First Kiss Diary - Chapter 22

The two boys who threw chalk at Ji Ning froze instantly, and everyone turned to look at them. The two remained silent, seeming to play dead or thinking that Ji Shixian was just joking about kicking them out, after all, who wasn’t scared by teachers in class since childhood? No one had really gone out to sleep after the teacher said, “Go outside and sleep.”

But after a brief silence, the person at the podium tapped on the hardcover book cover and reminded, “You can go after cleaning up. I still have five boxes of chalk here. You can’t finish until you’ve thrown them all.”

One of the boys asked in shock, “Are you serious?”

“Otherwise?” Ji Shixian asked back coldly, “Is it fake to throw chalk at people?”

A subtle commotion spread through the classroom.

“Is he protecting Ji Ning?”

“Did they go public with their relationship? But wasn’t it said to be a show?”

“Overthinking it, it’s just a show of authority for the first meeting with the teacher. Ji Shixian is strict anyway, or he wouldn’t have come this far.”

The two boys reluctantly walked to the door, and Ji Shixian didn’t joke with them either. He called them back and told them to take all five boxes of chalk from the podium outside to play with.

Don’t they like to play?

Ji Ning watched the two boys leave the classroom. She felt Nuonuo tapping something on her phone, and when she looked down, she saw a line of text on Nuonuo’s phone —

“I love Ji Shixian forever!!!”

“…”

Ji Ning choked up and pushed the phone back, gesturing for Nuonuo to be serious, after all, Ji Shixian looked very serious today.

After this whole ordeal, the class quieted down immediately. There were no more quiet discussions, and everyone listened attentively as Ji Shixian lectured and took notes.

After all, it was a rare opportunity to have a renowned actor teach them, not only theory but also techniques based on his own experience.

Ji Ning was also taking notes, listening to the man saying, “Acting skills are the soul of an actor, line proficiency is the flesh, and rhythm control is the skeleton. To become a good actor, all three are indispensable,” she was momentarily lost in thought.

It’s so strange, she had heard him talk about his high demands on himself in an interview before, and now she was hearing him say it again in the same classroom. It gave her a subtle sense of time overlapping.

Fate is really mysterious sometimes, pushing the distant star you once admired to stand before you.

The two-hour class quickly ended, and at the moment the bell rang, Ji Ning even heard reluctant sighs from those around her, not wanting it to end.

Of course, everyone studied for two hours, and the two boys stood outside for two hours as well.

When Ji Shixian came out, the two boys looked as dejected as wilted eggplants. They couldn’t even raise their hands. As soon as they saw him come out, they quickly broke the remaining chalk into pieces and smashed them towards each other.

Ji Shixian looked at the pile of chalk heads at their feet and asked calmly, “Do you know what you’re going to do next?”

“We know, we know!” the two boys groveled, “We’ll clean up here, sweep twice and mop once. We’ll take care of the classroom cleanliness too!”

He nodded but didn’t say anything more.

The remaining two boys looked at each other, wondering why he hadn’t said to let them go yet…

So one of them quickly admitted his mistake again, “Teacher Ji, we’re really sorry, we know we were wrong.”

Ji Shixian glanced sideways at Ji Ning coming out, then asked them lightly, “Who should you apologize to?”

“Sorry, Ji Ning, really sorry! I won’t throw chalk at you again, even though I may not have the chance again in the future… I’ll unfollow your fake account when I go back, and then I’ll promote your rose. I’ll put your poster on our school’s exhibition board!”

After the two boys sincerely apologized, Ji Shixian reminded them to remember to promote the rose, then let them go.

Mainly because he couldn’t drag it out any longer. If the boys didn’t leave, he couldn’t leave either. Two hours ago, news of his substitute teaching had spread, and now fans had already surrounded the place outside, with densely packed heads everywhere.

Ji Ning, on the other hand, couldn’t help but feel emotional when she saw this scene. She wondered when she would unlock such exaggerated attractiveness herself.

Would there be her fans inside? Maybe one or two… here for her?

Here’s the translation:

Ji Shiyan had obviously anticipated this situation long ago, and five bodyguards ran over from not far away.

Ji Ning was somewhat surprised, but quickly felt it wasn’t unusual, thinking that this might be the self-awareness of a top celebrity.

