Chapter 134
"Let's go! Let's go back!" Zhou Xiao swiftly climbed into the back seat of a taxi and waved goodbye to her parents, who were standing at the entrance to the community, reluctant to leave. She waited until the car had rounded the sturdy banyan tree at the entrance and her parents were out of sight before she turned back.
Zhou Xiao returned to Shanghai to receive a custom-made flower wall and prepare for Ji Shao's debut. She'd spent nearly a week at home, resting and editing. She stayed an extra day waiting for the TV station to confirm the video's usability before finally leaving.
Of course, in addition to the flower wall, Zhou Xiao also customized over a thousand peripheral gift packs and redeemed multiple large screens. Besides the standard accessories, she also customized a series of cute Ji Shao dumplings. For example, the V-sign Ji Shao made in the car during a previous group variety show has been made into numerous memes by fans.
Opening the messaging app, the small group chat buzzed with activity. This time, they finally had a chance to gather together again. Huayao Xingyu wasn't selling tickets for the press conference. Besides the official blog raffle and the popular comments and reposts, they also distributed a portion to media outlets and marketing accounts. Zhou Xiao, along with the other five, received two tickets specially sent by Lin Qianxia. Along with Zhu Jian's share and Dong Xiaoyu's winning ticket from the first day's draw, all five of them had tickets to enter the venue.
Qi Sisi, in the small group chat, was even trying to convince Dong Xiaoyu to take an extra day off so they could all spend the next day together in Shanghai. With many others in the group chiming in, Dong Xiaoyutong quickly became interested and quickly replied with a big "yes."
Zhou Xiao, who was flipping through the group chat history in the car, couldn't help laughing when he saw this. Just thinking about it, he began to look forward to the press conference the day after tomorrow.
After replying a few times, Zhou Xiao turned off his phone and leaned his head against the cushions in the back seat. His home was still quite a distance from the airport, so he took this opportunity to rest and recharge.
——【Forum】——[September 21st evening]
【Theme】Aaaaa! A dream collaboration!
[Main Post] All members of NINE STAR went to mentor Jiang Zhijuan's concert in Wuhu! [Picture]
The picture was taken by netizens and showed all the NINE STAR members on the big screen at the scene.
1L
Everyone feels like they all look plain, hahahahahaha they are all pretty good
31L
Teacher Jiang is really good. Although I was most afraid of him and Teacher Taozui when watching the show (one smiles but hides a knife, the other is sharp-tongued and mean), the trainees actually learned a lot from him. After all, in real life, no teacher would teach you that way!
56L
It would be great if Teacher Jiang invited them as guests. I haven't heard my son sing for a long time.
83L
Reply to 56L: Then let's not do that. I think this is just right. After all, it's a solo concert. Fans will definitely want to hear Teacher Jiang sing more. I hope our NINE STAR can also have the opportunity to hold a 10,000-person concert!
121L
A crowd of 10,000 people! A crowd of 10,000 people! Let's just have a simple dream! After all, there are only nine of us!
…
Back at the Huashang Times Hotel, Zhou Xiao was about to download the footage of Jiang Zhijuan's concert that had been circulating online. After the first enthusiastic netizen filmed it, it was quickly shared by marketing accounts, and that netizen's account quickly gained over a thousand followers. Soon, other netizens followed suit and posted live footage of NINE STAR from inside the concert.
But when she opened the video to look for Ji Shao, Zhou Xiao found that she had found him in the crowd almost immediately. This video was shot directly on the big screen, and at that moment, Jiang Zhijuan was smiling and introducing his students NINE STAR one by one to the fans in the audience.
The video was a bit shaky at first, but Zhou Xiao still managed to spot Ji Shao wearing a purple baseball cap amidst the colorful pile. Adding to that the clearly visible neem flower embroidery later on, it was clear that the hat was from the peripherals included in Zhou Xiao's support gift pack.
She searched for Ji Shao Plaza and, sure enough, a fan had already mentioned this matter in the plaza. For an artist to publicly authenticate something given by a fan is already a two-way street in the domestic entertainment industry.
This baseball cap was one of the peripheral items sent by the fan club on behalf of all fans. Ji Shao wore it during the practice room broadcast of the finals. Now it was re-verified during a private event, which made many fans feel that Ji Shao carefully accepts and preserves the gifts they give him, whether they are handmade or written. Unlike some artists who consider these things a burden and throw them away after a period of time.
The fans' reaction was immediate, with many tagging the fan club to ask how they could send Ji Shao their handmade gifts. The reason no one mentioned luxury goods was simply because everyone had learned from previous experiences, and after the match, Huayao had strictly prohibited the gifting of luxury goods or other expensive items. Of course, this proved to be their foresight.
The fan club was almost drowned by these voices, but after repeatedly asking the connection, the message they received was: "Try not to send gifts."
