Chapter 74: A Variety Show with a Dramatic Upgrade – A Romantic Transition?! ...
Ji Zhi Qiu felt an itch in her nose and sneezed.
Lu Yu Nian asked with concern, "What's wrong? Are you cold?"
Ji Zhi Qiu also felt confused: "I'm not cold. Maybe someone is talking about me behind my back."
Neither of them took it to heart and continued exploring. The program's designs were increasingly tricky, and they overcame numerous obstacles along the way, using both their physical and mental strength.
They finally found the password, came out of one of the rooms, and the lights automatically turned off after the door closed, leaving the corridor pitch black.
Ji Zhi Qiu couldn't help but joke, "This is really energy-efficient. If we keep playing like this, I'll become a night-vision animal."
Lu Yu Nian, who was standing next to him, blinked very quickly. His expression remained normal, but he was more tense than before. Only when he heard Ji Zhi Qiu's voice did he take a few steps toward him.
Seeing that Lu Yunian kept looking to the right, Ji Zhi Qiu couldn't help but ask, "What's there?"
Lu Yu Nian said calmly, "It's nothing, I just misread it."
Ji Zhi Qiu didn't notice anything unusual, but as soon as Lu Yu Nian finished speaking, he keenly caught the sound of water.
In that instant, he instinctively felt that it was his imagination; how could there be such a clear sound of water in a closed space?
But as if in response, the sound of water mingled together, as if a small river was flowing past them.
Did you hear that?
"I heard you."
The two exchanged a glance, their expressions somewhat serious, wondering what the director was up to.
Ji Zhi Qiu broke the silence first, "Let's walk a little further, be careful, and follow behind me."
Perhaps because he was used to taking care of children, he had an inexplicable protective instinct towards Lu Yu Nian, and he opened his arms to shield him behind him.
The director didn't add unnecessary traps along the way, but instead led them to the source of the water sound.
A long tunnel leads to a turbulent river that meanders through what is normally stagnant water, yet becomes unusually fierce under the guidance of some mysterious force.
Ji Zhi Qiu blinked, looking warily at the faint blue light on the far side, then turned back to instruct Lu Yu Nian, "You stay here and don't move, I'll go see what it is."
Lu Yunian looked ahead and slowly nodded.
As Ji Zhi Qiu approached, she realized it was a piece of paper with built-in fluorescence. Compared to the original, the light was much weaker and would disappear at any moment.
This paper has a time limit for reading.
Realizing this, Ji Zhi Qiu immediately picked up the paper and returned to Lu Yu Nian's side.
"Come and look at this." Ji Zhi Qiu squinted slightly, and in the dim light, he could see the contents of the paper.
"This is not just water, but the saliva secreted by some mysterious creature. If you get it on your skin, you will be marked as prey and then hunted down and harassed."
As soon as Ji Zhi Qiu finished speaking, the ghostly light disappeared completely. He casually tossed the paper aside. "I understand. There are scattered stones of different sizes in the water. As long as we step on them steadily and accurately, we can pass through smoothly without getting any so-called saliva on us."
Compared to the previous challenges, Ji Zhi Qiu didn't find them difficult and seemed quite relaxed. She turned to pull Lu Yu Nian and said, "Let's go."
But Lu Yunian still stared straight at him, standing motionless.
Ji Zhi Qiu tilted her head in confusion.
"Actually, there's something I haven't told you." Lu Yu Nian couldn't keep up the act any longer. "I have a mild case of night blindness and can't see clearly. I'm afraid I won't be able to get through this safely. Why don't we split up? You go first, so you won't be held back by me."
Past scenes uncontrollably surfaced before his eyes, and Ji Zhi Qiu then noticed some details he had overlooked.
Lu Yu Nian's reactions were sometimes fast and sometimes slow, and he would stare at some inexplicable places. He thought it was because Lu Yu Nian was cautious by nature, but he didn't expect that he couldn't see clearly and was waiting for his eyes to adjust to the light.
These words stirred Ji Zhi Qiu's protective instincts. "We're friends, how could I abandon you! Even if the director arranged for us to be together, it proves that some challenges later on can't be overcome by one person alone. No matter the reason, I'm going to help you get through them!!"
[Director: I didn't do it, I didn't.]
[While Dad is enjoying his sweet time here, the son has already rallied a whole bunch of ghosts and monsters, who are now rushing over in a grand procession. lol emoji]
[Hilarious! This is just like a prince going to rescue a princess kidnapped by a dragon, only to find that the princess has infiltrated the enemy's faction, and if he's any later, he'll be replaced by the dragon's leader.]
[You two stop arguing here. I suggest you sit here and wait for your son to come to your rescue. *winking emoji*]
Although Ji Zhi Qiu guessed that the three minor villains would cause a big disturbance, he did not know their specific plans and was still following the rules set by the program team to go and rescue them.
He spoke to Lu Yu Nian a few more times in a gentle tone, and Lu Yu Nian finally stopped seeing himself as a burden and decided to complete the game with Ji Zhi Qiu.
Having made the promise, he had to overcome the difficulties. Ji Zhiqi stood by the river, his mind racing, connecting all the stones in his mind and calculating the best route.
He turned around and said with a smile, "You don't need to look at the exact location of the stone. Just leave everything to me. I'll hold your hand, and when I say 'jump,' you'll come forward with me."
Lu Yunian nodded.
Ji Zhi Qiu took a deep breath and naturally took Lu Yu Nian's hand.
"Three, two, one, jump!"
Lu Yunian naturally leaned towards Ji Zhi Qiu, sensing his presence. Following his movements, the two jumped smoothly onto the first rock, their trouser legs clean and dry, without getting wet.
