The hotel floor was high, and the sound of the wind was quiet.

Yan Man found it a bit strange. If she wasn’t here to ask about the play, what else could she be doing by coming over late at night and risking being photographed?

Opposite her, Ye Lin nodded in response: “Mm.”

He said, “Say it again.”

That long string of thoughts was indeed hard to remember, so Yan Man repeated it.

“You’ve overlooked one thing,” Ye Lin said, “Your scene partner.”

“Ah.”

What he mentioned, Yan Man hadn’t thought of at all.

Yan Man: “You mean, actually a rather crucial influencing factor is how Li Haoge and A Zhao perform?”

“My performance should align with their rhythm; otherwise, it would seem very disjointed. If Li Haoge doesn’t give me enough emotional feedback, even if this scene is perfect in my mind, it still wouldn’t work on stage?”

“Yes.”

Yan Man pursed her lips. Li Haoge was indeed an uncontrollable factor; no one knew how he would perform on stage.

At this moment, the importance of scene partners became apparent.

While she was pondering, Ye Lin added: “However, you can first think through the basic ideas.”

Yan Man rested her face on her hand: “That’s right. Otherwise, if I design it too meticulously and then get thrown off rhythm on stage, that would really be counterproductive.”

She began to fret over the script, biting the pen cap for a long time before saying: “But I have three performance ideas, each in a different style, all requiring equal effort. Then there won’t be any focus.”

Ye Lin: “There’s also the simplest method.”

Yan Man looked up, listening to him: “You perform all the versions you have in mind, and I’ll see which one works best.”

“...”

Why didn’t you say this earlier.

“Been waiting for you to say this,” Yan Man took out a camera from her bag, “Let’s go.”

This camera was also familiar to him. Back on set, whenever there were intimate scenes or whenever she got close, this camera would always appear in his line of sight.

Yan Man had long forgotten about that. Now, her mind was solely focused on tomorrow’s performance.

She turned on the camera and decided: “We’ll record our performances with this.”

Ye Lin: “Us?”

“You’ll act with me,” she said, “I can act alone, but mainly I’m afraid you’d find it boring if I performed in your room without needing you to hold the camera.”

“…”

She tiptoed to find a good position for the camera and then asked: “Do you need the script?”

“No.”

Oh right, forgot. He had already memorized all the lines.

By the time they finished recording, it was already past eleven. After performing, Yan Man more or less had a feel for it.

She asked: “Which one do you think is better?”

“The second version.”

“Mm, I think that one’s the best too. If nothing unexpected happens, we’ll use that one tomorrow.” She nodded satisfactorily, feeling that tonight’s visit wasn’t in vain. “It’s late; I’ll head back now.”

She got up and left, sweeping the cherries and camera into her bag. She said: “If you have any issues or think of any good suggestions, feel free to send me a WeChat message anytime.”

“Okay.”

She walked all the way to the door, maintaining the appropriate boundaries throughout.

Before closing the door, she politely smiled: “Thanks for tonight. Wish you sweet dreams.”

Back in her room, Yan Man opened the camera and watched the performance again, noting areas she felt could be improved in her memo.

The next day, preparations for the program began.

They didn’t go to the classroom first but directly arrived backstage at the studio to start makeup, hair styling, and rehearsals.

This rehearsal was more immersive because they were fully made up, making it easier to get into character.

While getting styled, Yan Man was still flipping through her memo.

By the time she figured out these details, her hair was just done. She stood up, and across from her, Li Haoge also came over.

Li Haoge smiled and pointed to her ponytail:

“You’re wearing a ponytail today.”

Her look matched her character as a high school student.

“Yeah,” she said, “I haven’t worn one in a long time. The last time was in high school.”

Back then, the school required them to tie their hair up during Monday flag-raising ceremonies, but other times were flexible.

Li Haoge looked for a while and then said: “I really want to see what you looked like in a ponytail when you were a student.”

He turned his head and asked the assistant director nearby: “Will we have some spin-off shows later? Has the theme been decided? Can I request to see childhood photos or pictures from our school days?”

The assistant director nodded: “Sure, sounds quite interesting.”

Yan Man vaguely remembered spin-offs, knowing that some variety shows after finishing the main episodes would also do other “side stories,” like surprise dorm visits or hot pot dinners together, which the audience loved.

