Ji Shiyu steadied his breathing and went to the bathroom to take a cold shower.
He sent Gu Ran a WeChat message: [Good night.]
After a while, Gu Ran replied:
[Oh.]
Ji Shiyu smiled at his phone screen.
...
The recording of the show "Our Little Cabin" was in full swing. With the audience draw from Gu Ran, the top female live-streamer, plus the harmonious chemistry among the several resident cast members, the live-stream data was excellent. More and more people were watching, calling it a breath of fresh air among recent variety shows.
There was no fan infighting, no cast members tearing into each other, and no cutthroat competitive games. The guests lived and worked amidst green mountains and clear waters, rising with the sun and resting at sunset, far from the hustle and bustle of the city, doing all sorts of farm work that office workers sitting in offices every day deeply missed.
The resident cast members all had good personalities, but the most unexpected were the two female participants.
At the very beginning, some netizens had said that even if Gu Ran and Zhou Yuqi didn't clash, their fans surely would. That was until the first day when Gu Ran exposed herself as a fan in front of Zhou Yuqi with a set of "magical fairy transform" gestures.
From then on, everyone gradually discovered that the personas of these two female guests seemed different from what the audience had assumed.
Zhou Yuqi, who debuted as a child star, had the height and face of a cute girl. Everyone thought her personality would be even more cute-girlish, but they found she was actually a very strong-willed, domineering sister-type.
Every morning, her manner of dragging Gu Ran out of bed was like the reincarnation of a high school dean.
And Gu Ran, who was pulled out from under the covers by Zhou Yuqi, though half a head taller, followed obediently behind her idol to eat breakfast like a little quail, melting all the viewers' hearts.
The contrast between their appearances and personalities had everyone exclaiming they were totally shipping it.
A new day began. The five resident cast members finished breakfast but did not go directly to work in the fields like the previous two days.
The reason was they had received a task last night: today, a guest would come to visit their cabin.
They waited in the yard while chopping wood and shucking corn. In the previous days, the male residents had done all the wood chopping, but now Gu Ran also started learning. Liu Xiaolin first seriously taught her the technique. Gu Ran learned to swing the axe down onto the wooden block, and before long, she got the hang of it, chopping one piece after another smoothly and efficiently.
Zhao Mincong passed by carrying fodder to feed the sheep. Seeing the small pile of firewood already stacked beside Gu Ran, he praised, "Excellent!"
"Tired? Take a break if you are."
A light sweat glistened on Gu Ran's forehead. She looked up, saw Zhao Mincong, and smiled sheepishly: "Not tired, thank you, Teacher Zhao."
Because Zhao Mincong was the oldest and most senior among them, everyone respectfully called him Teacher Zhao.
Live-stream comments: [Ran Ran is so amazing!]
[The two female guests on the show are really not pampered at all. Zhou Yuqi was also very diligent shucking corn yesterday.]
[Who is the guest visiting today? So curious.]
[The production team is really good at keeping secrets.]
While the comments were buzzing with discussion, in the show's footage, a car with the program's logo finally slowly approached from the distance and stopped at the cabin's gate.
Zhao Mincong, who was feeding the sheep in the pen, spotted the car first and promptly called out loudly to the others in the cabin, "The guest is here!"
Hearing this, Gu Ran put down the axe. She was also quite happy about the guest's arrival and went over to welcome the visitor to their cabin.
Zhou Yuqi, Liu Xiaolin, and Chen Mian, who had been shucking corn inside, also came out.
The car door slowly opened.
The first thing captured by the camera was a pair of long legs.
The camera panned upward. The visitor was tall and slender, dressed in casual gray clothes, wearing a baseball cap, his outfit youthful and trendy.
Zhao Mincong, seeing who it was, was the first to step forward with a smile: "Ah, Xiao Sheng! Welcome, welcome!"
The camera focused on the guest's face.
Fans in the live stream immediately recognized today's guest as Luo Sheng, a currently popular male idol with countless girlfriend fans:
[I didn't expect the guest to be Luo Sheng!]
[Luo Sheng's fans will arrive on the scene in three seconds, hahahaha]
[Just noticed Luo Sheng has a good figure.]
[Teacher Zhao is so enthusiastic.]
...
"Long time no see, Teacher Zhao, hello, hello."
On-site, Luo Sheng warmly hugged Zhao Mincong. The two had worked together on a variety show before and had a good relationship.
Gu Ran had been looking forward to the guest's arrival, but upon seeing the young man step out of the car, she hesitated a little. She looked around and realized she seemed to be the only one who didn't recognize today's visitor.
Gu Ran quietly moved closer to Zhou Yuqi and whispered, "Um, Yuqi, do you know our guest's, uh, name?"
Zhou Yuqi leaned her head over and whispered back, "Luo Sheng. You actually don't know him?"
"I do, I do. I just couldn't remember his name for a moment, it's a bit awkward," Gu Ran forced a dry laugh.
She was embarrassed to admit she didn't know him. She didn't really follow celebrities much; the only idol she had ever followed since childhood was the magical fairy right beside her, Zhou Yuqi.
After hugging Zhao Mincong, Luo Sheng shook hands and greeted each of the resident cast members in turn.
Gu Ran, still feeling a bit guilty for not recognizing him earlier, was very enthusiastic when shaking Luo Sheng's hand: "Hello, hello."
After welcoming the guest, the group led Luo Sheng and his luggage back into the small yard.
The production team had a rule: ingredients must be earned through labor.
Luo Sheng had clearly done his homework before coming. After briefly settling his things, he asked, "Teacher Zhao, what can I do?"
