Note: This is a plot transition chapter, there is no main CP.

DISCLAIMER: We don’t own any of the stories published. We don’t know any Chinese language and this is our first time MTL-ing a novel, expect inaccuracies in the translations.

❌ NO SPOILERS. WE ARE MTL-ING THIS AT THE SAME TIME WE’RE READING IT ❌

Translated by: Jie Jie

Unedited. So there will be some typos and grammatical errors. Bear with me QAQ

Part 2/2 of chapter 28~~

Chapter 28.2 – He is worried about Jinchen’s Illness

Li Qiucheng sent a message with off-duty hours, but Xin Zimai didn’t want to admit it, so Li Qiucheng pretended he didn’t know. He smiled and didn’t ask more questions, instead he said, “Go upstairs. I bought yellow-bone fish soup for dinner.”

Xin Zimai had always found it strange. Li Qiucheng had obviously grown up abroad, yet he learned a lot of handful of good Chinese skills like making porridge and soup. What Xin Zimai thought was quite difficult, it looked extraordinary in Li Qiucheng’s hands.

Xin Zimai asked curiously before, but Li Qiucheng only said that his mother was good at cooking, so he had been cooking since he was a child. This description made Xin Zimai even more curious about his aunt who was friends with her mother, but he had never met her before.

The two of them took the elevator upstairs. Li Qiucheng was carrying two large bags full of ingredients, including yellow-bone fish for the fish soup. Xin Zimai originally wanted to help out politely, but Li Qiucheng didn’t give him any. He only let him open the door first, so Xin Zimai walked in front of him with empty hands.

He vaguely felt that something was wrong. He was like a playful child, leaving his parents alone behind to carry big bags. But Li Qiucheng’s look was so natural that it seemed as if Xin Zimai had thought too much.

When he returned home, Li Qiucheng went to buy ingredients and started cooking. Xin Zimai came home after more than half a month of tiredness. He just wanted to collapse on the sofa when he suddenly received a call from Zhou Jinchen.

Li Qiucheng rolled up his cuffs to reveal his bony wrists. He was busy in the open kitchen area and intermittently heard Xin Zimai’s voice.

Xin Zimai’s call was long and by the time the creamy yellow-bone fish and tofu stew was served, he was frowning and talking in the living room. Li Qiucheng glanced at him and turned to bring up some fried dishes.

It turned out that when Xin Zimai lived by himself, he hadn’t even unpacked the whole set of kitchen utensils he had bought, and his life depended on takeaways. If it weren’t for Li Qiucheng, those beautiful porcelain bowls would have been dusty until they were obsolete.

Only when the three dishes and one soup were ready did Xin Zimai hang up the phone. He came back after washing his hands, his eyes were still a little empty. When Li Qiucheng brought him the fish soup, he sat down and stared at the bowl of creamy white fish soup with stars and onion rings floating on it.

Seeing this, Li Qiucheng asked, “What’s wrong?”

Xin Zimai took a long time to hear it. He reacted and waved his hand, “Nothing. It’s something at work.”

Li Qiucheng said, “Right, someone in our group also mentioned this matter. Did Jinchen win an award? I haven’t had the time to congratulate him yet.”

Ever since Zhou Jinchen stopped going to the deep mountains to cultivate, he still needed to do regular reviews every now and then. Coincidentally, the doctor in charge of him happened to be the teacher of Li Qiucheng’s research group. Li Qiucheng has also helped the teacher since he joined the research group, and the last few times Zhou Jinchen’s reviews had been handled by Li Qiucheng. After all, the two of them met each other much later than Xin Zimai had known Li Qiucheng.

Xin Zimai nodded his head. Doctors are busy with their daily work, and news like this that has been out of time in the entertainment industry after nearly a month may still be a very novel news for Li Qiucheng and the others. Xin Zimai rubbed his eyes and said, “The call was made by Jinchen.”

Li Qiucheng looked at him and asked softly, “It’s tricky?”

Xin Zimai reported the news and said, “It’s not…It’s just that I don’t quite understand it.”

“What’s wrong?”

Xin Zimai used the round porcelain to evenly scoop up the fish soup and slowly brought it into his mouth. He was about to speak, but he was taken aback after drinking it, “….it tastes good.”

The ironing warmth slid from his lips and teeth down to his throat. The flavor was so rich and it was even slightly sweet. The sense of satisfaction exploded in his taste buds, and the next instant it turned into a fervent craving that screamed for more, wanting to keep tasting the next spoonful.

Although Xin Zimai already knew that Li Qiucheng’s cooking was good, there wasn’t a time when he wasn’t amazed by the finished product.

Li Qiucheng smiled, “Drink slowly, there is still a lot more.”

“En.” Xin Zimai drank a couple more before continuing the topic just now, “Jinchen told me he didn’t want to stir up any more heat…He wanted to suppress his topic.”

Li Qiucheng asked, “Isn’t that good?

“It’s not that bad,” Xin Zimai frowned. “It’s just that this is what Jinchen does for a living. What else is he going to do without the heat? Even if he wants to go the actor’s route, it doesn’t conflict with the heat ah……I don’t quite understand his thoughts.”

He pinched the spoon and sighed, “I don’t dare directly persuade him. I’m worried about the fact that Jinchen will suddenly think this way is related to his illness…..He probably doesn’t want to keep indulging these real high densities of emotions.”

