Chapter 49

The show got off to a flying start, and Producer Zhou Lan was thrilled.

She went straight to the Zhou Family Manor to celebrate with Pei Xu and chat about the upcoming filming.

They were heading to North City tomorrow. Based on her past experience, the North City Station was definitely going to be way more intense than the appetizer that was the South City Station.

The first week of a Love Variety Show was basically for building momentum and setting things up. By the second week, the relationship lines were pretty much all locked in. Every date during this period was crucial—a lot of the show's most iconic moments happened then.

As it happened, Pei Huahong and Zhou Jiangbai were both home.

Zhou Lan and her brother Zhou Jiangbai loved bickering. Seeing her, Zhou Jiangbai said, "What brings the busy woman to visit this old man?"

"I'm not here for you. I'm here for Pei Xu and my sister-in-law."

Pei Huahong smiled and brought her a cup of tea.

Zhou Lan sat down excitedly. "Did you guys watch our show?"

"Don't even get me started on that," Zhou Jiangbai said. "You're his aunt. How could you let them edit Xu into that kind of person on your show and not do anything about it?"

Pei Huahong comforted him. "They're making a show. They always need dramatic moments. It's all editing and scripting."

"I'm being wronged here," Zhou Lan said. "You know what Pei Xu's personality is like. He's actually even more aloof in real life than what we aired."

Pei Huahong said with a smile, "Then you should look out for him a bit. Don't let him get torn apart by the netizens."

She'd seen that all the guests got pretty good reviews after the first episode—except for Pei Xu. Far more people were criticizing him than liking him, saying he had a terrible attitude and didn't fit in.

"That's exactly why I came to talk to him," Zhou Lan said. "I hope he can be more proactive. The netizens can say whatever—it's not like he's money, not everyone has to like him. He doesn't care anyway. What I'm worried about is that if he doesn't hurry up, the person he likes is going to get snatched away."

Pei Huahong had heard Zhou Lan mention Zhai Xingchen before. She smiled and said, "That child Xingchen is quite good. He seems very sunny."

Probably because she knew he was the one her son liked, Pei Huahong was looking at him through rose-colored glasses. She just felt this young man Zhai Xingchen was lovely-looking and had a lovely personality.

Zhou Jiangbai quite liked him too.

"Then you should help out your own family," Zhou Jiangbai said.

"I am helping him," Zhou Lan said. "He doesn't want my help. Says he wants to do it himself."

Zhou Jiangbai laughed. "That kid better hurry up and get into a relationship. Finally acting a bit like a young person."

"I'm here to have a good talk with him," Zhou Lan said. "Is he home?"

"He's home. Said since he's leaving for North City tomorrow, he'd spend a rare day with us today," Pei Huahong said. "He's in the Fencing Gym next door. Zhang Weisi is here."

Zhang Weisi was a famous Fencing athlete. After retiring a few years ago, he'd become a full-time coach. Because Zhou Jiangbai had been fond of Fencing in his youth, Zhang Weisi had gotten to know the Zhou Family. Zhou Jiangbai had even converted a small building in their backyard into a sports gym.

Later, as Zhou Jiangbai got older, Zhang Weisi became Pei Xu's personal coach. All of Pei Xu's skills were taught by him.

Pei Xu had a genius-level aptitude for many things. He'd only taken up Fencing because of Zhou Jiangbai, treating it as a hobby, but his talent was outstanding—he excelled at anything he tried.

When Zhou Lan entered the Fencing Gym, Zhang Weisi and Pei Xu were locked in a fierce match.

Pei Xu was wearing a white Fencing Uniform and a mask. Even though she couldn't see his face, just his build screamed top-tier handsome—broad shoulders, long legs, a tall and straight posture.

Zhou Lan felt it was a shame their show couldn't showcase Pei Xu's Fencing skills. This sport wasn't like basketball or something you could just casually play. None of the other guests knew how, so they wouldn't be going to a Fencing Gym for a date.

She'd suggested it when filming the individual promo videos, but Pei Xu hadn't agreed.

Him joining the Love Variety Show was already a huge compromise. He had no intention of showing off any of his skills.

She wondered if he regretted that now.

Pei Xu was incredibly explosive during sports, with steady, precise, and fierce strikes. He loved physical activity and maintained extremely sharp reflexes. Zhang Weisi was defeated by him again. He took off his mask and said, "No good. Can't beat you anymore."

Pei Xu removed his mask and unfastened his Fencing Uniform, revealing a flushed face.

The clothes underneath were soaked through. His face and neck were bright red, covered in sweat.

"Every time I see you sweating like a waterfall, I suspect you're made of water," Zhou Lan said.

