Can't Hide My Love for You - Chapter 95

The filming of Like a Dream proceeded in an orderly fashion. Cheng Yixin had been longing for it, and finally, the day of her wrap-up arrived.

“Congratulations to Yixin on wrapping up! You’ve worked hard!”

“Thank you all for your help during this time. You’ve worked hard too.” She accepted the flowers prepared by the director’s team, her smile incredibly sweet.

“Sister Xin, I’ve already bought the local specialties. What time should I book the ticket back?”

“No rush. I’m going back tomorrow. You guys head out first.”

“But… there’s a variety show pilot to shoot tomorrow afternoon. Will we make it in time?”

“We will. I’ll be going back with Chi Yi.”

If the schedule wasn’t so tight, Cheng Yixin would have liked to stay a bit longer. Hearing Chi Yi’s name, Xiao Yu stopped asking. Since the work was finished, it was only normal for the young couple to want a date.

“Sister Xin, while you were busy at noon, President Chi called. She said she was delayed by some business and expects to arrive in the evening.”

Cheng Yixin checked the time. The final moments at the studio flashed by; it was already three o’clock, so a few hours wouldn’t make much difference. She hummed in response and immediately picked up her phone to message Chi Yi, telling her she had wrapped up and was now a “free agent.”

Previously, she had promised her parents to visit her grandparents, and Chi Yi would accompany her. Just as she sent the message, Mother Cheng called, perfect timing.

“Yixin, you’re finished over there, right? I’ve told your grandmother. Go to your grandparents’ house for dinner tonight.”

“Huh?” Cheng Yixin froze. “I’m finished, but Chi Yi hasn’t arrived yet. She’ll be here in the evening. Let’s go tomorrow instead.”

“I’ve already settled it with your grandmother. She started busy-ing herself after lunch. Can’t you just have Chi Yi go directly there?”

“That… I guess that works.”

Ending the call, she phoned Chi Yi to explain the situation.

“I just finished up here. I’ll head to the high-speed rail station in ten minutes,” Chi Yi said. “Give me the address—I’ll go there myself. Don’t keep your grandparents waiting.”

“Okay, stay safe on the road.”

After hanging up, Chi Yi habitually closed her laptop, looking ready to leave at any moment.

Knock, knock— Siwen tapped on the door.

“President Chi, there’s something I thought I should report to you.”

“Speak.” Chi Yi sat back in her executive chair. “What is it?”

“A program producer sent a business cooperation invitation email, asking you to participate in their show.”

“I believe I said I don’t accept these kinds of collaborations.” Chi Yi paused. “Tell me the highlights of this show.”

“It’s a reality dating show.”

Chi Yi raised an eyebrow. Siwen continued: “The guests have been finalized. Among them is Cheng Yixin.”

“Is It Only Me Whose Heart Is Fluttering? The first season had a good response, and they’re doing a second season now. There are six episodes in total. The first episode starts recording next week, and they’re filming the pilot tomorrow.”

Chi Yi had heard about this show from Cheng Yixin before—she was the one who persuaded Cheng Yixin to participate. Receiving an invitation at this specific time was indeed surprising.

“Shouldn’t the guests for this show have been set long ago? Why the delay?”

“I’m not sure. They contacted us when the second season started, but we declined. Now, it’s likely one of the original guests had an issue. This time, I didn’t reject it immediately because I saw Teacher Cheng’s name.”

Chi Yi didn’t accept immediately. She just told Siwen to reply to the production team saying she needed to consider it, wanting to see their sincerity. Truly, facing a camera was not something she was accustomed to, nor did she want her every move monitored.

When Chi Yi got off the high-speed train, it was pitch black outside. Having done her homework beforehand, she knew it took an hour to get from the station to Cheng Yixin’s grandparents’ house. The pre-booked private car was waiting at the exit, and the driver skillfully loaded her luggage into the trunk. Besides a change of clothes, most of the bag was filled with supplements for the elderly.

The grandparents lived in the countryside. The location Cheng Yixin had navigated for her was the village entrance. Before getting into the car, she had checked in with Cheng Yixin, planning to call her once she arrived.

“Miss, where are you getting off?”

“Right at the village entrance.” As Chi Yi spoke, the car lights illuminated the archway of the village. From a distance, she could see someone sitting on a stone platform under the archway, playing with their phone. That person noticed the piercing car lights and looked up.

Getting out of the car, Chi Yi’s first words were: “Why are you out here?”

