Chapter 70
It wasn't that Hu Zhenzhen deliberately tormented Director Lu.
She simply took advantage of a time difference and used that tone to deliver the task assigned by the film crew.
The production team originally planned for Lu Ye and Lei Tao to go together, but after Hu Zhenzhen said that, the production team naturally turned the fishing trip into a trip for Lu Ye alone.
A variety show should have at least ten episodes.
In Chairman Feng's original plan, there were twelve phases, but Hu Zhenzhen felt that was too many and cut two phases.
The actors weren't present throughout the entire ten episodes.
Some of them had to leave early to go to the film set, while others had to go to acting classes; they would stay for about three days in total.
After that, the newly established music company will have to take over the production of the group's variety show.
Before the group's variety show officially aired, Hu Zhenzhen planned to select two musicians from among them and produce an album for them.
At least it will generate some brand awareness, so that the later ratings won't be too bad.
Otherwise, that guy Feng Yang will call her again.
Hu Zhenzhen only stayed there for one day, and went home early the next afternoon.
Hu Zhenzhen returned to S City at the perfect time and even picked up Jiang Chen on the way.
She specially dug up a small flower from the location where the program crew filmed and brought it back as a gift for Jiang Chen.
Since the school's plant-raising activities, Jiang Chen has developed a great interest in growing plants. Hu Zhenzhen's garden is tended by a gardener, and seeing Jiang Chen's interest, she specially asked the gardener to set aside a small plot of land.
That small plot of land, only the size of a coffee table, was specially reserved for Jiang Chen.
He has planted one tomato plant, one chili pepper plant, and a rose that Hu Zhenzhen specially bought for him.
Children don't care how beautiful the flowers are; they are just happy as long as what they plant blossoms and bears fruit.
Jiang Chen looked a little down when he came out of school, but he cheered up as soon as he saw Hu Zhenzhen in the car.
"Mom, you're back!"
Hu Zhenzhen took out the small flowerpot she had hidden behind her back.
"Ta-da! Look what gift I brought you, Xiao Chen!"
Before Jiang Chen could even take it, he hugged Hu Zhenzhen first, saying, "Thank you, Mom."
It seems Xiao Chen missed her after being away on a business trip for a day.
With a smile on her lips, Hu Zhenzhen first put down the flowers, hugged Jiang Chen for a while, and then took out another gift.
It is a small crystal bear, only the size of a child's palm.
Hu Zhenzhen saw it in Mr. Ji's new product design and specially asked them to reserve one and send it over.
The crystal bear is small enough to fit perfectly on a schoolbag.
Jiang Chen was overjoyed and forgot all about what had happened at school during the day.
Celebrities are often embroiled in controversy. After Hu Zhenzhen gained fame, many students, parents, and even teachers at the school talked about her.
In this situation, Jiang Chen was naturally brought up as well.
Fortunately, he had his own friends at school, and Jiang Chen could usually see through the intentions of those who approached him afterward, so he was unwilling to get close to them.
In the same class, Wang Hao and Xu Jiayi were his best friends.
After moving up to the third grade, they changed classes. Wang Hao was assigned to another class, while Xu Jiayi and Quan Shiqian were assigned to the same class as Jiang Chen.
The original three-person school group didn't disband; it's just that Wang Hao and Xu Bo both showed up during breaks.
In addition, there's Tong Shuai, who comes over to play from time to time.
One big kid led five other kids, forming a small circle of friends on campus.
Thanks to their presence, Jiang Chen, whose height hadn't caught up yet, was never bullied.
Being a child who receives a lot of attention is never easy.
Even if you do nothing, you will still attract some unwarranted hostility.
Jiang Chen recently encountered a small problem.
Strictly speaking, it should be called idle gossip.
Elementary school students' lives are very simple, and children are also very simple. But as they get older and gradually become more sensible, their thoughts become more and more complicated.
In the past two days, some older students have been frequently seen loitering outside Class 1, Grade 3.
They didn't intend to do anything to Jiang Chen, but the gossip was really annoying.
Jiang Chen knew of several outrageous rumors.
'Hu Zhenzhen will definitely abandon him', 'He lives a life of luxury and has the temper of a young master', 'He only stayed because of money and his actual grades are very poor'.
Jiang Chen's every move seemed to have significance in the eyes of those who were paying attention.
