Before this, Xu Yanxia had never interacted with anyone in the entertainment industry other than Lu Jingxi.
Originally, like most people, she thought celebrities were all glamorous and might be a bit distant to interact with. But after spending just the first evening with them, she found that everyone was actually quite easy to get along with.
This variety show had invited a total of six guests. Besides Lu Jingxi, there was an actress around their age named Lin Lin, who was the one who took over after Bai Qingqing's incident a few days ago.
Of course, this one was much more grounded and down-to-earth than Bai Qingqing.
The remaining four were all men.
Among them, one was a veteran performing artist named Zhao Weimin, who was about the same age as Mrs. Shen.
One was Xu Qinghe, an idol actor who had been extremely popular a few years ago.
One was Xiao Chen, a highly popular young male idol.
And another was Lu Jingxi's peer, Cheng Yiran, a currently very hot male singer-songwriter in the country.
Except for the first two, who were not very familiar with Lu Jingxi and happened to be busy tonight, the rest of them had all come.
Fortunately, Xu Yanxia had taken Queen Xixi's foodie nature into account. Half of her suitcase was filled with food for her, which was also just enough to share with everyone.
Everyone was also great at providing emotional value. Not only did they praise her delicious cooking, but they also took videos and photos to share on their respective social media accounts.
Since they had to wake up early the next day to record the show, everyone said their goodbyes after eating.
Xu Yanxia also returned to her own room.
It was right next to Queen Xixi's, also a suite.
This was a famous local five-star hotel, and the environment both inside and outside the room was impeccable.
The cool air conditioning dispelled the summer heat of the island. Outside the window was a Southeast Asian-style garden, along with the rolling waves of the distant sea.
It was getting late, and after a busy day, she was indeed a bit tired. Xu Yanxia took a shower and lay down on the bed.
She had also taken group photos with everyone using her own phone tonight, and she posted them to her account now.
After all, the main purpose of coming this time was for promotion, so she definitely had to take the opportunity to generate some buzz.
It was already past eleven o'clock. She was just about to sleep after posting, but unexpectedly received a message from Lu Jingming.
"Not asleep yet?"
Xu Yanxia replied to him, "Not asleep."
Then she saw him ask, "Is it convenient to video call?"
Xu Yanxia thought he had something urgent to tell her, since there were many people around during their video call earlier and they hadn't finished talking. So she replied, "Sure."
Immediately after, Lu Jingming initiated a video call.
She hurriedly answered and saw that he had changed into short-sleeved pajamas on the other end, though he was still wearing those gold-rimmed glasses on his face.
As for her, her mid-length hair was draped over her shoulders, the ends still a little wet.
Speaking of which, it seemed to be the first time the two of them had seen each other's bedtime appearance, and they were both slightly stunned for a moment.
Lu Jingming was the first to react. He smiled and asked her, "Did you have fun with them tonight?"
Xu Yanxia nodded. "Yes, everyone seems very easy to get along with."
Saying this, she asked him with some surprise, "You aren't still working overtime this late, are you?"
Lu Jingming nodded. "There are a few speeches to prepare for tomorrow's opening ceremony, and I still have some documents to process today."
"By the way, what time do you guys start filming tomorrow?"
Xu Yanxia said, "I heard from Jingxi's assistant that it starts in the morning. The theme this time is everyone's hometown dishes. We have to go out and buy ingredients ourselves tomorrow morning, and they will be filming the whole time."
Lu Jingming let out an "oh" and reminded her, "Tell Second Brother's assistant to be mindful and record some of the important processes."
The entertainment industry is a deep and murky place, and since it involved buying ingredients themselves, it was better to be cautious.
Xu Yanxia nodded. "I also told them today. Jingxi said she plans to do a live stream on her account tomorrow, and the production team has agreed."
"That's good."
Lu Jingming smiled and said, "It's getting late, go to bed early."
Xu Yanxia was about to nod, but hurriedly asked him, "Right, you still haven't said what you were looking for me for?"
Calling twice for a video chat, it must be very important.
Who knew he would pause and say, "I missed you."
"And, I also wanted to say goodnight to you."
