Chapter 80

The bus continued to drive steadily forward, but the cabin was unusually quiet, with only the occasional soft vibrations of phones breaking the silence.

Huo Yan’s phone had been vibrating for who knows how long, and the group chat had turned into a frenzy of 99+ messages, yet he still didn’t want to open the chat.

Until he received a private message from Huo Ze: [Second Brother!!! Hurry! Help!!! I’m being ambushed by Mom and Dad right now. Come help me!]

Seeing that message, Huo Yan resignedly opened the group chat that was originally titled “Ye Leyao’s Inner Thoughts and Gossip Appreciation” but had now been renamed “Ye Leyao’s Love Story Appreciation.”

As soon as he opened it, he saw Mama Huo’s message: [I’ve said it before, it’s just a matter of time before Xiao Yao figures it out. @HuoYan, don’t you agree with me?]

Papa Huo followed up: [He’s already asked Xiao Qin what it means to like someone. I think it won’t be long now.]

Huo Jing’s message came in right after: [But I still think it’s too early for Xiao Yao to be dating at his age.]

Huo Ze added: “[ don’t mind him dating, but why does it have to be with Qin Yao? Isn’t Qin Yao around the same age as Second Brother? He’s too old!]

Huo Yan was already feeling frustrated, but after seeing Huo Ze’s message, his veins nearly popped: [@HuoZe, you better sleep with your eyes open tonight!]

Huo Ze hurriedly explained: [Second Brother, no, that’s not it! I was just making a comparison. I really think Qin Yao is a bit too old.]

Mama Huo chimed in: [Older men know how to take care of people.]

Papa Huo followed: [@HuoZe, have you ever dated an older person? How can you say older men aren’t good? Oh, wait, none of you three have ever been in a relationship, hahaha—]

Mama Huo added: [If you’re single, don’t meddle in this. Anyway, your dad and I are quite satisfied with Xiao Qin.]

Papa Huo agreed: [He’s successful in his career, hasn’t dated before, and treats Xiao Yao well.]

Mama Huo: [And he’s handsome!]

Papa Huo: [Exactly!]

Mama Huo continued: [Look at yourselves. Two of you have never dated, and one finally did but almost became a dad by accident… You tell me, what qualifications do you have to interfere with Xiao Yao’s love life?]

The two of them took turns, their words hitting harder with each exchange, completely disregarding the feelings of the other three in the chat.

Huo Ze couldn’t bear it anymore: [I’m leaving the group.]

Papa Huo responded: [Always threatening to leave the group; fine, go ahead. Just know, you won’t get any gossip if you do.]

Huo Ze fell silent, starting to spam mentions of Huo Yan in the group, desperately hinting at him to say something.

It wasn’t that Huo Yan didn’t want to say something; it was just that he was already too frustrated to speak coherently.

He had come on this travel show just to enjoy some gossip, but somehow this episode turned into a dating show, and he was surrounded by couples! To make things worse, his parents decided to hit him with a low blow at this very moment!

This was outrageous!

In a fit of anger, Huo Yan was about to begin a tirade against Papa and Mama Huo.

But before he could draft a long rant, Huo Jing sent a message—

[Although I still don’t agree with Xiao Yao and Qin Yao being together, we aren’t Xiao Yao, and we don’t really know how he feels. So, for now, I won’t say much more. But, how does Xiao Yao want to handle the online discussions?]

Right after sending that, Huo Jing @-mentioned Huo Yan.

Huo Yan had no choice but to delete the long rant he was typing and replied with a simple: [?]

Huo Jing responded: [Since it’s still live-streaming, I can’t ask Xiao Yao’s manager to contact him directly. And since Qin Yao is right next to you, could you ask him how he plans to handle the situation?]

Huo Yan: “…”

Hahaha, for crying out loud, so today’s just all about making my life harder, huh?

Huo Yan put his phone down, closed his eyes, and took a deep breath before turning his head.

After chatting with Qin Yao, Ye Leyao had already fallen asleep, leaning against his seat. But even though he was asleep, could someone explain to Huo Yan why they were still holding hands?

