The moment Luo Ming stepped out of the car, he spotted Lin Shuyue already waiting for him at the entrance of the TV station.
He couldn’t help but think back to what Lin Shuwen had said yesterday: “Impossible! Absolutely impossible. My cousin is not like that. You must have mistaken her for someone else.”
“Even dressed so casually, you’re still this gorgeous—no wonder you’re my little sister,” Lin Shuyue said teasingly as she looked “Lin Shuwen” up and down.
Today, “Lin Shuwen” was wearing a very ordinary oversized black puffer jacket—after all, November in the north was still pretty cold. Her ink-black long hair cascaded loosely over her shoulders, her skin was as smooth as cream, a faint smile graced her lips, and her brows carried an air of calm elegance. She was like a radiant pearl that drew everyone’s gaze.
Luo Ming just smiled and didn’t argue. To be honest, Lin Shuwen’s face really didn’t need any modesty.
Going overboard with humility was just another form of pride—and even a little modesty on her part would already come across as bragging.
“Come on in with me.”
Luo Ming nodded and obediently walked alongside Lin Shuyue.
Along the way, Lin Shuwen drew a lot of sideways glances. A few of Lin Shuyue’s colleagues who were familiar with her even came up to ask about Lin Shuwen.
About ten minutes later, the group entered a studio.
As soon as they walked in, Luo Ming spotted a “familiar face” in the crowd—it was none other than Sa Ning, the famous CCTV host and one of the founding figures of “Versailles literature.”
“Xiao Lin, you’re here! Come on over—Teacher Sa is already here,” a middle-aged man with a thick beard called out to Lin Shuyue.
Lin Shuyue grabbed Luo Ming’s hand and pulled him along with her.
“Xiao Lin, this is—”
“Director Zhu, Teacher Sa, this is my cousin, Lin Shuwen.”
At the introduction, both the bearded director and Sa Ning’s expressions shifted slightly.
“What are you standing there for? Say hello to Director Zhu and Teacher Sa,” Lin Shuyue said, patting Luo Ming on the shoulder.
Luo Ming knew this was Lin Shuyue helping him build connections, so he obediently greeted the two of them.
“Hello, Shuwen, right? I’ve heard Xiao Lin talk about you before,” Director Zhu said with a smile.
“I never knew Xiao Lin had a sister, but Shuwen, I have heard you sing. I’m actually a fan of yours!” Sa Ning was also gracious enough to pay “Lin Shuwen” a compliment.
“Teacher Sa, you flatter me. It’s an honor that you’ve listened to my songs. You might not believe this, Teacher Sa, but I’m actually a huge fan of yours!”
“Oh, really? Well, the most famous show I host is probably Today in Court. I didn’t realize Today in Court had such good-looking viewers!”
“It does! I often watch your show while eating—it’s my go-to mealtime viewing. Especially the ‘Sa Ning Time’ segment—I can never take my eyes off it.”
Hearing that, Sa Ning knew “Lin Shuwen” was genuinely a viewer of his show.
If greeting Lin Shuwen earlier was merely a matter of courtesy toward a colleague, there was now a touch of genuine sincerity involved.
“Shuwen, why do you like watching Today in Court?” Sa Ning asked with clear interest.
“Probably because I’m really into mystery and suspense fiction.”
Lin Shuyue couldn’t help but recall the times she’d visited Lin Shuwen’s house when they were younger—Lin Shuwen would always be curled up with a thick volume of The Complete Sherlock Holmes, completely absorbed in it.
So it wasn’t that Wenwen was trying to avoid me—she really did love those kinds of books? Lin Shuyue thought to herself.
And Sa Ning, having hosted so many episodes of Today in Court, was definitely familiar with mystery and suspense literature.
He casually brought up some of his favorite works in the genre, and “Lin Shuwen” was able to keep up and chat about them with ease.
As they talked, Sa Ning found himself thinking that Lin Shuwen was genuinely a great person—really his kind of people.
“Hey, hey, hey! That’s enough, you two! Teacher Sa, Shuwen—are you here to record a show today, or to host a mystery lit exchange?” Director Zhu cut in, noticing that the other guests had all arrived.
“Well, Wenwen, how about we add each other on WeChat and continue this another time?”
“Sure!”
After Luo Ming and Sa Ning exchanged WeChat contacts, he headed back to Sister Shan’s side.
As soon as he returned, Sister Shan introduced him to the other guests.
A total of six guests were participating in this variety show. Including Lin Shuwen, three of them were from the entertainment industry.
The other two weren’t particularly famous, but they were solid, seasoned actors—national first-class performers.
Then there were three more: a professor from Peking University’s Chinese Department, the vice president of the Chinese Poetry Association, and a graduate student from the History Department of Capital Normal University—the only other female guest besides Lin Shuwen.
After everyone got acquainted, they began going over the script.
Today’s show was mainly divided into three parts: a poetry competition, Tang-style costumes, and a performance segment.
The performances were interspersed throughout the poetry competition, and the Tang Dynasty attire was something they’d change into right at the start of the show.
The poetry competition questions were randomly selected by the production team, and the guests would then buzz in to answer.
The guest with the best score in each round could nominate another guest to perform.
Of course, no matter who ended up with the best score, all the guests would definitely end up performing their prepared acts anyway.
After confirming the show’s flow, it was time for rehearsal.
At first, Luo Ming had only seen this show as a task he had to complete on Lin Shuwen’s behalf.
But gradually, he started taking it more seriously—because he noticed that whether it was the two national first-class actors or the professors and scholars, everyone was putting in real effort.
They didn’t treat this as just another entertainment program. They saw it as an opportunity to promote Chinese poetry and culture to the public.
Everyone was preparing with such dedication that Luo Ming began to feel he shouldn’t just try to coast through this episode. An idea started forming in his mind.
The rehearsal wrapped up around 4 p.m. Luo Ming took the initiative to ask if he could go to Lin Shuyue’s place.
Lin Shuyue agreed without a second thought.
And that night, the lights in Lin Shuyue’s home didn’t go out until 3 a.m.
The next day, Luo Ming rode with Lin Shuyue to the TV station.
Along the way, Lin Shuyue gave Luo Ming several complicated looks, making him feel increasingly self-conscious.
When they reached the station’s parking lot, Lin Shuyue finally spoke up just before getting out: “Wenwen, be honest with me—did you secretly switch your major to Chinese Literature in college?”
“No… I didn’t!”
“Forget it then! Never mind. Back when your aunt and uncle told me you’d gone into entertainment, I actually thought it was a shame—since you were so talented in biology. But now, looking at you, I think joining the entertainment industry wasn’t such a bad choice after all.”
Luo Ming gave an awkward smile. By now, he was already thinking about how he was going to explain all this to Lin Shuwen.
After all, a person always has to pay the price for their moments of impulse.
