The girl group next door also had two members randomly picked, and they were still wildly guessing while holding hands.
“Is it Xiao Yu? Cici? No, no, wrong, Ah Wan?”
The audience couldn’t help but laugh at their blind guesses, thinking the showrunners really knew how to play.
On this side, as soon as Long Jia and Bo Jue spoke out, the host almost couldn’t hide his surprise.
“Sure? No changing your answer?”
They held hands with one hand and shook their heads at the same time.
The score for team Crown jumped by fifty points.
When Huo Ren and the others took off their blindfolds and headphones, their first reaction was to look for who had been randomly chosen.
Then they were collectively petrified.
This time—it was for real—
The host didn’t tell them if they guessed right, but continued with the next question: “After an argument, who usually apologizes first?”
“Long Jia.”
“Me.”
“Who likes to be the center of attention and interaction more?”
“Long Jia.”
“Me.”
“Who prefers to express feelings through physical touch?”
Long Jia lowered his gaze with a faint smile, taking a moment before speaking.
“Bo Jue.”
Bo Jue bit his lip, not wanting to answer, but finally spoke softly when the host seemed to urge, saying it was himself.
The girl group next door took ages to guess the person behind the partition, with almost all seven members cued in turn, not sure if they truly couldn’t guess or were trying to grab more screen time for exposure.
On Corona’s side, the speed and accuracy of their answers were astonishing.
More fascinating was not just the tacit understanding between the two but the synchronization of their body language despite the wall between them.
When Bo Jue frowned, Long Jia would slightly tilt his head towards him, as if he knew he was troubled by the question.
When Long Jia crossed his legs, Bo Jue also relaxed in the same posture, his lips curving into a smile.
As the questions delved deeper, the final one was even more suggestive.
“Should you become a couple,” the host hadn’t finished speaking when the audience already began to holler and scream, forcing him to pause for a few seconds until the hall quieted down to continue: “Would you prefer love at first sight or love that grows over time?”
Bo Jue paused for a few seconds, once again turning his head towards the blank partition.
And so did Long Jia.
—They gazed at each other through the wall for a long time.
“Both are good,” Bo Jue said softly: “There’s no difference.”
Long Jia, while answering, still turned his head towards the person opposite.
As if he could see his profile, his eyes, and lips.
“I wish for both.” Long Jia slowly said: “Teacher Bo… is a very good person.”
The best person in my heart.
Both the audience below the stage and the other guests were utterly confused.
Confused, yet the sugar rush was somewhat exhilarating.
They had always known about the previous “It’s love, after all” comments and always thought these two were just commercially exploiting the idea, simply acting.
But to act to this extent?
Are they sure acting can strike directly to the heart like this??
Even real-life couples might not have such understanding, right???
“So— it’s time to reveal the answer!” Xiao Xiao hurried over to help them open the mechanism, and the soundproof partition was withdrawn, revealing the person opposite.
Bo Jue sighed with relief: “I knew it was you.”
Long Jia smiled without saying anything, first glanced at the full score on the scoreboard, then casually smoothed his hair.
They got it all right.
He really wanted to reward him with a kiss, right now.
The six of them returned to the lineup, continuing to interact with the audience as per the flow, smiling as they presented exclusive gifts to the fans.
The Valentine’s Day atmosphere was well-enhanced by heart-shaped balloons, and a lucky audience member came on stage to read them love poems.
Long Jia always stood on the far right of the lineup, with Bo Jue always on the far left.
They gracefully hugged the fans, thanking them for their support over the years, wishing everyone a happy Valentine’s Day.
After the game ended, their gazes no longer met.
At the end of the recording, the production team also gifted everyone a customized gift box, containing a scarf, perfume, headphones, and an umbrella.
Long Jia opened the umbrella in the dressing room, discovering it was painted with all six of them, each with a radiant smile.
“Teacher Bo—” he called out: “Come in and see, there’s also an illustration inside the umbrella, it’s beautifully drawn.”
Bo Jue, hearing him, ducked under the umbrella, not yet clear where he was depicted, when he was suddenly kissed on the lips.
Soft and fiery, like a heart full of love.
They kissed deeply under the umbrella in the dressing room, hiding from everything as if indulging a long-restrained instinct.
Xie Lianyun dragged Mei Shengyao, who was intently watching the kiss, out.
“What are you meddling in, come help me remove my foundation.”
“But—”
“Are you a pig, Mei Shengyao?”
The kiss lasted only a dozen seconds, intense, swift, and bold.
Bo Jue almost pushed him away at the same moment it ended, his cheeks burning and his expression panicked.
Long Jia instinctively wanted to apologize.
“We can’t go on like this anymore.” Bo Jue spoke first: “Long Jia, let’s end this.”
The young man’s expression changed slightly, standing there unsure how to respond.
Bo Jue took the umbrella from Long Jia’s hands, bowed his head to close the opened barrier, smoothing out the folds on the surface, and carefully folded it back.
“I like you.” His voice was so light it seemed he was only mouthing the words.
“But we need to end this.”
Ren Ren has been too busy, Chi Chi is still ill, and Xie Lianyun has been subtly adjusting the atmosphere in the group, helping everyone share the pressure.
They couldn’t continue being so selfish.
“Is it because of this kiss?” Long Jia asked.
