Chapter 44
Upon seeing the person who arrived, Xu Gui automatically recalled their name:
Qiu Nai.
As a male star who is now somewhat famous in the industry, Qiu Nai's appearance is naturally acceptable. At least his features are upright and delicate, without any crookedness or asymmetry, which already surpasses many crooked-mouthed and crooked-faced people in the industry.
However, as the person got closer, Xu Gui noticed that the person seemed... a bit short?
According to Qiu Nai's information, how tall was he again? Xu Gui recalled, thinking uncertainly: It seemed to be 1.8 meters... She, "Xu Gui," had heard someone mention it before.
only……
Looking at the person who was about the same height as him, Xu Gui couldn't help but fall into deep thought: Is this person really 1.8 meters tall? After all, he was only 1.71 meters tall.
While she was deep in thought, Qiu Nai walked up to her and said calmly, "Xu Gui, do you have time to talk to me?"
Xu Gui was thinking about his height when he heard him speak, and a sentence unconsciously popped out of his mouth.
Are you 1.75 meters tall?
"..."
Seeing Qiu Nai's face suddenly freeze because of her question, Xu Gui came back to her senses and realized what she had asked. She gave a dry laugh, her eyes darting around, pretending not to see Qiu Nai's unpleasant expression.
Qiu Nai took a breath, trying to suppress her anger, and asked again, "Can you talk to me?"
Upon hearing this, Xu Gui shook his head without hesitation: "No way!"
Her rejection was too quick and too decisive. Qiu Nai's expression froze again, and she couldn't help but ask, "Why?"
Xu Gui stepped back a little, gestured the distance between the two, and said, "Just stand there, don't come any closer. Let's just leave it at that..."
"You ask why?" Xu Gui rolled his eyes, feeling that this person was asking a question he already knew the answer to, and said very impolitely, "That's because I don't want to become a part of your and Tang Xu's play. You two can create a CP if you want, but why do you have to drag me into it? And make me get scolded and have rotten eggs thrown at me by your CP fans."
Xu Gui was talking about something that actually happened. After the news spread that she had allegedly interfered in the relationship between Tang Xu and Qiu Nai, she was pelted with rotten eggs by the couple's fans as soon as she went out.
Fortunately, although she was a bit slow-witted at the time, she was as quick-witted as ever and managed to dodge the attack in time. It's just a pity that she was a bit slow back then, otherwise she would have found ten rotten eggs to throw back at her.
Xu Gui couldn't help but feel a little regretful about this matter; he even felt like slapping himself when he woke up in the middle of the night.
"I'm truly sorry about this. I didn't expect my fans to be so agitated," Qiu Nai said, but the next second, he changed the subject and said, "But in this matter, you weren't the only one who suffered, were you?"
He pointed out, "As a newcomer to the industry, you have neither works nor fans. If it weren't for this incident, how could you have gotten this invitation from Hunan TV? Do you know how many people in the industry want to participate in this program?"
He spoke as if Xu Gui had gotten a great deal.
Xu Gui scoffed and said, "Is it possible that even if I don't get the offer from Hunan TV this time, I'll have other job opportunities later?"
There's more to this world than just Hunan TV; she clearly has other options.
Her attitude of non-cooperation was firm, and Qiu Nai could not persuade her. He frowned and asked in confusion, "I don't understand. This is a win-win situation. Why are you unwilling? Regardless of other reasons, you have indeed benefited from this matter, haven't you?"
All of this only slightly damaged her reputation, but it brought her huge profits, which seemed worthwhile no matter how you looked at it.
Xu Gui pointed out his mistake: "Only you guys win, while I will only be branded as a homewrecker who interfered in your relationship and be hated by everyone! Because from the very beginning, you only wanted to use me to gain fans and generate buzz, but you never thought of clearing my name!"
Qiu Nai's expression showed a hint of guilt for a moment, then he said, "This has nothing to do with us. This is your manager's negligence!"
Xu Gui was getting impatient and said, "They're all crows, saying others are black won't make you look white... Move aside, I'm going back."
Qiu Nai is not a good-tempered person. He can patiently talk to Xu Gui, but that's only when he needs something from him. Now that he sees that Xu Gui is unyielding, he has lost his patience.
