Chapter 85
Ming Ye did not want to go anywhere anymore. Right now, he only wanted to disappear from this world—or become an invisible person no one could see.
Unfortunately for him, the eight people present clearly had no intention of letting him off so easily.
And so, Lin Zhiqiao and the others, who had arrived right behind Yan Jue and Jiang Yang, were treated to the full spectacle of a sea king turning into a swollen-headed fish.
The performers: the sea king and his eight fish—former fish, that is.
The eight of them had come quietly, and after their revenge was complete, they left in a grand, noisy procession.
The swollen-headed-fish segment was only there to vent their anger. They still had more important things to do.
For example, getting in touch with the other people the sea king had hurt before, piecing together the whole story, and then gifting him a deluxe trending-search package so he would be nailed firmly to the pillar of shame.
Being a master of time management was not something you got away with that easily.
“I feel so satisfied. Please include this in the all-time classic list of sea-king crash-and-burn moments so I can rewatch it over and over later.”
“How a Swollen-Headed Fish Evolves.”
“Damn it. Just thinking that I was actually feeling sorry for Ming Ye a few days ago makes me want to cry for myself now. This is too tragic, seriously too tragic. [covering mouth with tears in eyes.jpg]”
“The collapse came way too suddenly, sob sob. This is the first time in my life I’ve ever chased a celebrity, and this is the kind of earth-shattering downfall I run into. [hugging my weak, pitiful self.jpg]”
“Why chase celebrities? Chasing celebrities is nowhere near as fun as eating gossip. Following the Gossip King through the sea of drama is the true joy of life. [all hail the Gossip King.jpg]”
“Wait… I suddenly realized something. Doesn’t this mean Mingguang Entertainment’s two trainees who had the best shot at debuting are both finished?”
“Now that you say it, I think you’re right. Baby Li withdrew from the competition and terminated his contract with the company. Ming Ye has crashed this hard, so there’s definitely no debut chance left for him, and contestants with serious scandals can even be asked to leave the show. As for Mingguang’s other trainees… forget it. There are only five spots, and they aren’t even close.”
“Oh wow, total annihilation. [melon-munching squirrel watching the show.jpg]”
Just as the netizens had guessed, by the time Ming Ye returned to the filming base with that terrifying pig-head face of his, his “glorious deeds” had already spread all over the internet.
The production team, of course, knew about the uproar as well.
Before Ming Ye could even recover from his “breakup,” Director Xu had already called him into the office. When the two of them came back out, everyone received the news that Ming Ye was withdrawing from the competition.
Far away at Mingguang Entertainment, Lin Chen naturally received this news too—and to him, it was no different from another thunderbolt out of a clear sky.
Zhou Zili had voluntarily withdrawn and terminated his contract. Su Jia had collapsed and exited the mentor lineup. And now even the last remaining seedling, Ming Ye, had “made his debut before the whole internet” in an extremely high-profile way.
At that moment, Lin Chen’s dream of using Idol Star Dream to make a comeback was finally and completely shattered.
And not only that—because scandal after scandal kept breaking among the company’s artists, Mingguang Entertainment, already stuck in a slump, saw its public reputation sink several more levels.
Lin Chen was so furious that he slammed his laptop shut, unwilling to look any longer at the cold, glaring figures on the screen.
By now, he once again realized on a profound level just how bizarre Lin Zhiqiao was.
At this moment, Lin Chen deeply felt how correct his parents’ decision had been back then to send young Lin Zhiqiao away. Otherwise, the Lin family might have ceased to exist more than twenty years ago.
After years of carefully built business being thrown into chaos, of course Lin Chen was unwilling to accept it.
He decided to strike back. No matter what, he could not let Lin Zhiqiao have an easy time.
He had not yet settled on a detailed plan, so he decided to first buy Lin Zhiqiao a few negative trending topics as an appetizer.
And yet…
“Can’t buy them? What do you mean?” Lin Chen was both shocked and furious when he got the reply. “If you think the money isn’t enough, I can pay more.”
“It’s not a matter of paying more,” the other side said. “Even if you forcibly buy the trend, it still won’t make it up there. You should understand what I mean.”
Lin Chen calmed down a little, and after only a moment of thought, he immediately understood the implication—
Someone was protecting Lin Zhiqiao.
So even if he bought the trend, the other side would immediately notice the keyword “Lin Zhiqiao” and remove any harmful topic before it could rise.
