When the hour hand passed twelve, Xiao Bai grew nervous.
The clothes he had specially worn to his interview at the television station yesterday had just been washed. Everything else he owned consisted of cheap street-stall T-shirts and jeans faded from too many washes.
He opened his wardrobe and, from an entire row of obviously bargain-bin clothes, finally managed to dig out a white T-shirt whose chest design was not too outrageous. Then he picked a pair of jeans whose color was still reasonably bright.
When he looked up at the clock again, the hour hand was already striding boldly into one o’clock’s embrace.
He used styling mousse to comb all his bangs back, revealing his smooth, rounded forehead.
Jia Zhi Qing had once told him that his high forehead could deceive people at first glance into thinking he possessed a high IQ.
Xiao Bai had originally planned to squeeze onto the bus, but after thinking about how he might arrive drenched in smelly sweat, he painfully parted with twenty yuan for taxi fare. He also took two coins for the bus ride home.
Before leaving, he stood beside the shoe cabinet and carefully checked everything he was carrying one last time. Only after confirming that absolutely nothing could go wrong did he head out.
Yimate’s building was impossible to miss.
Against the entire gray and gloomy street, its bright orange exterior was almost painfully eye-catching.
Xiao Bai felt a little uneasy when he entered.
That was because he saw gleaming name badges pinned to the chests of many people inside.
As he passed the security guard, he deliberately slowed his steps, giving the man plenty of opportunity to rush over and question him.
But the guard merely glanced up before quickly lowering his head again and returning to his sports news.
Still uneasy, Xiao Bai circled around him once more. The security guard remained completely unmoved.
Not far away, a tall, elegant man was draped over the shoulder of the person beside him. Grinning, he asked, “What’s he doing? Drawing a prison circle around the security guard to lock him inside?”
The person beside him shrugged. “If you’re gay, have some self-awareness. Don’t casually take liberties with other people.”
Elio’s Notes:
- 吃豆腐, literally “eat tofu,” is a Chinese expression meaning to take liberties with someone, get fresh with them, or make unwanted flirtatious/physical advances.
The man pursed his lips accusingly. “That’s discrimination.”
“I know.”
“……”
“And please allow me to remind you of something, Your Majesty, Heavenly King Feng. It’s fine if you show me this flirtatious side of yourself, but do not let your fans see you acting like this outside. Otherwise, you can look forward to fighting the beggars for space under a bridge.”
Elio’s Notes:
- Heavenly King (天王) is an entertainment-industry title for a top-tier superstar. Gao Qin adds 大人, an exaggerated honorific, to mock Feng Ya Lun.
“You discriminate against beggars too?”
“I do.”
Feng Ya Lun asked gloomily, “What exactly don’t you discriminate against?”
“People who can make money and have a normal sexual orientation. Of course, there’s no hope for you in this lifetime.”
Feng Ya Lun said indignantly, “Gao Qin, don’t be so sure of yourself. Maybe one day you’ll fall in love with me!”
Gao Qin pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose and said flatly, “That is the most vicious curse I have ever heard.”
“I—%¥##¥#!”
“Even though we’re inside the company, as your manager, I still have to say this… please mind your image.”
“You—%&%¥%!”
After the security guard finally became unable to bear ignoring him any longer and gave him directions, Xiao Bai nervously made his way to the top floor of Yimate.
The glossy black marble floor was polished to a mirror shine, as though it were constantly waiting for someone to introduce their face to it at close range.
The female secretary sitting outside the only office on the floor sized him up with a smile. “You’re half an hour early, Xiao Bai, little brother.”
Xiao Bai’s face flushed scarlet in an instant. Stammering, he said, “Then I’ll go downstairs… and wait.”
“Oh, don’t leave.” The secretary swiftly caught his arm. “Why don’t you stay here and chat with big sis instead?”
Blood rushed straight to Xiao Bai’s head, turning his face as red as a ripe tomato.
The secretary laughed. “What are you so shy about? It’s not like I’m going to eat you.” She pulled him over to sit beside her and poured him a glass of water while she was at it.
Xiao Bai was just about to drink when she suddenly asked in a mysterious voice, “What’s your dad’s name?”
“……” The glass swayed back and forth five or six times in his hand before Xiao Bai slowly answered, “Zeng Guang Quan.”
The secretary frantically filtered through every famous person named Zeng Guang Quan stored in her memory. In the end, she reached one conclusion—never heard of him.
