Ren Jiyu was caught whipping out a slipper from out of nowhere and waving it around before quickly hiding it from his coaches. Another video footage showed him asking Iris Long to sign the slipper with a shy expression.
The Black Stars, especially the Slippers Army, were ecstatic to find that such an impressive youth and world-class athlete was actually one of them.
His actions endeared him to the masses, not only to Iris Longâs fans. As a matter of fact, his action of waving a slipper from out of nowhere became a trending meme.
He also became some kind of a mascot for the Black Starsâ Slippers Army. Their slogan temporarily changed from âSlippers of Justiceâ to âSlippers of Gloryâ because Ren Jiyu brought glory to the country and also to glory to the Slippers Army.
Perhaps the biggest news from last nightâs gala that swept the nation was Jin Chonglinâs alleged romantic relationship with Orchidiaâs COO Chen Fei. This dating rumour was all over the headlines.
Video footages and photos showed the two sitting together at last nightâs gala. Not only that, Jin Chonglin was also seen hugging Chen Fei and covering her mouth. Their faces were only inches apart as they glared at each other. Most people concluded that they were having a loversâ quarrel.
The next photos showed them smiling like they had put aside their quarrel and would continue it later in private. Jin Chonglinâs hand on Chen Feiâs waist was too visible. It showed possessiveness, and of course, intimacy.
Jin Chonglinâs army of fans was in uproar. They dug any information that they could find about Chen Feiâs background.
Most knew her as Orchidiaâs COO and one of Iris Longâs closest friends. Based on the information that Jin Chonglinâs fans found, Chen Fei had a degree in marketing and graduated from the same business school and year as Long Jinjing, Irisâ half-sister, who was also Orchidiaâs CFO. Both of them were two of the top students among their cohorts.
After their graduation, the two immediately went to help Iris Long launch her company, Orchidia Beauty, which was now known as Orchidiaâone of the current fastest-growing businesses in the country.
Appearance-wise, Chen Fei was not even near as beautiful as the stunning Iris Long. Well, only very few people could rival Iris Longâs beauty anyway so this wasnât even an insult to Chen Fei at all. Iris Long was a league on her own. Not a lot of women could compare to her in terms of physical appearance.
But Long Jinjing was still also a bit prettier than Chen Fei. Despite this, Chen Fei could still considered a very attractive woman because of the strong and confident aura she projected. Her expressions were very sharp as if she could pierce through a personâs bullshit.
She was also the one who often represented Orchidia at media events after Iris went into maternity leave. She was articulate, educated and skilled. Based on her performance as COO so far, it was clear that she was also an excellent leader.
Orchidiaâs avid consumers trusted her. After Iris Long, Chen Fei was the second most-known person from the company.
Third was Alric Bauer who was always credited as the main developer of most of Orchidiaâs products. Without him, there would basically be no Orchidia. The companyâs fans sometimes dubbed him as the âmad scientistâ.
The fourth most-known person from Orchidia was Long Jinjing. Her presence wasnât as noticeable as the others because she often hid behind the scenes. It was only because the other three would frequently mention her strictness in controlling the companyâs budget that the public remembered her.
The efficiency of Jin Chonglinâs army of fans in digging for information about Chen Feiâs background was quite impressive. They were able to collect this much within a day. Discussion about her compatibility with their Prince Lin Lin filled various forums.