Ji Shiyan glanced at her expression and said, “Didn’t bring bodyguards?”

The girl shook her head in surprise.

When she went out, she usually concealed herself well, and rarely was recognized by people. How could she have been prepared?

“Then use mine,” the man said, “Let’s go.”

Both of them were celebrities, and he couldn’t possibly leave her to face the surging crowd alone.

Even though many people were here for him, she also had some popularity. People couldn’t only focus on their favorite idols; idol CP (couple pairing) was also possible.

Ji Ning analyzed the situation and quickly nodded in agreement.

Even with bodyguards, the road ahead still didn’t look very optimistic, but fortunately, Ji Shiyan’s fans were orderly, and they soon made way for them.

Along the way, Ji Ning realized that some people were here for her. They shouted her name loudly and waved to her in the crowd, and she tried her best to respond to them.

After a winding path, the two finally got into Ji Shiyan’s car.

This was her first time riding in his RV. Before, she had only tried to piece together its appearance from various photos. At this moment, it looked even more exquisite than she had imagined.

In her mind, it was like a radar detector. When she saw the sofa, window, and table, corresponding keywords automatically popped up: he took selfies here, ate here, watched the news here.

Being rich was nice; the RV even had two floors, with a bedroom upstairs.

As for what had happened in the bedroom, she had no idea.

After the car had been driving for a while, Ji Shiyan got up and went to the kitchen inside. When Ji Ning heard the sound of chopping, she found it somewhat unbelievable.

Could Ji Shiyan be cooking for her?

As soon as this thought came to mind, Ji Ning immediately shook her head to clear it, thinking it couldn’t be possible.

Then the man skillfully put on a black jacket and started cooking and stirring in the pot.

Half an hour later, his hands, with distinct knuckles, brought over dishes and two bowls of rice to the table.

“There’s not much variety, just make do with it.”

Ji Ning looked at the sweet and sour ribs, potato beef, and cabbage soup on the table, momentarily losing her ability to organize her thoughts.

The music station in her mind automatically started playing “I’m Not Worthy,” “Why Like This,” and “Dream.”

Seeing the girl opposite her pinch her own cheek, Ji Shiyan asked, “What’s wrong? Aren’t you eating?”

“It’s not, it’s not. They’re all dishes I like.”

Ji Ning began to feel dazed. “When was this meal steamed? Why didn’t I see it?”

“I made it while you were looking around the car.”

Did he decide to cook at that time?

“Eat,” Ji Shiyan handed her a pair of chopsticks, “It’ll be over an hour before we reach the hotel.”

She had known he could cook before, but she hadn’t expected to eat something he cooked.

It might be a little embarrassing to say so, but she really wanted to take it home and preserve it.

Ji Ning took the chopsticks, thinking that even if she had to run 10,000 meters and do countless Pilates sessions after eating, it was worth it.

Every piece of ribs was flavorful, the potatoes were soft and glutinous, the beef was tender, and the cabbage soaked up the soup, incredibly tempting.

She deeply questioned her soul: How could anyone not like Ji Shiyan?

Ji Shiyan watched her eating with her head down and didn’t say anything. He couldn’t help but ask, “How does it taste?”

The girl nodded with bright eyes.

Just as morning in Naples is sufficient for a lifetime, Ji Ning’s meal was also sufficient for the evening.

The man seemed to be smiling, his voice low, “If you like it… I’ll cook for you again in the future.”

She was stunned for two seconds before realizing that they still had variety show filming ahead.

But this sentence did indeed make her very satisfied.

Certainly! Here’s the text with spaces between paragraphs:

――

Ji Ning was sent back to the hotel after seven o’clock. Because she was busy watching Ji Shiyu in the car, she didn’t notice the numerous messages Nono had sent her.

Nono would give her daily updates, usually detailing the schedule for the next day, and sometimes informing her about what everyone had been discussing recently.

After reading through Nono’s messages, Ji Ning opened Weibo and found a marketing account with millions of followers had posted about today’s events.

These accounts blur the lines between right and wrong. Occasionally, they criticize infidelity and unsavory activities, but they also accept expensive promotions from celebrities. They can claim their values are certified one moment and then capitalize on trending topics the next.

For instance, this person knew Ji Ning and Ji Shiyu were trending, and they knew at that time the two couldn’t ensure their own safety, let alone everyone else’s, without bodyguards. Yet, they still sensationalized the situation for attention.

