ABT ### Chapter 0087: Fundraising with Unique Skills

Pu City is an important economic, technological, industrial, financial, and exhibition center in China. It is one of the largest metropolitan areas in the world in terms of scale and area. As a city where rich history and high modernity coexist, it can be said to be full of prosperity.

Li Fanyu felt dizzy, despite enjoying the mild noon weather and the soft local dialects around him, he couldn't stop the buzzing in his mind. He really wasn't used to flying; the discomfort during takeoff and landing was bad enough. This time, he had the misfortune of choosing a seat next to the wing, and even half an hour after getting off the plane, his head was still echoing with the engine noise.

After getting off the plane, he felt like he couldn't hear anything, as if his ears were filled with mercury, turning the whole world into a silent film. As he walked towards the airport bus, someone suddenly patted him on the back. Turning around, he saw a round face with round sunglasses.

Li Fanyu's eyes widened in surprise, "Director Ma?! What are you doing here!"

This shout almost startled Ma Rao to a tumble. He quickly covered Li Fanyu's mouth and whispered, "Keep it down! Broadcasting or what? I've called you several times and you didn't hear me, your ears aren't working, but why is your voice getting louder?"

Li Fanyu dumbly leaned closer, shouting, "Director Ma, what did you say?!"

This loud voice immediately drew the attention of passersby. They stopped to look over. A few young women recognized Ma Rao and hesitated briefly before running over to ask for a photo.

Ma Rao quickly made a shushing gesture and posed for a few photos to send them off. Turning back to the continuously ear-scratching Li Fanyu, he slapped his forehead and pinched Li Fanyu's nose, shouting, "Close your mouth and blow hard!"

Li Fanyu vaguely heard this, closed his mouth tightly like a frog, and blew hard. Only when his face turned red and tears came out did his ears finally pop with a loud bang.

The world was finally normal again!

Seeing the foolishly grinning Li Fanyu wiping his tears, Ma Rao quickly pulled him up and hurriedly walked towards a black SUV parked not far away.

"Hey! Director Ma, that trick really worked. I thought my ears were deaf!"

Ma Rao opened the car door and shoved him inside, "You had barotitis media, which is basically the pressure in the cabin deforming your eardrums. I had the same issue the first time I flew. Just blow and it's fixed."

Li Fanyu suddenly understood. Truly a seasoned traveler!

"Director Ma, why are you in Pu City?"

"So you didn't know, I'm a Pu City native!"

Well... with that Beijing accent, who would've guessed you're from Shanghai! Li Fanyu silently criticized the character setting in his mind.

Seeing Li Fanyu's dark expression, Ma Rao chuckled, "I went to university in Beijing and have been there for years. Don't mind the accent. By the way, Qingyu should be in Pu City now too. Have you contacted her recently?"

Li Fanyu rubbed his ears, "No, she's so busy... I didn't want to bother her."

Ma Rao signaled the driver to start the car and took off his sunglasses, saying, "Hey, I've noticed you don't like to keep in touch with people. I don't mind since I'm a rough guy, and it's fine if you don't want to contact me. But Qingyu, she's someone lots of people want to connect with. Even if you two didn't work together, plenty of people would want to get close to her. And you're still indifferent. Such an attitude!"

Li Fanyu laughed dryly, "Director Ma, I know I was wrong. From now on, I'll call you every day, and wake you up at night if needed."

"Hey, you little rascal, do you believe I'll smack you!" Ma Rao pretended to strike, but seeing Li Fanyu's grinning face, he could only shake his head helplessly.

Pu City covers a vast area, and the hotel Li Fanyu booked was more than an hour's bus ride from the airport. Now that he had a free ride, regardless of the route, Li Fanyu shamelessly asked for a lift.

During the ride, Li Fanyu learned through chatting with Ma Rao that he and Zhou Qingyu were also in Pu City for the same charity event.

This charity event was quite novel, with the organizers promoting the slogan "Making Charity Fashionable" and inviting various celebrities and big names. The fundraising method was also unique, not allowing the celebrities to use their own money but instead requiring them to raise funds from society through various small activities. The funds raised had no upper or lower limits and would be donated to the World Children's Aid Foundation at the charity night to support scholarships for children in impoverished areas of China and aid for lost children.

These small activities didn't restrict fundraising methods or whether they were related to the celebrities' industries. For example, Alonso thought of organizing a kart race and selling tickets, a famous calligraphy artist rented an exhibition hall in the Pudong District to sell his works, and renowned singer Jin Yao took a guitar and started busking on a pedestrian bridge.

But there were also peculiar ones, like the person next to Li Fanyu. Ma Rao, being a director, couldn’t sing or write, so this nationally famous director decided to pick up his old school hobby—painting.

When they reached this point in the conversation, Ma Rao excitedly pulled out his phone to show Li Fanyu his unfinished paintings. The quality... well, let's just say his human figures were very Fauvist.

Li Fanyu couldn't help but think: You becoming a director really saved the overall standards of the painting world...

After dropping Li Fanyu off, Ma Rao reminded him to call after his competition to attend his art exhibition.

Li Fanyu agreed with a forced smile and, after completing his check-in, headed straight to his room. He called his mom to let her know he was safe and then dialed Zhou Qingyu's number.

Zhou Qingyu answered the phone with, "How come you have time to call me?"

Li Fanyu awkwardly laughed and told her about running into Ma Rao in Pu City.

Zhou Qingyu suddenly understood, "Oh, so it was Director Ma who told you, and that's why you remembered to call me."

"Ahem... I didn't know you were in Pu City."

"Don't you check Weibo? I posted on Weibo that I'm in Pu City."

"Uh... my phone is a bit special. Besides calls and messages, it can only use one app."

"Stop with the excuses. Let me treat you to dinner. And help me think of a way to raise funds. I've been thinking for a long time but haven't come up with anything."

"What? You need to think of a way? Just stand on the street and charge a thousand yuan per photo. Four or five million in a week would be easy."

Over there, Zhou Qingyu deeply despised him and said, "That's too lowbrow. Do you think I'm just a pretty face?"


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