Thousands of Heartbeats

After pulling the radishes, the group carried them back to wash and began cutting them under the sun.

Just as Yan Qiuzhi was about to get a knife, she was glanced at by Chen Lunan.

For some reason, although the two hadn't spoken a word, she could still sense what Chen Lunan wanted to express from his eyes.

With a hint of mockery, he seemed to say —Are you going to get a knife? Don't forget how you cut tomatoes a few days ago.

Yan Qiuzhi's steps halted.

Shao Yue looked at her suspiciously, "Qiuzhi, why did you stop?"

Yan Qiuzhi touched her nose, walked to the side, and said, "I feel like I'm not suitable for handling a knife. I don't know how to cook. I'll go over there and wash the radishes with Mu Xin."

Shao Yue: "…...."

Female artists were responsible for washing, while male artists were the ones cutting.

As the camera swept by, Xu artists took the initiative to bring up a topic as he looked at Shao Yue, "Shao Yue's skills seem to be average. It's obvious that you don't cook much. Can you cook?"

Shao Yue replied, "Not really."

Xu Kaishi laughed, "Yu Wei and I can't cook either. We probably don't have the time to cook even if we want to."

Shao Yue nodded.

After saying that, Xu Kaishi turned to look at Chen Lunan. When he saw the neatly arranged radish strips in front of Chen Lunan, he was stunned.

"Oh my God, it looks like Lunan can cook. The cutting is so neat!"

Several people nearby craned their necks to look.

"Brother Lunan, you're amazing."

"Does Teacher Chen really know how to cook?"

Chen Lunan nodded indifferently, "I can cook when I have time."

Xu Kaishi laughed, "Fans definitely don't know that you can cook. After this episode airs, they'll have one more reason to like you. Nowadays, men who can cook are rare, so we need to cherish them."

Mu Xin listened in and couldn't help discussing with Yan Qiuzhi in a low voice, "Teacher Chen can actually cook."

"En."

Mu Xin, oblivious to the situation, continued, "I wonder if Teacher Chen's cooking is good."

Yan Qiuzhi, who was lost in thought, replied without thinking, "It's alright."

If it weren't for Chen Lunan's good cooking skills, their married life might have been a bit more challenging.

People live to eat, and Yan Qiuzhi, who loved eating and had a sweet tooth, always involuntarily succumbed to delicious meals.

"What?"

Mu Xin widened her eyes and raised her voice, "Sister Qiuzhi, how do you know Teacher Chen's cooking is good?"

She was probably shocked by Yan Qiuzhi's statement, and her voice, unintentionally uncontrolled, reached the other side.

Instantly, everyone looked towards Yan Qiuzhi.

Even Chen Lunan raised his eyelids and gave her a look.

Yan Qiuzhi was stunned, realizing belatedly what she had said. Faced with the camera and so many eyes, she opened her mouth, somewhat weakly explaining, "I just guessed."

She defended herself, "Everyone knows that Teacher Chen is the kind of person who excels in everything he does. I believe cooking is no exception."

This explanation was reluctantly accepted by everyone.

Moreover—

The gazes of several people turned between the two, but they couldn't discern anything.

Yan Qiuzhi couldn't possibly have any relationship with Chen Lunan. After all, an entire afternoon had passed, if there indeed was something going on between them, they would have figured it out by now.

After that, Yan Qiuzhi didn't dare to be distracted. Every topic that Mu Xin discussed with her, she paid full attention to, fearing that she might blurt out something again. She couldn't afford to make another slip, especially with so many eyes and cameras around.

Once they were done with their tasks, everyone took a break.

As dinner approached, they were assigned tasks to choose vegetables in the vegetable garden and catch fish in the pond.

Considering that it was not suitable for women to go into the water in winter, Mu Xin and Yan Qiuzhi, accompanied by Xu Kaishi, were assigned to the vegetable garden, while the other three went to catch fish.

This allocation was the most reasonable, but Yan Qiuzhi actually wanted to go fishing.

She hadn't experienced this kind of life in a long time, so she was a bit eager.

However, this was Xu Kaishi's arrangement; no one can refute it.

Except for one person.

Thinking about it, she looked straight at the person.

Xu Kaishi was in conversation with Chen Lunan. Sensing a burning gaze, Chen Lunan paused and shifted his gaze.

"The water in the pond is very cold. Be careful not to get in and catch a cold later."

Chen Lunan nodded.

After contemplating for a while, he asked, "What if I don't touch the water?"

Xu Kaishi thought for a moment, "That should be fine, just be cautious."

"Alright."

Listening to the conversation between Chen Lunan and Xu Kaishi, Yan Qiuzhi's heart was bleeding.

