It had been three days since Lin Bei posted her first video, and the view count had stalled at 823.

Not exactly a smash hit, but not a flop either. There were seventeen comments in the comment section: eight said “I learned something,” five said “The young lady is so cute,” three said “The spare ribs look delicious,” and one even asked, “Is your landlord still looking for tenants?”

Lin Bei took a screenshot of that last comment and sent it to Su Chen.

“Look, someone wants to replace me.”

Su Chen glanced at the screen and said, “Then let her take over.”

“Are you really going to let me go?”

“Of course I’d miss your spare ribs.”

Lin Bei pouted and put her phone away. She knew Su Chen was joking, but she still couldn’t help wondering—would he really miss her if she actually moved out?

Never mind. She had more important things to worry about now.

Her fourth video was already edited; it was about “How to Eat for Three Days on the Price of One Cup of Milk Tea.” In the video, she showed a three-day meal plan: tomato and egg noodles on day one, fried rice with eggs on day two, and vegetable congee on day three. The total cost came to 11.5 yuan—exactly the price of one cup of milk tea.

After posting the video, she lay on the sofa as usual, waiting for feedback.

Su Chen sat at the dining table reading the financial report, glancing up at her every now and then.

“Can you stop staring at the view count?”

“I’m not staring—I’m just closing my eyes and relaxing.”

“You’re checking your phone every thirty seconds.”

Lin Bei flipped her phone over and pressed it face down on the sofa.

“Alright, I’m done looking.”

But thirty seconds later, she flipped it back over again.

Su Chen shook his head and went back to reading the report.

At 2 p.m., her phone suddenly vibrated.

Lin Bei almost reflexively grabbed it—it was a direct message.

“Hello, Lin Bei. I watched your video and found it very interesting. I’m a recent college graduate who’s about to start working in Jiangcheng, but I have no idea how to rent an apartment. Could you please answer a few questions for me? I’m willing to pay for your consultation.”

Lin Bei stared at the screen for five seconds, then sat bolt upright.

“Su Chen!”

Su Chen was startled by her sudden reaction: “What’s wrong?”

“Someone’s asking for a consultation! A paid one!”

Lin Bei held the phone up in front of him. Su Chen took it, read the message, and looked at her.

“What are you going to reply?”

“Of course I’ll say yes! If someone’s offering me money, why wouldn’t I take it?”

“How much are you charging?”

Lin Bei thought for a moment: “Fifty?”

“That’s too little.”

“One hundred?”

“You might be saving someone a thousand or two in security deposit, but charging only a hundred is way too low.”

“How much should I charge then?”

Su Chen thought for a moment: “Two hundred. Start with two hundred, and add more if there are more questions.”

Lin Bei widened her eyes: “Two hundred? Just for answering a few questions?”

“Aren’t you a professional?” Su Chen handed the phone back to her. “Professionals charge professional rates.”

Lin Bei hesitated for a moment, then replied: “Okay, two hundred yuan, video call consultation, no more than one hour.”

The other party replied immediately: “Great! How do I pay?”

Lin Bei was shocked all over again. She had expected the other person to haggle, to hesitate, to ask, “Could you make it cheaper?” But instead, they agreed without a second thought.

Suddenly, she realized how foolish it had been to charge only a hundred before.

Su Chen watched her dazed expression from the side, a slight smile playing on his lips.

“Do you feel like you were being too cheap before?”

“No, I mean I was just too poor before,” Lin Bei said as she processed the payment. “Two hundred yuan is enough for twenty cups of milk tea!”

“Aren’t you supposed to be thinking about how to help this person solve their problem?”

End of Chapter 14: Chapter 14