Can following the rules be called rebirth?

Chapter 178, Section 176: The Essence of Dating

"you say."

"Ok?"

"Sometimes I feel really strange."

"What's weird?"

At the dining table that just happened to be big enough for two people, a man and a woman were sitting facing each other.

Zhong Yujun gripped her chopsticks tightly again, taking small bites of the curry chicken on her plate, her beautiful eyes curving into two crescent moons.

"That's strange. I remember when we sat at the same desk in high school, you weren't this talkative, even during get out of class. You're certainly not this much now, acting as a life mentor to others."

“What’s even stranger is that when other people say that, I think they like to lecture and have a very paternalistic attitude.”

"If you put it that way, I actually think it makes sense."

"Ha~"

Zhou Mingyuan smiled slightly and took over the conversation.

“My starting point is different from those people.”

Meeting the probing gaze of the moonlight, the man slowed his speech and continued.

"A person who likes to preach puts their own knowledge above that of others and indiscriminately instills their own views and ideas into those around them."

"."

"how about you?"

Seeing that the other person stopped halfway through their speech, Zhong Yujun couldn't help but ask further questions.

"I just want you to always be living a vibrant and exciting life, free and happy."

Zhou Mingyuan looked serious.

What kind of life is worth looking forward to?

The girl blinked.

"After class, we'll go to the cafeteria for dinner together, take a walk in the Dutch-style park in the evening, lie on the playground and look at the stars, go shopping on weekends, and have a hangover at the barbecue stalls in the North Campus. In short, I'll be there for you."

That makes sense.

After a few seconds of silence, Zhong Yujun managed to squeeze out three words, a lingering blush rising on her cheeks, her voice barely audible.

My heart was pounding, as if it were echoing repeatedly in my mind through my long-sleeved T-shirt.

Faced with Zhou Mingyuan's sudden heartfelt words, she didn't know what to say for a moment.

In fact, too many sweet words will only weaken their effectiveness. Only those who are lazy to express themselves with actions will try to fill the other person's heart with words.

So it's very effective when a man occasionally opens up about his feelings.

Zhong Yujun is a typical northern girl, completely different from many girls with conflicted personalities.

She always speaks her mind and doesn't hide her emotions.

For example, when faced with a fatherly lecture.

If it were any other sensitive girl, even if she felt uncomfortable, she probably wouldn't show it on her face, let alone openly and honestly tell Zhou Mingyuan.

Instead of outwardly agreeing but inwardly scoffing, she actually listened after some thought.

When she fully felt Zhou Mingyuan's sincerity and realized that his intentions were indeed for her own good, she quickly picked up her chopsticks again and changed her mind.

"Are you really full this time?"

"Ok!"

Zhong Yujun put down her chopsticks again, contentedly pulled out a tissue to wipe her mouth, and gently squinted her eyes.

She is tall with long legs, has a larger frame than the average girl, and has a well-defined profile, giving her an enviable body proportion.

Naturally, this leads to a proportional increase in food intake.

To expect her to be like those little devils at Jieyou Media, desperately controlling her diet to conform to universal aesthetic values ​​and look good on camera, would be putting the cart before the horse and utterly unnecessary.

For so many days, Zhong Yujun has been forcing herself to control her food intake, and she has never been full.

Persuaded by Zhou Mingyuan to let go of the shackles, a large amount of delicious food filled his taste buds again, and he couldn't be happier.

On Singles' Day, Optics Valley was packed with people.

A dense mass of people, like boiling asphalt, poured out of the subway entrance and bus station, instantly submerging every inch of Optics Valley Square.

Neon signs and giant LED screens flashed wildly overhead, beams of light hitting countless sweaty faces, creating a dazzling interplay of light and shadow that made people dizzy.

Wow, there are so many people!

Zhong Yujun and Zhou Mingyuan walked out of the restaurant side by side and were immediately shocked by the scene outside.

All public facilities became battlefields, with people packed tightly together on escalators, like cans on an assembly line.

The queue twisted and turned, blocking the aisle, and even the steps were filled with young couples who were either engrossed in their phones or holding small notes while waiting for their turn.

"It's Singles' Day, so you either go out shopping or go on a date."

"Luckily, we have electric scooters so we don't get stuck in traffic, and we leave home very early."

As the two walked to the Duomo Cathedral on the first floor, Zhong Yujun couldn't help but sigh.

In fact, the time Zhou Mingyuan called her to go out today was quite different from the dating schedule of most men and women.

