Fu Yingyu dropped little Gu Suisui off at Feng Yaoqin’s workplace with the packed strawberry cake in hand, then had her assistant drive her to the high-speed rail station.
"Uncle, what do you want to buy?" The convenience store wasn't big, and usually, there was only one employee on duty per shift. Feng Yaoqin was working the day shift today and would be switching out at noon.
Feng Yaoqin changed out of her convenience store uniform and went to the warehouse to sort out the goods. Gu Suisui was temporarily guarding the cashier counter for her. Once the person for the shift change arrived, she could get off work on time and take her daughter out for lunch.
The man in the black suit saw that the person standing in front of the cashier counter was a young and cute little girl. He smiled heartily and said, "I'm not buying anything; I'm looking for someone."
Gu Suisui wasn't shy either. Seeing him say this, she asked in a crisp voice, "Uncle, there's only me and Mommy here. Who are you looking for?"
"...Mommy?" Su Yuanlang was stunned for a moment when he heard this title. Then, thinking of something, he asked, "Little child, does your mom have long, curly hair?"
Gu Suisui nodded and said very politely, "Yes, so Uncle, are you here to find my mommy? She's working in the warehouse right now. Do you need me to call her for you?"
Su Yuanlang waved his hand and said quickly, "No need, it's the same if I wait for her here. I'll talk to her after she's done with her work."
"Oh."
The little girl's gaze towards him was very fervent. Even if Su Yuanlang wanted to ignore it, he couldn't. He couldn't help but ask, "Little child, what's your name?"
Gu Suisui thought that this uncle knew her mama anyway, so she didn't hide it and told him her name with a proud expression.
"Then Uncle will ask you again. Why were you staring at me just now?" Of course, Su Yuanlang wouldn't think that a three or four-year-old child could have any thoughts about him. He was just a little curious about what this cute little girl had in mind.
Gu Suisui hesitated for a moment, tilted her head, and said with a troubled expression, "Uncle, I seem to have seen you somewhere before." From the first time she saw this human, she always had a very familiar feeling. She must have seen him somewhere, but... where?
The forgetful little marshmallow couldn’t remember at all. qaq
The little girl in front of him was very exquisite and beautiful. If he had seen her before, he definitely wouldn't have forgotten, so Su Yuanlang was very sure that he was seeing her for the first time today. He smiled and asked in return, "Suisui, then tell me, where exactly have we met?"
Gu Suisui shook her head and said truthfully, "Forgot."
Su Yuanlang saw her troubled expression, as if she couldn't remember no matter how hard she tried, and was amused by her reaction to the point where he almost laughed out loud. He covered his mouth and coughed lightly, saying, "...Then maybe you remembered wrong, or maybe Uncle's memory is bad and he forgot too. But it doesn't matter; haven't we 're'-acquainted now? Then next time you see Uncle in person, you shouldn't forget who Uncle is, right?"
"I won't!" After Gu Suisui finished speaking, she seemed to feel that it wasn't enough, so she clenched her little fist, raised it, and added in a milky voice, "My memory is very good!!" Not remembering this time was just a small accident!
"Hahaha, Uncle knows your memory is very good." Su Yuanlang was almost melted by this little girl. He suddenly thought of his own daughter.
Yuqing was probably more mature than her peers after starting elementary school because her mother passed away early, and he, as her father, was too busy with work and didn't come home often, so she naturally wouldn't act spoiled with him anymore.
However... his daughter was also as innocent and cute as this little girl named Gu Suisui when she was little, so adults couldn't help but want to hug her and pinch her cheeks.
Su Yuanlang thought of his daughter when she was little, soft and cute, pestering him to tell her stories, and a trace of nostalgia flashed in his eyes.
"Suisui, what 'very good memory'?" Feng Yaoqin heard her daughter's words as soon as she walked out of the warehouse. Turning her head, she saw that her daughter was talking to an adult male, and it seemed like they had been talking for quite a while. Her eyebrows furrowed slightly, and she subconsciously glanced at the convenience store's cameras before feeling relieved. However, she still took the wrench that was placed on the counter, which the convenience store used to repair things, in her hand, just in case.
After all, who in their right mind would strike up a conversation with a three-and-a-half-year-old little girl in a convenience store for no reason?
"Mommy, you're out～ This uncle said he's here to find you." Gu Suisui was the first to notice that her mama had come out and said happily.
Hearing her daughter's words, Feng Yaoqin suspiciously sized up the man across from her, gripping the wrench in her hand. At first, she only felt that he looked a little familiar, but after looking at him for a few more seconds, she suddenly remembered where and why she had seen him before. She said in a surprised tone, "It's you?! Mr. Su, why did you come here?"