It seemed that Chen Lunan wasn't very willing to help her.

Yan Qiuzhi withdrew her gaze, moved to the side, and sat down. Although her emotions were not clearly visible on her face, those familiar with her knew she wasn't happy.

Chen Lunan frowned and looked at Xu Kaishi, "Teacher Xu."

"Huh? What's up?"

Chen Lunan said, "Prepare two sets of waterproof suits for the female artists as well."

Xu Kaishi was puzzled for a few seconds, then turned his head and saw the anticipation in Mu Xin's eyes.

He was stunned and then smiled, "Mu Xin also wants to go fishing?"

Mu Xin nodded vigorously, "Very much!"

But she didn't dare to say it.

"What about Qiuzhi?"

Yan Qiuzhi responded, "Sure."

After changing into their clothes, the group headed to the pond to catch fish.

The water in the pond was indeed a bit chilly, it was apparent as soon as they stepped in.

Yan Qiuzhi shivered, but inside, she was excited.

It had been many years since she had been in the water. In her childhood, she used to go to the river to catch fish frequently. It had been too long.

Yan Qiuzhi held a fishing net and didn't pay attention to the others. She played alone in the corner, as if nothing else concerned her. She stared intently at the fish underwater, and as soon as she lowered the net, a lively little fish fell into it.

Her eyes lit up with excitement, "I—ah—"

Yan Qiuzhi turned around and accidentally collided with Mu Xin. Losing her balance, she fell straight backward.

"Qiuzhi."

"Sister Qiuzhi!"

Ripples of water splashed around. Chen Lunan was the furthest from Yan Qiuzhi, but inexplicably, he arrived faster than anyone else.

He reached out and pulled Yan Qiuzhi out of the pond, his voice deep, "Are you hurt anywhere?"

Yan Qiuzhi shook her head. For the first time, she felt that in Chen Lunan's heart, she, his beautiful wife, still held some significance.

She pointed to her mouth, indicating that she had just drunk some dirty pond water.

Chen Lunan frowned and tossed the fishing net to Mu Xin, "I'll take her back first."

Xu Kaishi quickly nodded, "Go ahead, we have it covered here."

Chen Lunan nodded.

"Can you get up?"

Yan Qiuzhi nodded and grabbed Chen Lunan's hand to climb ashore.

Watching the two figures retreat, Mu Xin's eyes turned red, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to."

Shao Yue comforted her, "It's okay, Qiuzhi knows you didn't mean it."

Mu Xin still blamed herself.

Xu Kaishi said, "It's really okay. As long as Qiuzhi is not hurt, Teacher Chen has already taken her back."

Yu Wei also nodded, "Teacher Chen is too fast. He will definitely take good care of Qiuzhi."

Mu Xin agreed, "Yes, yes! Teacher Chen is so gentle."

Listening to this, Shao Yue vaguely felt that something was off but couldn't figure out why.

The two hurriedly returned to the courtyard.

Xu Song's wife, Tong Shuning, heard the commotion and looked over, "What happened?"

Chen Lunan replied, "Fell into the pond."

He then asked, "Teacher Tong, do you have hot water?"

"Yes, yes, yes."

Tong Shuning then suggested, "Come, I'll take you to the bathroom first."

After entering the bathroom, Yan Qiuzhi rinsed her mouth first.

She felt so uncomfortable!

Everything else was not that important; the main issue was that her mouth was full of the taste of pond water—dirty and fishy.

She even despised herself.

After brushing her teeth several times, Yan Qiuzhi finally gave herself some psychological comfort.

She looked at the ruined makeup and her wet, dirty hair in the mirror, feeling extremely regretful.

She shouldn't have shown off!

After a while, Tong Shuning brought Yan Qiuzhi her clothes. They were neatly packed in bundles, making them easy to find.

Yan Qiuzhi took them and thanked Tong Shuning, "Thank you, Teacher Tong."

Tong Shuning smiled and said, "No problem."

Yan Qiuzhi stayed in the bathroom for almost an hour before coming out. She felt her whole body was dirty.

The pond had fish, and the fishy smell was quite strong.

After sniffing herself and confirming that the smell wasn't as strong, Yan Qiuzhi finally came out.

As soon as she came out, she saw Mu Xin standing at the door.

"Sister Qiuzhi, I'm sorry, I didn't mean it." Mu Xin apologized, her eyes turning red as she held her hand.

Yan Qiuzhi was startled, quite surprised, "It's okay, it's okay."

She reassured Mu Xin, "It's alright, it's my fault for not standing firmly."

"Really?"

"Really."

Yan Qiuzhi smiled at her, patting her head, "I took the opportunity to shower in advance. It's my perk."

