Chapter 273
Chen Shenju was slightly stunned, then his tone turned serious. "I will report this to the company and get back to you as soon as possible!"
Zhou Xiao nodded, gave an OK sign, and watched him leave. After Chen Shenju left, Zhu Jian, who had been looking through autographed photos with Qi Sisi, turned around and looked at Zhou Xiao in disbelief. "Xiaoxiao, tell me the truth, are you lurking in our fan club group?"
This was a joke, of course, but the fan club had indeed been planning to customize a three-piece hand-microphone set for Ji Shao before this. While the earphone malfunction during this concert made the fan club regret not getting Ji Shao the three-piece set sooner, it also served as a good opportunity to promote this support.
Scratching the back of his head, Zhu Jian continued, "Xiaoxiao, if Brother Chen writes back to you, please let me know if I can send it. I'll then discuss with the other members of the fan club whether we should switch support."
Customizing a three-piece set is naturally a significant expense, and this is only the initial stage of support, with no design drafts or detailed procedures for contacting suppliers. In the initial stages, if replacements are made promptly, losses are essentially zero.
If this support were to collide, Zhu Jian could already imagine the forums' chatter about their fan club having "another" beautiful ocean view room. Of course, beyond the excitement, these ocean view rooms have become a standard feature of every fan club and famous fan site.
"Ha!" Zhou Xiao put his arm around Zhu Jian's neck, narrowing his eyes and grinning like a fox. With a sly grin, he said, "Well, that's no problem!"
Of the three people eating melons nearby, except Qi Sisi who didn't understand the value of this customization, the other two had already come forward and surrounded Zhou Xiao, eagerly wanting to eat a handful of the melon.
"Xiaoxiao, you know, I haven't seen a customized microphone since I was a child." Dong Xiaoyu, who was surrounding Zhou Xiao, had a sincere look on her face and hugged her arm enthusiastically.
"Sister Xiao, please give me some spoilers when the finished product comes out! I guarantee it will be the first to be praised in the circle within a week!" Li Mo's eyes lit up, and it seemed that he was certain that Huayao would agree.
In fact, Huayao naturally agreed and actively promoted the improvement of customized design and configuration. Customization is expensive, and it must be ordered by all members, which is a very expensive fee.
Even if you find a regular brand, the price is not low, and there is a high possibility of being criticized by fans for being stingy. Instead of doing that, it is better to let the fans take care of it themselves. Of course, this is all a later story.
As the two of them were being attentive, Cheese, who had taken over the autographed photos from Chen Shenju, counted the number of autographs and the number of people present, then leaned over and whispered, "Excuse me!"
Then, right in front of Zhou Xiao and the others, he nimbly climbed over the railing. "Assistant Shao sent me some autographed photos. I'll give them to everyone." Cheese shook the autographed photos in his hand, his expression filled with indescribable joy and happiness.
Even though Chen Shenju didn't say much, Cheese knew that this was definitely because Ji Shao saw that they hadn't left at this hour, so he specially arranged for an assistant to confirm whether they were safe and whether they had any difficulties and could not return home.
Which idol would have their assistant come out to hand out autographed photos after a concert? It was Ji Shao! Which idol would even consider arranging a car to take them home? It was Ji Shao! This concert was so worth it!
Zhou Xiao suppressed her smile and poked Zhu Jian beside her. At her prompting, Zhu Jian shook his head, held up the autographed photo in his hand, and said, "Brother Chen just came over and gave it to us."
"By the way, we need to put our plan for a three-piece custom hand-microphone set on hold for now," Zhu Jian said, nodding at Zhou Xiao beside him, spreading his hands and smiling helplessly, "An unexpected person shows up midway. It seems we need to find another time to discuss it."
…
At a hot pot restaurant near the Cultural and Sports Center, several tables of people filled the second floor. Amidst the excited chatter about autographed photos, one voice stood out.
"First anniversary ribbons! I collected them all myself!" Qi Sisi said excitedly, carefully sorting the ribbons that had fallen onto the tray. The tray was overflowing with colorful ribbons, some even bearing faint shoe prints, but the owner couldn't bear to throw them away.
Zhou Xiao, who was standing beside her, looked at her and said helplessly, "Then you better be careful with it. Don't let Auntie throw it away as trash during the general cleaning."
When Zhou Xiao said this, everyone at the table couldn't help but laugh. She wasn't the only one who was impressed by this; everyone had heard Qi Sisi's wailing in the group that night.
As Qi Sisi assured him, "It's absolutely impossible this time," Ji Shao's "It's Destined" began playing in the hot pot restaurant. This song had given the fans an incredible surprise tonight, and hearing the original version again reminded them of Ji Shao's performance at the concert.
Not only do idols need a stage, but for fans who got into idol shows through talent shows, it is an indispensable part of their star-chasing life! It is also a stimulant engraved in their DNA!
At first, some people looked around, trying to find out which clever guy had asked the waiter to order the song, but they were immediately pulled together by fans at the same table to sing along.
Inside the 24-hour hot pot restaurant, a purple sign, once turned on, glowed with an intense purple light amidst the excitement. The original light was tinted with the purple glow of the sign. The patrons on the second floor were all Ji Shao fans who had pre-arranged an appointment offline, each carrying a wealth of support merchandise. Of course, even more striking was the autographed photo of Ji Shao that everyone had in their possession.
"Boss, your store is going to be a big hit!" Amidst the music, a drunk sister picked up the wine glass on the table and toasted the boss who was pushing a cart to serve the dishes.
Little did they know that the wine glass had been replaced with orange juice long ago, but the fans who were toasting him muttered that the wine had gone bad while drinking it down in one gulp! They also turned the glass upside down to indicate to everyone that there was no "wine" in it.
