Don't Be Too Nice to Me

Tang Zhi Chu sat down at the desk and turned on his computer.

There was still a little over a hundred thousand yuan left in his bank account. The rest had gone to the hospital.

Whenever he thought of his old father still lying in the hospital, Tang Zhi Chu felt a headache coming on.

After logging into the DY short-video app, he saw that he could still withdraw several tens of thousands of yuan. All things considered, his side gig currently earned about as much as the restaurant.

The restaurant made hard-earned money. With daily revenue of around five thousand yuan, after rent, utilities, and labor costs, its average monthly profit was just over forty thousand.

After Tang Zhi Chu had gained a little fame in the singing lounge, he could make that much by singing for half the night every day. It was just that his father thought his side gig was unreliable and unstable.

The father and son often argued over it.

DY, or Douyin, shared a name with the world's top unicorn company from his previous life, but its development was vastly different.

There had been no pandemic in this world, which had greatly hindered DY's growth. It now formed a three-way rivalry with KS and Penguin's Weixun.

The three powers stood in balance, each seeking a breakthrough.

DY was currently positioned as a music short-video app, so singers-for-hire like Tang Zhi Chu received traffic support and were doing fairly well.

Tang Zhi Chu even suspected that DY's official backing had played a role in getting him resources for the Dating Show.

After familiarizing himself with the Original Owner's singing equipment, Tang Zhi Chu was glad that he had opened his eyes to find himself on a Dating Show.

If it had been a music competition show, he would probably have been doomed.

Singing depended heavily on one's condition. He had arrived here out of nowhere, and for the moment, he truly could not bring out the full power of this fine voice. Being able to reach seventy or eighty percent of the Original Owner's level would already be good enough.

Besides, the two worlds were remarkably similar—so similar that many musical works had counterparts that were almost identical.

Thinking about it carefully, that was not strange at all. Vocal ranges were only so broad, vocal techniques were the same, and the cultures were similar too. By the laws of probability, identical works could exist. People won the lottery, after all.

Tang Zhi Chu stayed home until four in the afternoon, spending most of his time practicing his voice—or rather, becoming familiar with the Original Owner's vocal capabilities.

In Tang Zhi Chu's view, although the Original Owner had left him with a huge mess, he had also left behind an excellent voice.

He had never studied professionally, yet he had still dominated an online singing competition hosted by DY. One had to know that a two-hundred-thousand-yuan prize plus a variety show opportunity attracted far more than just amateur singers.

That afternoon, Tang Zhi Chu challenged himself with a relatively difficult song from this world. Using mixed voice, he effortlessly hit high C.

At four thirty, Tang Zhi Chu returned to the Small Villa.

The moment he pushed open the door, he heard sounds from the kitchen. He was surprised. Someone had come back this early?

He shifted the bag from his back into his hand. His computer was inside, and he had brought it over.

As he passed the kitchen, he glanced inside.

By coincidence, the person busy in the kitchen was Chen Si Yang.

She was still wearing her white bucket hat, with headphones over it as well.

There was a Western-style island counter in front of the stove, covered in bags of all sizes. One glance was enough to tell that they were groceries she had bought.

Tang Zhi Chu checked the time. It was just past four thirty. Was she already making dinner at this hour?

But he did not go up to speak with her. Instead, he headed upstairs, intending to put his bag in his bedroom first.

Chen Si Yang was completely absorbed in organizing the kitchen, music playing through her headphones. She did not notice anyone watching her from behind.

Why had she come back so early?

Chen Si Yang had her own little calculations.

First, she felt her cooking was only average. Making food for six people was a major undertaking, so she needed to start preparing early.

Second, Yang Jia Xing had been excessively enthusiastic. Being around him put a lot of pressure on her.

Preparing early gave her confidence, and it also let her avoid Yang Jia Xing a little.

Just like now—busy with little tasks by herself, listening to music and thinking things over. How relaxing was that?

The Planet Girl Group had nine members including Chen Si Yang. After disbanding, every one of them had gone on to develop well, except for her, who had been slacking off. That was also one reason Chen Si Yang had chosen to push herself.

"Ah!"

Perhaps she had been thinking too much and her hands had failed to keep up. While washing the knives, she accidentally cut her index finger.

Very soon, bright red blood seeped from the pale cut.

She had not wanted to bother with it, but the blood kept flowing. Chen Si Yang smacked her forehead, thinking that she had been far too careless.

Left with no choice, she went upstairs to find a Band-Aid and treat it first.

Tang Zhi Chu put down his bag and changed into a more casual outfit, looking considerably more energetic.

For someone constantly appearing in front of cameras, fashion sense was important.

Sometimes, good taste in clothes alone could attract a wave of fans.

After changing, Tang Zhi Chu was about to leave when he heard movement outside.

Someone else was back?

When he went downstairs, Chen Si Yang was nowhere to be seen in the kitchen.

Taking a closer look, he saw that she had bought quite a lot of ingredients.

There were fish and shrimp. Looking at everything together, most of the dishes seemed to be Sichuan cuisine.

He glanced upstairs and thought, That female celebrity is pretty ambitious. Isn't she planning to show off her cooking skills on the show?

"Huh?"

Tang Zhi Chu suddenly noticed several bright red drops beside the sink. Looking closer, he saw a knife nearby as well.

She got hurt? So the sound of the door opening upstairs earlier had been Chen Si Yang?

However, Tang Zhi Chu did not go upstairs.

It was indeed a good chance to get closer to a beauty, but Tang Zhi Chu had other plans.

He glanced at the action cameras around the room, then turned and put on the small apron hanging on the wall.

Judging by the seasonings and side ingredients, the shrimp looked rather lonely. That meant braised prawns in oil. Tang Zhi Chu began removing the shrimp veins.

Once the shrimp were prepared, Tang Zhi Chu noticed the fish. It had already been sliced, and there was a packet of pickled mustard greens as well. That meant pickled mustard green fish, so he began seasoning and marinating the fish.

In short, Tang Zhi Chu was handling the prep work.

For example, for the pickled mustard green fish, he marinated the fish, sealed it with plastic wrap, blanched the pickled mustard greens and arranged them on a plate, then put the garlic, ginger, and pickled mustard greens together. Finally, he set the plate on top of the small basin holding the fish, and the dish was prepped.

After that, whoever cooked only needed to follow the steps and put everything into the wok.

While Tang Zhi Chu was busy, Chen Si Yang had somehow appeared by the wine cabinet on the right side of the dining room entrance.

Just like that, Tang Zhi Chu spent around twenty minutes prepping every dish and cleaning up the kitchen as well.

When he took off his apron, Tang Zhi Chu saw Chen Si Yang.

Their eyes met, and both smiled.

"Is your hand okay?" Tang Zhi Chu asked with concern.

Chen Si Yang tucked the hand she had held in front of herself behind her back. "It's fine, just a small cut."

"That's good. It's still early, so I'll go get some exercise."

They passed each other. Chen Si Yang opened her mouth as though she wanted to stop him, but the words never came out.

During those twenty minutes leaning against the wine cabinet, Chen Si Yang had thought about many things. In the end, it was some inspirational saying that went to her head and stopped certain inappropriate thoughts from taking root.

When can't I find a man?

If I miss my career opportunity, there won't be a second chance!

So I have to be hard-hearted!

Watching Tang Zhi Chu walk toward the room with the fitness equipment, Chen Si Yang muttered, "Tang Zhi Chu, Tang Zhi Chu, don't be too nice to me, or I'll send my text to someone else!"