She’s a Passerby, But Can See the Protagonist’s Halo

The first week after the short holiday passed quietly on campus, and Yan and Zhu Jue didn't encounter any special incidents. However, since the day when Room 320 finished gossiping about the teacher-student romance scandal on Weibo, Yan noticed that Gu Jiasui, who attended classes with her every day, seemed to have undergone some changes.

It was hard to pinpoint exactly what had changed. It wasn't an immediate or drastic transformation, but rather something subtle. Gu Jiasui seemed to integrate more into the dormitory life. During tea parties, she no longer remained a silent listener but actively joined in conversations, as if she had let go of some burden.

Other students on campus would usually greet her with a nod, and Gu Jiasui would respond in kind. But recently, she had started smiling and replying with a cheerful "Good morning!" In short, she no longer seemed as distant and aloof as before, as if she had shed a layer of detachment from the world.

Early on Saturday morning, Room 320 was bustling with activity.

"Yan, are you really wearing that? Does this look okay on me?" Chu Bingbing was struggling to choose an outfit from her closet, her pretty face filled with indecision.

"We're mainly going to see the sights, so wearing something casual will make it easier to walk around. I heard the venue is pretty big," Yan replied.

Yan had tied her hair into a high ponytail and was wearing a stylish emerald green blouse with a denim skirt and a pair of comfortable canvas shoes, exuding a youthful vibe perfect for a day of walking.

Chu Bingbing finally settled on a heart-patterned knit short-sleeve top paired with jeans. Since she was the shortest among her roommates, wearing high heels wouldn't make much of a difference, so she opted for a pair of comfortable white sneakers instead. She tied her hair into a bun, looking lively and adorable.

These days coincided with the annual CG Carnival in Bin City, held over three days from Friday to Sunday. As the economic and cultural hub of southern Xia Country, the Bin City CG Carnival was one of the grandest events in the nation.

The entire dormitory was heading out to enjoy the event, thanks to an unexpected gift of tickets from Yuan Ye of the boys' dormitory, Room 414.

"How late are we staying today? We should treat them to a meal afterward. I heard these tickets were super hard to get, and a lot of people couldn't snag them. Who knew Zhu Jue's roommate was so resourceful?" Chu Bingbing quickly applied loose powder as she spoke.

"Hmm, I think it's because Yuan Ye is quite a well-known figure," Yan scratched her head.

She wasn't entirely sure either. Zhu Jue had handed her the tickets and explained that Yuan Ye had given them out to friends, just enough for both dormitories.

In the boys' dormitory, Room 414, the previous night, Yuan Ye had suddenly announced some big news to his roommates. After what seemed like a lot of internal debate, he pulled out ten CG Carnival tickets and asked if they were interested.

In truth, Yuan Ye had been extremely conflicted when he handed out the tickets. If any of his roommates or friends who knew a bit about the event were to ask, they'd realize how hard these tickets were to come by, and he'd inevitably have to explain himself.

Fortunately, his roommates didn't seem to know much about it. They happily accepted the tickets without asking too many questions, only confirming that he hadn't bought them himself and insisting on paying him back.

Since the tickets were free, Yuan Ye figured it was better to give them away than let them go to waste. He wasn't looking to make a profit anyway.

"Anyway, you guys can go and have fun. Don't worry about me," Yuan Ye emphasized as his roommates got ready to leave.

"Got it. Are you a vendor or a volunteer there? If you're swamped, just call us over to help," Chu Shen said.

He assumed Yuan Ye had gotten the tickets as a volunteer or staff member. Although the customers at the Chu family's small restaurant had been eagerly waiting, Chu Shen decided to take the day off. He had worked nonstop during the National Day holiday and had classes on top of that. Taking a day off to bond with his roommates seemed perfectly reasonable.

"Old Man Xiao, are you ready? I think you should cosplay as some immortal cultivator for the carnival. You'd totally pull it off," Ye Ping'an said, watching Xiao Qingnang pack something into his bag.

"Brother Fan is going with his wife. She said her company has some anime project going on," Zhu Jue glanced at his phone and looked up.

"Alright, we'll probably split up once we're there. I might even start a live stream. Brother Jue, are your ladies ready? Are we taking the subway together?" Ye Ping'an asked.

