Since the other party was so hospitable, Xu Qian naturally wouldn't refuse. Besides, he himself was quite eager to try it. The dishes looked a bit like those from Hunan, and the taste... was about the same, just a little bit weaker.
Overall, he still prefers the Sichuan flavor, hehe.
The two ate and talked, without any of the usual taboos about not speaking while eating. The conversation eventually turned to the lifestyle variety show that Xu Qian had decided to participate in.
“That program is pretty good; it lets you sleep for eight hours.” Sheng Huai emphasized ‘eight hours,’ clearly indicating his dissatisfaction with his current rest time.
"You've been there before, is there anything else you should be aware of?" Xu Qian became interested. It was his first time recording a program, and now that someone had been there, he could learn from their experience.
Sheng Huai ate a piece of green pepper and pork ribs, put down his chopsticks, and laughed, "Don't worry, with your skills, you won't be neglected."
Xu Qian was taken aback. Would he still be ignored if he appeared on the show?
Perhaps his gaze was too obvious, Sheng Huai sorted out his thoughts and continued his explanation, "People's hearts are always biased, and so are viewership numbers. The shows that air are all interesting; uninteresting content will naturally be discarded. Oh, of course, if you're a big enough celebrity to get views just by standing there, then you can ignore all of the above. (laughs) But for newcomers, including you, you need to be more active when you participate in show recordings. The hosts at Sanjiang TV are all seasoned veterans. At first, they'll throw jokes at you indiscriminately, but whether you can catch them or not depends on yourself."
Xu Qian thought about it for a while and felt that it made a lot of sense. It's very common for people to be promoted in this industry, but whether they can actually succeed is another matter.
After dinner, Sheng Huai took Xu Qian to play billiards. The two stayed at the club until almost 10 p.m. before letting Xu Qian go home.
"Everyone online says you have an old-fashioned cadre vibe. Someone who wants to go home to sleep at ten o'clock really does seem like it. Aren't you twenty-five? How come you live like you're fifty-two?" Sheng Huai couldn't help but complain.
Xu Qian's response was very calm: "Going to bed early and getting up early is good for your health, and it also helps you live longer."
"..." Sheng Huai was speechless, so he just gave him a thumbs up!
Seeing that it was almost time, the two got into their respective cars, unaware that another car was following behind them.
Then……
The next day, Xu Qian was trending on social media again after brushing his teeth, because he had dinner and played billiards with Sheng Huai the night before.
[Huai Ge's inevitable path to finding a partner: billiards! It's finally here!]
[I've been waiting for this for a whole month~ It finally appeared!]
Cherish everyone who's willing to play pool with their brother!
[Old Xu's smile is so incredibly gentle! I could totally handle it!]
Xu Qian noticed the high frequency of "billiards" in the search results and searched for the keywords "Sheng Huai + billiards". He then discovered that Sheng Huai, who had been teaching him with such enthusiasm yesterday, was actually a complete novice.
So what exactly did I do yesterday?! Xu Qian was caught in a deep internal struggle.
Fortunately, Yan Lang came to pick him up for work soon, otherwise Xu Qian would have become even more suspicious of himself.
The film studio was as busy as ever. Xu Qian wasn't the earliest, but he wasn't the latest either. It was only 10 a.m., and there was still a while before filming started at 1 p.m.
The morning's performance was for the two main actors. After this morning, these two will have to rush off to other business. They are truly the busiest of the busiest people.
He then spent some time spacing out on set until the makeup artist called out to Xu Qian, indicating that it was his turn.
Xu Qian then sat down, sleeves twirling. Just putting on the wig took a long time; the process for period dramas was indeed more complicated. In comparison, Xu Qian suddenly became interested in the modern campus drama that Director Chen had mentioned. It would be his first modern drama, and he was actually quite excited about it.
...
At midnight, the assistant director announced that filming for the 'Zhao Kingdom Chapter' had wrapped up for the day, but they still had to get up early the next day, and several of the actors were required to arrive on set by 4 a.m.
There weren't any complaints at the scene, but behind the scenes, some people were definitely going to start whispering.
For their "Zhao Kingdom" episodes, apart from the first few difficult scenes which were personally directed by Director Zhang, the rest were handled by the assistant director. It's not that the actors complained about the assistant director's work, it's just that the difference... you know! But the actors also understand that a supporting role is sometimes just a supporting role. If you want to enjoy the treatment of a lead actor, you have to climb to the position of a lead actor first.
Xu Qian didn't think too much about it. To him, whether the film was good or bad made little difference. He just needed to do his job well, and he couldn't interfere with anything else.
Because he had to get up early the next day, Xu Qian didn't go home and stayed at the hotel arranged by the film crew for another night.
Xu Qian, who was busy going back to the hotel to take a shower, ran into a group of girls at the door. When they saw Xu Qian, they ran away as fast as they could, holding up their notebooks.
"Old Xu, time to get off work?"
"You must be tired from work~"
Xu Qian paused for only a second, then reached out and took the notebooks from their hands. While signing them, he said to them, "What are you all doing here at this hour? You're all young girls, it's safer to stay at home so late at night. Go home quickly."
"We're all together, it's okay, you should get some rest too~" One of the short-haired girls giggled, and that girl was so sweet~
"Alright, go back now," Xu Qian said, turning to Yan Lang beside him. "You've gone to the trouble of seeing them off to their car and making a note of the license plate number."