Yan Man’s thoughts drifted a bit, wondering where her old photos were stored.

…

Just as she was thinking, the assistant director looked at the broadcast screen in surprise: “Ye Lin’s fans are here so early?”

In addition to the online live stream, real audiences also came to the studio this time. Yan Man casually glanced and saw a vast expanse of blue, like the deep sea.

Bi Tan happened to walk in and upon hearing this, he said: “Of course, my fans always arrive early. They probably just came to put up light sticks and will go eat afterward.”

Li Haoge, standing next to Yan Man, nodded.

Yan Man suddenly remembered that she didn’t have a fan color yet.

“But Ye Lin,” she pondered, “with ‘Ye’ in his name, I thought it might be green.”

“That’s impossible.”

Bi Tan chuckled, glancing somewhat meaningfully at Li Haoge: “That would be unlucky.”

Watching the rehearsal nearby, Ye Lin: “...”

The man shifted his eyes slightly, quickly interrupted by Bi Tan’s guilty conscience: “That! Everyone tidy up, Ye Teacher’s group is about to rehearse.”

Soon, Yan Man’s group was scheduled as the first to go on stage.

After Ye Lin’s adjustments, Li Haoge’s performance had improved significantly, and Yan Man’s worried heart finally relaxed a bit.

This rehearsal went smoothly, and everyone chatted as they walked down the steps. Yan Man, however, picked up the script and sat in a corner somewhere.

A Zhao came over and nudged her: “Why are you here? Let’s go play.”

“No need,” Yan Man said, “This character’s mood in this scene is rather repressed. I won’t join your fun so as not to affect my emotions. I’ll sit here and feel her living environment, which will help me get into the state later.”

A Zhao realized she was truly dedicated. She was immersing herself immediately, and her tone of voice already carried hints of the character.

Putting oneself in the same mindset and environment as the character, understanding and reading her, was the only way to truly play her well.

Having excellent friends also spurred one to strive forward.

A Zhao: “Alright, I won’t play either. I’ll also go experience the character. See you later.”

“Mm.”

The character Yan Man was playing suppressed her nature for a long time due to fear of not fitting in with the crowd. Whenever she saw others playing around, she always felt envious and lost.

Because this character wasn’t particularly similar to her and her acting experience wasn’t rich enough, using this method to understand the character was the best approach.

To rise after suppression, she had to press herself to the limit in the beginning to have a better explosion later.

Nearby, the team members were taking selfies and joking around. She looked up enviously from her dark corner, empathizing with the character.

Unbeknownst to her, this scene was captured and edited into a Weibo post ten minutes later.

Melon Field Little Girl: [Today I got tickets to ‘This Is Acting.’ As soon as I entered, I saw Yan Man sitting alone in a corner, looking enviously at her teammates... Probably got criticized by the mentor after just rehearsing, considering Ye Lin is really strict. He just gave pointers to their group...

I don’t really need to ship CPs. What’s the point of expired candy? Moreover, she only suits vibrant roles. She can handle straightforward ones too, but she can’t act well in repressed roles, so it’s just a casual performance.]

This person posted a long Weibo, and their words carried a professional flair, immediately swaying a large number of people who mocked her: [She’s just a newbie, not from a professional acting school. How good can her acting skills be? I said don’t hype her too much. It hurts more when she falls from higher up.]

[Ye Lin must not have any feelings for her...]

[I know everything else, but her relationships are so bad too? No one comforts her after being scolded?]

…

Soon, amidst the fermenting public opinion, the live broadcast of the show began.

The Weibo post “evaluating” Yan Man already had many comments, and its popularity rose. Therefore, although the initial groups weren’t Yan Man’s performances, everyone patiently waited.

Finally, Yan Man’s name appeared on the big screen, and the barrage immediately lit up with excitement.

[Observation card, beep.]

[Passerby card, beep.]

[Melon-eating card, beep.]

[CP card, beep.]

[I said some people shouldn’t borrow formations to give me stuff I want to see.]

[Hahahaha almost read it as CP beep, thought for a moment that Yan-Ye was happening today (not serious).]

…

The barrage laughed heartily, but none of it was related to the play.

Until Li Haoge spoke first, the focus of the barrage finally shifted to the play.

[???]

