What Was This Guy Up to Now?

The remaining guests included Su Ziming, a top-tier singer known for his talent. He had the air of a gentle, cultured man, but his singing packed serious power.

More importantly, his fans were absolute beasts in a fight.

Then there was Lin Xi, a second-tier singer and one cool chick.

Li Rou, a second-tier actress, wore a gentle smile the whole time and seemed like a very sweet person.

Same-sex marriage was legal in this world, but the public still wasn't particularly accepting of same-sex relationships. The show had deliberately invited five men and three women. Clearly, they wanted to stir things up.

Last was Yu Xiuyuan, who sat farthest away. Everyone turned toward him, only to find him staring blankly into space, as if he hadn't heard any of the introductions.

"Hehe... hehehe..."

"Heehee... heeheehee..."

He was grinning and giggling like an idiot.

Everyone looked exasperated.

What was this guy up to now?

Wen Lin glanced at their displeased expressions and concealed the gloating in his eyes.

He spoke with a voice full of concern. "Xiao Yu, that's rather rude. Everyone's waiting for you. You should show your seniors some basic respect. Go on and apologize. They'll forgive you."

There it was. One sentence in, and he already sounded like a seasoned, two-faced schemer.

Yu Xiuyuan snapped out of his daze and said solemnly:

"What did you say? Isn't that emotional blackmail?"

"..."

"Does everyone have to forgive me just because I apologize?"

Huh?

Was that right? What a novel angle.

Yun Chuan, who had been looking bored, raised his head to look at him again. Another side to him?

Yu Xiuyuan flashed Wen Lin a cheeky grin and began introducing himself. "Hello, everyone. I'm Yu Xiuyuan. Sorry, I zoned out because I thought of something happy. I wasn't deliberately ignoring you."

"What made you so happy?" The moment Yu Xiuyuan finished, best actor Yun suddenly spoke, cutting off whatever Wen Lin had been about to say.

Yu Xiuyuan hadn't expected Yun Chuan to strike up a conversation with him.

He seized the opportunity to explain. "Sorry, the matching clothes really were a coincidence. I didn't do it on purpose. I was so busy looking at your face earlier that I didn't even notice your clothes..."

Halfway through, he wanted to cover his face and crawl into the gap between the sofa cushions. What the hell was this stupid mouth saying? He'd have been better off not explaining.

Flirting with the best actor? Did he have a death wish?

Yun Chuan was genuinely surprised. In a rare display, the corners of his mouth lifted, and even his eyes brightened.

This guy certainly had some nerve.

"Xiao Yu, was it? You still haven't told us what made you so happy." Lin Qingnuan tore her gaze from Yun Chuan's face and steered the conversation back.

Freed from his embarrassment, Yu Xiuyuan silently thanked best actress Lin for coming to his rescue.

"It's just... hehe... sorry, I'm so happy I can barely control my body.

Mostly, whenever I think about retiring soon and just kicking back and enjoying life, I get so happy I can't stand it."

"Retiring? Who?"

"Me. My contract expires in two months, and the company doesn't plan to renew it. That works out perfectly. I've saved enough, too. It's not a huge amount, but it's enough to cover basic living expenses, so I'm planning to retire."

That was right. Yu Xiuyuan had spaced out because he'd suddenly remembered that this body's original owner had savings. A whole five million!

In his previous life, he'd worked himself to the bone, day and night, doing anything that paid. He'd been exhausted like a dog.

His ultimate dream had been to save five million, retire immediately, and laze around on the interest until he died. Not even God himself would get another day's work out of him!

And now he'd achieved it just by dropping dead?

It was that easy?

Someone should've told him sooner!

Boohoohoo...

Actually, it hadn't been easy at all. His lifelong reputation!!

Oh, well. How could he expect to inherit a fortune without paying a price?

He looked around. It wasn't exactly convenient, so he knelt in his mind.

It worked on the same principle as making a wish: sincerity was what mattered. No pointless formalities.

He prayed devoutly:

Thank you to this body's original owner for letting me inherit such an enormous fortune. May he become gold in his next life and be loved by everyone.

