I'm A Baller

Chapter 311: Gold Foil Icecream

“Get away from me, you punk!”

He Miaomiao was unusually agitated as she elbowed Wang Yan’s waist.

The fine, baby hair stood on end behind He Miaomiao’s ears. Under the illumination of the light and the contrast of her rosy skin, they emanated a bashful vibe rather than that of anger.

Wang Yan knew that it was not the right occasion to be carried away and take things too far.

Thus, he distanced himself from her slightly so that they wouldn’t remain in such an intimate position. He then smirked and continued to tease her,

“Secretary He, this isn’t the right attitude that you should have at work. How could you scold your Boss?”

“My boss? To hell with that. Don’t you know who’s the boss today?”

He Miaomiao wittily caught on to the crux of the problem. Well aware of the fact that she had plenty of money at her beck and call, she regained her confidence.

“You’d better behave yourself. I’m your money tree today. I’ll switch over to our competitor’s side if you try to be funny with me.”

“Yes, yes, yes. You’re the boss!”

Wang Yan was instantly terrified by her threats and quickly released her waist before he raised his hands up as though he was surrendering to her.

“Young Missy, you’re my princess today. If there’s anyone whom you want to fire off at, simply bark out your orders and I’ll bite back at them!”

“Pfft!”

As Wang Yan spoke, he pretended to chomp on something and when He Miaomiao saw the fire burning in his eyes, she couldn’t help but roar with laughter and her imposing aura was instantly gone.

“Look at you! Damn it! You’re so annoying!”

He Miaomiao cursed softly before she poked Wang Yan’s lower abdomen with her finger. A look of curiosity was written all over her face.

“Tsk tsk, it’s pretty hard, isn’t it? You don’t look like you have any muscles and yet your abs feel as hard as iron when you flex it up.”

“Well, with how systematic I am in taking care of my body, it would be impossible not to look shredded,” Wang Yan thought.

With a smug smile on his face, he tempted her slyly, “Why don’t you reach your hand over and have a good feel of it?”

“Pooh!”

The young missy, who had just recovered slightly from her embarrassment, flushed red again upon being teased by him.

“Scram aside. I’m reading the live comments so don’t be a hindrance.”

“Ha, she’s unexpectedly innocent,” Wang Yan mused.

He then stopped poking fun at her and straightened his back before he began to observe the events taking place on the livestream set.

He Miaomiao instantly felt more at ease and was no longer bothered even though Wang Yan was still very close to her.

Their respective personal space was conveniently reduced to a distance of just mere inches away from one other.

Habit was a terrifying form of power.

He Miaomiao was aware of this, but she willingly subjected herself to it and was even mildly excited.

…

Although the warm-up segment was very long, it was necessary.

Xiao Cang introduced the respective sponsors and organizers of today’s event before she interviewed each of them separately.

CEO Lee of Beauty Ko rattled out a long speech, but the audience, who were usually very impatient, were surprisingly tolerant towards her this time.

After all, everyone enjoyed looking at beautiful women.

The chattier audiences were already flooding the livestream server with comments.

All sorts of beautiful women present on set at the livestream event and they competed with each other for attention. A burst of cheering would always ensue no matter who the camera panned over to.

“This lady is blessed with big assets while the other lady is absolutely stunning and curvy…

“Today, we’re all perverts,” the audience thought.

After the warm-up performance, models from Beauty KO then conducted a small-scale fashion show. Subsequently, the livestream platform managers invited Fengfeng and Fafa to sing. All kinds of advertisements were broadcasted during the intervals and an hour flew past within the blink of an eye.

Six contestants then strutted up onto the stage ten minutes before 7 o’clock and the live comments suddenly became more organized.

Everyone knew who the four individuals from Wangting Entertainment were. As for the two remaining people, one of them was Rabbit, who was a livestream anchor supported by the platform, while the other was a new anchor named ‘No Coriander’, who had emerged from the preliminaries.

He had an enormous appetite but the real reason for his popularity was somewhat of a joke—he wouldn’t be caught dead eating anything that contained coriander.

It was hard to say if this was part of the persona that he wanted to show, but thanks to his huge appetite as well as how picky he was with food, he managed to become a second-tier anchor for competitive eating livestreams. Every day, he would never fail to be teased by audiences who promised to reward him with e-gifts that were convertible to cash for every stalk of coriander that he ate.

