Delicate Beauty in the Palm : Chapter 67 - Live Streaming
Chapter 67: Live Streaming
The gossip-hungry onlookers did not disappoint—they dug through that hospital video inside and out, over and over.
In the end, everyone focused on the moment when Wen Liang said, “Who spoiled you like this?” and Chen Die replied, “Who else? You.”
Thus, what started as a tragic love story between Wen and Die successfully evolved into a ‘dad-type’ love story.
[I looked it up—Mr. Wen is 29 this year, six years older than our Sister Die!]
[Waaaaah I always thought the way Mr. Wen looked at Sister Die was full of affection—just like how you’d look at your own kid!!!]
[I’m crying, how can their story still be so shippable even without the angst? I’ve weathered every storm, only to sit in the audience and watch you receive your very first award.]
[Wasn't it said before that Chen Die came from a wealthy family? Her agency is run by her own family. Maybe their families are old friends, and the two of them have been childhood sweethearts. Waaaaaah I’m all for it!]
[Ahhhhhhhh please, scriptwriter, turn WenDie’s god-tier love story into a drama and let them play the leads!]
[Later, someone even dug up an old post from Chen Die’s high school forum. The post was titled, “Anyone know the contact info of that new transfer student in Class 3, Grade 11?”]
There was a photo attached—of Chen Die herself.
Fans had already unearthed this post before, and that high school photo of Chen Die had circulated widely. But this time, attention shifted to a particular reply under the post:
“A few days ago, I saw the transfer student walking home with the eldest son of the Wen family. No idea what their relationship is, but with someone like that next to her, do you still dare to ask for her contact info?”
Chen Die had attended a prestigious private school at the time. Tuition was expensive, and most of the students were from influential political and business families in Yan City. Naturally, they recognized who Wen Liang was.
But now, through the lens of the internet, the whole thing looked completely different—
WEN! DIE! WAS! REALLY! RAISED! BY! HIM!
After reading that, Chen Die expressionlessly turned off her phone.
She had never really thought about it that way before. It had just been a twist of fate that led her to end up in Wen Liang’s household. But now that the fans had made a fuss, she had to admit—it kinda made sense.
From Grade 11 to her senior year in college, she really had been raised by Wen Liang. Even her temper was something she’d picked up from him.
Being raised…
Just thinking about it felt weirdly embarrassing.
She turned her head to look at Wen Liang, and her thoughts started to overlap with the Wen Liang from years ago.
Noticing her gaze, Wen Liang turned and raised an eyebrow: “What is it?”
Chen Die snapped out of it. “I feel like you haven’t aged at all in the past seven years.”
As the car passed a toll station on the highway, slowing down, Wen Liang rolled down the window, rested his arm on the frame, turned to her, and laughed softly: “But you’ve changed quite a bit.”
Chen Die immediately went on alert.
She was ready to fight back if he dared say she’d gotten older.
But the shameless man let his eyes slowly drop from her face, a teasing smile on his lips: “You’ve grown a lot since you were 18.”
Chen Die’s face flushed red instantly.
This guy really had no bottom line.
She turned her red face away, refusing to look at him again.
Wen Liang loved seeing her like that, and laughed again.
To Chen Die, that laugh was torture—embarrassing and infuriating. She finally couldn’t take it, turned back in frustration, and punched his arm: “You’re so annoying!”
“I’m driving.” He clicked his tongue and chuckled. “Being bigger is good.”
“......”
They finally got off the highway and returned to Yan City in the evening.
There were a lot of people at the hospital earlier, and Wen Liang, knowing Chen Die was shy, had asked Zhu Qicong to deliver her a pair of shoes. But once they were home, he stopped being considerate—after getting out of the car, he went straight to the passenger side and picked her up in his arms.
Once inside, he set her down on the living room sofa. “What do you want to eat?”
“Anything.”
Wen Liang pulled out his phone and ordered delivery. It didn’t take long, and once he was done, he tossed the phone aside and pulled Chen Die back down onto the sofa with him.
The two of them were squeezed together. Chen Die was practically sinking into the couch, her head resting on his arm. They were very close. Whenever things got quiet, Chen Die loved moments like this, when she could be close to Wen Liang.
After a pause, she spoke: “I saw Lin Quan at the hospital today.”
Wen Liang didn’t look surprised. He’d known about Lin Quan and Chen Ke’s divorce for a while but hadn’t told Chen Die, thinking there was no need.
“Her family has more connections in S City, so it’s normal for her to move there after the divorce.” He stroked her hair. “Did you two talk?”
