Chapter 198: Chapter 198: The Man At The Top Of The Food Chain
Before coming over, Bai Yaning had already transferred the royalties for “Bubble” into Wang Hao’s account, so Wang Hao was indeed a rich man now—with nearly a million big ones in his account!
Wang Hao grinned, revealing a set of teeth that seemed capable of demolishing all in their path, “Hehe.”
The two of them were just leisurely strolling along when suddenly a crowd up ahead caught their attention.
“What’s going on?” They exchanged glances, and Wang Hao said, “Shall we check it out?”
“Why not, we’re bored anyway,” Bai Yaning nodded.
So they squeezed their way to the front and, once they got closer, they finally understood—it was an insect banquet!
It was a small counter with a range of insects on display, including large grasshoppers, centipedes, scorpions, and so on. Just looking at them was frightening, let alone eating them!
Most of the onlookers were just there for the excitement, and hardly anyone dared to actually taste any.
“Can’t believe they have this,” Wang Hao said with excitement, as he led Bai Yaning closer, “Ha ha, haven’t come across this in a long time. Last time, I was telling Zhao about these deep-fried grasshoppers and cicadas—this is what I meant!”
Bai Yaning was goosebumps all over, instinctively leaning back towards Wang Hao, and asked in a low voice, “Can… can you actually eat these?”
No wonder she asked; she truly hadn’t encountered such things growing up…
Especially the large centipedes, about the thickness of a finger and as long as chopsticks, with golden claws and blood-red heads. Ordinary people would feel their hands go numb with horror, so it was understandable that Bai Yaning was frightened.
“You can eat them,” Wang Hao explained with a smile, “but centipedes don’t taste good. Scorpions are alright, especially the little ones; they’re the tastiest. Big ones have a harder shell, which makes them less enjoyable to eat.”
Hearing him speak so authoritatively, the store owner said with a laugh, “Oh, we’ve got a connoisseur here!”
Connoisseur? I’m more than just knowledgeable!
Lord of the Beasts’ wilderness survival was one of my top favorites. Know who Lord of the Beasts is? A man who stands at the top of the food chain! Are you kidding me?
“Ah, I know a bit, just a bit,” Wang Hao continued to introduce to Bai Yaning, “These little scorpions, they’re crispy when you eat them, taste like chicken. What do you think, dare to try?”
Looking at the small scorpions’ hook-like tails, Bai Yaning hesitated for a moment. She looked at Wang Hao, then at the formidable-looking little scorpions, and nodded fiercely, “If you eat, I’ll eat!”
“Hehe, I guarantee you’ll want a second one after the first!” Wang Hao shouted to the owner, “Boss, give me ten small scorpions, pick the big ones, I don’t want the small ones.”
Once he ordered ten, the store owner’s eyes creased into smiles, “Alrighty!”
He went off to fry the scorpions and asked while frying, “Bro, don’t you want to try a couple of centipedes? They’re really nutritious! Or how about a couple of grasshoppers?”
“No way,” Wang Hao shook his head decisively, “Centipedes have a strong metallic taste, they’re really not that good. Besides, my friend here is such a delicate girl, would it be proper for her to eat deep-fried centipedes? As for grasshoppers, I used to stir-fry them and eat them as a dish when I was a kid, got a bit sick of them.”
Everyone around them looked at Wang Hao as if he were a freak—you’re practically a man who stands at the top of the food chain!
You know all these? You’ve definitely eaten them before!
Bai Yaning glanced at Wang Hao with a smile: This guy is quite considerate!
“Looks like you really have eaten them,” the boss sighed helplessly, “Alright then, if you don’t want to eat them, I won’t persuade you. Here are your scorpions, take care.”
Taking the scorpions, Wang Hao gave Bai Yaning one first, then bit off a scorpion tail himself, smiling and said, “Want to try?”
“Sure!” Bai Yaning went for it, lightly pinching off a scorpion tail with her fingers and putting it to her mouth. After tasting it she said, “It’s actually pretty good.”
“I told you, right?” Our celebrity is beyond words—ah, such a woman is a man’s true treasure! Wang Hao handed her another one, “Let’s share, hehe.”
Bai Yaning nodded with a smile, “Okay.”
And so, to the amazement of the people around them, Wang Hao and Bai Yaning each held a bunch of scorpions, eating them as they walked along like snacks.
