16. Stunned

The first video was a collaboration between the two. Cui Sitong wanted to use himself to attract traffic to Song Jiuchen's official account.

The only issue was the direction of the first episode's filming. The studio team had differing opinions. Some thought it should be more lively, while others felt it should be a bit more formal at the beginning. Because of this disagreement, the script wasn't sent when the agreed-upon time arrived.

After learning why he hadn't received the script, Cui Sitong pulled Song Jiuchen aside for an overnight meeting.

The village committee meeting room was brightly lit, and the discussion was in full swing. The proposals were presented to Song Jiuchen, but the choice rested with the village officials. Ultimately, he would have to manage and develop the account himself.

Inside, it was bustling with activity, and the same was true outside. Fang Shuning and Liu Yi each sat on a small stool in the courtyard.

Liu Yi usually has a blank expression, making it impossible to read her emotions. However, anything she says becomes exceptionally serious. For example, right now, "Fang Shuning, it's late at night, I don't think you should be eating so many sunflower seeds. Eating too many will cause internal heat. Besides, 100 grams of sunflower seeds contains about 620 calories." At this point, Liu Yi paused, glancing at the nearly empty bag of sunflower seeds in Fang Shuning's hand. "This bag contains 300 grams; you've already consumed too many calories."

"Also, don't you think you've gained weight since you went home?"

Fang Shuning closed her eyes, unable to believe what she had just heard. Opening her eyes again, she asked, "Are you increasing women's body image anxiety?"

"No, as long as you're in good health, it's fine as long as you're comfortable with it. I just thought you would care about that aspect."

These words struck a chord with Fang Shuning. She truly cared, even deeply. Otherwise, she wouldn't have gone to the gym late at night after finishing overtime work.

Of course, this doesn't mean that Fang Shuning is particularly self-disciplined; she's just trying to fit into those exquisite and beautiful suits and be a modern, independent woman who combines beauty and intelligence.

Whoever said that beautiful women are brainless is the one who is truly brainless.

Counting the time, Fang Shuning had been back in Xitang for over half a month. In that time, she had done nothing but sleep and eat, indulging herself far too much. When people are in an overly comfortable environment, they become lazy, lax, and even decadent. But so what? Wasn't she home precisely to relax and rest?

Fang Shuning is very good at self-consistency.

However, it's really advisable to eat fewer sunflower seeds late at night.

The meeting room door is open; we need to let some fresh air in and let things cool down for a while.

Cui Sitong looked exhausted, and Song Jiuchen felt bad, so he asked if everyone wanted something to eat, offering to make it. Fang Shuning and Liu Yi stopped him in unison.

"Secretary Song, you should take a break. I'm afraid that if you eat your cooking, the big internet celebrity will get poisoned. Then we'll see who can help you manage your account."

Hearing Fang Shuning's words, Song Jiuchen scratched his head sheepishly. Cui Sitong quickly said that he didn't need to eat, as eating too late would cause him to gain fat and become puffy the next day, affecting his appearance on camera. Having been an internet celebrity for so many years, Cui Sitong seemed to have never eaten too much; he was basically content with just not being hungry.

There are 360 ​​professions, and every profession has its own set of problems.

The team at the studio is still working overtime to revise the plan. Fortunately, Cui Sitong's studio offers good benefits, so despite the overtime, no one complains.

Night fell, and a chill swept over us.

Fang Shuning wants to go home.

Song Jiuchen quickly got up to take Fang Shuning home.

"I'm going back too, why aren't you seeing me off?" Liu Yi stood at the entrance of the village committee, teasing Song Jiuchen with a blank expression.

"Yeah, why did Secretary Song only see me off and not the class monitor?" Fang Shuning liked to tease the puppy.

Song Jiuchen, however, was easily teased; his ears turned red instantly, and he stammered, unable to give a coherent answer. Seeing this, Liu Yi waved and walked alone into the night.

Cui Sitong didn't bother to pay attention to what the two were up to, and turned back to work overtime.

"Let's go then." Fang Shuning called out to Song Jiuchen, wanting to see what he was up to.

The village committee wasn't far from Fang Shuning's house, and they arrived at her doorstep in no time. Song Jiuchen remained silent the entire way, and Fang Shuning wasn't in a hurry, waiting for him to speak first.

Song Jiuchen had been pondering this all the way, but hadn't figured out how to start the conversation yet.

Fang Shuning opened the door to go home, but Song Jiuchen hadn't said anything yet. Fang Shuning deliberately slowed down her closing motion, and just as the door was about to close, Song Jiuchen quickly stepped forward and used his hand to stop the door from closing, saying, "Why don't you invite me up for a bit?"

This is the first time I've seen someone ask such a question.

They sat down again by the large window on the second floor, but this time Fang Shuning didn't reach for a Coke. Seeing others drink always makes her want one too, and drinking too much Coke before bed makes her more likely to wake up needing to pee. That's karma.

So, what exactly is Song Jiuchen up to?

