Dating Show Side Character, Getting Rich by Roasting People

CHAPTER 29: I Just Shipped the Most Chaotic CP!

　　The dark room was lit only by the weak glow of the LED candle in his hand.

　　Its battery was running low, the light flickered on and off, casting shadows across the face in front of him.

　　Sheng Yi lowered his gaze and saw Chu Ling’s tense, striking features.

　　She was very close, one hand pressed tightly over his mouth, while the other lifted a finger to her lips, signaling him to be quiet. Her round cat-like eyes darted around, listening carefully, then she gave him a quick blink, almost like a secret cue.

　　Her grip was so firm that Sheng Yi felt like he could barely breathe.

　　He didn’t even dare move his lips, afraid the slightest twitch would ruin her plan.

　　In the silence, he could hear his own heartbeat.

　　Once, twice, pounding in his chest like a drum.

　　【Oh my god! This is intense!】

　　【What’s Chu Ling doing!? Why cover his mouth all of a sudden?】

　　【Pretty sure she figured out this ghost can’t see and relies on sound to hunt. Not the time to explain, so covering him was the quickest solution.】

　　【I mean, that’s actually pretty smart. Her reaction time is crazy fast, I almost missed the logic myself.】

　　【I get it’s all about survival, but the second she covered his mouth… I swear that was kinda shippable.】

　　【Same! The tension is real! Hot people just make everything look good!】

　　【It’s wrong but I think I just started shipping this cursed CP… even though it looks doomed from the start.】

　　【Who would’ve thought? First it was Qin-Wen feeding us sweet moments, then Sheng-Wen seemed to take the lead, but now the first real spark comes from Sheng Yi and Chu Ling… what do we even call this pair?】

　　【Someone earlier said it’s the “Overbearing CP.”】

　　【…Not gonna lie, that actually fits their vibe perfectly.】

　　【As fun as this ship is, the thought of them having this moment while poor Wen Shu is still trapped in a coffin waiting to be rescued is kinda hilarious. Someone please save our girl!】

　　The NPC ghost moved slowly around the room, making its way toward their position.

　　Chu Ling kept her hand over Sheng Yi’s mouth as they backed step by step into the corner, carefully avoiding the NPC ghost’s path until the two of them were practically pressed together.

　　Sheng Yi instinctively reached out, keeping his arm in front of her, ready to take the hit first if they got caught.

　　With Chu Ling tucked against his side, he could feel her warmth, her breath, her heartbeat.

　　No… wait.

　　That was probably his own heartbeat.

　　Stupid heart, stop pounding.

　　Sheng Yi thought, a little frustrated. It’s so loud, what if the ghost hears it. (T/N: Ghost? Are you sure? 😏)

　　But luck was on their side.

　　After circling the room and finding nothing, the NPC ghost finally returned to its coffin and lay down again.

　　Chu Ling let out a long breath and released his mouth.

　　Sheng Yi understood now.

　　This NPC ghost could only catch people through sound. Even though the staff under the mask should technically be able to see, the rules restricted them. As long as no sound was made, they couldn’t touch them.

　　So basically, it was just a game of Red Light, Green Light. What had seemed like a deadly haunted house suddenly felt way less difficult.

　　All thanks to Chu Ling’s quick thinking.　　

　　“Threat’s over,” Chu Ling whispered as softly as possible. “Keep searching.”

　　Then she casually wiped her hand twice on Sheng Yi’s clothes.

　　“Hey.”

　　Sheng Yi let out a quiet laugh, half amused, half helpless. “Do you hate me that much?”

　　“What? No.”

　　Chu Ling blinked at him, expression completely matter-of-fact. “I just have a little germaphobia, so I wiped my hand. Do you mind?”

　　Sheng Yi: “…”

　　That’s your excuse for using someone else’s clothes as a napkin?

　　She sounded almost princessy, unreasonable in such a righteous tone, but Sheng Yi wasn’t actually annoyed. He just asked, “Then how come you weren’t germaphobic when you covered my mouth? You held it for a long time too.”