Jiang Chen had tried to understand them.
When rumors circulated that Jiang Chen's grades were very poor, he asked an ordinary classmate if they believed it.
After all, this is the most outrageous of all the rumors.
Schools have their own standards, and Beiguan Elementary School's standard is academic performance. In Jiang Chen's opinion, no one should believe such an outrageous message.
But reality was clearly different from what he had imagined.
That student was clearly influenced by the rumors and believed them to some extent.
From that day on, Jiang Chen understood.
Rumors do need to be carefully considered to avoid being swayed by them.
The saying "three men can make a tiger" applies here; many people's statements are more easily believed.
After learning this, he took the initiative to find the person who had been spreading this statement and confronted that classmate face to face.
Things unfolded exactly as Jiang Chen had predicted.
Beiguan Elementary School is well-managed; there are no delinquent students, and fights between boys are not common.
When Jiang Chen said he was going to find someone to explain, Tong Shuai was worried and insisted on going with him. The classmate who spread the rumors was even shorter than Jiang Chen, and when he was found, he was terrified.
"Jiang, I really didn't mean it. I didn't say it first; someone else told me, and that's why I thought that way."
Jiang Chen only said one sentence, and the other party was busy explaining.
"Student, our school has academic requirements, and I met them when I enrolled. I'm not like the person in the rumors who can't even read. I hope you won't spread these kinds of things anymore."
Jiang Chen spoke very frankly.
In addition, he rarely smiled at school, and his mouth always turned down when facing strangers. When that classmate saw this, he subconsciously thought that he was angry and apologized repeatedly.
"I'm sorry, Jiang, I really didn't mean to."
"I promise I will never say such things again. I will help you learn and explain to the other classmates. I hope you can forgive me."
The reason he apologized so readily was not only because Jiang Chen personally sought him out, but also because of Hu Zhenzhen.
Even children can subconsciously categorize people.
Hu Zhenzhen's name was so well-known, and many parents had mentioned her name at home, so the children subconsciously knew that Jiang Chen's mother was a formidable person.
Their thoughts are not so complicated.
Just like not wanting to get caught playing with toys by the head teacher, it was simply that she didn't want Hu Zhenzhen, that formidable person, to find out about this.
After dispelling this rumor.
Jiang Chen's campus life became much quieter, and for a while, the voices talking about him behind his back seemed to disappear.
But recently, this sentiment has resurfaced.
Unlike last time, this time the rumors are not offensive on the surface, and they all seem to be on Jiang Chen's side, with voices that are thinking of him.
"Jiang Chen, I heard your mother is away on a business trip. Will she be coming back?"
It's just a business trip, why won't you come back?
When Jiang Chen first heard about this problem, he couldn't understand their line of thinking at all.
"I will be back, I'll be back the day after tomorrow."
At first, Jiang Chen would patiently explain.
But later, as other people spread the rumors, they seemed to go further and further astray, claiming that Hu Zhenzhen no longer cared about him and had left him to fend for himself.
Many classmates even came to comfort him.
"Jiang Chen is fine. I'd rather my parents didn't care about me. I'm so free."
"Yeah, can we come to your place and play video games together? I don't want to go home today!"
Jiang Chen calmly declined their offer.
"I'm sorry, that rumor is false. My mother is very strict with me."
To dispel the rumors, Jiang Chen simply said this.
Jiang Chen only figured out what was going on before Hu Zhenzhen returned today.
It turns out there was a precedent before this.
A sixth-grade student's parents got divorced. His mother said she was away on a business trip, but she never came back.
I don't know who brought this up and connected it to Jiang Chen.
Gradually, the rumor spread that he was going to be abandoned.
Jiang Chen felt somewhat helpless.
This time, the gaze directed at him turned into sympathy and pity, but unfortunately, Jiang Chen didn't need either of these emotions.
He tried to explain, but it was clearly no use.
It seems we can only clarify this rumor once Hu Zhenzhen returns.
Jiang Chen now understands how those celebrities feel.
During the previous summer vacation, when he went to the film crew to play the young emperor, he heard many actors talk about similar troubles.
Jiang Chen understood half of it at the time, but felt that when faced with rumors, it was essential to explain as soon as possible.
Today he finally understood that kind of helplessness.