Ji Zhi Qiu breathed a sigh of relief and looked at Lu Yu Nian triumphantly, "I told you, we can do it."
He was focused on completing the game at first, but he couldn't stop getting distracted in the second half.
He held Lu Yunian's hand tightly, palms pressed together. The hand was sweaty and slippery, and fearing something might go wrong, he tightened his grip.
But Lu Yu Nian's hands were bigger than his, with long, slender fingers that could easily hold the back of his hand. At some point, it was Lu Yu Nian who was holding his hand.
But this made it inconvenient for him to exert force. The two seemed to realize the problem at the same time. Ji Zhi Qiu opened his hand to try to pull Lu Yu Nian back, and Lu Yu Nian's fingertips also reached out. Their fingers naturally intertwined and changed to... interlocking.
Is this how friends hold hands? Even if it's just to get through a hurdle, isn't it a bit... weird?
Ji Zhi Qiu was stunned, but she couldn't bear to shake off Lu Yu Nian's hand, so she maintained the position and kept brainwashing herself.
Not only were his palms sweating, but Ji Zhi Qiu suddenly felt hot all over, and his blood was rushing to his head. It was just a normal action, but because of his wild thoughts, he almost made himself blush.
Fearing being discovered, he slightly averted his gaze, but this only revealed his bright red ear tips.
"What's wrong with you?" Lu Yunian noticed his actions and subconsciously looked over.
Ji Zhi Qiu quickly covered her ears with her other hand, making a blatant attempt to cover up her mistake: "It's nothing, I'm just a little hot."
Lu Yu Nian paused for a moment, then asked, "Here?"
Ji Zhi Qiu then realized that he had talked nonsense. In order to create a scary atmosphere, the director had used plenty of blowers and air conditioning. It was good enough that he didn't get goosebumps on his arms, how could it be hot?
He closed his eyes tightly, unsure how to face Lu Yunian. As he was racking his brains for a reason, he suddenly felt the hand they were holding tightly rise up.
Lu Yu Nian gently shook him, as if to comfort him, "Don't worry, we'll be there soon."
Seeing Lu Yu Nian's natural reaction, Ji Zhi Qiu simply cleared her mind of all the messy thoughts and decided to give up.
What's wrong with two grown men holding hands like that?
There's absolutely nothing wrong with close friends engaging in some intimate gestures!
Besides, Lu Yu Nian is so handsome, so he didn't lose out at all!
Just now, when Lu Yu Nian raised their clasped hands, Ji Zhi Qiu secretly glanced at them. Lu Yu Nian's fingers were long and slender with prominent joints, and the veins on the back of his hands were slightly bulging. They were so sexy that they would make a hand fetishist scream.
With that thought in mind, Ji Zhi Qiu felt even more confident, so he simply pulled Lu Yu Nian along and successfully jumped over the last few stones, landing on solid ground.
Ji Zhi Qiu's thoughts returned, and just as she was about to speak to Lu Yu Nian, she caught a glimpse of a furtive figure out of the corner of her eye.
"who?!"
The figure paused, like a rusty robot, and turned its head very slowly. After seeing them clearly, it turned around very quickly, like a zombie that smelled human scent. Ji Zhi Qiu was so frightened that he almost instinctively kicked it. Fortunately, when he got closer, he realized that it was Wen Qi Zheng, who was so excited that his eyes were filled with tears, as if he had seen a relative.
Wen Qizheng was so excited that he wanted to give Ji Zhi Qiu a bear hug, but he instinctively avoided close contact with people, so he stood stiffly next to Ji Zhi Qiu and just stared at him longingly.
Ji Zhi Qiu smiled. "What are you doing here?"
Wen Qizheng, who had been on edge, couldn't help but pour out his grievances when he suddenly heard the kind words. "I was locked in an iron cage before, and I couldn't find the key no matter what I did. I could only wait there. I don't know why the cage suddenly collapsed. After I climbed out, I found myself locked in a closed room. I had no choice but to continue to wait while hugging my legs. Then, a rope inexplicably fell from the sky. I was afraid it was a trap, so I tested it several times before I finally couldn't resist climbing up."
Ji Zhi Qiu: "..."
Sometimes being honest and clumsy can be an advantage. Even the director was impressed by him and offered to help him cheat.
After Wen Qizheng finished speaking, he forced a fawning smile and stammered, "Zhi Qiu Yu Nian, can I come with you guys? I really can't manage alone..."
Ji Zhi Qiu had this idea before: "Great, come over here yourself, it saves me the trouble of looking for you."
"That's great!" Wen Qizheng was overjoyed. In this terrifying environment, Ji Zhi Qiu was his only source of support. He jumped up excitedly, wanting to hug Ji Zhi Qiu.
But he was a moment too slow, and Ji Zhi Qiu didn't realize his intention. Looking ahead into the darkness, she suddenly remembered Lu Yu Nian's night blindness and naturally took his hand.
Lu Yu Nian cooperated fully, taking the initiative to separate their fingers, and the two interlocked their fingers, palms touching, their posture exceptionally intimate, as if nothing in the world could separate them.
For example, Wen Qizheng, who jumped over wanting a hug: "..."
Wen Qizheng had practiced dance as a child and had a solid foundation in it. He managed to maintain a suspended posture and landed on the spot without hitting Ji Zhiqi.
He stared blankly at their tightly clasped hands, his eyes widening, his expression gradually turning to terror.
Ji Zhi Qiu didn't care about his gaze or avoid the camera. Her posture was so natural and intimate. Could it be that... without his knowledge, the two confessed their love and officially announced that they were together?
A reality show for kids is getting a major makeover with a romantic twist?!
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