Chapter 198 - 153: A Dreamy Night

Chapter 198: Chapter 153: A Dreamy Night"It’s my media assistant, Sister Liu, who manages my social media and public opinion control. She must be freaking out." Zhao Manying gave a mischievous grin. Ji Xinghuo nodded. In their earlier conversation, Zhao Manying had mentioned her private team, which included many members such as a media assistant, image assistant, house manager, financial advisor, legal advisor, and so on, each with several assistants under them. The whole private team consisted of more than a dozen people, all revolving around her. There was also a coaching team made up of about the same number of people, mostly hired by the club, who never got involved in her private life. Zhao Manying hadn’t taken the first call when another new call came in. Her social media kept ringing with new notifications, the phone screen furiously refreshing, data flooding in like a waterfall. It was Ji Xinghuo’s first time witnessing such a scene, and he was amazed. He laughed, "You take the calls." "Okay." Zhao Manying moved a bit to the side so Ji Xinghuo wouldn’t be in the camera frame before she answered the phone. A woman in her thirties appeared on the screen. "Man Ying, today’s not April Fool’s, is it?" Her expression was anxious like an ant on a hot pan, but she still asked with elegance. "Sister Liu, don’t panic," replied Zhao Manying. "My lady, my queen, my grandma!" Sister Liu’s face couldn’t hold back anymore, "You’re not worried, but I’m about to lose my hair over this!" Zhao Manying smiled and said nothing. "Are you really in a relationship?" Sister Liu pressed. "Hmm." "With whom?" Sister Liu looked incredulous. "I’m with you all the time. I know everyone you meet. How come there were no signs? It’s not Shi Renzhong, is it? Don’t tell me that after all these years of him pursuing you, you’re finally moved?" Zhao Manying frowned, "It’s not him." "Then who is it? Is it Cheng Sheng? Or Zhou Chaoge? It better not be Lu Pingyuan..." Sister Liu rattled off several names. Ji Xinghuo had heard of these people. They were either Zhao Manying’s teammates or competitors in the super league, all well-known super mutants, pop stars, or famous wealthy heirs in the country. "Sister Liu, stop guessing." Zhao Manying showed displeasure and glanced at Ji Xinghuo beside her, "He’s an outsider, someone you don’t know." Sister Liu noticed her expression and realized the man was right there. "Sir, please forgive me." Sister Liu’s voice came through, "I care about Man Ying and meant no offense towards you." Ji Xinghuo nodded. "He says it’s okay," relayed Zhao Manying. "Sister Liu, just speak your mind." "Alright." Sister Liu spoke seriously, "Man Ying, it’s your personal freedom to date, and I had already prepared for this, but you should have told me before announcing it so that we could minimize the impact and avoid disrupting your life and career." "Sorry Sister Liu, I acted impulsively," Zhao Manying said, her face showing no regret. "Ah..." Sister Liu sighed, "As it stands, I can only try to remedy the situation. I have a few plans on hand, the best of which is to immediately hold a press conference. You both attend, make a public appearance, sincerely ask for the fans’ blessings..." She was cut off by Zhao Manying, "Sister Liu, he doesn’t want to appear in public." Sister Liu hesitated, then said, "Then we have to settle for the next best thing, no press conference, but you need to release an open letter as soon as possible under your name, hoping everyone respects your personal privacy. The wording should be mild, emphasizing that personal life and career are separate, but still valuing the support from fans... Later, when reporters ask you questions, be careful with your answers, mindful of the words you use..." Zhao Manying listened carefully and nodded frequently. Ji Xinghuo also felt admiration by the side, appreciating how Sister Liu, a media expert, had a clear strategy and a precise grasp of public psychology. Following her advice would indeed minimize the impact on public opinion. However, Ji Xinghuo found it troublesome. Zhao Manying always said she wasn’t a female star, but in reality, her influence was even greater than that of a star, necessitating careful handling of public opinion. Perhaps she herself didn’t care, but her team around her definitely had to take it seriously, cleaning up this mess. Zhao Manying spoke with Sister Liu for a few minutes, meant to discuss longer, but Sister Liu hung up hurriedly to handle the situation. The next second, Zhao Manying’s phone rang again. "It’s my mom." Zhao Manying had no choice but to answer, chatting briefly with her mom, who thankfully was understanding. After giving some advice and seeing that her daughter was reluctant to reveal her boyfriend’s identity, she didn’t press further. Then it was her brother, the club owner, teammates calling in succession to inquire. Zhao Manying responded briefly, keeping Ji Xinghuo’s identity confidential. Taking advantage of her being on the phone, Ji Xinghuo opened the social media platform on his phone, and sure enough, all the online media had exploded. Less than a minute after Zhao Manying posted, it shot to the top of the Asia-Pacific Community’s news headlines and quickly spread internationally. Five minutes later, it was a hot topic in all countries globally, the intensity of attention skyrocketing. In the Asia-Pacific Community country, it was most exaggerated; the entire first page of trending searches was about Zhao Manying: "Sword Immortal is in love!" seaʀᴄh thё nôvelFire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "First Love." "Who is Zhao Manying’s boyfriend?" "Zhao Manying officially announces her relationship!" "A grudge so deep, it’s irreconcilable!" The photo Zhao Manying posted kept gaining likes, surpassing twenty million in ten minutes, with comments and shares increasing at the rate of hundreds of thousands per second. Countless people came rushing to leave their own comments. As Ji Xinghuo scrolled through these comments, the most highlighted one was, "Who is