185: We can only cooperate again.

Shen Lian went back and shared a bit of gossip with Zhou Yuanlin.

Zhou Yuanlin beat his chest and stamped his feet, wishing he had known earlier so he could have gone out and taken a photo to shove in Zhou Tangsi's face.

"Don't say, it was quite bold," Zhou Yuanlin sighed. "Except for Zheng Ge, anyone who dates Zhou Tangsi must be blind."

As they were speaking, the private room door was pushed open. Chu Yilan saw their animated expressions and lightly raised an eyebrow.

Zhou Yuanlin immediately distanced himself from Shen Lian.

"I didn't mean it like that," Chu Yilan spoke up; these people really thought he was a jealousy spirit incarnate. "What are you chatting about?"

After Zhou Yuanlin's linguistic processing, it felt as if Zhou Tangsi being cheated on to the point of hanging himself was just around the corner.

"So, how was it? Satisfying?" Zhou Yuanlin asked.

"No feeling. I don't care about the two of them." Chu Yilan poured himself a cup of tea. Nowadays, there were very few things worth him looking up for. Since Shen Lian had dragged him out, why would he look back?

Besides, who was better looking than Shen Lian?

Young Master Zhou treated them to this meal. Seeing that the two of them didn't want to make a fuss, Zhou Yuanlin didn't force it. They parted ways at the entrance, and he went off to enjoy himself alone.

On the car ride back, Chu Yilan was a bit sleepy. He leaned back slightly with his head up, one hand gently rubbing Shen Lian's shoulder blade.

Shen Lian asked, "Have you been very busy lately?"

"Not busy," Chu Yilan smiled faintly. "I just want to sleep when you're by my side."

Defenseless and comfortable. Before, he had turned like a machine, rarely feeling fatigue.

Knowing how to be tired is what makes one a normal person.

Two days later, Shen Lian received a call from Hu Kailan, saying there was a talent selection variety show called "all are big stars." They wanted to invite him as a special guest for one episode and asked if he was interested.

The name of the show sounded familiar, and its popularity was decent. It completely met the three-point agreement with Chu Yilan, so Shen Lian thought about it and agreed.

"Are you going to discuss it with... you-know-who?" Hu Kailan lowered his voice, as if the name "Chu Yilan" was a massive taboo.

Shen Lian found it bizarre. "Brother Hu, I can still make this kind of decision for myself."

"Right, right, right." Hu Kailan thought to himself, 'Am I not doing this to save my own life?'

"all are big stars" leaned towards selecting amateurs. However, for the sake of viewership, they would still include a few "washed-up celebrities," including but not limited to those who were once slightly popular, had faces familiar to the audience, and had corresponding representative works.

While it was billed as a singing and dancing elimination show, in reality, some movie stars would also be invited. But peeling back the appearance to see the essence, the vast majority of the so-called amateurs were "resource-backed players" with intriguing backgrounds. As for those washed-up celebrities, they were there to accompany the run and serve as foils; if they could become active again, it wouldn't be a bad thing for anyone.

There were eleven mentors in total, and the program team had done a good job in this regard, inviting industry professionals with solid qualifications. The "special guests," naturally, were for the gimmick.

The first three episodes of "all are big stars" had already made a few newcomers famous. Shen Lian didn't mind being this gimmick; on the contrary, this kind of exposure was quite nice.

The next recording was in five days. Hu Kailan interfaced with the relevant person in charge over there. Since it wasn't a live broadcast, he feared malicious editing, so he definitely had to go along.

On the day of departure, Hu Kailan sat in the passenger seat, looking somewhat nervous.

Shen Lian found it funny. "No way, Brother Hu, you're a gold-standard Agent."

"You don't understand," Hu Kailan replied. "Your constitution is a bit uncanny."

Every time he went on a show, Shen Lian could pull something big for Hu Kailan. Of course, most of it was good, but it was inevitably stressful! Furthermore, Shen Lian couldn't afford any mishaps now. CEO Kuang had shaken his shoulders and said: "Our future prosperity, or our miserable lives, all depend on Shen Lian!"

Shen Lian went to the backstage of the recording studio without any makeup.

The program team requested it, saying they had certain requirements for hair and makeup to match the stage, etc. Hu Kailan keenly sensed something fishy, but it was hard to refuse. After all, the other party had been consistently polite and beyond reproach, and the dressing room provided for Shen Lian was also private.

After arriving and meeting the program team, the other party was incredibly enthusiastic, arranging a bunch of Bodyguards to follow them, almost squeezing the people sent by Nie Sheng to the outside.

Serving tea, pouring water, and polite greetings—it seemed that if Shen Lian said "sitting is uncomfortable," they would immediately bring a bed.

"What do you think?" Hu Kailan asked Jiang You in a low voice, glancing sideways.

The two of them stood on the periphery, watching three or five makeup artists working together. Jiang You was no longer that naive intern; having seen some things and been briefly taught by Sun Binghe in his spare time, he now frowned. "When things are abnormal, there must be a catch!"

"Exactly!"

The next second, Hu Kailan saw one of the makeup artists flatteringly pull out a wig from a box.

Red, orange, yellow, green, teal, blue, purple—every single color was there.

Damn it!

Hu Kailan rolled his eyes and rushed inside.

"Oh!" Shen Lian grabbed it. This was truly a case of someone handing over a pillow just as he was getting sleepy. Last time he saw Chang Qing's hair color, he really wanted to try it, but Chu Yilan had a strong protective desire for his natural hair color and wouldn't agree no matter what. Shen Lian had to give up, but he didn't expect the program team to understand him so well. Shen Lian placed it on his head himself. "Fine, let's do a suitable makeup look."

Everyone: "..."

Hu Kailan's voice sounded from behind, suppressed: "Shen Lian, you're not colorblind, are you?"

"I'm not," Shen Lian said forcefully. "Just this one, the rainbow one!"

Hu Kailan: "..." Brother, you're really something.

The makeup artists carefully observed Shen Lian's expression and found that he wasn't faking it; he was genuinely quite happy.

Program teams always made strange requests, and many guests had clashed over this before. They had never seen a request so ridiculous that someone would agree to it as easily as Shen Lian.

But soon, the makeup artists understood why.

Shen Lian was simply doing it for fun and wasn't worried about his image at all. Because with this face, even if he had a head of rainbow hair, his fair skin and exquisite, bold features meant nothing was an obstacle. The makeup artists even felt this look was very distinctive; Shen Lian's visuals could completely pull it off, and there was a high probability it would go viral.

The makeup artists unconsciously became cautious, fearing that adding one more stroke would be counterproductive.

The program team also paired Shen Lian with a black biker set studded with rivets—another major minefield. Hu Kailan cursed in his heart; were they treating their Shen Lian as a comedian?!

But Shen Lian checked the size and it was exactly his fit. He didn't think much of it and got up to change.

In less than two minutes, Shen Lian came out.

"If you want it to look like this..." Hu Kailan's tone was serious as he subconsciously looked over. "I can only... only..."

Hu Kailan's mind suddenly went blank.

"Brother Shen!" Jiang You covered his mouth and stomped his feet. "It's actually kind of handsome!"

It really was handsome. Since the size was right, there was no wardrobe disaster. After all, Teacher Shen was all legs from the neck down. Those black biker pants were visually stretched to look like they were 1.8 meters long. The bronze rivets became excellent accessories. That inherent rogue air made people's heads spin when Shen Lian grinned. Rainbow colors, bold—what kind of popular underground bar singer setting was this?

Hu Kailan: "We can only collaborate again."

Everyone: "..."