At that moment, Liu Xiaolin and Chen Mian were preparing lunch in the kitchen, and Zhao Mincong was shucking corn with Zhou Yuqi. Hearing the question, Zhao Mincong said, "It's fine, feel free to look around and get familiar with the place first. After lunch, we'll all go up the mountain to dig for bamboo shoots."
Luo Sheng nodded and began strolling around the small yard.
Gu Ran was chopping wood.
Luo Sheng walked up to Gu Ran.
Gu Ran looked up, saw Luo Sheng, and remembering she hadn't recognized him before, greeted him warmly in the spirit of hospitality: "Hello."
She noticed Luo Sheng looking at her axe and firewood, so she asked with a smile, "Want to give it a try?"
Luo Sheng: "Sure."
Gu Ran handed the axe to Luo Sheng.
Luo Sheng clearly hadn't done this kind of work either. He tried a couple of swings but couldn't get the technique right; the wood kept slipping out from under the axe.
Luo Sheng gave Gu Ran an apologetic smile.
Gu Ran then reached out: "You have to do it like this."
She taught Luo Sheng the wood-chopping technique she had learned from Liu Xiaolin earlier.
Gu Ran placed both hands on the axe handle that Luo Sheng was holding to correct his posture: "You need to hold the axe like this, yes, turn it a bit, like this. When you swing, aim for the right spot and use your waist for power."
Luo Sheng listened attentively to Gu Ran's instruction, adjusting his posture according to her directions: "Like this?"
Gu Ran: "Yes."
The two involved parties were completely focused, one teaching and the other learning. However, the viewers in the live stream, especially Luo Sheng's fans who had rushed over upon hearing he was a guest on "Our Little Cabin," seeing this scene, suddenly began screeching like excited chickens:
[Ahhhh! Gu Ran's hand touched Luo Sheng's hand!]
[Gu Ran touched our Sheng Sheng!]
[Gu Ran is being so enthusiastic towards Luo Sheng!]
【Right, right, Gu Ran smiled so sweetly at our Luo Sheng when she greeted him】
Faced with Luo Sheng's fans who were acting like possessed screaming chickens, Gu Ran's little fish fans were left utterly speechless, a perfect "stunned beauty" moment.
Our Ran Ran is just hospitable and enthusiastic. She was merely teaching your idol how to chop wood, is there really a need to get so worked up?
These idol fans nowadays really have some strange issues, it's weird.
Gu Ran instructed Luo Sheng on chopping wood for a while and even specially praised him once he got the hang of it.
Luo Sheng: "Thank you."
It was time for lunch.
After lunch, the group, carrying small baskets on their backs and hoes, went up the mountain together to dig for bamboo shoots.
The live stream chat that afternoon was completely flooded with screams from Luo Sheng's fans.
Everyone had a very fruitful harvest this afternoon, digging up two large baskets of bamboo shoots, which they exchanged with the production team for abundant ingredients.
As night fell, the production team, always big on atmosphere, had set the dinner location not indoors, but in the small gazebo in the courtyard.
Everyone was basically seated. Gu Ran, who had gone to wash her hands, was the last to arrive and found Luo Sheng sitting in the spot she usually occupied.
So, she took the seat next to Luo Sheng.
Outside the screen, Luo Sheng's fans, seeing Gu Ran now actively sitting next to him, recalled the scenes from the day.
Thus, in Luo Sheng's fan group, someone began to tentatively discuss:
I suspect Gu Ran might have a secret crush... or some good feelings for our Sheng Sheng, ahhh!
Right, right! She kept actively approaching Sheng Sheng today, and even actively touched his hand when teaching him to chop wood!
And Gu Ran was especially enthusiastic towards Luo Sheng; I could tell from their handshake during the morning greeting.
The way she looks at Sheng Sheng is different. I really think there's an interest.
【No one could meet Sheng Sheng in person and not be moved, right?】
Soon, as the discussion heated up in the fan group, comments started appearing in the "Our Little Cabin" live stream chat, suggesting that Gu Ran might be interested in Luo Sheng, given how enthusiastic and proactive she had been towards him all day.
The little fish fans, who had been happily watching the live stream, saw those comments and were collectively left with question marks over their heads:
???
This too?
Little fish fans:
【I'd say you guys are being a bit too self-absorbed!】
The fan filter you're using must be eight hundred meters thick.
【No offense to your Luo Sheng, but don't assume everyone likes him, okay?】
The two fan groups didn't exactly start a fight, but Luo Sheng's fans, after being told they were self-absorbed, retorted indignantly.
Gu Ran clearly is interested in Luo Sheng; otherwise, how do you explain her constantly approaching him today?
【Gu Ran touched Luo Sheng's hand!】
Yeah, yeah, your Gu Ran clearly has feelings for our Sheng Sheng, she even actively sat next to him for dinner.
The little fish fans were stunned by the magical train of thought of Luo Sheng's fans.
However, no matter how much they tried to explain that Gu Ran was just being hospitable and friendly to a guest, and that she actively sat next to Luo Sheng only because he had taken her usual seat, Luo Sheng's fans seemed utterly unable to listen. They stubbornly believed these were just excuses made by fans to save face, and that Gu Ran was indeed interested in Luo Sheng.
All the little fish fans: "..."
Never in their lives had they felt so utterly speechless.
They were filled with a sense of frustration and powerlessness from not being able to get through to these people.
Faced with the increasingly certain Luo Sheng fans, someone finally thought of something.
The little fish fans directly threw out a few photos at Luo Sheng's fans, telling them to take a good look.
See? The man in these photos. Forget wealth and status, just talking about height, leg length, and aura, which aspect isn't superior to your Luo Sheng?
He's the president of Xinbo, you know.
If Gu Ran isn't even interested in a president/CEO, would she be interested in your Sheng Sheng!
