CH 9

It's over.

This time, it's not just her public image that has been shattered.

His public image has also been shattered.

When Song Yan kisses her, he has the habit of pinching her chin between his thumb and index finger, pressing his tongue forcefully, and prying open her teeth.

This habit unconsciously developed since he became intimate with Wen Li because she often forgets to open her mouth.

Wen Li felt uncomfortable as his slender and fair fingers touched her chin.

Ignoring her pride, she immediately exclaimed, "I didn't turn off the camera, calm down!"

Song Yan immediately froze, his expression slightly blank.

The invasive and treacherous aura that surrounded her instantly disappeared. His deep breath suddenly seemed stifled with no sound. He remained silent for a long time.

Wen Li's face turned as red as blood. She reached out to cover her eyes and stuttered, "Um, you... get up first."

Song Yan used his arm to prop himself up on the bed and slowly sat up, tilting his head to look at the camera in the corner of the ceiling.

The small light indicated it was recording up until now and suddenly went out as if it had received a signal.

His mind went blank for several seconds until he finally believed Wen Li's words.

Song Yan closed his eyes and let out a sigh. In his complaint, there was more shame than blame, "What have you done?"

He is usually cold towards others, but his voice is deep, mellow, and elegant. He speaks with a moderate pace, giving a gentle and refined impression most of the time. He rarely used such an emotionally expressive tone to question others.

"It's the script from the program team," Wen Li sat up, pitifully hugging her knees, "They said that because there was a camera, you weren't responding well, so I..."

And then she began her expert skill of shifting blame and defending herself, "It's all the program's requirements, it's not my fault."

Song Yan sighed.

He brought this upon himself.

In other words, he knew there was a pit ahead, he was mentally prepared, and yet, he still jumped in when faced with the bait.

Of course, he couldn't blame Wen Li just because he couldn't control himself, nor could he blame the program.

When Wen Li heard him sighing without saying anything, she leaned over and asked, "Teacher Song, are you okay?"

Song Yan glanced at her, reached his hand out, and pushed her face away. It was rare for him to abandon his manners, with his cold tone, "You think I'm okay?"

She felt somewhat guilty but shamelessly turned her face back, still convinced of her innocence, "Then you can't blame me either."

He whispered, "I'm not blaming you."

"Are you angry then?"

Song Yan found her question nonsensical, "Why would I be angry?"

Wen Li couldn't say much either. As public figures, they were used to putting on a show in front of the camera and were not conscious of their behavior in private. She cautiously glanced at his lower waist area but didn't notice anything unusual. His complexion seemed to have calmed down, returning to that ethereal moonlight-like appearance untouched by worldly matters.

She casually said, "I thought I disgusted you when I called you those things just now."

Song Yan replied calmly, "You didn't."

Wen Li felt relieved. Since the camera was already turned off, she sat cross-legged on the bed and chatted with him casually, "I was actually thinking of calling you 'senior' just now, but then I realized we've both graduated for so many years, it would seem too childish. So, I gave up."

From graduating high school to studying abroad and then returning to debut in the entertainment industry, so much time had passed. When she first met Song Yan, she instinctively wanted to call him 'senior' to avoid the suspicion of flattery or seeking favor. After thinking about it for a while, she decided to follow the hierarchy in the industry and call him 'senior'. Later it gradually changed to 'Teacher Song'.

Who could have imagined that they would get married?

Hearing her mention the past, a lump formed in Song Yan's throat. He turned his head slightly and said, "What does age have to do with it? Even when we're old and gray, you'll still be my junior, won't you?"

He got up, got off the bed, and squatted down to clean up the scattered fruits on the floor.

Wen Li also jumped off the bed and helped him pick them up.

"The plate is broken, be careful not to cut your hand," He kept his head down and didn't even look up, but his tone commanded her, "Don't make a mess."

Indeed, there were two different tones when they were on and off the bed. Wen Li inexplicably thought of when he had just called her 'Little spoiled girl'.

This nickname was really cheesy and sticky. Just hearing it gave her goosebumps and an itchy feeling in her heart.

"Well, what do you think of my performance just now? If it wasn't good, should we re-record it?" she asked.

Song Yan chuckled.,"You want to act cute again?"

"You're thinking too much," Wen Li immediately defended herself, "I'm just afraid that the effect won't be good later, and when it's broadcasted, I'll be overshadowed by Zheng Xue."

With her own script, who could compare?

Song Yan refused, "It's fine," he paused for a few seconds and then softened his tone, "Let it go."

Being rejected, her inner impulsive thoughts were intercepted. Wen Li pursed her lips and said disdainfully, "Whatever."

——

Because of this explosive material, the director was so excited that he had the editors cut the trailer the very next day.

Fortunately, it wasn't a live broadcast last night, and considering their public image, before the director could make any decisions, early the next morning, Song Yan went to see him.

In a variety show without a script, the material relied entirely on the guests' performance, and the guests had the right to suggest reasonable edits.

By noon, Wen Li also went downstairs to talk to him.