“Honestly, I’ve been worried about this,” Xin Zimai pulled his hair in annoyance. Li Qiucheng is the only person besides him who was also informed. It was only when he faced this person that he could express his worries, “Jinchen is very strong and have to do his best. He can interpret the emotions of the characters in the script smoothly and control them profoundly. That’s why he got to where he is today.”

“But you know,” Xin Zimai let out a long breath, he said grimly, “This is what ails Jinchen. He is only bad at perceiving emotions related to him. Although he has been fine all these years, I’m worried that one day he…”

“Actually, I don’t think so.”

The back of Xin Zimai’s cold hand was suddenly covered by a warm body heat. He was stunned for a moment. Li Qiucheng quickly put his hand back, looked at him, and said, “I’ve been following up on Jinchen’s review. My deepest impression of what happened to him is that he’s a very strong and very persistent person.”

“So, I think this matter may need to be thought in another direction.” Li Qiucheng said, “For this matter of suppressing the topic, did Jinchen explained to you why?”

Xin Zimai held the tips of his cold fingers and pondered, “He’s talking about the usual…..the hype will backfire and all that, but now that the big background is here, everyone is in the circle, how are we going to keep the popularity if we don’t do this? Moreover, we are not forced to stir up the heat, Jinchen has his own amount of topics. Many achievements are already there, and we’re just pushing the boat along with the river.”1顺水推舟: lit. to push the boat with the current; fig. to take advantage of the situation for one’s own benefit

Zhou Jinchen had just won Film Emperor, it was the right time to build momentum. Xin Zimai felt that his words were really a bit unreasonable, which was why he thought of going somewhere else.

Li Qiucheng himself was not a member of the circle. He was a doctor who couldn’t even talk about the last Film Emperor of the Wutong Awards. Xin Zimai can say these things and didn’t expect him to help, but only because they are the two people who knew about Zhou Jinchen’s condition, they would talk about these things at great length.

What Xin Zimai didn’t expect was that Li Qiucheng was not just a bystander, he thought about it and said, “Actually, I think what Jinchen said is reasonable.”

“…. Ah?” Xin Zimai was taken aback.

“I don’t understand the methods in your industry, about data, traffic, marketing, and stuff like that. But from a bystander’s point of view, the regulations in the industry right now…..is indeed problematic.”

Xin Zimai frowned and was a little unhappy. He felt that Li Qiucheng was talking nonsense without knowing what he was talking about and that the line of business had its own doorway. What qualifications did an amateur have to evaluate the rules of the industry?

Li Qiucheng noticed his expression but didn’t stop as he said, “I don’t think what Jinchen is saying is an old-fashioned excuse, but what he really thinks. As you know, Jinchen has a strong business talent, and these in the entertainment industry won’t jump out of money and business. Other than that, he’s always had a good eye for things.”

Xin Zimai slowly calmed down a bit. But what really made him change his mind was Li Qiucheng’s next words.

“The little girl in our group said that the Weibo post where Jinchen won the Film Emperor was forwarded millions of times on the first day, and the fans are spontaneously organizing to hit the Weibo tens of millions of times.”

“Maimai, heat and traffic are essential things, but they don’t replace everything. Jinchen’s heat is truly amazing, and he’s the equivalent of setting a benchmark here. It’s just that if he can do it now, someone will be able to surpass him in the future.”

“But actors are different. No powerful actor will be directly replaced. What is shaped by one actor will always belong to that actor. Someone can remake it, adapt it, but a classic will always be a classic. It will never change.”

“Of course, I’m just an amateur who knows very little about the industry.”

Li Qiucheng finished these great words slowly. He held his glasses down and said, “But I think that you should have a good chat with Jinchen to find out what he’s thinking.”

“Jinchen wants to be an actor, and it’s something he has to do considering his personal condition. But this kind of thing doesn’t mean that it’s a wrong choice in the current situation.”

Xin Zimai looked at the creamy white fish soup in front of him for a long time before responding in a low voice.

“Okay. I’ll talk to him.”

—-

As the one being worried, Zhou Jinchen didn’t know what his agent was thinking. After he was busy for a period of time, it was time for 《Sunny Weekend》 to air.

After the buildup of the first season and the recent publicity, the rating of the second season of 《Sunny Weekend》 was very pleasing, but this data was not the one that the show was mostly looking forward to. They also have a more valuable issue of resources —— for the two recording guests of the second episode are more well-known now than they were when they recorded at that time.

This is Zhou Jinchen’s first variety show after being crowned the Best Actor. He himself has not participated in many variety shows, with only a few of them being repeatedly viewed by fans. This time new content was released, fans naturally won’t miss such a good opportunity.

In addition to the new Best Actor, the program also has another killer copper – this is also the first variety show that An Xumo, who became famous in the 《Dance to the Top Show》 participated in after the game.

What makes the show even happier is that there are a lot of interactions between these two.

What could be more popular with viewers than this kind of episode?

The post-editing team that had been tormented by Li Xiuqing and some unnamed investor in turn simply had to hug and weep. No one expected that they would be tossed around for so long, that they had come unexpectedly and mistakenly chose the best result.

The author has something to say:

In the transition chapter, I wrote some parts of the reasons why the brother is an actor. In the future transition chapter, I will remind you in the previous chapter and title. Girls who don’t want to buy can skip it~

The next chapter is about Xiao Mo and his brother.

So, this is really a story about two people who both have emotional flaws and are slowly healing each other. In the early stage, Xiao Mo likes his brother a little more, and in the later stage, his brother likes Xiao Mo more.

(Of course, Xiao Mo may not agree with this. Ahem.)

Anyway, thank you all very much for your support-v-.