Entertainment mogul: Starting his business with the internet

Chapter 262 She's my sister-in-law

June 8th, Monday, a brand new week is about to begin.

Around six o'clock in the morning, just as dawn was breaking, the area in front of Beiping No. 4 Middle School was already bustling with activity.

A gentle breeze swept by, bringing a touch of coolness and dispelling some of the summer heat.

The students, full of energy, wore neat school uniforms and carried heavy schoolbags as they walked into the campus.

"Yuqing! Yuqing! Wait for me!"

Liu Yuqing hummed a pop song as she skipped along, her ponytail bouncing merrily. Combined with her delicate and beautiful face, she looked like a lively little elf.

Hearing the call, I stopped and turned around. I saw my classmate Li Lingyan running towards me, panting. I stood by the roadside and waited for a while.

Li Lingyan finally reached her deskmate, supporting herself on her knees with both hands, bending over and panting heavily.

"Yanzi, you should lose weight!" Liu Yuqing couldn't help but chuckle as she looked at her friend's disheveled appearance and went to help her up.

The two walked side by side towards the teaching building. Li Lingyan composed herself and asked:
"Yuqing, why didn't my sister go on Happy Camp the day before yesterday? I saw that all the other main actors from 'Chinese Paladin 3' were on it. I was really looking forward to seeing my sister's variety show debut!"

"Didn't Senior Sister explain on Weibo that she couldn't attend due to scheduling conflicts?"

Li Lingyan shook her head dismissively: "I don't believe it! Hu Ge, Yuan Hong, Yang Mi, and the others are all filming, aren't they? Does the 'Du Lala's Promotion' crew not allow us to take leave?"

Liu Yuqing helplessly shrugged and raised her eyebrows: "If you don't want to go, you don't have to go. What's the rush?"

Li Lingyan was not about to give up. She grabbed her best friend's arm and shook it, saying, "Yuqing, you must know the real reason, right? Tell me!"

She and Liu Yuqing were seatmates, and coincidentally, they were both fans of Liu Shishi, so the two had an extremely close relationship.

Although both are fans of Liu Shishi, my best friend is a well-known fan leader among the "little lions" (fans of Liu Shishi).

He knows Liu Shishi's assistant and even Liu Shishi herself, and can often produce rare autographed photos that Liu Shishi has never publicly released.

In Li Lingyan's mind, Liu Yuqing must have a lot of "insider information".

"Really want to know?"

Li Lingyan nodded eagerly: "Yes!"

"How about visiting the film set next time?"

"I'll cover the expenses!" Li Lingyan agreed without hesitation.

"OK!" Liu Yuqing kept her friend in suspense for a while before slowly saying, "Actually, I'm afraid that I'm too slow to keep up, so I'm afraid to go on variety shows."

Li Ling looked at her best friend with suspicion: "You're not kidding me?"

"No, my sister told me herself!"

"Alright!" Although Li Lingyan was still somewhat skeptical, seeing the determined expression on Liu Yuqing's delicate face, she ultimately chose to accept this explanation for the time being.

As they walked and talked, Li Lingyan curiously inquired, "Yuqing, what exactly is your relationship with my sister? Why would she tell you this herself? And when will you introduce me to her?"

Liu Yuqing glanced around and, seeing that no one was paying attention to them, lowered her voice: "Actually, Shishijie is my sister-in-law. We just had dinner together on the Dragon Boat Festival."

Li Lingyan curled her lips, her face full of disdain: "If you don't want to say, then don't. Yuqing, it's really pointless for you to make up such an absurd reason to fob me off."

Liu Yuqing suppressed a laugh: "Sigh, these days nobody believes the truth."

The two walked quietly along the campus path. After a while, although Li Lingyan found the whole thing absurd, her curiosity compelled her to ask again, "So you're my senior sister's sister-in-law?"

Liu Yuqing nodded vigorously, her expression very serious, without a trace of joking: "Yanzi, I'm only telling you this secret, so you must never tell anyone else."

"But I've never heard of you having an older brother?" Li Lingyan frowned, racking her brains for a long time before remembering that her friend was an only child.

"He's my aunt's son, my cousin. It's no different from a marriage alliance."

Seeing her best friend speaking so seriously, Li Lingyan felt a ripple of emotion: "Sister, you really have a boyfriend? What makes your brother so good as to be worthy of you!"

Liu Yuqing immediately stopped and stared at her friend expressionlessly, a hint of displeasure flashing in her eyes:
"Yanzi, I don't like what you're saying. Do you know who my brother is? It's not that I'm biased towards my brother, but for Shishijie to marry into our family is definitely a step up for her."

