My Wife Is a Superstar

Chapter 922 A Miser

After ending the conversation with Cheng Xiangyun, Ning Ran sat in a daze for a long time, seemingly unable to grasp the situation.

Did the film really become a huge hit? Did it really gross over one hundred million at the box office overnight? Did I really have fans forming a fan club for me?

Ning Ran pinched her own thigh with all her might at that thought. “Ouch!” It was so painful that a groan escaped her lips.

Coincidentally, Nan Chen stepped inside. “What are you doing?” The man shot her a doubtful gaze. “My skin's itchy!” replied Ning Ran ever so casually.

"Oh, really? Do you want me to scratch it a little for you?”

Ning Ran hurriedly waved her hands at that. “There's no need for that! I'm okay already. Thank you for your concern, Mr. Chen!”

Then came Nan Chen's revelation. “The box office preliminary results are out. The ticket sales didn't go that well—only a little over three million. Your film now ranks last on the real-time box office chart.”

"What? Didn't someone say that the ticket sales hit the hundred million mark already?” The woman blanched in astonishment.

“Says who?"

On that note, her heart sank. “Wang Xiaoou, that's who. But didn't the film receive countless positive reviews from the netizens? Why aren't the tickets selling?”

"Whose words do you trust? Wang Xiaoou's or mine?” answered Nan Chen with more questions. Ning Ran was on the verge of tears. Every bit of joy within her was swiftly replaced by sorrow. “I'm sorry..."

"What are you apologizing for?”

“Because... Because the box office sales were so bad. I even thought...”

She forced herself to hold back her overwhelming emotions. To be honest, she would be reduced to a sobbing mess at any moment.

It was then that Nan Chen parted his lips and said, “How could a film that grossed one hundred and three million on the first day of its release be bad?”

Ning Ran looked up in an instant. “What did you just say?”

"I said “one hundred and three million.’ I was only telling you how much in excess the film made over the hundred million mark a while ago.” The corner of the man's lips quirked, his face inundated with nothing but smugness.

“You big meanie!”

Ning Ran lunged at Nan Chen and pounded away at him without reprieve.

The next second, Nan Chen yanked the woman's body into his embrace and hugged her tightly. “Who would have known that you were so gullible?” he whispered a gentle tease in her ear with his magnetic voice.

"You must be a total nut job. Why must you trick me like that? I was so thrilled, and you just had to throw cold water on me. I almost broke down in tears because of that!"

Nan Chen was all smiles. “Silly, you. I've told you before—a movie that amazing would never flop. You simply didn't want to take my word for it. By the way, Wang Xiaoou must've already informed you that the company has organized a celebration party, right? The Big Screen Journal would like to have a half-hour exclusive interview with you prior to the celebration party, so you've got to doll yourself up. They're one of the critically acclaimed magazines in the local industry and have been running their social media account pretty well. They're rather influential if you ask me. Being featured on the cover of their magazine will signify a foothold in the film industry.”

“I'm not going to show up,” Ning Ran declined outright.

"Why not? So many actors out there would die to be on their magazine's cover. Even money can't buy them such an opportunity. To think that you're just going to throw it all away.” To say that Nan Chen was shocked would be an understatement.

Ning Ran covered her tummy and wailed, “I can't go because my stomach hurts. I need to go see a doctor.”

“That sounds serious! Why didn't you say anything sooner? Come, I'll take you to the hospital!” Wasting no more time, Nan Chen carried Ning Ran and bolted outside.

The latter wrapped her arms around the man's neck, indulging herself in the familiar scent exuding from his body.

“I didn't realize you were also this easy to deceive, Mr. Chen,” she muttered.

Nan Chen faltered in his steps. It finally dawned upon him that he had been played like a fiddle. Wheeling around, he brought the woman in his arms back to the bedroom and pressed her onto the bed. “How dare you be so cheeky!”

"Hahaha! S-Stop it..."

While the door to the bedroom was left wide open, the couple continued to fool around when a voice rang out. “Mommy, what are you two doing?”

It was Erbao. She barged into her mother's bedroom upon hearing the loud commotion. Fortunately, the adults were merely frolicking with each other, not doing anything too carnal.

Still, it was kind of awkward in a sense.

Nan Chen was the first to utter in a serious tone, “Your mommy's having a headache, so I'm giving her a massage session.”