“I wanted to see you sooner.” Cheng Yixin took her suitcase and pointed to a house in the second row of the village. “See? That’s Grandpa’s house.”

Nowadays, with the rapid development of the internet, the nightlife of the elderly was no longer as early-to-bed as it used to be. The faint sound of square dancing music could be heard.

Cheng Yixin pushed open the iron gate of the courtyard. Before entering, Chi Yi looked a bit stiff, peeking inside.

“Hear the music? Don’t worry, Grandma went out to do square dancing. Grandpa went to play mahjong. Currently, it’s just us at home.”

“Grandma still does square dancing?” Chi Yi chuckled.

“Oh yes. I’ll take you to see her in a bit. Eat first.”

Although the countryside had long used gas stoves, Grandma Cheng still liked using the large wood-fired stove for cooking. Cheng Yixin lifted the lid; inside was food specially set aside for Chi Yi, kept warm by the residual heat of the stove pit.

Halfway through the meal, Grandpa Cheng returned. Being a man of few words, he gave the guest a smile and a greeting, then told Chi Yi to make herself at home before retiring to the bedroom.

After eating, Cheng Yixin actually took Chi Yi to the village square. A group of aunties and white-haired grandmothers were square dancing. Although Grandma was old, she was very sturdy and open to new things. Ever since square dancing invaded the countryside, it had become her post-dinner entertainment with her old sisters.

“Grandma—!” Cheng Yixin found her in the crowd and shouted at the top of her lungs: “My friend is here!”

“Oho!” Grandma looked at Chi Yi. “Xiao Yi, right? Can you dance?”

Chi Yi didn’t know how to respond for a moment. She could do ballroom dancing, but in the current context, the “dance” being referred to was clearly not that.

“I can’t, Grandma,” Chi Yi waved her hand.

“Perfect! I’ll teach you!”

“???”

Cheng Yixin really wanted to see what President Chi looked like swinging her arms to square dancing. She fueled the fire from the side: “Grandma doesn’t take students easily. Hurry up and dance!” She took advantage of the fact that Chi Yi wouldn’t dare refuse an elder.

“Come, come, swing your arms just like me!”

Chi Yi was forced to swing her arms stiffly. Grandma Cheng, feeling her movements weren’t standard, personally stepped in to guide her. Cheng Yixin watched from the side, nearly bursting into laughter.

Initially, Chi Yi was incredibly embarrassed; among the crowd of aunties, her age was very conspicuous, and she had never touched square dancing before. But seeing how happy Grandma Cheng was, she let go of her reservations and started dancing with some flair, even appearing fearless in front of Cheng Yixin’s phone camera.

That night, Cheng Yixin posted a Weibo. The caption: Just got home and Grandma dragged us into square dancing. It seems President Chi is really enjoying herself~ [Doraemon Surprised face]

The focus in the comments section was captured perfectly: She’s already meeting the Grandma?!

At the same time, this Weibo post was seen by the production team of Is It Only Me Whose Heart Is Fluttering?. Originally, they had assumed Chi Yi’s request to “consider it” was a polite refusal and had no hope, preparing to invite others. Now, their hopes were suddenly revived.

“The CP popularity between those two is massive! If we can get them to participate in the show together, the ratings will explode! We can just arrange a ‘two women fighting over one man’ script—that’ll create topics.”

“Then how impressive does this man have to be to be liked by both of them at the same time?” the assistant director asked.

“Didn’t we invite that guy—graduated from a famous overseas college, family runs a big company, has musical talent, and is currently an independent musician… who was it? Right, Chen Fei! Isn’t he the perfect second-generation rich guy? This has potential.”

“But the contract we signed with Cheng Yixin clearly states ‘no forced CP-shipping’.”

“It’s not forced shipping. But can’t we influence the probability of who draws whom for a date?”

The assistant director had nothing left to say. After all, she was just an employee and couldn’t sway the choices of the investors.

They stayed in the countryside for one night. As soon as the sky turned pale in the morning, the roosters outside began crowing. Cheng Yixin was forced to wake up early.

She yawned while drinking porridge, eating it with small pickles. She finished half a bowl.

“This stir-fried egg is good.” Chi Yi picked up a piece of stir-fried egg. Her intention was for Yixin to take it herself, but seeing the other person already opening her mouth with an “Ah—,” she fed the piece of egg into Cheng Yixin’s mouth.

“Ho.” Grandma came in and laughed upon seeing this. “You two have such a good relationship.”

