The Celebrity Observers had stumbled over Bai Baozhu once again during the final heartline connection segment of the show!
Just as the Love Cottage staff had anticipated, Bai Baozhu, this great demon king, had once again caused a complete wipeout among all the Celebrity Observers on the show!
Because they got her wrong, the Celebrity Observers today missed out on their heart crystals yet again.
This was utterly infuriating for the Love Cottage Celebrity Observers!
After all, they had gotten all the other romantic heartlines correct. It was only when it came to Bai Baozhu that they were wrong!
“What? Did Bai Baozhu have any interaction with Lin Dong today? Why would she send the love text message to Lin Dong???”
“Hmph, I don’t know if Bai Baozhu and Lin Dong interacted. But I do know Bai Baozhu spent the entire day with Xia Tiantian. She also knows Xia Tiantian likes Lin Dong. So, she just habitually likes to steal her friends’ boyfriends.”
“That probably isn’t the case. Bai Baozhu seemed very nice today, a really good person.”
“Little Sister Mengmeng, you can’t judge people just by their surface. For example, Bai Baozhu clearly said before that she couldn’t cook, that she had never been in a kitchen. But look at her today, she managed to make the Gold Medal Roast Suckling Pig, such a difficult Michelin-level Chinese dish.
Do you think you can trust the words that come from the mouth of someone like that?”
Having stepped out of the ‘filter’ of the delicious food, Xu Bingying began viciously dissing Bai Baozhu again.
Seizing on Bai Baozhu’s supposed weakness of not being able to cook, she started aggressively setting the narrative.
Just as Xu Bingying was wildly distorting and smearing Bai Baozhu’s name on the program, Song Zhi, the most popular celebrity on the panel, suddenly spoke up.
“As you said, Bai Baozhu was with Xia Tiantian all day today. So, is it possible that the love text message Bai Baozhu sent today was to help Xia Tiantian, to facilitate her relationship with Lin Dong?”
Song Zhi’s words immediately stunned the other Celebrity Observers.
This theory, while sounding a bit absurd, was also somewhat convincing.
Most importantly, it aligned with the ‘immature child’ theory Professor Tian had proposed earlier!
If it really was as Professor Tian had analyzed—that Bai Baozhu, who had just graduated from university at twenty-one, was actually an immature child—then her actions that defied common sense were perfectly logical.
“I think Song Zhi’s analysis makes a lot of sense. Bai Baozhu sending the love text to Lin Dong isn’t entirely incomprehensible.”
“Wow, looking at it that way, Bai Baozhu and Xia Tiantian’s relationship really is quite good.”
“However, in this anonymous state, I’m still not optimistic about Bai Baozhu’s love text.”
…
Amid the Celebrity Observers’ discussion about Bai Baozhu, they soon saw in the video what the content of each dating guest’s love text message was.
They didn’t pay much attention to the others’ messages. The only one they cared about was the one Bai Baozhu sent to Lin Dong.
“‘Accompaniment is the longest confession of love, cherish the person by your side…’”
After reading Bai Baozhu’s message aloud, Xu Bingying curled her lips into a mocking sneer, a cold smile appearing on her face as she launched into a sharp critique.
“Isn’t this message just hinting to Lin Dong that besides Xia Tiantian, there’s someone else who likes him? No matter how I look at it, I don’t think Bai Baozhu sent this message to help Xia Tiantian or to bring Lin Dong and Xia Tiantian together. On the contrary, it seems like she’s trying to steal him. Forgive my bluntness, but Bai Baozhu is still that Bai Baozhu, a bit terrifyingly green (a homewrecker).”
Hearing Xu Bingying’s intense, highly subjective remarks, Liu An and Tian Hongxiu, the two mature men in their forties, both frowned with discomfort.
“There are a thousand Hamlets in a thousand people’s eyes. You think this message is a hint. But I think the message Bai Baozhu sent could also be telling Lin Dong to cherish Xia Tiantian.”
