Chapter 31.1

Zhu Xinyue thought to herself, she was also talking about a person.

But Ji Linyu didn’t give her a chance to explain further and let go of her hand, letting her eat first.

The only sounds in the dining room were the clinking of cups, plates, and chopsticks.

It seemed that every time she ate with Ji Linyu, it was especially quiet.

Zhu Xinyue looked at Ji Linyu, wondering whether children from wealthy families like them had been educated in various rules since childhood, such as not talking while eating or sleeping.

“What do you want to say?” Ji Linyu saw her glancing at him several times out of the corner of his eye.

Zhu Xinyue put down her chopsticks, swallowed her food, wiped her lips with a napkin, and said, “I want to chat with you. Will it disturb your meal?”

“No.” Ji Linyu, seeing how particularly reserved she was, seriously interrupted her eating process. He actually thought that chatting would disturb her meal.

Zhu Xinyue picked up her chopsticks again, took a piece of sweet and sour pork, and started chatting casually with him.

“I saw in the group chat that ‘Peach Blossom Spring’ has resumed production and the filming is going smoothly. It seems the public opinion has settled down?”

“Yeah. It will be brought up again before or after the movie is released, but the public relations department has already prepared a response strategy in advance. These are all marketing methods, so there is no need to worry about affecting the movie.” This was her first time participating in the filming of a movie, and Ji Linyu knew how much she valued it.

“That’s good. I’m still looking forward to watching the movie with you.” Zhu Xinyue brought up their previous agreement.

Ji Linyu’s mouth couldn’t help but curve up. He said casually, “If there’s any movie you want to watch recently, we can go watch it together.”

“There’s nothing I want to watch recently. I had Brother Hu get me on an online variety show that will start shooting soon. I might get so busy that I won’t be able to return to Tianze City until next month.” Zhu Xinyue reported her schedule while eating.

“Where is it being filmed?”

“Yunhai City, on an island.” Zhu Xinyue thought of the guest invitation format for this variety show, which relied entirely on the guests’ own connections. Sometimes, the regular guest, a film emperor, would invite someone who would end up standing him up, leaving him so angry that he would sulk by the seaside all day, refusing to go home until the director coaxed him back.

Zhu Xinyue turned to Ji Linyu and asked, “Perhaps, do you know Xie Zhuguang?”

“I’ve seen him once. My aunt likes him a lot.” Ji Linyu had a good memory, recalling seeing Xie Zhuguang backstage at a Spring Festival Gala when he was a child.

Xie Zhuguang was very popular back then. If you randomly interviewed ten people on the street, eight would say he was their favorite artist.

However, he has been out of the circle for more than ten years and had suddenly gotten married during his peak. The entertainment industry had seen many changes since then, and young people had long forgotten him.

“I will be filming the online variety show with this senior this time, and I might need to invite friends as a guest.” Zhu Xinyue laid the groundwork, clutched the chopsticks, and turned to look at Ji Linyu beside her.

Sensing her gaze and having nearly finished his meal, Ji Linyu put down his chopsticks, wiped his lips, and waited for her to continue.

Zhu Xinyue took a deep breath and asked, “If I invite you, would you come?”

Ji Linyu didn’t refuse but instead asked, “In what capacity would I go?”

Silence filled the air.

Zhu Xinyue was taken aback, meeting Ji Linyu’s eyes that were calm like an ancient forest, giving no sense of pressure, just waiting for her to take the initiative.

When she asked earlier, she was simply considering the need to invite friends to the show, but now thinking about it, inviting Ji Linyu might not be appropriate, potentially causing a media stir.

In what capacity could she explain to the public?

“My direct superior?” Zhu Xinyue tentatively asked.

Ji Linyu was silent for a moment and sighed lightly.

“Think again.”

With that, he got up and left, leaving Zhu Xinyue alone in the dining room, perplexed.

If not as her direct superior, perhaps as her childhood sweetheart’s brother? Her brother’s good friend? That relationship was even more distant.

The production team of “One Moment, One Scene” didn’t expect a Jinhuan artist to join their show. Though Zhu Xinyue’s only film hadn’t been released yet, the title “Jinhuan Artist” was attractive enough.

When Zhu Xinyue proposed investing in the show’s production, the team was worried she was buying her way in for more control. But her contract clearly stated she wouldn’t interfere with the production decisions, fully complying with the team’s arrangements.

