The next morning, Gao Shi received a call from a talent scout, who sounded extremely eager, as if he wanted to crawl through the phone line.
Under Gao Gusheng’s gaze, as if watching Tang Seng enter the Spider Cave, Gao Shi set off.
Li Mochen was indeed quite capable, at least in terms of strict management of his artists. After the criminal police caught two tainted artists, they found nothing else.
But Gao Shi didn’t believe Li Mochen’s hands were really that clean.
The meeting place this time was a beef jerky commercial shooting studio.
Today, Gao Shi was still dressed simply, in a black shirt and trousers, his shirt tucked in, looking exactly like the kind of outfit middle-aged men prefer.
But Gao Shi’s body proportions were excellent—broad shoulders, long legs, a three-finger-wide belt cinching a lean, strong waist. As he walked step by step, it was like stepping on the talent scout’s heart, turning a middle-aged man’s three-piece suit into an international brand.
The talent scout felt dizzy and overwhelmed, secretly determined to sign this man.
Not to mention, just this figure and aura made him a natural clothes hanger, sure to get plenty of men’s fashion ads.
He smiled obsequiously, “Mr. Gao, shall we go?”
The star of this commercial was the recently popular Pipi Baby.
Pipi Baby was an eight-year-old boy, inheriting the best features of his parents. His skin was white and delicate, his eyes big and watery, with long, curled eyelashes—like a living doll.
Pipi’s rise to fame began when his mother filmed a video of him squatting in their garden pulling up radishes. At five years old, the boy pulled hard like a little rabbit, but instead of pulling up the radishes, he pulled off the leaves and fell on his bottom.
The child looked at the radish leaves in his hand, then at the bald radish, his confused expression captured and turned into a meme that spread wildly. From then on, this cute and polite little boy entered everyone’s view, gaining a large fanbase of moms and older sisters.
Later, he was signed by Wanxing, and three years on, he was even more popular.
It’s no exaggeration to say that any parent who likes kids would soften their attitude upon seeing Pipi Baby.
The talent scout also brought Gao Shi to see Pipi Baby because he seemed to be quite fond of children.
Moreover, Pipi Baby’s co-star was the national sweetheart She Tingxie@@@@idk Her appearance at the commercial shoot in the following scene is inconsistent with her legal status as described earlier. This is a plot inconsistency or timeline issue in the text.]]], who was gentle, beautiful, and elegant—every man’s first love. The talent scout didn’t believe Gao Shi wouldn’t be moved.
…
When they arrived at the studio, the commercial was already being shot. Pipi Baby was eating beef jerky, his big eyes curved into two furry crescent moons as he recited the lines, “I want to eat mom’s dried beef every day.”
She Tingxie bent down, smiling softly, “Baby…”
“Cut!”
The director walked over, “Miss She, please note, you’re playing Pipi’s mother, not his sister.”
The director frowned.
He thought to himself that this was Wanxing’s top star, and with a child nearby, he didn’t say anything harsh, but inside he had already cursed a thousand times.
Miss She always looked so affectionate no matter who she acted with. It was one thing with adult men, but with a child, it looked like she was flirting with her own man!
The director was very frustrated. He wasn’t a perfectionist and didn’t take commercials too seriously. After all, with two popular stars, the product would sell well just on looks. But there were limits.
If this clip got out, people would think it was a scandal.
Fortunately, She Tingxie’s acting wasn’t great, but her attitude was okay. She apologized and said she’d try to get into the role. The commercial was short, and they had the whole day, so there was no rush.
She Tingxie left, and Pipi Baby jumped down from the sofa.
Pipi Baby was already eight, but looked only six or seven. His limbs were slender, cheeks chubby with baby fat, making him look even more like a doll.
The talent scout hadn’t expected a cut so soon, but he had anticipated it. The She Tingxie and Pipi Baby combo wouldn’t get the director too angry.
The talent scout pointed to Pipi Baby walking toward his parents. “Mr. Gao, your job probably keeps you away a lot. Kids need their fathers. If you and your son both enter the entertainment industry…”
Gao Shi interrupted, “I won’t enter the entertainment industry.”
The talent scout was rejected twice in a row but still didn’t give up. He switched tactics, saying, “Alright, even if you don’t enter the entertainment industry yourself, you can still consider your son’s future.”
“Look at our filming environment—it’s all very professional. We even have teaching instructors…”
Gao Shi glanced around the set as the scout enthusiastically introduced everything. He responded half-heartedly, and in the end, the scout dropped all pretense: “You could be like Pipi’s parents and become your son’s manager. That way, you wouldn’t have to worry about any unspoken rules in the industry.”
As for whether a parent could resist temptation and stay true to themselves as a manager, that was none of their business.
Gao Shi just gave a noncommittal “hmm,” making it impossible to tell if he was listening or not.
She Tingxie, having adjusted her state, came back to shoot a few more takes with Pipi, but every time, something went wrong—either her emotions weren’t right, or she forgot her lines. On the last take, she finally managed to act more motherly, but just as she spoke, Pipi, eating beef jerky, accidentally sprayed it all over her face.
She Tingxie’s expression instantly froze.
The assistant hurried over with a handkerchief, the director called “cut,” and Pipi’s parents quickly gathered around She Tingxie. Pipi realized he’d done something wrong and stood there, at a loss, nervously picking at his pants.
Pipi’s mom yanked him over and smacked him on the back with a loud “pop.” “Hurry up and apologize to the lady!”