I was really happy today. A few girls who were drunk with me also said auspicious words, which made the boss very happy.
She covered her mouth, which was about to burst open, and laughed happily amid the compliments, "Young girls are really good at talking. Well, I won't be stingy anymore. I'll give you all an 12% discount tonight. Eat and drink well, and come back next time!"
"The boss is really beautiful and kind-hearted." "Next time Ji Shao comes, we will definitely come again." "Will you give me a discount next time, beautiful boss?" "..." The enthusiasm and sweet talk of the star chasers were crazy at this moment.
Hearing the commotion at the table in front, Zhou Xiao looked up and exchanged a glance with Qi Sisi, then tacitly gave a thumbs-up to the group of people at that table. As the saying goes, those who plant trees enjoy the shade, and today's dinner started beautifully with a discount offered by the boss!
"Sister Xiao, please eat first. There's no rush to edit the photos." A pair of serving chopsticks fell from the sky, picked up the perfect piece of beef from the pot and put it into Zhou Xiao's bowl.
Zhou Xiao felt a little embarrassed. After saving the half-edited photo, she put her phone back into her bag. She was itching to edit the photos she had taken at the concert today, so she decided to take advantage of her free time to quickly edit them.
"Yeah! Eat first!"
Listening to Ji Shao's songs, the atmosphere in the venue was quite enthusiastic. Everyone enjoyed the hot pot meal to their heart's content. Just as everyone supported each other and walked to the front desk to pay, they were told that the bill had already been paid.
Zhou Xiao, who was walking to the back, heard the boss' words and subconsciously looked at Cheese in front. With so many people, they must have eaten quite a lot. She was just thinking about asking him to share the food later when she noticed Cheese's eyes looking at her.
Zhou Xiao: ...
Hmm, that look seems familiar. Oh, right? It seems to be similar to the look she just gave the other person?
Zhou Xiao shook her head, indicating that she wasn't the one paying. The owner at the cashier was also a bit confused. This was a significant sum. Based on the time it took for the payment to arrive, she quickly checked the security footage and beckoned someone who was still conscious to come inside the cashier's counter.
"Who is it? They are so generous to buy..." Qi Sisi, who was full of curiosity, squeezed in and put her hand on the shoulder of the stranger she met and started to look at the things. She got stuck in the middle of her sentence like everyone else.
"Oh my god..." Cheese, standing next to the boss, had a complicated expression on her face as she muttered silently. This was a rare moment of emotion for her; the person on the surveillance camera was so unexpected.
Zhou Xiao, standing on the periphery, felt as if she had guessed the truth for some reason. She turned her head to look towards the lobby on the first floor, paused for a moment, then turned back and asked the boss softly, "Excuse me, boss, did the person who paid for us eat on the first floor before?"
"Yeah!" The boss nodded confidently. "We ate in the lobby on the first floor. He said he was with you guys. I even gave their tables a 12% discount."
The others outside the cashier counter also realized what was going on, feeling a mixture of surprise and regret. Surprise that their idol had secretly paid the bill, regret that they had once been so close to Ji Shao! If only they had finished eating earlier and run into Ji Shao again... that would have been unimaginably lucky!
After everyone's explanation, the boss finally realized that the person who paid for their group of fans was an artist holding a concert at the nearby cultural and sports center. Feeling quite emotional, he turned the surveillance camera back on and had the fans film the scene of Ji Shao and his group entering the store and paying the bill.
This was the first time the owner had encountered such a situation in all his time. Furthermore, the celebrity secretly paid the bill, fearing rejection. These sweet-talking kids must have found a great idol.
…
In the back of the taxi, Zhou Xiao and Qi Sisi leaned against each other, watching the video Cheese had posted in the group chat. On the surveillance camera, a group of young men wearing three-piece celebrity suits and a large group of staff arrived at the store. Everyone who entered seemed to glance in the direction of the second-floor stairs.
Needless to say, these three-piece outfits were undoubtedly NINE STAR. Zhou Xiao speculated that perhaps the glimpse was due to the light board they had turned on, allowing people from outside to see the purple light ball on the second floor. Perhaps it was this light board that attracted Ji Shao and his group.
The group ate quickly, and the young man paying the bill paused at the cashier's counter. The owner recalled that he was telling her they were together. During this conversation, the owner began typing away on the keyboard.
The young man waiting to scan and pay seemed to have heard something and turned to look towards the stairs. Then, a large group of people hurriedly left the hot pot restaurant.
Qi Sisi said that even if the young man checking out the bill in the video turned into ashes, she would still recognize him as Ji Shaolai. For Zhou Xiao, as a photographer, recognizing Ji Shao was as easy as drinking water.
Zhou Xiao took a screenshot of Ji Shao paying, pointed at the time on the surveillance video, and asked Qi Sisi uncertainly, "By the way, what are we doing at this time?"
Qi Sisi blushed and stammered, "It seems like everyone is singing 'Drunk in the Starry River'..."
"Drunk in the Starry Sky" is a difficult song to sing, especially the high notes, which are the most prone to failure in covers. While there are certainly some Ji Shao fans who can sing, many struggle to sing. This time, especially since there were many drunk people, many were just singing along.
Think about it, before leaving, the boss, in order to comfort everyone who was disappointed, took the initiative to say that the sound insulation upstairs and downstairs was average, and that everyone below could hear what they were saying.
He hadn't felt it at the time, but now that he had come to his senses and thought about the weight of those words, Zhou Xiao was suddenly very glad that he hadn't run into Ji Shao and his group!
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