Chapter 38: You’re Different

The April sky, with sunlight pouring down like gold paper, bathed the bustling crowd flowing through the streets. The small tent at the street corner, however, stood still and quiet, as if frozen in a camera shot.

The girl’s eyes widened in surprise, staring blankly at Xiao Chi, her hand covering her mouth as her face turned red. This kiss… was so subtle!

Wait… did she just kiss two handsome men at the same time? Thinking about this, the girl’s ears turned bright red with excitement. “I’ll buy! I’ll buy everything! Can we do it again?!”

The onlookers finally snapped out of their shock, raising their phones and shouting “Buy! Buy! Buy!”—touch it, and it’s a win, kiss it, and it’s worth it!

Just as the scene was about to descend into chaos again, Ji Chenxuan decisively grabbed Xiao Chi and pushed through the crowd, heading for the van, leaving the mess behind for the production team to deal with.

The host was stunned, helplessly joining the staff in creating a human barricade, using all his strength to disperse the overly enthusiastic crowd.

The products provided by the sponsors sold out quickly, and after calculating the profits, they found that not only did they avoid a loss, but they also made a small profit, becoming the highest-performing group among the four guest teams.

“Today, Xiao Chen and Chenxuan were… still so unpredictable, once again opening our eyes. In any case, please look forward to the next episode…” the host announced, his face a mix of exhaustion and resignation.

However, the live chat was filled with laughter and joy, with the viewership numbers rising dramatically, and the atmosphere was full of excitement:

“Xiao Chen’s move was so slick! A true business genius!”

“I’m so jealous! I want a kiss too! Can I still make it to the site in time?”

“Come, come, come, everyone come to my place to get a lemon, one for each person, don’t fight over it!”

“After watching this episode of ‘Star CEO,’ I laughed so hard that my laugh lines are showing! I didn’t expect Chenxuan to have a talent for being a variety show star!”

The CP fan club’s post on Weibo had hundreds of new comments within minutes, buzzing like a New Year’s celebration.

Some CP fans even combined this “indirect kiss” with Xiao Chi’s flying kiss at the Star Show competition, turning it into a GIF meme, which quickly went viral.

“Ever since I started shipping Xiao Chen and Chenxuan, the official accounts have been giving us daily sugar! It’s sweet to the point of sadness.”

“I remember at the Star Show awards, President Ji himself presented the award to Chenxuan and gave him a crystal piano. They must be a couple! Don’t just live-stream eating bamboo rats!”

Just one day of heat and then getting frozen out, Ting-Xiao’s fans were crying, posting on Weibo, lamenting how unpredictable life was, or that they had become the biggest losers.

After the show ended, the other guest groups left by car.

Since the partner switched, Wen Anran had become the least noticeable of the eight guests. Xie Ting completely ignored him, and the entire live-stream room was dominated by Xie Ting’s fans, turning into a solo show.

On Weibo, the topic and hype were completely dominated by the interactions between Xiao Chi and Ji Chenxuan.

Wen Anran refreshed the trending topics related to the variety show on Weibo obsessively, but everywhere he looked, it was all about them. He couldn’t escape them, no matter where he went.

He seemed like an invisible person—his deliberately staged ambiguous moments were inexplicably deleted, and only the expression memes of Wen Ali remained, giving him the highest presence.

“Why… why is this happening? It should have been me in a group with Ji Chenxuan! The popularity should have been mine! Why are they stealing my spotlight?”

The terminal was suddenly slammed to the ground by the furious Wen Anran, nearly causing a corner to chip off.

The noise from outside was completely blocked by the tinted windows of the nanny van, and Xiao Chi nestled comfortably on the wide, soft sofa, quietly scrolling through trending topics on a social media platform.

Out of the ten posts related to him, eight were linked to Ji Chenxuan. Some people sarcastically questioned whether he was riding on President Huanyi’s coattails for publicity, only for those comments to quickly get drowned out by fans’ rebuttals.

Xiao Chi seemed to understand the underlying sarcasm online, though he didn’t take it seriously. He looked at his name stuck to Ji Chenxuan’s like conjoined twins, with a grin on his face.

“What are you looking at? Why are you grinning like that?” Ji Chenxuan asked, sitting opposite him, his legs crossed and posture relaxed, with a mini tablet resting on his lap.

His gaze was on the tablet screen, but he didn’t look up, yet it seemed like he could read Xiao Chi’s every subtle expression.

“Just reading some fan comments… What about you? What are you looking at?” Xiao Chi craned his neck, trying to peek at what Ji Chenxuan was doing. Ji Chenxuan was quick, instantly hiding the page for the latest fan fiction rankings and opening up a finance news site instead.

With one hand, he pressed Xiao Chi’s forehead, gently pushing him back, clearing his throat casually. “Sit properly. We’re about to start driving. Be careful not to bump your head.”

Xiao Chi glanced at him and grumbled, “What’s so funny about reading finance news?”

Ji Chenxuan closed the tablet, pulled out a fresh handkerchief from his pocket, and slowly said, “Am I laughing?”

Xiao Chi stared at him seriously. “Your eyes are laughing.”

Ignoring him, Ji Chenxuan grabbed Xiao Chi’s hand and held onto the slender fingers, which still had a faint trace of lip gloss on them. He used the handkerchief to gently wipe it away, doing so with deliberate slowness.

Xiao Chi, confused, asked, “What are you doing?”

“Wiping off someone else’s lipstick.”

