Mad Dog

Chapter 28: Most Painful Night for Jiang Qi Haters

#What’s more eye-catching than winning the Golden Tree Award this year is Jiang Qi’s face#.

It was a chaotic night, and the term that ended up sitting firmly on the top of Weibo’s hot search was this laughable and tearful term.

The PR department of Chen Ding almost went all out, excitedly watching the rapidly rising stock prices on one hand, and on the other hand, looking at the rumors and slanders online that the PR couldn’t keep up with, feeling somewhat laughable and helpless.

Jiang Qi himself had good looks, acting skills, and the added bonus of a billion-dollar box office. Now he even won the Best Actor award… This instantly blocked the paths of many people.

Moreover, there are many people online now who scold Jiang Qi, saying he has a stinky face, is disrespectful, lacks manners, and even his past scandals are repeatedly mentioned like gossip by a market vendor, but no one is scolding him for not deserving the award.

It can be seen that in this situation, Jiang Qi’s acting skills winning the award are truly well-deserved and not criticized. In the entertainment industry, resources are endless, but for actors in their twenties and thirties, they are still limited.

Now that Jiang Qi has gathered so much attention, capital will surely choose him first—since winning the Best Actor award until the next day, Xiao Yongfei has already received countless scripts.

Movies, TV dramas, various genres, martial arts, immortal, palace intrigue, power struggles, modern campus, and even ethical films… Xiao Yongfei couldn’t help but laugh and cry.

After thinking all night, he simply contacted the PR department and Qiu Heng, deciding to officially announce Jiang Qi’s new drama while the iron was hot. On one hand, this time period is the hottest stage, and on the other hand, it’s also to prove to the world that Jiang Qi is not a flash in the pan.

Look, the follow-up of the newly appointed Best Actor still doesn’t go for cheap popularity, but top-notch resources, and it’s the new work of the well-regarded director Qiu Heng!

So, under the enthusiastic discussions and consultations from all parties, the official Weibo of Chen Ding directly ‘officially announced’ a post, with a very playful and provocative tone—

[@Chen Ding Entertainment: Jiang Best Actor, Director Qiu calls you to play the male lead. @Qiu Heng @Jiang Qi.]

The netizens on Weibo, who were already busy discussing various topics, immediately went #wild# after this post came out.

Qiu Heng’s fans suddenly felt like a big pie had fallen from the sky onto their heads. They were dizzy and incredulous, wanting to leave a message to wait for the official announcement, but the official announcement from Chen Ding Entertainment was practically no different from an official announcement.

But when it came to directly congratulating, forwarding, and promoting… they felt like they were in a dream.

No way, why are Qiu Heng and Jiang Qi collaborating? Is it true? Why didn’t their professional fan support clubs receive any news beforehand?!

Just as everyone was bewildered and shocked, Qiu Heng also decided to ‘join the fun’.

[@Qiu Heng: In the wind and rain, “Jiao Si” awaits you, @Jiang Qi.]

Now, it was a completely official announcement.

And it was quite prestigious. The company’s director mentioned Jiang Qi first, and now they were waiting for Jiang Qi’s response.

After a long while, the night unfolded like a TV drama finally came to its conclusion.

[@Jiang Qi: Hmm.]

…

Maintaining his aloof demeanor, he simply responded with a casual ‘hmm’, without even tagging anyone, but even a fool could tell who he was conversing with.

Tonight might have been the most painful night for Jiang Qi’s haters.

Their disliked individual stole the spotlight, won the Best Actor award, and was practically portrayed as the epitome of success, reaping both fame and fortune. Meanwhile, Jiang Qi’s and other actors’ fans could only stare at the screen, their eyes burning with jealousy—commonly known as “green-eyed envy”.

Yet, for Jiang Qi himself, he felt nothing amidst this dazzling display of success and controversy.

After leaving the awards ceremony with his Best Actor award, he spent the entire car ride chatting on the phone with Zhi Qi.

Only after receiving numerous calls from Xiao Yongfei urging him to reply to a message from Qiu Heng on Weibo did Jiang Qi reluctantly log in and respond with a simple ‘hmm’.

“If you’re busy, you can go ahead and do your thing,” Zhi Qi’s voice on the other end of the line was soft and understanding, with a hint of laughter. “You don’t have to keep talking to me.”

In fact, Jiang Qi was always the quiet one, while she was the one excitedly chatting away.

“It’s okay,” Jiang Qi replied softly. “I’m not busy.”

Compared to anything else, Zhi Qi’s matters were not considered busy at all, especially since she had poor signal during the daytime when she was conducting fieldwork in the wetlands. They could only talk for a while at night.

“Tomorrow, we’re going into the mountains again, and we’ll have to stay in a local guesthouse,” Zhi Qi sounded a bit disappointed. “There won’t be any signal there, so I probably won’t be able to contact you for a few days.”

Since they had developed the ‘habit’ of chatting on WeChat every night, the thought of not having signal was a bit distressing.

Jiang Qi furrowed his brows at the thought of Zhi Qi being in the mountains during the rainy season, surrounded by snakes, insects, rats, and ants, while also considering her delicate skin. His worry deepened.

“Then…” Jiang Qi thought for a moment before stubbornly saying, “I’ll come find you.”

After all, filming for “Jiao Si” wouldn’t start until next month, so he had some free time.