Seeing that the little girl's mom was indeed the person he knew, Su Yuanlang's face immediately lit up with joy. He said, "Ms. Feng, thank you for what happened yesterday at noon."
His company was not far away. When he was discussing a contract, he passed by this convenience store and got out of the car to buy some things he needed. As a result, he left a very important USB drive in the store. If the convenience store staff hadn't seen it and helped pick it up and put it away, he would have delayed important matters because of this small mistake.
Feng Yaoqin smiled and said, "You're welcome; it was just a small effort. Besides, you've already said thank you to me once." Actually, she didn't like helping others. Yesterday, it was only because her daughter was coming back from filming a show that afternoon, and she was in a good mood, that she helped out.
"Ms. Feng, how about this? I'll treat you and your daughter to a meal at noon today as a way to thank you for your help yesterday." Su Yuanlang thought for a moment and said.
That USB drive was really important to him. If he just simply said thank you and left, he would feel uneasy in his heart.
Feng Yaoqin looked at the handsome and tall man in front of her and glanced at her daughter, who was staring at him without blinking. Her heart skipped a beat, and she changed her mind, saying with a smile, "Alright then, we'll leave after my colleague comes to change shifts later."
Feng Yaoqin's colleague came to change shifts with her on time. After asking the two people what they liked to eat, Su Yuanlang led them to a home-style restaurant. The home-style dishes made at this restaurant were excellent, and Su Yuanlang would sometimes bring his daughter Su Yuqing here for a meal.
There were too many people at the time they came for lunch, and the restaurant was also very popular. The private rooms on the second floor were all taken, so they finally found a seat with a good view in the hall on the first floor.
Su Yuanlang handed the menu given by the waiter to the mother and daughter across from him early and said, "It's settled that I'm treating you, so order whatever you want to eat."
When it comes to being treated to a meal, it’s tricky. If you order something too expensive, it makes you look greedy, as if you're taking advantage. But if you order something too cheap, it may seem like you have no taste. Feng Yaoqin wasn't stupid, of course, she wouldn't take on this thankless task. She said calmly, "This is also our first time coming to this restaurant, and we don't know what's good to eat. You seem to be very familiar with this place, so why don't you help us recommend something?"
If it wasn't because she had other plans, Feng Yaoqin wouldn't want to eat with a strange man with Suisui. She had originally planned to take her daughter to eat the crab roe buns that she had been craving for a long time. The food variety show "Celebrity Private Kitchen" last week featured crab roe buns, and Suisui had been constantly thinking about eating them after watching this show.
Although there were only three of them, since he said he was treating them, Su Yuanlang wasn't stingy either. He ordered seven or eight dishes in one breath and also asked the little child what drink she wanted.
Gu Suisui, the little child, ate very happily at this lunch for three people.
After lunch, Su Yuanlang thoughtfully drove the two of them to the entrance of the residential complex.
Feng Yaoqin watched the car drive away, looked down at her daughter, and asked, "Suisui, do you like the uncle who sent us home just now?"
Gu Suisui thought about the table full of dishes and the familiar feeling she had when she saw that uncle. She nodded and said, "Like!"
Feng Yaoqin's eyes flickered slightly, and she continued to ask, “Then… what if that uncle were your dad? What would you think?”
She knew that although Suisui said that she wouldn't be unhappy without a father, she actually cared a lot in her heart. Whenever she mentioned the word "dad," her eyes were brighter and more sparkling than usual, obviously liking it very much.
So Feng Yaoqin was considering whether she should find Suisui a father who doted on her and loved her. At the dinner table just now, she deliberately steered the topic of discussion to children and then learned that his wife had passed away several years ago and that there was only one daughter in his family now.
From the model of the car that this man drove and the suit he was wearing, it could be seen that his income should be very good. Moreover, his appearance wasn't bad, with thick eyebrows and big eyes, and he looked very educated and had a gentlemanly demeanor.
No matter which aspect she looked at, Feng Yaoqin couldn't find any major faults, and her first impression of him was very good.
He had a house and a car, and Suisui also liked him very much. Wasn't this exactly the life she had always wanted to give her daughter?
Gu Suisui's focus was more unique. She asked with a dazed and eager expression, "Is my father as tall as this uncle?" He was so tall. Everyone was so tall. She was the shortest of them all. Even Doudou-gege was taller than her! Hmph ヽ(≧Д≦)ノ
Feng Yaoqin hadn't seen him for more than three years, so she couldn't really remember how tall that man was, but she still felt that she should satisfy her daughter's admiration for her father. She said, "Yes, Suisui's father is also very, very tall."
Hearing this, Gu Suisui immediately felt satisfied. With this distraction, she forgot about the question her mother had asked just now.
