The chime of a WeChat notification broke the quiet breakfast atmosphere.
Li Jiao, holding the remaining half of a toast between her teeth, unlocked her phone.
“President Li, ‘Chinese Style Overseas Journey’ is about to start filming. Please remember to post a preview on Weibo when you have time. The show is already building momentum.”
It was a reminder from Lin Ru.
“Chinese Style Overseas Journey” was the variety show Li Jiao had invested heavily in and would personally participate in.
There were far too many budget travel reality shows nowadays, with overused formulas that had left audiences fatigued.
While sticking to this format would be safe and unlikely to fail, the chances of it becoming a breakout hit were slim.
Chinese Style had become a buzzword in recent years, with many obscure artists gaining modest fame by riding this trend, and Chinese Style singers subsequently rising to prominence.
After evaluating various factors, Lin Ru decided to capitalize on this trend by having guests travel abroad with Chinese Style elements.
The task at each destination would be to spend the first two days in central squares of bustling districts wearing Hanfu, singing Chinese Style songs, performing Chinese Style dances, playing Chinese Style music, and staging Chinese Style opera.
This would both promote traditional Chinese culture worldwide and fulfill the goal of traveling around the globe.
When Li Jiao first saw this proposal, she found it absolutely perfect.
Who understood Chinese Style better than her, someone who had actually come from ancient times?
She certainly hadn’t forgotten the filming schedule and simply replied with an “ok” emoji.
Li Jiao bit off the piece of toast in her mouth, placed it back on the plate, then opened her camera and took a photo of the lone small piece.
Hmm… it looked rather pitiful.
Her own breakfast was beyond photographable, so she turned her attention to Song Li Sheng’s portion.
He had a habit of using knife and fork to cut his food into small pieces before eating, which made his meals consistently slow.
His plate still contained more than half of his breakfast.
“Ah Sheng, let me take a photo of your breakfast.”
Hearing the intimate address slip from Li Jiao’s lips, Song Li Sheng’s hand holding the fork trembled slightly.
“Okay,” he replied without asking why.
Li Jiao found a decent angle and pressed the shutter button.
She then opened Weibo and composed a post: “Good morning, will be starting new work soon to share with everyone [sun emoji].”
The attached photo was the one she had just taken.
After hitting send, Li Jiao placed her phone back on the table, stuffed the remaining toast into her mouth, and returned Song Li Sheng’s breakfast to him.
The series of movements flowed seamlessly, completely unaware of the man across from her hurriedly straightening his phone.
“By the way, are you following me on Weibo?” she asked after swallowing the toast.
“I don’t have a Weibo account.”
“Oh, alright then~” Li Jiao sounded quite disappointed.
Lin Ru saw Li Jiao’s Weibo post the moment it went up, feeling pleasantly surprised by this boss’s unexpectedly cooperative attitude.
However, she remained completely unaware that Li Jiao had committed a major celebrity faux pas – using a work-related post as pretext to show off her relationship.
That night, after bathing, Song Li Sheng lay in bed and quietly opened his phone’s photo gallery.
That morning, almost as if possessed, he had secretly taken a photo of Li Jiao while she was taking her picture.
The photo didn’t show her face, only capturing her smooth hands and the two breakfast plates in front of her.
He was finding it increasingly difficult to suppress his urge to show it off.
But she couldn’t post it directly on public social media platforms like Li Jiao did—if someone accidentally dug it up, it would cause trouble for her.
As for private social circles, she couldn’t post it there either. What if Li Jiao discovered she had secretly taken photos of her?
In the end, Song Li Sheng opened a private WeChat group with three people.
These were Chinese classmates he had met during his early years studying abroad. They had kept in touch all these years and were among his few remaining friends.
He sent the photo over.
A reply came quickly.
Han Yi: “? Although it’s indeed morning in Country Y right now, if I’m not mistaken, it’s evening back home, right? Are you sending us breakfast photos?”
Cheng Yue: “…?”
Song Li Sheng: “You wouldn’t understand.”
Han Yi zoomed in and took a careful look at the photo, then realized: “Are you showing off your relationship to us here?”