“…” Xiao Chi pouted, his eyes wide in grievance. “I already agreed to your request, and now you’re still judging me?”

Ji Chenxuan lifted an eyebrow, giving him a sideways glance. “Did you replace my realistic doll?”

Xiao Chi blinked, unable to follow his train of thought, and quietly nodded. “Yes.”

“Didn’t you personally deliver the doll to me?”

“Yes.”

“Didn’t you say you’re mine now?”

“…I think I did say that?”

“Do I have VIP privileges?”

“…What exactly are you trying to say?”

After a long buildup, Ji Chenxuan slowly made his final point: “So, your entire being, every strand of hair, every finger, belongs to me. I’m wiping away traces that shouldn’t be there. What’s the problem?”

Xiao Chi was completely baffled. “Seems like… no problem.”

“That’s it.” Ji Chenxuan cleared his throat, his expression turning serious as he made a request, “From now on, you’re not allowed to casually kiss anyone, and no touching either!”

Xiao Chi mumbled softly, “You’re so sly. Last time, you secretly kissed me.”

Ji Chenxuan remained unfazed, “Can I be compared to others?”

“How am I different?” They’re both just two eyes and a nose.

Ji Chenxuan narrowed his eyes, and his voice suddenly rose, “Are you saying that, in your eyes, I’m just like everyone else?”

He leaned forward slightly, the muscles on his face tensing unnaturally. His lips were pressed into a straight line, and his eyes were faintly cold, though inside, his heart raced anxiously. He felt like a drum being pounded, worried he’d hear an answer he didn’t want.

Xiao Chi lowered his head, thinking seriously for a moment, then answered, “You’re still different.”

Before Ji Chenxuan could feel pleased, Xiao Chi added, “You’re my landlord.”

“…” Ji Chenxuan felt like something was stuck in his throat. “Is that all?”

“There’s more…” Xiao Chi wanted to say something else. He had this feeling that Ji Chenxuan was different, but this special feeling was so confusing and out of his understanding that he had no idea how to express it.

“What else?” Ji Chenxuan locked eyes with him, his gaze full of expectation. His voice softened without him realizing, like a clam slowly opening its hard shell to reveal the soft inside.

Just then, the car door was opened and closed with a bang—Zhou Tong and Liu Bing had gotten into the car.

The subtle atmosphere of ambiguity quickly disappeared, like a bubble popped by a needle.

Xiao Chi and Ji Chenxuan quickly looked away from each other—one stared left, the other right. The windows of the car reflected their profiles, like two mirrored faces.

Zhou Tong sensed the awkward atmosphere and glanced at Liu Bing for help. However, Liu Bing closed his eyes, pretending to nap, acting as though he was invisible.

—

Ji Chenxuan was busy with company affairs and couldn’t afford to spend too much time on the show. Fortunately, the filming schedule for Star CEO wasn’t very long, and as the topics related to the guest groups gained more popularity, the show’s ratings soared. The sponsors and investors were thrilled.

By the time the season finale arrived, the eight guests gathered once again.

Compared to the first episode, where they were trailing in popularity, Xiao Chi’s live stream numbers had been rapidly increasing every day, rising so fast that it broke the historical record for the show.

By the end, his numbers had jumped from last place to first!

At the studio for the finale, many staff members were busy preparing for the final episode.

The theme of this episode was music, with all eight guests performing together in a lively family-style concert to wrap up the show perfectly.

Before the live broadcast began, the host, Tian Tian, went around confirming each guest’s performance for the night.

“The first group is on the keyboard… the fourth group is playing the violin… Please double-check everything. The teleprompter is backstage—if you forget your lines, remember to look at it! Oh, and Xiao Deng, can you check if the instruments have arrived backstage? If they have, set them up.”

“Oh, okay!”

Xiao Deng was a new employee on the program team, inexperienced and easily ordered around by anyone.  

It was her first time participating in such a major variety show and being so close to big-name stars, leaving her so nervous she didn’t know what to do with her hands and feet all day.  

Most importantly, this episode featured her favorite artist, Wen Anran!  

Unfortunately, Xiao Deng was introverted, and even as the program was nearing its end, she couldn’t muster the courage to ask for an autograph.  

Unexpectedly, fate smiled upon her. While she was backstage checking the instruments, she ran into her idol face-to-face!  

“W-Wen… Brother Wen, why are you here?” Xiao Deng’s ears turned slightly red. She lowered her eyes, not daring to look directly at him, and stammered nervously.  

Wen Anran flashed his usual public smile. “Oh, nothing much. I just haven’t practiced in a while and didn’t want to embarrass myself later, so I came to warm up. Are you here to move the instruments? The piano and drum set have already been taken away. There are just a few left—let me help you.”  

“Huh? How could I let you do such heavy work…”  

“It’s fine. You look so delicate—doesn’t seem like you can carry heavy things. Here, I’ll take the saxophone and violin.”  

Xiao Deng was instantly overwhelmed by happiness, her head spinning. Apart from her idol’s smile, she didn’t notice anything unusual.  

As the two carried the instruments, chatting and laughing while walking further away, neither of them noticed a camera quietly recording. From the moment Wen Anran entered the backstage area, it had been fixed on him.  

The two figures disappeared around the corner, entirely out of the camera’s view. Liu Bing turned off the recording program and slowly stepped out from the shadows, a cold smile playing on his lips as he opened his contact list.  

“Idiot. Do you think I’m a fool? Fall for the same trick twice? Over my dead body!”