“Of course.” Cheng Yixin happily linked her arm with Chi Yi’s, stating without concealment: “Yiyi and I are the best in the world.”

Grandma naturally couldn’t hear the deeper meaning in her words and started digging into the pocket of her thick cotton coat.

“Grandma went to the temple to get you peace charms. I hope you stay safe and your work goes smoothly.” Grandma pulled out orange-red triangular peace charms with thin tassels at the end. “I remember when you were little, you were so naughty. I’d barely put it on you before you’d lose it.”

“Yes, yes, and you’d hit my butt when you found out,” Cheng Yixin said. “Actually, Grandma, the peace charm wasn’t lost. I gave it away.”

“She gave it to me.” Chi Yi came forward honestly to claim it. She took out her keychain and showed the peace charm hanging on it.

“Hmm? Let me see.” Grandma, with her failing eyesight, took the peace charm. Finding the plastic film in the way, she simply opened it and looked at the faded charm inside. “Mmm, it really is the one from that temple. It’s been so long, why do you still have it? Throw it away.”

Grandma made a move to toss it into the trash can. Cheng Yixin let out a cry and instinctively reached for it, but it was too late. The old peace charm fell precisely into the bin.

“Grandma—!”

Grandma, however, slowly pulled another peace charm from her pocket, stacking the two together. “The old must go for the new to come.”

She gave them each a new peace charm and walked out with her hands behind her back, looking every bit like someone who had performed a great deed and remained anonymous.

Cheng Yixin was still thinking about the old charm; after all, it was something Chi Yi had carried for over a decade. “I could pick it up and wash it; it might still be usable.”

“Let it go,” Chi Yi stopped her. “Grandma is right. Out with the old, in with the new.” She held the small clasp at the top of the charm and said with a smile, “In the future, I don’t have to worry about it breaking anymore.” Hanging it on the keyring, it was, in a sense, a couple’s accessory.

Because they had to catch the high-speed rail back to Jingning, they didn’t stay long. After breakfast and saying goodbye to the grandparents, they set off. Waving to the elderly through the glass until their figures grew small and vanished, Cheng Yixin let out a soft breath. “The next time we come will be for the New Year. It’s coming soon.”

“Mmm~”

“By the way,” Cheng Yixin proactively told her, “Remember I said I took that dating show? The pilot is being filmed this afternoon.”

“Are all the guests finalized?”

“Not sure. But it doesn’t matter even if they aren’t. It’s just the pilot; the appearances are decided based on popularity to attract the guests’ own traffic. It’s not a big problem.”

“I see.” Chi Yi paused, then said quite casually, “I was also invited to participate in this show.”

“?!” Cheng Yixin spun her head around to stare at her. “You’re participating?!”

“I’m still considering. Do you think I should?” Chi Yi teased her on purpose.

Cheng Yixin wanted her to, but… she knew Chi Yi didn’t like “showing her face.” So she said, “I’ll tell you how I feel after I finish recording this afternoon.”

Back in Jingning, Cheng Yixin immediately threw herself into her intense work.

The pilot wouldn’t be long in its finished form. The main content was a simple introduction of the guests, talking about their ideal types—similar to a chat session. There were ten guests in total—five men and five women—and six of them were recording the pilot.

In the dressing room, Cheng Yixin received the guest introductions. Looking at one person’s data, she couldn’t help but frown.

Chen Fei. The “scumbag” man whose jaw Chi Yi had fractured in the airport VIP lounge. He was publicly claiming his injury was caused by “gathering inspiration outdoors,” and some fans actually believed his nonsense, feeling incredibly sorry for him.

But on second thought, the persona Chen Fei built was that of a rebellious musical genius and a second-generation rich guy; many people fell for the “dangerous, charming bad boy” trope. Who knows how many of those were paid shills. She’d better stay far away from such a person; just touching him would be bad luck.

Each guest had a specific order of appearance. Chi Yi (if she joined) would be last. Before her appearance (in this case, the other guests), Cheng Yixin stood off-set to watch the recording.

The other four guests included: Male Guest No. 1, Yun Dongyuan, an athlete; No. 2, Dr. Dao, a doctor; Female Guest No. 1, Yi’er, a lawyer; and No. 2, Dai Mote, a model.

Just as the production team had revealed, the professions were diverse—both entertainment industry people and laypeople. It made the audience curious about how people from such unrelated fields would find common topics.