Even if you explain something, no one will believe it for a while.
Jiang Chen's mood only improved when he saw Hu Zhenzhen at the school gate.
The crystal bear his mother gave him was hanging on his schoolbag, and his gloom from the day vanished instantly.
Before driving home, Jiang Chen specifically mentioned that he wanted to eat the ice cream across from the school gate.
Liu An, who was driving ahead, got out and bought it for him, so the car naturally had to stop at the school gate for a while.
Jiang Chen lowered the car window and glanced around the school gate before finally spotting someone he recognized.
"Xu Bo, do you want to come to my house to play games today?"
It was rare for him to call out to his friends so loudly. Hu Zhenzhen peeked out through the crack in the car window and spoke up for Jiang Chen.
"Little Xu Bo, want to come play?"
Xu Bo was almost in his own car when he was suddenly called back and climbed out of the car again.
"Okay, what game?"
Xu Bo was originally the leader of this group of children.
But he has a bad habit: when playing games, he always likes to linger on his favorite character.
Over time, the children who always played with him inevitably felt wronged.
Xu Bo became increasingly unpopular.
Before meeting Jiang Chen, only Quan Shiqian was willing to hang out with him.
Jiang Chen is sensitive and can sense Quan Shiqian's occasional grievances.
Although he didn't say it, he actually didn't want to keep playing ugly roles.
Jiang Chen didn't say it directly, but suggested that everyone take turns playing the most attractive characters.
He said it no matter what game they were playing, and Xu Bo gradually got used to it, thus correcting this bad habit.
"The newly released Racing Planet!"
Jiang Chen replied, which made Xu Bo even happier.
"Great! I've always wanted to play this!"
He took two steps at a time and ran towards Jiang Chen, not forgetting to say something to the driver.
"Uncle Zhang, you go home now, I'm going to Aunt Hu's house to play!"
Since both families knew each other, the driver felt relatively at ease. He made a phone call to Mrs. Xu and then drove back.
Since Xu Bo is here, we can't just buy one ice cream.
Liu An, who had just returned, had no choice but to turn back again.
"Excuse me, could you please give me another one like this?"
Xu Bo was overjoyed once he got on the bus.
He is an outgoing person and is quite popular at school.
Although I don't have many close friends, I have many classmates with whom I can talk.
Jiang Chen didn't close the car window, and Xu Bo didn't seem to be thinking of closing it either.
Students coming and going naturally saw Xu Bo and Jiang Chen in the same car, and naturally saw Hu Zhenzhen in the car as well.
Some people even came up to greet Xu Bo and asked him what he was doing there.
"I went to Jiang Chen's house to play, and he bought a racing planet!"
This is currently the most popular game among children; it requires a special game disc to play.
Upon hearing this, the classmate was extremely envious.
"Then you have to tell me later if it's really that fun!"
After exchanging a few words, Liu An returned.
After giving the ice cream to the two children, he rolled up the driver's side window.
"Boss, shall we head straight back?"
"Let's just go back."
She glanced at the two children out of the corner of her eye.
With Xu Bo by Jiang Chen's side, Xiao Chen was noticeably happier.
Indeed, children need the company of friends to smile more.
After the two children got home, they stayed together and played games.
Hu Zhenzhen brought them juice once during the trip, without disturbing the two children's private space.
She was out for a day, and while there wasn't much work to be done at the company, there were still some decisions that required Hu Zhenzhen's attention.
Jianghu Film and Television is managed by President Qiu Shaotian, but Jianghu First Line has not yet found a suitable manager and is temporarily being managed by Hu Zhenzhen.
Fortunately, the music company had few employees, and with the help of other staff, it wasn't too troublesome.
Now, Hu Zhenzhen only needs to make one decision: the selection of songs for the album, and the method of promotion and exposure.
The demos were recorded, and Chen Kai arranged them, playing them one by one for Hu Zhenzhen to listen to.
Hu Zhenzhen isn't exactly a professional; she just made her choices based on her own preferences.
Fortunately, these demos were selected and submitted by the company's management, and each one was of good quality.
"When it was the first time that a singer from the industry was promoted to a wider audience, my manager talked to me and asked if I wanted to form a group before promoting them to a wider audience."
"combination?"
These days, you rarely hear about pure music groups like this anymore.
