Chapter 61
This time, both the Jiang Corporation and Jiang Ling became infamous across the entire internet.
The related hashtags stayed on the trending list for a long time. It was basically a public execution.
Lin Zhiqiao had also been eating very well these past few days, thoroughly enjoying a massive showdown that combined intense love-hate drama with a rich-family business war.
The winner of that war was obvious without saying.
Lin Zhiqiao glanced toward Ning Qiu and Pei Ning, who were busy in the kitchen. In just a few short days, the atmosphere between them had already become so intimate that there was no room for a third person.
At this rate, it probably would not be long before he got to see the two of them announce their relationship, followed by a beautiful wave of sweet, lily-flavored romance.
He might even get to attend a wedding banquet and eat wedding candy.
Lin Zhiqiao was extremely looking forward to that.
After the special livestream of Our Life ended, several more days passed before the production team finally, under the eager anticipation of viewers across the internet, announced the date filming would resume.
At that point, less than half the remaining time for the second arc of the show was left.
The first nightmare update after filming restarted was this: the guests had still not completed their task. The lyrics, the composition, and everything else that needed preparing were still only half-finished.
Immediately after came the second nightmare update: Pei Ning had made a last-minute decision to change the theme, meaning every single half-finished piece had to be scrapped and redone from scratch.
The villa living room instantly filled with miserable wailing.
“Giving up before we’ve even started?” Pei Ning’s voice carried a faint smile. “No one wants to know what the new theme is?”
Ji Ran replied weakly, “No—way—”
Ning Qiu asked with a smile, “I do.”
Everyone turned back in perfect unison and snapped, “Shut up! You don’t get a vote!!!”
Ning Qiu raised both hands in surrender. The look she gave Pei Ning seemed helpless on the surface, but in reality it was sweet and indulgent.
Pei Ning returned her the same helpless look.
Lin Zhiqiao painfully swallowed another giant mouthful of sweetness. [This sweetness is burning my mouth, sob sob sob!]
‘So sweet, I love it, let me eat a billion more bites.’
‘Our Sweetie is furiously scribbling notes again. I really want to turn into the pen in her hand and see what exactly she’s writing in that notebook. It has to be delicious, aaahhh.’
Pei Ning cleared her throat. “Alright, alright. The time we have left is enough. Trust me.”
Ji Ran looked at her mournfully. “Sister Pei, we only have four days left.”
“My personal record before this was only two days,” Pei Ning replied with a smile. “By myself. The entire thing.”
Ji Ran immediately fell silent.
Lin Zhiqiao silently shed tears. [But Sister Ning, not everyone is a naturally gifted elite combat soldier like you, aaahhh!!!]
Unfortunately, all protests were invalid.
Everyone was forced into a four-day battle.
The new theme was rebirth.
The moment they heard that word, everyone understood why Pei Ning had changed the theme at the last minute.
Ji Ran froze for a second. The miserable look on his face instantly brightened.
Pei Ning was experiencing rebirth, but wasn’t he too?
The two of them, along with Cheng Xia back at the training base, had all shaken off scumbags and stepped successfully into new lives!
‘Wow! I’m already looking forward to it!’
‘Is Sister Pei about to switch styles and reinvent herself? Can I hope for the queen of love songs turning into an inspiring queen boss? [looking up eagerly.jpg]’
‘It’s saying goodbye to the past, and also looking ahead to a brand-new future. [covering mouth, tearing up.jpg]’
‘Without that scumbag around to disturb her, Sister Pei’s life is definitely going to get better and better from now on!!!’
‘Quietly asking—she’s not going to stop singing love songs forever now, is she? I really love Sister Pei’s love songs. [crying explosively.jpg]’
‘Sticking to one fixed style is too limiting. Trying different styles is great too. Sister Pei has the talent. Whatever she releases, I’ll love it, hehe.’
‘Think bigger. She just dumped a scumbag, that’s all. How could that possibly mean she’ll never have anything to do with love songs again? [doghead.jpg]’
‘Come on now, does nobody feel like Sister Pei’s next romance might not be far away?’
‘Love songs flavored like lilies? Miss Ning Qiu, please don’t let us down. Please become Sister Pei’s muse of inspiration! [screaming madly.jpg]’
‘Raise the banner for Pei Ning and Ning Qiu!!!’
