Chapter 9: Ninth Day as a Salted Fish
Han Xiao’s phone vibrated non-stop. The group chat was buzzing with gossip about Zhou Shaoli’s newlywed wife being some wealthy heiress. The topic had spread from their department to the entire company, and everyone was brimming with curiosity about President Zhou’s wife.
[@President’s Special Assistant Han Xiao, do you have a photo of President Zhou’s wife? Send it so we can all take a look! The suspense is killing us, we really want to know what President Zhou’s wife looks like.]
The group chat was going crazy tagging him. Han Xiao actually still had the photo he took a couple of days ago and hadn’t deleted it yet. He liked that photo too much—the atmospheric vibe was just like a movie poster, full of texture. Throw a little filter on it, and it would look exactly like a vintage pictorial.
President Zhou and Miss Qin were simply a match made in heaven. Even as a grown man, he was inexplicably shipping them, so he couldn’t bear to delete the photo.
Just as he was about to send it to the company group chat, Han Xiao backed out of the sending interface. He couldn’t casually leak private matters regarding President Zhou and Madam.
If the company employees wanted to know what President Zhou’s wife looked like, they could just wait for the annual meeting or a company celebration. When President Zhou brought his wife to attend the banquet, the employees would naturally get to see her.
Han Xiao typed a line and hit send: [No photos.]
A wave of disappointed groans erupted in the group chat.
[Has Special Assistant Han not seen President Zhou’s wife either?] the crowd asked.
Han Xiao replied: [I’ve seen her. Madam is as beautiful as a fairy.]
[Is she really that pretty?]
[President Zhou himself is so handsome, so his wife is definitely a goddess too. That’s the only way they’d be a perfect match.]
[…]
Han Xiao exited the group chat, thinking to himself that he would go on a date with his girlfriend to watch a movie after getting off work today. If it weren’t for the fact that being Zhou Shaoli’s special assistant paid a million-yuan annual salary, he would never accompany Zhou Shaoli on frequent overtime and business trips.
…
The Courtyard Villa.
After receiving the message that Zhou Shaoli was coming back for dinner, Qin Jiaojiao hurriedly had the servants tidy up the house. She had been messing around wildly at home and had made it a bit of a pigsty. If Zhou Shaoli came back from work and saw a chaotic house, he would definitely have some complaints about her.
How was she going to persuade Zhou Shaoli to participate in Romantic Lovers?
Before she could even figure out how to phrase it, Zhou Shaoli arrived home. As he passed through the living room preparing to go upstairs, he bumped into Auntie Zhang and casually asked, “Where is Qin Jiaojiao?”
Auntie Zhang replied, “Madam is upstairs, Sir. Dinner will be ready soon. Once you change your clothes and come down, you can dine with Madam.”
Zhou Shaoli nodded and went up to the bedroom.
Qin Jiaojiao was in her room practicing her expressions in front of the mirror. Hearing a knock on the door, she opened it to see Auntie Zhang standing outside. “Madam, Sir is back.”
“He’s back this quickly,” Qin Jiaojiao said in surprise.
Auntie Zhang said, “Dinner is about to be ready. Madam, do you want to change into another outfit?”
“Change into what?” Qin Jiaojiao looked down at the casual loungewear she was wearing. Why would she change clothes just to eat dinner at home?
Auntie Zhang reminded her, “The kitchen has meticulously prepared a candlelight dinner. It’s your first time dining with Sir at home. Change into a pretty dress and treat it like a date out on the town.”
“Ah…” Qin Jiaojiao’s mouth fell open. She just asked Zhou Shaoli to come home for dinner to chat about business; she didn’t intend to sacrifice her physical charms!
Auntie Zhang urged, “I’ll go keep an eye on the kitchen. Madam, hurry up and change your clothes before coming down.”
Qin Jiaojiao: “…” Something seems a little off here.
At dinnertime, two people sat in the massive dining room. The expensive chandelier remained off; the only light came from a candelabra on the table holding a few white candles. The flames danced gracefully. The dishes on the dining table were exquisitely plated, and the arranged flowers emitted a rich fragrance, creating an overflowing atmospheric vibe.
