Chapter 3

The second season of 【First Heartbeat】, an online dating variety show, followed the same process as the first season: Matching → Online Chatting → Meeting → Dating.

Each contestant had their own live stream room and was given a specially issued phone from the production team. This phone was directly connected to the show’s backend, and during the contestants’ live streams, their chat screens were displayed in real-time for viewers to see.

During the live broadcast, the only apps contestants could use were the chat app and work-related software. The show had strict rules prohibiting them from searching for information about the dating show online.

After all, it was an online dating show. If one party checked the live stream, they’d instantly find out if the other was human or a “ghost.” That would ruin the surprise of the official face-to-face meeting on the eighth day.

The female contestants’ live stream setting remained in the Pink House, which fortunately wasn’t far from Bai Siyi’s factory job. In order to earn that 500,000 yuan, he had splurged on a shared bike monthly membership.

So yes, even the poor could now commute by “car.”

One week before the official live broadcast, the production team announced the contestant list. Two days before the broadcast, they released a teaser trailer.

The teaser was short, about a minute long, focusing on the four female contestants. It introduced them and hinted at their preferences for a partner.

When it came to selecting the female contestants, Director Liu put in a great deal of effort. Among them were a mature, big-sister-type corporate boss, a cold and proud actress, an adorable and sweet college student, and… a glamorous and alluring factory worker?

When the female contestants appeared on screen, a profile card showing their age, occupation, and hobbies was displayed in the top left corner. The audience was glued to their screens.

【Woohoo! Director Liu’s taste never disappoints! So many beauties!!! I love them all!】

【Okay, let’s see. The businesswoman is 30, the idol is 25, the university student is 20. I’m guessing the last one is a teacher or lawyer? Or maybe an inheritor of intangible cultural heritage, around 35, elegant and gentle!】

【Not necessarily! It could be an athlete, maybe an Olympic champion! Strong and domineering! After all, isn’t one of the male contestants an athlete?】

—

The audience enthusiastically debated the identities of the female contestants. The idol-turned-celebrity garnered the most attention, with her fans flooding the live stream with so many comments that the screen was completely obscured.

The last female contestant introduced was Bai Siyi. Since it was just a teaser to warm up for the next day’s live broadcast, Bai Siyi appeared dressed as a woman.

The production team intentionally saved his reveal for last.

When the video of the third female contestant ended, the teaser cut to a new scene. A slim figure in a white shirt, JK-style skirt, and long straight black hair appeared—a pure and delicate beauty.

The first three contestants were all stunning and unique in their way, but none could compare to the fourth.

With his delicate features, milky white skin, and light makeup, Bai Siyi, with his hair let down, was breathtaking.

He had that kind of beauty that was both pure and cool. His friend Meng Chen often joked that if Bai Siyi wanted, he could become an instant hit in bars and nightclubs, with men lining up to spend money on him.

Live Stream Comments:

【Wow, this little beauty is gorgeous!】

【Such big eyes and a perfect nose! There’s no way this is just a regular person, right? I don’t believe it!】

【Maybe they’re a rookie just signed by an entertainment company, and this show is their debut appearance!】

After Bai Siyi appeared, he looked at the camera with some awkwardness. Although he was a content creator, he primarily focused on voice acting and had never shown his face before—let alone while wearing a skirt!

Bai Siyi felt a strong sense of social death.

But for 500,000 yuan, he decided to throw away his pride!

In the teaser, the delicate and pure beauty looked into the camera, smiling as he greeted everyone in a soft, sweet, and adorable loli voice:
“Hello, everyone! I’m Bai Siyi. I’m happy to participate in First Heartbeat.”

When asked about his ideal type, Bai Siyi responded, “Hmm… someone over 1.8 meters tall, with a slim waist and shark-like abs. Oh, and if they’re rich, even better!”

After speaking, he smiled at the camera. While the other female contestants mentioned ideal personalities, ages, or professions, Bai Siyi was so specific—he even mentioned “rich and good-looking”—as if daring the audience to criticize him.

Bai Siyi did this on purpose. Director Director Liu had told him to create more buzz, so he deliberately set himself up with a gold-digger image, knowing it would spark controversy.

