Chapter 195

As the opening blockbuster of Jia Xing's betting season, "Three Lives Three Worlds, Ten Miles of Peach Blossoms" carried, in a certain sense, the company's "hope."

It must succeed! Absolutely cannot fail!

For this reason, extensive pre-launch promotion, preparation, and marketing plans were arranged long before the drama's release.

The online platform Youku even launched a Peach Blossom Express on the Beijing subway!

When Bai Liang stepped out of Beijing Capital International Airport, he saw outdoor advertisements for the themed campaign.

And reportedly, over thirty partner brands joined forces in promotion, using analysis of massive user bases and precise targeting to build a complete marketing ecosystem.

Behind-the-scenes videos of the drama's set construction garnered over 760,000 views; heartfelt promotional videos on costumes and production reached over 1,070,000 views.

Internet, digital marketing, flashy marketing tactics

Bai Liang watched in awe and took screenshots of all these things to send to Sister Yanzi.

He asked her if "The Legend of Chu Qiao" could generate this kind of buzz when it launched.

Sister Yanzi sent him a side-eye emoji in reply.

Yang Mi also rolled her eyes at Bai Liang, mainly because she thought he was moving too slowly.

Today she dressed differently from usual.

More precisely, she wasn't posing like she was trending on hot searches—she wasn't pretending to be youthful anymore.

Red-bottomed black high heels paired with Balenciaga tights, a tight short skirt, and a top with a one-shoulder cut revealing her fair shoulders, while the slightly loose neckline hinted at a glimpse of her cleavage.

Add to that her voluminous waves, and a stunning, mature beauty stood right before Bai Liang.

It felt like she was about to reach out and hook his chin with her finger.

"Why so long? It's not gentlemanly to keep a girl waiting."

"A girl?" Bai Liang tilted his head, puzzled.

"You're asking for a beating!"

Saying that in a baby voice was utterly unthreatening—it sounded like pouting.

Yang Mi only radiated the aura and intensity of a leading female character when she stayed silent and stared coldly at others.

But in front of Bai Liang, she had never shown him such a look before.

After meeting, she immediately grabbed his arm.

"What, are we stirring up gossip?" Bai Liang didn't resist, but found it strange.

"How could I stir up gossip with you? That's just digging my own grave."

Yang Mi laughed bitterly—this kid never thought before he spoke.

With "Three Lives Three Worlds" just premiering, Bai Liang and Reba's CP was about to resurface; even if she truly had such intentions, she couldn't let anyone know now.

"Then why are you looking for me?"

"In your eyes, does your sister only ever come to you for work? Can't I just be bored and want to hang out with you?"

"Hmm, you can even be bored?"

Bai Liang felt this premise didn't even make sense.

Yang Mi fell silent—did she really give off the impression that she didn't even deserve a single day off?

"Today, your sister has nothing to do. I just want to hang out with you to kill some time."

Reasonable.

Yang Mi knew Bai Liang was in Beijing today and that he was free—she must have asked Sister Yanzi first.

And since Sister Yanzi didn't give any special instructions, it meant there was truly no official business.

Once Bai Liang realized this, he took the initiative to invite her: "Then, Mi-jie, come with me to buy something—I might need it for the upcoming show."

"Buy something? Sure~"

Half an hour later, Yang Mi regretted it!

Damn it, this kid has too much nerve!

He was casually dragging her around the mall.

Even though they'd both disguised themselves—Yang Mi even changed clothes, wore a mask, sunglasses, and pulled up her hoodie's hood—she was still terrified inside.

The drama had just premiered! If anyone photographed her "intimately" shopping with Bai Liang now, it would be a major instability.

Because publicly, she was still the happily married, motherly type.

She had a husband and children.

Even if she occasionally did some light interactions with male celebrities, it never reached this level.

Secret meeting.

If this got out, she'd have to announce a divorce immediately.

"Mi-jie, don't panic—want to make a bet?"

"A bet?"

"Even if you take off your sunglasses and mask today, nothing will happen."

Yang Mi rolled her eyes behind her sunglasses—how could that be possible? Who was she? She was Yang Mi!

"Brat, are you trying to get me to do this so you can marry me?"

Though she knew she was teasing, Bai Liang still replied: "Mi-jie, you're late. A year ago, it wouldn't have been a problem—but now it's impossible."

"Hmph, I wasn't divorced a year ago either! What's different now? Got ambition now that you're top-tier?"

"Not exactly." Perhaps to prove it to Yang Mi, Bai Liang directly removed his mask and sunglasses.

After revealing his face completely, he smiled at her.

"Are you crazy?!"