Compared to groups that only make music, idol groups that are visually appealing and can be watched singing and dancing have become the new favorites of the audience.
In this situation, should we still recommend a combination?
"Yes," Chen Kai said, swiping open his tablet and clicking on the video.
Hu Zhenzhen had met all three people in the video before. The girl standing in the middle is Zheng Ling, who can sing folk songs. The two boys next to her are a boy with a nice deep voice and a boy who raps very well.
None of the three of them were initially on the list of the first batch of albums to be released.
After systematic learning, Zheng Ling gradually caught up with the others in the ranking list provided by the teacher, surpassing them and securing the second spot after Su Zhao.
What does Zheng Ling herself think?
Hu Zhenzhen still remembers the scandal that occurred when she signed with a veteran group a year ago. The biggest fear with such multi-person groups is discord and romantic relationships. Compared to developing solo careers, the potential risks in the future are not small.
"The agent said they had already asked her, and she herself is also willing."
Since the three of them hit it off immediately, Hu Zhenzhen saw no need to stop them.
"Let's try out a song first, and then make a final decision based on the results."
The matter has been temporarily settled.
Su Zhao was the most talented among them, so he was on the list of top picks from the beginning.
After signing the contract, he stopped running his original stall.
Having been delayed for four years by the Sound Grain Company, he began to learn with great eagerness as soon as he joined the company.
Vocal lessons, music composition lessons, and physical training lessons.
Su Zhaoquan is willing to learn anything related to the stage and singing.
He spends almost twenty hours a day studying.
It was Hu Zhenzhen who happened to run into him when she went to the company. Seeing how hard he was working, she forced people to rest for ten hours every day.
Things got a little better after that.
The company has a dedicated recording studio and employs professional recording instructors.
After selecting the songs today, the recording engineers can start working.
An album has ten songs. Hu Zhenzhen will choose half of them, and the singer can choose the other half.
The specific song to be used as the title track will depend on the situation after recording.
After all, even the same song will sound completely different when sung by different people.
Hu Zhenzhen's evaluation criteria are very straightforward.
First, whether it sounds good or not; second, whether it's listenable for a long time.
For a song to succeed, it needs the right timing, the right place, and the right people.
"Is Su Zhao ready?"
Following the established order, he will be the first singer to be introduced by a top-tier artist.
"He's in great shape and will be able to go into the studio for his first recording the day after tomorrow."
Chen Kai, who was the company's first singer, was also paying close attention to Hu Zhenzhen's attitude and took the initiative to mention it.
"Is the boss going to the company that day to check on the recording?"
Hu Zhenzhen was genuinely interested in this matter.
She's lived two lives and has never been inside a recording studio.
Hu Zhenzhen was quite keen to go and join in the fun if she had the chance to listen to a singer record live.
"Okay, let's set aside that day and go listen to the recording."
Hu Zhenzhen had just selected a song and finished her work.
The two children, engrossed in their game, crawled out of the room.
"Mom, I want to go out and play with Xu Bo on Saturday!"
"Okay," Hu Zhenzhen readily agreed, "Where do you two want to go?"
"Let's go to Wanfu Shopping Mall, we want to see the giant robot!"
A large robot has been built in Wanfu Square, and many children have recently been going to Wanfu Square to play because of it.
"Okay, then can Xiao Chen take Uncle Liu An with him? He's so pitiful, he's never seen such a big robot before."
As soon as Hu Zhenzhen said that, Chen Kai behind her laughed.
Xu Bo answered even faster than Jiang Chen, "Does Uncle Liu An also like robots? My Uncle Zhang likes them too, and I'll bring him along."
Xu Bo was already used to the rule of bringing people along when going out. Like a little adult, he patted his chest.
"Don't worry, Auntie, I will definitely bring Jiang Chen and the two uncles back safely."
Hu Zhenzhen laughed and ruffled his hair.
"Okay, then I'll leave it to you, Xiao Xu Bo."
When Hu Zhenzhen agreed, she didn't expect that these two little ones could accomplish such a big thing.
The next day was Saturday, and Jiang Chen got ready early to go out with Xu Bo.
Of course, people from two other families followed along.
Jiang Chen's side was represented by Liu An and driver Xiao Wang, while the Xu family sent even more people.
Two children were in one car, each with another person, and the rest of the children got into another car.
