Chapter 16: Participating in a Variety Show

Mr. and Mrs. Huo exchanged glances with Huo Jing, their eyes asking the silent question.

Is it true or false?

Huo Jing's face was grim.

How would he know?

With his busy schedule that kept him on his toes, how could he have the leisure to surf the internet every day and chase rumors?

Not giving Assistant Feng time to ponder where he had gone wrong to anger his boss, Huo Jing gritted his teeth and said in a low voice, "I remember your brother, Feng Ziqi , is currently filming a variety show?"

Whether true or false, wouldn't it be clear if they went to see for themselves?

Assistant Feng replied somewhat nervously, "Yes, the show is called 'Adventures Together.' It's a new adventure challenge show launched by the company this year, and today happens to be the first episode's recording..."

Huo Jing glanced at Ye Leyao.

Ye Leyao was puzzled.

"Why did Big Brother suddenly ask about Feng Ziqi?"

"Could it be that Big Brother already knows about Feng Ziqi spreading rumors about their relationship?!"

In the next moment, Huo Jing said, "Contact the director of the show and have Leyao participate as a guest star in the first episode's recording."

Mr. and Mrs. Huo instantly became excited.

Great! They were just worried about not having an opportunity to go to the scene and enjoy the drama. Now that Ye Leyao was going to participate in the variety show, didn't they have a legitimate reason to go?

Ye Leyao widened her eyes.

"Why am I suddenly making my debut?!"

Assistant Feng looked at Ye Leyao in surprise. "But Young Master hasn't prepared anything yet. Wouldn't it be..."

Huo Jing said, "Leyao has excellent looks and conditions. It's just one day of filming a variety show. What does he need to prepare?"

Assistant Feng silently looked at Ye Leyao.

Well...that was true.

Young Master's appearance was so good that people would often approach him on the street to ask if he was a celebrity.

It was just that this request from the boss was really too sudden!

But since the order had been given, Assistant Feng resignedly stood up. "Then I'll contact the director right away. By the way, should I also contact Young Master's management team?"

Huo Jing nodded.

Assistant Feng picked up his phone and went outside to make the call.

Ye Leyao was still in shock, unable to come back to reality.

Mrs. Huo spoke up, "Leyao, shall Mom and Dad accompany you later?"

After all, it was her first time participating in a program, and it was only natural for her parents to accompany her.

Mr. Huo nodded in agreement. It was only right.

Huo Jing also said, "I'll go take a look as well."

Ye Leyao looked at the three of them, feeling conflicted.

"Hold on, I haven't even recovered from the shock of my sudden debut!"

"It's too sudden...but the show I'm going to participate in is the same variety show Feng Ziqi is in! That means I can eat melons live, can't I?"

At this thought, Ye Leyao's eyes also showed a hint of excitement.

Suddenly debuting might not be so bad after all!

'Adventures Together' was the variety show that Huo Jing had recommended Feng Ziqi to participate in some time ago. However, what Huo Jing never expected was that his kind gesture would be used by someone to create hype!

And it was even a rumor...about a scandal!

Huo Jing clenched his jaw. He would personally go and see what Feng Ziqi was up to!

Twenty minutes later, Assistant Feng had arranged everything. After all, it was their own investment in the variety show, so it was easy to insert someone into the filming halfway through.

Assistant Feng asked, "I'm already familiar with the filming process. The production team will quickly send someone over to start the first scene's recording. This time, the broadcast format is half-live and half-edited. The live broadcast has already started with two guests filming..."

Pausing for a moment, Assistant Feng continued, "Should Young Master record the entrance scene here or..."

The entrance scenes of the first episode could be freely chosen by the artists. Just like Feng Ziqi, he chose to film at Huo Jing's riverside villa.

Ye Leyao was hesitating when Mr. Huo suggested, "Why don't we go to Big Brother's villa?"

Ye Leyao's eyes lit up.

"Dad Huo understands me too well!"

"When our whole family goes there, if Feng Ziqi walks out of the villa's room at that time—"

Huo Jing's face darkened.

Mr. and Mrs. Huo were also somewhat nervous.

If it really came to that, things would truly be hard to explain.

