Chapter 86
Not long after Shu Lin and Qin Ye’s wedding ended, Lin Zhiqiao received the filming notice for the third episode of Life.
Just like the previous two episodes, before filming officially began, Lin Zhiqiao received no hints at all.
The familiar cameraman was still diligently doing his close follow shots.
‘Long time no see. I’ve missed this so much.’
‘A brand-new episode—what kind of amazing gossip is our Gossip King bringing us this time [starry-eyed with anticipation.jpg]’
The production team’s car drove slowly, finally coming to a stop in front of a highly stylized building.
Lin Zhiqiao got out and looked up—
Miracle Star Figure Skating Club.
Even in broad daylight, under full sunshine, those few glittering rainbow-colored characters were dazzling enough to outshine everything else.
Lin Zhiqiao immediately realized whose home turf this episode belonged to.
Not far away, Wen Li, dressed in a casual sporty outfit and wearing a sun hat, waved at them. “Xiao Qiao! Over here!”
Lin Zhiqiao’s eyes lit up, and he jogged over.
Among all the guests on Life, if there was one profession Lin Zhiqiao was most curious about, it was definitely Wen Li’s.
Wen Li was a figure skater. In her youth, she had even stood on the podium in domestic competitions. Unfortunately, not long after entering the adult division, she retired young because of injuries.
After retiring, Wen Li did not stay on the provincial team. Instead, she went back and finished college, then after graduation found work at a figure skating club as a beginner coach.
According to her, over the years she had actually come across quite a few pretty good young prospects. Maybe in future competitions, people would even get to see some of those kids on the rink.
And the club standing in front of them now, called Miracle Star, was where Wen Li normally worked.
Among the six people participating in Life, Wen Li was the only one whose profession had almost nothing to do with the entertainment industry.
That was one of the main reasons Lin Zhiqiao was so curious about her.
“The others aren’t here yet. Let’s wait for them a bit,” Wen Li said.
Everyone was being picked up and dropped off by the production team’s designated cars, so it did not take long for all six to arrive.
Wen Li led the group inside the club.
“The first and second floors are the shopping area,” Wen Li explained. “They sell sports equipment, clothing, shoes and socks, and other athletic products inside.”
Pei Ning asked, “The skating rink takes up two floors?”
Wen Li nodded. “Right. To control the crowd flow.”
“Then which floor are we going to later?” Pei Ning asked again. “A-Qiu said she’s coming later too.”
Lin Zhiqiao’s radar instantly started moving again: [A-Qiu? That tone is way too intimate… suspicious, extremely suspicious! Don’t tell me the Shuang Ning CP has actually become real?]
Everyone’s gaze immediately landed on Pei Ning.
[Come to think of it, I already got to attend Shu Lin and Qin Ye’s wedding feast. So Pei Ning and Ning Qiu’s wedding feast… can’t be too far off now, right?]
Pei Ning: “……”
Under everyone’s gossip-filled gazes, Pei Ning lifted a hand to brush back her hair. Her expression stayed calm and unchanged, as if she had heard nothing at all, but the tips of her ears quietly turned red.
‘Good good good, I thought we wouldn’t get to eat Shuang Ning sugar after all, but turns out this CP even comes with after-sales service!’
‘Shipping CPs with the Gossip King is always accurate. Now we just wait for the Shuang Ning wedding trending topic [screaming.jpg]’
After that brief little interlude, the topic returned to the theme of this episode.
They were still in the first-floor shopping area. Lin Zhiqiao looked around several times. “There are really quite a lot of people!”
Wen Li smiled. “Yeah. In the last few years, more and more people have become interested in figure skating, and more and more people are coming to clubs just to try it out too.”
“By the way, the club is currently running a solo skating trial event. It only costs 9.9, and you can experience the club for two whole hours!” She looked toward the camera in the cameraman’s hand and took the chance to advertise. “The coaches at our club are all very pretty and very handsome. Just 9.9, limited to one purchase per person. If you miss it, there won’t be another chance!”