Pei Xu glanced over his shoulder at Zhou Lan.

Zhang Weisi greeted Zhou Lan. They were old acquaintances. After the greeting, Zhang Weisi went to shower first.

"You looking for me?" Pei Xu asked.

Zhou Lan said, "Go wash off all that sweat first. Why do you sweat so much?"

"Born that way," Pei Xu said.

Pei Xu went back to shower, and Zhou Lan went to wait in his room.

Pei Xu's room was huge—the largest in the Zhou Family Manor—but it had the least furniture, making it look very spacious. The design followed a futuristic black-and-white minimalist style, with very strong lines.

Pei Xu had a strange obsession with color. He didn't like the bright, vivid colors most young people favored.

But in this vast, black-and-white minimalist space, she spotted a touch of red.

The only touch of red in the room was the two nearly wilted pink Rose Flower stems in a white vase on the bedside table.

See? An aloof person could still have a very soft heart.

After his shower, Pei Xu started packing his luggage.

Zhou Lan smiled. "All those netizens should see this. You're not some young master who does nothing. You handle everything yourself."

She looked at the four suitcases on the floor.

"You have so much luggage this time. You're only staying there a week."

Pei Xu had prepared four Down Jackets.

And a Scarf in every color and style.

"Since when do you like such bright colors?"

Pei Xu gave a noncommittal "Mm."

Zhou Lan's eyes lit up. "These aren't for someone else, are they?"

She was pleasantly surprised. "You really have some moves. I was worried you'd never get a clue."

She crouched down and carefully checked the luggage Pei Xu had packed: Boots, Gloves, Ski Pants, a Fleece Hat, a Heat Patch, and a First Aid Kit.

He was better prepared than their Production Team.

"The Production Team reminded us to prepare all this," Pei Xu said.

Zhou Lan looked at the hats and gloves. There were at least two sets of each.

"Mm. They'll suit him. He'll like them."

Pei Xu said, "They're not just for him. They're for Wen Nu too. I figure neither of them packed enough."

The Down Jackets they bought probably weren't warm enough, and definitely couldn't match the performance and quality of what their rich second-generation group had. He was afraid if he only prepared things for Zhai Xingchen and left Wen Nu out, with Wen Nu's personality, he might become even more sensitive and insecure.

Since Zhai Xingchen looked out for Wen Nu so much, he'd follow suit.

Zhou Lan was taken aback. It was the first time she felt her nephew was so considerate.

If he put his mind to it, he could actually be this thoughtful.

Zhou Lan smiled. "Looks like I don't have much to advise you on, then. A lot of people ask me, 'What do you need to do to succeed on a Love Variety Show?' I always tell them just one thing: I think it's sincerity for sincerity. As long as you're genuinely putting in the effort, the person you like—and the audience—will see it."

Pei Xu gave another "Mm," carefully folding a Bugs Bunny-style fleece hat and placing it in the suitcase.

All the clothes and shoes in this suitcase were in Zhai Xingchen's size. Many had star-related patterns, some obvious, some less so.

Zhou Lan smiled and said softly, "Pei Xu, have a good relationship on our show."

Don't think about the outcome. Just love passionately, once.

They were catching a flight early the next morning. Zhai Xingchen's parents helped him do a final check of everything he needed to bring.

Dad Zhai read from a list item by item, while Mom Zhai checked them off one by one. Zhai Xingchen just sat nearby, watching with a smile.

As he watched, his eyes grew moist.

He suddenly missed his family very much.

His family.

As a transmigrator, he'd long since accepted his fate. Sometimes he thought about it and couldn't tell which world was the dream. He had a new life, new parents in this world. Maybe he and the original Zhai Xingchen had swapped worlds. Thinking of it that way was a small comfort.

A temporary parting was just sad. Life-and-death separation was an unbearable, profound pain.

They were such good people.

Do what you can. Look after as many people as you can.

He let out a breath, calming his emotions. "We've checked several times already. Nothing's missing."

Mom Zhai said, "Better check properly. Don't forget anything."

Dad Zhai said, "Forget it, let's not check. The Production Team is with them. They care more about the guests' health and safety than we do."

Zhai Xingchen said, "Exactly."

They closed the suitcase. The Production Team called him again, saying staff would come pick him up tomorrow.

Hu Ying was bringing the most luggage again this time.

She brought six suitcases.

"Are you moving house?" Tootsie said.

"It's freezing there. You have to wear two pairs of socks, I'm not exaggerating. We might even go to Arctic Village to see the Northern Lights. Do you know Arctic Village? It's the coldest place!"