[Today, Ji Ning went to school while Ji Shiyu happened to substitute teach for someone else. But the highlight wasn’t the two being together; it was when fans rushed over. After class, five burly bodyguards swiftly came over to isolate the fans. So, who are these bodyguards really guarding against? Many fans think they’re like family, not realizing they’re the ones they should be wary of the most.]

The comments below naturally started to belittle the fans.

[What’s the point of idolizing stars? You spend money on them, and they use your money to block you?]
[Haha, that’s why I don’t understand fans. Aren’t they just masochistic?]
“These two celebrities are something else. They seem amiable on TV but are actually so high-handed in private.”
[Fans spend so much money and effort, but no celebrity actually considers them friends.]

The online hierarchy of disdain began again, with non-fans looking down on fans, all based on “If I don’t understand it, it shouldn’t exist,” completely missing the positive impact idols have on their fans.

Ji Ning used to be a fan herself and was once influenced by these words, but after becoming a celebrity, she realized those instigators didn’t actually exist.

She switched to her main account and finally couldn’t resist speaking out.

After typing it out, Ji Ning pressed the send button on Weibo:

[From debut until now, thank you for every support, every shout, and every fan. In my heart, every cute fan is my treasure. Bodyguards are only here to maintain order, to prevent sasaeng fans and those with ulterior motives, and above all, to ensure the safety of both us and you, who love us. You are always my family, loving and trusting me unconditionally, and I feel the same way.]

It wasn’t profound, nor was it polished with elegant wording, but it was sincere. Sincerity is a deadly tenderness in this era.

She quickly received many replies on Weibo:

[Just a while ago, I was feeling a bit upset, but after reading this, I feel better immediately! When I go to stalk Ning’s schedule in the future, I’ll be sure not to disrupt the order!]

[Ning is right.]

[Our love will always be mutual. I won’t let marketing accounts affect our relationship. I’ll always remember the image of Ning being hugged by the burly security guard but still trying to wave at us.]

Sure, here’s the translated text with spaces between paragraphs:

纪时衍 probably saw it, went online for a few seconds, gave it a like, and then logged off. Soon, #Ji Ning Furious at Marketing Accounts# started trending again, with the topic summary being “the first female celebrity to dare to confront marketing accounts directly,” and it briefly trended near the top. That night, she gained three hundred thousand followers.

Marketing accounts are interconnected. When one person takes the lead, others will follow suit by posting similar Weibo posts on the trending topic. Naturally, they were unhappy with Ji Ning’s response. Coincidentally, “Roses and the Wind of That Time” was about to premiere, so they thought of ways to criticize Ji Ning as the show aired. Ji Ning had anticipated this outcome.

During that time, after finishing her daily promotional events for “Roses,” she still made time to see how the marketing accounts were criticizing her. However, whether being criticized or not, being in the limelight is still publicity. Regardless of whether people watch it or not, everyone knows that “Roses and the Wind of That Time” is going to air.

As a result, the first-day viewership was impressive, injecting vitality into a program that had been in a slump for half a year, boosting the overall market. The screenwriter, director, and main cast were all talented. The first few episodes had a tight pace, and the chemistry between the male and female leads was outstanding. Even the simplest childhood friends scenes were performed with charm.

Both the loyal viewers and those who casually tuned in were attracted to it. This show not only features childhood friends but also a popular storyline where the male lead protects the female lead. In addition to viewership ratings, online streaming views also soared, proving Ji Ning’s statement that none of her shows would flop.

Sweet, intense conflicts, and interesting plotlines, “Roses and the Wind of That Time” embodied these three qualities and quickly gained a large number of loyal viewers. Every critical plot twist made it to the trending topics, demonstrating its popularity.

The female lead’s character was somewhat similar to Ji Ning’s “Little Ear,” so Ji Ning exaggeratedly gained around a million followers that week. Her fan club also gained followers rapidly. There were more people applying to join and contribute to the fan club’s rankings, making the daily review process take an hour.

Works are an actor’s backbone. Ji Ning’s hard work paid off, and there were visible improvements in all aspects. Her search index began to climb, and discussions in fan forums became more active. Even some casual critics started to change their views on her because they enjoyed the show, shedding their “critic” label.

