Chapter 14: Fourteenth Day as a Salted Fish
Shen Xiaoshan rejoiced that she had stayed behind to look at the photos. Otherwise, if the production team had released the promotional posters as they were, the exceptionally high visuals of Qin Jiaojiao and Zhou Shaoli would have definitely attracted more attention than her and Meng Zi’ang.
Shen Xiaoshan’s persona in the entertainment industry was that of an understanding goddess. Forcing the anger down in her heart, she stood behind the staff member and asked with a gentle smile, “Are these photos easy to edit?”
The staff member turned around and, seeing it was her, immediately smiled. “Teacher Shen, don’t worry. The photographer took great shots; they just need a slight touch-up and they’ll be ready for the promotional posters.”
Shen Xiaoshan revealed an embarrassed expression on her face. “My husband and I are the C-position of this season’s show, could I trouble you to edit ours to be a bit more eye-catching?”
The designer immediately understood. Overall, Qin Jiaojiao and Zhou Shaoli’s visuals were the most prominent in the photos, and Shen Xiaoshan wanted to adjust the editing to highlight herself and her husband.
Shen Xiaoshan added, “With your excellent professional skills, it shouldn’t be too difficult, right?”
“No problem, Teacher Shen,” the designer agreed readily.
Shen Xiaoshan smiled in satisfaction and said, “Thank you. I’ll treat you to a meal when there’s a chance.”
Although Shen Xiaoshan just said it casually, the staff member felt a surge of excitement and quickly said, “You’re too polite. I will design the posters well; they will definitely satisfy Teacher Shen.”
Shen Xiaoshan said, “Then I won’t disturb your work anymore.”
Turning around, her face instantly sank, and she left in a displeased mood.
Since Qin Jiaojiao insisted on participating in Romantic Lovers, then just wait and see. She and Meng Zi’ang would definitely put on a good show of their happy newlywed life for her.
Qin Jiaojiao and Zhou Shaoli left the building. The heavy rain outside had already stopped, the sun was half-hidden behind the clouds, and the street air emitted the scent of rain-washed freshness.
Zhou Shaoli first called Old Li to check on the car’s situation, then called Chen Nan, the driver assigned to Qin Jiaojiao, gave him the address, and told him to come pick them up.
“Chen Nan will be here within half an hour. Shall we find a shop nearby to sit for a bit?”
Qin Jiaojiao gladly agreed, “Okay.”
Zhou Shaoli glanced at the time; it was time for lunch. He asked for her opinion: “A friend’s wife opened a restaurant nearby. How about we go there for lunch?”
“Sure.” Qin Jiaojiao pursed her lips and smiled somewhat embarrassedly, “I’m hungry.”
Zhou Shaoli checked and said, “It’s about three hundred meters from here, shall we walk over?”
Qin Jiaojiao nodded: “Let’s go.”
People were coming and going on the street. The two of them walking side by side gave off a feeling of quiet and peaceful times.
Three hundred meters wasn’t far, and they arrived quickly.
Qin Jiaojiao and Zhou Shaoli walked into the restaurant. A waitress wearing a qipao walked over and asked, “Do you two have a reservation?”
Zhou Shaoli said, “No.”
The waitress asked again, “Would you like a booth or a private room?”
Zhou Shaoli looked at Qin Jiaojiao, and she said, “A booth is fine.”
The waitress led them past the beautiful Chinese-style decor at the front desk into the restaurant’s main hall, arranging an elegant window seat for them.
Zhou Shaoli took out his phone to scan the QR code and handed it to Qin Jiaojiao: “You order.”
Qin Jiaojiao took the phone. They were husband and wife; going out, of course, he was paying. Her finger scrolled through the menu interface, selected a signature dish, and looked up to ask, “Can you eat this dish?”
Zhou Shaoli said, “I don’t have any dietary restrictions, just order whatever.”
“Okay.” Qin Jiaojiao continued looking at the menu.
“Our restaurant’s signature dishes are all quite good,” a crisp and melodious voice chimed in.
Qin Jiaojiao looked up and saw a young woman wearing an elegant, high-end custom qipao, her hair pinned up with a hairpin, walking over carrying tea.
Even though she was dressed very demurely, she exuded a glamorous, highly aggressive kind of beauty.
The woman introduced herself, “Hello, my name is Jiang Baizhi, the owner of this restaurant. You must be He Juanbai’s friends.”
Qin Jiaojiao looked at Zhou Shaoli.
Zhou Shaoli said, “Hello, Miss Jiang. Nice to meet you, I am Zhou Shaoli, and opposite me is my wife, Qin Jiaojiao.”
Qin Jiaojiao turned her head and greeted, “Hello.”
Jiang Baizhi placed the teapot and cups on the table and said, “Order whatever you’d like, this meal is on me.”