Ye Leyao quickly opened his notebook and meticulously searched through the relevant entries.

Then he slowly exhaled in relief—

"Oh, thank goodness. Although Feng Ziqi is indeed bold, he hasn't gone so far as to dare living directly in Big Brother's villa."

"The lakeside villa is rarely occupied by Big Brother, but there's always a housekeeper managing it. On the day of filming, Feng Ziqi had sent the housekeeper away in advance, only arriving half an hour before the production team."

Upon hearing this, the Huo family simultaneously sighed in relief.

So as long as they arrived before Ye Leyao, it would be Feng Ziqi who would be embarrassed!

Huo Jing took out his phone and, with his head lowered, sent a message to the housekeeper who managed the villa. Then he said, "It's not early, let's set off now."

The family had no objections and began bustling about their tasks.

Huo Father instructed the driver to bring out the nanny van he had bought for Ye Leyao a few days ago. Meanwhile, Huo Mother started picking out clothes for Ye Leyao to wear for today's recording session.

After all, they were going to film a program, and an adventure show at that—just the sound of it suggested physical activity. So the attire had to be light and convenient.

After selecting the outfit, the resident stylist rushed over. Since Huo Mother often attended various social gatherings, there was always a stylist living in the house.

As soon as Ye Leyao got into the car, the stylist started working on his look.

The nanny van was the latest extended model, perfectly capable of accommodating Ye Leyao, the three members of the Huo family, Feng Assistant, and the stylist.

Ye Leyao had good natural features, so the stylist didn't spend much time completing the entire styling process.

Assistant Feng watched, sincerely praising, "Young Master is truly handsome."

Huo Mother nodded in satisfaction, very pleased with Ye Leyao's appearance today.

Feng Assistant sized up Ye Leyao, suddenly remembering something. He spoke up, "Right, since Young Master and my brother are on the same variety show, I'll give my brother a call. I'll tell him in advance to take care of..."

"No!"

"Not necessary!"

Two voices spoke in unison.

Feng Assistant was startled, his hand shaking as his phone dropped onto his leg. He pushed his glasses up, raised his head, and looked at Huo Father and Huo Mother with lingering fear.

Why did they have to speak so loudly?

It was quite frightening!

Huo Father hurriedly explained, "Well... I felt that since we're going to meet on the show soon, there's no need to say anything in advance."

He then glanced at Huo Mother.

Huo Mother had already found her reasoning: "Ah, right, I thought the same thing. And since this is Little Yao's first time participating in a variety show, we don't want him to receive special treatment."

Ye Leyao nodded in agreement.

"Yes, yes. If you gave your brother a heads-up, how could we create a dramatic situation!"

Huo Father and Huo Mother nodded in agreement.

No communication, absolutely no communication!

Upon hearing Huo Father and Huo Mother's explanations, Feng Assistant reconsidered and realized they were right, so he didn't say anything more and put his phone away.

Instead, he began explaining the matters Ye Leyao needed to pay attention to during the recording.

Ye Leyao listened attentively, while inwardly remarking:

"Feng Assistant is indeed meticulous in his work, but he's just too much of a brother complex!"

"Feng Ziqi dared to let his team stir up rumors about him and Big Brother because he valued the traffic and benefits that come from such a scandal. Even if Big Brother eventually finds out and exposes it, he still has Feng Assistant, a good older brother who will unconditionally tolerate, assist, and clean up after him."

"In the plot, the scandal between Feng Ziqi and Big Brother escalated after the variety show aired. Big Brother was furious when he found out. He immediately contacted his legal team to sue Feng Ziqi. It was Feng Assistant who pleaded on behalf of Feng Ziqi to Big Brother. My Big Brother is also soft-hearted; in the end, considering Feng Assistant's years of loyalty, he only made Feng Ziqi's team issue an explanatory statement and didn't pursue the matter further!"

"But that was Feng Ziqi's team! Their explanatory statement was vague and ambiguously worded, turning what should have been a clear explanation into an official announcement!"

Huo Father and Huo Mother widened their eyes, looking at Huo Jing in disbelief.

Their son, who had been praised all his life, actually stumbled twice in a row on the same issue?

How rare!

