Chapter 121: I Do
After successfully teaming up with Ji Junxin during the second team selection, Jiang Lingling told Mi Hongdou about the Team Change Card. To quickly gather the 100 coins needed, they pooled their ten coins and gave them to Jiang Lingling, who was tasked with acquiring the card. After all, Jiang Lingling was more resourceful than Mi Hongdou, and Ji Junxin was more likely to agree to this plan than Bao Yueqiao.
Bao Yueqiao, although not very perceptive, was quite sensible. After the team change, she joined Mi Hongdou’s team with one coin and a crucian carp. For dinner, Mi Hongdou didn’t offer to cook the fish, and Bao Yueqiao, having just left their team, didn’t ask, so they both ate the provided rice and pickled cucumbers.
Since Jiang Lingling was responsible for earning the coins, Mi Hongdou wanted to complete more tasks and give Bao Yueqiao more coins when they switched teams. So, after dinner, she and Bao Yueqiao tried the chicken-feeding task, earning one coin.
Holding the single coin, Mi Hongdou regretted not exploring the village earlier. The chicken-feeding task could be repeated after the team change, she should have done it with Jiang Lingling earlier. But… she glanced at Bao Yueqiao, if I had known she would choose me, I would have nominated Ji Junxin first, without waiting for her!
Shortly after Jiang Lingling and Ji Junxin found the wood-chopping and laundry tasks, Mi Hongdou and Bao Yueqiao, on the other side of the village, also found a quantity-based task: helping an elderly man remove corn kernels.
Ten corn cobs for one coin.
Compared to the chicken-feeding task, limited to two times a day, this seemed more efficient. But the old man said he didn’t have any tools, they had to do it by hand. Mi Hongdou, wanting to earn more coins, checked the Supplies Board at the village entrance and found a corn cob stripper, described as “a helpful tool for removing corn kernels.” The price, however, was 100 coins.
100 coins! That’s 1,000 corn cobs! For 100 coins, we could just buy the Team Change Card.
Without tools, they had to rub two corn cobs together and remove the kernels by hand. Neither Mi Hongdou nor Bao Yueqiao was particularly strong. It took Mi Hongdou almost five minutes to finish one cob, and Bao Yueqiao was even slower. So, earning one coin would take them half an hour, and they would get slower as they got tired… The chicken-feeding task seemed much easier now!
After finishing one cob each, they gave up on earning a lot of coins from this task. But having already done a fifth of the work for one coin, they were reluctant to give up entirely. So, an hour later, they finally earned their one coin.
This task became more difficult as their hands got tired and sore. But it was ten cobs for one coin, they didn’t want their effort to be wasted. After an hour, they finally finished ten cobs. And the show announced that it was almost 9 PM, the end of daily tasks, so, their arms aching, they gave up and went back to their hut.
Mi Hongdou had been hopeful when they left for their task hunt. Now, returning with two coins, she felt dejected.
Putting aside the possibility that they had chosen the wrong tasks, Mi Hongdou realized that earning 100 coins for the card would be difficult. But Jiang Lingling should have earned more than five coins by now, Mi Hongdou thought, a glimmer of hope returning. She would clean up, then go check on them.
But just as she finished cleaning up, Ji Junxin came knocking.
“I need to talk to you.”
Ji Junxin’s serious expression made Mi Hongdou pause.
And then Jiang Lingling came and took the confused Bao Yueqiao away, which made Mi Hongdou even more uneasy.
She figured that either Ji Junxin didn’t agree with their team change plan, or she and Jiang Lingling hadn’t been successful with their tasks. Although neither was good news, she hoped it was the latter.
But when she asked Ji Junxin what was wrong, Ji Junxin… burst into tears…
Mi Hongdou’s mind went blank.
Tasks, Team Change Cards, reality shows, live streams, all forgotten in the face of Ji Junxin’s tears.
“Hey, don’t cry, don’t cry… what’s wrong? …” Mi Hongdou frantically searched for tissues, her hands patting her sides before she remembered that their uniforms didn’t have pockets.
Ji Junxin sobbed, tears streaming down her face. Mi Hongdou, heartbroken and anxious, unable to find any tissues, reached out and gently wiped her tears, her heart melting.
It was late September, the weather still warm, and Ji Junxin’s tears were warm against her hand.
Ji Junxin, who had initially cried because she was upset about almost missing the chance to be on the same team, now felt even more wronged under Mi Hongdou’s comforting touch.
Almost missing the Team Change Card was one thing, not being on the same team after two rounds of selection, the months of separation, Mi Hongdou’s lack of contact, her own unrequited feelings, it was all so frustrating!
Being pampered made you bold.
