Chapter 386 Career Line
Early morning, inside the photography base.
From the second-floor kitchen window came the clatter of stir-frying. This noise, never heard before on base, caught the eye of a security guard who was walking his dog as usual. He looked up at the windowsill, where long plumes of smoke were rising from the range hood. He couldn't help but shake his head and hum a little tune as he continued his patrol for the day.
The base, rebuilt right under his nose, was finally about to begin its mission. Thinking of the increasing number of people and the ever-increasing bustle of the place, the smile on his face grew wider, even out of the sight of the old man.
"Uncle Wu, have you eaten yet? Come and eat with us!" an enthusiastic voice called out. The security guard looked up and saw Zhou's father standing by the window, spatula in hand. As if worried he hadn't explained clearly, he gestured towards him, "Have you eaten yet?"
Mr. Zhou went to a nearby supermarket with his daughter, who was working out that morning. After some research, he opted for fried rice noodles he'd brought from home. While fried rice noodles might be a bit strong at this time of year, theirs was lighter and not too greasy.
However, Mr. Zhou also had a little selfish motive. He hoped that the local specialties he brought from home "from afar" could let his daughter's employees feel the kindness of their family.
"Eat, eat," the security guard said, his head held high and waving his hands with full energy. "Enjoy yourselves, I'm going to go on patrol..."
"Click!" Zhou Xiao, who was passing by, raised the camera in his hand and froze the scene in front of him at this moment.
The architecturally designed building, at this moment, is imbued with a touch of everyday life. The open windowsill on the second floor suggest a gentler life hidden beneath a modern, minimalist aesthetic. The two people interacting within the frame inadvertently become the highlight of this photo.
…
Plans can never keep up with changes. For example, Zhou Xiao was planning to take his parents to Shanghai for a good time yesterday, but when he mentioned it today, he didn't expect to be directly rejected by the two of them.
"Shanghai, I've been to that radio and television tower with your father before." Ms. Zheng leaned on the sofa and watched short videos. She was now as relaxed as she was at home.
"Later, the two of us are going to take a good look around your photography base. By the way, Xiao, please find me a camera before you go out today." Zhou's father, who was originally standing outside on the balcony breathing fresh air, immediately agreed when he heard the voice in the room.
Zhou Xiao patted his head. It was indeed a mistake. He had always thought that since he and his parents finally came to Shanghai together, he should take them out to play, but he forgot that they had traveled quite a lot.
Otherwise, where did the photo albums in her study back home, stacked up to her waist, come from? They were all taken by Zhou's father with his "battlefield-hardened" camera.
But speaking of cameras… Zhou Xiao thought for a moment, then said, “Comrade Zhou, do you want to go pick one out yourself?”
…
In a room on the fourth floor of the photography building, this was the only room in the entire building with two locks. When Zhou Xiao turned on the lights in the room, he saw rows of neatly stacked photography equipment.
The room isn't big, but the equipment inside is enough to make any performance-conscious photographer go crazy. And there's even a second set of equipment in front of me.
This was Zhou Xiao's system reward for winning the "ZYQ" grand prize. She had tried all the props in the set, but when it came to feel and adaptability, the camera in the beginner's gift pack was more comfortable.
For Zhou Xiao, any camera would work. But for Zhou's father, this room was undoubtedly a paradise for amateur photographers! "People who are good at photography but have a strong addiction to it" is exactly what they are like.
Just as the two of them had released Zhou Xiao, Lao Zhou, who had come with them to the equipment room, also released Ms. Zheng's pigeon. Who wouldn't say this is also a kind of inheritance?
…
The next day, Shanghai Administrative Service Center.
Because Zhou's father had been obsessed with the equipment the day before, Zhou Xiao had taken to following Ms. Zheng's steps around the base with his camera, snapping photos. Therefore, he had moved the time to get the business license to this time.
In the hall, Zhou Xiao, who was sitting on a high stool, stretched out his hand. After taking the ID card handed back by the staff, he carefully put it back into his bag, and then waited for the other party to search for the business license.
"Hello, this is the business license, please keep it carefully!" The staff at the counter handed the business license to Zhou Xiao quickly, and then stretched out his hand to signal the next number to come over.
The administrative service center has a considerable flow of people every day. When Zhou Xiao came to get his business license, he waited in line for about ten minutes, but this was actually quite efficient.
"Hello, please make room for the person behind you." Seeing that Zhou Xiao had not left after taking the business license, the staff member waved to the next person to come over and reminded him again.
"Okay... okay." Zhou Xiao, realizing something, immediately stood up and took out the document holder he had prepared in advance from his bag. After putting his ID in, he walked towards the restroom around the corner with a clear goal in mind.
Just now, the moment Zhou Xiao took the business license, the system's electronic prompt sounded -
[Ding! Detected the host's branch quest has been launched. Congratulations to the host for establishing a photography studio. Reward: 2 million yuan in system funds.]
It's just setting up a studio, so why is the system so generous now? Zhou Xiao looked at the system task page over and over again, but no matter how hard he looked, the panel only had a support task that he had just received two days ago.
Thinking she couldn't see anything further, Zhou Xiao pushed open the restroom door and was about to leave when she saw a girl standing in front of her looking at her with a troubled expression. It wasn't until she left the administrative building that she realized what she was worried about.
Zhou Xiao was a bit amused. She hadn't used the toilet, so naturally she hadn't pressed the flush button. It seemed like the girl had ended up going into the restroom after all? This should clear her name, right?
"Ding-ling-ling" the cell phone in his pocket suddenly rang. Zhou Xiao took it out and looked at it, then he subconsciously raised his eyebrows. Did he catch up?
