CSGM - Chapter 34
Chapter 34: Each Showing Their Skills
The tenth day of the Our Restaurant live broadcast.
As if terrified the cast members might actually earn some money, the Director set the theme for welcoming guests today as: Born as twins, sit at one table.
This meant they had to find twins in Jinwu Town to invite as their guests for the day!
Everyone was already tired of complaining about the Director's shenanigans, so they skipped that part today. After a frantic discussion, the entire cast set out and ran into town to find customers!
They split up according to their previous tent arrangements: Chu Xi went with Ren Zhi, Zhao Shiqing followed behind Li Xiling, and Luo Yangtian and Xiao Han went together. Each group headed in a different direction to search.
In the vast sea of people... who knew where to find twins, who were practically one in a hundred.
Meanwhile, on the internet, the famous entertainment industry paparazzi Zhang Xiaoyan released a teaser at exactly ten in the morning.
In the teaser video, Zhang Xiaoyan wore a panda mask, and his voice was altered with a voice changer. His whole look screamed "can't be seen in public." In the video, he said:
"Today, I'm bringing my family a trending-level scoop, exposing a certain top-tier female artist for having a publicly-funded romance on a variety show. I have solid proof of this, I'm not just making things up. No way. This top-tier star is the kind whose name you'd all recognize. I won't say more. To all my gossip-loving family, I'll reveal the secret in a live stream at 2:30 this afternoon."
The familiar scent of a teaser made the comments section erupt in laughter.
【So in your eyes, the entire entertainment industry is 'top-tier'.】
【Is teasing all you know how to do? /[laughing-crying emoji] The teaser is more exciting than the actual story. The real scoop always turns out to be something trivial.】
【Lol, Xiaoyan, if it's not a real top-tier star this time, you should just go get a factory job. /[husky emoji]】
【I'm done with you. If you have gossip, just drop it. What's with the teaser? Whose popularity are you trying to leech off now? /[sweat emoji]/[sweat emoji]】
【A top-tier female artist currently on a variety show… that's not a very wide scope, is it?】
【Which is more believable: that he's exposing a top-tier star this time, or that I'm Qin Shi Huang?】
【Greetings, Your Majesty!】
Zhang Xiaoyan even bought a trending spot for his teaser, but the response was still lukewarm. Seeing the doubt and ridicule in the comments, he typed out a line and replied to one: 【This time it's a real top-tier star. If she doesn't count as top-tier, then I don't know who in your circle does.】
It was rare to see Zhang Xiaoyan speak so arrogantly.
This made the crowd of gossip-mongers start to wonder just who this top-tier female artist having a romance on a variety show could be.
A breeze carrying this gossip also blew through the Our Restaurant live stream chat.
【I heard a top-tier female star is dating on a variety show. I'm here to check if it's Ren Zhi.】
【LMAO, everyone knows our Zhizhi is career-minded.】
【The only top-tier female artist I recognize is Ren Zhi, but… as someone who's been following the show, let me tell you, she works twelve hours a day. There's no way she has time for romance.】
【Anyway, it can't be this show. Luo Yangtian is just a little brother, and Xiao Han… forget it. Ren Zhi definitely doesn't like the Oily King type. She spends less time with those two than she does with Chu Xi. Who could she possibly be dating? It's more likely she's dating Chu Xi (dog head emoji).】
【Why do I feel like someone just hit on a key point? I feel like that's not impossible… More, more!】
But after a short discussion, the topic vanished from the live stream chat.
Because the audience knew in their hearts that it couldn't be Ren Zhi. She had zero CP-feel with the two male artists on the show; it was obvious she wasn't interested in them.
To put it bluntly, Ren Zhi interacted less with the two male cast members than she did with Chu Xi. How could a romance blossom from that?
No one suspected her, so there was no need to continue discussing the gossip here.
At that moment, Chu Xi and Ren Zhi were in an apartment building, knocking on doors one by one.
Arriving at an apartment with a brown alloy door, Chu Xi walked over, took one look, and turned to leave without even knocking. "No one's home. Let's go."
No one home again?
Ren Zhi found it hard to believe. Could there really be so few residents in one building?
She said, "Let's try knocking first, just in case."
Chu Xi said, "There's no 'just in case.' The handle on this door is covered in dust."
Ren Zhi walked over and lightly swiped her fingertip across the doorknob. Sure enough.
Helpless, she sighed. It was true, no one was home. "Alright, let's try another one."
As she turned, her hand was suddenly caught.
Chu Xi held her wrist, pulled a pack of wet wipes from her pocket, took one out, and gently wiped clean the finger that had just touched the dust.
Her gaze was lowered in concentration as she said, "You could tell just by looking, but you still had to touch it. Who knows how much bacteria is growing on there?"
Her cool and sharp features softened for a moment.
【See, I told you so. Ren Zhi has more CP-feel with Chu Xi than with the other two guys. How could the person dating be Ren Zhi?】
【Fans are debunking the rumor online. Our Zhizhi is career-minded, she really wouldn't be dating!】
【Let Zhizhi be beautiful on her own, men stay away!!!】
【Ren Zhi is definitely not a suspect. I'd rather believe she's dating Chu Xi than believe there's something fishy going on with her and Luo Yangtian or Xiao Han.】
【Hahahahahahaha, I'm dying. If Ren Zhi were to have a publicly-funded romance on this show, Chu Xi would actually be the biggest suspect!】
Ten minutes later, the two had moved to another building, still knocking on doors in search of guests.