“Thank you,” Qin Jiaojiao smiled.
“I won’t disturb you two any longer.” Jiang Baizhi set down the tea and turned to leave.
Qin Jiaojiao glanced at her retreating back and couldn’t help but praise, “Your friend’s wife is really beautiful.”
Zhou Shaoli’s expression was faint, his voice pleasant: “You are also very pretty.”
Qin Jiaojiao froze, her face warming slightly. Don’t praise people with such a serious face, honestly!
She reached out to grab the teapot to pour water to cover up her embarrassment, just as Zhou Shaoli reached out as well, and their hands brushed against each other.
The man’s fingers were cool to the touch.
Qin Jiaojiao looked up and met his gaze.
Zhou Shaoli spoke, “Let me.”
“Oh.” Qin Jiaojiao retracted her hand.
Zhou Shaoli’s fingers were distinct and well-defined, like a work of art. Even just pouring tea was a feast for the eyes.
Qin Jiaojiao held the teacup, blew on it, and took a small sip. The fresh fragrance of the tea leaves spread in her mouth, and she couldn’t help but take another sip, revealing an expression that said it was delicious.
“You like it?” the man’s slightly magnetic voice asked.
Qin Jiaojiao nodded, “It’s very good.”
“It is indeed not bad,” Zhou Shaoli said.
The waitress quickly came over to serve the dishes. The exquisite delicacies were plated on elegant dishes, emitting an appetizing food aroma.
Qin Jiaojiao set down her cup and picked up her chopsticks: “I’m digging in.”
Zhou Shaoli watched her eat with relish. He, who usually didn’t have a strong appetite, ended up eating a bit more than usual.
After lunch, Qin Jiaojiao took her phone, planning to check out some entertainment gossip. She accidentally scrolled past a photo-video post with a filter and background music that had a very atmospheric vibe.
#WealthyHeiressAndYoungMasterRunaway#
Qin Jiaojiao’s pupils quaked. The main characters in these photos were her and Zhou Shaoli waiting for the subway. Clicking into the comment section, it was full of people praising their high-level visuals and outstanding temperaments.
Many people commented with pictures: [I took photos too, they’re truly so beautiful and handsome!]
This video had skyrocketed to the number one trending search on the video app, and the number of shares had already surpassed several million by now.
Qin Jiaojiao couldn’t help but facepalm. Back then, trying to get to the studio for the photoshoot, her hair had been messy and her forehead dotted with fine sweat. Where was this supposed “fragile runaway heiress” vibe coming from?
“What’s wrong?” Zhou Shaoli asked.
Qin Jiaojiao looked at him with a complicated expression and said, “We’ve gone viral.”
Zhou Shaoli revealed a slightly confused expression.
“Here, look.” Qin Jiaojiao handed her phone to him to see.
Zhou Shaoli lowered his eyelashes and looked closely at the photos. The passersby had indeed captured a very strong so-called atmospheric vibe.
Seeing that he wasn’t angry about being posted online, Qin Jiaojiao breathed a small sigh of relief.
The driver changed his route to pick them up at the restaurant, first dropping her back at the villa before taking Zhou Shaoli to the company.
Zhou Shaoli arrived at the company. He felt the employees casting various glances his way, but he didn’t take it to heart. Arriving at the CEO’s office floor, just as he stepped out of the elevator, he heard gossiping voices coming from the pantry.
“President Zhou’s wife is so pretty!”
“Why do I feel like President Zhou’s wife looks a bit like a celebrity?”
“President Zhou’s wife is much prettier than a celebrity! I didn’t expect President Zhou and his wife to actually take the subway—so grounded.”
Zhou Shaoli picked up his phone and sent Han Xiao a message, “Come to my office.”
“Stop chatting, President Zhou is back,” Han Xiao’s voice carried out from the pantry.
Zhou Shaoli returned to his office. It wasn’t long before Han Xiao came in. He tapped his fingers on the desk and asked faintly, “Been quite free lately?”
Han Xiao tensed up all over. The company’s projects were currently in development, and since Zhou Shaoli was going to participate in a variety show, he indeed felt a bit free after arranging the itinerary.
Just now, when President Zhou returned to the office, he must have heard him and the secretaries gossiping.
“How could I be free?” Han Xiao put on a look of shedding blood and sweat for the company. “President Zhou, I’m almost too busy with work to breathe.”
Zhou Shaoli stared at him: “Too busy to breathe, yet you still have time to idle chat.”
“President Zhou, the photos of you and Madam have gone viral all over the internet,” Han Xiao explained. “The secretaries came to ask me who the mysterious woman next to you was. To prevent any wild rumors, I told them it was Madam.”
“Alright, there’s a meeting in half an hour, go prepare,” Zhou Shaoli said in a mild voice.
