Chapter 57
Ji Wei felt a gaze on him. He turned to see his idol quietly watching him.
He must… want my opinion?
He quickly said encouragingly, “It is very hard, but you’re already doing a great job.”
Lu Shenxing just gave him a thoughtful look.
Ji Wei turned and threw himself into the busy work of packaging the purchased goods for the group of design students, wrapping them in kraft paper and tying them with red string.
They had chosen fifty thousand dollars’ worth of goods, buying two hundred notebooks alone. Ji Wei couldn’t help but remind them, “Are you sure you want to buy this many?”
One of the girls, happily hugging her packaged goods, responded, “Of course, we can’t buy this many ourselves. We’re also buying for our other classmates.”
Other classmates?
Ji Wei was a bit confused. The Forbidden City’s Little Shop was only broadcast in China. Most of their classmates were American, right? Could it be that they also happened to like watching Chinese variety shows?
Seeing his confusion, a Japanese girl blushed and handed him her phone. “Our professor played Ji-kun’s video in class, so we… started watching The Forbidden City’s Little Shop.”
[Hahahahahaha, she must be of Japanese descent. She’s actually blushing. What’s there to be ashamed of for being a lookism admirer!]
[If it were me, I’d just say it out loud. Weiwei, you’re so good-looking.]
[First, you have to get the chance…]
[Aww, I’m jealous.]
Ji Wei took the phone.
—It was the video of him painting with Moli that day.
The video was sped up, with an afternoon’s worth of footage edited into a clip of less than ten minutes. He glanced at the title but before he could look at the content carefully, the view count startled him. A full eighteen million!
The other girls chattered on.
“You’re now a hot young painter in New York. The painting that the collector Charles bought from you has already appreciated to five hundred thousand dollars. A lot of people want to come and see you.”
“I originally watched The Forbidden City’s Little Shop for study purposes, but I ended up getting hooked. Now I have to go to a Chinese website every week to catch the updates.”
“Me too. When is the overseas version coming out? I’m even thinking about taking Chinese as an elective.”
…
The bullet comments were once again in a state of shock.
[So they watch the show to study? I’m deeply reflecting on the differences between people.]
[Coordinates: one of the eight major art academies. Our sketching teacher also showed us the video, but he didn’t make us study it, because we wouldn’t learn anything even if we watched.]
[Hahahahahaha, that’s true. Moli and Weiwei are both talented prodigies. There’s not much to reference.]
[That Japanese young lady blushed when she saw Weiwei just now. Believe me, looks are also very important. Otherwise, it wouldn’t have such a high view count.]
Old Sir Ma Liqing was not surprised by the girls’ answers. Moli was a rising young painter in New York.
Defeating him meant it was only a matter of time before Ji Wei was as famous as Moli. Of course, the collector Charles also played a significant role in promoting him.
The art world looked at art, and yet it didn’t.
Although it was frustrating, he had to admit that in contemporary painting, the more famous the artist, the higher the value of their work, even if the painting wasn’t that good.
Old Sir Ma Liqing looked at Ji Wei, just hoping that this child would not lose his way. The temptations of fame and fortune were too many.
After seeing off the design students, guests continuously arrived, having traveled from other states. By noon, they had already achieved sales of one hundred and fifty thousand dollars. The gamers from the internet cafe also bought nearly thirty thousand dollars’ worth of cultural and creative products.
Although there was still a considerable gap to the mission goal, Ji Wei really couldn’t refuse the gamers’ enthusiastic invitation and could only agree to play games with them for an hour.
Wilson proactively offered to help watch the store. “You go and play without worry.”
“Thank you so much.”
With his worries assuaged, he went to the internet cafe and opened PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds. Before starting the game, he was slightly concerned about the live stream’s popularity, because he wasn’t a talkative person.
There were many strategies to explain in standalone games, but in this game, he relied more on instinct. He wouldn’t say much during a match, which would be awkward.
That’s why he had only streamed two or three times before stopping.
What he didn’t know was that the live stream’s popularity had suddenly soared to twenty-three million! This was because the domestic esports forums had started a massive thread about his 33-kill game today.
