Chapter 247: Have You Heard of the Sharing Economy?

As for Tokyo, Bai Liang was actually quite familiar with the place, and didn't need any "local" guide at all.

Especially Shinjuku's Kabukicho.

Coming here gave Bai Liang quite a feeling of coming home.

Because as the saying goes, since you're already here, you might as well settle in.

Since we're already here, why not make a home here?

In his previous life, that's exactly what he did.

He even created an "urban legend" in Tokyo — the Son of the Wind, descending upon Tokyo!

That chuunibyou thing wasn't something he cooked up himself, but rather the product of bored Tokyo media.

They said he seemed to possess the power to see through people's hearts, effortlessly plucking the heartstrings of girls, making them unable to stop.

After that, he vanished like a gust of wind, never to be heard from again, just as mysteriously as he had appeared.

The Japanese really have always been rather chuunibyou.

In his previous life, Bai Liang had actually just hung out in Kabukicho for a while, and didn't spend any money.

The top hostesses picked up the tab for him.

Although those top hostesses at the big nightclubs all claimed to sell drinks but not their bodies, since Bai Liang really didn't spend any money, does that count as selling?

If this had happened back home in China, it would most likely be "A Certain Man Drinks at a Hostess Bar and Gets the Young Lady to Pay the Bill Instead."

But in Japan, these people love to dramatize and romanticize such things.

On one hand, because the adult entertainment industry is perfectly legal and regulated there, unlike in China where it counts as illegal and gets cracked down on.

On the other hand, they just love pulling these flashy stunts.

Japan has a department that sounds incredibly badass, called the "Space Operations Squadron."

Doesn't that sound at first glance like a combat unit from an Ultraman show?

But really, it just monitors meteors and space debris.

If even government agencies name things this way, there's no need to mention everything else.

"The Strongest Table Tennis Empire"

"The Empire's Greatest Treasure"

"The Empire's Destroyer Dragon"

"The Empire's Ferocious Tiger"

"."

One after another, these chuunibyou titles that would make us blush, our hearts race, and our breathing falter just from reading them aloud in public, are solemnly announced to the whole nation by hosts on Japanese TV.

It's the Olympic finals! Yet the Japanese TV station describes it like this:

"After 45 years, the long-cherished wish is finally fulfilled — the team event's showdown against the world's strongest table tennis empire."

The government is chuunibyou, the news is chuunibyou.

Naturally, everything else is no exception.

No wonder ghosts and gods are everywhere here, and urban legends are all over the place~

During the Edo period, Shinjuku was already a post station on a major transportation route, and had been bustling since ancient times.

Because Shinjuku's entertainment culture flourished, the postwar reconstruction plan set its sights on developing traditional performing arts and film culture, and thus Kabukicho was born.

This place is famous for its adult entertainment industry, and yakuza and illegal foreign residents also ran rampant here — it used to be a black hole of public safety.

A film called "Shinjuku Incident" that Big Brother Cheng made actually illustrates the situation here quite well.

However, after the millennium, Japan stepped up patrols and crackdowns, and illegal adult shops, yakuza, and illegal residents have all decreased significantly.

So today's Kabukicho has become synonymous with Tokyo nightlife.

The main street here is bathed in Japanese lanterns and giant billboards, with posters reeking of hormones, flashing shop signs, and dense crowds of people lining both sides of the street, making it feel like stepping into a "sleepless city" that never slumbers.

Bai Liang's former roommate Xiao Liu opened a host club right here.

This guy also has a bit of a protagonist halo on him.

He came here to be a host, and in no time at all, he's actually become the boss — the twists and turns of which would be another story entirely.

Bai Liang came today specifically to show some support for his old friend.

Although a guy visiting a host club is admittedly a bit odd... but considering that Dou Xiao Ai is also along, it becomes a lot more reasonable.

Dou Xiao Ai: So this is the role I'm playing?

She now has reason to suspect that this guy Bai Liang might actually like men... otherwise why go to a host club!

Sis just wants to stir up some scandal with you, not go hunting for gigolos together, you bastard!

Besides, she doesn't even dare take out her phone to snap photos, afraid that tomorrow some absurd headline like "Dou Xiao Ai's Tokyo Night Out with Hosts" will pop up back in China.

Miss Dou's methods aren't exactly sophisticated.

