Joining A Dating Show With Five Exes - Chapter 6

Chapter 6: Do You Want To Kiss Me Again?

Standing in front of a uniquely designed art museum on a beautiful, small island, the image that kept floating in front of Cheng Shiyuan was Xie Zhiqing’s grim expression half an hour ago when she heard Cheng Shiyuan was going on a date with Xia Ziran.

But what was worse was that—

The production team seemed to think the fun wasn’t big enough. Despite seeing Xie Zhiqing’s displeasure, they chose to ask her point-blank with a noisy megaphone if she wanted to participate in their date.

A staff member explained with a chuckle: “Since Teacher Cheng and Teacher Xia matched via the ‘Green Light’ for their date, other guests can also join in, for example, by choosing a special date location for them~”

It sounded as if, because they chose the “Green Light,” a color with very obvious emotional implications, other guests were being encouraged to relentlessly poach them.

Who came up with this morally bankrupt matching mechanism?

In any case, Xie Zhiqing couldn’t possibly have such a perverse cuckold fetish!

Then she saw the person who should have stood firmly by her side suddenly walk toward the small blackboard of available locations, seemingly “encouraged” by the production team.

Xie Zhiqing knew very well that the person Cheng Shiyuan wanted to date most when she pressed the green light was herself.

If she chose a date location that wasn’t suitable for long periods of time, this brief encounter wouldn’t change anything at all.

Reason told her this, but a more wicked voice sounded in her heart:

“If she comes back to you after dating Xia Ziran, is that enough?”

“You are truly magnanimous. There is no more tolerant ex in the world than you. You deserve to always be treated as a fallback and a spare tire. Haven’t you ever thought of cutting off all her other possibilities and becoming her only choice?”

Xie Zhiqing, who was usually rational enough to ignore such negative emotions, was possessed by an impulse at that moment and saw one of the date options:

Art Museum.

She knew very well that this was a landmine buried between Xia Ziran and Cheng Shiyuan.

She suddenly felt a strong desire to detonate this landmine herself today, cutting off any possibility of them rekindling their past.

So Cheng Shiyuan could only watch helplessly as Xie Zhiqing chose the most terrible location for them.

Thinking of the potential argument with Xia Ziran, looking at the life value above her head that was constantly dropping because she had left her only life-extender, and feeling the searing pain radiating from her internal organs—

Cheng Shiyuan even forgot the cameras were rolling and unconsciously returned to a bad habit she had quit long ago, raising her hand to bite her nails.

From a distance, Xia Ziran saw the familiar look of confusion on Cheng Shiyuan’s face.

She figured it out immediately: it must be that Xie Zhiqing, who was born an heiress and entitled to all good things, even when basking in the moonlight, still “hates the moon is high and doesn’t shine on me alone.”

Hence her many demanding rules for the moon.

While Xia Ziran only hated the moon for being high and not shining on her.

But it didn’t matter. She would just pluck this moon down and lock it in a room.

When it came to snatching things, she was very, very skilled.

However, as she approached her anchored prey, Xia Ziran didn’t miss the sight of the annoying “Art Museum” nearby.

“It hasn’t been that long. Your methods for attracting me have become even more unique?”

When Xia Ziran saw the “traffic light” device, she immediately deduced that its rules differed from actual traffic laws.

In traffic rules, green means safe. But in love, the more intense the color, the more it signifies being smitten.

Precisely because she had zero interest in these dates, Xia Ziran, upon finding the light, pressed Green just in case, signaling that she was not smitten with anyone.

Who knew the production team had set another trap here?

Two uninterested, un-smitten people could also trigger the date matching mechanism.

This accidental turn of events provided her with a chance.

Guessing that Cheng Shiyuan had likely pressed the Green light while Xie Zhiqing was present, and that this date location was probably chosen by her rival, Xie Zhiqing.

Xia Ziran smiled and rubbed salt into Cheng Shiyuan’s wound:

“Did you get tired of your old flame so quickly that you couldn’t wait to flash the green light in front of the wrong person?”

