Superstar Assistant [GL] - Chapter 18

Chapter 18

Afterward, Zhou Tiantian looked at the schedule and said to Li Ziyu, “There’s a reality show variety dinner on the weekend. Sister Ruoyun said it’s an audition for the variety show.” She was a little confused. “Do reality shows need auditions now?”

Li Ziyu sneered, “Forget it, don’t worry too much about this activity. We’re just going through the motions, acting as decorative background.”

Having been in the entertainment industry for three months, Zhou Tiantian was aware of some of the unspoken rules and asked, “Is there something shady going on?”

Li Ziyu said, “Sister Luo approached me about this reality show before. I was very interested, but Sister Luo later asked me to attend a dinner, saying I should ‘ingratiate myself’ with the reality show’s producer. That way, the chance of getting on the show would be higher.”

Li Ziyu said the word ‘ingratiate’ with great sarcasm. Zhou Tiantian immediately guessed the implied meaning of those words. She anxiously asked Li Ziyu, “You didn’t agree, right?”

Li Ziyu said, “I didn’t agree. So, it’s unlikely that the spot for a regular cast member on this reality show will go to me. I didn’t want to agree to this weekend dinner, but Sister Luo insisted I go for a meal. So I’ll go, but I can’t guarantee what will happen once I’m there.”

Zhou Tiantian said to Li Ziyu, “Let’s not go. Just tell the manager you’re sick.”

When Zhou Tiantian called the manager, the manager said to her, “I know what Ziyu means. I’m not asking her to go to accompany those people. It’s just to get familiar with faces. Actually, the guest roster for this reality show was already decided at that dinner before. I just want her to go and meet more people.”

Li Ziyu was relieved when she heard that the manager meant no harm.

…

Three days later, Li Ziyu had an announcement for a magazine cover shoot. She took Zhou Tiantian to the magazine shooting location.

Li Ziyu walked into the building, talking about what she wanted to eat that evening, when someone ahead suddenly called out to her, “Miss!”

Zhou Tiantian and Li Ziyu both initially thought the person was calling Li Ziyu. When Zhou Tiantian looked over, she realized it was someone she knew. The person was the lady who had lost her wallet at the bus stop when Zhou Tiantian went home.

The lady quickly walked up to her, grabbed her wrist, and said with a smile, “I really didn’t expect us to have the fate to meet again. I thought I would owe you a favor and one thousand yuan for the rest of my life and never be able to repay it!”

Li Ziyu looked at the woman talking to Zhou Tiantian in surprise, wondering why Zhou Tiantian knew her.

The woman looked at Li Ziyu, then at Zhou Tiantian, and understood something. She asked, “Do you work for Li Ziyu?”

Zhou Tiantian nodded. “I’m her personal assistant.”

The woman said, “I see. Just wait for me for a moment. I’ll go get my phone. This time, I must add you on WeChat and pay you back. You can’t leave again.”

Zhou Tiantian nodded, and she and Li Ziyu waited in place for her to retrieve her phone.

After the woman left, Zhou Tiantian looked at Li Ziyu. “How does she know you?”

Li Ziyu counter-questioned Zhou Tiantian, “I was wondering how you know her!”

Zhou Tiantian explained, “I ran into her when I went home. She lost her wallet and wanted to exchange one thousand yuan in cash with me, but I had to leave early because of something, so she didn’t get my WeChat or give me the money.”

Zhou Tiantian felt bad about the thousand yuan while she was at home, but she had no way of finding the woman, so she just let it go. She didn’t expect to run into her today.

Li Ziyu raised an eyebrow slightly, lifted her hand, and poked her cheek. “You silly person, you have the luck of the foolish. She is General Manager Wu of Pomegranate Video. This reality show is produced and planned by her video company. Although it’s only an online variety show, Pomegranate Video’s online variety shows are always very well done.”

Zhou Tiantian raised her hand, grasped Li Ziyu’s index finger, and pulled her hand away from her face. “Don’t poke me like that. If someone sees it later, they’ll start gossiping again. Besides, I just lent her one thousand yuan. How is that the luck of the foolish? That thousand yuan is still mine when she returns it.”

Li Ziyu said, “That’s why I say you’re silly. Why don’t you try to network with her and ask her to find you a better job at Pomegranate Video? After all, being a star’s personal assistant can’t compare to working for one of the largest and most promising video companies in the country.”

Zhou Tiantian replied, “But I’m already your personal assistant.”

Li Ziyu slowly curled her lips. “Don’t you want to work for Pomegranate Video? The opportunities there are much greater than being my personal assistant.”

Zhou Tiantian frowned slightly, a flash of worry in her eyes. “Are you going to fire me?”

