CH 51

Chapter 51: Anti-Fans

Over the past year, Shi Qingyang had started popping up in the discussions in the battle proficiency exchange forum. Unlike those who liked to publish some of their own findings on it, thinking they were very powerful and wanting to gain recognition from others, he preferred to give guidance to those who were low-level and who wanted help learning to solve some of their issues.

After a while, he had gained a great reputation in this forum. In contrast, there was less time for Pengcheng Wanli to appear, so fewer people knew him. Also, Cheng Xuze was busy developing the Cheng family and practicing radio exercises, so he would certainly not spend as much time on the Internet as he did before.

Pengcheng Wanli had a lot of popularity in the beginning, and now Shi Qingyang’s wasn’t so bad. Moreover, because Shi Qingyang could always suggest some very practical and inexpensive methods to practice capturing mutated beasts, he was more deeply admired than Pengcheng Wanli in the eyes of some low-level rad-warriors who weren’t very well-off.

Not only that, when some people on the forum pointed things out to others, they would unconsciously show some biases. Some even directly highlighted their own city or family, but “I don’t want to starve” didn’t.

He wouldn’t show off what he owned, and wouldn’t give praise for no reason. He didn’t even disclose any personal information. Such a low-key person naturally won the favor of many. The entire time, many people reached out asking to be his apprentice.

However, this post Shi Qingyang was looking at was just asking him to be the poster’s mentor. How could it be so highly ranked? Shi Qingyang browed around and found that it was his own anti-fans1 in this post, and they were still flaming him even now.

“Talking about I don’t want to starve, I bet he’s probably so poor he can’t even afford to eat.”

“According to my analysis, I don’t want to starve must be some old, poor, and ugly sissy. He’d actually go so far as to teach people how to put on makeup!”

“All he can think of are ways to save money. Such a guy must be poor, and have problems scrounging for food.”

“The landlord2 is absolutely blind to want to worship such a person as a teacher.”

“I can assure you that I don’t want to starve won’t dare to directly respond.”

……

Shi Qingyang scrolled down slowly. He had the feeling that the person with the ID of “Hero Holds a Sword and Carries Wine” was deliberately taunting him to try and get Shi Qingyang to reveal information.

The man combed through all of Shi Qingyang’s previous replies and analyzed them one by one in order to make people believe that Not Starving was an ugly and poor old man.

Many of the methods put forward by Shi Qingyang were indeed very grassroots. There had been people who thought he lived a bad life before. At this time, many people believed this guy’s words, and some who supported Shi Qingyang shouted, “So what if Master I don’t want to starve’s life isn’t good in reality? He is still my male god.”

“That is to say, on the internet where you can’t see I don’t want to starve’s looks, you’ll think he’s a male god. If you saw him in reality, most of you wouldn’t even give him a single look,” Hero Holds a Sword immediately replied.

Shi Qingyang was speechless when he saw the forum thread’s post count grow higher and higher, but he didn’t get angry. If he could have been angered because of words like these, he would have been infuriated in his previous life. At that time, some people talked about how he sold his body and things like that.

“Master Not Starving? Master Not Starving?” Cheng Xuze’s voice rang out: “In fact, Shi Qingyang is also a very good disciple. It’s enough to have one disciple. Haha, I was just kidding.” After I don’t want starve said he wouldn’t accept any more disciples, he was really nervous now.

“I’m reading a post.” Speaking of, Shi Qingyang sent over the post address: “There are more and more posts about me recently. Someone should have discovered me.” The Almighty Elixir of the Cheng family attracted a lot of attention. It was fine in the beginning, and no one had discovered his involvement. However, in recent months, many people had tried to fish his information on the Internet. It was likely that Cheng Xuze being Pencheng Wanli had long since been found out.

Shi Qingyang showed Cheng Xuze this post in order to make Cheng Xuze more alert, but unfortunately, he forgot that Cheng Xuze was actually his number one fan.

This number one fan, who had just received Not Starving’s great kindness, was in a state of unrequited gratitude

It wasn’t long before Cheng Xuze burst in with his administrator privileges and began to fight against the antis: “You slanderers, only those who can’t do it themselves will say that others can’t do it. I think you’re the one who’s old, ugly, poor and sissy!”

“Master is so talented and capable, how is it possible for him not to have money? It’s just you who’s the one that can only hop around on the internet all day.”

The old man was very energetic and fast in typing. He went from post to post and quickly refuted in a long list.

Now in a better mood, Shi Qingyang turned to other posts, and finally his eyes fell on one of them. It was a help request from a rad-warrior in the forum who wanted to buy a tank. Tanks…

Shi Qingyang thought of something wrote in the post that asked for guidance: “The latest combat vehicles of the Huofeng (Fire Phoenix) Company are pretty good overall, but there is a problem with the engine design. The two metal materials used in it are resistant to high temperature, but they will react in combination with a high temperature environment. Once the highest speed is maintained for a long time, there’s a certain chance of engine failure. The only result at that time is car destruction and human death.”