The production team, still in the funding stage, received Jinhuan Group’s investment, solving their biggest financial problem. Jinhuan Group became the largest investor in “One Moment, One Scene” and behaved like wealthy old coal bosses in the past. Only giving money and not meddling with the production, proudly declaring, “Leave professional matters to professionals.”

The production team was so moved that they renovated the venue for the guests’ activities and replaced all the home appliances with products from Jinhuan Group.

This show had no script, only fixed tasks: running a snack shop by the seaside.

Originally, Xie Zhuguang was the only regular guest. Now, Zhu Xinyue was added.

According to the original novel’s plot, Xie Zhuguang would work himself to exhaustion, despite having only two menu items: french fries and iced cola. Later, he invited friends to help, adding two more snacks to the menu.

Now that Zhu Xinyue is with him as a regular guest, the drinks on the menu have become richer, with the addition of pearl milk tea and hand-made lemon tea.

Xie Zhuguang, this former popular movie star, has no airs and is very down-to-earth, with a striking contrast between his appearance and personality.

His mother is a Westerner, and he inherited her deep, melancholic eyes. He looks like a handsome man with curly hair, the kind who could sketch portraits of people on the street without saying a word. However, his personality is quite different. He’s a chatterbox who can’t go ten minutes without talking.

“Wow! Xiao Zhu, you are so awesome. Have you done this kind of work before? These potato strips are cut so neatly! They are so crispy and bright after being fried!” Xie Zhuguang continuously praised Zhu Xinyue beside him.

“No, no, I haven’t,” Zhu Xinyue blushed at the praise, her movements becoming increasingly skillful.

On camera, Zhu Xinyue wore a transparent hairnet, tucking all her hair inside, revealing her small, delicate face. Her features were exquisite and pretty, with only light makeup.

The kitchen was a bit warm, and the fan nearby blew at the playful strands of hair by her ears. Her black hair, white skin, and slightly red ears made her look endearing.

The camera zoomed out, capturing her upper body completely on screen. She was seen focused on cutting potatoes into strips, her knife skills adept, her fair, slender hand gripping the sharp knife—a striking contrast.

The production crew monitoring the scene was puzzled. This girl could become popular based on her looks alone, so why did she come to this small, obscure variety show?

Xie Zhuguang was also very curious.

He was there to repay a favor to the show’s director, who had asked him to experience early retirement life while earning some appearance fees. However, he didn’t know why this young girl participated in this show.

After the first day of the trial run, the two guests had worked together for a day and had figured out each other’s personalities and how to get along.

Xie Zhuguang thought Zhu Xinyue would be a spoiled young lady, but she turned out to be the most diligent, constantly working in the kitchen.

Zhu Xinyue thought the senior would have the arrogance of someone his age or a habit of lecturing others, but Xie Zhuguang took special care of her, even shielding her from customers asking for her contact information. He also took over frying the potatoes, afraid that the hot oil would splatter on her.

“Xiao Zhu, why did you decide to join our show?” Xie Zhuguang asked while eating fries, sitting across from her.

Zhu Xinyue was keeping the books, calculating today’s revenue. After writing down the last number, she looked up at the distant sea.

“At first, I just wanted to earn some money from selling fries. Now I realize… our business is really good!” Zhu Xinyue grabbed Xie Zhuguang’s hand excitedly. “The profit for a portion of fries is 10 yuan, bubble tea and freshly made lemon tea are 12 yuan, and iced cola is 3 yuan. After covering the daily costs set by the production team, today’s net profit is 1,237 yuan. Even if we split it evenly, our daily wage is 618.5 yuan…”

“Wait, wait, how did you calculate that so fast?” Xie Zhuguang was astonished by her mental arithmetic, unable to process their daily wage before hearing Zhu Xinyue continue.

“If we earn this much daily, I can make 18,555 yuan a month. Even deducting a 20% fluctuation, it’s still 14,844 yuan…”

Compared to her previous salary of 6,000 yuan in the company, this was more than double!

Xie Zhuguang’s poor math skills made his head spin, but seeing Zhu Xinyue’s gleeful expression, he couldn’t help but laugh.

This girl is really something.

However, what kept Zhu Xinyue willing to stay and continue filming wasn’t just the daily wage of 600 yuan but also Xie Zhuguang’s charm and his interesting friends.