I'll be grateful forever!

Having given his thanks, he hurriedly stood up in his mind. He couldn't mistreat his benefactor's body.

Getting sidetracked. Reel it in! Keep smiling at the world.

Everyone on set was still stunned. His company wouldn't renew his contract? Was that something he could just announce? Was it something to be proud of? And he was this happy about it?

Was this guy nuts?

Yu Xiuyuan kept chattering. "I'll find somewhere with beautiful mountains and clear water. Every day, I'll sleep until I wake up naturally, grow flowers, go fishing, plant vegetables, and cook good food. When I can't be bothered to cook, I'll order takeout."

"I'll keep a few chickens, too, so I can collect eggs every day. Collecting eggs is so much fun~"

(Of course, after chicken poop crushed his enthusiasm later on, he never considered keeping chickens again. But that was a story for another time.)

"Hehehe... haha... sorry, I'm so happy I can't help myself (〜￣▽￣)〜"

"Finally, I'd like to give a special thanks to all my hater friends."

"As everyone knows, I don't have fans. All the attention I get comes from my hater friends."

"In other words, all my money came from my hater friends. Words can't express my gratitude, so I'm bowing down to you all in my heart! Even after I retire, I'll occasionally share bits of my life with all my hater friends. Love you~"

The set fell silent.

Even the live comments went blank for three seconds.

The haters had just opened a bottle to celebrate when they heard his contract wouldn't be renewed, only for his next words to infuriate them.

At least the booze wouldn't go to waste. They could drown their sorrows.

"Aaaah!!!! He's such an asshole!!!"

"Aaaaaaaaaah... insulting him means giving him money???"

"It actually seems to work that way?????"

"Retiring??? He gets to kick back at twenty-one? On the money I gave him???"

"Yu Dog! I'll kill you! This ends when one of us is dead!!!"

"Aaaah!!!! Yu Dog is such an asshole!!! Who wants to see you share your life!!!"

"Stay calm, girls. Don't let him throw us off! Someone like him would never actually leave showbiz. If we hadn't kept insulting him, he'd already be famous! Once he's famous, he'll make even more money!"

"Exactly! He's playing us! If we stop insulting him, he'll really get famous!"

"Just passing by: he'll get famous if you stop insulting him? You haters must be his true fans."

"One second he was riding the best actor's coattails, with matching outfits and that line about being too busy looking at his face to notice his clothes. He's obviously a scheming bastard fishing for attention."

"Exactly, you scheming bastard! Cut the sweet talk! We're going to keep insulting you!"

Meanwhile, two hashtags shot up in popularity.

#YuXiuyuanTrollsHisHaters#

#ThatBastardYuDeclaresHesLeavingShowbiz#

They brought a fresh wave of traffic to the show. The director grinned from ear to ear.

Drama was good. Keep it coming.

The other guests were inwardly gritting their teeth. What an attention seeker. He'd turned a simple introduction into an entire performance.

Watching Yu Xiuyuan's genuine smile, Wen Lin felt a faint unease.

Why had he changed so much? He wasn't really going to leave showbiz, was he?

He couldn't let him leave. After all, a stupid, obedient stepping stone who generated this much buzz was hard to find.

Wen Lin hurried over and sat beside Yu Xiuyuan, taking his hand and saying with concern, "Don't worry, Xiao Yu. I know your company won't renew your contract. I'll help you find a new one. You're so wonderful. You don't need to worry that no company will want you."

"Wen Lin, stop bothering with him. You're just too kind. You've already helped him enough." Fang Yi rolled his eyes at Yu Xiuyuan, his voice dripping with sarcasm.

Fang Yi genuinely hated Yu Xiuyuan and couldn't wait for him to leave showbiz.

Yu Xiuyuan returned the eye roll with twice the force, directing it at both of them at once.

He yanked his hand free. "I'm not leaving showbiz. I'm retiring! Those mean two different things, okay? That's every working person's ultimate dream. Clearly, you don't have a life."

Yu Xiuyuan shook his hand in disgust, then turned to the director. "Sorry for taking up everyone's time. What's next? When can we eat?"