When she entered, all the staff members were staring at her. Usually, Teacher Wen never blinked even when she was in the spotlight, but now for the first time, she avoided the burning gaze of the crowd and lowered her face, asking the director to give her and Song Yan some face.

With both parties making such a request, the director had no choice but to reluctantly agree. Besides muting certain parts, they would also make some cuts to the footage.

Thus, the edited version of the trailer was released on all platforms on the third day at noon.

The official Weibo account scheduled the release, and as soon as it was posted, it immediately became a hot search topic. The fans were incredibly supportive, and in no time, they made it the number one trending topic.

#Salt Grain Couple's First Episode Trailer#

It was only thirty seconds long, deleting the scene where Wen Li argued with the camera crew remotely. It started with a piece of funny background music.

「Just thirty seconds? Are you looking down on me?」

「I have a monthly data plan of 50GB on my phone! And you dare to give me just thirty seconds?」

「Well, my bros, thirty seconds are not bad. At least we have them in the same frame, so let's be content.」

Then came the familiar mermaid gag that netizens were very familiar with.

「Mr. Song, hello. How can I assist you?」

「I have something to say, don't be shocked.」

「We're fans of the couple, so we won't be shocked. Please go ahead.」

「My wife was acting spoiled with me.」

「What do you mean acting spoiled?」

「You know, the kind of sweet and irresistible kind...」

Then the scene directly jumped to the part where Wen Li fed fruits to Song Yan, and the post-production deliberately added suggestive music, combining cheesy and embarrassing elements, merging cringe and awkwardness into one.

「Wen Sanli, you've changed. You're no longer the upright man in my heart!」

「Hey, Beauty, you couldn't even resist that? Sisters, let's flood the chat with 'Song Yan is not good enough'.」

「Song Yan is not good enough.」

「If it weren't for your good looks, Wen Sanli, I'd want to beat you for your lousy acting skills.」

「You act all sweet and romantic with other male actors in idol dramas, but you're stiff and awkward in a variety show with your own husband. Well done, Wen! San! Li!」

「Just now, my boyfriend asked me to buy him in-game skins, but instead, I pushed him away and showed him this video to let him learn how a real man should act spoiled from Sanli. Bros, did I do the right thing?」

「Song Yan: If my wife is acting spoiled, what else can I do? Let's just make do.」

By the twentieth second, the screen went black.

Only the sound remained.

"Little spoiled girl, what do you really want by turning off the camera?"

"I just... wanted to eat grapes."

"I think you're in need of a good spa—"

The mischievous scene was accompanied by a line of subtitles that read, "As per the request of the State Administration of Radio, Film, and Television (SARFT) and the involved parties, this scene is not suitable for broadcasting."

The hidden meaning behind it was, "It's not that we don't want to show the scene, but SARFT and your beloved main characters won't allow it."

It was an extremely cunning move that left the production team completely clean while also inciting endless speculation. This tactic could be considered the ultimate battle move in the post-production industry.

As the trailer played out, the comments section went wild.

「? WTF WTF WTF WTF」

「Someone please hire a computer genius to restore the full audio track!!!」

「Ahhhh!!!」

「Can we bring these two and have them voice a radio drama? Let's crowdfund their payment! @DogEarFM」

「So you tricked the dog into coming here to kill it, right? Are you opening a dog meat shop?」

「In the end, the big move just took my breath away.」

「Program team, can I pay for early access for the complete playback? Or just open a rewarding channel for us to see it on cloud storage?」

「Is there anything that we, the annual VIP members, can't listen to or watch?」

The program team only bought one hot search, while the rest of the #WhatDidSongYanSay#, #LittleSpoiledGirlWenLi#, and #InThisWorldWithYouTrailerAmazingPost-production# were all naturally trending.

Within two hours of the trailer going online, the main platform's view count immediately broke records, surpassing the combined view count of the trailers of the other three pairs of guests released a few days earlier by 1.5 times.

Perhaps because the trailer was too embarrassing, neither Song Yan nor Wen Li reposted it.

Their latest Weibo posts were still from a few days ago, coordinating with the advertisements posted by advertisers.

The comment section was a sight to behold, with fans expressing their anger.

Song Yan: 「Advertisement copy.」

「Beauty, what the hell did you say that the program team muted you?!」

「Are you having a breakdown? Are you tired? Do you deserve a beating? What the hell is it?!」

「The above comment's speculation is too ordinary. I boldly guess it's a car accident.」

「It's definitely a car accident. Without any visuals, I bet Beauty seduced Sanli and brewed something up.」

The Salt Grains' trending topics always attract divine-level posts. No visuals? It doesn't matter. They took matters into their own hands and created their own satisfaction.

Within a few hours of the trailer release, numerous divine-level posts with indescribable short stories were written.

「Damn it, you think without visuals, you can stop us, the old perverts?」

「Perverts! Pervert souls! Perverts are superior beings!」

On the other hand, Wen Li's Weibo comment section was much more harmonious, with a neat column of comments:

「Hi, little spoiled girl!」

Wen Li: "..."