‘Hahaha this ad placement is honestly pretty brilliant.’
‘Director Fang: Did they even pay for this ad before running it [grumbling.jpg]’
‘I searched it up—the club is less than ten kilometers from my house. I’m tempted.’
‘If I go right now, can I run into Baby Ran and Xiao Qiao? It’s only 9.9 [itching to move.jpg]’
‘I bought one immediately. Xiao Qiao, wait for me. I’m going to the scene to eat gossip live [cracking knuckles.jpg]’
‘Help, I hesitated for literally two seconds, and when I clicked in again it already showed sold out wuwuwu.’
‘Can’t they release a few more vouchers QAQ’
‘Probably to control the crowd. Too many people at the rink would be dangerous.’
Wen Li did not rush to take them upstairs.
“For now, everyone go walk around the first and second floors and pick out a suitable set of clothes and skating shoes first,” she said. “As for the cost, Director Fang said he’ll reimburse it.”
So everyone scattered.
Lin Zhiqiao did not have many demands when it came to clothes and skating shoes. As long as they fit well, felt comfortable, and were easy to move in, that was enough.
Compared to those, he cared much more about protective gear.
For a beginner stepping onto the ice, falling and bumping into things was unavoidable. The ice surface at a skating rink was hard and freezing. Just imagining taking one solid fall already sounded painful.
So after quickly choosing his clothes and shoes, Lin Zhiqiao headed straight for the protective gear section.
Knee pads, hip pads, elbow pads, head protection…
He took every piece of protective gear he could, and the empty shopping cart immediately filled up.
Only then did Lin Zhiqiao stop in satisfaction and push his fully loaded cart toward the checkout counter.
On the way there, he ran into someone unexpected.
“President Song?” Lin Zhiqiao looked a little surprised. “What a coincidence. You too?”
Song Fengshi was also pushing a cart. Inside were some protective items, one set of skating training clothes, and a pair of small skates that were obviously child-sized.
Lin Zhiqiao glanced into the cart, and his eyes widened slightly.
[That size… those are for a child? Damn—] Lin Zhiqiao sucked in a breath excitedly. [Don’t tell me President Song secretly got married young and already has a kid?!]
Song Fengshi: “……”
He closed his eyes briefly and explained, “I happened to have some free time these few days. My niece said she wanted to try figure skating, so I signed her up for a week of classes.”
Just as he finished speaking, a little girl came out from beside a nearby shelf, looking around seven or eight years old.
“Alright, everything’s been picked out,” the girl said, chin slightly raised, speaking in a mature tone that carried none of the liveliness typical of her age. “Let’s go.”
Song Fengshi gave a quiet “mm” and turned to Lin Zhiqiao with an invitation. “Together?”
Lin Zhiqiao did not refuse, and the two adults plus one child walked toward the checkout together.
“This is my niece,” Song Fengshi introduced. “Her name is Song Xinqiu.”
Lin Zhiqiao smiled at her. “Hello there.”
Song Xinqiu looked at him once, then nodded. “Hello.”
At such a young age, she already carried a trace of the cool indifference adult Song Fengshi had.
Lin Zhiqiao secretly observed her for a moment and muttered inwardly: [Could this be genetic, some kind of Song family bloodline inheritance?]
What he did not know was that Song Xinqiu was secretly observing him too. After looking him over, she turned to glance at her own great-uncle, and a flash of sudden understanding crossed her young face, as if she had figured something out.
‘President Song? Don’t tell me it’s the President Song I’m thinking of?’
‘Holy shit, our Xiao Qiao really made it big.’
‘But they don’t look that close though.’
‘And you call this not close? Do you know how President Song usually reacts when he meets people he’s not that familiar with? This is already an incredibly good attitude from him [my whole family is shocked.jpg]’
The livestream comments were noisy as ever. Song Fengshi could not see them, but he could more or less guess how much of a stir his appearance would cause online.