Song Zhi looked at the line of text displayed on the screen, recalling how focused and serious Bai Baozhu’s eyes were while she was cooking.
He didn’t believe a girl who approached things with such seriousness and focus could be as despicable as Xu Bingying made her out to be.
And besides…
“I agree with Brother Song Zhi. I also think Bai Baozhu probably sent that message to tell Lin Dong to cherish Xia Tiantian.”
“I tend to agree with that interpretation as well.”
“Given Lin Dong’s lukewarm attitude towards Xia Tiantian, I think there’s about a 90% chance Song Zhi’s possibility is correct.”
…
Seeing that all the Celebrity Observers were actually speaking in Bai Baozhu’s favor, Xu Bingying was nearly furious. Her face immediately turned rather unpleasant.
But after thinking about Bai Baozhu’s current state of being blacklisted by the whole internet, she calmed down again.
With a sour expression, she glanced at the other Celebrity Observers, sneering coldly in her heart. Once this episode aired, she figured everyone except herself would be cursed out by the audience.
Hmph! She’d just wait and see if these people regretted it later!
…
Whether they would regret it or not, the Celebrity Observers didn’t know yet. What they were more preoccupied with at the moment was still that dish of Gold Medal Roast Suckling Pig Bai Baozhu had made!
After recording the show, all the Celebrity Observers except Xu Bingying eagerly asked the production team: Was the Gold Medal Roast Suckling Pig Bai Baozhu made actually delicious?
They heard that after the final episode of Love Cottage aired, there would be a special episode inviting all the dating guests and Celebrity Observers to record together. Could they ask Bai Baozhu to make some Gold Medal Roast Suckling Pig and bring them over to taste? And so on…
Their enthusiasm was overwhelming, leaving the Love Cottage production team staff somewhat unable to cope.
Some staff members who had already seen the later footage of Bai Baozhu cooking sighed inwardly, thinking that after watching the next few episodes, these Celebrity Observers would probably go even crazier.
No, judging by the current reaction of these Celebrity Observers, once the show aired… the audience would likely be even more frenzied!
Meanwhile, the protagonist who had all five Celebrity Observers thinking about her, Bai Baozhu, was—
Curiously learning how to play this world’s extremely popular 5v5 competitive mobile game.
After a rather unremarkable dinner, to lift everyone’s spirits and also to show off in front of the girl he liked, Lin Dong—the former esports champion, now retired—suggested they all play some games together. He would carry them to victory! Giving everyone a great gaming experience!
This suggestion was unanimously approved by everyone, and the production team also thought it would make for good viewing.
So, they provided each guest with a phone specifically for gaming.
“Zhu Zhu, you really don’t know how to play at all?”
Glory of Kings, this 5v5 competitive mobile game, was a nationwide sensation. Basically, every young person nowadays knew how to play it.
So when Bai Baozhu clearly stated that she didn’t know how to play this game, the other dating guests were stunned.
After all, even Bo Shenyu, who was half a ‘foreigner’, knew how to play, yet Bai Baozhu didn’t.
“But I learn things very quickly! I’m sure I’ll pick it up right away!”
Not wanting to be looked down upon, Bai Baozhu puffed out her chest and declared with utmost seriousness.
“The game isn’t hard. Explore it on your own first. I’ll take the others and play a few rounds.”
Having lost any romantic interest in Bai Baozhu, Lin Dong decisively left her behind to go carry his goddess, Ye Jingyu.
“Then I won’t play either. I’ll keep Zhu Zhu company while she plays.”
Seeing her good friend abandoned by that Big Pig’s Trotters, Lin Dong, Xia Tiantian pursed her lips and chose to play games with her bestie!
“I’m not very good at it either. You guys go ahead and play, Lin Dong.”
Seeing that the 5v5 game now had one extra person, Wei Wenbo, who wasn’t that passionate about gaming, withdrew from the gaming group before Bo Shenyu and Jiang Boyan could.
Bo Shenyu and Jiang Boyan, who had also wanted to drop out, missed their chance. Not wanting to spoil the fun, they could only join Lin Dong, Su Han, and Ye Jingyu to form a team and play.
