Travel · Guangzhou Arc (Six): I'll Never Xixi Again

Today is the second day since Xiao Ling and his group arrived in Guangzhou.

At exactly seven o'clock in the morning, on the street opposite the alley where Jinhsi Steamed Bun Shop is located.

"You mean Xixi opened a steamed bun shop here?" Xiao Ling squatted on the street with a toothpick in his mouth, looking quite like a street thug.

"Yes, that's what she said when we contacted her," Yangyang said softly, pulling the toothpick out of his mouth and throwing it into the trash can beside him. Then she pulled him up, "Be serious, you're going to scare the young girl!"

"I don't look that fierce, do I?"

"Um, when I first met you, I also felt that you were the kind of person who was not easy to talk to..." Liang Yu raised her paw and replied honestly.

"Uh..." Xiao Ling was speechless.

"By the way, why do we have to arrive so early?" Amis tilted her head and asked doubtfully, "Since Lord Ling Yin doesn't work that early, we can come back later?"

"Little Ai, have you ever heard of the 'fan effect'?" Suisui asked gently.

"Oh, you've come to the right person!"

She, Aemeath, the famous virtual singer Wooly, is now a top-tier content creator with millions of followers! Naturally, no one understands the importance of fans better than her.

"The keyboard that A-Yu bought for me before was pretty good, and I casually mentioned it during my live stream. A few days later, the supplier sent me a custom-made keyboard as a thank you for promoting them," Aemeath recalled. "Could this be considered a kind of 'fan effect'?"

"Of course," Suisui continued, "The fan effect is essentially fans making purchases out of trust in you. It's a marketing tactic built on emotion. Of course, yours was unintentional; you simply found it useful and recommended it to your fans."

"Brands hiring celebrities and top livestreamers as spokespeople is essentially a branch of the fan effect."

"But what does this have to do with Xixi's steamed bun shop?" Aemeath asked, puzzled.

"Actually, what I wanted to say is that her steamed bun shop is doing even better than you think. If you don't believe me, wait until she's about to open and see for yourself," Suisui said with a smile.

As Suisui said, as the shop's opening time approached, more and more customers from the surrounding area came specifically to visit.

Even so, they still tacitly maintained social etiquette and did not cause any trouble for other passersby who were in a hurry.

"Good heavens... so many people suddenly appeared!" Aemeath exclaimed as she saw the steamed bun shop surrounded by people from across the street.

"The little dragon buns were made by Lord Ling himself! I've never tried them before, I wonder what they taste like." Suisui looked at Xiao Ling thoughtfully, "Why don't you go and use your looks, big boss?"

"Sister!" Yangyang glared angrily at her older sister as soon as she heard the words "selling her looks".

"Yangyang, Little Ai, do you want to eat?" Xiao Ling asked with a smile. "If you want to eat, I don't mind using my looks."

"Okay, okay!" Aemeath nodded quickly twice, her eyes sparkling.

"Um... then thank you for your help, A-Yu." Yangyang tucked her hair behind her ear and said shyly.

"Well, so I'm the one who's superfluous..." Feeling neglected, Suisui burst into tears. "It's because I'm incompetent and can't win Brother Ling's favor..."

"Excuse me? Actually, you're older than me!" Xiao Ling bluntly exposed him. "Don't pretend to be young at your age, or I'll eat your share too."

"Hey? You little brat, I'll beat you up!" Suisui, whose sore spot had been touched, smacked Hajiling on the head with her fan.

After taking two hits from the fan, Xiao Ling, adhering to the principle that a good man doesn't fight with a woman, took advantage of the moment when Suisui's attack was in effect and quickly ran across the street.

"Tsk, this kid..." Suisui puffed out her right cheek angrily.

Seeing her older sister's expression, Yangyang couldn't help but cover her mouth and laugh.

"Yangyang, you're actually laughing at me!" Suisui was displeased and grabbed her younger sister to start tickling her.

"Ouch, sister, stop it! Hahaha... It's so itchy!"

For Jinhsi, this day was no different from any other day.

The steamed bun shop was as bustling as ever, with people rushing but remaining orderly, and the number of small steamed buns in the steamer was visibly decreasing.

"Here are your xiaolongbao. Please enjoy, but be careful, they're hot." Jinhsi's disguise was spot-on; even her voice lacked its usual crispness, likely due to deliberately lowering her tone.

After seeing the customer off, Jinhsi froze on the spot when she saw the next customer arrive at the shop.

"Piao...!" She instinctively wanted to call out the name she had been longing for day and night.

Xiao Ling smiled without saying a word, but simply made a shushing gesture and pointed to the customers surrounding the shop.

Jinhsi Xi immediately understood his meaning. After calming herself down, she asked in a deep voice, "What would you like?"

"One of each of the shop's xiaolongbao, please."

"Hold on."

Jinhsi skillfully packed the small steamed buns and handed them to Xiao Ling, while also showing him the location of the payment QR code.

After Xiao Ling scanned the QR code to pay, he took the small steamed bun and left without any intention of lingering.

So you're leaving already...?

Jinhsi was a little disappointed. She subconsciously glanced at her phone and suddenly noticed a note next to his transfer:

Come across the street after get off work, I'll wait for you.

Jinhsi's initially gloomy mood instantly brightened, and she threw herself into her work with even greater enthusiasm.

As soon as it was 9:30, Jinhsi couldn't wait to close the shop door, pack her things, and rush out onto the street.

She looked across the street and sure enough, Xiao Ling was standing there waving at her.

Jinhsi's mood instantly brightened, and she lightly stepped forward, staring intently at the red traffic light still lit at the street corner.

Thump, thump...

She stared intently at the traffic light until it turned from red to green, then immediately rushed onto the sidewalk and threw herself into the man's arms as fast as she could.

"Ouch!" Xiao Ling was bumped into by the little dragon girl, but still managed to hold her firmly in his arms.

"Rover..." Xixi whispered in my arms, "I miss you so much..."

"Me too," Xiao Ling said gently.

(They've actually forgotten their roots.)

"Huh? There really are dragon scales! A-Yu, you weren't lying to me after all!"

Hmm? Where did this girl come from? A-Yu? That must be the name of Rover.

Jinhsi pulled herself out of Hajiling's arms and found that a pink-haired girl next to her had been staring at the dragon scales that had suddenly appeared on her face due to shyness and excitement for a long time.

"Um... is there a problem?"

"Oh, it's nothing. I was just curious. A-Yu Yu told me before that he met a little dragon girl in Jinzhou who had dragon scales on her body. I thought he was just teasing me," Aemeath said sweetly.

"Alright! Let me introduce myself. My name is Aemeath, and as for my identity... A-Yu is my dad~"

Um?

Um?!

Huh--?!!!!

Aemeath's self-introduction to Jinhsi caused her CPU to overheat.

What does it mean to say you are the daughter of Rover?

"Really?" Jinhsi blinked her silver eyes, looking at Xiao Ling with great anticipation.

"Uh... she is indeed my daughter..." Xiao Ling gave an awkward but polite smile.

Okay, Xiao Ling successfully delivered the second blow, and Jinhsi, who was still immersed in the joy of reunion, was instantly turned into a black and white mess.

This is a classic scene in tragic love stories: when I first met you, I was young; when I met you again, you were already a married man.

Jinhsi: I will never be Xixi again!