Cannon Fodder 09

"Brothers, we've already been to all the places Fang Zhiyi went. If today's likes hit a million, I'll go to Yuying Middle School and uncover the mystery for you!" the bald man shouted at the screen.

A million likes? Yeah, right. How could that happen?

But Chen Dong was quite proud of his own strategy. It was definitely the right move to ride the wave of that unlucky guy's trending news while it was hot. Now, his livestream already had over a thousand viewers.

Chen Dong turned the camera away, pulled out a cigarette, and his assistant, hidden off-camera, immediately stepped forward to light it.

But just as he turned back, the number of likes in the livestream began to skyrocket. Chen Dong enjoyed a few puffs, fantasizing about how he'd milk these gullible viewers later. When he looked back at the screen, his face turned pale.

"A million likes already? How is that possible?" Chen Dong lost his composure for a moment, but he quickly noticed that a lot of people had just flooded into the stream. The viewer count was already breaking ten thousand. Chen Dong's hands started to tremble.

Originally, he just planned to hawk some white-label products a few times and then sell the account. But now!

"Brother Chen, what do we do now?" the assistant whispered.

After only a brief thought, and seeing the screen flooded with comments demanding he keep his promise, Chen Dong waved his hand grandly. "Alright! If that's what you brothers want, I'll take you to check it out!"

He didn't believe in ghosts, but he was still scared deep down. However, watching the soaring popularity, Chen Dong's brain temporarily stopped thinking rationally. This was all money!

And so, Chen Dong vowed with great conviction that he would go to Yuying Middle School the next day.

After ending the stream, he felt a twinge of regret. Why did he have to shoot his mouth off like that? But thinking of the traffic he just got, Chen Dong finally gritted his teeth. "Go find the operations people from the next department. Borrow those few small-time streamers from the company who don't have much fame."

The assistant nodded. Brother Chen was truly far-sighted and kind-hearted. Even with this kind of traffic, he still thought about giving newcomers a boost.

The next evening, a van slowly pulled up at the gate of Yuying Middle School. Looking at the police tape stretched across the entrance, everyone felt a bit creeped out.

"Brother Chen, is this place... safe?" asked a young man with a trendy hairstyle.

Chen Dong glared at him. "What's unsafe about it? If you want safety, go home and stream in front of your computer. See how many people watch you then!"

The young man shut up.

"That fugitive hasn't been caught yet, right?" someone else said.

Chen Dong waved his hand impatiently. "No matter how tough he is, he's just one guy. There are so many of us. What's there to be afraid of?" He brandished the baseball bat in his hand.

Although the small-time streamers all had their reservations, under Chen Dong's threats and promises, they still chose to squeeze through a gap in the gate.

"Three, two, one." The assistant counted down.

"Hello, brothers!" Chen Dong said excitedly. "I'm here today to keep my promise! Look, where is this?" He panned the camera around.

"The streamer really went?"

"Mad lad."

"Stay safe, little baldy."

"Streamer, are you scared? Brought so many people?"

Chen Dong saw this comment and explained with a laugh, "I originally wanted to come alone. But I considered two things. One, that fugitive is still at large, and it would be trouble if we ran into him. Two, just me talking to you dryly would be so boring, right? So I decided to bring a few more people. We're going to play some games inside later!"

The livestream instantly became lively.

"Play games? In this school? Thrilling!"

"Sick! I'll send you five bucks!"

Watching the gifts flying across the screen, the small-time streamers behind Chen Dong were stunned. This many people were watching?

Chen Dong was very pleased with himself. Seeing the viewer count rising straight up, he started to move forward.

"This brother, you're mistaken. I don't believe in ghosts. Preparing to play games here today is also to show you that there's nothing in this world that can't be explained, understand?"

He walked while answering the comments.

"Haven't I already shown you? Those so-called traces at the places Fang Zhiyi went were all faked by him, just for attention. Not like me, I keep it real!"

"Spiritual medium streamers? They're all frauds."

As Chen Dong spoke, his eyes darted around. If he had come alone, he would definitely be a bit scared, but now it was different. He had a whole group of people behind him.

They walked all the way to the spot where Fang Zhiyi had his incident. Everything was calm, and Chen Dong relaxed, reaching out to push the door open.

"This spot is where Fang Zhiyi died, right?" Chen Dong pointed the camera and then stood there without a care. "See? Any problem?"

The livestream's popularity surged again. Chen Dong's eyes were gleaming.

"Today, we'll start our game right here! This game is called... Hide and Seek!"

The rules were simple. Everyone would scatter and hide, and Chen Dong would find them.

Of course, those hiding had a mission: to create some noises and stir up some entertainment value.

As Chen Dong covered his eyes in front of the camera and started counting, the small-time streamers ran off. By now, they were dizzy with the success of Chen Dong's stream. Today was their chance to break out! Getting some face time would be good for their future.

Of course, a very few felt it was inappropriate.

Like a gaming streamer who had only come because he had no choice. He felt Chen Dong was being somewhat disrespectful. So he just found a random spot to sit and wait, planning to quit once Chen Dong found him.

Maybe this streaming business wasn't for him? How about finding a factory to screw in screws instead?

He didn't see Fang Zhiyi sitting at the desk behind him, legs up on the table, hands behind his head, watching him.

Those things within Yuying Middle School finally began to stir.

Chen Dong finished his countdown, picked up his phone, and saw the comments filled with things he didn't understand.

"Streamer, run! Quick!"

"Behind you! No, above you!"

"So scary!"

"Streamer, did you set this up? You scared me to death."

Chen Dong just thought these netizens were trying to create an effect. He looked left and right—nothing there. Then he looked closer. The viewer count in the livestream had broken a hundred thousand!

Chen Dong's sanity had flown away.

I'm going to make it big, he thought.

"Streamer, start looking already."

"Streamer, if you're really not afraid, tell ghost stories while you search."

Chen Dong scoffed. "I'm already here, why would I be scared?"

That netizen immediately sent several rocket gifts. Chen Dong's eyes went wide. "Thank you, big brother! Just telling ghost stories? I'm good at that!"

"So, there was once a school, and strange sounds often came from the last stall in the bathroom," Chen Dong narrated as he walked towards the bathroom.

There really was someone hiding in the bathroom. When he hid there, his mind was full of how to create an effect later. But now, the surroundings were so quiet he could only hear his own breathing. He was starting to get scared.