Chapter 47: An Unexpected Confession

Xu Zhaozhao continued to drive the vehicle at a brisk pace.

Within a few minutes, they arrived back at Ancient Tree Village.

As usual, she parked the car right next to the ancient tree.

Stepping out of the vehicle, Xu Zhaozhao raised a hand to shade her eyes and looked out toward the distant fields, where she spotted quite a few villagers still hard at work.

The arrival of the production crew coincided right with the harvest season, leaving the villagers with little time or inclination to gawk at them.

Not far away at the edge of the field, the village chief had just sat down with his family to take a break.

Catching sight of his vehicle being driven back from a distance, and noticing Xu Zhaozhao and the others standing by the ancient tree, he hurriedly put down his lunchbox and trotted over.

"Ah, Xiao Xu, you're back!"

"Yes, Village Chief. Here are your car keys back. Also..."

Xu Zhaozhao gestured toward the remaining barrel of mountain spring water in the back of the car. "We fetched this water from the ancient spring. We're leaving it for you to drink."

"You went to the ancient spring?" The village chief looked thoroughly surprised at the sight of the mountain spring water.

"Yes," Xu Zhaozhao nodded. "Auntie Fu mentioned the water there tasted exceptionally good, so we went."

"That's true, that's true."

Mention of the ancient spring perked up the village chief's interest. "It's just that things have been so busy lately, working from dawn till dusk. Otherwise, I would have gone to fetch some water myself long ago."

"This water is quite wonderful. Since you went to all that trouble to bring it back, you should keep it for yourselves!"

Xu Zhaozhao shook her head. She hadn't pooled her money with the others, so why give them the water?

She then handed the remaining three cups of lemon water over to the village chief as well. "Village Chief, I made these myself. Please accept them as a gift for you all."

"I couldn't possibly accept these. You helped me fix my car, and I haven't even had the chance to thank you properly yet!"

Xu Zhaozhao replied, "Village Chief, speaking of thanks, I used your car, and you didn't charge me for the gas either. We're even now."

"Oh, such a short distance, what gas money is there to talk about!" The village chief scratched his head.

Then, he looked up again. "Um, Xiao Xu, since you know how to fix cars, could I trouble you with one more favor?"

"Village Chief, please go ahead and tell me whatever it is."

"Well," the village chief began, "my little three-wheeler hasn't been running right lately. Could I bother you to take a look and see what's wrong with it?"

Originally, he had planned to wait until the rush of these few days was over and take it to a repair shop in town, but now that someone capable of fixing it was right in front of him, he didn't want to waste any extra time.

There were too many fields to tend to and far too much work at home.

His son was trying to make a living in the city, and getting back wasn't easy, leaving all the heavy lifting around the house on his shoulders.

"Sure," Xu Zhaozhao immediately walked over to the front of the village chief's farm vehicle. "Could you describe what specifically feels off, Village Chief?"

The village chief explained that the vehicle had a stuttering or jerking sensation whenever he drove it.

Using the tools provided by the village chief, Xu Zhaozhao removed the front hood to inspect the engine and various wiring harnesses.

[A focused woman is truly dashing.]

[Suddenly finding myself interested in auto repair!]

[Easy to say, hard to do. I'll never master car repair, so maybe I should start with hand-shaken lemonade instead!]

[Is it mandatory for every Z-list actor to master this many skills? Feeling inferior right now.]

"All right." Xu Zhaozhao dusted off her hands, motioning for the village chief to test-drive the vehicle.

The village chief started the engine, and true to form, the stuttering sensation he had complained about completely vanished.

"Xiao Xu, thank you so much. You've been a huge help."

"Oh, by the way," the village chief added, "come over to my house for dinner tonight. Tell me what you like to eat, and I'll have my wife whip it up!"

"Okay." Xu Zhaozhao nodded.

[Xu Zhaozhao, seriously, even if she has no money, she will never starve.]

[Tinkering with a few wires earned her an entire dinner.]

[Don't underestimate those few wires!]

When Xu Zhaozhao and Shen Mu returned to the ancient courtyard, Chen Sisi was the first to rush up to them.

She demanded bluntly, "Where did you guys go?"

Ignoring her, Xu Zhaozhao walked straight ahead.

The other dating couple had not yet returned, leaving only Chen Sisi and Sun Yu in the sprawling courtyard.

"I'm talking to you, why aren't you answering?"

Disregarding the coldly expressionless Shen Mu, Chen Sisi stalked directly behind Xu Zhaozhao.

"The market."

"Why go to the market? You and Shen Mu didn't even exchange text messages, what gives you the right to go on a date?"

"We went to make a living, not on a date." Xu Zhaozhao entered her room to retrieve her toiletries.

"What do you mean, make a living? You bought so much food and drinks, you clearly went out on a date..."

Seeing that Chen Sisi continued to hound her relentlessly, Xu Zhaozhao slipped straight into the bathroom, followed by the sound of splashing water as she showered.

