Variety shows weren’t CCTV’s strong suit, a decent resource for an average celebrity, but far too small-time for a top star like Jiang Li, and Duan Zhihan never touched variety shows at all.
So Director Xia found the comments both funny and exasperating.
This wasn’t a matter of whether they wanted to invite them, it was a matter of whether they even could. Dreaming about it was more realistic than actually inviting these two.
But the comment section didn’t care about any of that.
“Daddaddaddaddaddad”
“Why call him dad! Come call him grandpa with me instead”
“Grandpa, can you grant this one small wish of mine, I want to see them on the show before I die”
Thin-skinned Director Xia, unable to withstand the comment section’s overfamiliarity, could only reply that they’d try their best to reach out.
This got the comments even more excited.
“Looking forward to the results!”
“Grandpa, I love you”
“Dad, I love you”
“Reasonably suspect the person above is taking advantage of me”
Director Xia first contacted Jiang Li’s manager, figuring that since Jiang Li had at least done variety shows before, a rejection wouldn’t come too fast.
After leaving the press conference, Jiang Li went to the dressing room to remove his makeup. With his battery running low, he closed his eyes and switched into power-saving mode.
Suddenly, he felt a tug at the hair near his temple and immediately opened his eyes.
The new makeup artist quickly apologized. “Sorry, I accidentally got some makeup remover oil on your hair, I’ll wipe it off right away.”
The boy shot him a cold glare.
The makeup artist’s heart pounded nervously, he’d heard that Jiang Li treasured his blue hair dearly, had never dyed it any other color, though he couldn’t understand what was so great about it.
He hurriedly wiped the oil off completely, and only then did the boy withdraw his deathly stare.
After finishing his makeup removal, Jiang Li walked out of the dressing room accompanied by Xiao Su. The moment he stepped outside, he overheard gossip from inside.
“It’s not like he actually got hurt from touching his hair, being fussier than an actress.”
“Serving him is just my bad luck, if I hadn’t already found a new gig, I would’ve quit long ago. How long can someone like him stay popular anyway?”
“He really doesn’t need to bother with press conferences. The audience was actually planning to go watch, but hearing he was there, they’ve been trying to return their tickets, and it’s only the organizers who are fawning over him.”
Xiao Su heard every word the makeup artist and his assistant said clearly, and inwardly mourned for the two of them—Jiang Li was not someone who would just swallow an insult quietly.
Sure enough, the boy walked into the dressing room and, without further ado, poured makeup remover oil directly onto the makeup artist’s hair, all while wearing an innocent expression, even clapping his hands afterward.
Even though the boy hadn’t actually laid a hand on anyone, the invisible chill radiating off him, so unlike anything human, sent shivers down people’s spines.
The makeup artist and his assistant exchanged a look, and without even bothering to grab their makeup kits, fled the room in terror.
The little robot tilted his head. “Boring.” This generation of humans has such little nerve.
Xiao Su suppressed her discomfort, not sure of how this would look if word got out, but kept a composed expression as she accompanied Jiang Li into the nanny van.
Once in the car, Xiao Su noticed the breakfast from that morning still sitting there, uneaten. Restless, she carefully asked, “Should I throw the box away?”
Instead, the boy silently started eating the now-cold breakfast.
Before Xiao Su could think much of it, the closed car door was suddenly thrown open with force.
Ye Cheng, wrapped in a thick padded coat, squeezed in from outside, cold air rolling off him, but a bright smile plastered across his face.
“Brother Ye, weren’t you sulking in isolation?”
Xiao Su turned to look at the newly energized Ye Cheng, nearly thinking she’d mistaken him for someone else. Getting into the car, Ye Cheng denied it: “When was I ever sulking in isolation?”
The little Jiang robot also noticed something off about Ye Cheng.
He finished the last sip of his nut milk, suspecting the man was trying to lecture him again: “If you’ve got something to say to that reporter, say it to him. Don’t just make passive-aggressive faces at me.”
“Did you go and provoke a reporter again?” Ye Cheng asked suspiciously, shutting the car door. “I actually came today for something else.”
Jiang Li switched topics in an instant. “What is it?”
Ye Cheng’s voice turned serious. “Have you thought about your future? Sure, you have a lot of fans right now, but your fans are all elementary school kids, will they still like you once they’ve grown up?”
“They will.”
Ye Cheng was momentarily stunned by the boy’s crisp, confident answer, mainly because Jiang Li was still so young, top star at just past nineteen, still only twenty-nine ten years from now.
Unlike stars who only found fame close to thirty, who had to transition to playing “the male lead’s father” if they didn’t pivot quickly.
So he switched persuasion tactics. “Your reputation with the public is really poor right now. The whole Yuan Qing incident was a warning sign, anyone can smear you at any time. If you hadn’t gotten lucky this time, he could’ve stepped on you to climb up.”
“Is that so?”
Jiang Li didn’t take Ye Cheng’s words to heart at all. In the eyes of this noble little robot, humans weren’t even qualified to judge him.
