Chapter 2 Investment: "Too Extravagant!"

Chapter 2 Investment: "Too Extravagant!"

Ye Hantao leaned against the headboard, using her phone to search for information about the variety show "Classmates Are Here" online. The first result was: "The First Episode of 'Classmates Are Here' Premieres! Watch it with Qingmang TV!"

Ye Hantao was a little happy when she clicked on the Qingmang TV webpage, as she could watch it without having to pay for a membership.

"Classmates Are Back" - @YuanKai, @LiaoJiayue, and @WuXia share behind-the-scenes stories about old classmates. Let's listen together!

Ye Hantao swiped her finger, which automatically led her to Liao Jiayue's live stream. If she wanted to watch other people's live streams, she could drop down the list.

In an instant, a dense barrage of comments surged up, obscuring even the figures.

[I saw in the leak that Jin Shiyue and Chen Xiaofeng were also mentioned, how come it's just the three of them?]

[Believe me, Qin Shi Huang, more than any whistleblower.]

[This industry insider's leak is actually believable, and Jin Shiyue's IP address has changed to domestic.]

Open your eyes and look; there's definitely something below.

Ye Hantao blocked out some of the repeated comments before she could see Liao Jiayue sitting behind the round table and the host next to her.

A bunch of orchids bloomed quietly on the table, and a book was placed next to the vase. The comments said that it was "Jane Eyre," which Liao Jiayue had just shared and was currently reading.

Ye Hantao recalled that she had indeed seen photos of books shared by Liao Jiayue on the trending topics a few times.

"Did Teacher Liao call his old classmate yesterday?"

"Isn't it because you guys said you'd only give me 50,000 as a reward? I was worried it was too little, so I called to test the waters first."

[A non-celebrity getting 50,000 yuan for appearing on a TV show is quite a lot.]

Some completely unknown individuals only get paid a few thousand yuan for variety shows.

[Earning 50,000 yuan for two months of recording? Where can you even sign up for an event like this? Liao Jiayue's classmate actually thinks it's too little—is she a rich heiress even wealthier than Liao Jiayue?]

"I don't mind if it's not enough." Before sending the comment, Ye Hantao had a sudden thought, deleted a word, and clicked send.

I think it's not enough.

Ye Hantao watched as the three words were swallowed up by the barrage of comments. She waited for a while, but didn't hear the system's mechanical voice. She wasn't surprised.

After thinking for a moment, I opened my profile on Qingmang TV, changed my nickname to Ye Hantao, and then browsed the comments section under the videos.

[Ye Hantao: I think it's not enough.]

Just refreshed the page, and there were already comments below: "[Hahaha, sis, you really know how to be sarcastic!]"

Ye Hantao: I am the person in question.

[Yes, yes, that's you! Wait a minute, I'll get the girls in the group to come and yell at you!]

"Liar," Ye Hantao muttered. If she really believed it, the system would have spoken up already.

In the live broadcast room, the host continued to ask questions: "Teacher Liao just asked for the address of his old classmate, and he seemed to frown. Is there something inconvenient about it?"

“I spent half a year in Yuncheng during junior high school, so I still remember the neighborhood divisions there.” Liao Jiayue pursed her lips. “I didn’t expect Han Tao’s family to move from the city center to the suburbs.”

To protect the privacy of unsigned guests, Liao Jiayue and Ye Hantao cannot play their phone calls on public.

Therefore, netizens are unaware of where Ye Hantao currently lives.

Now, hearing Liao Jiayue mention the general area, I suddenly understand.

[Is it in the suburbs of Yuncheng, near Tianbao District?]

[I know this place. It's in the suburbs next to Tianbao District. The house prices are only a quarter of those in the city center, but the environment is just average.]

[Hilarious! Is this guest from the worst family of origin?]

[Your terrible family background is enough to make you laugh to death; it's a miracle you're still alive (rolls eyes.jpg)]

[You're all so surprised? Yueyue just mentioned before the call today that her initial intention in inviting this classmate was to help improve her life.]