Including travel time, and having eaten and drunk my fill at the Nyonya Culinary Restaurant, it's only 6:45 now.

The real peak season is just around the corner.

Optics Valley Square was packed with couples and photographers holding up selfie sticks, with a sea of ​​heads in the background.

Even the air seemed thinner.

"It's still a bit early, do you want to go see a movie?"

Zhou Mingyuan raised an eyebrow and asked.

"See a movie?"

Zhong Yujun took her phone out of her pocket and swiped the screen twice: "It doesn't work."

"Why didn't you say so sooner! They're all sold out!"

"How about we find a place to chat and have a drink?"

"Okay."

Zhong Yujun's eyes were filled with laughter, and she nodded decisively without much thought.

Everything is under control.

In Zhong Yujun's traditional understanding, going out alone on such days is nothing more than eating, chatting, and maybe watching a movie.

Try to maximize the time the two of you spend together.

But Zhou Mingyuan was not very willing to do so.

Eating is fine, but spending prime time watching a three-hour movie is a waste of precious time.

On days like these, he naturally wanted to share the benefits equally.

To ensure everyone gets a share of the benefits, and to participate in the second activity after dinner on the other side, this movie is not an option.

Rejecting the old-fashioned option of watching movies doesn't actually require any complicated steps.

After eating, just pretend you had a sudden urge.

In a crowded place like Optics Valley, on Singles' Day, it's impossible to find a seat on a movie ticket if you try to buy one at the last minute.

So, the two of them quickly made their way through a maze of turns and arrived at a small, quiet bar.

Hmm. The bar was actually quite empty.

It was exactly seven o'clock, and it wasn't even completely dark yet, so it would be strange if there were many people!

That's how bars are; they're often hidden in the corners of alleyways and lanes, under the shade of willows and poplars. They're actually quite unique and niche places, and they're the most expensive and high-quality.

What are you looking at?

The small, spacious private room was beautifully and stylishly decorated.

Zhou Mingyuan casually ordered some drinks: a cherry wine and a signature Martini.

After the waiter left the private room, he took a small sip and glanced around.

Zhong Yujun tightened her jaw, her attention completely focused on the phone screen on the table.

"Look, it's a live stream notification!" The girl handed over her right hand, moving the screen between the two of them.

"Zhao Xue is live streaming? Wow, I didn't expect that! Instead of going out for Singles' Day, she's going to do a live stream. That's so dedicated!"

As soon as he finished speaking, another notification popped up on the screen from Douyu Live.

Uno-chan will keep you company during your lonely times~

"It's not just Zhao Xue."

Zhong Yujun smiled gently, raised the glass in front of her, and swallowed it with a light shake.

"It seems that the senior student is also very dedicated."

After clinking glasses with the man a few times, Zhong Yujun was clearly slightly tipsy.

I started to feel a slight heat inside my body, which was just enough to block out the cold autumn night wind.

In the small, quiet bar booth, only a curtain separates the inside from the outside.

A television was hanging in the hall, playing a girl group dance music video. The music and sound effects were mixed together, creating a buzzing sound in Zhong Yujun's mind.

"What's going on?"

Zhou Mingyuan couldn't help but gossip.

For a period of time recently, the two drank and chatted, using live streaming as a side dish to accompany their drinks.

After secretly watching Du Jianuo's live stream for a while, Zhou Mingyuan got a little tired of it and suggested switching channels to Zhao Xue's live stream.

Thank you for the gift, just call me Old Cai! Thank you, brother! Wishing you health, happiness, joy every day, and may you live forever!

Surprisingly, the live stream room of Zhong Yujun's roommate wasn't as deserted as she had imagined.

What's even more surprising is that she also gave quite a few gifts!
A few people were swiping their phones to send virtual gifts. Zhao Xue, dressed in a long dress, sat in front of a chair and skillfully thanked everyone for the gifts, her Shanghai accent beautiful and pleasant to the ear.

“Cai Zhipeng sent her gifts again. Seriously.”

"what?"

Zhou Mingyuan rubbed his eyes, stretched out his finger, and tapped on the other person's profile page.

A local resident of Jiangcheng, 19 years old, and with his own selfie profile picture—it really is Cai Zhipeng.

"Weren't they a little flirtatious and really close before? How did their relationship turn out like this?"

In the past few days, Zhou Mingyuan has been running around trying to resolve Shen Yunrong's case, and hasn't been able to go back to his dormitory much.