Huo Jing clenched his jaw, shooting cold glances at Feng Assistant.

"Later, Big Brother naturally became infuriated once again, but at that point, any statement he issued would only be perceived by netizens and fans as "merely an excuse to avoid implicating Feng Ziqi," after all, a "single" artist does have better prospects."

"Feng Ziqi achieved his goal, it's just a pity for Feng Assistant..."

Ye Leyao looked at Feng Assistant with regret.

Feng Assistant felt somewhat puzzled under his gaze.

Huo Father and Huo Mother were also curious.

So what happened in the end?

What happened to Feng Assistant?

"Having been repeatedly deceived by Feng Ziqi, Feng Assistant, who was once the special assistant to the president, gradually fell to become a regular employee in the company. In the end, Big Brother directly dispatched him to Africa to grow cacti!"

Huo Jing: "…"

Why did he have to send Assistant Feng to plant cacti in Africa!

Was this the kind of illogical crap that Ye Leyao usually read?!

Mrs. Huo covered her mouth, struggling to hold back her laughter.

Mr. Huo cleared his throat and said, "We're almost there."

Ye Leyao quickly raised his head, scanning the surroundings. Good, Ziqi Feng hadn't arrived yet.

The butler, having received the message in advance, had already come over to open the villa's gate.

Following Huo Jing's instructions, he also went down to the basement level to tidy up the surveillance room.

Ye Leyao sat alone in the living room while everyone else headed to the surveillance room.

As they waited for the production team, Ye Leyao took a brief tour around the villa.

This detached villa had three floors above ground and two below, with a massive swimming pool in the backyard. Because Huo Jing was often busy with work and frequently stayed in a flat near his company rather than coming home, there weren't many signs of habitation throughout the entire villa.

However, due to regular maintenance by professionals, both inside and out, the villa was very clean and tidy.

Ye Leyao wandered around for about ten minutes before the filming crew arrived with their entourage.

The last-minute notification of an additional celebrity guest had nearly overwhelmed the production team, who arrived with a heavy heart, ringing the doorbell directly.

Ye Leyao opened the door and flashed them a smile.

The staff members were momentarily stunned.

So… so handsome.

But even more impressive than Ye Leyao's looks were the several visibly thick red envelopes he held in his hand.

"Thanks for coming to film, wishing you all a prosperous start," Ye Leyao said with a cheerful smile as he distributed the red envelopes among them.

"Not at all!"

What was there to complain about!

It was just their job!

The live stream had already begun, but because Ye Leyao was a complete unknown without any fame, there were only a few people in the live stream room.

There were only a handful of sporadic comments:

"Hey, what's his name! Give me all his contact information ASAP!"

"Holy crap, when did the entertainment industry secretly restock? He's so handsome!"

"Yes, yes, yes, a sunny young hunk, my expectations are sky-high now!"

Mrs. Huo suddenly remarked, "The number of viewers in the live stream is quite low."

With such a small audience, how would they enjoy the show later?

Huo Jing was aware of this issue and sent a message directly to the director.

Thus, one minute later, Ye Leyao's live stream became the featured live stream.

Ye Leyao led the filming crew into the villa, thoughtfully closing the door behind them.

The assistant director immediately began guiding the process.

Ye Leyao faced the camera and gave a simple self-introduction.

The assistant director then asked, "Is this your home? Our program has requirements, and we may need to do some simple filming here."

Ye Leyao was very pleased with this question, smiling and saying, "No, it's not my house, it's my brother's. My brother said it's fine to film whatever you want."

The assistant director, with years of experience, truly loved working with celebrities who were fully cooperative!

Facing a newcomer, she could indulge him, couldn't she?!

The assistant director signaled for the cameraman to start filming promptly.

Ye Leyao glanced up at the clock on the wall.

Good, it was almost time.

At the same moment, in the surveillance room.

The three members of the Huo family watched as a luxury car, clearly not one of theirs, pulled up to the villa's front gate, simultaneously curling their lips into smiles.

Good, Ziqi Feng had arrived!

Assistant Feng watched helplessly as the outside surveillance footage was switched to the main screen, recognizing the luxury car on it as somewhat familiar.

It seemed… like he'd seen it somewhere before?

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