In the end, Fang Pingyue got her wish and added Qu Nanzhu on WeChat, on the condition that she agreed to three ground rules with Huo Sili.
First, she could not bother Qu Nanzhu too much. Second, she could not reveal his private contact information. Third, she could not say online that she knew him.
Fang Pingyue nodded and agreed to each one.
As for the mind-clearing talisman, Qu Nanzhu finally gave it to her as a first-meeting gift, and she tucked it into her phone case like a treasure.
When he returned to his little rented apartment, the little paper figures bounced over and gathered around him. But Xiao Zhu was no longer in the corner, and the first thing Qu Nanzhu felt was a little loneliness.
After all, in Qu Nanzhu's heart, Xiao Zhu was the person closest to him in this world.
Then I'll visit him again tomorrow!
With Xiao Zhu's major issue resolved, Qu Nanzhu finally had time to think about finding a better place to live.
Once Xiao Zhu's soul body recovered and fully merged with the jade, they could not be without a big home to live in.
Qu Nanzhu was visibly in excellent form during his livestream that evening.
The first reading came quickly. It was about romance, and after Qu Nanzhu offered a few suggestions, the person thanked him and left the stream.
The second reading brought several young women. Some held a banner with a slogan written on it, while others held signs or photos, with stickers on their faces-
All of the same person.
Qu Nanzhu had never seen anything like this before. The moment the call connected, they launched into a thunderous chant.
"Drawn to Su, our love runs Shen-deep-!!"
"Aaaaaah!!!!"
Qu Nanzhu and the chat were left staring in bewilderment.
[Honestly, I don't understand what they're doing.]
[I really want to ask if they're sick in the head. Bringing fan support into a metaphysics stream now, are we?]
[My secondhand embarrassment is acting up again...]
[Nobody gets it except them...]
[Just show this stuff to your own people. What exactly are you showing us for???]
[Go home, kids. Go home.]
Seeing the unfriendly comments, one girl immediately snapped back, "Wow, you're all so jealous. Are you jealous that our darling has people who like him?"
The others beside her said nothing, but their expressions clearly showed their agreement.
The chat was even more speechless.
[I've marveled at fangirl logic countless times.]
[Can't we simply dislike this kind of fan behavior?]
"Then suck it up. And don't use anything our darling endorses, okay? If you do, you're supporting him~"
[¿]
[I can't take it anymore. Streamer, kick them off. I seriously... **********]
[Aren't you just ruining the general public's impression of your idol and bringing him hate?]
"No need to worry. Our darling is very popular with the general public. Rival fans, stop pretending to be random viewers and yapping."
[Unhinged.]
[Unhinged.]
Qu Nanzhu had no idea why things had turned out this way. What was this business of callers arguing with the chat?
He disabled the chat and muted the girls, his voice cool and his tone stern. "No more arguing. If you don't want a reading, you can leave the call. If you don't want to watch, you can leave the stream."
At those words, the girls' expressions immediately soured, whereas the viewers had no objections.
After all, they were mainly here for the drama. As far as they were concerned, Qu Nanzhu had no need to go out of his way to please them. He was extremely capable, and if he got angry and stopped streaming, they would be the ones losing out.
Feeling he had made himself very clear, Qu Nanzhu turned the chat and call audio back on. His voice was mild. "All right. Are you all asking about the same thing?"
The girl in front was still speaking in an unpleasant tone because of what had just happened. She nodded, then took out what looked like an ID photo and showed it to Qu Nanzhu.
"Give me a reading. I want to know when our darling will become famous worldwide."
[Pfft... sorry.]
[If the person above is sorry, then I'm sorry too.]
[Then I guess I'm sorry too.]
[We've all been professionally trained... pfft hahahahaha.]
[We're really not trying to laugh... but did that question go through your brain at all?]
The girl held the photo out toward the camera, making sure everyone could clearly see her idol's face.
They certainly could. Several celestial masters watching Qu Nanzhu's stream to learn frowned instinctively at the sight.
