Who Needs a CEO? I Choose Stardom

The car commercial wasn’t difficult to shoot. Plus, the endorsement was clearly meant to capitalize on the buzz from Ni Bingyan’s search for her dog, so by the end of August, the ad was already rolling out on all major platforms.

When people saw that Ni Bingyan could land a great endorsement just by looking for her dog, the online buzz that had just died down instantly flared up again!

It was the kind of hilarious and rare event that netizens just loved to get in on.

[Holy cow! I’m just floored! When people first found out she drove a Volkswagen, the haters said she had no class. But who’s as farsighted as my Bingyan? /laugh-cry emoji/ To all those whose idols drive luxury cars, I don’t see any luxury brands asking them to be spokespeople, do you?]

[Yeah, these keyboard warriors can’t even afford a toy car, but they sure talk big. They look down on this and sneer at that. They probably never look in the mirror to see what a sorry sight they are themselves!]

[Honestly, I usually don’t buy into car endorsements from other celebrities, because they all drive luxury cars and never use the models they’re promoting. But this one, bros, this one is legit!]

[Can’t afford to rush into anything! I’m not a high-earning celebrity, after all. Over two hundred thousand yuan is no small sum! @WelfareLottery, Cai Cai, you’re my only hope.]

[Umm... is it just me, or are celebrities getting way too good at manufacturing hype? To promote this car, she heartlessly let her dog go stray, then pretended to look for it, wasting a ton of public resources. The real Wangcai is probably rummaging through trash somewhere right now, right?]

[Get lost, hater-baby! Try using your brain when you post, okay? The whole world knows how much Wangcai’s mom loves him, alright? You think that thick photo album of his is fake? ’Intentionally let him go stray’... Your brainless comment has left me speechless!]

[Speaking rationally, any normal person can tell if it’s the same dog, right? Let alone Wangcai’s mom.]

[The god-like Wangcai’s mom, HAHAHAHA!]

[For real, if celebrities actually used a product for over a year before endorsing it, I’d buy it in a heartbeat. There’s really nothing to criticize here.]

...

As expected of someone who’s a natural magnet for trending topics. She could shoot a commercial and get on the hot search list without any marketing push. Boss Yu must be grinning from ear to ear, right?

Wei Shuojie chuckled as she clicked her mouse, working through the new flood of job offers in her inbox.

She rejected the unsuitable ones immediately and set aside the promising ones for further consideration.

Ni Bingyan was in a period of rapid ascent, so most of her energy needed to be focused on acting.

Once she won a few more significant awards next year, her status in the industry would be secure.

When it came to advertisements, Wei Shuojie was deliberately aiming for quality over quantity, careful not to overexpose her and burn out her fame. As a result, she hadn’t taken on many endorsements this year.

Ni Bingyan didn’t need to worry about any of this.

While Sister Wei was happily screening offers, Ni Bingyan had already returned to the film set.

She had to go to New York Fashion Week next week, so they had to pick up the pace on set to free up her schedule.

Fortunately, she and Director Wu Xi clicked surprisingly well.

Both were perfectionists when it came to their work, yet easygoing in their personal lives. After spending some time together, it got to the point where Wu Xi could give her a look, and Ni Bingyan would instantly know what she meant.

Under these conditions, filming for the already straightforward plot progressed at a rapid pace.

Wu Xi was very particular about the aesthetics of every shot, so Ni Bingyan had to spend a lot of time on her makeup and styling each day.

To keep her in peak condition, the crew figured out her daily routine and even scheduled all her scenes during the daytime. This allowed her to get her beauty sleep by ten o’clock every night, a luxury that was enough to make anyone weep with envy!

Life on this set, for Ni Bingyan, was quite blissful.

On top of that, Sang Yuan’s commute to his company took him right past the set, so he often stopped by in the morning and evening to check in on her.

Sometimes he would bring a flower picked from a garden, and other times he’d bring her some fruit. If he came across a book he thought she’d like, he’d bring her a copy. When something interesting happened, he’d make a special trip just to tell her about it...

