They shared a not-so-long but very sweet kiss. Song Jianchu had been on edge, thinking that Mu Ye might do something.
Mu Ye noticed his nervousness and didn’t act impulsively. After the kiss, he hugged Song Jianchu for a few minutes to comfort him.
Mu Ye sighed with a hint of regret and held him, saying, “I miss home, Chu Chu. Shall we run away?”
Song Jianchu smiled and replied half seriously, half jokingly, “Sure, why not.”
“Really?” Mu Ye buried his face in Song Jianchu’s shoulder and asked, “Should we leave now?”
Song Jianchu said, “Let’s go.”
Mu Ye let go of him, held his hands, looked into his eyes, and smiled, “Never mind, we can’t ruin the image of the leaders.”
Song Jianchu blinked.
Mu Ye lowered his head and rubbed his nose against Song Jianchu’s, reluctantly saying, “I’ll endure a little longer.”
Song Jianchu wanted to laugh a bit but held it in, saying, “Hang in there.”
After lunch, the members entered their break time and went back to their dorms to rest.
On the first day of resumed filming, Song Jianchu was feeling a bit tired, so Mu Ye hugged him, and they slept for two hours.
Most of the work at the ranch was concentrated in the morning. In the afternoon, everyone had free time and wandered around the ranch with the tourists.
In the afternoon, according to Song Jianchu’s arrangement, the construction team started their work, repairing the old facilities.
At sunset, the ranch closed for the day, and the repairs were mostly completed.
After the first day of business, Song Jianchu held a summary meeting for everyone to briefly go over today’s work.
“That’s it for today. Does anyone have any questions?” Song Jianchu closed his notebook.
Pei Shinian raised his hand, and everyone looked at him. Song Jianchu nodded and said, “Go ahead.”
“I want to use the welfare card.” Pei Shinian placed a gold card on the table. “Tomorrow, I want to be the leader.”
Song Jianchu didn’t have any objections and felt relieved, saying, “Sure, you can.”
Bai Xingyu’s eyelid started twitching as he stared at Pei Shinian warily. “I warn you, don’t mess with us.”
Pei Shinian pretended to look serious. “Brother, why do you think of me like that? Do I really come across as untrustworthy?”
Bai Xingyu’s eyes showed suspicion, and the other members also looked skeptical.
Pei Shinian sat up straight, trying to prove himself. “You don’t have to be so nervous. I promise not to cause trouble intentionally. How could I have any evil intentions?”
Their trust in Pei Shinian diminished even further.
Though Sheng Yi was also meeting Pei Shinian in person for the first time and didn’t know him well, he inexplicably felt uneasy.
He whispered to Rong Yu, “Xiao Yu, should we leave tomorrow afternoon?”
Rong Yu nodded in agreement.
Sheng Yi sighed in relief. “That’s good then.”
Checking the time, Song Jianchu stood up and said, “Tomorrow, I’ll exchange positions with Teacher Pei. Let’s end the meeting here, everyone worked hard, go rest.”
Suddenly, Director Cui called out to the group, “Wait, there’s a wake-up task tomorrow.”
Everyone stopped in their tracks and turned to look at him.
Pei Shinian was taken aback. “Even the leaders have to do it?”
Director Cui replied, “It depends on the leader’s personal preference.”
Bai Xingyu said with an odd tone, “A good leader should integrate into the team. Jianchu has never given himself any special privileges.”
Mu Ye agreed, “If it were Chu Chu, he would definitely participate with everyone.”
Sheng Yi nodded in agreement, “I think so too.”
Lu Shen added, “Yes.”
Before even officially becoming a leader, Pei Shinian suddenly felt a sense of moral pressure. He hesitated for a moment and asked, “What’s the wake-up task then?”
Director Cui explained, “This ranch provides a public service of delivering fresh milk to nearby elderly people. Someone needs to wake up at 4:30 am tomorrow to deliver the milk.”
Pei Shinian panicked, “4:30 am? Who can wake up at that hour?”
