Gao Qin opened the door. Just as Xiao Bai and Jia Zhi Qing were about to step inside, he stopped them. “Guest bathroom first.”
Jia Zhi Qing looked as though he had expected this. He grabbed the thoroughly bewildered Xiao Bai, took three practiced steps, and turned right.
It might only have been the guest bathroom, but it was enough to make Xiao Bai’s eyes widen like bronze bells.
The bathroom alone was practically bigger than both of their rooms put together.
Jia Zhi Qing stripped naked in a few swift motions and ran straight under the shower.
Staring at the bare figure amid the spray, Xiao Bai asked blankly, “What are you doing? Didn’t you just bathe the day before yesterday?”
Jia Zhi Qing vigorously scrubbed at his hair and said resentfully, “Anyone who hasn’t showered within the last twelve hours has to wash themselves clean here before they’re allowed into the living room.”
Xiao Bai clicked his tongue. Twelve hours? Wouldn’t that mean showering twice a day?
Jia Zhi Qing started lathering himself with body wash, then glared at him unhappily. “We go to the public bathhouse together all the time, so you’ve already seen everything there is to see and there’s nothing left to hide… but you still don’t have to stand there staring at me while I shower.”
Xiao Bai awkwardly turned his head away.
A huge mirror filled the wall in front of him. Light reflected across its surface in tiny orange-gold starbursts, softening and brightening his face beneath the glittering glow.
Knock, knock.
Jia Zhi Qing spun around and clamped his legs together.
Gao Qin opened the door and tossed in two shirts and two pairs of trousers.
Xiao Bai reached out and caught them. He had just opened his mouth to say thank you when the door shut again.
“Don’t mind him. That’s just how he is.” Jia Zhi Qing finished showering and casually grabbed a towel to dry himself. “Your turn.”
“Oh.” Xiao Bai obediently took off his clothes.
There were only the two of them in the bathroom, but getting completely naked in an unfamiliar place still raised goosebumps all over Xiao Bai’s body. He showered at a speed comparable to a rocket launch.
Jia Zhi Qing had only just finished dressing and was still combing his hair when Xiao Bai shut off the shower.
“I wasn’t even looking at you. What are you so nervous about?”
Xiao Bai awkwardly pulled on his clothes without answering.
Jia Zhi Qing opened his mouth as though he wanted to say something, thought better of it, then sighed. “Let’s go.”
Xiao Bai’s hair was short, so a quick rub with the towel was enough to dry it.
Gao Qin was sitting on the sofa reading a magazine. When they came out, he tapped the two small round stools opposite him with the tip of his foot. “Sit.”
Xiao Bai looked at the soft sofa, then at the tiny stools that could barely accommodate half a butt cheek, and paused.
Jia Zhi Qing was much more direct. He dropped onto one and said, “I came to ask you for help.”
“Mm. I can’t imagine what else would bring you here.” Gao Qin closed the magazine, picked up the glass of red wine waiting on the small table beside him, and took a light sip. “Do you need to borrow money, or… is it about him?”
“Him,” Jia Zhi Qing answered firmly.
Gao Qin leaned his head back and silently studied Xiao Bai for a long moment before saying, “He’s not cut out for this business.”
Jia Zhi Qing’s head buzzed.
He knew Gao Qin well enough. The man might be viciously sharp-tongued, but his judgment of people was frighteningly accurate. Feng Ya Lun had been brought up entirely under Gao Qin’s guidance. Otherwise, who could have imagined that the scrawny, sallow kid from back then would one day become a superstar capable of going head-to-head with Yan Su Ang?
“But didn’t Yimate’s boss just ask him to sign a contract?” Jia Zhi Qing asked, unwilling to give up.
The corner of Gao Qin’s mouth curved upward. “Surely you’ve heard the saying: cast a wide net, then focus on the best catches. Signing one more person costs the company nothing more than a tiny addition to its annual miscellaneous expenses. If he becomes famous, great—we got lucky. If he doesn’t, we throw him aside. Either way, it means practically nothing to the company. To tell you the truth, the only reason Ma Rui wants to sign him is because he embarrassed Yan Su Ang and gave Ma Rui a little thrill. What did you think it was?”
Even though Xiao Bai was not particularly quick-witted, he could still hear that Gao Qin had little faith in him. His expression dimmed.
Gao Qin turned his head toward him. “How old are you?”
“Twenty-two.”
