Chapter 195: Lots of Bad Guys, and Plenty of Good Guys Too

In the livestream.

“Whoa, Streamer, aren’t you being a little too stingy?”

“Streamer, you’ve changed. You’ve really changed!”

“The point is, someone else gave him those cash vouchers! This is insane!!!”

“Streamer, you weren’t like this before!”

“If you don’t want it, then don’t enter. One less competitor for me!”

“The Streamer just gave away millions worth of stuff a few days ago, and now people are calling him stingy?”

“Yeah, the Streamer’s money doesn’t grow on trees!”

…

Seeing that the chat was about to erupt into another argument, Li Xiao quickly stepped in.

“Alright, that’s enough. It’s just a livestream, let’s just have fun. No need to blow things out of proportion.”

“It’s my money. I’ll spend it if I want to, and I’ll give it away if I want to.”

“If you don’t like it, you’re welcome to leave. I won’t try to stop you.”

Upon hearing Li Xiao’s bold words, the clamor in the chat immediately died down.

Many people were only just now realizing that Li Xiao wasn’t quite like other streamers.

Ordinary streamers relied on their fans to make a living, but the man before them had absolutely no need to pander to his audience.

Seeing the comments in the chat suddenly turn harmonious, Li Xiao was a bit surprised. He originally thought those guys would start cursing him out. ‘Looks like I overestimated their fighting spirit.’

He chuckled.

“Right, since we’re doing a giveaway anyway, I’ll set up another lottery for everyone. There are 15,000 people in the stream right now, so I’ll give away 15,000 drink vouchers.”

“The second milk tea shop under my name is opening tomorrow. You’re all welcome to come and show your support when you have the chance.”

“The vouchers can be redeemed for one free drink.”

“Of course, it’s best if you don’t all come tomorrow. The customer traffic on the first day will definitely be heavy.”

“If we can’t serve everyone and make you all wait too long, I’d feel really bad about that.”

Hearing Li Xiao’s words, Zhou Shishi immediately set up the lottery.

As for the drink vouchers her boss had mentioned, they hadn’t been made yet.

But she knew that for simple vouchers like these, as long as the money was there, an advertising agency could rush out an order within a few hours.

Hearing that Li Xiao had actually opened a drink shop,

many viewers in the livestream were very interested.

“Whoa, the Streamer opened a drink shop? I’ve definitely got to go try it!”

“I’m in Tibet! A drink voucher is useless to me!”

“I’m from Yangcheng! If any kind person in the chat wants to give me theirs, thank you!”

“You guys must be new fans. Let me tell you, you have to go support the Streamer’s milk tea shop! Now, whenever I drink milk tea, I only order from the Xihan’er Milk Tea Shop!”

“The milk tea at that shop is not only cheap and delicious, but more importantly, every time I go, I feel like I’m doing something really meaningful!”

Apparently, many of the viewers were locals from Yangcheng.

Last time, Li Xiao had given out 10,000 one-cent vouchers for Mango Pomelo Sago on his stream.

Many local Yangcheng viewers who lived relatively close to the milk tea shop had gone to redeem their vouchers.

After all, a single drink cost over ten yuan, and now they could get one for just a cent. Most people wouldn’t pass up a deal like that.

However, when these viewers arrived at the milk tea shop, they saw that most of the employees were Xihuan’Er—people with intellectual disabilities.

Their initial thoughts of taking advantage of a good deal were instantly thrown out the window.

Many even felt a sense of regret.

‘A shop like this must be so difficult to run. These kids with intellectual disabilities are working so hard, yet here I am, an able-bodied person, trying to take advantage. It really isn’t right.’

They all silently deleted their one-cent vouchers and, one by one, bought drinks at the regular price.

But after they tasted their drinks, expressions of surprise appeared on their faces.

After all, while the drinks at the Xihan’er Milk Tea Shop might not have been the absolute best on the market, they could at least beat out over 90% of the competition.

