Chapter 142: Ruby Marshall’s Livestream 2
The Spaceship was the most expensive gift on the Lychee Platform. Whenever one was gifted, a platform-wide announcement went out, and soon, the livestream’s viewer count climbed to 1,023.
After a few bites, Ruby Marshall shared her thoughts. "The pork intestines are stewed until they’re incredibly tender, and the texture is perfect. It’s spicy and numbing, so it’s full of flavor but not greasy at all."
"Of course, that’s just my opinion as someone who loves spicy food. If you can’t handle the heat, this would definitely be too much for you."
The dishes Shane Perry had ordered began to arrive. The rest of the family simply ate in silence, leaving Ruby Marshall as the only one talking at the table.
A moment later, a user named "xy" entered the livestream, their name glowing with a rainbow aura. Without a word, they began sending gifts—first the free ones, then the one-yuan lollipops, six-yuan roses, ten-yuan sunglasses... all the way up to a Spaceship. They sent one of every single gift on the Lychee Platform, totaling nearly 20,000 yuan!
Ruby Marshall had been so absorbed in eating that she’d missed the first gift, but the spectacle "xy" was creating was impossible to ignore. "Thank you! Thank you so much, ’xy,’ for all the gifts! I never expected to receive so many on my very first stream."
"I was just looking at the menu, and this whole pork intestine hot pot is only 588 yuan. If you like it, you should come try it for yourself."
xy casually sent another Spaceship with a comment: Ma’am, I have an eating disorder, but watching you eat is giving me an appetite. That’s why I’m sending gifts! Besides, I have plenty of money.
Ruby Marshall beamed when she read that. "Well then, I’ll eat a little more. I hope it helps you, even just a tiny bit." ’Please don’t let the gifts stop!’
[This is the first time I’ve ever seen a rainbow avatar on the Lychee Platform. This guy is obviously no ordinary person, or at least, no ordinary rich person.]
[Isn’t this everyone’s first time? A brand-new streamer’s channel, and all this is happening. It’s a real eye-opener.]
[The host is so cute. Someone gifts her a ton of money, and she just tells them to come eat here themselves.]
[She didn’t even see that first Spaceship. She was way too focused on her food.]
After a total of three Spaceships, the viewer count had surpassed 2,000. Ruby Marshall was a complete and utter rookie, and you could even hear the distinct accent of her hometown when she spoke.
But she ate with such gusto. Having grown up with very little, she truly cherished good food. Combined with the fact that the spicy pork intestines were genuinely delicious, she looked like she was enjoying every bite, which earned her a lot of likes from the viewers.
Riley Perry liked to eat the pork intestines with rice, so she ordered five more bowls. The hot pot at this restaurant was truly excellent. Not only was it not greasy, but the intestines were cleaned perfectly, with no unpleasant odor. The bright red broth alone was enough to make your mouth water.
Ruby Marshall seemed to enjoy her meal even more, pairing the pork intestines with rice. One after another, viewers in the chat complained that watching her was making them hungry.
[This family looks like they cherish every bite. Now I want to go get hot pot too.]
[I was the smart one here. I ordered a takeout hot pot the moment I clicked on this stream. I’m already eating!]
Besides the ingredients for the hot pot, the restaurant also served stir-fried dishes. But the Perry family was used to being frugal, and since they felt they had enough food, they didn’t order anything extra.
The meal lasted for about an hour, and they had eaten most of the food on the table. Ruby Marshall hadn’t said much throughout. When she finally put down her bowl and chopsticks and glanced at the viewer count, she exclaimed, "Whoa, over three thousand people? That’s so many! I’m finished eating now, so all of you should go have your meals too. Sean, how do I turn this off?"
The audience watched as a young man’s hand reached into the frame. They knew it was the host’s son. Then, the stream went dark.
"Oh my gosh, being a food streamer is exhausting! I was so nervous I barely dared to speak, afraid I’d say one wrong thing and they’d all leave."
Riley Perry laughed. "But you did a great job, didn’t you? Right, Dad?"
Patrick Perry nodded. "Yes, I thought you were great. Besides, your mother got a ton of gifts today. To be this successful on her very first try... even I’m getting a little jealous."
At the mention of gifts, Ruby Marshall’s eyes lit up. "Quick, take a look! How much money did I make today?"
Besides the Spaceship Riley Perry had sent to drive traffic and the flood of gifts from "xy," other viewers in the stream had chipped in with smaller gifts as well.
Shane Perry took his mother’s phone, tapped open the earnings page, and shoved the screen in her face. Ruby Marshall stared, dumbfounded. "16,352.21 yuan? That much? How is that even possible?"
Shane Perry laughed. "One Spaceship is 5,000 yuan. The top gifter alone sent three of them, and he sent one of every other item, too. Add in all the other smaller gifts from viewers, and it adds up. It would’ve been even more if the platform didn’t take a cut of almost sixty percent."
"For this month, even if you don’t get a single gift in any of your other streams, you’ve already come out ahead!"
Ruby Marshall murmured in an excited daze, "Is being a streamer really this easy? Over ten thousand yuan, just like that?"
Shane Perry didn’t answer, but a knowing smile spread across his face as he looked at his sister. ’That user, "le"... it was definitely her.’
Patrick Perry, afraid that today’s success would set his wife up for disappointment if her next stream didn’t earn as much, quickly threw some cold water on her excitement. "Today was a fluke. Some rich kid just happened to stumble into your stream, which is why so many people showed up. Tomorrow you might only have a handful of viewers and no gifts at all. You can’t get upset if that happens, okay?"
’He’d be the one to suffer for it. Whenever his wife got even a little upset, she’d pinch him—and she’d pinch him wherever she could grab. Only the one being pinched could know that kind of pain.’
Ruby Marshall rolled her eyes at her husband. "You think I need you to tell me that? You think I don’t understand something so simple? Don’t worry. If I make money, great. If not, who cares? All I’m doing is filming while I eat. It doesn’t get in the way of my real work. I’m not treating this like some serious career."
’Even though we’re moving to Dragonspire next year, for now, I’m still a farmer. The work in the fields has to get done. I’ll only have time to think about other things when there’s no farm work to do.’
’My husband has his job as an electrician at the ironworks, so I’m the one who usually does most of the farming.’
’I can say with absolute confidence that I’m the backbone of this family!’
’Of course, so is my husband. And my daughter. And, hmm, my son will be soon, too!’
’A family can’t be held up by a single pillar. A house is sturdier when it has more supports, and the load on each one is lighter.’
’But not everyone is as lucky as I am. My husband may not be a high-flyer, but he’s a responsible man who protects our family.’
’My daughter is a brilliant student. The scholarships she’s won are worth more than what my husband and I have earned in most of our working lives.’
’My son is doing great so far, too. He might not be quite as brilliant as his sister, but being in the top three of his entire school is more than enough to make me proud!’
"Alright, we’re done eating, so we should get going. We’ll go do some sightseeing around Dragonspire this afternoon. Riley, you don’t have to come with us. Go take care of your own things."