Upon seeing the approaching person, Xu Gui's mind automatically conjured up the name:
Qiu Nai.
As a male star with some fame in the industry, Qiu Nai's appearance was naturally acceptable; at least his features were regular and delicate, neither crooked nor slanted, which already surpassed many of the crooked-mouthed and crooked-faced men in the industry.
However, as the person drew closer, Xu Gui noticed that this person seemed... somewhat, shorter?
How tall was Qiu Nai according to his profile? Xu Gui recalled, thinking uncertainly: It seemed to be 1.8 meters... She had heard someone mention it before. But
...
looking at someone who was about the same height as herself, Xu Gui couldn't help but fall into deep thought: Is this person really 1.8 meters tall? After all, she was only 1.71 meters tall.
While she was pondering, Qiu Nai had already walked up to her and said calmly, "Xu Gui, do you have time to chat with me?"
Xu Gui was thinking about his height, and upon hearing him speak, a sentence unconsciously popped out of her 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 question she had asked. She gave a dry laugh, her eyes darting around, pretending not to see Qiu Nai's ugly expression.
Qiu Nai took a breath, trying to suppress her anger, and asked again, "Can you talk to me?"
Hearing this, Xu Gui shook her head without hesitation, "No!"
Her refusal was too quick and too decisive. Qiu Nai's expression froze again, and she couldn't help but ask, "Why?"
Xu Gui took a step back, using her hand to measure the distance between them, and said, "Just stand there, don't come any closer, let's just talk like this..."
"You ask why?" Xu Gui rolled her eyes, feeling that this person was asking a question she already knew the answer to, and said very rudely, "That's because I don't want to be part of your and Tang Xu's 'play'! You two can create a CP, but why drag me into it? And make me get scolded, have rotten eggs thrown at me by your CP fans."
Xu Gui was referring to something that had actually happened. After the news spread that she had allegedly interfered in the Tang Xu and Qiu Nai CP, she was pelted with rotten eggs by their CP fans as soon as she went out.
Fortunately, although she was a bit naive at the time, she was as quick-witted as ever and managed to dodge the attack in time. It was just a pity she was a bit too foolish back then; otherwise, she would have definitely thrown ten rotten eggs back at her.
Xu Gui couldn't help but feel a little regretful about this incident, the kind of regret that made her want to slap herself when she woke up in the middle of the night.
"I'm really sorry about this. I didn't expect my fans to be so agitated," Qiu Nai said, but the next second, he changed his tone, saying, "But in this matter, you weren't the only one who suffered, were you?"
He pointed out, "As a newcomer in 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, saying, "Isn't it possible that even if I didn't get the invitation from Hunan TV this time, I would have other job opportunities later?"
There's more than just Hunan TV in this world; she clearly has other options.
Her uncooperative attitude was resolute, and Qiu Nai, unable to persuade her, frowned in confusion and said, "I don't understand. This is a win-win situation. Why are you unwilling? Regardless of other reasons, at least in this matter, you have indeed benefited, haven't you?"
All this only damaged her reputation a little, but it could bring huge profits. It seemed worthwhile no matter how you looked at it.
Xu Gui pointed out his mistake: "Only you win, while I will only bear the stigma of being a homewrecker who interfered in your relationship, and be hated by everyone! Because from the beginning, you only wanted to use me to gain fans and generate buzz, but you never thought of clarifying things for me!"
Qiu Nai's expression became somewhat guilty for a moment, and then he said, "This has nothing to do with us. This is your manager's negligence!"
Xu Gui was already a little impatient and said, "They're all black crows. Saying others are black won't make you seem white... Move aside, I'm going back."
Qiu Nai wasn't actually a good-tempered person. He could patiently talk to Xu Gui, but that was only because he "needed something from him." Now, seeing that Xu Gui was unyielding, he lost his patience.
"Xu Gui, you'd better think this through. A newcomer like you with no capital and no connections, it won't be easy for you to make it in this industry," Qiu Nai sneered, his tone arrogant. "If you cooperate with us, you might even get some publicity."
He glanced at Xu Gui and said, "While Tang Xu and I may not be as famous as the top stars, we're still better than you."
Xu Gui: ? ?
Xu Gui didn't respond immediately. Instead, she took out her phone and started tapping on the screen.