Ye Cheng realized there was no point being subtle with Jiang Li, who had zero patience for reading between the lines.
He got straight to the point: “Director Xia from CCTV reached out to me, he wants to invite you onto a divorce-themed variety show. These days, whoever goes on a show like that comes out clean.”
Just as Ye Cheng was about to give two examples, Xiao Su asked curiously, “Why did Jiang Li get criticized for going on variety shows before?”
Ye Cheng froze for a moment. He didn’t think it was really the audience’s fault, mainly, Jiang Li’s personality was too cold. He never smiled on shows, and no matter how good-looking his face was, it just wasn’t endearing.
Knowing how strange Jiang Li’s personality was, Ye Cheng usually avoided variety shows for him whenever he could. But this time was different.
The public attention on Jiang Li and Duan Zhihan together was simply too high, even a random Q&A show completely unrelated to them would take off with either of them on it, let alone this divorce-themed show that already came with its own built-in drama. It was undoubtedly going to be the most-watched show of the year.
What he’d said to Jiang Li earlier had also been completely sincere, the hotter Jiang Li got, the more people would be cursing him.
Jiang Li himself didn’t care, but Ye Cheng’s heart ached every time he saw the flood of negative comments. Was this nineteen-year-old boy really that unaffected?
If he could clean up his image even a little on this show, maybe the number of people cursing him wouldn’t be quite so overwhelming.
But Jiang Li rejected the idea without even thinking. “I’m not going.”
If he went, he’d definitely run into Duan Zhihan, because of what happened that morning, the little Jiang robot couldn’t help but feel a bit guilty.
Unexpectedly, grown man that he was, Ye Cheng started tearing up in front of him: “If you don’t go, my year-end bonus is finished, ugh, might as well jump out of the car.”
Xiao Su winced watching this, their manager’s tactics were far too crude. Surely Jiang Li wouldn’t fall for something like that.
She recalled the seemingly unfeeling boy from the dressing room earlier, and yet that same cold boy said, “If you keep crying, I’m not going at all.”
Xiao Su suddenly realized that the seemingly cold Jiang Li actually had a soft side, it was just extremely hard to notice most of the time.
Meanwhile, Jiang Li slouched in his seat playing a game, a straw from his lemon water tucked in his mouth.
He’d agreed to Ye Cheng’s request for two reasons, one, Ye Cheng’s crying was genuinely unbecoming, two, Duan Zhihan definitely wouldn’t go, since Jiang Li had just called him disgusting that very morning.
At the thought, Jiang Li took a sip of his lemon water, an unusually sour taste spreading across his tongue, and his heart ached a little too.
Duan Zhihan’s manager Song Hang watched Jiang Li’s interview footage and couldn’t help laughing out loud.
Their Best Actor had so proudly said he was going to bring his wife breakfast, mocking him for not having a wife, only to have the other person flat out call him disgusting.
If their respective fans knew about this, they’d probably be dumbfounded.
Song Hang set his phone in front of Duan Zhihan, sighing in mock pity. “Why put yourself through this.”
“What’s there to argue over with your own wife?” Duan Zhihan merely glanced at the screen. “Worst case, I’ll collect the debt later.”
Song Hang suspected this award-winning, critically acclaimed Best Actor was actually flirting shamelessly, but he had no proof.
Just as he was suspecting this, Duan Zhihan raised his dark peach-blossom eyes. “Download Weibo for me.”
“Aren’t you the one who doesn’t go online?”
Ever since Song Hang had known Duan Zhihan, the man had never really used social media much, at most browsing web pages on a computer.
“That’s what you single people call going online,” Duan Zhihan said slowly. “For us married folks, we call it keeping up with our wife’s activities.”
You’re already divorced, aren’t you?
Song Hang didn’t want to argue with this Best Actor, but Duan Zhihan just tossed the phone in front of him, so he had no choice but to hold his nose and download Weibo.
The moment it finished downloading, he tossed the phone back, but Duan Zhihan didn’t leave, instead tapping his fingertip lightly against the screen, as if waiting for something.
Curious, Song Hang glanced at the screen and saw fans passionately commenting under CCTV’s official Weibo post, strongly demanding that Jiang Li and Duan Zhihan appear on the divorce-themed variety show.
At this, Song Hang almost wanted to laugh, it wasn’t just the fans who wanted Duan Zhihan to go on a variety show, he himself had considered it too.
But not this kind of entertainment-focused show, a show introducing national treasures would at least be prestigious, right? Duan Zhihan hadn’t budged, staying quietly focused on filming, as if the only thing in this man’s eyes was cinema.
Song Hang couldn’t help but ask, “What are you waiting for?”
“A phone call.”
There were only a handful of people who could make Duan Zhihan wait for their call. Song Hang immediately thought of Director Wang.
Good directors were rarer in the domestic industry than good actors. Director Wang used to be a talented but underappreciated filmmaker, and Duan Zhihan, admiring his talent, had taken on his production.
