Chapter 55
After exiting the subway station, Jiang Li crossed the pedestrian walkway and finally spotted the hot-pot restaurant's signboard.
—"Veteran Hot-Pot."
The storefront was small, and it was pri lunch hour, yet only a handful of tables were occupied in the middle of the day.
Maybe it was the weather. The clear, crisp autumn air would probably have to chill a little more before the place got lively. Most people think of hot-pot as a winter ritual, sothing best shared with friends while you eat and sing together.
"Table for how many, sir?"
"Two. I called your boss last night."
"Oh, right—Miss Kakayan? One mont, please."
While Jiang Li spoke with the server, Kakayan turned to study the restaurant's interior. The set-up differed from the barbecue place they'd visited last ti: large pots sat on every burner, and the room felt markedly emptier.
They chose a table against the wall, and Jiang Li picked up the nu. He ordered a yin-yang pot, then ticked off every at option—beef rolls, lamb rolls, fish balls, bullfrog, shrimp paste—and added mixed vegetable platters, mushroom platters, and every soy product in sight. Since the boss had promised a free al, Jiang Li checked nearly every item he could pronounce.
With Kakayan's appetite, finishing all this would be effortless.
After half a month of grinding on videos, Jiang Li figured he'd earned a proper reward.
He handed the order slip to the server. "Do you have cola?"
"We do."
"Then bring two cans each of Pepsi and Coke."
"Certainly, give a mont."
Once the waiter walked away, Kakayan leaned in, voice hushed. "You ordered this much, and we really don't have to pay?"
"Of course not."
"But... why would the boss treat us?" She tilted her head, violet-brown eyes blinking. "Does he want to be friends, so we have to invite him back next ti?"
"No need."
Jiang Li waved a hand. "We're here to 'GG' for the boss, so the al's on the house."
"'GG'?"
Kakayan scrunched her pretty face, trying to puzzle out the term.
"After we eat, we'll post a video promoting the restaurant. If locals see it, they'll co try the place." Jiang Li paused, then added, "Not only is the al free—if the video does well, the boss will thank us."
"That's amazing!"
Kakayan's mouth opened in surprise; for the first ti she felt, in the most concrete way, the perks of being an internet celebrity. Eat for free—and the boss thanks you.
Jiang Li didn't ntion that once their account grew, people would actually pay them to eat at their restaurants. That single word—sweet—could wait. Telling her too early risked unrealistic expectations. High hopes often bred anxiety before success ever arrived, and an unstable mindset could sink a creator fast.
Being an up host was brutal. Behind the glamour, you refreshed analytics daily, worried about numbers even in your dreams. You had to chase every trend, every scrap of traffic. A finite pie ant that those who grabbed more left the rest starving. The few visible winners looked like they'd had it easy—survivorship bias—while countless small creators vanished before the algorithm ever noticed.
But Jiang Li kept those worries to himself. As agreed, the division of labor was clear: Kakayan appeared on cara; all the operations stress, all the editing pressure, rested on Jiang Li's shoulders.
A short while after ordering, the server returned with the receipt. Even though paynt wasn't required, procedure still had to be followed.
Watching the lone man and woman at the table, the server figured the account na "Miss Kakayan" ant the woman was in charge and the man was the assistant. He recalled that the man had handled the ordering while the woman simply glanced over the nu. With that in mind, he handed the receipt to Kakayan.
"What's this?"
Kakayan squinted at the tiny print.
"It's a scratch-off," Jiang Li said, picking up a napkin to demonstrate. "Scratch it like this—maybe you'll win sothing big."
"I can't get it to scratch." Kakayan pressed the ticket flat on the table and rubbed furiously with her thumb. The table shook, but the surface stayed pristine.
"Give it here—you're too gentle."
Jiang Li took the ticket and made a show of rubbing it twice.
"I won."
"What?" Kakayan's eyes lit up as she leaned in.
"Third prize. You get to sit on my lap while you eat."
"..."
Kakayan's eyebrow twitched, but she did her best to look unfazed. Inside she was probably seething.
"Not happy?"
Jiang Li grinned and patted his own thigh.
"Ugh."
Kakayan mid gagging, then turned away, giving Jiang Li the back of her pink ponytail in clear irritation.
At that mont the restaurant owner arrived, carrying the yin-yang pot on a tray.
The boss of "Veteran Barbecue" was a tall, middle-aged man in a white tank top and a conspicuous bald head—basically the Chinese Dwayne Johnson. Looking at his sturdy fra, Jiang Li suspected he really had served.
"You're the Bilibili up hosts, right? I'm the owner, surna Shi."
Boss Shi set the pot down and extended his hand to Kakayan. After all, their cooperation had been arranged online; basic courtesy on a first eting was only polite. In the videos he'd seen this pink-haired girl—she must be Miss Kakayan.
Kakayan stared for a mont, then raised her hand.
Clap.
She gave Boss Shi a crisp high-five.
The fifty-sothing "Rock" rubbed his shiny head.
"A-hem."
Jiang Li cleared his throat.
Boss Shi thought it was a greeting and turned to offer Jiang Li his hand.
Jiang Li glanced at Kakayan, then at the boss's broad palm. He thought for half a second and delivered a sharp slap of his own.
"Don't mind us, Boss—this is how the young people say hello these days." Jiang Li grinned, speaking for Kakayan.
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