“We did. She apologized to me.”
Wen Liang raised an eyebrow and sneered slightly: “What’s an apology worth? Just ignore her.”
Chen Die gently pressed her lips together and softly called his name: “Wen Liang.”
“Mm.”
“Why did you bring me back with you back then?” Chen Die, after reading all the online comments, finally grew curious about this question.
Wen Liang didn’t speak for a moment. Then he smiled and started getting handsy with her again, shamelessly poking and squeezing her as he joked, “Raising a child bride—what a win.”
“……”
The earthquake in S City this time didn’t cause major casualties in the urban areas, but it was devastating in the surrounding regions. One of the frequently reported topics was the <A-Xiao> film crew, who happened to be promoting in the area at the time.
The next day, the crew publicly announced a donation to the disaster zone and promised to allocate a portion of the future box office revenue for local post-disaster reconstruction.
Since the exposure of Chen Die and Wen Liang’s relationship had taken up a lot of public attention and resources, some haters or rival fans seized on this moment to criticize them, accusing them of being ‘entertainment-obsessed’ and ignoring real issues, attempting to ruin their public image.
Just last month, Chen Shao had helped Chen Die set up a personal studio under Yiming Entertainment. This made handling resources and coordinating with staff easier and more efficient.
Chen Die contacted her studio and donated 1 million yuan to S City.
After gaining overnight fame with her debut film, Chen Die became incredibly popular with strong acting skills. She was practically revered, so her pay for acting in <A-Xiao> was also very high. On top of that, she had recently landed several ad deals and magazine covers, making her a certified ‘little rich lady.’
Soon after, the official Weibo account of Wenyuan Group reposted Chen Die’s studio post.
@Wenyuan Group Official: Chairman Wen Liang of Wenyuan Group personally donated 10 million yuan to the S City disaster area and pledged to fund the construction of five Hope Primary Schools in the affected and economically underdeveloped areas.
Though Chen Die and Wen Liang’s relationship had been exposed, neither had officially acknowledged it—just tacitly accepted.
This repost from Wenyuan’s official account basically made it public.
[AAAAAAHHHH I’m losing it!! Everyone, SHIP THEM!!!]
[To all the haters who said my Sister Die and Mr. Wen were just clout-chasing during a disaster—did YOU donate anything?]
[Sobbing—what kind of divine love story is this??]
[I want a relationship like this too, where a single donation is 10 million yuan!!]
[I still can’t wrap my head around how my angsty ship suddenly turned so sweet—what even happened!?]
[Maybe all those dramatic, heart-wrenching moments we thought were angst… were just teasing between a lovey-dovey couple.]
……
Chen Die: “……”
With the earthquake situation winding down, Chen Die continued promoting <A-Xiao> with the crew, also appearing on several popular variety shows.
Though Fang Ruan always made arrangements ahead of time with producers and hosts to keep the topics centered around the film and not Chen Die’s relationship, the hosts—of course—knew which topics would stir up the most buzz and still tried to steer the conversation toward her love life, subtly or not.
By the end of September, all promotional events had wrapped up.
Chen Die could finally relax. The public frenzy had died down a bit, and she wasn’t under constant scrutiny anymore. After discussing with Fang Ruan, she decided to just do a live stream and address things openly.
After finishing work that day, the business car dropped Chen Die off at the villa in the western suburbs, where Fang Ruan was also waiting.
“Come inside with me?” Chen Die asked. “I don’t really know how to do livestreams.”
Fang Ruan looked hesitant: “No way, I’m afraid Mr. Wen will kick me out.”
Chen Die laughed, “He’s got something going on tonight. He’s not home.”
Only then did Fang Ruan agree, though she still looked nervous walking in.
Aunt Zhang had taken the day off for her daughter’s school event, so no one was cooking dinner. Chen Die walked into the kitchen and, for once, decided to do it herself. She opened the fridge and asked Fang Ruan, “What do you want to eat?”
“Anything, something simple.”
Chen Die used to know how to make a few small dishes, but she was rusty now and unsure if anything she made would be edible. So she didn’t hold back: “Let’s just eat instant noodles.”
Fang Ruan watched her pull out two boxes of cup noodles from the top cupboard: “…That’s very simple.”
“These are delicious, you just don’t get it.” Chen Die rolled her eyes.
Fang Ruan snarked, “Oh, but your Mr. Wen gets it.”
“He doesn’t either. He just eats anything and isn’t picky.”
