Chapter 650: Outshone by Mom

The few of them followed the cliff face of the gorge up to a small hill, where the stones grew in all sorts of strange shapes.

Some looked like rabbits, some like a gorilla's mouth, others like an octopus; many couldn't be compared to anything at all, and the entire surface of the small hill was covered in dense, irregular little holes.

And the edges of the stones were extremely uneven as well.

Liu Tianxian stood atop a tall stone, feeling a sense of boundless openness—vast and endless all around, with rolling hills in the distance and mountain ranges stretching across the horizon, a magnificent sight.

Some of the hills were black, others a rusty brownish-red, just like being on Mars itself.

"What mountain is that?" Liu Tianxian pointed at the distant range.

"Yanzhi Mountain, probably!" Fang Hong said, unsure.

"Alas, lost my Qilian Mountains, my six livestock no longer thrive; lost my Yanzhi Mountain, my women lose their rosy complexion." Liu Tianxian spread her arms wide and sang to the sky.

The gesture was rather funny, making everyone around burst into laughter; Liu Xiaoli couldn't help but chuckle either, exasperated with her daughter.

"You're talking about the Yanzhi Mountain in Gansu—it has nothing to do with this one." Fang Hong corrected her.

"Ah, it's not this one?" Liu Tianxian said, surprised.

"No, the real Yanzhi Mountain is in Gansu; this is just what they call it here, it isn't actually that one." Fang Hong said.

There is a Yanzhi Mountain in the Western Regions, it's just not that well known, and it's easy to get them mixed up.

Of course, the one people usually talk about is the one in Gansu—the famous line by the Xiongnu king about losing this and that; it's also a strategic stronghold, otherwise it wouldn't be so famous.

"Oh, I got it wrong. I thought the real Yanzhi Mountain was right here. No matter, they're all the same."

Liu Tianxian waved her hand, looking utterly indifferent, and beckoned, "Mom, come on, let's take a photo, the two of us."

Liu Xiaoli looked at the mountain path beneath her feet—rugged and hard to walk.

"Careful!" Fang Hong held her arm and helped her up.

On a rock, mother and daughter stood together; Liu Tianxian wrapped both arms around her mom's neck, looking very affectionate.

Liu Xiaoli was also wearing sunglasses and a straw hat!

"Come on, smile." Fang Hong walked to another little hilltop, took out the camera, and aimed it at the mother and daughter.

The mother and daughter's smiling faces looked radiant!

And behind them stretched endless mountain ranges, along with the Gobi desert—truly magnificent.

The picture froze; Liu Tianxian was about to step forward and said, "Let me see."

"Don't move, I'll come to you." Fang Hong signaled her not to move about; although this mountain wasn't too dangerous, a fall would still be scary—especially for a pregnant woman like Liu Tianxian.

He walked up to Liu Tianxian, adjusted the camera, and showed the mother and daughter the photo he'd just taken.

"Why does the lighting look a bit dim?" Liu Tianxian leaned in to look at the camera, feeling her photo hadn't turned out well.

"The weather here is just like that." Fang Hong said.

The weather in the Western Regions always gave people a hazy, gray feeling—thanks to heavy industry and the coal sector, plus environmental factors, it certainly wasn't as nice as down south.

"I mean me myself." Liu Tianxian said.

"Is it possible the problem isn't the lighting, but that you got outshone by your mom?" Fang Hong looked at her and laughed.

Liu Tianxian didn't care for that remark—her eyes flew open, her brows shot up, with a hint of fighting spirit.

Liu Xiaoli craned her neck to look from behind, heard this, and couldn't help but let out a string of "hehehe"s.

She gave Fang Hong a pat on the shoulder and laughed, "Xiao Fang, when it comes to being a person, you don't have to be quite so honest—be a little more tactful."

"Sure enough, feelings always fade." Liu Tianxian put on a pitiful look.

"Oh, feeling wronged now? Alright, I was just kidding—you look great, you look the best." Fang Hong put an arm around her shoulder to soothe her, and planted a loud kiss on her soft, tender cheek.

"Really?" Liu Tianxian asked in a sweet voice.

"Of course it's true." Fang Hong said.

"Then give me another kiss." Liu Tianxian tapped her own cheek.

"So mushy!" Liu Xiaoli muttered from the side.

Liu Tianxian happened to hear it and was displeased again: "Mom, if you can't stand the sight, you can always close your eyes."

"Is that any way to talk to your mother?" Liu Xiaoli gave her daughter's head a knock.

The three chatted and laughed there; meanwhile, the Han family's girl, Wen Muye, and Li Anran and the others were also on various hilltops taking in the scenery and snapping photos as souvenirs.

After all, they'd been tense filming for over a month, hadn't even rested during the National Day holiday—this was their first time coming out to relax a little.

After each of them had played around for a while, they climbed down onto the boundless Gobi and gathered together again to take a group photo as a memento.

