Chapter 6: Speak the Harshest Words, Perform the Gentlest Deeds

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Under the shade of the old tree village gathering spot, only Xu Zhaozhao and Shen Mu remained. Shen Mu noticed Xu Zhaozhao’s resistance. His gaze once again turned cold and indifferent.

“If you want to be eliminated now, then both of us can just sit here and wait!” He didn’t want to stay on the dating show anyway; he was only waiting for the elimination notice.

Xu Zhaozhao sighed. The contract hadn’t ended yet; leaving the dating show wasn’t something she could do on a whim.

“Let’s go,” she said stiffly, turning around. “Getting eliminated in the first round isn’t my style!”

Shen Mu silently followed behind her. Their shadows, one tall and one short, stretched long under the afternoon sun, reminiscent of the time they spent together on the island’s beach. The brightness made Xu Zhaozhao’s eyes ache.

She lowered her head, struggling to hold back tears. If it weren’t for the cameras, she would have run away at the first opportunity.

Who, after a whirlwind marriage and divorce, could calmly face an ex-husband who had divorced her through cold violence?

“Wait…” Just as Xu Zhaozhao was walking ahead with her head down, Shen Mu suddenly reached out and stopped her.

“What?” Xu Zhaozhao looked up.

Seeing her reddened eyes, Shen Mu’s heart stirred involuntarily. Sensing the change in his own emotions, a warning flashed in his mind: This woman was not simple; don’t be deceived by her demeanor.

“I noticed everyone else heading toward the fields. Since we’re supposed to help the villagers with farm work, wouldn’t it be better to go to the fields to complete the task?”

[I also want to point out that Xu Zhaozhao was walking in the opposite direction of the other guests, always with her head down, heading into the village.]

Since the guests split up, the livestream had divided into ten separate feeds, allowing viewers to enter the room of any guest they wanted.

Because both Xu Zhaozhao and Shen Mu’s initial images were unappealing, their group’s livestream had very few viewers.

Xu Zhaozhao glanced at the sky. “It’s just past noon, the sun is at its harshest.”

“At this time, not many people work in the fields. We should try our luck inside the village.”

[With her outfit, she clearly can’t do farm work; she just wants to slack off inside the village!]

[She isn’t wrong. My grandparents get up at dawn to work, but when the sun is strongest in the fields, they return home for lunch and a nap.]

Following the cobblestone path into the village, the ancient village’s charm suddenly enveloped them.

Seeing the walls built of blue stone on both sides, Xu Zhaozhao couldn’t help but run her hands over them here and there.

“This place is really nice,” she said sincerely, “it makes one want to retreat to a pastoral life.”

After long periods of intense work, the slow life became what she longed for most.

Thinking that in just nine more days she could return to the island to retreat, she temporarily forgot her present worries and smiled with ease.

Seeing that smile, Shen Mu’s heart skipped a beat.

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Back then on the beach, it was precisely such a sincere, natural smile from Xu Zhaozhao that had moved him.

Noticing Shen Mu staring at her, Xu Zhaozhao quickly hid her smile and avoided his gaze.

Before, when he looked at her like that, she could confidently say he loved her.

But now, she wasn’t sure what that look really meant.

Perhaps she should never have gotten close to him in the first place.

The two walked silently through the village, barely interacting. Their livestream audience had dwindled to single digits.

Those remaining were probably watching while multitasking and hadn’t switched the stream.

Soon, Xu Zhaozhao stopped in front of a house.

It was the last house built in the village, halfway up the mountain, perched on higher ground.

From here, one could overlook the entire village and see the guests who had found no farm work in the fields gradually heading into the village.

Xu Zhaozhao knocked on the door: “Knock, knock, knock.”

“Who is it?” After a moment, an elderly woman opened the door and stepped out.

Seeing the handsome young couple standing before her, she was momentarily stunned.

“Hello, ma’am,” Xu Zhaozhao greeted warmly. “We’re from the dating show ‘Love in the Mountains and Fields.’”

“Oh, yes, I know. A few days ago, the village chief went door to door to inform everyone about your program, so we should cooperate well.”

“That’s right,” Xu Zhaozhao nodded. “May I ask if there’s any work you need help with?”

“Well…” The elderly woman shook her head. “Young lady, you should try other houses. I live alone and haven’t farmed for many years, so I don’t have any work for you.”

“That’s not necessarily true,” Xu Zhaozhao stopped her from closing the door and pointed to dozens of chickens, ducks, and geese penned up behind a wire fence at the back of the house.

“Are those yours?”

The woman nodded. “Yes, they are.”

Next to the fence was a wooden enclosure housing two pigs.

“How about we help you collect eggs and clean the chicken and pig pens?”

“Ah?” The woman was taken aback. “That’s dirty. You city folks wouldn’t be able to do it.”

She shook her head. “Forget it, you should look for work elsewhere.”

“Ma’am, just trust us with the work,” Xu Zhaozhao promised confidently. “We won’t let you down.”

“Really… really?”

Seeing Xu Zhaozhao’s confidence, the woman trusted her a little more.

“Alright then, I’ll entrust those two pens to you.”

“You should know in advance,” Xu Zhaozhao said, “after we finish, you have to invite us for dinner.”

“It doesn’t have to be anything fancy; just cook whatever you normally eat.”

“That’s definitely no problem.”

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The elderly woman nodded and immediately fetched a bamboo basket from the courtyard, handing it to Xu Zhaozhao.

“Here, put all the eggs in here.”

Xu Zhaozhao took it and passed it to Shen Mu. “Don’t just stand there, get to work!”

“What did you say?” Shen Mu’s eyes widened. “You want me to…”

He pointed to himself and then to the foul-smelling chicken pen.

“Yes,” Xu Zhaozhao nodded. “You go.”

“Why should I go?” Shen Mu was furious. This woman knew he was slightly obsessive about cleanliness, yet dared to assign him such a task. Was this revenge?

There was no way he was going in there.

“This is a two-person task. I found and negotiated it, so I’ve done half the work. The rest is up to you.”

“Nonsense,” Shen Mu said. “I won’t accept this task; I’ll find another one.”

“Are you sure?” Xu Zhaozhao pointed to the guests streaming into the village. “If you go back now to look for another task, someone else will have already claimed it!”

“I don’t care. Then I’ll just give up. I’m not doing this task!” Shen Mu almost shouted.

[Ahahaha… Evil people have their match!]

[Shen Mu’s grievances caused by Sibao are now being balanced out by Xu Zhaozhao.]

As Shen Mu and Xu Zhaozhao argued, many spectators flocked to their livestream.

“You’re absolutely refusing to go, right?” Xu Zhaozhao asked finally.

“Absolutely not!” Shen Mu’s tone was cold and firm.

“Fine then,” Xu Zhaozhao sighed and held out her hand. “Give me your jacket…”

“For what?” Shen Mu snapped.

Xu Zhaozhao twirled once in front of him, then made a princess-like curtsy. Her outfit was too revealing, and many viewers were waiting for her to slip.

In the next moment, a jacket imbued with a mint scent fell over her head.

Shen Mu’s suit coat nearly reached his knees. Xu Zhaozhao made sure no part was exposed to the camera, then carried the basket in one hand and went to open the chicken pen’s gate with the other.

“Wait!”

Just as Xu Zhaozhao was about to step into the pen, Shen Mu suddenly called out.

“What is it?” Xu Zhaozhao turned around.

Before her, a tall shadow had already stepped into the chicken pen and taken the basket from her hands.

[Ahhh, forgive me for only being able to scream!]

[My goodness, Shen Mu—speaking the harshest words, yet doing the gentlest deeds!]