It was a lively day at Shen Aunt’s house. Everyone from Grandma Shen to Shen Yu, Shen Le, and Shen Xiaochuan was there.

They had all gathered for the sake of Tan You’s new venture. The first video she had collaborated on with Xu Liang was finally edited and complete.

Shen Yu sat beside Tan You. "Sis, are you really just going to register with your real name? Not going to pick another one? I see other people have stage names and stuff. You’re not getting one?"

Tan You replied, "There’s no need. I’ll just use my real name. It’s simple and direct."

After registering accounts on several short-video platforms, Tan You uploaded Ji Li’s first video. In her life as Chi Mo, Tan You had also managed an account, but back then, Chi Mo had better starting conditions and a variety show appearance to attract some traffic.

But here, Tan You was starting from scratch, which was completely different. Even though the Beauty System could cheat for her, Tan You still felt a little uncertain.

Amidst green mountains and clear waters, a beauty in a red dress danced gracefully. Just watching from a distance, her beauty was otherworldly.

Seeing the dancer’s face up close was even more breathtaking.

Xu Liang toyed with his phone. "This is the video I’m most satisfied with in years—in terms of shooting people, of course."

Tan You smiled at him. "I’m deeply honored."

Tan You hadn’t always been comfortable in front of the camera, but she’d once had a cameo in a movie by Director Liu. She had naturally polished the skill of presenting her most beautiful side.

Especially Ji Li’s face; after the boost in beauty value, it was truly stunning.

Once the video was uploaded, the Beauty System began to work its magic. Soon, the video was pushed to countless phones. Anyone who saw it couldn’t resist watching it a second time.

Shen Yu, Xu Liang, Shen Le, and Shen Xiaochuan watched as the view count and comments shot up, with the comment section filled with all sorts of praise.

Xu Liang gave Tan You an unreadable look. "Did you buy traffic?"

"Do I look like I have money for that?" Tan You rolled her eyes. "If I were rich, why would I have gone to all the trouble to find you?"

Xu Liang accepted her explanation. "True. You went to all that trouble because you wanted to use my skills for free."

Shen Xiaochuan sang her praises without reservation. "This just proves my sis is pure gold—she’ll shine wherever she goes!"

Shen Yu tapped the little chubby boy’s head. "She’s clearly my sister, yet you keep calling her ’sis’ like you’re closer to her than I am."

Shen Xiaochuan let out a silly laugh. "Sis, you’re going viral!"

Tan You said, "This is just a flash in the pan. So, Teacher Xu, when are we shooting the second video?" 𝗳𝚛𝚎𝚎𝘄𝕖𝕓𝕟𝕠𝚟𝚎𝕝.𝗰𝕠𝐦

’I’ve already practiced the dance, so all that’s left is filming. The key is Xu Liang. I can’t just let him go so easily. A photographer who brings his own equipment and skills and doesn’t even charge is too hard to find.’

Xu Liang said, "Let’s do it tomorrow, then. It’s not like I’m losing out, after all."

Although he didn’t charge for portraits, his standards were incredibly high. The last time he’d shot a person was three years ago, and while it had caused quite a stir, Xu Liang honestly felt that photo was nowhere near as good as his current work.

Just as he was about to say more, his phone rang. A glance at the caller ID showed it was the friend who had originally goaded him into coming here, and Xu Liang immediately answered.

"Old Xu, how are you going to thank me?" his friend asked, getting straight to the point the moment the call connected.

"I’ll treat you to a meal when I get back. You can pick any place you want, how’s that?" Xu Liang laughed. Seeing Shen Xiaochuan and Shen Le looking at him curiously, he put the call on speakerphone.

His friend, unaware of this, chattered on, "Now that’s more like it! I knew you must’ve gotten hooked, seeing as you haven’t come back after all this time..."

Tan You glanced at Xu Liang and, maintaining a sense of personal space, turned slightly to the side, clearly not wanting to listen in on a private conversation. The three teenagers, however, huddled around Xu Liang, listening with great interest.

Eight o’clock in the evening was peak time for online traffic. Most people had finished dinner and were relaxing. For example, people like Wen Zhe or Ji Li’s former classmates naturally came across the video while scrolling.

Wen Zhe was a bit stunned when he first saw the name. Come to think of it, he hadn’t been in contact with Ji Li for a while now. With the little shadow who was always following him suddenly gone, Wen Zhe couldn’t help but feel like something was missing.

He resentfully swiped past the video, clearly not wanting to watch it. But after hesitating for two seconds, he swiped back. ’Whether it’s Ji Li or not, it won’t hurt to take a look.’

The video began with a drone shot, sweeping over rows of overlapping mountains and pristine waters, dotted with a few dozen village houses. A red sun leaped from behind the clouds, seeming to drape the layered forests in a rosy glow.

Just as the clouds parted, a figure in red appeared in the frame. The next second, it cut directly to a close-up, and Ji Li’s face filled the entire screen.

Wen Zhe sucked in a sharp breath. ’That’s Ji Li!’ How could he possibly be mistaken? ’But has it even been half a month? Could Ji Li have changed so much?’ Come to think of it, Wen Zhe couldn’t quite remember what she used to look like.

He only remembered that she was always following him, always with her head bowed...

In the video, Ji Li danced gracefully. She was like an Elf of the mountains, so ethereal it seemed she might ride the wind and depart in the next second, forever beyond anyone’s grasp.

After watching the video once, Wen Zhe’s finger seemed to move on its own, restarting it from the beginning. He watched it three times in a row before he recovered from the shock.

When he looked at the comment section again, what had initially been a few hundred comments had now surpassed ten thousand, and the number was still climbing. Clearly, he wasn’t the only one who had seen this video.

The comment section was buzzing.

[Beautiful is the only word, and I’m already sick of saying it!]

[Does a beauty like this actually exist? She’s just too gorgeous!]

[The choreography doesn’t look hard, but as a dance major, I tried it twice and I just can’t capture that same feeling!]

[It doesn’t look difficult, but the dancer has such a powerful presence. It’s really not easy for female dancers to achieve that kind of power; they’re usually more focused on graceful softness.]

[Did you see that backbend? My god, who can handle that?]

[I declare her my new wife!]

[A goddess of this caliber, how have we only just now seen her?]

Seeing the flood of praise in the comments, Wen Zhe felt an inexplicable irritation. He turned off his phone’s screen and tossed it aside, but the very next second, it rang. A flash of joy crossed Wen Zhe’s face as if he’d thought of something, but his expression soured again when he saw the caller’s name.

"Xia Mo? What is it?" Wen Zhe stood up from the sofa, paced a few steps around the living room, and then stopped in front of the floor-to-ceiling window.

"Oh, nothing much. I was just thinking that we haven’t seen each other since your birthday, and I’ve found a job now, so... maybe we could get together?" Xia Mo said, gritting her teeth. She, too, had naturally been targeted by the Beauty System’s traffic push and had therefore seen Ji Li’s video.