Xu Yanxia, "..."
Her face heated up again.
She waved at him, ready to hang up.
But she saw him frown at her. "You're not going to say goodnight to me?"
"...Goodnight."
Blushing, she ended the video call.
Then she turned off the light and went to sleep.
On the distant other side, Lu Jingming also put down his phone with a smile and continued looking at his computer.
Although he really wanted to go and be with her, without a career, how could he support a family in the future?
...
The production team's filming schedule was quite tight. By eight o'clock the next morning, the guests had already arrived at the filming location.
Because she had to share a makeup artist with Lu Jingxi, Xu Yanxia woke up a bit earlier. After eating breakfast, she went to get her makeup and styling done first, and then called Lu Jingxi over to get hers done.
Except for going out to buy groceries in the morning, the main filming content today was to be completed in the hotel garden.
At this moment, the staff were setting up the scenery and installing the cooking stoves. Out of her professional habit as a chef, she went to check the stoves in advance.
To match Lu Jingxi's vacation-style long dress look today, the stylist had paired Xu Yanxia with a white high-waisted A-line short skirt and a loose mint-green cotton-linen short-sleeved shirt. It made her waist look slim and her legs long, giving her a very youthful vibe.
Especially with makeup on her face right now, she looked exceptionally bright and beautiful.
At this time, the guests were arriving one after another. In particular, the ones who had tasted her cooking last night took the initiative to greet her when they saw her.
"Morning, Xiao Xia! You look very beautiful today!"
"Whoa, miss, you look stunning today!"
"This look is absolutely gorgeous, Xiao Xia!"
Xu Yanxia also responded politely, "Morning."
"Thank you for the compliments."
...
Seeing that she had inspected the stoves and the set, she was just planning to return to the makeup room to check on Lu Jingxi when a man around thirty years old walked up to her and asked, "Hey beautiful, how come I haven't seen you the past few days?"
Xu Yanxia recognized him at first glance.
This was the male actor Xu Qinghe, who had been explosively popular a few years ago.
Back then, she had just started college, and many of her classmates had been his fans.
So she introduced herself, "Hello, I am part of Jingxi's family and friends group."
She saw him look somewhat surprised. "You're her younger sister? I thought she only had a younger brother?"
Xu Yanxia explained again, saying, "I am their family's chef."
"A chef?"
He became even more surprised. "Such a young and beautiful girl working as a chef? You're not joking with me, are you?"
"You flatter me."
Xu Yanxia said politely, "I am indeed the Lu family's chef. I'm not joking."
In her heart, however, she couldn't help feeling a bit uncomfortable.
She remembered watching the TV dramas this person acted in back then. Most of his roles were upright characters, and he seemed quite refined. She didn't expect him to be so talkative in real life, and a bit... frivolous.
However, the other party didn't seem to think anything of it. He smiled and started introducing himself, "I am Xu Qinghe."
He even reached out his hand, taking the initiative to shake hands with her.
Xu Yanxia shook hands with him politely. "Hello."
Then, the man asked her again, "With your looks, hasn't any talent agency tried to sign you?"
Uh...
Xu Yanxia could only reply politely, "You flatter me. The barrier to entry in the entertainment industry is very high, and I'm just an ordinary person."
But the man pulled out his phone and said, "Let's add each other on WeChat. Want to grab a bite together when you have time? I have a lot of connections, I can recommend you for some roles."
Xu Yanxia was speechless.
"I'm sorry, but my phone is charging in the dressing room. I need to go back and check on it."
After giving her polite excuse, she gave him a brief nod and headed back to the dressing room.
Watching her walk away, Xu Qinghe couldn't help but frown.
Given his status and resources, very few girls in the entertainment industry ever turned him down.
Just then, his male assistant walked over and whispered to him, "That girl is taken."
"By who?" Xu Qinghe asked immediately.
"Lu Jingxi's older brother," the assistant replied. "They were even trending online a few days ago."
"No wonder!" Xu Qinghe let out a scoffing laugh. "Turns out she's got her eyes on someone richer."
"I knew it. Why else would someone so young and pretty be working as a private chef?"