No Coriander was signed to Wind Fish—one of the eight major guilds under Fish.

Thus, today’s competition was actually a competition between the two livestream anchors under the platform and the four big shot livestream anchors from Wangting Entertainment.

“Do you think we could be the champion?”

He Miaomiao was starting to be nervous after she had come to know of the inside story behind the competition.

“You’re certainly clear of your stand, aren’t you, my little comrade?”

Wang Yan teased and beamed with satisfaction at her usage of the word ‘we’.

“I’m serious! The prize money for the champion is half a million yuan,” He Miaomiao emphasized and Wang Yan nearly laughed out loud when he saw her roll her eyes.

“You’re a wastrel who could casually squander off ten million yuan. You have no rights to feel sorry about the half million,” Wang Yan mused.

However, he knew better than to voice out his thoughts.

Grinning, he praised, “The winning factor lies beyond the competition. We’ll definitely win with you on our team.”

“Is that so?” He Miaomiao remarked.

Feeling pleased with herself, she tilted her chin but, nevertheless, pretended to be embarrassed by his compliment.

However, her poor acting had already divulged her hunger for more compliments.

Well aware that he had to satisfy He Miaomiao, Wang Yan disregarded his pride and showered her with over the top praises.

“Of course! Those people are merely a bunch of overcautious, indecisive country bumpkins. Regardless of whether they’re seeking entertainment or something else, all they do is scheme instead of taking action. Nobody could be as bold as you, my princess.”

“No such person exists.

“Today, I can’t be bothered to care about anything, no matter who is scheming and what is brewing.

“I fear nothing when you’re with me.

“Your Highness, I am your knight for the day. I’ll be standing behind you to back you up, so don’t worry and be bold. I’ll be cheering for you in person when you soar above the clouds.”

Usually, He Miaomiao disliked boys who do not have a proper job. However, she does not find Wang Yan repulsive at all. In fact, she was so amused by him that she began to giggle.

“Tsk, they’re so flashy…” the onlookers around them thought.

Many people couldn’t help but feel a tinge of sourness over how good the couple looked together.

“Damn it, I really want to beat someone up…” the jealous onlookers contemplated.

Other than the loveless middle-aged managers, the mistresses of ceremonies also do not dare to get close to the couple.

They knew that they would only look like country bumpkins beside He Miaomiao and would be reawakening their feelings of inferiority if they dared to get close to her.

However, they couldn’t refrain from sneaking glances in the couple’s direction.

The mistresses of ceremonies especially enjoyed checking Wang Yan out.

He was a frivolous, handsome and charismatic man of an esteemed social standing. In fact, he might even become their boss in future.

“How spiteful!

“Why is he already attached?

“Not to mention that his girlfriend also looks gorgeous,” the ladies thought.

…

It was a pleasant surprise that He Miaomiao could cut the mistresses of ceremonies down to size

Most of the girls who had come for the event had interacted with Wang Yan one on one.

Regardless of whether they were attracted to him prior to their trip to Shanghai, all of them have a serious crush on him now.

Wangting Entertainment was rich and influential and treated its employees well. The organization was also generous and easy-going in how they handle matters and its leader was capable, rich and handsome. It was, indeed, a wonderful company to work for.

However, beautiful girls would inevitably be pompous.

It was common for them to think of themselves as the crim of the crop and individuals who were irreplaceable and important.

However, now that Miss He had showed up extravagantly dressed, it was enough to make any woman sober up. “Snap out of it. You’re just an average pretty face. She is the real deal,” a voice in their head reminded.

After their fantasies were doused out by a bucket of cold water, many of them finally came to know of their place and began to thinkmore realistically.

“Perhaps we’re merely lucky enough to be given a chance by Wangting Entertainment?” they wondered.

…

After the six anchors took their seats, they started their respective livestreams and greeted their audience, who responded by breaking into cheers.

As the representative of Wangting Yule, Wang Yunxi went on stage during the last five minutes to read out the rules.

“The main ingredient for the day is a wild green lobster obtained from the sea off Northeast Australia. The lobster costs over 5,000 yuan each and is sponsored by Haidilao. Once again, we would like to thank Haidilao’s head office and flagship store for their tremendous support.

