Chapter 223: Yes, We Have a Baby

Wei Jin brought Jing Tian to Ning Hao's home; Xing Aina had already given birth.

The little one was fair and chubby, truly endearing.

What surprised Wei Jin a little was that Huang Bai, that guy, was also there, though the latter looked somewhat helpless.

"Brother, look, the baby is smiling at me."

Jing Tian seemed to really like children, but Wei Jin estimated that the main reason was that the baby was fair and tender, and anyone would want to give them a squeeze; if she really had to give birth to one herself, he feared she would be annoyed within three days.

"Silly, a newborn baby has very poor eyesight and can't see who you are at all; they aren't smiling at you."

"Ah, is that so?"

Wei Jin's words made Xing Aina's eyes light up; it seemed she hadn't expected him to know so much.

"Haozi, you should learn a thing or two from Wei Jin; day after day, you can't do anything right."

This way of lecturing Ning Hao surprised Wei Jin a little; one had to know that Xing Aina had a very good temper, especially since there were guests present today.

Wei Jin guessed there was something going on here; could it be that Ning Hao had really done something out of line? Taking advantage of the time Jing Tian and Xing Aina were teasing the baby, Wei Jin pulled Ning Hao to the side.

"Senior Brother, what's going on with you? Did you make Na Jie angry?"

Who knew Ning Hao would have a bitter face, devoid of the joy of a new father: "How would I dare? I'm even wondering if your Na Jie is going through menopause. These past few days, she's been watching the news about Director Gu and is suspicious of me every single day, finding me an eyesore here and picking at my faults there."

Wei Jin understood in his heart; this was Xing Aina feeling a sense of empathy.

Two days ago, Gu Changwei hit the headlines again; he was caught cheating once more.

This time, it was a passionate encounter in a car, and they were caught red-handed by reporters. The key was that Director Gu even got out of the car to negotiate with the reporters, only to be snapped by another media outlet, making it impossible to keep a lid on it.

The exposed photos were quite clear, and Director Gu was a sentimental man; it was still Zhang Jingchu.

This woman was also formidable; she had been blacklisted by the directors' wives' group a while ago and simply gave up on caring, no longer worrying about anything.

Thinking deeper, how could the media be so coincidental? Were there no hidden places for the two to meet? Zhang Jingchu was clearly retaliating: if you want to blacklist me, I will blatantly snatch your man and see who loses more.

"Senior Brother, there's no helping it. Postpartum is exactly when estrogen levels are in chaos; it's understandable to be irritable."

Wei Jin could actually understand it quite well. As fellow directors' wives and mothers, Xing Aina must have felt a sense of shared sorrow for Jiang Wenli's plight.

The key was that Ning Hao was younger and more handsome than Gu Changwei, and his commercial achievements were a cut above; in the entertainment industry, his appeal was absolutely no less than Director Gu's, so it would be strange if Xing Aina wasn't worried.

"I understand my foot. These past two days, I've been dragging Huang Bai along as a human shield, and it looks like he's about to lose his effectiveness too. I can't stay in this house anymore; I've already notified the crew to get ready, and we're heading to Dunhuang in a couple of days."

Wei Jin suddenly realized; no wonder Huang Bai looked like he was facing death—no one could handle this kind of domestic affair.

However, Ning Hao's approach was quite decisive; when a woman is being unreasonable, cold treatment is not necessarily a bad method.

"Sometimes I really envy you; romantic and sentimental, and the key is that you can keep your relationships steady. Who can you even reason with about that?"

"Senior Brother, don't even think about that. I have looks plus talent; it's not something an average person can achieve."

Speaking of this, Wei Jin was also a bit proud; as long as he didn't court disaster, he shouldn't capsize.

"However, that script of yours, are you really not going to change it?"

Wei Jin was worried; the old guys wouldn't miss such a good opportunity, and this time they were completely in the right.

"What else is there to change? The crew is all ready. I don't believe it; if *Nanjing* could pass, they can still keep staring at me?"

Ning Hao didn't care at all; the script had already passed, could they really block him during the editing phase? "You handled this matter beautifully this time; it was so satisfying."

Ning Hao hadn't been able to stand Lu Chuan for a day or two; sniping at something like *Nanjing* was just too refreshing.

"But, didn't the old guys at the Academy give you any trouble?"

"Strangely enough, they really didn't this time."

