When Cheng Che sat up in bed, he glanced at the time.
3 a. m.
He looked down at himself, remained silent for two seconds, and then got up and went to the bathroom.
He muttered something as the hot water came down.
"Great talent."
The next morning at nine o'clock, Cheng Che arrived at Guo Xin's house on time.
Guo Xin's parents were not home, so the living room was converted into a temporary editing room.
The portable video recorder was connected to the computer, and several sheets of paper covered in notes were scattered next to it.
Guo Xin sat in front of the computer, with dark circles under his eyes, but he looked incredibly energetic.
"What time did you go to sleep last night?" Cheng Che asked.
"I didn't sleep." Guo Xin rubbed his face. "After finishing the last cut, I listened to the background music three more times. The more I listened, the more excited I got, and I couldn't sleep."
Su Qingyue, Lin Xiao, and Zhou Mingxuan arrived one after another.
Guo Xin called everyone to the computer and turned on the video.
The scene begins with Cheng Che practicing basketball in the park.
Morning light, low walls, the crisp sound of rackets hitting the ball. Then there's a shot of him running in the Spring City Old Street, interspersed with the morning light at Green Lake, the bustling atmosphere of the flower and bird market, and Jiang Xue's silhouette as she arranges shelves in a cultural and creative store.
The middle section shows a marathon scene, where his white vest stands out in the crowd, from the start, overtaking, to the sprint and crossing the finish line.
The final scene is a quick montage: the waters of Dianchi Lake, sugar paintings in the old streets, the steaming rice noodles, the fresh flowers in the flower market, and Cheng Che's final words to the camera, "Welcome everyone to the City of Caiyun."
The video is eight minutes long.
The living room was silent for several seconds.
"Alright," Guo Xin rubbed his hands together. "No need to change it. Just send it."
Cheng Che nodded.
He took out his phone, downloaded Douyin), and logged in with his officially verified account.
He thought for a moment and changed his nickname to " Cheng Che Himself ".
The video upload progress bar is moving forward little by little.
Zhou Mingxuan leaned over and took a look. "Should we buy some promotion? The new account doesn't have a fan base, the algorithm might not be able to promote it."
"No need," Cheng Che said firmly.
He closed Douyin and turned his phone to the system panel. He tapped it lightly.
[Should we use the " Ten-Million-Tier Popularity Card "?]
[yes.]
[ The Ten-Million-Tier Popularity Card has been used. The public content posted by the host will receive 10 million-level impressions.]
Cheng Che put his phone away and looked around at everyone. "Alright. Let's go eat first."
Guo Xin was taken aback. "Not focusing on the data?"
"Why are you staring at it? It's not going to run away." Cheng Che patted him on the shoulder. "I have my driving test tomorrow, I need to relax today."
"You've registered for the second part of your driving test?"
"It's in the morning paper. Tomorrow morning."
Everyone laughed for a while, then followed Cheng Che out the door.
They found a hot pot restaurant and ordered a table full of dishes.
Cheng Che was in charge of the hot pot, Guo Xin was in charge of eating, Su Qingyue and Lin Xiao were in charge of taking photos, and Zhou Mingxuan was in charge of pouring drinks for everyone.
Halfway through the meal, Cheng Che's phone started vibrating.
He didn't look at it.
The vibration lasted for ten minutes without stopping.
Guo Xin glanced at his phone. "Aren't you going to take a look?"
"Eat." Cheng Che placed a piece of tripe into his bowl.
Guo Xin chuckled and opened the Weibo super topic.
He posted a message using the pseudonym " Intelligence Bro ".
[ Intelligence Bro: Che Baby posted a cultural tourism promotional video on Douyin today, under the account name " Cheng Che Himself ". Please go and support him. Also, he edited the video himself and entered it into the Caiyun Province Tourism Competition. If you're able, please vote for him.]
The comment section became lively within ten minutes of the post being published.
[ The Intelligence Bro has finally released new information!]
[ Cheng Che Himself? I'm coming right now!]
[A cultural and tourism competition? I'll have to get my parents to vote with me!]
How long is the video? Is it good?
On the other end of the internet, things have completely spiraled out of control.
A rented room in Magic City.
Hu Manni was sprawled on the sofa scrolling through her phone when Huang Chengcheng, who had just finished showering, came out and asked while drying her hair:
What's interesting to watch today?
