Upon hearing Xia Xiqing’s words, Zhou Ziheng paused for a moment. Though he still remained silent, his accelerated heartbeat betrayed his emotions.
He narrowed his eyes slightly, staring at Xia Xiqing, who was still staring straight at him. After a moment of tension, he spoke again, “Is your mouth sealed? That’s fine. Just help me remove this cloth.”
Xia Xiqing’s tone was so firm that it was almost impossible to refuse. Zhou Ziheng turned his neck and thought silently for a moment.
To be honest, he didn’t want to deal with this person at all.
But… if they continued to remain in this stalemate, neither of them would be able to leave, and besides, they were recording a program, so he couldn’t make things difficult for the production team.
After struggling for a moment, Zhou Ziheng had no choice but to give up on watching the show.
He braced his feet against the ground, exerted force to turn the office swivel chair he was sitting on, and positioned his body facing the long table. A white porcelain vase with a bouquet of white chrysanthemums was placed nearby. Zhou Ziheng strained his bound hands to reach for the vase. Finally, his fingers gripped the neck of the vase, and with a loud crash, he smashed it against the edge of the table.
Zhou Ziheng lifted his leg, pressed the sole of his boot against the edge of the table, and kicked hard, sliding himself and the chair over to Xia Xiqing’s side.
“I can remove your blindfold, but in exchange, you must untie my ropes.”
Having been genuinely devoted to him for years, Xia Xiqing instantly recognized Zhou Ziheng’s voice, which was exactly what he had expected. He smiled, “No problem.”
As soon as he finished speaking, Zhou Ziheng reached his bound hands behind his head, removed the cloth blocking his vision, and tossed it aside.
His vision cleared from the temporary blur, and Xia Xiqing turned his face to the side, only to realize that the two of them were extremely close. He could almost smell Zhou Ziheng’s faint aftershave scent.
Xia Xiqing half-closed his newly sighted eyes, his expression transitioning seamlessly from confusion to surprise, without a single flaw.
“So I’m trapped here with you,” Xia Xiqing smiled sweetly, his eyes sparkling, the mole on his nose making him look even more innocent. “It feels like a dream. I’m a bit dizzy right now.”
He was such a good actor that even Zhou Ziheng, a professional actor himself, couldn’t help but admire him. Zhou Ziheng couldn’t figure out why this smile looked so natural on him. If it weren’t for seeing his true face, few people would be able to see through him.
The room was filled with cameras, capturing every corner in crystal-clear detail. To avoid being accused of being cold toward his fans, Zhou Ziheng could only respond with a smile that seemed warm enough, softening his voice. “My eyes were also covered by a blindfold, and I was pretty surprised when I took it off.”
His pride as an actor and Jiang Yin’s instructions left Zhou Ziheng no choice but to patiently deal with him, even though he truly disliked such people. He handed the sharp shard of porcelain to Xia Xiqing. “Thank you for your trouble.”
“No trouble at all. I’ve liked you since long ago. I’ve watched every single one of your films.” Xia Xiqing awkwardly took the shard with his hands cuffed, then bent down to help Zhou Ziheng cut the rope.
Zhou Ziheng smiled emotionlessly, “Thank you.”
Two people skilled at pretending engaged in a series of insincere exchanges.
The rope was difficult to cut. As Xia Xiqing worked, he spoke slowly, “Hmm, were the rules only explained once? I’m still a bit confused.”
Zhou Ziheng snapped out of his reverie. He hadn’t heard what Xia Xiqing had said, so to ease the awkwardness, he spoke up himself: “By the way, how did you know someone would remove your blindfold?”
Xia Xiqing had anticipated this question. Now that there were only the two of them here, Zhou Ziheng fully understood his true nature. If he didn’t be honest, he would lose more trust and cause trouble for the rest of the game.
It was better to be open and honest.
Those hands, used for painting, cut the rope with each powerful stroke. Xia Xiqing stared intently at the rope as it gradually broke, explaining softly, “Although this is my first time on the show, I’ve often played escape rooms with friends before, so I have some experience.”
“In a place like this, you can’t get too emotionally invested. You have to constantly think from the perspective of the planners.”
He cut through one rope, pulled out the severed end with his hands, and said, “They locked me in here because they want me to escape, not because they actually want to keep me trapped here for the entire episode. If I were alone in this room, with my hands and feet bound and unable to see, the likelihood of escaping on my own would be virtually zero. In that case, there would be only two possibilities: first, wait for someone else to escape from their room and come to mine to either save me or kill me. Second, there is another person in this room, and we need to help each other. From the perspective of the show’s watchability…”
At this point, Xia Xiqing raised his head slightly, his eyes meeting Zhou Ziheng’s.
He didn’t say a word, just stared at him silently for three seconds.
Then he suddenly curved his lips into a smile.
For a moment, Zhou Ziheng had an eerie illusion that he could hear the words Xia Xiqing hadn’t finished saying.
Though they had only known each other for a few days and there was no such thing as tacit understanding between them, from that gaze, he fully grasped the unspoken meaning behind Xia Xiqing’s words.