Wei Jin actually had some guesses in his heart: either his mentor blocked it, or his return with the momentum of a Golden Bear Award victory made them afraid to act rashly, or perhaps the censorship matter made them understand his attitude, and they were too lazy to ask for trouble. —— Inside the Chairman's office at Shanhe Building, Chen Zhiming was reporting on work.

This trip to Berlin lasted a full month, and Wei Jin needed to keep track of many things in the company.

"President Wei, *The Voice* has already reached an agreement with NBC for 2 million USD."

Wei Jin nodded upon hearing this; after dragging it out for so long, it was finally settled.

The explosive popularity of *The Voice* allowed television stations in many countries to see the potential of this variety show.

Before the new year, the North American NBC network offered a price of 1.5 million USD, hoping to introduce the program rights to create *North American The Voice*.

Besides that, countries including Norway, the UK, Finland, Portugal, Japan, and South Korea had also come to make contact, interested in introducing it.

However, the price was far worse than North America's; the highest was only 400,000 USD, and the cheapest was only tens of thousands.

This figure certainly didn't meet Shanhe Media's expectations, so the company basically only negotiated with the North American side.

After all, North America paid more, and their entertainment program production strength was stronger with greater influence; Shanhe Media hoped North America could create a hit, allowing other countries to see hope so they could raise prices later.

"*Snow Leopard* has also been settled with Anhui Satellite TV at 1.2 million per episode."

The male lead for this drama was given to Chen Xiao; since *Zhu Xian*, he hadn't shouldered a lead role independently.

The female lead was given to Yang Rong. As for other roles, Wei Jin didn't inquire further; the Artist Department and Production Department were very clear about Wei Jin's style and would only choose suitable candidates.

This drama had a production cost of 30 million for a total of 40 episodes; the first round of revenue alone would net a profit of 18 million, and counting subsequent second and third rounds as well as online rights, the profit would be at least 50 million or more.

"Good, it looks like the TV Production Department can have a prosperous year."

"That's for sure; last year the Variety Department was far ahead, and this year the other departments are all gearing up, waiting to take the top spot."

Chen Zhiming's words were not groundless; the post-production of *Ghost Blows Out the Light* had just been completed, and although it hadn't been sold yet, he believed it would definitely be more profitable than *Snow Leopard*.

The female lead for this drama was given to Zhang Yuqi of Xinghui after two months of open casting, mainly because her look was too fitting for the original work.

The male lead was handed to Lei Jiayin; he had been with the company for quite a few years, always honest and dutiful, and when there were no projects, he would hone his acting skills at the Shanghai Drama Academy. He was a very pure actor, and if there was an opportunity, the company naturally wouldn't be stingy about promoting him.

As for the role of the fat man, it was taken by Li Dazui from the Air Force Political Department; the company didn't have anyone of that type, so they could only let an outsider have it.

In fact, whether it was the directors or artists at Shanhe Media, they had basically understood Wei Jin's requirements over the years: quality was always the top priority, and when it came to casting, they wouldn't overly favor their own people.

However, despite this, whenever a company project used external artists, they would usually conduct a series of resource exchanges with the other party's agency.

For example, with Zhang Yuqi this time, even though she won the role, Xinghui also paid with a movie supporting role resource.

"By the way, how are this year's new projects going?"

"*The Myth* started filming at the beginning of the month, and *Palace* is also undergoing preliminary preparations, expected to start filming in April. Additionally, for the second half of the year's projects, the Screenwriting Department is also screening suitable scripts."

Wei Jin nodded with some gratification upon hearing this; the management system of Shanhe Media had become increasingly mature, and there were many things he no longer needed to worry about. — The news that *Eye for an Eye* and *Painted Skin 2* had set their release dates quickly spread throughout the entertainment industry, becoming known to everyone.

Everyone recalled the incident with *Curse of the Golden Flower* back then; it was exactly the same.

Many people in the circle were waiting to see Lu Chuan make a fool of himself; this guy had such a foul mouth that he had offended quite a few people.

Qin Hong also hadn't expected Wei Jin's actions to be so swift; he hadn't even had time to take action himself.

After discussing it with Wu Kebo, they could only choose to change the release date, but Lu Chuan exploded.

"I don't agree. We can change it once, but what about next time? Wei Jin still has several projects in his hands."

Lu Chuan saw it very clearly: relying on the production speed of Shanhe Media, unless he didn't release his film, he would be targeted forever.