Wang Hao, munching away, smiled and said, “Delicious, haha, look how scared they are. Missing out on such a tasty treat is a real shame. Too bad Zhao isn’t here, or I would have definitely made him try some!”
Nibbling on scorpion legs, Bai Yaning crinkled her cute little nose and chuckled, “You rascal, Zhao Zhenhao wouldn’t dare eat them, let alone touch them. He’d probably go weak at the knees. But thinking about it, I wouldn’t even dare to look at these things before, let alone know they’re actually quite tasty.”
Wang Hao ate as he asked, “So you’re not afraid anymore today?”
Bai Yaning smiled in response, “Since you’re eating it, of course I’m not afraid.”
As they walked, suddenly Wang Hao’s WeChat notification sounded. He took out his phone and curiously said, “Huh? It’s Little Yueyue, what’s going on?”
Bai Yaning asked, “Who’s that?”
“An actor from the crew,” Wang Hao said while munching on a scorpion leg, “I’ll see what it is; it has been quite some time since I last checked in on them.”
Little Yueyue: “Brother Ritian, what are you doing now?”
Wang Ritian: “I’m out on the street, what’s up? Did something happen with the crew again?”
Little Yueyue: “No, no. Our web series has all been shot, and the editing is nearly done. If everything goes as planned, we’re preparing to release it tomorrow. If you’re free, come over, Director Gao said he’s planning to have a proper celebration, there’s a dinner party!”
Wang Hao immediately got excited at the mention of a dinner party!
Wang Ritian: “A dinner party! I must go! What time, and where?”
Little Yueyue: “Tomorrow at 11:30 AM, first floor of Henglong Holiday Hotel. We’ve booked the place, so hurry up if you’re coming!”
Wang Ritian: “No problem, I’ll definitely be there on time!”
Phone in hand, Wang Hao laughed and said, “The crew is getting ready for a celebration party, two months have flown by in the blink of an eye.”
“Yeah,” Bai Yaning nodded and said solemnly, “We’ve known each other for nearly two months too; time really flies.”
They continued chatting as they walked, when suddenly a girl around twenty-four or twenty-five years old in the crowd turned to them and exclaimed in surprise, “Was that… Wang Hao? His girlfriend is so pretty, and what a figure!”
She quickened her pace and caught up, calling out from a distance, “Wang Hao! Brother Hao!”
Hey, someone’s calling me?
Wang Hao turned around, and upon seeing her he laughed, “Hey, Lin Yingying! Out for a stroll?” Then he introduced her to Bai Yaning, “This is Lin Yingying, a high school classmate.” And to Lin Yingying, he introduced, “Bai… Bai Ning, a friend of mine.” That was close!
Bai Yaning nodded slightly, “Nice to meet you.”
The superstar’s smile had Lin Yingying spellbound! She was stunned for a good while before she came back to her senses and said, “Nice to meet you, I’m Brother Hao’s high school classmate. What are you two doing…?”
“Ah, just wandering around,” Wang Hao said casually, without the slightest change in his demeanor. Then he added, “Speaking of which, it’s been a long time since we last met, what have you been up to lately?”
Lin Yingying laughed, “Just muddling through, working for a foreign company at home, making a living. You?”
“I’m just so-so,” Wang Hao casually replied, “Doing some odd jobs.”
“That’s fine, keep at it and maybe switch jobs later on,” Lin Yingying finished saying but suddenly remembered something, “Right, our class leader said we’re having a reunion soon, have you heard?”
“Heard about it, bumped into him a few days ago,” Wang Hao said, “He’s doing pretty well for himself, driving an Accord, seems like he’s an HP district manager or something, pretty impressive. Speaking of which, it really has been a few years since the last gathering.”
“Yes, it’s time for a good catch-up,” Lin Yingying’s eyes lit up when she heard Wang Hao was going, “Then you should bring your friend along too. It would be a shame for such a beautiful woman not to go!”
Lady, she’s a big star! The number one in the country! What’s the point of her going to our high school reunion?
Status! Do you understand status?!
Can you afford her appearance fee?
“We’ll see, we’ll see,” Wang Hao said with a grin, neither committing nor declining, “We’ll talk about it closer to the date. She’s usually busy, I don’t know if she’ll have time.”
“Beauty, you’ve got to give Brother Hao some face no matter what,” Lin Yingying was blunt and straightforward, just throwing it out there, but after taking another two glances at Bai Yaning, she suddenly started shaking, “You… you are…?”