"Xu Gui, you should think this through. As a newcomer with no capital and no background, it won't be easy for you to make it in this industry." Qiu Nai sneered, her tone arrogant. "If you cooperate with us, you might be able to ride on our coattails and gain some popularity."
He glanced at Xu Gui and said, "Although Tang Xu and I can't compare to those top-tier celebrities, we're still a bit better than you."
Xu Gui: ? ?
Xu Gui didn't respond to him immediately. Instead, he took out his phone and started tapping something on the screen.
Seeing her actions, Qiu Nai assumed she was selectively ignoring him and deliberately making these gestures to annoy him, which only fueled her disdain.
But a few seconds later, Xu Gui suddenly raised his phone and pressed the screen directly against his face.
Qiu Nai: "...What does this mean?"
Xu Gui smiled and said, "What I mean is, open your eyes wide and see for yourself. On our show, my popularity seems to be a little higher than yours and Tang Xu's."
Qiu Nai's gaze was fixed on Xu Gui's phone screen. In just two days, Xu Gui's ranking had dropped from thirteenth to fifteenth, but coincidentally, he had surpassed Qiu Nai and Tang Xu.
It is known that Tang Xu is ranked sixteenth and Qiu Nai is ranked eighteenth.
Qiu Nai: "..."
Xu Gui withdrew his hand, feigning indifference, and said, "In other words, I no longer need to ride on your coattails. In fact, I hope you won't try to ride on my coattails."
Qiu Nai looked completely bewildered, then laughed angrily, "We're trying to ride your coattails? You..."
Ding-dong!
Just then, the elevator on this floor opened again, and someone came out of it. Qiu Nai paused for a moment, and at that instant, Xu Gui had already darted past him.
Qiu Nai's eyes widened, wanting to say something, but because of the presence of other people, she couldn't chase after him. She could only stand there, staring hatefully at Xu Gui's departing figure.
"Hey, Teacher Qiu?! What are you doing on this floor?"
"Ah, hello... I just finished eating and had nothing to do, so I just wandered around to digest."
Hearing the voices of several people behind him, Xu Gui pretended not to hear and happily returned to his room.
The next day, Xu Gui prepared to go to work as usual (to set up a fortune-telling stall). Before that, she went downstairs to have breakfast. The hotel they were staying at provided meals, but they had to pay for them themselves. The money they paid for was, of course, the money they had earned from their "work" during this period.
While Xu Gui was having breakfast, Fu Xia, whom she had met the night before, came over and sat opposite her. While mixing her noodles with chopsticks, she asked curiously, "What did the staff call you over for last night? I saw everyone talking about it, guessing that some sugar daddy has taken a liking to you."
Xu Gui asked her, "What do you think?"
Fu Xia shook her head and said, "I don't know."
Anyway, everyone will know about this after today, so there's no need to hide it. The main thing is that there's no need to hide it from the people in front of him. So after thinking about it, Xu Gui nodded.
"Indeed, a wealthy patron has taken a liking to us," she said frankly.
Fu Xia exclaimed in surprise, looking at Xu Gui with great admiration, and said, "You're so amazing! Sigh, why doesn't any sugar daddy take a liking to me?"
Seeing that she didn't seem to care much despite saying that, Xu Gui couldn't help but ask her, "Why did you enter the entertainment industry and become a professional in this field?"
Fu Xia looked around and, seeing that no one was watching them, leaned closer to Xu Gui and whispered, "Isn't there a lot of handsome men and beautiful women in the entertainment industry? I'm a bit of a looks-obsessed person; I just like looking at good-looking people!"
She said with a smug look, "When I see someone good-looking, I can eat two more bowls of rice."
Xu Gui: "I thought it would make it easier for you to find a boyfriend."
She said that, but Fu Xia didn't deny it. Her face turned red, and she said shyly, "That's part of the reason... Let me tell you, I've recently fallen for a really handsome boy, he's totally my type!"
"Really, he's really exceptional, an absolute gem. Not only is he tall and good-looking, but his temperament is also incredibly pure and clean. These days, men of this quality are truly rare."
