Chapter 2: Exactly Like a Face-Check at a Bar

After arriving at the airport and finding the spot, an assistant-looking person was handing out materials to the part-timers.

Things like posters.

"Sign here to get the stuff. You'll get fifty first, then follow me to the exit in a bit and wait. After you get the celebrity's autograph, you'll get another hundred."

A hundred-and-fifty job, and there weren't too many demands—no hysterical screaming or fainting or anything like that.

But even with such a simple setup, something still went wrong.

Their group of fake-fan part-timers ran into the real fans.

When the two sides converged, even though the numbers weren't huge, that corridor happened to be pretty narrow—there was no squeezing in at all!

Naturally, they didn't get a single autograph. Those real fans were shrieking and carrying on like they were on stimulants, and even Bai Liang felt a little scared watching them.

Huang Jingyu, though, was more aggressive—he squeezed in.

Five minutes later he came out with a face full of existential doubt, and the first words out of his mouth were: "The entertainment industry really is dark!"

"What happened?"

"That assistant who was handing us materials just now—fucking hell—he actually blocked me and wouldn't let me through…"

Pfft!

Bai Liang generally doesn't laugh at people, unless he really can't hold it in.

Seeing Huang Jingyu's resentful gaze, he patted the guy's shoulder and offered one line of comfort: "I reckon it's still your image problem. You're one-eighty-five, and you're pretty good-looking too. If you actually got up close to that male celebrity, wouldn't you just make him look like a shrimp by comparison?"

That actually made sense!

Still, Huang Jingyu corrected Bai Liang's statement: "I'm one-eighty-seven."

Bai Liang, at one-eighty-four-point-five, had nothing to say to that.

At this moment, Huang Jingyu was watching the male celebrity being swarmed by dozens of people, and a bit of longing did show in his eyes.

"One could take his place~"

Bai Liang, standing right behind him, dubbed the line for him.

That made Huang Jingyu's old face flush red.

A young guy barely out of his teens, getting his sore spot hit like that is genuinely embarrassing.

Today's first job had clearly met its "Waterloo." If Bai Liang hadn't turned around and found two hundred yuan by the restroom door, the morning's part-time wages wouldn't have even covered a day's meals.

Over lunch, Huang Jingyu was still full of drive—after all, the "big job" was in the evening.

Eight hundred yuan!

But this kind of work had a threshold: you had to send over photos and a resume in advance for them to review.

It was exactly like a face-check at a bar.

Luckily, both he and Bai Liang were decent enough in that department, so they got in smoothly and landed the high-paying gig of eight hundred yuan for half a day.

In his excitement, Huang Jingyu even started fantasizing about the entertainment industry.

Saying that if he became a celebrity, he'd definitely do this and that in the future.

The content was roughly like an ordinary person imagining how they'd spend it after winning a ten-million-yuan lottery.

"The Brazilian jiu-jitsu I know—drop that into the entertainment industry and it'd count as a personal specialty, right?"

Hearing that, Bai Liang thought about it seriously. "Doesn't seem all that useful. For action scenes, it'd definitely not look as good as those choreographed martial arts routines. Your thing is too practical."

Ah, this~

Is being practical also a crime?

But Bai Liang's "hit" wasn't over yet. "Sure, it's practical, but times have changed. Win a fight and you go to jail, lose one and you go to the hospital. For your specialty, I can only think of one use right now."

"What is it?"

"Beating your wife."

"Your grandpa's!"

Shooting the breeze is always fun. Although Bai Liang the bastard's words were a "tiny little bit" unpleasant to the ear, considering he was the one treating to lunch, Huang Jingyu's mood was still pretty good.

However, he got a little too happy too early today.

The evening job wouldn't allow dressing as plain as when they were pretending to be fans.

Before heading out, the two of them spruced up a bit. Bai Liang buttoned his white shirt crisp and straight, threw on a brown plaid casual blazer over it, paired with casual suit trousers, and polished, brand-new leather shoes.

He checked himself in the mirror. The short-haired young man inside was tall and well-built, with refined features and sharply defined lines—clearly outstanding bone structure. A pair of phoenix eyes, slender but not small, with slightly upturned corners that added a touch of easygoing charm.

With looks like his, if he kept a straight face and didn't smile, he actually looked quite cool—there was a sharpness to him.

But Bai Liang liked to keep a smile on, which gave him an absurdly approachable air instead.

That's how people without edge or life pressure look.

The evening job's gathering spot was pretty legit—basically the same place Bai Liang and the others often shot as print models.

The modeling agent posting the job was called Old Zhou, a familiar face in the circle.

Bai Liang had some impression of him, and Huang Jingyu even more enthusiastically went over to say hello, because Old Zhou was pretty much the modeling agent who paid up the fastest.

A so-called modeling agent was basically the same as those extras wranglers over in Hengdian—similar line of work.

Including Bai Liang and Huang Jingyu, there were eight people for tonight's job.

All good-looking guys.

Bai Liang took a quick look at his "colleagues" and suddenly spotted a "blind spot"!

He patted Huang Jingyu's shoulder. "You're actually the tallest one here."

Hearing that, Huang Jingyu froze for a second, took a look around, and sure enough.

The male modeling industry did have some height requirements.

Especially for runway models—they often required one-eighty-six or above.

For print models, the height bar could be lowered depending on looks.

But this line of work generally attracts tall guys.

Generally, when it comes to modeling shoots, Huang Jingyu's height doesn't really stand out.

Today, though, he felt a bit like a crane standing among chickens.

There were even some guys who'd barely scraped by one-meter-eight mixed in.

Likewise, judging purely by looks, all eight guys on today's job could be called handsome.

Is this really a looks-only lineup?

But Huang Jingyu sized everyone up, then said to Bai Liang with full confidence, "Still, the two of us are the best-looking!"

Bai Liang corrected him with a perfectly serious face, "I'm the best-looking."

"Bullshit! How could a rugged guy like me not be more handsome than you?"

"When we took the subway here, only two girls asked for your WeChat, but six girls asked for mine."

Lies don't hurt—it's the truth that's the sharp blade.

Once Bai Liang pulled out the "big data" to back up his conclusion, Huang Jingyu was left speechless.

Still, their discussion was honestly a bit too loud, and they nearly offended all six of the other guys.

Especially the shortest one, who shot them a rather indignant glare.

Bai Liang responded with a very friendly smile at him—utterly harmless and innocent.

Which instead left the guy completely at a loss.

Might as well have just said "What are you looking at?"

They're all young people with thin skins—it's easy for a single sentence to spark conflict, but even easier for a smile full of goodwill to leave them helpless.

Bai Liang: Mess with me, and you've messed with cotton~ (soft as can be)

"The car's here, let's go, let's go, get in."

At that moment two business vans pulled up, and the model agent Old Zhou called everyone to get in.

Bai Liang and Huang Jingyu got into the one where Old Zhou sat in the front passenger seat.

Once in the car, Huang Jingyu couldn't hold back, "What's the job today, Brother Zhou? Where are we headed?"

Old Zhou, in a floral shirt with sunglasses propped on his forehead, looked mysterious. "Good thing, good job—do well."

Great-great-great, which is the same as saying nothing at all.

Luckily the car didn't drive far, only about ten minutes, and it brought the eight male models to....... Brilliant Business K.

When they arrived, Huang Jingyu was completely dumbfounded.

Huh?!

Where the hell have they brought us?