C20 The Provocation of the Money Nightingale

"Forget it, I won't bother with you anymore. But why is this rose just a bud and not blooming?" Everett wondered, but shrugged it off and got back to planting. He resumed his work, planting the roses directly into the ground. These roses were three to four times larger than the average ones, with a single rosebush covering about four square meters, which actually saved him quite a bit of money.

After planting a dozen desert roses, Everett realized he needed to leave a path for future tourists. So, he went back to the drawing board to redesign the rose garden.

"Alright, I'll leave a path in the shape of a 'Y'. At the center of the 'Y', I'll build a manor and call it Rose Manor. Also, I'll plant the roses all the way up to the desert pillar cacti. Later on, I'll encircle the cacti, giving it a unique feature. Hmm, I should plan for several paths..."

After a few hours of planning, Everett descended the megadune and resumed his planting. By evening, he had planted over 12,000 roses.

Having finished with the roses, an exhausted Everett climbed back up Stratdwell Mountain. As evening fell, the sky blazed with the colors of the sunset. Looking back towards the east side of the mountain, he saw the sea of roses—a splash of red amidst the vast greenery of the desert—creating a stunning vista.

At night, bathed in moonlight atop the mountain, Everett lay there tired but content.

"Finally finished. Let's see if they bloom tomorrow. Oh, and I should check out how Chili Live has been promoting me!"

Everett took out his phone, but before he could open the Chili Live app, a push notification popped up from the Snima news client.

"Cat's Tooth Live's top outdoor streamer, Money Nightingale, addresses rumors of faking desert scenes and challenges Chili Live's newcomer, Everett, who loves farming..."

"Wow, I made the news!"

Everett had not expected Chili Live to make such a big splash.

He tapped on the news and watched an interview video. In it, Cat's Tooth's premier outdoor streamer stood in an office atop Hartlepool's tallest building, responding to a journalist's questions.

Reporter: Mr. Money Nightingale, what's your response to the online claims that you faked a live stream in the desert?

Money Nightingale: What do I think? (Laughs) Do you really see me as that kind of person?

Reporter: Certainly not. Mr. Nightingale, some netizens allege that you've been suppressing the up-and-coming broadcaster Everett on Cat's Tooth Live, and that you've even used your influence to have Cat's Tooth shut down his channel. Is there any truth to this?

Money Nightingale: They're slandering me. I'm just a broadcaster; do I have that kind of clout? None of this has anything to do with me. It's all a smear campaign by Meyer, the head of original content, who's trying to defect to Chili Live.

Reporter: So, you're saying you didn't try to hold back Everett, the so-called Rookie King?

Money Nightingale: Hold on, watch your language. He's not the Rookie King, and he'll never be. His high traffic is simply because he's piggybacking off my name for his own hype. Such behavior is nothing short of despicable!

Reporter: Currently, Chili Live is heavily promoting Everett, much like they did with you in the past. What are your thoughts on Everett? Do you believe he has the potential to surpass you as the top outdoor broadcaster?

Surrounded by reporters with microphones, Money Nightingale sat on a brown leather sofa, legs crossed, a short haircut, and a smile on his face.

"Listen up, Everett will never make it big, and don't you dare compare him to me. It's like comparing trash to a bouquet of flowers—it's an insult. But since you insist on this comparison, so be it. I'm laying down the gauntlet today. To Everett and everyone at Chili Live, hear this: I, Money Nightingale, am officially challenging you!

You think you can catch up to me just because you're pushing him on all channels? Let's make a bet. If your live viewership even reaches half of mine, I, Money Nightingale, will kneel and call you 'Dad'!"

With that, he fixed the reporters with a piercing gaze, sending a shiver down their spines.

Reporter: Do you truly believe that Everett, who has a passion for farming, is merely a flash in the pan?

Reporter: Would you actually kneel and call me daddy?

Reporter: …

Money Nightingale: No, he'll be the one kneeling and calling me daddy! And if that kid has the guts to take up the challenge, I'll respectfully address him as 'brother' first!

As Money Nightingale finished speaking, the reporter attempted to continue with questions, but Money Nightingale rose to his feet, and a group of security guards approached. They shielded him from the reporter, stating, "That's enough for today's interview. Why don't you go interview Chili Live instead?"

Once the reporter had been sent packing, Everett was seething with rage. Damn it, they think I'm afraid to take up the challenge? I've managed to grow crops even in the desert. How dare they question my courage?

"I'll respond to you right now!"

Everett was ready to fire back a response when he realized he lacked a significant social media presence. Without an influential account, how could he make his voice heard?

"Time to sign up for Weibo!"

With that, Everett downloaded the app and registered an account. Just as he was about to post his challenge response, he noticed the top trending topic on Weibo – and it was about him, again!

Cat's Tooth was addressing the departure of their Head of Security and throwing down the gauntlet to Chili Live!

Everett clicked on the post, which was filled with details.

The outdoor live streaming legend from Cat's Tooth had challenged Chili's up-and-coming star. Analysts were predicting that tomorrow's debut of Chili's new star might go unwatched.

"To hell with your experts!"

The live streaming giant, Cat's Tooth, had openly declared war on Chili Platform. In response, Chili Platform remained silent, and their stocks plummeted for three consecutive days. If this attempt to create a new star failed, Chili Live might well be forced out of the industry.

"It looks like things aren't looking too good..."

Everett kept scrolling through Weibo, and the outlook was indeed bleak. The media was overwhelmingly siding with Cat's Tooth Live, while Chili Live had yet to issue any statement.

Money Nightingale, the billionaire outdoor streaming king, had thrown down the gauntlet to Everett, the new agricultural sensation. He boasted that if Everett could attract even half of his own viewership, he'd kneel and call him daddy. The new star of Chili Live, paralyzed by fear, risked becoming the biggest laughingstock in the streaming world.

"Damn! When have I ever been afraid to respond? I just don't have as much leisure time as you all, alright?"

The more he read the news, the more infuriated he became!

Everett quickly exited the trending topic and submitted a request to verify his Weibo account with a VIP badge. He had barely finished when, to his utter surprise, his request was approved in less than two minutes. Not only that, but the Weibo system also promoted his account to over a hundred million followers!

Everett watched in disbelief as his follower count skyrocketed from zero to one thousand, then to ten thousand, and a hundred thousand, and in less than half an hour, it astonishingly surpassed one million. He was completely dumbfounded.

"What's the meaning of this? Are you trying to stir up more trouble?"

It's no surprise, though; these new media outlets thrive on trending topics. As long as there's buzz and debate, they seem eager to report on anything, even if it's as trivial as the pleasant aroma of dog poop!