Fu Xia cupped her face in her hands: "I think I've fallen in love and started dating... What do you think, should I confess to him? Will he accept me?"
Xu Gui looked into her bright eyes and asked in confusion, "Are you simply asking for my opinion, or do you want me to do a fortune telling for you?"
Fu Xia said hesitantly, "It would be even better if you could calculate it."
She finally revealed her true intentions: "Can you help me calculate whether he is my destined partner? I really think he is so handsome, and there is nothing about him that doesn't match my aesthetic. I haven't met someone I like in a long time."
Xu Gui hummed in agreement and said, "Wait until I finish eating."
Fu Xia nodded vigorously: "Mmm-hmm!"
The two quickly finished their meal. Afterwards, Fu Xia scanned 500 yuan on her phone and sent it to Xu Gui. Xu Gui immediately checked her recent online activity, and then…
"So, is he my soulmate?" Fu Xia asked excitedly.
Xu Gui: "Uh..."
Fu Xia said excitedly, "I really think he must be my true love. I've been watching him for several days now, and I definitely have to confess to him today! Do you think I can succeed?"
Xu Gui: "Ah!"
Looking at the expression on Xu Gui's face, Fu Xia's excitement gradually cooled down. She asked softly, "Could it be that he's not my destined partner?"
Xu Gui looked at her hesitantly, nodded, and said, "You two aren't a good match."
Fu Xia: QAQ.
She sniffed and said dejectedly, "Actually, I'm not too surprised. I guessed it long ago. How could such a good man be mine? Does he think I'm not pretty enough? Or does he think my family background isn't good enough? Or does he dislike my personality? Does he think I'm too clingy?"
Hearing her belittling words, Xu Gui interrupted, "That's not the reason. You're not good enough for her; it's purely an objective reason."
Fu Xia's eyes were brimming with tears: "Objective reasons?"
Xu Gui: "Didn't you ever think that the person you like is actually just a sixth-grade elementary school student?"
Fu Xia: "..."
Fu Xia: ? ? ! !
She stared blankly at Xu Gui, feeling that she could understand every single word he said, but why couldn't she understand anything when they were put together?
"Impossible!" Fu Xia shook her head vigorously, gesturing with her hands: "He's so tall and strong, twice my size, he makes me feel really safe. How could someone like that be a primary school student!"
She didn't believe it.
Xu Gui: "I have no reason to lie to you. If you don't believe me, you can go and confess to him and see if what I said is true or not."
Fu Xia said aggressively, "I don't believe it. He's so tall and handsome, he looks like he's in his twenties. I think he must be a college student." She spoke with great conviction.
Xu Gui glanced at her and said calmly, "Yes, whatever makes you happy."
After breakfast, the two went off to prepare for their respective shoots. Fu Xia glanced at Xu Gui's retreating figure and muttered, "Impossible, right? That guy looks like a college student, how could he be an elementary school student?"
She kept muttering to herself until she reached her workplace.
Fu Xia now works in a cake shop, a large one at that. If you were to ask her how she manages to make money working in a cake shop, the answer would be, of course, because she has a good father.
On her first day working at the cake shop, her doting father had his secretary buy all the cakes in the shop to make dessert for all the employees.
If you ask whether this counts as cheating, it wouldn't be, because Fu's father's company has this expense every day. The company has always prepared snacks and cakes for the employees at noon to supplement their meals and fill their stomachs. It's just that now the supplier has been changed to the cake shop where Fu Xia works.
Of course, the production team said that Fu Xia's actions did not constitute cheating, but the fans of the other guests did not think so, so Fu Xia's live broadcast room was "lively" every day, with many netizens criticizing her for having connections and cheating.
Fortunately, Fu Xia couldn't see the live stream comments during filming, otherwise she might have become depressed.
Now, Fu Xia's gaze fell on the outside of the cake shop, and she couldn't help but sigh—she was torn about whether or not to believe Xu Gui's words and give up on confessing her feelings.
As for the cake shop owner, even if he saw Fu Xia slacking off, he chose not to, because what the sugar daddy was doing was not slacking off, but resting!