Qin Yao was sitting right next to Ye Leyao, and after realizing that Ye Leyao had fallen asleep, he gently loosened his right hand from Ye Leyao’s grasp. He adjusted Ye Leyao’s head into a more comfortable position, then held Ye Leyao’s hand again. With his left hand, he was still holding his phone, seemingly replying to messages.

The more Huo Yan watched, the more annoyed he became.

At that moment, Qin Yao noticed Huo Yan’s gaze and glanced at him with a questioning look.

Huo Yan glared at Qin Yao unceremoniously, calmed his emotions a bit, and raised his phone, gesturing with a nod.

Qin Yao understood.

Huo Yan opened WeChat and forwarded Huo Jing’s question to Qin Yao.

Looking at the message from Huo Yan, Qin Yao didn’t even furrow his brows.

In fact, ever since they returned from the resort, Qin Yao had already made thorough preparations.

After realizing that he liked Ye Leyao, Qin Yao had never intended to hide it. His original plan was to make things public once he and Ye Leyao had mutual feelings.

But what Qin Yao hadn’t anticipated was that after several days, Ye Leyao still hadn’t figured out his own feelings and had even straightforwardly asked Qin Yao what “liking” meant in front of a live audience and the other guests.

At that moment, Qin Yao’s heartbeat quickened, but he also felt a little helpless.

Then again, ever since meeting Ye Leyao, Qin Yao had grown used to this sense of helplessness.

It wasn’t annoying—in fact, it gave him a sense of being needed.

So, after a brief moment of thought, Qin Yao gave Ye Leyao a clear answer: he liked him.

Qin Yao had just checked the trending topics.

In just a few minutes, his and Ye Leyao’s names had already skyrocketed to the top of the trending list.

The first post he clicked on was a clip from the live stream.

The moment Qin Yao said “I like you,” there was a brief blank screen in the live chat. Then, the entire chat exploded with meaningless comments like “Ah!” and “?”

The audience watching the live stream had been stunned.

Wait, weren’t they just gossiping about Liu Yan and Shen Chong a second ago?

A second before, there were still Liu Yan’s fans freaking out in the chat!

How did it suddenly turn into Qin Yao confessing his feelings?

Qin Yao likes Ye Leyao?!

Huh?

Did they really just witness a confession in the live stream?

And Ye Leyao, what’s going on with you?

Aren’t you the king of gossip? Isn’t your specialty digging into other people’s business?

So why did you ask Qin Yao what “liking” means?

And not only was Ye Leyao confused about why he would like Qin Yao, but he also had to see the netizens’ comments on Weibo before raising that question.

The onlookers were stunned; it felt like they had ended up gossiping about the Melon King himself!

Ye Leyao’s fans were equally dumbfounded: “I guess if you gossip long enough, you become the subject of gossip yourself!”

Qin Yao’s fans were even more confused: “When did Qin Yao start liking Ye Leyao? Why didn’t we notice?”

Thinking back, maybe it all started in the last episode during the hike.

Was it really just because they held hands, and then he fell in love?

Though many netizens did say at the time that they “shipped” it, didn’t their relationship develop a little too fast?!

And didn’t Qin Yao say before that he was just taking care of his little brother?

So, while taking care of him, he fell in love?

Huo Yan was right there the whole time!

But on the other hand, the fact that Qin Yao firmly told Ye Leyao he liked him before Ye Leyao even realized his own feelings—those two simple words were filled with affection and tenderness.

Who could resist screaming after hearing that?!

As soon as this video was uploaded, the comment section was flooded with reactions:

—”Although I didn’t pick up on many clues about their relationship before, that doesn’t stop me from shipping this couple!”

—”Ahhhh, say no more, I was totally hit by that line from Qin Yao. Let me just ship this CP first!”

—”+1! I’m shipping them like crazy! Who understands?! After Qin Yao said he liked him, Ye Leyao’s response and their physical contact—how is that not a confession too?! I don’t care, they’re both headed for each other!”

—”Ahhh, exactly! Ye Leyao even admitted earlier that he doesn’t like physical contact with others—except for Qin Yao! Except for Qin Yao! What more evidence do you need?”

—”Qin Yao is the only one! He’s special!”

