Join a Dating Reality Show with the Aloof, Fishing-Style Richest Man - Chapter 40.2

“Want me to teach you a way to never starve?” Lu Zhao’s tone was full of playfulness, her eyes narrowed in a happy smile. She looked like a little fox, or perhaps a silly, cute Shiba Inu.

Her voice was rippling with a hint of mischief. To Ji Zhaoxi’s ears, it sounded so alluring.

“What way?” Ji Zhaoxi cooperated.

Lu Zhao smiled even wider and led Ji Zhaoxi to a cluster of what looked like weeds. She squatted down and pulled Ji Zhaoxi down with her, pointing at the weed-like things. “Do you know what this is?”

Ji Zhaoxi looked down. The stalks were straight, and the leaves at the top were curled with a slightly fuzzy texture.

“Bracken fern,” Ji Zhaoxi said in a flat voice.

Lu Zhao, who had been ready to tease her, was stunned for a moment. Then her eyes widened in disbelief. “How do you know?!”

Ji Zhaoxi’s expression didn’t change much, but her eyebrows quirked up with a bit of pride.

“Didn’t you send me that ‘Encyclopedia of Wild Vegetables’ to read? I memorized it all.”

Lu Zhao: “…”

Her expression became complicated. “You memorized it all?”

“Mhm.”

“After all, you said it—if you don’t memorize them all, you’re not worthy of being a ‘love-brain.'”

“…”

Lu Zhao felt this trip was a waste. Her actual plan in suggesting they come here was to tease her with wild vegetables. Who would have thought she’d actually recognized all of them?!

Lu Zhao hadn’t even recognized them all herself; she had only done a quick crash course before bringing her up the mountain…

“Then you’re certainly dedicated…” Lu Zhao’s tone was complex. This person’s “love-brain” was probably beyond saving. To be worthy of the title, she actually studied an encyclopedia of wild vegetables.

Ji Zhaoxi raised an eyebrow, looking quite proud of herself.

Lu Zhao was deeply defeated. She never imagined Ji Zhaoxi’s preparation would be so thorough!

Sigh, no wonder she was a winner in life—she even memorized wild vegetables faster than anyone else.

Ji Zhaoxi pulled Lu Zhao up and went to another patch of grass, pointing at a cluster of low-growing plants with serrated edges. “Do you know what this vegetable is?”

Lu Zhao: “…Sorry, don’t recognize it.”

Ji Zhaoxi gave her a meaningful look. “You still have a lot to learn.”

Lu Zhao pouted and muttered quietly that she wasn’t a “love-brain” anyway.

— Hahahaha, are these two on the mountain just to learn about wild vegetables? — I’m literally dying of laughter. What’s the point of learning wild vegetables? Is it to build a foundation for your future as love-brains! — Wait, what did I just hear? President Ji knows ALL the wild vegetables! Are successful people really this free? Or is the Ji Group planning to expand into some new business? — Lu-bao! You’re failing! Even President Ji knows them and you don’t! — With President Ji like this, I think we can look forward to her future as a love-brain! (panting.jpg) — Suddenly I’m looking forward to it too…

Lu Zhao felt she had lost all face on this mountain!

She had thought that on the mountain, at least she would know more than Ji Zhaoxi. She didn’t expect to be completely crushed.

Seeing her looking like a wilted little fox, the laughter in Ji Zhaoxi’s eyes overflowed.

Ji Zhaoxi flicked the little fox’s forehead and said unhurriedly, “Next time you want to play a trick, make sure you’re tough enough before you try to strike the iron.”

Lu Zhao: “…”

She looked at her with resentment. Seeing her obviously self-satisfied expression—and hearing her speak with such sarcasm—Lu Zhao got angrier the more she looked.

“Darling, are you mocking me?” Lu Zhao said in a chilling tone.

“Mm-hm.” Ji Zhaoxi sounded like she was in a great mood.

“Rawr!”

Lu Zhao pounced like a hungry tiger!

“Hiss—”

Ji Zhaoxi let out a sharp breath but immediately stabilized her stance to prevent Lu Zhao from falling down with her.

Lu Zhao’s sudden move caught everyone off guard. Even the production crew members following them were dumbfounded by the scene, yet they didn’t dare step forward to separate them.

The position the two were in right now was… quite hard to describe…

When Lu Zhao lunged, she jumped directly onto Ji Zhaoxi, wrapping her legs around her waist and sinking her teeth into Ji Zhaoxi’s cheek, looking for all the world like a fuming, ruffled fox.