Upon hearing her best friend speak of her idol like that, Li Lingyan immediately flew into a rage, her face turning bright red: "Nonsense! What man wouldn't be good enough for me? Your brother wants to marry me? He's a toad trying to eat swan meat!"

"How dare you call my brother a toad! Yanzi, you're being unreasonable! Don't talk to me anymore, I don't want to talk to you." Liu Yuqing angrily rebuked her, turned around and left, leaving Li Lingyan standing alone in the wind.

"Yuqing!" Seeing her best friend turn her back on her and leave without paying any attention to her, Li Lingyan stomped her feet in anger.

Liu Yuqing arrived at the classroom, slammed her schoolbag heavily on the desk, and became angrier the more she thought about it. In her heart, her cousin Song Ci was one of a kind.

Seeing this, a boy in the back row leaned forward slightly, his face full of concern and a hint of ingratiation: "What's wrong? Who made our campus belle Liu angry?"

Liu Yuqing glared at the boy fiercely: "Lu Zhong, it's none of your business!"

Lu Zhong felt wronged and looked at Liu Yuqing with a resentful expression. His lips moved, but he didn't say anything.

Another classmate covered his mouth and chuckled, his gaze intentionally or unintentionally sweeping towards Lü Zhong, his eyes full of mockery.

His seatmate usually showered the school beauty with attention, and everyone in the class knew what he was thinking. Unfortunately, his feelings were unrequited; the school beauty, Liu, ignored his advances. It could be said that Liu Yuqing didn't find any of the boys in the class attractive.

At this moment, Li Lingyan arrived late, and hesitated to speak to her deskmate, but seeing that her best friend turned her head away from her, she helplessly pursed her lips and sat down quietly.

Noticing the unusual atmosphere between the two girls in the front row, Lü Zhong nudged his seatmate and asked in a low voice, "What's going on between them?"

My deskmate squinted, looking equally inquisitive: "How would I know? They're usually inseparable, like two peas in a pod. They probably had a fight."

Lu Zhong wanted to mediate, but the homeroom teacher arrived in the classroom soon and morning reading began, so he had to suppress his thoughts for the time being.

For the entire morning, Liu Yuqing and Li Lingyan didn't exchange a single word, and their classmates could tell that the two best friends were having a fight. When the lunch bell rang, students gradually left the classroom. Their homeroom teacher, Ms. Li, called the two to her office and asked bluntly, "Tell me what happened?"

The two girls exchanged a glance, then turned their heads away, their expressions stubborn and both resentful, neither willing to speak first.

Seeing their stalemate, Teacher Li sighed helplessly and had no choice but to call on someone.

Compared to Liu Yuqing, who was always fawned over by the boys in class and had a proud and stubborn personality, he felt it would be easier to let the more honest Li Lingyan speak first.

"Li Lingyan, you tell me, what happened? Did you have a falling out with Liu Yuqing?"

Li Lingyan looked distressed, hesitated for a long time, glanced at Teacher Li, then at her deskmate, and finally honestly explained the reason for their argument that morning.

After hearing this, Teacher Li's gaze fell on Liu, the school beauty: "Is that so?"

Liu Yuqing nodded, her expression still showing some resentment.

Teacher Li was speechless for a moment, then earnestly lectured, "You two are arguing over such a small thing, and it's even about chasing after celebrities. It's utterly ridiculous!"
You'll be in your second year of high school next semester, and your studies will become even more demanding. How can you still have the mind to think about such trivial matters?

Liu Shishi is just an ordinary celebrity; she's not worth your time. Your most important task at this stage of your lives is to study hard and do your best to get into a good university.

"Teacher Li, don't worry, I will definitely get into a top-tier university. Following celebrities and studying are not mutually exclusive."

Upon hearing this, Teacher Li immediately laughed: "Liu Yuqing, look at you talking big. Your grades are only average in the class."

Based on current grades, I should have no problem getting into a top-tier university if I perform normally, but if I want to get into a "Double First-Class" university, my grades are still far from enough.

If idolizing celebrities could get you into Tsinghua or Peking University, I wouldn't stop you; I'd encourage you to do it. But can idolizing celebrities really do that? Can your idol, Liu Shishi, get you into a top university?

Liu Yuqing's lips parted slightly, wanting to retort to her teacher that Liu Shishi didn't have that ability, but her husband did.

But she swallowed the words back. Her academic talent was average, and if she wanted to get into a prestigious school, she could only rely on her brother to find a way. Some things were better left unsaid to outsiders.

"I won't go into any more grand principles, just think about it carefully!" Teacher Li waved his hand and dismissed the two.