This finally gave many people pause, as sensible fans understood that the agency was doing this for Ji Shao's own good. But just as everyone was feeling a bit disappointed, a blog post appeared, pushing the fans' excitement to a climax.
——A certain blog——
@TanquanxiuxianmanualV: Oh my god! My heart is so generous! //@FlippedPounding Heart·Ji Shao: #Ji Shao Super Talk# Found a boy wearing a hat at his mentor's concert~ Ji Shao has it, so how can Tiao Si not have it? Retweet this post and follow @NINE STAR-Ji Shao V to get a hat matching Xiao Shao's! 1,000 people will be selected and free shipping~
[Help, did this sister fill in an extra 0*?]
[I don't want a hat, I just want the rich woman to look at me!]
[This is really exciting, the number of people entering the lottery...]
@Tanquan XiulianmanualV: (＿ε＿) I've received so many questions, so I'm asking for everyone here. My sister Xindong has a very steady hand, and it's 1000! Go for it everyone!
[Don't just watch the fun, go get yours! The real thing is really beautiful, and the embroidery and colors are on par with big brands! It's great for everyday use. Here's a censored selfie to show you the hat [Image]]
If I could draw this hat, I wonder what kind of lively, cheerful and cute little girl I would be.
【……】
While browsing the forum, Zhou Xiao saw many people asking for the link to the hat. Clicking on the homepage, he saw that most of the people, aside from casual users, were newbies who had only joined the game after the finals. Many only learned from fans during the game that the hat was a peripheral product and not for sale.
So Zhou Xiao exchanged these 1,000 hats from the system for a lottery and included free shipping. However, what she didn't expect was that this timely peripheral lottery not only made her recognition value soar in a short period of time, but also Ji Shao's long fame value took a small step towards the next stage.
Leaning back on the sofa, Zhou Xiao glanced across at the room across from her. It had been empty, but now it was filled with all sorts of goodies, which she had the hotel staff pack for her back home. This was also why Zhou Xiao opted for free shipping, letting the system directly connect to logistics information and deliver the hats one by one. The hats didn't need to be unpacked and repacked like the gift packages; the system took care of it, eliminating the need for intermediate steps.
But Zhou Xiao was somewhat surprised that when she mentioned this lazy approach, the system silently accepted it. Zhou Xiao touched her chin. After all, it shouldn't be illegal to let the black technology system do the dirty work, right?
Just as she seemed to be thinking, her cell phone suddenly rang. Zhou Xiao picked up the phone and saw that it was Li Ruoshi, the owner of the coffee shop, calling.
When she picked up the phone, Li Ruoshi on the other end said in a somewhat older sisterly, somewhat blaming tone, "Is NINE STAR going to hold a press conference at Huashang Times? Why didn't you contact me?"
Li Ruoshi knew why Zhou Xiao hadn't invited her to support him this time. For one thing, with the end of Star 101, the sales of merchants at Huashang Times had, if not halved, at least not as strong as before. After all, there were still the occasional performances, bringing in a steady stream of revenue, while the vendors who had set up stalls had long since fled. For another, this press conference might have been a fluke, and Zhou Xiao didn't want to take advantage of it.
But the more this happened, the more Li Ruoshi felt that Zhou Xiao was a good person. During the time they were supporting each other, the coffee shop's business was booming. Even after Star 101 ended, many fans would specifically order coffee and cake when they visited Huashang Times, boosting sales.
She had known for a while that NINE STAR was returning to Huashang Times for their group launch, as they were trending on social media and frequently featured in major media outlets. But she hadn't heard from Zhou Xiao, so she called him straight away.
Li Ruoshi knew that word of mouth was paramount to generating revenue. Her coffee shop, thanks to its early popularity and consistently high-quality service, became a top choice for residents gradually moving into the Huashang Times area. At her request, Zhou Xiao also added desserts to his fan base.
The next afternoon, Zhou Xiao and Qi Sisi, already sitting by the fountain with their small stools, watched the truck carrying the flower wall approach. After the people got off, Zhou Xiao instinctively recognized one of the workers: it was the worker who had worked with her when she first built the flower wall.
Zhou Xiao still remembers these photos as the first he took with his own camera after disabling the system's Master Shot mode. A gentle breeze brought back memories of that summer. While the installation might have been a routine task for the workers, the image they captured at sunset transformed Zhou Xiao.
"Master, do you remember that we installed the flower wall in this place last time?" Zhou Xiao stood up from the small stool and said with a smile to the middle-aged man who was about to open the box door.
To Zhou Xiao's surprise, the middle-aged man nodded and said, "We all say that your flower wall is the best we've ever seen!"
For a moment, Zhou Xiao wanted to hug the system and give it a big kiss.
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