Chapter 66: Absolutely Stunning!

“…Is this the so-called ‘beginner’s area’ in the mall that Su Chen mentioned?!”

“Hahaha, I can’t take it anymore, I’m actually dying of laughter!”

“Pfft! At first, I thought Su Chen’s commentary was profound, but the moment I saw this tasting section, I just couldn’t hold it in!”

“Well, Su Chen isn’t wrong—after all, the tasting section really is zero cost!”

“Tsk tsk tsk… Just look at Su Chen’s shameless, freeloading ways! I bet he’s a regular at the tasting stalls.”

“I’m actually in tears—turns out even a celebrity can have a bit of me in him!”

Watching the two of them dart from stall to stall in the tasting section, utterly enjoying themselves, the livestream chat had completely exploded with laughter.

Having suffered through one vapid idol after another, the viewers truly had never seen a celebrity so down-to-earth.

And as the chat boiled over, something entirely unexpected happened. The news of Su Chen and Wang Bingling shopping together in the mall shot straight onto Weibo’s trending list!

It had to be said, Su Chen’s behavior—so completely at odds with the public’s traditional image of a star—held an unprecedented fascination for the bystanders.

In an instant, all the buzz about Su Chen bargaining and taking the Sweetheart Queen from Taiwan to the tasting section of the mall completely eclipsed the news of Meng Xiaotian’s comeback and the CP rumors about Yu Yanhong.

At the same time, the managers and stars from various entertainment agencies who had been keeping an eye on Su Chen were left utterly bewildered.

Wtf?!

What is this new kind of hype? Why have I never seen it before?

Is Su Chen trying to craft a “man of the people” persona?

But this isn’t just down-to-earth—he’s practically buried underground!

And what’s more, to these seasoned professionals, Su Chen’s actions didn’t seem scripted at all.

His whole bargaining process was just too natural—no trace of acting!

…

Meanwhile, Su Chen and Wang Bingling, having made the rounds of the tasting section twice and even polished off the restocked samples, finally began to consider where to have lunch.

It wasn’t that they couldn’t keep “milking this sheep,” but if they ate any more, Wang Bingling might not have room for lunch.

After weighing their options, they settled on a hotpot restaurant.

Once they’d eaten their fill, the two sat in the restaurant and started discussing their plans for the afternoon.

Although Wang Bingling had claimed she was here to treat Su Chen to a day of fun, she actually hadn’t made any plans at all—she just figured she’d pay for whatever came up.

“How about… we go to karaoke?” Wang Bingling suggested.

“We’d have to sing at KTV, but on our show, as far as I know, you need to buy the rights to perform songs. We probably wouldn’t have many songs to sing…” Su Chen reminded her.

Wang Bingling was taken aback, only just realizing that she didn’t even hold the rights to her own songs at the moment.

It dawned on her—with other shows, even as the original singer, she’d have to pay royalties to sing her own music!

With that realization, Wang Bingling’s ideas fizzled out.

She smiled awkwardly. “…Honestly, I’m fine with anything. It’s your call. I’m really just here to hang out with you.”

Su Chen: “……”

The ball was in Su Chen’s court, but for the moment, he didn’t know what to do either.

In the end, he fell back on classic male logic—when in doubt, head to an internet café!

He hadn’t expected that Wang Bingling would immediately latch onto the idea.

She confessed that, in private, she was a bit of a gaming addict—playing games was one of her favorite activities in life.

Su Chen was briefly stunned, then let out a wry laugh.

Their friend circle included Yan Mi, after all! With a gamer girl like her, how could her friends not be into gaming as well?

Unbeknownst to the two of them, this rough-and-ready plan—with a hint of absurdity—had once again ignited heated discussion among the two million viewers in the livestream.

“…No way?! They’re really going to an internet café to play games?”

“Pfft!!! I just joined the stream—wait, isn’t Su Chen a celebrity? Shouldn’t he be taking the Sweetheart Queen to some high-end afternoon tea? What on earth is bringing an A-list star to an internet café?!”

“Hey, don’t get ahead of yourself! Let’s just watch—maybe Su Chen will even try to bargain down the hourly rate at the café!”

“Hahaha! Bargaining for café fees?! But honestly, are these two really celebrities? Why do I feel like I’m looking in a mirror?!”

“Speak for yourself! I’d never drag my little sister to an internet café!”

“Brothers, time to log in! Anyone know which server Su Chen’s on? I main Yasuo—time to snipe them!”

Clearly, the chat had lost it once again.

Other celebrities were always showing off in sports cars or yachts, or attending art exhibits and concerts—cultured, classy, and high-brow.

But Su Chen? He spent the morning bargaining and sampling mall snacks with Wang Bingling, and now he was taking her to an internet café to play games.

What’s more, Wang Bingling actually seemed to be enjoying herself?!

Unbelievable!

Yet this very approach had the audience absolutely hooked.

They were long since tired of the reality shows, dramas, and films that had nothing to do with real life.

Even other streamers’ broadcasts were often riddled with fake scripts.

But this—this was as down-to-earth as it could possibly get.

Too cool!

This was way more entertaining than any scripted variety show.

Now, glued to their screens, they didn’t want to leave. They just wanted to see what other outrageous things Su Chen would do.

“All right! Let’s get going. I’ll go settle the bill… But remember, you promised not to fight me for it!”

Seeing that Wang Bingling had rested enough, Su Chen got ready to head to the internet café with her.

But just as they were about to stand up, a heated argument suddenly erupted at the front desk.

In an instant, everyone in the restaurant turned to look.

Su Chen had a vague sense that the voices were familiar.

He glanced over, and the feeling grew stronger.

Not only did the two arguing voices sound familiar—they looked familiar, too.

Su Chen strode over to the front desk for a closer look.

What the hell?! Weren’t these the same two paparazzi from this morning?!

“Put your phone away! I already said, lunch is on me!”

“Screw you! We agreed I’d pay!”

“You were napping just now, I was the one who brought Su Chen over—obviously, I should foot the bill!”

“Get lost! Miss, don’t listen to him—scan my code!”

…

At that moment, the two paparazzi were shoving their payment codes at each other, even resorting to pulling hair and snatching phones, all to get the cashier to scan their code. The scene was chaos.

The cashier had never seen people fight to pay the bill like this—she was completely at a loss, frozen in place.

Who… was she supposed to scan?