Fortunately, Zhou Tong was there, so Luo Tian had someone to talk to. He echoed Zhou Tong's words: "I really didn't know it was so scary before I played, but it's also true that I didn't perform well."
By admitting his poor performance, he could at least win back some fans, even if it didn't satisfy casual viewers. He couldn't afford to let his fanbase be shaken too much, since he still needed to make a living from online traffic.
Seeing that Luo Tian still knew to apologize, Zhou Tong immediately felt genuinely sorry for him and patted him on the shoulder: "It's okay, it's okay. Everyone makes mistakes. Keep it up next time."
Before the game started, it was mentioned that the first place winner would receive a surprise prize. Now the program team has revealed the reward: the first-place team can choose their partner for the next task first.
Key point: group.
In other words, the award was given to two people in the group. Xiao Shulang came in first place, and Luo Tian was also counted as first.
The audience erupted in uproar.
[Why did Luo Tian get this? What did he do? He didn't even understand the map in the end; it was all Xiao Shulang's doing.]
Luo Tian's fans were naturally upset to see the screen filled with "Luo Tian is not worthy," and they retorted: "What happened to the group stage? The draw was just luck."
The audience started arguing again in the live chat. The staff member said, "We'll keep the next mission a secret for now, but you two can choose your partners now and write them down on cards and give them to me. We'll announce them next time we're divided into groups."
If the two first-place winners want to choose the same person, the production team has other ways to resolve this, but it's clear that Xiao Shulang and Luo Tian won't have any conflicts in choosing their people.
Xiao Shulang wrote down Qin Shuang without hesitation, and Luo Tian quickly wrote down Xu Baichang. Even if the audience couldn't see it, they could guess correctly.
Tonight's game was physically demanding, and many people were exhausted. Fortunately, it only takes ten minutes to get back, otherwise everyone would have fallen asleep in the car.
Back at the mountain villa, there was another "heart-fluttering text message" segment. Today, with the addition of advisors, the two advisors would read the text messages with the audience in the living room and offer brief comments while the guests sent them in their rooms.
The moment Zhou Tong and Tian Xiaole touched the tablet, the first text message and screen of the day appeared. Unexpectedly, Yin Xingzhi, who had only ever sent messages to Luo Tian since the first day of the broadcast, changed his target for the first time.
Yin Xingzhi sent You Ziang a message: "Thank you so much for today."
“Hmm…” Yin Xingzhi was one of the three people Tian Xiaole was in charge of. She nodded. “It’s not surprising that Yin Xingzhi would send a thank-you text message to You Ziang. He was really scared today. You Ziang’s presence gave him a lot of sense of security. Regardless of whether their relationship has warmed up or not, a thank-you text message is quite normal.”
Tian Xiaole's idea is also the idea of most people, but some of Luo Tian's fans started to worry. Even Yin Xingzhi changed the recipient of the text messages. Could it be that Luo Tian won't receive any text messages?
Next up are Xu Baichang and You Ziang. Although these two didn't team up or interact much today, they still texted each other. In a dating reality show, this could be considered as a sign that their feelings for each other have clicked.
But when it comes to sweetness, we have to look at the next two. Without any prior discussion, they sent text messages at the same time, and this is what they said.
Xiao Shulang: "Shall we try to get first place together next time?"
Qin Shuang: "Want to team up with me for the next mission?"
They interacted so much today, with plenty of content to choose from, but they both picked the same thing, which made everyone exclaim how great their tacit understanding was!
Honestly, I didn't think there was any spark between them at first, but now I suddenly realize that their relationship is truly like a slow and steady stream. By the time we realized it, it seemed like every little thing they did was sweet.
Oh no, I really want to ship them! All the sweet moments on the show are thanks to them!
Tian Xiaole also praised it, nudging Zhou Tong with her elbow: "Their text messages are pretty good, right, Brother Tong?"
Zhou Tong didn't want to praise Xiao Shulang, but he had to admit, "Hmm."
It's not sweet talk at first glance, but when you put the two text messages together, you feel a subtle yet powerful jolt to your heart—a feeling of sudden, heart-fluttering excitement.
It wasn't passionate, but it was beautiful.
With all text messages sent, Luo Tian finally found himself in the same situation as Yin Xingzhi, becoming one of the people who hadn't received a single text message tonight.
A note from the author:
I'm taking a day off tomorrow, but I'll update as usual the night after tomorrow.
Chapter 21 "If only they could be together"
Although there were times when Luo Tian didn't receive Xu Baichang's text messages, fortunately, Yin Xingzhi always stayed by his side and sent him messages, and fans could still praise him by saying that their brother was loved and charming.
But today he finally fell from the bottom, left all alone and with no one to care for him or love him.
