Proofreader & Editor:Peter Pan
Harbor City, Mong Kok, a cha chaan teng.
A middle-aged man with short hair sat by the window on the second floor, gazing at the bustling night scene while eating hot pot alone, yet he had ordered a table full of dishes.
His hair was graying, and wrinkles marked the corners of his eyes, but rather than making him look old, his phoenix eyes lent him a roguish charm.
Inside the restaurant, the heating was cranked up high, and the man was sweating profusely from the spicy food.
The ringtone of a cellphone suddenly pierced the air.
While answering the call, the man dumped some fish balls into the boiling pot.
Splash! Splash!
Soup splattered onto the table.
Though it was past ten, the place was crowded with people enjoying their late-night snacks. The second floor was abuzz with chatter, but as the man picked up his phone, a hush fell over the room as if silenced by an invisible force.
"Uncle Jiu, I've met Lin Baici. He's a tough nut to crack!"
A rich, lazy female voice came through the earpiece.
"Then I'll find someone else."
Uncle Jiu, the middle-aged man, picked up a piece of lamb with his chopsticks, swirled it in the dipping sauce, and popped it into his mouth.
"No, no! I was just kidding!"
The woman quickly pleaded, "I really like this mission!"
"Oh? Got your eye on Lin Baici?"
Uncle Jiu teased, well aware of the woman's penchant for young, fresh meat.
"Absolutely!"
The woman exclaimed, "You didn't see him in person. He's so handsome, I almost couldn't resist stripping him down and turning him into a wax figure!"
"Remember, try to win him over first. If that fails, then do as you please."
Uncle Jiu warned, "But don't you go killing him off!"
"Of course not, how could I bear to? Such a handsome pup."
The woman chuckled, "Just wait for me to tame him and bring him back to Kowloon Pavilion."
"Be careful. As far as I know, he took down half of the Lost Coast gang. He doesn't have much divine grace, but what he has is top-notch!"
Uncle Jiu casually chewed and swallowed the fish balls he had scooped from the pot.
"I got it!"
The woman sounded confident, "Uncle Jiu, rest assured, Kowloon Pavilion will soon have a new guard dog."
Uncle Jiu ended the call, and as the phone was placed on the table, the second floor returned to its noisy state.
No one knew about the call the middle-aged man had just taken.
"Lately, the God's Ruins scene is brimming with talent. Makes me feel like an old fellow, ready to roll home and wait for death."
Uncle Jiu laughed heartily. Despite his words, there was no self-pity, only a spirited enthusiasm.
Just the thought of playing 'games' with so many geniuses made him reluctant to lie down in a coffin just yet.
That kid seems to be heading to Busan's God's Ruins for the winter break. Should I up the ante for him?
Uncle Jiu bit into a fish ball, as if he were crushing Lin Baici's corpse between his teeth.
***
The sound of night rain accompanied Lin Baici as he dashed into the dormitory building just before curfew.
"Be earlier next time!"
The dormitory supervisor shouted.
"Got it!"
Lin Baici replied nonchalantly, went upstairs, and returned to his room to find everyone chatting.
"I thought you'd win over Ji Xinyan!"
Qian Jiahui was surprised. His words were casual, but Liu Yu and Xu Daguan took them seriously, feeling annoyed. They both fancied Ji Xinyan, but given Qian Jiahui's status, they didn't dare to retort, so they had to swallow their irritation.
"Ha, she's not into me!"
Lin Baici brushed it off.
Hearing this, Liu Yu's spirits lifted.
Serves you right, hitting a wall, huh?
Thinking being handsome gives you free rein?
Sorry, Xinyan isn't that shallow.
"Qian bro, are you after Bai Jiao?"
Xu Daguan was worried. Did Qian Jiahui know Lin Baici was pursuing Ji Xinyan and decided to back off?
No way!
Bring on the fierce competition!
"No!"
Qian Jiahui shook his head, "I never chase girls actively."
Damn!
Qian Jiahui's domineering attitude made everyone want to flip him off.
Fang Mingyuan found the discussion about girls boring.
He used to be interested, but ever since his cousin let slip about Divine taboo during the National Day holiday, he lost interest in women and even basketball.
I wish I could be a divine hunter!
I wish I could break into God's Ruins!
Fang Mingyuan thought Lin Baici was outstanding and Qian Jiahui was rich, but compared to his cousin, they were nothing.
After freshening up, Lin Baici saw over thirty messages on his phone. Opening them, he found they were from Ji Xinyan and Jin Yingzhen, each accompanied by a selfie.
Ji Xinyan, this won't do!
You're wearing too much, and what are you covering with your hand?
Jin Yingzhen, on the other hand, treats me like a brother, showing me the real deal.
Lin Baici snarked as he replied to each message.
The Korean girl seemed to be waiting for Lin Baici's response, and upon seeing it, she immediately made a video call.
Lin Baici answered and saw Jin Yingzhen in a crop top and yoga pants, working out.
