The First Night at White Villa
The car swayed gently as night settled over Long Cheng. It was past seven, and exhaustion painted the faces of all the participants.
Lian Wei, meanwhile, just wanted to sit next to someone familiar — Jimin, Mo Chen, or maybe Eun Ha. But fate, or the irony of her colleagues, pushed her straight into the seat beside Xiang Chen.
She wasn't sure how it happened — quietly, politely, she ended up there, trying to get used to the presence of the man who seemed carved out of ice.
Yet he didn't act nearly as distant as people said.
Lian Wei remembered the scene from Sexy Purple — the moment Xiang Chen took off his suit jacket and stepped into the shower. Just thinking about it made her cheeks warm. The man beside her was the same one who made her imagine things she would never admit out loud.
They said Xiang Chen was cold, reserved, incapable of getting close to anyone. But on that trip, he showed the opposite.
When she talked about her nine-month-old Persian kitten, Mingau, he listened attentively. When she mentioned Jimin's mother, whom she affectionately called ahjumma, he smiled with curiosity. And when she finally spoke of her late grandmother and the loneliness of living alone, he just listened… until he reached out and gently brushed her hair.
"You talk too much," he murmured, amused.
"I know." She yawned, smiling. "No one else listens, so I take the chance."
He watched her face, her eyes slowly closing. Before he knew it, she had fallen asleep on his shoulder.
In that moment, Xiang Chen felt something he hadn't understood in a long time — peace.
The actor remembered the first time he saw her: she was crying on the sidewalk, surrounded by honking cars. He, always indifferent, was suddenly overtaken by an impulse.
He offered her a tissue.
She took it without even looking at who he was and broke down, telling him her boyfriend had cheated with her best friend.
"What do I do?" she sobbed.
"Leave him," he answered simply. "Someone who really loves you will appear."
At the time, he had no idea how much that sentence would change his own life.
"Lian Wei." His voice woke her. "We're here."
The young woman blinked sleepily. They stood in front of White Villa, the place where they would all be staying for the show.
The villa was huge, surrounded by flowers and tall trees, with seven rooms to divide among the guests. The rules were clear: men and women separate.
The lottery assigned the pairs — and by fate (or the cameras' mischief), Xiang Chen and Wei Wei ended up in rooms side by side. Each had its own bathroom, air-conditioning, and even a kitchenette.
Eun Ha shared a double room with Su Mi; Fanxing was paired with Romena — and unfortunately for the model, their room didn't even have air-conditioning.
Mo Chen, Jimin, and Qiao Liang took the triple room, while Yang Yan and Naihe shared the other double.
Romena, however, was far from pleased. She complained through dinner and, later that night, decided she would use Wei Wei's bathroom — without asking.
The sound of the doorknob turning startled Wei Wei awake.
"Xiang Chen!" she called instinctively.
The actor, in the room next door, didn't hesitate. He opened the door and found Romena in a towel, trying to force her way in.
"What do you think you're doing?" His voice sliced through the silence. "Lost your mind?"
Jimin, who had just stepped out of the shower, appeared as well, followed by Mo Chen and the host.
"Ramona?! What is this?!" Jimin exclaimed, stunned.
"The shared bathroom is awful! I just wanted to shower!" she complained, crossing her arms.
"If you want to shower, knock on the door!" he shot back, irritated. "People aren't supposed to guess your wishes! And please, stop looking at me like that — we're done, remember? And you have a boyfriend!"
The chaos paused when Wei Wei opened her door, eyes sleepy but steady.
"Romena, this is my room. And I don't owe you anything." Her voice was sweet but firm. "Go use the shared bathroom. And next time, learn to knock. I thought you were a thief!"
Silence fell. Everyone stared at Romena, who flushed with embarrassment and muttered an apology before storming off.
Wei Wei sighed and returned to bed, while Xiang Chen stayed at the door, watching her.
"Are you alright?" he asked softly.
"I am now. Thank you."
He nodded and stepped back, his expression cold — but his heart far from calm.
The next morning, social media was in an uproar.
"Xiang Chen protects Wei Wei once again!"
"Ramona Sanches humiliated on camera?!"
But among all the hashtags, one stood out:
#WeiChen — the couple fate brought together.
✨ End of Chapter 3 ✨