"BOSS~" As soon as the call was connected, Shu Nan's sweet voice came over from the other end of the line, "I called you on my first call after returning to China. Am I very dedicated~"
"You are very dedicated and I am very touched. Now that you have returned to China, remember to come early tomorrow to sign the contract," Zhou Xiao said jokingly with a smile on his face.
Zhou Xiao's preparations for the opening of her photography studio were simple. Since a new project wouldn't start shooting for several days, she didn't require everyone to be on duty the next day.
Shu Nan was very enthusiastic when she learned that the studio was about to open. She wanted to attend the opening, but unfortunately, the weather in her area had been bad in the past two days, so she might not be able to return home on time.
"Don't worry! I'll be the first one there tomorrow!" Shu Nan's tone sounded extremely confident. But she definitely wouldn't be the first one, because there was already an employee at the base who arrived earlier than her.
…
When Zhou Xiao returned to the base with his business license, he saw several flower baskets neatly arranged around the gate. Ms. Zheng, arranging the flowers in the baskets, was like a diligent bee plucking flowers from a blanket of green leaves.
She was holding a pair of scissors in her hand, trimming some small flowers that were not blooming well to ensure the neatness and beauty of the flower basket. She looked particularly busy.
Next to Ms. Zheng was Xue Xi, holding a watering can. Like Ms. Zheng, she was also sifting through the flower baskets, but she was checking to see if the soil inside was absorbing enough water to prolong their blooming period.
"Ms. Zheng Jinghua, isn't this too grand?" Looking at the message on the flower basket, Zhou Xiao couldn't help but reach out and hug his mother.
——"Come on, Jinzhu! May your dreams come true and may you reap happiness and success!"
The row of flower baskets looked particularly festive, but there wasn't a trace of the usual "Da Mai" (big sales) brand. Zhou Xiao understood that while her parents were happy for her to start her own business, they didn't want her to overwork. Therefore, both the flowers in the baskets and the words of blessing conveyed their deep love and care for her.
"As for the studio, we can't just set it up that easily. We need to have a good start," Ms. Zheng hugged Zhou Xiao back and said to her with a smile.
Zhou Xiao now understood that Lao Zhou's preoccupation with his photography equipment and his decision to stand up Ms. Zheng yesterday was fake; the real reason was to go to the flower shop and order a flower basket for her. No wonder neither of them wanted to go with her when she went to get her business license today.
"Yeah." After listening to Ms. Zheng's words, Zhou Xiao had no other opinions and obediently set the opening time for tomorrow morning to 8:18 a.m. Well, it was originally set at 8 a.m. sharp.
Just when Zhou Xiao was about to continue sticking around, the truck coming towards them from a distance turned on its double flashes and then slowly stopped in front of the three of them.
After the vehicle came to a complete stop, the three of them saw clearly that it was actually a professional flower basket transporter. Zhou Xiao suddenly had a terrifying thought in his mind: Could this be another order from Old Zhou?
In a flash, Zhou Xiao quickly turned to look at his mother. Seeing her expression of confusion, he finally breathed a sigh of relief. The family's financial power rested with his mother, so it definitely wasn't Old Zhou who ordered it.
Zhou Xiao was just wondering if the person was asking for directions or seeking help because their car had broken down when the passenger window opened with a click. A woman with a gloomy face poked her head out and said in half-standard Mandarin, "Is this the Zhou Xiao Photography Studio?"
"Yes! This is Zhou Xiao's studio!" Xue Xi put down the shower head in his hand, subconsciously raised his hand and replied loudly to the woman.
"That's right, Lao Wang, get ready to unload the goods!" The woman retracted her head, then opened the car door and jumped down nimbly.
Feeling his arm tighten, Zhou Xiao immediately reached out and shook it back. After comforting Ms. Zheng, he said to the tall woman, "Could you please let me see your order?"
The specifications of this flower basket car are really large. If the woman hadn't heard "Zhou Xiao Studio" from her mouth, people would have believed that it was the grand opening of a star-rated hotel.
The woman seemed prepared. Her rough hands pulled out an order from the small black bag tucked into her waist and handed it to Zhou Xiao. Then she left and unloaded the flower baskets from the truck with the man driving.
It was then that the three of them realized there were two workers inside the flower baskets, presumably protecting them along the way. Indeed, even though they were being transported in a dedicated vehicle, only two people were definitely not enough to protect and load the baskets.
Zhou Xiao unfolded the order sheet and was stunned. This truckload of flower baskets had been sent in the name of Xincheng. However, the order sheet listed the number of flower baskets each person was to donate.
"Xincheng 10, Ji Shao 20, Chen Si 6..." Except for Xincheng and Ji Shao, the others are all artists that Zhou Xiao has photographed before.
The three of them were still gathered together looking at the list when they heard a horn honking louder and louder. Zhou Xiao looked up and saw a relatively small truck driving in front of the flower basket car and then stopping.
However, this time Zhou Xiao didn't need to ask the workers for an order, because the unique XS big logo and the familiar perfume scent on the flower basket already told everyone who sent the flower basket.
XZC magazine had also collaborated with XS, and there was even a half-full bottle of XS perfume in the director's office. Xue Xi's eyes wandered between the two cars, then fixed on the brand's flower basket.
It's not uncommon for agencies and celebrities to show their affection to their photographers by sending them flower baskets. However, Xue Xi rarely sees brands doing this. What is certain is that the other party must really love photographer Zhou Xiao.
But what no one expected was that the flower basket truck that arrived at the photography base was just the beginning.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