In Mi Hongdou’s arms, Ji Junxin’s tears turned into sobs as she buried her face in Mi Hongdou’s shoulder. Mi Hongdou instinctively held her close.
It was past nine, and the viewers still watching the live stream dropped their chicken feet and duck necks in shock. What was the name of that fan group again, Sweet Red Bean Soup? Were they still accepting new members? They suddenly felt the urge to ship them…
Mi Hongdou’s warmth and scent calmed Ji Junxin, bringing her back to her senses.
She knew she couldn’t hold back any longer. Since realizing her feelings, those words had been weighing on her heart like burning coals. While trying to maintain a pretense of friendship, they had been constantly scorching her. She had thought she could endure it, but after months of separation, she couldn’t. And today, both Jiang Lingling and Bao Yueqiao being on the same team as Mi Hongdou had filled her with jealousy. No longer enjoying the constant companionship they had during “Imperial Secrets,” she realized she couldn’t bear anyone else being closer to Mi Hongdou than she was. And as just a friend, she would never have that right.
Unable to endure any longer, Ji Junxin had made a decision. But she was still rational, with so many cameras watching, she had to… wait.
Ji Junxin, wiping her tears on Mi Hongdou’s shoulder, pulled away and held out her hands. “Two hours of washing clothes, twelve basins, only twelve coins…” she said, her voice slightly muffled. She needed an excuse for her outburst in front of the cameras.
Her hands, soaked for two hours, were wrinkled. And because she had scrubbed so hard, afraid of not being paid if the clothes weren’t clean enough, six of her ten fingers were raw and bleeding.
She presented her two wrinkled hands with six neatly applied band-aids.
Mi Hongdou felt a pang in her heart, as if it had been stabbed six times. Her own sore and reddened hands from removing corn kernels, they were nothing compared to this.
Mi Hongdou gently held Ji Junxin’s hands, wanting to examine them more closely, but Ji Junxin pulled them away. “My fingers hurt, that’s why I was crying, don’t laugh at me,” she said, embarrassed.
Although shocked, Mi Hongdou was still thinking clearly. Who would cry like that just because of sore fingers!
Ji Junxin’s fans, however, were saying that she hadn’t even cried when she injured her fingers before, and now she was crying at the sight of Mi Hongdou, it couldn’t just be because of her fingers… but whatever their goddess said, it must be true… And where could they join the Sweet Red Bean Soup group?
Mi Hongdou didn’t comment on Ji Junxin’s obvious lie.
Ji Junxin gently squeezed Mi Hongdou’s hand.
Mi Hongdou understood and forced a smile. “Of course not.”
She’s not earning any more coins! Mi Hongdou thought, determined to wash clothes herself tomorrow, even for a whole day, to get that Team Change Card!
“I have something to tell you,” Ji Junxin said, releasing Mi Hongdou’s hand.
Mi Hongdou, remembering Ji Junxin’s tears after saying those same words earlier, felt a surge of anxiety.
Ji Junxin opened her hand, revealing the small card.
“The Team Change Card?” Mi Hongdou, looking at the card, was stunned. “But you only earned twelve coins?”
“We fed the chickens, and Jiang Lingling chopped wood for two hours, seventy-seven coins.” Ji Junxin held out the card. “Do you want to be on my team?”
Mi Hongdou, as if struck by a sudden windfall, nodded vigorously. “I do.”
“Congratulations, you’re now teammates,” a staff member said, appearing off-screen. “Now you have to redistribute your team assets.”
The viewers, who had been watching Jiang Lingling chop wood and Ji Junxin wash clothes for two hours, were relieved, the two were finally together. Although they weren’t part of that strange “Sweet Red Bean Soup” group, they still felt a sense of satisfaction.
And that strange group was already busy making a short video.
The video showed Ji Junxin offering a ring: “Will you be with me?” Mi Hongdou nodded vigorously: “I do!” Subtitle: Congratulations, you’re now a couple.
Late that night, the slightly cheesy, but strangely addictive video spread online.
After acquiring the card, Ji Junxin and Jiang Lingling’s team was penniless. Mi Hongdou and Bao Yueqiao’s team had one coin on Bao Yueqiao, and two coins earned from their tasks.
They decided to give both coins to Bao Yueqiao for Jiang Lingling’s team. Ji Junxin also gave her fish to Jiang Lingling. Although this was a small token compared to Jiang Lingling’s seventy-seven coins, it was their way of showing their gratitude.
