20: Life is short, so seize the day!

"You've really been in the zone these past two days," he said, tilting his head as he studied her. "You're becoming more open with your topics, and you're brave enough to respond to anything."

Bai Xinran was picking up her water glass to take a sip and nearly choked upon hearing this.

She wiped the corner of her mouth and raised an eyebrow at him. "Making money isn't something to be ashamed of. Besides, it's just talk; it's not like they can actually do anything."

Yu Heng gave a low chuckle. "Fair enough, that's a good mindset. Just treat the people in the stream like heads of cabbage."

"Haha, heads of cabbage? Seriously?" Bai Xinran was amused.

"Otherwise, are you the cabbage and they're the pigs?" Yu Heng joked. "But aren't you the dog? Why are you calling other people 'dog' in the stream?"

"Psh! They gave gifts!" Bai Xinran said with a grin. "I'm just satisfying the diverse needs of the fans!"

"Alright then. How was the haul today?" Yu Heng asked.

"Today's revenue was over ten thousand again!" Bai Xinran leaned closer to Yu Heng to show him the backend data. "Look at the number of SCs; it's even higher than yesterday."

Yu Heng glanced at the screen and smiled. "Tomorrow, record a submission—the self-introduction kind. Then, during the stream, ask if anyone can record for you. You can post stream highlights later."

He mused that relying solely on the stream's organic traffic was still a bit slow.

Posting videos and gaining followers was key, as Bilibili was still primarily video-based at this time.

"Got it, I understand." Bai Xinran noted it down seriously, then gave a small yawn and rubbed her eyes. "Then I'll head back now; it's already 10 o'clock."

As she spoke, she walked toward her room to grab her backpack.

"Wait a second, I'm heading back to the school dorms too." Yu Heng stood up from the sofa and grabbed his jacket from the armrest. "It's on the way. Let's walk together; it's not safe for you alone late at night."

Bai Xinran turned to look at him. "You're going back to the dorms too?"

"Yeah," Yu Heng walked to the entryway to change his shoes. "I haven't submitted my off-campus housing application yet!"

The two walked side-by-side on the small path leading to the school, the streetlights stretching their shadows long and short.

A night breeze blew past, carrying the chill of early autumn and fluttering the stray hairs on Bai Xinran's forehead.

"Say..." Bai Xinran suddenly spoke up. "Can our line of work really stay this popular forever? It feels a bit unreal. The money is coming in so fast; what I've earned these past few days is as much as a month's worth of living expenses."

Yu Heng kept his hands in his pockets and said slowly, "No one can say for sure how long it will stay popular. But with the internet, as long as you catch the trend, even a pig can fly. We're currently riding that trend, so we should flap our wings as much as possible while we can still fly and build up some capital. Even if the wind stops one day, we'll have money to do other things. Money makes money; it's the same no matter what you do."

He glanced at her. "So, don't think too much. While the momentum is good, record more videos and accumulate works and fans. You can't go wrong with that. Even if Virtual Streamers stop being popular later, with such a large fan base, it'll be easy to transition to something else."

"Mm, that makes sense." Bai Xinran nodded. "Anyway, as long as I follow the boss, there'll be meat to eat!"

"Glad you know." Yu Heng smiled and looked at the female dormitory building ahead. "We're here. Go on in. Remember to record the video tomorrow."

"Got it! Goodbye, Boss!" Bai Xinran waved at him and ran into the dormitory entrance.

Yu Heng pushed open his dorm door, and a familiar smell of instant noodles mixed with sweat wafted toward him.

"Oh, Brother Heng is back?" Hao Junran was sitting with his legs crossed, munching on spicy strips. "I thought you were out having a good time again tonight."

"How could I not come back?" Yu Heng curled his lip. "They still have to do bed checks!"

In his previous life, he hadn't kept much contact with this group after graduation, but looking at them now, these guys were actually quite interesting.

And they had all ended up doing pretty well for themselves.

Hao Junran later became a director at a short video company, managing several accounts with millions of followers;

Liu Tianqi was indeed amazing at gaming; although he didn't become a top-tier Streamer, he did well on smaller platforms;

Hou Xudong joined a TV station after graduation and had solid cinematography skills.

Weren't these all ready-made resources?

And they could all be put to use.

He suddenly felt that moving out wasn't strictly necessary. After all, he still had four years of university; he couldn't just be a loner.

He could spend Friday to Sunday nights at the Villa and stay in the dorm during the week.

Not long after, the lights-out bell rang.

At 11 o'clock, the power to the dorm lights was cut.

But the power strips and such could still be used.

However, everyone in their dorm was already in bed by this time.

"Damn, they're really punctual with those lights." Hao Junran rolled over in bed, making the bedboards creak. "Hey, which girl in our class do you guys think is the prettiest?"

Liu Tianqi chimed in upon hearing this, "It has to be Lin Zixi. She's so cute, and she speaks with a bit of a southern accent."

"So you like that type." Hou Xudong scoffed from his bunk. "In my opinion, someone like Hou Yuting is the real deal. Look at how she barely talks to guys; she's so cold and aloof. The more she's like that, the more it makes you want to conquer her!"

"In terms of classiness, it has to be Meng Shirui," Hao Junran suddenly interrupted. "You can tell at a glance she was raised in a wealthy family; I've never seen her wear the same outfit twice. And have you noticed? When she looks at people, her eyes are especially seductive—both pure and sultry."

Hearing the name Meng Shirui, Yu Heng's heart stirred.

During his freshman year, Meng Shirui had proactively confessed to him and even pursued him for half a year.

At that time, he always felt that her family background was too good and that he, coming from an ordinary family, wasn't a good match, so he stubbornly refused to agree.

Not long after, he got together with He Mengyao.

However, even now, he couldn't figure out what Meng Shirui had seen in him.

"Yu Heng, why aren't you saying anything?" Hao Junran poked his head out to look at Yu Heng in the adjacent bunk. "Who do you think is the prettiest?"

Yu Heng rolled over. "They're all okay."

"Quit acting," Liu Tianqi clicked his tongue. "Did you look at the beauties any less during military training?"

Yu Heng curled his lip. "That was purely appreciation—equally appreciating every pretty girl."

Hou Xudong suddenly lowered his voice. "Seriously though, Meng Shirui's legs are incredible—long and straight. Last time she wore a short skirt to class, I sat in the back row just staring at her legs; I didn't hear a word of the lecture."

"Can you fucking have some self-respect?" Hao Junran laughed and cursed. "Look at Yu Heng; I've seen him eating in the cafeteria with two big beauties several times!"

"Really? Who?" Liu Tianqi pressed. "From our class?"

"None of them are from our class. They're all my high school classmates. Is it that strange to eat together?" Yu Heng said.

Hao Junran leaned halfway out of his bunk and lowered his voice mischievously. "So what if they're high school classmates? Confess already, how far have you gotten with those two beauties? Held hands? Kissed?"

Yu Heng lay on the bed with his hands behind his head and rolled his eyes in the dark. "None of your business. Go to sleep."

"Tch, boring." Hao Junran grumbled as he pulled back. "I think you just have a guilty conscience."

Yu Heng didn't say anything, but his mind was racing.

He thought about the Meng Shirui they had just discussed.

In his previous life, he really had been a bit too traditional; male chauvinism was undesirable.

What 'matching' or 'not matching'?

What 'responsible' or 'not responsible'? Life is short, enjoy it while you can!

Family background and all that—put it aside.

With Meng Shirui's figure and temperament, getting a taste wouldn't be a loss.

It was better than his previous life where he directly refused and didn't even get a whiff.