Love Variety Show: The despised me exploded in popularity

The car headed toward the city center, and Xu Qingyan didn't bring up anything else, driving in silence.

Because he had been caught in the rain, he became adept at ruining other people's umbrellas.

He had seen too much of society's gristly side, only bullying young girls who were easy targets; there was nothing scary about them. He had seen worse people and had been a bad guy himself.

The fruit shop owner didn't dare to stir up trouble, it was just that he had run into someone even more problematic than himself, someone who would turn hostile at the smallest disagreement.

Xu Qingyan never gave a thought to the logic of the lower social strata, nor did he want to reason with them. In Southern familial cultures, things weren't about right or wrong, only about smoothing things over and getting things done.

If you were in the right, there was no need to reason with anyone, the past was all about who had your back.

Li Yang had better options and shouldn't take detours in repetitive physical labor. Hardships didn't refine a person; they only brought more inferiority and hesitancy.

During the wait at red lights, he replied to a few messages.

Shen Jinyue: "You actually didn't know I was attending Xinghai University!!! (Hammer emoji!)"

Xu: "You don't look like a college student either."

Shen Jinyue: "(Angry!!) What do you mean? Clarify! (Grabs collar) What about me doesn't look like a college student, are you saying I look old! (Angry!)"

Xu Qingyan couldn't be bothered to explain, ending the conversation with a meme.

In the center of Xinghai City, the building known as Fung Fish Garden was constructed around ancient towers. Famous and expansive, many luxury cars were navigating around looking for parking spots.

Upon arrival, parking was free.

Xu Qingyan felt oddly at ease about this; he had often followed others to banquets before. Some restaurants and taverns charged for parking, others for "tea and napkin" fees.

Or they would itemize the costs for seat covers, towels, and napkins, charging per bowl of rice. Some even charged absurd fees for kitchen labor, fire use, or dishwashing.

After inquiring at the front desk, they learned the location of their private room; a waiter guided them upstairs, through the corridor, to the door of the room.

Lin Chuan was already waiting at the door, greeting them warmly from a distance.

"Long time no see, Brother Xu, it's like seeing a voice embodied."

"We just spoke on the phone a couple of days ago, so it's not that long. Brother Xu smiled amiably, chatting effortlessly with Lin Chuan, "If not seeing each other for a day feels like an eternity, then I guess..."

Their relationship wasn't complicated; Lin Chuan wanted to meet talented lyricists and composers, Xu Qingyan wanted to know some reliable peers. Older folks didn't really pay him any mind.

A good person to be around and very comfortable, they hit it off immediately.

From the moment Li Yang saw Lin Chuan, she was stunned. She had been too nervous on the way there and had not paid attention to who Xu Qingyan had planned to meet, thinking it was just a friend.

Who would have thought that Xu Qingyan's dining companion was Lin Chuan? Even though Li Yang wasn't a fan, she knew of the recently popular Lin Chuan, widely recognized as a promising new generation artist.

Although she couldn't remember the names of the songs Lin Chuan sang, just hearing his voice was enough to identify him—a voice not yet fully deepened, with an incredibly wide range and pure as water.

"This must be your sister, right? Hello, sister, you're so pretty," Lin Chuan didn't neglect anyone's feelings, leaning against the door with words as if bathed in spring breeze.

"A sister from my hometown, she's a freshman at Xinghai University," Xu Qingyan introduced casually.

Feeling both of their gazes, she became extremely nervous.

"My name is Li Yang, Li as in 'dawn', Yang as in... 'ripple'."

"Oh, Li sister, your surname is rather similar to mine. Maybe I'll just call you sister, is that okay?" Lin Chuan was truly nice, speaking with measure, exuding sincerity.

"...Yes, that's fine," Li Yang meekly nodded.

This was her first encounter with a celebrity, completely unprepared for it. And... to also know Brother Xu so well, they seemed very familiar!!!

She had never imagined meeting a celebrity; they were people from a whole different world, yet here she was seeing one face to face.

"For our first meeting, I'll give you a little gift," Lin Chuan brought out a small box and handed it to Li Yang, "It's not expensive, just a little token."

Inside was a delicate piece of jade jewelry, indeed just a small accessory.

Li Yang was confused, looking instinctively at Xu Qingyan.

"He's already calling you sister, so just call him Brother Lin," he said with a smile, "This is a token of intention from your Brother Lin Chuan; he'll be sad if you don't accept it."

Li Yang, still dazed, accepted the gift and obediently called him by name.

"Thank you, Brother Lin Chuan."

Lin Chuan responded with a smile, "Let's go in and order, don't let ourselves get hungry."

The three of them took their seats in the private room, which seemed a bit empty.

Li Yang sat next to Xu Qingyan, looking down at the sanitized bowls and chopsticks on the table as if trying to become invisible, not wanting to interfere with Xu Qingyan's business discussion.

"Do you have any dietary restrictions, sister? What about you, Brother Xu?" Lin Chuan prepared to order.

"None," she replied.

"I'm easy," he said.

Lin Chuan skillfully ordered the dishes through the tablet on the table, quickly selecting all the dishes. He informed them of six hot dishes, three cold ones, a soup, and some fruit and desserts.

When Xu Qingyan heard five hot dishes, his eyelid twitched, knowing someone else was expected to join. Under normal circumstances, the number of hot dishes was usually 1.2 times the number of people, so four hot dishes would have been enough.

Now, seeing that the three of them had opted for ten dishes, it would be suspicious if no one else showed up.

However, since Lin Chuan hadn't mentioned it while ordering, he probably wanted to gauge Xu Qingyan's reaction. If Xu Qingyan didn't bring it up or expressed a desire not to talk business, most likely nothing would come of it.

But he wasn't opposed to the idea; Lin Chuan didn't seem like someone who would recklessly recommend friends, and his character was sound. Besides, Xu Qingyan was in need of his own circle of connections.

"We've ordered quite a bit today, don't you think we can't finish it?" he pretended to be surprised and inquired.