Fang Shuning thought that Song Jiuchen was referring to her question during the day, "Do you have feelings for me?" She wondered what would happen if he really did have feelings for her and confessed directly. Should she reject him? Fang Shuning felt it would be a pity to reject a man who was exactly her type.

But if you don't refuse, wouldn't that be like a rabbit eating the grass near its burrow?

Thinking of this, Fang Shuning sighed regretfully. Sigh~

Song Jiuchen had no idea what Fang Shuning was thinking. He just kept encouraging himself. Some things really take a lot of courage to say.

Fang Shuning.

"kindness?"

Are you interested in making an investment?

"ah?"

This strange idea had been swirling in Song Jiuchen's mind for a long time. Whether it would work or not, he felt he had to at least try. The village's cannery had gone bankrupt a couple of years ago and had been abandoned ever since.

Xitang Village has a large number of yellow peach trees. When the peaches ripen, they can only be collectively delivered to wholesalers, resulting in low prices and increased transportation costs. The villagers work hard all year round, but earn less than they would in three months working in the city. From that time on, Song Jiuchen had been thinking about rebuilding the cannery. Unfortunately, the land for the factory belonged to the village collective. Even after waiving some fees and offering the surrounding land use rights free of charge, they still couldn't attract a willing investor.

Song Jiuchen overheard Fang Shuning and Liu Yi's conversation that day. This gave him the idea, but Song Jiuchen also knew that he was making a hasty decision.

After listening to Song Jiuchen's explanation, Fang Shuning smiled. People really do smile when they're speechless.

Leaving aside the calculations of the initial operating costs for rebuilding a long-abandoned cannery, what makes Song Jiuchen think that Fang Shuning, someone who knows nothing, has a completely unrelated major, and has never been involved in this kind of work, would agree to this? Does he really think Fang Shuning's money grows on trees? Or does he really think Fang Shuning is a fool?

Song Jiuchen was thus "invited" out of Fang Shuning's house.

For the next two days, aside from attending one class, Fang Shuning didn't go to the village committee again. Cui Sitong's filming was on track, and the first video was officially released two days later. The response was very good.

Cui Tongtong has her own built-in audience, and platforms promoting agricultural products also provide traffic support. Most importantly, Song Jiuchen is genuinely good-looking. Compared to those heavily filtered beauty bloggers online, he's even better. Moreover, Song Jiuchen possesses a natural charm, a handsome look without filters.

It quickly gained a large following of female fans.

Some people even started shipping Cui Sitong and Song Jiuchen as a couple.

Song Jiuchen's official account is seeing its follower count grow at a visible rate. Even Cui Sitong's backend data has improved significantly. The studio team is overjoyed.

Cui Sitong naturally noticed Fang Shuning's unusual behavior these past two days. After things got back on track, he finally had enough time to have a proper talk with Fang Shuning.

Cui Sitong dragged Fang Shuning, who was sleeping in bed, out of bed, saying as he did so, "I've told you eight hundred times not to keep the air conditioner on, it'll give you facial paralysis. Get up!"

Cui Sitong could really change his name to Cui Jianhua.

Once Fang Shuning had cleared her head, Cui Sitong finally spoke, "Tell me, what's been going on with you these past two days?"

Friends who have known each other for many years share a tacit understanding that surpasses even blood ties. Neither can hide anything from the other.

Fang Shuning wasn't one to hide anything, and recounted the whole story in detail.

After listening to Fang Shuning's explanation, Cui Sitong remained silent for a while before asking, "So, are you angry because Song Jiuchen contacted you for investment purposes, or because Song Jiuchen contacted you solely for investment purposes?"

The two sentences, though only two words apart, have completely different meanings.

Cui Sitong's question left Fang Shuning completely bewildered. Right, what was she even angry about?

If it's because Song Jiuchen asked her to invest, then there's really no need. After all, she said from the beginning that she was just trying her luck when she asked. Song Jiuchen also knew that he was being a bit unreasonable and didn't have high hopes.

But if Song Jiuchen is only contacting her for investment purposes, then there's even less reason for it. The two of them have no real relationship to begin with, and those inexplicable thoughts are just her own one-sided speculation. Secretary Song is simply stating the facts; why is Fang Shuning being so dramatic?

"Fang Shuning, you wouldn't actually have taken a liking to Secretary Song, would you?" Cui Sitong threw out another fatal question. Fang Shuning was speechless this time.

Fang Shuning had been in several relationships, but never truly cared for any of them. She only considered those men as fleeting emotions to spice up her life. Like scallions sprinkled on top of fish soup after it's cooked, their absence wouldn't stop her from drinking it, but their presence certainly made it more pleasing to the eye.

Fang Shuning couldn't figure it out, so she simply stopped thinking about it. There was no need to make things too difficult for herself.

Seeing Fang Shuning's mood fluctuate between sunny, cloudy, and sunny again, Cui Sitong said that once she was done with her work for the next few days, the two of them would go to the city and arrange for eight male models for Fang Shuning so she could have a good look at them.