"They've already left," Zhu Jue replied, having received a message from Yan.

"Let's go, let's go! Check your stuff. We can't keep the ladies waiting," Ye Ping'an quickly jumped up from his chair. His live-streaming equipment, including the support rod and microphone, was already prepared.

Today, the world would witness the power of Earth's otaku culture.

At the subway entrance near Bin University's main gate, the five boys met up with the five girls. This was the first time the two dormitories had met in person.

Since both dormitories were moving as a group, Yan and Zhu Jue didn't stick together but instead stayed with their respective roommates.

On weekends, the subway station near the university was crowded. Since it was an intermediate station rather than the terminal, even though they split into two carriages, there were only a few seats available. The boys took the seats but eventually gave them up to the girls.

The five boys stood near the carriage connection, while Yan and Gu Jiasui sat in one row, with Chu Bingbing, Yi Zhi, and Ding Ling sitting across from them. The group chatted in their group chat.

[Chu Bingbing]: Which one is Lin Lu's husband? The one with the kid?

Yan broke into a cold sweat reading the message. She really hadn't forgotten about that, huh?

[Yan]: Lin Fan isn't here. He and Sister Lin Lu might be going together.

[Yi Zhi]: The guy with the buzz cut is Chu Shen, the one who makes fried rice.

Among the dormitory, only Yi Zhi had seen Chu Shen in person besides Yan.

[Ding Ling]: Got it, the fried rice guy.

[Gu Jiasui]: +1

[Chu Bingbing]: @Yan Zhu Jue's dormitory is surprisingly good-looking! There's a laid-back hottie, an ethereal hottie, a fair-skinned cutie, and the ruggedly handsome fried rice guy. The average attractiveness level is so high, I almost thought they were from the art school.

Chu Bingbing was genuinely shocked after meeting them.

Among their peers, girls usually took care of their appearance early on, but many boys could barely pass as presentable, with no sense of fashion and questionable hygiene habits.

But Zhu Jue's roommates were all good-looking and clearly took care of themselves. It felt like they had stumbled upon a group of high-quality guys, and just looking at them was a treat.

[Chu Bingbing]: Did they dress up just for today? Do they always look like this?

Yan thought to herself, of course, they look good—they're halo figures! But she couldn't say that out loud. She quietly typed her reply.

[Yan]: They usually look like this when I see them. Zhu Jue says they're all very clean and tidy, and under Lin Fan's influence, they even clean up their dorm together. I guess birds of a feather flock together.

Aside from the halo figures aspect, Yan also felt that it was rare for dormitories like hers and Zhu Jue's to get along so well and coordinate their living habits.

It had only been a month since the semester started, and some dormitories had already reported conflicts to their counselors. Rumor had it that one student was so helpless that their parents had done everything for them, and now they expected their roommates to tie their shoelaces for them.

The group chatted and scrolled through trending topics, and the subway ride passed quickly.

Many people got off at the convention center station, and the group finally gathered outside. Yan looked around and noticed that one person was missing from the boys' group.

"Where's Yuan Ye?" The guy who gave them the tickets was nowhere to be seen.

"He said he had to go prepare and wouldn't be taking the same entrance as us," Ye Ping'an said, carrying his chest bag with his hands in his pockets.

Yan blinked. Well, it didn't matter. Yuan Ye's "Girl's Dress-Up System" halo was so conspicuous that she'd spot him immediately.

Sure, there were a lot of halos at the convention center today, and the crowd was massive, but with her sharp eyes, she wasn't worried about losing anyone.

On weekends, the line to enter the carnival was incredibly long, stretching in a spiral from the subway station to the convention center entrance.

"There are so many people," Chu Bingbing exclaimed. The last time she had been to the convention center was to pick up a car, and while the auto show had been crowded, it was nothing compared to this!

The long queue was something she had only seen at popular tourist spots during holidays or at the two major theme parks in the country. It was absolutely overwhelming.

Of course, what was even more eye-catching were the outfits worn by the visitors at the carnival. Hanfu, JK uniforms, and Lolita dresses were quite common, but the various cosplay costumes were the real showstoppers.

White-haired, green-haired, pink-haired, and yellow-haired individuals, along with those clad in armor, wielding weapons, or dressed in combat suits—looking around, the nine of them stood out like aliens from a distant planet!