Ye Hantao sat up straighter and muttered to herself, "This is why Jiayue chose to call me."

Outside the window, the sounds of blackbirds and cicadas chorused like a symphony, but the curtains were not yet drawn.

Ye Hantao leaned over the bedside and turned on the light. The light slanted in, illuminating a row of law books on the desk and an unfinished ink painting spread out on the desk. The nine-square grid of Q-version portraits was only half-finished.

The host then aptly introduced a new topic, "Teacher Liao, how long has it been since you last saw your classmates?"

Liao Jiayue reminisced, "It's been almost five years."

"Did you stay in touch during that time?"

"No, actually I even got the phone number from my junior high school homeroom teacher."

Host: So how did you come up with the idea of ​​inviting this student?

"After taking promotional photos for the show a couple of days ago, I had dinner with a friend, and she told me that Han Tao's family is quite..."

Liao Jiayue quickly stopped talking and said with a smile, "Anyway, it was a suggestion from a mutual friend. We're all classmates."

Just then, there was a knock on the bedroom door.

"Tao Tao, are you awake?" Zhou Ti's voice wasn't loud, as if she were testing the waters. "Your brother bought mango tarts."

"woke up!"

Ye Hantao, with her sweet tooth, quickly turned off the variety show, threw off the covers, and ran out of the bedroom.

Therefore, I missed the next round of criticism in the live stream chat.

[Yueyue is too kind. At least invite a wealthy friend; what kind of buzz can you generate by inviting a non-celebrity classmate?]

[We hadn't been in touch for four or five years, so it just so happened that Yueyue mentioned it to a mutual friend right after she finished taking promotional photos for the show?]

[Family members, I can't help but speculate about a conspiracy; could Yueyue be being exploited?]

[It's all wrapped up!]

[This guy's definitely going to be a blood donor. Just wait, before the show even ends, he'll be making money off social media!]

"Brother—!" Ye Hantao ran out of the bedroom like a little bird, her voice preceding her arrival.

The morning light streamed into the living room, and Zhou Mingsheng leaned against the sofa armrest, his long legs stretched out and resting against the coffee table.

He casually flipped through a copy of "Introduction to Jurisprudence" that he had picked up from the sofa, his handsome features drooping, showing obvious signs of weariness.

Hearing the sound, he looked up and saw his younger sister, whose eyes and brows were full of life. She had run halfway to him when Zhou Ti stopped her.

Zhou Ti bent down and touched Ye Hantao's knees. "Why are you running? Can your brother fly? Does your knee still hurt after sleeping all night?"

Zhou Mingsheng suddenly stood up, not even remembering to put the book back in his hand, and strode over to Ye Hantao and squatted down, "Are your joints hurting again?"

"Hey, why are you all so serious?" Ye Hantao thought to herself, "If I really have a genetic disease like the system said, it's much more serious than joint pain."

It's a system restriction that prevents her from revealing any related information to her family.

Afraid that her family would notice something was wrong with her expression, she peered past the two of them to look for the mango tart her brother had brought back, while reassuring them, "Rest at home for a few days, and you'll definitely be fine."

After searching around and not finding it, she looked down and asked her older brother, who was squatting in front of her, "Brother, where's the mango tart you bought?"

"I was afraid you weren't awake, so I put it in the refrigerator to chill."

Ye Hantao went to the refrigerator again and found a box with the "POL" logo on the refrigerator shelf. The rich aroma of mangoes wafted out along the edge of the box.

She pretended to be eager to eat the mango tart, put the box back in the refrigerator, and rushed to the bathroom to brush her teeth.

Zhou Ti and Zhou Mingsheng were also deeply saddened by their daughter/sister's carefree attitude.

A few years ago, a month before Tao Tao fell into a coma and was hospitalized, she first experienced joint pain. Later, she had a fever, the flu, and heart cramps. She was so sick that she completely forgot about the trigger of the joint pain.

