Traffic Falling from the Sky

Perhaps feeling overwhelmingly shy, Xia Yanchun let Shen Nian hold her for a while before sitting back down at the desk to figure out the computer.

She opened the browser to watch some videos, played around with Baidu, browsed the web version of TikTok... and then started complaining that the computer wasn't much fun, giving up the seat to Shen Nian.

Shen Nian had watched many videos of AAA game masterpieces online, but he had never played them himself. Although he wasn't addicted to games, who could refuse to try out a legendary AAA game?

So he downloaded Steam and successfully registered, surpassing 99% of computer novices.

It was just that there were too many games, many with English names, and he didn't know which was which. Plus, they cost money, so he could only find time to look into them later.

The most important thing, of course, was the live streaming he had been dreaming about.

After downloading the platform's live streaming software, he began figuring out how to divide the screen into nine sections, allowing viewers to connect their microphones and cast their screens. There were tutorials online, and doing it was easier than he imagined.

Next up was the actual streaming.

In the evening, Shen Nian tried setting up the live broadcast room.

The title of the stream was simple.

[Study Room]

Description: Taking in heartbroken high school students.

In the upper left corner hung a line of small, colorful text: Send any small gift, and the streamer will explain a homework problem.

The platform would give every new streamer a little traffic recommendation. When Shen Nian streamed, you couldn't say nobody was watching; you could only say it was like entering an uninhabited wasteland.

Who would watch a nine-grid black screen live stream?

Shen Nian was also pondering this.

With no highlight clips to draw traffic, no foundational fan base, and no entertainment value, could this live stream really take off?

Everything is hard at the beginning, but this was way too hard.

Although the platform's algorithm pushed some traffic so Shen Nian's stream wasn't completely empty, people would leave as soon as they entered. Very few stayed in the stream.

The only account that stayed for twenty seconds left him a single chat comment.

[The college entrance exam is already over, and you're still doing a study room. The streamer is quite a piece of work.]

Shen Nian: "..."

How did you know I was a piece of work? You actually saw through that, how embarrassing.

Alright, Shen Nian admitted that his stream was indeed a bit hastily put together.

An idea from winter break was only being put into practice during summer break. The college entrance exam craze had long since dissipated.

Shen Nian tried streaming for two hours until ten at night. A total of 130 people visited the stream, but not a single one stayed.

During this time, Shen Yue also came in to take a look. She played with his new computer for a while, and upon hearing that it cost over ten thousand yuan, she questioned where he got the money.

Shen Nian said it was from his savings and next semester's scholarship, playing dumb to gloss over it.

His grades were right there, and Shen Yue didn't know whether the school had set up scholarships for mock exams anyway.

As long as Shen Yue and Xia Yanchun didn't compare notes, his lie wouldn't be exposed.

If they did compare notes, he would have to resort to the primitive money-laundering method: catching and selling fish.

It would be best if they didn't. The fishing excuse held absolutely no credibility with Xia Yanchun. The two of them were practically inseparable every day; wouldn't they know if the other went fishing or not?

Shen Nian felt he was still too honest. He should have asked his family for four or five thousand, then used his own money to buy the ten-thousand-plus computer. If asked, he could just say the computer only cost four or five thousand. After all, they didn't understand computers anyway.

The live stream was deserted.

This was somewhat within Shen Nian's expectations. Fortunately, he hadn't lost anything—if you really had to count something, it was just the one yuan spent on electricity.

Knock, knock.

The door opened two seconds later, and Xia Yanchun quietly poked her fluffy head in.

"Hi." Xia Yanchun slipped inside, holding a small bag printed with the Zhao Yiming logo, and a small table—the kind used for reading in bed.

"You're here."

"Mhm." Xia Yanchun walked over to look at the computer and asked curiously, "Are you live streaming?"

"Yeah, but nobody's watching."

"Hmph, I knew it."

"Let's watch a movie. What do you want to watch?"

"Anything is fine." Xia Yanchun's eyes curved into a smile. The girl, whose hair had just been blow-dried, smelled fragrant all over. She climbed onto the bed, seemingly scenting the entire bed with her fragrance.

As soon as Xia Yanchun arrived, Shen Nian stopped worrying so much. He leaned in close to quietly sniff her, his mood brightening significantly.

"Let's watch a TV show then. There's a hit new show airing that looks pretty interesting."

"Okay."

Xia Yanchun quickly set up the small table and took out the snacks one by one: braised quail eggs, dried pork slices, pickled chicken feet... She was clearly a seasoned snacker.

"Is my sister outside?"

"No, right here." Xia Yanchun pointed at herself.

"...I mean my actual sister."

"Oh, she's taking a shower. I thought you meant me."

The corner of Shen Nian's mouth couldn't help but twitch.