Since some casual critics had become supporters, as long as she didn’t give up, she would surely be able to win over most of them to her side. After getting rid of most of the casual critics, she could also try to convert the haters. Casual critics and haters were different. Casual critics simply didn’t have a favorable opinion of her, while haters actively attacked and insulted her.

As long as they weren’t too stubborn, she believed their attitudes would change once they understood the truth. As for the haters and marketing accounts, that would be a gradual process to resolve since haters had supporters and marketing accounts were interconnected and stubborn.

To become a top-tier celebrity, she needed a large number of fans and casual supporters, and these supporters should be willing to pay for her works, while her fans should be loyal and proactive. She made a more detailed plan. That day, she was so busy that she didn’t even have time to rest, sitting by the window working until dawn.

This day finally dawned.

—— “Roses” was in full swing, and the school was hosting an anniversary celebration, inviting Ji Ning to return to host. So Ji Ning declined an entertainment show and went back to school to “bring glory to the alma mater.” Coincidentally, Sun He, who was also a graduate of this school, was one of the hosts tonight.

Even though they hadn’t seen each other for a while, Sun He’s animosity towards Ji Ning hadn’t diminished in the slightest. She still gave Ji Ning a disdainful look and a sour face whenever she saw her. When the camera was on Sun He, she would still give her sweet wink. What a devoted and hardworking female celebrity, who never broke her character.

Honestly, Ji Ning was almost moved. What kind of deep-seated hatred could make Sun He relentlessly target her from all angles? Were they competing for resources? The company always prioritized resources for Sun He before anyone else. What could Ji Ning, an artist who didn’t even have a proper manager, compete with?

Were they competing for fans? Their fan bases didn’t overlap, and their fans had different habits. Were they competing for boyfriends? Sun He already had a fiancé, and she was experiencing her first romance on a dating show. Speaking of Sun He’s fiancé, Ji Ning thought he was not bad.

When “Roses” aired, he even helped promote it on Weibo, although she had forgotten his name. During rehearsals, Ji Ning and Sun He went through the program flow a few times, but considering that they were both accustomed to being in front of the camera, the school leaders didn’t make them rehearse further and just let them host as they pleased.

At eight o’clock in the evening, the ceremony officially began. The Film Academy invited a large number of celebrities, which made up 50% of the entertainment industry. At this moment, during the anniversary celebration, most students naturally returned to their alma mater to celebrate.

This included a large number of influencers like Ji Shiyan Zuo and contributions from the front row, which even drove up the price of the limited audience seats at the ceremony. After all, the essence of being a fan is that we have no inherent connection, it’s all about me spending money.

The Film Academy made sure to make a big show and even livestreamed the event. Along with the excited fans, there were also a few low-key but high-profile groups of a thousand people each. Inside the “Double Click Couple” super topic, it was still quiet and peaceful, but the underground spy groups expanded to three, all with one hundred percent activity rates, and all the fan girls were busy swooning over the couple.

【Why do I feel like there’s sugar everywhere since they got together! They’re always in the same frame!】

【Stop sleeping and get high, let’s get hyped together!】

【Ningning also wore a ring today, Salt also wears a ring, what does this mean, the Double Click Couple is real!】

Sure, here’s the text with spaces between paragraphs:

The CP fans that exist in the eyes of many people not only exist but are also numerous, and their discussions are even more intense than those of fans in live broadcasts.

Ji Ning first briefly introduced the school, then talked about the excellent dramas and teachers the school had recently rehearsed. When the responsible teacher saw that time was running short, they quietly conveyed through the earpiece, “We’ll skip the part that Sun He was supposed to talk about.” So Sun He, who had just lifted the microphone, had to swallow her words and give up talking about the school’s history, and the camera shifted back to Ji Ning.

Ji Ning began introducing the teachers and artists present today, and when it was time to introduce Ji Shiyan, the CP group almost exploded. [“What’s with the introduction, just marry me!!”] Miss Sun, “enduring” for twenty minutes, finally got to her part and began her daily wink broadcast: “After listening for so long, I’m sure everyone is tired, so let’s warm up with a little lucky draw next.”

