75: Chapter 75 Contact Successful

"Brother Hua, y-y-y-you... hello, I didn't expect to... meet you here, I-I... am just t-t-t-too... excited," Chen Sheng stammered, feigning incoherence.

Or rather, he was already somewhat incoherent himself.

Having grown up without ever seeing a live celebrity, let alone a superstar, it seemed only natural for him to feel excited.

"I'm very happy to see you too. Take your time, don't rush," De Hua said. True to his reputation as an artist with excellent character, he showed no sign of impatience toward Chen Sheng, instead maintaining a warm smile throughout.

Chen Sheng swallowed hard and took a deep breath before continuing with a shy smile, "Brother Hua... I'm a member of the Shu Province branch of the De Hua Fan Club. I just heard a couple of days ago that you were coming to Shu City to record a show. I even had some T-shirts made yesterday, planning to go to the recording site to support you!"

"Thank you for your support, but there's no need to come to the recording site. Please don't let me affect your work and life."

Chen Sheng quickly denied it, "No... no, it's no trouble. We're all people with some free time; we just wanted to see you up close."

After saying this, he seemed to have a sudden realization, "Oh, Brother Hua, I'm sorry for interrupting your morning run. I won't bother you any further..."

He said he wouldn't bother him, but anyone looking at Chen Sheng's expression right then could see he was hesitating to say more.

De Hua clearly saw it too and said with a smile, "Is there something you need help with? A photo or something? As long as you don't attract too much attention from others, I'm fine with it."

"Brother Hua! Is that really okay?" To be honest, Chen Sheng really did want a photo with De Hua. If he showed it off, Old Yu and the others would be green with envy.

However, compared to a photo, the T-shirts were the main priority. After hesitating for a moment under De Hua's encouraging gaze, Chen Sheng voiced his request. "Brother Hua, it's like this: our Shu City Fan Club just had some T-shirts custom-made yesterday, and we planned to wear them together at the site."

"Brother Hua, I was wondering if you might have time to sign the T-shirts after you finish your run."

"I'm not sure how many T-shirts there are. If there are too many, I might not have enough time."

"No, to avoid affecting the filming of the show, we only organized a small group of 20 people. Considering some might join halfway, we ordered 25 in total."

Hearing there were only 25, and that a signature takes about 5 seconds—totaling 125 seconds for 25 shirts—De Hua figured it wouldn't take more than five minutes even with other factors. He nodded with a smile, "No problem! Once I'm done running, I can sign all 25 T-shirts."

Compared to fans being willing to custom-make T-shirts and travel all the way to a recording site for him, five minutes really was nothing.

Chen Sheng quickly thanked him, "Thank you! Thank you so much! Brother Hua, I won't disturb your run anymore; I'll just follow behind you."

"Alright! Then you'd better keep up." De Hua smiled, put his sports headphones back on, and continued running forward.

Chen Sheng followed excitedly from behind, occasionally letting out a silly grin.

But he soon found himself unable to smile.

Why? He couldn't keep up! When he worked at Qicai, he sat in front of a computer every day. He never thought about exercising, had no energy for it, and was never in the mood. Now, with this sudden morning run, he finally understood the causal relationship behind soaking goji berries in a thermos.

Before long, his entire back was drenched in sweat. He switched from breathing through his nose to his mouth, greedily gulping down the surrounding oxygen. Every time he lifted his legs, they felt heavier and heavier...

Despite this, Chen Sheng gritted his teeth and persevered.

He was making money, after all; it was worth risking his life for!

This scene, falling into De Hua's eyes, made him lower his guard even further.

With such a performance, he was undoubtedly a die-diehard fan.

However, he didn't go easy on the man just because he was a die-hard fan. He stuck to his habit and ran nearly 5 kilometers before stopping. While doing some simple stretches, he said to the heavily panting Chen Sheng, "Young man, how old are you this year?"

"Me? I'm 28, not yet 29."

"Twenty-eight, quite young. You should pay more attention to exercise; health is the foundation of everything."

Chen Sheng gave a bitter smile. "Brother Hua, it's not that I don't want to exercise more. My old job involved working overtime in front of a computer every day. Even if I wanted to exercise, I didn't have the time. It's only because the company went bankrupt recently that I've had the time to come out for a morning stroll."

"Oh! Then, have you found a new job yet?"

Chen Sheng gave another bitter smile. "Not yet. It happens to be graduation season, and compared to graduates, they are more cost-effective."

Seeing De Hua looking conflicted, Chen Sheng quickly added, "Right now, I'm driving for a ride-hailing service while also doing self-media. I don't earn any less than I did at my old job."

De Hua nodded with a smile. "There's always a way out. As long as you're willing to work hard, difficulties are only temporary. As long as you're willing to work hard, persistence is victory."

Perhaps it triggered a memory, as a momentary daze appeared in De Hua's eyes, but it vanished quickly, replaced once more by the calm of someone who had been seasoned by time.

Seeing that Chen Sheng had recovered a bit, De Hua spoke first, "Young man, how about this: I'm staying at the XX Hotel nearby. You go get the T-shirts and then come find me at the hotel."

Chen Sheng nodded quickly. "Okay! I only got the T-shirts last night, and since it was so late, I just left them in the trunk. My car is parked in a lot not far from here."

"That's perfect then." De Hua explained with a smile, "I have to head to the recording site at eight o'clock. I was worried we wouldn't have enough time just now."

"Go get the T-shirts. I'll tell the hotel front desk in advance. When you arrive, just ask for them."

"Alright! Brother Hua, see you later then."

"Mm! See you later."

Although he felt very urgent, Chen Sheng still watched De Hua leave first before rushing to the parking lot. He grabbed the box of T-shirts from the trunk, locked the car door, and walked quickly toward the XX Hotel.

When he arrived at the hotel and found the front desk, because De Hua had notified them in advance, the receptionist led Chen Sheng directly to De Hua's suite after he explained his purpose.

When Chen Sheng entered the room, De Hua happened to be having breakfast. Seeing Chen Sheng arrive, he immediately greeted him, "Young man, I happened to order a portion for you too."

Chen Sheng glanced at the person nearby, who was likely an assistant. The man was currently sizing him up with eyes as sharp as a hawk's. Chen Sheng looked back calmly and without fear.

He wasn't a bad person, and he had no intention of harming De Hua; he just designed a way to get an autograph. Once he had convinced himself of that, he felt no guilt at all.

Probably having determined that he wasn't a threat, the assistant withdrew his gaze. However, to be cautious, he still stepped forward to take the cardboard box from Chen Sheng's hands. "Sorry! I need to check this."

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