LABMY CH133

The netizens’ confusion was clearly also Pei Yao’s confusion. “You don’t have stomach problems, so why do you carry stomach medicine with you?”

Jian Yuanbai, being questioned like this, finally realized how problematic his words were. He fell silent for a moment, his brain racing to think of a reason for carrying stomach medicine.

Why?

Saying he knew Pei Yao would be on the show was definitely out of the question. So what excuse did he have for bringing stomach medicine?

Jian Yuanbai’s mind spun, and he quickly said, “Besides stomach medicine, I also brought cold medicine, fever reducers, painkillers, cough suppressants, and band-aids.”

“You know, since it’s a seven-day trip, I thought there might be a chance we’d need them, so I brought all the household medicine just in case.”

In reality, he hadn’t brought any other medicine at all, but he knew that with Pei Yao’s personality, he would never demand to check his suitcase.

Pei Yao listened, dumbfounded. He had never seen anyone bring a whole pharmacy to a dating show before. His tongue twisted in his mouth as he struggled for words. After hesitating for a long time, he finally managed to say, “You… you’re quite thoughtful.”

“You’ll probably be very popular with a partner.” The second half of the sentence was purely a hasty patch-up after remembering that this was a dating show.

At that moment, the first thought that flashed through Jian Yuanbai’s mind was—if Pei Yao was this easy to ‘trick,’ then if anyone in this dating show was even slightly nice to him and he got moved by it, wouldn’t that be a disaster?

His face immediately turned serious, and he sternly said, “How does bringing medicine make me thoughtful? You know me, I’m so broke I jingle when I walk. I brought medicine because if someone needs it, this island is surrounded by water, and it’s inconvenient to buy things, so I can sell it to them and make a profit.”

“In this day and age, you have to be cautious around others. Like me, I’m giving you medicine just to make a profit!” His words were firm and resounding.

Pei Yao was momentarily stunned. Under the moonlight, he looked a bit adorably flustered. After hesitating, he said, “Then… then I’ll transfer you the money when I get my phone?”

“I didn’t bring cash, sorry.”

Jian Yuanbai quickly replied, “Forget it this time, since you’re my boss.”

The audience watching this unfold on their screens went through a rollercoaster of emotions.

• “I was just about to start shipping them, and BAM—it shattered. Completely shattered!!”
• “Who the hell goes on a dating show to make a profit from selling medicine?!”
• “Everyone else is here for romance, and you’re here to do business??”
• “I had just come up with an angsty love story in my head—someone, please shut him up, I’m begging you!”
• “This dating show is looking for straight guys, right? I’m officially nominating Jian Yuanbai!!”
• “He only needed three sentences to make me go from emotional to completely speechless.”
• “When Pei Yao asked why he brought stomach medicine, Jian Yuanbai could have said, ‘Because of you,’ and that would’ve been a fatal blow. If he had just stayed silent, it would have left endless room for imagination. But no, he had to say, ‘To make a profit.’ Is this man a reinforced steel straight guy??”
• “Let’s crowdfund some duct tape for this man—I’ll chip in 50 cents.”
• “Jian Yuanbai, shut up. Please.”

Even the viewers who weren’t present at the scene knew that Pei Yao’s question had created a golden opportunity to boost his favorability. They had all been watching the screen intensely, excitedly anticipating his answer, completely immersed in their romantic fantasies.

And then, under everyone’s expectant gaze, Jian Yuanbai: I gave you stomach medicine to make a profit.

The audience behind the screens was so furious that they wanted to jump in and shut his mouth themselves.

Jian Yuanbai’s diversion successfully derailed the conversation, leaving Pei Yao at a loss for words. He looked at Jian Yuanbai with a complicated expression, genuinely doubting whether someone with this level of emotional intelligence could actually find a partner on this show.

After all, he himself was the hidden straight guy in this show, which meant Jian Yuanbai had to be the real gay one.

