Chapter Seventy-Eight: Lin Ze, You Finally...

Page 1

When Zhang Ya heard Zhang Huai’s plan, she felt nothing amiss; in fact, her eyes lit up instantly. For her current self, this was an opportunity to garner massive attention, whether good or bad—it didn’t matter. The greatest fear of any celebrity is irrelevance, and what she lacked most now was exposure.

“Don’t worry about this. You know how professional our company is when it comes to celebrity transitions. You’ve seen how successful Zhang Yang’s latest song was after his transformation.”

Zhang Huai began painting a grand picture at once.

Zhang Ya was no novice in the industry; the tricks and schemes were second nature to her. Yet, this was no disadvantage for her. Lin Ze was a rising star, and if she could even slightly associate herself with him, the heat generated would be more than enough to serve her needs.

“Alright, this afternoon you’ll fly to the Red Leaf Inn. I’ll book your ticket.”

Zhang Huai had already bought a night’s stay at the Red Leaf Inn from a scalper for a high price. All she needed to do was arrive in the afternoon to check in.

“Thank you, Mr. Zhang,” Zhang Ya replied sweetly.

...

Yesterday, because of a game of Gomoku, Lin Ze and Su Zitan had been freed from their original tasks. Today, they rode their little electric scooter around Ear Sea, enjoying the sea breeze for hours. By four or five in the afternoon, under the blazing sun, they returned to the inn.

Passing the front desk, Lin Ze noticed someone vaguely familiar checking in. He couldn’t place her, and after a longer glance, said nothing.

“Did you find her pretty?” Su Zitan, having just walked past, pinched a bit of flesh on Lin Ze’s waist and questioned him fiercely.

“No, no, she just looked a little familiar,” Lin Ze hurriedly grabbed Su Zitan’s hand.

Back at the inn, Xiao Qian was no longer tagging along. Lin Ze saw Ji Chen and Lin Chunshui sitting in the courtyard; the other two pairs were nowhere to be found.

“Xiao Lin, I’ve never cooked before—do you think I can manage?” Ji Chen fiddled with a borrowed cooking gadget.

“You’ll be fine. Why wouldn’t you?” Lin Ze reassured.

The gadget was for making egg waffles, honeycomb-shaped. Simply pour in the prepared mixture and wait for a while.

“As long as you follow the instructions, you’ll be alright,” Lin Ze said.

He and Su Zitan glanced at their own cart—the one for fried yogurt. Tonight, they would use it for business.

Page 2

All four teams would sell a kind of snack outside the inn, competing for sales.

Lin Ze and Su Zitan’s fried yogurt machine was at a slight disadvantage in terms of profit. The highest profit belonged to Zhao Funing and his wife’s barbecue cart.

Preparations began. Lin Ze and Su Zitan checked their stock—all kinds of fruit and yogurt, top notch.

After a short rest, it was time to set up their stall. Lin Ze felt as though someone upstairs was watching him; he looked up but saw nothing.

Zhang Ya had already arrived in her room, gazing out at the sea view. Wonderful, truly wonderful. Now, all she had to do was wait until evening when the stalls opened, and her plan could begin.

She scrolled through Lin Ze’s recent posts, feeling a twinge of excitement.

Soon, the outside grew bustling; the four stalls were set up outside the inn—a cart for egg waffles, a cart for fried yogurt, a barbecue cart, and a fruit salad cart.

Lin Ze’s stall quickly welcomed its first customer.

“Brother Lin, I want a strawberry fried yogurt and a matcha fried yogurt.”

“Alright, first batch strawberry, second batch matcha.” Lin Ze took some strawberries from Su Zitan, placed them on the fried yogurt griddle, poured on yogurt, and then, with his two spatulas, mashed the strawberries thoroughly, blending them with the yogurt.

As the mixture solidified, Lin Ze drew grids with his spatulas and, with a single flip, produced three bowls of fried yogurt.

One bowl went to the waiting customer; the other two were placed in the small ice cabinet nearby.

Lin Ze’s movements were deft, the three bowls of fried yogurt flawless.

Zhang Ya, sitting on her bed, watched Lin Ze’s actions via the camera outside.

It was only the beginning; soon, orders poured in.

Lin Ze’s batch produced three bowls, more than the other three stalls.

Seeing the timing was right, Zhang Ya stripped down and entered the bathroom. She soaked her body and hair, tore up loads of paper, and stuffed them into the toilet. A flush clogged it.

Wrapped in a bath towel, exposing a scar on her chest, she called the front desk.

She dialed three or four times before someone outside heard.

“Hello? This is room 306. I accidentally clogged the toilet—could someone come have a look?”

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The call was answered by Lin Ze, who happened to have some free time and plenty of stock left.

“Oh, alright, I’ll be right there.” Lin Ze nodded.

The cameras focused on the four stalls outside.

Ji Chen had burnt two or three batches of egg waffles; Lin Chunshui wouldn’t let him continue, leaving Ji Chen idle.

Lin Ze hung up. Ji Chen happened to stoop and enter from outside.

“Ji, what are you doing in here?” Lin Ze took off his apron.

“Don’t ask. I’ve burnt several batches—my wife won’t let me cook anymore…” Ji Chen was speechless. “Strange, I followed the timing precisely, how could this happen…”

“Hey, brother, do you have anything to do? If not, could you go upstairs? Room 306’s toilet is clogged, help me out—I can’t leave the stall right now…” Lin Ze pulled Ji Chen aside.

“Alright, I can handle a clogged toilet.”

Ji Chen nodded.

With that, Ji Chen headed upstairs.

Zhang Ya switched her phone to camera mode, aiming it at the door. Her heart began to race; now that it was happening, she felt a bit nervous...

Footsteps echoed in the hallway, growing closer. Ji Chen arrived at the door and knocked.

“Hello, I’m here to fix the toilet.”

Zhang Ya hesitated; the voice outside sounded odd, hoarser than Lin Ze’s.

She peered through the peephole—the person outside was bowing his head, wearing an apron. It should be Ze, right?

She took a deep breath and flung open the door.

“Hello, you—”

Before she finished, Zhang Ya grabbed the man’s clothes and dragged him inside, then rushed at him.

“You’re finally here, Lin—”

“What the hell is wrong with you!” Ji Chen shoved Zhang Ya away and quickly retreated a few steps.

Zhang Ya’s mind was flooded; she hadn’t even seen who it was and chased after him blindly.