Ji Zhaoxi quickly supported her, leaning back against a tree to endure the ache in her waist. She felt a slight sting on her cheek, but the pain was accompanied by a warm, tingling itch…

Lu Zhao was biting her face, but since there wasn’t much flesh to grab onto, she was struggling. She mumbled incoherently, “Apologize to me!”

Ji Zhaoxi held her steadily, showing no signs of panic even while being bitten.

“I don’t know what I did wrong. Why do I need to apologize?”

“I don’t care!”

She was playing the rogue.

Regardless, Ji Zhaoxi had mocked her earlier, so she had to apologize! Lu Zhao didn’t care about “boss” titles right now; she clung to her sacrilegiously, essentially saying: I’m not coming down until you apologize!

The smile in Ji Zhaoxi’s eyes deepened. This bratty, stubborn look was so cute she almost wanted to reach out and ruffle her. She loved that Lu Zhao was being so bold and uninhibited with her, rather than placing herself in a position where she felt she had to please her.

Meanwhile, the livestream audience was losing their minds.

— Holy crap! What kind of foreplay is this! — They aren’t a couple yet? What more do they have to do to be a couple! — I’m telling you, they are locked in! Don’t even try to tell me otherwise! — Hahahaha, I knew President Ji was the top! The Ji-Gong faction wins! — Exactly! Look at Lu Zhao’s “bottom” energy right now. Where is the “top” behavior? President Ji is clearly the doting top!

However, those supporting Lu Zhao as the “top” were wearing masks of pain! They had told her to show some backbone—is this how she shows it?!

But a dedicated supporter never gives up!

— Who says being soft means you can’t be the top? Haven’t you heard of the “soft top/seductive bottom” trope? — Exactly! With Lu Bao’s stamina, she could flip President Ji over in a second! — Besides, if President Ji is this doting, why wouldn’t she be doting in bed too? If Lu Bao wants to top her, she’d just lie down dotingly! Aahhh!

Lu Zhao had no idea how much she was breaking her supporters’ hearts. She was stubbornly biting down, determined to make Ji Zhaoxi yield. Even if her demand was quite unreasonable, Lu Zhao didn’t care. She wanted it!

Leaning against the tree, Ji Zhaoxi found it a bit difficult to hold her up despite the support, especially with her existing backaches. To avoid dropping her, she finally gave in.

“I’m sorry. It’s all my fault. Please, Great Hero, forgive this lowly one just this once.”

Her voice softened, sounding infinitely indulgent. Lu Zhao actually felt a pang of regret the moment she heard the apology. That soft, gentle tone made her heart skip a beat, and a strange sensation began to bud in her chest.

Flustered, Lu Zhao lost her bravado. She let go of the poor cheek and jumped down. Once she was steady, she saw two neat rows of teeth marks on Ji Zhaoxi’s face.

“…”

What was I thinking? she wondered.

Ji Zhaoxi touched the bite mark, then naturally took out a tissue to wipe her face, casting a meaningful glance at Lu Zhao.

“Next time you bite, remember to wipe it clean for me afterward.”

“…” Lu Zhao wanted to sink into the ground.

The tooth marks on Ji Zhaoxi’s face were quite obvious as they walked back. Lu Zhao followed behind like a quiet little quail. The production crew watched as Ji Zhaoxi remained completely unfazed, despite the marks ruining her cold aesthetic. Oddly, it made her look uniquely cute.

Back at the courtyard, everyone watched as Ji Zhaoxi pulled Lu Zhao into the bedroom and forbade anyone from approaching…

Everyone: “???” That behavior leaves a lot to the imagination!

While the fans screamed, the two disappeared from the cameras. The director took a slow sip of tea and clicked his tongue. Young people these days. Can’t even wait a few minutes.

Inside, Lu Zhao thought she was in for a reckoning. But instead, a phone was shoved into her hand.

“Take pictures for me,” Ji Zhaoxi said succinctly.

Lu Zhao spent the next while acting as a professional photographer. Every shot of Ji Zhaoxi was beautiful. Once the teeth marks had mostly faded, Ji Zhaoxi called a stop.

“When you jumped on me earlier, you hurt my waist,” Ji Zhaoxi said while checking the photos.

Lu Zhao took the hint and immediately gave Ji Zhaoxi a diligent massage. During the massage, the cat, Tangyuan, jumped onto Ji Zhaoxi’s back to “knead dough.” Lu Zhao snapped a quick photo of this for her private album.