—”Right, and during the first episode, on the last night when they played Truth or Dare, Ye Leyao already said that out of all the guests, Qin Yao was his ideal type!”

—”Oh my god, you guys need to check the livestream right now. They’re still holding hands!”

After seeing this comment, netizens flocked to the stream.

As a result, what was usually the most boring part of the show—the car ride—reached a record high in online viewers.

The production team knew exactly what the audience wanted to see and immediately made Ye Leyao and Qin Yao’s screen the main feed.

The camera was positioned from a bird’s-eye view, making everything crystal clear.

Ye Leyao had fallen asleep, wearing an anime-style sleep mask, his head tilting slightly. As the car drove, his head slowly nodded toward Qin Yao.

Just as his head was about to droop completely, Qin Yao, who had been looking at his phone, suddenly reached out and gently placed Ye Leyao’s head on his own shoulder.

After positioning him, Qin Yao even adjusted his own seat, just to make sure Ye Leyao would sleep more comfortably.

The chat went wild: “Ahhhhhhhh—”

—”I’m a screaming chicken today!”

—”Oh my god, oh my god, are you two really not dating? This is way too sweet!”

—”Seriously, I’m shipping this so hard right now!”

—”They’re still holding hands!”

—”Fingers intertwined!”

—”Ahhhh, Qin Yao, did you just sneakily rub Ye Leyao’s hand with your thumb?!”

The livestream viewers couldn’t handle it anymore.

How could it be this sweet?!

And how had they not noticed something between these two before?!

At that moment, a comment floated by: “Forget about us; even Huo Yan probably didn’t expect this.”

This comment sent the chat into a fit of laughter.

—”Exactly! When Qin Yao confessed to Ye Leyao, did anyone else notice Huo Yan’s face going dark, hahaha.”

—”Yes, yes, I saw it! And just now, too—his glare was like shooting daggers! You can tell Huo Yan is super pissed!”

—”Ah, but on another note, doesn’t this episode seem like it’s full of guests who are in relationships?”

It wasn’t long before someone counted them: Zhou Zijian and Wen Xiangyue, Liu Yan and Shen Chong (though their fans don’t admit it), Ye Leyao and Qin Yao, the close connection between Li Siyuan and Duan Tingyan, and the possibly single Teacher Gou Shi.

—”Phew, is this show really not a dating show?”

—”So by this count, it’s just Huo Yan and Wen Huai who are… hahaha—”

The gossiping viewers broke into mischievous laughter.

The discussion veered off track, but there was still a significant portion of fans focused on Qin Yao and Ye Leyao.

Qin Yao briefly checked the online discussions, and once he confirmed that there was nothing negative about Ye Leyao, he returned to the WeChat conversation and replied to Huo Yan: [I’ve already got people monitoring public opinion. Until Yaoyao figures out his own feelings, I won’t make any statements. But don’t worry, I won’t let anyone harm him during this time.]

After reading Qin Yao’s reply, Huo Yan felt a bit better: [You’d better, or… you do know Ye Leyao has two other brothers besides me, right?]

Qin Yao chuckled softly and replied: [Yes, I know.]

Huo Yan didn’t reply further, instead forwarding Qin Yao’s response to the group.

Their silent exchange of messages didn’t make a sound, but at the back of the bus, several pairs of eyes kept glancing toward them.

It wasn’t until both Qin Yao and Huo Yan put down their phones that the other guests finally, though a bit reluctantly, averted their gazes.

They hadn’t fought, and the atmosphere seemed pretty calm.

Tch.

The bus continued its journey, and Ye Leyao fell into a deeper sleep, dreaming of his childhood.

It was a sunny day.

Ye Leyao couldn’t remember how old he was, but he knew that when he stood, his height only reached about the length of Mama Huo’s thigh.

Mama Huo was busy doing something in the kitchen, and Ye Leyao, like a little shadow, kept trailing behind her. There was a noisy machine running as well.

Who knows how much time passed, but eventually, the noisy machine stopped.

Mama Huo smiled and said, “It’s ready!”

Ye Leyao clung to her leg and demanded, “I want to drink it! Hurry and give it to me.”

Mama Huo, amused, poured some milk into a glass and handed it to him: “It’s a bit hot. Try it and see if it tastes the same.”

