Chapter 6: The Little Internet Celebrity

The warm afternoon sun cast a dreamy glow on the glass window.

Ji Chenxuan had finished handling his company affairs earlier than usual. Worried that someone might starve at home, he made the rare decision to skip lunch at the office.

It was the first time he left work on time. As he walked out of the headquarters building, his colleagues stared in shock at his departing figure, so excited they nearly celebrated the occasion.

The daily necessities Xiao Chi had ordered through Zhou Tong in the morning were already delivered to his personal storage locker by drone.

The automatic sensor light softly lit up. The house was as quiet as before, not a trace of life in it. Ji Chenxuan hung his coat on the coat rack and called out a couple of times, but only the empty breeze responded.

Ji Chenxuan furrowed his brows and quickly took a few steps up to the second floor. The bedroom was empty, the balcony was vacant, and even the bathroom was unoccupied—damn it, that bastard Xiao Chi had disappeared again!

The new mobile terminal was still in its unopened package. Ji Chenxuan’s expression shifted slightly. Xiao Chi had no contact information, and looking for him was like searching for a needle in a haystack. Where could that guy have gone?

He couldn’t even spare time for lunch. Ji Chenxuan drove slowly around the nearby streets, searching. Xiao Chi didn’t have any money, so he could only rely on his two legs to get around—he shouldn’t have gone too far.

The crowds were overwhelming, and Ji Chenxuan searched aimlessly for half an hour, but still found nothing.

He tugged at his tie in frustration, and his dark reflection in the half-transparent black glass window showed a tense and annoyed face.

He should have returned to the office to handle the endless tasks, and he shouldn’t have bothered with this troublemaking guy. After all, Xiao Chi was just a virtual AI, a competitor—not even someone he cared about!

Ji Chenxuan parked his car at the side of the road, pulled out a cigarette from his silver metal case, lit it, and let the white smoke spread inside the car. His dark eyes, obscured by the smoke, reflected a vague and confused emotion.

Around him, people and cars came and went. Ji Chenxuan stared at the rearview mirror, lost in thought, until the falling ash burned his fingers.

That guy had no common sense. He probably wouldn’t even bring money with him. What if something happened…

It seemed like it wasn’t just his fingers that were burned.

Time flowed through the bustling crowds, each minute and second dragging on unbearably.

He had only taken a few puffs of his cigarette before pulling it out. The red ember flickered between his fingers, and Ji Chenxuan’s face darkened as he casually snuffed it out. He started the car again and drove relentlessly through the endless streets and alleys.

Suddenly, his wristband beeped, interrupting his chaotic search.

Ji Chenxuan glanced at the incoming call—Zhou Tong. He folded the phone and put it to his left ear. “Hey, I’m busy right now, I’ll go to the office later—what did you say?”

The black sports car slid to the side of the road and came to an abrupt stop. Behind him, an angry voice shouted curses, and a horn blared, but Ji Chenxuan couldn’t care less.

“What does the person you’re talking about look like? … Yeah, I know him. A friend. Keep him there, don’t let him go anywhere. Watch him, I’ll be back soon.”

The sports car spread its wings, instantly switching to intelligent flight mode. It soared into the sky from the dedicated lift-off track. The drop in altitude was like Ji Chenxuan’s mood at that moment—constantly rising and falling.

His hand rested on the steering wheel, and the rearview mirror reflected his sharply defined face, his thin lips pressed into a firm line. The muscles in his cheeks were tense, clearly outlining his cheekbones.

That damn bastard, he’d better not make it easy for me to find him!

He narrowed his eyes, the corners tinged with resentment, his teeth itching with anger, yet as his breath gradually steadied, it seemed as though he had finally exhaled a long-held sigh of relief.

Before landing, he even had the leisure to fix his loosened tie.

—

After lunch, Zhou Tong took advantage of a short break during the afternoon to go downstairs for a walk, as usual, to help digest his meal. When he reached the lobby, he saw that neither the front desk nor the reception staff were at their posts. Instead, they were gathered around a nearly two-meter-tall brown cartoon bear.

A group of lively children, holding colorful balloons, ran around excitedly, clearly having fun.

Zhou Tong was quite displeased. The fan open day event had already finished in the morning—how were there still so many people around? When President Ji returned this afternoon and saw this, there would definitely be a scolding.

Just as he was about to lose his temper, the receptionist spotted him and rushed over, looking like a lifeline. She panted as she spoke, “Assistant Zhou, we didn’t plan for this cartoon bear in the fan event, right? There are too many kids, and they’re all surrounding it, we can’t get them to leave.”

Zhou Tong shot her an irritated glance before furrowing his brows and walking up to the cartoon bear. He put on a serious face and said, “Mr. Bear, our event has already ended. Please take the children and leave. It’s almost time for work.”

