Dating My Drama Queen Girlfriend On A Slow-Paced Variety Show - Chapter 13

The walk from the small courtyard to the main road was quite long, and it was a task Pi Dajun and You Yang couldn’t complete alone. When Li Yue and Luo Mingzi stepped out, they saw the other three guests chatting with the workers hired to help.

“Sister Xuezhen, we’re heading up the mountain!” Luo Mingzi was still practically hanging off Li Yue, waving happily at Wu Xuezhen. Pi Dajun handed a basket to Wu Xuezhen and shouted toward them, “Make sure to stay safe! Don’t go too deep into the woods!”

“We know, you too!”

Luo Mingzi stood on her tiptoes to whisper in Li Yue’s ear, and Li Yue leaned down to listen.

“Sister Xuezhen and Uncle Dajun are so affectionate.”

Luo’s minty breath brushed against the side of her face. Li Yue reached out to tuck a stray lock of hair behind Luo’s ear and nodded. “Mm.”

Wu Xuezhen walked over, teasing them with a beaming smile. “You two look like a pair of newlyweds, sticking together like glue.”

When things are said openly and naturally, they usually don’t feel awkward. However, ever since Luo Mingzi entered the entertainment industry in her senior year, the two had spent more time apart than together. It had been three years since anyone had teased them like this. Li Yue blinked, then smiled. “Can’t it be a passionate romance instead?”

Wu Xuezhen replied, “Passionate romance?”

She clapped her hands in realization. “Fine then, you’re just waiting to collect a wedding gift from me!”

Luo Mingzi suddenly took off her hat and started fanning herself. The sunlight hit her face, making it obvious she was feeling the heat, her cheeks were flushed pink. She said loudly, “It’s too hot! Let’s get into the mountains already!”

Wu Xuezhen burst into laughter. “Go ahead then, you and your ‘girlfriend’ lead the way.”

Luo Mingzi’s face turned even redder. She let out a huff, grabbed Li Yue’s hand, and strode forward. As she walked, she called out, “Let her experience what it feels like to be a lone soul!”

Wu Xuezhen followed, thinking for a moment before adding, “I wonder who the real lone soul is.”

Luo Mingzi insisted immediately, “You Yang!”

With that, the two looked at each other and burst out laughing. “Hahaha!”

Li Yue shook her head helplessly.

As the guests began their tasks, Director Liu took a moment to call a small meeting. She clapped her hands and said, “I think the atmosphere today is great. If we can keep this up, we won’t even need to prompt them or think of mini-games to fill the airtime.”

The assistant director thought for a bit. “Everyone was a bit of a slow starter. Three of the four are actors maybe they’ve finally gotten used to the rhythm of variety shows?”

Director Liu didn’t think so. From the moment Luo Mingzi said “You’re like my girlfriend” to Li Yue this morning, the director felt the atmosphere of this recording was different from the previous ones. If nothing else, it was as if a switch had been flipped in Luo Mingzi, returning her to the state she was in during the very first episode.

“I think Teacher Li Yue interacts with the other guests very naturally. No awkward formalities, she just blended right in,” another assistant director said softly while reviewing the morning’s footage. “Is it because she can cook? Should we prioritize guests who can cook in the future?”

“I think so. After breakfast, the regular guests treated Li Yue much better than they did previous guests. In the last five episodes, the humor surrounding meals was getting repetitive after all, you can’t just keep filming guests struggling to get a hot meal.”

Not to mention the backlash online from fans accusing the show of “mistreating the guests.”

Director Liu agreed this was a direction to consider, but the atmosphere ultimately depended on the guests themselves and they couldn’t always have the guest star doing the cooking. The assistant director beside her joked, “Should we make Teacher Li a permanent fixture just to cook for everyone?”

“That’s a punchable suggestion. Do you cook every day at your own house?” Director Liu waved her off, telling everyone to get serious. She muttered, “Even if we did make Teacher Li a regular, that wouldn’t be her role.”

The editor standing behind the director shook her head. “How did we get onto the topic of making Teacher Li a regular? That’s probably harder than getting Teacher Luo to learn how to cook noodles. Sister Liu, look at the work group first. The promotion team wants to know if we should still buy ad space on social media; episode four is about to air.”

