Chapter 177: Chapter 159

“What? I didn’t say anything,” Lemon quickly denied, faking a confused expression. Then, he looked at Jiu Xi and asked, “Did I say something?”

“You shouldn’t behave too shamelessly as a person,” Jiu Xi indifferently threw Lemon under the bus.

In response, Lemon suddenly hugged Jiu Xi and said, “Even if I were to say something, I’d say that I love this boyfriend of mine to death! Anyway, let’s eat, let’s eat!”

After saying so, Lemon quickly washed his hands, took one of the bowls, and picked up a pair of chopsticks.

“I never knew instant noodles could taste so good,” Millie said. She had long since started digging into her bowl of noodles, disregarding the two boys’ bickering.

The instant noodles were quite chewy, and they had a different taste from the egg noodles typically used in lo mein.

“It seems the noodles I bought were useful after all,” Lemon commented after slurping a bite of noodles.

“We typically eat instant noodles for their convenience, but if we have time on our hands, it is possible to make instant noodles taste a lot better,” Jun Zishu said as she held up her portion, stirred it a little, and started slurping on the noodles as well.

Meanwhile, Yu Fanshu was in a wonderful mood as she ate her noodles. It was especially true when she bit down on her fried egg. After all, the fried egg she received wasn’t an ordinary fried egg, but one filled with Jun Zishu’s affection for her instead!

Three packets of noodles definitely weren’t enough for five people to share. Millie had already eaten before, so she withdrew from the competition after eating half a bowl. However, it was a different story for everyone else. Jun Zishu and Yu Fanshu were half-full after finishing their portion, while Lemon and Jiu Xi were still starving for more.

Thus, Jun Zishu cooked the remaining three packets, and everyone ate to their heart’s content.

When Tang Tongtong finally arrived, he saw a group of satisfied actors playing with their phones in the living room.

“I get the feeling that you guys ate something good behind my back,” Tang Tongtong said, narrowing his eyes.

“You’ll find out once the second episode airs.”

The TV crew didn’t plan for the guests to play any games yet during the second episode. Instead, the crew had everyone gather and talk about their dreams and aspirations. Although it was clichéd, it was a topic the audience was curious to learn.

The three couples sat around the round coffee table. Jun Zishu hugged a pillow in her arms and sat closely to Yu Fanshu, Millie played with her bracelet, Tang Tongtong looked like he was daydreaming, and Lemon messed with Jiu Xi by tugging on a charm hanging off of Jiu Xi’s shirt.

Upon hearing the director’s call for action, everyone stopped what they were doing and gave some responses.

Lemon was the first to speak up. After stretching his long legs, he said, “What I am doing now is equivalent to realizing my dream, I guess. My dream is to do something related to music, and I am satisfied with my current life. Of course, if I get the chance to become better and go further, I will naturally take it. After all, there is no upper limit in this field.”

Jun Zishu had a relatively favorable opinion of Lemon. He was a very bright and silly boy. He was also good-looking, talented, and straightforward.

Jun Zishu felt that it was unlikely that Lemon was putting on an act right now. If she really misjudged him, there must be some severe darkness in Lemon’s heart.

“My initial dream doesn’t really have anything to do with singing or making music,” Millie followed up after Lemon, gathering everyone’s attention onto herself. “My initial dream was to become a gourmet, the kind that you typically see on food programs. I wanted to be the judge who judges others’ cooking and eats a bunch of delicious food.

“However, I later discovered that I’m not talented in the culinary arts at all. My tongue is also average. So, after I blew up my kitchen, I decided to change my dream.”

Millie shrugged after saying so. She was wearing a pink shirt today. Paired with the faint red rouge covering her cheeks, she looked very much like a cute teenage girl.

However, Millie was much older than she looked. In reality, she wasn’t 18, but 28 instead.

Jun Zishu had seen what Millie looked like off-camera. During the last filming session, she had seen the woman standing in a corner lighting a cigarette. The way Millie lit her cigarette and smoked it also looked skillful, and the cold expression she wore was completely different from the way she behaved in front of the camera.

Jun Zishu felt that Millie had most likely grown tired of acting cute and wanted to stop the act. However, her persona was the definition of cute, and she had adopted this persona ever since she debuted. While she could easily transition into a different persona, the risks that came with it were high. Not to mention, she also needed to follow her company’s decision.

“I didn’t take you for such a capable person,” Tang Tongtong exclaimed in surprise. Millie’s cute appearance gave her the image that she should be excellent at cooking. While Millie had admitted that she couldn’t cook last week, he didn’t think that she was bad to the point of blowing up her kitchen.

“Afterward, I dreamed of becoming a cool lawyer like the ones on TV, but I quickly realized how challenging it was to memorize laws,” Millie said, sighing helplessly.

“How did you end up becoming a singer, then?”

“Because of a singing competition I took part in during high school. I originally participated for fun, but a talent scout approached me and said I could make a living through singing. So, here I am. Now, my dream is to sing and dance on a bigger stage.”

After Millie finished speaking, everyone turned toward Tang Tongtong, who sat next to her.

“My dream? At first, it was to become a street performer. How cool would that be? But my mom gave me a beating after I told her about it.”

Everyone chuckled for a moment when they heard Tang Tongtong’s words. Then, they quickly quietened down and continued listening to him speak.

“My mom told me to study properly. She hoped that I could become a doctor, but I ended up registering for an art school. At the time, my dream was to become an actor, and I am now on my way to realizing this dream,” Tang Tongtong said. Then, he looked toward Jiu Xi and asked, “What about you, Jiu Xi?”