“No, I’m happy, and the recording was enjoyable.”
Bo Jue looked up at him, afraid of hurting him, and repeated himself in a flustered manner.
“I really… like you, for a very long time.”
Long Jia stood still, looking at him for a long time.
“It’s not just because of today, right?”
Bo Jue silently shook his head, holding back tears without further explanation.
We cannot become a weakness for Crown.
Nor can we become the storm itself.
“What about later?” Long Jia asked again: “Now, the future, all cut off?”
“At least for now,” Bo Jue whispered back: “Right now, I just want to focus on taking care of Huo Huo, staying with Xiao Chi until he gets better.”
The young man raised his hand, wanting to touch his lover’s cheek again, but ultimately withdrew it.
“I promise you.”
“Take good care of yourself from now on.”
Then he quickly turned and left the dressing room, without looking back.
Huo Ren had just changed and came out when he saw Long Jia walking quickly, lips pursed, mood off.
“Long-ge?” he instinctively said: “Where are you going, Long-ge?”
Long Jia paused for a few seconds, then continued to walk briskly forward with one arm around Huo Ren, as if wanting to leave this place at this moment.
“I’m going to borrow a car, go for a drive.”
“I’ll come with you.” Huo Ren frowned: “Something happened?”
Long Jia took a deep breath, nodding slightly.
He borrowed a Maybach from Uncle Wang and drove with Huo Ren out of the city to the north, aimlessly speeding away.
“I should have a cigarette at a time like this,” Long Jia said, steering and glancing to see if any paparazzi were following.
“But I’ve quit for several years, it wouldn’t be good to start again.”
His heart suddenly felt disconnected, the restlessness making even breathing seem superfluous.
Thoughts fragmented like a suddenly crumbling iceberg.
Huo Ren sat in the passenger seat, holding the safety belt, and after a while, lowered his voice: “What happened between you and Bo-ge?”
“We broke up.”
Long Jia, with one hand on the steering wheel, drove the car off the elevated road towards another city area.
“He said it should end, and I agreed.”
Huo Ren had never imagined such a thing.
He always thought these two brothers would always be together, year after year until marriage, and then Yun-ge would disdainfully be their best man alongside him.
He had never considered the option of breaking up.
“Is it because of us?” Huo Ren spoke urgently, one hand on the steering wheel, instinctively wanting him to go back and talk to Bo Jue: “You don’t have to worry so much, as long as—”
“The situation is too special now, and if Bo Jue and I were a couple, sooner or later more details would become risk factors.” Long Jia was explaining everything rationally, speaking so fast without pause: “Xiao Bo is already trying hard to endure and stay correct, he did nothing wrong, this relationship shouldn’t exist now.”
Huo Ren made sure both their seat belts were fastened, tersely said: “Long-ge, if you’re feeling bad, it’s okay to go for a drive…”
Long Jia briefly withdrew from his thoughts, reducing the car’s speed to half, and shook his head unconsciously.
“You say Xiao Bo,” the young man gripped the steering wheel, pressing down his emotions: “How could he not want me.”
“I agreed to the breakup, but—”
How could he not want me.
Huo Ren understood that Long Jia’s mind was in chaos at this moment, with his rationality and emotions both throwing him into disarray.
He turned to pat the elder brother’s shoulder, offering a comforting hug.
“I’ll still see him after I go back to the dorm, I have to see him every day,” Long Jia forced himself to take a deep breath: “He’s still so close yet so far from me…”
“Do you want to move out?”
“Absolutely not, I have to see him,” Long Jia shook his head again: “If we can’t be in a relationship, at least let me see if he’s doing well, if he’s smiling every day.”
Huo Ren didn’t know whom to comfort first.
He quickly sent a message to Xie Lianyun and Yao Yao, asking them to keep Bo Jue company for a while.
Xie Lianyun replied with a string of question marks and exclamation points, baffled, before agreeing.
The Maybach eventually stopped in front of a tattoo parlor.
“This is my friend’s shop.” Long Jia glanced at the sign and finally unbuckled his seatbelt.
“Ren Ren, if you want to go back first—”
“I’ll stay with you.”
“Okay,” Long Jia mussed his hair: “Okay, you stay with me.”
The owner, surnamed Shen, had a burly and formidable appearance, looking like he might have been special forces.
Huo Ren thought his brother was a bit too impulsive, whether in love or not, and whispered: “Bro, a tattoo is for life.”
“You better think it through.”
He was terrified of pain, and the sight of the long row of disposable needles made him want to back away.
As a child, getting injections was so painful it brought him to tears; the idea of having color inked into his skin was akin to torture.
“Little Long Long?” The burly man had just finished up and was wiping his hands with a hot towel: “What brings you here today?”
“I’m here for a tattoo.”
“You’ve gone mad.” The owner looked at him with pity: “For sashimi, go to the Japanese restaurant diagonally across. Their wasabi is very strong, remember to ask for more soy sauce.”
“Let’s go back, bro,” Huo Ren tried to steer his brother away from the ‘execution ground’: “What if you guys get back together? Don’t be impulsive.”
“I don’t care what happens later.” Long Jia’s gaze was resolute as he began to unbutton his shirt, his neck slender and beautiful.
“Old Shen, tattoo a black swan on my chest.”
“I want it with me for life.”
Oh no