Thinking of this, Zhou Mingsheng unconsciously tightened his grip on the book he was holding. Zhou Ti shook her head, her voice barely audible, "I told your father that our family is moving in a few days."

On the day of the last move, Tao Tao regained consciousness in the hospital. Zhou Mingsheng responded, but he was still worried.

After confirming in the mirror that her eyes weren't red, Ye Hantao, with a mouthful of toothpaste foam, leaned out from behind the bathroom door and mumbled, "How come you guys can always buy it every time you go?"

This dessert shop has been open for over ten years. Ye Hantao loved eating there even when her family was still living in a three-bedroom apartment in the city center. Unlike other shops that she could afford, her desserts were either too creamy or not moist enough.

POL stores offer high-quality taste and ingredients at affordable prices, attracting increasing foot traffic and often selling out within an hour of opening.

Later, after her family moved to an older neighborhood, she regretted that if she wanted to eat it again, she would have to get up at three or four in the morning to take a bus to the city center.

To my surprise, I saw it again near the neighborhood the following week. Apparently, the original landlord wanted to raise the rent, and the shop owner, not wanting to indulge the landlord, looked for a new shop.

Although the shop is located near the residential area, Ye Hantao often has to wait in long lines when she goes to buy it, and she rarely manages to buy the dessert she wants.

On the contrary, my parents and brother would bring back a box of desserts from the store every now and then, including the best-selling mango tart.

"There weren't many people around on my way home." Zhou Mingsheng accompanied Zhou Ti as they brought out the freshly heated steamed buns and shumai from the kitchen. On the table were the vegetable porridge and soy milk that he had brought back that morning.

After brushing her teeth and washing her face, Ye Hantao carefully applied some moisturizing lotion in front of the mirror.

There weren't many bottles and jars on the washstand; almost all of them were things she and her mother used. The brands weren't the well-known, mainstream ones; they were from a rare, lesser-known brand. She had searched online before when recommending it to her classmates, and it was so small that it didn't even have an online store.

The family of three sat at the dining table eating breakfast. When they were almost finished, Ye Hantao finally told them that she had agreed to participate in the variety show.

Zhou Mingsheng wasn't home yesterday and didn't know what had happened. Zhou Ti, however, stopped eating her porridge and said, "Weren't you worried yesterday that you weren't familiar with each other and would feel awkward in front of the camera?"

“Jia Yue called again this morning.” Ye Hantao finished eating two xiaolongbao and half a bowl of porridge and then stopped. She took out a mango tart from the box and continued eating while scooping out pieces, “I was thinking of taking a trip during the holiday, and I have 100,000 yuan.”

"One hundred thousand? The price has gone up?"

“Oh, Jia Yue said the production team’s 50,000 yuan was too little. She called yesterday to test the waters, and today she formally invited them. The production team will offer 50,000 yuan, and she will offer another 50,000 yuan.”

Ye Hantao, biting into a piece of mango, said, "I think I'll return the 50,000 yuan to Jiayue privately after the variety show ends."

"Tao Tao, is this the formal invitation you're referring to?"

Zhou Mingsheng found the live replay of the pilot episode of "Classmates Are Here" on his phone.

He glanced down at her for a moment, then, as Ye Hantao leaned closer to look, he turned off the live chat, lifted his eyelids, and asked in a low voice, "Your phone call was broadcast live?"

Ye Hantao nodded, "Yes."

Only by live-streaming can one maintain their persona, and also slow down the progression of the illness. As for whether the system is deceiving people, there should be subtle changes once the severity of the illness drops to 95%.

In the replay, the host announced loudly, "See you on 'Classmates Are Here'!"

Liao Jiayue stood up and shook hands with the host, ending the live broadcast.

After the production crew left, the manager, who hadn't said a word, turned his head and said, "What's going on? Didn't you say last week that you wanted to invite your high school classmate, saying he was an idiot?"

"She's hooked up with a rich young master." Liao Jiayue's expression was not good. She didn't know if it was the butterfly effect or what, but her high school classmate, who was supposed to be the stepping stone in the plot, had actually hooked up with that rich young master two months earlier.