Qiu Nai, seeing her actions, assumed she was selectively ignoring him, deliberately trying to annoy him. He felt even more disdainful.
But a few seconds later, Xu Gui suddenly raised her phone and pressed the screen directly against his face.
Qiu Nai: "...What does this mean?"
Xu Gui smiled: "It means, open your eyes wide and see, 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 was known that Tang Xu was ranked sixteenth and Qiu Nai was eighteenth.
Qiu Nai: "..."
Xu Gui withdrew his hand and said insincerely: "In other words, I no longer need to ride on your popularity. I actually hope you don't ride on my popularity."
Qiu Nai was full of question marks, and laughed angrily: "We ride on your popularity? You..."
Ding-dong!
Just then, the elevator on this floor opened again, and someone came out of the elevator. Qiu Nai's voice paused, and in that instant, Xu Gui had already darted past him.
Qiu Nai's eyes widened, wanting to say something, but because of the presence of others, she couldn't chase after him and could only stand there, glaring resentfully 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."
She heard the voices of several people behind her, but Xu Gui pretended not to hear and happily returned to her room.
The next day, Xu Gui prepared to go to work (set up a fortune-telling stall) as usual. Before that, she went downstairs for breakfast—the hotel provided meals, but they had to pay for them themselves, which, of course, came from their earnings from "work" during this period.
While Xu Gui was eating breakfast, Fu Xia, whom she had met the previous night, came over and sat opposite her, stirring her noodles with chopsticks, and asked curiously, "What did the staff call you for last night? I saw everyone talking about it, guessing that a 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."
Since everyone would know about this after today, there was no need to hide it, especially not from the people in front of her. So, after thinking for a moment, Xu Gui nodded.
"Indeed, a sugar daddy has taken a liking to us," she said frankly.
Fu Xia exclaimed in surprise, looking at Xu Gui with great admiration, "You're so amazing! Sigh, why doesn't any sugar daddy take a liking to me?"
Xu Gui, seeing that she didn't seem to care much despite her words, couldn't help but ask, "Why did you enter the entertainment industry?"
Fu Xia glanced around, making sure no one was watching, before leaning closer to Xu Gui and whispering, "Isn't it because there are so many handsome men and beautiful women in the entertainment industry? I'm a bit of a looks-obsessed person; I just love looking at good-looking people!"
She said smugly, "Seeing good-looking people makes me eat two extra bowls of rice."
Xu Gui said, "I thought it was to make it easier for you to find a boyfriend."
Fu Xia didn't deny it, her face flushed, and she said somewhat shyly, "That's part of it... Let me tell you, I recently fell for a really handsome guy, he's totally my type!"
"Seriously, he's really amazing, practically a perfect man. Not only is he tall and handsome, but his temperament is also incredibly pure and clean. These days, men of this quality are so rare."
Fu Xia cupped her face in her hands. "I think I've fallen in love, I'm in a relationship... What do you think? Should I confess to him? Will he accept me?"
Xu Gui looked at her bright eyes and asked doubtfully, "Are you just asking for my opinion, or do you want me to do a fortune telling for you?"
Fu Xia said hesitantly, "If you could do a fortune telling, that would be even better."
She revealed her true intention: "Can you help me find out if he's my soulmate? I really think he's so handsome, everything about him is perfect for me. I haven't met someone I like like this in so long."
Xu Gui hummed in agreement and said, "Wait until I finish eating."
Fu Xia nodded vigorously, "Yes, yes, yes!"
The two quickly finished their meal. After eating, Fu Xia scanned 500 yuan on her phone and gave it to Xu Gui. Xu Gui immediately checked her fortune telling results, and then...
"So, is he my soulmate?" Fu Xia asked excitedly.
Xu Gui: "Uh..."
Fu Xia said enthusiastically, "I really think he's my true love. I've been watching him for days, and I have to confess to him today! Do you think I can succeed?"
Xu Gui: "Ah!"
Fu Xia looked at the expression on Xu Gui's face, and her excitement gradually cooled down. She asked softly, "Isn't he my soulmate?"
Xu Gui looked at her hesitantly, nodded, and said, "You two aren't a good match."
Fu Xia: QAQ.
She sniffed, looking dejected. "Actually, I'm not that 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?"
Xu Gui interrupted her, hearing her self-deprecating words, "That's not the reason. You're not good enough for him; it's purely an objective reason."