*
On the other side, Xu Gui also arrived at the foot of the overpass, where a group of regular customers were gathered at her stall.
Upon seeing them from afar, this group of regular customers rushed over with great enthusiasm.
"Good morning, Master!"
"Master, you are as radiant and full of energy as ever today."
"Master, can you tell if I'll be able to catch a big fish today? Preferably a crucian carp, because I promised my wife I would."
...
The group of regulars chatting amongst themselves were none other than Old Wu and his fellow anglers. Over this period of time, they had become Xu Gui's loyal repeat customers, and every morning when Xu Gui came over, they were the ones he saw.
Thanks to them alone, Xu Gui has his daily "basic salary".
Just as everyone was having a lively time, a weak voice came from the side: "Are you, are you Professor Wu Yongfa?"
Old Wu turned his head and saw a young girl looking at him excitedly. He asked somewhat blankly, "Who are you?"
"I...I'm a physics student at University A, my name is Sun Xiaoxiao." The girl hurriedly introduced herself, then said excitedly, "I even took your class before. I originally wanted to apply for your graduate program, but you retired after only two years..."
Upon hearing the name of the school where he had once worked, Old Wu's expression softened, and he said, "Oh, so you're a junior from University A. What brings you here?"
Sun Xiaoxiao said shyly, "It's like this, I'm currently working on a research project, which you, Professor Wu, have also studied before. I have a question that I'm not quite clear about, so I'd like to ask you for advice!"
Old Wu: "Oh, let me see it."
The teacher and student went to the side to study their topic, the atmosphere filled with academic seriousness. Those watching this scene were bewildered.
[Goodness gracious! I was saying before that since these fishing enthusiasts are all big shots, if any students with questions related to their majors have any unanswerable questions, they could just go to Xu Gui's fortune-telling stall and wait for these big shots to appear. Now, someone actually did that?]
[Damn, how come I didn't think of that! I'm also a physics student, and I'm going to see Professor Wu at Xu Gui's place this afternoon too. I have a research project that's been stuck for a long time.]
【What about us students from B University? We're in B City, it takes half a day to get here by plane】
[Actually, if there's really a problem I can't solve, flying to City A might not be a bad idea, right? These are all experts from textbooks; if I could get their guidance, oh my god, I'd be so happy!]
I'm suddenly so tempted! I'm going to book my flight to City A right now!
[Wow, it feels like a door to a new world is opening up to us! If we ever encounter any problems we don't understand, we can just go to Xu Gui and ask the experts!]
[You guys are really going to fleece us! My brother's afraid we'll see you trending someday. I've even thought of a headline: "Retired professors suspected of being rehired by current students on the street – is this moral decay or the coldness of the world?"]
[Sisters, you have such great writing skills!]
...
Leaving aside the fact that Sun Xiaoxiao enlightened countless college students in the live stream, let's just talk about Xu Gui and his group.
Watching Wu Yongfa being respectfully ushered aside by the students, Wang Defa didn't know what others thought, but he certainly felt a pang of jealousy. He didn't know why, perhaps it was because both of their names contained the character "Fa," but he and Wu Yongfa had never gotten along from their first meeting, and they always had to argue about who was superior in everything.
Now, Wang Defa had to bitterly admit that he had actually lost.
All of Wu Yongfa's students who cherish him have come over, so why haven't his students arrived yet? This is outrageous! These unfilial disciples! I'll call them all and give them a good scolding when I get home today.
Xu Gui ignored the disputes between Old Wu and the others, set up his own business, and dealt with Wang Defa and his group first.
After they finished calculating, Old Wu had also finished explaining. He said, "Your topic is a bit profound. It might be difficult for you to handle it alone... This is my phone number. If you still have any questions, you can call me again."
Sun Xiaoxiao asked in surprise, "Me? Can I?"
"Of course!" Old Wu said with a look of satisfaction, "I welcome every student who studies diligently."
However, what Mr. Wu didn't know was that he would later deeply regret his words. After all, netizens these days are all shameless. In their eyes, Mr. Wu welcomes students who study diligently, and students who study diligently are synonymous with them.
So, aren't they the students that Mr. Wu welcomes? There's absolutely no doubt about this equation!