It felt as if ordinary people had accidentally stumbled into some secret gathering, and this was a massive one at that.

Yan accompanied Gu Jiasui, both wearing masks, while Ding Ling stood behind them, her eyes darting around, her face tense.

"Goddess of Mercy," she muttered under her breath.

The crowd was enormous, and the mix of scents was overwhelming. Ding Ling felt like she was suffocating.

If it weren’t for the fact that the place was filled with such vibrant energy, she might have thought she was surrounded by some kind of "demons and monsters"!

Ding Ling's muttered "Goddess of Mercy" caught the attention of Yi Zhi, who was a head taller than her.

"Wow, that really does look like the Goddess of Mercy from TV dramas," Yi Zhi remarked.

In the queue a row ahead of them, a woman dressed in white, holding a jade vase, walked gracefully forward. Behind her was a child dressed as the Red Boy, carrying a large bag on his back.

Characters from TV dramas, anime, games, and novels—everywhere you looked, there was someone embodying a different role.

By the time Yan and her group had passed through security and entered the venue, they saw a line of people wearing different Peashooter headgear walking by.

The carnival was packed with activities. It was essentially a gathering of like-minded enthusiasts, with large areas dedicated to vendors, cosplay zones, game company demo booths, and meet-and-greet sessions for various IPs, as well as signings and more.

"I’m going to livestream, so I won’t be sticking with the group," Ye Ping'an said, pointing to his phone.

At that moment, Yan could see the barrage of comments flying across his screen.

【What kind of place is this? I just saw so many strange creatures walking by. Isn’t this Earth, the ancestral planet from thousands of years ago? Did Earth join the universe earlier than we thought? How are there so many different species here!】

【Peashooter people? And deities descending to Earth?】

【Dinosaurs! The legendary dinosaurs still exist? I thought they went extinct long ago!】

【That’s… such an ancient tactical suit. What kind of place has the streamer stumbled into? Why do these seemingly hostile species seem so comfortable interacting with each other?】

Yan: …

You interstellar folks really aren’t very worldly, huh.

Ye Ping'an waved his phone and walked off, afraid that if he stayed any longer, he wouldn’t be able to hold back his laughter, and that would be hard to explain.

He vowed not to explain anything today—watching the interstellar viewers wildly speculate was just too amusing.

"Chu Shen, I need to talk to you about something," Yi Zhi said, patting Chu Shen on the shoulder. She was slightly taller than him.

She wanted to ask him if his restaurant needed any ingredients.

Ding Ling’s gaze swept across the crowd, and her pupils contracted slightly. She took a step forward. "I think I saw someone I know. I’m going to go find them. Don’t wait for me—I’ll text you."

Chu Bingbing glanced around, then silently linked arms with Gu Jiasui and looked at Xiao Qingnang. "Hey, Xiao, want to stick with us?"

After all, Yan and her boyfriend would definitely be together, and no one wanted to be the third wheel. Chu Bingbing felt she had taken on a great responsibility.

Xiao Qingnang waved his hand. "No worries, I’d just be in the way. I’ll wander around on my own."

He had noticed some strange, eerie doctor cosplays and was curious about what kind of doctors would appear in such a bizarre and fantastical carnival.

Moreover, as someone skilled in traditional Chinese medicine, Xiao Qingnang could see that many of the young people had makeup on their faces and bodies, with lips painted black or purple, making it hard to assess their actual health.

In the blink of an eye, the two groups from the dorms had split up, forming several smaller teams.

Yan had thought the day would be divided between the boys' and girls' dorms doing their own thing, but the group had fragmented much faster than she expected.

"Alright, if anything comes up, just message in the group. I’ll find you quickly," she said.

Including Lin Fan, the special forces soldier who might or might not show up, there were ten extraordinary individuals at the carnival today. Yan silently prayed in her heart.

Surely, nothing major would happen, right?

Yan held a map of the carnival in her hand. "Zhu Jue, let’s head to the vendor area first and see if we can grab some freebies. We can split up and cover more ground."

"‘Call Me Detective Lady’ has a lot of giveaways if you show proof of purchase. And for the ‘Little Broken Planet’ movie series, there are official sponsored plushies if you answer some questions."