[Original Poster] Is Ji Wei cheating? With this level of skill, why isn’t he playing professionally? Why is he just a streamer?
[1F] He’s been a Human 8x Scope for a long time, but he doesn’t play PUBG much. He plays more standalone games.
[2F] His technique can’t be compared to a pro’s, and his rotations are based on instinct. Sigh, all I can say is his talent is too good.
…
[1245F] How is this cheating? Doesn’t Wilson know better than you? I hate posters like you who just start flaming without knowing anything.
[1246F] Missed the live stream, want to see him play another round. Although he had a positional advantage, 33 kills is too amazing. Not many domestic streamers can do that, right?
[1247F] It’s starting again! Quick, go to the Forbidden City’s official website to watch.]
…
Since he wasn’t on the same team as Wilson, he couldn’t just fire away without a care. Ji Wei had to devote some of his attention to looking after his teammates. However, his ultra-long-range sniping still drew a wave of shock.
[Wuwuwuwu, Cub Wei is so amazing.]
[Guys who are good at games have a natural charm. It used to be ‘Mommy loves you,’ now it’s ‘Big sister, I’m available!’]
[You’ll have to ask Film Emperor Lu if that’s okay.]
The esports players who came from the forums stood out… conspicuously among the other bullet comments.
[Damn, this is too slick. One shot, one head.]
[We must not let him get a Kar98k. It’s so damn terrifying.]
[Crap, he got an AWM! This match is already over. Congratulations to Ji Wei for his early victory.]
Players from the forums continued to pour in. The live stream, which had a somewhat saturated user base, broke new highs in viewership again.
Ji Wei’s phone suddenly rang.
—A message from the Forbidden City app.
[Congratulations on unlocking the Self-Reliance series of cultural and creative products.]
The Self-Reliance series?
Ji Wei didn’t understand what it meant.
He clicked on the description and only then learned that the Self-Reliance series referred to the cultural and creative products they had personally designed last week.
However, unlike the previous model of unlocking products and receiving them as gifts, they could only be purchased with real money from the shopping list. His notebook had a cost price of $10.
Zhao Yue’s washi tape had a cost price of $5.
Xiao Chi’s T-shirt had a cost price of $15.
Old Sir Ma Liqing’s umbrella had a cost price of $20.
All were within an affordable range.
Ji Wei scrolled to the very bottom of the screen.
Lu Shenxing’s brush rest had a cost price of… $50,000.
Ji Wei was speechless.
And that was just the cost price.
[Film Emperor Lu’s can only be admired from afar, right? Not to mention that ordinary people wouldn’t buy a brush rest, even if they did, how could they buy one so expensive?]
[Huh, so the brush rest he made last episode will just be left to rot?]
[Oh my, let this level-ten Lu-Wei scholar answer. Don’t worry about it rotting. It will definitely be given to Weiwei. The moment I saw the brush rest, I knew what Film Emperor Lu was planning, tsk tsk.]
[Thank you, academic ace, for the explanation. I’ve learned something. This Lu-Wei fan hasn’t even passed Level 4 English, I’ve just been busy squealing.]
Although the live stream’s popularity increased astonishingly, the growth in sales revenue stagnated. It wasn’t that there was a problem with the shop, but that the foot traffic had become saturated.
Fans who had traveled from various states generally arrived in the morning. By noon, the shop was mostly filled with students from nearby high schools, taking pictures and chatting.
Lu Shenxing used a pen to mark several places on the map. “We can consider cooperating with shopping malls.”
Old Sir Ma Liqing couldn’t help but ask, “The street our shop is on has good traffic, right? I’ve seen the malls in St. Lawrence, and their foot traffic is very low.”
Xiao Chi nodded slightly.
Zhao Yue pretended not to see.
Lu Shenxing lowered his eyes. “Who said we’re going to the malls in St. Lawrence?”
***
After Ji Wei returned to the store, the atmosphere became busy. He saw Zhao Yue packing things into a box nearby and asked quizzically, “Are we moving?”
Zhao Yue shook his head. “We’re going to Angnei first.”