Liu Tianxian also took a photo with each of them.

For this, Liu Tianxian even posted on Weibo, uploading two photos of herself on the Gobi desert, plus two costume-photo shots in space suits, arranged into a four-panel grid.

The four-panel grid even had a cute, kawaii border.

The caption read: "This young lady's in a good mood today, so here's four photos from 'Mars' for everyone. The photos themselves aren't anything special, but 'Mars' really is beautiful!"

"Wow! Big Sister, you're so pretty!"

"What place is that? Did you really go to Mars?"

"Big Sister, the place you went to is so unique—tell me, I want to go check in on Mars too."

The two photos in space suits, combined with the reddish-brown Gobi backdrop and the playful caption, could really fool anyone who didn't know into thinking she was on Mars.

But netizens' eyes were sharp.

"That's not Mars, it should be somewhere in the Western Regions."

"Looks like it's in Hami, I've been there!"

"The two space suit photos are somewhere on Balikun Shan, the two Gobi ones are at Guaishi Shan! You're welcome."

"Really? Going to check in, maybe I'll run into the fairy sister."

"Check in! Check in!"

Liu Tianxian's photo drew attention from netizens and fans online, as well as a wave of public discussion.

It even topped Weibo's hot search, a clear sign of its influence, instantly making Hami explode in popularity.

Within just a couple of days, tourist numbers surged, and all sorts of ordinary people and internet influencers posted check-in photos of themselves at Hami's "Mars" location.

They also spotted the filming site of The Martian, though Liu Tianxian was no longer there—the crew was packing up, and no celebrities could be seen.

But netizens still took photos from afar, capturing only vague outlines, since they weren't allowed to get close—the movie hadn't been released yet, and leaks were forbidden.

The outline was just "Huoxing Jidi," nothing more detailed could be seen; one netizen posted the photo online: "This is where Liu Tianxian filmed—this is really 'Mars'!"

"Hami is packed! Liu Tianxian is entirely to blame!"

Such news also made the front pages of self-media outlets and major portals like Sina and NetEase.

Suddenly, Hami went viral online, leaving the Hami Ministry of Culture and Tourism utterly unprepared.

They simply had no time to react to this flood of traffic!

Yet, despite the chaos, they quickly organized teams to set up guesthouses, restaurants, and parking lots at Guaishi Shan and Barkol.

When tourists come, you must provide them with basic food and lodging—otherwise, they'll complain.

And once these facilities were built, they needed long-term operation and management, which was quite troublesome.

It was uncertain whether they could maintain a steady, long-term flow of tourists.

In any case, Hami's tourism industry had struck it rich—once there were hardly any people, now tourists were everywhere, snapping photos and checking in.

For this, the Hami Ministry of Culture and Tourism issued a statement, awarding the major film project The Martian a 200,000-yuan subsidy!

The region was poor; giving this much was already generous.

But the crew declined it and donated it back to the local Ministry of Culture and Tourism for disaster relief and emergency rescue.

The money could be used whenever natural disasters occurred or someone was injured—though the sum seemed small, it was genuinely hard to come by when a real disaster or emergency struck.

Not everyone encounters hardship.

Hami's subsidy to the crew of The Martian was inevitably leaked.

"The Incredible! Liu Tianxian's The Martian boosted Hami's tourism—official reward of 200,000 yuan!"

Such headlines spread again across the internet.

Liu Tianxian had merely filmed one scene there, played around a bit, yet the place continued to draw sustained public attention.

Of course, the local authorities were also riding the trend, using the 200,000-yuan reward as self-promotion.

Giving the money directly to her personally would have been inappropriate; giving it to the crew was perfect, since it was a group effort.

In mid-October, Liu Tianxian returned to Beijing to continue filming The Martian's "space" scenes, which required Best Special Effects.

It was also the film's grand climax!

After finishing a day's shoot in Beijing, Liu Tianxian could go home; Xu Liyun greeted her like a "biological daughter," overjoyed.

"You're finally back—I've been waiting day after day!"

Xu Liyun rushed out to meet her, scanning Liu Tianxian from head to toe, especially her belly—still flat—and asked, "How are you? Feeling well?"

"I'm fine!" Liu Tianxian said.

"You had the hospital checkup and everything was fine; let's go back in a couple of days after resting." Liu Xiaoli said.

"Good!"

Seeing her daughter-in-law was doing well, Xu Liyun relaxed and said as usual: "Come in, come in—it's cold outside. I'll make you soup."

The weather in Beijing in mid-October had turned chilly!

And Xu Liyun resumed her soup-making routine, but this time, she cooked only soups beneficial to the fetus.

Like chicken soup, fish soup, and pork rib soup.

Of course, Fang Hong and Liu Xiaoli could also enjoy Liu Tianxian's treatment—after all, she couldn't possibly drink it all herself.

She still had to film, and her figure couldn't change yet—luckily, the shoot was nearly over.

