I Joined a Fake Variety Show (GL) - Chapter 12

Zhou Xi opened the door and saw Han Shutong standing there, dressed in gray silk pajamas. The fabric shimmered, reflecting tiny points of light under the hallway lamp.

Han Shutong’s long hair was clipped up with a hairpin, with a few wisps falling around her face. The casual hairstyle looked much softer than her usual meticulous appearance.

Hearing the door open, Han Shutong looked up, about to speak to Zhou Xi, but when she saw Zhou Xi’s flushed face, her words became: “You…”

Looking at Zhou Xi’s cheeks, the unspoken words caught in Han Shutong’s throat.

Zhou Xi was confused. “Me?”

Han Shutong smoothed over the ripple in her heart. Pretending to be unconcerned, she pointed to Zhou Xi’s face and asked, “Your face is a little red. Is the air conditioning not on?”

Zhou Xi touched her face. Without a mirror, the warmth under her fingertips told her how red her cheeks were. She immediately remembered the reason for her blush and stammered a cover-up. “I-it’s stuffy in the blankets.”

Han Shutong didn’t doubt her, but she found Zhou Xi’s flushed appearance adorable. The corner of her mouth curved slightly. “Then let’s eat breakfast.”

“Did you make it?” Zhou Xi asked.

Han Shutong paused. “Delivery.”

Zhou Xi said, “Oh.” “You go ahead and eat. I’ll go wash up.”

While washing her face, Zhou Xi deliberately used cold water for a physical cool-down.

When Zhou Xi finished washing up and came out, she saw Han Shutong sitting at the dining table, looking down at her phone. Zhou Xi’s eyes flickered, and she noticed the food on the table hadn’t been touched.

“Don’t wait for me, you eat first,” Zhou Xi said as she walked over.

“Mhm.”

Although she said that, Han Shutong didn’t open the takeout boxes until Zhou Xi sat down.

It was still steamed buns and congee, but this time the congee was changed to century egg and lean pork congee.

Zhou Xi took a sip and gave Han Shutong a thumbs-up.

Han Shutong: “I’m glad you like it.”

With that, Han Shutong lowered her head to reply to Bai Mo’s WeChat messages. There was an advertisement to be posted today, and Bai Mo needed to log into Han Shutong’s Weibo. Since Bai Mo had changed her phone, she was asking Han Shutong for the verification code.

As Han Shutong sent the code to Bai Mo and was about to put the phone down to focus on eating, Bai Mo sent two more messages.

Bai Mo: [Screenshot]

Bai Mo: [Sister Tong, Sister Zhou wants you to look at her / smirk]

Han Shutong clicked on the image. The two characters “Wife” (老婆) forcefully jumped into Han Shutong’s sight.

Because Han Shutong and Zhou Xi followed each other on Weibo, Bai Mo saw Zhou Xi’s comment the moment she logged in.

Han Shutong exited WeChat and opened Weibo.

She found the post, sorted the comments by time, scrolled down nearly a hundred comments, and finally found Zhou Xi’s comment.

@ZhouXi: Wife, look at me!

Comment Time: 7.13—7:30

It was right around the time she had knocked to wake Zhou Xi up.

Han Shutong clearly knew this couldn’t have been posted by Zhou Xi herself. After taking a screenshot, she handed the phone to Zhou Xi. “Your account has been hacked.”

Zhou Xi had just taken a sip of congee. Hearing Han Shutong’s words, she frowned in confusion.

Hacked?

Looking down, Zhou Xi first recognized the Weibo interface, then recognized it as a comment on Han Shutong’s Weibo, and then…

The familiar profile picture, the familiar Weibo name, and even the commented sentence were familiar.

Zhou Xi nearly choked on a mouthful of congee. “Wait, let me go check.”

For a moment, Zhou Xi also thought she had been hacked. But when she rushed back to her room, grabbed her phone, and saw the screen still showed the unrefreshed page after commenting, she realized she had posted the comment herself.

