CH 33

Song Yan had just entered the studio and coincidentally encountered Wen Li's girl group dance performance.

Just like the trainees, his gaze was fixed on the stage.

Then, his expression slightly froze as he was captivated by the girl on stage. With her hair tied up in twin ponytails and wearing a short skirt, she exuded a youthful energy that made her seem like a sixteen-year-old girl. She held his complete attention.

It felt like acting.

What's so difficult about dancing to earn money?

As an artist, one shouldn't be burdened by idols.

"The ambiguous attraction, the result of a heartthrob—"

With her deer-in-headlights appearance, deliberately feigned dizzying dance moves, and a smile that was irresistibly sweet, she stole the show.

"A hundred thoughts, fantasizing about our future together—"

She posed as if contemplating, raising her leg and suddenly bouncing in excitement.

Following the rhythm of the dance, Wen Li placed her hands on her waist and made a cute pouting gesture towards the camera.

The trainees in the audience erupted into a thunderous cheer.

Wen Li enjoyed hearing others praise her, even if she felt she hadn't done something well. If someone could replace criticism with encouragement, she would be even more motivated and work twice as hard.

Immersed in the enthusiastic support of the trainees, her heart swelled instantly. She winked playfully, shooting her gaze like it didn't cost a thing, at every trainee present.

Suddenly, among the group of young boys, she saw a man who wasn't wearing a training uniform, wasn't a mentor, and wasn't a staff member.

Unlike the other boys, who were trying their best to cheer loudly to avoid making her feel embarrassed, he stood casually at the side, exceptional in temperament, tall and handsome, with a relaxed and carefree expression. His deep eyes were firmly fixed on her, a faint smile lingered at the corner of his lips.

He seemed to have received her wink as well and raised an eyebrow with composure, the smile on his lips becoming more apparent.

"..."

"At the moment when you smiled at me, I was at a loss—"

At this moment, everything seemed to go silent. Wen Li's mind exploded with a bang. Shyness and embarrassment surged through her body, making her tingle and burn. She couldn't hear any sound, couldn't see anyone, and the universe seemed to have only Song Yan, who suddenly appeared out of nowhere to watch the excitement, and her brain froze. Only her muscle memory reluctantly moved her body to continue dancing as a robot.

She wasn't shy in front of so many people and cameras.

But at this moment of seeing Song Yan, she wished she could just die on the spot.

"Love, the sweetness of love, like ice cream in summer, chocolate in winter. I dare not look at you, not because I don't like you, but because I like you too much~ wohwoh~ love~"

When the song reached the climax, Wen Li's kept avoiding eye contact with Song Yan. Her natural blush overwhelmed the blush on her cheeks. The stars in her eyes shimmered brighter than the highlighter eyeshadow on her eyelids.

When it finally ended, she squatted down on the ground, supporting her forehead and closing herself off in a deep self-reflection.

"Wen Li! Wen Li! Wen Li!"

The trainees were still shouting her name.

The excited director grabbed the megaphone and shouted, "Trainees, guess who's here!"

The trainees looked around in confusion, their eyes filled with doubt until a hundred pairs of eyes locked onto a man who suddenly appeared in the studio.

"Awesome!!!!"

"So exciting!!!!"

Song Yan took the microphone handed to him by the staff. In a warm voice, he said, "Hello, everyone. I'm Song Yan. I'm here today to visit the set."

It really was Song Yan!

These trainees who had just entered the entertainment industry and had yet to mature as artists, living under the constant spotlight, felt as if a big star from the silver screen had suddenly appeared before them. Their reactions were just like ordinary people, like they were not seeing a person but a deity.

"Song Yan!!!!"

"I need to call my mom and tell her I saw Song Yan. My mom loves Song Yan so much! Damn it, my phone was confiscated! Director! Give me back my phone!"

"Oh my god, Song Yan is really here!"

Wang Yiyuan was so excited that he couldn't speak, desperately grabbing Xu Li's arm in an attempt to seek a hint of reality outside the dream.

"Is this fucking real? Is it? I'm not dreaming, right?"

Xu Li's features contorted in pain, gritting his teeth as he asked, "What the hell do you think?"

Seeing Xu Li in such pain, Wang Yiyuan confirmed, "It's not a dream!"

The atmosphere on set was exploding. Qi Sihan couldn't help but cover her ears, at a loss whether to laugh or cry. She used the microphone to say to Song Yan, "Teacher Song Yan, could you please come up on stage and help our Teacher Wen Li? She's tired and can't stand up."

With the trainees' screams even louder than before, Song Yan walked towards the stage.

It turns out that boys scream just as uninhibitedly as girls, if not more.

Wen Li felt his aura when Song Yan walked up to the stage. Just as Song Yan bent down slightly, about to touch her, she immediately jumped up and crawled back a few steps in the opposite direction.

