Chapter 356
Chapter 356
The two of them might have been ordinary people, but after everything they had experienced in the Realm of Death, that description no longer quite fit.
The usual ideas, such as a trip to the seaside or the desert, or singing, watching a movie, or playing a Murder Mystery Game, were not even under consideration.
Why waste their time on something so boring?
Wouldn’t that time be better spent cursing the Realm of Death a few more times?
Unfortunately, they could not do that during the show.
Or perhaps they could… if they changed their approach?
“Life’s pretty stressful. Shall we find somewhere to let off steam?” Yellow Hair suggested.
Lin Junruo’s eyes lit up. “Any good ideas?” she asked immediately.
Yellow Hair thought for a moment. “Ever tried a boxing gym?”
Lin Junruo shook her head. “No. It sounds painful.”
At that, Yellow Hair glanced at her slight frame and immediately abandoned the idea. “Then let’s go with the simplest, most common option.”
“What is it?” Lin Junruo asked eagerly.
“Karaoke,” Yellow Hair said.
Lin Junruo: “…”
Why had she ever trusted him?
Who could have guessed that, after going around in circles, the first place they chose for their date would be… a karaoke venue?
Truly, how very creative.
There might have been nothing original about it, but after their earnest discussion, the eventual choice of karaoke was such a reversal that it still earned them a wave of Popularity.
Lin Junruo was a little disappointed, but she did not refuse.
The two set off for the karaoke venue.
Yellow Hair chose a large Private Room. Mindful that Lin Junruo was a woman, he ordered a few bottles of fruit wine, some soft drinks, a fruit platter, and some snacks a young woman might like. Then he opened the song-selection screen and tapped away, quickly filling the queue with karaoke staples.
“Love Even in Death,” “First Taste of Love,” “Boundless Oceans, Vast Skies,” “Princess,” and so on. After choosing those, something else occurred to him. He searched for the artist Phoenix Legend and added a whole string of songs.
Lin Junruo looked at the playlist and went numb.
Meanwhile, Yellow Hair was still calling out enthusiastically, “Here we go, girl! Let’s get this party started!”
Lin Junruo: “…”
As their Popularity rose, the bullet comments filled with laughter.
“Sheng Mao, please look at her face.”
“She’s about to lose her mind.”
“Her: What an incredible surprise.”
“Leave the playlist alone. You really don’t need to do this.”
“I’m dying, hahahaha.”
“Sheng Mao, please, I’m begging you. Look at a decent playlist!”
“…”
Reading the bullet comments, Yellow Hair grumbled inwardly. What was wrong with his playlist? He and his friends always picked these songs when they got together.
Oh, right. Should he choose a few songs for girls?
A thought struck him, and he began tapping in another string of titles.
“Our Love,” for instance, and “Why Not Dance”…
“I’ll do it myself,” Lin Junruo said with some difficulty.
Yellow Hair thought that was fine and moved aside for her.
Then he watched her choose some slow English songs, something with a title about time and flowing, and, oh, some songs by Xu Song. He knew that singer.
Lin Junruo was not just pretty. She could sing well too.
But Yellow Hair frowned. They were here to vent, not actually to sing.
He did not think this would do.
Picking up the microphone, he said, “That’s not how you do it. Watch me.” Then he changed the song to “Love Even in Death.”
And then…
Lin Junruo was treated to Yellow Hair screaming his heart out.
It certainly was one way to let off steam.
Once the chorus was over, Yellow Hair let out a long breath. Finally, he exhaled a single word. “Yes!”
Lin Junruo: “…”
“Want to try?” Yellow Hair offered her the microphone.
She hastily waved him off. “No, no. You carry on.”
Yellow Hair did not stand on ceremony.
One song ended, and the next soon began.
He was not entirely hopeless.
After singing a few lines and loosening up, Yellow Hair began to… improvise wildly.
“Think you’re so great, do you? You still can’t kill me! Hahaha! Mad about it? Stay mad!”
Lin Junruo: “?”
“Nyah, nyah, nyah!”
“I love singing!”
“What’s the use of being so badass? You still get trampled underfoot.”
“Look at you, you coward.”
“Hahahaha!”
Lin Junruo: “?”
The bullet comments were a stream of question marks too.
No one had expected Yellow Hair to start hurling insults halfway through a song. After a few lines of abuse, he would even throw in a “Hey!” to the beat.
Well, damn. Lin Junruo could only marvel.
The audience had not expected it either. Their Popularity shot upward, though Yellow Hair lost some of it again for breaking character.
After delivering a string of insults, he offered Lin Junruo the microphone once more. “Want a go?”
Let out every last bit of frustration.
They could not mention the Realm of Death, but no one had said they could not swear at someone, had they?
They might be cursing the Realm of Death, but who would know?
Lin Junruo began to feel tempted.
She was fairly restrained at first. Taking the microphone, she gave a quiet “Pah,” then said in a perfectly calm voice, “You bastard. You piece of trash.”
No one had expected her to begin like that. The bullet comments filled with laughter again, and their Popularity rose along with it.
Soon, however, Lin Junruo had no attention to spare for any of that. After a few insults, she suddenly felt as though the floodgates had opened!
“An ugly thing like you just has to make trouble. All those fancy little tricks, and it still ends in game over, doesn’t it? Think you’re so great? You’re actually weak. What do you think you are? Heaven? Earth? Lightning? Light? An eternal joke?”
Watching her deliver that torrent of abuse, Yellow Hair silently raised a thumb.
Zhou Jingying had never imagined that a perfectly normal dating show would end up like this.
Thank goodness this was the Realm of Death. In the real world, the entire production team would probably have been summoned for a stern talking-to.
Weren’t they teaching the audience to swear at people?
Still, watching the ever-rising Popularity, even with some lost for breaking character, Zhou Jingying could only think: well said, beautifully said. If they had more to say, keep it coming!
Lin Junruo and Yellow Hair took turns hurling insults into the microphones for a solid hour. Only when their throats began to hurt did they finally stop.
But it had to be said, they had… yes, let off steam.
“Shall we head to the next place?” Yellow Hair asked.
Lin Junruo nodded. This time, she was looking forward to it a little.
This time, Yellow Hair took her straight to a stress-relief center.
That was exactly what it was called: the Stress-Relief Center.
There were quite a few places like this these days, though few were actually good. Who knew how Yellow Hair had found this one? Or perhaps the stress-relief centers inside the variety show were different from those in reality. Either way, this one really did relieve stress.
Smashing things over and over, popping bubble wrap…
After they had vented for a while, Yellow Hair finally took Lin Junruo to an arcade.
Dancing, slacking off, claw machines.
None of it was particularly original. Yet, whether it was something about the two of them or not, they somehow made it all look both relaxing and fun.
And although Yellow Hair might not usually seem very capable, he was remarkably good at claw machines.
By the time the two of them were tired and sat down in the mall, Lin Junruo was surrounded by a pile of plush toys.
Yellow Hair went to buy two ice cream cones.
“Here.” He held one out to her.
Lin Junruo had been looking down. At his voice, she raised her head and looked at him.
In that instant, she suddenly felt her heart skip a beat.