Chapter 84: My Home

When Huang Guolun heard that the livestream was about to begin, he hurriedly put his sunglasses back on. Zhao Jing logged into Sunny Day Live using her laptop and was typing in the name for a temporary stream room. She casually named it "Livestream Rehearsal," purely for testing the streaming effect and not intending to attract any viewers.

Just then, she noticed Huang Guolun had put his sunglasses back on, and she burst out laughing. "Why are you wearing your sunglasses again? Are you paying tribute to Blind Abing? You look absolutely hilarious on camera like that!"

Huanzi, munching on chips, leaned over to Zhao Jing and craned his neck to see, "What’s so funny? Let me have a look… Oh wow, you really do look like Blind Abing. Mr. Huang, are you really paying tribute to him?"

Feeling awkward, Huang Guolun adjusted his sunglasses and replied, "What tribute? I just don’t want my whole face on camera. I’m a teacher for the people, and showing up in this kind of setting isn’t exactly appropriate."

Zhao Jing teased, "Then don’t wear those sunglasses! You really do look blind! Why not wear some square-framed ones instead?"

Zhao Yan came to Huang Guolun’s defense, "Don’t be ridiculous, I think those sunglasses suit Mr. Huang’s vibe. Very retro."

Huang Guolun gave Zhao Yan a thumbs-up, grateful that someone finally understood him. That retro style was exactly what he wanted!

But Zhao Jing just kept giggling uncontrollably.

Zhao Yan nudged Zhao Jing from behind and scolded her, "Stop laughing. Mr. Huang looks pretty cool in those glasses."

"I’m not laughing at Mr. Huang, I just remembered a joke about a blind person. I thought of it on the road earlier and couldn’t tell it then. Now with Mr. Huang dressing like Blind Abing, I can’t hold it in anymore—I have to share this joke with you all!"

From the mischievous look on Zhao Jing’s face, Huang Guolun could guess this was probably not a clean joke.

Neither he nor Zhao Yan was particularly interested in hearing one of Zhao Jing’s off-color jokes.

But Liu Xiaowei and the others were quite keen.

Zhao Jing’s momentum was unstoppable, and she rattled off the joke like slicing through tangled knots.

The joke went like this: Once, a blind man went to a restaurant. The owner came over and handed the menu to the blind man. The blind man said, "I’m blind and can’t read the menu. Please give me a used fork from a previous customer, and I’ll order based on that!"

The owner was amazed and went to the kitchen, fetched a fork from the sink that hadn’t been washed, and handed it over. The blind man brought the fork to his nose, sniffed it, and exclaimed happily, "Ah! This is exactly what I want—meat with mashed potatoes!"

The owner’s jaw nearly dropped. That fork really had just been used for mashed potatoes and meat!

So the owner prepared meat and mashed potatoes for the blind man.

A few days later, the blind man returned. Once seated, the owner habitually handed him a menu again. The blind man said, "Hey, it’s me! I can’t see, remember?"

The owner quickly apologized, "Oh, sorry, sir, didn’t recognize you. I’ll get you a fork right away!"

He rushed to the kitchen and brought back another fork. The blind man sniffed it and ordered steak and fries.

The owner was amazed by the blind man’s incredible sense of smell.

That night, he told his chef-wife Mary about the blind man’s unbelievable "nose skills."

The couple decided that next time the blind man came, they’d play a little trick on him.

Two weeks later, the blind man returned. The owner warmly greeted him and hurried to the kitchen to tell his wife, "Mary, Mary, the blind man’s here. Quick, let’s carry out our plan!"

Mary, grinning, took a clean fork and rubbed it in a certain spot, then handed it to her husband.

The owner, grinning wickedly, gave the fork to the blind man. He watched with satisfaction as the blind man sniffed and sniffed, unable to decide.

The owner thought, "Got you this time!"

Finally, the blind man happily said, "Hey! Mary? I didn’t know she worked here!"

Zhao Jing finished the joke and burst into laughter, shaking with delight as if Huang Guolun was the miraculous blind man in front of the camera.

Huang Guolun’s face turned green at the punchline.

Apart from Liu Xiaowei, who laughed along with Zhao Jing, the others felt awkward.

"Jingzi, can’t you be a bit more proper?" Even Sister Xu couldn’t stand it and chided her.

"I am being proper! I just thought the joke was funny," Zhao Jing replied, quite self-assured.

Zhao Yan scowled. "Don’t tell jokes like that during the livestream. It’s embarrassing!"

Zhao Jing retorted, "Don’t be so old-fashioned, sis. It’s just a joke, nothing more."

Huang Guolun muttered, "After that joke, I’m not in the mood to play the drum anymore."

Zhao Jing quickly apologized, "Don’t be so sensitive, Mr. Huang. Don’t let me affect you. I’m sorry. I promise I won’t tell any more dirty jokes. I’ll stick to the ones Xiao Si is good at."

Huang Guolun hurriedly said, "No jokes at all! Let’s just get the equipment tested and get this over with so we can eat. I’m starving."

Zhao Jing gave him an OK sign. "I’m starting the stream now. Mr. Huang, just play the drum however you like. Let’s test the mic position and see how the acoustics are."