[Is it because I just watched Ye Lin’s movie, so the difference in acting skills seems so great?]

[I’m serious, you haven’t seen Ye Lin’s movies before. That was negative-level acting, but this at least passes. Ye Lin is amazing.]

[What is this? If it weren’t for watching Yan Man, I’d switch channels immediately.]

[+1]

After several exchanges between Li Haoge and A Zhao, the barrage comments were filled with yawns.

[Thanks for the invite, already lying down.]

Li Haoge: “Then that ten thousand yuan will...”

“Will what?” Yan Man finally raised her head from the corner, her eyes red-rimmed, and tears instantly fell. “You used it to pay for her piano lessons, right?”

[Holy crap]

[Holy crap holy crap]

[Wow, instant tears! (Her eyes are so beautiful)]

Li Haoge nervously clenched his palms, and after a long while, he softly said: “It’s not that I don’t want to give you both the best, but our family only has so much money. We can only fulfill one person’s dream.”

“So I’m the one being abandoned, right?” Her voice softened and then grew stronger. “Right?”

The young girl’s shoulders began to tremble slightly.

This was really a simple story: a struggling family, two sisters in need of funds, and a brother unable to make a decision.

“I’ve never asked for anything,” she choked back tears, “This is the first time.”

“But even the first time, because she pouted and said her fingers got blisters from practicing piano, you pitied her and gave everything to her?”

“But it hurts too!” The little girl finally couldn’t hold back anymore; tears streamed down in torrents, and her voice quivered. “Learning dance is painful too…”

“I get bruises on my knees when I fall, my insteps get blisters, and I shiver from cold in rooms without air conditioning…”

“Because I didn’t say it hurt, no one thought I was sad, right?”

[Help, my heart is already shattered...]

[Sob sob sob, dear daughter, don’t cry, mommy will hug you.]

[Where’s my tissue? Where’s the big pack of tissues I bought for 1.5 yuan?]

Opposite her, Li Haoge looked at her tears, and his eyes unconsciously reddened.

“If there were any other way, how could I bear to abandon either of you…”

The barrage comments were astonished:

[Damn, Li Haoge is in character? Li Haoge actually has red eyes?]

[So amazing, am I seeing this right? Did she bring Li Haoge into the scene?]

[Seriously visible to the naked eye, after two rounds, Li Haoge went from being detached to fully immersed…]

[Yan Man’s segment is really good. As an only child, it made me feel heartbroken.]

[Is there actually someone who can cure Li Haoge’s poker face?]

[#Yan Man, the miraculous healer#]

[I was crying halfway and suddenly burst out laughing and bit my tongue. Are you going to compensate me, upstairs commenter?]

…

For Yan Man, this performance started off somewhat misaligned.

Perhaps due to excessive nervousness, Li Haoge’s performance wasn’t as good as during rehearsals. He set the wrong tone from the start, which meant if they continued according to his direction, the entire segment would collapse.

Yan Man had to rely on her familiarity with the scene, choosing to temporarily ignore their lines and immerse herself fully in the role. Finally, at the moment she lifted her head, she shed that crucial tear as envisioned.

The subsequent development flowed smoothly.

Li Haoge and A Zhao were brought back into the scene by her. By the end of the final segment, the three reached reconciliation and found a solution to balance both dreams.

The stage lights dimmed, and the actors took their bows.

Walking from backstage to the front, Yan Man kept her head down, looking at the path. When she raised her head, she received two explosive lights.

— This was new content added by the program this season.

After the actors’ performances, the mentors pressed the explosive light button based on personal aesthetic judgment.

One explosive light was equivalent to 100 in-venue votes, and the votes’ ultimate purpose was kept mysterious, with the program teasing that it would be revealed at the end.

In previous performances, only one actor received an explosive light.

Kong Lei praised some of her detailed handling, speaking for over three minutes, then suddenly turned to Ye Lin: “She performed so well, and she’s still your team member. Why didn’t you press the explosive light?”

Ye Lin: “I pressed it.”

At this point, the camera cut to a close-up, and sure enough, the light in front of the man was lit.

CP fans went wild:

[Holy crap, he pressed it halfway through her performance! He’s more eager than all of you!]

[Hahahaha, wife’s acting is too good. Can’t we be proud?]

