I Got Famous Making Cooking Livestreams In Space

Translator: Sy

Chapter 29: The Gathering of Tycoons

“Are you gonna kiss me? Answer me! Kiss me!” Lin Ning pinched Xizai’s cheeks, growling. But the way his pretty peach blossom eyes narrowed impishly and his pearly teeth peeked through his stretched lips made his stern face limpy. The cat stared at him like he was an idiot.

Li Chengyan swished his tail, meowing half-heartedly in response, the pink in his ears still far from fading. The cat body must’ve had some kind of dumbing effect on him, he thought. He never would’ve found the person before him… cute (?) otherwise. 

Lin Ning played with the kitty for a little longer before realizing Li Chengyan hadn’t once appeared on screen. “Where’s your ex-owner, Xizai?” He couldn’t help but mumble.

The kitty turned away, so Lin Ning let go of it.

“Are you leaving?”

Li Chengyan leaped down nimbly, and the holographic cat padded towards the tablet screen. It wriggled into the screen, and the screen seemed to ripple, the circling waves vibrating before stilling down, and the kitty was now back to just being on the phone screen.

Lin Ning: “…” Meanie. 

Li Chengyan felt a little guilty seeing the disappointment on Lin Ning’s face. He lifted a paw, showing his pink little paw beans, and nudged it at the screen stiffly. A cat paw emerged from Lin Ning’s screen, and Lin Ning put his hand on it. A torrent of warmth came from Lin Ning’s palm, a strong surge of plant-healing powers swelling into the cat’s body.

“……” The rampaging eased. He lifted his head, locking eyes with Lin Ning.

Lin Ning grinned. Underneath the overhead lights, it was as if there were stars in his eyes, so soft and mesmerizing Li Chengyan struggled to pull away. Those full red lips parted, and Lin Ning said, “Some plant powers as a gift, Xizai. I don’t really get why you like them so much, but here you go. Sweet dreams.”

Li Chengyan the cat froze. A trail of palpitations throbbed in his chest, swelling into heart pounds that rippled down his blood and bones. Even his eardrums shuddered.

*

Zhang Zhining was getting ready for bed when Lin Ning emerged from his room.

When he saw him, he grinned. “Were you having a video call with Xizai? Sorry, I didn’t mean to eavesdrop – it’s just that my ears are really sharp ‘cause of the powers, y’know? So I heard a meow.”

Lin Ning shook his head, pouring himself a glass of water. “No worries. Yeah, that was Xizai. He’s with his other owner at a different place, but he’ll be back soon.”

Zhang Zhining yawned, not thinking to ask more. He ruffled his hair. “Are you going to sleep?” His hair looked like a bird’s nest now.

Lin Ning nodded. “Feel free to switch off the lights. Good night.”

After returning to his room Lin Ning lay on the bed, staring at the view outside his window. He felt good, bouncy, as if he’d just woken up. Sleeping wasn’t possible anymore. It took him a while before he finally dozed off.

*

The next day, a tag about the marshal crept up the trending page as expected. Then the tag shot up, breaking through the other tags like it was chopping through bamboo. Slash after slash it cleaned through the ranks, killing its way to number one. And it stayed there for a good half of the day. And why did it go viral in such a short amount of time? Because the news was born from the marshal’s own Interstellar account. This was real, genuine, reliable news. 

#MarshalAttendsInterstellarConferenceAt6

There’d never been a tag that’d trended this quickly before— it was evident how much the Interstellar people respected and loved the marshal. At this very moment, everybody,  tech-savvy or not, was watching the trending page in front of their tablets, waiting for the conference to begin.

Ever since news of the marshal’s injuries went viral, the people had been silently waiting for updates, praying for his recovery. During this time, it was near impossible for anyone to get reliable news on him, so all they could do was listen to the officials’ orders to wait patiently for news. But days turned to weeks, and time ground their patience. The people started speculating that the marshal might’ve been fatally wounded, or that his days were numbered.

The marshal had powers of the highest rank, after all. That meant he’d had to endure the torture of Power Rampages his entire life, so it was highly likely he’d die young, like other highly-ranked power holders in the past.

But these rumors were squashed like bugs under the new tag. Without a question, a message the marshal’s team itself posted was more than enough to prove the truth: photon tablets could only be accessed by their registered owners, and without their vital signs or clear consciousness present, one couldn’t share posts through their accounts.

There were millions of comments below the tag, all of them howling fans of the marshals.

[AAAAAAA my god is back! He’s here to marry me!!! sohappyimlosingmyming.jpg]

[I declare I’m the marshal’s number one fan of the whole universe. He’s someone everyone should worship and learn from. No, I’m not taking any criticism!]

[We have the peace of today because the marshal and the soldiers’ fought through battle after battle for our sake. The marshal’s the best. May our galaxy never fall.]

[The marshal led the people to fight the Parasites many times and won again and again. Now that he’s back, we’ll give him nothing but the best. BTW, here’s a hot pic of the marshal: take it with you if you like.]

[I don’t care, I’m lurking in the trending page and livestream’s chat the whole day. I’ve gotta see my man’s comeback! He’s a long-legged 188cm god! There’s no one out there as hot as him!]