“Another main ingredient featured is an artisanal ice cream produced by Häagen-Dazs, a brand under General Mills, and features Jax from the League of Legends Ruined King series. It is specially made using the highest quality milk from New Zealand, premium cocoa beans from Argentina as well as 18 types of top grade nuts and dried fruits. It costs 1,888 yuan per 100ml…”

The livestream server was quickly flooded with comments when Wang Yunxi began to introduce the ingredients and both the guests and fans gulped furiously.

While price point does not equate to quality, but when the price of an object passes a certain threshold, it was no longer something that the average man could easily be exposed to in daily life.

In other words, it would only be something that one would hear of in legends.

The 5,000 yuan selling price of the wild green lobster fell within the acceptable price range for majority of the people, but it was shocking to pay 1,888 yuan for a 100ml icecream.

“What the f***! Isn’t 100ml just a single scoop? Well, then 2 scoops would practically cost me a month’s salary!” someone exclaimed.

“You calculated wrongly. Two scoops is equivalent to a semester’s tuition fees for me,” another person corrected.

“Two scoops would already take up most of the balance that I have in my bank account. Bohoohoo, where did I find the guts to watch this livestream?” someone lamented.

“A house in my county costs 3,200 yuan per square meter… Do you guys understand my pain?” said another.

While everyone was busy calculating the cost of the icecream, Wang Yunxi continued, “All guests and fans could feast on the same ingredients with no limits imposed. Please enjoy to your heart’s content!”

Comments instantly flooded the livestream server to the point where practically nothing could be seen on the screen beyond the words.

Those who were present at the set of the event erupted into cheers and many even began to chant the live broadcast slogan, “CEO Wang is mighty and powerful!”

When the audience who were tuned in to the livestream heard the cheering in the background, the comments in the livestream server gradually echoed the same sentiment.

“Master Wang, you’re inhumane!”

“Master Wang, you’re the best!”

While Wang Yan wasn’t affected by any of these comments, He Miaomiao was so amused that she could barely stop herself from grinning.

When Wang Yunxi realised that there was practically no hope of the audience ceasing their remarks any time soon, she resumed her announcement,

“Every 100g of lobster must be matched with 100g of icecream, but you are free to choose which one to consume first. However, if you fail to finish any of the items, you will not be able to continue with the challenge.

“We’ll evaluate your results based on the total weight of the food consumed.

“Throughout the entire competition, you are allowed to use the washroom to answer the call of nature. However, you are not allowed to do anything to induce vomiting. Once the food that you vomit out exceeds a certain weight, you will be disqualified immediately.

“Lastly, the duration of the competition is three hours. Please allocate a reasonable amount of rest time, pay attention to your physical condition and do not over exert yourself. Try your best to achieve good results while bearing in mind that safety comes first,” Wang Yunxi reminded.

The timing of the speech was just right and Xiao Cang then took over from her smoothly. After Xiao Cang finished reading the advertising messages from the sponsors, the official countdown began.

“10, 9, 8…1. Let the competition begin!”

Following a beeping sound, the bright red countdown light lit up and a notification popped up in Wang Yan’s system at the exact same moment.

“Your special card, ‘Cold, mildly spicy, and very sweet’, is officially activated for three hours. The value of the amount of food consumed by you and He Miaomiao is being calculated.”

This special card not only served as a source of fund for the office building that Wang Yan had auctioned, but also contained two special instructions.

“The total value of the amount of food consumed by He Miaomiao alone could be used to purchase your basic and second-tier character attributes.

“The total value of the food that you consume could be used to purchase external points for He Miaomiao.”

Wang Yan does not have high hopes for He Miaomiao’s appetite, for he knew that it would already be a miracle if she could contribute enough for him to buy one attribute.

On the other hand, based on the amount of food that Wang Yan himself could stomach, he felt that it was still worth it for him to give it a shot.

“Even if I couldn’t get her any points for enhancing the appearance of her character, it’s still better than nothing if I could buy one point to enhance her character’s figure. I like the idea of that…Gulps… No, no, don’t think about it!

“Hurry up and eat,” Wang Yan thought.

Wang Yan then called out to everyone quickly, “Leaders, shall we dig in too?”

“Sure, let’s eat.”

CEO Li of Beauty Ko, CEO Wang of the livestream platform, Wang Yunxi, the Vice President of Haidilao and the Vice President of Häagen-Dazs agreed in unison.

