On December 23rd, mainland Chinese actor Ji Lingchen was spotted by netizens sitting on a high-speed train holding a book. Interestingly, in the middle of the open book, Ji Lingchen was actually playing on his phone. This sparked a trending topic on social media titled “Encountering Ji Lingchen on the high-speed train pretending to read.”
The photos uploaded by netizens onto social media showed Ji Lingchen sitting in a middle seat in the second-class carriage of the high-speed train, wearing a knitted hat and appearing to be deeply engrossed in the book he was holding.
However, another photo from a different angle revealed that Ji Lingchen was still holding the book but using his phone with his left hand to text. Perhaps this behavior is common among young people in the high-tech era, as many tend to check their phone and reply to messages during their reading breaks. Some netizens mocked Ji Lingchen, saying, “Money will come back, but I will never encounter a Ji Lingchen pretending to read on the high-speed train at 20 again,” “He may be looking up words he doesn’t know,” “There are e-books within the book.”
After the topic “Encountering Ji Lingchen on the high-speed train pretending to read” trended, Ji Lingchen responded on Weibo, saying, “There was a particularly good sentence in the book that I just shared with friends using my phone.”
Ji Lingchen, originally named Ji Lincen, was born in 1993 and has worked as a model and actor. In October 2017, he appeared as a regular guest on the reality show “Dear Inn Season 1” on Hunan Satellite TV, and in February 2024, he participated in the variety show “Infinite Surpass Class Season 2,” where his acting skills and exaggerated lines were criticized, leading to another round of trending discussions. However, some viewers have been understanding towards Ji Lingchen, considering his background as a model and believing that he needs time to grow.
In response to the criticism from the public, Ji Lingchen once stated, “I sincerely do not mean to offend, it’s just that I’m not skilled enough. I know that the path of learning is full of obstacles, and I accept and appreciate all criticisms.”
Despite some people insisting on questioning Ji Lingchen’s explanation of “reading and sharing on the high-speed train,” leaving comments such as “Can the phone focus so closely?” and “Which sentence? Tell us about it,” there are others who have shed light on another side of Ji Lingchen privately.
According to the independent media outlet “Light and Shadow New World,” Ji Lingchen has a deep understanding of the scripts, memorizes his lines well, and can quickly get through scenes because of his thorough character comprehension, rarely facing any issues during his performances. His emotional and challenging scenes are particularly impressive. Additionally, Ji Lingchen is known for his professionalism on set, never displaying arrogance, and most importantly, always being punctual for his call times. The article author described, “It’s often close to departure time, I go down to the lobby, and he’s already sitting there waiting. This is so crucial; it’s rare to see an actor so punctual.”