Chapter 75: How Dare He?

"Xu Junze, have you made up your mind? Please make your choice."

Prompted by the production crew, Xu Junze's face showed clear hesitation.

"Could I have a little more time?" he asked.

"Of course. When you're ready, just say her name."

Xu Junze nodded slightly and paced back and forth twice.

The viewers in the live stream chat were filled with curiosity—

[Is it really that hard to choose?]

[Can't he just pick whoever he wants?]

[Is he thinking about choosing Ye Fangfei? But Zhang Chen just hinted not to pick his girl.]

[No way, right? That would be intense.]

...

Zhang Chen couldn't figure out what Xu Junze was dithering about. For a grown man, he was acting far too indecisive.

Yet a faint sense of foreboding prickled at Zhang Chen—could that punk really be about to choose his girl?

The thought made him frown, and he shot a warning look at Xu Junze, who kept his eyes glued to the floor, refusing to meet anyone’s gaze.

The air in the study grew inexplicably tense.

After a minute or two, Xu Junze suddenly looked up, an expression of resolve on his face.

"I'll pick Yaoyao," he declared.

No sooner had the words left his mouth than Zhang Chen exhaled in relief, while Chu Yao looked utterly stunned.

What? That makes no sense...

He’d acted completely over her in front of her, and it had seemed obvious he was now interested in other girls.

The eyes never lie—she could tell.

So why pick her now? What was he after? Was he just playing a character for the cameras, indulging his professional instincts?

"Chu Yao, you have one right of refusal. Will you agree to travel with Xu Junze tomorrow?"

The staff member now handed the decision to Chu Yao.

She glanced at Xu Junze, gritted her teeth, and answered, "Thank you for choosing me, but I'm sorry—I have to decline!"

The others at the scene all raised their brows in surprise.

Well now, someone actually turned him down?

The chat was now flooded with "666."

People began speculating that Xu Junze had hesitated so much because he guessed Chu Yao would reject him, so he was torn about whether to go through with it and get his heart stomped on anyway...

[He knew this would happen, and he still picked her! I'm crying.]

[Sigh, I don't get why Chu Yao is so ruthless.]

...

A short silence fell.

Xu Junze's expression froze for a moment, and he managed an awkward smile. "Alright then."

"Please make your second choice," the staff continued.

Xu Junze pressed his lips together in a faint smile, his gaze shifting over the three remaining ladies, finally landing on Li Jiayan.

Li Jiayan's heart skipped a beat, and she began chanting in her mind, Please don't pick me...

But Xu Junze's gaze didn't linger on her. Instead, he turned to Lu Zhou.

"May I choose Jiayan?" he asked with a smile.

Lu Zhou looked utterly baffled.

What kind of move was this?

"Who you pick is your own business, why ask me?" Lu Zhou frowned.

"I just thought, if you were particularly bothered by it..." Xu Junze explained.

"There's no need," Lu Zhou replied, his lips twitching. "Are you going to ask every ex whether they mind before you pick someone?"

Zhang Chen, hearing this, quipped with a lazy smile, "I can answer in advance: I do mind."

Ye Fangfei: "..."

Suddenly, everyone burst out laughing.

"Xu Junze, please make your choice!" the staff prompted again.

Xu Junze nodded, having made up his mind. "Then I'll pick Jiayan!"

Li Jiayan wanted to say, "Could you not pick me? I want to be with Lu Zhou," but she realized that would be far too blatant, leaving her open to embarrassment, so she swallowed her words.

Meanwhile, fans of the Lu Zhou and Li Jiayan pairing in the chat began to grumble.

"Now it's Lu Zhou's turn. Who do you choose?" the staff inquired.

Hearing his name, Lu Zhou turned to look at the three women left unchosen.

Standing beside him, Zhang Chen glared at Lu Zhou with a predatory intensity.

The pressure was palpable; Lu Zhou couldn't possibly ignore it.

Everyone watched him closely, eager to see what choice he'd make. Since joining the show, Lu Zhou had kept a certain distance, and no one could guess what he really felt.

His interactions with his ex before the trip, and their seamless teamwork during the recent game, had led many to believe his first choice would be Li Jiayan.

But when Xu Junze asked whether he minded, Lu Zhou hadn't answered, and now Li Jiayan had already been picked.

Zhang Chen had already repeatedly warned others to stay away from Ye Fangfei.

So who would he choose? Chu Yao or Qi Jiajia?

Likewise, Chu Yao and Qi Jiajia both felt their chances of being chosen had just gone up.

While everyone silently guessed the outcome, Lu Zhou spoke.

"Fangfei."

He slowly uttered the name.

Ye Fangfei, hearing her name, raised her brows in surprise and looked up.

Beside her, Zhang Chen’s eyes widened in disbelief as he stared at Lu Zhou. Outrageous! He’d already warned him twice! And Lu Zhou still picked Ye Fangfei?!

It was a provocation. A blatant provocation!

Zhang Chen felt a fire blazing in his chest.

Everyone else was equally shocked, including the show’s director.

This was like a bug, exploding in a show whose direction everyone thought was already set.

So, did Lu Zhou have ambitions for Ye Fangfei?

Incredible.

The chat was now exploding—

[666]

[So bold! Respect for you, man.]

[Is this scripted?]

[I'm fired up watching this.]

...

The air in the study seemed to have been compressed for ages, until finally, the staff cleared their throat and broke the silence.

"Um... Third place... Zhang Chen, it's your turn. Who do you choose?"

Choose?

Ha!

Like he had a choice!

Zhang Chen let out a bitter laugh and, after a long moment, finally turned to look at Chu Yao and Qi Jiajia.

His mind was still far from calm. The moment he looked at Chu Yao, a thought flashed through his mind:

If she hadn't rejected Xu Junze at the start, Xu Junze wouldn't have picked Li Jiayan; if Li Jiayan hadn't been chosen, Lu Zhou might not have picked Ye Fangfei.

Tracing the sequence, Zhang Chen suddenly realized that Chu Yao had a hand in Ye Fangfei being picked away.

So, his decision was made.

"Qi Jiajia," Zhang Chen announced, his face dark.

Qi Jiajia, hearing her full name called, felt like she’d been swept up by a whirlwind.

Zhang Chen picked her? That was unexpected...

Meanwhile, Chu Yao’s expression darkened.

From rejecting someone first, to being left unchosen now—the whole scene felt painfully ironic.

She hadn't foreseen this outcome.

Everything seemed to have gone off the rails.

But she’d have to accept it.

Fine then, Wen Yiming it is.

Wen Yiming himself was pleasantly surprised by Zhang Chen’s choice—he’d already mentally prepared to pair up with Qi Jiajia, but fate had other plans.

Turns out, coming in last in the game wasn’t such bad luck after all.

In that moment, some were delighted while others were left crestfallen.

Tonight’s travel partner selection game had come to an end; whatever awaited them tomorrow would be revealed then.

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