Yang Mi immediately scanned around and was relieved to find no one was paying attention to them.

Besides, this outdoor goods store happened to have very little foot traffic at the moment.

Only, the young shop assistant at the moment was staring fixedly at Bai Liang, her mouth gradually opening—clearly she had already recognized him, and was about to shout the next second.

"Shh~"

Bai Liang held up one finger, telling her not to make a sound. The young shop assistant nodded repeatedly, a little worked up.

But she immediately pulled out her phone and asked with her eyes whether she could take a photo.

Bai Liang: "Sure~"

Yang Mi clutched her own head. "We're done for."

"What, you afraid she'll post it online?"

"She'll definitely post it online! This store has surveillance too. If they pull the footage later, I was clinging to your arm when we came in!"

Right now she was already regretting it—teasing her little brother had teased up a real mess!

Linking arms wasn't actually all that intimate in itself, but it depended on the occasion.

If it were walking a red carpet, absolutely no problem at all. If it were on a film set, the two of them could even stick out their tongues for a passionate kiss and explain it away with "too deep into the role."

But going shopping out on the street—this behavior went way too far!

A lot of things just depend on the occasion, like how wearing a bikini at the beach is perfectly normal, but wearing a bikini on the street would get people treating you like a lunatic.

Yang Mi had already begun thinking about the follow-up emergency PR plan.

And Bai Liang chose the simplest method—he told the young shop assistant straight out: keep it a secret, okay~

The other party naturally agreed: Mm-hm! I will definitely keep it a secret!

Yang Mi was unimpressed by this, but because she was lost in thought, when she heard the words "check out," she subconsciously pulled out her phone and paid for Bai Liang.

After they left, she only then reacted. "Hey, why did I pay?"

Bai Liang was also curious: "Yeah, why did you pay?"

The two stared at each other for several seconds. Yang Mi looked at him helplessly. "You little punk, are you messing with me today? But you played way too big!"

"Relax, nothing will happen."

"You know what that line of yours sounds like?"

"What?"

"'I'll just rub against it, I won't put it in.'"

After saying that, Yang Mi felt it wasn't quite appropriate—not that it was too explicit, but that it wasn't precise enough. "Should be, 'It's fine, once won't get you pregnant.' Do you think I'm some twenty-something little girl?"

Bai Liang looked at the bag on her back. There was a little charm hanging from it—the rabbit talisman pendant he had given her before.

"The agile rabbit, granting you the power to reverse time and space. The one out shopping with me today isn't exactly twenty-five-year-old Yang Mi, is she?" "Cut the crap with me!"

"How about… we make a bet?"

The moment those words left Bai Liang's mouth, he already felt a little regret.

Not that he was afraid of losing.

But he felt that recently the frequency of his "betting" seemed a bit too high, gradually trending toward becoming a gambling dog.

"If this thing doesn't make a single ripple." Yang Mi's beautiful eyes lifted, and she said peevishly: "Do whatever you want."

Mm. Guess I have to hand it to you.

But Bai Liang didn't mind either. "From now on, calling me 'big brother' works too?"

"…Do you know what state I'm in right now?"

"Huh?"

Please... kindly.... bookmark.... 6... 9.... book....!

"If I lose, I'll be the club's bikini model!" Yang Mi said viciously.

All she'd done today was finally squeeze out some time, thinking she'd find Bai Liang to chat and relax, ease the tension she'd been feeling lately.

Borrowing Reba's big white 【dog】 to use for a bit—nothing excessive about that.

And the result was this kid pulled this huge stunt on her!

And it was right at the moment when "Eternal Love" had just premiered. If she didn't have a hypertensive episode on the spot, that already counted as an excellent state of mind—being able to stand here bullshitting with this guy.

But Bai Liang was still a bit puzzled: "If I win, you'll be the club's bikini model, right?"

"Bullshit! If I lose, I'm the bikini model! So forget calling you big brother—I'd call you daddy!"

However, what Yang Mi hadn't expected was that several months after this incident, she still hadn't seen any news online exposing her shopping with Bai Liang.

The only consequence of this incident was: she got freeloaded by Bai Liang for an expensive set of outdoor gear.

And during the two extra days Bai Liang stayed in Yanjing, "Eternal Love" premiered and immediately exploded!

Three days after launch, total online views surpassed 1.5 billion!

The official Weibo topic's read count and mention count reached an astonishing 3.07 billion and 5.689 million respectively.

Even the TV drama's ending theme "Liang Liang" caught fire beyond control.