That method felt strangely familiar to Lin Chen.
…Could it be President Song again?
The moment that thought surfaced, he rejected it at once.
Impossible.
How could Lin Zhiqiao possibly have climbed high enough to connect with President Song? Even if the two knew each other, with President Song’s personality, how could he possibly do something like this for the sake of an entertainer?
Maybe it was the Ji family, Lin Chen thought.
Lin Zhiqiao’s close relationship with the two young masters of the Ji family was common knowledge. It would not be impossible for the Ji family, while protecting their own children, to casually help one of their children’s close friends as well.
That line of reasoning made sense.
But for some reason, Lin Chen still felt uneasy, as if things were not nearly as simple as he imagined.
If he could not afford to provoke him, then surely he could at least avoid him, Lin Chen muttered to himself. At worst, he would just steer clear of Lin Zhiqiao from now on.
Ming Ye’s withdrawal did not affect the progress of filming.
After the final debut-round stage ended, the five trainees who would debut through Idol Star Dream were officially confirmed, and the group name was set as Dream Chasers.
Cheng Xia successfully took first place and the center position, while Ji Ran came in just barely behind him by an extremely narrow margin of votes.
But Ji Ran was not upset by that at all. On the contrary, he was very happy, and every time he met someone he had to show off a little—because, after all, that center position still belonged to the Ji family.
The third and fourth debut spots went to those who had originally ranked fourth and fifth in the second round of voting. After the original third-place Ming Ye withdrew, Chef Bro managed to squeeze into fifth place by a hair’s breadth and debut successfully.
When he was interviewed, Chef Bro held his giant iron spatula with both hands and said with deep emotion, “I want to thank my lucky charm for making my dream come true.”
Lin Zhiqiao could not help laughing.
It really was a lucky debut. If Zhou Zili had not voluntarily withdrawn, and Ming Ye had not followed right after with his dramatic downfall, Chef Bro would definitely have had no chance at debuting this time.
Looking at Chef Bro’s expression, Lin Zhiqiao suspected that spatula might very well become a family heirloom.
Once filming wrapped, Ji Ran and Cheng Xia became even busier, while Lin Zhiqiao happily welcomed a little vacation.
At the same time, he received a wedding invitation from Shu Lin and Qin Ye.
The moment Lin Zhiqiao got the invitation, his eyes lit up—these two were finally getting married!
Shu Lin and Qin Ye had not had an easy road, so receiving such wonderful news now made Lin Zhiqiao sincerely happy for them.
More importantly, among all the CPs Lin Zhiqiao had shipped, Shu Lin and Qin Ye were one of the very few that had never collapsed—and the only pair, so far, to actually make it all the way to marriage.
How could that not make Lin Zhiqiao excited?
Several days later, at the wedding.
Shu Lin and Qin Ye’s wedding was not indoors, but an outdoor ceremony held under the open sky.
At a glance, the venue was full of soothing stretches of greenery, with flowers of all colors scattered across the grass—romantic and gentle.
Shu Lin and Qin Ye were busy welcoming guests.
Lin Zhiqiao did not go up to disturb them and quietly found a seat for himself first.
Shu Lin spotted him at once, however. After whispering something into Qin Ye’s ear, the two of them came over together.
By now, Shu Lin was already visibly showing. Even through the loose suit jacket he wore, the round curve of his belly could clearly be seen.
Lin Zhiqiao could not help stealing a couple of curious glances at it.
Shu Lin asked, “Want to touch it?”
In just one month’s time, he had developed a soft kind of maternal glow. The sharp edges he once carried seemed to have softened and relaxed, making people’s hearts soften with him.
Lin Zhiqiao asked quietly, “Can I?”
Shu Lin nodded, so Lin Zhiqiao cautiously stretched out one finger, lightly touched it with his fingertip, and immediately pulled back.
The movement was so light and so fast, as though he were afraid of startling the baby in Shu Lin’s belly.
Shu Lin asked, “How does it feel?”
Lin Zhiqiao thought for a moment and answered honestly, “It feels very magical.”
Shu Lin smiled. Qin Ye’s large hand came to rest on his lover’s stomach as well, and he smiled too. “I think it feels magical too. That we were actually able to make it to this point together, no matter what… I’m truly very grateful to you.”
Lin Zhiqiao looked puzzled. “Grateful to me?”
