Chapter 68: The Trend, Part Four [Second Update]

Yan Man opened the comments section, which already had nearly 20,000 replies.

[???]

[Are they real people? It’s hard to see clearly. Is this a pre-release teaser for Floating Life in Old Years ?]

[Am I the only one who finds this thrilling…?]

[Same here… Ugh, why didn’t they release the rest of it? Are they short on traffic or something?!]

[Holy crap, is this real? Is there really such a good thing happening?!]

[CP fans are losing their minds! Did they get another real couple?!]

[Fake news much? Clearly just promotional material. CP fans are so naive—always getting hurt but still giving their all like stan fans.]

[?] Stop bullying them.

[Let it go, everyone. How could this be real? Didn’t you see the earlier leaks? At most, they’re a contract couple. Do you even know what that means? They’re just collaborating with the company/production team for mutual benefit.]

[So what if they’re a contract couple?! Are those lips on Yan Man’s neck fake??!!]

[Well said! So what if it’s fake? Haven’t you heard of “taking the wrong bride but ending up with the right one”? Let’s ship it hard and hope for fake-to-real action.]

[@CheXiXi, come draw some spicy fan art.]

[Is anyone else wondering who the original couple was supposed to be? Looks like someone’s house is about to collapse again. [Smoking emoji]]

[Hahahaha, paparazzi jackpot! Filming young idols and stumbling upon top-tier stars instead. They immediately abandoned their original targets—this was totally worth it!]

The more Yan Man scrolled, the more amused she became. Ye Lin walked over and sat beside her.

“Enjoying your own gossip this much—you’re the first.”

“Some of these comments are hilarious,” she said thoughtfully. “That couple downstairs should thank us for covering for them.”

After a pause, she looked up at him. “What do you think, Teacher Ye? Should we post something on Weibo?”

Ye Lin: “What do you want to do?”

“If you’re asking for my opinion,” she said, “I think this is a good opportunity. It’ll give our fans some time to adjust… Even though many people might not believe it’s us, at least it gives the fans a heads-up so they won’t panic too much later.”

She added, “Especially your fans.”

For years, he’d been single, and his fanbase likely valued his relationship status highly. While many actresses treated male fans as rivals, Yan Man genuinely believed every bit of affection was precious.

Over the years, his fans had poured so much love into him—it wasn’t fake. She wanted to respect them fully, and she believed that by showing respect, they would reciprocate equally.

She didn’t believe in the idea of only pampering fans when needed and ignoring them otherwise—it felt too hypocritical. Though most male celebrities eventually married and started families, they still deserved proper preparation and buildup.

After a moment, she added, “Most importantly, announcing right after being caught feels rushed, like we’re forcing the issue.”

It felt like they were trying to brush it under the rug if they hadn’t been photographed.

“Mm, I agree,” Ye Lin said. “Besides, I haven’t figured out the right wording for the post yet.”

At this, she chuckled. “True. If we post now, what should we say?”

Yan Man joked, “Hello everyone, the people on the balcony are indeed the two of us. Did you find it exciting? Like this post until we hit a million, and we’ll livestream for you!”

Ye Lin: ?

He stood up, heading somewhere, his voice low. “Then let’s not post for now. When the timing feels right, we’ll announce it.”

She lowered her head to scroll through Weibo again, intending to agree. Suddenly, Zhou Xuan sent her another message.

Zhou Xuan: [Homework. Those of you with active sex lives, read this immediately.]

Yan Man opened it and found a simple blog post from a science communicator: [Everyone, remember to drink a glass of water before starting each session and use the restroom afterward to prevent infections. Take care of your body~]

Below, the reasons were explained in detail. Yan Man skimmed through quickly, feeling as though she were back in the airplane cabin hours ago, the plane breaking through the clouds, a loud buzzing ringing in her ears.

Just then, Ye Lin returned, handing her a glass of water.

In that moment, everything seemed to overlap. She remembered how every single time before they began, Ye Lin would hand her a glass of water without fail.

At the time, she thought he was just worried about her voice getting hoarse.

She lifted her eyelids and looked up at him, her thoughts momentarily scattered.

“You always make me drink water… Was it to prevent me from getting sick?”

“What else?” He pinched her earlobe lightly. “I knew you might be careless, so I prepared everything I could for you.”

He had done his homework—he had actually done his homework.

Everything—what she had prepared for and what she hadn’t—he had thought through it all in advance, leaving nothing out from start to finish.

“I promised you I’d protect you,” he said.

No matter the moment.

She set her phone aside and confirmed, “Are we still posting on Weibo?”

“No,” he said, slipping off his robe and leaning down. “There’s something more important to do.”

As the night swayed, Yan Man was swept up in its waves, and Weibo remained just as lively.

Many people were jumping around on the trending topics, like frustrated melon thieves who hadn’t managed to steal anything.

[Why no movement? Neither of them has posted on Weibo?]

[They’re probably doing it.]

[?]

[Hahahahahahaha]

[Do you think they have no nightlife like you?]

While the trending topics buzzed with activity, Ye Lin’s super topic was also boiling over.

[Are we sure it’s them? Their figures look really similar.]