Back then, "The Rise of the Crown Princess" had just wrapped, and Dou Xiao Ai couldn't wait to cut ties with the male lead Sheng Yilun from the drama.

Originally the two had been @-ing each other on Weibo, flirting up a storm.

Shooting photo sets together, appearing on magazine covers.

In interviews, Dou Xiao Ai also acted as if she was on great terms with Sheng Yilun.

But after "The Crown Princess" ended, Sheng Yilun's career clearly didn't take off like Dou Xiao Ai's, so a Weibo post drawing a clear line appeared.

Needless to say, that statement didn't even bother using Sheng Yilun's real name, referring to him directly as "the male actor who played Qi Sheng."

The disdain in her attitude and the ruthlessness of her stance hurt a lot of CP fans' feelings.

After she herself started fading, she actually had the nerve to go back and stir up CP with him again.

Originally it was a netizen who posted that they had bought a joint magazine featuring Dou Xiao Ai and Sheng Yilun back in the day, saying they wanted to give it away and asking who wanted it?

Sheng Yilun left a comment underneath, saying "I want it."

Right after that, she wants me.

Such baffling behavior naturally draws mockery, ruining her reputation to shreds.

So this young lady is just bold, daring to pull such a stunt.

Calling her some thousand-year-old fox spirit would really be a stretch.

The team behind her isn't all that reliable either.

Forget comparing her to top-tier 85-flowers like Zhao Liying or Yang Mi, she doesn't even measure up to Nazha's little airhead team's support.

No matter how out of touch Tang Ren is, he's still an old-school company—he's got a solid handle on marketing.

Thinking it over, it feels like the only team hers can be measured against is Meng Jie's first company's team—both are the mindless "smothered by beauty" hype style.

Case in point: the moment Bai Liang brought her to the host club, she immediately short-circuited.

Fortunately, Bai Da wasn't deliberately messing with Zhang Tian'ai—he'd just come to find a friend.

Besides, Xiao Liu is a sensible one too.

Tonight he'd cleared out his entire shop—no random hosts or male escorts—and instead had some flashy, dolled-up female servers on hand.

Bai Liang took one glance and knew what they were there for~

Still, tonight's opening act was quite the dramatic scene.

Compared to her earlier, more immature look as a model, Xiao Liu now seemed considerably more mature.

Mm. The powdery scent on him is a bit heavy; his looks were already in the pretty-boy category, a bit like Lu Han.

But overall, he still looks pretty sharp and handsome.

Xiao Liu doing so well in the host business isn't without reason.

Let's put it this way: of the three roommates back then, Huang Jingyu had the lowest looks.

But at this moment Xiao Liu's expression was a bit odd, and he quietly said to Bai Liang: "Liang-ge, I did some checking for Fu Zai—his Japanese girlfriend seems to be a player."

"How much of a player?"

"Mm, Liang-ge, have you ever heard of the concept of the sharing economy?"

Bai Liang:???

"Quick! Mix Fu Zai a green cocktail!"

Xiao Liu nodded rapidly. "I'll change the lighting in the shop to green too."

"Oh right, is there a place around here for boxing?" Bai Liang suddenly asked.

"I do know—what's this for?"

"This guy's got a bit of a violent streak. I'll beat him up first, let him cool down, so he doesn't lose control and start throwing punches with intent."

Xiao Liu: Something feels off about this, but it also somehow makes sense.

Arrange it!

No sooner said than done—the spotlights cast green beams, and one of them just happened to land right on Jiang Jinfu's head.

"This drink is called 'Letting Go'~"

A glass was brought over, and Xiao Liu solemnly introduced it to Jiang Jinfu.

Jiang Jinfu: Why the special introduction for my drink?

Xiao Liu: I just named it~

Jiang Jinfu felt something was off—Bai Liang's and Zhang Tian'ai's drinks next to him weren't this green either.

When he saw the fruit platter in front of him was uniformly green too, he finally started sensing something was wrong.

What the hell! Outrageous! Gotta throw a heavy punch!

He directly activated his passive Battlefield Valor, readying Intent-to-Harm Punch and Skull-Crushing Strike.

Unfortunately, the capybara beside him used a move—Overwhelming Might followed by Stunning Display—dousing his fully ignited violent impulse.

Next up, naturally, was bitter wine down the throat, heart aching—glug glug glug

Zhang Tian'ai:

Tokyo's nightlife really is... quite colorful!

What a magical evening.

