The next morning, Liu Rulan and Xiao Chen brought breakfast to call Xiao He.
Meeting Xiao He's dark circles and lifeless, vacant gaze, Liu Rulan was immediately startled: "What's wrong with you?"
Xiao He collapsed onto the sofa, looking exhausted. His eyes were fixed on the ceiling, and his voice was weak: "I feel so bad right now. I feel itchy all over, like ants are crawling on my chest."
"Huh?" Liu Rulan quickly touched Xiao He's forehead. "He doesn't have a fever... That's strange. Xiao Chen, let's take a taxi and go to the hospital to get checked out."
Xiao Chen immediately took out her phone: "Okay, sis."
"Ahem, no need for that." Xiao He immediately sat up from the sofa again, coughing lightly as if to sound serious. "Eh? I feel a little better..."
Liu Rulan, with an "I knew it" expression, casually sat down on the sofa next to her and crossed her legs: "So what exactly happened?"
What kind of antics is that brat up to now...?
Xiao He clutched his chest, heartbroken: "Why hasn't 'Yu Ye' had a finale yet? Why are they rushing to adapt it into a film or television series if it's not finished yet? Why isn't the author updating? My heart aches so much right now, and not only my heart aches, but my stomach is starting to hurt too—"
“You’re hungry,” Liu Rulan said bluntly, and gestured for Xiao Chen to set out breakfast first. “Hey, eat breakfast first.”
"All right."
Xiao He knew when to stop and began preparing breakfast.
"By the way, you were trending on Weibo again last night. Although you weren't at the top, you still made it onto the trending list and there was some discussion about you. You probably didn't know that, did you?"
Xiao He exclaimed "Ah!" and stuffed a small steamed bun from Beijing into his mouth: "Why?"
“Yesterday you dyed your hair white on the spot while filming, and when you got back to the hotel, fans mistook you for someone’s idol. After the photos came out, a lot of people were asking about you,” Liu Rulan said. “Then they thought you were a new resource star that ECL boy group was going to put in, so they went to ECL boy group’s official account to make a fuss.”
Xiao He: "These people are really full of energy..."
You're living such a leisurely life, don't you have anything to do?
"So what's the situation now?" Xiao He asked again.
Since Liu Rulan is only now telling him about what happened last night, Xiao He believes that Liu Rulan has already taken care of the matter for him.
Sure enough, Liu Rulan continued, "Liao Ronghui contacted me last night. I happened to have a few photos on my phone, so after confirming that there were no problems with Director Zhuang, our studio took the opportunity to release a new photo of your latest look."
Although there has been no official announcement yet that he will be joining Director Zhuang's new film, he has successfully capitalized on this small wave of popularity. After many fans learned that it was for the role, the comments section was buzzing with discussion, and they are very much looking forward to Xiao He's new film.
Of course, another reason is the popularity brought by the broadcast of "Shining Stars"—
【I originally came here to criticize Meng Zetian, but when I clicked in, who is this handsome guy?】
【Meng Zetian, it's me (birdsong and fragrant flowers), (birdsong and fragrant flowers), (birdsong and fragrant flowers)... Huh? Who are you? Sorry, wrong person.】
【Huh? Something's not right. How come it's still you after all this time?】
【Replying to the comment above, you haven't picked the wrong person; this really is Xiao He.】
【???】
【Dude, when did you switch to being an idol? You're so handsome! If you keep going like this, I'll feel really uncomfortable.】
【No—what are you doing? You've forgotten your roots! Have you forgotten that plaid shirt and jeans you wore that day? Xiao He, you've changed! I declare you a disgrace to us programmers from this day «N.o.v.e.l.i.g.h.t» forward—】
【What new drama is this by Brother Xiao? When will it air? Meng Zetian is really wicked; I want to watch something else to calm my nerves.】
【To be honest, I think Brother Xiao has really become more handsome. Is this what they mean by "fame makes one more attractive"?】
【Haha, with this idol makeup, who wouldn't look good? I think Xiao He is just so-so. If he can't get leading roles, he'll just have to rely on his looks to attract fans.】
【Oh no, it's really getting to the point where Xiao Ge is becoming popular. Even the haters' rhetoric is getting ridiculously idiotic. I guess this is a successful case of cultivating a fanbase.】
【A certain fan group is really taking precautions, their acting in "Shining Star" was completely outshone, we didn't even dare to laugh at you, but you guys are mocking them, 666 likes! Looks like I'll have to help promote your吐槽 videos again, you're welcome.】
Xiao He ate while reading these comments, and he was absolutely laughing at these netizens.
After taking a few bites, Liu Rulan pushed the "soy milk" with a straw next to her: "Don't just eat, drink this too."
Okay, thank you.
Xiao He was caught off guard and casually picked it up and took a sip.
"puff--"
He spat out everything in his mouth.
"vomit--"
No longer caring about the "soy milk" that was spraying out, the disgusting smell, like foot bath water that had been sitting for decades, mixed with the old man's skin and the stench of fermentation, directly ripped open Xiao He's skull. Then, it swirled the prepared swill around in Xiao He's mouth and punched his tongue hard.
"Water, water—"
Xiao He struggled to pull out the water glass next to him, while Liu Rulan and Xiao Chen burst into laughter: "Hahaha—"
Xiao He: "..."
Xiao He didn't even have the strength to curse. He first drank several mouthfuls of water to get rid of the taste in his mouth, then stuffed a small steamed bun into his mouth to suppress the nausea in his throat. Finally, with trembling hands, he pointed at the two culprits—
"You, you all—"
Liu Rulan wiped away the tears from the corners of her eyes and smiled happily: "Surprise! Didn't you say you'd never been to Beijing before and wanted to try some of the city's local delicacies? Well, I had Xiao Chen go and buy some for you first thing this morning. I even had him go to an old alley to buy it. It's absolutely authentic, absolutely original-flavored douzhi (fermented mung bean juice). How about it? Isn't it amazing?"
Xiao He gritted his teeth: "You bunch of bastards!"
He was truly impressed!
Xiao Chen couldn't stop laughing, and didn't forget to take credit for herself: "Brother Xiao, I even did some research, and this place is the most authentic!"
Sure enough, people don't get tired when they do bad things.
Xiao He: "...Hey, you've turned against the Heavenly Gang, and you still have the nerve to be so smug? Come here, come here!"
Then Xiao He grabbed Xiao Chen, who was about to run away, and forced him to sit on the sofa, smiling "kindly": "My dear Xiao Chen, since you went to so much trouble to buy this soy milk, you should definitely have a few sips and try it, right? Otherwise, it would be such a waste~"
Xiao Chen's expression immediately changed drastically: "Ah, ah, I don't need it—"
He looked at Liu Rulan beside him: "Sister Liu, save me!"
Liu Rulan spread her hands innocently.
"Don't worry, she'll get some too after you finish yours!"
Xiao He sneered as he poured the soy milk into paper cups next to him, then forcefully shoved one into Xiao Chen's hand: "Drink!"
Xiao Chen trembled and looked at Liu Rulan, trying to form a united front, but to her surprise, Liu Rulan calmly picked up a cup, leisurely blew on it, and then took a sip without changing her expression.
Xiao Chen: ?
Xiao He: ?
"It's nothing special." Liu Rulan shrugged, looking at the two of them with disdain. "You can't even drink this?"
Xiao He: ...As expected, Sister Liu is the strongest, no doubt about it.
