Chapter 80: Transmigrated as a Fraudulent Male Streamer (4)
An old classmate running a streaming platform?
Cen Yu pondered for a moment before remembering who this person was: the story’s Male Lead #1, He Yongning.
Like Pei Hengyun, he had hailed from that same rural middle school. A completely self-made, wealthy first-generation entrepreneur, he wasn’t particularly close with Pei Hengyun. In the novel, the two only gradually developed feelings for each other after arriving at the class reunion plagued by one strange occurrence after another.
Calm, composed, a bit of a germaphobe, and possessing the mature, reliable air of a self-made tycoon, he was practically a prime candidate for the main love interest.
—Yes, after carefully studying the book, Cen Yu still managed to sniff out that subtle, implicit harem-stock vibe hidden beneath its horror exterior.
“He Yongning?” Cen Yu blurted out the name immediately. “He’s your classmate?”
The gentle smile on Pei Hengyun’s face remained unchanged. “We just haven’t seen each other in years.” He continued as he drove, “It works out perfectly that you’re coming back with me this time. Who knows—maybe he’ll see your talent for streaming and decide to promote you.”
Much like Yu Xinyu’s blind worship and attachment to Cen Yu in the previous book, the Pei Hengyun in this world saw absolutely no problem with supporting a boyfriend who didn’t earn much. In fact, even though he was deathly afraid of ghosts and spirits—scared to the point of cowering in Cen Yu’s arms at the mere mention of the words “horror movie”—he would still drive out to rescue Cen Yu whenever he got into danger.
Cen Yu was also immensely curious about what the ending of the novel hinted at:
What on earth was that whole “the entire class reunion is a massive conspiracy, everyone was duped” thing actually about?
Unable to suppress his curiosity, he tried to flip to the very end of the script to check, only to be hit with a system prompt: [Non-plot characters, please refrain from cheating.]
So just because he was destined to die early, he wasn’t even allowed to read the rest of the script? Cen Yu cursed the System inwardly!
“Where did you go to high school?” Cen Yu asked, pretending not to know.
“Meiman High School,” Pei Hengyun replied. “We only had one high school in our town, and the entire grade consisted of just one class.”
He added with a smile, “It just so happens that it’s been ten years since we graduated, so the class monitor suggested we all get together.”
Cen Yu recalled from the original novel that Pei Hengyun’s old family home had been destroyed by a mudslide, so they could only stay temporarily at Jiang Tuan’s place.
Jiang Tuan was the village chief’s son, and having just built a brand-new house in the township, he was able to accommodate Pei Hengyun and the others. His character was set up as someone who had harbored a secret crush on Pei Hengyun back in high school. Unprepared for his first love to return to his hometown for a class reunion, he welcomed him with immense enthusiasm.
Consequently, he harbored a deep distaste for Cen Yu, who had tagged along under the guise of a “good friend,” viewing him as an unreliable slacker who did nothing but live-stream on his phone all day.
Before they knew it, the car had pulled back into the urban district. Sitting in the back seat, Little Le noticed they were nearing his neighborhood and immediately interjected to interrupt their conversation. “Brother Pei, Brother Cen, I’m home.”
Pei Hengyun pulled the car up along the curb.
Little Le lived in a relocated residential estate with a bustling entrance; even at past two in the morning, a good number of night-market stalls were still operating by the gate.
The scene carried a warm, lively atmosphere, putting Little Le slightly more at ease.
Before stepping out of the car, he looked up at Cen Yu and the good-natured Pei Hengyun. After a moment’s hesitation, he spoke to Cen Yu—
“Brother Cen, I won’t be coming in tomorrow.”
“?” Cen Yu hadn’t expected Little Le to suddenly resign.
“…I just can’t get over what happened tonight,” Little Le confessed. As if recalling what he had seen upon waking up, his legs trembled slightly as he spoke. He threw a look at Cen Yu. “I’m sorry, Brother Cen. I guess my guts are just too small.”