She couldn't help it and replied to the top comment:

「It's just a script and character setup!」

Wen Li's Data Team replied: 「Oh, girl, you're so cute when you act tough.」

Wen Li's Fan Support Group replied: 「She's getting anxious, she's getting anxious, she's getting anxious.」

Little Spoiled Girl Holding a Small Grape replied: 「Dare you confront me face-to-face, @Song Yan.」

Wen Li, who was at home browsing Weibo, became extremely angry. She ran to the study, pointed at Song Yan's nose, and angrily exclaimed, "If you dare to leave a comment under my Weibo, you're dead!"

Song Yan, who was about to send a comment: "..."

——

With the release of the trailer, the first episode went live at 8 pm on the same night. Due to a surge in new users, the platform experienced temporary lag and slowdown.

The first episode had a duration of two hours, with a relatively low proportion of scripted content. Most of it consisted of pre-interviews with the guests and their daily lives at home.

During the pre-interview segment, the couples recorded separately to test their compatibility.

When asked why they chose to participate in the show, the answers from the other three couples were romantic and smooth.

Especially when it came to the two couples with the highest attention, they received a barrage of face-slapping comments.

In front of the camera, Lu Ming smiled gently and said, "I'm usually busy with work and don't have much time to spend with her, so I wanted to take this opportunity to be together more."

Zheng Xue also smiled gently and said, "It's a kind of record of our life. When we get old, we can still sit together and watch it."

Then it was Song Yan and Wen Li's footage.

Wen Li wasn't given any prompts during the interview, and these questions weren't communicated to her in advance. After thinking for a moment, she smiled and said, "To make money."

Song Yan's response was also honest: "Your compensation is very appealing."

「Wow, their compatibility is quite something.」

「Wen Sanli, your performance makes me doubt if the phrase 'living is a surprise' was ghostwritten by you.」

「It's so real that I don't even know what to criticize.」

「Salt Grains Couple, as expected of you.」

「Why is it so hard to hear a romantic phrase from the two of you? Huh?」

Originally, the barrage etiquette was to focus on their own main characters, so the fans of other couples shouldn't have flooded the screen. It's unclear whether they did it intentionally or unintentionally.

「Is this all? CP fans, what are you dancing for?」

「Yeah yeah yeah, that's it. Your industrial sugar is so sweet.」

「With just this, we're crushing your main couple. Our CP's screen time directly boosted the viewership. Are you jealous? Hehehe.」

The Salt Grain couple has a large number of CP fans, so there were bound to be countless sarcastic comments. In the end, the provocative messages were reported and deleted, and the anti-fan's accounts were suspended for three days for suspected malicious provocation.

In the first episode, Song Yan spent most of the time filming out of town. The couple recorded separately, the plot twists were already spoiled in live broadcasts and previews. After watching the first episode, fans felt a great emptiness and started clamoring for the second episode.

When the show aired, Wen Li found out that Song Yan had only returned home temporarily, and all her acting cute was just a setup by the production team.

But there was no way around it. They had signed a contract and had to complete their work properly. Song Yan was magnanimous and didn't mind, so she didn't have much to worry about.

The first episode had a good start, so the production team decided to do something different for the second episode.

It was clearly stated in the contract that the guests would have a joint recording session. Wen Li thought it would happen at least after the fifth episode, but to her surprise, they would do it in the second episode.

Those familiar with the industry understood the reason behind it. The production team wanted to create a rating spike.

Moreover, the recording location was not in Yancheng but in the city where the TV station supporting the program was located.

Celebrities often have to travel to various places, officially called business trips, but it's just part of their regular work.

On the way to the airport, with the cameraman not in the same car, Wen Li temporarily turned off the in-car camera and said seriously to Song Yan, "Teacher Song, I'm counting on you for everything. I don't expect to drive Lu Ming and Zheng Xue crazy, but at least let's step on them!"

Seeing his indifferent expression, Wen Li smiled brightly and started complimenting him, "You've won the Best Actor award before. I believe in your acting skills. I'm sure you can handle me."

Today, Song Yan wore a light-colored jacket, with soft, messy bangs falling down, giving him a youthful and carefree look.

He didn't respond to her flattery, but instead asked her, "You still haven't forgotten them after two years?"

"Of course not. Can I forget them?" Wen Li said, and then she turned her face to look at the scenery, showing no interest in continuing the conversation. She pouted and asked him, "What are you doing? Feeling aggrieved for being a tool?"

Song Yan glanced at her from the corner of his eye, his voice devoid of any emotion. "My wife treats me as a tool, should I not feel aggrieved?"

"So you're unwilling to help me?" Wen Li immediately felt deflated, finding her teammate uninteresting, "If you're unwilling, you should have said so earlier. You don't need to come today. It's more comfortable to stay at home."

He had promised to come and record the show, so he should follow through with it. Yet here he was, being sarcastic.

Or was he implying that he found her petty and resentful?

But it wasn't him who had been so heavily criticized two years ago. What did he understand?

Wen Li firmly believed she was not at fault and turned her head to look at the scenery outside her car window.

This woman is really--

He felt very helpless in his heart, but he couldn't do anything about it.

Song Yan took a deep breath, not knowing how he convinced himself internally, and said in a low voice, "I'm not unwilling."