A Trial Run

For them, it was a huge letdown.

But to Zhang Yang, it was a complete transformation, far beyond his expectations. After all, the person beneath the mask was the one he recognized as himself. Seeing such a change just by putting on a mask was an unexpected delight.

"I didn't realize there'd be such a huge difference between wearing a mask and not wearing one!" A BGM inexplicably began playing in his mind.

[ I started changing my hairstyle, losing weight, changing my style, and moving forward. Sorry, but this time I'm definitely going to win! ]

That was right. He'd already won, and he'd only win more in the future.

When he got back to his place at noon, Zhang Yang braised some beef brisket and made himself a luxurious bowl of red-braised beef noodles.

The noodles were evenly thick, and the broth had been reduced until it was especially rich. Zhang Yang gave himself full marks for both appearance and taste.

As he bent over his noodles, he didn't forget to open the comments on his Little Blue Book account and take a look.

"Looking forward to seeing you level up again, bro."

"Hope you don't ruin your hair. Hope you find a reliable barber."

"Just do your best. You can only do so much with what you've got, so a complete transformation might be impossible, but at least you can look better than before, right?"

"Hopefully! He takes advice, has perseverance, and actually follows through. That's already pretty rare."

Zhang Yang read through the comments, then asked a question in a reply below.

"Urgent! My family set me up on a blind date tonight. Anything I should keep in mind?"

Now that his account was getting popular, the replies came much faster.

"What!? This is way too soon! We've only just started your makeover, and you're already going on a blind date? Hard to say if it'll work out!"

"You're really scrambling at the last minute. There's just not enough time—we're not good at forcing things before they're ready!"

"Girl, he's asking for help, not for us to pour cold water on him. We're saying he needs confidence—he absolutely has to be confident. Girls like confident guys best."

"Promise me you won't act like a simp. As a woman, I enjoy having a simp around, but that doesn't mean I'd ever accept one as a partner."

"Did you change your hairstyle? Take off your glasses? Dress neat and fresh, and be confident and outgoing. There's not much time, so you can only manage these things for now."

Most people felt that Zhang Yang's blind date had come about far too soon. Still, figuring there was no harm in trying, they all joined in with advice.

Zhang Yang scrolled through the replies for quite a while, then made a new post with an update on his current look.

"I've followed everyone's advice: got a new hairstyle and switched to contact lenses. Any more suggestions? Help me make this blind date a success."

He raised his phone's 12-megapixel front-facing camera and snapped a selfie, then posted it online.

A moment later, the comments exploded.

"Help! Is that really you?"

"Wow, taking good advice really pays off!"

"Why does your hair look so nice? That hairstyle is a dead ringer for Bosco Wong's!"

"You're getting more handsome by the minute. Lost weight, changed your hairstyle, ditched your glasses—which step are we even on? You've already transformed completely!"

"Okay, but his eyes are so bright! I'd be all in just based on his eyes!!!"

"Please, please, please put on a mask! I want to see you wearing one!"

Faced with everyone's heartfelt requests, Zhang Yang didn't hold back. He put on a mask, took another photo, and uploaded it.

Everyone knew that with a mask on, he looked like a completely different person.

In an instant, the comments section went absolutely wild.

"It's over. You're already way out of my league."

"Oh my god, you look handsome now!"

"Just weld that mask to your face."

"This is so inspiring. I'm already looking forward to hearing how your blind date goes tonight."

"I don't want to praise you in case you get cocky, but you're seriously so attractive."

"Go on the date just like that. Be confident, natural, and courteous, and she'll definitely be crazy about you!"

Ding!

The system has accepted a new, reasonable suggestion!

Mission: A Trial Run

Mission objective: The host must show his best side on this blind date and raise his date's favorability to above 80. Current favorability: Xiong Yaqian (0/100)

Reward 1: 5 experience points

Reward 2: Height increased by 2 centimeters

Zhang Yang's spirits lifted at once. He'd triggered another new mission!

In short, the mission asked him to make a good impression on this blind date and raise her favorability to 80. Honestly, this was a bit harder than the previous missions, but the rewards were better too!

For example, five experience points, added to the six he'd already earned, would be enough to take him straight to level three.

What did level three mean? It meant his daily cashback would immediately double to 20,000, adding up to 7.3 million in cashback over a year!

Oh, and he'd also grow another two centimeters.

He was currently 176 centimeters tall, around average. Two more centimeters would bring him to 178.

Young people were well nourished these days, and there were plenty of tall guys, but it wasn't as if every other man on the street was 180 centimeters tall. At 178 centimeters, he'd be doing pretty well. Besides, everyone knew there were no men who were 178 centimeters tall, because all the 178-centimeter men called themselves 180.

"But what about her favorability? It's at zero right now?" Zhang Yang glanced at the system and fell into thought.

Xiong Yaqian was his blind date. Her favorability toward him was currently zero... She had no feelings for him at all.

Thinking back on it, Zhang Yang could see why.

First, they'd never met. Second, his WeChat Moments were pretty bare, with nothing much in them. Third, their conversations had been as good as nonexistent; they just weren't on the same wavelength. Taken together, he was basically a complete stranger to her, someone she had no real impression of.

Naturally, her favorability was zero.

"But that's fine. We can take it slowly." Zhang Yang sent her the address for that evening's meeting at the Bund.

It didn't take long for her to reply.

Xiong Yaqian: "This place? Isn't it really expensive?"

At that very moment, Zhang Yang saw her favorability toward him shoot up by twenty points.

All that just because of a fancy restaurant?

Zhang Yang couldn't help laughing.

Zhang Yang: "The atmosphere and the food are both great, so it's worth paying a bit more. If you have somewhere better in mind, we can go there instead."

Xiong Yaqian: "No, no, you can decide. Oh, and sorry for making you spend so much this time."

Zhang Yang: "Don't mention it. Send me your location and I'll drive over to pick you up."

Xiong Yaqian: "You have a car? Give me a moment, I'll send you the address."

Before long, Xiong Yaqian sent him her location.

Zhang Yang glanced at the address. "Okay, got it. How about five tonight?"

Zhang Yang chatted with Xiong Yaqian for a few minutes, and they agreed that he'd drive over and pick her up that evening.

A simple chat lasting just a few minutes had already brought her favorability up to twenty. Zhang Yang felt a little more confident about completing the mission.

"If I level up smoothly, I'll be getting 20,000 a day starting tomorrow." Zhang Yang's eyes glimmered.

At this rate, he might not be able to settle down in Magic City anytime soon, but back in his hometown, he could live in a villa and drive a luxury car right away. Reaching the peak of life would be effortless.

And if he set his sights a little higher and kept working hard, even a mansion in Magic City wouldn't be out of reach!

In the afternoon, Zhang Yang found some time to visit Vientiane City and pick up a few new clothes.

He put this outfit together on his own, but he hadn't thrown it together at random.

He didn't know much about fashion, but he could learn. A white T-shirt under a casual blazer instantly gave him a boost in style. It wasn't that he didn't want to dress younger; he was already twenty-five, and going for a boyish look no longer suited him.

This outfit fit his age and suited his vibe perfectly.