“Can you sing? Dance? Play any instruments?”
Xiao Bai honestly shook his head.
“Can you act? Can you lie? How many works of literature have you read?”
Xiao Bai snuck a glance at Jia Zhi Qing, whose expression looked equally grim, then answered quietly, “I’ve read Grimm’s Fairy Tales.”
The hand holding Gao Qin’s wineglass trembled slightly. His expression, however, remained perfectly unchanged as he looked at Jia Zhi Qing. “Tell me. What exactly is he supposed to become famous for? That baby face of his? It isn’t ugly, but in the entertainment industry, it certainly isn’t outstanding either.”
Jia Zhi Qing suddenly straightened his back. “Nobody thought much of Feng Ya Lun before he debuted either.”
“But he had a beautiful face that appealed to both men and women.” Gao Qin curled his lip slightly. “Do you have any idea how much time and effort I spent correcting all his strange habits and packaging him into what you see today?”
Jia Zhi Qing stood up indignantly. “Xiao Bai can change too.”
Gao Qin gave him an almost-smile. “And you think that investment would be worth it?”
Jia Zhi Qing was struck speechless.
“Rather than take on someone with no talent, no foundation, and no idea what kind of future he has—someone already on the old side for a newcomer—I could choose from plenty of people with potential, aptitude, and professional training.” Gao Qin said indifferently, “Yimate recruits plenty of teenagers every year, then continuously weeds them out until only the best are left. None of those people requires me to worry over them. I can simply sit here and count the money.”
“Money, money, money! Is money all you have?” Jia Zhi Qing exploded.
Gao Qin shrugged. “What else do you need besides money?”
One sentence.
Jia Zhi Qing was instantly annihilated.
Back when he had encouraged Xiao Bai to try his luck at the television station, it had only been because Xiao Bai was decent-looking. He had wanted the guy to take a shot and see whether some freak stroke of luck might turn him into a celebrity who could make big money. The amount of hope he had placed in it was roughly the same as winning the Mark Six lottery. He certainly had not expected Xiao Bai to actually hit second prize.
At first, Jia Zhi Qing had thought that although Xiao Bai was not employed by the television station, becoming a contracted artist at Yimate would still give him limitless prospects for making money. That was why he had shamelessly come begging Gao Qin for help. Instead, he had gotten no hope at all and an entire bucketful of cold water poured over his head.
Elio’s Notes:
- An older uncensored version of the text identifies the obscured lottery reference as Mark Six (六合彩), a lottery whose name is commonly used as shorthand for extremely long odds.
- 钱途无量 is a pun on 前途无量, “to have limitless prospects.” The first character is replaced with 钱, “money,” turning Xiao Bai’s promising “future” into promising “money prospects.”
Xiao Bai suddenly spoke. “Money is exactly what we want.”
Gao Qin clearly had not expected such a direct answer. He paused before saying, “Oh. Then go rob a bank. I’d say your chances there are better than your chances of becoming a star.”
Ignoring the sarcasm, Xiao Bai stubbornly continued, “If Feng Ya Lun could do it, then so can I.”
Gao Qin put down his wineglass and folded his arms across his chest, studying him for a long while. “Why do you want money? A house? A car? Women? Excitement? You want to stand above everyone else?”
Xiao Bai shook his head. “I want to buy back Xinglong Butcher Shop.”
“Xinglong Butcher Shop?” The answer had clearly surprised him yet again.
Jia Zhi Qing hurriedly explained, “Xinglong Butcher Shop belonged to Brother Xiong. Xiao Bai worked there. Later, Brother Xiong became addicted to drugs, sold the butcher shop, and killed himself. Xiao Bai swore in front of Brother Xiong’s grave that he would buy the shop back.”
“So that’s why you came here wanting to become a celebrity?” Gao Qin suddenly felt like laughing. The corner of his mouth had already started to lift when his eyes met Xiao Bai’s earnest gaze. For some reason, the laugh simply would not come.
“Please.” Xiao Bai suddenly bent both knees and knelt.
Jia Zhi Qing nearly jumped out of his skin. “Hey! Isn’t this a little dramatic? He’s not Zhuge Liang, and you’re not Liu Bang. Why are you acting out Three Visits to the Thatched Cottage?”
“…The one who made the Three Visits was Liu Bei, not Liu Bang,” Gao Qin corrected irritably.