The four days flew by in the blink of an eye, and soon it was the promised day of the concert.
Counting the stage from the first season of Our Life, this was only the second time in Lin Zhiqiao’s acting career that he had stood on a stage facing a fully packed audience.
It would be a lie to say he was not nervous.
But compared to the first time, when he had absolutely no experience, Lin Zhiqiao felt that this time he would perform much more calmly.
This stage belonged primarily to Pei Ning, and she also carried the heaviest load.
This new song, created by six people together in less than four days total, ended up delivering an effect on stage that stunned everyone.
Different from what many fans had guessed, it was not just a simple “waking up after heartbreak” rebirth anthem.
There was no excessive dwelling on the silence of a low point. It was a song that wove together friendship, courage, renewal, self-rescue, mutual support, and more.
With the soaring high notes she was so proud of, Pei Ning perfectly expressed the song’s true meaning.
The atmosphere at the venue was completely electric.
After the performance ended perfectly, Ning Qiu—who was closest to the stage—braced one hand on the stage edge and flipped herself up in one smooth motion. Right in front of the live audience and the livestream cameras, she stuffed the bouquet in her hands into Pei Ning’s arms, then gave her a huge hug and a cheek kiss.
It was a bouquet of foxtail lilies, every blossom vivid and radiant.
The other people on stage were lucky enough to get flowers too—each one received a tiny, adorable daisy.
Pretty cute, actually.
[Never in my life did I imagine the first flower I’d ever receive would happen under these circumstances.] Lin Zhiqiao waved the little daisy in his hand. [I got sweetness and flowers. Who’s the happy one? Not saying! ]
‘So sweet so sweet so sweet.’
‘Raise the flag for Pei Ning and Ning Qiu, aaahhh.’
‘I’m so jealous of the girls who got to go in person, sob sob sob. Who knew tickets would be this hard to snatch? I’m crying to death. [angrily pounding table.jpg]’
‘I’m dying, Lin Little Qiao is literally me in real life. That expression is exactly the same as mine right now, wanting to scream from shipping this romance so hard, hahaha.’
‘Honestly, I’m kind of grateful now to that certain trash man with the surname Jiang. If not for him, Sister Pei might still be trapped inside the title of “queen of love songs.”’
‘Stop giving a scumbag a golden crown. How is this the scumbag’s credit? This is clearly the credit of the whole Our Life family, Miss Ning Qiu, and most of all Sister Pei herself!!!’
‘Who is bringing up that scumbag at a time like this? Drag them out, drag them out!! [totally disgusted.jpg]’
‘I’ve already moved the Civil Affairs Bureau here. Please let Pei Ning and Ning Qiu get married on the spot, thank you. [grabbing a handful of cyber wedding candy.jpg]’
‘As expected of my Sister Pei. This song gave me goosebumps all over.’
‘Steady, steady. Congratulations to Sister Pei on her successful transformation, aaahhh. [calling out wildly.jpg]’
The finale stage of Season 2 of Our Life came to a perfect close.
After returning backstage, Pei Ning sought out Lin Zhiqiao.
Lin Zhiqiao looked blank. “Star in the music video?”
“That’s right.” Pei Ning nodded. “I’m preparing a new album, and today’s song will be included in it.”
In truth, even before this season of the show, Pei Ning had already sensed that she had become trapped in a strange sort of bottleneck.
It had been a very long time since she had put out a new album. It was not that she had no inspiration to create, but rather that everything she created during this period felt unsatisfactory no matter how she looked at it. So the plan for a new album kept getting pushed back again and again, shelved for a very long time.
It always felt like something was still missing.
It was not until this recording of Our Life, and everything that happened during it, that the knot in her thoughts was finally untied.
And Pei Ning knew very clearly that the key person who had broken through her creative block was neither Ning Qiu nor Jiang Ling.
It was Lin Zhiqiao.
If Lin Zhiqiao had not “spoiled” the truth, she would never have discovered Jiang Ling’s true face. Ning Qiu would not have rushed back from abroad. And the later plotline of joining forces to tear the scumbag apart would never have happened either.