"Mother-in-law, your cooking is truly excellent!" Liu Xiaoli praised after sipping the chicken soup.

"If you like it, you can come every day—I'll make it for you," Xu Liyun said gently.

Liu Xiaoli really just wanted an excuse to come over daily, to see her daughter.

Before pregnancy, seeing her occasionally was fine; now that she was pregnant, she wanted to come every single day.

"Why be shy? We're family. I make extra for Xixi anyway—it'd be wasted otherwise," Xu Liyun said.

"Then I won't be polite," Liu Xiaoli laughed.

Liu Tianxian ate her fill, rubbed her belly, and felt as if something alive was pulsing there.

It was her imagination—she'd unconsciously rub her belly when nothing was happening; it was a psychological bond between mother and fetus.

Just like Fang Hong always wanted to listen to her belly.

Fang Hong asked: "Can you still take ads like this?"

"What ads can I take?" Liu Tianxian lightly patted her belly, implying her condition.

"She won't be able to do anything for at least a year—many events and ads have been postponed," Liu Xiaoli added.

She handled all the commercial matters.

"I've gotten a few ad offers from elsewhere—see if Xixi can take them. Signing isn't urgent; the brands haven't demanded appearances yet," Fang Hong said.

"What offers?" Liu Xiaoli asked, puzzled.

"Huawei's Nova phone series and Chow Tai Fook jewelry," Fang Hong said.

These were the ads Fang Hong planned to snatch from Da Baobei—he'd just taken Pizza Hut away for Nazha.

Nazha was cheaper, and her current fame wasn't worse than Da Baobei's, but few stars could replace Da Baobei's status and celebrity like Jade Rabbit.

So it depended on whether Liu Tianxian wanted them.

Losing several major ad deals would hurt Da Baobei badly.

Some brand ads are face-saving, symbols of status, and channels for spreading visibility.

So many phones, so many jewelry stores plastered with posters—that's a form of indirect exposure, which is why celebrities are willing to take ads.

"Strange, why are you so eager to get me ads?" Liu Tianxian was puzzled.

In the past, this man never cared whether she took ads or what kind of ads she took; over the years, he'd only ever introduced her to Xiaomi.

And that was just by chance, not something he deliberately arranged for her.

"All these ads are meant for Da Baobei—I plan to take them from her." Fang Hong didn't hide it.

"Wait, why are you stealing her ads?" Liu Tianxian didn't understand.

Xu Liyun wasn't interested in this matter, so she didn't join in; she put away the bowls and chopsticks and went to the kitchen to busy herself.

"Is it because Huayi?" Liu Xiaoli guessed.

"Yes, this isn't stealing—it's each side using their own abilities. The brand didn't sign Da Baobei; she's just a candidate." Fang Hong explained.

Brands keep several celebrities as potential image ambassadors; the final choice requires comprehensive evaluation.

Like fame, status, price, and potential revenue.

So Da Baobei isn't guaranteed to be chosen—she's just trying hard, and there are other actresses competing.

But if Fang Hong personally goes to negotiate, it'll look like a direct strike.

Because Chang'e Video has partnered with Huawei, collaborating on computing and the Data Center; Huawei provides cloud services to help Chang'e optimize content distribution and network data storage.

Especially overseas, where there's no Data Center, Huawei's services are used.

Huawei is fundamentally a terminal data service provider.

Also, Huawei's products—phones and smart hardware—have ads placed on Toutiao, Bilibili, and Chang'e Video.

As for games, they've also launched on Huawei's distribution channels, so the two sides' cooperation runs deep.

If Fang Hong goes to negotiate, and the two actresses are roughly equal, they'll certainly give him face; besides, Liu Tianxian is far more famous and has higher status than Da Baobei.

Her works and image are both stronger.

"I see."

Liu Tianxian thought for a moment and said: "If you can get them, I'll take them."

"Huh? So straightforward?" Now it was Fang Hong's turn to be puzzled.

"Whatever you do, I support. Besides, I don't like Huayi." Liu Tianxian spoke bluntly.

After being criticized for so long, she'd endured heavy psychological pressure—everyone has anger inside.

And this is something her man is determined to do; she must stand by her man. Even if she can't help much, she can still strike back at Huayi.

She also understands this matter: fundamentally, Da Baobei entered a bet with Huayi—if the other side doesn't earn ninety million in these months,

Huayi will have failed to meet its profit expectations, inevitably causing a sharp drop in stock price.

If those few celebrities can't pay or repay the hundreds of millions, it'll trigger a chain reaction.

So Huayi is nervous—it's real Silver, after all; those celebrities who signed the bets are nervous too—they must compensate if they fail to meet profits.

But where can they get that much money all at once!

That's why many celebrities who signed bets later ended up in debt.

Of course, Fang Hong knew: in his past life, these ads were signed by Da Baobei—she'd just gotten married, at the peak of her fame.

(End of Chapter)