Who Needs a CEO? I Choose Stardom

Ni Bingyan sliced the meat into shreds, not daring to say much.

She had outfits for events and costumes on set. Since she rarely took time off, she didn’t have much need for casual clothes. Her principle for buying clothes had always been quality over quantity.

’Classic styles that you can wear for years without them going out of fashion—what a bargain!’

As the shredded meat hit the wok, Ni Guangli sat at the dining table, popping blueberries into his mouth one by one as he brought up a new topic:

”The other day, an auction house sent me a catalog. They’re having a special jewelry auction next month. I took a look, and the diamonds are all high quality. You should come with me to check them out when you’re free. You’re always walking red carpets and attending events. Without some fine jewelry, it’s so bad for your image.”

Ni Bingyan had no idea her father was complaining that she didn’t know how to spend money and planned to take her out to broaden her horizons. She hadn’t seen him in a long time, so she was just happy and didn’t mind his chatter. She explained as she dished out the food:

”I have a jewelry endorsement, so I can’t wear diamonds from other brands in public. Even if I bought them, I’d barely have a chance to wear them. Unless they’re collector’s grade, would I just be buying them to let them collect dust?”

Ni Guangli dismissed her concerns.

”Then buy gemstones! Back in the day, your mother wanted to buy them but couldn’t find anywhere that sold them. You’re lucky to be living in better times, so you have to wear them for her, too!

”You have no idea how beautiful your mother was, or how much she adored all kinds of sparkly jewelry. It’s a shame the market economy wasn’t developed back then, so her options were limited. She could only wear some of the old-fashioned family heirlooms.

”Speaking of old jewelry, you can pick a few pieces from our family’s collection. Wear the ones that are still presentable, and just leave the ones that aren’t. Sigh, they weren’t properly maintained during those difficult times. Many of the pearls have lost their old luster. But there are a few gemstones with good fire...”

’Alright, looks like I’ll have to make time to go to the auction with my dad next month.’

”Well, Dad, you’d better keep earning money! At the rate you’re spoiling your daughter, how much will ever be enough!”

Ni Bingyan was only joking, but when Ni Guangli heard her, his face lit up and he eagerly told her:

”I made a killing last year. I consulted some experts and bought a plot of land at an auction early in the year. Then last month, the government released its new zoning plans, and—get this—the plot is right at a new subway entrance! I don’t know the first thing about real estate development, so I just flipped it and made this much in pure profit!”

Seeing her dad hold up one hand with five fingers spread wide, Ni Bingyan’s eyes widened, but she didn’t dare ask exactly how much that was.

Ni Guangli hummed a tune, feeling his opinion of that kid rise a little more.

Ni Bingyan lowered her head and quickly made her dad a dish of savory Bear Paw Tofu.

There was leftover rice in the pot, so she got out another wok and made a low-oil version of fried rice.

The water spinach in the yard was ready, so she picked a few stalks to make a simple, clear soup.

Seeing that she had so quickly prepared two dishes and a soup, Ni Guangli put all else aside and dug in.

”See? You insisted on dragging me to look at cars. I told you we should come home first so I could cook for you, but you wouldn’t have it. Now you know how hungry you are, don’t you!”

Ni Bingyan ladled out a bowl of soup. Seeing her dad eating so ravenously, looking like he was absolutely famished, she couldn’t help but feel a pang of sympathy.

Ni Guangli just chuckled without answering, clearly enjoying his daughter’s concern.

After dinner, while Ni Bingyan was busy washing the dishes, Ni Guangli sat at the table and asked her, ”Where’s Little Sang? Is he off today? It’s rare for me to visit, so I have to give him a chance to treat me to dinner! Hmph, hmph. What do you think about tonight?”

Ni Bingyan shot him a sidelong glance. ”Dad, we’re not even official yet! What’s the rush? His family lives in this complex too. If he found out you were here and invited his parents to have dinner with all of us, would you go?”

’There it is,’ he thought. ’The moment she’s unhappy with me, I go from her sweet ”Dad” to a drawn-out ”Faaather.”’

”And why wouldn’t I go? There’s nothing wrong with getting to know them a little better!”

Stubborn to the last, Ni Guangli would never bow his noble head!

What else could it be but a father-daughter bond destined by fate? They were cut from the same cloth.

”Nothing’s set in stone yet! I want to get to know him better: his temper, his personality, whether his family has any skeletons in the closet, how easy they are to get along with... This is a lifelong commitment, after all. It’s always better to be cautious, right? What if I find out things are bad after we get married? What am I supposed to do then? Sharpening the axe doesn’t delay the woodcutting. The more important something is, the more you shouldn’t rush it!”

Since the two young people were already getting to know each other, Ni Guangli didn’t want to push too hard. Seeing how strongly she objected, he dropped the idea.

”That works. Tonight, it’ll just be us, father and daughter. We rarely get to see each other, and it’ll be nice to catch up properly without any outsiders around.”

”Okay, Dad. You should stay for a while. I’ll come home right after I finish work. I’ll get a room ready for you in a minute. We have everything you need here. I even bought you clothes for every season, from underwear to outerwear. It’s all been washed, too. I just wanted to make it convenient for you to visit whenever you wanted.”