When a resident opened the door, Chu Xi introduced herself. "Hello, I'm a staff member from the show Our Restaurant. We've opened an RV restaurant and we're looking for some guests…"
The person who answered was an auntie of about fifty. She had an oval face, a stylish perm, and was wearing a thin, navy-blue floral dress. She stood in the doorway, staring at them in bewilderment, as if she couldn't understand what Chu Xi was saying.
Seeing her uncomprehending gaze, Chu Xi stopped her pointless explanation. She thought for a moment, then changed tactics. "Do you know Ren Zhi?"
"No."
Just as the auntie said this, Chu Xi had already pulled Ren Zhi forward.
Ren Zhi and the auntie made eye contact for a second, before she even had a chance to say hello.
The auntie's eyes instantly lit up. She raised a finger, pointed at Ren Zhi, and exclaimed excitedly, "Oh! Ren Zhi! Yes, yes, I know her!"
She didn't recognize the name, but she recognized the person as soon as she saw her!!
It was that pretty young lady from TV! She had watched so many of her dramas!
"You're Ren Zhi…" The auntie's heart pounded with excitement, her hands trembled. She beamed at Ren Zhi. "I never thought I'd get to see you face-to-face. What show is this again?"
If the task hadn't been so difficult, Chu Xi really wouldn't have wanted to play her trump card.
It was now clear that Ren Zhi's star power was still very strong.
She explained their purpose to the auntie, hoping she could provide some useful information, like if there were any twins in the neighborhood.
The auntie understood. "You're looking for twins, huh? Alright, you wait here."
The auntie took out her phone and slowly tapped out a message on the screen. She turned her head and said to them with a triumphant look, "I'm asking in the property management group and having my friends forward it. We'll find someone in no time!"
A short while later.
Not only did twins arrive, but so many people came that the entire building was packed.
The small building suddenly became so crowded that not even a drop of water could get through. Looking down from the floor Ren Zhi was on, every single step of the staircase was filled with heads craning their necks in anticipation, their bodies swaying as if on a bumpy bus.
"Where's Ren Zhi?!"
"Oh my god, I can't believe I get to see a living, breathing Ren Zhi in my lifetime!"
"Stop crying, stop crying, look, there's a pretty sister!"
The noise was a chaotic, clamorous, and thrilling roar.
The cameraman, struck with fear, made a tactical retreat and turned the camera towards the crowd in the stairwell.
Three security guards in uniform linked hands at the top of the stairs, struggling to maintain order.
Would the online audience watching this feel sympathy for Ren Zhi? Would they condemn the moral decay of this zombie-like mob?
No! They would only feel envy! Their eyes would turn red with jealousy!
【Waaaaah, when will I get to appreciate Zhizhi's beauty in person!】
【Why don't they come to XX County? Is the RV out of gas? I'll pay for it! Please drag the whole crew over here!】
【Don't panic, this is nothing. If it were me, I'd be even crazier than them.】
【I'm tired of saying the word 'jealous'. I hope that in my lifetime, Zhi's fan meeting will be held near my house just once.】
【I can't even imagine how beautiful Zhizhi is in person QAQ】
"Ren Zhi!!!! I'm your fan!! I've liked you for ten years!!!"
"Me too!!! Ren Zhi! I—like—you!!"
The stairwell erupted with screams, among which were a few cringey, folksy declarations that made you break out in a cold sweat.
Seeing Ren Zhi's awkward expression as she struggled to move, the auntie felt quite embarrassed and explained with a sheepish smile.
"I just said in the group that you were here and looking for some twins to have a meal…"
"It's alright, Auntie. Thank you…" Ren Zhi replied with a polite but awkward smile.
But they did indeed find twins.
Three pairs, in fact.
It was just that the process of leaving the scene was a bit of a struggle.
Ren Zhi handed out admission tickets for the RV restaurant to the three pairs of twins. Wiping away the sweat that had beaded up from pushing through the crowd, she casually asked, "I wonder how Sister Ling and Xiao Tian's groups are doing?"
Luo Yangtian had found one pair of twins and successfully invited them, so it wasn't a total loss.
As for Li Xiling and Zhao Shiqing's team…
The report from the front line was that Sister Ling had gone all out—
Li Xiling had hijacked a busker's business. She was standing on their turf, using their equipment, and singing her own songs.
She had turned the street into a concert venue.
With one foot propped on a speaker, she waved to the crowd, singing and shouting with her powerful voice:
"Twins, where are you?"
"Friends of twins, can you come to the front?"
"Alright, no problem, one more song! But you have to send me another pair of twins!"
A fifty-meter stretch of street was packed to the brim. Li Xiling's rich and gentle voice, with its powerful penetration, drifted down the street. The melodious, heavenly sound lingered in the air, causing those on the road who knew the song to involuntarily hum along. The Golden Melody Queen's skill was truly well-deserved.
In the end, her audience worked together, spreading the word until they found five pairs of twins willing to go to the restaurant for a meal. Li Xiling was so happy she giggled nonstop!
"This is the first time I've ever held a free concert, you guys lucked out!"
After she finished, she put down the microphone, thanked the busker who had lent her the spot, and wasted no time in rushing back to the restaurant with her guests.
That afternoon, they had collectively recruited nine tables of guests and returned triumphant.
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