Who Needs a CEO? I Choose Stardom

Xu Bin didn’t know what others were thinking.

He only knew that the moment he opened the door, he wanted to curse his head off!

But they were all respectable people, and doing so would be far too unseemly.

So he nonchalantly picked up the long robe from the back of his chair, calmly draped it over himself, and calmly tied the belt.

He didn’t look the least bit awkward. That meant the awkward ones were the group of people at the door.

Some of them held beer, others carried takeout boxes of barbecue and other dishes. The group of seven or eight men and women stood at the door like a set of plum blossom poles.

Barrages of thoughts scrolled through their minds. Their eyes darted around, wishing they could suddenly develop recording-camera eyes, but no one dared to move or speak.

’Better let someone else do the offending!’

The scene was eerily silent.

Even after Xu Bin slowly finished putting on his robe, no one spoke up.

In the end, he, the host of the room, was the first to break.

He wanted to say, ”You’re all here pretty early,” to ease the awkwardness, but he was furious inside. His mouth moved again and again, but he just couldn’t get the words out.

’Logically speaking, Ni Bingyan has been in the industry for years. She’s not some greenhorn. How could she not understand what I meant?’

’If she wasn’t willing, that’s fine, but couldn’t she have just rejected me directly? We’re all civilized people. It’s not like I would have forced her.’

His eyes began to roam through the crowd, intending to find that malicious bitch.

’Even if I found her, I couldn’t do anything right now. But I’ve already marked her as an enemy, so I have to remember her smug face.’

’Otherwise, once I get busy again, I’ll forget to deal with her.’

But aside from seeing Ni Bingyan’s executive agent and assistant, he couldn’t find her in the crowd.

”Old Xu is so slutty~”

Suddenly, a high-pitched voice piped up from the crowd, though it was impossible to tell who it was.

It was November in Cambodia. Even though it was hot due to being in the tropics, the temperature at night was only around twenty-something degrees Celsius. Wearing a thong and a hip-length fishnet shirt to invite people to his room for fun... no matter how you looked at it, it was indecent.

Although he was good-looking and had a habit of working out, he was, after all, a bit old. Dressed like this, he was still a bit of an eyesore.

Everyone had been in this industry for a long time. Thinking back on how it was Ni Bingyan’s executive agent who had relayed the invitation to the ”gathering,” they more or less figured things out.

The cameraman, who was tall and burly, cursed inwardly, ’Shameless old lecher, a toad lusting after a swan’s flesh,’ and squeezed right in, carrying a case of beer.

This film crew wasn’t short on money, so the accommodations were quite good. Xu Bin’s family wasn’t short on money either, and he had paid out of his own pocket for an upgrade, so his room was divided into an inner and outer chamber.

The inner chamber was the bedroom. Seeing him immediately go to shut the door after getting dressed, everyone knew there was likely something inside not suitable for outsiders to see. Although they were curious, no one was tactless enough to pry.

The outer area was a living room, large enough to easily accommodate a dozen or so people.

This was also why everyone had come without hesitation after receiving the message that he wanted to have a lively gathering with calligraphy and painting enthusiasts.

Normally, Xu Bin seemed polite and amiable. Plus, they had wrapped up filming early today, so everyone was looking for some fun. Someone was treating them to a late-night snack, and they could even indulge in a hobby on the side—what could be better!

Xu Bin had sharp ears. When he heard that comment, his old face immediately flushed with shame.

’Especially that name!’

’Old Xu, Old Xu... don’t they usually call me Brother Xu or Mr. Xu?’

’And now I’m just Old Xu?’

For an actor, looking upon aging with indifference requires a great deal of courage—courage that Xu Bin clearly did not possess.

In that moment, his hatred for that person surpassed even his hatred for Ni Bingyan!

Quickly shutting the bedroom door, Xu Bin whipped his head around. Before he could lash out, the crowd swarmed in, all of them beaming, spouting compliments as if they were free.

