Global Game: I Can Choose Instance Rewards-Chapter 607 - 402: Banquet (Part 2)
The fourteen-year-old boy, who had been talking with a dozen guests ahead, immediately strode over upon seeing Wang Zhifan, ignoring the crowd, and shouted:
"Fan! You’re finally here! I’ve missed you to death!"
"..."
For a moment, Wang Zhifan, who already felt a bit awkward, couldn’t help but twitch the corner of his mouth. It’s not like he hadn’t seen a big scene before; after all, he had been the boss of a gang and a continental overlord in dungeons, but being watched by so many people in real life was a first.
"Ah Ming! Don’t just shout like that out of nowhere!"
Chen Can couldn’t hold it anymore upon seeing this scene and immediately reprimanded his younger brother.
But Chen Ming didn’t seem to mind, as he ran over boisterously, replying indifferently:
"Ay! Brother, isn’t it because I haven’t seen Fan in a long time? It’s normal to be a little excited!"
As this guy joined Wang Zhifan and Chen Can, many guests in the large living room focused on Wang Zhifan, the center of attention, and whispered among themselves.
"Is that Fan? He indeed looks extraordinary, definitely an expert!"
"Whoa! Is he the boss that Ming mentions often in his videos? We’re finally seeing him in person?!"
"He really looks strong! I can sense the terrifying vitality within him! I wonder what rank of a boss he is!"
"Uh... brother, sorry to interrupt, is this Fan famous? Why haven’t I heard of him before?"
"Obviously you wouldn’t know if you haven’t watched the player videos that the second young master of the Chen family posts on C Station. He mentions this person in every video. According to the second master, his strength is terrifyingly strong, possibly one of the strongest players in Xia Country..."
"Ah? Is it really that exaggerated? Aren’t the strongest players in our country all in the administration? Would they have time to attend such gatherings? I don’t believe it..."
"Haha, brother, whether you believe it or not, I have some connections in the administration. Apparently, the top expert from our Dongjiang City’s administration went on a business trip out of town the day before yesterday. Coincidentally, an extremely powerful Gray Realm creature appeared in the suburbs, and even after great efforts, the administration couldn’t handle it. It was ultimately resolved by an extraordinarily strong civilian player, and as to who this civilian player is, I suppose there’s no need for me to say more..."
"Gosh! Even our Dongjiang City’s administration had to ask for his help? Seems we’ve truly met a big figure among players today!"
...
Even though everyone’s discussions in the large living room were deliberately lowered in volume, Wang Zhifan’s extraordinary senses easily picked up every word. He quickly became very confused, wondering when he became a celebrity and how his name ended up in videos?
Therefore, when Chen Ming rushed to him, he forced out a slightly awkward smile and gritted his teeth, whispering:
"Kid, what tricks have you pulled? Why does it seem like everyone knows me? Didn’t I tell you to keep a low profile?"
Seeing Wang Zhifan not looking very pleased, Chen Ming, however, appeared nonchalant and directly admitted:
"Fan, don’t worry. I’m very low-key. I just sometimes mention the experiences of dungeon runs with you in the player videos I release. But the kids on C Station insist I’m bragging, saying that Fan is just a fictional character I made up. Naturally, I don’t want to be slandered by them, so I often argue with them online to show that Fan, you’re indeed real..."
After Chen Ming’s explanation, Wang Zhifan finally understood what was going on. It all started when he and Chen Ming were matched in a dungeon for the first time. After that, Chen Ming posted a recording of their run. Later on, they met each other again through a trading interaction, leading to more dungeon runs, during which Chen Ming recorded parts to post online, catching the attention of his video followers.
Over time, due to some coincidences, Chen Ming’s portrayal of the player master "Fan" gained some attention in their small circle, leading to Wang Zhifan becoming somewhat famous on the internet without his knowledge.
And at this banquet, many guests were Chen Ming’s video fans, invited to liven up the party. So when they heard Chen Ming shout "Fan," they immediately understood and started to discuss.
"Haha, you kid, you sure know how to stir things up..."
Wang Zhifan was at a loss hearing this; he truly hadn’t expected that this rich young master Chen Ming had a habit of posting online videos.
The only good news is that Chen Ming was not a particularly famous content creator, meaning currently his videos’ outreach about Wang Zhifan was still quite limited, so Wang Zhifan didn’t have to worry too much about becoming some public figure.
On the side, Chen Ming’s elder brother Chen Can was also feeling helpless as he witnessed this, and immediately admonished his younger brother not to drag Wang Zhifan into the spotlight.
"Ah Ming, you know the kind of person Fan is; he’s not the type who enjoys being high-profile. You better not do any more mindless things like this in your videos, and it’s best to delete past related videos to avoid affecting Fan’s daily life..."
Wang Zhifan just waved his hand, forcefully cutting off the topic.
"Alright, things are already like this, so it doesn’t matter whether the videos are deleted or not. Just remember to keep a low profile in the future, Ming. Not many people in the player community are honest, and being too flashy can bring a lot of unnecessary trouble. Let’s return to the party; many guests are still waiting."
After this not-so-eventful episode, Chen Ming and his brother’s banquet continued. Wang Zhifan started mingling with them, eating and drinking, chatting away in the large living room. Occasionally, guests would come up to greet or even engage him in conversation, to which he responded politely each time.
It must be said that the banquet, funded by the Chen family, was quite lavish, with delicious and high-end food and drinks. While Wang Zhifan socialized, he also took care of his hunger, trying everything from ancient Xia Country’s full-course meals, Buddha Jumps Over the Wall, to 1982 Lafite, though he controlled himself so as not to reveal his humble origins. 𝒻𝑟𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝑛𝘰𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝘤𝘰𝘮
Of course, talking about assets, Wang Zhifan was by no means poor; he was just born a civilian in both of his lives, inherently bearing the mark of a certain social class. However, he didn’t see any problem with this. Being born as a civilian, there’s no need to pretend to be some rich elite—staying true to oneself is what matters.
After a period of eating, drinking, and having fun, the banquet moved to the next stage, which was the player gear trading event Chen Ming had mentioned over the phone.
But contrary to Wang Zhifan’s previous speculation, the trading event wasn’t as tiny-scale as he had imagined, with the Chen brothers intending for him to break the bank. In reality, it was thoroughly prepared. The Chen brothers used their family’s resources to procure a batch of quality equipment from societal channels, planning to sell it at a discounted price below cost, which was the main appeal to attract players to the event.
On the other hand, players who had equipment they wished to sell, like a gunner player who had picked up Mage class equipment that wasn’t high-grade and didn’t fetch a price on forums, could negotiate sales here or directly sell to the Chen family.
Wang Zhifan inquired of Chen Ming and his brother why they were organizing such an event when the Chen family was wealthy with no reason to waste money. Chen Can explained that they intended to establish a player guild, and many attendees of this banquet were prospective members under evaluation, so providing some benefits was only natural.
"Fan, if you’re willing to join, my brother and I will definitely make you the guild leader. That way, our guild wouldn’t have to limit low-level player admissions,"
Seeing Wang Zhifan inquiring to this point, Chen Can jokingly suggested to him.