Everyone present had tacitly agreed on leaving Yu Fanshu for last. After all, it was undeniable that Yu Fanshu was the most popular celebrity out of everyone here. She was also the most mysterious among them. So, it was best to have her as the finale.

“I used to dream of becoming a painter. Unfortunately, I’m not great at telling apart colors, and my drawing skills are exceptionally terrible. Afterward, I fell in love with music, and my current dream is to become a musician who can play music happily.”

Jiu Xi might look indifferent and introverted right now, but when he was on stage singing, the energy he could put forth could excite one’s blood as much as Lemon could.

“What about you, Jun Ling?” Jiu Xi asked, passing the baton to Jun Zishu.

“Me? I used to dream of opening a shop and becoming a proprietress,” Jun Zishu said, a faint smile on her face as she revealed the original owner’s dream.

“A restaurant?”

“No, a flower shop. I wanted to get up every morning to take care of flowers, enjoy the sunshine, and take it easy,” Jun Zishu said softly, her description quickly creating a leisurely image in everyone’s minds.

“Did your dream change afterward?”

“Afterward, I wanted to get into doing business and handling finance.”

This was Jun Zishu’s own dream. Though, perhaps it couldn’t really be considered a dream. Instead, it’d be more accurate to say that it was the life planned out for her.

Her parents had nurtured her as their company’s successor, and she was gradually taught to manage and develop the company. She had lived her life like that every day, so she had known how to manage a business and handle finances from a very young age.

Because of this, she never had anything she wanted in life. She merely obediently accepted her fate and lived with it.

However, while she had lived her life without having any dreams or aspirations, she didn’t think it was a bad life. At the very least, she got to live a good life while being praised by many.

“Actually, I didn’t come from an acting background. I only entered the entertainment circle out of curiosity. Who knew I’d be stuck here as soon as I stepped inside? For my current dream, I’m hoping that I can grow better and better,” Jun Zishu said, smiling. She didn’t say that her dream was to reach Yu Fanshu’s height or surpass Yu Fanshu. Others would only ridicule her and think that she overestimated herself if she said that.

Jun Zishu was a cautious person. Rather than show off every little achievement she made to everyone, she preferred to plot in secret and give everyone a big surprise in the end. To achieve this goal, she was willing to hold back herself.

“What about you, Miss You?” Jun Zishu asked, shifting the topic away from her.

“My initial dream was to do business,” Yu Fanshu said. Similar to Jun Zishu, she wasn’t interested in acting initially. Instead, she was more interested in handling finance.

“Tsk, tsk, tsk. As expected of a couple. Even the dreams you two have are mostly similar,” Lemon joked.

“My body was still healthy around that time. When I accidentally came into contact with acting, I felt that it was interesting, so I entered the entertainment circle. I didn’t act for awards; I only acted for my own joy. As for my current dream, I hope that every role I act in will have its own value.”

Yu Fanshu was a person fit for others to envy. Other than her physical health, everything else about her was impeccable.

Afterward, everyone continued chatting casually, the atmosphere surrounding them feeling relatively relaxed. Then, when they ran out of conversation topics, they moved on to singing and dancing.

Yu Fanshu boldly held Jun Zishu’s hand in front of the others and the cameras. Her expression was so frank and normal that others wouldn’t find her behavior strange. They would simply think that she was playing her role in the variety show.

At one point, Jun Zishu left for the bathroom to fix her makeup since she needed to remain in her best state at all times in front of the camera.

When Jun Zishu left the bathroom, she came across Millie smoking.

When Millie saw Jun Zishu, she didn’t bother hiding her actions at all. Instead, she asked, “Want one?”

“Thanks, but I don’t smoke,” Jun Zishu said, shaking her head.

Millie revealed an unimpressed smile as she puffed her cigarette and exhaled a smoke ring. Then, she threw the cigarette onto the floor and extinguished it with her feet.

“How did you do it, Jun Ling?”

“What?”

“Someone is backing you, right? You might be able to fool the masses, but you can’t fool me. Without anyone backing you, how can you suddenly switch companies?” Millie spoke in a certain tone. However, her face did not carry any hints of sarcasm, only calmness.

“If I have to name a backer, it’d have to be Miss Yu. I only got to jump ship because of Miss Yu’s care,” Jun Zishu openly admitted.

“You really are amazing. I used to think that you were quite silly because of how you ruined your reputation even with such a face, but now that I think about it, that really isn’t the case. The cards in your hand have been getting better and better recently. Perhaps, after this variety show starts airing, you’ll be able to take off for real,” Millie said as she took out her compact mirror and fixed her lipstick. Then, once she was done, she looked at Jun Zishu and revealed her usual sweet smile, saying, “I wish you a better tomorrow.”

“You too. Also, you should smoke less. It’s not good for your health.”

“I can’t help it. I’m addicted to it, and I can’t quit it,” Millie said nonchalantly. There were just some things that a person couldn’t help but do even when they knew that it was harmful to themselves. “Jun Ling, I really envy you.”

“If I was my past self, I would’ve envied you, too,” Jun Zishu said, shrugging. Then, she saw Millie smiling. However, it wasn’t the usual fake smile, but a relaxed and pleasant smile instead.

“Something is going on between you and Miss Yu, right?” Millie suddenly asked. “I didn’t want to bring it up before, but I felt that I should still say it. Be more careful.”

“Is it that obvious?”

Jun Zishu realized that when Millie mentioned envying her, the other party was talking about this.