He followed the owner into a private dining room that was neither too big nor too small, with pleasant surroundings and plenty of peace and quiet.
Gu Chengyuan hadn't refused to have dinner with the owner. If he had, his rivals would probably be smearing him tomorrow.
That was how realistic the entertainment industry was. The slightest problem would bring out the haters, regardless of who was right or wrong. One wrong step could leave you regretting it forever!
Back at the little blue house, Chi Yining and Yan Guiyun were preparing dinner in the kitchen.
Looking at Chi Yining standing there motionless, Yan Guiyun asked with a smile, "Xiao Yi? What's wrong?"
"Nothing..."
Chi Yining recalled how Yan Guiyun had held his hand the entire time at the supermarket, without showing the slightest dislike for the inconvenience. He had managed to pick out ingredients and push the cart with just one hand.
Only after they left the supermarket had Yan Guiyun's large hand, with its perfectly shaped knuckles and long fingers, let go of his. He had even worried that the fine sheen of sweat on his palm would get Yan Guiyun's hand wet.
His grandparents had held his hand like that when he was little, too. Why was it that when Yan Guiyun, his friend, held his hand, his hand felt so warm, with a faint current flowing through his whole body?
Chi Yining couldn't make sense of it no matter how hard he thought. Could this just be what it felt like between friends...
After answering Yan Guiyun, Chi Yining slowly went back to washing the baby spinach.
Washing vegetables was something he could manage. When his grandmother felt like cooking, he would occasionally help wash them.
Water from the faucet flowed over his hands and the leaves, slowly filling the entire silver basin as Chi Yining carefully and thoroughly washed them with his fair hands.
Yan Guiyun had already started heating the wok, getting ready to stir-fry.
I just don't know whether I added enough water to the rice earlier. Should I ask Yan Guiyun? He was watching right beside me, and I didn't hear him say anything, so it should be enough?
Sometimes, Chi Yining felt like he was mentally ill, unsure about this and unsure about that. Was everyone like this in unfamiliar territory?
"What are you thinking about?" With the range hood making so much noise, Yan Guiyun leaned close to his ear to ask.
Fortunately, he had come back to his senses. Otherwise, he definitely would have been startled. "I was wondering whether I added enough water to the rice."
Yan Guiyun said, "Trust yourself."
[Damn it... what is it that we viewers aren't allowed to hear?!]
[Haha, blame that range hood. I demand the director replace it right away!]
[I ship it so hard... those two really love whispering to each other...]
[Yeah, sob sob, I've almost forgotten what Chi Yining used to be like...]
[Same here. These are clearly two different people! Was Chi Yining putting on an act before?!
[Then his acting was way too good. The way he was crazily infatuated with Film Emperor Gu, it's really hard to believe it wasn't real.]
After a busy afternoon, Ma Ling finally had time to watch the livestream.
It was only the first official day of streaming!! Yet there were barely any comments insulting Chi Yining anymore...
Sure enough, most netizens let looks dictate their values. Some had even started defending Chi Yining.
Her hands were starting to tremble. Could someone tell her this wasn't real?!
Excited, she switched out of the livestream interface to see what was happening on Weibo.
What caught her completely off guard was the trending searches!!! Three whole entries! All featuring Chi Yining!
She was dizzy, genuinely about to faint... And these weren't even negative trending searches. They were all either about his god-tier looks or him being the king of the grind.
Could Chi Yining really be their company's little lucky star? In just one day, quite a few acting academy students had already asked whether they were recruiting.
So excited that her blood pressure was about to shoot up, Ma Ling immediately took a deep breath to steady herself. It looked like they needed to invest more in Chi Yining. He was practically a walking advertisement for their company!!
A little over half an hour later
The brave warriors who had ventured out returned one after another. The director was both happy and troubled. It was only the first day, and he already couldn't stump the guests. He was something of a failure as a director.