Li Ziyu opened her mouth, then laughed. “Fine, I won’t talk about opportunities with a little fool like you. Since you’re willing to stay by my side and continue being my personal assistant, then do a good job. I certainly won’t treat you badly.” As she said this, her heart felt a little sweet, and she raised her hand to pinch Zhou Tiantian’s cheek again.

…

While they were talking, Wu Shan returned. She quickly walked up to Zhou Tiantian and said, “Let’s exchange WeChat accounts. I’ll transfer the money to you.”

Zhou Tiantian nodded, took out her phone, and they added each other on WeChat. Wu Shan then transferred one thousand yuan to Zhou Tiantian.

After Zhou Tiantian accepted the thousand yuan, Wu Shan finally breathed a sigh of relief. She extended her hand to Zhou Tiantian and said, “Now I can finally introduce myself properly. My name is Wu Shan, Vice President of Pomegranate Video. You can just call me Sister Wu.”

Zhou Tiantian quickly shook her hand, smiling somewhat shyly. “My name is Zhou Tiantian, Li Ziyu’s personal assistant.”

Afterward, Li Ziyu went for her magazine shoot. Wu Shan took Zhou Tiantian to another area, saying she wanted to have a good chat with her.

In the company’s reception room, Wu Shan poured Zhou Tiantian a cup of coffee and said, “It’s a good thing I was going to the magazine company today to discuss a collaboration. Otherwise, I would have certainly missed you. I’ve truly felt terrible about not repaying you or thanking you.”

Zhou Tiantian was still a little shy, but her eyes were very sincere. “It’s really nothing. Everyone has bad luck sometimes… I just left in too much of a hurry.”

After chatting for a long time, as Zhou Tiantian was about to leave after Li Ziyu called, Wu Shan asked, “Don’t you have anything else to say to me?”

Zhou Tiantian looked at her confusedly. “No. Do you need my help?”

Wu Shan laughed. “Are you truly clueless, or are you playing hard to get?”

Zhou Tiantian was even more confused, looking at Wu Shan blankly.

Wu Shan’s smile became more genuine. “I’ll be direct with you. You should know that Li Ziyu is competing for a regular guest spot on a reality show, and that reality show happens to be produced by our video website and is one of the projects under my jurisdiction.”

Zhou Tiantian’s face suddenly turned red. She shook her head and said, “No, please don’t misunderstand. I won’t ask you to open the back door for Ziyu just because I lent you a thousand yuan.”

Wu Shan said, “Actually, for me, there isn’t much difference between Li Ziyu and Cai Yao. The biggest selling point of this reality show isn’t the female guest, so operating the position to belong to either one is actually very simple.”

Just then, Li Ziyu walked in. She saw the two focused on her and offered to wait outside.

Wu Shan smiled warmly. “Ziyu, you’re not the type of person to wait for an assistant. It looks like your relationship with Zhou Tiantian is quite special.”

Li Ziyu replied, “We were high school classmates… she’s a bit silly and does her job well. I don’t have anything going on today, so waiting for her is fine.”

Wu Shan invited her to join the conversation and then asked, “Ziyu, are you interested in starring in our company’s new online variety show?”

Li Ziyu looked at Wu Shan in surprise. “General Manager Wu, you mean…?”

Wu Shan said, “I like your assistant and want to be friends with her. Tiantian helped me out of a predicament, and I can offer a job opportunity in return.” She subtly implied that being friends with the VP of Pomegranate Video would benefit Zhou Tiantian’s future in the agency.

Li Ziyu turned to Zhou Tiantian, giving her the decision-making power. “Since General Manager Wu wants to be friends with Tiantian, let Tiantian decide.”

Zhou Tiantian grew flustered but took a deep breath. Her cheeks flushed red, and she said to Wu Shan, “Is it really okay to give the reality show opportunity to Ziyu? Will it be difficult for you?”

Wu Shan laughed out loud. “Tiantian, I’m the Vice President. If I can’t even decide on a guest for a reality show, I’m a pretty unsuccessful Vice President.”

Zhou Tiantian took another deep breath and said, “If it’s not inconvenient for you, I still hope this opportunity can be given to Ziyu, I hope she can develop better.”

Wu Shan smiled. “Alright, I will inform you after I arrange it.”

Zhou Tiantian turned to Li Ziyu, her eyes shining with the desire for credit, and gave Li Ziyu a sweet smile.

Li Ziyu couldn’t help but raise her hand and stroke her hair, saying softly, “Thank you. You are truly amazing.” Zhou Tiantian’s smile became even brighter.

