Dating Show Side Character, Getting Rich by Roasting People

CHAPTER 16: Mr. Self-Obsessed

　　【…Wait, Mr. Watson, you’ve spotted the blind spot.】

　　【He knows the menu so well he doesn’t even need it. Male Guest No. 1 has clearly been here more than once. Who keeps coming back to a couple-themed restaurant just to be shown off to by other couples?】

　　【But didn’t he say his last breakup was with that materialistic ex while studying abroad? Then… what’s this?】

　　At first, Lu Shixuan didn’t catch the hidden meaning in Chu Ling’s words. He thought she was joking about his charm with the opposite sex and was about to laugh. Then he suddenly realized something was off and felt a chill run down his spine.

　　“…There's no such thing as romance.”

　　His eyes flickered nervously as he tried to cover it up, “I just came a few times with colleagues. The chef here is really skilled, and there’s no rule that only couples can eat here, right?”

　　Chu Ling smiled ambiguously.

　　Sure, of course that’s possible.

　　But the guilty tone in his voice might as well have written “I’m lying” across his forehead.

　　He didn’t even check for contradictions in his own setup. So dumb.

　　Luckily, at that moment, their appetizers arrived, saving Lu Shixuan from total embarrassment.

　　He had just relaxed when he looked at Chu Ling’s order, and his heart sank again.

　　Earlier, when Chu Ling picked the dishes, she only showed the waiter the pictures, so he hadn’t paid attention.

　　Now he noticed that he had ordered a regular foie gras, but Chu Ling, who had never been there before, had gone straight for the priciest dish in the restaurant: white sturgeon caviar.

　　White sturgeon caviar is extremely rare and has long held the title of the world’s most expensive caviar. Just a small serving as an appetizer costs several thousand!

　　This woman is crazy!

　　Even though Lu Shixuan was rich, he still felt the pain.

　　Chu Ling ignored his pained look and stuffed the spoonful straight into her mouth.

　　She just wanted to disgust him.

　　Knowing how much he hated materialistic exes, she might as well be an even more extravagant girl.

　　Besides, it was rare to come to a place like this and not even have to pay. Of course she had to pick the most expensive dish. Otherwise, what’s the point?

　　But as soon as Chu Ling tasted the caviar, she realized it wasn’t as good as she had imagined. She immediately frowned and set it aside.

　　Lu Shixuan stared at the abandoned bowl. “….”

　　His heart hurt even more.

　　Sensing his gaze, Chu Ling asked, “Do you want a taste too?”

　　“…No.”

　　“I thought so.”

　　Chu Ling smiled sweetly. “I’m not the type to feed anyone my leftovers either.”

　　“….”

　　He gritted his teeth, cleared his throat, and returned to the earlier topic. “About what you said about my love life… ever since I came back to start my business, I’ve been so busy that I really haven’t had time for a relationship. Before I knew it, I’d dragged it out to this age.”

　　He glanced at Chu Ling and continued, “Because I haven’t spent much time with women, I might not always behave well. I may have made you feel uncomfortable in some ways. But believe me, I mean no harm.”

　　For once, his words actually sounded a little sincere.

　　A few people even started defending him.

　　【Understood.】

　　【He’s just a bit of a typical straight guy. Not a bad person at heart.】

　　Chu Ling sneered quietly to herself.

　　She wasn’t a fool.

　　She could tell whether someone had bad intentions or not.

　　She paused for a moment, then asked, “In your work, haven’t you ever come across female colleagues?”

　　“That… yes, I have.”

　　Lu Shixuan hesitated for a second, worried she might be trying to trap him, and answered carefully.

　　“Then in your work, have you dealt with female clients or partners?”

　　“…Yes, I have.”

　　He seemed to catch what she was getting at and quickly added, “That’s different. Work is work, life is life. I don’t want to mix romance with work, and I have no intention of dating colleagues—”

　　“I mean…”

　　Chu Ling cut him off. “When you’re working with other women, even your clients, you don’t have such low emotional intelligence, right?”

　　“….”

　　Lu Shixuan was slightly stung by her words and instinctively said, “I do pay more attention at work…”

　　“So your emotional intelligence can actually be allocated as needed.”

　　Chu Ling shrugged. “You just don’t see a need to allocate any to me.”

　　“….”

　　Just as Lu Shixuan opened his mouth to say something to salvage the situation, the main courses arrived.

　　He had ordered the steak and the blue lobster, both signature dishes of this restaurant. He was about to introduce them to Chu Ling, “This Brittany blue lobster is their specialty. You know it comes from—”

　　Chu Ling interrupted him suddenly, asking, “Wasn’t what you ordered good?”

　　“Of course it’s good.”

　　Lu Shixuan raised an eyebrow, thinking he understood her. “You want to try some too?”

　　“No.”

　　Chu Ling said, “If it’s so good, then none of it can shut your mouth?”