[Ninety percent sure. Honestly, I had a feeling about it for a while.]

[T.T Nooo]

[Everyone, don’t be so resistant. I used to be like you. Do you know what made me change my perspective? Long-time fans will definitely know. Floating Life was a script signed two years ago. If nothing unexpected happened, that should’ve been his retirement movie.]

[What??]

[Oh my god, are there still people who don’t know? Your guy hasn’t had any activities for months. Especially since none of his endorsements from his debut to now have been renewed. Insiders have been saying for a while—he stopped taking business deals ages ago.]

[Mm, Bi Tan occasionally replies to private messages. Seriously, you guys enjoyed watching that variety show because of his new looks every episode. Honestly, if it weren’t for Yan Man, I doubt he would’ve taken that variety gig.]

[Without Yan Man, Shaved Ice wouldn’t exist either. Everyone knows deep down. With his qualifications and wealth, how could he possibly star in an idol drama… Trace back to that clarifying Weibo post—it’s all because of Yan Man.]

[If he doesn’t retire, maybe Yan Man is the only entry point left.]

This comment reignited some fans who were feeling melancholic. Compared to retirement and romance, the latter was far easier to accept.

After all, most of his fans were attracted to his looks or admired his professional skills, and there were plenty of casual fans too.

[Am I the only one who’s a CP fan?]

[Hahahaha, I didn’t dare say it earlier. I’ve been a fan of Ye Lin for five years and also like Yan Man—a really sweet girl. Everyone should get to know her. Honestly, given Ye Lin’s personality, having Yan Man around must make his life much more interesting.]

[+1 CP fan]

[I haven’t really looked into Yan Ye, but I know they’re super popular with so many people shipping them. It must be sweet, right? I’ll just treat it as Shaved Ice 2.0 . Does anyone have links?]

[Send me one too—anything with Yan Man works for me.]

[A casual fan of Yan Man here, but honestly, I’m glad about this. With so many people around him, she’s probably the only one not there for his fame.]

[Their faces look great together!]

…

And just like that, as Yan Man had hoped, everyone began to mentally prepare themselves for the idea of the couple, starting their first tentative steps toward making peace with the CP fans.

On one side, the 90 million Ye Lin stans were slowly adjusting. On the other side, as the final episode of City Travelers aired, Yan Man’s fanbase was on the verge of breaking the 50 million mark.

Just a little more to go.

That day, after finalizing plans with Teacher Xu Wenjing at the theater, she received a message from Simon, asking her to think about what kind of fan perk she’d prepare when her followers hit 50 million.

Yan Man replied with a simple “Okay,” then tucked her phone away and began discussing the day’s rehearsal with Teacher Xu.

True to her word, Teacher Xu immediately thought of her when this play came up.

Her role wasn’t heavy, but it had several key moments that suited her perfectly, serving as a good way for her to adapt to the rhythm of stage acting.

Yan Man had been rehearsing for several days, often arriving first and leaving last. Occasionally, she even stayed until the theater closed, observing how everyone performed.

On Saturday, a light snow fell again, and Ye Lin came to pick her up.

Using the snow from the past two days, Yan Man built a tiny snowman and posted it on her social media, jokingly lamenting how her hands had turned red from the cold.

After finishing her shower and climbing into bed, Ye Lin was already waiting under the covers, warming the spot for her.

Yan Man opened her phone and found a message from Zhou Xuan.

First came a picture: an adorable fluffy Corgi-shaped hand warmer.

Zhou Xuan was showing off: [I saw your post.]

[Winter’s here—it must feel especially cold, huh? And you don’t even have anything to warm your hands?]

Zhou Xuan: [The one I just bought is super useful. Beg me a little, and I’ll consider sending you the link.]

Yan Man glanced at her phone while subtly noticing Ye Lin’s hand resting on the edge of a book. Suddenly struck by inspiration, she opened the video recording feature and placed her hand in Ye Lin’s palm.

Unaware that she was filming, he instinctively wrapped her hand in his and gently squeezed it, asking, “Cold?”

By the time he finished speaking, the automatic timer for the WeChat short video ended.

Without hesitation, Yan Man sent the clip, smirking as she teased back: [Who said I don’t have something to warm my hands?]

Single Zhou Xuan: [...]

Yan Man stared at her phone for a long while, unable to stop laughing. She couldn’t resist capturing the moment, so she took a screenshot of the conversation and video, then sent it to Simon.

Simon: [???]

Only then did Yan Man realize what she had done. Too embarrassed to admit she was just showing off her relationship, she hesitated for a moment before asking Simon a pointless question: [Can I post this on my social media?]

Simon: [Of course! It’s your account—you can post whatever you want.]

She had intended to share it on her private social media circle, but Ye Lin was talking to her at the same time, distracting her. Acting purely on autopilot, her fingers unconsciously opened the orange-eyed app (Weibo), where idols seemed to have ingrained certain actions into their DNA. Plus, Simon had been mentioning fan perks all week, so her mind went blank, and her fingers moved on their own.

She even added text: [Thanks, this feels amazing.]

…

One minute later.

Simon: [ANCESTOR, YOU POSTED IT ON WEIBO!!!]