Who Needs a CEO? I Choose Stardom

He was always like this, slipping his own agenda into the conversation.

Ni Bingyan couldn’t help but blush a little, but she didn’t respond.

She hadn’t looked at her schedule yet and didn’t know if she had work on the day of Guoguo’s first birthday, so she naturally wouldn’t make any promises.

”Turn right at the upcoming intersection...”

Ni Bingyan listened to the GPS, stopped at a red light, and waited.

”And then?”

”Number Three is a judge named Xue Kaixiang. The guy’s had a high hairline since high school. He said he got a hair transplant a while back, but who knows how it turned out. You’ll definitely recognize him the moment you see him. His wife is a kindergarten teacher. They just got married over the May Day holiday and don’t have kids yet.”

As she drove, Ni Bingyan committed all of this to memory.

”Number Four is a general surgeon, Zeng Wei Qiang. He likes to post medical science content online and is a bit of an internet celebrity. When he published a book before, I even bought a batch to give to my employees as a bonus. If I ever feel sick, I can’t rest easy until I’ve asked him about it. As for his wife, she’s an obstetrics nurse. Their son is one and a half, and his nickname is Duofu. They should be bringing him along later.”

Seeing Ni Bingyan’s silence, Sang Yuan asked her again, ”What kind of name do you think would be good for our child? Look at the nicknames they chose—so festive!”

Ni Bingyan laughed and scoffed, ”Pfft,” then ignored him.

Sang Yuan didn’t feel awkward. He took out Wangcai’s beef jerky treats and fed them to the dog.

Wangcai was a very well-behaved dog. Other than getting jealous occasionally, he hardly ever got upset.

From the moment Sang Yuan got in the car, Wangcai had been lying quietly at his feet. If not for the sound of him chewing the jerky, you probably wouldn’t even know he was there.

The drive from home took just over an hour.

Once they were out of the city, the roads were relatively empty since it was a weekday, so Sang Yuan started telling her stories about his high school days.

”You must have had a lot of admirers back then, right? Did anyone ever write you love letters?”

Sang Yuan immediately sat up straight and said seriously, ”How is that possible? I started school early, so most of my classmates were a year or two older than me. They all treated me like a little brother. Who would have pursued me?”

Seeing his nervous expression, Ni Bingyan just huffed and didn’t press the issue.

But that just seemed to energize Sang Yuan. ”You must have had tons of guys chasing you when you were young, right? To be fair, you have to tell me about it.”

The smile instantly vanished from Ni Bingyan’s face.

’The original owner of this body, of course, had many admirers.’

’She was beautiful and came from a wealthy family. She had talent and good grades. From childhood on, she was a goddess in her classmates’ eyes.’

’But I was like an ugly duckling, always wearing old clothes donated by strangers, eating plain food, and enduring the subtle ostracism from my classmates.’

’When I was little, I just studied silently, desperate to build a better life for myself through education.’

’I had a deep-seated inferiority complex, but at the same time, I was fiercely independent, terrified of people looking down on me.’

’Back then, I was young and naive. A teacher told me the government had officially started a student loan program. I could take out a loan for school, and once I was in, there were scholarships. As long as I was outstanding enough, I could finish my studies with loans and scholarships.’

’But in the end, I was afraid I wouldn’t be able to pay it back, so I didn’t dare take out a loan. I was also afraid I wouldn’t be good enough to get a scholarship, so I ultimately chose to give up on college.’

’The old director of the orphanage was born before the Liberation. He hadn’t received a good education, had a limited worldview, and was getting old with little energy to spare. He usually only focused on the small world of the orphanage and didn’t keep up with current events, so of course he didn’t know about the policy changes.’

’When he saw that I didn’t plan on going to college and wanted to get a job to support myself, he thought about the orphanage’s difficult financial situation, gave me some living expenses, and sent me off to find work.’

’But then, because of human traffickers, a bizarre twist of fate led me to become a background actor, and from that point on, I entered the entertainment industry.’

’Because of this, the old director was still full of regret on his deathbed, feeling that he had been incompetent and had ruined my life.’

’I clearly had the chance to attend a prestigious university, graduate, and become a white-collar office worker, but now I was just driving a beat-up Wuling van, running between different film sets as an extra.’

’Doing grueling work for a meager income, with no idea when I would ever make a name for myself...’

”Oh no, I think we took a wrong turn. Yuanzi, quick, check the map!”

Seeing that she was deliberately changing the subject, Sang Yuan didn’t mind and just gave her directions.

He had been here several times and was quite familiar with the roads.

It was August, and the sun was scorching like fire, but here in the mountains, the trees were lush, and the air was fresh. There were cascading waterfalls and flowing springs, secluded pools and clear streams—it was truly a perfect place to escape the summer heat.

Seeing they had arrived, Ni Bingyan parked the car, and Sang Yuan started sending a message on WeChat:

”Where are you guys? We’re already here! You know the spot, right? By the big locust tree!”

Guessing it would be a while before the others arrived, Ni Bingyan finished parking and opened the trunk and the back doors.

”Let’s go down and set up camp first. The sun’s getting stronger, so when they get here, they’ll have a place to rest.”

Sang Yuan agreed. He got out first, pulled down the small, collapsible wagon, and then put the tent, camping tarp, and other things inside it.

There was an open area by the side of the road, suitable for parking. Down a gentle slope, shaded by green trees, lay a fairly large lawn. Not far off was a deep mountain stream, and at its end, you could faintly see a good-sized pool.

In the distance, the mountains were a vibrant green, and the sound of birdsong drifted through the air. Ni Bingyan took a deep breath and felt instantly refreshed!

This really was a great spot for a picnic.

If it weren’t a weekday and if they hadn’t arrived so early, they probably wouldn’t have been able to claim such a good spot.

The two of them made a few trips back and forth to carry their things down. They set up the tent first, then stretched out the large camping tarp and spread out a checkered picnic blanket.

They set up the small table and placed their food and supplies on it. After they both double-checked everything, they took a small metal tray, placed a mosquito coil on it, and lit it in the middle of their campsite.

”Kids are mosquito magnets. Let’s let the smoke air out the area first, so they don’t get bitten when they arrive.”

Sang Yuan worked skillfully, adding the finishing touches just as his dad had taught him.

Sure enough, Ni Bingyan’s fondness for him grew. ”If you ever become a father, you’ll definitely be a great one!”

Sang Yuan got excited the moment he heard that.

Before he could say anything, Ni Bingyan laughed heartily, picked up her fishing gear, and headed to the stream.

’Flirting with sweet talk? She could play that game, too.’