　　【LOL the food’s already here, who wants an introduction? Just eat before it gets cold!】

　　【Male Guest No.1 really doesn’t miss a single chance to show off.】

　　【Compared to last time… Ye Weiyang really gave him way too much face.】

　　【Good thing it’s Chu Ling this time, haha, satisfying!】

　　【Chu Ling: Little mouth, shut it.】

　　Lu Shixuan’s pretentious spiel was abruptly cut short. He choked on his words and had no intention of continuing.

　　Even though the caviar wasn’t great, the expensive main courses and desserts Chu Ling ordered later were delicious, giving her that rare feeling of indulgence only a high-end restaurant could provide.

　　When Lu Shixuan went to pay the bill, he couldn’t help the twitch at the corner of his mouth.

　　Just this one meal cost him a five-figure sum, most of it thanks to Chu Ling.

　　He was rich, but he wasn’t stupid.

　　On top of that, it was money spent on a woman he didn’t even like.

　　“What’s wrong?”

　　Chu Ling asked, pretending not to notice. “Do you want me to split my share?”

　　“…Of course not.”

　　Lu Shixuan forced a smile. “We’re on a date. There’s no way a girl should pay.”

　　Fine, he could cover a bit of the cost.

　　If the audience found out he ¹went Dutch with Chu Ling, they’d roast him to death as the “²AA guy.” He understood that much.

　　“I thought you didn’t eat enough.”

　　He said that while gritting his teeth and pulling out a card to hand to the front desk, trying to squeeze in one last chance to show off. Then he heard Chu Ling’s cheerful voice, “Really? Then the main course and dessert were quite good. Wrap me a portion to take home too.”

　　Lu Shixuan: “?!”

　　Enough already! Now she’s eating and taking food home too!

　　After the meal, Lu Shixuan and Chu Ling returned to the villa.

　　As expected, they were the first group back, even before night had fallen.

　　Lu Shixuan probably had a terrible experience today and didn’t want to share the same space with Chu Ling at all. He hurried upstairs and left.

　　Chu Ling, on the other hand, sat on the sofa playing on her phone and quietly checked her live stream.

　　Unexpectedly, her live stream was once again the top in real-time viewers among the four groups.

　　Those haters said they wouldn’t watch, but in reality, each of them was loyal, proving truly not to abandon or give up.

　　Chu Ling glanced at her backend, clicked through hundreds, thousands, and tens of thousands of points, and realized she had already earned nearly a few million.

　　At this rate, by the end of the show, becoming a millionaire or even a billionaire was not a dream.

　　She really had to thank them!

　　Just as she was thinking this, the door clicked open. Chu Ling looked up and saw Ye Weiyang and Lin Zirun returning together.

　　Ye Weiyang looked at her with some surprise, asking, “You guys are back?”

　　She thought they had returned quite early. 

　　But considering it was Chu Ling, it wasn’t impossible.

　　Lin Zirun glanced at Chu Ling, looking a little awkward. Since Chu Ling had been his date last time, he greeted her and then used the excuse of going upstairs to put his things away to leave first.

　　Ye Weiyang asked Chu Ling, “Who did you get paired with today?”

　　Chu Ling said, “Lu Shixuan.”

　　Ye Weiyang immediately remembered what happened yesterday and gave her a slightly sympathetic look. “Oh… it’s him.”

　　“Are you talking about me?”

　　Lu Shixuan came down the stairs. “You mean asking about me? Want to know where we went today?”

　　Ye Weiyang sighed for a second but still played along. “Where did you go?”

　　“Mm-hmm, skiing.”　　

　　Lu Shixuan said, “Indoor ski slope. The place isn’t anything special, but Chu Ling and I had a pretty good time together.”

　　“Oh…”

　　Ye Weiyang didn’t react much. Her date today mostly involved walking, and she was exhausted from the day, just wanting to go upstairs, shower, and rest. She hadn’t expected Lu Shixuan to give a full report on the details, emphasizing how skilled he was, making even her half-hearted responses feel impossible.

　　Seeing Ye Weiyang’s expression droop more and more, Lu Shixuan raised an eyebrow and smiled. “Are you jealous?”

　　Ye Weiyang: “?”

　　Chu Ling almost spat out her drink.

　　What a narcissistic guy.

　　“I don’t know if she’s jealous,” Chu Ling said, glancing at him, “but I think you need some medicine.”

________________

Glossary:　

¹ “went Dutch” means splitting the bill equally, with each person paying for their own share of the meal. It’s an English idiom that comes from the stereotype of Dutch frugality.

²“AA guy” is a direct carryover from the Chinese slang AA制 (AA zhì), which also means splitting costs equally. In China, being labeled “AA guy” can carry a slightly negative connotation in dating contexts — as if the man is stingy or ungentlemanly for not covering the bill.

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T/N: Big thanks to cosmicpeach for the sweet comment on the NU page! I really appreciate it. Haha, your review was so on point.

Actually, after making everyone cry buckets with SEMxTFM, I figured we all deserved something lighter. So here we are with a comedy to shake off the leftover angst. 🤣😅

Sure, it’s got a couple of plot holes, but as long as you’re laughing when she’s roasting the bad guys, I’m happy. That’s the main vibe I wanted to share this time. 😘❤️

　

　　 

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