"I'm standing up," she said stiffly.

Song Yan's hand hung in mid-air, amused, "What are you running away from?"

The trainees quickly shouted with wit, "Shyness!"

Wen Li tightened her grip on the microphone and retorted, "Who said that? If I can stand up on my own, do I still need someone's help?"

These bold trainees weren't afraid of offending the judge and directly exposed her, "Stop pretending, you're just shy!"

"..."

Since this was an impromptu visit, there was no script prepared. Qi Sihan just conducted a simple interview with a few questions. This visit ended with this little incident.

Wen Li and Song Yan maintained a safe distance of a few centimeters throughout. It was clear that Wen Li didn't want to get too close to Song Yan, deliberately keeping her distance. Despite the distance, they still stood together, appearing in the same frame. Two very beautiful artists stood side by side, looking particularly pleasing to the eye.

The trainees didn't hide their admiration for Song Yan, constantly expressing their awe. They couldn't help but exclaim, "So handsome! He looks even more handsome in person! He was already so handsome in the close-up shots on the big screen, he's even more stunning in real life."

"Last question, Teacher Song Yan, what do you think of Teacher Wen Li's girl group dance performance?"

"The song is great, it's cute and full of youth and energy," Song Yan politely praised.

Qi Sihan was pleasantly surprised, "Thank you, Teacher Song Yan. This is our group's song."

Wen Li remained silent throughout. Although she didn't want Song Yan to give any positive or negative comments about her, she couldn't help but feel a little unhappy when he didn't evaluate her. She lowered her eyelids and glanced away from the camera.

Then, Song Yan smiled and said, "The person dancing is even cuter."

He didn't mention a name, just used a simple pronoun, but everyone present knew who he was referring to.

Qi Sihan was initially stunned. Before she could react to Song Yan's implicit yet cheesy compliment, the group of trainees couldn't hold back their excitement and exclaimed, "Wow!"

Wen Li pursed her lips and silently mouthed, "Tch."

Finally, Qi Sihan, as the temporary host, professionally promoted [In This World with You].

The visit ended, and because they couldn't delay the subsequent recording, Song Yan briefly encouraged the trainees and prepared to leave.

"I'm leaving," he waved to Wen Li, "Teacher Wen."

Wen Li immediately waved her hand impatiently, "Ok, hurry up and leave. Don't waste my time!"

In that half hour, the two of them hardly exchanged a few words. They didn't even have any physical contact. Even when Song Yan was leaving, Wen Li's reaction was extremely impatient, wishing for him to leave quickly.

But it felt as if the air had been injected with sweetness on set. Everyone could feel this sweetness.

Wen Li was completely unaware of it. She only felt alive again once Song Yan left.

After the program finished recording, the production team brought her to the interview room for a post-program interview.

Wen Li had already changed out of the pink skirt and into a sleek white dress, and she had reverted her hairstyle to a simple, fluffy high ponytail. She felt much more relaxed.

The first question from the staff was, "Teacher Wen Li, were you surprised by Song Yan's visit today?"

Wen Li's expression immediately tensed, and she lowered her eyes, sighing deeply, "It was more of a shock, right? Do you really have to make fun of me like this on the show?"

Several staff members immediately chuckled softly.

Wen Li fanned her face with her hand, pouting while standing with her hands on her waist, full of variety show vibes, "I can't stand it when I think about that scene. I won't ever dance this kind of girl group dance again, even if Qi Sihan kneels down and begs me, absolutely not!"

"But Teacher Song said you were cute."

"He's an actor. Don't let his acting fool you," Wen Li firmly said, "He must be laughing at me in his heart."

The staff members exchanged glances.

It didn't seem like acting?

Or maybe they just couldn't see through Song Yan's exceptional acting skills?

——

Song Yan's visit to the set of [For You To Debut] took place in the morning, and immediately in the afternoon, someone on the forum leaked the explosive information.

「Wnct's scoop -- Song Yan went to visit the set in the morning.」

0L:「Wow. It is said that the scene was explosive and the trainees were all excited. When the second episode airs, get ready for it to dominate the hot search.」

2L:「Feeding a bunch of single male trainees dog food, truly living up to the reputation of a sugar-daddy variety show.」

4L:「Whose set did they visit? Did they visit Wen Li's set?」

12L:「Wow, is this a crossover with the neighboring drama 'Dreamland'?」

30L:「Getting excited over nothing. Eating up the benefits of a CP and going crazy. Haven't fans learned their lesson from Ming-Zheng CP? I advise the fans not to get too emotionally invested. One day when Salt Grain CP collapses, there will be cries of despair.」

56L:「No matter how much you ship a real-life CP, never get emotionally invested, it will collapse sooner or later.」

...

