Socializing Takes a Turn

"Fame and fortune?"

"Didn't he just turn from a fan into a hater?"

When Chen Jue heard that, he felt less at ease than he had when he got home earlier, and his mind began to wander.

He was just an ordinary wage earner. Although he'd considered making a little money online with skills like darts and stone skipping,

he'd planned to do it without showing his face, simply to show off his skills, attract some traffic, and earn a bit of pocket money.

According to Zhu Hongbin, if he accepted the interview, he'd definitely be exposed on camera.

Once countless sharp-eyed netizens started digging, they'd realize that Chen Jue had played only a small part in the rescue. The real credit belonged to Wu Fang and the sanitation worker.

Chen Jue had only come in at the end and taken out the fleeing Pit Bull.

If the story was posted online, someone would surely accuse him of chasing clout and taking credit.

Then he wouldn't be getting famous. He'd be getting dragged.

Besides, Chen Jue had no plans to become an internet celebrity overnight.

Didn't everyone know that an internet celebrity's final destination was selling products?

He could say, "Friends, you can't go wrong buying this!" to the camera, then cash in on some lousy products. After that, no matter how he tried to clear his name, he'd never be able to.

He did want to make money and live well, but not by peddling junk.

After explaining his concerns over the phone, Zhu Hongbin laughed. "Brother, it's fine if you don't want to be famous! The more popular you are, the more trouble you attract!"

"But this is a great chance to promote our club. I'll have the TV station blur your face. I guarantee your privacy won't be compromised."

With Zhu Hongbin putting it that way, Chen Jue had no choice but to agree.

Zhu Hongbin had helped him once before. If not for his connections, Chen Jue wouldn't have gotten into a major company like Hengtong.

He could treat the interview as repayment of that favor.

After hanging up, he went online and ordered several different types of darts.

From Short Sword Darts to Willow Leaf Darts, Meteor Darts, and Steel Needles, Chen Jue planned to try them all.

Now that his Darts skill had reached Lv4, it had become more difficult to level up. He had to try different techniques and take on greater challenges to speed up his progress.

But Chen Jue hadn't expected that in just half a day, news of the vicious dog attacking a little boy in the park would have spread across the internet.

It had even topped the trending searches!

The surveillance footage of the incident had been edited into short videos by well-meaning netizens and uploaded online.

Before long, all sorts of different versions appeared.

Some had special effects, some had background music. In short, the rescue had gone completely viral.

Chen Jue opened the comments and saw one popular comment after another:

"I feel so bad for the little boy. I was bitten by a rabid dog when I was little too. (praying) I hope he's okay."

"Walking your dog without a leash is like letting the dog walk itself. (doge)"

"That young lady who saved him was so cool! I love her! (heart)"

"That guy's amazing! He took down a Pit Bull with one dart! That's a big, vicious dog! (666)"

"They both practice darts. Could they be from the same school in real life? (curious)"

"Hang City's martial arts world has produced a pair of dart-wielding lovebirds. (sticking out tongue)"

When Chen Jue scrolled further down, he couldn't help laughing.

"Dart-wielding lovebirds?"

"They've already given us a martial arts-style nickname?"

Chen Jue blushed. With a twitch of his hand, he forwarded the video to Wu Fang, whom he'd just added as a friend, and attached a message: "Looks like we've become famous?"

Wu Fang had probably heard the news too. She replied with an embarrassed, sweaty-face emoji.

Her phone and WeChat had been blowing up with calls from relatives and friends. Netizens had doxxed her.

As a high school PE teacher who was beautiful, kind-hearted, and talented, Wu Fang was already well-known around the school and the park. It didn't take much digging for netizens to identify her.

Chen Jue, on the other hand, was lucky. The surveillance camera hadn't caught his face, and he was a nobody at work who had just switched employers and hadn't even worked a single day yet. It was only natural that no one recognized him.

"Have any reporters contacted you?"

"My phone's about to crash. I'm getting calls and WeChat voice messages nonstop. (awkward)"

"If it vibrates one more time, I'm turning it off and going to bed tonight. (covering face)" Wu Fang messaged him.