“…”

Didn’t I delete it? How was it not completely deleted? When did I comment? Did I accidentally hit the send button when I put the phone down just now?

Zhou Xi had found the truth.

Zhou Xi pulled down to refresh, then scrolled to her comment. Seeing only three likes, Zhou Xi let out a sigh of relief.

At this moment, Zhou Xi suddenly felt thankful she was a minor celebrity whom no one paid attention to.

Otherwise, the consequences would be unimaginable.

While Zhou Xi was deleting the comment, Bai Mo messaged Han Shutong.

Bai Mo: [Sister Tong, why did you kick me out? I’m going to miss the ad posting time.]

Han Shutong: [Mhm, I logged out.]

Zhou Xi walked out of the room, pretending to be natural. “It really was hacked. Good thing you found it in time.”

“Did you get it back?” Han Shutong asked.

Zhou Xi sat back down and nodded. “Yes, yes, no need to worry.”

As she spoke, Zhou Xi’s face didn’t blush and her heart didn’t race, as if she were speaking the truth.

But the next second, Zhou Xi asked hesitantly, “…How did you know I was hacked?”

Han Shutong swallowed the congee in her mouth, her eyebrows slightly raised, and asked in a low voice, “Would you call me wife?”

“N-no,” Zhou Xi said in a fluster.

Han Shutong nodded. “Then it must have been hacked.”

Seeing Han Shutong so certain, the worry in Zhou Xi’s heart settled.

A little while later.

“Today…”

Today was the first day of filming. Han Shutong was worried Zhou Xi might be uncomfortable, so she wanted to ask if she was nervous or if she wanted to film an outdoor scene instead of staying at home.

But Zhou Xi took a sip of congee. Hearing Han Shutong speak, she quickly swallowed the congee in her mouth and said, “Sorry, I need to go out for the whole day today. I won’t be able to stay home with you.”

Han Shutong paused in the act of picking up a steamed bun. She looked up at Zhou Xi, opening her mouth as if to ask something, but finally just nodded. “Okay.”

After picking up the bun, she asked, “Do you need me to drive you?”

Her tone was soft and slight, with a hint of anticipation.

But Zhou Xi didn’t catch it. She shook her head. “No need to trouble you. I’ll just take the subway.”

Han Shutong hummed. It wasn’t until they finished eating and Zhou Xi was clearing the table that she spoke. “What time are you coming back?”

“Around six or seven in the evening. Don’t wait for me for dinner; I’ll eat outside,” Zhou Xi thought for a moment and said.

Han Shutong nodded. “Okay.”

After clearing the table, Zhou Xi returned to the bedroom.

Han Shutong sat on the sofa, with the script now replaced by a tablet on her lap.

Hearing the door open, Han Shutong merely intended to glance up, but her gaze instantly settled on a certain person and couldn’t look away.

Zhou Xi usually wore no makeup, only applying it for auditions or filming. Even then, it was just penciling her eyebrows, lining her eyes, and applying a light lip color. It was evident that Zhou Xi didn’t pay much attention to makeup, relying on her good features.

But today, not only was Zhou Xi’s makeup much more deliberate, but her clothes were also clearly chosen with care.

Zhou Xi saw Han Shutong looking at her, smiled, and waved. “I’m heading out~”

“Be careful on the road,” Han Shutong said after a pause.

“Will do~” Zhou Xi seemed to be in a very good mood, skipping as she walked.

With a ‘click’, Han Shutong was the only one left in the apartment. The room fell silent.

Han Shutong had no mind to look at the content on the tablet anymore. She set it aside and stood up to pour herself a glass of water.

Returning to the sofa, she picked up the script lying on the other side and began reading it.

She thought changing the object would shift her focus, but she still couldn’t concentrate.

Han Shutong looked up at the camera in front of her. “I will be reading scripts here all day.”