This group of people will not follow in large groups; once they enter the square, they will simply circle around to prevent any unforeseen events.
Jiang Chen had been kidnapped by Jiang Lin once, which left him with some trauma, so he didn't resent this kind of protection.
Xu Bo had been used to it since he was a child.
As soon as the two children got out of the car, they held hands and started playing intently, completely unaffected by the adults following them.
Wanfu has reached an agreement with the robot animation company, and has not only erected huge robot models in Wanfu Plazas across the country, but also set up a dedicated robot figurine store.
This is also one of the main purposes of the two of them today.
For today, Jiang Chen took out the coin purse that Hu Zhenzhen had bought for him, something he hadn't done in a long time.
However, unlike last time, Jiang Chen knew that robots weren't cheap, so he carried the card with the money he had deposited in his wallet.
After Hu Zhenzhen said she wasn't sick, Jiang Chen finally relaxed.
It turned out that the card he used to save money for his mother was actually his spare change card at that time.
"Jiang Chen, come quick! There's a dark green Tadam robot here!"
Jiang Chen looked over in the direction Xu Bo was looking and couldn't help but exclaim "Wow!"
The two children each bought one before happily leaving the figurine shop.
When they went in, there were still many people outside, but when they came out after paying their bill, the area outside was empty.
Jiang Chen spotted the old man sitting on the ground at a glance.
Medical personnel nearby were treating her external injuries.
"I really don't need to go to the hospital, it's just a superficial injury."
The ambulance paramedics even brought a stretcher, but the old lady just wouldn't get on.
“My baby is still outside. I’ll rest here for a while and then I can go home by myself. Don’t worry, I will definitely pay the expenses.”
"It's not about money. You can't even stand up. You need to come to the hospital with us for a check-up."
The medical staff patiently offered advice from the sidelines.
Judging from the old woman's clothes, they knew that her refusal to go to the hospital was not because of money, but mostly because of Beibei, whom she mentioned.
“You can come back to pick up Beibei after we’ve finished our check-up at the hospital. Or you can call your family and ask them to come and take Beibei away.”
The medical staff tried to persuade the elderly man for a long time, but they couldn't change his mind.
After listening for a while, Jiang Chen stepped forward and said, "Grandma, is anyone home? I can help you take your pet home."
There are pet storage facilities outside Wanfu Plaza.
The old man raised his head and looked at Jiang Chen and the others behind him.
Now that everyone was gone, Liu An and Xu's driver, surnamed Zhang, suddenly stood out.
Judging from the children's attire and speech, they were clearly well-mannered, and the old man began to waver.
The reason she insisted on not going to the hospital was that she didn't want to entrust Beibei to someone else.
There are few people you can trust these days. If someone with bad intentions sells or abandons Beibei, she will be in even more pain.
So even though her foot was very painful, she refused to go to the hospital, preferring to waste time and insist on taking Beibei home first.
Can we trust these two children?
She was still hesitating.
Jiang Chen understood her hesitation and offered, "Grandma, you can add Uncle Liu on WeChat. We'll send you a video after we take Beibei back."
Only then did the old man agree to believe it.
"Thank you for your hard work, I will pay you."
“Beibei is in box number 80 by the door. This is the key to unlock it.”
The old woman recited her home address, which Liu An wrote down on his phone, and he also left the old woman his phone number.
She was finally relieved and agreed to go to the hospital with the ambulance crew.
Jiang Chen went to the pet boarding point with Xu Bo and found box number 80.
Inside the box was a medium-sized black dog.
Dogs are wary of strangers, especially if a stranger tries to take them away.
Jiang Chen also kept a dog named Wangcai. He originally wanted to open the box directly, but the black dog barked at him, so he quickly moved his hand away.
He looked at Xu Bo, who was already so scared that he hid behind Uncle Zhang.
Jiang Chen then looked at Liu An.
Liu An's eyelids twitched; he knew this was definitely something he would have to do.
"Give me the key, young master. You should stay away from here and go see Uncle Zhang."
After giving his instructions, Liu An took a deep breath and tried his best to keep his cramping calves from shaking.
It's just a dog. Dogs that bite don't bark. This one is barking so loudly, it definitely won't bite!
After comforting himself for a while, he reached out to open the door.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com