Chapter 41: What Is Your Choice?

“You sing very well. Now that you’ve terminated your contract with your previous company, I assume you haven’t signed with a new one yet?” As they approached the Pink Cottage, Xu Junze suddenly asked Lu Zhou.

“No, I haven’t.”

“At Starlink, we’ve recently signed a few singers who are doing pretty well in the influencer world. Would you be interested in working with us? Maybe try out the influencer path?” Xu Junze put on a serious face.

Lu Zhou paused slightly at his words, turned to look at Xu Junze, and smiled. “Thank you, Jun, for thinking of me. I don’t have any plans to sign with a company at the moment, but if I consider it in the future, I’ll reach out to you.”

Of course, Xu Junze could tell Lu Zhou was being tactful. It was obvious he wasn’t willing to switch industries just yet—and who could blame him? He’d once been signed to Jinhua Entertainment, and now, fresh off a contract termination, his pride was still high.

But just wait—after he’s taken a few more hard knocks in showbiz, he’ll realize, ah, maybe it’s better to play the influencer game after all!

Xu Junze chuckled, patted his arm, and said, “Alright then.”

The two returned to the villa. Xu Junze’s PD stopped him, asking for an interview.

The producers were probably about to rub salt in Xu Junze’s wounds again. Lu Zhou felt an inexplicable sympathy and waved with a smile, “Go on—hang in there.”

In the interview room, before the camera.

Staff: “You and Chu Yao were both crying during your conversation just now. It’s clear you once had deep feelings for each other. Can you tell us what exactly caused your breakup?”

Xu Junze was silent for a long moment before finally speaking. “Work disagreements and being overly rational put a strain on our relationship.” He kept it vague, not intending to elaborate.

Staff: “You want to get back together with her. Are you confident the same issues won’t arise between you two again?”

Xu Junze: “I’m confident. But she… maybe she doesn’t have faith in me. She can’t get past what happened before. That’s just her character—she takes things too seriously.”

Staff: “After talking to her today, do you have any new thoughts?”

Xu Junze: “My mind’s pretty blank right now. I can’t accept this reality yet. Don’t ask me about it anymore.”

…

If you asked whether Xu Junze loved Chu Yao, the answer would be yes.

But this time, coming on the show and wanting so badly to reconcile wasn’t entirely about love.

Xu Junze had built his MCN business from scratch, making many influencers popular. But what really put his company on the map was Chu Yao.

If you looked at the influencer rankings, Chu Yao was undoubtedly number one—her influence had even spread overseas.

His company’s reputation soared thanks to her name.

Back when Chu Yao wasn’t that famous, he’d approached her, started as friends, gave her a lot of support without asking for anything in return, and eventually they became a couple.

After they got together, Chu Yao agreed to sign with his MCN agency.

They were both lovers and business partners.

At first, things went well—they shared the hardships and grew their business together. But as their careers rose, conflicts of interest gradually emerged.

During their meteoric rise, Xu Junze admittedly got a little carried away. He wasn’t satisfied with just a simple partnership with Chu Yao—he made a foolish move, trying to make the “Chu Yao” brand solely owned by the company.

He wanted to control her completely.

This idea, in the end, infuriated Chu Yao.

When love clashed with business interests, love lost.

Chu Yao was not the type to be blinded by love. When facing enormous interests, she became clear-headed and started to question whether the man beside her was truly worthy of her trust.

The landmine was planted, and with every new conflict, it would explode again, until finally, the two broke up for good.

Not only did they separate, but after the contract expired, Chu Yao left Starlink and refused to work with them again.

After her departure, Xu Junze’s career never regained its former glory.

He regretted letting greed get the better of him, pushing too hard for quick gains and driving them to where they were now. That’s why he wanted to do anything, as long as there was a sliver of hope of winning her back.

That’s why he signed up for this show.

But after arriving, he realized she wasn’t giving him another chance—and had set her sights on someone else.

Was it worth fighting for any longer?

He thought, perhaps it was time to bid the past farewell.

…

At 7 p.m., back at the Pink Cottage, everyone had returned except for Ye Fangfei.

Before dinner, Qi Jiajia seized the chance to secretly pass a gift to Zhang Chen.

“This is for you. Sorry about this morning—I was rude.”

Because of the coffee mishap earlier, Qi Jiajia felt a little awkward around Zhang Chen now.

So it was a gift to make up for it, but Zhang Chen wished she wouldn’t bring up the morning incident at all.

“It’s nothing, don’t worry about it,” Zhang Chen said, not taking the gift.

“Then… would you please accept it?” Qi Jiajia insisted, blushing.

He had no choice but to take it, glancing at the gift bag. “What is it?”

“A game figurine,” Qi Jiajia said, relieved when he accepted it. “I saw your phone case has this character, so I thought you might like it.”

It was a thoughtful gift.

Zhang Chen hadn’t realized Qi Jiajia paid such close attention to him.

“Thank you—I really do like it.”

Tonight, only seven people sat down to dinner together.

The show’s producers announced that Ye Fangfei would miss tonight’s meal due to work commitments.

During the meal, the producers handed out a new task.

The usual text message segment came early this time.

[The second date is about to begin, and this time it’s a designated date.

Female guests may each choose one male guest, except for their ex, for tomorrow’s date.

Each male guest may accept a maximum of two dates. If more than two women invite the same man, he must choose one woman to decline. The woman who is declined may then select another male guest for her date.

Female guests, please send the name of your chosen male guest to this number within thirty minutes.

This date must be kept secret—do not reveal your choice to anyone else.]

After reading the task notice, the male guests, who were at the mercy of others’ choices, exchanged silent smiles, while the female guests, now holding the power, began to mutter in distress.

“Ah, how am I supposed to choose…”

“I hate making these kinds of decisions!”

“Only half an hour to decide?”

…

Lu Zhou ate quietly, watching their reactions.

Was it really that hard to choose? He suddenly wondered.

He thought, maybe the women were saying this deliberately, so the less popular guys wouldn’t lose face.

Yes, the less popular guy—he meant himself…

Sure enough, before half an hour was up, the women had sent in the names of their chosen dates.

And soon after, the men’s phones began to ring, one after another.