Pipi stumbled from the hit, looked at his mom, then at She Tingxie, and said softly, “Sorry, big sister, I didn’t mean to.”
She Tingxie forced a smile. “It’s okay, you’re just a child.”
“I’ll go fix my makeup.”
Everyone on set dispersed. Gao Shi stood up as well. The talent scout looked at him hopefully, only to hear Gao Shi ask, “Excuse me, where’s the restroom?”
Gao Shi walked off toward the restroom under the disappointed gaze of the scout, but he was actually thinking about the way Pipi’s mom had smacked him and frowned slightly.
Instead of heading to the restroom, Gao Shi walked in the direction Pipi’s family had gone. Not far away, in a quiet corner, he heard Pipi’s tearful voice.
“Daddy, Mommy, please don’t fight…”
Though the parents tried to keep their voices down, their argument was still harsh to the ear.
“How can you call yourself a mother, huh?!”
“How could you tell Pipi to call Miss She ‘auntie’ at her age? Are you teaching him to apologize or to make enemies?!”
“It’s just a title, it’s not that serious!”
“She’s twenty-six or twenty-seven, Pipi’s only eight—how could you let him call her ‘big sister’?”
“So he should call her ‘auntie’? Look at yourself, all wrinkled—why don’t you ask yourself if you’re embarrassed to be in the same generation as her!”
“Why should I be embarrassed? I’m just in my early thirties!”
“You should try dressing up a bit. You look over forty!”
“Pah! You shameless old thing! Are you interested in that little vixen?!”
“What nonsense are you talking?!”
The argument grew louder and louder, finally ending with the man losing. He then turned his anger on his son. “Pipi, what’s wrong with you today?”
Pipi sobbed, “Daddy, I don’t want to film anymore.”
From Gao Shi’s angle, he could see Pipi open his mouth to show his parents, “The beef jerky is so hard, my teeth hurt, my mouth hurts, my tongue hurts too…”
In the commercial, Pipi had to eat a whole stick of beef jerky.
For a child his size, it was a lot—and because of She Tingxie’s repeated retakes, Pipi had eaten seven or eight packs that morning, his belly bulging.
Hearing Pipi say he didn’t want to film anymore, both parents turned on him together. “Why don’t you want to film, huh?”
Pipi’s dad seemed very dissatisfied with his “fragility.” “It’s just a little sore in your mouth. If you can’t handle this, what will you do in society? Suffering a little now will earn you enough money to last a lifetime!”
Pipi’s mom’s face darkened. “You planned this, didn’t you? You didn’t swallow on purpose, you sprayed that little vixen on purpose, just so you wouldn’t have to film, right?!”
Pipi anxiously protested, “No, Mom, I didn’t. I’m just too full, I can’t eat anymore, I feel sick.”
He quickly lifted his shirt, revealing his round, distended belly.
Gao Shi’s eyes narrowed—there were scars crisscrossing that little belly, old wounds overlapping new. It was hard to believe this was a child’s skin.
Gao Shi’s anger flared.
Pipi’s mom seemed to ignore the scars, cursing as she smacked his back. “If you’d done your job, I wouldn’t have had to humble myself and apologize to that little vixen!”
Pipi’s dad wanted to say something but closed his mouth, then turned to Pipi. “We raised you this big, you need to earn money and be filial to your parents, understand? If you say you don’t want to film, does that mean you don’t love us anymore?”
He crouched down and gently patted the spot Pipi’s mom had just hit. Pipi seemed to rely on this embrace, anxiously trying to explain, “Pipi loves Daddy and Mommy, I’ll film lots of commercials to be filial.”
Pipi’s mom crouched down and poked his forehead. “Remember, without us, you wouldn’t have the good life you have now.”
Pipi nodded quickly, resting his head on his mom’s shoulder in his dad’s arms, like a content little bird.
“I’ll remember.”
Pipi’s parents each took one of his hands and walked away together, restoring their “family harmony.” To outsiders, they’d look like a loving family.
No one mentioned Pipi’s sore mouth or his bloated belly again.
It was as if they’d all forgotten.
And Pipi forgot, too.
＊＊＊
She Tingxie was raging in the lounge.
She couldn’t imagine being sprayed in the face with disgusting beef jerky crumbs mixed with saliva.
“So disgusting, why doesn’t that brat just die!”
“He definitely did it on purpose!”
“Damn, that brat’s mouth was injured, there was even blood, disgusting!”
“I’m only twenty-six, and the company actually has me playing the mother of an eight-year-old brat??”
“That bitch Bai Shi! If it weren’t for her, I wouldn’t have to lay low and lose so many endorsements because of her.”
“That director only knows how to cause trouble, always cutting me!”
She Tingxie cursed viciously, harping on Pipi’s mistake again and again, completely ignoring how many times she herself had messed up before.
She cursed for a long time before finally stopping, taking a sip of coffee and setting it down.
The assistant quietly breathed a sigh of relief.
This commercial had taken a whole day to shoot.
After parting ways with the talent scout, Gao Shi turned his car around and returned to the building, waiting patiently in the car.
After a while, Pipi’s family came out, seemingly looking for something they’d lost. The two adults started blaming each other again, eventually dragging each other back through the main entrance, completely ignoring Pipi, who was still outside.
Gao Shi looked at Pipi standing all alone at the door and rolled down the car window.
##
I’m about to beat some parents black and blue.