Qin Jiaojiao felt a bit uneasy. Looking through the candlelight at Zhou Shaoli across the table, she twitched the corners of her mouth and said, “Auntie Zhang arranged all this.”
Zhou Shaoli wiped his hands with a wet towel, picked up his knife and fork, and said, “Let’s eat first. The steak won’t taste good if it gets cold.”
Of course, he knew Qin Jiaojiao hadn’t ordered the servants to do this. At a single glance, he could tell this was an atmospheric dinner arranged by the housekeeper, who wanted to foster their relationship, and had instructed the servants to set it up.
Seeing that he didn’t reveal any strange expressions, Qin Jiaojiao picked up her knife and fork and started eating. She had to admit, the chef at the courtyard villa really suited her tastes. He could cook dishes from several countries, and each dish was exceptionally delicious. Although her mind was completely preoccupied with talking to Zhou Shaoli about the dating variety show, she still had to eat and drink her fill before getting down to business.
Seeing her focused on her meal without any intention of paying attention to him, Zhou Shaoli ate his dinner unhurriedly.
Half an hour passed, and the two silently finished their dinner. Qin Jiaojiao got up to turn on the dining room lights and said, “Let’s go sit in the living room.”
Zhou Shaoli hadn’t sat down to have a slow, quiet meal with anyone in a long time. The meal the kitchen prepared tonight suited his tastes very well, so he had eaten a bit more than usual.
“Go out for a walk?” he asked.
Qin Jiaojiao felt that was a good idea too. Lately, she had been eating a lot, and besides sitting, she was lying down. She felt like she had gained a tiny bit of weight, so exercising after a meal to aid digestion would be great.
The courtyard villa area had a large circular lake planted with a pool of lotuses. A curved arch bridge led to a pavilion in the center of the lake. The lotus lake was enclosed by a railing, and free-roaming white swans swam gracefully in the water. The scenery was exceptionally pleasant.
Qin Jiaojiao and Zhou Shaoli strolled along the lotus lake. She glanced at the man’s handsome side profile and said, “I have something I need to discuss with you… You know how I used to mess around in the entertainment industry? Well, right now I’m an artist under Starlight Entertainment. A while ago, my manager signed me up for a variety show.”
Zhou Shaoli turned his head to look at her.
“Mhm… This variety show is going to start filming soon.” Qin Jiaojiao revealed a slightly troubled expression and asked, “Are you busy with the company lately?”
Zhou Shaoli said, “It’s alright.”
Qin Jiaojiao asked in a probing tone, “Then do you have time to accompany me to participate in this variety show?”
Zhou Shaoli’s footsteps paused, his light brown eyes gazing at her steadily.
Qin Jiaojiao bit her lip and said, “I’ll just be straight with you. This is a couples’ dating variety show, and it requires husbands and wives to participate together. The show offered a very generous remuneration… If I don’t participate, I’ll have to pay a penalty for breach of contract. I currently don’t have that much money on hand to pay the fee, and I really don’t want to pay it either. If you have time, could you participate with me?”
Qin Jiaojiao’s voice was sweet and pleasant to the ear. When she spoke, it carried a natural, delicate softness that made it nearly impossible to refuse.
Zhou Shaoli looked at her face full of anticipation. He hadn’t interacted much with Qin Jiaojiao; their marriage had simply been going through the motions in front of their closest relatives.
After getting married, he hadn’t spent any time with her. The number of times they met could be counted on one hand, let alone having actual conversations. They were like two strangers living under the same roof.
But spending time with her these past few days, he felt she was slightly different from before. Some of her small gestures and little expressions were actually quite interesting to watch.
Seeing Zhou Shaoli remain silent, Qin Jiaojiao pursed her lips. She had thought that by accompanying him to the banquet and him stepping in to help her resolve the extortion, their relationship had gotten slightly closer.
Sure enough, she was overthinking it.
Sigh, with his cold, Buddhist-like personality, he definitely wouldn’t like being exposed to the public eye. He simply didn’t want to participate in a dating variety show.
She didn’t like forcing people to do things against their will.