Qin Ye and Shu Lin exchanged a smile, but neither of them seemed inclined to explain any further.
Lin Zhiqiao was led by them to the VIP seating area. Not long after, two more people began walking toward this section.
A familiar voice called out, “What a coincidence, Xiao Qiao. Fancy running into you here.”
Lin Zhiqiao looked up in surprise. “Director Fang?” Then he glanced at the person beside him and looked even more astonished. “President Song?”
It was none other than Our Life’s director, Fang Xinnan, along with his friend, the head of the Song family business, Song Fengshi.
Fang Xinnan smiled at Lin Zhiqiao, while Song Fengshi simply nodded. He did not speak, but directly took the seat beside Lin Zhiqiao.
The smile on Fang Xinnan’s face deepened further, and he sat down leisurely next to Song Fengshi.
The wedding was held on a grand scale, and it was obvious that Qin Ye’s family placed great importance on Shu Lin.
On stage, the happiness overflowing from both Shu Lin and Qin Ye was impossible to hide.
Lin Zhiqiao could not help sighing inwardly. As expected, a marriage blessed by one’s family really is this beautiful and happy.
The Song Fengshi beside him glanced at him, and a flicker of thoughtful consideration quickly passed through his eyes.
Once the ceremony ended, the banquet officially began.
Lin Zhiqiao fully immersed himself in eating, but in the middle of it he still remembered to ask Song Fengshi, “President Song, are you friends with Qin Ye?”
“Not exactly,” Song Fengshi replied. “The Song family had business dealings with the Qin family before.”
Lin Zhiqiao gave an “oh” and did not ask further.
At that moment, Qin Ye’s voice suddenly sounded nearby. “I really didn’t expect President Song to come in person. This should be the first time President Song has attended a banquet hosted by our Qin family, right? Does the food suit your taste?”
The newlyweds had come over to make a toast.
Song Fengshi paused briefly, then nodded. “It’s excellent,” he said. “Since it’s a wedding banquet, and I happened to be free, I came.”
Fang Xinnan, seated on his other side, gave him a highly meaningful look, as if he knew everything—but said nothing.
Song Fengshi remained expressionless, as if he had not noticed the implication in his friend’s glance at all.
Qin Ye smiled, exchanged a few casual words with Song Fengshi, and after finishing the toast, moved on to the next table.
Song Fengshi secretly cast another glance at Lin Zhiqiao. Seeing that he had shown no particular reaction to the conversation just now, he seemed to relax a little, though his fingers tightened slightly before loosening again.
No one noticed that brief moment of stiffness.
The banquet lasted until dusk was nearly falling.
Just before parting, Song Fengshi seemed to ask casually, “What are your plans after this?”
“Season three of Our Life should be starting soon,” Lin Zhiqiao said. “But I don’t know what they’re filming this time.”
Out of the six people on the show, only two hosts’ arcs had been filmed so far, so there were still four left.
Lin Zhiqiao himself had been busy with Idol Star Dream during this period, and Fang Xinnan had not contacted him at all, so he was sure that the next host would not be him, but one of Tang Zhou, Wen Li, or Jiang Qianqian.
After thinking for a moment, Lin Zhiqiao suddenly looked at Fang Xinnan with wide, hopeful eyes. “Director Fang, can you give me a hint?”
Fang Xinnan smiled with narrowed eyes and mysteriously wagged one finger twice. “That is classified.”
Lin Zhiqiao sighed. “Then forget it.”
After he left, Song Fengshi asked Fang Xinnan, “What is the arrangement for season three?”
Fang Xinnan looked at him, his smile full of meaning. “You want to know?”
Song Fengshi gave a slight nod.
Fang Xinnan asked, “Do you have some plan in mind? Why don’t you tell me about it?”
Song Fengshi only looked at him once, but said nothing.
Just the reaction he had expected.
Fang Xinnan was not surprised. He let out a regretful sigh, but still gave him a hint. “I probably shouldn’t tell anyone this, but… I heard from Xiao Qiu a few days ago that he’s recently become very interested in figure skating.”
Song Fengshi immediately understood the implication.
“Thank you,” he said.
“There’s no need to be polite with me.” Fang Xinnan waved a hand. “It’s good for you to be a little more proactive. If someone beats you to it, you’ll regret it.”
“Good luck, President Song.”