At this, Director Liu sighed. “Same as usual. We won’t buy it. The guests’ agencies can decide for themselves.”

The editor laughed. “Don’t sigh, Sister! With Teacher Luo here, we don’t even need to buy ads. She hits the top three on the trending list effortlessly.”

True, every episode launch hit the top three, but the replay rate was low. Clips were everywhere, but the full episode data never matched the first one. It was a classic “high start, low finish” with average reviews. Director Liu was starting to doubt her own skills!

She stood up, brushed off her clothes, and a sharp glint appeared in her eyes. She whispered, “It’s fine. We’re about to drop the big move! Don’t worry, I feel like once this card is played, we’ll definitely recreate the glory of the first episode!”

The circle of directors’ eyes lit up instantly, like weasels spotting a fat chicken, and they began to chuckle wickedly.

While the crew was meeting, the mountain group was busy gathering firewood.

Li Yue looked at the distant peaks.

The green hills safe for filming were frequently used by villagers to gather grass or fruit, resulting in a winding path that the government eventually paved to make travel easier. Panshan City was in the north; they planted wheat in winter and corn in summer, using the leftover stalks as fuel for cooking fires.

The thick logs used for recording Late Countryside were provided by the show, but the guests had to gather the thin kindling and dry leaves themselves.

Li Yue walked at the back. Seeing Luo Mingzi’s steps getting heavier and her hand restlessly reaching toward the weeds, she gently tapped Luo’s hand away. “Aren’t you afraid of bugs?”

Wu Xuezhen, walking in front, laughed. “Hahaha! In the first episode, Mingzi saw a beautiful flower and leaned in, only to find a giant mantis on it. She almost jumped to the moon!”

Li Yue laughed too.

Luo Mingzi’s face flushed with mock indignation. “I just didn’t see it clearly! Who’s afraid of a mantis? It’s not like I haven’t seen one. I used to see them in the garden at home all the time. I’ve even seen a pink one!”

She turned to Li Yue and added, “Did you know? In mantis society, after mating, the female eats the male to provide nutrition for the next generation.”

Li Yue knew that much.

She said quietly, “Good thing I’m not a mantis, but a woman.” She put a slight emphasis on the word “woman” as she bent down to pick up a dry branch and placed it in Luo Mingzi’s basket.

Afterward, she asked, “Is it heavy?”

Luo Mingzi shook her head and looked around. From this vantage point, they could see the small courtyard where they were filming.

The green mountains were like a painting, with a village of blue walls and black tiles nestled among them, a curved road leading to the farmstead that looked like a hidden paradise.

Luo Mingzi remembered something and pointed toward the yard. “Did you see that big tree in the backyard today? I want to buy a swing to hang there. Remember the ‘dating spot’ woods at our school? There was a swing there, and I always dragged you to go swinging while the couples next to us were busy making out like nobody was watching.”

Luo Mingzi reminisced with infinite nostalgia. “Being young was so great!”

Li Yue arched an eyebrow and glanced at Luo Mingzi’s face.

Wu Xuezhen, walking ahead, suddenly turned around with mock anger. “Hey! Who says we aren’t young anymore!”

Luo Mingzi burst into a playful grin. “Sister Xuezhen and Uncle Dajun are forever young and forever in love! You two should have a ‘muah’ when we get back today!”

Even a veteran of thirty years like Wu Xuezhen felt her face heat up at Luo Mingzi’s words. She rummaged through the grass, found a small stick, and pointed it at the shouting Luo Mingzi. “Come here! See if I don’t give you a smack! I’ve realized you’re far too lively today, you need a lesson!”

“No, no, blehh!” Luo Mingzi hid behind Li Yue, grabbing her. Li Yue instantly became a human shield, forced to sway back and forth as Luo moved.

“The young should express their love bravely!” Fearing the stick wouldn’t reach her, Luo Mingzi even puckered her lips and made loud “mwah mwah” kissing sounds at the air.

Wu Xuezhen ground her teeth. With a stroke of inspiration, she pointed the stick at the pretending not to exist Li Yue. “I can’t hit you, but I can hit your little girlfriend! Li Yue, take my sword!”

What did Big Li do to deserve this?

