Chapter 13: Manager
Successfully handing off a package of roast pork, Mi Hongdou smiled faintly. As expected, she didn’t need to use the tactic of visual impact by opening the greaseproof paper package. The temptation of crispy-skinned suckling pig was truly irresistible to ordinary people.
“Junxin, look what I brought back.” Lu Gaoshi walked over with a happy expression, holding up the bag in her hand to Ji Junxin. “We were just saying that we didn’t know if the roast pig from the other crew was delicious. Well, we can’t have roast pig, but Jiang Duo brought some homemade dried meat, honey-glazed, your favorite. You didn’t eat breakfast this morning, you must be hungry now.”
Lu Gaoshi, nearly forty, was slightly plump. Her hair was tied up, and her face had a gentle and kind expression. As she spoke to Ji Junxin with a hint of joy and teasing, she resembled a kind elder. As Ji Junxin’s manager at this time, Lu Gaoshi’s appearance was reasonable. Mi Hongdou lowered her eyes slightly, concealing the surprise and disdain on her face.
Ji Junxin, holding the package of roast pork, was still shocked by the fact that her mouth said no, but her body was very honest. Lu Gaoshi’s interruption brought her back to reality. Ji Junxin shook the package of roast pork in her hand and pointed to Mi Hongdou: “Our little empress brought roast pork, ordered by Qiao Rubai.”
“…Oh, hello, you must be Mi Hongdou, who’s playing the little empress. I’m Ji Junxin’s manager, surnamed Lu.” Lu Gaoshi, who had been happy, was stunned for a moment, but quickly smiled and greeted Mi Hongdou. “Little Empress is a newcomer. If there’s anything you’re not sure about, just ask me. We’re in the same crew, don’t be polite.” She put on a friendly and approachable demeanor.
“Hello, Sister Lu.” Mi Hongdou pretended not to see the flash of annoyance on Lu Gaoshi’s face and greeted her obediently.
Lu Gaoshi nodded, not continuing the pleasantries, but instead stuffed the bag in her hand into Ji Junxin’s: “This was freshly made by Jiang Duo this morning. I heard it was still a little warm when it was packed, and it smelled delicious. Try it, see if it’s better than the ones you usually buy outside.”
A package of roast pig in her left hand and a bag of pork jerky in her right, what a hearty breakfast…
“Would you like some pork jerky?” Ji Junxin felt a little embarrassed to have taken Mi Hongdou’s roast pork since they weren’t very familiar, so she offered the bag of pork jerky.
“Aiya, this is from Jiang Duo…” Seeing this, Lu Gaoshi quickly reached out to stop her. Unfortunately, she was a step too late. A small, white hand quickly reached out and took the entire bag of jerky. Yes, the entire bag!
“Thank you, I love it.” Mi Hongdou clutched the bag of jerky, pretending not to hear what Lu Gaoshi was saying, and gave Ji Junxin a bright smile. “Then I’ll be going. I have a scene later.” She waved and left with only the bag of jerky.
Lu Gaoshi’s face was flushed with anger. How could there be such a presumptuous person? Such a big bag of jerky, taking a few pieces would have been fine, but she actually took the whole bag, so impolite! Looking at Ji Junxin, who seemed to be in a good mood, waving goodbye to Mi Hongdou, Lu Gaoshi was so angry she didn’t know what to do.
Lu Gaoshi angrily returned to Jiang Duo’s side. After learning that Jiang Duo had only made that much jerky and had already given it all to her, with nothing left, she became even angrier. She was so angry that she didn’t even want to look at the roast pork Ji Junxin handed her. Earlier, knowing that another crew was starting filming in the film city today, she specifically asked Jiang Duo to make pork jerky. She had planned to bring up the topic of roast pig with Ji Junxin after hearing the firecrackers, making her crave it, and then, as if by coincidence, take out the pork jerky from Jiang Duo, which would definitely increase Ji Junxin’s favorability towards Jiang Duo. Then, after exchanging gifts, wouldn’t they become closer?
Speaking of which, it was all Qiao Rubai’s fault. She didn’t know what she had been eating these days, but she frequently came to the set, and every time, she would snatch the food that Jiang Duo had prepared to win Ji Junxin’s favor. If it weren’t for this, would she have needed to bring the jerky so early in the morning? She wouldn’t have encountered that Mi Hongdou either. A little newcomer, she didn’t know what she was relying on to dare to snatch food from Ji Junxin. And that foodie actually looked happy and not upset at all.
When people spend time together, they can more or less understand each other’s temperaments. Ji Junxin offered a piece of roast pork, which Lu Gaoshi refused with a smile, saying she had eaten too much for breakfast. Ji Junxin could see that she was hiding her unhappiness behind that smile. It was her fault, she hadn’t even tasted the food she brought back before giving it away. She felt like she had let her down… Ji Junxin felt a little guilty. But thinking about the little empress’s sparkling eyes when she received the roast pork, and her bright smile when she took the jerky, like a child who had received candy, she felt that it wasn’t so bad. Anyway, she might not even be able to finish this package of roast pork herself, so it wouldn’t be good to keep the jerky as well. Plus… Ji Junxin thought of what Qiao Rubai had said to her earlier, secretly glanced at Lu Gaoshi, who was sitting next to her, playing with her phone and still seeming angry, and her eyes dimmed. The originally crispy and delicious roast pork now tasted bland in her mouth. Perhaps there were some things she couldn’t pretend not to see anymore.
