Unlike Lu Wen’s polite smile, Tan You rarely showed any expression, but when she did smile, her eyes seemed to twinkle like stars. Anyone who saw it for the first time could tell her smile was genuine and from the heart.

Ji Mingxi also sensed Tan You’s sincerity. He smiled. "Let’s... switch seats. There’s not much... sun... over here..."

He was a foreigner, and while he could speak some Chinese, he wasn’t very fluent, so foreign words tended to slip out when he was flustered. Tan You didn’t understand them at all, but she didn’t refuse his kind offer. "I can speak English," she said. "If it’s easier for you, feel free to use it."

"Of course, it would be even better if you could teach me your country’s language."

Ji Mingxi switched to the other seat. "Okay. The host said you could speak some."

Tan You was very composed. "Just a few simple phrases I’ve picked up from watching shows. In exchange, I can teach you Chinese."

Ji Mingxi beamed. "Great! We can learn from each other..."

Tan You wasn’t usually a talkative person, but she knew she had to take the lead on this dating show, so she was making an effort to talk more. Besides, he was a foreigner who knew nothing about the area. As the local, Tan You felt she had a responsibility to take good care of him.

So the two of them made small talk for the rest of the ride, mostly about their hobbies.

Once the initial stiffness wore off, Ji Mingxi opened up quite a bit. He was naturally a cheerful and talkative person—otherwise, he wouldn’t have become a host in his home country.

This dating show was a big-budget production with four pairs of guests in total. However, each pair had a separate storyline and would never cross paths during the show. This meant the production team had to split into four separate crews to follow and film each pair.

The guests would spend a month together, just eating, drinking, and having fun. How their relationships developed was entirely up to them.

Tan You had been mulling this over for the past couple of days. So, when Ji Mingxi brought up their upcoming schedule, she pulled out her own plan. "I like to be organized, so I drafted a preliminary plan. How about I run it by you, and if you see anything you’d rather not do, we can revise it?"

Ji Mingxi hadn’t expected this from her. He blinked, then broke into a smile. "Sure! I’m not familiar with this place, so it’s great that you made a plan, Wenwen. Where are we off to?"

Tan You said, "The plan officially starts tomorrow. First, we’ll grab some dinner. There’s a music festival nearby, so I was thinking we could check it out after we eat. Are you up for that?"

Ji Mingxi’s face lit up. "You like music festivals, too?"

Tan You shook her head. "I’m just curious about things I haven’t tried before, so I thought it’d be a good chance to see what it’s like. You write lyrics, don’t you? The ones for your group’s new song are excellent."

Ji Mingxi’s smile grew more sincere. "You knew about that?"

Tan You replied calmly, "I did my homework. I figured I should know what my partner for the next month is like."

Ji Mingxi paused. "What if the person you researched isn’t the real me?"

Tan You was unfazed. "That’s fine. As long as you’re a person with principles and integrity, that’s good enough. What you read online isn’t always the same as the real person. We can get to know each other slowly."

She glanced at Ji Mingxi as she spoke. "And of course, if you don’t feel like smiling, then don’t. Just be yourself. We’re here to have fun, so our own happiness is what’s most important."

She mentioned it casually before changing the subject to dinner. "Do you have any dietary restrictions? Like organ meats? Or any allergies?"

Ji Mingxi found it to be a novel experience, being cared for so thoughtfully by a woman. He thought for a moment. "I’m not picky, but I am allergic to mangoes."

Tan You nodded. "Got it. We’ll decide what to get together when we order."

Although it was their first time meeting, the atmosphere was comfortable and harmonious, with no trace of awkwardness. Listening from the front seat, the producer-director felt something was off but couldn’t quite put her finger on it.

She mulled it over for a long time without getting anywhere. Seeing they were about to arrive at the restaurant, she remembered her instructions from Qi Yu. "Sister Wen, you look so beautiful today. It’s such a huge change from how you were portrayed in the papers a few days ago."

Tan You shot the producer-director a look, a teasing glint in her eye. "What kind of cosmetic procedure lets you recover in three days? I think confidence is a woman’s best beauty treatment."

The producer-director was momentarily speechless. She hadn’t expected Tan You, who was so warm toward Ji Mingxi, to be this cold to her. She pressed on, "Sister Wen, I heard you terminated your contract. Could you share some of your future career plans?"

Tan You replied, completely unruffled, "Yes, I did. My personal independent studio is already in the process of being set up. As for future plans, I haven’t decided yet. I’ll think about it after we’re done with this show."

The producer-director opened her mouth to ask another question, but her phone suddenly rang. She answered in a hushed tone and didn’t dare stir up any more trouble for the rest of the ride. Watching this, Ji Mingxi could tell something fishy was going on.

’That makes sense.’ Ji Mingxi thought. ’Just like Tan You, I also looked into Lu Wen’s past. I knew about her terminating the contract with her agency, so I won’t pass judgment on the complexities of that situation.’

’Just as Tan You said, we’ll see after this show is over.’

Then, the minivan pulled up in front of a Chinese restaurant.

Tan You paid no mind to the producer-director’s earlier shenanigans. "Let’s go. You need to book this place in advance. It has great reviews and is very private."

Ji Mingxi took in his surroundings. "This place is really nice. I’m looking forward to this."

Tan You appreciated Ji Mingxi’s enthusiastic response. "My country has tons of amazing food. We’ll be staying here for the next week, so I’ll take you to try all sorts of regional specialties."

Ji Mingxi feigned a look of horror. "That sounds terrifying. I have to maintain my figure."

Tan You was unconcerned. "I have to maintain my figure too, but I’ll just exercise more. For instance, I’ll add two extra hours of dance practice to my routine."

Ji Mingxi asked, "You dance too? We should have a battle sometime."

"Sure," Tan You replied. "We can practice together when we have time."

Both Tan You and Ji Mingxi were poised individuals, and their conversation flowed gracefully with no shortage of topics. For example, Ji Mingxi was now curious. "So, what are your plans for the next week?"

Tan You pulled out the plan she’d made. She had even thoughtfully annotated it in Ji Mingxi’s native language to make sure he could understand it.

Ji Mingxi looked it over. "’Challenge Course’? What’s that?"

Tan You smiled. "It’s a game show with an obstacle course in Province A, set up in part of a water park. If we’re going to have fun, we might as well go all out. I’ve always wanted to do a show like this, but unfortunately, my old agent would never have booked this kind of work for me."

Ji Mingxi looked it up on his phone, and his eyes grew brighter the more he saw. "What happens if we fail?"