Hearing her mock the fact that she and Xie Zhiqing were ill-suited, no matter how many times they reconciled.

Cheng Shiyuan was, for once, unable to argue.

Even if she were to try and win back Xie Zhiqing, who was back at the villa, by the time the other woman was coaxed and rushed to the art museum, it would be too little, too late.

The countdown above her head wouldn’t allow her to leisurely finish the date and then return to extend her life.

She had to choose whether to take a bite out of the tough bone that was Xia Ziran.

Cheng Shiyuan tried to maintain her usual lighthearted demeanor and replied:

“I saw that Teacher Xia seemed very regretful that she couldn’t debut with me, and I’m a soft-hearted person, so I worried that Teacher Xia would be sad.”

“Fortunately, fate agrees that we have an affinity, and here we are meeting again so soon. Teacher Xia must feel very lucky, too, right?”

Hearing Cheng Shiyuan remind her that even though she was “abandoned” in the dark corridor, she now had another chance.

The smile at the corner of Xia Ziran’s lips deepened, and she moved closer to Cheng Shiyuan, as if being enticed into a state of being smitten.

“Of course, I feel very lucky.”

After saying this, the topic took an abrupt turn:

“Standing in a place like this makes me recall many things from the past. Like how my hopes for the future were completely ruined by some irrelevant person, forcing me to give up my favorite art major and live the life I despise the most—”

The smile on Cheng Shiyuan’s face froze.

She suddenly realized that Xia Ziran’s closeness wasn’t intimate; it was a giant python using its body length to measure whether it could fatally constrict its prey.

The shadow cast by her height completely enveloped Cheng Shiyuan.

Her words were like sharp fangs, biting into Cheng Shiyuan’s soft heart.

“If it were you, and your life was ruined by someone like that, would you feel lucky, too?”

Cheng Shiyuan was stunned, captured by the hatred in her eyes at this moment.

She recalled countless afternoons spent with Xia Ziran during their relationship. When she was tired from competition prep and woke up on her desk, she would always meet those eyes.

The deep, undisguised resentment had become a recurring nightmare that often woke her up in the middle of the night.

This unresolved, lingering hatred made Cheng Shiyuan’s heart sink.

She quickly made a decision.

“It turns out this art museum holds such unpleasant memories for Teacher Xia.”

“Then it seems our Green Light match-up really isn’t suitable. A forced melon isn’t sweet.”

As Cheng Shiyuan said this, she tried to step back, but Xia Ziran swiftly grabbed her wrist, refusing to let her escape:

“You won’t know if a forced melon is sweet until you taste it.”

“After all, a karmic debt is also a kind of bond, isn’t it?”

She’s truly insane.

Cheng Shiyuan didn’t want to get further entangled with her. The constantly dropping countdown above her head didn’t allow her to linger here either.

She used a skillful technique to break free from Xia Ziran’s grip.

Her familiar figure ran toward the familiar intersection.

For a moment.

Xia Ziran felt like she saw Xie Zhiqing again, standing across the road, calmly waiting for the bird to fly back to its old nest.

Given Xie Zhiqing’s pride and self-respect, she would never tolerate being teased repeatedly by Cheng Shiyuan on the show. Choosing the date location for them was a sign that her patience had run out.

Xia Ziran didn’t need to rush. If she waited patiently, she would eventually find this heartbroken little bird, tired from flying and even shivering from the storm outside.

This time, she would cut the bird’s wings, breaking them entirely.

“Beep-beep—!!”

But a truck suddenly turned the corner, blaring a jarring horn!

All of Xia Ziran’s thoughts vanished at that moment.

Before she knew it, she had yanked the person fiercely into her embrace with a strength she didn’t know she possessed. Even her arms, locked in the embrace, were unconsciously trembling.

Cheng Shiyuan, who had just narrowly escaped death, didn’t spare a moment to celebrate her survival. In that tight, suffocating embrace, she urgently tried to look up to see how many minutes were left on her life countdown.

