I Joined a Fake Variety Show (GL) - Chapter 4

Zuo Yuan quickly saw Zhou Xi’s message.

Zuo Yuan: [You!]

Zuo Yuan: [No wonder you’ll never be famous with such an unpleasant way of speaking!]

Zhou Xi silently rolled over and yawned.

Zhou Xi: […Are you famous?]

No.

Zuo Yuan hadn’t achieved any real fame over the years either, only standing on the periphery of variety shows.

When Zhou Xi asked the question, she had no ulterior motives; she was merely asking a simple, genuinely friendly question.

But Zuo Yuan was utterly furious upon reading it.

The next second:

[You have been removed from the group chat]

“…”

Is that all the fighting spirit you have?

Zhou Xi felt nothing special about being kicked out by Zuo Yuan. After deleting the group chat, she scrolled down, looking through the messages sent by others.

Unsurprisingly, a few old classmates had sent her screenshots of the hot search and the video, congratulating her on trending while asking what happened.

After replying to several people in a row, Zhou Xi’s fingers were numb from typing.

Taking a breath, Zhou Xi opened her Moment (Pēngyǒu Quān), which she hadn’t touched for eight centuries, and posted:

[I wasn’t collecting recyclables, just moving house. Thank you all for your concern, I won’t reply to everyone individually.]

After posting, Zhou Xi returned to the list, clicked on the remaining unanswered conversations, and then exited them. At this moment, Zhou Xi desperately wished WeChat had a one-tap select-all and mark-as-read option—it would be a blessing for people like her who couldn’t stand the red dots.

After a series of actions, the unread messages were finally down to five.

They were from two people in total.

Zhou Xi looked at the saved name of the sender, her knuckles hovering in mid-air, pausing her action.

Both were people she hadn’t expected.

One was her younger sister, Zhou Si Mei, and the other…

Why would Han Shutong message her?

Seemingly disbelieving, Zhou Xi clicked on the avatar to confirm again. After making sure it really was Han Shutong, a hint of confusion flashed in Zhou Xi’s eyes.

Han Shutong had starred in a famous director’s movie during her sophomore year, which aired during her junior year.

The movie was a huge success, with theaters packed to capacity.

Although Han Shutong, who played the female lead, was a newcomer, her appearance and acting were outstanding. Overnight, Han Shutong became famous. Her name occupied several hot searches, and her Weibo followers surged by millions after the movie’s release.

From then on, Han Shutong’s career path broadened significantly.

In contrast, she and her other dormmates only signed with a company after graduation.

Since graduating, Zhou Xi hadn’t been in frequent contact with any of her dormmates. In fact, their interactions were sparse even during their school days.

Han Shutong had a colder personality and spent little time in the dorm. The two rarely exchanged more than ten sentences in a conversation.

However, after graduation, just when Zhou Xi thought their paths had completely diverged, she would receive a mass-sent holiday greeting from Han Shutong every holiday. She would reply with a copied holiday wish from the internet.

Then she would get a “thank you” from Han Shutong, and Zhou Xi would reply with a “you’re welcome.”

The conversation would end.

Because of this, she and Han Shutong hadn’t completely lost touch over the past three years.

Opening the chat, Zhou Xi quickly glanced up. The last conversation was during the Dragon Boat Festival.

Today was not a holiday, just an ordinary, unremarkable day, so Zhou Xi was surprised to see Han Shutong’s avatar.

Unable to figure it out, Zhou Xi focused on the message Han Shutong had sent.

Just two words.

[Are you there?]

While Zhou Xi was typing in the group chat, Han Shutong was leaning on the sofa reading a script.

Normally, Han Shutong kept her phone on silent while reading a script, but today was an exception. The moment she heard the notification sound, Han Shutong already had her phone in hand.

Han Shutong, who was silently lurking, saw Zhou Xi’s message and the corner of her mouth involuntarily curved upward.

It was early afternoon, and warm, orange light streamed through the glass into the room, hitting the square mirror in the living room. The light refracted onto Han Shutong’s profile. Coupled with Han Shutong’s subtle smile, the scene merged into a picture of beauty.

From afar, Bai Mo couldn’t resist taking a photo.

But as a ‘click’ sound rang out, it not only reminded Bai Mo that she hadn’t muted her phone but also drew a sidelong glance from the woman.

“S-Sister Tong, I thought you looked really good from that angle, so I couldn’t resist taking a picture,” Bai Mo stammered nervously.

Oh no, oh no. Not only did I take a picture of Sister Tong, but I took one of Sister Tong in her pajamas.

I’m going to get scolded, I’m going to get scolded.

Just as Bai Mo’s finger was hovering over the delete button, the scolding she expected from Han Shutong didn’t happen. Instead, a slightly smiling, gentle-voiced Han Shutong appeared, saying, “Really? Let me see.”

Bai Mo was stunned for a few seconds, wondering why Han Shutong wasn’t angry. Her hand moved faster than her brain, and the phone was already in Han Shutong’s hand.

Han Shutong only glanced at it before handing the phone back to Bai Mo. “Your photography skills have improved.”

“Hehe.” Receiving the praise, Bai Mo couldn’t help but chuckle twice.

Han Shutong spoke up, “Can you help me with something?”