Yan Lang nodded.
The group of girls jumped around excitedly, just like a bunch of little rabbits.
After they left, Xu Qian turned and went into the hotel.
After a while, Yan Lang also came up, bringing Xu Qian some small gifts. They were from the group of girls earlier: cookies they had baked themselves, and a few letters.
In principle, Yan Lang shouldn't accept food from fans. These kinds of food pose many risks, and what if the celebrity gets sick from eating them? But Yan Lang also understands that he can't make this decision on his own; he should at least inform Xu Qian first.
Xu Qian is someone who listens to advice, but he certainly doesn't have as much experience as Yan Lang in this kind of matter. "You can arrange it as you see fit, but you can accept the letter, right?"
Yan Lang was very satisfied. "Of course you can trust me!"
"Okay, you arrange it. I'm going to take a shower."
While Xu Qian was taking a shower, Yan Lang took several photos of the gifts and letters from fans from various angles and under different lighting conditions. As a straight man with an artistic side, taking photos is a skill he absolutely must master!
A while later, Xu Qian came out after taking a shower. Looking at the photos Yan Lang had sent him, he didn't think much of it, picked two to post on his Weibo account, added a "thank you" message, and then yawned before going to bed.
...
At 3:10 a.m., Yan Lang knocked on Xu Qian's bedroom door, but there was a quick response.
"Let's have soy milk and fried dough sticks for breakfast. It feels like it's been ages since I've had any." Xu Qian's first words upon opening the door were about breakfast. This is the consequence of not eating late-night snacks—you wake up starving.
Yan Lang looked at the other person's face, which was not puffy at all, and smiled like a father. He had to admit that seeing such a face so early in the morning was a real treat. "It's fine, but it's still quite cold outside today. Why don't you put on a jacket? So you don't catch a cold."
Xu Qian didn't seem to mind, but he figured, "If it's going to be added, so be it." He nodded and said, "I'll go get one."
The two had changed their clothes and were walking downstairs when they heard a commotion at the door, such as "Old Xu is coming out" and "Wake up, don't sleep!"
Xu Qian glanced at the time subconsciously. It was only 3:15. What was going on? Didn't they sleep?
"Old Xu! You're going to work so early?"
"Have you had breakfast? You should eat breakfast before going to work!"
Good morning!
Xu Qian glanced at them. There were not only girls but also a boy in the group. They all looked quite young. Thinking of this, he sighed, "Didn't any of you go home to sleep? Did you stay out all night?"
We wanted to wait for you!
"Pen'er will always love you!"
"It's okay! I'm not sleepy at all! Seeing you is enough!"
Xu Qian was both amused and exasperated. Although he was touched, he knew this behavior was inappropriate. "Don't wait next time. I'm serious. Your family will worry about you. Go home and rest now."
"It's the weekend today, so we don't have to go to school," a girl said sweetly.
"That won't do either. It's too dangerous for you to come out on your own. Let's let it go this time, but there won't be a next time." Xu Qian's expression turned very serious.
"But you never post on Weibo, so we can't see you even if we want to," the girl who had been acting coquettishly muttered, sounding somewhat resentful.
"..." Xu Qian coughed and said awkwardly, "What's so interesting about an old man?"
"Bullshit, you're not an old man!" The only boy suddenly spoke up, his voice so loud it completely drowned out the others. But the moment Xu Qian looked over, he immediately blushed, extremely embarrassed.
Xu Qian broke down in laughter; they were such a bunch of clowns. "Are you all hungry? I'll treat you to breakfast. After you eat, go home obediently, okay?"
The boys and girls blushed and nodded, perhaps because of the other person's smile, or perhaps because of the gentleness in their words.
The area around the film studio is full of restaurants. Xu Qian went to his usual soy milk and fried dough sticks place. As for his little fans, he asked them their names and preferences. Some didn't like sweets, so he substituted noodles. Others ordered soy milk with a steamed bun.
Upon further inquiry, he learned that the five people were all from the same school, high school sophomores. They had come here on impulse after seeing the photos he posted on Weibo, and unexpectedly, they actually ran into each other.
Xu Qian looked at Yan Lang in silence for a moment, then took out his phone and posted another Weibo post.
Xu Qian V:
I appreciate your kind offer to pick me up and drop me off at get off work (laughs), but your health is the most important thing. Please don't stay up late! Please don't stay up late! Please don't stay up late!
Photoshop again, I'll definitely be back next time!
[Next time for sure = indefinite extension]
[←_← Look what I found!]
[What happened? What's going on?]
[Hmm? Have you ever been open for business? I have absolutely no recollection of it.]
[I'm so jealous after watching the whole thing! I want Xu Jinglei's autograph too!]
[I'm going to Weicheng on a business trip next week, so I'm cautiously trying to bump into someone...]
Xu Qian only replied to the first comment, solemnly stating that "next time will definitely not be an 'indefinite postponement'," before logging off Weibo.
After breakfast, Xu Qian asked Yan Lang to watch the children get on the bus, while he went into the film studio first, as it was less than 4:20 and they were in a bit of a rush.
Busy with work, he had no idea that his Weibo post had suddenly become popular again.
Author's note: The third update will still be at 6 PM or 9 PM.
P.S., thanks for the landmine!
***
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