Pei Ning did not dare imagine what her life would have become if she had truly accepted Jiang Ling’s proposal, only to then fall into the malicious trap he set for her.
Maybe it really would have turned out exactly as Lin Zhiqiao had said—she would have fallen back into the abyss, pregnant, bitterly waiting for the scumbag’s “awakening” and “redemption.”
What redemption? That was clearly evil straight from hell.
Just imagining it made Pei Ning feel a lingering fear.
Luckily, that future would never happen now. She had already broken free of the devil’s grip.
Something lightly bumped her arm. A trace of warmth and softness brushed the tips of her fingers, as fleeting as a dragonfly skimming water, yet enough to pull Pei Ning’s drifting thoughts back.
It was Ning Qiu.
Pei Ning was not surprised at all.
Her lips curved faintly as she gave the other woman a very slight smile.
“So, what’s your answer?” Pei Ning looked back at Lin Zhiqiao.
Lin Zhiqiao had been thinking too. Hearing that, he asked, “Of course I can, but… is my character supposed to be the scumbag?”
Pei Ning blinked. “Do you want to play the scumbag?”
Lin Zhiqiao shook his head decisively. “No.”
[Though if I think about it, that kind of role would be pretty interesting. A scumbag done well really makes an impression. The scumbag in an MV should count too, right?]
A trace of understanding flashed through Pei Ning’s eyes. “Alright. I know.”
‘Hahaha, I saw that mischievous little spark in Sister Pei’s eyes. [doghead.jpg]’
‘Originally he wasn’t going to be the scumbag, but after asking that… Little Qiao, you’d better pray for yourself, hahaha.’
‘Seeing one piece of gossip and loving another, getting bored of the old and craving the new—how is that not scumbag behavior? [grinning.jpg]’
‘A gossip-eater’s “trashiness” doesn’t count as being trash. Our Little Qiao just wants to give every scandal a home, that’s all. [righteously arguing.jpg]’
That was the end of the conversation between them. The details of the collaboration would be left to Lin Zhiqiao’s agent to negotiate.
And so the filming of Season 2 of Our Life officially came to a complete end.
Just like before, the date for Season 3 was still undecided, and Lin Zhiqiao once again entered a brief little vacation.
For a starving gossip-eating tanuki, days without gossip were unbearably lonely.
Lin Zhiqiao spent three days lying around at home. Other than binge-watching dramas and variety shows, the thing he did most every day was lurk on Weibo, Tieba, and all sorts of forums, trying to dig out even the tiniest scraps of gossip from obscure corners of the internet.
Sadly, the efficiency was too low. It was not even enough to wedge between his teeth.
Worth mentioning, after Season 2 of Our Life wrapped, Lin Zhiqiao gained a brand-new fan nickname—
The Gossip King.
According to the fans, anywhere Lin Zhiqiao appeared, gossip followed. He had earned the title fair and square.
Lin Zhiqiao liked that comment, declaring that he was very fond of the title and unceremoniously accepted it.
Perhaps the God of Gossip sensed the boredom of his devout follower, because Lin Zhiqiao soon had new work again.
Director Xu Mingjie’s idol survival show, Idol Star Dream, was finally about to officially begin filming.
This was not exactly a new gig. Ever since that last time when he personally witnessed Director Xu’s live-on-site scandal, a long time had already passed.
The contract had been signed ages ago; the start date had just been delayed again and again.
Idol Star Dream was a boy-group idol survival show. Director Xu had followed the trend—this show would become the first idol survival show ever to livestream the entire process from start to finish.
A twenty-four-hour uninterrupted livestream, minimizing scripted manipulation and unfairness as much as possible.
Lin Zhiqiao was very much looking forward to it. The moment he got the notice, he immediately packed his luggage and set off for the filming location.
One more thing worth mentioning: after switching to a new company, Ji Ran and Cheng Xia had also signed up for Idol Star Dream.
However…
Lin Zhiqiao suddenly remembered that he did not seem to have told Ji Ran and Cheng Xia yet that he too had been invited onto the show?
Though of course, he was not going there as a contestant.
He had been invited as a special mentor’s assistant.
Yes, that’s right.
It was the perfect gossip-eating seat specially opened up for him by Director Xu.