“Master Not Starving appears! But why did he suddenly mention tanks? He replied to the wrong post?” someone replied in surprise.

“Huofeng Company’s latest model has just sold a limited number of 100 tanks. Its market value is priceless. Master, you really have money!”

“So Master Not Hungry actually has a lot of money!”

“Local tyrant, please adopt me!”

“The landlord was slapped in the face. So cool!”

“Upstairs, your focus is so strange. Now the most important thing is to contact Huofeng Company. How can their cars be listed if they really have that kind of issue?” Finally, a relatively sane person asked.

Huofeng Company was the largest combat vehicle enterprise in the country. It produced all kinds of chariots. Almost all the top chariots in the country were from Huofeng. This time, Huofeng Company spent a lot of manpower and material resources to develop their new tanks. If there was such a problem…

It had to be said that today’s tanks had very good defense. They wouldn’t be damaged when they hit mutated plants, so when in danger in the wild, drivers often drove for their lives at the highest speed. If the new tanks were really like what Not Starving said, once they did so, they would combust the engine…

Soon someone went to Huofeng Company to ask, and Shi Qingyang also received a communication from Cheng Xuze: “Master Not Starving, you are too amazing! Your words are so powerful, but what you said about the Huofeng Company’s tanks true? Could such expensive vehicles really have problems?”

“Of course there is.” Shi Qingyang casually said, turning on the news.

In his previous life, Huofeng Company’s change of ownership made a lot of noise. The reason was this tank. At the beginning, a level-7 radiant warrior with some family background ran for his life at the fastest speed after encountering a swarm of locusts, but when he was close to the city and was about to be saved, his car suddenly exploded, destroying the vehicle and killing many people in the process. Many people witnessed this scene, and Huofeng Company went under intense questioning. After that, the parents of the dead rad-warrior recklessly suppressed Huofeng Company, and Huofeng Company could only change ownership.

In his previous life, Shi Qingyang was just looking at this news. However, after Huofeng Company’s crisis, the one who took it over was the Feng Family3, which made him a little dissatisfied. Taking advantage of this opportunity, he simply reminded Huofeng Company of this issue.

Along the way, it could divert other people’s attention–the Cheng Family was really too eyecatching these days…

“Master, you have done the Huofeng Company a great favor. They should really thank you,” Cheng Xuze sighed.

“Then let them give me money.” Shi Qingyang smiled and typed a line of words. Then he said, “I’m about to leave, so you should be about to go? Aren’t you going to celebrate?”

“I almost forgot this. I have to celebrate! I also want to call those old guys to let them know about my son! We’ll have to get up early tomorrow to test Xiao Hui, and have the staff notify the others in advance…” Cheng Xuze laughed, and performed a piece of the radio exercise: “And this set of skills, shall be a family heirloom in the future!”

Shi Qingyang silently turned off the computer and went out to exercise.

The next morning, shortly after Shi Qingyang got up, the doorbell of the villa rang. It was Xing Ou, the leader of Spark City, who came to congratulate Shi Qingyang and Cheng Ran, and then asked people to bring in all kinds of new year goods he had prepared.

He was sincere and boasted about their good achievements. Unfortunately, when talking, he deliberately turned the topic to Cheng Hui several times, making people understand that the intention of the drunkard lies not on the wine, but on other purposes, and that he had come here not for idle chatter but with ulterior motives4.

It was also from his mouth that Shi Qingyang knew that early this morning, Cheng Hui had passed the test and became a level-8 rad-warrior.

There was relevant news on the Internet. One could find photos of Cheng Xuze and Cheng Hui everywhere upon looking. Cheng Xuze was always serious in front of people, and here was no exception. Cheng Hui was smiling embarrasedly. On the news, in addition to reporting on the Cheng family and son, it also devoted a lot of space to praising several other level-8 rad-warriors in Yangtze City, and the people of the Yangtze City radiation energy association. Without their cooperation, Cheng Hui would never have completed all the tests early in the morning.

One reporter even said excitedly that these people couldn’t wait to help Cheng Hui test, which was enough to let people know the deep friendship between them.

Thinking of Cheng Xuze’s complaint about the exclusion of the Cheng family by others in Yangtze City, and of what Cheng Xuze said he would do last night, Shi Qingyang also had a trace of sympathy for Cheng Hui, who was embarrassed.

There was no doubt that Cheng Xuze urged Cheng Hui to carry out the test so early.

However, there was also be a reason for Cheng Xuze to do so. The Cheng family had no foundation. Their rise was originally diggin a piece of meat from the mouths of other families in Yangtze City, and naturally made others itch with jealousy. At this time, Cheng Xuze needed some weak points he could use to paralyze others.