"Oppa, annyeonghaseyo!"
"Old Bai, you're not short of girls chasing you, why watch this?"
Qian Jiahui, hearing a Korean woman's voice, thought Lin Baici was watching videos of Korean young ladies dancing and asked.
He didn't understand the appeal of women in videos you couldn't touch.
"Friend!"
Lin Baici treated Qian Jiahui as a friend, so he didn't hide the truth.
"What? You know Korean girls too?"
Xu Daguan was surprised and stood up, moving closer to Lin Baici, "Let me have a look!"
Lin Baici turned the phone away.
Jin Yingzhen dressed like that wasn't for others to see.
"So stingy?"
Xu Daguan scoffed.
"She's shy around strangers!"
Lin Baici made an excuse, climbed onto his bed, and a few minutes later, the dormitory lights went out.
Xu Daguan wanted to talk more but was cut off by Liu Yu.
"Can we sleep? We have class tomorrow!"
Xu Daguan, truly intimidated by the matter at hand, burrowed into his covers, "Sleep! Sleep!"
***
A quiet night passed, and dawn arrived.
Finally free from trivial matters, Lin Baici began to enjoy his college life.
After getting up in the morning, taking care of personal hygiene, he went to the cafeteria for breakfast with Hu Wenwu and Fang Mingyuan, then to class.
In the evening, after class, Lin Baici went straight to Gu Qingxiang's rental for dinner, followed by Korean language tutoring. Snacks and fruits were plentiful, with new varieties every day.
Gu Qingxiang had clearly put thought into it, even carving the fruits into various shapes.
At 9:30 pm, Lin Baici would head back to school. He had thought of making excuses to stay overnight several times, but he was too shy to speak up.
Ah, the journey to end my single life is long and arduous.
A week passed uneventfully. On Sunday, Hua Yueyu visited, but she looked tired with dark circles under her eyes.
Lin Baici asked what was wrong. Hua Yueyu didn't say, but he learned from Qian Jiahui, who liked to watch live streams, that recently a streamer named "Little Fairy Tooth" had emerged on Shark Platform, beating the top three and kicking the four leading ladies, seemingly set to dominate as the new queen.
Since the last top streamer was banned for tax evasion half a year ago, the leading female streamers on Shark Platform had been battling for six months, spending a fortune.
Hua Yueyu had a chance, but in the last half-month, Little Fairy Tooth completely overshadowed her.
Qian Jiahui said Hua Yueyu's streaming was off. She first got sick, then seemed to have real-life relationship issues, arguing with her top three fan, leading to a loss of many followers.
Lin Baici checked out Little Fairy Tooth's stream. She had a decent face, scoring a seven out of ten, an average body, slightly short, but a really nice voice.
The key was her incredible mimicry skills, from movie lines to classic hits, she imitated them perfectly.
Qian Jiahui said at first everyone thought Little Fairy Tooth was using original sounds and criticized her, but she didn't explain and even intensified her imitations. When half of Shark Platform knew of this shameless streamer, Little Fairy Tooth suddenly turned off the background music and movies, singing a cappella and reciting lines.
Still identical to the originals, this stunned the critics and amazed the bystanders, turning them into fans.
Lin Baici guessed Little Fairy Tooth might be using divine grace; otherwise, from Lolita to elegant lady to a husky voice, she could sing all types, which was too exaggerated.
Hua Yueyu also had divine grace, but her Drunken Fist couldn't be displayed while drinking and boxing on a live stream; that would get her banned.
Lin Baici planned to invite Hua Yueyu out next weekend to relax and unwind.
Life was uneventful, and Lin Baici's routine remained the same: dormitory, cafeteria, classroom, and Gu Qingxiang's rental.
***
On Monday, unable to bear Xu Daguan's stinky feet any longer, Lin Baici returned to Gu Qingxiang's rental as soon as he got back to the dorm.
"My roommate's feet are too stinky. Qingxiang, let me stay for a night. I'll go rent a place tomorrow!"
Lin Baici knew Gu Qingxiang must have feelings for him; otherwise, she wouldn't go to the trouble of making him dinner and arranging fruit platters so meticulously.
Gu Qingxiang frowned, looked at Lin Baici, and after a few minutes of hesitation, agreed, "Don't rent a place, it's a waste of money. Talk to your roommate about personal hygiene!"
"Xu Daguan's stinky feet are natural; he can't help it!" Lin Baici said helplessly.
Gu Qingxiang wanted to say more but gave up, "Fine, just stay here. But you can't fail your finals, and you must coordinate with your roommates. Don't keep getting reported!"
"Long live Qingxiang!"
Lin Baici cheered, lifting Gu Qingxiang and twirling her around the living room.
Unable to sleep that night, Lin Baici decided to watch Little Fairy Tooth's live stream, preparing to observe her since knowing the enemy is key to victory.
But as the sound from the stream began, his stomach growled first.
Gurgle!
Hunger pangs attacked his insides.