CH 54

November 4, 2021kaychandra

Chapter 54: Showing Off Gifts and a Guest Appearance

Xiao Qiao’s Parents V: Nowadays, young people like these flashy things. Although this ring looks good, it doesn’t have the same value as gold. However, it’s a piece of our child’s heart, so the child’s mother and I can only wear it. It’s embarrassing to wear a couple’s peace ring at such an old age. [with photo]

The third day of Gongxi Qiao’s return to the country, the boast-crazy blogger “Xiao Qiao’s Parents” posted a set of hand-holding photos. The hands in the photos weren’t very beautiful, but the man’s was vigorous and strong, and the woman’s was plump and soft. It was evident that the hands were those of a middle-aged couple.

This Weibo was instantly rated by netizens as the most insincere Weibo. Some netizens even concluded that the faces of the parents behind the Weibo must have cracked from laughter.

“This pair of rings is so beautiful, symbolic and auspicious. Qiao Shao has a good eye for selecting gifts.”

“I saw this same pair of rings when I was abroad. I won’t say how many zeros were in the price in order not to irritate people. Although Qiao Shao never shows off his wealth on Weibo, it was shown off by Daddy Gongxi and Mommy Gongxi when they boasted about their son. I’m blown away by this kind of tycoon behavior.”

“Person above, quickly tell us the price. We aren’t afraid of getting blown away by Qiao Shao’s tycoon behavior ah ah!”

Flower Country netizens were never short of crouching tigers and hidden dragons, and someone soon found out the price of this ring. One of the users lamented, “The price of the wedding ring that a certain female artist showed off in her Weibo is less than half of the price of this pair of rings.”

“My Qiao is a true tycoon. I often see his work team and close friends in the circle showing off the gifts he gives them. The feeling of being friends with a tycoon is so beautiful. How I wish I was one of Qiao Shao’s friends.”

“Don’t think about it above. Speaking about Qiao Shao’s friends, there are actually people who don’t show off their gifts.”

After this netizen left a message, it aroused the curiosity of netizens. Who hadn’t yet shown off a gift from Qiao Shao?

“Some Qiao fans claim that Gongxi Qiao and Master Xi are close friends. Unfortunately, Master Xi simply doesn’t care about your tycoon young master’s gifts. It’s better not to put gold on your face[1]. You’re shameless. I feel embarrassed for you.”

There would be no shortage of anti-fans as long as someone was an entertainer, and the same applied to Gongxi Qiao. Whenever these anti-fans found a possible weakness, they would spare no effort to attack.

In fact, even passerby fans could tell that Xi Qing and Gongxi Qiao had a very good relationship. Xi Qing hadn’t sent more than a few posts after registering on Weibo, but almost every post was related to Gongxi Qiao. It was obvious that he saw Gongxi Qiao start a Weibo and only then did he get involved. And many times, it was Xi Qing who took the initiative to interact with Gongxi Qiao, rather than Gongxi Qiao rushing to please him.

It was like that, but there were still people saying that Gongxi Qiao was hugging Xi Qing’s thighs. How did their eyes grow?

However, the black fans took advantage of Xi Qing’s lack of sharing things online, and they went around proclaiming that Gongxi Qiao was holding Xi Qing’s thighs. It made the Qiao fans who didn’t want to pay attention to the anti-fans a little angry. However, just when they were ready to roll up their sleeves and fight, Xi Qing sent out a Weibo post.

Xi Qing V: This gift is proof that Xiao Qiao’s discerning taste is directly proportional to his talent @Gongxi Qiao. [with photo]

The photo captured Xi Qing’s left arm. The watch paired with a shirt sleeve had an unspeakable elite taste.

This Weibo post could be considered to have smacked the anti fans in the face and attracted a lot of onlookers.

“After going through all of Master Xi’s posts, I found that every time someone slanders Qiao Shao, Master Xi would stand up for him. If this isn’t friendship, what is?”

“Master Xi is defending his friendship with his actions ah!”

“I think I believe in brotherhood again.”

“Ah ah ah ah, so loving. Master Xi, how handsome!”

After this incident, Xi Qing and Gongxi Qiao had become iron buddies recognized by all netizens. Even blind people would be embarrassed to say that Gongxi Qiao hugged Xi Qing’s thighs. With the status of Xi Qing, if Gongxi Qiao was really just hugging his thighs, would he wear the watch Gongxi Qiao gave him on his wrist?