What Bai Siyi didn’t realize was how enchanting his smile looked while dressed as a woman.

Live Stream Comments:

【That’s exactly the mindset you should have! A girl as beautiful and with such a great figure as you should have high standards—higher, even!】

【Stay clear-headed, sis! Never lose yourself in love! You’re so outstanding already, having high standards is totally normal. What, should a flower grow in manure to make sense? I suggest those criticizing Bai Siyi shut their mouths unless they want to be roasted.】

【If I had this face and figure, I’d line up eighteen male models in front of me and pick one after trying them all out, haha.】

—

The moment Bai Siyi appeared, the comments exploded. But as soon as Bai Siyi finished speaking, his identity card was displayed on screen.

Bai Siyi, 19 years old, Gender: Male.
Height: 177 cm, Weight: 60 kg.
Occupation: Factory assembly line worker.

The identity card stayed on the top left corner of the screen for about seven or eight seconds before the teaser ended. However, those few seconds caused a massive uproar—and even made it onto the trending topics list!

The audience, who had just been admiring Bai Siyi’s beauty, was now completely shocked.

【???】

【What?! Did I just see that right? I need to watch that again! Shocked dog meme.】

【Guys, we didn’t see wrong! I took a screenshot! He really is a guy!】

【Shocking! Director Liu actually invited a cross-dressing master?】

【Damn it! How did the production team find such an adorable boy?! Why can’t I find someone like him in real life?!】

【Aaaaaah! But he’s so pretty, so slim, and he even uses a loli voice! A. Loli. Voice. I’m completely floored!】

—

As Director Liu had hoped, First Heartbeat quickly surged to the trending topics within half an hour after the teaser was released. Along with it, the hashtag #SheIsActuallyAMan! also trended.

Clicking on it revealed Bai Siyi’s teaser, along with various screenshots. The segment where he used a loli voice to state his preferences for a partner was particularly viral. Within less than two hours, the discussion volume had already reached several hundred thousand.

【It’s not about sexual orientation, but just talking about the show First Heartbeat… isn’t it all about male and female online dating? This time they invited a cross-dressing master. The guy who gets matched with him must be really unlucky!】

【Let me wait and see who the unlucky guy is who gets matched with this cross-dressing master!】

【Please, someone like Bai Siyi is basically a once-in-a-lifetime find, right? Even a steel bar could bend! Whoever gets matched with him has really good luck! Whoever gets matched with him will be laughing secretly in their bed!】

【I just hope Bai Siyi gets matched with a super straight guy, then they’ll break up! Otherwise, how will I have a chance? You straight guys will never understand Bai Siyi’s beauty.】

—

This teaser was extremely successful, successfully bringing First Heartbeat to the spotlight. Director Liu was thrilled as he watched the related topics stay on the trending list.

He knew from the start that Bai Siyi had potential!

In fact, Director Liu had originally noticed Bai Siyi because of his looks and figure, but the surprise was that Bai Siyi also had a loli voice!

That was even better!

Director Liu felt that 500,000 yuan was too little for Bai Siyi and predicted that the heat he would bring to the show would make it worth doubling his pay.

The day after the teaser was released, at 8 o’clock in the morning, the official live broadcast of First Heartbeat began!

Because of the cross-dressing master, even before the show started, there were already hundreds of thousands of viewers waiting in the program’s live stream comment room!

The viewers couldn’t find Bai Siyi’s Weibo account, but since he was a completely new face, it was understandable that he didn’t have one.

Eager to know what would happen next, the audience stayed in the chat room, generating heat that left many competitors envious.

At exactly 8 o’clock, when the program’s main live room opened, the bullet screen exploded with comments.

【Ahhhh! He’s here, he’s here, he’s walking towards us in a dress!】

【The live stream finally started! Director Liu, do you know I’ve been waiting since last night?!】

【Oh, here they come, the beautiful sisters are coming!】

—

The camera focused on the pink cottage’s sofa area. The door opened, and the four female contestants walked in one after another.

Leading the way was the female boss, Xi Mo, dressed in a skirt and with large wavy hair. Behind her was the highly popular female idol, Qiu Bo, with bright pink hair that immediately caught the eye.