Seeing how flustered she was, Chen Jue told her he'd agreed to an interview.

To his surprise, Wu Fang's school leaders had also forced her into one.

They said it would give the school some publicity, and she'd accepted an interview invitation from 1818 Golden Eye as well.

"Well, what a coincidence!"

Chen Jue grinned, and his inner lecher began to stir.

Whether he was flirting with men or women, the hard part was getting them to respond.

Once they shared an experience and had something to talk about, getting a conversation going was already a good start.

Besides, they both practiced darts and shared the same hobby.

With such a perfect opening, whether they'd end up together would depend entirely on Chen Jue's own ability and effort.

That night, Chen Jue was so happy he could've been rolling in honey.

A shy, lecherous guy like him had always been too timid to approach the young women he liked. He could look, but he never dared to flirt.

If the Attribute Panel hadn't changed his outlook, he probably would've spent ages thinking over even a simple reply.

When he got up early the next morning, he found several new messages on his phone.

One was from a reporter at 1818 Golden Eye, who had privately added him as a friend. She wanted to hear about what had happened beforehand so she could prepare her questions and interview script.

The second was from Zhu Hongbin. He said everything had been arranged, and the interview could happen as soon as that morning.

The efficiency was enough to astonish Chen Jue!

But then again, wealthy men like Zhu Hongbin had money to spare and mainly cared about having a good reputation.

The International Darts Club hadn't been well-known in Hang City before. After this exposure, it would surely attract a new wave of members.

For Zhu Hongbin, the club's owner, it was a chance to gain both fame and fortune.

After all, no one got up early without a reason!

Chen Jue had still underestimated the impact of the incident.

He opened his phone and browsed the news. Several trending topics were related to the dog attacking the little boy.

The dog lovers who usually railed against people online had gone completely silent. Even the dog owner had been doxxed and become the target of public outrage.

Seeing such satisfying news first thing in the morning put Chen Jue in a great mood.

He went downstairs to pick up a delivery. When he opened it, he found the ancient-style face mask he'd bought online.

Thinking he might need it for the interview that morning, Chen Jue took it and drove to the darts club.

Since an interview had been arranged for that day, the club staff had started cleaning every inch of the place early that morning.

The marble floor was so polished it reflected people's faces.

As soon as Chen Jue arrived, he saw Zhu Hongbin directing the employees as they tidied up the details.

The award plaques weren't displayed prominently enough, the trophies weren't lined up neatly enough, and the potted plants were blocking the view—they all had to be moved around.

Seeing how particular Zhu Hongbin was, Chen Jue's opinion of him immediately soured.

It reminded him of when school leaders came to inspect and teachers made the whole class stay after school to clean.

The leaders got their good impression, the school got the credit, and the teachers got the ratings and bonuses.

What did the students get?

They worked hard cleaning, only to receive a verbal "Thanks for your effort," or maybe a rotating banner proclaiming their class an advanced class, hung outside the classroom.

In short, the boss gave an order, and the employees ran themselves ragged.

But for the sake of appearances, Chen Jue didn't call him out. He just walked over and greeted him in a calm voice.

The moment Zhu Hongbin saw Chen Jue, he became extremely enthusiastic. He kept calling him "Brother Chen Jue" and "Outstanding Member" as he led him to the club's reception room.

Quite a few people had already arrived. Besides several TV station staff, there were also two young men in jackets.

Both their jackets had large logos on them. They were clearly the two professional players and club coaches featured on the promotional board by the entrance.

There was also a stylish, sophisticated-looking woman sitting in the nearby president's office.

"Brother Chen Jue, let me introduce you to everyone first."

"This is Liu Li, the head of Golden Culture Media Company." Zhu Hongbin invited Chen Jue to sit on the sofa.

He first introduced the stylish woman, then changed the subject and explained.

It turned out that there was a large MCN company behind the Golden Eye program. If they covered your story, you had a good chance of going viral and becoming the next internet celebrity.

What did internet celebrities make a living from these days?

Livestream sales, naturally—turning traffic into money.

And ordinary people couldn't make it big without these MCN companies giving them a push behind the scenes.