[Honestly, without Yan Man, this group would’ve been doomed. Ye Lin probably appreciates her, appreciation + acknowledgment since her professional skills are undeniably top-notch. Ye Lin is quite fair in this aspect.]

[Appreciation my ass, it’s love.]

After Yan Man’s performance ended, all the actors backstage also became tense.

With such an excellent segment preceding them, failing to deliver a sufficiently outstanding performance would result in a stark contrast.

…

Two hours later, all groups had performed, and the voting channels for the live audience and online viewers were closed.

The host returned to the stage: “Alright, now all statistical data is in my hands. Next, let’s announce the latest gameplay for this season.”

“For scenes where the explosive light was activated, the contestant with the highest vote count gets to collaborate on a project with the mentor!”

With this announcement, the live chat exploded with barrage comments:

[Holy shit, CP fans are having a party?]

[AAAAA I saw a spoiler earlier! There’s an original vampire script! Vampire squee squee.]

[Now you’ve got my attention. Who wouldn’t want to see Coconut Grove Vampires with Yan Man? Sorry, I’m in.]

[Some fans are getting ahead of themselves… Has Yan Man been announced as number one yet, and here they are shipping already?]

“The winner is Yan Man!”

[??? Hahahahahahahaha!]

[Sorry, this turnaround was too fast, it’s quite funny.]

[My Manman, beautiful, cute, awesome. You don’t understand her, but it’s okay, I don’t blame you.]

[I do. Since the explosive light only adds 100 votes, the in-venue and online votes have different weights. But before you jump to conclusions, think about how many people praised Yan Man during her performance in the live stream?]

The qualification to collaborate on a project with the mentor was available to each group.

After announcing Yan Man’s name, the host continued to reveal the next two actors.

Everyone waited until the live broadcast completely ended before leaving the large rest area for actors.

Although Yan Man wasn’t in the live room, A Zhao knew about the vampire script and briefed her along the way.

For instance, how exciting this setting was and how much tension there would be if she and Ye Lin acted together.

A Zhao: “Vampire Teacher Ye, aren’t you excited?!?!”

Yan Man thought for a moment, “Not particularly.”

“…”

While Yan Man was stepping off the stage, “Melon Field Little Girl’s” mocking tweet was dug up again.

— But this time, it was by the fans.

These gossip accounts had no conscience or底线, doing anything for舆论and heat.

The original post clearly stated, “She doesn’t fit and just acts casually.” Underneath, fans enthusiastically arrived with screenshots of the number one vote count:

[Ah, sorry, acting casually got her the top vote across the web~]

[Acting casually gained her 300k followers in an hour.]

[Shocking! She bagged three explosive lights, all because this actress acted so casually...]

[Finally understand why this blogger gets流量. They ride the wave of hot topics. A few hundred words’ tweet hit on Yan Man’s bad acting, her poor relationships, and the fake Yan-Ye CP, all while boasting about ‘getting tickets to the show’ and having connections.]

The analysis above was quite fair. Opening the comment thread, the poster self-replied 2.0: [Riding three waves at once, how haven’t you choked to death? Scram.]

[Hahahahaha, sis, your two-level反转didn’t kill me.]

[Additionally, late arrival borrowing the floor to clarify. Yan Man’s relationships are great. She’s the only artist all actors follow. Here are some photos of her with other actors.[Photo]]

[Staff here to dispel rumors, a backstage worker. Friends invited her to hang out, but she said she wanted to stay in character to avoid breaking the mood. She was trying to find the feeling closest to her character. It was precisely because her character was isolated that she appeared ‘isolated.’ Her relationships are really good; she’s a very humorous beauty.]

[Moreover, the blogger’s tendency to provoke fights is obvious. The production team just mentioned backstage that they won’t give tickets to this account next time.]

[Exactly. The production team lets these accounts in for promotion and useful feedback, not to stir the pot.]

[By that logic, isn’t the blogger indirectly confirming her good acting? And she’s professional too. Everyone was playing around, but for a mere few minutes of performance, she was so serious. No wonder I felt that picture didn’t match her personality at all.]

[This contrast... instant obsession.]

[If I were the blogger, I’d be pissed. Too bad I’m not, hehe.]

Backstage, Yan Man took down her high ponytail and chatted with everyone.

Mid-conversation, the topic of support colors came up.