Qin Jiaojiao lowered her head and said, “You’re so busy with work, you definitely don’t have time. Just pretend I never brought it up.”
“I have time,” Zhou Shaoli finally spoke up. His voice was flat but steady. “Send the contract to my assistant and have him arrange the itinerary.”
Qin Jiaojiao abruptly lifted her head to look at him, asking, “You agreed?!”
“Mhm,” Zhou Shaoli nodded.
Qin Jiaojiao suppressed the wild joy bubbling up in her heart and said, “You don’t have to force yourself, you know.”
“I’m not forcing myself.” Zhou Shaoli’s tone was unwavering. “As your husband, I have a responsibility to accompany you to necessary occasions.”
“Thank you!” Qin Jiaojiao’s beautiful face overflowed with a radiant smile; she almost wanted to spin in circles.
Zhou Shaoli was willing to participate in the dating variety show and go through the plot with her! As long as she endured until the variety show plot ended and she got her ten billion in breakup assets, her future would be bright—no, it would be sparkling like gold!
That was a full ten billion! She could even buy a private island if she wanted to. She could do whatever she wanted; it was going to be pure bliss.
Zhou Shaoli looked at Qin Jiaojiao with an unfathomable expression. I only agreed to participate in a variety show with her, yet she’s this happy?
Returning to the villa, Qin Jiaojiao said in a cheerful tone, “I’ll head back to my room first. I won’t disturb you anymore!”
After returning to her room and washing up, Qin Jiaojiao lay comfortably on her bed and took out her phone to message her manager: “Zhou Shaoli has agreed to participate in the variety show.”
The manager received the message and replied immediately: “That’s fantastic! I’ll communicate with the program team on my end to confirm the filming schedule, and I’ll notify you in advance to prepare.”
“Okay.”
Whenever Qin Jiaojiao closed her eyes now, all she could see was the scene of herself throwing money into the sky, an unstoppable smile playing on her lips.
Even though she had changed worlds, she could still live a rich and flavorful life.
Marching forward toward a beautiful future!
…
After Han Xiao and his girlfriend finished watching their movie, he took out his phone to check it and saw that Zhou Shaoli had sent him Qin Jiaojiao’s WeChat contact card, stating he would be participating in an entertainment variety show with Qin Jiaojiao soon.
President Zhou is going to participate in a dating variety show with Miss Qin?!
Han Xiao suspected his eyes were playing tricks on him. He carefully read the message a few more times before finally confirming it was real.
His girlfriend came out of the restroom, saw his strange expression, and asked, “What’s wrong? Did your boss call you in for overtime?”
Both she and Han Xiao were corporate elites. They had been dating for a few years and bought a matrimonial home in Beijing this year, preparing to get married. In private, they would occasionally complain about the frequent overtime, but their execution skills were very strong. After all, their boss paid them a high salary.
“No.” Han Xiao wrapped his arm around his girlfriend and said, “President Zhou asked me to rearrange his upcoming itinerary. He and Madam are going to participate in a dating variety show in the entertainment industry.”
His girlfriend was equally shocked. “Today isn’t April Fool’s Day, is it?”
“I’m not lying to you.” Han Xiao said in an expectant tone, “In a little while, we’ll be able to see President Zhou and Madam’s married life on TV.”
His girlfriend teased, “Then when the time comes, you’ll have to be busy with work on the clock, and off the clock, you’ll still have to cheer on the capitalist.”
Han Xiao took out the photo on his phone to show his girlfriend. “Look at President Zhou and Madam.”
“Wow, is President Zhou’s wife really this beautiful?!” his girlfriend exclaimed.
Han Xiao pitched them to her: “Right? Seeing the photo makes you kind of want to ship President Zhou and Madam’s CP. President Zhou and Madam are ‘marriage first, love later’—your absolute favorite novel plot.”
“Then we’ll definitely watch it together when it airs.”
The next day.
Qin Jiaojiao slept until she naturally woke up. After waking up, she lay in bed for a long time, unwilling to get up.
Opening her phone, she saw a message from her manager. The program team had finalized the filming schedule for the variety show: recording and filming would officially begin next Monday.
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