Chapter 27: Hello, Life!

“Oh, why is it so hard to walk here!” Zhou Ran trudged along the muddy country path, feeling utterly bewildered.

He should have been relaxing in his shop this weekend, enjoying himself and preparing for the grand finals. But yesterday, Ning Wei had suddenly called him, asking for a favor—to make a guest appearance on a variety show.

Ning Wei had always been kind to Zhou Ran, and since he was personally asking for help, Zhou Ran found it hard to refuse. After all, he had nothing planned for the weekend anyway, so he might as well agree and lend Ning Wei a hand.

Besides, there was nothing wrong with making some extra money from a show appearance during a free weekend—what could be more comfortable?

The show Ning Wei wanted Zhou Ran to guest on was called “Hello, Life!” It was a rural reality show, much like “Back to Field” on Earth. The episode Zhou Ran was to join happened to be the season finale.

“Hello, Life!” was another program directed by Ning Wei. Since its premiere, the show had moderate success—not unpopular, but never quite a hit. Originally, the guest list had already been set, but one of the artists suddenly fell ill and couldn’t make it, so Ning Wei had to call on Zhou Ran. As it happened, Zhou Ran’s popularity was soaring lately, and his appearance would be a great boost for Ning Wei’s other show.

Zhou Ran was picked up by the crew at noon and driven to a small village. At first, he thought they would take him directly to the filming site, but the crew only drove him to the village entrance. From there, he had to make his own way—on a muddy rural road, no less.

The regular guests of “Hello, Life!” were Teacher He, whom Zhou Ran had met a few times, Chef Huang, and the up-and-coming young actress Zhang Xiaofeng. Before heading to the Mushroom House where filming took place, Zhou Ran, as per the show’s custom, called in a dish request with Chef Huang.

Chef Huang had been woken up by a phone call that morning. He was sleeping soundly when the call came through, the voice on the other end electronically altered beyond recognition.

The caller made only one request: sweet and sour pork. Nothing else. As soon as the request was made, the caller hung up. Chef Huang was still puzzling over the caller’s identity when Teacher He, who was chopping firewood outside, called out for him to come quickly.

“Huang! Come over here and see—look who’s here!” Teacher He shouted excitedly.

“Who is it? Why are you in such a hurry?” Chef Huang, still pondering the identity of today’s guest inside his room, was interrupted by Teacher He’s voice. He put aside his thoughts and hurried to the door, curious to know who could make the ever-sociable Teacher He so excited.

When Chef Huang stepped outside and looked, he was stunned. “Oh my goodness, how did the crew manage to invite Zhou Ran?”

Chef Huang was truly surprised by Zhou Ran’s appearance. He never expected the production team to go all out and invite Zhou Ran for the final episode. Zhou Ran’s current status made any invitation a major feat—his appearance fee started at a million, and his schedule was almost always fully booked.

“Hello, Zhou Ran!” Chef Huang greeted him warmly the moment he saw him.

“Hello, Teacher Huang!” Zhou Ran quickly returned the greeting.

Before coming, Zhou Ran had acquainted himself with some of the show’s details. Chef Huang had once been a top-tier actor, but after getting married, he gradually stepped back, acting in only a handful of projects each year and enjoying a more relaxed life. He had shifted his passion to cooking and was now also one of the show’s investors.

“So you’re the one who called in the sweet and sour pork!” Chef Huang realized only now. No wonder he couldn’t recognize the voice over the phone—if it had been someone he knew, he would have caught the tone despite the electronic masking. The way a person speaks in everyday life is always distinct.

“Yes, that was me. I hope I didn’t trouble you, Teacher Huang?” Zhou Ran replied a little sheepishly.

Back in his own world, sweet and sour pork had always been one of Zhou Ran’s favorite dishes. So, learning that “Hello, Life!” had a segment for requesting dishes, he had immediately asked Chef Huang for it.

“Haha, not at all! It’s a piece of cake,” Chef Huang joked. Making sweet and sour pork was simple enough—at least it wasn’t like the last guest who asked for the full Manchu Han Imperial Feast. That request nearly made Chef Huang lose his temper. Did that guy have any idea how many dishes were in the Manchu Han Feast? If Chef Huang could prepare that, he’d have been recruited by the state to cook for national banquets long ago!

“Who’s here?” Zhang Xiaofeng, who had just woken up, heard voices at the door. She quickly washed up and hurried downstairs.

On the surface, Zhang Xiaofeng was the new darling of the post-2000s generation of actresses, but in private, she was a diehard Zhou Ran fan. She never missed any of his shows, and she shipped him with all kinds of pairings—her devotion was beyond question.

The first time she saw Zhou Ran on “Who Is the King of Singers,” she was immediately drawn to him. How could someone be so handsome, and so perfectly fit her taste? When she heard him sing “Sunny Day,” she was completely smitten. Ever since, she followed all news about him, and had even asked Director Ning Wei for a ticket to the finals, wanting to see him perform in person.

Just the previous night, she’d binge-watched Zhou Ran’s videos until dawn, which was why she’d gotten up late today.

When she came downstairs and saw Zhou Ran standing there, she was stunned. For a moment, she wondered if she was hallucinating from thinking about him too much.

She rubbed her eyes over and over, until they were red, before she finally accepted that she really was meeting Zhou Ran in person.