He got up to move the desk so the screen faced the bed directly. This way, he and Xia Yanchun could lean comfortably against the wall. A 27-inch screen from this distance might be completely blurry for someone nearsighted, but it was just perfect for two people with normal vision.

Xia Yanchun could never be without her small blanket. Without it, she would feel uncomfortable all over. Even when leaning against the wall wearing knee-length shorts that made a wardrobe malfunction impossible, she still habitually wrapped the blanket around her lower half.

The tips of the girl's hair slipped into his collar as Shen Nian gently wrapped his arm around her.

"Your hair is tickling me, it's a bit itchy."

"Oh." Xia Yanchun leaned over, found a hair tie on Shen Nian's desk, and casually tied her hair into a small ponytail.

She had noticed it earlier when playing on the computer. The hair tie she gave Shen Nian was still well-kept. Even though he didn't wear it, he hadn't just tossed it aside.

Now it actually came in handy.

She leaned against Shen Nian again. "How about now?"

"Better."

"Hehe." Xia Yanchun's body slowly relaxed. She liked resting all her weight on Shen Nian.

Shen Nian was so sturdy anyway, what's the harm in pressing against him a bit?

Her hair was a bit fluffy, and Shen Nian stroked it to smooth it out while watching the computer. When Xia Yanchun ate snacks, she would occasionally pop a piece into his mouth as a little reward for acting as her backrest.

"Wow, there are only eleven survivors left in the whole world? These people share their thoughts, that feels so creepy. They're just like you, not like a normal human," Xia Yanchun said, thoroughly engrossed in the show.

"Complain about the plot all you want, but you just had to throw an insult at me too."

"Hehe, then I won't complain next time."

"Am I supposed to say thank you for that?"

"You could, I wouldn't mind."

"Oh ho, you're really something." Shen Nian laughed in exasperation. To think that mere Chunbao would get so full of herself. He'd refine her with one hand!

And so, Xia Yanchun's face was kneaded like dough by Shen Nian for over ten seconds. No matter how much she pawed at his hands, Shen Nian refused to let go.

If Xia Yanchun hadn't mumbled and pinched Shen Nian's thigh, he wouldn't have planned on stopping.

Her small face was rubbed red. Xia Yanchun was huffing madly, and just as she was about to exhale sharply at him, a call came through on Shen Nian's phone.

The breath she was holding got stuck in her stomach.

"Ahem, let me take this call." Shen Nian cleared his throat. He looked and saw it was a QQ call from Hajima.

"Who is it?"

"Ma Mingfan. Don't make a sound for a second."

"I know..." Xia Yanchun puffed out her cheeks, nudged his arm, and left it at that. She went back to watching her show, taking the opportunity to eavesdrop on the boys' phone conversation.

As soon as Shen Nian answered, Ma Mingfan's loud voice boomed through the speaker.

"Holy crap, Shen Nian, quickly check out the video I just sent you."

"Oh... I don't see anything." Shen Nian switched back to his QQ interface, but there was no video.

Oh, wait, there was one: a video of older women square dancing in the park that he had sent earlier.

Ma Mingfan laughed, "Haha, I thought I forwarded it. Sending it to you now."

With that, he hung up.

Xia Yanchun furrowed her delicate brows; she was listening closely.

She had long heard that guys loved to share resources. If you have an apple and I have an apple, exchanging them means we still each have one apple. But if you have a website and I have a website, exchanging them means we each have two websites.

She wanted to see what kind of weird things boys shared with each other. If it was porn, she would definitely make Shen Nian delete it completely.

Soon, Ma Mingfan forwarded a video. Xia Yanchun immediately leaned against Shen Nian, squeezing into his arms and rubbing against him.

"?" Shen Nian smiled. How could someone willingly walk right into a trap?

Well, he wouldn't hold back then.

His hand habitually rested on Xia Yanchun's flat stomach as Shen Nian checked the short video Ma Mingfan had sent.

The thumbnail showed an interview clip, complete with a massive yellow title and netizen comments. At first glance, it was clearly from one of those engagement-bait accounts.

"2026 College Entrance Exam Interview: This exam was very easy, I'm guaranteed at least a 140 in math!"

Seeing this, Xia Yanchun's tense heart relaxed. She really thought it was some shady resource.

To be honest, she kind of wanted to see what those resources actually looked like. Although the curious young girl knew such things existed, she had absolutely no channels to find out.

Of course, even if she did, she wouldn't watch them! Really, truly!

Shen Nian had a bad feeling the moment he saw the title.

Because that was exactly what he had told the reporter who interviewed him at the time. Coupled with the fact that Ma Mingfan was so excited to forward it to him, he could pretty much guess the content...

The video started with the reporter's self-introduction. Shen Nian recognized the background; it was Cinan First High School.