“What about your mom?” It was the age of equality between men and women now. There was nothing strange about the wife in a family being more powerful and capable than the husband.
“Xu Zhi An.”
She jumped up excitedly. “Xu Zhi An? The Hong Kong singer who sang Why Did You Love Someone Else Behind My Back?”
“……”
“No, wait. He seems to be a man.”
“……”
Elio’s Notes:
- Xiao Bai’s mother’s name, Xu Zhi An, is pronounced the same as the Chinese name of Hong Kong singer Andy Hui, which is why the secretary immediately makes the association before remembering that the singer is male.
Despite suffering two consecutive blows, the secretary was the type who only grew more determined after setbacks. “Why did you end up replacing Luo Pei Jue as a host on GO! GO! SU… SUPER STAR?”
Xiao Bai was just about to answer when the tightly shut office door opened. Ma Rui stuck half of his bald head out, crooked a finger at him, and said, “You. Come in.”
The secretary watched mournfully as the juicy piece of gossip that had almost reached her mouth flew away. Then she opened QQ and began complaining.
Brown-Nosing the Boss Is Hard: I saw Xiao Bai! ＼（≧▽≦）／
Cui Hua: （⊙＿⊙）Which Xiao Bai?
Brown-Nosing the Boss Is Hard: The one who said “the auntie upstairs.”
Rather Die Than Obey the Police: （ ⊙ o ⊙ ）Huh? No way! Don’t tell me Xiao Bai is one of Yimate’s artists?
Brown-Nosing the Boss Is Hard: He wasn’t when he went in. No idea whether that’ll still be true when he comes out.
Cui Hua: Quick, go eavesdrop through the crack in the door. Grab a receiver! A headset! A microphone!
Rather Die Than Obey the Police: No wonder he badmouthed Great God. So he’s from the rival camp! How shameless! How despicable!
Brown-Nosing the Boss Is Hard: Sigh. Too bad Weijie isn’t hiring lately. Otherwise, I’d really love to jump ship, jump ship… I want to see Great God Great God Great God every single day!
Cui Hua: Feng Ya Lun is handsome too! Hasn’t he been going head-to-head with Great God lately? How can you betray your own side?!
Brown-Nosing the Boss Is Hard: ％＞＿＜％ But he never even looks at me.
Cui Hua: ＋＿＋ You don’t need to jump ship. You need plastic surgery.
Rather Die Than Obey the Police: Feng Ya Lun isn’t one ten-thousandth as handsome as Great God! Feng Ya Lun isn’t one ten-thousandth as handsome as Great God! Feng Ya Lun isn’t one ten-thousandth as handsome as Great God! Feng Ya Lun isn’t one ten-thousandth as handsome as Great God! Feng Ya Lun isn’t one ten-thousandth as handsome as Great God! Feng Ya Lun isn’t one ten-thousandth as handsome as Great God! Feng Ya Lun isn’t one ten-thousandth as handsome as Great God! Feng Ya Lun isn’t one ten-thousandth as handsome as Great God! Feng Ya Lun isn’t one ten-thousandth as handsome as Great God! Feng Ya Lun isn’t one ten-thousandth as handsome as Great God! Feng Ya Lun isn’t one ten-thousandth as handsome as Great God! Feng Ya Lun isn’t one ten-thousandth as handsome as Great God!
Cui Hua: The one above is flooding the chat. Drag them off and lock them up!
Someone: What are you guys talking about now?
Cui Hua: Please make good use of the chat history.
Someone: Oh, Xiao Bai. I think he’s really cute.
Rather Die Than Obey the Police: Someone, congratulations—you’ve been living on Mars.
Elio’s Notes: 火星了, literally “gone to Mars,” was internet slang for being badly behind the times or unaware of something everyone online already knew.
Someone: Where’s Brown-Noser? Hurry back and give us the gossip!
Someone: Sigh. Working at an entertainment company is so nice. You get to see huge celebrities every day. ~~~~(>_<)~~~~ I’m not asking for much. I just want to go one day without seeing bizarre-looking creepy old men.
Rather Die Than Obey the Police: …I misjudged you.
Cui Hua: I bet one cucumber that Brown-Noser went to eavesdrop.
Rather Die Than Obey the Police: Two tomatoes. I’m in.
Someone: Organized gambling is wrong.
Brown-Nosing the Boss Is Hard: I’m back. （＊＾＿＿＾＊）Hee hee…
Cui Hua: Well?
