Chapter 67: A Different Path

While Chen Tianyu was busy conducting a rigorous investigation, Liu Zichen neither interfered nor participated. She had her own plans; crime scenes were not her forte, so she sought a roundabout way to assist. Everyone at Beiting was tacitly fulfilling their own duties.

The "suicide" of Xiao Su and the poisoning of Hu Wenyi had yet to show significant progress. Based on the crime scene report, the police re-interrogated He Xiaoxue, but she only admitted to having misremembered the dates of her residency. Later, when the property management surveillance was retrieved, it confirmed that He Xiaoxue had moved out 23 days ago and had never appeared on camera since.

What was strange was that on the day of Hu Wenyi's death, the footage showed him entering the stilt-floor of Building 3, but no other suspicious person appeared. It was truly bizarre! How did the killer bypass the cameras while carrying takeout into Hu Wenyi's room? The police were conducting an emergency investigation. Although the residential complex was upscale, it had clearly cut corners on its surveillance system; it was only fortunate that the one camera capable of viewing Building 3 had not malfunctioned. The police were facing a massive workload, having to check days of footage from both the building and other areas of the complex. As for He Xiaoxue, with the surveillance proving her departure and no clear evidence linking her to the murder, the situation was difficult; once the mandatory detention period expired, they would have to let her go.

Therefore, Liu Zichen, who had kept a low profile, spent these days preparing for a major undertaking: she and Shen Mingyue were going to interview with a streaming platform to launch a channel. This was not a whim, but rather stemmed from a joke made by Chen Tianyu: "Since you're already famous, why not start a live stream?" With the investigation at a stalemate, the joke suddenly took on practical significance. The case seemed closely tied to the entertainment industry; could they uncover clues through the now-popular medium of live streaming? *Let's give it a try,* she thought.

Having never considered streaming, she was flustered by the tedious and unfamiliar preparations. Fortunately, Shen Mingyue was trend-savvy, occasionally filming short videos and watching streams, so she had a general idea of how it worked. Shen Mingyue arrived around the third day, having finished the remaining material work for Beiting. She arrived just in time for Liu Zichen's "grand project."

With each other for company, their spirits lifted. Over the next two days, they joked around while waiting for their application to be approved online. Given their looks and charisma, the platform naturally didn't refuse, and by the next afternoon, their channel was successfully launched. Room number 1733, with the two women taking turns as hosts.

"1733, check, one, two... 1733, check, one, two..." Shen Mingyue playfully tested the microphone. The equipment they had set up was of good quality, and the small room was quite cozy. Liu Zichen, the "Minister of Finance," watched from the side and couldn't help but smile.

The room was actually empty, and they hadn't gone live yet, but they could hear their own voices clearly through the headphones. It was a strange feeling; hearing one's voice travel through the network and return felt curiously ethereal.

Liu Zichen asked with a grin, "Well, Mingyue, are you satisfied?"

Shen Mingyue was still tinkering and nodded in response, "It'll do."

"Your standards aren't low. I spent quite a bit of silver on this," Liu Zichen said helplessly.

Shen Mingyue replied happily, "The hardware is quite good, but I don't know what the people who come in will want to see... Actually, I think we're missing some props."

Liu Zichen agreed, "I was just about to ask you. What should we perform? We can't just sit here and talk, right?"

"Singing. Nine out of ten streamers rely on singing," Shen Mingyue said nonchalantly.

Liu Zichen said gravely, "I'm not very good at singing. Can you do it?"

"It's okay, leave the singing to me," Shen Mingyue said confidently.

Liu Zichen was suddenly struck by an idea. Hesitantly, she asked, "What about reading?..."

Shen Mingyue burst into laughter, unable to contain herself. "Reading?! Did I hear that right? I've never seen anyone live stream reading."

Liu Zichen, however, was quite serious. "Have you heard of 'The Reader'? We could read books, poetry, or even tell stories if all else fails..."

Shen Mingyue shook her head like a rattle, objecting, "That definitely won't be popular. Think about the people who watch live streams: some want to see beautiful women, some want novelty. Perhaps the very niche ones are here to learn, but we can't make ourselves a niche channel. If we do, how will we ever get spotted by talent scouts?"

Liu Zichen realized she had a point and frowned, feeling conflicted.

"But I don't have many other talents. Do I really have to dress provocatively..." She shivered at the thought, only now realizing that this was not as easy as she had imagined.

Shen Mingyue couldn't think of a better way either. After all, Liu Zichen’s status as a "once-in-five-thousand-years beauty" was their greatest gimmick; relying on her own singing would likely just blend into the crowd. There were too many singers; breaking through was possible, but not quickly, which went against their goal of becoming an overnight sensation.

"So what do we do?" Shen Mingyue said, frustrated. "In this society, if you can't capture attention, you're bound to fail."

Liu Zichen fell into deep thought; perhaps she had been too impulsive. "Is the heat from the news no longer effective?" she muttered to herself.

Shen Mingyue said helplessly, "It’s been almost a month since that happened. If it were fresh, it would be different, with plenty of interest. Now, you can barely even search for that news story anymore."

"That's true," Liu Zichen agreed with her assessment. Relying on news coverage to explode in popularity was clearly too idealistic.

"Wait," Shen Mingyue's eyes suddenly lit up. "Actually, 'secondary news' can also go viral!"

Liu Zichen asked, puzzled, "What do you mean?"

Shen Mingyue fluttered her eyes and said mysteriously, "Sister Zichen, why don't we stage a performance?"

Liu Zichen felt an inexplicable sense of trepidation. This girl was eccentric; what kind of trick was she up to now? Why did she feel a chill run down her spine?

Shen Mingyue said with a straight face, "Sister Zichen, do you remember that I used to be a reporter?"

"Weren't you a website editor?" Liu Zichen replied, caught between laughter and tears.

Shen Mingyue stuck out her tongue. "Actually, back when I was running a fashion column at XX Literature, I switched between being an editor and a reporter constantly. Do you remember when I interviewed the detective Li Yiting? I had to pester him relentlessly to get him to agree. Brother Li was quite stiff back then."

Liu Zichen laughed, "What are you trying to say? Why are you rambling so far?"

"I want to be a front-line reporter again, to go and track down the 'once-in-five-thousand-years mermaid'! If I manage to find her, wouldn't you say that could become a viral news story?" Shen Mingyue covered her mouth and giggled.

Liu Zichen was suddenly enlightened. This was a brilliant idea!