Standing in front of the mirror, Zhang Yang looked at his reflection while listening to the system's pleasant notification in his mind.
The task had gone smoothly.
Three experience points had been added to his total, leaving him 18 points away from leveling up. And there was another reward he'd been eagerly anticipating: a two-centimeter boost in height.
A genuine barefoot height of 1.8 meters.
A man who stood 1.8 meters tall, weighed 70 kilograms, was healthy and decent-looking, and earned 20,000 yuan a day was already a highly desirable catch on the dating market.
He couldn't conveniently claim the second reward just then, so Zhang Yang planned to save it for when he got home.
"Then I'll take these." Zhang Yang chose the shoes Bei Wei had picked out.
"I'll go pay." Bei Wei immediately followed the sales assistant to the register. A little while later, she returned with the receipt and held out her hand to Zhang Yang.
"What's that for?" Zhang Yang looked at her open palm.
"One yuan!" Bei Wei demanded without the slightest embarrassment.
Zhang Yang didn't believe in that sort of thing, but Bei Wei looked quite serious, so he sent her one yuan.
As soon as she received it, Bei Wei cheered up.
Zhang Yang had no idea what she was so happy about.
After buying the shoes, it was past nine. Zhang Yang insisted on walking Bei Wei home, and this time she let him.
Outside an upscale apartment complex, a winding path led toward the brightly lit lobby in the distance.
Bei Wei walked beside Zhang Yang. On the way, just twenty minutes earlier, she'd been quite lively, but now that they'd reached her home, she'd grown quieter and quieter. She hadn't said a word for quite some time.
Zhang Yang saw her walking with her head lowered, stepping on her own shadow. He smiled and caught up with her.
"Watch where you're going."
"Huh?" Bei Wei raised her head in a fluster, her eyelashes fluttering wildly.
Zhang Yang stood beside her, taking in her pale little face glowing beneath the streetlamp and her slightly trembling gaze. A smile touched his heart, and without hesitation, he took her hand in his.
Her hand felt soft against his. For a second or two, it twitched when he first took hold, but then she let him keep holding it.
There, wasn't that easy?
"Bei Wei." Zhang Yang glanced at the streetlamp in the distance, then at Bei Wei, who stood before him with her head lowered and cheeks burning red.
"Mm..." Bei Wei's voice was barely louder than a mosquito's buzz.
Zhang Yang's right hand naturally settled at Bei Wei's waist. He was just about to press his advantage and pull her into his arms.
"Hey, hey, hey! What do you two think you're doing?"
Bei Wei shuddered and sprang away from Zhang Yang as if she'd been startled.
Annoyed, Zhang Yang looked behind him.
A girl in a crop top stepped out of the tree-lined path. She had a striking figure and gave Zhang Yang an appraising once-over. A tall, handsome guy stood beside her.
"Who's that?" Zhang Yang asked Bei Wei.
"My roommate." Bei Wei covered her face, then covered her burning red ears. "Brother Zhang, I'm going upstairs."
Her face was burning with embarrassment. Head down, she hurried off toward the apartment lobby in the distance.
"Come on, do you really have to interrupt people like that?" Zhang Yang frowned at the girl.
"He's up to no good! Good thing I saw you, or he would've gotten his way!" The girl glared at Zhang Yang. "How did Bei Wei ever fall for your tricks?"
"Look, miss, that's a pretty unpleasant way to put it." Zhang Yang couldn't help finding it funny. This girl sure had a chip on her shoulder.
What did it have to do with her?
"Am I wrong? Look at those shoes. I bet you're not even 1.8 meters tall, and you're nothing special to look at either." The girl pulled the handsome, tall guy beside her closer. "See him? A guy like this is chasing me, and I still haven't said yes."
The handsome guy rubbed his nose and looked up at the sky, looking a little awkward.
"Bro, I think she's a hardcore lesbian. Be careful and cut your losses in time." Zhang Yang couldn't be bothered to argue with a woman. He tossed out the remark as he brushed past the two of them and headed back the way he'd come.
The girl's eyes widened. She stood frozen in place.
"Hardcore lesbian? You called me a lesbian? Wait!"
Zhang Yang couldn't care less that Bei Wei had a best friend who now hated his guts.
When all was said and done, you had to forge your own strength.
Sure, he had the system backing him, but he'd still made every bit of progress one step at a time.
"System, claim reward."
Inside the apartment, Zhang Yang stood in front of the mirror, barely able to wait any longer.
To hell with being just under 1.8 meters!
From now on, he was a solid 1.8 meters tall—an indisputable, barefoot 1.8 meters. People online might all claim to be 1.85 meters, but in reality, 1.8 meters was plenty tall.
At that height, with high-tops on and his good proportions, he'd look no shorter than someone who was 1.85 meters.
In the mirror, Zhang Yang visibly shot up again.
His whole frame grew taller and leaner. With a little styling, he was already handsome.
Looking at his reflection, Zhang Yang couldn't help thinking of the guy he'd seen that evening. To be fair, that guy really was handsome—tall and good-looking, with sharply defined features. Zhang Yang still had a long way to go to match him.
"But I've got potential! Who would've guessed I looked like that just a month ago?" Zhang Yang looked at his old photos on his phone. He'd been fat and frumpy, with lifeless eyes and a lost look in them.
And now? He was more than just a different person. Compared with his old self, he was downright handsome.
It was time to bring in a flood of new followers.
Zhang Yang opened Little Blue Book. He'd been posting updates promptly, but only his regular followers knew the full story. Casual users might just scroll right past.
This time, he planned to post a before-and-after photo and make a big splash.
He'd figured out that the more attention he got and the more popular he became, the faster the system responded to new suggestions.
He rummaged through his album and picked out the most haggard, greasy, and overweight photo he could find. Then he took a new photo of himself. His eyes were bright, his figure lean, and his outfit gave him a mature air.
The contrast was so stark that even Zhang Yang found it hard to believe.
"Thanks to everyone who's offered advice along the way. Looking back at my old self, I'm filled with mixed emotions. Thank you for helping me become a better version of myself."
Once he'd uploaded it, Zhang Yang went to get some rest.
His new post immediately caught the attention of his longtime followers, as well as plenty of Little Blue Book users who happened to come across it. While Zhang Yang slept, the discussion around his post grew more lively than ever.
Before long, a story about a Little Blue Book advice-taking blogger who'd undergone a dramatic transformation thanks to the efforts of countless product managers had suddenly become a hot topic.
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