So, Professor Wu, just wait for their army of students!
Now, unaware of what awaits him next, Mr. Wu happily goes fishing with his old friends, little knowing that his joyful and leisurely fishing life is about to come to an end.
Sun Xiaoxiao watched the professor leave, and excitedly jumped up and down while holding her notebook. But as soon as she finished jumping, she met Xu Gui's curious gaze.
Sun Xiaoxiao's face immediately turned red.
"Hello." She greeted Xu Gui shyly, feeling that her behavior just now was a bit embarrassing.
Xu Gui nodded to her: "Hello."
Then she asked him, "Would you like your fortune told?"
Now, the person with curious eyes became Sun Xiaoxiao. She knew Professor Wu because she had watched Xu Gui's live stream before, so she knew that Xu Gui could tell fortunes. However, as someone with a physics-based mind, Sun Xiaoxiao didn't quite understand how Xu Gui did it.
So, out of some curiosity, she sat down in front of Xu Gui.
Although Sun Xiaoxiao was curious, she had never thought of having her fortune told before, so she was now somewhat troubled.
“But I don’t seem to have anything I want to calculate,” she said.
Xu Gui glanced at her and casually asked, "Were you raised by your maternal grandparents?"
Sun Xiaoxiao looked at Xu Gui with some curiosity and nodded, "Yes, because my parents died early and my grandparents disliked that I was a girl, my maternal grandparents took me home."
Xu Gui: "You can take some time to go home and visit your family recently."
Sun Xiaoxiao looked at her blankly. Xu Gui said, "Your grandmother is sick. I think you should go back and see her."
Sun Xiaoxiao was startled and said, "But I didn't hear my grandfather say that. I called them recently, and my grandmother is fine too."
After she finished speaking, before Xu Gui could say anything, she couldn't sit still any longer. She picked up her phone, stood up, and said, "I'm going to make a call."
She hurriedly walked to the side, found her grandfather's phone number, and dialed it. Soon after, Xu Gui and the others heard her raised voice on the other end: "...Grandma is really sick? Why didn't you tell me?"
"Afraid I'll worry? I'm the one who's worried if you don't tell me!"
"No, I need to ask for leave to come back and see her... I'm fine at school, you don't need to worry about me. I know Grandma is sick, and I won't feel at ease at school if I don't come back to see her."
She said a few words into the phone and then hurriedly returned to Xu Gui's fortune-telling stall, her face showing barely concealed anxiety.
"Miss Xu, thank you for telling me that my grandmother is sick..." she said hurriedly, first scanning the QR code on her phone to pay Xu Gui for the fortune telling, then quickly bowing to Xu Gui before rushing back to school to ask for leave.
Xu Gui watched her retreating figure and calculated the time.
"She should be able to make it..." If Sun Xiaoxiao buys a ticket now and takes a train or plane today, she should be able to see her grandmother one last time.
Xu Gui withdrew his gaze.
Not long after Xu Gui set up her stall, a group of people carried a pile of things to her and politely asked, "Hello, are you Miss Xu Gui?"
Xu Gui looked up at them and nodded.
The other party immediately said, "We are staff members of [Miaoyu], and our boss asked us to deliver this to you!"
Xu Gui looked behind them and saw that they were carrying a beautiful aquarium. The aquarium was oxygenated and had its own ecosystem, with green grass, rocks, and beautiful fish swimming around.
Follow-up filming: ?
Viewers in the live stream: ??
Then, they watched in bewilderment as the group set up a platform next to Xu Gui, placed the aquarium on it, along with a pile of fish food, and finally, a very small aquarium.
Inside the aquarium was a green-shelled turtle, which Xu Gui glanced at.
After the people from [Miaoyu] put the items away, they were about to leave when the person in charge handed Xu Gui a booklet, saying, "This is our [Miaoyu] product information. You can take a look before we begin."
Xu Gui casually flipped through it and nodded: "Okay."
The person in charge said, "Thank you for your hard work."
As soon as the people from [Miaoyu] left, the person filming couldn't help but ask the question that everyone had been asking: "What are [Miaoyu] and these things doing?"
Why do they seem a little confused?
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