A farce like this wasn’t a big deal in the first place. Instead, Gongxi Qiao’s work team took the opportunity to give Gongxi Qiao a positive impression of being a generous and affable person in front of netizens, whether they were fans or passersby.

Gongxi Qiao didn’t even bother with this little thing online, but seeing his parents and Xi Qing show off their gifts on Weibo did make him laugh.

He often ran to his parents’ villa these days to eat and drink. Besides eating and sleeping, he didn’t have to do anything. His life was far too comfortable.

After playing at home for a few days, he was invited by Director Zhu to guest star as the cool president in her drama. Director Zhu was the director of ‘Immortal Mountain Courtyard’ and her idol dramas were always guaranteed ratings because she was very good at controlling the pace of the drama.

Although Gongxi Qiao wouldn’t act in such idol dramas anymore with his current status, Director Zhu took care of him when he was in the crew of ‘Immortal Mountain Courtyard’. When he was attacked by Zheng Lei, this director stood up for him and said a lot of fair words, so he had to pay back this favor.

Gongxi Qiao’s guest role was the CEO of a multinational conglomerate. When the lead character was framed by the third male lead, he was impressed by his integrity and ability, and finally decided to invest in him. This allowed him to successfully defeat the third male lead and secure the decision-making power of the family business.

As a friendly cameo role, Gongxi Qiao’s part wasn’t big. In order not to add trouble to the crew, he also brought a personal suit to the scene. The costumes prepared by the crew might not always fit. As the mysterious big BOSS[2], how could he wear an ill-fitting suit?

Because Gongxi Qiao was willing to give herself this favor, Director Zhu was very happy. After seeing Gongxi Qiao, she smiled before she spoke, “Xiao Qiao, come and sit down.” She noticed that Gongxi Qiao’s assistant also carried a suit and was very satisfied with Gongxi Qiao’s attentiveness. Her smile, which was only seven points, suddenly turned into ten. “Do you have any comments on the content of the cameo scene?”

“Director Zhu’s dramas are always a guarantee of ratings. I can’t find anything wrong with them anyway.” Gongxi Qiao sat down and exchanged pleasantries with Director Zhu for a while before getting up and going to the dressing room to put on his makeup.

After seeing Gongxi Qiao leave, Director Zhu picked up the loudspeaker and said, “Everyone, take your positions. Let’s try to finish this shot as soon as possible so that we can proceed to the next shot.”

“Director Zhu, I heard that Gongxi Qiao is very difficult to invite now and no longer takes TV scripts.” The assistant director came up to Director Zhu and said with emotion, “I didn’t expect you to invite this great god to do a cameo.” Now, as long as their drama used Gongxi Qiao’s guest role in the publicity, they would make up money from the guest appearance fee.

“This kid is a good person. He isn’t forgetful,” laughed Director Zhu, who was amused by the assistant director’s implicit boast. “He’s a good seedling. He will definitely make a big breakthrough in the film industry in the future.”

The assistant director laughingly stated that yes, people in the industry were now very optimistic about Gongxi Qiao’s development, and that it might not be long before this Qiao Shao could become the biggest star on the scene. A future movie star coming to guest star in an idol drama like this wasn’t something that many artists would be willing to do unless there were friendly feelings.

The main actor in the cast was a little nervous. He hadn’t been in the industry for long, just two or three years. He only gained some popularity because he had played a likable role. However, this popularity was completely inadequate in front of Gongxi Qiao. He didn’t even know where to put his hands and feet when he thought that he would have to act with this person next.

“Lin Kang, when Qiao Shao comes out later, remember to say hello to him properly.” Xie Ji also didn’t expect Gongxi Qiao to make a cameo in this idol drama. He pulled Lin Kang to the corner and whispered, “If you have a good relationship with Qiao Shao, you won’t have to play this kind of unappealing villainous third male role.”

“I know.” Lin Kang played the villainous third male lead in the drama. He was sinister and cunning, specializing in messing with the male lead as well as robbing the family fortune, a role that was never liked by the audience.

“Here he comes, here he comes.” The scene suddenly became lively.

Xie Ji saw that as soon as Gongxi Qiao came out, a whole bunch of staff members went around to serve tea and water, and holding up parasols and fans. He elbowed Lin Kang with envy, “See, this is the difference between being popular and not being popular.”

Lin Kang looked up in the direction where Gongxi Qiao was standing and found that the producers, who were usually very cold with him, were smiling like daisies around Gongxi Qiao. Even the scriptwriter, who usually didn’t talk much, also went up to take a picture with Gongxi Qiao, not to mention the other people’s ingratiating gestures.