Only, because of Yang Mi's reckless bet, her "ethical relationship" with Bai Liang was probably about to undergo a tiny little change~——

"This year we have two candidate tour guides. You need to, within one day, convince your other teammates and gain their recognition—otherwise you will be exiled alone."

Though Bai Liang, recording this kind of reality show for the first time, had long known what the script's direction would be afterward, he still listened quite attentively.

"Your teammates are already watching the livestream now. Please do your best to show off your talents as team leader."

Livestream?

Bai Liang curiously looked at the production crew's camera. "Is it really livestreaming?"

"It really is. The other six teammates are already watching the feed of you and Jing Boran."

Alright then! Next, Bai Liang was going to show off his "dependability" as much as possible.

"I went and bought a lot of stuff these past two days, all pretty useful—absolutely enough to keep us alive in Africa!"

The moment these words came out, the atmosphere in the livestream rooms of the few people watching shifted completely.

"Arsenal" showcase.

When Bai Liang began showing off the multi-function folding shovel, fire starter, outdoor hand saw, paracord, water filtration gear, and other items he had just bought, the other guests were somewhat dumbfounded.

They were joining "Flowers and Boys," right?

But the way Bai Liang was acting, it looked like he was about to take them on a "wilderness survival" trip.

The guests who knew the situation were actually quite impressed in their hearts: this guy's brain works well—he gets both the show's entertainment value and a perfectly reasonable excuse to "lose the vote."

The classmate Nazha, who was still in the dark at this point, was watching with great interest. After all, no matter what, she would choose Bai Liang as the guide—the two of them would be together!

However, when Bai Liang pulled out a Nepalese kukri, Nazha could barely hold it together either, covering her mouth as she laughed: "Can this idiot of his even bring it on a plane?"

Whether he could bring it on or not didn't matter—the show's entertainment value was secured.

Compared to Bai Liang's "abstract" approach, Jing Boran's side was far more reliable.

After the two finished their livestreams, it would be "vote-canvassing" time.

In the end, everyone would vote at the Capital International Airport to "exile" one of them.

What followed was simple: the two "candidate guides" went to meet the other guests for "private chats."

Most of the footage in the first episode would be padded out with this kind of content~

But based on the production team's experience, audiences actually quite enjoyed watching this part.

Next came calling and visiting them one by one.

Bai Liang looked at the guest list and very naturally put Nazha last, because after "visiting" Nazha, he probably wouldn't be leaving.

This season had a total of eight guests—four women and four men—a fairly balanced lineup.

During the afternoon, Bai Liang strolled leisurely around Yanjing City.

He soon reached the fourth guest, Song Zuer.

The other party seemed very eager to see him, having waited outside the hotel room early on.

Upon meeting, she even proactively hugged Bai Liang, then declared earnestly:

"Brother, I'll definitely choose you!"

Ah, this~

Bai Liang: I haven't even said anything yet.

Although the vote-canvassing phase was still ongoing, the final vote would of course be four to two—Song Zuer should be the other person, besides Nazha, who would choose him.

It's just that calling him "brother" so affectionately the moment they met... the other party really was quite young, only nineteen.

Bai Liang's impression of Song Zuer was still stuck on the little Nezha she had played.

This Miss seemed to have grown in proportion, still looking very small.

Completely different in style from the next guest to meet, Jiang Shuying, who looked like a mature older-sister type from her photos.

"Two more to go."

After leaving Song Zuer's place, Bai Liang muttered as he glanced at the production crew behind him.

The feeling of having people following and filming him everywhere struck him as quite novel.

"By the way, can you guys really keep up with me no matter what?"

"Don't worry about that, Mr. Bai—we're professionals."

"Personally, I'd suggest sending your most agile cameraman to follow and film me."

What does he mean?

Seeming to read the confusion of the follow-cam crew, Bai Liang gave them a brief demonstration.

He didn't do much—just cosplayed Jackie Chan for a moment.

He slid down the stair railing in one swift motion, followed by a kestrel flip, kicked up onto the wall, and vanished from the production crew's sight just like that.

This happened so suddenly that it left all the cameramen dumbfounded.

After freezing in place for two seconds, Bai Liang's head poked out from behind the wall: "Didn't you say you could keep up?"

Production team: Thanks to Bai Liang for the show material—well done, but please don't do that again!

This kind of stunt was more suited for "Running Man" and "Go Fighting!" rather than "Flowers and Boys."

But Bai Liang's reminder did indeed have an effect.

The production team immediately reassigned two of their most fit and agile cameramen to him.

Including the team following him, everyone was replaced with male crew members in peak physical condition.

This is still Yanjing!

Once this gentleman reaches Africa, who knows if it'll be like a dragon returning to the sea.

(End of chapter)