Since he had taken the medicine, Pei Yao’s stomach gradually felt better. With his complicated thoughts, he slowly drifted off to sleep. Jian Yuanbai, completely unaware that his actions had cemented his reputation as the ultimate straight guy in the audience’s eyes, also let his mind go blank and fell asleep after Pei Yao.

The next morning, everyone was woken up by the production team. After last night’s events had fermented online, the production team had also learned about Wan Yuda’s situation.

However…

The director looked between Pei Yao and Wan Yuda with a complex expression. Last night, he had consulted Assistant Li, asking if they should urgently remove Wan Yuda to avoid negative effects on the show.

But Assistant Li actually said there was no need.

Although Chasing Love! Brother was directed by him, the director didn’t have full decision-making power. The real decision-maker was the owner of Obsidian Investment Company, which held an 80% stake in the show.

Since the behind-the-scenes boss said it wasn’t necessary, the director could only bite the bullet and continue filming.

Wan Yuda’s situation was serious, but as long as Pei Yao didn’t press charges and send him to jail, it hadn’t reached the point where they needed to censor him or take down the show.

Looking at the six guests behind the camera, the director made up his mind that if things got worse, he would shamelessly plead with Pei Yao not to press charges. After all, if the show got taken down, it would be a huge loss for Pei Yao too.

That morning’s task was simple: making breakfast. Each pair would cook separately but exchange meals after finishing.

The director smiled and said, “The first person to enter the villa yesterday will get to choose their partner first.”

“After they choose, the next person who entered will make their choice.”

The group was currently in a villa on a small island in the sea. The villa had two floors, a spacious layout, and was large enough to accommodate all six of them.

The first person to enter the villa yesterday was Jian Yuanbai.

Chu Caiyang joked with a smile, “The production team is so sneaky. I had a feeling there would be some privilege for the first person to enter the villa, but they didn’t mention anything during yesterday’s task. Turns out they saved it for today.”

The gym owner who had been paired with him yesterday laughed heartily and said, “What does it matter? You weren’t the first one in anyway.”

Chu Caiyang sighed dramatically. “Oh, come on. I was just bringing it up so that I could show off how smart I am.”

Then, he looked at Jian Yuanbai. “Jian Yuanbai, have you decided who you want to pick?”

“Let me guess,” he said, but his tone was already teasingly certain. “It’s Pei Yao, right? I bet I’m not wrong.”

Yesterday, Jian Yuanbai had been sticking to Pei Yao all day, teaming up with him for every task, almost as if they were tied together. So, aside from Chu Caiyang, everyone else had the same assumption.

However, just as Pei Yao was feeling slightly embarrassed under everyone’s teasing gazes, Jian Yuanbai unexpectedly said a name that no one had anticipated.

“I pick Wan Yuda.”

Wan Yuda looked surprised. “Me?”

Jian Yuanbai nodded. “Yes.”

His demeanor was so natural that it was as if all the hostility he had shown toward Wan Yuda yesterday had never existed. “Let’s make breakfast together.”

Wan Yuda was taken aback but quickly grew smug. Even though he had been annoyed at Jian Yuanbai for constantly opposing him yesterday, the fact that Jian Yuanbai had chosen him over Pei Yao now made him feel like he had won.

Anything that made Pei Yao look bad, Wan Yuda enjoyed.

Wan Yuda cast Pei Yao a provocative look. Pei Yao, who had faced countless cameras in his career, felt an unfamiliar sense of discomfort for the first time and subconsciously avoided his gaze.

After being stuck to Jian Yuanbai all day yesterday, and even being taken care of by him when he had a stomachache last night, Pei Yao had somehow already assumed that Jian Yuanbai would choose him.

But without hesitation, Jian Yuanbai had named someone else.

For some reason, an unfamiliar emotion surfaced within Pei Yao, making him feel a little down.

He didn’t try to analyze the feeling. It was quickly drowned out when the second person to enter the villa, Chu Caiyang, chose him.

