Chapter 66 Sixty-Six Fires
At the end, Yan Duo emerged from under the covers to catch her breath, her hair disheveled, cheeks flushed, and panting heavily as if she had just run a kilometer.
“It’s so hot!” Yan Duo wanted to throw off the blankets and get out of bed.
Ji Ran also emerged from under the covers, stopping her movements as he asked, “Aren’t you afraid of the cameras anymore?”
Yan Duo turned her head to look at him, “Then what should we do?”
Even though she knew she was probably overthinking—after all, how could a five-star hotel possibly have hidden cameras?—Ji Ran’s words still made Yan Duo freeze in fear.
Ji Ran fumbled under the covers for a while before emerging, then meticulously wrapped Yan Duo up like a mummy with the blanket, leaving only her head exposed. With a serious expression, he said, “You’re not wearing any clothes right now, so to avoid being seen by others, I’ll carry you to the bathroom for a shower!”
Yan Duo looked at him wearing nothing but black boxer briefs and wanted to say, “Just throw me a nightgown, and I can walk freely.” But Ji Ran lifted her up and carried her straight to the bathroom.
After taking a shower, Yan Duo put on a bathrobe and prepared to go out by herself.
Ji Ran quickly stopped her again: “That won’t do! You’re not wearing anything underneath, I should carry you out!”
Before Yan Duo could refuse, Ji Ran hoisted her onto the bed like a sack of potatoes and straightened her clothes.
“How do I feel like I’m actually mocking myself?” Yan Duo lay on the bed, watching Ji Ran take clean quilts from the closet, and asked.
“How could that be? I’m just worried someone might see you!” Ji Ran grabbed the blanket and draped it tightly over Yan Duo, saying.
If he hadn’t said anything, it would have been fine, but with those words, Yanduo finally confirmed that Jiran was truly mocking her. After Jiran got into bed, Yanduo turned over and climbed on top of him, biting his neck fiercely.
“Jiran, you jerk!”
What does he mean by being afraid others might see her? Wasn’t he afraid of being seen in his underwear with an obvious bulge? The way he deliberately teased her was utterly despicable!
Ji Ran smiled and let her bite him. Once she had vented her anger, he removed the cumbersome bathrobe from under the covers and fell asleep beside her.
In the following days, after traveling with Yan Duo to two cities, Ji Ran returned to T City together.
After resting for the night, Yan Duo considered that she had four upcoming award ceremonies to attend and realized her wardrobe was insufficient. Just as she was about to go out to buy clothes, Qi Sixian called her.
“The Ji family still doesn’t know you’ve changed agents. They called me, hoping you’d help promote for them.”
Yan Duo was a bit confused, “Promotion? How do we promote it?”
Qi Sixian said, “Don’t you have an awards ceremony to attend? Their spokesperson is about to change, and they want to lend you clothes for free to see your influence in driving sales.”
If her product promotion abilities are strong, Yan Duo will undoubtedly be the next spokesperson.
As for being a spokesperson, Yan Duo didn’t think that far ahead. But she was delighted to have free clothes to wear now. “Really? Can I go pick them out at their store?”
Qi Sixian was speechless: “Are you stupid? Of course, the clothes lent to you wouldn’t be common designs found everywhere—how could they just casually sell them in stores! They’ll deliver them directly!”
Brands lend clothes to celebrities to wear on important occasions, which is equivalent to their The flagship store would naturally choose the most unique outfits that best showcase the brand’s strength, and most of these pieces aren’t available in regular stores.
Hearing that she wouldn’t even need to leave the house, Yan Duo was even more delighted. “I’m free from now until right before the awards ceremony tomorrow. Sister Qi, could you help arrange it with them?”
Since Sister Qi would remain her agent in the future, there was no need to hide anything from her. Yan Duo straightforwardly shared her schedule.
Touched by Yan Duo’s trust, Qi Sixian replied, “Alright then. I’ll send them your home address and phone number later so they can contact you directly.”