Brown-Nosing the Boss Is Hard: o（︶︿︶）o Sigh… Xiao Bai probably won’t escape the boss’s demonic claws this time.
Cui Hua: Ah! Don’t tell me they already…
Brown-Nosing the Boss Is Hard: ╮（╯▽╰）╭ Not yet, but all it’ll take is one nod.
Rather Die Than Obey the Police: Is the crack in the boss’s office door still that wide?
Brown-Nosing the Boss Is Hard: Mm. Because I’ve never had anyone come fix it. O(∩_∩)O~
Xiao Bai sat stiffly as he watched Ma Rui puff away behind his desk.
Ma Rui took one final drag, then stubbed out his cigarette. “So? What are your plans for the future?”
Xiao Bai shifted uneasily in his seat. “I want to make money.”
Ma Rui burst out laughing. “You’re the most straightforward and the most crass person I’ve ever met. But that’s only human. Who doesn’t like money? Sigh. So, do you want to keep developing as a host, or would you rather act or sing?”
“Huh?” Xiao Bai had never seriously considered the question before. “Which one pays more?”
Even Ma Rui, who had dealt with countless kinds of people, felt a sense of defeat. “Every trade has its master. If you’re good at what you do, you can become a millionaire emptying chamber pots. If you’re bad at it, you could end up buried in debt even as a prostitute.” Seeing Xiao Bai listening blankly, he continued, “All right. How about this? Sign a long-term contract with me, and I’ll plan out your entire future. I can’t promise you a huge fortune, but within five years, I guarantee you’ll be living in a two-hundred-square-meter home and driving a car worth three or four hundred thousand yuan. What do you think?”
Xiao Bai’s heart went thump. “How long is a long-term contract?”
“Twenty years.” Ma Rui sighed. “You know how bad the economy is. Building someone into a star isn’t easy. Sometimes a company pours its heart and soul into making someone famous, and then heh heh, the moment their contract expires, they dust themselves off and jump to someplace bigger. By then, it’s too late even to cry.”
Seeing that Xiao Bai still was not reacting much, he added, “You know Feng Ya Lun, right?”
Xiao Bai nodded. He was the only male celebrity Jia Zhi Qing liked and was always talking about.
“He signed a long-term contract too. If you meet him later, go ahead and ask him whether I, Ma Rui, treat him well. He says he wants a raise? I move money around from somewhere else and give him one. He says his car broke down and went in for repairs? I immediately send my brand-new BMW straight to the foot of his building. Even a father couldn’t treat his own son much better than that, could he?”
Xiao Bai continued listening with the same foolish expression.
Now that Ma Rui was on a roll, he continued, “Don’t be fooled by how popular Yan Su Ang is right now. Heh heh. He isn’t exactly happy at Weijie either. Zhang Fu Man meddles in absolutely everything. Yan Su Ang practically needs permission just to eat or go to the bathroom. That’s no way for a human being to live.”
Xiao Bai was beginning to feel dizzy.
Seeing that the time was ripe, Ma Rui immediately pulled a contract from his drawer. “Here. Take a look. If there aren’t any problems, sign it.”
Xiao Bai picked up the contract. The long strings of English made his head spin; even if it had been written in Chinese, he would only have understood half of it. “Can I take it home and look at it?”
Ma Rui’s brows shot up. “No. Company contracts never leave the premises.”
“But…”
“What’s there to ‘but’ about? Go ask around. See whether Yimate isn’t one of the very best agencies in this business. You know the saying: miss this chance and there may not be another. Think carefully.”
Xiao Bai clutched the contract stubbornly. “I want my friend to look it over for me.”
“Your friend? What does he do?” Ma Rui looked at him warily. He had clearly investigated Xiao Bai beforehand, and the boy had no family background or powerful connections.
“Insurance.”
“Oh.” Ma Rui thought for a moment. “Fine. Bring him along tomorrow and let him have a look. That’ll also save me from looking like I’m trafficking people.”
Xiao Bai breathed a sigh of relief. “Thank you, President Ma.”
“Mm. Go home for today, then. Don’t forget—same time tomorrow.”
Xiao Bai practically floated backward out the door, feeling the damp stickiness of sweat against his back.
The secretary immediately rushed over. “Well? Did you sign?”
Xiao Bai shook his head. “I’m bringing a friend tomorrow to look it over.”
The secretary suddenly lowered her voice. “Make sure you bring a sharp one.” If your friend isn’t sharp, there’s no way he’ll spot the trap that old fox buried in the contract.
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