…

On the way home, Li Ziyu gently sighed, “I really didn’t expect that something Sister Luo worked so hard on with no result was actually settled by your thousand yuan.”

Zhou Tiantian said softly, “I just saw that she was so helpless at the time… I just remembered my past self… I never expected her to be the Vice President of Pomegranate Video. I can only say I have very good luck.”

Li Ziyu felt a little heartache and anger. “So you never want to tell me anything, always keeping it to yourself… are you really not treating me as one of your own?”

Zhou Tiantian quickly shook her head. “No, it’s just that those things are really too troublesome. I don’t want to cause you too much trouble.”

Li Ziyu grew angrier. Seeing a temporary parking spot, she pulled the car over, turned, and glared fiercely at her. She leaned forward, enclosing Zhou Tiantian in her space, and said coldly, “If you ever say something like that again, I will immediately fire you and kick you out!”

Zhou Tiantian immediately felt wronged and her eyes turned red. “Because my family matters are really complicated! I don’t want these things to bother you, and I’ve grown up. I don’t want to keep hiding behind you and troubling you. I also want to learn how to solve these problems and become strong myself.”

Li Ziyu immediately softened when she saw her tears. She quickly wiped her tears and said gently, “I call you a fool, and you still don’t believe me… I’m not someone who is so afraid of trouble… you don’t have to treat me like an outsider… I know you want to grow and become strong, but that doesn’t stop you from telling me these things. At least you have someone by your side who can analyze the situation for you.”

Zhou Tiantian lowered her head and softly said, “I’m sorry, I misunderstood you.”

Li Ziyu sighed, “You’re such a fool… will you tell me what happened when you went home? As long as you don’t want me to interfere, I absolutely won’t… but I hope that when you deal with these things, you know that there is someone you can rely on.”

On the way home, Zhou Tiantian told Li Ziyu everything that happened recently, including her stepfather’s actions. Li Ziyu slammed her hand on the steering wheel and cursed, “Your stepfather is such trash. I really want to find someone to deal with him!”

“No, that’s illegal!” Zhou Tiantian quickly stopped her. “I actually already have a plan. I just need to wait a while.”

Li Ziyu raised an eyebrow. “Tell me about it. What plan did you come up with?”

Zhou Tiantian said, “He likes to gamble. I’m giving him 8,000 yuan every month. He’ll take it to gamble… Then, he’ll fall into huge gambling debts… When that happens, I’ll take my mom and escape, letting those debt collectors torment him…”

Li Ziyu was a little surprised. “Not bad. Your plan won’t waste too much of your time, and no matter what happens to your stepfather in the end, it will have nothing to do with you. Very good. You’ve made progress.”

Zhou Tiantian looked at Li Ziyu in surprise. “Don’t you think I’m being too scheming?”

Li Ziyu chuckled softly. “How is that scheming? For a person like him, you’re being genuinely gentle… follow your plan. It’s not bad.”

Zhou Tiantian looked at Li Ziyu’s profile, a faint smile on her lips. She felt much lighter after telling Li Ziyu everything. She felt like someone was supporting her.

…

Zhou Tiantian became even more attentive in taking care of Li Ziyu, right up until Li Ziyu was invited to attend the reality show dinner produced by Pomegranate Video.

That evening, Li Ziyu, wearing a Dolce & Gabbana dress, arrived at the hotel, radiating a queen-like presence. Zhou Tiantian, as her assistant, accompanied her to ensure she was safe if she got drunk.

In the hotel lobby, they ran into the producer and a woman beside him. The woman, elegantly dressed, was Cai Yao.

Li Ziyu told Zhou Tiantian, “That woman must be the so-called pre-determined personnel.” Cai Yao was the female lead in Li Ziyu’s first drama, who got the role through connections but whose poor acting allowed Li Ziyu to become popular instead.

Li Ziyu ignored Cai Yao, but Cai Yao squeezed into the elevator before the doors closed. Cai Yao sneered, “Are you also here to compete with me for the regular guest spot? You won’t even get through the door this time.”

Li Ziyu ignored her, only giving a cold smile as she stepped out of the elevator first.

Zhou Tiantian squeezed Li Ziyu’s hand to calm her. “Ziyu, don’t get angry at her. She just wants you to lose your temper… and make them think you’re a diva.”

Li Ziyu rubbed her hair. “I know… I’m just laughing at her for overestimating herself. The more proud she is now, the more embarrassed she’ll be later.” She then told Zhou Tiantian to go eat downstairs and not starve herself.

When Li Ziyu entered the private room, her manager, Luo Na, directed her to her seat.

Cai Yao walked in with the producer, intimately holding his arm and sitting next to him, showing off her status. The other guests, who were popular and experienced, secretly looked down on Cai Yao but assumed she had secured the spot.