Yan flipped through the guide she had prepared the night before and decided to go for the freebies first.

‘Call Me Detective Lady’ was a Western fantasy detective novel she loved, and it had exploded in popularity after being adapted into an anime. The fact that the detective lady didn’t have a fixed male lead meant there were plenty of ships to sail, making it incredibly popular.

Yan and Zhu Jue queued up to collect the freebies, answering questions at different booths, exchanging secret codes, posting photos for likes, and showing proof of purchase. Though it took some time, Yan happily walked away with shiny holographic tickets, free pins from kind-hearted creators, small cards, and stickers.

Free stuff from fellow enthusiasts—what a treat!

As they walked away, they noticed several booths suddenly getting excited, almost competing to attract customers.

"Miss, our merchandise is really nice too! Check out my OTP!"

"Beautiful, our author X is super famous, and her writing is amazing! Here’s a pin for you—come on, take a look!"

"Check us out!"

Yan and Zhu Jue exchanged glances. What was going on?

Usually, it was the customers who were polite to the vendors. Why were so many vendors suddenly chasing after passersby?

After walking a few steps, Yan quickly identified the core of the situation through the sea of heads.

Well, well.

The 【Spend or Die】 aura was in full effect, but Yan didn’t see 【Ancient Meets Modern】. Wasn’t Gu Jiasui supposed to be with Chu Bingbing?

Why had they split up?

Chu Bingbing was clearly a normie, and Gu Jiasui didn’t know much about this stuff either. How had she ended up in the vendor area, being swarmed by eager sellers?

Yan and Zhu Jue approached, hesitating whether to help Chu Bingbing out of the situation. She looked completely surrounded!

But Chu Bingbing didn’t seem too bothered.

As they squeezed through the crowd, they heard Chu Bingbing asking innocently, "Is this the green novel app? If I tip 100, I can get all of this?"

"Yes, yes! 100 yuan is the price for a legitimate subscription," the vendor eagerly replied.

Chu Bingbing looked down, her pink manicured fingers tapping on her phone. "I have to manually enter 100? How annoying."

"Alright, take a look," she said, handing her phone to the vendor.

The goth-style vendor’s eyes widened in shock. "Miss, did you tip too much? It was supposed to be 100 yuan! This… this is 10,000 yuan! You’re now the ultimate overlord!"

"Wasn’t that the most expensive option? One is 100, so 100 would be 10,000," Chu Bingbing tilted her head.

The vendor’s face twisted as if the sky had fallen. "Miss, I meant 100 yuan was enough. You just tipped 100 times that amount!"

Was she going to ask for a refund?

"It’s fine, just pocket change. I usually spend that much on two hair clips, and you’re giving me a bunch of stuff," Chu Bingbing said nonchalantly.

Her system required her to spend 500,000 yuan within three hours. Being able to spend money and get physical items in return, rather than just virtual purchases, was a win. Chu Bingbing only wished the app allowed larger transactions—10,000 yuan at a time was such a hassle!

"Thank you, our generous patron!" The vendor bowed deeply, almost ready to kneel.

"Take a couple more sets. I have more at home. Should I send you a couple of boxes?"

Chu Bingbing waved her hand. "No need, I’ll check out other places."

She was on a tight schedule, so she avoided the long lines and focused on the less crowded booths that required some serious spending.

And so—

"Damn, this rich girl, how many booths has she hit already? Some splurged ten thousand, others fifty or sixty thousand, all for comic and novel creators, just for a set of merchandise."

"Looks like she's already spent two hundred thousand."

Chu Bingbing wore a mask, her face hidden as she swept through several booths. The amount of merchandise she had collected was overwhelming, and honestly, she didn’t recognize most of it. But it didn’t matter—she was here to support the creators.

She had started with just a small, cute bag, but now she had been gifted a sleek holographic bag, a canvas tote, and even a custom messenger bag from one of the booth owners.

Many of the smaller booths were niche, featuring less popular animations, novels, and even some long-forgotten fanfiction. The booth owners were passionate, funding their setups out of their own pockets.

Chu Bingbing didn’t discriminate. She methodically went through each booth in order. Someone had even brought over a camping cart to place beside her, and it was quickly filling up with more and more merchandise.

"The ​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​​‌​​​‌‌‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌‍rankings and announcements on Green Site have been flooded by this girl. I’m following her account right now!"