âAlthough COO Chen Fei is not what youâd call a traditional beauty, sheâs pretty enough. At least, sheâs not horrendously ugly. Besides, her education and current career position are all top-notch. Even when our Prince Lin Lin decides to take a break from his showbiz career, COO Chen can still support him.â
âPrince Lin Lin doesnât need any woman to support him. Heâs a freaking member of the Jin family!â
âCalm down. Itâs just a figure of speech.â
âI donât like this! Prince Lin Lin is everyoneâs husband. Nobody deserves him! What if he meets another psycho like that evil Fan Luo? No way! Iâm gonna protect Prince Lin Lin for his whole life!â
âYouâre the one whoâs a psycho! We may belong in the same fandom but I refuse to associate with such a crazy fan like you! If you really love Prince Lin Lin, then you must treat him as a human being and not as a product that you can control! He has a right to fall in love, marry the woman he loves, and build his own family just like the rest of us.â
âI love Orchidia Beauty products. COO Chen Fei is an incredible woman worthy of my respect. I support her relationship with Prince Lin Lin! Sheâs definitely not a psycho like that murderous she-devil Fan-whatâs-her-name who bewitched our Prince Lin Lin for such a long time.â
âLetâs not make all this wild speculations. Iâm sure that Prince Lin Lin would clarify whatever kind of relationship he has with COO Chen. Letâs wait for what he has to say before overreacting.â
The dating rumour between Jin Chonglin and Chen Fei continued to fester and even grow into bigger proportions. The video footage showing him covering her mouth during the gala inspired many fan fictions. Some of them even had strong, kinky overtones.
Orchidia.
With the help of the companyâs security (and the ever cute and mighty Ketchup), Jin Chonglin was able to slip inside the building without anybody untrustworthy noticing him. The employees in the know about his arrival were all discreet and professional. They even helped him cover his tracks.
He was now sitting in the COOâs office and sipping a nice cold latte from the companyâs own high-end cafĂ©. He looked so comfortable. It was as if he was inside his own home.
Chen Fei glared at him and was even hissing at him. She looked like she was about to murder him.
âAre you fucking kidding me, you shithead?! Pretend to be your girlfriend?! Are you insane?! No way! I refuse to join in this kind of shitty game of pretend!â
Jin Chonglin sighed and put down the latte on the table. âIâm doing this to protect you!â
She was incredulous at his claim. âProtect me?! Now Iâm sure that youâre dumber than I initially thought. How does pretending to be your girlfriend protect me or even solve this dating rumour between the two us? Youâre not going to protect me this way. Iâm sure that your fans will eat me alive instead! No, I refuse this. I donât want to be involved with you in this way.â
Then she shuddered and rubbed her arms. âIâm having goosebumps just thinking about it.â
He clicked his tongue. âYou rude woman, how dare you call me dumb? Youâre the dumb one!â
She gave him the finger with both hands. âFuck you, Jin Chonglin!â
âHow dare you?! Youâre so vulgar! Weâre inside your office! Whereâs your professionalism?!â
âYou dare to call out my professionalism? Youâre the one who barged into my office like a lowly thief! Then you even dare to spout all this nonsense about me pretending to be your girlfriend? Thereâs really something wrong with your brain!â
Jin Chonglin was almost near his tolerance limit for the woman. She was talented, alright. Talented in making him angry!
He took several deep breaths to calm himself down. His purpose in coming here in spite of all the danger of being recognized by the public and causing mass hysteria was not to fight with Chen Fei. He came here to make a deal with her.
âLetâs talk like adults,â he said. âAll this shouting will get us nowhere.â
âHmph!â Although she was like this, she still stopped yelling at him and sat down in another seat before crossing her arms over his chest. âNow explain.â
He sighed but still explained why he came up with the ridiculous idea of pretending to be in a relationship.
âTo be honest with you, this kind of gossip will go away on its own even without us doing anything,â he said.
âLetâs not do anything then,â she replied.
âIf youâre ready to be face a lot of criticism and even insults, then letâs not do anything.â He shrugged.
She frowned. âWhat do you mean?â
âIâm a man. Whatâs more, Iâm Jin Chonglin, a superstar.â
She rolled her eyes. âYeah, yeah. A narcissistic braggart as always.â
A visible vein started throbbing in Jin Chonglinâs forehead. He restrained his temper and decided to ignore the womanâs infuriating words.
âPeople already expect me to be a magnet of ladies because of who I am. It doesnât really bother me. There had been countless females throughout my career who tried creating dating rumours with me for clout. Most of the time, I ignore the rumours and just let my team handle them. But there are times that I had to make a personal statement to deny the relationship. It depends on the situation.
âWhat Iâve noticed is that the females are always the ones who are in the losing end in this kind of dating rumours. Women tend to be the ones who suffer while I remain the superstar that I am.â