Next came Jiang Mianshu, a programming student with glasses and a cute, innocent expression.

Finally, Bai Siyi didn’t wear a dress today, instead, he wore simple jeans and a white T-shirt, with his long black hair flowing freely and light makeup, walking in calmly.

Not only the audience, but even the directors were amazed as they watched Bai Siyi in women’s clothing, thinking to themselves that he truly deserved to be chosen by Director Liu!

If Bai Siyi didn’t speak in his male voice, they wouldn’t have been able to tell he was a man!

As soon as Bai Siyi walked into the camera frame of the live stream, the audience went wild:

【Ahhh! That’s him, that’s him, it’s this man!】

【Wow, truly stunning! But why isn’t he wearing a skirt today? I want to see his long, straight legs!】

【Sisters, if this were a gay-themed variety show, Bai Siyi would probably be eaten alive, bones and all. Dog head.jpg】

【Can’t wait for Director Liu to plan a gay-themed variety show, eight men with seven tops and one bottom, then toss Bai Siyi into the top pile! Slurp slurp.jpg】

—

Although the live broadcast of First Heartbeat had just started, because Director Liu invited a cross-dressing master as a female guest for online dating, and yesterday’s teaser had trended, the program’s live room had almost immediately appeared on the homepage of the video platform as soon as it started broadcasting.

In less than half an hour, the live stream’s traffic had increased by hundreds of thousands!

—

In his office, Director Liu excitedly slapped his thigh as he watched the trending topics and the comments from netizens: “Look! I told you! This time, we’ve got it right!”

If the recording continues smoothly, he might even break the curse of the second season failing and make First Heartbeat‘s second season even more successful!

The four female guests were all seated on the couch. The other three were stunned, simply shocked, not having any other thoughts—just pure shock.

Even the female idol, Qiu Bo, who was sitting across from him, said: “Bai Siyi, it’s such a shame you’re not debuting.”

He’s even more beautiful than I am, a top-tier idol! That’s really rare.

The oldest “boss lady” in the group, who had an elegant style, wore big wavy hair and intricate makeup, along with a black dress. She looked at Bai Siyi in awe, with affection in her eyes as she sized him up. Then, she stood up and gracefully sat beside him.

Xi Mo had always been in the ^[1]“Four-love circle” (四爱圈) is likely internet slang or a niche term related to fandom culture. It may refer to a specific subculture within idol, entertainment, or LGBTQ+ communitiesfour-love circle, and she was drawn to someone like Bai Siyi.

The strong aura of the boss lady, mixed with the scent of perfume, immediately reached Bai Siyi. He straightened his back, placed his hands neatly on his lap, and nervously glanced at the boss lady sitting next to him.

“Hello, I’m Xi Mo.”

The boss lady took the initiative to extend her hand to Bai Siyi. A bit flustered, Bai Siyi shook her hand: “Hello, I’m Bai Siyi.”

Xi Mo then kindly introduced Bai Siyi to the other two female guests—one was a top-tier idol named Qiu Bo, and the other was a programming student named Jiang Mianshu.

Xi Mo was genuinely interested in Bai Siyi.

Xi Mo: “Are you still studying, Bai Siyi?”

Bai Siyi smiled and answered, “No, sister, I didn’t finish high school. I started working, and now I’m a factory worker on the clothing assembly line.”

Xi Mo: “…”

Everyone was shocked. Top-tier idol Qiu Bo widened her eyes and looked at him: “No way! Didn’t any talent scouts approach you?”

Bai Siyi shyly shook his head. But in reality, there had been many talent scouts, including Director Director Liu, who had personally approached him this time.

However, the previous scouts who wanted to bring him into the industry had made him wary. He felt that the entertainment industry was full of traps, and he didn’t want to turn himself into just a pretty commodity.

He didn’t have any special skills, no background, and lacked education. He feared that if someone took advantage of him, he would end up helping them profit. So he rejected all offers.

Although Bai Siyi was short on money, he was very cautious about these things. If he wasn’t confident, he wouldn’t go through with it. After all, he still had debts to pay and needed to take care of his mother. He didn’t have any siblings, and he had no fallback—if something went wrong, it would be the end for him.