Suddenly, Wu Shan walked into the private room. Everyone stood up to greet her, as she was the highest-ranking person there. Wu Shan exchanged pleasantries but acted as if she didn’t know Li Ziyu.

After a few bites of food, the producer said to Wu Shan, “Vice President Wu, this is Cai Yao, the last regular guest for this reality show.”

Cai Yao immediately stood up, raised her glass, and said, “Sister Wu, hello. I’m Cai Yao, I will definitely work hard…”

Wu Shan, with a faint smile, did not raise her glass. Instead, she looked at Cai Yao and said, “But I don’t think we’ve finalized the last guest yet.”

Cai Yao’s smile froze on her face. The producer was embarrassed and explained that he thought Wu Shan had tacitly approved the choice.

Wu Shan clarified, “I remember I replied to your email with the four words: ‘Read and pending discussion.'”

The producer had only seen ‘Read’ and assumed approval.

The producer then asked, “Then who is your preferred candidate, Vice President Wu?” He looked at Li Ziyu.

Wu Shan nodded. “I think Li Ziyu would be more suitable. The other guests are friendly, but she gives off a rather aloof feeling, and I hear she has a big temper. I think there should be some sparks flying in the variety show.”

Cai Yao was devastated but had no say. Luo Na was also surprised.

The producer risked asking Li Ziyu, “Does Ziyu happen to know how to cook?”

Li Ziyu shook her head slightly. “I cook badly visually, but the taste seems fine.”

Wu Shan laughed, “That can be a selling point—dark cuisine with a taste that surprises.”

The producer, seeing Wu Shan’s clear preference, agreed. “That works too.” He announced that the guests would meet to finalize the script, confirming Li Ziyu’s position.

Cai Yao, gritting her teeth, raised her glass and said with a cold smile, “Congratulations.”

Li Ziyu smiled faintly and, being a little sharp-tongued, replied, “Thank you for your generosity, too.” Cai Yao’s eyes flashed with hatred.

…

A week later, the program’s official Weibo account began its official announcement. Many netizens didn’t recognize Li Ziyu. Li Ziyu’s fans promoted her assistant’s Weibo, which had more of her content.

Some casual fans found a video on Zhou Tiantian’s Weibo. The video was filmed after Li Ziyu cooked for Zhou Tiantian to evaluate her skills.

The video quickly went viral for several reasons:

Clumsy Cutting: Li Ziyu’s knife skills were that of a beginner.

Crude Technique: Her cooking methods were rough.

Magical Color: The final dish had a “magical” color, making fans joke she graduated from a wizarding school.

When Li Ziyu presented the “dark cuisine” to Zhou Tiantian and told her to try it, the comments on Weibo and Bilibili exploded.

Fans were concerned for the assistant’s safety (“Please spare the assistant!”).

The dish was described as making people “want to go on a hunger strike.”

Then, Zhou Tiantian’s voice was heard: “Why does it look so ugly, but taste so delicious?”

Li Ziyu replied, “Nonsense. I never said my cooking tasted bad. It just doesn’t look good.”

The second wave of comments questioned Zhou Tiantian’s sincerity (“You must be lying!”). When Zhou Tiantian took another piece, some even wanted to try it to verify the taste.

Wu Shan’s intuition was proven correct. The show’s producer and director immediately saw the potential for publicity and marketing. They paid marketing accounts to repost the video and bought the trending topic #LiZiyuCookingSkills#. The contrast in the video made it instantly popular, boosting the variety show’s buzz. Many netizens now wanted to watch the reality show to see if the taste was truly good, suspecting Zhou Tiantian might be acting.

Zhou Tiantian, now scrolling through Bilibili, felt indignant. “It really tasted good! Why doesn’t everyone believe me!”

Li Ziyu sighed, “I don’t know why my cooking looks so bad… I don’t even want to eat it myself.” She then took some of Zhou Tiantian’s food, saying, “Your cooking is better, it looks good and tastes good.”

Zhou Tiantian suggested, “We can film a few more videos like this… The program team must also want us to film more videos to promote the show and create some suspense.”

Li Ziyu initially complained that cooking was too tiring. Zhou Tiantian then tried to negotiate. “Then I can give you a massage every day.” Li Ziyu dismissed this, as she went to a spa.

When Zhou Tiantian asked what she should do, Li Ziyu said, “Stick your head out here… I’ll flick it. If it makes me happy, I’ll let you film a video.”

Zhou Tiantian reluctantly put her head forward and asked her to be gentle.

Li Ziyu laughed, gently tapping her forehead. “Such a fool, believing everything I say!”