At first, the rest of the crew found their public displays of affection a bit envy-inducing, but they soon got used to it. They came to feel that shipping the real-life couple every day was much sweeter than the artificial fluff of a TV romance.

After completing the scheduled filming, the day of departure arrived. Accompanied by Wei Shuojie, Ni Bingyan boarded a plane to New York with ten suitcases of coordinated fashion ensembles.

Traveling with them were photographer Cheng Man, assistant Duanmu Li, executive agent Wang Biao, and makeup and stylist Chen Daolin.

Ni Bingyan hadn’t gone abroad for the fashion shows last year. For one, she didn’t have a high-profile enough endorsement to secure a front-row seat, and buying her way in felt tacky. For another, her industry status wasn’t high enough for the company to allocate significant resources, so there was little point in going. And third, she was too busy filming to spare the time.

This year was different. That much was clear from the fact that the company had hired photographer Cheng Man and stylist Chen Daolin to accompany her and had prepared an arsenal of high-fashion ”battle armor” for the occasion.

The group set off in high spirits. Since the itinerary included a one-night layover on Hong Kong Island, and since Ni Bingyan had rarely traveled abroad—this being her first time since her rebirth—she stuck close to Wei Shuojie the entire time, terrified of accidentally causing trouble and delaying their journey.

The first day went smoothly. After a night at the hotel, they successfully boarded their flight the next day. Ni Bingyan settled into her seat and only let out a sigh of relief once the plane was flying smoothly.

This flight was going to last more than ten hours. Ni Bingyan had slept well the previous night and wasn’t hungry or tired, having just boarded. So, as planned, she took out the original French-language novel Sang Yuan had given her a few days prior.

The book was rather obscure; she had scoured several bookstores and searched online but couldn’t find it for sale anywhere. Sang Yuan had specially asked someone to bring it back from France for her.

She had been thrilled to receive it, but her time on set was too fragmented to let her read it in one sitting. Today was the perfect opportunity.

Ni Bingyan began to read intently. Around her, other passengers were either sleeping or attending to their needs—eating, drinking, using the restroom. Someone was in high spirits, playing a game, while another person got up to head to the lavatory.

Since it was first class, there were only a few people. By a stroke of luck, there were no crying babies, making for a pleasant environment. Ni Bingyan quickly became lost in her book.

As time slowly passed, other passengers grew bored. Now familiar with their surroundings, they began striking up conversations with those they found agreeable.

Ni Bingyan was at a tense part of the story when a flight attendant came over to ask what she wanted for lunch. She had to ask twice before Ni Bingyan snapped back to reality.

She apologized sheepishly, chose the most convenient meal option, and ate quickly. Then, she forced herself to put on an eye mask and rest for half an hour. Once the strain in her eyes had eased, she picked up the novel again, which she had a little less than half of left to read.

This time, she read straight through until four in the afternoon. Turning the final page, she looked up with a sense of wistful loss.

After finishing such a powerful story, her mind was buzzing with countless thoughts, but alas, she had no kindred spirit to share them with.

For most of her compatriots, even learning English well was a challenge; those who could fluently read literary works in other foreign languages were even rarer.

She wasn’t the type to show off, so she never brought up topics with people who wouldn’t appreciate them.

Sister Wei and the others didn’t understand French and had most likely never read the book. Trying to discuss it with them would be like a chicken talking to a duck—awkward for them, and for her.

So, it was better to savor the experience alone.

It was like a cow eating grass—swallow it down quickly first, then ruminate on it later.

She had a similar habit when it came to reading.

After mulling it over for a while, she took out a notebook and pen and began to earnestly write down her thoughts on the book.

This notebook was nearly full; it was the one she dedicated to recording her reading responses.

Finishing a French novel and then writing about it in French was a very effective learning method.

Ni Bingyan’s mind was brimming with ideas, and she wrote for a good half hour before finally stopping.

Just as she was holding her notebook and checking for typos, she heard the person in the adjacent seat ask her politely in French:

”Pardon my rudeness, mademoiselle, but might I ask what book you were reading earlier?”