Chapter Thirty-One: Zhou Ziheng's Unusual Behavior

Zhou Ziheng seemed to realize as well that he would be grouped with Yu Tang. The corners of his mouth couldn't help but lift in a smile. But as soon as he realized what he was thinking, his expression grew serious and he quickly suppressed the smile. He walked over to stand beside Yu Tang.

Casting his eyes down, he looked at her sitting on the sofa and cleared his throat softly. “It’s not that I want to be in a group with you—it just happened this way.”

Zhou Ziheng spoke in a low voice, but the microphone picked it up clearly.

[Don’t worry, everyone, if the sky falls, our Zhou will hold it up with his mouth.]
[The king of stubborn words.]
[Everyone’s talking about you, but I’m the only one who truly understands! A stubborn soul needs a lover who won’t be pushed away.]

The barrage of comments was lively, and Bai Yang watched with amusement.

Once Yu Tang’s group was set, the other groups soon followed. In the end, Lu Zhiming was paired with Xie Yi, Xiang Youran with Xiao Yufei, and Chen Cheng was left to team up with Shen Tianshi.

Shen Tianshi, disappointed at not being in Yu Tang’s group, was full of resentment. Even during the short walk from the room to the courtyard, he grumbled incessantly. He wanted to be paired with Yu Tang—if only he hadn’t taken so many gold coins from her earlier. Now he was thoroughly dejected, forgetting entirely how much he had disliked her when she first arrived.

[This is hilarious. Has this guy forgotten where he started?]
[So funny! If you can’t perform even with our Orange, maybe you should go home and farm.]
[But seriously, Yu Tang really has both luck and skill. It feels like she’s never lost, no matter who’s paired with her.]
[It’s all scripted anyway, why take it so seriously?]

All four groups stood at the starting line in the courtyard.

Yu Tang held the band in her hand and bent down to tie her leg to Zhou Ziheng’s. Meanwhile, she was still pondering the system’s task. What exactly counted as intimate contact? She hadn’t arrived at an answer when she suddenly felt a hand land on her shoulder.

Reflexively, Yu Tang almost threw her partner over her shoulder, but since she was crouched down, she simply punched Zhou Ziheng, sending him sprawling to the ground.

Zhou Ziheng landed hard on his backside. His crisp white shirt was now smeared with dust, and his gold-rimmed glasses had fallen to the ground. One hand bracing himself, the other rubbing his tailbone, he closed his eyes and gritted his teeth. “Yu Tang… what did I do to deserve this?”

He had just wanted to remind her not to tie it so tightly… what had he done wrong…

The commotion was loud enough that the other guests turned to look. Shen Tianshi laughed gleefully, wishing he could circle Zhou Ziheng and mock him.

A fleeting smile crossed Xie Yi’s eyes as well. Only Lu Zhiming pursed his lips in concern, looking as if he thought it must have hurt.

[I’m dying of laughter, Teacher Zhou is so pitiful hahaha!]
[Yu Tang: I don’t know, he just tripped on his own.]
[Why is Yu Tang like this? I would never bully someone like that—must be my upbringing.]
[Wow, that girl’s got some strength.]

Yu Tang, too, realized something was wrong and waved her hands awkwardly, at a loss for what to do. “I… I’ll help you up.”

The moment she said it, she reached out, but her feet slipped, and she tumbled right onto Zhou Ziheng again.

Yet Zhou Ziheng had to admit, as Yu Tang fell on top of him, before the pain even registered, the first thing he noticed was the scent coming from her—yes, the fragrance of laundry detergent.

When the scent faded, all that was left was the sharp ache in his internal organs from being crushed.

“You—”

Startled, Yu Tang scrambled off him. Realizing the cameras were on her, she frantically searched for one. “It’s not my fault, the ground’s just too slippery, please don’t cyberbully me!!”

She was so flustered she nearly broke into a full set of mantis fist moves on the spot.

[Yu Tang, humble wage slave hahaha!]
[This is priceless, Yu Tang is losing her mind.]
[Zhou Ziheng is truly suffering.]

Just as the farce threatened to spiral out of control, Bai Yang, stifling laughter, stepped forward. He looked at Zhou Ziheng with concern. “Teacher Zhou, are you able to continue? If so, we need to proceed with the game.”

The implication was clear. Zhou Ziheng could hardly pretend not to understand. Gritting his teeth, he got to his feet. “I’m fine.”

He held out his hand to Yu Tang, who, having learned her lesson, obediently reached out to help him up. Zhou Ziheng’s hand was burning hot, while Yu Tang’s fingers were cool to the touch. The contrast was brief, their hands meeting and parting almost instantly.

Why so fleeting? Because Shen Tianshi couldn’t stand it any longer.

“You fell, so what? You’re a grown man, can’t you get up on your own? Why do you need someone to pull you up? Should I do it for you?!”

With that, Shen Tianshi yanked Yu Tang aside and used his own warm, sweaty hand to pull Zhou Ziheng to his feet. Feeling the sweat on Shen Tianshi’s hand, Zhou Ziheng immediately withdrew his own and wiped it on his clothes with distaste.

Yu Tang, meanwhile, still held out her hand, frozen.

Because at that very moment, when their hands had touched, a voice from the system sounded in her mind.

[Since you managed to get Zhou Ziheng to initiate intimate contact, it seems he has forgiven you for your past actions. Your progress toward redemption will be greatly increased.]
[Congratulations, you have overachieved on this task.]
[Reward issued: luxury brand endorsement.]

At these words, Yu Tang’s eyes instantly lit up. A luxury endorsement! She remembered how, in her last life, after years of struggling and barely clawing her way into the second tier, she had only just managed to land a top luxury endorsement.

Though she had been a film queen and never lacked for resources, she never forgot her humble beginnings. She would always remember the joy of being cast as a female lead for the first time, and the pain of being cyberbullied until she couldn’t eat.

“Yu Tang!”

“What are you thinking about?”

The other three groups had already finished tying their legs, but Yu Tang was still standing there. Xiao Yufei couldn’t help but call out to her.

Yu Tang came back to herself and crouched down at once. “Oh, right.”

After tying the rope, she and Zhou Ziheng were even closer than before.

Having experienced so much in her previous life, Yu Tang was immune to such tricks and didn’t lose her composure. Zhou Ziheng, on the other hand, though an actor, was visibly blushing.

Xiang Youran noticed, her eyes flickering. Although this segment hadn’t existed in the previous life, if she remembered correctly, Zhou Ziheng had once deeply resented Yu Tang because he believed the resources she gave him were merely leftovers from others. He should have detested her. Yet now, he showed no sign of that hate at all…

[Is Teacher Zhou actually shy?]
[No way—after all those roles, is Zhou Ziheng still this easily embarrassed?]
[Oh dear, he’s truly pure-hearted.]
[Yu Tang, cool as ever, not a flicker of emotion.]
[In just two days of variety filming, Yu Tang’s already teamed up with four different men. She’s really living the life—I’d do two episodes just for that!]