such delicate thought into it.

Initially, Cheng Duzhou hadn’t known either, until he arrived at the campsite yesterday and opened the suitcase.

“Let me show you something.” Cheng Duzhou rummaged near the bottom of the suitcase and pulled out a perfume bottle, a faint smile slipping into his hushed voice: “He packed this for me.”

It was a unique bottle of perfume. The liquid inside was an azure blue, cradling an exquisitely crafted pirate ship that floated on the surface thanks to its specialized material, gently rocking with the ripples.

Just from the packaging alone, one could tell it was a fragrance tailored to the ocean.

So Duan Xingye hadn’t just made sure Cheng Duzhou looked great on camera; he had even considered his scent.

Bullet comments:

“Teacher Duan is such a details freak!”

“Looks like sharing good finds, but it’s actually flexing his relationship. Hand over the perfume link please, I want Teacher Duan’s style of pampering too.”

“We only saw Duan Xingye’s clumsy side, but he was actually so earnest and attentive when packing.”

“Moved to tears. In how many couples does one side put in effort and the other doesn’t appreciate it at all? I love Lu Ye Shu Huai‘s two-way devotion so much.”

Before long, a viewer asked with concern: “Did you sleep well in the RV last night?”

“Pretty good.”

Cheng Duzhou placed the phone on the stand nearby, smoothed his sleeves, and began gathering the scattered items on the floor.

“The seaside environment was nice. Went to sleep shortly after signing off.”

The stream, warm and gentle a second ago, abruptly flipped tone.

“Why does that open box next to the suitcase look so familiar?!”

“It’s that certain Durex gift set!”

“Let me count: one, two, three… Holy shit! Three packets torn open in one night!”

“The RV must have rocked all night long.”

“‘Went to sleep shortly after signing off’???”

“The RV: Dare you tell the truth?”

Cheng Duzhou caught the abnormal speed of the rolling comments in his peripheral vision. Glancing over in confusion and realizing what everyone was talking about, a rush of crimson heat instantly swept across his face.

“Fuck!”

Muttering a low curse, he shot to his feet, snatched the phone, and bolted out the door.

Viewers roared with wild laughter: President Cheng, don’t be shy!

Shortly after Cheng Duzhou left.

The person on the bed who was supposed to be sound asleep slowly opened his eyes.

Bright, crisp light filtered through the slats of the blinds, fine specks of dust dancing lazily in the air.

Bleary-eyed with sleep, Duan Xingye glanced back toward the doorway.

Being away from home was different after all. Nestled in Cheng Duzhou’s arms all night, he had slept soundly, but the moment Cheng Duzhou moved this morning, he had woken up—he had simply been too lazy to get out of bed.

So while Cheng Duzhou was streaming just now, he had been awake the entire time.

Duan Xingye tossed back the covers and sat up by the edge of the bed, lowering his head to rub his neck. As he rubbed, the corners of his lips curled into a subtle arc.

At least Cheng Duzhou had a conscience and knew how to speak up for him.

Right at that moment.

He noticed the bright red gift box sitting open on the floor.

The raffia grass was scattered in disarray, with three torn wrappers lying flat on top.

Duan Xingye’s eyelid twitched, suddenly realizing why Cheng Duzhou had rushed out mid-stream.

Cheng Duzhou had just caught that on camera, hadn’t he?!!

Starting a new day with yet another round of social death, Cheng Duzhou and Duan Xingye continued filming for Companionship Along the Way.

The four guest couples headed to an ocean theme park.

The production crew hadn’t set any specific tasks for today; the focus was on filming the guests enjoying an outing together, allowing the stream to take in the fun scenery through their perspectives.

The park was packed with thrilling attractions like pirate ships and roller coasters. Duan Xingye clearly had no interest, spending most of his time sitting on an outdoor bench waiting for the other guests.

Cheng Duzhou stayed beside him as well.

The follow-up director, Old Xu, asked: “President Cheng, not going up to try it?”

Cheng Duzhou waved his hand, declining.

“He’s afraid of heights,” Duan Xingye said, accustomed to it. “Back in elementary school, every time they organized a trip to the amusement park, it always ended with the two of us walking around together.”

Bullet comments:

“Wuwu, I want to see elementary school Cheng and Duan holding hands so badly! Which fan artist can grant my wish?”

“President Cheng afraid of heights? When filming movies, he dares to jump off seven-story buildings.”

“My guess is the fear of heights is fake; he probably just wants to keep Teacher Duan company.”

In the afternoon, everyone prepared to leave, which required walking through the souvenir shop at the exit.

Jiang Li had a seven-year-old son at home, so she bought plenty of toys.

Wu Enqi was practically a kid herself, dragging her husband around in pure delight.

Meanwhile, Tao Ziyi and Huang Liang picked out couple accessories, focused entirely on posing for the camera.

Only Duan Xingye had zero interest in the park merchandise on the shelves. Walking up to the front counter, he picked out a light-blue ocean-themed ice cream and stepped outside.

Leaning against the railing, he was barely halfway through when a grayish-blue plushie was held out in front of his eyes.

Duan Xingye looked up from his phone.

At first glance, the plushie looked like a fish.