“Is that so? But why did I hear her laughing? What's so funny about having a headache?” Puzzlement was written all over Erbao’s face.

The man quickly explained, “Her head must hurt so much that she's starting to act silly and laugh on her own.”

"Oh?" The little girl became all the more confused.

“Don't listen to your daddy's nonsense, Erbao. I'm laughing because I'm happy that our film has hit the hundred million mark!” Ning Ran was in seventh heaven when she dropped those words. Erbao, however, could not make sense of what her mother had just told her. “What does “hit the hundred million mark’ mean?”

“It means the ticket sales were very high, and the film made tons of money!” Ning Ran did not hesitate to return a response.

Erbao’s eyes sparkled. “Doesn't that also mean we now have lots of money to get some yummy food?”

Nan Chen secretly heaved a sigh. Even if we didn't manage to sell a single ticket, I'd still have more than enough fortune to feed you all the delicious food in the world for the rest of your life, silly girl. It broke his heart to see his daughter's eyes shining with glee in regard to wealth. To harbor such a thirst for money, Erbao must have been left scarred by the abject poverty back in the days when Ning Ran was the only person she could rely on.

Kids her age would normally be unaware of what money could bring, much less be intrigued by the mention of it.

Speaking of which, no children would deem money of any importance, for their parents could provide for them.

On the contrary, life had not been smooth sailing for Erbao, considering the poor financial status of the household in the past. Whenever she had the urge to taste good food or have some fun, Ning Ran would turn her down, only to promise to make it up to her once they had more money to spare. Erbao eventually became a miser, just like her mother. As such, her eyes would light up when it came to money.

Given the money, it would mean that she could satiate all her heart's desires.

Nan Chen picked the little girl up and asked, “Tell me what you're craving now, and I'll buy it for you!”

"Hmm... I'm craving for...”

Ironically, Erbao could not offer an answer to that. Truth be told, she had blurted those words out on a whim. She might have thought of various food in her head, yet she found it hard to choose something specific.

“The girl was only passing casual remarks about it. You don't have to take it seriously.” A grin was etched on Ning Ran’s countenance as she spoke.

“Daddy! I want to go to the cinema!”

Erbao had been thinking about Dabao’s words to her from the night before—she would get to enjoy a variety of tasty food should she visit the cinema during the day.

Even though she could not make up her mind about what she wanted to eat just yet, she believed that she would have the answer once she reached the cinema.

“We can't go to the cinema today. Your mommy and I have some very important work to do. In fact, you can't go anywhere today. If you do, you'll definitely be recognized.”

"Who'd recognize me?” Erbao regarded her father with her large, gleaming eyes.

Her question only served to elicit an elucidation from her mother. “Anybody who goes to the movies will recognize you. All of them love your acting so much that they'll naturally know that it's you at a glance.”

Ning Ran had spoken nothing but the truth. Erbao’s scenes in the movie had been made into screenshots and circulated all over the internet. It was not exaggerating to say that Erbao had garnered more fame than Ning Ran.

“What will happen if they do?” Erbao still could not get it.

The adults exchanged glances. Neither of them had any idea how to better explain the matter at hand.

That was because even they themselves had no clue about what the consequence might be should Erbao get pointed out by her fans in public.

“They won't scold me, will they?” asked Erbao, seemingly aggrieved.

As a matter of fact, Ning Ran had often been bombarded with negative comments over the internet by the community, which had misled Erbao into believing that it was the norm for celebrities to receive criticism

“Most probably not. No one will scold a cute little girl like you,” were Ning Ran's comforting words. Curiosity then got the better of Erbao, compelling her to probe further. “So, what exactly will happen?”

"Hmm... Maybe they'll take pictures with you or something. No matter what, we shouldn't wander about outside for the time being. We'll only be inviting more trouble if we go out now. Let's wait for the hype to die down a bit before we head to the cinema, all right?” suggested Ning Ran gently. “Then, should I even be going to school today?”

Erbao’s question stumped her parents once more.

Indeed, she had made a point. Since she was not allowed to go to the movies, she wondered if she should skip school altogether. From her perspective, her teachers and schoolmates would recognize her all the same.

“Today's a weekend, so we don't have school,” Dabao chimed in.

Nan Chen and Ning Ran shared a look, both wearing scornful expressions.

How dumb can we possibly get? Isn't it a given that there's no school on weekends? How could we have let our son point it out?