Can You Believe It? I Ran into My Ex on a Dating Variety Show - Chapter 9

The villa occupied a vast area, and the rooms were equally large. After turning down two corridors, there were two bedrooms with doors that faced each other directly.

Su Jingxi pulled Shi Yu along to look for a room. Shi Yu tried to pull his hand away multiple times, but he failed. Eventually, they reached the two innermost rooms, which were situated right across from each other and were the closest together.

Su Jingxi said excitedly, “Brother Shi Yu, let us live here together! It would be so much better to be close by.”

Just as he finished speaking, he saw He Xingzhi walk into one of the rooms as if no one else were there. At the same time, Xie Yuanzhou moved into another room across the hallway. Su Jingxi was inexplicably afraid of He Xingzhi, so he reluctantly dragged his suitcase to the outermost room instead.

Shi Yu moved into the room directly across from He Xingzhi. He brought his suitcase inside and was about to close the door to organize his things when he looked up. He saw He Xingzhi, with his dazzling red hair, sitting on his bed and staring at him with a dark expression. Shi Yu gave him a single glance and promptly shut the door.

He Xingzhi was so angry that the veins on his forehead began to throb.

In the villa, almost every corner except for the bathrooms was equipped with cameras. They were so densely packed that it was nearly impossible to find a blind spot.

He Xingzhi had eaten too many sweets earlier and was now feeling thirsty. He left his suitcase on the floor and simply flipped the lid open to grab a pair of slippers. Without even putting away the shoes he had just taken off, he walked out of the room.

He headed to the dining area and searched the refrigerator. Just as he was about to grab a bottle of chilled soda, he caught sight of the mugs arranged on the island counter out of the corner of his eye.

There were four colors of cups. Only the white cup had Shi Yu’s signature written on it with an indelible marker. It was clearly written by Shi Yu himself to avoid using someone else’s cup.

He Xingzhi bypassed the soda and grabbed a large carton of pure milk. After closing the refrigerator door, he walked toward the island. He initially wanted to pick up the other unused white cup, but the thought of Shi Yu locking his door earlier caused a wave of resentment to surge in his heart.

He grabbed a cup of a different color, and as he did, he forcefully bumped his wrist against the unused white cup.

“Bang!” The cup hit the floor and shattered into pieces.

The staff in the observation room were stunned.

The person in charge of the observation room reported the incident to the director via walkie-talkie. The director instructed an assistant to sneak in and clean up the mess while the living room was empty, then replace it with a new white mug. A recently graduated intern replaced it with an identical white cup.

When He Xingzhi came out again to look for something, he saw the white cup once more. This time, he did not even pretend. He could not stand the sight of that cup existing, so he walked up and smashed it.

Observation room: “????”

“Director, I think we should just change these cups to eight different colors.”

This time, the staff not only changed them to eight different colors but also thoughtfully wrote the names of the corresponding guests on them.

When Shi Yu came out of his room to get a drink of water, he noticed the change immediately. Only his own cup still had the name he had written himself; the other cups were all labeled by the same person from the production team.

“Do you know why the production team changed the cups?” the system asked, unable to contain its excitement.

However, Shi Yu showed little interest. He said, “Someone accidentally broke one, making it impossible to maintain a balanced color scheme, so they simply switched to individual colors.”

“Damn, how can you be this smart? Your guess is almost exactly right. However, it was not accidentally broken. Your ex-boyfriend saw that you used a white cup, so he smashed the other white one. I bet he wanted to use a couple’s set with you but was too embarrassed, yet he did not want anyone else to have a matching set with you, so he just smashed it to end the problem once and for all.”

“He was not embarrassed; he was just afraid I would misunderstand and think he still likes me.”

“Is there even a need to misunderstand? Anyone with eyes can see it.”

After drinking some water, Shi Yu asked the production team for a package he had sent ahead of time. It was a box filled entirely with disinfectant supplies. Shi Yu cleaned every inch of his bedroom and disinfected it thoroughly.

He worked until he was drenched in sweat. He grabbed a change of clothes, preparing to take a shower. Originally, every room was equipped with a bathroom. Some had large bathrooms with raised circular tubs and other amenities. Shi Yu’s room was not the largest and was likely a guest room, but he was not picky.

However, when he tried to take a shower, he found that the bathroom door would not open no matter how much he pulled. Shi Yu gave up on the idea of forcing the door open. He gestured toward the camera closest to the bathroom door, pointing out that the door would not open and requesting someone to fix it.

Not long after, a task card from the production team was slid through the gap under his door. Shi Yu picked it up, opened it, and read it aloud.

“On the first day of the guests’ stay, an unfortunate event occurred in the villa. Originally, every room was equipped with a bathroom, but now, two bathrooms on each floor are under maintenance, and the repair time is uncertain. Guests who do not have a functional bathroom, please find a guest you would like to get to know better and ask to borrow theirs.”

Shi Yu was speechless at this arrangement but also understood it. The production team was running a dating contract observation show, and their purpose was to use various methods to push guests from being strangers to knowing each other and potentially falling in love. From that perspective, borrowing a bathroom was indeed an effective way to promote a relationship. Specifically, the production team intentionally waited until everyone had selected their rooms before revealing this information. It added a sense of random expectation, similar to playing a game.

Shi Yu did not actually want to borrow from anyone. He only wanted to use his own bathroom. He did not want to think about how unclean someone else’s bathroom might be. Even if it looked clean, he would not be able to stop himself from imagining what the previous person might have done while showering. Shi Yu frowned in frustration.

“You can go across the hall to borrow one. After all, you have done much more intimate things countless times, and you used to shower together frequently. There is no pressure.”

“But I do not think he would be willing to let me borrow it.”

“He even smashed a mug just because it was the same color as yours to prevent anyone else from having a matching set with you. He even broke two in a row, forcing the staff to change them. Do you really think he would be unwilling?”

Shi Yu still frowned. If possible, he did not want to have more contact with He Xingzhi. He did not want to cause that person any more pain.

“Maybe you should ask Su Jingxi. He has an available bathroom in his room. Just bring your disinfectant.”

Shi Yu picked up his change of clothes and a bag of disinfectant supplies before heading out. When he opened his door, the door across from him opened at the same time.

He Xingzhi saw the items in his hands and guessed that he was someone who needed to borrow a bathroom. He Xingzhi assumed that Shi Yu would definitely ask to borrow his, and that he could only ask to borrow his. He knew about Shi Yu’s germaphobia and knew that this person could not stand using a bathroom used by a stranger.

Therefore, he purposefully stepped out to wait, expecting to see how Shi Yu would open his mouth to ask him. He was determined to make Shi Yu beg him in person.

However, Shi Yu simply gave him a glance as if he were a stranger and then walked past him lightly. He had absolutely no intention of greeting him.

He Xingzhi: “????”

This was not what he had expected.