"You still don't need that many," Tootsie said. "Like last time, you won't even wear it all… You're bringing face masks? You're going to do a mask in that cold?"

"The houses must have heated brick beds, right? Or central heating?" Hu Ying thought for a moment. "Forget it, I'll bring them all. Might need them."

She handed her luggage over to the Production Team in advance and had a meal with Tootsie.

After eating, she planned to get a haircut.

"You're really going to flip the script and become the top?" Tootsie asked with a laugh.

Hu Ying looked at her long hair. "Being able to top or bottom means you can advance to attack or retreat to defend."

Didn't that just double her chances of winning over Zhai Xingchen?

If Zhai Xingchen wanted to top, she'd bottom. If Zhai Xingchen wanted to bottom, she could flip and top!

Twice the probability compared to others!

Compared to the others, Wen Nu was very busy the night before departure. Business at their shop had noticeably picked up the last couple of days. People were already coming to their Promise of Sweetness Bakery because of its fame. To keep the customers, he'd spent almost the whole day in the shop serving them, closing later than usual at night.

Just as he was about to close up, someone from a local delivery service suddenly came into the shop.

They handed him a large box.

A Designer Travel Luggage case.

Wen Nu was shocked. "I didn't buy anything."

"Are you Wen Nu?" The delivery person checked the address. "Yep, look. Promise of Sweetness Bakery. That's you. Please sign for it."

Wen Nu immediately thought of the Production Team and the others.

After he signed, Jin Qian asked excitedly, "Open it and see what it is."

They opened the luggage case and found a Down Jacket inside.

"Wow, this Down Jacket…" Jin Qian said. "This is really expensive. I wouldn't even buy it for myself! Who sent it to you?"

Wen Nu shook his head. He had no idea.

The sender hadn't even left him a note.

But he was so touched.

But the other person clearly didn't want him to know who they were.

It was just a kindness from an anonymous stranger.

Early Monday morning, Zhai Xingchen got into the Production Team's car.

Dad and Mom Zhai saw him off, waving to him in the morning light.

"Be careful," Mom Zhai said.

Zhai Xingchen nodded. "You guys go back inside."

"Uncle and Aunt can watch the Live Streaming. We have a lot of Live Streaming this week," a staff member said with a smile.

The car gradually drove away. Mom Zhai patted Dad Zhai's back. "Stop looking. You can't see him anymore."

"He's grown up. Slowly leaving home," Dad Zhai said.

"That's why I say, parents and children can't stay with you forever. To have someone always by your side, you still need your partner," Mom Zhai said with a smile.

The couple went upstairs together. Mom Zhai sighed with emotion. "Actually, I think all the guests on the show are quite good. Pei Xu, Huo Cheng, that Yan Zhi… and the ones we haven't met in person are probably all nice too. If our son really finds someone he likes on this show, that would be good. He won't be lonely in the future."

At 8:10 AM on Monday, Zhai Xingchen boarded the plane to North City.

He looked out the window at the whole of South City—the forest of skyscrapers, the long river flowing into the sea.

At the same time, having tasted success, Star Sea Network released another Live Streaming Preview.

After the first episode's hit broadcast, the number of netizens following The Red and Blue Signal had doubled. With its looks and character settings surpassing even idol dramas, this season of The Red and Blue Signal had successfully become the most anticipated variety show of the winter. The Live Streaming hadn't even started yet, and the topic was already blowing up across all major forums.

One short video quickly went viral beyond its original circle.

It was a video made by a certain content creator. What made it blow up was its originality.

Clicking on the video, the first thing that appeared was a clip of the show's Director Guo Bing being interviewed. He stood on stage, telling a reporter, "We will be broadcast on satellite TV. We are a satellite TV variety show."

This was originally a very ordinary interview clip, answering a reporter's question about whether Season 4 would be broadcast on satellite TV.

But!

Right after he said that, the video's style abruptly changed, set to the children's song 'Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star.'

"Twinkle, twinkle, little star, how I wonder what you are."

Various video screenshots of Zhai Xingchen were edited together. The creator's editing skills were top-notch — using only Live Streaming footage and content from the first episode, paired with some cringey lines from popular audio dramas, they'd cut a storyline where seven guests were all fighting over one Zhai Xingchen. A total battle royale.

The domineering CEO Huo Cheng, the aloof male god Pei Xu, the Asceticism king Yan Zhi, the fiery beauty Hu Ying, the dark little cutie Wen Nu, and so on and so forth.

The entire screen was flooded with bullet comments: 【Creator is the GOAT!】

【Will be on satellite TV? Then I'm relieved.】

【Satellite TV variety show, hehehe.】

【So it was all predestined from the start!】