[I may be a guy, but I really gotta fanboy over the marshal, okay? His aura’s way too dominant. I used to think I was a solid straight guy, but now I’m not that sure anymore… I’m gonna faint.]

[This place’s a whole sea of pictures I wanna lick. Our marshal’s way too powerful. Those deep, sharp eyes, that controlling, handsome face… How can anyone live up to him? I’m on my knees. How can I marry him? Maybe in my dreams?]

The internet was everything marshal-related. People were digging up all past photos of the marshal during his public appearances. Every single one of them was of him in military uniform, back held straighter than a ruler. He was like an unsheathed sword, yet he wasn’t flashy— he could draw attention just by standing to a side.

In the evening, after coming back from a walk with Lin Ning, Zhang Zhining turned the television on and tuned into the livestream.

“Are you watching the conference with the marshal?” Lin Ning walked in with a plate of freshly cut fruits, handing Zhang Zhining a little bamboo toothpick.

“Thanks. Yeah, I’m watching the livestream. I feel like your knowledge of current affairs is pretty low. You don’t really know anything about the marshal, do you?” Zhang Zhining stuffed a slice of apple in his mouth. It was crunchy and sweet. “You know, none of my friends ever shut up about the marshal, hahaha——”

Lin Ning took a bite of strawberry. “Hmm, I honestly don’t really know what’s going on, other than that the marshal’s amazing…” he mumbled. “Besides, I’m surrounded by rumors right now, so I can’t be too active on social media.”

Zhang Zhining patted Lin Ning’s shoulder. “My good brother, if you need any help, let me know. I’m leeching off you now, so I definitely owe you one.” 

Lin Ning couldn’t help but snigger. He propped himself up on a cushion. “I’m getting the feeling that you’re no kid in a financial crisis. Are you some rich family’s boy out here exploring the peasant life?”

He pointed at Zhang Zhining’s wristwatch. “This. It doesn’t look cheap. Probably not a counterfeit. But I’m just guessing, so don’t mind me.”

Zhang Zhining didn’t want to lie to him. He knew it was just a joke, but he nodded seriously at Lin Ning.

The hand with a strawberry froze. Lin Ning‘s heart skipped a beat, “You really are a rich family’s young master!”

Zhang Zhining explained, “The Second Planet’s Zhang family. You must’ve heard of them. They’re one of the top fifty most influential families in the galaxy.”

Lin Ning’s hand trembled, and the grape in his hand tumbled down to the floor (which was a waste). He felt as if he’d been tasered. Why was it that the people around him got to either be red carpet actors or wealthy masters, while he got to be universally hated????? Did he have some kind of personality problem he wasn’t aware of?

Lin Ning’s head was whirling. [Hey, System, should I start sucking up to more people? I have two rich guys literally right next to me!!! My god, I’m going crazy. Is the Zhang family that amazing?]

Wait, the Zhang family…

Lin Ning asked, curious, “Any relation to Zhang Yiming?”

Zhang Zhining shook his head. “Zhang Yiming’s family is from the Main Planet; mine’s from the Second. My family lives on the Main Planet now, but nothing’s changed. We’re not blood-related, and we’ve never collaborated in businesses before.”

Lin Ning nodded thoughtfully.

As Zhang Zhining saw his face. His mouth gaped open in surprise. “Hold up. You had no idea? Everyone and their dog knows about the top 50 most influential Interstellar families. You… heh, are you really an Interstellar person?” Zhang Zhining looked as if he’d just discovered a new continent.

Lin Ning: “……” Sorry, I really am not.

“Quick, the livestream’s starting. The marshal’s about to come out. We can’t miss that.”

Lin Ning just wanted to change the topic. He stuffed his mouth with a slice of watermelon. And his timing was perfect. The conference started. The venue was orderly, and mass media representatives had laid out mics on the first row of conference tables like pistols and snipers aiming at an enemy. One of the front-row tables had the plaque with the words “Marshal Li Chengyan” embossed on it. That was the seat meant for the marshal, without a question.

???

Hang on. Lin Ning rubbed his eyes, then read the plaque again.

Marshal Li- who now???

“Ah, here comes the marshal.” Zhang Zhining broke the silence, pointing excitedly at the screen.

The livestream cut to another camera. A tall, handsome man in a military uniform came into the frame slowly, and like a myriad of stars surrounding a moon, a crowd of executives trailed behind him.

The man’s ebony dark hair was combed back. His face was frigid and stern, unapproachable, but still oppressingly, overwhelmingly handsome. His nose was tall and sharp, his eyes profoundly consuming, his thin lips pursed in a straight, tight line — he looked hostile. Ever since he appeared on camera, his steady gaze never once wavered from the camera. That pointed look shot through the screen, stabbing right at Lin Ning.

Lin Ning’s hand went limp, and the watermelon followed in the grape’s footsteps, tumbling onto the floor.

Li- Li Chengyan!!!

The marshal’s Li Chengyan? Xizai’s ex-owner is the marshal!!!

Ten thousand shots of sedatives wouldn’t be enough to calm down Lin Ning’s pounding heart. He could barely register the fact that his heart was beating at the speed of light as if it were about to spew out his chest. It was just yesterday night, yesterday night when he followed the marshal’s personal Interstellar account and disrespected the marshal’s cat…

Uwaa, was it too late to start sucking up to him now?