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

Jiang Che paused for a moment as he climbed upwards, his back muscles visibly tensing.

He bounced the person on his back, his tone deliberately light: "Teacher Song, do you know that line of yours, if you put it in an idol drama, the male lead would pin you against the wall the next second?"

"Come on, didn't you get enough of that just now?"

Song Yuqi's cheeks instantly burned, and she bumped her forehead against his back: "Hurry up and climb your stairs!"

Jiang Che chuckled softly, said nothing more, and continued climbing uphill with her on his back.

The stairwell was extremely quiet.

Song Yuqi's warm breath brushed against his neck, causing a slight tickling sensation.

She lay there obediently, and could clearly feel the power of his muscles rising and falling with his movements beneath his clothes.

Climbing those few floors made their hearts race.

The moment the fire door to the top floor was pushed open, a gust of river wind rushed in.

Song Yuqi shivered from the cold.

Jiang Che put her down with his back hand, and she skillfully put her feet back on his black leather shoes.

As soon as I stood firm, blinding searchlights lit up the deck in front of me.

Deng Chao and Wang Mian, along with seven or eight NPCs dressed in black, lined up on the only path leading to the bow of the ship.

Like an impenetrable wall, it completely blocked the road.

Deng Chao held a megaphone in his hand, his smile extremely sly:

"Run! Keep running! Weren't you so arrogant when you locked the door? Why aren't you running now!"

Wang Mian fanned the flames from the sidelines: "Brother Chao, they're out of options, hand over the gems!"

Looking at the dense wall of people in front of her, Song Yuqi felt a chill run down her spine.

"Oh no, I'm really doomed this time."

She tugged at Jiang Che's sleeve, "How about I hold them off while you find a chance to escape? Every one of them who can get away is a chance."

Jiang Che looked down at her.

She was barefoot, her burgundy cheongsam clinging to her body in the wind, and the tip of her nose was red from the cold.

Let him escape?

Isn't this a slap in the face for him in front of tens of millions of people?

[System Notification: Temporary Quest "Breakthrough" triggered. Escort your teammates safely to the verification platform at the bow of the ship. Quest Rewards: Constitution +5, Reputation +200 million.]

Jiang Che ignored the system's prompts.

He tightened his suit jacket and wrapped Song Yuqi up completely with his other hand.

"Hold on tight."

"Huh?" Song Yuqi hadn't reacted yet.

Jiang Che wrapped his arms around her waist and lifted her up with one arm, holding her securely in the crook of his arm.

With his other hand, he pulled off his tie and casually wrapped it around his right hand twice.

"Brother Chao, I'm sorry to offend you."

As soon as he finished speaking, Jiang Che charged straight into the wall of NPCs.

Deng Chao shouted at the top of his lungs, "Quick! Stop him!"

The first NPC lunged at him.

Jiang Che dodged to the side and used his shoulder to push the person away by half a meter.

The second NPC tried to grab Song Yuqi from his arms.

Jiang Che didn't even dodge. He swung his right hand, which was wrapped in a tie, to block the other person's arm, protecting him completely.

Song Yuqi was held tightly in his arms, her face pressed against his shirt.

All he could hear was the howling of the river wind and the steady, powerful beat of his heart.

Bang, bang, bang.

She felt like she couldn't breathe.

This man exudes an unstoppable drive; he's ridiculously handsome.

Seeing that he couldn't stop the NPC, Deng Chao got impatient and personally grabbed him, shouting, "Jiang Che, you stop right there!"

Jiang Che was forced to the edge of the deck, next to a row of benches for tourists to rest.

Without even stopping, he took a long stride and stepped directly onto the back of the bench.

With a leap, Song Yuqi and I landed steadily behind the blockade line.

Wang Mian, standing to the side, was dumbfounded: "Brother Chao... is this still the same Lyricist who sings? This is Jackie Chan!"

Deng Chao was also stunned: "Holy crap, what did this kid eat to grow up so strong?"

After breaking through the blockade, there was a flat deck a hundred meters ahead.

Jiang Che carried Song Yuqi all the way to the bow of the ship and pulled out the "Heart of Wuhan" from his pocket.

He slammed it onto the verification table.

"Beep—Verification successful!"

The ship's alarms were instantly silenced, and a few brilliant fireworks burst into the night sky with a bang.

Wu Zheng's voice, filled with gritted teeth, came over the radio:

"Congratulations to Team Red for successfully capturing the Heart of Wuhan and winning this round!"

The screen was now completely filled with "Ahhhhh" comments.

Holy crap! He carried someone away with one arm! That was so manly!

[I'm moved to tears! That fighting prowess, that domineering protectiveness of his wife—who could resist?!]

[Song Yuqi was as docile as a kitten in his arms; the size difference was insane!]

[Deng Chao: I'm here to film a variety show, not to be an extra in an action movie!]

Jiang Che put Song Yuqi down.

Song Yuqi looked up at Jiang Che.

The man's shirt collar was unbuttoned by two buttons due to his earlier movements, and his chest was still rising and falling slightly.

Fine beads of sweat glistened on his forehead, revealing a wild and untamed spirit.

She quickly looked away and guiltily tidied her wind-blown hair.

That's it, the heartbeat I felt today is gone forever.

At this point, the lock on the fireproof door in the lower deck was finally broken by the staff using hydraulic shears.

Chen He and Lu Han rushed onto the deck, looking disheveled.

Pointing at Jiang Che, he started cursing: "Jiang Che, you son of a bitch! You try staying down there for an hour! It smells like engine oil!"

Lu Han was so angry she jumped up and down: "Old Wu! I'm reporting him! Jiang Che brought his own tools! What kind of good person carries a wire to pick locks?!"

Jiang Che dusted off his hands, his smile utterly irritating:

"Brother He, Little Deer, a bet's a bet. It's windy under the bridge, so make sure the tent is sturdy."

Chen He was so angry that he clutched his chest and yelled.

Wu Zheng came out with a megaphone, looking at Jiang Che with a helpless expression.

The original plan was to corner the couple in the lower deck and film more footage of their extreme struggle.

Who knew this kid would pry the door open in ten seconds.

"Alright, alright, this round of the game is over. Team Red wins the right to stay in the Presidential Suite on the Zhiyin Cruise Ship tonight!"

As soon as she finished speaking, Bai Lu squeezed out from behind the crowd, a surprised smile on her face.

"Great! Does the presidential suite have three rooms? My feet hurt so much, I need to take a good bath."

She naturally included herself in the red team.

The atmosphere on the deck fell silent for a moment.

Deng Chao and Chen He exchanged a glance but neither spoke.

The old foxes all knew that Bai Lu had run faster than a rabbit when she encountered the patrolman.

They completely ignored Jiang Che and Song Yuqi's lives and now they're here to divide the spoils; it's really quite unsightly.

Just as Song Yuqi was about to retort, Jiang Che spoke first.

He said without a trace of emotion, "Miss Bai, you may have misheard me."

Bai Lu was stunned: "What?"

"Director Wu just announced that those who have received the Wuhan Heart Hotel will be moving in."

Jiang Che pointed to the gemstone necklace on the table. "From the second-floor ballroom to the lower deck, what does this chain have to do with you?"

Bai Lu's smile faltered, and she forced an explanation: "But we're on the same team. I was keeping watch for you guys up up there just now..."

"It's really tough being out in the open so long that you can't find a soul in sight."