Chapter 20 – First Photoshoot
The studio was filled with the sound of shutters clicking.
Without needing much direction, Chen Bai surprisingly understood the photographer’s cues. He was professional, cooperative, and dedicated.
“Okay, that’s a wrap! Great job!”
The photographer straightened up and gave a thumbs-up, signaling that the first shoot was done.
Chen Bai stepped out of the lights, his face instantly breaking into a bright smile, switching his demeanor in an instant.
After exchanging a few words with the photographer, he waved at his agent with a grin.
The rest of the team was still reviewing the photos, and since there was a short break before the next shoot, Chen Bai sat down with his agent, watching the crew work.
Gao Qian raised an eyebrow as Chen Bai approached and asked, “Was this really your first shoot?”
Chen Bai sat down, held his fingers a tiny distance apart, and smiled, saying, “I’ve done a little bit of this before.”
Back in high school, he had briefly worked in this field for a while.
After graduation, he quickly moved on to delivering food, working part-time in a bubble tea shop, and livestreaming. He hadn’t been involved in this line of work since, but luckily, he still remembered a bit from back then.
Gao Qian was skeptical of the small gap Chen Bai showed with his fingers, his eye twitching. “How many jobs have you worked, exactly?”
Chen Bai gave the same smile, showing the same small distance between his fingers. “Just a little.”
The photos from the first shoot were good, so they could move on to the next set. He changed outfits, and the styling and makeup were adjusted accordingly.
The second outfit was also shot in the studio, but the third was different—it would be shot outside, just a short distance away on the street next to the building.
The street had mostly old, European-style buildings from the last century and was a common location for photo shoots.
Wearing a dusty pink coat that resembled pressed flowers, Chen Bai was handed a bouquet of blooming baby’s breath.
The photographer gestured toward the street and told him, “Walk from over there, like you’re heading to meet someone you like. Just smile.”
For once, Chen Bai didn’t immediately respond as smoothly as before. It seemed like he was thinking, and he took a long time to do so.
His agent glanced at him and, realizing something, tentatively suggested, “If you can’t imagine that, think of it this way: you’re on your way to make money, and ahead of you is the God of Wealth.”
The photographer waved his hand, “That’s too abstract, a bit hard to grasp…”
Chen Bai clenched his fist, his eyes lighting up instantly. “Got it.”
His voice was firm, and his gaze became unusually clear.
Photographer: “?”
Photographer: “Alright, as long as you get it.”
The lighting and camera crew quickly got into position.
It had rained yesterday, and though it had stopped today, the sky remained overcast. The clouds hung low over the street, casting a shadow over the buildings and people, and a breeze occasionally swept through.
Chen Bai, wearing the pink coat, walked from the end of the street with the flowers cradled in his arm, his expression relaxed, his posture easy.
He gave off a sense of calm, like a sea of flowers blooming after the rain, exuding the unique warmth and comfort of spring.
The clouds shifted, and a breeze lifted some flower petals. A beam of light broke through the thick clouds, filtering through Chen Bai’s tousled pink hair, illuminating his clear eyes, which now sparkled with a radiant smile.
Ah, so this is the power of the God of Wealth.
The moment the God of Wealth was mentioned, his eyes became crystal clear.
For a while, all that could be heard was the sound of camera shutters.
Some scenes are impossible to recreate, and a good photograph captures the most perfect moment.
The shutters stopped clicking, and after walking the length of the street, there was no need for a second take. Chen Bai squatted down on the roadside to rest.
The shoot was over, the payment secured, and the photographer, reviewing the photos, grinned with satisfaction. Chen Bai also smiled contentedly.
After the shoot, there was a brief interview, and with that, the job was officially done.
The magazine came out once a month, and this shoot was for a special edition two months from now. The results wouldn’t be seen until then.
Chen Bai wasn’t too concerned about how the photos turned out—he was more interested in when he would get paid.
Even though the job was done, they didn’t take back his work pass, and they even gave him the bouquet of baby’s breath as a keepsake.
Walking out of the white building, Chen Bai casually tucked the work pass into his pocket, wondering where to go next.
In reality, he didn’t need to think too hard.
It was mealtime, so his agent drove him to a nearby mall for dinner.
After dinner, he was driven straight back home, arriving just in time for his livestream.
The moment he started the stream, fans flooded in, and the first thing they noticed was the pink and white bouquet placed next to his keyboard.
Each flower was in full bloom, contrasting sharply with the gray-black keyboard.
[Er Bai’s got something going on!!]
[Spill the tea on what you did today!]
[Wait, isn’t Er Bai supposed to be the one giving flowers to someone else?]
“You guys think too fast,” Chen Bai picked up the bouquet and waved it in front of the camera a couple of times before putting it down. “It’s a prop from my part-time gig. They gave it to me after we finished.”