Fu Xia's eyes were filled with tears. "An objective reason?"
Xu Gui: "Haven't you ever thought 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 understood 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, so strong, twice my size. He makes me feel so safe. How could someone like that be an elementary school student!"
She simply didn't believe it.
Xu Gui: "I have no reason to lie to you. If you don't believe me, you can confess to him and see if it's true."
Fu Xia retorted fiercely, "I don't believe it! He's so tall and handsome, he looks like he's in his twenties. I think he's a college student." She said confidently.
Xu Gui glanced at her and said calmly, "Well, whatever makes you happy."
After breakfast, they went to prepare for their respective shoots. Fu Xia stared at Xu Gui's back 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 got to her workplace.
Fu Xia now works at a cake shop, a large cake shop at that. If you were to ask her how she manages to earn money working at a cake shop, the answer would be, of course, because she has a good father.
On her first day 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's not really. Fu's father's company has this expense every day, and they've always prepared snacks and cakes for their employees at lunchtime to help them feel full. It's just that the supplier has now changed to the cake shop where Fu Xia works.
Of course, the production team says Fu Xia isn't cheating, but the fans of the other guests don't think so, so Fu Xia's live stream is always "lively," with many netizens criticizing her for having connections and cheating.
Fortunately, Fu Xia can't see the comments in the live stream during filming, otherwise she might have become depressed.
Now, Fu Xia's gaze is fixed on the outside of the cake shop, and she can't help but sigh—she's struggling with whether to believe Xu Gui's words and give up on confessing her feelings.
As for the cake shop owner, this big spender who has multiplied their shop's revenue several times over, even if he sees Fu Xia slacking off, he chooses not to. After all, can a big spender's slacking off be called slacking off? That's called resting!
*
On the other side, Xu Gui also arrived under the overpass, where a group of regular customers are gathered at her stall.
From afar, this group of regular customers rushed over with great enthusiasm.
"Master, good morning!"
"Master, you're as radiant and energetic as ever today!"
"Master, look at my face today, will I be able to catch a big fish? Preferably a crucian carp, because I promised my wife I would..."
This
group of regular customers, chatting amongst themselves, were none other than Old Wu and his fellow anglers. Over this period, they had become Xu Gui's loyal repeat customers, and every morning when Xu Gui came, they were the ones he saw.
Just from them, Xu Gui's daily "basic wage" was already secured.
Just as everyone was chatting animatedly, a weak voice came from the side: "Are you, are you Professor Wu Yongfa?"
Professor Wu turned his head and saw a young girl looking at him excitedly. He asked somewhat blankly, "And you are?"
"I, I'm a physics student at University A, my name is Sun Xiaoxiao," the girl quickly 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, Professor Wu's expression softened. He said, "Oh, so you're a student from University A. What brings you here?"
Sun Xiaoxiao replied shyly, "Well, I'm currently working on a project, one that Professor Wu has researched before. I have a question I'm a little unclear about, and I'd like to ask you for advice!"
Professor Wu: "Oh, let me see."
The teacher and student then went to the side to work on their project, the atmosphere filled with academic seriousness. The others watching this scene were: ? ?
[Goodness, I was saying before that since these fishing enthusiasts are all big shots, if any students with questions related to their majors have any unanswered questions, they could just go to Xu Gui's fortune-telling stall and wait for these big shots. Now, someone actually did that?]
[Damn, why didn't I think of that! I'm also a physics student. I'm going to see Professor Wu at Xu Gui's this afternoon; I have a research problem that's been stuck for a long time.]
[? ? What about us from University B?] [We're in City B, it takes half a day to get there by plane.]
[Actually, if we really have any problems we can't solve, taking a plane to City A doesn't seem like a bad idea, right? These are all textbook experts! If we could get their guidance, oh my god, I'd be so happy!]
[I'm suddenly so tempted! I'll book a flight to City A right now!]
[?? I feel like a door to a new world is opening up to us! If we have 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 is afraid we'll see you trending someday. I've even thought of a title: "Retired professors suspected of being rehired by current students on the street, is this a moral decline or the coldness of the world?!"]
[Sister, you're so eloquent!]
...
Leaving aside the fact that Sun Xiaoxiao enlightened countless university students in the live stream, let's talk about Xu Gui and his group.