At second glance, it looked like a smiling tuna.

Either way, it was hideous.

“For you.” Cheng Duzhou glanced at the plushie and said, “A little dol-pain.”

“…”

Oh.

Duan Xingye didn’t know what to say, taking the ridiculously ugly dolphin.

He was somewhat surprised that Cheng Duzhou would buy a souvenir for him.

He wasn’t a kid, nor did he care for fluffy stuffed animals.

Still, it was a gift.

Besides, while browsing the shop, he hadn’t thought of buying anything for Cheng Duzhou, yet Cheng Duzhou had bought something for him.

Duan Xingye licked the cream from the corner of his lips and asked, “Want some ice cream?”

The ice cream in Duan Xingye’s hand was melting fast, its surface licked into a smooth, silky swirl of white and pale blue, yet it still looked undeniably delicious.

Cheng Duzhou glanced at Duan Xingye, wasted no ceremony, took hold of his wrist, leaned down, and took a bite of the ice cream.

Duan Xingye’s voice shot up an octave: “I can buy you your own!”

Bullet comments: Hahahahahahaha President Cheng, your entire brain is just plotting how to take advantage of your wifey!

…

The first episode of Companionship Along the Way wrapped up smoothly.

The guests boarded the tour bus heading for the airport.

Facing their follow-up directors’ cameras, each couple said their goodbyes to their respective streams.

Things were slightly different over on the [Lu Ye Shu Huai] side.

Once on the bus, Duan Xingye had fallen fast asleep hugging the dolphin plushie, leaving only Cheng Duzhou on camera.

The chat beamed with knowing smiles: Understood, Teacher Duan worked hard last night.

Cheng Duzhou couldn’t see the comments, simply bidding everyone farewell.

Then, turning his head toward Duan Xingye, he extended a finger to poke the supple, delicate cheek, whispering softly: “Goodbye.”

Counting it as saying it on Duan Xingye’s behalf.

Viewers flooded the screen enthusiastically:

“Bye President Cheng! Bye Teacher Duan! Bye little dol-pain! See you next week, be there or be square!”

Upon returning to Shanghai, everyone threw themselves back into their busy work routines.

Cheng Duzhou had script table reads over the next couple of days.

The music variety show Duan Xingye had accepted earlier was premiering soon. He had to travel to a neighboring province on Tuesday for on-site rehearsals, planning to stay overnight.

The elevator finally arrived, the doors sliding open to reveal several people inside.

Two young women standing near the front had their eyes light up the moment they saw Duan Xingye, clutching their employee badges in sheer excitement.

“Hello, Teacher Duan.”

They greeted him in hushed, restrained voices.

Pausing slightly, Duan Xingye gave a faint nod after a moment’s thought and stepped inside.

Ever since returning from the island shoot, Duan Xingye distinctly felt that everyone in the Shengxing building looked at him differently—giving him the exact same grinning, teasing vibe as the CP fans in the livestream.

Unaccustomed to it, Duan Xingye could only do his best to ignore it.

Xiao Dai followed behind, pulling a suitcase.

The two women were clearly familiar with Xiao Dai, leaning in eagerly: “Is Teacher Duan going on another trip?! Is it Companionship Along the Way?”

“How could that be? We just got back,” Xiao Dai chuckled. “It’s for Singer-Songwriter 101, going to the neighboring province for rehearsals.”

The music show had already officially announced its cast, so everyone knew Duan Xingye was serving as a mentor.

The women worried: “Ah~~ Then what about Companionship Along the Way?”

Xiao Dai: “Coming back tomorrow; won’t interfere with Companionship Along the Way.”

The women: “Ah~~ Then what about President Cheng?”

Xiao Dai looked puzzled: “What about President Cheng?”

The women whimpered: “President Cheng will have to sleep alone in an empty bed.”

“…”

Standing up front, Duan Xingye’s face pulled taut.

Do you all think I’m dead?

…

Reaching the ground floor, the crowd stepped out of the elevator.

Standing in the corner of the elevator was a young man wearing a baseball cap, staring intently at Duan Xingye’s retreating figure.

His manager was getting frantic beside him: “Why did you stop me just now? Don’t you want to participate in Singer-Songwriter anymore? This was the perfect chance to apologize properly to Duan Xingye—he’s a mentor, he holds your fate in his hands!”

Tang Ning pursed his lips in a tight line, saying nothing until Duan Xingye disappeared from view, before muttering: “I have my ways. I won’t beg him.”

Once in the car, Duan Xingye plugged his phone in to charge, his fingertip hovering over WeChat in hesitation.

Should he let Cheng Duzhou know about this business trip?

Wherever Cheng Duzhou went, he always reported his itinerary to him.

And starting this week, the reporting had upgraded: even eating an eel rice bowl for lunch, he would take a photo and send it over.

Boring.

Just at that moment, WeChat suddenly chimed with a notification.

Cheng Duzhou: [You’re not coming home tonight?]

Duan Xingye exhaled a quiet breath.

Cheng Duzhou had probably heard from Sister Yu.

He typed a reply.

Seen: [Yeah.]

Cheng Duzhou: [What about tomorrow?]