The freshly-made oat milk had a particularly sweet fragrance, and soon, the entire kitchen was filled with its aroma.

Ye Leyao slowly carried the glass of milk into the living room before taking a small sip.

The rich taste of milk passed over his taste buds, and Ye Leyao blinked.

Mama Huo, sitting across from him, noticed and furrowed her brow. “Does it not taste right?”

Ye Leyao gave a small nod.

Mama Huo was puzzled. “But I made it exactly the way you taught me, didn’t I?” After a pause, she suddenly sighed, “If only Xiao Qin were here…”

She stopped mid-sentence. “Do you want me to make you another cup?”

Ye Leyao hugged the glass and shook his head. “No need.”

It was at that moment that Ye Leyao suddenly realized something. He couldn’t help but speak: “Even though the ingredients and the process are the same, it seems like everyone’s oat milk tastes different.”

Mama Huo’s gentle gaze fell on him, and after a long pause, she smiled and nodded. “Yes, because we’re human beings, independent individuals, not pre-programmed machines or precise instruments. It’s not just the milk, but every dish, every baked cake—each person’s creation has its own unique flavor.”

Ye Leyao nodded, finished the milk in his glass, and placed it back on the table.

At that moment, he suddenly looked up at the gentle woman in front of him and asked, “By the way, can I ask you a question?”

Mama Huo replied, “Go ahead.”

“I want to know, what is love?”

“Yaoyao, we’ve arrived.”

Ye Leyao’s eyes shot open, realizing that he was resting his head on Qin Yao’s shoulder. The two were so close that if Ye Leyao lifted his head just slightly, his forehead would touch Qin Yao’s lips.

He blinked slowly, feeling that the way he was leaning so closely against Qin Yao was a bit too intimate.

But for some reason, the only thing he felt inside was joy, with no trace of discomfort.

In fact, Ye Leyao even wanted to stay in that position a little longer.

Huo Yan stood up and saw the scene. The frustration he’d held in all this time finally burst out: “Ye Leyao!”

Startled, Ye Leyao sat up straight.

[What’s Second Brother doing? He scared me!]

Good, he deserved to be startled!

Huo Yan snorted inwardly before laughing out loud. “I saw you hadn’t woken up, so I thought I’d call out to wake you.”

Ye Leyao gave Huo Yan a mildly exasperated look.

[Second Brother is so childish!]

Yes, he was childish!

But at least Huo Yan’s mood was much better now, so he didn’t fuss with Ye Leyao anymore and grabbed his luggage to get off the bus.

Once most of the guests had left the bus, Qin Yao finally let go of Ye Leyao’s hand. “Let’s go too.”

Ye Leyao looked down at his hand, not moving even as Qin Yao picked up the luggage.

Qin Yao furrowed his brow slightly. “Yaoyao, what’s wrong?”

Ye Leyao snapped out of it, thought for a moment, then said, “I just had a strange dream, and I’m thinking about it.” He stood up with a smile. “Let’s go.”

Qin Yao followed him off the bus and asked, “Did you figure it out?”

Ye Leyao’s gaze landed on Qin Yao’s hands, which were pushing two suitcases, and he smiled. “What exactly is Qin Yao asking about?”

Qin Yao raised his head and met Ye Leyao’s bright, smiling eyes.

His heartbeat skipped a beat.

Qin Yao’s expression softened, and his smile grew. “Looks like you’ve almost figured it out.”

Ye Leyao didn’t answer, but looked away toward the front and exclaimed, “Are we going to take a boat next?”

Huo Yan turned around, and seeing that Ye Leyao wasn’t holding Qin Yao’s hand anymore, he was in an excellent mood as he explained, “The director said the villa we’re staying in this time is on an island in the middle of the lake.” He paused. “Are you okay with that?”

Qin Yao looked at Huo Yan in confusion.

Ye Leyao sighed. “I’ve said it before; I just don’t like water, but I’m not afraid of it!”

[What’s there to be afraid of about staying there?]

Qin Yao withdrew his gaze.

Huo Yan didn’t ask any more questions.