After that, he waited for his teammate to come online. Midway through, he seemed to remember something and added, “Qingzhou and I came up with a super cool team name. You’ll see it during the competition tomorrow.”
His teammate Qingzhou came online, and they quickly linked up, pausing the chat for now.
Tomorrow was the first round of the streamer competition, and today was their last day of practice. Although time was tight, there was no real sense of urgency in the stream. Chen Bai, being the chatterbox he was, didn’t stop talking—chatting with his teammate and with the chat, a non-stop commentary machine.
Qingzhou had grown completely accustomed to the constant stream of words coming from Chen Bai through the headset, no longer affected by it. Despite the chatter, he could still pick up crucial in-game sounds like footsteps, demonstrating significant growth in his focus.
The fans in the livestream believed that during the competition tomorrow, this talkative player would probably act more seriously than usual—at least talking a bit less.
But in reality, that didn’t happen.
The next day, the much-anticipated competition finally began after a month of promotion.
The first round felt like a chaotic battle. Familiar streamer IDs popped up from time to time on the official live channel, making the match both thrilling and intense. The excitement was off the charts, with viewership climbing into the millions within the two-hour stream.
From the official channel, viewers could watch the streamers’ gameplay, but they couldn’t hear their communication. From the outside, all you could see was the Baizhou Team rapidly taking down opponents, leaving none behind as they executed smooth, flashy moves.
Impressed by their slick performance, viewers clicked into their stream.
What they heard was far from the calm, tactical coordination they expected. Instead, they were met with an unbroken stream of banter, throwing them off balance.
“How many have we taken out? Oh, seven. One more and we’ve got enough for two mahjong tables.”
“There’s a guy on the mountain who looks like he wants to come down, but he’s not gonna make it in time to escape the poison zone. Qingzhou, take a shot and help him get down faster to join the seven little brothers for a mahjong game. Quick, we might even get a couple more rounds in.”
“Someone just came out of the house. Let me check if he’s got any good loot.”
He finished with, “Good old Chen Er Bai, always happy to help others.”
No competition could silence his talkative mouth. With every word, his opponents’ hopes of winning drifted away, like victims of a demon’s whisper.
To ensure fairness, viewers could send messages in the chat, but the streamers couldn’t see them. This meant that even while talking only to his teammate, Chen Bai kept up a constant stream of commentary.
[Listening to Er Bai chat while playing is scary for newcomers, and even the longtime fans are nervous (smoking emoji)]
[Don’t get it wrong, Er Bai may seem talkative, but he really is talkative]
[Baizhou Squad, the name is so cool (monotone)]
[It even sounds kind of comforting for the stomach]
[Chen Er Bai is so kind (monotone)]
The ‘kind’ Chen Er Bai became the kill leader on the day of the preliminaries, leaving behind enough defeated players to fill several mahjong tables. His fan count began to skyrocket by the tens of thousands, making him the fastest-growing streamer of the month.
The preliminaries eliminated most of the entertainment streamers and some unlucky participants, leaving the top 16, then the top 8, then the top 4, and finally, the finals. The process was a bit drawn-out.
Adding insult to injury, Chen Bai couldn’t even have dinner with his good neighbor during this long period.
Since the platform decided to schedule the competition during dinner time, it overlapped perfectly with the evening dinner break he usually had with his neighbor, forcing him to eat dinner alone beforehand.
Without his dinner buddy, his meal didn’t taste as good.
But the prize money sure did, so Chen Bai could bear it.
The top 16 and top 8 qualifiers took nearly a week, leaving only the top 4 and finals. With fewer players, the tournament should’ve progressed much faster.
Outside of the competition, Chen Bai still had enough energy to continue his regular streams. Although Qingzhou wasn’t streaming, he joined Chen Bai for their duo games.
During this time, Chen Bai also climbed the game rankings during his streams. The teammates and opponents he matched with were now much stronger than usual, on par with the level of the tournament, with the occasional pro player showing up. Chen Bai, who didn’t pay attention to this scene, relied on his teammates and chat to recognize them.
Having previously worked as a commentator, Chen Bai had met plenty of pro players in his world due to work. Being a chatterbox, he didn’t find it particularly exciting. He kept chatting as usual and kept sniping when necessary.
“By the way, we need to shoot some promotional photos soon. When are you going?”
“Bang—”
His teammate’s voice came through his headphones, and something in the words caught his attention. With a snap, Chen Bai instinctively misfired, missing his shot.
After the miss, his muscle memory kicked in, and he quickly found nearby cover, asking, “What photos?”
His teammate explained that it was for the top 4 promotion photos, and the platform had sent a message about it a few hours ago.
Having been streaming non-stop and missing all messages, Chen Bai glanced at the screen while quickly pulling out his phone. The pink-haired guy dropped his phone on the bed again.
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