The live barrage rolled with various mixed attributes: [“I’m not tired, Ji Ning’s voice blows me away, I can appreciate his beauty and voice for five hundred years.”] [“Where’s your depth? Why should I be tired of listening to Ji Ning speak? Not only am I not tired, but I’m also excited as if I’ve been injected with chicken blood, I can do it all.”] [“Sun He’s daily wink was quite nice at first, but after seeing it too many times, it feels oily, too professional and sweet.”]

As the discussion ensued, the lucky draw began, with Sun He first drawing a treadmill from the barrage, then starting to snatch the order from Ji Ning, and taking over the task of drawing a student’s phone from the audience. Since this was a live broadcast and couldn’t be repeated, who could stop her?

Ji Ning saw Sun He as a blossoming social butterfly, so she simply put down the microphone and watched Sun He perform. After the draw, it was time for the display of excellent film and television works from the college. After a twenty-minute video, it was time for students to speak.

“Next, let’s invite Nian Cun to the stage to speak!” Miss Sun applauded twice and then stood aside, glancing at Ji Ning, as if she had thought of something. After Nian Cun finished speaking and stepped down from the stage, the next step was supposed to be to find a student from the audience to speak, but Sun He didn’t follow the procedure. She suddenly added, “I just saw the barrage on the live stream and found that many people don’t understand what Nian Cun said about montage techniques. Can Ji Ning explain it to everyone?”

It seemed like she was giving Ji Ning the spotlight, but she had ulterior motives. If Ji Ning answered correctly, Sun He could earn a reputation for taking care of others; if Ji Ning answered incorrectly, it would be even better for Sun He, as everyone would not only criticize Ji Ning but also have nothing to do with Sun He herself.

“Montage means composition and assembly, a technique of artificial collage editing.” Ji Ning quickly answered, fearing that time was running out, and said, “Do you all understand? If you do, then we should pick a student from the audience to express their feelings. You can talk about the knowledge you’ve learned at school, or express your opinions about the school, purely lyrical is also acceptable.”

Just as Ji Ning finished speaking, she gave the students in the audience a moment to think, and Sun He seized the opportunity to take the floor. Sun He said, “Actually, it was supposed to be Ji Shiyan speaking here, but the senior wants to leave the speaking opportunity to everyone, hoping that everyone will be more enthusiastic and make this special opportunity even more special.”

“Oh, that black guy in the back row is indeed special. Do you want to speak? Then come up!” Both the leader and Ji Ning were stunned, and Ji Shiyan’s brows furrowed imperceptibly. Although no one had been designated in advance to be picked, even the dumbest person would know what kind of student should be invited in such a situation.

There was no problem with the black person’s identity, but most of them had only been at the school for a year and were not good at speaking Chinese. When they got on stage, it was inevitable that they would have some difficulty expressing themselves. Of course, it would be better to invite a native student who seemed eloquent.

Sure enough, the black guy took the microphone and said, “I don’t understand Chinese very well.” “It’s okay,” Sun He smiled sweetly, “someone will help you translate, just speak in English.” After saying this, Sun He glanced at Ji Shiyan again, probably knowing that she needed his consent, playing the role of a double agent.

Although Ji Shiyan was still frowning, he realized from Sun He’s suggestive gaze that she was urging him to join her in challenging Ji Ning. Did Sun He actually want him to stand against Ji Ning? She was pushing the Chinese dream too hard. However, Ji Shiyan quickly figured something out and nodded without hesitation.

The black guy quickly took the stage, said a few words, and then sought translation, looking to Sun He, who had just cued him a minute ago. But Sun He had left for the restroom a minute ago on some pretext. He could only look to Ji Ning for help.

It was at this moment that Ji Ning realized that Sun He’s last-minute substitution wasn’t because she didn’t know what kind of configuration would be better, but because she deliberately chose someone who wasn’t good at Chinese to make things difficult for her.

With only two hosts on stage, and one of them gone, the task of translation naturally fell to the other host. Although actors didn’t necessarily need to speak English, it would be somewhat embarrassing for public figures to translate messily. With the situation having progressed to this point, inviting outside help would also invite ridicule for the people involved.

But in front of so many people, her English skills were expected, and she would be embarrassed if she failed… Ji Ning, who had always ranked first in English throughout the entire year, calmly thought—Sun He really walked into the trap.

Author’s Note: Ning Ning: I’m scared even to attract fans by myself.