Yan Man thought for a moment, “Yellow, orange, pink, which one do you think is better?”

There were votes for every color, so Yan Man ended up with three cups, placing them in front of her. She broke off a piece of chalk, planning to toss it into whichever cup it landed in.

She sat down reverently when a commotion arose behind her—it was Ye Lin.

“Hello, Teacher.”

“Hello, Teacher,” someone added cheekily, “Do you want to join in and help Manman choose a support color? She’s been struggling with this for a long time.”

Yan Man looked up, meeting the man’s lowered gaze.

She thought he seemed in a decent mood today since she got him the top score, bringing him honor as a mentor.

But she also knew he just wanted to quietly pass by and smoothly return to his room.

“He definitely has no interest,” Yan Man said, handing him the chalk, “but you can try if you want.”

“…”

Ye Lin’s hand hung at his side, and she handed him the chalk just as it reached his hand. The man reached out and threw it into the pink cup.

Yan Man was tired of choosing: “Let’s go with pink.”

“Pink is great!” A Zhao beside her was excited.

Li Haoge: “Why is it great?”

A Zhao whispered: “Misty pink and deep sea blue are a perfect match.”

Soon, A Zhao turned to Yan Man again, whispering but unable to hide her excitement.

“Why did you let Teacher Ye help you choose?!”

Yan Man honestly replied: “Oh, because he’s a top star. I figured if he chose for me, it would give me a bit of a boost. Maybe I’ll be the next top star?”

“...”

Let me take two sips, how will it affect you?!

Finally, the show ended, and Yan Man returned to the car.

Simon summarized the key points of today’s barrage comments and some exciting Weibo posts for her.

Yan Man: “Are there still people shipping Yan-Ye?”

“Isn’t that obvious?” Simon wanted to roll his eyes. “As long as you two collaborate, there will definitely be people shipping you!”

Regarding this point, Yan Man had a different opinion.

“On the contrary, I think as we collaborate more, the sense of mystery decreases, leaving less room for imagination. People will gradually realize that we’re fake, that we’ve BE’d, and there’s nothing to ship.”

Simon: “Is that so?”

“Of course,” Yan Man said. “Our CP fans will definitely decrease because they’ll see through the truth.”

“Don’t believe me? Let me find something for you.”

She said, “You can’t just look at today’s barrage comments; one person can send a hundred messages. You need to look at the big data.”

Simon: “Alright, show me the big data when you find it.”

Yan Man: “By the way, where did our CP fandom even come from? There must be an origin, right? Did it just pop up out of nowhere? Or during our BE phase?”

She had been extremely busy lately, and so had her team—they hardly had time to look into this matter.

Just right, they could check it out today.

She wanted to see what made those who once shouted “not even dogs would ship them” jump on the bandwagon.

Finally, Yan Man found the big data—it was an article.

[Super Topic Overnight Explosion: Behind Yan-Ye CP, Is It All Just Bubbles?]

Great, it looked very professional, and the analysis should be quite thorough.

Satisfied, she placed the content in front of Simon and triumphantly opened it:

[Talking about the hottest topic recently, it has to be the Yan-Ye CP between Yan Man and Ye Lin.

Below, the editor will dig into the data behind it.

...

From this, it’s clear that behind Yan-Ye isn’t just bubbles but real people, one after another. They promote each other, create content, and have contributed to the current popularity of the super topic.

CP Super Topic Peak Follower Growth, check-in numbers broke 350,000, ranking first with a significant lead over others!

The hottest CP of the first half of the year—how can anyone not say it’s addictive?]

Yan Man: “...”

Simon: “Hmm, typical clickbait title. Behind what seems like a negative article is awe at the traffic you two bring. If this isn’t red-hot, tell me what is?”

Unwilling to give up, Yan Man scoured Weibo for a while longer.

In the end, she had to admit one fact—

It was the first week since her “first love” ended, and the Yan-Ye CP had truly taken off.

...

Yan Man was speechless for a moment, staring at her phone wanting to see everyone’s entry point into shipping them. However, she accidentally typed “Ye Lin” instead.

Soon, related topics popped up.

#YeLinYanMan#

#YeLinYanManBEVideo#

#YeLinYanManTruthIsReal#

...

...

Yan Man tilted her head slightly.

The truth is... what?