Chapter 38: Live Streaming a Verbal Smackdown

As the words faded, Chen Shuya tilted her head slightly, looking at Su Chen beside her with a gentle smile. "That was certainly a sincere lesson! Thank you, Su Chen, for your generous tutorial on how to master the art of the 'divine retort.' Now, let's connect with our next viewer."

Because the stream was trending, the number of concurrent viewers had already exceeded 200,000, and there were hundreds of requests to connect. Chen Shuya looked at the screen and randomly selected a viewer from a channel named "Riding a Donkey on a Journey"—as luck would have it, this was Xu Xiaolin, Sun Tiantian’s roommate!

"Ahhh! Tiantian, I'm so lucky! I got picked! It's me, it's me!"

The moment the connection went through, a girl's excited shriek echoed through the stream. Su Chen chuckled and replied, "Yes, yes, it is indeed you. But there’s no need to be so excited; this is just a standard connection, not a lottery jackpot."

"Hello, hello, 'First Deep Affection' Su Chen!" Xu Xiaolin took a deep breath to steady herself, then said with a beaming smile, "I'm your newest fan!"

Su Chen smiled in response. "Thank you for your support! Is there anything you'd like to ask or say to me?"

Xu Xiaolin glanced at Sun Tiantian before looking back at the camera with a serious expression. "First of all, I want to apologize for my previous remarks. Before I knew the full story, I kept going to your Douyin page to criticize you. Standing here in front of everyone, I want to formally say: I’m sorry!"

Su Chen waved it off nonchalantly. "It’s alright. As I said earlier, I don't hold grudges against the netizens who criticized me, so you don't need to keep it on your heart."

"Mhm, I know, but saying it out loud makes me feel much better!" Xu Xiaolin then asked with a mischievous, gossipy smile, "For my second question, may I ask if you are currently in a relationship?"

As soon as the words left her lips, the chat room exploded. It was clear that everyone shared a love for gossip; they were all very interested in the answer and flooded the screen with comments.

"Well, usually I wouldn't answer such personal questions," Su Chen said with a warm smile. "But since everyone is so enthusiastic today, I’ll make an exception and break the rule: I am currently single."

The moment he finished, the screen was instantly filled with comments like "Su Chen, I want to have your babies!" and "My idol, I love you!"

Truth be told, given Su Chen’s overall qualities, he was exactly the type of man who appealed to women. He was strikingly handsome, clever, witty, kind-hearted, and emotionally stable. On top of that, as a major influencer, his income was surely substantial. Which girl wouldn't be tempted by a man who had wealth, looks, and character?

Meanwhile, hearing Su Chen’s answer, Xu Xiaolin grew excited again. Composing herself, she whispered, "Actually, I really wanted to tell you something... I don't know if you remember 'Autumn Breeze Seeking an Old Friend'?"

She had asked the previous question on behalf of Sun Tiantian. Having lived with her for so long, Xu Xiaolin knew Sun Tiantian had developed special feelings for him. Although he was a famous influencer with countless fans now, their Tiantian was no slouch—she was a top student at Renmin University, beautiful, with a perfect figure and a great personality. Didn't she deserve him?

If "First Deep Affection" Su Chen said he had no impression of "Autumn Breeze Seeking an Old Friend," it would clearly indicate that he only saw Tiantian as an ordinary fan with no further thoughts, and there would be no need for them to develop anything.

But if he remembered her vividly, it meant there were infinite possibilities!

Su Chen paused for a second, then asked with a smile, "Of course I remember Little Autumn. May I ask who you are to her?"

Back in the dorm, despite Sun Tiantian desperately trying to cover Xu Xiaolin's mouth, the latter blurted it out first. "Actually, I'm her roommate. She’s been worried about you these past few days..."

Su Chen smiled. "I know that. Is Little Autumn with you right now?"

Seeing that Su Chen had already opened the door, Sun Tiantian had no choice but to glare at Xu Xiaolin and whisper, "Brother Su Chen..."

Su Chen laughed heartily. "Long time no see, Little Autumn. Listening to your roommate, it seems like she’s trying to play matchmaker... what do you think?"