Even if the other party had the intention of keeping a mistress, they had already spent the money they needed to. "Now they live in a big apartment and drive a BMW. If I invite her over again, wouldn't that obviously create a conflict in their public personas?"

Liao Jiayue inadvertently revealed her status as a wealthy heiress from the very beginning of her career. "Classmates Are Coming" is her first variety show, and she must deliver a stellar performance.

"I've seen photos of this junior high classmate you invited," the agent's gaze swept over Liao Jiayue's delicate features, her mind wavering. "Aren't you worried that she'll grow up and steal your thunder?"

Liao Jiayue was touching up her lip gloss in front of the mirror. Because she debuted with a pure and innocent image, her makeup was very light and natural.

"Even if you grow up, it's useless if you can't improve your temperament." Liao Jiayue smiled sarcastically. "My family is desperately poor. I recommend cheap skincare products that cost ten or twenty yuan every day. My shoes are always the same few pairs of wholesale goods from Yiwu. I eat in the cafeteria every day to save money."

If Ye Hantao had started working a few years later, things might have changed, but starting university right now is the perfect time.

Like that high school classmate who was kept by a sugar daddy, she had never seen much of the world, couldn't learn how to do makeup, and didn't know anything about dressing. Just the difference in wealth among the students in the dormitory made her feel inferior, no different from a rat in the corner.

Judging from Ye Hantao's behavior in junior high school, her family background was probably not as good as this high school classmate's. She first experienced the stark contrast between rich and poor in college, and then witnessed the glamorous lives of celebrities in variety shows. It's easy to imagine what she would become.

The agent was puzzled, "You remember this country bumpkin so clearly." He even remembered that the other person recommended skincare products and that he ate at the cafeteria every day.

Liao Jiayue did not continue the topic. "Keep an eye on public opinion guidance, but don't be too straightforward. Let netizens guess and analyze for themselves, and they will believe it without a doubt."

"I've already spoken to the PR department." The company maintains hundreds of marketing accounts, so there's no shortage of press releases.

As the agent spoke, she glanced at the artist she managed. Just by looking at her proficiency with these common methods used in the industry, even she was surprised, as if Liao Jiayue was the agent who had been doing this for over ten years.

Is this what a born star is like?

The variety show "Classmates Are Here" is scheduled to start on July 26th. When Ye Hantao signed the contract, the program staff informed her that the first episode was tentatively scheduled to be filmed in Beijing.

That evening, Xiao He, the staff member in charge of the liaison, tapped Ye Hantao's chat box.

"Tao Tao! Come and hear some good news!"

Ye Hantao was furiously writing a "script" on her desk to maintain her persona when she heard Xiaohe say there was good news. She immediately replied, "What is it?"

Both of them were dessert lovers, and they quickly became familiar with each other. After receiving the news, Xiaohe immediately ran over to tell Taotao.

"The recording location for the first night has been changed to Yuncheng! You no longer need to worry about buying plane tickets or taking the high-speed train to participate in the show."

"Ahhhhh, that's great!" Ye Hantao typed quickly, "The dessert shop next to my house is super delicious, if I can find some there, I'll bring you some!"

"When we were filming in Yuncheng, my dad even drove me there in his electric tricycle [cat throwing flowers.jpg]"

The family originally had a four-wheeled gasoline car, but her father's investment in a friend's shop failed, resulting in the house being downgraded by one room and the car being downgraded by one wheel.

Xiaohe: "I overheard that it was suggested by the big investor who just arrived. Your first night's accommodation has been changed from a guesthouse to a three-story villa, and all the fruits and vegetables used are organic, directly supplied from the farm! And you don't even need to advertise!"

Ye Hantao exclaimed, "That's incredibly extravagant!"

Xiaohe: "I hope more Gods of Wealth like this come, so that we staff members can also benefit from their good fortune."

A note from the author:

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Who is this extravagant God of Wealth? It's so hard to guess! [Cat emoji]