Jiang Lingling took Bao Yueqiao for a walk and subtly explained the team change. The little girl was stunned, a thousand questions in her mind. But with the cameras rolling, she didn’t dare to ask and just said that she was happy to be on Jiang Lingling’s team. This was actually true. She had thought Jiang Lingling, who could pull nails with her bare hands, was the strongest, and when she chose Mi Hongdou, it was to leave the strongest teammate for Ji Junxin. It seemed that being too considerate wasn’t always a good thing, Bao Yueqiao thought, slightly dejected.
To cheer her up, Jiang Lingling showed off her wood-chopping earnings, promising her good food.
But Jiang Lingling didn’t know that the show was discussing her having depleted their entire wood supply, it would be difficult to repeat that coin-earning strategy. After all, this was a multi-faceted reality show, if she just chopped wood for twelve days… it would be boring.
Having earned the card and appeased Bao Yueqiao, Jiang Lingling felt that she had earned her chicken and beef feast.
When she returned with Bao Yueqiao, Mi Hongdou and Ji Junxin explained their asset redistribution plan. Bao Yueqiao, seeing that they had given her the fish and all the coins, leaving nothing for themselves, protested.
Mi Hongdou and Ji Junxin insisted, and Jiang Lingling, after a moment of thought, accepted.
The money and the supplies weren’t much to Jiang Lingling, she could have given them all to Mi Hongdou’s team. She accepted because she understood that it was a gesture of goodwill from Mi Hongdou and Ji Junxin… a matchmaking gift? Haha.
So, Jiang Lingling and Bao Yueqiao, with three coins and a fish, moved into Ji Junxin’s old house. And Ji Junxin, with only her personal belongings, moved into Mi Hongdou’s.
The layout of the tiled houses was similar: a courtyard, a storage shed, a kitchen, and then the main house with a living room and two bedrooms on either side. The unique feature was the bathroom, connected to both bedrooms. When using the bathroom, you had to lock the door from the other bedroom, and remember to unlock it when leaving. This complicated design had been criticized earlier, why not one bathroom per bedroom?
The director had said, with enough coins, they could upgrade to a house with a private bathroom, or even a separate house with a courtyard. And if they didn’t like the tiled houses and didn’t have enough coins, they could always downgrade to a thatched hut, which had a single bathroom door!
Of course, it was a single door, a small, separate thatched hut shared by everyone!
So, the complaints about the bathroom design ceased.
During the house tour earlier, Mi Hongdou and Jiang Lingling, on the same team, had found the bathroom design troublesome. But now, with Ji Junxin as her teammate, Mi Hongdou found it… rather cute. Their bedrooms, although separated by the living room, were now connected by the bathroom.
After a long day, the houses cleaned, the daily tasks over, and no food for late-night snacks, it was… time for bed.
According to the rules, the cameramen would stop filming when the celebrities went to bed, and they could remove their microphones. Only the fixed cameras in the rooms would continue recording, but without sound, and without lights, it would just be darkness, no night vision.
So, after filming the team change and asset redistribution, the crew left. Because Ji Junxin’s hands were injured, they thoughtfully left a few band-aids. After helping Ji Junxin apply them, Mi Hongdou urged her to shower first.
As soon as Ji Junxin entered the bathroom, Mi Hongdou started changing the bedsheets. After several team changes, their team color was finally settled: Mi Hongdou’s original light green. The crew had left a new set of light green bedding for Ji Junxin, but since Ji Junxin had spent most of the afternoon cleaning and hadn’t had time to air out the bedding properly, Mi Hongdou swapped hers with Ji Junxin’s, giving her the one that had been in the sun longer, then made the bed for her.
Having lived with Ji Junxin for months, Mi Hongdou had become an expert at making her bed. Ji Junxin was a restless sleeper, so she had to create a… cocoon. Folding the blanket left, right, then tucking in the bottom, a perfect, draft-proof sleeping bag!
Mi Hongdou efficiently made the bed, then suddenly thought, wait, I’m being filmed.
But… looking at the neatly made bed, Ji Junxin’s comfort was more important.
Just as she returned to her own bedroom, about to put on her own bedsheets, she heard a scream from the bathroom, followed by the sound of her bedroom door being flung open.
Ji Junxin rushed out, and Mi Hongdou instinctively checked if she was dressed. Yes, fully clothed.
“There’s… there’s a cockroach!” Ji Junxin, her voice trembling, clung to Mi Hongdou’s sleeve. “Inside… in the bathroom…”
Cockroaches… I’m also afraid of cockroaches…
Mi Hongdou bravely entered the bathroom, and before she could even see the cockroach, the door slammed shut behind her.
That scared?
She turned around and saw that Ji Junxin had followed her in and closed the door.
“You…” Mi Hongdou was about to say, you could have waited outside.
Ji Junxin put a finger to her lips, silencing her, then quickly squatted down, grabbed a slipper, and started hitting the floor repeatedly.