What had she originally come to do? Oh right—to "night-cruise" Tokyo with Bai Liang, stir up a little scandal, land a small trending topic.

Honestly, that scheme wasn't all that outrageous—at least far more normal than tonight's events.

Originally Zhang Tian'ai was still a bit embarrassed, after all her motives weren't pure.

And Bai Liang was too easygoing—she felt like she was hoodwinking a cute, innocent, handsome young guy, and her conscience was being gnawed by guilt.

But now~

Zhang Tian'ai felt this was exactly what she deserved!

Good lord, Jiang Jinfu wailing like a ghost made her feel utterly awkward, and that was already bad enough.

The sudden "fight" genuinely startled her.

"Breaking it up" worked up a sweat all over her.

But during the "breaking it up" process, she did gain some new insight into Bai Liang—he doesn't look that burly, yet his muscles are that solid~

No wonder he could pin a muscular guy like Jiang Jinfu on the sofa and pummel him—pretty manly.

Besides that, damn, these boys are really childish!

Zhang Tian'ai lost count of how many times she sighed stealthily that night, looking at Bai Liang and Jiang Jinfu, feeling these two owed her a trending topic: "Tokyo Brawl, Two Men Fighting Over One Woman."

No errors in any chapter—content all in one place to read!

After all, comforting Jiang Jinfu in the end fell to her.

A whole round of analyzing, spouting crap like "you can find someone better."

Honestly, she really deserves a trending topic.

When Xiao Liu arranged for someone to send the thoroughly drunk Jiang Jinfu back, Bai Liang felt that Zhang Tian'ai beside him was no longer the same as before.

Earlier, when she had invited him to tour Tokyo together, her face had been so radiant, her eyes darting around nimbly, giving off quite the air of a scheming, gorgeous bad woman.

But now, she looked as if she'd lost all hope, turned into a salted fish.

Her expression was a mix of helplessness and an existential crisis.

Of course, even a salted fish, she was still a very pretty one.

"After this last drink, shall I take you back?"

"What time is it?" Zhang Tian'ai slumped on the sofa, listless.

"Four in the morning."

"It's almost morning already," she reached up to scratch her hair, her scalp seemed a bit itchy, then shot Bai Liang a beautiful eye-roll, and fell into hesitation.

A few seconds later, Zhang Tian'ai completely gave up caring, "Can we take a photo together so I can post it on Weibo?"

"Sure."

"Can we be a bit more intimate?" Xiao Ai Tongxue said very directly.

"That's fine too~" Bai Liang naturally agreed at once, "Take it here?"

"No, let's not, a host club is out of the question. Netizens these days can dig up anything—why would you be friends with someone who runs a host club?" Zhang Tian'ai really couldn't hold back, and while Xiao Liu was away, quickly asked.

"You've got the order wrong—he was my friend first, then he opened the host club."

Zhang Tian'ai: ". Fair enough, but aren't you afraid it'll get out and people will talk nonsense?"

There was indeed that possibility.

A couple of years ago, that Korean guy Seungri—after his scandal broke, a bunch of celebrities who'd been to his nightclub scrambled to distance themselves.

For someone like Bai Liang to have a friend who runs a host club—honestly, just that name alone is enough for haters to spin all kinds of dirt and rumors about him.

"I'm not really worried, it probably won't get out."

What a lovely "probably"!

Zhang Tian'ai was truly impressed—this guy climbed all the way to top-tier fame, surely not just by luck?

His nerve was absolutely boundless!

Putting herself in his shoes—if she had some friend or sister who opened up some "Heaven on Earth" type place

Forget staying in touch, she'd want to pretend she'd never met them in her life.

And going a bit darker—aren't you really afraid some so-called friend might use your fame to stir up trouble?

The celebrity effect is a very useful thing, and Bai Liang is the top-tier star of the domestic entertainment scene!

Are the friends around you really all the kind of sincere friends who think of you?

How can someone surviving in showbiz still have such fantasies?

Zhang Tian'ai looked at Bai Liang with some complicated feelings, feeling she couldn't keep thinking about it—any more and she really wouldn't be able to bear it.

She just wanted to ride the wave for some traffic and buzz, that's all.

At four in the morning, the Kabukicho signs gradually went dark, the pachinko parlor's neon diffused into purple scars through the morning mist.

A scene like this, so like the cold, messy aftermath when the revelry ends in the arena of fame and fortune.