"Sticking your head out gets you a blade, and pulling your head in also gets you a blade; why not fight a battle painlessly and happily?"

"You talk easily; the money was all invested by us. If it loses money, will you pay with your life?"

Qin Hong was also getting impatient; did this guy not understand his own position? One had to know that the Qin Brothers were not exactly kind-hearted people; it was just that they had gone legit in recent years and started to cultivate their character, but that didn't mean Lu Chuan had the qualifications to shout at him.

Lu Chuan was retorted with a sentence, his face flushed red, and he stormed out, slamming the door—Emperor Motion Pictures announced its new film plan for this year; there were many projects, but it was missing the most profitable *Ip Man* series. One had to know that for the past two years, almost as soon as a film left theaters, a sequel plan would be released immediately. Regarding this, Zhen Zidan had a bad premonition and began discussing it with his Assistant.

"You say, could it be..."

Zhen Zidan was very worried; although he was already almost a first-tier actor, the thing a red-hot actor feared most was losing sustained popularity.

"Brother Danny, that's impossible. We can guess just how profitable this series is."

The Assistant felt a bit guilty at this moment; after all, the bad idea was his. The matter of visiting Wei Jin alone was indeed too rash. In terms of closeness to Wei Jin, how could Zhen Zidan compare to Boss Yang?

"Perhaps, he wants to knock you down a peg?"

"Then what should we do now?"

It was unknown if everyone who practiced martial arts had this problem, but sometimes their minds were terrifyingly simple.

"How about you go see Boss Yang in person and humble yourself?"

The Assistant's suggestion made Zhen Zidan feel quite embarrassed. Damn it, the matter of raising his salary hadn't been settled, and now even the sequel series had no follow-up, yet he still had to go and humble himself with eager anticipation; was he living too spinelessly?

However, remembering that he had been in the industry for nearly 20 years to reach where he was today, if he truly offended Emperor Motion Pictures, he might return to the pre-liberation era overnight. Zhen Zidan put away his pathetic self-esteem.

"Alright, you contact Mani first." — Ning Hao was very decisive; he had truly entered the crew ahead of schedule, and the media had already reported it.

"Commercial blockbuster director Ning Hao, new film *No Man's Land* officially enters the Dunhuang Gobi Desert."

"*No Man's Land* — the first domestic road movie in the Great Northwest."

Looking at the news online, Jing Tian was a bit confused.

"Brother, Senior Brother Ning Hao just became a father; shouldn't he be accompanying the baby and his wife? Is the movie that important?"

Jing Tian didn't want a day to come where, in Wei Jin's heart, a movie was more important than her.

"Hey, this isn't a problem with the movie; Na Jie has had a very bad temper lately, so Senior Brother went out to hide..."

"Then why would Na Jie's temper get worse? Wasn't everything fine before?"

Wei Jin didn't know how to answer upon hearing this; he was much more of a playboy than Gu Changwei.

After pondering for a while, he had no choice but to tell the young girl some unreliable physiological knowledge.

"So, after pregnancy and childbirth, women's tempers all become irritable?"

Although Jing Tian found it hard to understand, she chose to believe the man's words, and then she became a bit worried:

"Brother, will you dislike me then and hide from me and the child like that too?"

The young girl seemed to have already imagined a scene where the child was not yet a month old, and Wei Jin was out having fun with other women, calling it "filming a movie," leaving the mother and child helpless and alone.

"What are you thinking? When we have a child, I will put down all my work and accompany you every day."

It seemed that no matter how old a woman was, she was prone to being sentimental. Wei Jin had no choice but to pull Jing Tian into his arms and keep whispering sweet nothings, finally coaxing the young girl.

It was just that what he didn't expect was that he would immediately face this problem himself. — Beijing, inside Ceng Li's villa.

In the spacious master bedroom, Wei Jin sat on the sofa, head bowed in silence, his expression somewhat complex.

By the bedside, Ceng Li had her hands crossed together, occasionally stroking her lower abdomen, her eyes occasionally revealing expressions of happiness and longing.

Suddenly, Ceng Li let out a "blech" sound, rose from the bed, and rushed to the bathroom with one hand covering her mouth.

Wei Jin also snapped back to reality and immediately followed her in.

"Li Jie, are you alright?"

Wei Jin reached out to pat Ceng Li's back and asked softly.