“But you don’t have to envy others.” Xie Ji was worried that Lin Kang was affected by Gongxi Qiao’s popularity, so he added, “When he first started, he played the third male lead villain of a dog blood drama. I heard that he was also suppressed by the male lead actor.”

“How is the male lead actor who suppressed him now?” Lin Kang asked rhetorically.

“Uh ……” Xie Ji then remembered that there had been no news of Zhou Huaisheng in the circle for a long time. When Zhou Huaisheng played the male lead in that drama, he was already considered to be quasi-second-tier. After that drama, because the ratings were good, the female lead, the second male lead, and Gongxi Qiao were all popular. However, as the male lead, Zhou Huaisheng had no news at all.

Thinking of this, his back was a little chilly. Looking at Gongxi Qiao’s eyes, he had a little more awe. Even though Zhou Huaisheng was crushed to this point, other people in the circle mentioned Gongxi Qiao with praise. Could this be done by an ordinary person?

“Remember, this person cannot be offended,” Xie Ji said with a serious expression. “If you offend him, it will be impossible to stay in the circle.”

Lin Kang smiled meaningfully. “Then why should I rush to please him? In case this young master is displeased, it would become more of a loss than a gain.”

Xie Ji sighed helplessly. Seeing his indifferent appearance, he had to stop mentioning this matter.

The necessary equipment of the big BOSS in idol dramas was a cool car, an imposing secretary and assistant, and a tyrannical aura.[3]

Although Gongxi Qiao wasn’t an overbearing male president, he had seen a lot of overbearing male presidents, and even experienced an overbearing emperor. Playing an overbearing president was simply too easy.

So when the shot of him getting out of the car passed once, even the eyes of the artist playing the female lead started to glow. She grabbed her assistant’s sleeve vigorously, trying to suppress her excitement.

“So handsome, so handsome, so handsome,” the female lead actor whispered, “the way he got out of the car, it was so handsome. My heart was about to jump out of my chest.”

The male lead actor silently covered his face. From today onwards, he felt he could no longer shamelessly claim to depend on his face to eat.

Gongxi Qiao’s scenes were few, and the requirements of the drama weren’t as stringent as those of a movie, so his scenes were shot in less than a day.

After the scenes were finished, he even bought drinks for everyone in the crew. After refreshing the entire crew’s goodwill, he left the set with an elegant gesture.

However, once the car door closed, the original three hundred and sixty degrees without dead angles mount suddenly became a boneless recliner.[4] He yanked down his tie a few times and took off his suit jacket as well. He took a few sips of the water Xiao Yao handed him. “Shooting outdoor scenes in this kind of weather is practically a barbecue session.”

July in the Imperial Capital was very hot. It was often joked that if you stood on the road for half an hour and sprinkled a handful of cumin, you could eat it immediately. He wore a three-piece suit for the outdoor scenes in order to conform to the plot’s character setting. It would be strange if he didn’t get hot in the nearly 40-degree heat.

“Qiao Shao, the way you got out of the car just now was really handsome.” Xiao Yao’s eyes glowed and she said, “Many of the female crew members had eyes green with envy.” Speaking of this, she saw Gongxi Qiao’s Adam’s apple moving, and she couldn’t help but gulp a little.

Having long been accustomed to Xiao Yao’s view that her own artist’s words and deeds were great, Gongxi Qiao laughed lightly. He screwed the cap back on the bottle and let out a long breath of relief. He said to Chen Ke, “I think I just saw Lin Kang in the cast.”

“He plays the villain in this drama. Although the role isn’t appealing, it’s possible for Director Zhu’s drama to become a big hit, so he can at least become well-known by the audience.” Chen Ke put Gongxi Qiao’s suit jacket away. “I heard that Xie Ji got the role through personal relationships.”

Gongxi Qiao nodded and didn’t say anything. Instead of being impressed with Lin Kang, he was more impressed with Xie Ji.

“Xie Ji is really attached to Lin Kang.” In general, Xiao Yao always felt like this Lin Kang person was a bit cold-hearted and callous. “I think it would be better to give him a new artist.”

“Individuals have their own choices,” Chen Ke said in a somewhat indifferent tone. “In the first place, Lin Kang’s personality isn’t suitable for show business. If it wasn’t for Xie Ji fighting on his behalf in the company in the past year, the company wouldn’t have arranged a payment plan for him.”

As Gongxi Qiao listened, his brow furrowed. After thinking about it carefully, he didn’t speak.