With all the guests gathered, the show crew helped load their luggage onto a big boat, leaving behind a few small boats for the guests to form teams of two or three.

Qin Yao didn’t hesitate to reach out to Ye Leyao, and the two of them boarded one of the boats.

Zhou Zijian glanced instinctively at Wen Xiangyue, but she didn’t say anything, only casting a brief look at Wen Huai.

Seeing this, Wen Huai smiled. “What are you waiting for? Let’s go.”

Zhou Zijian’s heart sank a little. Just as he was about to team up with Song Zhehan, Wen Huai called out, “Zhou Zijian, aren’t you coming?”

Zhou Zijian was stunned.

And not just him—other guests looked over too.

Wait, weren’t there supposed to be three people on each boat?

With the boatman at the front, Zhou Zijian and Wen Xiangyue would sit opposite each other, and Wen Huai would sit between them?

That’s exactly how it went.

But since the small boat had two rows of seats facing each other, Wen Huai sat next to Wen Xiangyue and Zhou Zijian could only sit across from the two of them.

Seeing this, Ye Leyao couldn’t help but let his lips curl up.

[Hahaha, Wen Huai isn’t giving Zhou Zijian any alone time at all! I get it now—he only agreed to be on this show just to stir things up!]

The other guests also finished grouping up on the shore.

Liu Yan and Shen Chong sat on one boat, Duan Tingyan and Song Zhehan on another, leaving Li Siyuan and Huo Yan to share the last boat.

Huo Yan looked at Li Siyuan across from him and raised an eyebrow. “I thought you’d be sitting with Duan Tingyan.”

Li Siyuan replied with annoyance, “You’re not sitting with Ye Leyao and Qin Yao either.”

Huo Yan grinned. “That’s because I have some sense.”

Mainly, he didn’t want to watch them being all lovey-dovey—it was too frustrating! Too frustrating!

Li Siyuan let out a heavy snort.

Just then, Duan Tingyan’s voice called out from the other boat: “Siyuan, if you want to sit with me, I can switch with Mr. Huo right now.”

Li Siyuan’s cold gaze fixed on him, and then he suddenly reached out and beckoned Duan Tingyan over. “Then come here.”

If Duan Tingyan dared to come, Li Siyuan dared to throw him into the water.

Duan Tingyan felt a chill run down his spine. He immediately turned his head, tightened his life jacket, and smiled. “Forget it, forget it, Siyuan. I’m sure we’ll have plenty of chances to share a boat in the future. Let’s just leave it for today!”

Li Siyuan rolled his eyes. “Coward.”

The boatman rowed the small boat, slowly taking the group toward the heart of the lake.

When the boat docked, everyone realized that, rather than calling it a lakeside villa, it was more accurate to describe it as a small artificial island.

Not only were there some basic living facilities on the island, but also a few shops.

The villa where Ye Leyao and the other guests were staying resembled more of an estate, with a large swimming pool outside.

As for the rooms in the villa, they were arranged the same way as before—two suites on each floor, and the villa had four floors in total. Except for the first floor, all the floors consisted of suites, with a total of six suites and twelve rooms.

This meant that some guests in this episode would have the opportunity to stay in a suite alone.

When it was time to assign rooms, this time no one suggested taking a tour first.

Ye Leyao glanced at the various expressions on the group’s faces, and his lips curled up.

[It seems everyone has their plans now!]

Huo Yan’s eyes brightened, and he looked at Ye Leyao. “You’ll share a suite with me.”

Ye Leyao was stunned. His first instinct was to refuse, but before he could speak, Huo Yan added, “What? You don’t want to stay with me?”

Ye Leyao:

[I kind of don’t.]

But after a second thought, Ye Leyao realized that staying with Huo Yan wasn’t a big deal.

After all, if he wanted to find Qin Yao for anything, he could just go to his room.

So Ye Leyao nodded. “Alright.”

Qin Yao met Ye Leyao’s gaze but didn’t object. He turned to Song Zhehan. “Do you want to share a room with me?”

Then he looked at Li Siyuan. “Or we could pair up.”

Song Zhehan was the first to speak. “Let’s pair up.”

Li Siyuan, unable to compete with Song Zhehan, clenched his teeth slightly.