"Same in the anime section. People are already posting threads asking who this wealthy goddess is."

"Over three hundred thousand, right? That’s a car’s worth of money. She’s spending more in a day than I’ve earned in two years!"

Eventually, the scene escalated to the point where booth owners were voluntarily making way for Chu Bingbing. She sat on a chair, legs crossed, as niche creators lined up to introduce their works to her.

Yan noticed that Chu Bingbing was spending money frantically. She would glance at the merchandise, ask about the creator or the specific work, and then her fingers would fly across her phone.

Yan stared at the "spend or die" aura surrounding Chu Bingbing, then glanced at the growing crowd of onlookers. She frowned and tugged at Zhu Jue beside her.

There were too many people, and with all the cosplay and costumes, who knew if someone had snuck in something dangerous? Chu Bingbing didn’t have any bodyguards either. Just because this was the anime world didn’t mean there weren’t bad people. And with so many regular visitors around, it wasn’t impossible that someone might try to take advantage of a young girl throwing money around.

"Zhu Jue, put on your mask. Let’s go over there."

Yan quickly sent a message to Chu Bingbing: "Zhu Jue and I are coming to get you."

Yan had noticed on the event map that there were some clothing booths nearby. They’d need to get Chu Bingbing a change of clothes later.

When Chu Bingbing saw Yan’s message, she lifted her head from her phone and felt the intense stares around her. She realized she had made a mistake.

"Hey, what are you doing? Don’t cut in line!"

Someone called out as Yan and Zhu Jue pushed their way through, thinking they were trying to skip the queue.

"We’re the young lady’s assistants."

"Miss, it’s time to go."

Yan delivered her lines coldly, and Chu Bingbing awkwardly stood up.

"Let’s go."

Yan and Zhu Jue’s masks were firmly in place, and luckily, they had both brought bags. Yan had originally planned to collect merchandise and buy some books, but now everything would go to Chu Bingbing. They quickly and roughly packed up the items, and Yan pulled Chu Bingbing away from the scene.

She led Chu Bingbing to a spot behind a pillar, noticing that Chu Bingbing still seemed anxious and kept checking her watch.

Yan grabbed her hands. "How much more are you planning to spend?"

Chu Bingbing froze. What did Yan mean? Did she… figure something out?

At that moment, Yan pulled out her phone and showed her an interface, her tone enthusiastic: "Okay, I actually wanted to show you my favorite creator, Cool Breeze. One deep-sea torpedo donation gets you an extra chapter. The whole story is already written!"

Chu Bingbing blinked. So Yan just wanted her to tip her favorite creator.

She glanced at the remaining balance of her special task. Earlier, because the green app kept lagging, she had impatiently clicked multiple times, resulting in some donations of thirty or fifty thousand. Now, she had already met the five hundred thousand spending quota.

But if Yan wanted to take advantage of her generosity, Chu Bingbing wasn’t going to ruin her fun. She looked at the leftover virtual currency from her earlier top-up. "Sure, Cool Breeze, right?"

Chu Bingbing generously tipped two hundred deep-sea torpedoes in one go. After all, the money she spent today would be multiplied and returned to her personal savings. No big deal.

Seeing that Chu Bingbing finally seemed to calm down, Yan looked around and called Gu Jiasui, who had wandered off somewhere. After a while, Jiasui arrived with a T-shirt Yan had instructed her to buy quickly and randomly. They headed to the restroom.

Under Yan’s direction, Chu Bingbing changed her outfit, let down her hair, and put on a pair of chain glasses. Her appearance was now completely different from before.

Yan finally let out a sigh of relief.

The hashtag #BinCityComicConRichGirlSpendsHundredsOfThousands had already started trending on Weibo.

Chu Bingbing now realized she had caused trouble for her roommates. "I’m sorry for causing you all so much trouble."

Yan waved her hand. "It’s fine."

At that moment, Yan’s phone buzzed with a flood of new chapter updates. Her face lit up with joy. "Cool Breeze just dropped a hundred chapters! I knew the whole story was pre-written!"

What could be more exciting than your favorite novel suddenly releasing a hundred chapters?

And it was all thanks to Chu Bingbing’s donations. Who could say they didn’t benefit from this?