Bu Hui glanced around, trying to spot an event coordinator to ask a question, but all she saw were fellow "Little Fruits."
"Free airfare and this much food and drinks to snack on… I feel like Brother Jiu must be losing a ton of money," said Li Minjia, blinking in disbelief.
As one of the more socially anxious fans, Li Minjia had already picked up and inspected the nearby snacks. They were real, not props.
Not everyone was like that. Some Little Fruits had already started munching away, unbothered and bold.
Backstage, the live broadcast on the Orange Orchard app had gone live. Over 300,000 Little Fruits were already tuned in, waiting in front of their screens.
The first thing they saw was Chu Zhi getting his makeup done. He greeted them with a warm smile, "Hello to all the Little Fruits watching the stream. Welcome to our festival!"
At the same time, two hosts were walking toward the main venue. The event had brought in Wei Tongzi and Huang Youru, both hosts from Mango TV. Of the two, Huang Youru had the higher profile these days. Her show Xiaomang Teatime Talk was trending, and she had a few other hot variety programs under her belt too.
"Two professional hosts for just three hundred fans? Brother Jiu really cares about this festival," Huang Youru said, chewing on a soft white candy.
"Of course. Everyone online knows Chu-ge treats his fans well," Wei Tongzi replied in agreement. What she didn't say out loud was: he just doesn't treat himself the same way.
Wei Tongzi was a lowkey fan herself. She hadn't even entered the lottery for fear of revealing her status. At first, she had been disappointed, but fate took a turn—she got invited as one of the event hosts.
When the two women stepped into the venue, they saw that handling the crowd would be easy. With only three hundred attendees, managing the floor was simple. They took their mics and stepped onto the small circular stage at the center.
"Welcome to the Orange Festival! Today is all about you, our Little Fruits!" Huang Youru called out with high energy.
Wei Tongzi added, "To all the Little Fruits here and watching online, let's have a great time today!"
The cameras were rolling. The production team sent by Taiyang Chuanhe knew what they were doing. No technical errors here.
"It's a fan festival, so all the snacks are for you. Help yourselves!" Wei Tongzi said.
Even so, most of the Little Fruits were still a little stiff. Many had come in expecting a formal fan meet-and-greet.
"Are you trying to help the organizer save money? Don't worry, Teacher Chu can absolutely afford these snacks," Huang Youru teased. "He handpicked every single item for you. If no one eats them, he'll think his taste is off."
The first to move was a male fan named Wei Xuan. He was the energetic type—the more people around, the more at ease he felt. He grabbed his favorite rice crackers and a bottle of Sprite like it was no big deal.
Once someone broke the ice, the others followed. The sour plums and soft white candies disappeared the fastest.
Soon, nearly every Little Orange had snacks in hand. Even those who didn't care much for junk food still picked up a small packet just to avoid standing out. Society teaches you not to be the odd one out.
The livestream split into two feeds: one showing the venue, the other Chu Zhi backstage. In about ten minutes, the feeds would merge.
"Now this feels right," Wei Tongzi said, munching on a cookie. "Teacher Chu only asked for one thing—that everyone here relax and enjoy themselves. Honestly, I've always wanted to host while snacking. Today, dream fulfilled!"
"Wow, such a small dream," Huang Youru deadpanned. "Hosting while eating? You act like it's a big deal."
Well, fair point. Huang's talk show always featured food. People really are different.
"Don't be the party pooper today. We're here to have fun," she added with a grin.
The two hosts had different styles. Wei was the friendly classic type, while Huang was sharp-tongued, sarcastic at times, and genuinely funny.
Little by little, the crowd began to loosen up. Wei Xuan was scarfing down snacks like he was born to do it. In his head, he was already impressed: Man, they really bought a ton of snacks. This star really knows how to treat fans.
Li Minjia looked like a little hamster, hugging a jar of sour plums and a couple of candy packs.
"This makes me look kinda dumb…" Bu Hui muttered as she stared at her backpack, stuffed with mineral water bottles and three loaves of bread. She couldn't help but feel overprepared.
Many Little Fruits quickly realized that this fan festival was nothing like the usual fan meetups they'd imagined.
The livestream view count hit 470,000. While it might seem small compared to the millions some streams pull, the Orange Home app's viewer count reflected actual people—no bots, no fluff.
[AAAAHHH we get to eat snacks and see Jiu-ge in person, is this HEAVEN?][Why didn't I win? Ughhhh crying so hard][So jealous my eyes are green. I heard the trip was all-expenses-paid!][Keep dreaming! There's no way that's true… right?][Other stars should take notes. @Su Yiwu_ no concerts, no fan events, look at Jiu-ge. I could cry.]
To be fair, most fangirls had more than one favorite idol. But because Chu Zhi spoiled his fans relentlessly—er, showed constant care—80% of his fans were ride-or-die.
The remaining 20% watched this and suddenly felt weird. Comparing multiple idols side by side… the gap was just too obvious.
Then came the moment everyone had been waiting for.
A few minutes later, the chat exploded as Chu Zhi stepped out from backstage. The applause was sparse, not due to lack of enthusiasm, but because most people had one hand full of chips and the other gripping soda.
"Haha, as long as you're enjoying the snacks, I'm happy. But don't you dare let go of that Sprite—your head can fall off before your soda does," Chu Zhi joked as he took the stage.
Wei Xuan stared at him in disbelief. Holy crap, he looks just like the photos. Maybe even better. Is this guy really human?
Male fans were impressed. Female fans were speechless. If not for some shred of sanity, they might have charged the stage. The distance between them and their idol was less than 50 meters—it had to be the closest they'd ever been.
"Let's keep everything casual and relaxed today, alright?" Chu Zhi said as he brought up three chairs and sat down with the two hosts.
Shouts came from the crowd: "Alright!" "Let's chill!"
"The Little Fruits in the back, feel free to move up or shift to the sides," Wei Tongzi reminded gently.
"If you prefer looking at the back of Chu-laoshi's head, you can ignore that," Huang Youru added.
Their banter landed perfectly. Wei's style was warm and traditional, while Huang's blunt honesty often made people laugh out loud.
"You, the one taking photos—yeah, I see you," Huang suddenly pointed out. The fan froze, as if caught stealing snacks.
Then came the punchline: "No need to sneak around. Take all the pics you want! This festival is all about making fans happy. Teacher Chu, strike a pose or two, please."
"Strike a pose?" Chu Zhi had done plenty of fashion shoots. Without missing a beat, he stood up and posed confidently.
Whoa. He really did it. Huang had just been joking.
"Don't waste the moment! Get your photos in!" Wei Tongzi encouraged the crowd.
At a typical fan meet, you'd get a couple of songs, a rushed Q&A, then a group photo and goodbye.
Chu Zhi wanted something more. He'd racked his team's brains designing this event. It had to be fun, inclusive, and most of all, safe.
The first event was "Find the Orange Tree Badge." Five custom-made medals were hidden around the venue. Whoever found one could ask Chu Zhi a question. Plus, they got to keep the badge as a souvenir.
"Alright, if you're full and refreshed, it's time to move," Wei Tongzi announced.
"Let's go, let's go!" Huang urged. About half the crowd started searching. The rest hesitated, still unsure if it was okay to dive in.