Chapter 28: The Generous Movie Star

October, the transition between autumn and winter, brought a cliff-like drop in temperatures to the Shandon region. The temperature fluctuation between day and night was staggering. During the day, Gu Yin felt so hot he was tempted to shed his hoodie for a short-sleeved shirt, yet by night, he felt he needed a heavy-duty military overcoat just to survive.

Driving along the elevated highway, the orange-red glow of the streetlights swept rhythmically through the car interior. Gu Yin drove in silence, while Mengmeng, the chubby girl in the back seat, chattered incessantly:

"Seriously, what were you thinking?"
"How could you just drive off with someone else's car like that?"
"You are truly unreliable..."

Although Gu Yin's excuses at the police station had been so brilliant that even she had wanted to applaud, reflecting on it now, it seemed rather shameless. He had simply been lucky to run into that justice-obsessed policewoman; anyone else would have had him detained for the night.

Irritated, Gu Yin countered, "Weren't you the one in such a rush to leave?"

That single sentence acted like a detonator, igniting Mengmeng: "Even if I was in a rush, that doesn't mean you should have taken someone else's car! You *&%￥#@..."

The car became incredibly noisy. Mengmeng ranted for a long time, but Gu Yin barely caught a word of her muttering. He only heard her final question to Xia Qianyi, who sat beside her:

"Qianyi, don't you think so?"
"Hm?"

Xia Qianyi, who had been staring blankly out the window, blinked slightly. When she turned her head, her clear pupils held a hint of confusion. The girl’s ruby lips parted slightly:

"What did you just say?"
Mengmeng: "..."

*So, I’m just the extra one here?*

"I said, what do you think about this whole situation!" she summarized.

"I... think it was quite good." A rare, faint smile appeared on the girl's stunning face.

"Did you hear that? Even our Qianyi thinks... wait, what? You think it’s good?" Mengmeng’s mouth twitched.

"Yes, quite good," Xia Qianyi said in a clear, gentle tone. "Someone needed to teach that kind of person a lesson; otherwise, she would just continue to disgust more people."

As she spoke, she did something completely out of character: she gave a thumbs-up toward the rearview mirror, where Gu Yin was secretly watching her.

"Cough..."

Gu Yin’s face flushed, and he immediately looked away.

Mengmeng: "..."

"Forget it..." She sighed, resting her forehead in her hand. Seeing they were almost there, she decided to warn Gu Yin: "Remember not to tell anyone about what happened here. It won't do you any good, understand?"

Gu Yin remained noncommittal, offering no reply. Mentioning this made Xia Qianyi blush slightly. She thought to herself that it was fortunate Gu Yin’s livestream channel was obscure and likely had few viewers; otherwise, if the clumsy "socially dead" moments from her driving lessons were shared, she would have been mortified.

After exiting the highway and passing two intersections, Gu Yin dropped Xia Qianyi and Mengmeng off at a residential complex called "Happy Home." The community didn't allow outside vehicles to enter, so the two women got out at the gate.

"Hey."

Just as they were about to walk off, they heard Gu Yin call out.

"What is it?" Mengmeng asked.

They watched as Gu Yin picked his phone up from the mount, pulled up his payment QR code, and said, "Pay up."

"...You actually want money!" Mengmeng’s mouth twitched.

Does he have any idea who he just gave a ride to?! That’s Xia Qianyi, a red-hot celebrity! Mengmeng complained internally, *Do you know how many people would pay to drive our Qianyi home, you idiot!*

"And why wouldn't I?" Gu Yin didn't give an inch. Just because a celebrity is in the car doesn't mean they shouldn't pay, right?

"You..."

Just as Mengmeng was about to retort, a fragrant breeze swept past. Xia Qianyi had walked around from behind her and stood directly in front of Gu Yin’s car.

*Ding.*

Her flawless, pale hand held her iPhone, encased in a fuzzy phone cover. After scanning Gu Yin’s code, a notification hit his phone a moment later:

[Alipay received, 10,000 Yuan!]

Gu Yin: "???"

"My gas... err, my electricity doesn't cost that much," Gu Yin couldn't help but say.

Although he had heard that celebrities in the entertainment industry were never short of cash—making tens or hundreds of thousands for a single appearance—he never expected that just for driving Xia Qianyi back from driving school, this young lady would transfer him ten thousand.

Generally speaking, a ride-hailing service from his school to Happy Home would cost at most two hundred yuan, and that was even before electric vehicles drove the prices down. What on earth was this ten-thousand-yuan transfer?!

Outside the driver's side door, the girl in the grey hoodie had already pulled up her mask and pulled her hat low. The white streetlamp light spilled onto the brim, casting the area beneath it into darkness, making her face nearly invisible. Yet, for some reason, Gu Yin felt that those clear eyes under the hat were glimmering.

"It’s not very convenient for us to drive ourselves, so we might need to trouble you to drive us in the future. Consider this payment for multiple rides," the girl’s clear, melodic voice came from beneath the grey brim. "You’re driving for a ride-hailing app anyway, so it shouldn't be too much trouble for you, right?"

That was what she said, but it certainly wasn't the only reason she transferred so much. Today at the school, it seemed that because of her, another instructor had forced a few extra students onto Gu Yin. Even if that was a matter between colleagues, it had something to do with her, so she naturally wanted to compensate him.

"Qianyi!" Mengmeng resumed her chattering.

Gu Yin looked at the girl who seemed to love wrapping herself in her hoodie, scratched his head, and thought about how his car was damaged and he wouldn't be able to work for a few days anyway; driving them would actually be profitable. He nodded: "Fine, but I don't have time to pick you up. At most, I can drop you off when I'm free."

"Deal."

Xia Qianyi nodded, reached a small hand out from her sleeve, and waved at Gu Yin: "Drive safely."

Was that concern? Gu Yin didn't know. However, he wasn't arrogant enough to think a celebrity would have a crush on him after just one day. He was, after all, the kind of guy that even a woman with a stable job in a small town would look down upon.

*Vroom...*

After parting ways with Xia Qianyi, he pressed the accelerator on his way home. It was late—past 8:30 PM, and he wouldn't be home until at least 9:30. It was all because of that trouble with Qin Ou, the Cadillac driver.

"Another day done, goodbye friends."

Before getting on the highway, Gu Yin removed the camera from his chest. At that moment, he actually thought about how nice it would be if he were an influencer or a celebrity. Look at Xia Qianyi—she tossed out ten thousand yuan like it was nothing, an amount that would take him over a month to earn.

"Better be realistic..."

Gu Yin shook his head, thinking he didn't have the personality for an influencer anyway. He doubted anyone was watching, so he might as well stick to earning the two-hundred-yuan daily minimum.

"Dreams" and "ideals"—he had had them too. It was a pity they were so fragile; the moment they hit the ground, they shattered into pieces that could never be put back together.

It is worth mentioning that as he turned off the camera, some of the viewers were amused:

[This kid still doesn't realize he's gone viral, does he?]