Chapter 6: The First Video’s Backlash

The account had only one follower: the official platform assistant. After posting the video, Zeng Yan didn’t pay it much mind. A newbie account’s first video would be lucky to get ten views. She felt that the silent system probably wouldn’t help her with traffic, so she wasn’t in a hurry. She’d take it slow.

After the fight, her reputation was firmly established. The doctor repeatedly stressed the need for rest, and kind-hearted people helped her get her three meals. Zeng Yan was puzzled that her cheap mom, Sun Jiazhi, hadn’t shown up today. Li Haixia had mentioned that the people with armbands at the mine educated people for at least two days, so the three Zengs were likely in the midst of a rough re-education and couldn’t get home. Could it be that Sun Jiazhi thought her “good” grandmother was taking such good care of her that she thoughtfully decided not to cause more trouble?

It’s better that she doesn’t come. I’m too lazy to deal with a scorpion like her.

Zeng Yan was sick of eating hospital food. Tofu was a luxury item at this time, and the relatively affluent gold mine only served it once a week. The typhoon had ruined most of the crops, so she’d been eating stewed potatoes and eggplant for all three meals today. The chef’s skills were terrible, making the food worse than if it were just boiled in plain water.

When everyone was asleep at night, Zeng Yan went into her space to eat a late meal. People who had been hungry for a long time shouldn’t eat too much. The light pork belly and chicken rice noodles were nourishing. After she finished the bowl, she had two more pieces of Ejiao. The Ejiao with nuts was sweet and fragrant, and her stomach, which had been suffering all day, finally felt comfortable.

After her meal, Zeng Yan didn’t rush out. She curled up on the sofa in the lounge, enjoying a life she could call her own. The hospital bed only had a thin grass mat, and her skinny bones were sticking out and hurting.

She opened the short-video platform and was surprised. The video had done much better than she had expected. The account had gained 14 new followers, 66 likes, and 13 comments. The first comment was scolding her.

“You made me dizzy! How is this a good thing? If you can’t film, don’t. If you’re too poor to buy a stand, I’ll send you one.” Several more comments echoed this sentiment, and the comment itself had a dozen likes.

Zeng Yan thought to herself, “The space is tied to me, so the camera would have shaken when I hit them. This was the best I could edit!”

Someone else’s logic was online. “Is this a snippet from a period drama? It feels so real. What’s the name of the show? I want to watch it.”

“Looks like a selfie video. Is the actress on her way to the set? The blogger is spoiling the show. Be careful, the crew might fine you.”

“The actors look so plain. I don’t recognize any of them.”

It’s a miracle you don’t.

“Dongma full-fat milk powder!!! I’m 70 years old, and I haven’t seen this brand in almost 40 years! Blogger, are you going to livestream? If you’re selling Dongma milk powder, I’ll buy it no matter the price!”

Zeng Yan made a point to satisfy the nostalgic request from this old man in Canada. She replied, “When I get more in stock, I’ll message you privately.”

“That said, the costumes and makeup in this show are great, and the casting is good. That old lady doesn’t look easy to deal with. And the girl hitting people—her arm is thinner than a piece of kindling. Did they hire someone with an eating disorder to play this role?”

You’re the one with an eating disorder!

Someone finally saw the truth. “I don’t care if it’s a TV show or not, that girl did a great job! She only hit where it hurt and only used quotes to scold them. She used four ounces to deflect a thousand pounds of force. A little wisp has great power! I support you!”

Zeng Yan pouted. I would have liked you more if you hadn’t called me a little wisp.

“The filming is very realistic. In real life, bad people aren’t so cunning. How can they be bad if they’re not stupid?”

“I love family drama! I followed you, blogger. Keep it up!”

While she was reading the comments, she gained two more followers and three more comments.

Zeng Yan had only ever made food videos and had never ventured into family drama before. She found it quite surprising how much people loved to watch it.

“If only I could have ten fights a day,” Zeng Yan murmured to herself, forgetting the rule she had just made about fighting with scoundrels rarely and viciously.