After Xing Ou came, other people in Spark City who knew Cheng Ran’s identity also arrived. All kinds of things filled the villa in a very short time.

“This can be regarded as fowls and dogs turn immortals5, right?” Cheng Ran played with those things curiously. He had no impression of Cheng Hui, but he didn’t hate him. He felt very happy when he knew that Cheng Hui had advanced.

“We’ve spent the whole day receiving these people. Let’s go out to eat at night?” Shi Qingyang asked. Probably to impress them, those who came to visit all staggered their arrival time, making it so that the three of them had no free time all day.

“Alright.” Cheng Ran nodded: “Let’s go to Spark Hotel? I like the pie there.” Now that Cheng Ran had avoided taking the radiation inducer injection earlier, and that he’d been under care for more than a year, Cheng Ran had no problem eating. As long as he did not eat too much food with high radiation, he would have no problem.

“Of course.” Shi Qingyang smiled. In the past, Cheng Ran would never take the initiative to ask where to go. Now, he had really grown a lot.

Spark Hotel was the largest hotel in Spark City. It was owned by the whole Spark City, and its profit was always the infrastructure of Spark City. Now that it was almost New Year, it was usually extremely busy whenever Shi Qingyang and others went in the past.

“I’m sorry, sir. We’re full.” The woman in red cheongsam looked at Shi Qingyang apologetically.

“Let’s go somewhere else.” Cheng Ran looked at the crowded scene inside and grabbed Shi Qingyang’s wrist. He wanted to come here for dinner because Shi Qingyang had brought him here before, but he was reluctant to let him squeeze with others.

Shi Qingyang also thought it would be better to move to another place. Just as he was about to go out, a beautiful woman in her thirties greeted him with a smile on her face, the sign of the manager on her chest: “Isn’t this Master Cheng? What does Master Cheng want to eat? Please come in.”

“But the seats…” Cheng Ran glanced at the people waiting in line outside.

“Master Cheng, there is a box upstairs,” The manager said with a smile. “Master Cheng, it was also our negligence that we didn’t give Master Cheng a VIP card. We deliberately reserved boxes upstairs for distinguished guests like Master Cheng.” She just learned Cheng Ran’s identity from Xing Ou today and met Cheng Ran. How could she not make every effort to lock him down?

Moreover, she took a lot of effort to catch up with Xing Ou. Naturally, things should be done according to Xing Ou’s wishes. Didn’t Xing Ou always want to use the Cheng family to suppress the Yin family, so as to dominate political power?

The manager was very enthusiastic, but Shi Qingyang and Cheng Ran were not used to this. Although there were many people who had fawned on them this year, there weren’t many people who approached them outside…

“You lead the way, find a quiet box. In the private room, serve some signature dishes later. The pie as well, we’ll take a share.” Gu Changjin adapted well.

“I’ll take you up in just a moment.” The manager smiled and took them into the elevator: “The boxes on the top floor have floor to ceiling windows. I have already arranged one for you. How does that sound?”

“Sorry for the trouble, thank you.” Cheng Ran said sincerely, but Shi Qingyang glanced at the manager.

“No need. How can it be a trouble to help Young Master Cheng?” The manager laughed happily, but things didn’t go as smoothly as she said.

“We’ve already sat down, now you’re driving us away, what do you mean by this?” As soon as they reached the top floor, a voice sounded. Shi Qingyang raised his gaze and saw many acquaintances, led by Yin Tiancheng.

“Master Yin, I’m really sorry, but someone has already reserved the location here.” The manager was neither humble nor arrogant: “Master Yin, you can change to another box.”

Yin Tiancheng did not speak, but looked at Cheng Ran gloomily. The people around him could not help saying, “When we came up, why didn’t anyone say someone had reserved it?”

“Stop talking, let’s go!” Yin Tiancheng snorted coldly and walked out.

Footnotes

1 – Anti-fans: Called ‘black powder’ in the Chinese because they love to ‘throw black powder’/slander their target, think of it as slinging mud or throwing dirt on someone to dirty them. English equivalent is antis. [return]

2 – Landlord: In chinese forums they refer to forum posts as ‘buildings’, each post is a different ‘floor’ (so 67th floor is the 67th post, for example). Following this, the OP, or original poster, is called the ‘landlord’ since they put up the ‘building’. [return]

3 – The Feng family is Shi Qingyang’s enemy, who sent Shi Qingyang into the research institute. [return]

4 – Last sentence here I added myself to explain the idiom preceding. The idiom is 醉翁之意不在酒 [zuì wēng zhī yì bú zài jiǔ], having ulterior motives when doing something. [return]

5 – 鸡犬升天[jī quǎn shēng tiān]: Relatives and followers of a high official receive promotion after him; idiom referring to how when one person ascends to high rank, the people around them also go up in importance. [return]