[From the perspective of the show’s watchability, only when you and I are together does it have the highest topic value.]
“I just wanted to try the second possibility, but I didn’t expect my luck to be so good—it worked on the first try.”
Another lie.
At some point, Xia Xiqing had already untied Zhou Ziheng’s hands.
“Alright.”
“Thank you.” Zhou Ziheng was still a bit dazed. He considered himself a smart person, but the extremely poor first impression had caused him to lose his judgment of the person in front of him. If he wanted to win this game, he had to let go of his prejudices.
When he came to his senses, Zhou Ziheng noticed that Xia Xiqing had bent down and was using his cuffed hands to untie the rope around his ankles.
His hands were now free, and he could easily untie the knot himself without resorting to such a violent method as using a shard of broken porcelain, nor did he need anyone else’s help.
“I’ll do it myself…”
Before he could finish speaking, he saw Xia Xiqing, still bent over, lift his head. His eyes held a hint of confusion, and his slightly reddened lips held the shard of broken porcelain that had been used to cut the ropes. The oversized collar of his white shirt revealed his prominent collarbone.
His eyes, freed from the black cloth, his slightly longer hair tied back, the angle of his bent body, and his posture close to Zhou Ziheng’s knees.
The handcuffs, the mole on his nose, the sharp shards, the beautiful yet cold lips, and the teeth gently biting the porcelain shard.
The strange atmosphere highlighted these broken elements into a strange picture, very strange, and accidentally smeared with a hint of ambiguity.
Zhou Ziheng didn’t understand why he suddenly felt embarrassed, a feeling he had never experienced before. He hurriedly bent down and reached out to untie his legs.
People instinctively fear the unknown.
Xia Xiqing didn’t pay much attention to it, simply using her fingers to remove the ceramic shard she was holding and handing it to Zhou Ziheng. “It seems like a few knots. Try using this?” But he only shook his head, struggling slightly to untie one knot.
Seeing that he wasn’t grateful, Xia Xiqing straightened up and casually tossed the broken porcelain shard into a corner of the room, like throwing a dart.
Zhou Ziheng, now free of the restraints on his hands and feet, regained his basic freedom, at least escaping from that damn swivel chair. The previous scene had made him feel uneasy all over, and no matter how he tried, he couldn’t shake it off. He could only attribute it to the aftereffects of being restrained. He turned his neck and clenched his fists until they cracked, trying to relax himself. Xia Xiqing’s hands were still shackled, and he couldn’t free his legs on his own.
Unfortunately, he had only agreed to remove the black cloth as a condition. Now that Zhou Ziheng had done his part, he could easily leave him here to become a sacrifice in the game, especially since he hated him so much.
Xia Xiqing pondered his options. This was a TV show, and abandoning a teammate outright would be highly controversial. Most celebrities wouldn’t choose such behavior. However, this show had the unique element of psychological warfare, where the hidden “killer” role naturally fostered mutual suspicion among participants, making it impossible to call them teammates.
Therefore, leaving Zhou Ziheng here at this moment was entirely logical.
In truth, Zhou Ziheng was also contemplating. To be honest, his moral compass prevented him from abandoning someone so easily, even if this was merely a simulated survival game. However, he genuinely disliked Xia Xiqing. He was a major hassle, a ticking time bomb. If he saved him now, there was a chance he might betray him at some point.
Smiling like an angel while pushing him into the abyss—that was Xia Xiqing.
For a brief moment, both of them struggled and weighed their options.
“Although you’re my fan, this is a game, and I can’t be sure if the production team will use some tricks to lower my guard.” As Xia Xiqing had anticipated, Zhou Ziheng was searching for the least objectionable justification for abandoning him. However, even if the audience were to express dissatisfaction, it would not matter, as he was unwilling to be associated with Xia Xiqing. “If you are the killer, then I would be aiding and abetting you.”
“What if you are?” Xia Xiqing had wanted to ask him that, but he held back before speaking, as the question was too direct and conflicted with his harmless persona.
There was no way around it.
Having prepared himself mentally, Zhou Ziheng turned around boldly, but as he took a step, his calf was gently tugged by a foot.
“Don’t go.”
Turning back, Xia Xiqing sat in his chair and looked into his eyes. Zhou Ziheng found it extremely strange. Even though he belonged to such a cunning body, why could those eyes always produce the purest, most heartbreaking gaze?
“Ziheng, ally with me. I will help you win unconditionally.” Xia Xiqing smiled, his expression so confident it didn’t resemble someone seeking help, but rather a negotiation expert holding the best cards.
“Is that so? But in this game…” Zhou Ziheng raised an eyebrow at him, “The rule for victory is to trust no one.”
“Quite clever,” Xia Xiqing laughed.
“I’m not asking you to trust me.” His eyes, as dark as an abyss, gleamed with a sweet, alluring light. “I’m asking you to use me.”
Author’s Note: Xia Xiqing: This kid is just too pure. My □ □ technique completely failed.
Zhou Ziheng: Well, not completely… [whispering]
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