Chapter 19 – Pink-Haired Chen Bai
The person holding the umbrella glanced at the pink-haired man walking beside him.
After passing the stairs, they were back on their usual street. Entering a residential building dimly lit with a yellow glow, the sound of rain was cut off outside the building.
Xu Sinian closed the umbrella and walked upstairs with him.
Completely forgetting the topic of romance, which had nothing to do with him, Chen Bai suddenly remembered something halfway up the stairs and turned his head, saying, “I learned a new way to make small cakes today. Let’s try it together another day.”
The person behind him agreed.
Having successfully found a cake-making partner, Chen Bai was in a great mood. He arrived at his door, waved goodbye with a small flourish before closing it, his face beaming with joy.
Xu Sinian stood at the door, slowly folding up his dripping umbrella.
Chen Bai, now back home, set down his keys and immediately powered on his computer. While the computer booted, he opened the game and livestream software. As the game loaded, he went to the bathroom, grabbed a towel, and casually dried his hair.
The rain had been heavy today, and using an umbrella had only kept him from being completely soaked. It blocked most of the rain, but the rest still left him damp, requiring a manual clean-up after returning home.
Once the game finished loading, Chen Bai sat down, towel still on his head, and started his livestream. He also contacted his friend to log into the game.
Though he had come back early, it was already past his usual streaming time. Some viewers had been waiting for a while, and as soon as the stream went live, they flooded into the chat.
“Sorry for being a bit late today.”
Glancing at the barrage of comments popping up, Chen Bai switched to drying his hair with one hand while using the other to control the mouse. He said, “I just got back from a part-time job.”
“What kind of job? The piano job I mentioned earlier—I just finished a gig today.”
[Wait, someone actually booked you?!]
[Today’s outfit looks great! So you do have normal clothes!]
[Was it someone from the stream who booked you? Quick, tell us what Er Bai looks like in person!]
[Wow, you really got a gig!]
Chen Bai chuckled, “Of course.”
Qingzhou logged into the game, and the two of them seamlessly transitioned to discussing which map to practice today.
While the two of them were having a lively conversation, so was the chat, though it seemed like everyone was having entirely different conversations. The viewers in the livestream were curious, trying to summon the person who had supposedly booked the gig with Chen Bai. At first, they called for them to speak up, but eventually, the chat turned into wild guesses and random tagging of people from the donation leaderboard. The mood shifted entirely, and everyone was having fun.
After tagging the top ten on the leaderboard, and with all of them claiming not to be in A City, the viewers could only sigh in disappointment, guessing that the gig must have been with someone outside of the stream.
Just as they were about to move on, someone quietly entered the livestream, shot up to the top of the donation leaderboard, and sneakily commented: [It was me.]
In-game, Chen Bai was discussing strategy with his teammate, his head still wrapped in a towel, and was too focused to notice the chat. It wasn’t until after ambushing some enemies and collecting a good haul of equipment that he found a moment to glance at the livestream chat.
At that moment, the chat seemed to have stumbled upon something amusing. Messages were flying by, with various colorful fan badges flashing across the screen.
Most of the comments were too fast for him to read, but he did notice that many were tagging [Yushuiriqing].
Chen Bai had a rough idea of what was being discussed. Knowing that Huo Qing wouldn’t say much, he just laughed and continued playing the game.
The chat kept buzzing.
[I’m sticking around here today!]
[So, how was it? No need for specifics, just a general impression.]
[?]
[I’m too curious now! I won’t be able to finish my homework without knowing!]
Under the weight of the crowd’s expectations, Yushuiriqing didn’t say much but responded with: [Er Bai’s piano performance is something I’ll pass down as a family heirloom. ??]
[You even have a video?!]
[What video? Share it so I can check it out.]
[I’m even more curious now! Help!]
Despite all the pleading from the chat, no further details were given. In the end, the audience only reached two conclusions: first, that Er Bai was truly good at talking, capable of chatting nonstop regardless of time, place, or audience; and second, that he played the piano very well.
Some guessed that he must be quite good-looking, but they received no confirmation or solid evidence.
The hands that played the piano so well were now hammering away at the keyboard with a satisfying clacking sound.
Their strong start in the game ultimately led to a win.
Returning to the main game screen, Chen Bai finally had more time to check out the chat, which was still chaotic with a mix of comments and flashy gift effects, resembling a lively marketplace.
“Taking orders? I won’t be taking any for a while—I’m quite busy in the coming days.”
“As for curiosity… everyone looks the same, one nose, two eyes. Nothing too different.”
