Looking at Yan Sheng smiling faintly in front of the camera, Jiang Xulin secretly guessed that perhaps the relationship between the two brothers was not as harmonious as he had imagined.
...
The live stream came to a close amidst the reluctance of viewers. The results were even better than expected, exceeding the production team's predictions.
After an hour, the fans were still reluctant to let him go and hoped that he would extend the broadcast.
That's impossible, of course, since the production team didn't pay him a salary.
After saying goodbye to netizens and staff, "Yan Sheng" turned around and went up to her room on the third floor.
Yan Shenyu felt that she had done a pretty good job with the live stream. When she opened the door and saw Yan Sheng's flushed face, she was startled for a moment and hesitated, "Although I think I did a decent job, is it really necessary to be this moved?"
"Who's moved?" Whether out of anger or anxiety, Yan Sheng stared at Yan Shenyu's bare chest and questioned, her face flushed, "Why did you unbutton two buttons?!"
Yan Shenyu glanced down and asked, puzzled, "It's the 21st century already. I didn't show any cleavage or nipples. What's wrong with unbuttoning a couple of buttons?"
"You—" Yan Sheng was so ashamed that she turned her face away, not wanting to look at his face again. She never expected him to say such vulgar and offensive words.
“And I think they all really liked it,” Yan Shenyu said, recalling the netizens’ reactions. “During the live stream, some netizens even asked me to unbutton three buttons. If it weren’t for your pure and innocent image, I would have satisfied their requests.”
“Uh…” Yan Sheng glared at him and said coolly, “If you keep going like this, the live stream will be banned.”
“That’s right,” Yan Shenyu said with a regretful expression. “It’s a pity that I haven’t had a chance to show everyone the abs I recently developed.”
At this point, Yan Shenyu touched her stomach, then lifted her shirt to admire her firm, fair abdomen—once her flat stomach, abdominal muscles and V-line were beginning to take shape.
"Uh..." Yan Sheng was speechless. "Could you please not do this kind of thing with my face on?"
As soon as he finished speaking, Yan Shenyu came over and said with a kind look, "It's a pity that the netizens didn't see it, but I'll reluctantly show it to you."
Yan Sheng: "..."
Get lost! Who wants to see your abs!
A note from the author:
Mr. Xie, alone in his empty house: I want to see my wife's abs! But where is my wife? Where is my big wife?
Chapter 33, just you wait.
After the live stream ended, Yan Shenyu and Yan Sheng went to the hospital to check for allergens.
The conclusion was shocking: it wasn't an allergy to any medicine, food, or cosmetic.
"It's a bacterium with mild toxicity. Ingestion or skin contact can cause allergy-like symptoms." Looking at the test report, Dr. Lou also found it somewhat unbelievable. "But the subsequent toxicity is not high, and it can be metabolized and recovered on its own after two days. It is more common in places like biological research institutes. This is the first time I have encountered someone infected in real life."
Ingestion or skin contact?
Yan Sheng frowned and quickly went through her schedule from two days ago in her mind.
Aside from staying at home, he only attended the recording seminar for "Diary of a Rich Family" yesterday. He drank water and interacted with quite a few people at the meeting.
Was there something wrong with the water? Or did someone administer medication to him through his skin?
No, that doesn't necessarily mean he was infected on the set. There's another possibility—the Yan family.
"Have you been to any research institutes before?" Yan Shenyu asked Yan Sheng.
Yan Shengchong snapped out of his reverie and shook his head: "No."
"Then you..." Yan Shenyu frowned, a bad feeling creeping into her heart.
"Thank you, Dr. Lou. I'm relieved to know everything is alright," Yan Sheng said, interrupting Yan Shenyu.
They didn't discuss similar issues again until they left the hospital. Only after the car drove out of the hospital did Yan Shenyu ask, "Did something come to mind?"
Yan Sheng then came to her senses and shook her head: "It's nothing. I probably went to the pharmacy building when I returned to school that day and accidentally picked it up there."
Yan Shenyu felt something was amiss, but this plot point wasn't in the original work, and Yan Sheng's reasons were quite convincing, so he ultimately chose to believe him.
When Yan Shenyu got home, she discovered that the production crew had already installed cameras.
To facilitate filming and protect family privacy, the cameras are mainly located in Yan Sheng's bedroom and a small part of the common areas.
Upon returning, Yan Sheng requested two days off from the production team, citing feeling unwell. The program was pre-recorded, so while it would have some impact, with proper coordination, these two days of rest wouldn't cause too much trouble.
However, Jiang Xulin couldn't help but earnestly persuade her over the phone: "Yan Sheng, I understand that you're not feeling well, but you just got off to a good start with the live broadcast. If only four days' worth of content can be included in the first episode, your screen time will inevitably be cut to less than half an hour. You're a newcomer, and your presence isn't strong yet. How will any viewers remember you?"
When the other party didn't answer, Jiang Xulin thought his persuasion had worked, so he quickly added, "Actually, being sick is nothing. We're doing a reality show, so you can just record what you look like when you're sick. The audience will think you're dedicated to your job and feel sorry for you."
After he finished speaking, Yan Sheng finally spoke on the other end of the phone.
"No," he said in a cool, slightly hoarse voice, "Thank you for thinking of me, Brother Jiang, but I really can't be there these next few days."
Jiang Xulin then asked, "Since you can't appear on camera, how about having your younger brother do it?"
"My younger brother?" Yan Sheng was taken aback.
"The production team is interested in recruiting him, but he personally is unwilling," Jiang Xulin said slowly. "But you are indeed facing this problem now, and with so many of us here, we can't just stop filming. Why don't you step in and ask him to help you out?"
After a long silence, Yan Sheng said coldly, "Didn't he refuse?"
