Sang Qiao stretched her hand in his direction, her tone uncertain, "Like this?"
Si Chenli held her shoulders with both hands, turning her towards him. Originally, she was facing sideways to him, but now they were face to face, with her dirty hands stretched out between them.
The warm large palms on her shoulders hadn't yet let go, and the distance between them was very close, she could almost hear his strong heartbeat, making her subconsciously lean back a bit.
"Should I read the book again and study it?"
"Focus here, wrap this part in, and pinch the ears a bit longer." The man covered her index and thumb with his hand, gently guiding her to pinch out the basic shape of a rabbit.
Sang Qiao intently stared at the lump of mud, which, thanks to the man's few steps, was recognizable as a rabbit.
She glanced at the little rabbit in the notebook, its bottom wasn't round and plump, but split in two, "Should I pinch out lines for its bottom?"
"..."
[It's just instructing you on how to mold clay and you dare to ask such a question! Qiao, we girls should be more subtle!]
[Brother Li's clay sculpting skills are so good, has he learned this before?]
[Is that supposed to be a rabbit? What a rush job, folks, I thought it was some unidentified creature.]
By the time Sang Qiao finished coloring the rabbit she held, she quietly observed the man's expression, frankly speaking, her rabbit was even uglier than the mud person.
Seeing her clutching tightly to the rabbit, Si Chenli spoke calmly, "Isn't it supposed to be for me?"
"Here." Sang Qiao resignedly placed the rabbit into his palm, "I did my best."
"Mm." The man examined the rabbit in his hand, his expression unchanged even in the face of such an ugly rabbit.
As the evening darkened, their "romantic" date also came to an end, and a staff member came to take them back.
Sang Qiao and Si Chenli walked to the original venue and saw Yao Hui and Meng Wangge standing miserably in the corner, while the other four guests kept their distance, stuffing tissues into their nostrils.
The air was even filled with a stench, causing Sang Qiao to subconsciously pinch her nose.
"How does everyone feel about choosing their own partners? Give me your answers and you can rest in the room specially arranged by our production team."
The director, frustrated to the point of almost choking, this Yao Hui and Meng Wangge truly brought him a big "surprise!"
They came back reeking, those who knew thought they went out for a meal, those who didn't would think they went to eat something far worse.
"As long as I'm not with Lin Weichen," Lu Tianxin was the first to speak, which was enough to show how much she disliked Mr. Lin.
"I also don't want to be with Meng Wangge," said Yao Hui weakly, covered in filth, having done a mountain of chores for a villager today and almost fainting from exhaustion.
"Mr. Si, may I be in your group?" Sang Jiao walked up to Si Chenli, a perfectly measured smile hanging on her lips, sweet and adorable.
She lowered her voice to a volume only the two of them could hear, adding, "I have some information about the past that I believe you will be interested in, once you see it, you'll understand."
"What if I'm not interested?" the man responded coolly, his expression unreadable.
And without deliberately concealing his voice, those nearby, though curious about what they were discussing, didn't dare to approach rashly.
"Then I'll let you deal with me as you wish." Sang Jiao blinked shyly, very suggestive, not wearing her usual light-colored, demurely pretty dress today.
Instead, she purposefully mimicked Sang Qiao with a cropped T-shirt and black pants on the top.
Her deliberately crafted pose made her, already similar to Sang Qiao, even more convincingly so.
"Will it be okay if I ask you to move out of the Sang Family and never go back?" Si Chenli didn't even spare her an extra glance.
Sang Jiao's palms slightly sweat. She hadn't expected Si Chenli to be uninterested in her, who looked extremely similar; was he actually thinking about standing up for Sang Qiao?
However, thinking that Mr. Si would despise Sang Qiao after seeing the information, she gritted her teeth and nodded, "Of course, may I have a word with you, Mr. Si?"
Si Chenli gave her a cold look and then strode after her.
Sang Qiao watched the backs of the two with a slight frown. During their conversation just now, she only vaguely heard something about being interested and moving out.
She wasn't clear on what they had discussed. Once Sang Jiao knew Si Chenli's identity, she would surely try to curry favor; Sang Qiao had guessed this long ago.
Yet, seeing the man follow Sang Jiao, she still felt uncomfortable inside.
It was as if everything around her could be easily stolen by Sang Jiao.
Realizing her own thoughts, Sang Qiao was shocked. When had she grown so fond of Si Chenli to think that he was hers...
Their relationship had always been that of exes who had never been together. She shouldn't think that partnering in a variety show for one season could erase the past and make them friends.
"Sang Qiao, are you and Mr. Si planning to split up this season?" the director, who also noticed Mr. Si walking away with someone else, asked with slight concern.
Mr. Si had requested to be in a team with Sang Qiao for the first season, and he had thought that they would continue to be partners for the second season, but unexpectedly... they were splitting up?
It was truly a pity given their current high popularity and the number of fans shipping them as a couple.
"Yes." Sang Qiao nodded, having already calmed herself down. It didn't matter. It was all the same with whom she partnered in the filming.
-
-
Sang Jiao took Si Chenli to a secluded area away from the cameras.
She bent down and pulled out a document from beneath a chair. "Mr. Si, please take a look at this. These are all the itineraries of Sang Qiao during the days she called off her engagement. She wasn't sick or hiding anything unbearable; she simply despised you."
"I also have a recording on my phone of what she said at home before she went to cancel the engagement. Please listen."
The recording played, starting with a male voice.
"Sang Qiao, have you thought it through? Are you really going to call off the engagement? Though Si Chenli will need someone to take care of him in his later years, the Si Family still holds power and influence."
"I'm not interested in the Si Family. I've never liked old men, and now that he's disabled and disfigured, I can't accept it even more."
"Alright, then go and cancel it, but try not to offend them."
"I won't say more if I can cancel the engagement smoothly."
After the recording ended, Sang Jiao noticed that the man's expression remained calm. She usually could read people's emotions and speak accordingly, but facing Mr. Si, she couldn't tell whether he was happy or angry.
"Give me the recording." Si Chenli's thin lips parted, his gaze settling on the recorder, and he pondered for a moment.
"Here, this recording—is our partnership still in place?" Sang Jiao handed the recorder to him with delight.
"Move out of the Sang Family as soon as possible." The man dropped these words and lifted his leg, intending to leave.
Sang Jiao's eyes widened in disbelief; she doubted her ears and chased after him, "Mr. Si, are you still going to continue in a group with Sang Qiao? You're not pursuing her actions of kicking someone when they're down? You put in so much for her, yet she has never reciprocated; don't you think it's not worth it?"
"Whether it's worth it or not is for me to say—it's not your place to teach me."