Quite a few internet celebrities had risen to fame through Golden Eye in recent years. First they'd trend and gain followers, then appear on programs, and finally start livestreaming products.

A show that had originally focused on news and current affairs had turned into a star-making factory. The way capital worked was crystal clear.

But when Chen Jue saw the interview agreement Liu Li had pushed toward him, along with a follow-up agreement for prospective online-host training, his brow furrowed and his expression darkened. "President Zhu, this isn't what we discussed over the phone, is it?"

"Don't get the wrong idea, Mr. Chen! This is just a preliminary agreement. It's standard practice in this industry. If you don't want to sign, we don't have to go ahead with the interview."

"Besides, you weren't the one who did most of the work rescuing the little boy. You just happened to benefit from the attention." Liu Li crossed her legs on the sofa opposite him.

She'd already looked down on Chen Jue because he had an ordinary face, seemed entirely unremarkable, and didn't have the air of a darts expert.

Now that he'd darkened his expression, Liu Li's words became even more cutting.

Zhu Hongbin tried to persuade him. "Brother, you should seize the opportunity President Liu is offering!"

"These days, if ordinary people want to make it big, it's seventy percent looks and thirty percent luck. Hard work is no use at all."

"You've gotten lucky. While the news is still hot, you can ride the wave. It'd be easy to become a darts celebrity with a million, or even ten million, followers."

"Then you can sign a professional contract with our club. We'll fund your applications for overseas competitions, so you can win a gold medal abroad and bring glory to the country."

"Once you become a sports superstar, you might not be worth hundreds of millions, but making a few million would be a piece of cake!"

Zhu Hongbin was blunt, practically laying a fortune at Chen Jue's feet.

If he signed, he could transform into Hang City's newest internet celebrity. Then he could live in a luxury apartment, drive an expensive car, and enjoy the good life. It would be a breeze!

If an ordinary person came across an opportunity like this, they'd probably sign without a second thought.

But what did Chen Jue do for a living?

He'd worked in financial risk management. Faced with high returns, he was always the first to spot the risks that worked against him.

When he saw that the agreements called for commitments of ten or even twenty years, along with clauses requiring him to follow the company's daily arrangements and forbidding him from taking independent gigs, commercial appearances, or competitions,

Chen Jue knew that this fortune being offered to him might as well have had nothing to do with him for the rest of his life.

"President Zhu, thank you for the offer!"

"But I really can't sign these agreements."

"Sorry to hold you up. I have something to take care of, so I'll be going. Goodbye!" Chen Jue didn't say much. He cupped his hands, rose from the sofa, and started to leave.

Zhu Hongbin's expression darkened, and he tried hard to stop him. "Brother Chen Jue, won't you think it over?"

"You'd better think carefully. Once you walk out that door, it won't be easy to become a professional player later!"

Hearing the threat hidden in his words, Chen Jue paused and glanced back at Zhu Hongbin.

That face looked familiar!

As he thought about it, he suddenly remembered being in the general manager's office at Taisheng Finance, facing Zhou Yong, and encountering a similar situation.

Looks like I was still too naive! Chen Jue sighed inwardly.

He realized his earlier thinking had been too simple, too childish.

What kind of position did Zhu Hongbin hold?

Could someone like him really relate to an ordinary nobody like Chen Jue?

The night Zhu Hongbin had stood up for him, he'd probably been drunk, carried away by the alcohol, and noticed Chen Jue's talent for darts while he was at it.

To people like them, there was no room for all that politeness and insincerity. It was all about straightforward interests.

At that thought, Chen Jue's good impression of Zhu Hongbin vanished completely.

He didn't make any threats about how there were plenty of places that would welcome him. He just gave Zhu Hongbin a subtle smile and left through the door.

All that remained was Zhu Hongbin, looking furious, and Liu Li, touching up her makeup with a compact.

"President Zhu, since the real deal has left, let's find someone else for the interview. I think Coach Wang from our club would be a good fit..."

A new chapter!

And please send some recommendation votes!

P.S. If this fortune were placed in front of you, would you sign? I definitely would. (smirking)