“Yes, yes, that works.”
After hanging up the phone, Yanduo ran to the study to find Jiran.
“Honey, my clothes are sponsored, no need to buy them!”
Jiran looked up and asked her, “Which brand?”
For well-known celebrities, many brands are willing to lend clothing. Just like before, some actively contacted Zeng Wei, expressing willingness to provide outfits for Yan Duo. However, those brands either had a poor reputation or other unfavorable aspects, so Zeng Wei outright refused. After all, wearing subpar brands at major events could negatively impact the artist’s image.
Yan Duo replied, “The Ji family contacted Sister Qi.”
Upon hearing this, Ji Ran nodded. The Ji family was an international brand, highly sought after by most domestic celebrities for endorsement deals. It was a great opportunity. However, Yan Duo agreeing to wear their clothes meant she intended to compete for the next endorsement deal. From then on, she would likely be seen as a rival by many.
“That’s great.”
Since Yan Duo has reached this position, even if it might offend some people, she still has to fight for what she deserves. More importantly, the brand prefers to choose her.
“It’s good, but I’m afraid we might make enemies in the future.”
Although it was Yan Duo’s first time dealing with an internationally renowned brand, she wasn’t entirely unaware of the internal competition. The pie was only so big, and inevitably, she would encroach on others’ interests, inadvertently offending peers in the industry.
Ji Ran glanced at her, slightly surprised that Yan Duo could think of this, and asked, “So what do you think?”
Yan Duo straightened her chest and said, “Of course, I’ll dress beautifully to face the storm of bullets!”
This path was one of no retreat, and when she chose to enter this circle, she had already prepared herself mentally for everything.
Ji Ran smiled and said, “Alright then, if you have any ideas, you can discuss them with Zeng Wei. He’ll fully cooperate with you.”
Yan Duo nodded and agreed.
The Ji family acted quickly. To avoid delaying Yan Duo’s schedule the next day, they brought several haute couture and limited edition outfits to Ji Ran’s home that very afternoon. To ensure Yan Duo presented herself in the best possible state, the brand manager even brought along their in-house designer. The designer helped Yan Duo coordinate a full look from head to toe, not just the clothes and shoes, but even the accessories, all from their own brand.
The brand manager stroked his chin, looking at Yan Duo in the mirror, and asked, “Miss Yan, do you have a personal makeup artist?”
At that moment, Yan Duo was admiring herself in the mirror. Hearing the question, she shook her head and said, “No, I don’t.”
Yan Duo wasn’t famous before, so she never needed a dedicated makeup artist. Even now that she has the need, she doesn’t feel she must have one exclusively. In her plan, she intended to ask Qi Sixian later to recommend a makeup artist who could come to her home tomorrow to do her makeup.
The manager said, “Is that so? How about I arrange for the company’s makeup artist to come and do your makeup tomorrow?”
Making this suggestion wasn’t because the manager doubted Yan Duo’s ability to choose a good makeup artist. Rather, the manager privately believed Yan Duo would shine brilliantly tomorrow—if that’s the case, why not let her promote their cosmetics line at the same time?
Hearing she wouldn’t need to trouble Qi Sixian, Yan Duo was more than willing and quickly agreed with a smile, “That sounds great.”
Ji Ran stood by, taking everything in. After Yan Duo’s outfits were all finalized, he said to the manager, “I’ll also be attending the awards ceremony tomorrow. When you come over, bring a few haute couture pieces for me as well—just coordinate them with her outfits.”
The manager was taken aback at first, then showed a troubled expression. Numerous celebrities had wanted to borrow their clothes, but the company wasn’t a charity—without approval from higher-ups, how could they just lend them out so easily?
Ji Ran understood perfectly and said, “I’ll buy it.”