Chu Caiyang, feeling awkward for teasing the wrong outcome earlier, tried to lighten the mood. He patted Pei Yao’s shoulder. “Don’t worry, I’m actually pretty good at cooking.”

Pei Yao smiled. “Now I’m looking forward to it.”

Meanwhile, on the live stream, the audience was wailing in agony, devastated that their CP (couple pairing) had died before it even officially started.

• “How can someone be this handsome and this clueless at the same time? And on top of that, he’s fickle! Yesterday, he distanced himself from Wan Yuda because of Pei Yao, and today, he’s sticking to him. I have no words.”
• “Last night, when Jian Yuanbai talked about making a profit off stomach medicine, I still had hope. But today, that hope is gone.”
• “I was ready to ship them because Jian Yuanbai treated Pei Yao differently, even disliking Wan Yuda because of Pei Yao. Now? I’m flying out of this shipwreck.”
• “This is such a turnoff. I’m speechless.”

As the audience raged, Jian Yuanbai remained focused on preparing breakfast on set.

To allow all six people to cook simultaneously while maintaining an element of mystery, the production team had set up six separate cooking stations, each stocked with limited ingredients. Their options were restricted to seafood porridge, plain porridge, millet porridge, pork porridge, noodles, or pumpkin.

Jian Yuanbai stared at a small basket of shrimp, carefully planning his seafood porridge.

Since seafood porridge required some ingredients and rice to be pre-soaked, the production team had already taken care of that, so the contestants didn’t have to wait hours for the soaking process.

Jian Yuanbai trimmed the shrimp heads, cut off their legs, slit their backs, and meticulously cleaned out the veins. He also carefully prepped the squid and dried scallops.

The more seriously he worked, the more disappointed the audience became. They lost interest in watching him and turned their attention to the other contestants.

Half an hour later, the six of them sat across from each other at a long dining table. Jian Yuanbai pushed the bowl of seafood porridge he had personally made toward Wan Yuda. “Seafood porridge.”

Those two words made Pei Yao instinctively look over. Out of all the options, seafood porridge was the most complicated to make. He couldn’t quite pinpoint what he was feeling, but his chest felt a little heavy.

Wan Yuda, on the other hand, was pleasantly surprised. “Thanks.”

Then, as if feeling guilty, he added, “I’m not very good at cooking, so I only made a bowl of millet porridge. I hope you don’t mind, Brother Jian.”

Jian Yuanbai shook his head. “I don’t mind.”

With a hint of satisfaction and a touch of smugness, Wan Yuda scooped a spoonful of seafood porridge into his mouth. The next second, his face turned green. Gagging, he rushed to the trash can and spit it out.

Then he turned to Jian Yuanbai, his expression dark. “You did this on purpose, didn’t you?”

“Did you make it this awful just to mess with me? We’re all adults, is this really that funny?”

Jian Yuanbai looked at him like he was crazy. “What are you even talking about?”

“I’ve always been bad at cooking.”

“I made this porridge seriously, hoping to improve my skills. But judging by your reaction…”

He sighed, looking genuinely disappointed. “I guess I just don’t have any talent for cooking.”

Under the table, the other contestants were pinching their thighs to stop themselves from laughing in front of the cameras—especially with Wan Yuda looking as furious as he did.

The audience, however, had no such restraints.

• “OH MY GOD. So, are we saying that Jian Yuanbai knew his cooking was bad and deliberately chose Wan Yuda because of the breakfast swap rule?”
• “Jian Yuanbai, you sneaky little—! Pei Yao is watching you!!”
• “I don’t think it’s just ‘bad.’ It must be straight-up inedible. Look at Wan Yuda’s face!”
• “When Wan Yuda got chosen, he even threw a smug look at Pei Yao. Now? This is karma at its finest!”
• “This is SO satisfying!!”
• “Oh no… I kind of want to ship them again.”
• “Jian Yuanbai’s words keep turning me off, but his actions keep pulling me back in. I’m standing at the edge of this ship, stepping in and out.”