Just then, Duan Tingyan spoke up. “Siyuan, how about…”

“I’ll pair with Shen Chong,” Li Siyuan glared at Duan Tingyan.

Duan Tingyan coughed lightly and sighed. “Then who will I stay with? Brother Zhou? Wen Huai, one of you come stay with me.”

In the last two episodes, Zhou Zijian had always roomed with Wen Xiangyue. But now, with Wen Huai present—

Ye Leyao couldn’t help but smile as he whispered to Qin Yao, “I bet Wen Huai definitely won’t let Brother Zhou and Sister-in-law stay together.”@@novelbin@@

Sure enough, just as Ye Leyao finished speaking, they heard Wen Huai laugh. “I’ll share a suite with my mom. You don’t mind, right?”

This last sentence was directed at Zhou Zijian.

Zhou Zijian resigned himself to nodding, smiling as he said, “No, of course not!”

Ye Leyao’s smile widened.

[Even if he did mind, Brother Zhou wouldn’t dare to say anything right now!]

So, the last suite was left for Liu Yan.

With the room assignments settled, everyone went back to their rooms to freshen up.

Ye Leyao returned to his room, casually placed his suitcase down, and took a shower.

When he came out of the shower, he saw Huo Yan sitting on the sofa, playing on his phone. Huo Yan said, “I’m going to take a shower, too.”

Ye Leyao nodded, grabbed his phone, and went downstairs.

It was still early, and the sun was blazing in the afternoon sky.

As soon as Ye Leyao reached the living room, he noticed a somewhat unfamiliar figure sitting on the sofa. When the person saw Ye Leyao come down, they greeted him.

Hearing the voice, Ye Leyao confirmed, “Are you Duan Tingyan?”

Duan Tingyan had already changed out of his skirt and removed the exaggerated makeup from his face. Now, wearing simple casual clothes, he looked quite handsome.

Hearing Ye Leyao’s words, Duan Tingyan smiled. “What? I don’t look good in men’s clothes?”

Ye Leyao shook his head. “No, actually, you look quite handsome.”

[I’m just curious how Li Siyuan managed to have an online romance with you.]

Of course, Ye Leyao couldn’t ask that aloud.

So he sat on a nearby sofa with his phone, intending to check his notes.

He had just settled in when the sound of hurried footsteps caught his attention.

Both Ye Leyao and Duan Tingyan looked up to see Li Siyuan angrily rushing out of the villa.

Ye Leyao was confused. “What’s going on?”

Duan Tingyan also straightened up a little.

Just then, more urgent footsteps echoed, accompanied by Shen Chong’s panicked voice. “Quick! Stop Li Siyuan…”

Duan Tingyan slowly turned his head to look at him.

Shen Chong, panting, said, “He… Li Siyuan… He’s going to find his agent.”

Duan Tingyan replied, “So what if he’s going to find his agent?” Suddenly, something dawned on him, and his eyes widened. “Wait, he didn’t find out that his agent and I are friends, did he?”

Shen Chong nodded repeatedly, his face filled with worry as he hurriedly explained, “I didn’t know he didn’t know about this, so…”

Before the shoot, the guest stars had dinner together, and during the meal, Duan Tingyan mentioned this to Shen Chong and Wen Huai. But Shen Chong didn’t realize Li Siyuan wasn’t aware of it!

As soon as Shen Chong mentioned it, Li Siyuan’s expression changed instantly. He clenched his fists and ran downstairs.

Sensing something was wrong, Shen Chong quickly chased after him.

Duan Tingyan slapped his forehead. “Then why are we still standing here?”

With that, Duan Tingyan sprinted outside.

Ye Leyao looked at Shen Chong, then at the backs of the two as they rushed out.

[Li Siyuan’s agent is Duan Tingyan’s friend, which means Duan Tingyan’s appearance on the show was also related to his agent?]

As this realization hit him, Ye Leyao was shocked:

[So the reason Li Siyuan fought with his agent was because of this?!]

[Ahhh, no, I have to go stop him too!]

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TL NOTE: Please don't skimp on the stars for the translation - it inspires me and gives me the strength to write more. Thank you~!

If you want to buy me a /santos_28