While the noodles were cooking, Fang Ruan wandered around the living room, sighing at how every corner reeked of capitalist wealth.
“You’re doing the livestream here, right?” she asked, pointing at the sofa. “You’ll have the trophy in the background from your last award—perfect.”
Chen Die nodded; she didn’t mind.
After finishing their noodles, Fang Ruan helped set up the livestream equipment and propped the tablet up.
It was Chen Die’s first time doing a livestream. Seeing her own face on the screen, she looked a little stunned. She stared at the screen for a while, then asked Fang Ruan behind the camera, “Is it on?”
Fang Ruan whispered, “Yes, it’s on. You already have tens of thousands of fans tuned in.”
Earlier that morning, Chen Die’s studio had posted a notice on Weibo announcing the livestream, so everyone had been waiting. The viewers poured in quickly, and the comments were moving so fast that the stream even lagged a bit before Chen Die could see what people were saying.
[AAAAAHHHHH SISTER DIE I’M HERE!!!]
[So close to Sister Die’s face, I’m dead!! Is this really a human face??!!]
[Ahhhhhhh Sister Die is exactly my type sniper!!!]
[I’ve seen Sister Die’s bedroom, so that basically means I’ve slept with her!!!]
[OK, the rich girl persona is confirmed!]
[Hahahahaha truly the kind of person who’ll stop working hard and just go home to inherit the family fortune.]
Fans didn’t know about the Chen family’s wealthy background or the entanglement between Chen Die and Chen Shuyuan. They simply assumed Chen Die was now streaming from her family home.
“Hi everyone, I’m Chen Die.”
She was a bit nervous, stiffly waving to greet everyone.
The comments were flooded with “Hahahahahaha.”
Very soon, fans started asking about her relationship with Wen Liang.
Chen Die leaned closer to the screen, hugging a pillow as she read the questions and picked some to answer.
“Yes, that guy in the video is Wen Liang.”
“Yes, we were already together at that time. He’s also my ex—we broke up for a while before.”
“A dating reality show? Probably not. He doesn’t really like appearing on camera.”
“Tragic Love StoryCP?” Chen Die couldn’t help but laugh. “I saw that too. I even showed it to Wen Liang. But back then, we hadn’t planned to go public with the relationship yet, so we had to pretend not to know each other at events. Didn’t expect everyone to read so much into it.”
The number of viewers in the livestream kept climbing, and the topic “Chen Die Livestream” shot to the top of the trending list.
Many fans started throwing money at the stream like crazy. Chen Die said several times not to send gifts, but it didn’t help.
Then suddenly, a system message popped up: “Ye Chuqing V” has gifted the host 100 luxury yachts.
Moments later: “Yiming Entertainment V” has gifted the host 200 luxury yachts.
Chen Die: “...?”
Ye Chuqing, as the president of the Film Industry association, had a verified Weibo. And due to the microfilm plagiarism scandal, fans already knew the two were on good terms.
As for Yiming Entertainment—well, that didn’t even need explanation. The one sending the gift had to be her cousin, Chen Shao, the company president.
[Sister Die really is winning at life—sisterhood, brotherhood, she’s got it all!!!]
[I want that kind of simple and straightforward sisterhood too.]
[Look at her brother!!! Compared to mine—mine is worthless!!!]
Chen Die pulled out her phone from the sofa cushions and messaged Ye Chuqing.
[Chen Die: ?]
[Chen Die: What’s with you and Chen Shao? Some kind of kink?]
[Ye Chuqing: ?]
[Ye Chuqing: Focus on your stream. Look at the camera. Stop gossiping about us.]
“......”
Seeing that Chen Die could now handle the stream on her own, Fang Ruan—who had an early meeting the next day—said goodbye and left.
Chen Die only briefly explained her relationship with Wen Liang, skipping over any questions about “grooming-style romance” or “dad-type boyfriend.”
After answering the dating questions, Chen Die didn’t really know what else to talk about.
“How about we end the stream here for today?” she suggested.
The comments immediately exploded with wails, begging her to keep going.
Chen Die rested her chin on her palm and asked, “Anything else you guys want to know?”
“Yes, <A-Xiao> comes out October 1st during Golden Week, please support it!” she said, reading the comments. “Box office reward if it passes 1 billion? We’ll see. I haven’t figured that out yet.”
[Can we get a couple photo with Mr. Wen if it hits 1 billion??]
[Or do a livestream together!!]
[When can we get more sweet couple content!?]
Clearly, the fans couldn’t let go of Wen Liang.