Shortly after, the internet exploded again. Ji Zhaoxi had posted a set of photos. In them, she looked elegant and cold holding the Ragdoll cat, but on her beautiful face, the faint red teeth marks were unmistakable.

Ji Zhaoxi’s Weibo usually only posted corporate PR. This was a rare personal post.

— Hahaha, is that the mark Lu Zhao left! — Every photo shows the mark so clearly. Can I assume she’s doing this on purpose? — President Ji! My Bao! Look at what you’ve done!

Ji Zhaoxi looked at the comments and used a secret “alt” account to like the comment saying she was doing it on purpose. However, she was annoyed that no one asked who took the photos. She switched back and forth between accounts to manipulate the discussion.

Ji Zhaoxi V: Lu Zhao took them.

The comment immediately shot to the top. The fans went wild.

The “Alt Account” Crisis

However, things took a turn when fans noticed something. The person who had asked the question (Ji Zhaoxi’s alt account) had the same IP address as Ji Zhaoxi. Furthermore, looking at the alt account, “Zhao-zhao’s Heart,” people realized it only followed Lu Zhao and only posted about her.

Suddenly, the realization hit: President Ji has a Lu Zhao stan account!

Just as the topic was about to trend, Ji Zhaoxi received a panicked call from her PR department. “President Ji! Your alt account has been exposed!”

Ji Zhaoxi froze. She looked at her history—it was full of fan posts about Lu Zhao. Her face tightened. She couldn’t admit it was her. She immediately messaged her assistant, Zhou Jiaoyan.

Zhou Jiaoyan: You caused the trouble, and I have to take the fall? Ji Zhaoxi: Three months of vacation. Zhou Jiaoyan: Not enough. Ji Zhaoxi: One year. And I’ll buy back your family’s ancestral home for you at the next auction. Zhou Jiaoyan: Deal.

Zhou Jiaoyan posted a cold, expressionless selfie from the alt account. The narrative shifted: Assistant Zhou was the hardcore Lu Zhao fan! The corporate water army moved in to support the story. President Ji doesn’t have time to be a fangirl! It was the assistant all along!

The storm subsided, but the “drama” was etched into netizen memory. When Lu Zhao found out, she was stunned. “Assistant Zhou is my fan?”

She remembered seeing Zhou Jiaoyan’s phone before. “Wait, doesn’t Assistant Zhou use a Huawei?”

Ji Zhaoxi didn’t blink. “She has two phones. She doesn’t take the other one out often.”

Lu Zhao nodded, seemingly convinced, while Ji Zhaoxi secretly breathed a sigh of relief, her ears flushing red at the close call.

If Lu Zhao ever found out that was actually her secret account, what would she think?

Would she think Ji Zhaoxi was a creep, or would she just treat her like an ordinary fan? Under the current circumstances, Ji Zhaoxi didn’t dare gamble on the answer.

“But how am I supposed to face Assistant Zhou now?!” Lu Zhao looked distressed. It would be fine if she didn’t know, but now that she did, she felt like their next meeting would be incredibly awkward.

Especially since they were currently filming the same dating show…

“Bao, do you think Assistant Zhou actually likes me? It doesn’t seem like it, though! Could her acting really be that good? Then again, who could have guessed she was a hardcore fangirl!”

Lu Zhao rambled on, her heart filled with worry.

If Zhou Jiaoyan really liked her, what would happen to her friend, Xu Miaomiao? They wouldn’t be on the same side anymore! Two best friends turning against each other over one woman? It just wasn’t worth it!

Ji Zhaoxi found the whole situation difficult to describe. She wanted to explain, but didn’t know how, so she ultimately remained silent. Her sense of guilt toward Zhou Jiaoyan deepened; she figured she could probably extend that vacation a little longer.

Zhou Jiaoyan might act like she didn’t care about the vacation right now, but Ji Zhaoxi had a premonition: once Zhou Jiaoyan and Xu Miaomiao got together, she would only complain that she didn’t have enough time off.

After all, as a popular actress, Xu Miaomiao’s schedule for commercials and events was likely booked through the year after next. She would be flying all over the country, and the only way Zhou Jiaoyan would get to see her was by taking leave to visit.

While they were busy worrying, a very serious problem had arisen elsewhere.

Xu Miaomiao was nearly exploding with rage after finding out about this!

Zhou Jiaoyan likes Lu Zhao?

Isn’t she supposed to like ME?!

How is this possible!

Aahhhhhh, I’m so mad!

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