In one night, her followers grew to 57, and the video’s views exceeded a thousand. It was a great start. A newbie account needed frequent updates to gain followers.

It was almost noon, and Sun Jiazhi still hadn’t appeared. Without the scorpion, there was no material for @Guiqu Laixi. She would have to film something else. Daily life couldn’t go on without food and drink. As a food blogger, Zeng Yan was very interested in the hospital cafeteria. It felt a little awkward to always have someone get her food. After resting for two days, eating well, and sleeping well, the head injury was mostly healed. She decided to go get her own lunch and record a short video.

She turned on the camera and gave a close-up shot of the large aluminum lunchbox. The lunchbox, rented for 50 cents, was covered in scratches, having been passed through who knows how many hands. To buy a lunchbox, you needed industrial coupons, and not everyone could afford even a small one. Zeng Yan wasn’t being fussy. When in Rome, do as the Romans do. If others could use it, she could, too.

The gold mine hospital was a building from the war with Japan and was quite old. The hallway was dark and deep. The draft that swept through made the oppressive summer heat disappear instantly. To take advantage of the cool hallway, most of the patient rooms on both sides were open, and a few patients were scattered on the beds with peeling white paint. The hospital wasn’t open to the public, and most people injured in the typhoon had been sent to the county hospital, so there were very few patients here.

The cafeteria was at the end of the hallway. When she walked in, she realized that all the hospital’s liveliness was gathered here. There was only one window for food, and the line was already quite long before mealtime.

Zeng Yan’s sense of smell was keen. She could tell by the smell that the noon meal was stewed potatoes with a soybean paste sauce. Good heavens, the eggplant is gone.

Two uncles ahead of her in line recognized Zeng Yan and offered her their spot. “Comrade, you stand here.” Before Zeng Yan could refuse, the young woman with a buzz cut at the very front of the line scoffed. “The uneducated wench even hit her own grandmother, but now she’s everyone’s favorite. What a sign of declining morality.”

Everyone with ears knew who she was talking about. Zeng Yan didn’t care. She wasn’t an industrial coupon; there was no way everyone would love her. It was too tiring to argue in the heat. She’d just consider it the buzzing of a fly.

She didn’t pay attention to her, but the righteous crowd wouldn’t let it slide. The plump auntie who was bringing out a big basin of food heard everything. She slammed the large ladle against the side of the basin and harrumphed. “Bring your lunchbox out, time to eat.”

The woman with the buzz cut handed over her lunchbox, and she saw the plump auntie’s hand shake. A full scoop of vegetables became a half-scoop, and the piece of pork belly she liked the most was shaken off. The woman with the buzz cut was so angry she was about to faint. “Do you have to scoop the food like that? If your hands are shaking, you should go home!”

The plump auntie returned the words in kind. “You uneducated wench, don’t you have any respect for your elders?”

You should never offend the person serving the food. Everyone else was amused. Zeng Yan was also very entertained. Most people at this time were simple and full of righteousness; they were all so endearing.

The endearing plump auntie took special care of her, giving her a full scoop of food with at least four pieces of meat and picking out a large, fluffy steamed bun. “Heaven has mercy on you. Look at how skinny this child is. Eat more. If it’s not enough, your auntie will give you more.”

It was hard to refuse the kindness, but Zeng Yan found it hard to swallow. The temperature was high in the summer, and the soybean paste for the stewed potatoes had spoiled. The meat wasn’t good either. It was cured pork from the winter and had a rancid taste. The bad taste was bearable, but Zeng Yan also found a small creature on the black potato piece.

She quickly ran back to her room with her lunchbox. Under the pretense of using the restroom, Zeng Yan went into her space and quickly ate three bowls of meat congee to calm her nerves. She had prepared it early, just in case the cafeteria food was bad, and it turned out she had been farsighted.

This video of the cafeteria didn’t need any editing. She quickly posted it with the familiar hashtag: #GoodThingsToShareWithEveryone.

The response was enthusiastic, and the number of comments even surpassed the previous video.