　　“That was an emergency. I was saving your life, okay?”

　　Chu Ling turned it around on him. “You should be grateful instead of nitpicking.”

　　【…Wait, am I wrong for shipping them? They don’t even seem to get along.】

　　【You’re expecting the two sassiest mouths in the show to be friendly? The fact they haven’t outright fought yet is already mercy for the cameraman.】

　　【I don’t care! I’ll ship it anyway! Even enemies can be good CP!】

　　【Honestly, I don’t think they actually dislike each other. With their personalities, if they haven’t roasted each other to death yet, it means they’re tolerating each other. Compare Chu Ling’s attitude toward the other male guests.】

　　【…You know what, that makes sense.】

　　【Male Guest 1, 2, and 4: ? Can someone speak up for us please.】

　　“Found it!”

　　Chu Ling suddenly exclaimed with delight.

　　She had discovered the final key evidence: the ghost marriage contract.

　　This was a haunted house game, so the main focus was NPC jump scares. The story itself wasn’t complicated, even a bit cliché.

　　A young girl had been forced into a ghost marriage. Her family, afraid she would take revenge, gouged out her eyes so she could never find her way back.

　　After death, she became a vengeful spirit. She slaughtered everyone here and took their eyes. But because ghosts couldn’t touch real objects, she never managed to find the marriage contract.

　　She wanted to destroy it, end the ghost marriage, and free herself from fate.

　　Sheng Yi thought for a moment. “So what do we do? Find the ghost and hand this over to her?”

　　That sounded like the normal way to clear the game.

　　But who knew where the ghost was hiding?

　　And if they tried to leave this room, they’d run straight into another circle of NPC ghosts. Even if they stayed silent, there was no guarantee the sound of moving around wouldn’t give them away.

　　Chu Ling pinched the marriage contract between her fingers. It didn’t feel like a delicate prop used multiple times. More like a mass-produced photocopy.

　　“How about… I just try this first.”

　　With a bit of gambler’s spirit, she tore the contract right in half.

　　【???】

　　【What is she doing!? Is she crazy!? Why destroy the prop!?】

　　But the very next second, the haunted house lit up with bright lights.

　　“Congratulations, you’ve cleared the stage.”

　　The voice of a staff member came over the broadcast. “All players may leave through the corridor.”

　　This time it was the livestream chat’s turn to be stunned.

　　In another room, Wen Shu’s coffin unlocked automatically. She quickly climbed out and hurried to regroup with Chu Ling.

　　“That was so fast!”

　　She grinned. “I knew you guys could do it!”

　　The NPC ghosts patrolling the hallway also vanished.

　　The three of them walked toward the exit while going over the storyline again.

　　Even though the haunted house wasn’t that complex and the puzzles were easy, the immersive experience was still pretty good.

　　Chu Ling had torn the contract so quickly that Sheng Yi hadn’t even had time to stop her. Only now did he ask, “It worked out this time, but what if tearing the paper hadn’t been the solution? What was your backup plan?”

　　“It’s just torn, not shredded,” Chu Ling answered lightly. “Worst case, when we meet the ghost lady, I’ll get down on my knees and beg. I helped her out, so she can’t really blame me, right? I had good intentions.”

　　Sheng Yi: “…”

　　Good intentions decide a person’s whole outlook on life, apparently.

　　Because Chu Ling and Sheng Yi cleared the stage, Qin Shuo was released too. He had been stuck inside for about twenty minutes, safe but bored out of his mind.

　　When he came out, he saw the three of them chattering excitedly, even quizzing the haunted house staff.

　　Wen Shu asked, “So the clear condition is just tearing the marriage contract? Is there another method?”

　　The staff explained, “If you find the ghost and hand it to her, she’ll also ask you to tear it. Basically, finding the contract already counts as clearing the mission. Almost any way you handle it afterward works.”

　　“And if you find other ghost-marriage items, like earrings or rings, you can trade them with the ghost to rescue teammates she captured. This is considered a side quest. You didn't complete it, but it doesn't affect the main storyline.”

