On the very first day I met him, my heart fluttered.
That day, a new family moved into the yard next door.
While they were unpacking their luggage, I wanted to go over and help.
He had a pair of bright, dazzling, enchanting eyes.
Somehow, he took my hand, looked at me, and my heartbeat was about to stop.
We became classmates and were in the same class.
He was very shy and always tried to avoid me.
Mom said boys are like that.
It went on like that until the day our family was about to move away.
…
Then I saw news about him online again. Oh my God, he was so handsome, and he had even become a huge star.
…
He started dating someone else (╥╯^╰╥)(╥╯^╰╥).
They were beautiful and had enchanting hair, but they were definitely all show.
As for him, he was still waiting for my first kiss.
…
He looked so miserable. I wanted to go back.
But Father said I had to finish my studies. I was already in my twenties, and he still would not feel comfortable letting me return to China alone.
…
I was so happy. I could finally go back to China.
He had fallen into a low point in life. It must have been fate, letting me appear by his side at a time like this.
…
Gao Xiaolan opened her diary and flipped to the latest blank page.
She wrote: He is a total jerk.
Qiongzhou, Heartbeat production team.
Li Lu got off the plane and took the production team’s car to the base.
He had already adjusted his mindset; after all, he was just here to fill a slot.
He figured no one would interact with him anyway, so he’d just coast through without getting many shots.
The sea breeze blew across his face, bringing a faint, refreshing comfort.
Underfoot, the sand was soft. Waves rolled in one after another, and the sunset glow spilled across the golden sea.
The production team really knew how to pick a location; he might as well treat it like a free vacation.
“Teacher Li, over here, over here.”
A little girl was leading the way; she was his producer.
“My name is Jiang Zi. Just call me Little Jiang.”
“Little Jiang, just call me by my name.”
“Teacher Li, you’re finally here. The show has already started live streaming, and you’re the only one who still hasn’t joined the production.”
“Mm.”
Li Lu wore his oversized sunglasses, his expression unreadable.
It wasn’t his fault he had arrived late. He had received the contract only God knew when.
The show was in live-streaming format, thanks to advances in technology.
Everyone had a dedicated camera recording everything they did here.
Arriving late didn’t affect the show; lots of shows like this add people midway.
“Teacher Li, are you here alone?”
“Yes.”
“Teacher Li, where’s your team?”
“I don’t have a team.”
“Oh, no team.”
Little Jiang was already surprised to see him coming alone.
“You don’t have an executive agent or a makeup artist?”
Every artist who came on the show had a whole crowd around them.
At the very least, they brought an assistant and someone for makeup and styling.
“I came by myself. The production team has makeup artists, right? Just have someone do a quick fix-up for me.”
Li Lu guessed what she meant, but with such a big production team, he probably didn’t need to hire someone separately.
Now that he was going solo, how could he bear to spend his own money hiring people.
“Yes, I’ll contact them right away.”
Jiang Zi walked ahead while contacting the director team.
She knew he was already in a pretty rough spot, but she hadn’t expected it to have come to this.
Heartbeat Villa Area.
In the spacious living room, the nine guests, five women and four men, appeared one after another.
When each person appeared on the live-stream screen, real-time subtitles also popped up beside them with a brief introduction.
Xiao Jun: Champion of Season 8 of Youth Trainee, singer, actor, representative work: All Is Vanity.
Zhang Wenbo: singer, actor, music producer, winner of the annual best-selling album award in ’28 and ’29.
Lin Xuan: actor. Representative works: Bad Deal, Love Group…
Yang Shu: actor, director, producer, movie king with 3 billion in box office.
…
Everyone arrived one after another and exchanged greetings.
“Director Yang, I didn’t expect it really was you?”
“Liu Mian, you’re here for this show too? Don’t tell me your family is also pushing you to get married.”
“Haha, mainly because they offered too much.”
…
Although the production team claimed this was a full A-list lineup, there were still subtle tiers.
Yang Shu and Liu Mian had been in the industry the longest and had the most works, so they counted as seniors.
Especially Yang Shu. Not only was he a great actor, he also successfully shifted into directing and scored a 500 million box office hit, enjoying a period of unmatched glory.
Lin Xuan, Zhang Wenbo, Li Shihan, Yaoyao, and Lin Lin all belonged to stars in their prime.
Their works were steadily increasing, and their popularity was stable.
After a few years in the business, only the best-quality artists survived the cut.
Nuan Nuan and Xiao Jun were artists who had only exploded in popularity over the last two years.
No one knew what their future would look like, but right now they were definitely the most popular artists.
The bullet comments in the livestream room were already going wild:
『Wow, it really is Liu Mian.』
『My Xiao Nuan, don’t get locked up. You’re mine.』
『Xiao Nuan is mine.』
『Xiao Nuan belongs to Li Lu, to Li Lu.』
『Haters get lost.』
『I’ve waited all day. It finally started.』
『Li Shihan and Lin Xuan aren’t really a thing, are they? Their collaboration film is still in theaters, and now they’re on a dating variety show together. Will their next appearance be a wedding?』
『I think Yaoyao and Li Shihan are the real couple. The two of them have been glued together this whole time.』
『They’ve always been best friends. They should be together forever.』
『Zhang Wenbo is acting weird. He just got here and already sat on Lin Lin’s side. Something’s off.』
『Lin Lin, be careful. He’s a womanizer.』
『Liu Mian and Yang Shu are definitely a couple. Otherwise, anyone pairing up with either of them would be an old cow eating tender grass.』
『That’s nonsense. Our Sister Mian only dates people younger than herself.』
『Xiao Xiao looks so helpless, just spacing out alone.』
『If Xiao Jun dares to get involved with any female celebrity, his wife fans will probably tear that person apart.』
『Xiao Xiao is so handsome. Mom loves you.』
『Xiao Xiao, go after Lin Lin.』
『Why is there one male guest missing? Isn’t it supposed to be five couples?』
『There’s still one Song or whatever. Figure it out yourself.』
『Haha, I’m so eager. I’m actually just here to see who is taking his place.』
…
Everyone following the show knew that a certain Song had imploded in a huge scandal over the last few days.
The entertainment media were also all guessing and fanning the flames about who the Heartbeat production team had arranged as the substitute.
The show was officially launching today, so this was also a major topic.
The guests in the living room were very curious as well. It had already been on for half a day… had they failed to find the last person?
Everyone had signed early and originally knew who the other guests were. Now, with this sudden cast change, they were all a bit surprised.
“Old Yang, who is the other person? Haven’t they arrived yet?”
The only one who dared call Director Yang directly “Old Yang” was Liu Mian, since they had comparable seniority.
“What, who do you want to come? I’ll call him for you.”
“Get lost.”
Yang Shu laughed as he asked back, only to get a “get lost” in return.
“Sorry, I’m a little late.”
The door was pushed open, and a tall figure in a floral shirt and beach shorts appeared.
The other guests in the room looked over in tacit agreement, then froze in shock.
The instant Li Lu appeared on camera, the live-stream subtitles displayed:
『Li Lu, top star idol. At his peak, his Weibo reposts exceeded 100 million in one hour, breaking a record. Representative works: none.』
The barrage of comments also went quiet for a second, then suddenly began multiplying.
『Who is this?』
『Wasn’t he blacklisted?』
『Liar, wasn’t it supposed to be an all A-list cast? You brought in a has-been past his prime to fill the spot?』
『So this is wordplay??』
『I just bought a membership. Refund me.』
『Geneva, refund.』
『Refund.』
…