[Even the wind can't stand you and wants to slap you twice. Okay, okay, lesson learned.]
"Be grateful you have me as your little sister. After all, a gorgeous, innocent beauty like me is hard to come by."
"Innocent? Gorgeous beauty?"
He pulled the suitcase beside him, rested an elbow on it, and propped his head on one hand. Looking at Chi Shuran, who was still standing in the windblown sand, he raised his brows slightly. "You mean the one who posted on Moments in the middle of the night, 'Putting ice cubes in my pants pockets. From now on, I'll be a cold person'?"
"Chi An!"
Hearing Chi An bring up her cringeworthy antics, Chi Shuran bristled and charged straight at him without a care.
"Shut up! Don't say it! You'd better keep that mouth of yours under control! Don't ruin my image. Once the livestream starts, you... just put on the same persona as me."
She got stuck halfway through, thought for a moment, then blurted out what came to mind, only to receive a look of utter disgust from Chi An.
"The same as you?"
"We can still get along if we see through things without pointing them out. Chi Shuran, do you not want to stay at home anymore? If you don't, just say so. There's no need to disgust me like this."
Chi Shuran bristled again. "I-!"
"Someone's here."
Before Chi Shuran could shout, Chi An swiftly interrupted, successfully diverting her attention to the car behind them.
[You have to fight magic with magic. As long as I change the subject fast enough, they won't take their feelings out on me.]
[Okay, okay, so these two thought filming hadn't started yet, and nobody even reminded them. This director knows how to play.]
[I'm dying. Why do I actually think Chi Shuran's kind of cute? I'm hallucinating, right? Someone come smack me awake.]
[To the person above, remember that people who stay up late often: 1. hallucinate; 2. have poor memory; 4. can't count; 6. get confused. Remember all nine points!]
[Okay, hey, wait. How many points did you say there were?]
[A guy who doesn't show off is rarer than a new user on Pinxixi. What more could you want? Sure, he's Chi Shuran's brother, but I can't help being a sucker for a pretty face o(╥﹏╥)o]
The car door slowly opened. Once everyone saw who got out, they all fell silent in a rare moment of unanimity.
Chi An said, "You people in showbiz can do this?"
Two people in orange sanitation uniforms stepped out of the car. One even held a broom. With a mask covering his face and his deliberate acting, nobody would have associated him with a celebrity.
After getting out, the two first looked around, then took off their masks as though breathing a sigh of relief, a weight lifted from their shoulders.
As the masks came off, two handsome faces appeared before everyone.
[Lin Yuxuan?! It's actually Lin Yuxuan?!]
[Disguising himself as a sanitation worker. Trust him to come up with that.]
[The attention seeker is back on a variety show. Couldn't he just stay in the music scene?]
[Is the guy next to him his older brother? He's so handsome too, but they don't look much alike.]
[An older cousin on his father's side, maybe. I think Lin Yuxuan said he was an only child.]
[What's wrong with the world having one more person with good genes? All I did was eat one more bowl of rice than everyone else at every meal.]
[So what do genes have to do with how much you eat?]
[Never mind me. Just going nuts.]
[I suspected the guy dressed as Ultraman was him, but I never once suspected the sanitation worker. (cracking apart)(cracking apart)]
"Hello, everyone. I'm Lin Yuxuan, and this is my older cousin."
"Hello, I'm Gu Zijin. It's an honor to be on this show."
Once the introductions ended, an eerie silence fell over the scene. The staff all turned their eyes toward the Chi siblings.
Noticing their looks, Chi An turned his head. "Introductions. Aren't you going to lead the way?"
"The variety show hasn't started yet. Shouldn't introductions wait until everyone's here?"
"Besides, it's you they don't know, not me."
"Ah, what would our family do without a dazzling presence like me?"
After watching Chi Shuran's entire performance, Chi An stood up, snatched the sunglasses off her face, and put them on his own. "That really hurt my eyes."
"Hey! Chi An, am I your actual sister or not?! We're out in public. Can't you let me save a little face?!"
Suddenly exposed to the sunlight, Chi Shuran hurriedly covered her face with her hands. Only after adjusting to the light did she roar at Chi An.
Imitating Chi Shuran's earlier tone, Chi An spoke as he walked toward Lin Yuxuan and Gu Zijin.
"Ah, the secret our family's hidden for so many years couldn't stay hidden forever."
"The truth is, I fished you out of gutter oil with my own hands. If I hadn't been young and foolish back then, how could you be so greasy today?"
[The grease got me. My eyes have really suffered for belonging to me!]
[I need to wash my eyes! My eyes!]
[(parks)(discreetly honks the Rolls-Royce's horn)(rolls down window)(holds a rose between teeth)(strikes a pose)(is just about to speak)(the traffic police next door say I'm blocking the road)(turns a deaf ear)(puts on sunglasses)(thin lips move slightly)Hey, handsome. Wanna get married?]
[Aaaah!!! You're all gutter oil!!! I'm going to swish spicy strips through you until you die, stirring them around inside!]
[Can someone pay a little attention to our Lin Yuxuan? He's being ignored.]
"...Are we... being ignored?"
Holding his suitcase as the wind buffeted him, Gu Zijin didn't know what to do for a moment. This was his first variety show, and he wasn't a celebrity.
"It's fine. Just follow my lead. They said the livestream hasn't started yet anyway."
Lin Yuxuan waved a dismissive hand, signaling to Gu Zijin not to worry.
"Hello, I'm Chi An." Standing in front of Lin Yuxuan, Chi An held out his hand.
Looking at the face before him, Lin Yuxuan froze briefly. Once he recovered, he immediately clasped the offered hand. "Hello, hello! I'm Lin Yuxuan!"
According to Sister Wang, this Lin Yuxuan was one of the people rumored to be involved with Chi Shuran. But looking at him now, why did he seem a little goofy?
After exchanging the same introductions with Gu Zijin, the three stood awkwardly in place.
"So, what are we supposed to do here now?" Unable to bear the awkward atmosphere, Lin Yuxuan asked hesitantly.
Seeing how guileless Lin Yuxuan looked, Chi An felt like teasing him. "See that road? You have to run from here to the final destination yourself."
"Without any transportation," Chi An added.
"Huh?! Have they lost all human decency?!"
He looked incredulously at the deserted road, then at the staff seated under the sunshade. "Is our show short on funding?"
"If it is, I can donate some. Don't do this to me. It wasn't easy getting one of my older cousins to come. Don't pull this right at the start. How am I supposed to explain this when I get home?"
Before you continue