The manager instantly burst into laughter. He had dealt with many celebrities in the industry through the Ji family, and almost none of them would spend hundreds of thousands or even millions on a dress they’d only wear once. Most opted to borrow or rent. If Ji Ran was willing to pay a premium, why wouldn’t they agree? Besides, when he and Yan Duo appeared wearing matching outfits from the Ji family’s brand, wouldn’t that be free advertising for them?
“Alright, alright, I’ll bring ten sets of clothes for your reference tomorrow.”
Ji Ran: “Okay.”
After the Ji family manager left with his team, Yan Duo asked Ji Ran, “Why did you buy them?”
In Yan Duo’s impression, because the brand involved ethnic insults, Ji Ran terminated his endorsement deal with a well-known menswear line and hadn’t endorsed any fashion brands since. However, this didn’t mean no brands were willing to lend him clothes. Spending a large sum of money to buy clothing didn’t seem cost-effective to Yan Duo.
Ji Ran hung up the dress Yan Duo would wear tomorrow and said, “Of course, I want to match outfits with you.”
Wearing matching outfits doesn’t necessarily mean wearing the same brand.” Yan Duo gave him a sidelong glance. “The matching outfits are just an excuse—the real reason is you want to make a good impression on the brand so they’ll give me the endorsement, right?”
Yan Duo’s current market value isn’t particularly high, roughly in the six-figure range. Even if she lands an endorsement deal, the fee would only be enough to buy an ordinary haute couture outfit. From this perspective, Ji Ran’s deal doesn’t seem very cost-effective at all.
Ji Ran pinched her nose and said with a smile, “You’re overthinking it. If buying a set of clothes could land you a spokesperson role, domestic artists would have done it long ago. How could this endorsement still be waiting for you?”
Although this was the truth, what Ji Ran didn’t tell Yan Duo was that he spent money on clothes merely to convey his support for her work to the brands.
Yan Duo thought about it and felt that it made sense, so she didn’t say anything more.
That evening, to ensure the best mental state for the next day, Yan Duo sternly refused Ji Ran’s request for intimacy, lying in bed early to apply a face mask—and even slapped one on Ji Ran as well.
Ji Ran had no interest in skincare or face masks, but Yan Duo gave him no chance to refuse. He could only lie stiffly on the bed with her, peacefully waiting for half an hour.
When the time came, Ji Ran washed his face, casually applied some moisturizer, and got into bed.
Yan Duo spent twenty minutes in the bathroom completing her full skincare routine. After applying hand cream and stepping out, she impulsively stepped onto the electronic scale by the bed.
A few seconds later, Ji Ran, who was sitting on the bed scrolling through his phone, heard a sudden exclamation.
“No way, I actually weigh 90 pounds!”
Ji Ran turned to look at Yan Duo, only to see her take off her shoes and step back onto the scale, muttering in disbelief, “How can this be?” Then, he watched helplessly as she removed her socks, her pink loungewear pants, and top, standing there in just a black tank top and underwear, before finally trembling with frustration, “This scale must be broken—it hasn’t budged at all.”
“I think if you keep taking it off, there might be less.” Ji Ran looked at her and suggested.
Hearing this, Yan Duo didn’t think much of it and reached out to pull off her tank top. Halfway through, she suddenly snapped back to reality, turning to glare at Ji Ran. “What are you up to?”
Ji Ran watched her movements, feeling somewhat disappointed. “I was just telling you ways to lose weight, for your own good.”
Yan Duo pushed the scale against the wall and called him out, “A tank top isn’t that heavy—it couldn’t possibly make you lose even an ounce!”
Ji Ran looked at her and said, “Right, it won’t make you lose an ounce now, but I can guarantee that if you take everything off, you’ll lose at least two ounces within an hour.”
To this, Yan Duo, who had long seen through his tricks, simply replied with two words: “Ha ha.”
Ji Ran looked at Yan Duo sleeping with her back turned to him and thought with amusement, seems like he’ll have to come up with new tactics for coaxing his wife into bed!
The author has something to say: Ji Ran: Even tricks need regular updates, otherwise there’ll be no meat to eat!
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