As she looked up, Xia Ziran’s sharp jawline came into view.

And those sharp, yet life-extending, lips.

Cheng Shiyuan’s throat involuntarily bobbed.

She gently poked Xia Ziran with the only finger she could move. When the other person instinctively lowered her head.

Cheng Shiyuan didn’t miss the moment the venomous snake retracted its fangs—

She gently tilted her head and, succeeding in her attempt, kissed those lips.

[Successfully touched Life Extension Target ‘Xia Ziran,’ character unlocked! Friendly reminder, the life extension effect will disappear if the Host moves more than one meter away from the target!]

Her internal organs, which were radiating searing heat, were miraculously being cured by cold hatred.

Cheng Shiyuan narrowed her eyes and let out a comfortable sigh.

Then she noticed that Xia Ziran remained utterly motionless, watching her “accidentally” lean in for a kiss, even as the surrounding staff, shocked by the near-accident, rushed over. Xia Ziran still didn’t move.

But they had hugged for too long, so long that the tourists on the island, who were already curious about what show they were filming and had gathered for gossip, grew in number.

Cheng Shiyuan whispered a reminder: “I’m, I’m okay now…”

“Are you?”

To her surprise, Xia Ziran didn’t seem to be expressing fear over nearly losing her.

While complying with the production team’s request to temporarily accompany Cheng Shiyuan for a check-up, her voice was calm as ever, and her overly sharp phoenix eyes were full of pointed scrutiny.

She quietly mentioned: “You stared at my lips many times just now.”

Cheng Shiyuan’s heart, which had just relaxed, was suddenly clenched tight by that sentence.

She knew better than anyone how terrifying Xia Ziran’s observational skills were. If she found out about the life extension—

As if to confirm her ominous premonition, the other person watched her current complexion with contemplation.

“How strange. I initially thought you were unhappy because you saw me. But after that one kiss, you look completely refreshed, as if you’ve had a tonic?”

Xia Ziran slowed her speech, lowering her brows and eyes as she spoke, her gaze sweeping over Cheng Shiyuan inch by inch.

It gave Cheng Shiyuan a strong sense of unease, as if she were being scrutinized by a dark creature again.

Cheng Shiyuan choked, but dared not show any hint of her inner turmoil.

Just as she was about to try and change the subject, Xia Ziran suddenly smiled, revealing a meaningful look.

Then, the other person leaned in abruptly and asked in a voice only they could hear:

“So, you planned that little kiss for a long time, didn’t you?”

Her breath hitched for a second before Cheng Shiyuan managed to steady herself, feigning exasperation: “…I’m not sure about anything else, but you seem even more confident than before, Xia Ziran.”

She deliberately used a slightly provocative tone, attempting to confuse the issue.

But Xia Ziran seemed to see right through her clumsy facade.

“You’re lying.”

As if amused by the person’s dying struggle, Xia Ziran didn’t rush to announce the answer. Instead, she maintained the extremely close distance, looking at Cheng Shiyuan with a half-smile.

It wasn’t until the frantic bird could no longer hide its guilt, exposing a gaze of inescapable despair, that she lowered her head and whispered into the other person’s ear, like a lover’s sweet nothing.

“How pitiful, Cheng Shiyuan. Is the aesthetically pleasing but ultimately useless Xie Zhiqing not satisfying you, making you so desperate that you couldn’t resist sneaking a bite from the person you ‘dislike the most,’ even ignoring the cameras?”

“Tell me, if Xie Zhiqing saw us like this now, what expression would she have?”

As if thinking of an amusing joke, Xia Ziran couldn’t help but laugh softly.

She pulled back slightly, to the perfect distance for an intimate embrace and kiss if Cheng Shiyuan were to simply lift her face.

It was the unspoken chemistry they had developed during their past relationship.

Xia Ziran licked her lips, smiled, and handed the choice back to the little liar who liked to deceive herself.

“That little bit just now seems far from enough to satisfy you—”

“So, do you want to kiss me again?”