266L:「As a CP fan who joined the fandom a month ago, let me tell you, this pair relied on fanfiction to keep the fans satisfied when there was little sugar between them. Recently, their interactions on variety shows have increased, but they are mostly subtle gestures imagined by fans. Compared to other guests, their interactions are scarce. Even after three episodes, they haven't had much physical contact. Those who are pessimistic upstairs don't need to worry. If they were really in a relationship, Beauty and Sanli would have been labeled as 'unprofessional'.」

...

328L:「If you claim they are in a relationship, why don't they kiss? After three episodes, the only physical contact was feeding fruits, and they even put a damn black screen on it. It made me go looking for fanfiction for the continuation. Screw it, I'd rather they give us more industrial-grade sugar substitutes.」

456L:「Before the Ming-Zheng divorce, there were plenty of industrial-grade sugar substitutes, yet the CP fans still cried and screamed for sweetness. Most CP shippers have dirty minds.」

555L:「In response to 456, we live to ship CPs. If we don't ship CPs, do we expect ourselves to be in relationships? Even if the CP between the two is fake, it still attracts people more than ordinary relationships. I don't care if it's real or not. Recently, I've been obsessively following Salt Grains CP and eagerly seeking more material. My mind is full of them, and whenever I immerse myself in that atmosphere, the corners of my mouth can't help but curl up. As long as they don't divorce, I'll even eat industrial-grade sugar substitutes.」

The post quickly rose to the "hot" section.

After the recording ended, Wen Li accidentally saw Wen Wen scrolling through the post.

She saw Wen Wen interacting with other users in the post, replying to an user:「Sisters, don't pay attention. Those who don't ship CPs will never understand the joy of being a CP fan.」

"Wen Wen, stop following the crowd, okay?" Wen Li was speechless, "It's obvious that the program team leaked the information to generate hype."

Wen Wen quickly locked her phone and turned back to look at Wen Li, who was wearing a steam eye mask on her forehead.

She stammered, "Sister, why are you awake? Can't sleep?"

"How can I sleep when you keep..." Wen Li imitated her tone and chuckled, then resumed her expressionless face, "Why would I sleep?"

Wen Wen blinked.

She understood the situation between her sister and Teacher Song, but it didn't prevent her from sincerely feeling that there was something going on between them.

"Stop reading the posts," Wen Li put her eye mask back on, "Wake me up when we get home."

Not daring to defy her sister, Wen Wen obediently nodded, "Okay."

With the eye mask on, Wen Li's vision was in darkness, but she couldn't really fall asleep. She pretended to doze off with her eyes closed until they arrived home.

When they reached home, as soon as Wen Li entered the house, she heard some commotion inside.

Her eyes widened as the memories from the morning recording session flooded her mind. Without thinking, she didn't even bother to put on slippers. She pressed against the wall and hurriedly hid on the other side of the house.

Finally, she sneaked to the balcony through the dining room. Wen Li quickly closed the glass door, trapping the man inside the house.

Song Yan knocked on the glass, signaling her to open the door.

Wen Li firmly leaned against the door, her tone stuttering, "What do you want?"

Song Yan: "Let's talk."

"I have nothing to talk to you about. You colluded with the production team to make a fool out of me today," Wen Li sneered, "I'm being magnanimous by not holding you accountable. Those who have common sense should disappear from my sight."

Song Yan turned his head, his Adam's apple bobbing, he took a deep breath, and then smiled, releasing his breath.

"Alright, I'll disappear."

Then he turned around and walked away.

Wen Li watched him leave, slightly loosening her grip on the door handle. She had just let out a sigh of relief, thinking that he left. But the man who had already turned away suddenly turned back, took a few steps with his long legs, and quickly pulled the balcony door before Wen Li could react.

Caught off guard, Wen Li didn't expect him to play this trick, "You!"

Song Yan closed the balcony door. Wen Li took two steps back, looking at him warily, "What are you doing? You don't want to push me off the balcony, do you?"

Song Yan didn't know whether to laugh or cry at her overly imaginative thoughts. He pressed his tongue against his cheek as he chuckled in a muffled voice.

"What are you laughing at?"

In her irritable state, Wen Li was suddenly pulled over by Song Yan, her arm held tightly, and she was pushed into his embrace.

"I'm laughing because you're a fool."

Song Yan held the back of her head, his other strong arm firmly gripping her waist, lifting her slightly. Her bare feet stepped on his feet.

Under the scorching sun in the afternoon, the reflection of the balcony's glass door was severe, and the camera couldn't clearly see what was happening on the balcony.

In the camera control room, the group of staff members anxiously stared at the screen.

Only the director had a grim face and questioned, "Who was responsible for installing the cameras at that time? Why didn't anyone remember to install one on the balcony? You've lost your performance record!"

"..."