Went to visit a pregnant woman, didn’t expect to also help them with their marriage, totally overachieved.
It’s just...
Why does it feel like ever since Cheng Zhirang suggested "moving to the next phase," the word proposal is everywhere?
Repeated the word proposal many times over the phone with her parents, argued with Lin Huanyue using it many times, and now it’s even more direct, someone here successfully proposed and is going to go into marriage.
After saying proposal so many times, suddenly seeing a successful couple, made me feel like Cheng Zhirang’s proposal would succeed too.
It’s so weird.
She mused over these thoughts all the way home, thinking to go online to refresh the news to clear her mind.
As soon as she refreshed the news, a bombshell popped up: #Su Yan suspected to propose to Lin Banyan#.
Her: ...Ugh, now the whole world is wrapped around the word proposal, surrounding her.
Could it be that today’s big data analysis is powerful to this extent? Whatever just happened in life is immediately pushed online? It’s terrifying.
She only could put down her phone again, sit cross-legged and turn on the TV to watch a movie.
She’s almost watched all the movies from recent years, and her habits keep her from wanting to watch them again, so she can only idly scroll back to a few years ago to watch some older films.
When she switched to 2015, among the refreshed films below, there was one called "Proposal."
Mu Qiu: ...damn.
Threw the remote away, didn’t want to watch the movie anymore, better off just sleeping.
Cheng Zhirang got home and thought Mu Qiu wasn’t there.
He knew she’d go to Zhou Jilin’s today, thinking she’d have lunch there before coming back, unexpectedly at two in the afternoon, she was already on the sofa watching a movie with her legs crossed.
And her expression while watching was really strange.
Expressionless, like a calm lake with no waves, as if the movie in front of her was incomprehensible.
"Qiuqiu?"
He walked over and sat down: "Had lunch?"
"Yes."
"Had it at home?"
"Yes, ordered delivery."
"What movie is this?"
She wistfully turned her head: "Proposal."
Cheng Zhirang: ...
Carelessly sipping water, he choked a couple times, grabbed a napkin and coughed.
"What a coincidence," she said in a wistful tone, "Ever since you said those words yesterday, today I’ve been hearing and seeing those two words everywhere. Just witnessed Zhou Jilin successfully proposing."
"Maybe it’s fate?" he babbled along, "Does this mean the timing is right?"
"Right for what? My parents said next time you have such thoughts like ’turning a young woman into a long-term and cheap sex partner’, you should聊直接打电话给他们聊聊.".
"Oh, by the way, rest assured, they’ve been teachers for many years, they’re very skilled in heart-to-heart talks to correct people’s wrong thoughts."
Cheng Zhirang was surprised: "You told them?"
"Otherwise, next time you bring it up again, should I directly take you back to them to set off a bomb?"
He looked over and hugged her shoulders: "So you’re actually getting prepared. I’m very pleased."
Mu Qiu’s ears got a bit warm, she stared straight at the TV to avoid looking at him.
"No need to thank me, I haven’t prepared anything. What’s your plan for tomorrow?"
"Having lunch with the parents, attending a live-streamed birthday party in the afternoon, and an evening broadcast. The evening one will be short."
"That’s quite a tight schedule," she turned off the movie she’d absolutely lost interest in and looked at him, "You’ll be busy on your own tomorrow? I’ll stay at home, it’s hot outside."
"Okay."
He actually wanted to take her along, but she’d rather not, so that was fine.
Though the birthday is tomorrow, starting from earlier, the Cheng Zhi fan club has been fervently creating buzz.
Through various prize draws, many related posts of #519 Happy Birthday Cheng Zhirang# have flooded topic pages, visible right when going online. Additionally, major city center street screens have been secured for #519 Happy Birthday Cheng Zhirang# promos.
On top of that, brands Cheng Zhirang has endorsed have actively done pre-promotion, and the birthday event discount plans have spread widely on shopping sites, including spoilers from luxury brands, one even securing Hai City’s landmark for promo, and neighboring cities are lighting the "Cheng Zhirang Star" with zest.
With such fanfare, everyone knows his birthday is tomorrow.
Yuan Chun even called Mu Qiu, advising her to make a bowl of longevity noodles for Cheng Zhirang.
She hadn’t decided yet, when Zhao Yu sneakily messaged her, pondering several plans for upper-class birthday gifts.
Various cosplay costume designs were flung over.
She replied with a ’thanks but no thanks’ emoji.
When it comes to gifting, of course, the principle is what the recipient likes and needs the most, and whether they like it or need it can be easily found out by asking.
At dinner, she specifically asked Cheng Zhirang.
"Brother Cheng, what do you want for a birthday gift?"
Cheng Zhirang seemed surprised she asked directly, paused, and said: "No specific wants."
"Nothing you like or need?"
"What I like... I want a..."
"Just say it," Mu Qiu put down her chopsticks, quite generously assuring, "As long as it doesn’t harm heaven and earth or commit crimes, doesn’t touch on human trafficking or moral limits, I can find a way for anything."
Turning gift-giving into pulling out criminal laws and national security laws as guidelines.
Cheng Zhirang chuckled: "Not that exaggerated, I like surprises. You can give anything, I’ll wait for the surprise."
"Surprise, huh—" she drew out her voice and slowly repeated it.
That’s a bit tricky.
——
May 19th.
After midnight, Weibo’s opening screen was a Cheng Zhirang beauty attack, the brand sponsors went all out, changing his face in several short videos from all angles.
Fans who stayed up late for the card point to send blessings went crazy screen-bombing, the buzz directly pushed the #519 Happy Birthday Cheng Zhirang# topic into the top three on the list.
Offline, Cheng Zhirang-endorsed brands, in-store special decorations used orange color as a base, made giant solo posters of Cheng Zhirang, hung them outside the store.
Subway, airport, mall screens, everywhere was Cheng Zhirang’s handsome face.
Even when Mu Qiu opened her writing software, the pop-up opening screen was his face.
This was unbelievable.
How could she have any mood to write now, completely distracted by that face?
"Qiuqiu?"
A deep, husky voice murmured, then the man beside her wrapped his arm around her, pressing close from behind, "Why aren’t you asleep? Can’t sleep?"
It’s midnight, truly time to sleep.
But she’d never seen this kind of spectacle where millions of fans card-time celebrated an idol’s birthday, she was itching, just wanted to surf the internet for this late-night frenzy.
Zhao Yu had previously card-timed for Su Yan, but Su Yan’s birthday was later, in August or September, card-timing would be the next morning, no need to stay up late. So she really hadn’t experienced it.
She turned, burying into his embrace, with her phone still lit, making Cheng Zhirang’s eyes squint.
"Alright," he moved the phone aside and turned it off, with a magnetic voice coaxing her, "Time to sleep."