Mu Xin pouted.

After comforting Mu Xin, Yan Qiuzhi went back to her room to change clothes.

As soon as she entered the room and blocked the camera, she heard a knock on the door.

She was startled but opened the door directly.

"Mu—" She looked surprised at the man who appeared. Since there was no microphone attached to them now, she also became a bit bolder, "How come you are here?"

Chen Lunan slightly lowered his eyes to look at her; a clean face with a blush, wearing soft home clothes, and a large red mark on her neck.

He frowned, "What happened to your neck?"

Yan Qiuzhi looked down, let out an Ah, and said, "It smelled too fishy, so I scrubbed it."

"......"

Chen Lunan felt a headache coming. He handed her something, "Ginger tea, drink it."

Yan Qiuzhi curled her lips, "Thanks."

She drank it in front of Chen Lunan, then handed the bowl back to him.

But he stood still there and didn't leave. Yan Qiuzhi looked at him suspiciously, "Is there anything else?"

She blinked at Chen Lunan, a clear hint — she didn't want their relationship exposed on the program.

Chen Lunan naturally understood the hint in her eyes. He paused for a moment, then looked her up and down, "Sure you're not hurt?"

"No hurt at all."

Yan Qiuzhi nodded.

She stared at Chen Lunan with a slight smile in her eyes, "Why, are you afraid that you won't be able to explain it if I get hurt?"

Chen Lunan didn't speak, just stared at her for a moment, then asked, "Put on your clothes and come downstairs."

"......"

Yan Qiuzhi pouted, not very happy, "I feel like my mouth is full of the taste of that pond water; it's so unpleasant."

Chen Lunan paused, listened to her soft voice, and his throat rolled.

"And then?"

Yan Qiuzhi rolled her eyes, looking at him, "What else do you want me to say?"

Chen Lunan was about to speak when footsteps sounded at the stairs. He frowned but before he could say anything, Yan Qiuzhi took two steps back, held the doorknob, and said seriously, "Thank you for the ginger tea, Teacher Chen. I'll come downstairs after changing clothes."

Chen Lunan just stood there and watched her performance.

Shao Yue called from the staircase, "Qiuzhi, are you okay?"

"Yes, I am fine."

After Yan Qiuzhi finished speaking, she sneezed.

The two exchanged a glance. Chen Lunan's eyebrows furrowed, his tone becoming a bit more serious, "Go put on your clothes."

"Oh."

Yan Qiuzhi muttered softly, "Even if I catch a cold, it won't be contagious to you. Why do you have to be so disgusted?

She kicked Chen Lunan's foot and continued, "I feel like my stomach is full of pond water; it's uncomfortable."

Chen Lunan: "......"

When Yan Qiuzhi came downstairs after changing her clothes, the dishes were almost cooked.

Everyone showed concern about her condition. Yan Qiuzhi reassured them that she was fine before sitting down to the side.

After sitting down, Yan Qiuzhi still felt uneasy. She took out her phone and searched on Baidu, then sent a message to Chen Lunan.

Chen Lunan was helping in the kitchen, and when his phone vibrated, Xu Song even looked at him and asked, "Your phone has been vibrating for a while. Is there something urgent?"

Chen Lunan probably knew what was going on. He replied in a low voice, "Let me check."

He looked at the messages he just received; they were screenshots sent by Yan Qiuzhi about the consequences of drinking pond water, with questions about the possibility of parasites, among other concerns. In addition to the screenshots, there were also Yan Qiuzhi's crying emojis.

Chen Lunan turned his head and glanced out the window, coincidentally meeting Yan Qiuzhi's pitiful eyes.

Rare, he thought.

Chen Lunan paused for a moment before sending a message to Yan Qiuzhi: 【What do you want?】

Yan Qiuzhi: 【Milk tea and cake. Only milk tea and cake can dispel the taste in my mouth and make it sweet and soft.】

Chen Lunan: 【......】

Looking at Chen Lunan's reply, Yan Qiuzhi felt wronged and pitiful. She didn't know if she could get milk tea today.

She thought to herself and silently poured water into her mouth.

Then she continued sending messages to Chen Lunan: 【Are you ignoring the life and death of your wife? I knew you despise me. Did you see me get dirty falling into the pond and want to go hug other fragrant and beautiful girls?】

Yan Qiuzhi: 【I've seen through you a long time ago. You're just such a heartless and unscrupulous man.】

Yan Qiuzhi: 【Sob, sob, sob, sob, sob, sob, sob...】

Ten minutes later, Yan Qiuzhi received a cold reply from the indifferent man: 【Turn off the microphone, come upstairs.】