/
Previously, they hadn’t managed to find Bai Qi at Jing University, and for the first time, the paparazzi were also useless. Thus, they hadn’t managed to get any deets on their relationship and they could only rely on Bai Qi’s Weibo. He’d been hinting that he was in a relationship since before… but other than that? What did he do to become Xi Chengyun’s partner?
Well, they didn’t know anything!
Now that he was finally shown on screen, the fans naturally poured out their anger at him.
Some netizens who thought that the situation wasn’t bad enough also joined the excitement and criticized Bai Qi.
Yet, as they continued to bash him, they couldn’t help but sigh: 【Not gonna lie, this huli jing is really good looking】
Both Bai Qi and Xi Chengyun knew nothing about what was happening online.
Back to where the crews were, Xu Yi led Bai Qi into the house.
Xu Yi smiled and said, “I’m sorry, the house is a little messy. Little Chuan and I aren’t really good at taking care of these things.”
The sound of someone sitting up came from the direction of the sofa.
It was Qiu Sichuan.
Qiu Sichuan looked a little better than yesterday, but he was still pale.
As they filmed, he and Bai Qi said their hellos again and did a new self-introduction.
“Is there anything to eat in your house?” Bai Qi asked.
Xu Yi opened and laid out his luggage bag. There were cup noodles, Luosifen*, self-heating hotpot, and semi-prepared Jianbing*…
They only had instant food.
* Luosifen (螺蛳粉) is a type of Chinese noodle soup served with rice noodles. The broth is made by stewing river snails, pork bones, etc., and is usually served with pickled bamboo shoots. Some people find the dish rather smelly.
* Jianbing (煎饼), as mentioned in a previous chapter, is a type of fried pancake and is a staple street breakfast food in China. It is usually topped with different fillings such as ham, green onions, chili sauce, etc.
“What has the program team given you guys?” Bai Qi asked.
Xu Yi took him to where the refrigerator was.
Bai Qi opened the fridge and saw that the ingredients were quite plentiful. There were cabbage, pumpkin, half a chicken, a whole duck, and a box of frozen shrimp…
“Wait a sec,” Bai Qi said.
“Mn,” Xu Yi answered.
Bai Qi turned around and walked out.
Qiu Sichuan couldn’t help but ask, “Where’s he going? What did you guys talk about?”
“Nothing much, he just takes a look at the fridge,” Xu Yi replied.
Soon, Bai Qi was back.
Bai Qi was holding something in his arms. He continued walking over as he said, “It’s so freaking cold…”
“What’s this?” Qiu Sichuan asked.
Bai Qi opened his jacket and Qiu Sichuan saw two round chicken eggs. Bai Qi opened his palms and there were chicken feathers, it was as if he’d just raided a chicken coop.
Qiu Sichuan froze.
Bai Qi turned around and headed to the kitchen, with Xu Yi immediately following suit.
Xu Yi walked behind him as he asked, “Are we planning to have lunch together?”
Bai Qi nodded. “Yup, yup!”
“Great! It just so happens that Little Chuan and I can’t really cook.” Xu Yi said, smiling.
“Don’t mind if I use your kitchen for a bit?” Bai Qi asked.
“Sure, go ahead,” Xu Yi replied.
10 minutes later…
Bai Qi cracked some eggs and made egg custard, pouring some oil on to top it off. Then, he chopped up a pumpkin and put everything into a steamer.
“It smells delicious,” Xu Yi noted, “But it doesn’t look like much though?”
Bai Qi nodded and said, “Yup, cause this is only breakfast.”
“So, for lunch…”
“Let’s eat first and think about that later.”
Bai Qi carried the food out and placed it in front of Qiu Sichuan. “Wanna try some?”
Qiu Sichuan pursed his lower lip. “I don’t…”
“All the more reason you should eat something if your stomach isn’t feeling well. You didn’t even eat breakfast.”
Qiu Sichuan looked at him, astonished as he asked, “How did you know?”
“Four years ago, in one of your interviews, you mentioned that there were two people in your group that didn’t have a very good foundation in dancing, so they would keep practicing and often have no time to eat…  And one of them was you. Your stomach wasn’t in a good condition back then.” Bai Qi calmly said.
Qiu Sichuan was stunned again.
It was true. He did say something like that in an interview, and not only that… He’d mentioned that he came from a poor family and became a ‘Beijing drifter’* when he was just 17. He stayed in a basement, eating loads of instant noodles and having his three meals irregularly. Clearly, his stomach wouldn’t have been in a good state. Later on, in order to make a living, he was scouted by a shitty talent company and was given the chance to participate in a talent show. He didn’t dare to rest for even a minute, continuously practicing the choreography until he forgot eating and sleeping.
*Beijing drifters are people, particularly from the countryside, who leave their hometowns and move to Beijing, in hope of a better future.
Well, Bai Qi hadn’t mentioned all these in front of the camera.
After Qiu Sichuan became a celebrity,  not many people brought up his difficult past, trying their best to steer clear from labels such as ‘poor’ and ‘countryman’.
Bai Qi only brought up half of his story, so there was some sort of unspoken gentleness to that.
“Thank you,” Qiu Sichuan said in a low voice.
Xu Yi couldn’t help but add, asking, “Are you a fan of Little Chuan’s? I mean, woah, how do you know so much about him?”
Bai Qi shook his head. “Nope.”
Qiu Sichuan’s grip on his spoon suddenly tightened. He felt slightly disappointed.
Qiu Sichuan often felt that he was a ‘has-been’.
Slowly, there will be more and more fans who will no longer remember him.
Participating in this show, he wasn’t sure if he was hoping for himself to regain some fame, or for him to be seen as even more outdated…