“That’s way too early,” Sheng Yi exclaimed in surprise.
Bai Xingyu sighed wearily, “It’s not even dawn yet.”
Song Jianchu was already struggling to keep his eyes open. He leaned against Muye’s arm, and Muye comfortingly held his shoulder, saying, “It’s alright, it definitely won’t be us.”
Doing charity work is a good thing, but nobody wanted to do it that early.
Bai Xingyu’s expression turned serious. “Stop beating around the bush and tell us the task.”
Director Cui said, “The task deadline is 4:30 am tomorrow. Members who find a four-leaf clover in the ranch and submit it to the production team don’t have to deliver milk.”
Pei Shinian looked baffled. “A four-leaf clover? Isn’t that a lucky charm from legends? They actually exist?”
Bai Xingyu was getting tired of arguing and gritted his teeth. “In the middle of the night, where do you expect us to find a four-leaf clover? Just tell us not to sleep.”
Sheng Yi hung on Rong Yu’s back and said helplessly, “It’s so late. What if there are wolves on the grassland?”
Director Cui’s tone turned cold. “The task starts now. Members who haven’t found a four-leaf clover and submitted it to the production team before 4:30 am tomorrow will deliver milk together.”
Pei Shinian cleared his throat and tried to bargain, “Well, uh, as the leader tomorrow, I’ll…”
Bai Xingyu interrupted in a casual tone, “A leader who doesn’t participate in charity work can’t promote positive energy to the audience.”
Mu Ye chimed in, “Indeed.”
Pei Shinian had to change his words, “I’ll take the lead in doing the task then.”
Seeing how comfortable Song Jianchu looked as a leader, Pei Shinian couldn’t help but feel frustrated even before officially taking on the role.
“I’m going to sleep first,” Song Jianchu gave up and turned to walk back to the dorm. A little more sleep was precious.
“Chu Chu, wait for me,” Mu Ye followed him and entered the dorm together.
“You guys go ahead and have fun. I’m going to bed early too,” Bai Xingyu said as he headed to the dorm, with Lu Shen following silently behind.
Sheng Yi looked at Rong Yu hesitantly and asked, “Do we need to find a four-leaf clover?”
Rong Yu replied, “Staying up late is not good for health.”
Sheng Yi nodded, “Then let’s go to bed.”
Saying that, the two of them walked towards the dorm.
Pei Shinian was left alone, standing there dumbfounded, muttering to himself, “None of them is doing the task?”
After thinking for a moment, Pei Shinian realized that enduring the torment of waking up early together might not be so bad.
Yawning, he lazily returned to his room.
After returning to the dorm, Song Jianchu took a shower and changed into pajamas, then collapsed on the bed, barely able to keep his eyes open. He tried his best to stay awake and wait for Muye to come back so they could sleep together.
Mu Ye quickly finished washing up and put on his coat to go out. He knelt by the side of the bed and kissed him, whispering, “Chu Chu, I’m going out to do the task. You go ahead and sleep, don’t wait for me.”
Instead of both of them having a sleepless night, Mu Ye decided to do the task alone and let Song Jianchu get a good night’s sleep.
Song Jianchu, still half asleep, sat up. “I’ll go with you.”
Mu Ye gently touched his head. “No need. You go ahead and sleep. It’s cold outside.”
Song Jianchu got up, seemingly sleepwalking, and put on his coat.
“Wear more layers,” Mu Ye reminded him.
Quietly, the two of them left the dorm and asked the production team for two flashlights. They went out onto the grassland in the dark to search for a four-leaf clover.
The grassland at night was serene yet noisy, filled with the sounds of insects chirping incessantly. The moon shone like a bright pearl in the vast night sky, casting a soft glow over the flat grassland.
Stepping on the soft grass, Song Jianchu used the flashlight to search the ground, feeling like his eyelids were weighed down by two lead balls, and he felt like he was sleepwalking.
If it weren’t for this show, he probably would never do such a meaningless and foolish thing in his life.
