Huayu 2021: Isn’t he in the technology field?

Chapter 199: CP Fan Battle, When Xingxing Gets Lost

At 8 PM, Weibo's servers faced a new test.

The official Weibo account for "Lighter and Princess Dress" unexpectedly released nine photos of the costumes, captioned "The encounter between a king and a knight, an ever-burning lamp in a wasteland."

In the first photo, Jiang Qing sports blonde hair, one hand in her pocket, wearing a loose and simple white shirt, and glaring arrogantly at the camera.

Zhang Jingyi stood holding a book, wearing a red plaid dress. Her ponytail was slightly lifted by the wind, and her profile was both stubborn and full of stories.

The Weibo server immediately sounded an alarm.

As soon as programmer Xiao Wang opened the food delivery app, the alarm pierced the office. He watched in disbelief as the word "Explosive" appeared after the search term "Jiang Qingjinfa," and the comment section refreshed with thousands of screams every second.

"This isn't a promotional photo; it's like Li Xun himself crawled out of the book!"

I have to work overtime again!
He grabbed his hair, closed his eyes, and looked pained.

"Golden-haired Jiang Shen! He's like a character straight out of a comic book! Absolutely amazing!"

"It's even more comic book-like than a manga! I never thought I'd see Jiang Shen with blonde hair!"

"I love Jiang Shen's world-weary face! That's exactly the kind of feeling I'm all about!"

"Seriously, his expression perfectly captured Li Xun's character! That's exactly the feeling!"

"The key point is that Jiang Shen and Zhang Jingyi just stood there, and their auras were so harmonious! This darn CP chemistry is incredible!"

"I was immediately drawn to Zhang Jingyi's stubborn face during the filming of 'The Wind Rises'! She played a princess without any awkwardness; Zhu Yun is simply a match made in heaven!"

"I declare! Mingyun Xunhuan is the strongest CP in the Chinese entertainment industry!"

"Bah! Jiang Zhou Yu Huo smiled without saying a word!"

"True love at first sight is in art!"

"A beautiful and reasonable combination is the best duo!"

……

The comments section quickly veered off-topic, turning from discussions about outfits into a battleground between CP (couple) fans.

A fan of the original work, @金毛熊熊, posted ten comparison pictures in the super topic, placing photos of Jiang Qing coding alongside screenshots from the novel and comics.

The top-rated comment lamented: "Finally, I don't have to watch those wooden actors who can't even put their hands down on the keyboard anymore!"

Douyin film blogger @瓜田蹦迪 quickly edited and released a video, adding a clip of Jiang Qing's speech at the Baidu AI Conference with a line from a novel: "Where I am is the mountaintop."

The number of likes exceeded one million in just a few tens of minutes.

The comment section was flooded with fans of the original novel: "Help! Even the way he raises his eyebrows is exactly the same as I imagined!"

Zhang Jingyi's studio took the opportunity to release behind-the-scenes footage of the photoshoot for her official makeup photos.

In the video, Zhang Jingyi tiptoes to hand the coffee cup to Jiang Qing. As she turns around, her ponytail brushes against his blond hair, and the scene freezes on the moment Jiang Qing raises an eyebrow.

A popular fan, @仪眼万年, immediately reposted: "The scene where Zhu Yun hands coffee to Li Xun! It's a famous scene from Chapter 37 of the book!"

The popularity index of the CP super topic "Ming Yun Xun Huan" soared, dropping to seventh place on the CP list, pushing "Yan Zhi You Li" and "Yi Jian Qing Xin" out of the top ten, and closing in on the third place "Jiang Zhou Yu Huo".

The number one spot naturally belongs to the "Honor Couple," who became a sensation last month due to the broadcast of "You Are My Glory."

Since the show started airing, Yang Yang's fans have been spamming the comments, "People always meet the best Yang Yang at different stages of their lives." Dilraba's fans are also proud of her outstanding performance, claiming that Dilraba is the chosen one, Qiao Jingjing.

Unlike Dilraba's previous dramas, her performance in "You Are My Glory" has been widely praised. The only problem is that the series was reported by many parents in the early stages due to too much game content, but it's not a big issue.

The four fan groups were locked in a fierce battle over the trending topic "Who is the real CP?", with no one willing to concede. A small number of fans of Tian Xiwei and Zhao Jinmai also took the opportunity to stir up trouble, creating a huge uproar.

Zhou Ye's biggest fan, @Wildfire, posted a long article to control the situation: "Some people are really ugly trying to piggyback on this! Jiang Shen even gave Ye Zi the endorsement of JD Supermarket, do I need to say more?"

The accompanying photo shows Jiang Qing and Zhou Ye together on a bamboo raft at a Chinese restaurant.

Zhang Jingyi's biggest fans immediately retaliated.

@仪心一意 posted the filming schedule: "Some people are a thing of the past. The next four months of filming are enough to change a lot of things. People can't stay in the same place forever. Besides, the fact that Jiang Shen is willing to act with our Xiao Zhang already says a lot, doesn't it? Stop fooling yourselves, okay?"