The two girls in front of him were the daughter of the president of the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China and the daughter of the CEO of a listed company. Their family backgrounds were among the best in the entire Beiping No. 4 Middle School. As their homeroom teacher, he had no intention of saying anything more.

The younger generation today is independent and opinionated. Too much education may actually trigger their rebellious tendencies. Moreover, given their family backgrounds, studying is not the only way out for them. Even if they don't get into top universities, their future will not be too bad.

After leaving the office, Liu Yuqing and Li Lingyan, having had a cold war all morning, and with the help of their homeroom teacher, gradually calmed down.

Li Lingyan followed behind Liu Yuqing like a little tail, still preoccupied with the fact that her best friend was her idol's sister-in-law, and tugged at her sleeve:

"Yuqing, I was wrong this morning. I didn't mean to belittle your brother. I just couldn't accept the news that my sister has a boyfriend and spoke without thinking in my shock."

Seeing her friend take the initiative to back down, Liu Yuqing's anger dissipated: "I'm not angry anymore."

The two walked side by side down the corridor of the teaching building. Li Lingyan felt a mix of emotions. Fans have very complicated feelings about their idols being in love, and she couldn't express them for a moment. She didn't know whether to be happy or worried.

"Hey, my sister is still so young, why is she in such a hurry to fall in love? If the other little lions find out about this, who knows what kind of commotion it will cause."

"Tch, it's not like Senior Sister can never date or get married. Sooner or later, it'll all be the same."

Li Lingyan tilted her head, her face solemn: "Yuqing, Shishijie is such a good person. Your brother is so lucky to be with her. You must make sure your brother treats her well."

Liu Yuqing, listening to her friend's rambling on about Liu Shishi's love life, gradually grew impatient: "I know, I know! Fine, fine, I'll just tell you the truth, Yanzi, do you know who my brother is?"

Seeing her friend acting so mysteriously, Li Lingyan's curiosity was piqued: "Who is it? Is it also a celebrity?"

Liu Yuqing raised her head and said arrogantly, "What are celebrities? My brother is Song Ci!"

"Who?" Li Lingyan looked incredulous, thinking she had misheard.

Liu Yuqing emphasized again: "Song Ci! I'll say it again, my brother, Liu Shishi's love interest is the richest man, Song Ci!"

Li Lingyan's eyes widened in surprise, and she covered her mouth, frozen in place for a long time before she came to her senses: "Wow, my sister's boyfriend is actually a noble young master."

Liu Yuqing was smug and very satisfied with her friends' reaction: "Aren't you surprised? Aren't you happy with my brother as your brother-in-law?"

People are just that realistic. As soon as Li Lingyan heard that her idol had found a super handsome and super rich partner, her attitude instantly did a complete 180-degree turn.

She replied happily, "Satisfied, very satisfied. Wait, didn't your brother announce his engagement to his childhood sweetheart on Weibo a while ago? Could it be that the richest man's mysterious fiancée is Shishijie?"

"Yes, that's why I said Shishi is my sister-in-law."

Li Lingyan belatedly realized, "No wonder you always manage to get my sister's autographed photos and all sorts of exclusive insider information."

And then there's that inexplicable "Tang Poetry and Song Lyrics" couple being promoted by fans—now I understand completely. It turns out the older sister and your brother have been together for a long time.

Liu Yuqing nodded slightly: "That's right, Tangren's top female star Liu Shishi and Song Ci, isn't that 'Tang poetry and Song Ci'? It was originally proposed by me and Shishi's assistant Jiang Yuanyuan."

After figuring out everything, Li Lingyan was overjoyed: "My sister kept it from us for so long. With such an excellent fiancé, you should show him off! I think the little lions will definitely bless her."

"I'm only telling you this, so don't tell anyone else. Senior Sister isn't ready to make it official yet."

Seeing her best friend share such an important secret with her, Li Lingyan felt even happier. She patted her chest and confidently assured her, "Yuqing, don't worry, I definitely won't tell anyone."

However, I want to give you a little heads-up beforehand: my sister is in a relationship. That way, when she officially announces it, the Leos (fans of Leos) will be mentally prepared and won't be caught off guard.

Liu Yuqing replied nonchalantly, "With such an excellent partner as my brother, Little Lion should be secretly happy. What's there to be upset about? Just don't reveal my brother's identity, and the rest is up to you."

"Male and female fans have different attitudes toward this matter."

"Forget it, it's all the female fans who are willing to spend big money. I've hardly ever seen any male fans willing to spend money on their older sisters."

"There's strength in numbers!" Li Lingyan chuckled. "It does have some use when arguing with rival fans on Weibo."

(End of this chapter)