I have absolutely no idea about my roommate's relationship status.

"What kind of relationship?"

"Consumers and female livestreamers."

"Is this any different from being ambiguous?"

"Of course it's different."

Zhou Mingyuan shrugged and turned his head away.

Then I looked at Zhong Yujun. Although she hadn't drunk as much as I had, her skin was prone to blushing after just a little alcohol.

After a few drinks, her originally fair and bright cheeks turned as red as ripe apples.

"From being a romantic interest to becoming a fan in the live stream, the relationship has definitely deteriorated."

"Because Lao Cai is still a student, even if his family is well-off, his spending power is ultimately limited."

“Any big spender in the live stream is more generous than him. If you put him in this environment and compare him with others, it’s almost impossible for him to make progress.”

"."

Zhong Yujun bit her lip, seemingly lost in thought.

After hearing Zhao Xue say a few more words on the screen, Zhong Yujun's expression became more serious.

"By the way, I haven't asked you properly yet."

"Everyone says you have a lot of experience in running Jieyou Media, and you are a textbook and benchmark in the industry."

"But when I went to Nanhu Industrial Park for interviews, not a single person could answer this question. Live broadcast design, scripts, copywriting, traffic generation—where did you get your experience from?"

The girl rubbed her burning cheeks and involuntarily raised her voice.

"In the end, creating content is simply about discovering the audience's spiritual needs and then addressing those needs. It's that simple."

Zhou Mingyuan didn't directly answer with that string of fancy-sounding terms; he just spoke plainly.

"Okay, I won't ask any more questions that are too complicated."

"Can you tell me why all the new employees your company hires are women?"

Zhong Yujun pretended to be nonchalant and began to probe indirectly.

"personal hobby."

Zhou Mingyuan spoke off the cuff without even thinking.

Zhong Yujun was speechless. After a moment of silence, she gritted her teeth and repeated, "Personal hobby?"

"Ah."

Zhou Mingyuan stared at her expression and couldn't help but chuckle.

"Just kidding!"

"How could we only recruit female anchors? It's just that the company is still in its early stages, and having more female anchors makes it easier to train and manage them uniformly, and we can prevent office romances between men and women through our systems."

"Okay, then I won't ask anymore. I believe you're a boss with principles and wouldn't have an office romance."

"Thank you for the compliment. Although I don't have any office romances, I really don't have any bottom lines."

Zhou Mingyuan took a sip of wine and said the most sincere thing he had said all day.

"."

Zhong Yuyun rolled her eyes at him.

Compared to Du Jianuo, who made her first fortune in the live streaming industry, it wasn't until Zhong Yujun personally visited Jieyou Media that she belatedly realized many things.

I didn't realize Zhou Mingyuan was so outstanding.

It turns out he has the power to influence the future prospects of so many people.

So this is what it feels like to be relied upon.

It's impossible to say that I didn't feel uneasy.

But Zhong Yujun wasn't petty; she didn't say anything like, "You won't have any ulterior motives or try to take advantage of me."

She suppressed her doubts and tried her best to present a calm and collected demeanor to the other party.

The two of them drank until they were slightly tipsy, and then simply took a walk along the square before heading back to their dormitories.

Unlike others, I didn't stroll around the streets in a lively atmosphere, nor did I accept bouquets from the children running around in the square.

One reason is that on special days like Singles' Day, you have to queue for a long time no matter what you do.

On the other hand, Zhou Mingyuan had long understood the true nature of dating.

The essence of dating is not about repeatedly raising a girl's threshold.

For example, you could set off fireworks on an anniversary, then take your partner to the top of a Ferris wheel and kiss them.

While such a scene may be romantic, it is impossible for it to become a part of everyday life.

In fact, truly talented singers don't need accompaniment; their a cappella performances are already heavenly.

For men and women in the ambiguous stage of a relationship, even doing nothing, just taking a walk is enough to make them happy.

Even if they are just walking side by side in an ordinary way, walking five hundred meters or a thousand meters, they will not feel tired, forget the time, ignore their surroundings, and be completely immersed in the joy of being together.

This feeling is the essence of dating.

The answer to dating is always why you want to meet, not what you want to do when you meet.

Therefore, expert date planning never involves figuring out how to fill the timeline with activities.

Instead, they focused on figuring out how to help women relax and enter their own unique space.

I've entered a state where I'm happy just being with you, even if we don't do anything.

Movies, meals, gifts, and surprises are all just embellishments.

(End of this chapter)