I'm in Wuha, and the whole internet is shipping me and Song Yuqi as a couple.

After Dilraba uttered those words, there was a two-second silence around the campfire.

Song Yuqi stared at her face and saw that there was a smile on her lips, but there was no smile in her eyes.

She used to think that Dilraba was just there to stir things up, ambitious but not that serious. But at this moment, she suddenly realized that this woman really didn't want to back down.

"Ignore?" Song Yuqi tossed the cushion back onto the chair and sat up straight. "When did I say I was going to ignore it?"

"You mean 'now'." Dilraba shook the beer glass in her hand. "'Now' is an interesting word. It means—you're not sure about 'later' either."

Song Yuqi was speechless.

She did say, "But I'm not sure about the future."

That was originally her way out, but when Dilraba brought it up and interpreted it, it became evidence of her lack of confidence.

"alright."

Jiang Che's voice came from the side, just enough to make both of them stop talking.

He pointed at Wu Zheng with the bamboo skewers in his hand: "Next round, spin."

Wu Zheng felt as if he had been granted a pardon and quickly bent down to remove the bottle.

The bottle spun around a dozen times before coming to a crooked stop in front of Lu Han.

Lu Han happily reached into the cardboard box, pulled out a card, glanced at it, and burst out laughing.

"Honestly: Among everyone here, who do you think is the most hypocritical? No dodging allowed, you have to point it out directly."

"Is that even a question?" Lu Han stood up and pointed at Wu Zheng.

"Our dear Director Wu said he would give everyone a holiday, but his schedule is packed from morning till night."

"He appears kind and approachable on the surface, but in reality he's driving the donkey with a whip."

Wu Zheng clutched his chest: "Lu Han! How dare you talk about your employer like that!"

"I'm only saying this because you're the boss," Lu Han said righteously. "I wouldn't even bother scolding anyone else."

The whole audience burst into laughter.

This round has been resolved, and the atmosphere has become lively again.

Deng Chao turned around again and pointed at Chen He.

Chen He drew a dare and imitated the signature move of someone present, asking everyone to guess who it was.

He imitated Deng Chao's way of running on tiptoe, and was chased by Deng Chao for two laps around the beach.

Song Yuqi watched them bicker and slowly breathed a sigh of relief.

The lingering effects of that conversation hadn't faded yet, but thankfully no one pressed the issue any further.

The wood in the fire crackled and popped, and someone opened a few more bottles of liquor.

"This is the last round, everyone!" Wu Zheng glanced at the time. "Who wants to spin?"

"I."

Dilraba stood up.

She walked to the middle and squatted down.

She reached out and pushed it away.

The bottle slid very fast, drawing an arc in the sand.

Song Yuqi watched as the green bottle spun around and around, its speed gradually decreasing.

Passing by Lu Han. Passing by Chen He. Passing by Deng Chao.

Stopped.

Facing Jiang Che.

It's Jiang Che again.

Chen He slapped his thigh: "Good heavens! Is this bottle surnamed Jiang tonight? Why is it facing him again!"

Dilraba didn't look at Chen He; she stood still, her gaze fixed on Jiang Che.

"Senior brother, this is the last one."

Jiang Che leaned back in his chair and threw the skewers he had finished eating into the trash bag.

He reached into the box and pulled out the last card.

I opened it and took a look.

"Read it!" Deng Chao was so anxious that he stretched his neck out two miles.

Jiang Che turned the card over and held it up to the light of the campfire.

"Honestly, if you had to choose one of the two people to be with right now, who would you choose? You can't say you wouldn't choose either of them, and you can't say you'll think about it later. You have to name them on the spot."

The surroundings fell silent instantly.

This time, even Chen He didn't dare to respond.

Song Yuqi's heart was pounding, each beat heavier than the last.

Dilraba stood by the campfire, the firelight illuminating half of her face, making her expression indistinct.

Deng Chao muttered under his breath, "Who wrote this? Are they trying to kill someone...?"