Cheng Yue: “…You’re insane.”
Song Li Sheng: “Yeah, going to sleep.”
Han Yi: “Sleep my xx, don’t you know there’s a saying against flaunting your love everywhere?”
Having achieved his goal, Song Li Sheng stopped responding. He immediately turned on “Do Not Disturb” for the group and let the messages explode without replying.
Of course, he didn’t go to sleep right away. Instead, he opened Weibo, registered an account, followed Li Jiao, and then comfortably put on his sleep mask.
“Chinese Style Overseas Journey” was officially announced two days before filming began.
The show had seven permanent guests. Besides Li Jiao, they had invited a Chinese Style singer, an opera performer, a male idol from a boy band, a nationally recognized professional female dancer, and two actors with recent popularity.
Lin Ru deliberately avoided inviting top-tier celebrities. First, she was afraid that after the show aired, fans would spam comments and overshadow Li Jiao’s presence. Second, their show wasn’t short on funds, so they naturally didn’t lack popularity. Instead of hiring expensive, big-name stars, it was better to directly invest in buying trending topics.
As soon as the announcement was made, forums instantly erupted with discussion threads.
【I understand everything else, but why is Li Jiao on a Chinese Style variety show?】
As the title says: What does she have to do with Chinese Style?
First comment: I don’t get it either… Where’s her Chinese Style? Is it in her nationality?
Fifth comment: She signed with “Gardenia Star,” and this show is produced by “Gardenia Star.” Everyone dddd (those who know, know).
Twelfth comment: ??? I looked it up, and she really did sign with “Gardenia Star.” I don’t get it—is “Gardenia Star” accepting even this kind of caliber now?
Reply to twelfth comment: Honey… although I don’t understand either, remember the group rules—our group prohibits using insulting language for personal attacks against female celebrities.
Twenty-fifth comment: Every variety show has a few nepotism beneficiaries forced into it. Aren’t we used to it by now? Just ignore them. I’m quite looking forward to this show—they actually invited professional Chinese Style dancers and opera performers.
Thirtieth comment: I’m looking forward to it too, but I’m looking forward to Li Jiao making a fool of herself haha. What can a pretty face even do? When everyone showcases their talents, will she just stand there spacing out?
Reply to thirtieth comment: Honey, you’re so mean, but I like it.
Thirty-sixth comment: Forget it, let’s not. If Li Jiao embarrasses herself overseas, wouldn’t it be our country’s face she’s losing?… If she really becomes a laughingstock in front of foreigners… I’d genuinely want to disappear… I’d blacklist Li Jiao for life.
Reply #36: Srds (although, but), no need to escalate this to such a high level [sweating]… Genuine question, do foreigners in Huaguo worry about whether their words and actions might cause embarrassment? I’m saying don’t be too submissive…
OP: Everyone stop! Don’t discuss sensitive topics! Just focus on mocking Li Jiao! OP has deleted some comments to protect the thread, apologies in advance.
[This thread has been deleted by the system for violating community guidelines]
…
Unaware of the online drama, Li Jiao finished arranging company matters and began packing her luggage.
Since the production crew would send photographers to film pre-departure preparations in participants’ rooms, but Li Jiao didn’t want anyone entering her and Song Li Sheng’s private space, she decided to move to a hotel one day early.
Song Li Sheng felt uncomfortable watching Li Jiao’s two suitcases being carried out of the villa.
The variety show’s first stop was Country F, with seven days of filming scheduled – meaning he and Li Jiao wouldn’t see each other for a full week!
He waved goodbye to Li Jiao with a smile, but internally his emotions were tangled into knots.
Because he couldn’t detect any reluctance on Li Jiao’s face – instead, she looked completely delighted.
As the car drove out of the courtyard gate, Song Li Sheng’s smile completely vanished, his eyes dimming slightly.
He dialed Jiang Chen’s number: “Haven’t you gotten the people in Country F to move the business meeting to the coming days yet?”
Jiang Chen began explaining through the phone.
“Enough, I don’t care about your process. Just get me results as soon as possible.”