Watching Wu Yongfa being respectfully ushered aside by his students, Wang Defa felt a pang of jealousy, though he didn't know what others thought. He didn't know why, perhaps it was because both their names contained the character "Fa" (发), but he and Wu Yongfa had never gotten along from their first meeting, always needing to prove themselves superior.
Now, Wang Defa had to bitterly admit defeat.
All the students who respected Wu Yongfa had come, so why hadn't his own students arrived? This was outrageous! These unfilial disciples—he'd call them all and give them a good scolding when he got home.
Xu Gui ignored the squabbles between Wu Yongfa and his group, setting up his own business and dealing with Wang Defa and his group first.
After they finished calculating, Professor Wu had also finished explaining. He said, "Your topic is a bit profound. It might be difficult for you alone... Here's my phone number. If you have any questions, you can call me again."
Sun Xiaoxiao was pleasantly surprised: "Me, can I?"
"Of course!" Professor Wu said with a look of satisfaction, "I welcome every student who is serious about learning."
However, Professor Wu didn't know that he would later deeply regret his words. After all, netizens these days are all shameless. In their eyes, Professor Wu welcomes students who are serious about learning, and students who are serious about learning = them.
So, aren't the students Professor Wu welcomes them? This equation is completely unquestionable!
So, Professor Wu, just wait for their army of students!
Meanwhile, Professor Wu, unaware of what he would face next, happily went fishing with his old friends. Little did he know that his happy and leisurely fishing life was about to be gone forever.
Sun Xiaoxiao watched the professor leave, excitedly jumping up and down while holding her notebook. But after she finished jumping, she met Xu Gui's curious gaze.
Sun Xiaoxiao blushed instantly.
"Hello," she greeted Xu Gui shyly, feeling embarrassed by her earlier behavior.
Xu Gui nodded back, "Hello."
Then she asked him, "Want your fortune told?"
Now, the one with the curious gaze was Sun Xiaoxiao. She knew Professor Wu because she had watched Xu Gui's live stream before, so she knew Xu Gui could tell fortunes. However, being a physics-oriented person, Sun Xiaoxiao didn't quite understand how Xu Gui did it.
So, out of curiosity, she sat down in front of Xu Gui.
However, although Sun Xiaoxiao was curious, she had never thought of having her fortune told before, so she was a little troubled.
"But I don't seem to have anything I want to have told," 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, so my maternal grandparents took me home."
Xu Gui said, "You can take some time to go home and visit them recently."
Sun Xiaoxiao looked at her blankly. Xu Gui said, "Your maternal grandmother is sick. I think you should go back and see her."
Sun Xiaoxiao was startled and said, "But I didn't hear my maternal grandfather say anything. I called them recently, and my maternal grandmother is fine." After
saying this, before Xu Gui could say anything, she couldn't sit still anymore. She picked up her phone and stood up, saying, "I'm going to make a call."
She hurriedly walked to the side, found her maternal grandfather's number, and dialed it. Soon, 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'd worry? I'm worried because you didn'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, then hurriedly returned to Xu Gui's fortune-telling stall, her face showing barely concealed anxiety.
"Miss Xu, thank you for telling me Grandma is sick..." she said hurriedly, first scanning Xu Gui's payment for the fortune-telling with her phone, then quickly bowing to Xu Gui, before running 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 bought a ticket now and took a train or plane today, she should be able to see her grandmother one last time.
Xu Gui looked away.
Not long after Xu Gui set up her stall, a group of people carrying a pile of things came to Xu Gui and politely asked her, "Hello, are you Miss Xu Gui?"
Xu Gui looked up at them and nodded.
The other party immediately said, "We are staff from [Miaoyu], and our boss asked us to deliver this to you!"
Xu Gui looked behind them and saw a beautiful aquarium they were carrying. The aquarium was oxygenated and had already created its own ecosystem, with green plants, rocks, and beautifully swimming fish.
The cameraman: ?
The viewers in the live stream: ? ?
Then, they watched in bewilderment as this 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. Xu Gui glanced down at it.
After the people from [Miaoyu] finished putting things away, they prepared to leave. Just then, 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 trouble."
As soon as the [Miaoyu] people left, the paparazzi couldn't help but ask the question that had been nagging them: "What is [Miaoyu] and all these things doing?"
They were a little confused.