Wu Zheng's lips twitched as he stood to the side. He wanted to call for a stop but was afraid of being scolded by the viewers in the live chat. He wanted to urge them on but was afraid something bad would really happen.

two seconds.

Five seconds.

ten seconds.

"Old Jiang..." Lu Han tried to smooth things over, "How about we just forget about this question?"

"Need not."

Jiang Che threw the card into the fire, and the bamboo skewer and the paper burned to ashes together.

He stood up.

Song Yuqi looked up at his profile. The light from the campfire illuminated his jawline, making it impossible to discern his expression.

She wanted to tell you not to answer, but she couldn't utter a single word.

Jiang Che turned his head.

He looked at Song Yuqi.

"Come here."

Just three words.

Song Yuqi paused for a moment, then didn't move.

Jiang Che didn't repeat himself. He walked over and pulled Song Yuqi up from the beach chair.

His hand gripped her wrist tightly, his fingers holding her firmly.

Song Yuqi stumbled a step after being pulled by him, and before she could regain her balance, he took two more steps forward.

They stood by the campfire, facing everyone and all the cameras.

"The selection is complete."

Chen He put the beer can on the ground and mouthed two words to Deng Chao: "Awesome."

Deng Chao slowly raised his thumb.

Wu Zheng's hand holding the microphone was shaking. In all his years as a director, he had never seen anything like this on set.

Song Yuqi lowered her head, her ears burning hot, her wrist held by Jiang Che, unsure whether to break free or not.

"Jiang Che..." her voice was barely audible, like a mosquito's hum, "Let go, the camera is filming..."

"Take the picture then."

He said this as if nothing had happened.

Dilraba stood still, her beer glass halfway up her hand.

The firelight flickered, and the expression on her face gradually softened, finally settling into a faint smile.

"OK."

Dilraba finished the last sip of wine in her glass and turned it upside down on the armrest of the chair.

She turned and walked towards her beach chair, patting Wu Zheng on the shoulder as she passed by.

"Was that enough for tonight? Congratulations, you don't need to buy any more trending topics."

Wu Zheng opened his mouth, but ultimately said nothing.

Dilraba picked up her coat and draped it over her arm, then waved to Deng Chao and Chen He.

"I'm leaving now, see you tomorrow."

Her figure disappeared at the end of the beach.

There was no turning back.

The campfire was burning brightly when a piece of wood collapsed, sending up a cluster of sparks.

Song Yuqi watched Dilraba walk away, her heart filled with mixed feelings.

It wasn't the exhilaration of winning, nor was it entirely guilt.

More importantly, he actually made the choice.

In front of everyone.

"Feed".

Jiang Che's voice came from above.

Song Yuqi looked up at him.

"What are you spacing out for?"

Jiang Che released her wrist and casually tucked her hair, which had been ruffled by the sea breeze, behind her ear.

"We're leaving, we're going back."

"Where to?"

"Go back to your room."

Song Yuqi walked ahead, her pace faster than when she arrived.

Jiang Che followed behind, their shadows stretched long by the campfire, overlapping slightly on the beach.

From behind came Deng Chao's booming voice: "Old Jiang! You two are officially announcing your relationship, right?! Can I post it on my WeChat Moments?!"

Jiang Che didn't turn his head, but raised one hand.

He raised his middle finger.

A burst of howls and laughter erupted on the beach.

Song Yuqi pursed her lips, trying hard to suppress the upturned corners of her mouth.

On the way back to the hotel, neither of them spoke again.

There were only the two of them in the elevator.

Song Yuqi stared at the numbers jumping up one by one, and out of the corner of her eye, she saw Jiang Che leaning against the corner of the elevator, his hands in his pockets and his eyes closed.

Jiang Che.

"Um."

"You just now..." she paused, "were you serious?"

The elevator has arrived.

The door opened.

Jiang Che opened his eyes and turned to let her go out first.

As he passed by her, he lowered his head, his lips almost touching her earlobe.

"Song Yuqi, when have I ever joked with you?"