Han Xiao glanced at Zhou Shaoli. Seeing his handsome face was as usual, his expression calm without revealing anything, he quickly scurried out.
……
Around eight in the evening, the official Weibo for Romantic Lovers began to officially announce the variety show guests.
#RomanticLoversSeasonTwoGuestAnnouncement# The most romantic thing in this life is meeting you, my lover. Welcome @ShenXiaoshan @MengZi’ang couple, @ChenFeihong @JinMingzhu and @QinJiaojiao @ZhouShaoli for joining #RomanticLovers#. On this happy journey of life, let’s witness their love together.
After the official announcement poster was released, the Romantic Lovers official account pinned it, and then posted an individual promotional poster Weibo for each guest.
The guests responded one after another to the production team’s tags, tagging their respective husbands/wives, and announcing that they would be participating in the Romantic Lovers variety show together.
The second season of Romantic Lovers hit the trending searches right after its official announcement. Long-time fans and melon-eating netizens followed the guests tagged by the official Weibo, clicking in to see who the guests were.
Netizens weren’t unfamiliar with Shen Xiaoshan; she was a popular ‘little flower’ who had married into wealth. Netizens were very curious about her husband’s identity. Clicking in to look, they were shocked to see the verification actually stated he was the famous Second Young Master of the Meng Brothers Pictures Group in the entertainment industry.
Meng Brothers Pictures was a well-known entertainment company in the industry with many stars under its banner. If the company could produce a few more trending idol stars, they could rank among the top-tier entertainment companies.
Shen Xiaoshan was an artist under Meng Brothers Pictures. Wasn’t this a real-life case of an artist marrying her boss and living a happy, wealthy life? Good heavens, what a fairy-tale romance!
When seeing the posters made from heavily edited photos, netizens were all amazed by Shen Xiaoshan and Meng Zi’ang’s visuals.
[I knew there was a reason my sister got married during the rising period of her career!]
[With a man this handsome and rich, how many male stars in the entertainment circle can compare? I’m so jealous!]
[For a moment I don’t know who to be jealous of. Sister and brother-in-law are such a perfect match, so ship-worthy. I’m definitely shipping this couple!]
[Ahhh I really want the variety show to air today, cheering for them wildly!]
On the poster, Shen Xiaoshan and Meng Zi’ang were far too conspicuous. Many netizens lost interest in the other guests, and only a small number of netizens clicked into Qin Jiaojiao and Zhou Shaoli’s Weibo profiles.
[Who is this Qin Jiaojiao? How come I’ve never heard of her?]
[Zhou Shaoli’s Weibo is a newly registered account. This couple couldn’t be a pair of random non-celebrities shoved in, could they?]
[The last non-celebrity couple blew up by relying on a variety show script, and now they’re earning millions a month from ads. Just thinking about it is disgusting.]
[The production team needs to hurry up and replace them before it airs!]
[…]
Looking at the boycotting words in the comment section, Qin Jiaojiao couldn’t help but feel a bit speechless.
However, what truly left her speechless was the poster. She knew Shen Xiaoshan was the C-position couple arranged by the production team, but there was really no need to photoshop her and Zhou Shaoli’s photos to look ugly.
The people in the picture were overly sharpened; they had clearly been altered using editing tools.
Qin Jiaojiao saved the poster image and sent it to the PR Director, requesting the marketing department to re-edit the pictures.
Director Chen actually replied to the message very quickly, saying he would communicate with the staff to redo the posters, and then re-edit the official announcement Weibo.
Qin Jiaojiao felt relieved and went to play games. Recently she had gotten hooked on a new game, addicted to farming and leveling up, logging in every day to harvest and plant crops.
Since she had nothing to do, she took a shower early and lay in bed. Time flew by while playing games, to the point she didn’t even notice when Zhou Shaoli came back.
When Zhou Shaoli came back, she was deeply engrossed in her game. He grabbed his pajamas and went to the bathroom. It wasn’t until the man came out after his shower that she realized Zhou Shaoli had returned home.
“You’re back.”
“I got off work early today,” Zhou Shaoli sat down on the sofa.
Qin Jiaojiao exited the game interface and asked, “Do you have any photos?”
“There are a few on my phone.” Zhou Shaoli was slightly confused, “What’s wrong?”
Qin Jiaojiao got out of bed and walked over to him. “Let me see.”
Zhou Shaoli opened his phone gallery. She naturally sat down beside him, craning her neck to check his phone.
The pictures on his phone were basically work-related. Whoever took his photos used strange angles. It was purely thanks to his innate good looks that he could pull it off, otherwise, it would have looked as ugly as possible.
Qin Jiaojiao’s body was very close to Zhou Shaoli’s, her soft, long hair draping over the man’s leg.
Zhou Shaoli’s eyes deepened slightly as he looked down at her. She didn’t seem to realize she was so close to him that they could smell each other’s scent.
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