Chapter 68 Tell Her to Get Out!

From the start of today’s broadcast, Su Chen hadn’t glanced at the livestream—not his own, nor anyone else’s. As a result, he was completely unaware that his uneventful day had actually drawn in a massive wave of new fans. Even Wang Bingling’s popularity had soared alongside his!

One must understand, Wang Bingling was no greenhorn like Su Chen, but a top-tier actress, the darling sweetheart of Taiwan. For her to climb even higher was far more remarkable than Su Chen’s meteoric rise in followers.

Elsewhere, at the entrance of a luxury club in Shanghai, Xu Fangyuan exited slowly, flanked by a line of bowing greeters. She’d spent the entire day being pampered by her gigolo “little brother,” only leaving when he was so utterly spent he couldn’t lift his head. Satisfied but not yet sated, she finally departed, leaving the young man asleep in the private room, a single tear tracing down his cheek. At thirty, a woman’s appetite is like a wolf’s; at forty, a tiger’s—and nearing fifty, she could simply drain the land dry!

“Boring. This one was too fragile. I hadn’t even gotten started! Next time, I’m done with pretty boys—it’s got to be a muscleman!”

She slipped into her car, thinking to buy some food for Lin Yanran on her way back. But as she picked up her phone, a sudden impulse made her open the “Star of Tomorrow” livestream, curious to see how Su Chen, that useless man, was doing.

Yet the moment she clicked on his stream, Xu Fangyuan froze. On the screen, she saw the two paparazzi who worked with her company!

Xu Fangyuan: ???

“What are they doing next to Su Chen? Weren’t they supposed to be tailing him on my orders? Did he catch them? Useless idiots!” she muttered in annoyance.

But when she saw the two chatting and laughing with Su Chen, confusion set in. They didn’t look like they’d been caught at all...

Unclear on the details, Xu Fangyuan reached out to staff members assigned to keep an eye on Su Chen, asking what had happened during the livestream. When they finished their report, Xu Fangyuan was left utterly dumbfounded.

Her paparazzi—had they been “CPU’d” by Su Chen?

Meanwhile, after an afternoon of gaming at an internet café, the group finally decided to leave. While they felt nothing sitting there, the moment they stepped outside, everyone’s stomachs began to rumble. After a brief discussion, they agreed to find somewhere nearby for skewers and barbecue.

They hadn’t walked far before spotting a familiar street-side barbecue stall—the very same place where Yan Mi had treated Su Chen to a midnight snack not long ago.

“Brother Chen, Sister Bingling, it’s my turn to treat tonight!” Before they even reached the stall, the two paparazzi—still smarting from losing the bill at lunch—thumped their chests, eager to claim the honor this time. After all, they’d wrestled over the hotpot bill at noon, only to have Su Chen sneak in and pay. This evening, they were determined to join forces and settle the check together, avoiding any repeat of that embarrassment.

Seeing their enthusiasm, Wang Bingling quickly interjected, “No need to fight! Tonight’s on me. I flew all the way from Taiwan just to treat Brother Chen. If you snatch this from me, wouldn’t my trip be wasted?”

The paparazzi, hearing this, relented.

The food arrived quickly, and soon their table was filled with skewers. With meat and drinks flowing, the group’s conversation turned lively.

“Damn, if my family hadn’t needed the money, who would choose to be a paparazzo?” one grumbled.

“Exactly—people curse us everywhere we go. Sometimes, it’s even dangerous!” the other added.

“Honestly, it’s not even about what others say. On quiet nights, I want to slap myself. This job is really inhuman…”

They didn’t even need Su Chen to coax them to drink; they started on their own. With each story, another bottle was emptied, and soon they were clearly tipsy.

“Not only is the work hard, but the bosses are heartless—they don’t even cover our social insurance or housing fund!”

“Those capitalists don’t treat us like people! If you don’t hit your targets, you don’t get a base salary. I remember once we had to photograph a celebrity, and the boss made us climb a seventy-meter tower crane. We could’ve died!”

Shivers ran through his voice as he recalled the memory.

“Looking back, I, Li Ergou, was one of the few college graduates in my village—a young man full of dreams and ambition! Who would’ve imagined I’d be a paparazzo for eight years just to make ends meet? What a damn shame!”

As he finished, his phone rang. He glanced at the screen: the caller was “Agent Xu.”

With a cold smirk, he hung up.

“See? My idiot boss is calling again. Climb, will you? Who has time for that—I’m drinking with celebrities!” he laughed.

“Right! Tell her to get lost!” his partner chimed in.

With that, they each grabbed another bottle. “Speaking of celebrities, the dirt in this industry is endless. One word from us and half the stars would be ruined!” one bragged.

“That’s why Brother Chen is the best—no scandals at all, and he treats us like human beings!”

“To fate bringing us together—Brother Chen, Sister Bingling, let’s toast!”

...

Inside the car in the club’s parking lot, Xu Fangyuan saw this scene and, in a fit of rage, hurled her phone at the windshield. In the confined space, the phone bounced back and struck her chin, the pain and fury making her scream uncontrollably.

“Arghhhh! You two mutts, forget about getting paid! Arghhh!”

...

Back at the barbecue stall, the group grew ever merrier as the alcohol worked its magic. Meanwhile, outside, a middle-aged man in shabby clothes, his hair a mess, cradled an old guitar as he made his way from table to table.

“Hello, would you like to request a song?”

“No!”

“Hello, would you care for a song? It’s very inexpensive.”

“Get lost! Where did this beggar come from? Don’t ruin my meal!”

“Ah, sorry to bother you…”

With a forced smile, the man moved on, clutching his guitar, his demeanor humble in the extreme. No matter how much abuse was hurled at him, he didn’t give up, patiently moving from table to table…