He continued chatting with the viewers while starting another game with his friend.
For some reason, the stream was unusually lively tonight. From start to finish, the chat never stopped buzzing with excitement.
Despite the energy, he ended the stream at his usual time, quickly showered, and went to bed.
He had work tomorrow—an assignment for a magazine he had taken on earlier. His agent would be picking him up in the morning, and staying up too late would make it impossible to wake up on time.
—Not that going to bed early would help much.
The next morning, Chen Bai managed to get up purely thanks to his desire to earn money.
By the time he finished getting ready and went downstairs, his agent’s car was already parked nearby.
With his hair still a mess, he asked if they had eaten breakfast, then generously bought them a steamed bun.
Gao Qian thanked him for the bun and advised him to fix his messy hair a little.
The photoshoot was scheduled on the other side of A City, with the actual shoot planned for the afternoon, but they needed to start preparations in the morning.
By the time they arrived at the location, the staff at the studio had already been working for a while.
The studio wasn’t just a photography space; it was a large, white building with three floors. He was headed to the second floor, which, aside from the main studio for shooting, also had a lounge, makeup room, and a wardrobe area.
As someone just working a job, Chen Bai couldn’t help but feel that every brick in this place reeked of wealth.
Gao Qian agreed, saying, “Only EV could afford to maintain a studio like this.”
EV was the magazine behind this shoot, backed by a major fashion brand and known primarily for being loaded with cash.
The project manager in charge of today’s shoot approached them, and their conversation ended.
Chen Bai received a work badge that granted him access to the studio and certain areas.
Everything else was handled by his agent. His only job was to sit quietly in the makeup room and let people work on him.
Halfway through the process, his agent returned, glanced at him a few times, nodded approvingly, and said, “Looks much better than your bird’s nest this morning.”
It was truly a transformation, thanks to the stylist’s magic hands. Even his mess of bed hair was saved.
The editor-in-chief had kept their promise: the makeup artist and styling team today were well-known in the industry, and they consulted with Chen Bai throughout. The makeup and styling were perfectly tailored to him.
Chen Bai figured the makeup artist must be the type to believe in encouragement-based teaching since they showered him with compliments from start to finish, using fresh praise every time.
As it happened, Chen Bai was also good at chatting.
The two of them exchanged compliments back and forth with such politeness that it turned into a round-based competition, leaving the people around them laughing uncontrollably.
The match ended in a tie, and the stylist asked Chen Bai to stand up and check the final result.
For this shoot, there were three outfits in total. Right now, Chen Bai was wearing the first one: a loose-fitting pink shirt with an excellent cut, designed by a designer from the fashion brand backing the magazine. It perfectly complemented his fair skin.
Several people gave him a second look and called over the project manager, whose eyes lit up before launching into a string of praises.
The styling was flawless, without a single mistake, even exceeding expectations.
The progress was so smooth that it made everyone smile. The project manager left to check on the progress in the studio.
With nothing else to do, Chen Bai followed them to take a look.
The studio was bustling, filled with people, and cables from various machines were spread all over the floor.
The setup seemed minimalist, but it clearly took a lot of effort.
Chen Bai glanced around, disappointed to find that aside from being the person in front of the camera, there was no other work here for him. He quietly sighed.
“…”
Hearing the sigh, his agent, standing nearby, turned to look at him. After a moment of thought, they realized what was going on and reassured him, “Don’t be nervous. Just follow the photographer’s instructions.”
For a newcomer to the shoot, encountering this kind of scene for the first time, it was normal to feel a bit nervous. But everyone has a first time, and after multiple experiences, they’d gradually get used to it.
Chen Bai wasn’t nervous, but he didn’t bother telling his agent that he was actually just scouting for a side gig. He simply replied, “Got it,” without saying more.
The setup for the shoot was nearly complete. While they were watching, the crew inside the studio began final checks.
The stylist found Chen Bai and made a few last-minute adjustments to his hair.
Once that was done, Chen Bai went over to have a brief conversation with the photographer, nodding and smiling.
With everything ready, he turned to meet his agent’s gaze, gave a nod, and stepped into the spotlight.
The photographers had been briefed beforehand that they were working with a newcomer, so they had prepared themselves to guide him as needed.
But when the shoot officially began, and the slender figure stepped into position, lifting his gaze to the camera, the soft light reflecting off his pale grey eyes, he no longer carried his usual smile. His posture was relaxed yet natural, with a perfect balance of coolness and ease.
The photographers’ plans to guide him quietly faded away with each click of the camera shutter.