”Mr. Xu has always been a man of refined taste. This is certainly very atmospheric, hahaha!”

This was the charm of the Chinese language; the same content, expressed differently, could have a completely different effect.

It wasn’t that they were afraid of offending him, but rather that they feared things would escalate and delay filming.

They were all just working stiffs. Their greatest hope was for the work to go smoothly so they could return home to their families sooner.

Furthermore, if they finished filming ahead of schedule and there was a surplus in the production budget, they might even get a bonus.

As some with high EQ smoothed things over, others immediately beckoned for everyone to take a seat.

”Come on, come on, the grilled fish is still hot! This is authentic Cambodian barbecue. You won’t find anything this genuine back home!”

Xu Bin was pulled down into a seat. Since he was only wearing a long robe, he had to press his legs together and tug at the fabric, carefully trying to avoid exposing himself.

He wanted to get up and change, but the big cameraman pulled him back to have a drink.

On set, you can’t offend the director, and you can’t offend the cameraman either. If they decided to pull a few tricks while filming him, not only would his shots be ugly, but he would also find himself with a lot less screen time without even realizing it.

Helpless, Xu Bin had no choice but to pick up a bottle of beer.

Just as everyone was starting to eat, Ni Bingyan came in, carrying a folding table.

”Haha, sorry I’m late! I borrowed a table from the hotel so everyone can show off their skills later. I was worried Mr. Xu’s table wouldn’t be big enough for us all to spread out!”

With a CLANG, she set the table down. With Brother Biao’s help, she quickly set it up. Ni Bingyan’s smile was particularly innocent.

”It gets so boring on set every day. It’s rare for Mr. Xu to organize an event like this, haha! Don’t be shy later, everyone, show us what you’ve got! I never knew our crew had so many hidden talents! So many calligraphy and painting enthusiasts! This is the entertainment industry, after all, haha!”

After greeting everyone, she turned to Xu Bin with an embarrassed look.

”I’m so sorry, Mr. Xu. I just thought this kind of thing is always livelier with more people, so I called all my good friends to come along.”

Ni Bingyan was displeased with Xu Bin, but not to the point of tearing off all pretenses. So she claimed she was the one who had invited everyone.

Leaving him this fig leaf would make it easier to work together moving forward.

’Time is precious. It should be spent on more meaningful things.’

’After this movie, I still have a variety show to film!’

’From the planning to the team to the execution, it’s all being done by my fans. Every detail is tailored to my preferences. This is something I could probably brag about for the rest of my life, so I have to take it seriously.’

’For a person like him, a small punishment as a warning is enough. It’s not worth sacrificing something big for something small.’

What else could Xu Bin say?

Could he say that he only wanted to ask her out and had no intention of hosting this crowd of nuisances?

Could he say that his true intentions weren’t in the wine, that the calligraphy and painting were just a pretense, and that the Four Treasures of the Study he’d just bought were still in their packaging?

Obviously not.

So, all he could do was force a laugh and agree, ”Yes, yes! The more, the merrier.”

Seeing Ni Bingyan take the responsibility on herself instead of using him as an excuse, Brother Biao felt a warmth in his heart. But he just laughed heartily and said in a joking tone:

”If it was just the two of you in the room, the paparazzi would have a field day. If rumors started spreading, I don’t have enough bonus money to cover the fines, haha! Besides, sharing the fun is better than having it all to yourself, right?!”

Saying it like that was no different from a direct insult.

Xu Bin’s face tightened, and he let out a string of awkward laughs:

”Hahaha~ That was indeed shortsighted of me. I was originally thinking we could chat and go over the script to prepare for tomorrow’s shoot, haha~”

He laughed awkwardly, and the others laughed awkwardly along with him. ”Hahaha~ When it comes to professionalism, no one beats Mr. Xu!”

Whether Xu Bin believed them or not, they had gone through the motions.

”Here! Let’s have a round!”

”Another one!”

For a moment, it actually started to feel like a real party.