Little Le’s sudden resignation caught Cen Yu entirely off guard.
Not that it made much of a difference… after all, Cen Yu was destined to meet his demise in that rural township very soon anyway.
So, putting on an irritated front, he threw out a few lines like “I told you there are no ghosts in this world” and “How can you believe in hallucinations,” before transferring the money owed to Little Le and letting him head home.
Watching Little Le’s back vanish into the bustling entrance of the residential estate, Cen Yu added a few more complaints—
“You saw that guy, right?”
“What’s there to be so terrified of a vagrant?” Cen Yu couldn’t help venting to Pei Hengyun.
Pei Hengyun, however, wore an understanding expression. “Still, I really don’t think that was a human…” He paused, then looked at Cen Yu. “Why don’t we quit doing this altogether?”
He thought for a moment. “How about you become a gaming streamer instead? I hear they make pretty good money.”
“Me, a gaming streamer? Playing Tetris live in front of a camera?”
It wasn’t that the original Cen Yu hadn’t considered becoming a gaming streamer, but he was terrible at every single game, with Tetris being his sole specialty. Of course, he had also entertained the idea of becoming a beauty streamer.
Yet for some bizarre reason, no one seemed to appreciate his looks. Hardly anyone ever entered his channel, and the rare viewer who stumbled in would leave a comment like:
[With a face like that, you’re trying to be a beauty streamer? You joking?]
Naturally, Cen Yu had suffered a total breakdown and ultimately decided to stick to being an outdoor exploration streamer courting danger.
Cen Yu had looked at his reflection in the livestream camera and confirmed that his features hadn’t changed at all. There was no logical reason why everyone praised his good looks and striking appearance in the last world, only for people in this world to consider him an eyesore, right?
Cen Yu cast another glance at himself in the rearview mirror.
He verified that he indeed looked the same as he did in the previous world (after all, this was his original appearance).
“…How would you rate my looks?” Cen Yu couldn’t help asking.
Pei Hengyun hadn’t started the car yet. Hearing the question, he turned his head to look at Cen Yu.
Cen Yu’s hair was somewhat long, reaching down to his neck, and had been bleached a pale ash-gray for stream aesthetics. He possessed a cool, melancholic countenance, with two tear-moles beneath his eye standing out quite prominently… Pei Hengyun’s gaze lingered on his tear-moles for a brief moment before he spoke. “Babe is naturally very handsome.”
“…Then why couldn’t I make it as a beauty streamer?” Cen Yu grumbled in confusion.
He was genuinely baffled. Why had the original Cen Yu been flamed for being ugly when he tried to be a beauty streamer?
Who knows what crossed Pei Hengyun’s mind, but a fond smile spread across his face. “Maybe they just don’t know how to appreciate true beauty.”
“To me, Babe is the most handsome person in the world.”
“…Tone down the sappiness.” Cen Yu rubbed his arm to smooth down the goosebumps.
In the character setup, Pei Hengyun was three years older than Cen Yu, which was why he was normally extremely tolerant of him, completely indulging his every whim.
According to the original book’s tropes, Pei Hengyun played the role of the devoted house-husband shou, while Cen Yu was the ungrateful young-wolf gong.
The two soon arrived at the apartment Pei Hengyun had purchased. The floor space wasn’t particularly large, but the interior decor was exceptionally cozy.
Stepping inside, Cen Yu immediately noticed a painting hanging on the wall. The canvas featured nothing other than a high school; leaning in closer, one could even spot students attending class inside the school building.
The inscription at the bottom was simple as well:
Meiman High School · Summer of 2012
It appeared to be a painting Pei Hengyun had created depicting his own high school days. Who would have thought the protagonist shou was so nostalgic about his high school life?
The thought flickered through Cen Yu’s mind as he stared at the painting. But if he remembered correctly, hadn’t Pei Hengyun never returned to his hometown even once since graduating from high school?