So, many viewers who had tried it began to spontaneously promote their new favorite milk tea shop.

That’s why, when these viewers heard Li Xiao’s second milk tea shop was opening, they immediately started promoting it in the comments.

“You guys have no idea! The last time I went to the Streamer’s milk tea shop, it was full of kids with intellectual disabilities working there!”

“I went yesterday! The shop has hired over a dozen kids with intellectual disabilities. The Streamer is such a great person!”

“Don’t you guys know that hiring people with disabilities can get the company a tax reduction?”

“Easy for the commenter above to say. Don’t you know that small and micro-enterprises are tax-exempt? Besides, even if he wanted a tax cut, would he need to hire over a dozen people for that?”

“I can’t believe the Streamer is not only rich and handsome, but also so kind-hearted!”

…

Watching the discussion in the chat, Li Xiao’s heart warmed.

He had actually noticed before that fewer than ten of the one-cent Mango Pomelo Sago vouchers had been redeemed. He had assumed it was because the milk tea shop was too far for most viewers, so not many people used them.

Now, seeing everyone’s comments, he realized that those viewers had actually gone to the shop after all.

They simply hadn’t used the one-cent vouchers because of the shop’s special circumstances.

‘Looks like there are a lot of bad people in this world, but there are plenty of good ones, too.’

Li Xiao cupped his hands toward the camera.

“I’m just doing my small part.”

“For those of you who win a voucher, please use it. Don’t worry about saving me money. A little bit of cash like this is nothing to me anyway.”

“Alright, enough chitchat, or the soup will get cold.”

He pulled over the stewing pot, which was wrapped in transparent oil paper. The waitress had already cut a circle around this see-through layer.

From within the unsealed paper, the faint aroma of squab soup wafted out.

Li Xiao explained to his audience,

“Slow-cooked over a low flame for six hours. A single-serving pot of squab soup made with two squabs and a ton of other ingredients. I don’t even need to open it to know how savory and sweet it’s going to be.”

With that, he picked up the white towel prepared for him and lifted the lid.

As the lid, still attached to the layer of transparent oil paper, was opened, a cloud of white steam billowed up.

Along with the billowing steam, a rich aroma rushed into Li Xiao’s nostrils.

Just as he’d expected, the squab soup was incredibly fragrant.

The golden broth was exceptionally rich, yet not at all greasy. Only two or three tiny droplets of oil floated sparsely on its surface.

Clearly, the squab, the main ingredient of this slow-cooked soup, had been carefully prepared beforehand. The excess fat had been removed early on, and even the skin had been stripped clean.

And the ingredients for this slow-cooked soup were far more complex than just tea tree mushrooms.

As Li Xiao gave it a casual stir, the ingredients that had settled at the bottom of the pot were brought to the surface.

Dried tea tree mushrooms, fresh matsutake, sea coconut, coconut slices, and goji berries—all ingredients bursting with umami.

Combined with the young squab, it was a match made in heaven.

The squab meat was tender and smooth. A gentle pull was all it took to savor the freshness of the meat and the richness of the broth.

The tea tree mushrooms, with their unique texture and fragrance, enhanced the squab’s savory flavor, adding layers of complexity to the soup.

He took a spoonful of the shimmering golden squab soup, followed by a second, a third, and a fourth.

Just as he was about to bring the fifth spoonful to his lips, he suddenly snapped back to reality.

‘I’m livestreaming right now. Just drinking soup without saying anything seems a bit rude to the viewers.’

He nonchalantly took that fifth sip and then cleared his throat.

“Delicious. Truly delicious.”

“As you all know, I’m a huge fan of soups.”

“This squab soup feels like it was tailor-made for me.”

“Even though it has a lot of ingredients, the flavors are all harmonious.”

“It’s all about that savory sweetness—the inosinate from the squab, the glutamate from the various mushrooms, and finally, the fructose from the coconut slices and sea coconut.”

“It makes the entire bowl of soup unbelievably savory.”