As for Mi Hongdou, she walked out of the “Imperial Secrets” set, took a detour, and chose a trash can far away from both crews, throwing both greaseproof paper packages inside. One was the fake roast pork package number two that she had shown Ji Junxin earlier, which was actually filled with newspapers and tissues, just to pretend that she couldn’t finish it. In her previous life, when she encountered something delicious and wanted to save more for Ji Junxin, she would pretend that she had eaten too much and couldn’t finish it. Then Ji Junxin would always step up and offer to help. It seemed that this tactic still worked. To satisfy a foodie while also saving face for them, Mi Hongdou’s heart was truly devoted. The other package, naturally, was the pork jerky she had just taken from Ji Junxin… Jiang Duo and Zhang Zijing, just looking at them was annoying, how could she possibly eat the food they made?
Want to get close to a foodie with food? This time, don’t even think about it! Mi Hongdou had some idea of how Ji Junxin and Jiang Duo gradually became best friends in her previous life. That big bag of pork jerky must have been specially made to trick the foodie! This time, with her, a super invincible reborn die-hard fan, she would see how those two would try to get close! Mi Hongdou glared angrily at the greaseproof paper package buried deep in the trash can.
However, she didn’t expect that after Qiao Rubai’s rebirth, Lu Gaoshi was still Ji Junxin’s manager. Mi Hongdou couldn’t understand this. Speaking of Lu Gaoshi, she had to mention Ji Junxin’s debut. Ji Junxin and Qiao Rubai were childhood friends who grew up together. They were in the same class until college and had a very good relationship. Ji Junxin’s parents were both university professors and always hoped that their daughter would also become a teacher. So Ji Junxin majored in Chinese Language and Literature in college, while Qiao Rubai went to study management. Although they were in the same university, they were in different classes. In her junior year, Qiao Rubai interned at a magazine under Qiong Yu. Just a few days into her internship, a model stood her up. The frustrating part was that the model had already delayed the photoshoot repeatedly and only explicitly stood her up when the magazine was about to go to print. At two or three in the morning, where could she find someone to take the photos? Moreover, it wasn’t easy to find models for ancient-style photoshoots. Qiao Rubai’s family wasn’t all kind and helpful. There were those who were waiting to see her fail. Qiao Rubai couldn’t bring herself to ask for help. But the magazine couldn’t go to print with blank pages… Qiao Rubai was desperate and prepared to do it herself. But after changing clothes and standing in front of the camera, the photographer took a few shots and finally waved his hand: “You can’t capture the essence, miss, let’s not… let’s not…” In the end, it was Ji Junxin, who had accompanied her, who stepped forward and took a bunch of beautiful photos, saving Qiao Rubai from the predicament. Afterward, it was as if they had opened the door to a new world. One took the photos, and the other managed the business. They went from magazines to television, and then to the big screen. Ji Junxin became famous, and Qiao Rubai established her position in the Qiao family, eventually becoming the head of Qiong Yu Entertainment at a young age.
Judging by the results, Qiao Rubai and Ji Junxin were both successful. But the hardships they went through were not insignificant… At that time, Qiao Rubai had just joined Qiong Yu and was still familiarizing herself with the company’s operations. Ji Junxin had also just signed with Qiong Yu and only had a little experience in magazine photoshoots, so she was considered a newcomer. The company was short-staffed, so they assigned Lu Gaoshi, a mediocre manager, to her temporarily. However, although Lu Gaoshi was Ji Junxin’s manager, it was Qiao Rubai who arranged everything for her. Lu Gaoshi wasn’t very capable, and with Qiao Rubai around, she was happy to do less work and still get paid the same. So, as a manager, Lu Gaoshi mostly did the work of an assistant. Later, when Qiao Rubai established herself in Qiong Yu, she wanted to replace Lu Gaoshi and become Ji Junxin’s manager directly. Ji Junxin was kind-hearted and sentimental, so she didn’t allow it. So Lu Gaoshi continued to do the work of an assistant while receiving a manager’s share of the profits. In her previous life, this situation continued until Ji Junxin retired. What surprised everyone the most was that not long after Ji Junxin retired, Lu Gaoshi went to become Jiang Duo’s manager. Mi Hongdou once heard Qiao Rubai mention that Lu Gaoshi and Jiang Duo had been colluding for a long time. Qiao Rubai didn’t say it explicitly, but what she implied was that Zhang Zijing and Jiang Duo had betrayed Ji Junxin together, and Lu Gaoshi probably played a part in it.
Why did Qiao Rubai let such a person stay by Ji Junxin’s side… Mi Hongdou couldn’t understand.
Mi Hongdou frowned, pacing back and forth by the trash can, the more she thought about it, the more confused she became. Suddenly, someone patted her shoulder, startling her and making her jump to the side, almost bumping into the trash can.
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