Chapter Four: Homeward

Late at night, Tang Zhichu lay in bed, not falling asleep right away, but scrolling through his phone instead.

There were countless entries about Chen Siyang on the search apps.

A native of Qionghai in Shudu, she graduated from the Huaguo Academy of Film and Television. In 2021, she participated in the idol girl group competition on Kiwi Video, standing out from the crowd and winning the popularity vote several times.

Unfortunately, the girl group lasted less than a year before dissolving.

Currently, Chen Siyang is signed under Tianhe Entertainment.

After reading this information, Tang Zhichu curled his lips in self-mockery. He’d spent half the evening in front of the mirror, thinking Chen Siyang had texted him because this body was handsome enough.

Now, it seemed he’d been naive.

A girl group member who had just disbanded, newly signed with a major company, with outstanding looks and abilities—would such a person really come on a dating show for love?

What a joke!

When morning came, Tang Zhichu opened his eyes, surprised to find he’d slept better than he expected.

He drew open the curtains. Before the sunlight arrived, a bright world spread out before him.

The seventh season of “Love At First Sight” had come to Yuzhou. Tang Zhichu was, in fact, a native of Yuzhou.

Yuzhou in April was caught between lingering cold and the first warmth of spring. Who could imagine that three months later, the city would become a furnace?

After washing up, Tang Zhichu opened his bedroom door. He hadn’t even gone downstairs when he heard a sound behind him. Turning around, he saw Chen Siyang.

Today, Chen Siyang wore a black sports outfit, paired with a white bucket hat and headphones slung around her neck. She looked cool, and her outfit provided a bit of cover.

“Good morning,” she greeted first.

“Morning.”

“Is this the time you usually get up?” she asked.

Tang Zhichu glanced at the clock—eight o’clock on the dot. “About this time.”

“Do you want breakfast?” she continued, walking up to him without waiting for a reply. “I was planning to make sandwiches. Want to try my cooking?”

With the conversation at this point, Tang Zhichu could only nod.

Chen Siyang raised her eyebrows, clearly in a good mood. She’d grown up in a well-off family, never worrying about food or being bullied. Outsiders saw her as aloof, but only she knew her temperament was on the gentle side. Since her own intentions weren’t pure, the colder Tang Zhichu was to her, the less pressure she felt.

Tang Zhichu was thinking too. Clearly, playing the lovesick fool wouldn’t work. The more proactive Chen Siyang was, the more obvious it became that a female celebrity came onto a dating show for exposure, to gain resources.

It was all about benefits—no need to care about the subtleties and restraint between men and women.

In the kitchen, Yang Jiaxing and Huang Zejun sat across from each other, each eating a bowl of noodles.

But each had another bowl placed in front of them, creating a subtle tension.

Hearing footsteps, they both looked up. Their eyes lit up.

“Hello!”

“Morning!”

Chen Siyang paused, her expression stiffened slightly. “Good morning to you both.”

Yang Jiaxing stood up. “I made noodles. Want to try some?”

Huang Zejun glanced at Yang Jiaxing, but swallowed his words, lowering his head to eat instead. In the end, he chose to keep things from getting awkward.

Noticing that Chen Siyang didn’t answer immediately, and even glanced at Tang Zhichu standing beside her, Yang Jiaxing added, “We were just discussing what to cook for dinner. I’ll be back around six, so I’ll buy the ingredients then.”

Chen Siyang gave Tang Zhichu a slightly embarrassed look—it was clear she meant she couldn’t make the sandwiches anymore.

Tang Zhichu shook his head gently to show he understood, then walked toward the stove.

At that moment, Huang Zejun called out to him, “Hey, want some beef noodles?”

He spoke in the local Yuzhou dialect. Like Tang Zhichu, Huang Zejun was a Yuzhou native. He didn’t just offer; he pushed the extra bowl toward Tang Zhichu.

Since the noodles were already made, anyone could have them.

Tang Zhichu didn’t stand on ceremony. He thanked him and sat down beside Huang Zejun. “I’ll take care of breakfast tomorrow, then.”

Huang Zejun kept an eye on Chen Siyang as he replied, “Sure, you do breakfast tomorrow. I’m not picky—anything goes.”

He knew he couldn’t be as bold as Yang Jiaxing, but thought he could try a different approach by building alliances.

“Can I be included?” Chen Siyang interjected, looking at Tang Zhichu.

“Of course,” Tang Zhichu replied.

Yang Jiaxing chimed in, “Then I’ll be your assistant.”

As Tang Zhichu ate his noodles, he nodded. Even with just these few exchanges, he already had a basic understanding of Huang Zejun’s and Yang Jiaxing’s personalities.

Both were confident. Yang Jiaxing was direct—what he wanted, he went for with everything he had. Huang Zejun was more composed, with the calmness of a general who adapts to any situation.

Tang Zhichu thought to himself, being a lovesick fool wouldn’t work, but neither would giving up. These were strong competitors.

He couldn’t let the female celebrity always take the initiative—what would the audience think then?

He glanced at the sports cameras set up throughout the house, pondering his next move.

Across from him, Yang Jiaxing was discussing dinner plans with Chen Siyang.

Yesterday, they’d divided up cooking duties. Tang Zhichu had been upstairs at the time, while Zhou Yun and Huang Zejun were paired up and handled dinner.

Today, it was Chen Siyang and Yang Jiaxing’s turn.

…

At nine, Tang Zhichu left the house.

The dating show didn’t interfere with each guest’s private life. Filming was limited to the villa or activities organized by the show.

Standing at a crossroads, Tang Zhichu hesitated. Should he visit his “father,” still in the hospital? Go to the Sichuan restaurant? Or simply return home?

After a moment, he chose to go home. He decided to take things one step at a time.

In situations like this, not only might his family find his behavior strange, but he himself needed time to adjust.

The Yuzhou of 2023 in this world was every bit as bustling as the city in his previous life.

The Bodhisattva Bridge commercial district was one of the busiest in Yuzhou, filled with towering buildings and endless traffic.

Tang Zhichu’s home was about a kilometer from the heart of the district. By rights, his family shouldn’t be badly off.

Unfortunately, it was an old street. There had been talk of redevelopment for years, but nothing had come of it.

With the real estate market in decline, redevelopment seemed even further away.

The taxi stopped at the entrance to the alley. Through the window, Tang Zhichu could see his family’s restaurant, but he didn’t go in. Instead, he circled around and entered the alley from another end.

Deep in the alley stood a small five-story building, its walls darkened with age. His home was on the second floor—a spacious, bright three-bedroom apartment. Back then, it was considered quite a good place.

The city had developed too quickly. They’d missed the boom of getting rich through redevelopment, but the rapid growth had at least allowed them to make a living running a small business.

Opening the door to his room, Tang Zhichu let out a soft sigh. This hardly counted as plotting for wealth at the expense of someone’s life.

If anyone was unlucky, it was he himself—everything had to start from scratch.

The place was spotless: the quilt was neatly folded, the mattress without a wrinkle, and a cluster of pothos vines climbing from the desk up the shelf, stretching past the window, full of vitality.

His memory told him the cleanliness wasn’t because the show’s team had recently installed cameras—he’d always been a bit of a neat freak.

The most valuable things in the room were his computer and the singing equipment he’d bought for online singing competitions, spending tens of thousands on the latest gear.