The guests appeared every five minutes. The time in between was used for those who had already appeared to introduce themselves and talk about topics to liven up the atmosphere. Since it was the first meeting, there was more or less some awkwardness. Even the very “straight” athlete was trying hard to find topics, and the scene gradually became harmonious.

…Until Chen Fei appeared.

“Hello everyone, I’m Chen Fei. I’m a musician. I can rap and my specialty is ‘oral skills.’ Even if the hope is slim, I still want to find my destiny girl from this show.”

For some reason—likely because she knew what a piece of work Chen Fei was in private—Cheng Yixin felt his introduction was suggestive and full of double entendres.

“I’m new here. You all should introduce yourselves.” Chen Fei proactively cued the female guests.

“I’m Dai Mote, a model. I’ve been in the industry for five years.” The two other male guests applauded politely.

“A model, huh~ You must have a great figure.” Chen Fei’s gaze scanned her up and down shamelessly. He said with a smile, “Do you models eat very little? I see most of you don’t even weigh a hundred pounds.”

“The diet is quite strict. If we’re too heavy, clothes don’t look good. After all, in the modeling industry, we have to have requirements for our bodies.”

“If you’re fat, just don’t wear anything; it looks better,” Chen Fei joked, as if he was used to speaking without a filter. But since they were all strangers, the atmosphere instantly soured.

“Just kidding.” He tried to save face for himself and asked the other female guest: “And what’s your name, beauty?”

“I’m Yi’er, a lawyer.” Compared to Dai Mote, Yi’er was more reserved. Her introduction was concise and clear.

“Little Sister Yi’er, I noticed all you girls are so thin. Very self-disciplined.”

“Thank you,” Yi’er gave a polite smile.

“What’s the saying? If you weigh less than a hundred, you’re either flat-chested or short. You two are exceptions,” Chen Fei said, his gaze clearly sweeping over them.

The female guests clearly felt offended, but since they were going to be on TV, they couldn’t show it too obviously, lest they be attacked by mindless fans. The male guests also felt it was inappropriate and tried to smooth things over. Chen Fei, who came with a “playboy” attitude and was inflated by his blind fans, mistook vulgarity for humor. Anyway, the production team wouldn’t dare breathe too loudly against him given his background.

“Teacher Cheng, it’s your turn to go on,” a staff member whispered to her.

“Ooh.” Cheng Yixin smoothed her skirt, walked behind the set, and pretended to push open the door to enter.

“Yo, Yixin, the big star!”

Because of the previous airport incident, Chen Fei hated Cheng Yixin to the core. If he couldn’t deal with Chi Yi, couldn’t he deal with a mere actress? And since it was in front of a camera, he figured Cheng Yixin wouldn’t dare give him a dirty look—it was the perfect time for revenge. Besides, if she dared to show a “black face,” he would have a reason to get shills to attack her, while he would just be “authentic.” No matter how he thought about it, he wouldn’t lose.

Cheng Yixin gave a proper smile to the camera, accompanied by that annoying voice: “Yixin, introduce yourself formally. No data that can be found online—that’s boring. What do you all think?”

It sounded like he was trying to start a fight. The other guests naturally didn’t respond to him and gave a polite refusal: “A famous actress; we all recognize her without an introduction.”

“That’s why I said we should do something interesting—like bust or hip measurements. Oh wait, is that too blunt? Sorry, my friends and I like to joke like this. I feel like we’re old friends at first sight.”

Cheng Yixin let out a “ha” and laughed. “I was wondering why you were so confident. I didn’t realize that birds of a feather flock together—everyone around you must be the same, to mistake vulgarity for humor.”

“No way, are you taking a joke seriously?” Chen Fei feigned surprise.

“It’s only a joke if someone thinks it’s funny. I’m afraid you’re the only one laughing at this joke.”

” I just wanted to adjust the atmosphere. Why can’t you take a joke?”

“Rudeness is rudeness. Who are you trying to PUA?” Cheng Yixin said straightforwardly.

“…” Pfft. Someone at the table couldn’t hold back and chuckled behind their hand.

Trying to be sarcastic but being hit with a direct punch, and being laughed at by others, Chen Fei’s self-esteem was bruised. He glared at Cheng Yixin.

“Don’t look at me like that,” Cheng Yixin shrugged. “I’m afraid you’ll stand up and scare me with your 1.9-meter height.”

Chen Fei, whose actual height was far below the 1.72 meters listed in his data, instantly had his tail stepped on. This time, the person who had anger but couldn’t vent it in front of the camera was himself.