Chapter 14: 14

Chapter 14: The Invitation

But the lighting guy never came back. The makeup assistant was sweating. It was only when she was about to crack under the pressure of the bullet screen and sponsor’s questions that the door swung open and Lu Xinghua stormed in. By now, the stream had been delayed by twenty minutes. 

“Switch the camera and mic on.” Lu Xinghua sat on the streamer’s chair, fury still smoking on his face. Usually, he relied on makeup and filters to keep his face flawless on screen, but now, with his face bare and his outfit unchanged, his eye bags and acne scars seemed blown up on camera.

“Hua, you haven’t changed your clothes yet.”

Every time the thought of the mistreatment he faced from the board of directors minutes ago drifted into his mind, Lu Xinghua’s head buzzed with anger. He couldn’t believe that Wang Zhi — that bastard — was serious about keeping the guy. 

Fine. 

FINE!

An idea popped up in his head as the makeup artist’s rambling droned in the background. He waved his hand, brushing her off. Then, he waved his hand a second time, signaling the lighting guy to start the stream.

“But…” The makeup artist bit her lip. The makeup and outfit were special requests from the perfume company since they were meant to complement the product’s theme. This wasn’t something Lu Xinghua could decide on his own…

“No buts!” Lu Xinghua snapped.

“…” The makeup artist shut her mouth.

Lu Xinghua’s face appeared in the frame. He didn’t look as handsome as the audience was used to. Today, he was bare-faced — sallow, wan. Acne marks dotted his cheeks.

[HuaLovesHisFans]: !!! Hua’s bare-faced!

[HuaPathJourney]: Aaa! Even when he’s bare-faced he’s handsome! I want to dance on those blemishes!

[Forever_passerby_A]: I’ve been waiting for this perfume’s release. Hope it’s good.

[MakeMeDoMyHomework]: What happened earlier? Technical issues? Everyone was talking about it.

[HuaProtector]: HLH fans, take over the chat! The haters are starting to attack! Hua Hua, please give us an explanation, so we can take the chat back.

[HuaPathJourney]: Oh no! Hua looks distressed! What happened?

When Lu Xinghua finally found the comment he was fishing for, he let out a tired smile. He spoke in a low, husky voice, “Something a little upsetting just happened. It was my fault, though, so I feel really bad about it. I sincerely apologize to all my fans and today’s sponsor.”

[HuaPathJourney]: What happened? If you tell us, we can help!

[Lets_go_Lulu]: Could it be? That new streamer who placed first on the recommended page. He overtook our Hua… It’s really weird…

[HuaAlltheWay]: !!! That new guy’s shameless. Who does he think he is, walking around thinking he can take over our Huahua’s throne?!

[Lululuaa]: Is it possible that the company’s promoting Lemon Kitchen and squashing down our Hua’s resources?

The bullet screened dribbled past with guesses.

Lu Xinghua watched the accusations on Lemon Kitchen pile, neither explaining nor denying them. He kept his gaze lowered, giving a weak, subtle smile as if his heart was shattered, almost as if he agreed with the speculation.

In some ten minutes, news about the shameless rookie Lemon Kitchen who hogged all of the streaming platform’s resources and support started to trend among Hua Lu Hua’s fans. His young and vicious fans didn’t possess a fully developed concept of sensibility, and so painted Lemon Kitchen as an arrogant, demanding newbie. They even whined about how kind Hua Lu Hua was and how he’d kept the stream going despite being bullied, defenseless.

The netizens who often kept tabs on the trending page pulled out their popcorn. Hua Lu Hua’s fans had a horrible reputation of being capable of practically skinning their targets alive with slander. Most people didn’t approve of their behavior, but they rushed over to watch the drama anyway. After all, tea is tea.

It wasn’t as if Lemon Kitchen didn’t have any supporters. All those who were captivated by his food had seen the hot pot preview and were wringing their hands with anticipation. With all these Lemon Kitchen haters coming after him, how could they bear to just stand by and watch?

Everyone in the streaming world knew that Lu Xinghua loved setting his fans loose like rabid dogs. As long as somebody threatened his throne, he’d use any trick to squash them down, using carefully crafted actions and words to set his fans in motion. Lu Xinghua pulled many of these stunts, but he’d crashed that car a few times, too. He’d been called out for being manipulative before, but with the power of his fans, he still forced his way out clean.

The two parties clashed at each other like fire against water. As the number of participants swelled, the arguments intensified.

*

Lin Ning slept through everything. 

He slept like a baby, too.

Before transmigrating, Lin Ning was just a university student learning to cook from his father — all his energy was focused on sharpening his culinary skills and academics. He never really understood how streams and social networks worked — hell, he rarely even played video games.

He rubbed his eyes as dawn came, then headed to the bathroom. In his daze, he smelled something good.

“What’s this?” There were traces of paste on the basin. Lin Ning rubbed it with his fingers. The paste’s color seemed similar to the soap he bought the kitty. But… He lifted his head. He couldn’t remember ever opening the soap bottle. Perhaps he was overthinking.

To think a kitty could take a bath on its own. He really was in a daze.

After showering and brushing his teeth, he made some toast, fried eggs, and warm milk. Then, it was time to work. The kitty nibbled on some milk cakes, its small pink tongue sticking out from time to time. 