This is not only a slap in the face to Luo Tian, but also to his fans. Suddenly, the number of comments about Luo Tian in the live chat decreased significantly, and everyone was talking about others.
Fortunately, the live stream ended soon, so the fans didn't have to continue feeling awkward.
After the event ended, Luo Tian checked his phone repeatedly and found that there were no message notifications, which he found unbelievable.
He hurriedly went out and first knocked on Xu Baichang's door. Because the filming was going on too late today, the production team did not plan to record a post-interview, and all the cameras were already turned off, so Luo Tian did not need to hide anything.
But he really overlooked the time. Everyone was quite tired after the physical tasks that night and just wanted to lie down as soon as possible. Xu Baichang had just changed into his pajamas and was in no hurry to open the door. He asked from behind the door, "Who is it?"
"I," Luo Tian said, lowering his voice with a pleading tone, "I want to talk to you. Do you have time?"
Upon hearing this, Xu Baichang was even less inclined to open the door: "I'm very tired today and I want to rest. Let's talk about it tomorrow."
Luo Tian desperately wanted to pry the door open, but he always acted like "I'm very nice and considerate" towards Xu Baichang, so he could only put on a smile that no one could see to comfort himself: "Ah, then you should get some rest and have sweet dreams."
After walking away from Xu Baichang's door, Luo Tian glanced at Yin Xingzhi's doorway a few times, but ultimately did not go over.
Now that Yin Xingzhi, who used to chase after him in the six-person team, has suddenly stopped following him, he is unhappy, but he is not so upset as to confront Yin Xingzhi directly. After all, although he enjoys the feeling of being admired, he takes it for granted. Fans do, and so did Xiao Shulang back then.
He can make money from his fans' traffic and treat Xiao Shulang like an ATM. Yin Xingzhi is not that important to him. Unless he feels that he has become a completely marginal person in this show, why would he care about Yin Xingzhi?
After taking a shower, Xiao Shulang comfortably leaned back on the bed. Some people online joked that they were waiting to see if he would have any more juicy stories to reveal tonight. The topic he started today hadn't died down yet, and everyone was really impatient.
Luo Tian didn't receive a single text message today, and his performance on the show was terrible. Xiao Shulang doesn't have to do anything else tonight, and he's already tossing and turning, unable to sleep.
Xiao Shulang messaged Wang Hao, explaining that he was busy with a TV show and couldn't come here, so he could only ask Wang Hao to find someone to help him finalize the shop's details. Just kidding, that's over five million yuan, and Xiao Shulang was really eager for it.
After sending the message, he put down his phone and stretched. The air in the mountains was very fresh, and the temperature was lower than in the city. It would be cool even without air conditioning in the summer, but it seemed a bit stuffy tonight.
Xiao Shulang walked to the window and looked outside. The night was dark and there were no stars. The darkness had a feeling of impending storm.
Xiao Shulang has always had good sleep quality and his biological clock is always very punctual. However, today he slept past seven o'clock. When he groggily opened his eyes, he heard the sound of raindrops falling to the ground.
Is it raining?
No wonder he overslept. The sound of rain is always so soothing, especially the tinkling of raindrops hitting the green leaves in the mountains. It felt like his soul was being cleansed. He had just gotten up when he heard a staff member knocking on the door.
"Teacher Xiao, excuse me, are you up yet?"
Xiao Shulang: "Hey, he's awake."
"Oh, sorry to bother you. Could you please tidy up a bit and come to the living room first? There have been changes to the program schedule, and the director wants to let everyone know."
Xiao Shulang: "Okay."
He doesn't need to wear makeup; he always gets ready quickly in the morning. When he arrived at the living room, not everyone had arrived yet, but staff members knocked on each door one by one, and the rest of the people arrived soon after.
A light rain was falling outside. The director said to them, "The weather forecast shows that it will rain for the next two days, with heavy to torrential rain. The original filming project cannot proceed, so we have decided to postpone the live broadcast for two days."
The production team won't be idle during these two days of not broadcasting live. They'll quickly release the edited version to prevent the show's popularity from waning and to whet the audience's appetite. Maybe the effect will be even better when it airs again.
Xiao Shulang understood: In short, they had a two-day holiday.
Adjusting the shooting schedule due to special circumstances is in accordance with the contract terms, and everyone had no objections. Luo Tian even visibly breathed a sigh of relief: because he had only tidied up briefly before leaving the room, he hadn't put on makeup, and the dark circles under his eyes were visibly deepened.
He really needs to take a break.
"How are you all getting around?" the staff member asked. "We're heading back to the city center. If anyone needs a ride, we can give them a lift."
Luo Tian was the first to stand up and wave his hand: "No need, I'll have my assistant drive over."