With that, Zhao Jing put on her noise-canceling headphones and began the stream, listening to the audio as she went.

Seeing Zhao Jing busy with her laptop, Huang Guolun casually started playing the hand drum.

His skill was far superior to Zhao Jing’s earlier attempts; after just a few beats, a rhythmic and melodious sequence emerged.

The atmosphere in the café instantly shifted back on track, thanks to the drum music.

It was the first time Huanzi, Liu Xiaowei, Su Ling, and the others had seen Huang Guolun play an instrument.

They’d heard Zhao Yan and Zhao Jing rave about his talents, and now they were eager to see what kind of musical genius Mr. Huang really was.

And with just a few beats, Huang Guolun’s drumming showed real flair, quickly quieting everyone down.

Huanzi called out eagerly, "Don’t just play, Mr. Huang, sing something!"

Su Ling nodded enthusiastically, her eyes shining with anticipation.

"Alright, I’ll sing ‘My Home’ then."

Continuing the afternoon’s trend of local-flavored songs like "In a Moment," Huang Guolun shifted rhythms and played the well-known piece "My Home," popular in the ancient town of Lijiang.

At first, Liu Xiaowei and the others didn’t recognize what he was about to sing, but as soon as Huang Guolun opened his mouth, they heard the familiar, catchy melody:

"Do de do de di da da do di da do
Do de do de di da da do di da do
My home, is a little place he fenced off
Everywhere is green grass, all is green
…"

Listening through her noise-canceling headphones, Zhao Jing heard exactly what the livestream audience was hearing. The microphone was perfectly placed, capturing both Huang Guolun’s voice and the drum in harmonious balance.

With her eyes closed, Zhao Jing felt as if she were standing on the streets of Lijiang. The nostalgic music filled her with endless memories.

She gave Huang Guolun a thumbs-up, signaling that the sound was excellent and his singing was phenomenal.

For Huanzi and the others, it was their first time seeing Huang Guolun sing while playing the drum. His singing wasn’t dazzling, but it was incredibly soothing and pleasant. The more they listened, the more they enjoyed it.

Maybe it was the song’s catchiness, but after hearing Huang Guolun repeat the “do de do de di da da” chorus a few times, everyone was hooked. His magnetic, earthy voice, paired with the primal rhythm of the hand drum, seemed to transform the café into a patch of green hills and clear waters beneath a blue sky and white clouds, inviting everyone into an inexplicably relaxed and contented state.

Zhao Yan had been standing to watch, but as soon as Huang Guolun started singing, she was overcome by a wave of leisure and laziness, unconsciously sitting down beside Huanzi like a contented, chubby cat, resting her arm on his soft, plump shoulder and settling into the most comfortable position to enjoy Huang Guolun’s soul-cleansing performance.

Huanzi, full of admiration, turned to Zhao Yan and whispered, "Mr. Huang really does sing beautifully."

"Doesn’t he?" Zhao Yan nodded with a smile, the dimples in her cheeks betraying her enjoyment.

Zhao Jing also had dimples, though hers were less obvious than Zhao Yan’s and only appeared when she laughed heartily.

Now, wearing noise-canceling headphones and watching the livestream page, Zhao Jing’s dimples grew deeper and deeper.

As the stream started, her fans received notifications and began pouring in to watch. The viewer count quickly surpassed five hundred, and their comments made Zhao Jing stifle her laughter—

"Is this the stream room of Little Four’s nemesis—Jing-ge? Why is there a blind guy playing the drum?"

"Damn! Jing-ge, I tolerated your last stream from the middle of the road, but now you’ve got a blind guy on? You owe me new eyes!"

"Jing-ge, you’re being naughty again. Don’t think just because you’re pretty I won’t block you. Show your face if you dare—let me lick the screen!"

"Jing-ge, is it really you streaming? Did I go to the wrong room?"

"Hey, someone tell me, who’s this blind guy? He actually sings pretty well and his drumming’s got style. Thumbs up."

"Jing-ge, I waited half a year for your stream, and all I got was a highway and now a blind guy. You can’t do this to us!"

"If you want to see Jing-ge, type 666!"

"Jing-ge is dead, burn paper if you have business. I’m not kidding, she’s really dead."

"Jing-ge, show yourself! Who the hell is this blind guy?"

"Stop arguing, everyone. This uncle might not even be blind. He’s probably someone Jing-ge invited. Listen to him sing—it’s got real character! I think he’s better than the original singer!"

"Jing-ge, show your face and I’ll send you a rainbow! (100 RMB gift)"

"Everyone, go home. This isn’t Jing-ge’s room. She’s busy doing her laundry at my place. Must be a system glitch."

"Jing-ge, please show yourself and explain! Is this your stream or not? Otherwise we’re leaving."

…

Just as Huang Guolun’s song drew to a close, he had no idea his stream was already a riot of hundreds.

He paused and asked Zhao Jing, "Well? How’s the sound?"

"Absolutely perfect!" Zhao Jing gave him an OK sign, then added, "Hold on, Mr. Huang. Lots of my fans just joined the stream. I need to say hello to them first."