Feng Yaoqin didn't ask any further. She just wanted to test her daughter's feelings first to see if she liked Mr. Su or not. She didn't necessarily want her to accept the concept of a stepfather right now.
Before there was any obvious progress in this matter, she had to keep it a secret and not let her daughter know. If she found out in the end that that uncle couldn't be her father, she would probably feel disappointed and sad again.
==
"Lu Yuanzhi, you're my manager, at least do something, like find a way to suppress that damn trending search for me!"
Ever since Ke Jingyang finished filming the first episode with Gu Suisui, he had been feeling uncomfortable all over. He stayed at home and didn't even play games, thinking about when that damn trending search would go down every day.
The topic of the "Traveling with Babies" production team officially announcing the guest lineup was only particularly popular for the first two days, but later it slowly fell out of the top five. However, his photo with the children remained high in popularity. Since last night, it had even been hanging in the top spot on the trending searches.
Ke Jingyang was baffled. Wasn't it just an ordinary photo? What was there to discuss! Tell him, what was there to discuss!!
Besides, he didn't have the kind of nurturing father temperament that the Weibo comments said, like his eyes had a trace of doting on the two little children. What?? His eyes were clearly impatient! Impatient, okay!! Were all these netizens' eyes bad? Otherwise, why were they all misinterpreting, not knowing how to respect him, the person involved?
Seeing that this small matter had been nagging him from last week to this week without end, Lu Yuanzhi's ears were about to get calluses. Finally, Lu, the great manager, who had been enduring for four or five days, couldn't bear it anymore. He was so annoyed by this person that he almost exploded, “Ke Jingyang, can you please chill for one second? It’s not like you’ve never trended before! How many times have you been on the hot list? One more or one less won’t make a difference!”
Back when this guy used to trend every three to five days, Lu was practically pulling his hair out but Ke Jingyang never even blinked, acting like he didn’t care no matter what they wrote about him.
But now that he finally had a wholesome trending topic that could actually boost his national image, he was acting like someone died. People would think he’d been exposed in a scandal or something.
After Lu Yuanzhi finished complaining, his rationality returned. He pushed up his gold-rimmed glasses and thought that he was not only this kid's cousin but also a responsible good manager. So he took a deep breath and continued, “The second episode you’re filming tomorrow will air by the end of the month, and the production team needs buzz right now. Just consider this part of your job. You can't take that several million dollar appearance fee for nothing."
The "Traveling with Babies" production team was able to let a troublemaker like you go on a parent-child variety show because they valued your popularity, right? It couldn't be because of your personal charm, could it??
Even if I'm willing to suppress it, the production team may not be willing to agree. The topic can stay at the top of the trending searches because they want to use your popularity to make the premiere of the variety show have higher ratings.
Ke Jingyang scratched his hair with a slightly annoyed expression and said unhappily, "I don't lack that several million appearance fee. Manager Lu, you sold me out for this little bit of money?"
Lu Yuanzhi: …Fine, you’re rich, you’re right, you win.
Actually, Ke Jingyang's professional ability was quite strong, but his temper was too bad. Once he was in a bad mood, he would go on strike, and eight cows couldn't pull him back. For example, there was an advertisement last time that was like this. Because the female model made some very intimate moves without permission when filming the advertisement with him, his bad temper flared up. Not only did he severely verbally abused the female model who wanted to create a scandal with him on the spot, but he also said that he wouldn't film the advertisement and paid a large amount of liquidated damages.
Originally, he was in the right, but in the end, he not only paid a sum of money but was also schemed against by that female model, who said that he touched her inappropriately when filming the advertisement. If there hadn't been evidence to prove that it wasn't true, this kid would have almost capsized in the gutter.
Fortunately, Ke Jingyang's family was very rich and didn't need to rely on being a celebrity and taking advertisements and endorsements to earn money. Otherwise, with his temper and personality, he might have starved to death on the streets long ago.
Lu Yuanzhi glanced at his phone and said to Ke Jingyang, who was still depressed, "Alright, I don't think you need to worry about being at the top of the trending searches anymore, because someone has already helped you take away the popularity."
The number-one trending topic was no longer #KeJingyangWithKids, but #RisingActressJiMin’sPoorActingSkills. The related tags were all things like #JiMinNotWorthyOfLeadRoleIn“TitForTat” and #JiMinDeliberately TargetedSupportingActressOnSet.
Good things don't go out, but bad things travel a thousand miles. The speed at which this negative news spread on the Internet was much faster than positive news.
The cause of the incident was that someone posted a video with the scene deliberately blurred, which showed Ji Min NG-ing many times in the same scene. The person who posted the video was professional, and this kind of revelation that deliberately left half of the suspense made people itch even more, which made the netizens who were watching the excitement discuss it even more happily.