Chen Die was just about to ignore it when suddenly, the door behind her opened, and Wen Liang walked in, changing into his slippers.
Chen Die: “……”
Didn’t you say you’d be home late tonight?
The comments section instantly went wild.
Gift animations filled the screen, even covering Chen Die’s face.
[Ahhhhhhh!!! Are they living together!?!?!]
[Thank you Sister Die for the early 1 billion box office reward!!! If it hits that mark, give us more treats!! I can keep eating this sugar (romantic content)!!]
[Ahhhhhhhhhhh!!!]
[Tonight I am the loudest screaming chicken in the morning!!!]
[I’m FONGING!!!” (slang for losing one's mind in excitement)]
[What kind of divine visuals are these two!? I’m obsessed!!!]
When Wen Liang walked into the room and turned around, he saw Chen Die’s stunned expression. He then noticed the screen in front of her.
Wen Liang: “What are you doing?”
Chen Die swallowed hard: “…Streaming.”
Wen Liang, a man used to storms and waves, clearly didn’t know the meaning of nervousness or awkwardness. He leaned over the back of the sofa to look at the screen.
His pose looked like he was hugging Chen Die from behind—they were very close. It wasn’t actually that intimate, but it was the first time fans had seen the two of them being sweet together in real time, and the comments and gifts exploded.
Wen Liang frowned: “Why is everything so white?”
Chen Die: “……”
Excuse me, is that really the point right now??
Do you even have a clue!?
I told you I’m livestreaming, and you still leaned over to look!
Chen Die, utterly exasperated, explained: “It’s called a filter.”
[Hahahahahaha true ‘dad-type’ boyfriend energy.]
[xswl (laughing to death), how is the chairman kind of cute??]
[Wuwuwuwu (crying), this is too sweet. Why am I about to pass out from just a few words??]
This was Wen Liang’s first time seeing a livestream. He glanced at the scrolling comments—his original intention was to see if anyone was saying anything bad about Chen Die—but instead, he kept seeing a certain term pop up repeatedly.
“What’s a ‘dad-type boyfriend’?” Wen Liang asked.
“……” Chen Die couldn’t take it anymore and shoved him, “Is this really the time for your curiosity!?”
The fans had already offered a very official explanation in the comments: A boyfriend who treats his girlfriend like a daughter. This type of boyfriend is mature, calm, reliable, and not very talkative, but absolutely attentive.
Wen Liang saw it and raised an eyebrow.
Chen Die couldn’t take the stream anymore and hurriedly said goodbye to everyone before abruptly ending it.
—And the world finally went quiet.
Wen Liang leaned on the back of the sofa, laughing: “Why are you so nervous?”
“Who knows what you were going to say next.” Chen Die rolled her eyes, then asked, “Why are you home so early? Didn’t you say you’d be late tonight?”
“Things wrapped up quickly, so I came back.” Wen Liang ruffled her hair. “Heading to bed?”
That night, Wen Liang personally shattered the ‘dad-type boyfriend’ label again.
All that “mature,” “reliable,” “restrained,” and “attentive” stuff disappeared the moment he took his pants off.
Afterward, Chen Die lay weak and dignified on the bed, completely drained. Wen Liang got out of the shower and climbed into bed. Just as he tried to pull her into his arms, Chen Die smacked him.
Smack!
She didn’t have much strength, but it made a surprisingly loud sound.
Wen Liang squinted, grabbed her and pulled her toward him: “Are you looking to go again?”
Chen Die whimpered and scooted backward, choosing to surrender in the face of bodily safety: “No more, no more.”
Wen Liang held the soft, fragrant woman in his arms.
They’d just changed the shower gel at home—from a creamy rose scent to a summery, fresh lime scent. Chen Die smelled amazing. Wen Liang buried his face in her neck and took a deep breath.
“Are you a dog?” Chen Die asked with her eyes closed.
“You smell so good.”
Chen Die giggled: “It’s my natural fairy scent.”
Wen Liang: “Lucky me, then.”
After a quiet pause, Wen Liang spoke: “By the way, do you remember what day it is tomorrow?”
Chen Die froze. It wasn’t their anniversary, nor anyone’s birthday. Then suddenly, a realization hit her—she remembered what tomorrow was.
But… it was kind of hard to say out loud.
And honestly, could this even be considered a real anniversary?
Tomorrow marked the day five years ago when Chen Die had climbed into Wen Liang’s bed.
She couldn’t bring herself to say it, so she asked: “What day?”
Wen Liang: “My mom’s death anniversary.”