"I'm fine, it's just sudden nausea; I've almost gotten used to it these past few days."

Ceng Li shook her head and wiped the corners of her mouth; her eye sockets had also become somewhat moist due to the act of vomiting.

After washing up, Wei Jin carefully helped Ceng Li back to the room.

"I'm not that delicate; it's only been a short while."

The two came to the sofa, and Ceng Li leaned her head on Wei Jin's shoulder.

"Xiao Jin, do you like boys or girls? What name should we give the child? Do you think Big Uncle and Uncle Wei will like him?"

Ceng Li kept fantasizing; she seemed to have already seen the child walking toward her.

After rambling on for a long time, Ceng Li realized that the man hadn't said a word.

"Xiao Jin, why aren't you talking? Do you not like children?"

Wei Jin was still in a daze at this moment; he felt that things were somewhat beyond his plans.

When Ceng Li showed him the examination report, he was completely stunned.

All these years, when being intimate with the women around him, although Wei Jin never used a "little umbrella," the days he chose were calculated by time, because he wasn't ready yet.

But even being so careful, he didn't expect that God would still give him a huge surprise.

According to the time shown on the report, it should have been during the Spring Festival this year. Wei Jin, having achieved his goal, was overjoyed at the time and didn't remember who he had injected capital into.

The man's silence made Ceng Li's heart hang in the air; she dared not imagine what there would be to look forward to in her world if Wei Jin didn't agree to have this child.

With a sobbing tone, Ceng Li pleaded: "Xiao Jin, this is our child; you promised me..."

Forcing himself to calm down, Wei Jin squeezed out a faint smile, looked at Ceng Li, whose eyes were already red, and spoke to comfort her: "Li Jie, you're overthinking it. It's just that things happened so suddenly that I didn't know what to say for a moment."

Having calmed down, Wei Jin had already decided to keep this child; Li Jie was no longer young, and this might be the best opportunity.

Gently pulling Ceng Li into his embrace, Wei Jin no longer hesitated.

"Li Jie, although it was a bit of a surprise and I haven't mentally prepared myself yet, this is my promise to you. I said we would definitely have children."

"Since he (or she) chose to arrive at this time, let us, as a family, embrace this fate and face it together."

Hearing Wei Jin's words, Ceng Li could no longer hold back her tears; these were tears of happiness. — A pregnant woman really shouldn't have such intense emotional fluctuations.

After experiencing such great ups and downs in her mood and another bout of crying, Li Jie soon fell asleep.

Quietly keeping watch by the bedside, scenes of meeting, knowing, loving, and supporting each other with Ceng Li surfaced in Wei Jin's mind; this woman had already carved a deep mark in his heart.

Looking at the sleeping Ceng Li, Wei Jin felt an unprecedented sense of peace.

Getting up and coming to the courtyard, Wei Jin lit a cigarette, his mind filled with a thousand thoughts.

Since transmigrating, whether it was making money, filming movies, or interacting with female celebrities, Wei Jin always had the feeling of being in the midst of it all yet still being a passerby.

Perhaps this child would give him more attachment and expectation for this world.

Since he had already decided to accept this child, he had to make plans early. Ceng Li's profile was too high; if the matter of her being pregnant out of wedlock were exposed, he feared there would be no peace for a single moment in the future.

According to what Li Jie said, this time it was because she felt a bit unwell, and coupled with her period not coming, she felt something was off and bought a pregnancy test stick to check first.

Upon seeing the result, although Ceng Li was overjoyed, she was not carried away; she also knew that going to the hospital so blatantly would be tantamount to announcing it to the world.

Ceng Li first found Liu Yan, who had experience as a nurse and helped draw blood, and then, through Zhang Xu's connections, the blood sample was sent to the hospital for testing through a roundabout way.

As the Artist Department Director of Shanhe Media, Zhang Xu knew many people from all walks of life, and he also had a clear understanding of the relationship between Ceng Li and Wei Jin. He handled this matter very discreetly, so there shouldn't be any major problems.

Although it hadn't been exposed yet, as the months progressed, it would inevitably be impossible to hide. Wei Jin hadn't expected that the villa in North America would be put to use so soon.

The second update of the day. I humbly request all readers to reward me with subscriptions, follow-reads, bookmarks, monthly tickets, and recommendation votes. Thank you, everyone! (End of chapter)