Entertainment: Starting with a Song of Rice Fragrance

"Dad, how's your recovery going? Are you feeling pretty good?"

At noon on the 17th, Zheng Ning brought a large basket of fruit to Shuncheng First Hospital to visit her father, who had been moved from the intensive care unit to the general ward.

"Cough cough... I feel great! Dr. Liao said I'm completely out of danger, and all I need to do now is rest."

Zheng Aile sat up straight on the bed, coughed lightly twice, and looked at her son with pride and joy in her eyes.

I thought my illness would deplete all of my family's savings.

The tens of thousands of yuan I earned from running the shop in previous years have long been spent.

The family's audio-visual store had already prepared to sell off its stock.

Who would have thought that during this most difficult time, his son, who had never sung much since childhood, would inexplicably become a hot little star?

Because his son injured his throat when he was young, Mr. Zheng had no expectations for him. Now he feels like he is living in a dream.

The son not only signed with Feiyang Entertainment, one of the three major entertainment giants, but also became a formal B-level singer.

Moreover, he even wrote his own songs and won first and second place on the Xinghai Group's newcomer champion list!

With just these two songs, my good son earned more than 100 million yuan in after-tax income. He not only paid off the money he had borrowed from relatives and friends, but also paid off his upcoming hospital fees and expensive imported medicines!

He even bought his mother a 1 yuan mink coat and installed air conditioning in his daughter's school dormitory...

"This child is just so lovable, the more you look at him, the more you like him."

Looking at his sensible and capable son, Old Zheng felt that he had nothing to regret now. Even the apples that his son peeled tasted sweeter than before.

"Dad, just stay in the hospital and rest assured. Mom and I are here. Our family will only get better and better in the future."

Seeing his father's face becoming increasingly rosy, Zheng Ning was genuinely happy.

"Oh, right, Dad, I have my own fan club now! We had 150 members right away, so I'm not going to be alone anymore!"

He happily told his father about his interactions and exchanges with Uncle Wang and the members of the Shuncheng Zheng Ning fan group that Zhao Gang and others had established over the past few days.

They were almost all passionate music lovers in the city. Although they had different professions, they would often get together to exchange and discuss music and celebrities. They would also occasionally create songs or perform in bands. They were quite a formidable group.

"Ring ring~"

Just as I was having a pleasant chat with my dad, Lao Zheng's phone suddenly rang.

"Hey? Ha, Little Jiang? Good afternoon, good afternoon! He's here, he's here! Come on, let me introduce you!"

After chatting for a couple more minutes on the phone, Old Zheng reluctantly hung up.

"Who is it, Dad? You sound quite familiar with us. Are you here to introduce us?"

There were only the two of them in the room, and since he said he would introduce them, it could only be him.

"Yes, Jiang Zhiping, you know him, right?"

"Jiang Zhiping? Why does that name sound so familiar? Oh, I remember now, hasn't he acted in several well-known period dramas? Dad, how do you know him?"

"Yes, that's him! Haha, I've known him for a long time, back when he wasn't even an actor yet!"

Dad laughed heartily, clearly proud to know this big star.

"Back when I was young, I was a street performer all over the West Coast, right? I met him when I was in Lincheng. That kid was only in junior high school back then, and he was always wandering around the streets like a little rascal. He thought it was interesting to see me busking, so he even brought his classmate to come and support me. That's how we got to know each other."

"I'm a generation and a half older than him, but we still treated each other as equals—what we'd call a friendship across generations these days. Who knew this guy would become so successful, even becoming a star and acting in several TV dramas!"

Zheng Aile is immersed in her past glories and is somewhat unable to extricate herself.

The son didn't interrupt his boasting, after all, Jiang Zhiping was now a somewhat famous actor. Around the age of twenty-seven or twenty-eight, he had already starred in several well-known period dramas and workplace dramas, and was considered an artist between B and A level.

"But why did he ask to get to know me? I'm not an actor, and I have no connection with him..."

Being able to know a celebrity proves that it's neither good nor bad, especially since this is my dad's friend.

But I'm a singer, and the other person is an actor. How could we possibly have any connection?

"It's okay, you'll see when you meet them. Anyway, if you're good at acting, you can sing, and if you're good at singing, you can act. Who knows, you might even go into acting in TV dramas someday. Isn't it good to get to know a big star beforehand?"

"That's good, Dad. Shall I peel you another pear?"

"Great, haha, my son's really doing well! The fruit he peels tastes extra sweet!"

……

A short while later, a tall young man with a neat buzz cut, a thin face, but very bright eyes knocked on the door and entered the ward carrying a basket of fruit.

"Little Jiang, haha, how many years has it been since we last met? Welcome, welcome!"

Old Zheng sat up straight and reached out his hand to greet him.

"Old Zheng, it's been almost seven or eight years since we last met. Time flies... You didn't even tell me you had a stroke before, otherwise I could have helped you. Look how polite you are..."

The visitor placed the fruit basket on the table and hurriedly extended both hands to shake hands with Old Zheng.

"Hehe, it's nothing. My son is doing great. He covered all my medical and hospital expenses. Let me tell you about him..."

When talking about his son, Old Zheng's face beamed with joy, and he quickly introduced his younger brother and son to each other.

"Nice to meet you, Brother Jiang. I've been watching your performances for a while now, and you act so well."

Zheng Ning quickly reached out and shook hands with the other person.

He was a junior, four or five years younger than the other person, who was a celebrity who had been famous for several years and was also his father's friend, so he naturally had to be polite.

"Oh, you're Zheng Ning! You're so handsome! Even more handsome than the male lead in our current drama!"

As expected of a big star, his words were like a breath of fresh air. Zheng Ning had gotten used to his friends' praise lately, but this compliment still made him blush with embarrassment.

"Not at all, Brother Jiang, you're too kind. Please have a seat, I'll peel an apple for you."

"Hey, you're not being polite. You're handsome, and you sing well and write great songs! To be honest, the reason I came to visit you, Brother Jiang, is actually to get to know you."

Jiang Zhiping picked up the apple and knife from the table and started peeling it. He did it quickly and efficiently, and finished in no time. Then he cut it in half and gave it to Zheng Ning.

"To be honest, I came here for two reasons. First, to visit Old Zheng, and second, I actually have a favor to ask..."