　　“What about the protective charm?” Chu Ling asked. “It didn’t seem useful at all.”

　　“That’s for us staff members,” the worker said. “If you carry it, the NPCs won’t make direct physical contact with you, so players don’t get too scared.”

　　Wen Shu laughed. “That’s kind of a shame.”

　　She had actually wanted to try getting chased by a ghost.

　　The three of them chatted about the clues and storyline, while Qin Shuo stood there looking utterly lost.

　　Heh. He had no idea what they were talking about.　　

　　After all, his very first solo mission ended with him getting captured.

　　He opened his mouth a few times, hesitated, but still couldn’t shake the feeling that even if he tried to join in, he’d just be an outsider.

　　“Well, if it isn’t Teacher Qin.”

　　Chu Ling noticed Qin Shuo and teased, “Finally, he sees the light of day again.”

　　“…”

　　The trio’s vibe was going strong at the moment, and Qin Shuo couldn’t bring himself to interrupt. He had to force a compliment instead. “I knew you’d pull it off. You all did great.”

　　Then he turned to Wen Shu. “You’re okay, right? Not too scared?”

　　Wen Shu shook her head. “No.”

　　“Wen Shu was amazing.”

　　Sheng Yi glanced at Qin Shuo and added, “We only made it through thanks to her finding the clues.”

　　Most people would panic and freeze after falling into a coffin. Wen Shu had stayed calm and managed to pass along clues. That alone put her ahead of many others.

　　“Really?”

　　Qin Shuo's face flashed with discomfort for a moment, and then he quickly showed an expression of admiration. “I thought I’d be the one protecting you, but I didn’t realize you were this capable.”

　　“I don’t really need protection.” Wen Shu’s voice was steady.

　　“You can’t put it like that.”

　　Qin Shuo jumped in, trying to score some points with her. “Girls always need protection. It’s only natural for a man to protect a woman—”

　　“Teacher Qin, maybe you should focus on protecting yourself first?”

　　Chu Ling cut in, smiling lightly. “If I’m not mistaken, the only person in our group who got caught by a ghost was… you, wasn’t it?”

　　Qin Shuo: “…”

　　Qin Shuo: “I just let my guard down for a second. Besides, I’m not exactly good at this kind of game. And when I said protection, I wasn’t only talking about this.”

　　He turned back to Wen Shu, speaking with heavy sincerity. “If you need me, I can protect you at any time.”

　　Protect her?

　　He still dared to use that word?

　　All these years, the one who had hurt her the most was him. And he dared to talk about protection now?

　　After Chu Ling’s reminder last time, Wen Shu had started hearing his sweet words as nothing more than sugar-coated traps born of control.

　　He called it protection, but in reality it was just another form of control.

　　Wen Shu clenched her fist, about to speak, when Chu Ling cut in again. “Oh? So is Teacher Qin planning to switch careers and apply as her bodyguard?”

　　Qin Shuo: “?”

　　“Protecting her at all times.”

　　Chu Ling said the most ridiculous thing in the most matter-of-fact tone. “Isn’t that basically a bodyguard’s job?”

　　Wen Shu couldn’t help but laugh, then shook her head again. “No need. My family already has bodyguards.”

　　Wow.

　　The young lady card, played just like that.

　　Chu Ling sighed in mock pity. “That’s a shame for Teacher Qin.”

　　Sheng Yi, watching from the side, was quietly laughing to himself, then added another jab. “He could always work as a security guard.”

　　Chu Ling pretended to consider it. “Though I hear that industry is pretty competitive these days. Teacher Qin, you’ll have to work extra hard if you want to fulfill your dream of protecting Wen Shu.”

　　Qin Shuo: “…”

　　What kind of nonsense was this.

　　Why hadn’t the production team kicked those two out already?

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T/N: Alright, tonight I gave you guys two chapters. That chase inside the haunted house is too intense and good that I feel I'll be a villain if I stopped with a cliffhanger. So enjoy your two chapters for today.　

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