"Yes!" Hu Manni sat up abruptly. " Che Baby ran a marathon yesterday! The organizers gave us lots of camera shots, look, look--"
She held up her phone; the screen showed a live recording of the marathon.
Images of Cheng Che wearing a white vest standing at the starting line, him overtaking Shen Chi on the track, and him crossing the finish line.
Every shot is clean and crisp, and every expression is natural.
As Huang Chengcheng watched, she unconsciously sat down.
"That's so cool..." she whispered.
"You ran pretty fast," Hu Manni added, "2 hours and 14 minutes. My first time running a full marathon. Do you know what that means?"
"I don't understand. But watching him run, I feel like I can lie on the sofa a little longer."
The two watched the live broadcast recording and then flipped through the post-marathon interviews.
Standing at the finish line, Cheng Che was asked by a reporter if he was tired. He replied, "I'm quite tired." The reporter then asked him which was more difficult, tennis or a marathon. He said, "Tennis is difficult; a marathon only requires running."
The interview has already garnered over ten thousand comments.
After watching it, the two of them were still somewhat unsatisfied.
Hu Manni leaned back on the sofa, staring at the ceiling:
"There's so little content about Che Baby. He hasn't made many appearances since the tennis tournament ended, his variety shows have finished airing, and there aren't any new videos."
Huang Chengcheng nodded. "Yeah, that's too little. Even someone like me who's a very laid-back fan feels like it's not enough."
Hu Manni picked up her phone again and habitually opened Weibo's super topic page.
She scrolled down a few pages, then suddenly her eyes widened, and she sprang up from the sofa.
"Look!" She shoved her phone in front of Huang Chengcheng. " The Intelligence Bro posted it! He said Che Baby filmed a video promoting Caiyun Province's culture and tourism, and posted it on Douyin with the account ' Cheng Che Himself.' He wants us to go support him!"
Huang Chengcheng took the phone and glanced at it.
" Intelligence Bro " is Guo Xin, a very special figure in Cheng Che's fan circle.
According to Cheng Che's fans, he doesn't enter the entertainment industry, doesn't follow his schedule, and doesn't sell Cheng Che's photos or schedule information.
Although many people have messaged him privately wanting to buy his photos, he has never sold a single one.
He has his own principles, which is why he has always had a good reputation.
Fans know that anything posted by "Intelligence Bro" is always true and completely clean.
"Search quickly!" Huang Chengcheng urged anxiously.
The two opened Douyin ) and searched for " Cheng Che Himself ".
There is only one video on this account.
She clicked on it.
A number popped up on the screen.
20 million likes.
50,000 comments.
Published: Half an hour ago.
Huang Chengcheng thought she had misread it. She exited and then clicked back in.
It's still the same number.
" Manni..." her voice was a little weak, "Come and see."
Hu Manni leaned closer, glanced at the screen, and her mouth formed an "O" shape.
"This... this is the number of likes in half an hour?"
The two women exchanged a glance, both seeing disbelief in each other's eyes. Hu Manni's hands trembled as she clicked on the comments section.
The comments section has exploded.
[I got this from the trending topics!]
This video is so well made!
[ Caiyun, the land of colorful clouds, and the spring city of Spring City —I'm going there next month!]
[Tickets already booked!]
[ Che Baby's camera presence is amazing; every shot is like a movie!]
[Mommy loves you! Che Baby is the best!]
After watching this video, I've decided to work in Caiyun Province after graduating from university.
Below is a comment that has been pinned to the top, from an official account.
[Official account of Caiyun Province Department of Culture and Tourism: Welcome friends from all over the country to Caiyun Province. Here you'll find scenery and delicious food beyond your imagination. Thanks to Cheng Che Himself for promoting our hometown.]
Hu Manni scrolled down and saw several more highly-rated comments.
[I was originally just a fan of the actors' looks, but after watching this video, I've decided to become a fan of the entire production team.]
[Going to Spring City next month, anyone want to team up?]
[I've already sent the video to my parents, and they said they'll take me there during summer vacation.]
[This is the real promotional video; it's even better than the official one.]
Hu Manni put down her phone and took a deep breath.
" Chengcheng," she said.
"Um."
"Our Che Baby seems to have really become popular."