From inside the bear costume, Xiao Chi’s muffled voice came out: “I didn’t bring them here. I’m here to see Ji Chenxuan.”

Zhou Tong was stunned for a moment before scoffing, “Here to see President Ji? You?”

He looked the bear up and down, his eyes full of disbelief. With a furrowed brow, he patiently asked, “Who are you? Do you have an appointment with President Ji?”

“I’m…” As the words were on the tip of his tongue, Xiao Chi remembered he had promised not to reveal his identity. He abruptly stopped and awkwardly added, “I don’t have an appointment, but he knows who I am.”

Zhou Tong nearly laughed in frustration. “There’s a line of people a mile long wanting to meet President Ji. Can’t you come up with a better reason? Where’s the security? Please escort this ‘Mr. Bear’ out.”

Xiao Chi, struggling to remove the heavy bear headgear, clumsily took it off. There was a loud pop as the headpiece came off. The heat inside had made him sweat, and the moisture nearly stuck his bangs to his forehead.

With his two large bear paws resting on his chubby bear belly, Xiao Chi awkwardly craned his neck to lower his head, speaking seriously, “I really know Ji Chenxuan. He’s my fan.”

“…” Zhou Tong’s expression stiffened. It was unclear whether he was stunned by the words or by the extraordinarily handsome face in front of him.

He racked his brain trying to remember where this young star had appeared from. Was he the new talent Ji Chenxuan was promoting?

But that didn’t make sense. He would have known about it.

After the store owner earlier, Zhou Tong became the second victim of Xiao Chi’s innocent face.

Although he thought it was more likely that Xiao Chi was just another unknown newcomer trying to ride Ji Chenxuan’s coattails, Zhou Tong still decided to call the boss for confirmation—after all, the boss had asked him earlier to order a bunch of men’s daily essentials, and who knew, maybe Ji Chenxuan really had a secret lover?

When Zhou Tong heard the subtle tone in President Ji’s voice on the phone—“a friend”—and the uncontainable urgency in his voice, Zhou Tong’s mouth fell open in shock, wide enough to fit an egg.

Having been an assistant for three years, he knew that his boss was typically cold, composed, and a workaholic who never showed favor to anyone. He never expected that Ji Chenxuan would care so much about a newcomer and even seem so anxious that he’d have Zhou Tong watch him to make sure he didn’t run off.

Zhou Tong led Xiao Chi to the lounge, occasionally stealing glances at his face, his mind in a whirl.

Although Zhou Tong knew that prying into his boss’s privacy was dangerous, he couldn’t hold back his curiosity. Like a cat with its claws out, he poured a cup of coffee for Xiao Chi, then picked it up and casually asked, “How did you meet our boss?”

Xiao Chi couldn’t tell the truth and wasn’t good at lying, so he responded diplomatically, “He watched my livestream.”

Zhou Tong made a sound of understanding, thinking to himself that Xiao Chi was just a small internet celebrity. He smiled with a slightly flirtatious look in his eyes and said, “President Ji has been at the top of the bachelor billionaire list for three years in a row. I bet you get some generous tips, right?”

Money, to Xiao Chi, was just a number, so he answered calmly, “Probably a few million.”

Too bad all that money belonged to the AI company—he hadn’t pocketed a single penny.

Zhou Tong nearly spilled the coffee as he trembled. He clicked his tongue inwardly, thinking how hard he worked every day from dawn till dusk, and yet earned less than this small streamer’s tips.

“How should I address you, sir?”

Xiao Chi awkwardly shook his head, saying, “I can’t say.”

Zhou Tong, hiding his dissatisfaction behind his coffee cup, thought to himself: Isn’t he here for fame and fortune? Why keep his name a secret?

He wanted to ask what their relationship was, but it felt too forward and embarrassing, so he steered the conversation another way, asking, “How do you usually address President Ji?”

Xiao Chi hesitated for a moment, recalling their previous interactions, and with a mysterious expression, he replied, “Dad.”

“Spit—” Zhou Tong coughed out the coffee he had just taken, choking and gasping for air. His face turned red, and his eyes widened in shock.

So, the boss and this little internet celebrity already had a “godfather-son” relationship?!

Xiao Chi quickly dodged the “spit attack,” moving far away and shooting him a look of disdain. He thought to himself, Your boss even changed his ID to ‘husband’ later on—really, you’ve never seen such things before, no need to overreact.

At this moment, the lounge door opened, and Ji Chenxuan stepped inside. As soon as he saw the head poking out of the cartoon bear suit, his tense nerves relaxed, although his brow furrowed even deeper.

Zhou Tong, flustered from cleaning up the spilled coffee, was startled when he saw his boss. The name Xiao Chi had just used echoed in his mind, and without thinking, he blurted out, “Dad—”

Ji Chenxuan: “…………”