He glanced at the cameraman following them, but had no intention of stopping him.
Once they reached the checkout counter, Lin Zhiqiao headed over to the companions who were waiting for him.
Only after he had walked away did Song Xinqiu give a light snort and say, “I was wondering why you suddenly turned so kind, even putting work aside to personally accompany me to the club.”
She shot her great-uncle a sideways glance. “So the drunkard’s intention wasn’t in the wine after all.”
Song Fengshi said nothing, tacitly admitting it.
“How rare. Great-uncle finally has someone he likes too.” Her voice paused slightly. “He still doesn’t know?”
Song Fengshi was silent for a moment. “Mm.”
“Oh? So it’s a secret crush, then.” Song Xinqiu lifted her little face, sounding very intrigued. “Three million, and I’ll keep it secret for you. Otherwise I’ll tell him.”
Song Fengshi did not hesitate. “Deal.”
*
The third episode would last for one week. After that week, the six of them would have to perform an ice dance routine for everyone on the rink in order for this experience to count as a success.
Hearing the goal, Tang Zhou gave a bitter smile. “One week? Dancing on ice? If I can just manage not to fall, that’ll already be impressive.”
Wen Li brought everyone up to the top floor.
“The fourth floor is the trial zone and regular member zone,” Wen Li said. “The fifth floor is the VIP area.”
The VIP changing rooms were single-person rooms. After everyone changed and stepped onto the rink, all of them were dressed lightly and ready to move—except Lin Zhiqiao, who had wrapped himself up so thoroughly he was only one step short of wearing a bulletproof vest.
Ji Ran laughed at him. “Why are you wearing so much protective gear?”
Lin Zhiqiao answered honestly, “I’m afraid of pain.”
Ji Ran was still laughing, and in the next second his foot slipped. He fell flat on his back and landed hard on his butt.
The laughter stopped abruptly, immediately replaced by a cry of pain. “Fuck! My ass!!!”
Lin Zhiqiao blinked innocently: [Ah. That looks like it hurts a lot.]
‘Hahaha the face-slapping came way too fast!’
‘That was such a solid thud. Is Baby Ran’s butt okay [trying hard not to laugh.jpg]’
‘Doesn’t sound okay hahaha.’
‘This just proves our Xiao Qiao had better foresight after all.’
Ji Ran stood back up with a dark face, one hand clutching his backside.
The smile on Wen Li’s face never left as she patiently explained the basic skating techniques to everyone.
On the first day, her requirements were not high. As long as everyone could skate steadily on the ice, that would be enough.
After the explanation ended, everyone started moving around freely.
The rink on the fifth floor was divided into several zones. Lin Zhiqiao and the others were at rink number five, where there were not actually that many people.
Lin Zhiqiao held onto the railing by the edge of the rink and carefully shuffled his feet along.
Ahead of him, the tall Tang Zhou lost his balance and went down with a thud, following directly in Ji Ran’s footsteps.
Lin Zhiqiao looked at him sympathetically, then went around him. The moment his hand came off the railing, the skates under his feet immediately stopped listening to him.
Panicking, Lin Zhiqiao instinctively crouched down to lower his center of gravity. His skates carried him all the way to the railing on the other side. After one dull thud, he too ended up sprawled on the ice.
Luckily, with all the protective gear on, he did not feel any pain.
Lin Zhiqiao rubbed his padded backside and held onto the railing, trying to stand up, when suddenly a shriek came from beside him: “Move, move, move out of the way ahhh—”
Someone else was sliding out of control straight toward him.
Lin Zhiqiao had not even steadied himself yet. Hearing that, he instinctively tried to step back, but his foot slipped and his body dangerously started wobbling again.
Just as a “collision” was clearly about to happen, there was a tug at the back of his neck. Someone had grabbed him by the back collar like he was a little chick, pulling him to a stop and even dragging him a few steps backward.
Song Fengshi’s voice sounded from behind him.
“You okay?”