“Mercy,” Big Li said, feeling that she was also quite young and still had much to live for. The culprit, Luo Mingzi, caught Li Yue’s wrist and laughed. “You can’t catch us! Run!”

She dragged Li Yue along as she bolted.

Li Yue moved at a leisurely pace, waiting until Luo Mingzi running at “10 mph” was caught by the “90 mph” Swordswoman Wu Xuezhen. As an accomplice, Li Yue also received a tap from the stick.

“Waaaaah,” Luo Mingzi faked a cry. She snatched the stick from Wu Xuezhen, “angrily” snapped it in half, and spitefully tossed it into Li Yue’s basket.

When we get back, I’ll personally turn you to ash in the fire!

After the antics, Wu Xuezhen took off her hat to fan herself and smiled at Luo Mingzi. “That expression just now was so playful. You’ve got a lot of spirit.”

Li Yue’s eyes lowered as she looked at Luo Mingzi. Having run barely ten steps before being caught, Luo Mingzi was actually panting. Her mouth was slightly open, her face a mix of embarrassment and bewilderment.

“You have grass in your hair,” Li Yue said, reaching out to pluck it from Luo’s bangs. Luo Mingzi looked up, and their eyes met.

Li Yue’s lips curled into a smile, and Luo Mingzi followed suit. The hesitation on her face vanished instantly, her eyes lighting up. She grabbed Li Yue’s wrist and pointed ahead to Wu Xuezhen. “Sister, let’s take Li Yue to that little pavilion!”

“Sure. I’m tired too; teaching a naughty child takes a lot of energy. Sigh!” Wu Xuezhen rolled up her sleeves while letting out a long-suffering sigh.

Li Yue made a “please” gesture and said to Wu Xuezhen, “We’ll definitely be obedient from now on… Mom.”

Wu Xuezhen: “?” Wu Xuezhen: “???”

Confusion and bewilderment washed over her face, wearing a “Did I hear that right?” expression. At that moment, Li Yue grabbed Luo Mingzi’s hand and gave a light upward tug. Luo Mingzi jumped up, wrapping her arms around Li Yue’s neck and her legs around Li Yue’s waist.

“We’re heading off first, Mom!” Luo Mingzi laughed and shouted as she was carried forward by Li Yue.

Wu Xuezhen was so shocked she was speechless. She pointed at their retreating figures and gasped.

“You two stop right there!”

Luo Mingzi raised a hand, waving it in the air. “Listen to your mother, don’t let her get hurt~”

“Mom, don’t run so fast! Be careful not to get hurt!”

Eventually, Li Yue was the one to stop, setting the flailing Luo Mingzi down. Luo Mingzi looked like she wanted more, lingering as she patted Li Yue’s arm and massaged her shoulders.

Wu Xuezhen caught up, wiping away sweat. “How can you run so fast while carrying a whole person?” Was she really getting old?

Li Yue laughed. “It’s just that Teacher Luo is too light.”

Wu Xuezhen looked at Luo Mingzi’s thin arms and legs and nodded. “Too skinny indeed. Eat more tonight.”

Luo Mingzi leaned on Li Yue’s shoulder and said to Wu Xuezhen in a soft, syrupy voice, “Thank you, Mom. Mom is so~ good~ to me.” The “so good” was dragged out into a melodic trill. Li Yue suddenly covered Luo’s mouth with her hand and sighed.

If you keep talking, “Mom” won’t be feeling so good anymore.

Luo Mingzi’s eyes crinkled into a smile. She lifted her lashes and stole a quick glance at Li Yue. She paused, then spoke through the hand covering her mouth. “I won’t make Mom angry anymore.”

Wu Xuezhen nodded with satisfaction. “A child who admits their mistakes is still Mom’s good child.”

“Li-zai, let go of your younger sister.”

Li Yue and Luo Mingzi were the same age, but Li Yue was born two months earlier.

Sister.

The corner of Li Yue’s mouth twitched as she slowly withdrew her hand.

Luo Mingzi, who had been staring at her, flashed a radiant smile. She tilted her head and looked at Li Yue, her voice soft and sweet. “Thank you, Sister. You’re so good too, Sister.”

The “very good” sister didn’t say anything, only offering a faint smile.

But the hand she had dropped slowly clenched into a fist, her fingertips brushing against her palm.

There, a kiss remained.