Mu Ye held his hand and turned to ask with a smile, “Have you been to the grassland before?”
Song Jianchu answered lazily, “Yeah.”
Mu Ye asked, “With Yin Chi?”
Song Jianchu replied, “With my parents.”
Mu Ye gently rubbed his hand with his thumb and asked softly, “Do you remember what they looked like?”
Song Jianchu slowed his pace and looked up at the moon in the sky. “I remember.”
Song Jianchu continued, “My mom had dimples when she smiled, and I resemble my dad more.”
Mu Ye tilted his head, carefully observing Song Jianchu’s face, and slightly curved his lips. “You have them too.”
Song Jianchu was momentarily bewildered. “I don’t.”
“You do,” Mu Ye lightly tapped his cheek with another hand, saying, “When you smile.”
Song Jianchu usually didn’t smile in front of a mirror, so he had some doubts. “Really?”
“Mm,” Mu Ye smiled and said, “Very cute.”
Mu Ye always loved to see Song Jianchu smile. It was because when he genuinely smiled, he had two not very noticeable dimples on his face, which made him look cute and handsome, different from his usual self.
Having lived for nineteen years, Song Jianchu discovered for the first time that he had such a feature.
Nobody had ever told him about it, and he was a bit surprised. He subconsciously raised his hand to touch his face.
Staring at Song Jianchu’s face for a few seconds, Mu Ye suddenly asked, “Did you ever think about the kind of family you’d like to have when you grow up?”
Song Jianchu turned his head in surprise and met Mu Ye’s earnest gaze.
His gaze paused for a moment, and then he lowered his eyes, carefully contemplating for a moment. “I never did before.”
Mu Ye held onto his fingers and asked softly, “And now? Have you thought about it?”
Thinking of the complex thoughts he had during the day, Song Jianchu hesitated in his gaze. Seeing Mu Ye holding his fingers tightly, he softly replied, “Yes.”
Before, he had never thought about such matters because it didn’t seem necessary. Being used to living alone, he didn’t have a specific concept of family, and he wasn’t interested in the idea of building one.
But now, Song Jianchu had a vague idea in his mind.
Having a house and a car, maybe even a pet, would that be considered a family?
Although he was still not entirely clear on what constitutes a family, he felt that those things weren’t the most important.
The most important thing was the person who would accompany him through the long journey of life.
Song Jianchu discreetly glanced to the side, accidentally meeting Muye’s expectant eyes, and quickly looked away.
“Tell me?” Mu Ye urged with anticipation.
Song Jianchu felt a little embarrassed to say, and shyly shook his head. “I haven’t figured it out yet.”
“Besides that horse, is there nothing else you want?” Mu Ye asked with a light smile. “Nothing you’d like to have in your future home?”
Song Jianchu shook his head.
Mu Ye lowered his eyelashes, understandingly nodding.
The two of them walked silently for a while. The night on the grassland was beautiful, and they unconsciously forgot about the task at hand.
As the thoughts from the day slowly settled, Song Jianchu suddenly found some words stuck in his heart. He looked at the grass wet with dew, occasionally glancing towards Mu Ye’s direction, hesitating several times before he could finally speak.
Since he had the ability to obtain everything he wanted, Song Jianchu rarely felt so conflicted. He had never worried about losing anything.
Losing something meant he could fill the void with something new; there was almost nothing in the world that money couldn’t buy.
But Mu Ye was the exception, he was unique.
Love was a fragile relationship, and if it failed to be nurtured, money couldn’t buy a second Muye.
Even if it wasn’t the right time, Song Jianchu felt it was necessary to make a preemptive effort.
Feeling nervous, he licked his lips and stopped walking, “Mr Mu Ye…”
“Yes?” Mu Ye suddenly asked.
Song Jianchu looked perplexed. “Huh?”
The moon shone brightly, and thin clouds played like shadows.
Mu Ye looked into his eyes, his eyes sparkling with a gentle, silvery moonlight. He asked in a soft voice, “In the future, does your home have a place for me?”