If it hadn’t been for Duan Zhihan’s brilliant performance in that film, it wouldn’t have won three heavyweight awards at the film festival.
Yet Director Wang hadn’t shown Duan Zhihan any gratitude for helping him out, word was, he was already considering replacing Duan Zhihan for the sequel, trying to prove his success had nothing to do with Duan Zhihan.
Song Hang asked hesitantly, “Are you waiting for Director Wang’s call?”
The rumors about the recasting had been spreading wildly. If Director Wang had no intention of replacing the lead in the sequel, coming out to deny the rumor wouldn’t be hard at all, not denying it basically confirmed it.
To be fair, Director Wang really was talented, but Duan Zhihan wasn’t short on good scripts either, he didn’t need to wait around for an olive branch from Director Wang.
“Who’s waiting for him?”
Duan Zhihan looked down on Wang Can, not because of any issue with being replaced, but because he thought the man was too stubborn, and people that stubborn wouldn’t go far.
He didn’t care about people like Wang Can either. In his past life, he’d already won every award worth winning, in this life, all he wanted was to hold his Jiang Li close.
Hearing Duan Zhihan’s denial, Song Hang grew even more puzzled, if not Director Wang, then whose call was he waiting for?
The next second, the strikingly handsome man stared at CCTV’s Weibo post, deep in thought.
“Why haven’t they contacted me yet to do the show?”
Song Hang: ???
At the TV station, Director Xia had just received Jiang Li’s agreement, and his heart hadn’t calmed down for a long while.
You had to understand, since his debut, Jiang Li had only ever appeared on two variety shows, one a talent competition, one a national mainstream show, neither of which their own show could compare to.
Even though the station had allocated more funding, clearly encouraging them to secure Jiang Li and Duan Zhihan, CCTV’s budget simply couldn’t compete with that of the provincial satellite channels.
As for buzz, they had even less of an advantage. The only edge they might have was the show’s format.
When the photo of Jiang Li and Duan Zhihan first broke, seven or eight shows within their own station alone had already been eagerly rubbing their hands together, not to mention all the satellite channel shows below them, everything from post-wedding shows to parenting shows in all sorts of varieties.
Back then, all they could do was watch helplessly, since their show was divorce-themed, they could hardly ask a newlywed couple to appear on a divorce show. Who would’ve thought that in the end, they’d be the only survivors left standing.
Getting Jiang Li’s favor this time left even the usually composed Director Xia feeling his heart race, and immediately after, another thought occurred to him.
Getting Jiang Li alone wouldn’t be enough, they’d also need Duan Zhihan to agree, and no one dared take on that daunting task.
Deciding who would go invite Duan Zhihan became a half-hour-long debate among them.
There was no way around it, everyone knew Duan Zhihan was completely devoted to acting, and inviting him onto a variety show always carried a lingering sense of guilt, as if disrupting the man’s artistic career.
In the end, they resorted to drawing lots, and the deputy director drew the honorable but daunting task. Under everyone’s earnest gaze, he dialed Duan Zhihan’s number.
The moment the call connected, everyone unanimously walked away, leaving only the deputy director alone in the meeting room.
It was simply too nerve-wracking, if Duan Zhihan agreed to appear, their show would become the most talked-about program even before it aired.
Although thinking it over, it seemed impossible, and if it was impossible, that meant Jiang Li couldn’t appear either, since they’d only be able to invite ordinary guests. If the content of the show was good, maybe it could get some buzz on Weibo, but going by CCTV variety shows’ usual fate, it would probably end up with barely a ripple from start to finish.
Although it was the deputy director making the call, Director Xia’s heart still pounded just as hard. After a good while, there was still no sign of movement from the deputy director.
Director Xia laughed bitterly to himself, hadn’t he already predicted this outcome?
His heart sank a little, not because he stood to gain anything if the show became a hit, but simply out of a pure sense of loss over the death of what could have been a phenomenon-level show.
Everyone else’s faces showed the same disappointment. As the director, he had to rally everyone’s spirits, and just as he was about to speak, the deputy director suddenly walked over holding the phone.
At that moment, everyone’s eyes fixed intently on the deputy director. Never having been the center of so much attention before, the deputy director opened his mouth, then closed it again.
A shy young man couldn’t help but stomp his foot. “Just tell us already, what happened?”
Director Xia guessed the result from the deputy director’s expression. He took a deep breath and asked, his voice trembling, “Did Teacher Duan agree to appear on the show?”
The deputy director nodded firmly.
With that nod, everyone’s tense bodies suddenly relaxed, breaking out into a burst of cheers. Director Xia pulled the deputy director aside privately and asked, “How did you convince him?”
He’d met Duan Zhihan once before and didn’t think someone like that could be easily persuaded. Sure enough, the deputy director shook his head.
Director Xia’s confusion deepened. “So he just agreed outright?”
Although this possibility was slim, it wasn’t impossible either, it seemed even a Best Actor’s principle of never doing variety shows could be broken. But the deputy director’s next words left him utterly stunned.
“Teacher Duan volunteered himself.”