“He rejected me, not you.” Jiang Xulin smiled and patiently reminded, “Now that you’ve just returned to the Yan family after recognizing your relatives, everyone outside is speculating about how you two are getting along. If Yan Shenyu could appear on camera at this time, the outside world would believe that you two are like brothers.”
Jiang Xulin's statement contained an element of gambling, but he was still somewhat confident.
Although Yan Sheng and Yan Shenyu don't seem to have a good relationship, they are public figures after all, and they still have to maintain appearances.
However, the next moment, Yan Sheng rejected him without hesitation.
“No need,” the man’s slightly cold voice rang out, like ice crystals on a winter lake. “Since he has refused, I will not force him.”
“Then what about these past two days…” Jiang Xulin quickly asked.
"Thank you for your hard work. I'll add the rest later." Yan Sheng said no more and hung up the phone.
He then checked again to make sure all the cameras in the room were completely blocked before sitting back down on the bed.
His swollen face was reflected in the bathroom mirror. Just two hours earlier, Yan Shenyu had been putting on makeup in front of this mirror. She grumbled incessantly, yet her heart softened, and she agreed to all his requests.
It turns out the show had actually invited Yan Shenyu, but why did he refuse?
If I ask him for a gig, will he agree to participate in the show, just like he agreed to do his live stream for me before?
No, why are you thinking so much? It has nothing to do with you.
Yan Sheng suddenly pulled the blanket over her head.
If he doesn't want to come, he doesn't want to come. He doesn't want Yan Shenyu to come; if she does, she'll steal his popularity!
...
In the next room, the miserable Yan Shenyu was still looking for a place to live. He not only searched for it himself, but he also hired several real estate agents, yet he still hadn't found a suitable property.
No matter how good a house is, there's always something about it that doesn't suit his taste: location, neighborhood, layout, size, decoration...
Until he came across a design studio's large-scale apartment design case, his eyes lit up.
It's no exaggeration to say that every detail of the apartment's decor perfectly matched his aesthetic preferences—the perfect balance of artistry and livability made it exactly the home of his dreams.
On a whim, Yan Shenyu privately messaged the design studio, asking if they could contact the owner to inquire whether the property was for sale.
...
Secretariat of the President's Office, Wildfire Technology.
"Not for sale." Secretary Lin hung up the phone, muttering to herself, "It's really strange that customers would actually find properties through designers."
He had just finished complaining when he looked up and met Xie Siyan's gaze.
After hesitating for a while, Secretary Lin finally told the president about it.
The latter nodded, his voice calm: "If there are similar situations in the future, just refuse them for me."
"Understood," Secretary Lin nodded, then remembered the instructions from the marketing department and quickly said, "President Xie, the S-level advertising budget for the Wildfire Youth series phones this year has been allocated to 'Diary of a Rich Family.' After discussion, the marketing department has tentatively decided to invite Mr. Fu Shuyu to be the spokesperson, and would like to ask for your opinion."
"Why invite him?" Xie Siyan's expression was serious, revealing little emotion. "Does he have outstanding film and television works? Widely popular songs? Or extremely high popularity?"
Um... I think he still has some popularity?
Secretary Lin grumbled inwardly, but dared not say it aloud in front of Xie Siyan.
Since canceling Wei Yiming's endorsement, the Youth series of mobile phones has not had any new celebrity collaborations.
As a technologically advanced company, Wildfire Technology doesn't rely heavily on marketing. Compared to competitors who spend lavishly on celebrity endorsements and distribution channels for advertising, Wildfire Technology has always maintained a low profile. Their flagship phones each year gain popularity through word-of-mouth and are in high demand.
However, the Youth series of mobile phones is an affordable product line, and its user group is mainly students and young professionals who are easily influenced by advertising and trends, so marketing is essential.
The marketing department spent a lot of money on variety shows this time, and in order to save costs, they plan to sign contracts with the artists and the program team to promote the show together.
So they turned their attention to Fu Shuyu, who had just returned to China, and her elegant demeanor and angelic face attracted a large number of fans. Coupled with her established status, she was guaranteed to generate buzz for at least the two seasons the variety show aired.
More importantly, the Fu family and the Xie family have a connection, and it's said they met privately not long ago. That's why the marketing department set their sights on Fu Shuyu. However, they didn't expect that this attempt to flatter him would backfire, dragging him down with them.
"Then what do you think..." Secretary Lin probed Xie Siyan's tone.
“No rush,” Xie Siyan shook his head. “If there isn’t a good candidate, we’ll leave it for now. Better to have none than a bad one.”
Secretary Lin nodded hurriedly.
“There’s one more thing,” Xie Siyan said in a deep voice, “Fu Shuyu is a member of the Fu family. These kinds of wealthy and powerful families value family identity the most and will not allow family members to endorse a certain type of brand.”
“But…” Secretary Lin paused, unsure how to begin.
Xie Siyan glanced at him sideways: "Speak your mind."
Secretary Lin: "But the marketing department said that when they were liaising with the program team, Mr. Fu had proactively offered to help if needed."
Xie Siyan remained expressionless: "Then we don't need him."
“Okay!” Secretary Lin nodded quickly. “Then I’ll have them reconsider the candidate.”
Xie Siyan glanced at his watch and said calmly, "You don't need to come with me anymore. I'm going back to the old house to see Grandma."
In recent days, Mrs. Xie's health has been deteriorating.
...
Later, the design studio replied to Yan Shenyu: "Thank you for your liking, but we are sorry, the client has no intention of selling."
Yan Shenyu had no choice but to think of another way.
Meanwhile, the afternoon live stream of "Diary of a Wealthy Family" was about to begin. Yan Shenyu first put the live stream on hold in the background and returned to Yan Sheng's homepage to read the comments.