She was speaking to the people in the studio.

The production team initially didn’t believe anyone would work all day. But when they saw Han Shutong eat the leftover steamed buns from the morning for lunch and then change position to lie on the sofa, they finally believed her.

Han Shutong, the workaholic persona, stood firm.

It wasn’t until 5:30 PM that Zhou Xi returned from outside.

The moment the door opened, Han Shutong’s hand, which was writing notes, subtly curled, and the line she was reading stopped.

Zhou Xi changed her shoes in the entryway. She was wondering what Han Shutong was doing when she walked into the living room and saw Han Shutong sitting on the sofa.

Zhou Xi stopped and asked, “You… didn’t move all day, did you?”

“I moved.”

She had gone to the restroom, looked for a pen, and searched the kitchen for food.

Zhou Xi nodded and asked, “What did you eat for lunch?”

Han Shutong: “Steamed buns.”

Zhou Xi said, “Uh.” “The leftovers from the morning?”

Han Shutong nodded, but her gaze remained fixed on the script.

Zhou Xi: “What about dinner?”

“Haven’t eaten yet.”

Zhou Xi: “Shall I cook for you?”

Han Shutong finally put down the script, looked at Zhou Xi, and nodded. “Yes, please.”

“What do you want to eat?”

“Shredded potatoes with green peppers.”

Zhou Xi turned and walked to the refrigerator. The potatoes were finished and needed to be restocked. Zhou Xi said, “I’ll go buy groceries.”

Han Shutong stood up from the sofa. “I’ll go with you.”

Zhou Xi pointed at Han Shutong’s pajamas. “Then go change your clothes.”

In the studio, hearing that Han Shutong was going out, a few people commented, “She’s finally moving. Oh no, we finally have an outdoor scene.”

The vegetable market.

“Besides potatoes and green peppers, is there anything else you want to eat? Since we’re out, we can buy some other vegetables too,” Zhou Xi asked.

“Mhm, we can look around.”

The market was bustling with vendors shouting and customers haggling.

Han Shutong’s tense emotions relaxed somewhat here.

“I’m going to buy some fruit,” Han Shutong told the person selecting vegetables.

“Okay.”

About ten minutes later, the two finished their shopping and returned to the car.

After driving for a while.

Han Shutong, feeling much more relaxed, asked the question she had been debating in her mind for a long time, trying to make it sound casual: “What did you… do today?”

Zhou Xi was looking out the window. Hearing Han Shutong’s question, she turned and replied, “I went to see a friend.”

Han Shutong pursed her lips. Must be a very important friend.

In the end, Han Shutong only replied, “Mhm.”

Zhou Xi: “What did you do today?”

Han Shutong: “Read scripts.”

“Nothing else?” Zhou Xi immediately lowered her voice and asked Han Shutong conspiratorially, “Did they not ask you to act according to the script?”

Han Shutong shook her head. “No.”

In fact, the production team did think about asking Han Shutong to act, but then thought that Han Shutong sitting on the sofa all day might also be a good topic of conversation, so they didn’t bother her.

“What should we do for the next two days?”

The content of each episode was edited from three days of filming, and the broadcast footage would be the most entertaining parts of those three days.

Zhou Xi searched on her phone. “Wait, let me see…”

A minute later, Zhou Xi listed potential activities like a restaurant menu: “Should we go bungee jumping? Or skydiving? Paragliding?”

“Bungee jumping it is.”

“Huh?” Zhou Xi let out a dry laugh. “Aren’t you scared? I’m a little scared.”

“Then why did you suggest it?”

“I was just teasing you.” Zhou Xi hadn’t expected Han Shutong to agree without hesitation. She awkwardly closed the images she had searched for. “Cherish life, stay away from extreme sports.”

Han Shutong narrowed her eyes. “Actually, there are things we can do at home too.”

Zhou Xi turned to look at her. “Like what?”

“Teach me to cook.”