Sun Tiantian felt the heat rush to her face, turning her bright red. She pouted and retorted, "Brother Su Chen, what nonsense are you spouting? She doesn't mean that at all!"

"No, I do! I totally mean it!" Xu Xiaolin shouted excitedly from the side, impossible to silence.

Su Chen, listening to the commotion on the other end, laughed joyfully and teased, "Well, what if I told you I felt the same way?"

Hearing this, the viewers in the stream—while still not fully grasping the situation—grew frantic. The chat moved so fast it covered the entire screen. Sun Tiantian, still a student, had never experienced such a massive scene and panicked, immediately hanging up the call.

Watching the connection drop, Su Chen finally couldn't hold back his laughter. *Trying to tease me, were you? "How have you been lately," huh? "Already eighteen," were you? Finally, I’ve caught the chance to get my revenge! This is what they call a gentleman’s revenge—ten years is not too long. Everything owed to me will be paid back! Hahahaha!*

"Su Chen, what’s the story with this 'Little Autumn'?" Chen Shuya asked, teasingly. "Is there a backstory between you two? We’re all very curious! Can you tell us more?"

Su Chen smiled offhandedly and explained, "I’ve known Little Autumn for over three years. Back when I first started streaming and was at my lowest point, she was the one who kept supporting and encouraging me not to give up. We’re very close, kindred spirits, the kind of bond that’s better than siblings. Because of the recent donation controversy, she didn't know the inside story and was very worried, so she kept reaching out to ask how I was. I told her there was a reason for what I did, and she believed in me unconditionally. I was just teasing her earlier..."

"Wow, that sounds really sweet!" Chen Shuya exclaimed. "Honestly, I’m envious of such a sincere friendship. And the fact that you managed to connect with her out of hundreds of thousands of viewers—that shows you’re truly fated."

In the dorm, Xu Xiaolin watched the stream and pouted—*What do you mean? I was the one who connected!*

The stream continued, and the subsequent questions from viewers were more conventional. Su Chen handled them methodically and composedly, earning rounds of applause.

Chen Shuya laughed, "Actually, what many of you don't know is that Su Chen used to be an emotional consultant! If any of you have relationship troubles in the future, you can come to Su Chen for advice!"

Sure enough, once that was said, the style of the questions changed, and Su Chen decisively entered his "sharp-tongued" mode. Needless to say, he wouldn't turn down the "anger points" being handed to him on a silver platter!

Viewer: "Host, I’ve been getting close to a girl, but I noticed that sometimes when I message her on WeChat, she doesn't reply. What's going on?"

Su Chen: "It's simple. If you can't be sure whether a girl likes you, then she definitely doesn't."

Viewer: "But I send her gifts, and she never refuses them!"

Su Chen: "Congratulations. I can only say you're the king of the deck, the busiest clown in the circus. You're a backup tire, confirmed without a doubt."

[Received anger points from Wang Xiang, +888]

Viewer: "Host, why is it that before we moved in together she was very close to me, but after we moved in, she seemed to grow distant?"

Su Chen: "Because she originally wanted to be with you for the long haul, but after moving in, she realized you weren't long enough, and you didn't last long enough."

[Received anger points from Xu Heqing, +999]

Viewer: "Brother Su Chen, I’m your fan. I have a question that's been bothering me. I always feel my boyfriend is stingy. Should I break up with him?"

Su Chen: "Could you give me an example?"

Viewer: "For instance, he doesn't have much money and can't afford the restaurants in the mall, so he only takes me to eat noodles every day. He never thinks of eating anything else!"

Su Chen: "Then why don't you take him out for something nice?"

Viewer: "..."

[Received anger points from Yang Xiaocui, +666]

*Fan or no fan, I don't care. Come and face your doom!*

At this moment, Su Chen treated everyone equally—regardless of gender, he focused only on the facts. If he had to roast them, he wouldn't pull his punches. Aside from the victims, the audience in the stream found it incredibly entertaining, as if they were watching a spectacular reality show.