"Xu Zhaozhao!" Chen Sisi banged furiously on the door a few times.

Catching sight of the camera, she forcefully suppressed her rising anger, thinking she would give Xu Zhaozhao a piece of her mind after the latter finished her shower and returned to her room.

To her surprise, just as Xu Zhaozhao finished showering, the other dating guests returned. Jealous and curious, Chen Sisi rushed off to find out what the others had done on their dates.

By the time she finished her rounds and returned, hoping to resume interrogating Xu Zhaozhao, the latter had already slipped out while everyone was distracted and headed straight to the village chief's house for dinner.

When she finally returned and stepped into the courtyard, Song Qing immediately waved at her.

"Zhaozhao, where did you go? I packed some delicious treats for everyone, come quick and..."

Before Song Qing could finish, Xu Zhaozhao politely declined, "I've already eaten at the village chief's house. Thank you though."

She felt not an ounce of curiosity about where the couples had been on their dates or what kind of food they had brought back.

What she wanted much more was to go to sleep.

Just as everyone had gathered together, the voice of the director echoed, reminding them that they still needed to send text messages to their crushes tonight.

Night descended like a velvet curtain.

After eating, everyone retreated to their respective rooms to ponder and draft their messages.

Shen Mu sat in the corner of his room, his gaze a tangled mix of inner conflict and anticipation.

Once again, he sent his text message to Xu Zhaozhao: "Tomorrow, I'll take you fishing again. How does that sound?"

After sending the text, he waited quietly, as if the entire world had frozen still.

Meanwhile, back in their shared room, Xu Zhaozhao and Chen Sisi sat facing each other in an atmosphere thick with subtle tension.

Seeming to have completely forgotten her outburst toward Xu Zhaozhao that afternoon, Chen Sisi asked with an air of solicitous concern, "Zhaozhao, who are you planning to text?"

Xu Zhaozhao put down her phone, looked at Chen Sisi, and let out a trace of confusion in her gaze, "Why do you ask?"

She couldn't quite fathom what Chen Sisi was getting at. Whom did Chen Sisi want her to text? Surely not the movie star again?

Chen Sisi's expression was a tangle of agonizing hesitation.

She had arrived here overflowing with absolute confidence, believing she could effortlessly charm her preferred target.

Instead, the reality had left her bitterly disappointed.

She kept hitting a wall with the movie star Ke Hao, and no other male guests had invited her out either.

She now felt trapped, caught in an awkward predicament with no graceful way out.

Yet looking at Xu Zhaozhao, the girl had effortlessly reeled in a devoted, puppy-like follower such as Shen Mu from start to finish.

How could she not feel jealous?

Her heart was filled with lingering resentment and a bitter sense of loss.

Right as the two of them were speaking, Xu Zhaozhao's phone buzzed.

Taken aback, she wondered to herself: Who on earth could possibly be sending her a message?

However, upon opening her phone, she was stunned to discover it was an invitation text from Ke Hao.

"Zhaozhao, would you do me the honor of admiring the mountain scenery with me tomorrow?"

"Who is it?"

Noticing Xu Zhaozhao's look of astonishment, Chen Sisi snatched the phone right out of her hand.

When she saw that it was indeed an invitation text from Ke Hao, her expression instantly turned ugly.

"Zhaozhao," she said, her voice chilling, "are you going to reply to the movie star?"

Looking torn and seeking guidance, Xu Zhaozhao put on an anxious front, "Sisi, what do you think? What should I do?"

Meanwhile, the live-stream comments section was buzzing with activity.

[What a play within a play. Everyone place your bets, what is Chen Sisi going to say?]

[They're putting on quite the show for us again. If you ask me, Chen Sisi is definitely not going to let Xu Zhaozhao text the movie star back.]

[If I didn't know they had a contract between them, I'd genuinely believe the two of them were having an innocent discussion.]

[Will the directors please look at Xu Zhaozhao and hand her a script already!]

"You're asking for my opinion?" A flash of complicated emotion flickered across Chen Sisi's eyes.

Looking somewhat embarrassed, Xu Zhaozhao murmured, "If I text the movie star back, this will be our second date... Who knows, maybe we could actually keep things going."

"Don't forget, it's not just you—he and Song Qing would also be going on their second date!"

Chen Sisi reminded her sharply, "Look at Song Qing. When she stands next to the movie star, doesn't she look much more compatible with him? Besides, they're alumni."

As they spoke, Xu Zhaozhao's phone vibrated once more.

Chen Sisi glanced down. This time, the message was from Shen Mu.

Staring at the screen of Xu Zhaozhao's phone, Chen Sisi's gaze turned dark and murky.

"I'm rooting for Shen Mu. I really think he's a great match for you."

Since the movie star wouldn't give her the time of day, she was going to leave him hanging and let him experience the taste of being left out in the cold too!