As for the remaining trio of Bai Baozhu, Xia Tiantian, and Wei Wenbo, they began their newbie training camp.
By the time Lin Dong finished one game with Ye Jingyu and the other three, Bai Baozhu, this ancient soul, had finally figured out the basic controls of Glory of Kings!
And she had fallen deeply in love with the game!
Because—
“Wow—! Wang Zhaojun is so pretty! Zhen Ji is so pretty! Diao Chan is so pretty! Chang’e is so pretty!…”
Looking at the beautifully modeled female heroes in the game, Bai Baozhu, a gaming newbie who adored all things beautiful, was completely captivated.
By the time Lin Dong had played four games with Ye Jingyu and the others and was ready to call it a night, Bai Baozhu was still utterly absorbed in watching tutorials about various beautiful female heroes, unable to extricate herself!
“Zhu Zhu, why have you been watching strategy guides this whole time instead of playing?”
Xia Tiantian, who had been staying by Bai Baozhu’s side the entire time, was truly puzzled. Bai Baozhu clearly liked the game so much, yet she hadn’t played a single match, just kept watching tutorials for pretty heroes.
“No, no, I haven’t cultivated my skills to a sufficient level yet. I can’t recklessly duel with others without absolute confidence!”
Having learned martial arts from a young age, Bai Baozhu’s thinking was somewhat rigid. Even when facing a virtual game PK, she spoke with utmost seriousness.
Her words made the other dating guests burst out laughing.
Especially since the expression on her face was so earnest, earnestly silly and adorable.
“Zhu Zhu, do you want me to be your master and teach you?”
Faced with Bai Baozhu’s utterly serious expression, Lin Dong couldn’t help but tease her.
However, Bai Baozhu pouted and refused without a second thought.
“No!”
She planned to challenge this Big Pig’s Trotters, Lin Dong, later to properly vent some anger for Xia Tiantian!
How could she possibly learn how to play the game from him!
What no one expected was that this casual, idle gaming session would lead a certain future empress who had never played games before to become completely addicted. It even successfully unearthed another one of her hidden talents!
“Zhu Zhu, alright, time to give the phone back to the production team. We need to go upstairs and send the love texts.”
Looking at Bai Baozhu, who was clinging to the gaming phone and refusing to let go, Xia Tiantian was truly at a loss whether to laugh or cry.
She really couldn’t understand how Bai Baozhu, who hadn’t played a single game, could be so addicted to it that she couldn’t pull herself away.
“Just a little longer, just a little longer! Let me finish watching this video!”
By the time Bai Baozhu finished the video, there were only a few minutes left until eleven o’clock.
However, this wasn’t a problem for either Bai Baozhu or Xia Tiantian.
After all, neither of them had a crush on anyone at the moment. The love texts they sent every night were just a formality. Sending one didn’t take much time at all; they could get it done in a minute.
The two went to the living room on the girls’ floor. Ye Jingyu and Su Han had already finished showering, sent their texts, and were just waiting to receive today’s love texts.
Bai Baozhu and Xia Tiantian quickly sat down on the sofa, picked up their respective phones, and started composing their love texts.
Whether it was a coincidence or not, today Bai Baozhu once again ‘flipped to Lin Dong’s tile’. Looking at the number 4 on the exquisite ball, Bai Baozhu made a face of disgust and typed just five words.
…
“Buzz—!”
Seeing that he had actually received a love text, Lin Dong was overjoyed! He was even fantasizing that perhaps his cool gaming skills today had successfully caught Ye Jingyu’s attention.
But when he opened the message, he fell silent…
【I will beat you!!!!!!!!】
These familiar exclamation marks… this childish tone…
It was the same person who sent the text yesterday!!!
But who on earth was this person?!
No matter how Lin Dong thought about it, he felt the text messages he had received over the past two days didn’t match up with any of the four female guests in Love Cottage!
‘Could it be… there’s a hidden fifth female guest here???’