There were over a hundred mbers in Raina’s work group chat, and aside from five on-screen hosts, the rest were mostly behind-the-scenes staff.
At first, everyone thought Raina was just joking.
Inviting Julian as a guest? That was sothing people only dread about.
Since his debut, Julian’s fa had only grown, and now he was not only a Pseudo-Champion but also the youngest National-level Gym Leader in the country.
He wasn’t a celebrity, nor was he a social dia influencer among Trainers, but his popularity far outclassed both by a huge margin—so much so that comparing them to Julian would be like comparing the earth to the sky.
Soone like him, who didn’t even accept formal interview requests, coming to participate in a variety show? That sounded like an absolute joke.
But then, Raina posted a photo of Julian eating—with her in the picture as well.
Raina: "Julian is having dinner at my house."
The group chat instantly went dead silent.
Not long after Julian agreed to appear on the show, Raina’s phone rang.
Raina stepped aside to answer the call, and after a few minutes, she returned.
At the sa ti, one of the TV station higher-ups posted an official announced in the work group chat:
[Julian has accepted Raina’s invitation and will appear on this week’s episode of "Rising Star." All relevant personnel, start preparing imdiately—if anything goes wrong, you’re fired.]
With the higher-ups confirming it, the entire work group chat exploded.
It was actually true—Raina had really managed to invite Julian! How did she pull that off?
None of them knew Raina’s background, so they were all curious how she had gotten Julian to agree, especially since even the national broadcaster had failed to secure an interview with him before.
So of the more cynical ones secretly cursed Raina, calling her a sly fox who must’ve used “shady thods” to rope Julian in.
anwhile, many of the n who secretly admired Raina felt a pang of heartbreak—while they were simping for their goddess, their goddess was apparently simping for another man.
"Rising Star" was a long-running national-level variety show that had been popular for over thirty years.
Over the years, they had invited guests from all kinds of professions—celebrities, singers, professional trainers, writers, artists—all with considerable fa and fanbases.
Each episode typically featured two guests—one more famous, the other less so—with segnts involving Q&As and gas.
Originally, this episode’s guests were already set: one was a recently viral internet celebrity, and the other was a newly debuted idol from a talent show.
But with Julian joining, one of them had to be cut—and the internet celebrity was the unlucky one.
When the production team inford him that he was no longer needed, the influencer was furious. However, upon learning that Julian was replacing him, he imdiately backtracked, offering to appear for free—or even pay for the opportunity himself.
He just wanted to ride on Julian’s coattails for so clout, but the production team outright refused.
After all, soone like Julian wasn’t soone they could afford to offend.
What’s more, the station director had issued a strict order—if anything went wrong with this episode, those responsible could kiss their jobs goodbye.
"Rising Star" had a live audience of 300 people. Once news got out that Julian was the guest, so people were already offering 500,000 just to buy a ticket to the taping.
---
Three days later, as the recording began, Julian followed Raina into the studio’s floor.
The mont he walked in, everyone on set instantly turned their heads to look at him.
“Julian, the recording starts in about two hours. I’ve already briefed you on the format, so for now, let’s get you into makeup,” Raina said.
Julian nodded and followed a young production assistant to the dressing room.
“Just a light touch-up is fine,” he told the eager-looking stylist.
With a face like his, no matter how they styled him, he’d still look good.
Strictly speaking, Julian wasn’t classically 'handso'—more like 'decent-looking'. But his upbringing, natural charisma, elite skills, and prestigious background all combined to amplify his presence tenfold.
The mont Julian left, Raina was imdiately sward by curious colleagues.
“Raina, what’s your relationship with Julian?”
“Raina, can you give Julian’s contact info?”
“Ugh, why couldn’t I have been assigned as his stylist?!”
The questions ca rapid-fire until a deep, authoritative voice cut through the chatter.
“Alright, enough. Everyone, back to work.”
At the sound of Host He’s voice, the crowd reluctantly dispersed.
“Senior Howard,” Raina greeted politely.
The veteran host smiled approvingly. “You’ve done well, Little Ran. I never thought you’d actually manage to invite soone like Julian to our show. After this episode, our ratings are definitely skyrocketing.”
"Rising Star" had five hosts—two n and three won—and Howard was the most senior among them, a pillar of the network.
“Who knows what kind of trick she pulled,” sneered a woman about Raina’s age, standing beside Howard. She eyed Raina with obvious jealousy.
Raina shot her a cold, unbothered look. “Oh, I 'totally' climbed into Julian's bed. If you’ve got what it takes, why don’t you try it too?”
“You—you shaless—!” The woman flushed with anger.
“Enough bickering. Go prepare your scripts,” Howard intervened sternly.
But deep down, he was a little stunned by what Raina said.
If that was true, then from this point on, Raina would be untouchable at the network.
Using romantic ties to climb the ladder was usually seen as disgraceful—unless the man in question was so far above everyone else that it beca less about sha and more about sheer, unattainable prestige.
Of course, Raina hadn’t actually slept with Julian—she’d have loved to, but the man simply wasn’t interested.
Imagine a stunning woman getting drunk, collapsing into your arms, utterly at your rcy—no strings attached, in the dead of night—and instead of seizing the opportunity, you book two separate rooms.
That was exactly the kind of thing Julian had done.
If it weren’t for the mont when he carried her into the room and she 'felt sothing bump her', Raina might’ve genuinely believed Julian was incapable.
The jealous woman stord off in a huff.
As Raina was about to leave too, Howard called after her:
“Little Ran, keep up the good work. From now on your future here will definitely be secured.”
"Rising Star" was a long-standing, wildly popular show for decades now. So naturally, its five hosting spots were fiercely competitive.
The woman who’d just sneered at Raina? She’d only gotten her position because she was a network executive’s niece—bumping out a more qualified candidate.
Raina, on the other hand, had been a temporary replacent after one of the female hosts went on maternity leave. She was talented, but everyone assud she’d step aside once the original host returned.
But now?
By pulling off the impossible—landing Julian as a guest—Raina had all but cented her spot permanently. Even if the original host ca back, she’d likely be reassigned to a lesser program.
“I understand, Senior Howard. I’ll give it my all.”
Raina nodded, fully grasping the unspoken promise in his words.
With that, she happily flicked her ponytail and walked cheerfully toward Julian’s makeup room.
*****
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