You Ziang was still sleepy when he was woken up. He yawned and said, "I'll have my driver come over too. No need to trouble you... I want to sleep for another five minutes."
Xiao Shulang said to the staff, "Could you take me with you?"
Staff member: "Okay."
Qin Shuang, who had originally planned to have her assistant come, changed her mind at the last minute: "Add me too."
Xu Baichang didn't need to go with the production team. Yin Xingzhi, in order to appear successful in his career, insisted on not taking a ride-sharing service. But everyone else had a company or a driver to pick them up, while he used a mobile app to call a car. Honestly, why bother? Wouldn't it be better to save some money?
Even though she's not in the entertainment industry, she carries an even heavier idol image burden than Xiao Shulang.
As Luo Tian got up and went upstairs, Xiao Shulang said behind him, "Since you have two days off, that's perfect. Quickly vacate my shop."
Luo Tian paused, then gritted his teeth and said without turning around, "Who wants your stuff? I said I'd return it!"
He said that, but his heart was bleeding. The streetwear store was in a good location, and with his promotion and fans buying it, the turnover was quite good. Of course, it hurt a lot to lose such a big piece of his flesh.
The production team sent out the announcement while everyone was packing their luggage, so as not to keep everyone waiting in vain.
Xiao Shulang and Qin Shuang carried their suitcases to the car. It was raining heavily outside, and it wasn't convenient for one person to carry both an umbrella and a suitcase. Qin Shuang offered, "I'll put them down."
Xiao Shulang: "Then I'll hold the umbrella."
Qin Shuang opened the luggage compartment on the side of the bus and put her and Xiao Shulang's suitcases in one by one. Xiao Shulang held an umbrella and leaned forward slightly to cover Qin Shuang so that she wouldn't get wet.
The weather forecast was right; the light rain had turned into a downpour with strong winds. Large raindrops pounded on the ground, and the slanting rain was so strong that umbrellas couldn't provide any protection unless you changed the angle.
Xiao Shulang held two umbrellas, and to avoid getting water from his umbrella on Qin Shuang, he had to stagger the umbrellas. But when Qin Shuang got up after putting down his luggage, he found that Xiao Shulang's arm, which was holding the umbrella for him, was already wet.
Qin Shuang was stunned for a moment: "You..."
His gaze lingered on Xiao Shulang's arm. Xiao Shulang handed the umbrella to Qin Shuang and shook off the water, saying, "Hey, it's okay. I'm wearing short sleeves anyway, so I can just wipe it off. It's better than getting your back wet."
The principle is the same, but the meaning is different.
After getting on the bus, Qin Shuang asked a staff member for a dry towel. Xiao Shulang was about to reach out and take it, but Qin Shuang simply pressed the towel onto his arm: "I'll wipe you down for you."
Wiping his arms a couple of times seemed effortless, and since the towel was already at his side, Xiao Shulang didn't refuse: "Thank you."
As he thought to himself, Qin Shuang was indeed a cold-faced but warm-hearted person. The more he got to know her, the better he would find out. Enjoying the drying service, Xiao Shulang sighed: No wonder he is the protagonist I admire.
Xiao Shulang and Qin Shuang sat side by side. Xiao Shulang was already used to the seating arrangement and didn't think much about it anymore. After the car started moving, he took out his phone and scrolled through it for a while.
News of the delayed broadcast of "Heartbeat Encounter" has spread online, and viewers have flocked to the program team's Weibo account to leave messages. Most of them expressed their understanding and urged the program team to release the edited version as soon as possible.
As Xiao Shulang scrolled through the news, listening to the sound of rain pattering on the glass, he softly hummed a tune, which blended wonderfully with the sound of the fresh rain in the empty mountains, creating a beautiful melody.
Qin Shuang listened quietly, and only spoke when Xiao Shulang stopped: "It's nice, what's the song title?"
It's a song Qin Shuang hasn't heard before.
Xiao Shulang snapped out of his reverie: "Ah, there's no song title. It was just a little tune I hummed on the spot."
It's not surprising that even someone who knows nothing about composing can hum some pleasant original tunes when they're in a good mood; it's just that most people forget them as soon as they turn their heads and can't remember what they hummed.
But Xiao Shulang had just hummed a long melody with a great sense of rhythm, leading Qin Shuang to guess: "You know how to compose music?"
Xiao Shulang humbly replied, "I know a little bit about it."
He wrote songs for others in his college club and received unanimous praise. However, he was self-taught out of interest. Although he had also studied with professionals, Xiao Shulang did not consider himself to be very proficient. At most, he had a basic understanding.
After the car entered the city, Qin Shuang should have been dropped off first according to their social standing, but Qin Shuang said that since Xiao Shulang's address was on the way, she would drop him off first.