Bai Mo: “Tell me, Sister Tong.”

“Help me find a few cleaners to tidy up that apartment in the X district.”

Bai Mo instantly understood why she suddenly needed the apartment cleaned. “Are you going to film the show there?”

Han Shutong nodded. “Yes.”

“I understand. I’ll make the calls right away.”

After Bai Mo left, Han Shutong’s attention returned to her phone.

She then saw the message: “…Are you famous?”

Looking at the ellipsis before the question, Han Shutong could already imagine the look of confused inquiry on Zhou Xi’s face as she asked it.

Before Han Shutong’s smile could deepen, she saw the notification that Zuo Yuan had been removed from the group chat.

When Han Shutong deleted the group chat, she immediately received a message from Zuo Yuan.

Zuo Yuan: [Shutong, why did you leave the group?]

After kicking Zhou Xi out of the group, Zuo Yuan’s anger hadn’t subsided. She was cursing Zhou Xi to never be famous when she saw that only two people were left in the group chat.

Han Shutong had left the group!

Zuo Yuan immediately panicked. She had been trying to leverage Han Shutong’s network, hoping Han Shutong would introduce her to a few directors. Why did she suddenly leave the group now?

Zuo Yuan immediately messaged Han Shutong.

Han Shutong: [One person is missing from the group. It doesn’t make a difference if I’m not in it.]

So Han Shutong saw that Zhou Xi was gone and thought the group was disbanding?

Zuo Yuan: [How can you compare yourself to Zhou Xi? Look at the things she says, it’s really polluting the group.]

Han Shutong’s pupils constricted, and she pressed her lips together.

She clicked on her contacts list, scrolled to the very bottom, and looked at the text that read 120 friends. Han Shutong tapped her finger on the backrest of the sofa.

A few seconds later.

Han Shutong: [Sorry, my friends list is full. Clearing some space.]

Zuo Yuan saw this, and an alarm went off in her heart. Sure enough, after the next message was sent, there was a prominent red exclamation mark in front of the green bubble.

After the chat with Zuo Yuan ended, Han Shutong put down her phone and continued reading the script.

But she had only read one line when her phone rang again.

She looked over—it was Zhou Xi.

Zhou Xi: [Bear poking head out.jpg]

Zhou Xi: [I’m here. You aren’t contacting me just to ask about the Weibo hot search, are you?]

Han Shutong: [No, it’s about something else.]

Without waiting for Zhou Xi to ask, Han Shutong typed out the explanation she had rehearsed hundreds of times in her mind.

Han Shutong: [I recently accepted a lifestyle observation variety show, and I need a roommate. So, I wanted to ask if your schedule is free and if you could help me out?]

Free, free, free.

Zhou Xi didn’t even have a schedule to begin with.

Seeing the message from Han Shutong, Zhou Xi instantly bolted upright from the bed. She sat cross-legged, studying the content of the message.

Observation show? Roommate? Asking me to join?

Doesn’t that mean living with Han Shutong?

In college, Han Shutong was the cleanest and tidiest of the four. Her quilt was always perfectly squared, and she would immediately wash clothes after taking them off.

If they lived together, Han Shutong would undoubtedly be a good roommate.

Since she hadn’t found a place yet, she could stay at Han Shutong’s for now, using the opportunity to slowly search for an ideal apartment.

Zhou Xi was tempted.

Cohabitation wasn’t the issue, but the problem was…

Zhou Xi: [Can I secretly ask about the rent…]

Han Shutong: [There’s no rent. It’s my own apartment.]

That might be true, but Zhou Xi couldn’t live there for free.

They were only ordinary classmates. Moreover, given Han Shutong’s current fame, she would definitely gain attention as her roommate once the show aired.

Zhou Xi: [No, no, no, that won’t work. I have to pay rent. I can’t take advantage of you.]

Han Shutong: [So, you agree?]

Zhou Xi: [You must have seen the hot search today, right? Zuo Yuan mentioned it in the group chat earlier. I was actually moving house, not collecting recyclables.]

Hmm, it’s the same as my deduction.

Han Shutong: [I know.]

She knows? How does she know?

Zhou Xi: [But because I moved out in a hurry, I haven’t found a new place and am staying in a motel. So, your invitation is like a lifesaver, giving me a place to stay.]

Zhou Xi’s implied meaning was that she accepted.

But Zhou Xi’s calmly typed words made the person reading them feel a pang in her heart.

She had assumed…

That in the days she didn’t know about, the other person was still living a carefree and happy life.

But only today did Han Shutong realize that a woman needed so much strength to ride a vehicle piled high with boxes.

Han Shutong: [Then, how about deducting the rent from your appearance fee?]

!

There’s an appearance fee?!

Zhou Xi leaned back, lying flat on the bed. Holding up her phone, her eyes sparkled with joy and excitement.

So focused on finding a place to live, she had completely forgotten that being on a show came with an appearance fee.

Zhou Xi: [Can I secretly ask how much the appearance fee is?]

If it was a lot, she could rent a better apartment.

After Zhou Xi asked, the opposite side was slow to reply.

After waiting for a while, Zhou Xi was about to exit the chat with Han Shutong to reply to her sister’s message when a white chat bubble popped up.

Han Shutong: [Around 150,000.]