“This time, the ‘Cultivation’ crew will be out on location for more than a month. You two, remember to arrange your own family matters in advance. Don’t delay your work.” Chen Ke said to He Peng and Xiao Yao, “I heard that although the scenery there is beautiful, transportation isn’t too convenient. Remember to bring all the things you should bring, and take good care of Xiao Qiao.”

“Brother Chen, don’t worry,” Xiao Yao said with a smile. “We promise to complete the mission.”

Chen Ke couldn’t rest assured. It was a mountainous area. Even the cell phone signal was intermittent. The only advantage was the beautiful mountains and clear water. Gongxi Qiao was a young master who hadn’t suffered much since childhood. He didn’t know if Gongxi Qiao could get used to it when he got there.

This time, the ‘Cultivation’ crew wasn’t like ‘Immortal Mountain Courtyard’, where indoor sets were the main focus, and even for outdoor settings, there were often places to film scenes. In contrast, for the sake of aesthetics and realism, ‘Cultivation’ would travel to several locations for filming. The total time it would take to film at all the locations would add up to at least two months.

“Brother Chen, don’t worry. I’ll take care of myself.” Gongxi Qiao knew what Chen Ke was worried about and laughed. “Although the shooting conditions of this drama are tough, it also ensures the quality of the film. That’s a good thing for us actors.”

Chen Ke sighed. “When things are done here, I will go over to see you. There’s a lot of mosquitoes at that location. This time, the company has arranged an extra assistant for you as part of the team. He’s a medical school graduate. However, because he doesn’t want to be a male nurse, he changed his career to be an assistant.” He was the gold medal agent of the company. Now, they had signed many newcomers in the circle. Some agents were just starting out, so the company needed him to do agent training, so he was unable to do anything else, and had to arrange an extra assistant with knowledge about physical care for Gongxi Qiao.

Gongxi Qiao had no problem with the company’s careful arrangement and nodded his head in response.

Seeing that he nodded, Chen Ke only said, “Tomorrow, when the ‘Cultivation’ opening ceremony is held, I’ll bring him to tag along so he can also get familiar with your living habits.”

Although the movie ‘Cultivation’ had only one investor, the Xi Group couldn’t help but be rich and powerful. All the people in the team were highly sophisticated talents in the circle. Even the scene and logistics personnel had worked on many blockbusters.

Therefore, the movie’s opening ceremony was already the entertainment media’s object of attention. Not to mention anything else, just the mysterious cast list was enough to make the major media outlets speculate for a long time.

The hustle and bustle of the showbiz world couldn’t affect the business world. For example, a publicity manager of a branch of the Bai Group’s enterprise, was, at this moment, broken inside.

“Didn’t I say I wanted the artist who recently made a big splash at the exchange conference? Who’s the artist you’re reporting now?” Bai Zhong threw the report on the table. He leaned sideways on the boss’s chair, rotating it with some impatience. “Tell me, what’s going on here?”

“Boss …… The artist you’re talking about didn’t agree to our endorsement invitation.” The publicity manager smiled bitterly. “His agent said that Gongxi Qiao’s new movie is about to start shooting, and the schedule can’t be arranged.”

“How much time can it take to shoot a commercial?” Bai Zhong snorted coldly, “Didn’t he endorse the Xi Group before? Why isn’t he available at this moment?”

The publicity manager lowered his head and didn’t say anything. If the artist didn’t want to endorse them, he couldn’t just put a knife on his neck and threaten him.

“Okay, since he isn’t willing, forget it.” Bai Zhong opened the folder that he had thrown on the table and looked carefully at the picture of the spokesperson on it several times. “Then let’s make do with this.”

To him, this was just an endorsement of a branch company’s products. It wasn’t that important, but he was a little upset when he thought that this artist would endorse for the Xi Group, but turned down his Bai Group’s invitation.

At night, the Xi family villa.

“Boss, the person you arranged has been assigned to Qiao Shao.” The bodyguard captain walked into Xi Qing’s study. He saw Xi Qing reading a book and lowered his voice a few points. “With him around Qiao Shao, security will definitely not be a problem.”

In order to send a bodyguard who understood nursing to Qiao Shao without leaving any traces, it took a lot of effort. They even disguised his academic qualifications.

Xi Qing put down the book and said to the bodyguard captain, “Thank you for your hard work.”

When the bodyguard left, Xi Qing picked up the book again. However, thinking about how Gongxi Qiao would soon go to a remote mountainous region with difficult conditions to shoot a movie, he couldn’t read the book anymore.

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