The Top-Tier Star Couple Is a Little Sweet

A hot topic on Zhihu: “Why do Wen Li and Song Yan have so many couple shippers?” The original poster added: They’ve been married for two years, but haven’t worked together on a film or TV project, appeared on a variety show together, or even interacted much on social media. They’re the entertainment industry’s most widely known contract couple, the kind who can’t even be bothered to pretend they’re in love. I’m baffled by how many people ship them. I swear I’m not hating. Top answer: “A shipper here, reporting in. Let me spell it out for you: they really don’t interact much, so we have to find all our crumbs under a microscope. But 1. Looks: two goddesses of beauty. People were already imagining what they’d look like together back when our Sanli was just a rookie. Then their first public appearance together went viral, and the black swan x pure-hearted beauty pairing inspired a whole wave of substitute celebrity romance stories. 2. Star power: both A-list. They’re a power couple in every sense, right? 3. There are tons of incredibly talented fan creators in the fandom. Between fanfiction, fan art, and fan edits, there’s more than enough to gorge yourself on. You can’t bear to leave. So no matter how often outsiders call their relationship fake, as long as they don’t announce a divorce, we’ll keep shipping them!” - One day, Wen Li was invited to film an idol variety show, where she performed a sweet, energetic girl-group dance in front of the cameras. As it happened, Song Yan was sent over by the production crew of a couples’ variety show they were contractually committed to, and the two of them locked eyes across the stage. “...” After filming the idol show, Wen Li explained with a look of despair, “I wasn’t trying to act young. They forced me to dance.” Song Yan drawled, “So you can dance after all. You were ready to die rather than grant my request back then.” Wen Li’s eyes widened. “But what you asked me to dance back then was a strip, ” To get the show past review, the scene ended there, and Wen Li’s words were mercilessly muted. #Wait, why did this suddenly get suggestive?# #Was it the kind of strip dance I’m thinking of?# #You can’t just mute her!# #Production crew, you have no heart# #Tell us more, us single people love this stuff# The Zhihu poster updated their question: “Thanks, everyone. No need to answer anymore. I’m already at the bottom of the rabbit hole, and I love it.” [Important: No real-life inspiration, not for anyone. The male lead is an actor with top-tier acting skills, a three-time major film award winner, and trained in acting. He debuted in film, sings off-key, and dances like he’s doing group exercises in the park. Anyone who’s read the whole story couldn’t possibly claim to know who inspired him. I’m not a fan of anyone. I’ve clarified this several times. Anyway, thanks to the longtime readers who’ve helped clear things up. Love you all!] [Content warning: Lots of fandom comments, fan reactions, and on-screen comments. Read with caution if you don’t like those.] 1. Tsundere, sharp-tongued black swan x scheming, devoted pure-hearted beauty 2. Wish fulfillment / male wish fulfillment / everyday fandom life / contract marriage / familiar character types and tropes, nothing new / all characters are fictional, pure fantasy 3. Real-life shipping can end badly, so make your own content and ship them yourself! A literary synopsis: -I was once spotless, but later became covered in mud, while you remained radiant and precious, impossible to forget. -You were so dazzling that you disturbed my sleep. So I decided to crawl out of the mud and pluck you down. Theme: Build happy families and maintain long-term social stability