Xi Mo smiled and said, “What a pity. You’re still young, do you still want to go back to school? If you do, I can help you.”

That was impossible!

Even if he wanted to go back to school, he couldn’t accept help from Xi Mo here. He immediately shook his head: “No, no, thank you, sister. I have a plan for myself.”

Xi Mo looked at him meaningfully but didn’t say anything more.

The audience in the live stream was also very shocked:

【So, Director Liu found another assembly line worker?】

【Excuse me, which factory does Bai Siyi work at? I’ve already prepared my resume, haha, I’m running over there to find my wife.】

【He started working at such a young age and didn’t even finish high school. Could his family be really struggling? I can help sponsor his education! Please give me contact details!】

—

The viewers in the live stream liked Bai Siyi very much. Even though he was a cross-dressing king, he was beautiful, reserved, and a bit shy when facing the camera. The audience instantly became his “^[2]“Mom fans” (妈妈粉, māmā fěn) are fans who adore a celebrity or public figure in a protective, caring way, similar to how a mother would treat a child. Instead of romantic … Continue readingmom fans.”

They eagerly asked about Bai Siyi’s situation under First Heartbeat’s account, but since it was an online dating variety show, the guests’ information would gradually be revealed during the show, so the production team wouldn’t respond to any inquiries.

After a simple self-introduction, the most anticipated segment came.

It was time for the guests to match with their online dating partners!

The staff handed each of the four female guests a phone and an envelope: “Inside, you’ll find the contact information of your online dating partner. Quickly use your exclusive dating phone to add them!”

Live stream: 【Hiss, the four male guests haven’t appeared yet, I’m really curious who they’ll match with!】

【Ah, too bad the male guests can only be revealed on the eighth day, when the female guests meet them in person. For now, we can only guess their identities through chat.】

【This was the same last season! Director Liu said it’s to increase the audience’s sense of participation and anticipation, so everyone can experience online dating along with the female guests!】

【Can’t wait to see who Bai Siyi’s match is!】

Of course, this is also what makes First Heartbeat so captivating. During the week of online chatting, the audience gets to experience online dating along with their favorite female guests, guessing and anticipating what kind of person the partner might be.

They analyze the partner’s identity, personality, career, etc., based on the statements they make. This results in high discussion topics and engagement every day, which makes both the audience and the production team happy—everyone wins.

The four female guests received their phones, then opened WeChat. The accounts were all registered by the production team, and the guest names were chosen by the guests themselves. It was just a week of chatting, so Bai Siyi didn’t take it too seriously. He named himself “Most Loves Macho Man,” aiming to keep the online dating experience genuine.

He advised the other person to have self-awareness and know when to back off! Smile.jpg

The audience in the live stream was stunned:

【Bai Siyi looks so pure with his loli voice, but turns out he’s into some heavy stuff! Dog shock.jpg】

【Wow, who doesn’t love a macho man? But I’m worried the online dating partner might be overwhelmed.】

【Director Liu is never subtle. If you like older people, he sets you up with a sibling relationship. If you like rich people, he’ll get you a factory worker. Now Bai Siyi likes Macho Man, maybe Director Liu will set him up with a roasted chicken.】

—

When the female guests received their online dating partner’s WeChat ID, they whispered among themselves: “I’m a bit nervous. I don’t know what kind of person they are, how old they are, or what kind of work they do.”

Xi Mo boldly said, “I don’t have high demands for work. Even if they’re just a factory worker, I don’t mind.”

She then deliberately glanced at Bai Siyi.

Bai Siyi awkwardly smiled but didn’t respond to that.

When Bai Siyi searched for his partner’s WeChat, he saw the name was a string of English letters. Since he wasn’t very familiar with English, he quickly overlooked it and added the person.

However, after adding them, he took another look at the name and instantly thought he might have misread it.

“Piupiustar? Is this their name?”

Bai Siyi was shocked. If it was, the name did seem a bit childish. He even thought of that phrase, “^[3]“Do you believe in light?” is a reference to Ultraman Tiga, a popular Japanese tokusatsu (special effects) series. The phrase comes from the show’s iconic transformation scene, where … Continue readingDo you believe in light?”