he?" The other top comments were similar, all curious about the identity of Zhao Manying’s boyfriend, speculating wildly. Most expressed their shock, some fans thought she was playing a prank, others sent blessings, some were heartbroken, some envied, and some were furiously cursing. Then there were all sorts of bizarre comments. "This guy’s hands look pretty good, he must be a young and handsome man." "Nonsense, would the Sword Immortal take a liking to someone ugly?" "You don’t understand! These are obviously a mutant’s hands, with long and well-proportioned fingers, clean skin without any calluses, powerful tendons, and exceptionally extraordinary palm lines. He’s at least a four-time evolved super mutant, very powerful!" "I want to become this hand, then I could touch Sword Immortal’s hand." "Me too!" "Just the hand? Not other parts?" "Envious." "You unambitious clowns, if I could switch, I’d replace this guy directly!" "Then I’ll replace Zhao Manying." "I hate it, I knew I shouldn’t have checked my phone before bed. At least I could have had a good night’s sleep, wouldn’t have known about this sad news till tomorrow morning, sob sob..." "Please, to the unknown brother who will hug the Sword Immortal tonight, touch her armpits for me, that’s my favorite part." "Please touch her thigh for me." "Can I lick her toes..." As the comments became weirder, Ji Xinghuo read them with a head full of black lines. In the Asia-Pacific Community Country, there were many idlers who, since they could afford to lie flat without working, had plenty of time to spend online posting nonsensical comments. One was more abstract than the next; one was more capable of stirring things up than the next. Many of them were just in it for fun. No matter the trending news, they would swarm in groups, not meant maliciously, but once fun-seekers gathered, it turned into an abstract convention of the internet. Not just online, Ji Xinghuo saw in his family chat where his siblings were also discussing this, and various school groups were lively as ever, all forwarding and speculating. Ji Xinghuo found the comments fascinating. In the past, he had always been a spectator of trending news, a part of the onlooking crowd, but now that he was the protagonist at the center of public opinion, watching tens of millions or even hundreds of millions of people discussing him, he felt an indescribable emotion. New yet odd. At the same time, he felt a bit proud, greatly satisfying his vanity, feeling as though he were floating, as if his bones had lightened by several ounces. "Stay calm!" "Normal heart." Ji Xinghuo took a deep breath, suddenly understanding why Zhao Manying had announced her relationship. She hoped that by doing so, she could experience a sensation she had never felt before, that enormous sense of achievement, transforming her fans’ obsession into maintaining this relationship. "The tricky mind of a woman..." He smiled at Zhao Manying, who was on the phone and unaware, and she returned a sweet smile. A few minutes later. Zhao Manying finally ended the call, though her phone was still ringing, she didn’t pick up, instead setting it to Silence mode aside and complaining, "So annoying." Ji Xinghuo laughed, "That’s the price of being a public figure with such big fame." "I’d rather just focus on playing games, just earn a salary and game bonuses for some peace, not needing so much attention, just let everyone watch me play the game and not care about my personal life," Zhao Manying sighed. "How could that be possible?" Ji Xinghuo laughed dryly. Zhao Manying’s popularity wasn’t just due to her formidable skills, but also her beauty was probably a bigger factor. At least seventy percent of her fans were in it for her looks! The remaining thirty percent admired her for her skills, and that number had grown significantly after she won several championships. "That makes sense..." Zhao Manying was self-aware. She leaned back against Ji Xinghuo, saw the photo she had posted on her phone now nearing one hundred million likes, with tens of millions of comments and shares, the numbers still soaring. By tomorrow morning, probably the entire world would know that Zhao Manying was in a relationship. The two watched the amusing comments, occasionally looking at each other and chuckling, until they had finished their barbecue meal, and it was one o’clock in the morning. Qing Hong also ate its fill, contentedly crawled back into its pocket to sleep. "Time to go home." "Yeah." Zhao Manying got up to pay the bill, put on sunglasses to cover her face, and left the barbecue restaurant hand in hand with Ji Xinghuo. Soon, they parked their Light Wheel Motorbike beneath the Mingyuan Building, Zhao Manying asked, "Do you want me to take you home?" She remembered Ji Xinghuo lived in Qishan District, quite far from here. "No need," Ji Xinghuo shook his head. "You’re not expecting me to invite you up, are you?" Zhao Manying chuckled. "If you dare invite, I dare to accept," Ji Xinghuo laughed heartily, looked up at the towering building and suddenly said, "I can’t afford a place in Mingyuan Building, but I could rent nearby, to also experience the glamour of high society." "Are you planning to move?" Zhao Manying asked, "I am considering it, my lease is almost up, and I want to change the environment," Ji Xinghuo was still thinking, actually no matter which district of Chang’an he lived in, life was very convenient. However, if he could move to a better place, he certainly wouldn’t resist. "Then I’ll keep an eye out for you," Zhao Manying wasn’t one to cling unreasonably, waved her hand and said, "See you tomorrow." "See you tomorrow." Ji Xinghuo watched her ride the Light Wheel Motorbike away, as she entered the parking lot behind the building, took the elevator up to the top floor of the building, returned to one of the spacious flats, a vast flat where she lived alone. He looked towards Zhao Manying’s location, gazed around at the brilliantly lit city under the night sky, reminiscing the lingering touch of their lips and couldn’t help but exclaim: "What a dreamlike night!"