The seven of them, including Wang Yan and He Miaomiao, sat directly across from the livestream anchors.

They, too, adhered to the same rules of eating and ate the exact same food as that of the livestream anchors.

From time to time, the camera would cut to the frame of the leaders eating.

This gimmick was another brainchild of Young Master Wang, which he neatly coined ‘To participate and experience together so as to create an immersive experience that allows the audience to feel as if they are experiencing the event in person’.

Impressed by Wang Yan’s ingenious idea, CEO Li, CEO Wang and the rest agreed to his arrangements excitedly.

That was how the seven of them ended up sitting across from the livestream anchors.

As part of the deal that they had struck up, Wang Yan and Miss He would be seated right at the edge of the table where they would never be caught on camera.

Fans were also strictly prohibited from taking photos and videos and the mistresses of ceremonies were entrusted with the important task of supervising the set.

Wang Yan was cunning enough to take advantage of the situation without revealing his face to the public, for he was bent on remaining as a mysterious, faceless figure up till the end.

“Here, have a taste of this. It tastes slightly spicy.”

Wang Yan picked up a piece of lobster for He Miaomiao gently. Each piece of lobster meat, which was thinly sliced and almost translucent, weighed around 20 grams and was cooked shortly after immersing it in the pot.

However, Miss He did not appreciate his kind intentions and merely stared at the Häagen-Dazs pitifully as she whined in a baby voice, “I want to start off with the icecream…”

“Sure, go on and eat it,” Wang Yan agreed.

He Miaomiao immediately opened a box of icecream happily and dug in with great enthusiasm.

At the same time, the camera featured a close-up shot of the icecream and comments from the thrilled viewers immediately flooded the livestream server like a tidal wave.

“The icecream was containedwithin a specially crafted, tiny, eco-friendly box and the lid of the box is sealed with a thin film. Upon tearing open the box, pushing up the buckle and giving the lid a hard twist, the box would open up to reveal an intricate wooden fork and spoon as well as a piece of gold foil that is sealed up in a mini plastic bag.

“If you tear away another layer of film, you will be able to see the icecream.

“However, don’t rush to devour the dessert just yet.

“Instead, open up the mini plastic bag to pour the edible gold foil onto the ice cream, taking care to rub the gold foil gently during the process. The gold foil, which is thinner than a cicada’s wings, would then crumble into pieces and scatter all over the icecream,” Xiao Cang explained

When Xiao Cang added on that the gold foil was made of 9999 gold, the audience went crazy and began to flood the server with comments again.

“What the f***! Aren’t you afraid of heavy metal poisoning?” a person remarked.

“F***, you’re so darned rich, aren’t you? Fancy mixing your icecream with gold!” another exclaimed.

“Wait a minute! Wait a minute! Is this the same gold as what I’m wearing on my hand now?” said another.

“Master Wang, I’ll watch and see what you’re up to with bated breath. Hands down without complaints if you’re truly formidable. Otherwise, don’t crap around with me. I simply relish some juicy drama. Got a problem with that?” someone wrote.

Xiao Cang, who had done her research beforehand, then explained calmly,

“The edible gold foil is indeed made of the same gold as the gold ring that we wear. However, contrary to your beliefs, consuming a tiny amount of gold foil is not just harmless but also beneficial.

“The World Health Organization’s Codex Alimentarius Commission officially included 9999 natural pure gold under the scope of food additives as early as 1983. It is listed as item number 310 in Table A.

“Our Ministry of Health also issued the ‘New Food Resources Category 8 Minerals and Trace Elements’ article, which clearly specified that gold foil is edible.

“Take a look at how thin the gold foil that I’ve added is?

“If we hold the plastic bag up against the light, we’ll notice that the gold foil is slightly translucent.

“Because the thickness of the foil is one-thousandth of a millimeter, most of it would already be broken up into pieces inside the plastic bag as it is too flimsy.

“Other than that, it is made of 99.99% pure gold which contains almost zero impurities. Everyone, please feel free free free free free…”

Halfway through her speech, the word ‘free’ was suddenly echoed over and over again like a broken recorder.

Everyone would never get to know if the gold foil was delicious or not, for the livestream server had crashed under the overwhelming enthusiasm of the audience.