“They’re both Lius. Same family. Why fuss over details?” Jia Zhi Qing reached down to pull Xiao Bai up, but Xiao Bai stubbornly refused to move.
Elio’s Notes:
- “Three Visits to the Thatched Cottage” (三顾茅庐) refers to Liu Bei repeatedly visiting the strategist Zhuge Liang to persuade him to join his cause. Jia Zhi Qing gets the ruler wrong and says Liu Bang instead; his defense is essentially, “They’re both surnamed Liu, close enough.”
“I’m not taking on any new artists,” Gao Qin said mercilessly.
Jia Zhi Qing was so angry he nearly lunged at him. Fortunately, Xiao Bai reacted quickly enough to grab him.
Seeing that Jia Zhi Qing was still furious, Xiao Bai got to his feet dejectedly and hung his head. “Forget it. Maybe your cousin is right. Maybe I really am not cut out to be a celebrity. I should keep my feet on the ground and find an ordinary job.”
Gao Qin crossed one leg over the other. “I said I’m not taking on new talent. That doesn’t mean nobody else can.”
Jia Zhi Qing eyed him suspiciously. “What do you mean?”
“Weren’t you just comparing him to Feng Ya Lun? Fine. I’ll see whether he really can become the second Feng Ya Lun. If the company is already paying one freeloader, paying two makes little difference. What are you doing for work right now?”
Jia Zhi Qing instinctively did not want Gao Qin finding out that he had just been fired. In a gruff voice, he said, “Insurance. Why?”
“Come to Yimate with him tomorrow and report for work.”
Jia Zhi Qing stared blankly. “You’re hiring me?”
“I’m not hiring you. Yimate is. If the money were coming out of my pocket, I certainly wouldn’t waste it like this.” Gao Qin picked up his wineglass and took another sip. “Prove it to me. Show me how you’re going to turn him into the second Feng Ya Lun.”
Turn Xiao Bai into the second Feng Ya Lun?
Jia Zhi Qing looked at Gao Qin sitting leisurely on the expensive leather sofa, sipping his red wine, and suddenly felt all the hot blood in his body surge back to life. “Fine! Then keep your eyes wide open and watch!”
He grabbed Xiao Bai. “We’re leaving.”
Xiao Bai stumbled after him while waving goodbye to Gao Qin.
After riding the elevator down, Jia Zhi Qing deliberately straightened his back as they passed the security guards.
One day, he would finally hold his head high. Everyone would see him in a whole new light. Nobody would ever look down on him again, nobody would ever dare ignore him, and nobody would ever order him around like he was nothing!
Xiao Bai’s voice suddenly sounded beside his ear. “If you keep walking, you’re going to hit the utility pole.”
Jia Zhi Qing snapped back to his senses and stopped with the thick utility pole barely three centimeters from the tip of his nose. He turned excitedly. “Xiao Bai!”
“Mm?”
“Let’s get a bowl of malatang to celebrate!”
“Celebrate what?”
“Celebrate leaving the ranks of the unemployed!” His ambitions might be lofty, but for the moment, receiving a monthly paycheck was still more important.
Love Malatang was very close to Brother Xiong’s Xinglong Butcher Shop, so the two of them knew the place well. Despite its rather suggestive name, the food inside was no different from the malatang served anywhere else.
Elio’s Notes:
- Malatang (麻辣烫) is a Chinese street-food dish in which selected ingredients are cooked in a hot, spicy, numbing broth. The restaurant’s name, “Love Malatang,” gives the ordinary food an intentionally romantic-sounding twist.
There were not many customers that day. Only one young couple sat whispering together in a corner.
Jia Zhi Qing ordered several things, then turned around to look for Xiao Bai and discovered that his eyes were glued to the television.
“What are you watching?”
“That person…”
“Mm?” Jia Zhi Qing looked up. It was the monthly broadcast of New Songs This Month.
“He was the guest that day.”
Jia Zhi Qing sighed. “His name is Yan Su Ang.”
“He must be really rich.”
…Rich? If that triple-threat Heavenly King with countless fans and countless awards knew that, in someone else’s mind, his entire identity amounted to nothing more than “a rich guy,” who knew what he’d think?
Jia Zhi Qing patted Xiao Bai on the shoulder and said solemnly, “As long as you make him your goal, one day you’ll definitely be able to buy Xinglong Butcher Shop back.”
“Mm!” Xiao Bai clenched his fist.
Yan Su Ang…
He silently engraved that name deep in his heart.
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