Meng Ziyi herself suddenly appeared on the scene, commenting under Zhang Jingyi's Weibo post: "When are you going to teach me, junior, how to get Dr. Jiang to give me his blonde hair for semi-permanent use?"

The accompanying picture is a photoshopped selfie of her blonde hair.

Netizens burst into laughter, and "Meng Ziyi steals hair color online" surged to fifth place on the trending topics list.

The real blow came from Wang Sulong.

During his live stream on Douyin, he was teased by fans who requested songs, and he suddenly grinned mischievously at the camera.

"How about singing 'A Little Sweet'? There's a couple that's really suited to this song lately."

The screen was immediately flooded with comments about "Ming Yun Xun Huan", and the number of viewers soared to five million in the blink of an eye.

Wang Sulong realized something was wrong and immediately shut down the live stream, citing a problem with the medium.

Thank goodness, he didn't see the trending topics. The original message was "Jiangzhou Fishing Lights"!
I need to explain this to Yezi right away; this whole thing has caused a huge commotion!

A popular post appeared in the Douban group "Has the entertainment industry collapsed today?"

"Is Jiang Qing the most chemistryable crossover celebrity in the Chinese entertainment industry?"

The original poster listed the following: Meng Ziyi's domineering CEO-like wife, Zhou Ye's pure campus romance, Zhang Jingyi's fateful entanglement, Chen Duling's intellectual romance, and Zhao Jinmai's youthful innocence...

The most upvoted comment is a concise summary.

"He looks at dogs with deep affection, but when he looks at Zhang Jingyi, it's like he's looking at his destiny."

A well-known drama critic on Weibo, @八倍镜追剧, published a lengthy analysis.

"The most amazing thing about Jiang Qing and Zhang Jingyi is not their matching looks, but the sense of destiny pushing and pulling. The golden-haired, arrogant genius and the stubborn princess, the collision of their dangerous yet pure auras, is a chemical reaction that no acting skills can portray."

The accompanying image is a behind-the-scenes GIF of the two gazing at each other, and it was shared over 100,000 times in half an hour.

The real trump card comes from Twentine, the author of the original "Lighter" novel.

She posted the message ten minutes after the official Weibo account was updated.

"I was drinking milk tea when I saw the photos, and I choked when I saw Jiang Qing's official makeup photos. This is a perfect copy of Li Xun from my mind! Jiang Shen is so handsome! I'm screaming and cheering!!!"

Zhang Jingyi was also certified by her.

"The way she stubbornly looked up was exactly how Zhu Yun looked when she pushed open the base gate."

The fan culture earthquake continues unabated, with amazing fan-made videos appearing on Douyin.

The content creator cross-edited Jiang Qing's high school programming competition videos with Zhang Jingyi's stage performance clips from her student days, adding the theme song "Lighter," and the barrage of comments went wild.

"So everything was preordained!"

The most outrageous thing was that the fire department's official Weibo account joined in the fun, reposting a still of Jiang Qingjin from the drama as a reminder.

"Hair dye is a flammable substance, so the film crew should pay attention to fire safety!"

The comments section instantly turned into a meme-filled session.

"Li Xun's lighter has been handed over; now let's warm everyone with Jiang Shen's code fire!"

When "Mingyun Xunhuan" surged to third place on the trending searches, Zhang Jingyi's agent's phone was bombarded with calls from brands.

Jiang Qing doesn't have an agent, and the brands know he's unlikely to accept endorsements. They can only try to get through Zhang Jingyi to agree.

They realized that with this level of attention, the popularity of their drama would definitely be high, so they decided to act first.

Even if the chances are slim, how will we know if it will work if we don't try?
At 10 p.m., netizens who stayed up late surfing the internet discovered that the three super topics "Jiang Zhou Yu Huo", "Yi Jian Qing Xin" and "Ming Yun Xun Huan" were all trending on the hot search list, which can be described as a spectacle in the Chinese entertainment industry.

While the internet was abuzz with excitement, the two people involved seemed remarkably relaxed.

A faded plastic shed stands deep inside the night market.

Jiang Qing pulled the brim of his baseball cap down to his brow bone, his blond stubble completely hidden in the shadows.

He sat on a low stool with his long legs bent, peeling edamame beans with his fingertips, the green shells falling into the enamel plate with a soft rustling sound.

Zhang Jingyi crouched down and squeezed into the plastic tent, her canvas bag still covered in sequins from the film set.

She expertly picked up the thermos and scalded the bowls and chopsticks.

"Boss, grill the lamb skewers a little longer, this Jin."

Seeing Jiang Qing's warning look, she suppressed a laugh and changed her words.

"This person doesn't like food that's too oily."

"okay!"

The owner, busy grilling skewers, yelled without turning his head. Jiang Qing curled his lips, knelt on a low stool, and wiped the greasy tabletop with a tissue.