“You’re coming? You’ll scare all my classmates,” Zhi Qi chuckled at Jiang Qi’s impulsive and carefree attitude, repeatedly declining, “Forget it, the UV rays here are particularly strong. What if you get tanned? The director will blame you for not fitting the character in the script, and besides, you still need to study the script and understand the character…”

Although the girl’s words were logical and factual, they made Jiang Qi feel as if he were imprisoned by layers of restraints because he knew she was right.

Since signing the contract, he was no longer ‘free’.

At least, he couldn’t just do whatever he wanted anymore. But life always involved choices. Jiang Qi took a deep breath, obediently murmured a ‘hmm’, and promised to listen to Zhi Qi, dedicating himself to diligently completing every role he would undertake in the future.

But before ending the call, he whispered softly, “I’ll be waiting for you to come back.”

If I can’t see Zhi Qi all the time, then so be it.

But since seeing her, if I can’t see the girl for a few days, I’ll miss her a lot, really miss her.

Maybe that’s what they call ‘missing someone’?

The expression of young love is obscure yet intense, but unfortunately, the signal from the girl’s side is intermittent, and I couldn’t hear clearly. She just vaguely murmured an ‘um’ before hanging up.

After hanging up the phone, Zhi Qi quickly logged into Weibo and entered a “station” she cherished—this was a site she found that had the best photos and edits for Jiang Qi, whether it was the lighting or the artistic conception, it was unparalleled.

After entering, Zhi Qi quickly saved various amazing pictures of Jiang Qi tonight, staring at the screen with the young man’s clear and indifferent face, while the girl’s big eyes sparkled…

*

Before Jiang Qi signed a contract with Chen Ding Entertainment, the contract had been reviewed by Shen Lei.

Because he inherently had a huge advantage in popularity and didn’t need the company to promote him, Jiang Qi was fully qualified to have a “fifty-fifty split” with Chen Ding in terms of profit sharing, with additional bonuses and such calculated separately.

Jiang Qi basically couldn’t understand those things, but listening to Shen Lei, he knew that his previous statement of “earning five hundred thousand for a single film is just pocket money” wasn’t an exaggeration.

For example, one clause in the contract between him and Chen Ding stated that he would receive a corresponding bonus once he won the Best Actor award, and besides, he won the Best Actor award at the Golden Tree Awards. The remuneration for “Gazing at the Sky” plus the fees from the magazine shoots arranged by Qiu Mi, the bonuses and Best Actor award money after signing with Chen Ding, plus the upcoming payment for “Jiao Si” and so on—

After Qiu Mi excitedly helped him do the math, Jiang Qi was surprised to find that he was already worth “several millions.”

Unconsciously, he had reached a height that he absolutely didn’t dare to dream of a year ago.

Jiang Qi thought for a moment and asked Qiu Mi, “With this money, is it enough to open a decent supermarket?”

…

Qiu Mi hadn’t heard of Jiang Qi’s “grand ambition” to open a supermarket before, completely not understanding what he meant, so he could only awkwardly reply, “Enough, enough, right? Brother, why do you ask this?”

Jiang Qi casually replied, “I want to open one.”

???

“You want to open one? Where do you have the time?” Qiu Mi couldn’t help but laugh out loud, boldly suggesting, “Bro, if you want to invest, let your family help open one.”

Qiu Mi just said it casually, but after Jiang Qi heard the word ‘family,’ his eyes gently flickered.

Actually, he wasn’t completely without family, but he didn’t know if Jiang Shi was willing to see him again. After all, the last time they met was a few years ago.

Regardless of anything else, Jiang Qi felt that the Jiang Shi’s help was like a lifeline when he was young and helpless. If he hadn’t helped his uncle sell vegetables, he might not have been able to go to school. Jiang Qi lowered his gaze, then extinguished the cigarette he had just lit in the ashtray after a moment of contemplation.

The young man stood up, put on his mask, and the fabric behind it sounded muffled. He casually said to Qiu Mi, “I’m going out for a while.”

Jiang Qi first went to the bank to withdraw some money, then drove to the Itada District.

Over the years, many of the rugged roads in Lin Lan City had been repaired, so it only took less than an hour to drive to the Itada District, which used to feel quite remote.

Following the route in his memory, the young man turned the steering wheel and headed towards a narrow alley behind the “Jingxin Vegetable Market.”

It was a low-rise residential area where the monthly rent was low, mostly rented by tenants doing business in the vegetable market. Jiang Qi remembered that the Jiang family had always lived there, and he had even lived there for a few years himself, not knowing if they were still there now.

Cars couldn’t enter the narrow alley behind the market, so Jiang Qi had to park outside and walk in.

In the evening, every household had its lights on. There was no soundproofing here, no privacy, only noise and the mixed scent of vegetables. The muddy ground underfoot was soft and wet, and his shoe soles were instantly stained.

In the narrow alley, only three people could walk side by side at most, and there were often collisions as people passed by carelessly. Jiang Qi had long been accustomed to this.

His expression remained indifferent as he walked up to the door of unit 1008, and only a hint of complexity flashed in his light-colored eyes.

There was light coming from the window of the house, indicating that someone was living there, but he didn’t know if it was still Jiang Shi and Guan Yue…

Jiang Qi stood outside the door for a while, then took a deep breath and knocked on the door.

After three knocks, a woman’s high-pitched voice came from inside the house, “Coming, coming!”

Then the door in front of him was pulled open, revealing Guan Yue’s pale and thin face. There was a clear look of confusion in her cloudy eyes when she saw the young man.