Qu Nanzhu's expression was not nearly as obvious. Only his tone sounded uncertain. "This is a celebrity?"
The girl's tone was very unpleasant when she heard that. "What's that supposed to mean?"
Qu Nanzhu paid no mind to her attitude and spoke bluntly. "He's done the whole gamut of wrongdoing and crime. Call the police."
[Holy shit, holy shit, I knew there was major gossip to be had in this stream!!]
[Let me introduce the subject of our gossip: entertainment industry newcomer Su Yuanshen! A small-time star with a big-time attitude, sporting an incredibly "authentic" persona (actually just low emotional intelligence).]
[Seriously? I've already seen police in this stream, but honestly, once anything involves the entertainment industry, it's really no small matter.]
[Everyone, get your bowls and chopsticks ready. This place is about to turn into a complete mess.]
The fangirls flew into a rage at Qu Nanzhu's words, clamoring over one another to tell him to stop talking nonsense. Spreading rumors was illegal, and he had better watch out for a lawyer's letter from their darling!
Off camera, Qu Nanzhu accepted the dessert a little paper figure handed him. Only after taking a bite did he leisurely speak. "Friends in the stream, do you think I'm talking nonsense?"
[Nice, there's even an interactive segment.]
Qu Nanzhu said, "Whether it's illegal or not, it's already been reported to the police. Leave the rest to them."
His attitude was far too certain. They had only been willing to spend so much money on a reading for their idol because they had heard that Qu Nanzhu had genuine abilities. Most of what they had just said had actually been instinctive rebuttals.
At that thought, the girls looked at one another and calmed down. The next second, the camera shook rapidly, and they disconnected.
[Wait, what? They just left?]
[What else would they stay here for? Weibo's already blown up. Here's the link, no need to thank me.]
[You're a good person.]
Qu Nanzhu did not have Weibo, and neither did Xiao Zhu, because he was not popular at all and had no need to use it.
Besides, he was not the type to love gossip, so he planned to finish his pudding while the viewers were still discussing it, then start the third reading.
[Su Yuanshen's super topic has already exploded. Everyone's talking about God Qu divining his illegal activities.]
[Isn't the funny part how none of the spectators can find God Qu's stream?]
[Isn't it even funnier that someone's fans wanted to accuse God Qu of clout-chasing, only to discover that not only does he have no Weibo account, they can't even find his stream?]
[Really? That's rough. Who got forcibly unfollowed and had to ask other viewers in the group for a link? Oh, me.]
[Don't even mention it. The viewer group's practically bursting too. The admins issued an emergency notice saying they're no longer approving requests to join.]
[Go ahead and dig into any gossip involving God Qu. Every bite will leave you speechless.]
Without Qu Nanzhu knowing a thing about it, two trending topics quietly climbed to the top of the rankings.
One was #Su Yuanshen reported for illegal activities#.
The other was #Where exactly are you watching God Qu's stream?#.
By the time Qu Nanzhu finished his pudding and began the third reading, the stream had over five hundred thousand viewers online. Comments such as "Rumormongers should die," "Just wait for our lawyer's letter," and "May this clout chaser never get another customer in his life" also popped up.
Having eaten and drunk his fill, Qu Nanzhu raised an eyebrow and knowingly asked, "Why are there suddenly so many more people? What have you been doing behind my back?"
[??? Don't you know what you did?]
[What a rare sight. Our God Qu actually knows how to joke.]
[Forget rare sights! They've already issued a lawyer's letter. What do we do?]
[Are you stupid? Do you seriously not know the entertainment industry's default is to send letters without suing?]
[Heh, don't you haters know why? With so many haters, you expect our darling to sue all of you? Are you paying the legal fees?]
[The one above has come to defend their master.]
After his teasing, Qu Nanzhu connected the third reading's call without any warning.
The screen split in two. On the other side was an attractive woman, instantly stirring some less-than-pleasant memories in Qu Nanzhu.
His gaze darkened slightly. He had never expected this person to seek him out of her own accord.
Any normal person would surely be desperate to avoid him.