"What happened to the Michelin-starred meal?"

Zhang Jingyi rested her chin on one hand and shook her head in disappointment.

"With such a large business empire, President Jiang, is treating me to dinner causing a budget deficit?"

That makes it sound like she wasn't the one who was clamoring for barbecue earlier.

Amidst the smoke rising from the grill, Jiang Qing pointed to the tabletop.

"Isn't this a feast enough?"

Fingertips traced across the greasy menu.

Boston lobster or Australian Wagyu beef?

Zhang Jingyi slapped away his feigned hand.

"Ten more skewers of lamb and two bottles of ice-cold Coke, please!"

After saying that, he laughed out loud, then took his phone out of his pocket and waved it at him.

"I just saw someone say that we were eating French food, it's hilarious."

The phone screen displayed a newly released exposé from a marketing account, accompanied by a photo that was clearly a forced perspective image taken during their afternoon shoot.

Jiang Qing glanced at the title "Top-Tier Japanese Cuisine Private Meeting" and her lips twitched.

"The photo editing skills are terrible."

"That's the key point!"

Zhang Jingyi clicked on the top comment, where a netizen with the ID "Has Mingyun Xunhuan made an official announcement today?" commented: "The golden-haired loser and the frizzy princess are a perfect match!"

She deliberately read it in the tone of Zhu Yun from the script.

What is Li Xun's opinion on this?

Jiang Qing flipped the freshly baked bread slices over.

"I suggest he retake Probability Theory and Mathematical Statistics."

The aroma of honey filled the air, and he suddenly looked up.

"However, the description of this 'frizzy-haired princess' is quite apt."

A gust of night wind blew into the plastic shed, and Zhang Jingyi glared at him, holding down her wildly flying hair.

"I think 'Golden Retriever Loser' is a very fitting description!"

Her eyes darted around, and she suddenly covered her mouth and lowered her voice.

"I heard about your and senior Meng Ziyi's 'Love at First Sight' super topic"

"Eggplant smells delicious."

Jiang Qing poked open the soft eggplant flesh, but the aroma of garlic interrupted the conversation.

"Don't just talk."

A few middle-aged men next door got into a drinking game and started playing drinking games. Zhang Jingyi took the opportunity to move her stool half a foot closer.

"The fishing lights on the river..."

Jiang Qing pushed the iced cola over.

"Eat and drink at the same time, don't choke."

Seeing that the girl was about to speak, he skewered the roasted mushrooms with a bamboo stick.

"Try this, it's 0.5 points worse than what a Michelin-starred chef makes."

Zhang Jingyi took a bite of the mushroom from his hand, and it burned her tongue.

"So where is the difference?"

"The difference lies in..."

Jiang Qing wiped the sauce from the corner of her mouth with a tissue.

"It's not located in Lujiazui."

The girl burst out laughing.

That's true!
At this moment, the owner came over wearing flip-flops and put the remaining skewers down for them.

Jiang Qing took out her phone to pay, and the payment notification sound was exceptionally clear.

"WeChat payment received—80 yuan!"

Zhang Jingyi laughed so hard she clutched her stomach.

"The spending records of a billionaire CEO at night are shocking."

She raised her phone towards Jiang Qing.

"Look at this poll! 62% of netizens bet that we'll have to do more than 20 takes for our kissing scenes."

Jiang Qing pressed down on the brim of his hat and leaned closer to the screen.

"What about the remaining 38%?"

I bet your ears will turn red!

Zhang Jingyi suddenly reached out and pinched his earlobe, but Jiang Qing turned his head to avoid it.

She triumphantly waved her phone.

"Now you know what big data prediction is, right?"

Jiang Qing smiled and grabbed a lamb skewer, taking a big bite.

When the barbecue was over, Jiang Qing picked up her sun-protective clothing that she had left on the stool and got up.

"The script reading is on the 28th, you can come a day earlier."

"What, Mr. Jiang, are you going to extend hospitality?"

Zhang Jingyi was the first to leave the stall, stepping backwards as she stepped on his shadow.

"I've never really explored Luyang properly."

Her expression was full of anticipation.

At the invitation of the university, the location for the lighter photo shoot has been changed from Shanghai University of Technology to the University of Science and Technology of China.

Jiang Qing suspected that they wanted her to catch up on the public courses she had missed, and also use her as a form of advertising to attract more future students.

"We'll know when the time comes."

He spoke in riddles.

"Great! The unknown is always something to look forward to."

The girl tilted her head and smiled radiantly.

"Ah."

Jiang Qing gazed at her and nodded gently.

Under the streetlights, his eyes were slightly narrowed, the pupils sparkling like a crescent moon.

It looks exactly the same as when we first met.

"What are you looking at?"

Zhang Jingyi asked out of curiosity.

"The way it looks when it gets lost while looking at the stars and crashes into the human world."

The girl paused, looked up at him.

Their eyes met, and the night suddenly softened.

(End of this chapter)