Lin Ning grabbed the cat and pulled it onto his chest, ruffling its fur mercilessly. He brought it to him, face-to-face, and gave it a big, fat kiss. The kitty squirmed, but it was worried its claws might hurt him. In the end, it lost to Lin Ning’s kiss attack.

“Xizai~ You smell so good.” Lin Ning buried his head in the kitty’s fresh fur.

Upon hearing those words, the struggling cat stopped moving. Its tail curled up guiltily.

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A notification rang from the photon tablet. Lin Ning checked it with the kitty still clasped onto his chest. It was a message from Zhang Zhining, the delivery boy. 

Zhang Zhining: Finally finished the uni assignment! One step closer to graduation!

Attached underneath was a photo of him and some classmates playing basketball on a ball court.

Lin Ning felt nostalgic for his own university days as he stared at the picture of Zhang Zhining on the court. He petted the cat with his free hand, the other liking the picture Zhang Zhining sent. Then, he opened the chat window to send a text.

Lin Ning: Are you free tomorrow? I need your help. I’ll treat you to a meal in exchange, of course!

Zhang Zhining exited the basketball court drenched in sweat. He sat on the bench to rest. The boy had a clean, handsome face, his jersey and basketball shorts exposed his long but muscular limbs. As he panted to catch his breath, he ran his fingers through his hair. 

“Hey, hey! What’re you looking at, Zhang Zhining? You look super occupied.” A friend plopped down beside him, peering over Zhang Zhining’s shoulder. Zhang Zhining seemed to be very caught up by a notification on his photon tablet.

“As if I’d ever tell you! Go take a shower, you stink!” Zhang Zhining laughed and shoved his friend away.

“Ooooh, lemme guess, it’s someone you like, isn’t it? Is the impossible finally happening to our master Zhang…” The delicious scent of gossip drifted into the friend’s nose. 

“’Someone I like’? That’s bullcrap.” Zhang Zhining retorted, but his fingers didn’t stop moving. He replied: I’m free, glad to help.

Lin Ning saw Zhang Zhining’s reply, and continued texting happily.

Lin Ning: I have a stream tomorrow that requires an on-camera inexperienced eater, but I’m not really in a position where I can I can’t reveal my face right now. I mean, you don’t have to show your face, either. I just want to invite you over to talk about food, or I’d feel awkward.

Zhang Zhining: No problem, I’m the best at eating!

Zhang Zhining: No, I mean that I’m fine with this! awkward.jpg

Lin Ning: Alright, I’ll see you tomorrow at 8am. I’ll wait for you by the alley.

Zhang Zhining: Ok!

Lin Ning noticed an unread message from the Shine app as he texted Zhang Zhining. He tapped on it. The message was from Shine Livestreams’ management office.

A letter to Mr. Lemon Kitchen.

He scanned through its content. It was a letter sent yesterday. Shine Livestreams wanted to sign a long-term contract with Lin Ning and was willing to provide any type of support he needed as long as Lemon Kitchen remained on their platform without transferring to a different livestreaming company. The payment detailed in the contract was high and the benefits they offered were so good, they were unbelievable. Lin Ning was about to go blind just by reading them.

Even after paying all his debts, he’d still have some money on the side to spare.

Lin Ning thought for a moment, then phoned the number left in the letter.

……

Lin Ning: “Hello. I’m the owner of Lemon Kitchen’s account.”

The voice of a middle-aged man came from the other side. “Hello, hello! I’m the director of Shine Livestreams, Wang Zhi. Our company sees great potential in you, so we’re interested in signing a contract with you. What do you think? If you’re unsatisfied with anything we’ve detailed in the letter, we’re always open to renegotiation.”

Lin Ning: “Thank you, Director Wang, for taking an interest in me, but…  I don’t want to take the offer yet. Maybe we can talk about it sometime later.”

The voice from the other side sounded concerned. “Is something bothering you? If there is, we can help. We may not be the biggest livestreaming company out there, but our legal team’s highly qualified…”

Lin Ning’s head throbbed. Having too many people know about his real identity at a time like this was not going to be good.

“Director Wang, my identity’s a bit of a problem right now, but I’m really grateful for the offer. Would it be alright if we rediscuss matters again in a while? I don’t plan on transferring to another platform for the time being, though. I like Shine Livestreams.”

Lin Ning might have said he didn’t want his identity revealed, but Wang Zhi heard something else entirely. This contract was the sweetest thing in the entire universe of livestreams. Why would Lemon Kitchen reject it? Could it be…

A sense of dread washed over Wang Zhi. He got into an argument with Lu Xinghua yesterday, so Lu Xinghua sent his fans after Lemon Kitchen. Could it be that Lemon Kitchen was disappointed in Shine Livestreams?

 

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In the night, the cat tiptoed into the bathroom and turned on the overhead shower. But the water’s pressure was too strong, so it got soaked.

Oh well. It tried again, this time with the hot water tap in the basin. 

Alright, this works.

It reached out a paw to squeeze a little shower gel. It smelled good.

Suddenly, a clatter came from outside the door. It froze.

It crouched by the door to watch. Lin Ning got up in the middle of the night to grab a cup of water. He was only in his pajamas, collarbone and pale skin exposed.

……

The tips of the kitty’s ears went pink.

This human — he looks kind of good.

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