Chen Die (blurted out): “Ah?”
Wen Liang had never told her when Shen Yunshu’s death anniversary was. The only reason he asked was because he wanted to see her get flustered and embarrassed for thinking the wrong thing.
He smiled and teased: “Where did your mind go?”
Chen Die (furious and flustered): “Wen Liang!!”
He held her in his arms and burst out laughing, his chest vibrating with the sound. The laughter was piercing, and Chen Die couldn’t take it. She flailed her limbs in his embrace, trying to escape, but couldn’t get free.
After listening to him laugh for a while, Chen Die finally couldn’t help but sigh: “Stop laughing, it’s disrespectful.”
Wen Liang didn’t believe in any of that. He was used to living uninhibitedly and continued teasing her: “And what you were just thinking about—that was respectful?”
“…How would I know?” Chen Die muttered. “Why didn’t you ever tell me?”
“It was so long ago. Nothing worth bringing up.” Wen Liang spoke casually, twirling a strand of her long hair around his finger.
“Are you going to visit her tomorrow?” Chen Die asked.
“Mm, I’ll stop by.”
“I’ll go with you.” Chen Die patted his back. “It’s okay.”
He smiled carelessly: “Why do you always think I’m so fragile?”
Chen Die didn’t reply—she just hugged him tightly, burying her face into his chest.
After a moment, Wen Liang stopped joking around and lowered his head to kiss her shoulder.
After Wen Huaiyuan passed away, he was buried alongside Shen Yunshu. They had actually visited just six months ago.
That morning, on the way there, Chen Die bought some pastries and a bouquet of flowers.
Wen Liang had never bought anything during past visits—he’d just stop by, nothing more.
Sitting in the car, he watched as Chen Die, wearing a wide-brimmed hat, stood by a small flower stand by the road, picking out a bouquet.
The vendor was very old, with white hair and hands covered in dry, cracked skin.
Chen Die paused and didn’t use a QR code to pay. Instead, she walked back to the car and asked Wen Liang: “Do you have any cash?”
Wen Liang handed her his wallet.
Chen Die took out a 100-yuan bill, paid the old woman, and didn’t ask for change.
She returned to the car holding the flowers, looking quite pleased, and held them out to Wen Liang: “Pretty, right?”
“Very.” Wen Liang followed her lead, then asked, “Why buy them?”
“Isn’t this what people do? Otherwise, why are there so many roadside stalls selling flowers?”
Wen Liang, as usual, missed the point: “You buy flowers, and in a few days they wilt and get thrown out during cleanup anyway.”
“……”
Chen Die truly couldn’t reason with him.
“At least they’re beautiful today. You don’t get it—women love flowers. And didn’t your mom use to run a flower shop? She must’ve loved flowers a lot.”
It had been nearly 20 years since Shen Yunshu passed. Coming to see her now brought a sense of peace.
Chen Die placed the flowers and snacks in front of the tombstone. She didn’t really know what to say.
She had never met Shen Yunshu, and even calling her anything felt unnatural.
After a long silence, she finally said: “Auntie, I came with Wen Liang to visit you. I’m his girlfriend, Chen Die.”
Wen Liang hadn’t said a word the entire time.
Chen Die turned to look at him: “Say something, too.”
“There’s nothing to say.”
…Was this really his biological mother?
Chen Die thought maybe he was embarrassed to speak in front of her, so she said: “I’ll wait over there. You only come once a year—say whatever you want.”
But it wasn’t that Wen Liang felt awkward speaking in front of Chen Die—he truly didn’t have much to say.
It had been 19 years since Shen Yunshu died. Even if she were alive, 19 years of no contact would have made them strangers.
She died when Wen Liang was still an elementary schooler who hadn’t even had his growth spurt. She wasn’t there for any of the key moments that shaped his personality. More often than not, Wen Liang simply didn’t know what he could say.
This time last year, Chen Die had left him and suggested breaking up.
When Wen Liang came to see Shen Yunshu then, he did speak.
At the time, he said: “In the 18 years since you passed, there’s only one thing I feel I did right—but she didn’t think so.”
The ‘one thing’ he meant was bringing Chen Die home back then.
Now, Wen Liang crouched down and looked at the young, beautiful woman in the photo on the tombstone. He smiled: “Turns out that was a pretty good decision after all.”
He looked toward Chen Die, who was standing a short distance away, her back to him. She was wearing a dress, and the sunlight bathed her figure in a soft glow, as if she were shining.
“That’s your daughter-in-law,” Wen Liang said.
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