Mi Hongdou could clearly see that she was hitting an empty spot… Where’s the cockroach?
“Don’t run! It’s there!” Ignoring Mi Hongdou’s confusion, Ji Junxin continued hitting the floor, squatting by the door. “It went that way, let’s look for it!”
Look for what? Mi Hongdou rubbed her eyes, she didn’t see anything… Could she have hit her head? Mi Hongdou, worried, asked, “Are you…”
Ji Junxin grabbed her hand and pulled her towards the center of the bathroom.
The bathroom, shared by both bedrooms, was quite spacious, with a toilet, a sink, and a separate shower stall. Ji Junxin pulled her to the shower stall and pushed her inside.
“Hey…” Mi Hongdou’s mind was filled with question marks.
Ji Junxin also squeezed into the shower stall and closed the glass door.
Although the bathroom was spacious, the shower stall, with two people inside, was cramped. Mi Hongdou instinctively took a step back, her back against the glass wall. They were now only a tissue box apart.
Using the cockroach as an excuse, having successfully trapped Mi Hongdou in the shower stall, Ji Junxin knew that time was limited, she had to act quickly.
Earlier, when she came in alone, she had already surveyed the area, planned her position, even rehearsed her lines, preparing for a dramatic confession, hoping to break through Mi Hongdou’s defenses and capture her heart.
She had it all planned out, but now, facing Mi Hongdou’s confused expression…
One wrong word, and it would be over, either a relationship or a return to awkward distance, the memories of their past and the hopes for their future intertwined, Ji Junxin suddenly felt afraid.
Her lips trembled, but no sound came out. Her eyes stung, and tears welled up.
“What… what’s wrong…” Mi Hongdou, even more flustered than when Ji Junxin had cried before, asked. This situation, this location, it was all too strange.
Ji Junxin turned her head away, dodging Mi Hongdou’s hand, which was reaching out to wipe her tears.
Time was running out, she couldn’t indulge in Mi Hongdou’s warmth, and she had lost her courage.
So, Mi Hongdou, tricked into the bathroom, then trapped in the shower stall, watched as Ji Junxin, tears streaming down her face, choked out the words, “I… I like you. Can you… try liking me too…”
Even Mi Hongdou, as clueless as she could be, wouldn’t mistake this “like” for friendship…
Being hit by a ton of falling pies from the sky… Mi Hongdou felt she could write a book about it.
The prepared, dramatic confession, lost amidst the tears, all that remained were the simplest, most heartfelt words.
Ji Junxin spoke, and Mi Hongdou, stunned, didn’t respond, didn’t nod, didn’t shake her head… Ji Junxin’s tears flowed faster.
“Can you…” Having said it, she had to know the answer.
Ji Junxin, looking so pitiful, her tears falling as she tugged at Mi Hongdou’s sleeve, “Can you…,” it was enough to melt Mi Hongdou’s heart.
“Yes, yes, yes…” Mi Hongdou nodded repeatedly.
Yes, yes, yes… I can give you anything, even my life!
Mi Hongdou, who had already planned to pursue Ji Junxin, also felt like crying.
Had she saved the Earth in her previous life?
Ji Junxin stopped crying, her eyes still teary. “What… what did you say?”
“No need to try, I’ve… always liked you…” Mi Hongdou said, her eyes red, gently wiping Ji Junxin’s tears. “Don’t cry.”
Always liked her? As a friend? Ji Junxin looked at Mi Hongdou, then slapped her hand away. “Idiot! You don’t understand! You don’t know what kind of ‘like’ I’m talking about!”
“I know!”
“You don’t!”
“I do…”
“You do, right!” Ji Junxin lunged forward, closing the distance between them, her lips crashing against Mi Hongdou’s.
Mi Hongdou didn’t resist, her arms catching Ji Junxin.
Ji Junxin’s lips were tightly pressed together, reflecting her inner turmoil.
The kiss was hard, yet… tempting…
Mi Hongdou held Ji Junxin close, their lips touching. Her heart pounding, she couldn’t help but gently lick Ji Junxin’s lips.
The body in her arms trembled slightly, and Ji Junxin’s tense lips softened.
Like an invitation…
A gentle tease, a deeper exploration, no resistance.
Their lips met, a long-awaited taste.
Unable to stop, wanting more.
A playful dance of tongues, a gentle give and take, until Ji Junxin melted against her, soft as a marshmallow.
Their breaths mingled, heavy and warm. Mi Hongdou reluctantly pulled away, her lips still lingering.
After a long moment, she finally spoke, her voice slightly hoarse, “Now… do you think I understand what kind of ‘like’ you mean?”
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