Ke Jingyang glanced at the new top trending search and was secretly satisfied. He casually asked, "Who is this Ji Min?" She was actually able to suppress his topic?
A great handsome guy like him, who was popular with thousands of young girls, was only not seen by Gu Suisui, a three-and-a-half-year-old child whose aesthetic sense hadn't yet formed. Ke Jingyang, who had just thought that he had temporarily preserved his lifelong reputation, quickly relapsed into his narcissistic habits. Moreover, he had always been quite struck by the fact that the little girl thought that cotton candy was more attractive than him, a handsome guy, at the park that time.
"Ji Min is from Tianhao Entertainment. The female artists in their company have always been fighting fiercely because ever since the film queen Zhang Huijin, who filmed the parent-child variety show with you, retired, the position of the company's number one female artist has been vacant, and they all want to go up and get more resources." Of course, the company would push all the resources to its facade. Which person wouldn't want to compete for such benefits?
Moreover, Ji Min's scandal this time was probably exposed by Fu Yingyu, who was competing with her for the position of the company's number one female artist.
In the end, it was also because Ji Min was too anxious, doing such obvious and naive things in a place like the production team where there were many people and eyes. Wasn't this personally handing over her own handle to the other party?
Looking at the way she usually acted in front of the media's cameras, she didn't seem like a person without any scheming, but what she did this time was a bit too stupid.
Ke Jingyang said "Oh" and wasn't very interested in this kind of infighting. He said absentmindedly, "According to your analysis, this video was done by the female supporting role that the trending search mentioned."
The two women fighting back and forth was too boring and less interesting than filming a variety show.
"Yes, it's probably close to the truth. But according to what I know, this Fu Yingyu is about to terminate her contract with her original brokerage company and is preparing to transfer to our Qin Shi Entertainment. It seems that you two will be artists in the same company in the future."
Fu Yingyu had kept the matter of wanting to terminate her contract a secret very well, but Lu Yuanzhi, as the gold medal manager of Qin Shi Entertainment, naturally had his channels of information. "Speaking of which... Tianhao Entertainment was not very kind this time, forcing Fu Yingyu to be a supporting role for another woman who was inferior to her in every way, and they also wanted to give the position of number one female artist to Ji Min. Who wouldn't be depressed? No wonder Fu Yingyu couldn't wait to terminate her contract with the company and was even willing to take five points less of the commission."
Regardless of other aspects, Lu Yuanzhi quite admired this desperate courage.
==
"What are you all doing that I'm supporting you for?! Why hasn't this little bit of negative news been suppressed by now!!"
Ji Min, who was staying in the hotel, had a gloomy face with a very ugly expression. She was in a state of irritability and anger, and the people around her didn't dare to say a word.
Because of that video, Weibo was now exploding. The phones of the staff members around Ji Min had also been almost blown up by the major media outlets. As soon as they turned on their phones, there were all kinds of calls and text messages, and they simply couldn't handle it and didn't know how to reply. Ji Min didn't even go to the filming of the "Tit for Tat" production team today, fearing that she would be blocked by the group of reporters at the entrance of the production team and kept being asked questions.
The comments and direction under Weibo were also very unfriendly to Ji Min. Even if they had bought water armies on their side, the effect wasn't very obvious for the time being—
"My heart aches so much to see my sister getting rained on for so long, wuwuwu. If you can't act, then don't act. Give the role of female lead to other more hardworking and motivated people."
"To be honest, I've been unhappy with this Ji Min for a long time. She also stole the role of female lead in my Xiaolihua's TV series."
"My sister Ji Min wasn't born in a professional class. No one has good acting skills from the beginning. My sister doesn't have as many opportunities to film as others. This time, she finally got a female lead in a movie by herself. Although her acting skills aren't as good as Fu Yingyu's, she's also working very hard and staying up late every day to film in the production team."
"Please, the fans upstairs, consciously form a group and roll away, okay? Fu Yingyu also wasn't born in a professional class. Look at her, and then look at your master. The difference is clear at a glance."
"The word 'hardworking' is not used for you Ji Min's fans to whitewash. Next time, please use your brains and think of other words."
Ji Min was furious when she saw the almost one-sided comments on the Internet.
Fu Yingyu! It must have been that woman Fu Yingyu who did it!! The water armies under Weibo were all hired by her. Otherwise, why would this matter have reached the top of the trending searches in just half a day!
Ji Min's manager was a woman in her thirties, who looked like a standard strong woman. She hung up the phone, patted her on the shoulder, and said in a deep voice, "Don't be impatient. I've already arranged for people to go to those paparazzi and spend a lot of money to buy other people's dirt."
Since this dirt couldn't be suppressed for the time being, then the best way was to find other dirt to top it, and then slowly find a way to remove it from the hot search position.