Angnei was the closest metropolitan city to St. Lawrence, with significantly more people. Lu Shenxing folded the map. “Let’s go.”
They didn’t pin all their hopes on cooperation, so after Lu Shenxing confirmed the location, he only took Ji Wei with him. Just as they were about to leave the store, Wilson called out to them. “I’ll go with you.”
“Are you going to buy something?”
Ji Wei asked.
Wilson nodded, then shook his head.
He was practically raised by his aunt. His aunt lived in a Jewish community for many years and had relatively conservative views. She called games “spiritual opium.” As for her hobbies… they were even more conservative.
Her usual hobbies were visiting museums and art galleries. Every time he saw his aunt, he would be lectured into submission.
“If we meet the person in charge of Leo Mall, Anna, later, don’t talk about games,” Wilson instructed. “You can talk about painting and things like that.”
Although Ji Wei didn’t understand, he still nodded.
They took a taxi, drove for two hours, and arrived at the entrance of the first mall.
Compared to St. Lawrence, Angnei was indeed different. The streets were full of people of all colors, and languages from different countries flowed through the air.
When they stepped into the mall, Ji Wei felt that several white teenage girls around them seemed to be looking at him and discussing something. However, they weren’t speaking English; it sounded a bit like French, so he couldn’t understand the content.
[Is there an online translator here!]
[Translate what? Just look at their expressions, you can tell they were charmed by our Weiwei’s cuteness and want to come over and talk to him.]
[Ji Wei seems to be particularly likable. A stark contrast to the scandal-proof Film Emperor Lu.]
[That’s just a brainwashing tactic from marketing accounts. Film Emperor Lu was rumored to be with an actress he worked with three times a long time ago. When the actress was asked if she wanted to date him, she said… no, because he looks like he wouldn’t know how to say sweet things.]
[Hahahahahaha, Film Emperor Lu is quite cold, but if he proposed to me, I would definitely say yes. Just looking at him every day is pleasing to the eye.]
Accidentally making eye contact with one of the girls, Ji Wei smiled shyly.
This seemed to give them courage. One of them came forward, holding up a doll she had just bought, and asked in English with a thick French accent, “What do you like? Do you like this? I can give it to you.”
Looking at the girl’s enthusiastic eyes, Ji Wei didn’t know how to politely refuse. As he was thinking, Lu Shenxing, who was beside him, spoke up.
“That won’t be necessary.”
“He likes me, and—” the man’s French pronunciation was smooth. He paused and said, “he already has me.”
The girl finally realized they were a couple, and her face immediately flushed red as she walked away. Her companions also left with her.
“What did you just say to her?”
Ji Wei asked curiously as he pushed Lu Shenxing’s wheelchair.
“Nothing.”
The man said faintly.
Meanwhile, the bullet comments had already exploded.
[Is there a French expert here to explain? I can’t understand at all, I’m so anxious.]
[Go check Weibo, someone on Weibo has translated it. Film Emperor Lu didn’t give the little girl any chance at all. My god, it’s so sweet.]
[Ahhhhh, I saw it!]
[Huh, am I the only one wondering what ‘has me’ means?]
[I suspect the person above is making a dirty joke and I have evidence.]
The mall manager was still dealing with a store dispute, so they were asked to wait in the break room. Ji Wei sat down on a plastic stool, and his campus card suddenly fell out of his pocket.
Ji Wei bent down, but because the stool was a bit high, he unexpectedly stumbled and fell forward. Fortunately, he managed to grab Lu Shenxing’s hand.
To be precise, it was his sleeve.
Ji Wei looked up, his gaze moving from the sleeve he was clutching all the way up until it met his idol’s gaze, looking into the man’s dark eyes.
His heart skipped a beat.
It made him stare blankly for a moment. After a few seconds, he remembered they were filming, and he was about to speak when he heard the man say slowly and deliberately, “Be more reserved.”
The tips of Ji Wei’s ears turned a distinct shade of red. He realized it himself and immediately let go of the sleeve and lowered his head.
Then, in the next second—
The man tightly, gripped his hand.
Fingers intertwined.