The camera cut, and Shen Nian appeared on the screen, followed by the Q and A from his interview... Summarized in one sentence, it was exactly the title of the video.

The interview actually looked quite normal, with nothing taken out of context. The publisher was a legitimate TV station account, the kind with a verified blue checkmark.

It was just the bullet comments that were a bit problematic. There was a string of question marks, along with people calling him a braggart and a show-off...

He clicked open the comment section—

[The math test was so hard this time, and he guarantees a 140? The top student at our school said 130 is the absolute limit.]

[You guys hating on him don't understand style. When you're out and about, you give yourself your own status.]

[@Mumu Huan, bro, I tagged your senior over here hahahaha.]

[Am I the only one who thinks this guy is kind of handsome?]

[What if he's actually really good?]

[The last guy who talked this big gets dragged out and mocked every single year.]

There was mostly sarcasm and mockery. Of course, there were also people wishing him a bright future, but they were very few.

There were 13,000 likes and over 800 comments. Looking at the timestamps of the comments, they were all posted in the last day or two, even though the video itself was published the day after the college entrance exam ended.

Furthermore, when he exited and clicked back in, the likes had increased by another two thousand. The traffic was still steadily climbing.

It was likely because the exam scores were about to be released, and the algorithm was starting to build momentum, pushing videos related to college entrance exam interviews. This particular interview video was just the pig standing in the wind.

Shen Nian and Xia Yanchun looked at each other in dismay.

"You actually got interviewed?" Xia Yanchun blinked her big eyes.

"Yeah..."

"Pfft, hahahahaha, you're getting roasted so badly! They're all saying you're bragging!" Xia Yanchun poked Shen Nian's cheek, laughing joyfully.

"What do you mean? I was actually being quite conservative. I should have said a guaranteed 145 at the time. I was too hasty."

"Hmph, but they don't believe you."

"Well, what can I do?" Shen Nian smiled faintly, but his mind was racing.

This was traffic falling straight from the sky.

If there was enough hype, couldn't he use the popularity of this video to drive traffic to his own live stream?

He could step out and claim it as himself, attracting netizens over. Whether they were cursing him or respectfully wishing him well, it was all traffic.

It seemed feasible...?

It was just that with only over ten thousand likes right now, the heat was still far from enough.

"What's wrong?" Seeing him daze out, Xia Yanchun thought he was upset about being scolded and felt a tiny bit surprised.

Would someone like Shen Nian, who would unhesitatingly choose posting on a forum over a confession wall, really feel bad because of random comments from netizens?

"I'm wondering if this video will go viral, and thinking about how to direct the traffic to myself."

"Not bad, you actually know how to quickly monetize traffic."

"I'm not you, how could I not know?"

"You dare insult me? Take this, and this!" Xia Yanchun humphed, lightly pounding her fists against Shen Nian's body a few times.

Shen Nian shifted the little person in his arms, faced the computer, and then pulled her back in front of him. Pressing down slightly with his large hands, Xia Yanchun's upper body leaned perfectly against his chest.

"Let it go, let's watch TV. Rewind it a bit, I didn't get to see it."

"Mhm." Xia Yanchun leaned forward to adjust the progress bar, then nestled softly back into Shen Nian's embrace.

Shen Nian was definitely not the type to get depressed over a few gossip comments online. See, not only was he watching TV, but he was also scheming on how to harness the popularity. His mindset was boundlessly positive.

The doubts online were, after all, just doubts.

While accompanying Chunbao to watch TV, Shen Nian would still occasionally click open the video to check the increase in likes and comments. After a forty-minute episode, the likes had actually jumped by twenty thousand, and the comments were growing too, with an even higher growth rate than the likes.

This video was probably going to blow up.

Shen Nian chuckled. Was this the power of Luck plus 5 kicking in?

"Hmm?" The large hand on her stomach stopped moving. Xia Yanchun curiously tilted her little head up. She couldn't see Shen Nian, but she could use her ponytail to remind him.

"How are you so good at enjoying yourself?" Shen Nian simply stopped looking at his phone, set it aside, and peacefully cuddled with Chunbao.

"You're pretty good at enjoying yourself when you hug me every day too."

"Is that the same thing?"

Shen Nian only gave the show thirty percent of his attention; the remaining seventy percent was entirely focused on Xia Yanchun.

From this top-down perspective, he could faintly catch a glimpse of the fair skin beneath the young girl's collar, which stirred Shen Nian's thoughts into a mess. The large hand massaging her lower abdomen also showed a faint tendency to move upward.

"Mmm..." Xia Yanchun shrank her body slightly, a trace of heat radiating from her, but she didn't make a sound.

After quite a while, she finally grabbed Shen Nian's hand, placed it back onto her flat stomach, and grumbled, "You're not watching TV properly, you have wicked thoughts..."