After drinking all night, Zhang Tian'ai felt her head was a bit itchy from the hair extensions, and somehow her eyelashes had gathered a bit of dew.

The worst part was actually her feet—wearing high heels all night, besides her toes feeling numb and sore, her heels felt like they'd been rubbed raw.

Stepping onto the bluestone road, before she could even take two breaths of the morning air, her body lurched.

The thin heel was stuck in a crack between the bluestones.

Zhang Tian'ai: Never coming back to this crappy place Tokyo again!

But just as she was on the verge of tears, Bai Liang, who had come out of the shop earlier, walked out of a nearby convenience store, squatted down to pull her high heel free, and handed her a band-aid.

"You went and bought this for me specially?"

"Local specialty, bought as a souvenir—I'll give you a few more later."

Watching his dead-serious expression, Zhang Tian'ai could barely hold it together—who buys band-aids as souvenirs.

But when she opened it up, the back had "Great Luck and Great Fortune" printed in gold foil.

It really was a local cultural product?

Maybe it was psychological, but after putting it on, her heel genuinely felt less painful.

Of course, she didn't let Bai Liang apply it for her—she'd been wearing these high heels so long, her feet had gotten a bit sweaty.

When she'd just pried her feet out of the shoes, she distinctly felt the color of the stockings on her soles had darkened.

Then she pulled off the hair extensions that had been making her scalp itch, let her hair down completely, and once she came back to herself, Zhang Tian'ai figured she must look an absolute mess, utterly wretched, and wondered if her makeup had smudged.

Now she really didn't want to take photos—disaster, the whole night wasted.

She wanted to glare at Bai Liang, but then felt that her own motives were impure to begin with—was this some kind of "karma"?

At that moment, it happened to be sunrise, the first ray of sunlight pierced through the clouds, the city skyline flushed crab-shell blue. She hitched up her skirt and strode forward, wanting only to hurry back to the hotel to remove her makeup and rest.

Bai Liang tilted his head watching this scene, couldn't help pulling out his phone—click, one shot.

"You're photographing me?"

"Yep~"

"Delete it quick, I look hideous right now." Not a single female star can tolerate being caught in an ugly photo.

"No, you look quite nice."

Not believing his nonsense for a second, Zhang Tian'ai took the phone and looked—and froze.

Lingering neon lights, sunlight piercing the clouds, the cold and absurd street after the revelry, a stray cat leaping over a billboard

Within this composition, a streetlamp that hadn't yet gone out stretched her shadow long across the bluestone pavement.

Just as she happened to lift her skirt hem, a contradictory feeling of decadence and freedom filled the view.

Even her shadow seemed to become part of her skirt hem.

"You really take great photos~" the young lady said in a complicated tone.

The moment she saw the photo, she felt utterly smitten, and almost didn't want to return the phone to Bai Liang.

Bai Liang smiled as he looked at her. "Didn't you want to post on Weibo? A photo of yourself under the city sunrise might go viral even more than our scandal."

"You knew about that?"

Bai Liang: I'm not stupid, I just don't mind.

But for some reason, many of the young ladies he met all liked to treat him like a fool.

Including the one right in front of him.

As more and more of the sun emerged, the sunlight poured straight onto Bai Liang, as if plating a layer of brightness onto the tips of his hair.

Only then did Zhang Tian'ai realize that after drinking all night, this guy didn't seem off in any way at all — clean, as if he had just walked out of a hotel.

And she herself remained with her back to the sunlight the whole time, but a blush rose on her cheeks that she herself hadn't noticed.

"Thanks."

Bai Liang: She's even thanking me~

After they finally got in the car, he rolled down the window and waved toward the end of the street.

"Who are you waving to?"

"My friend Xiao Liu, of course. He was watching us get in the car the whole time. When you're out and about, safety is very important."

To be fair, this time Zhang Tian'ai really felt that Bai Liang's friend who ran the host bar wouldn't be riding on his celebrity effect.

The guy didn't even show his face when sending people off — clearly not wanting to bring any trouble to Bai Liang.

"Oh right, do you still want to take a photo of the two of us together?" Bai Liang asked from inside the car.

"Yes!"

The next second, a sweet fragrance carrying a hint of alcohol rushed straight to her nose; fortunately, it wasn't at all irritating.

There was a touch of cloying sweetness.

(End of this chapter)