Chapter 76: A Fierce Life Needs No Explanation

Television dramas, by genre, can be classified in many ways.

What could attract a girl of Fan Baobao's age was undoubtedly idol dramas. However, in 1999, the domestic idol drama market was almost a blank slate. The only one Zhao Fusheng had some impression of was naturally "Cherish Our Love Forever," which indeed launched several future big stars.

He originally thought he would never see this drama in his lifetime, but unexpectedly, it actually existed.

Only the lead actors were not the ones he was familiar with, especially the male lead, who was no longer that "Brother Jing" with a pancake face that made people nauseous.

But even so, Zhao Fusheng was really not interested in this kind of idol drama. He chatted with Fan Baobao half-heartedly, his mind not on it at all.

In fact, what Zhao Fusheng liked was the warm feeling now, like when he went to buy groceries just now, walking a road he had traveled for nearly twenty years, yet it felt so unfamiliar. But seeing the roadside vegetable stalls still made him smile involuntarily, and seeing those old houses still made him inexplicably excited. The memories imprinted in his heart by time might not be just simple images.

Hey, let me ask you, if I go to Beijing, can you take care of Beibei and my mom?

At this moment, Fan Baobao's sudden question interrupted Zhao Fusheng's thoughts immersed in memories.

Looking up, Zhao Fusheng stared at Fan Baobao blankly: "What did you say, go to Beijing?"

Fan Baobao nodded: "The school contacted me, meaning if I'm willing, they can recommend me to study at the Central Academy of Drama, but I can only start from the second year."

Hesitating for a moment, she said softly: "I haven't figured out how to tell my mom yet."

"Go, of course you have to go." Zhao Fusheng frowned slightly, then said seriously: "You have to understand, if you get into the Central Academy of Drama, you won't be a model from an unorthodox background, but a proper graduate from a professional school. It will be nothing but beneficial for your future development."

He wasn't joking. Fan Baobao's biggest problem was that she wasn't a formally trained actress; she lacked systematic training in performance. The little training at Ninghai Film Academy could at most let her play a maid well. To truly be a lead, she could only rely on her face.

That's right, in the so-called era of massive traffic more than ten years later, many traffic stars, those young idols, relied on their faces to act in TV dramas and movies.

What impressed Zhao Fusheng most was a widely circulated joke online: Do you know how hard so-and-so works? With a fever of 62 degrees, they still insisted on singing on stage for the waiting fans; with both legs shattered, they still practiced tap dancing; with a throat swollen over thirty times, they still practiced pronunciation; they practiced dancing over forty hours a day; with 30 billion fans worldwide, they never got arrogant; they held charity performances on February 29 and 30 every year, donating all the two trillion yuan earned to children in Switzerland who couldn't afford school.

This was originally just a teasing remark, but some fans actually believed it, showing how terrifying blind followers can be.

Zhao Fusheng didn't want Fan Baobao to one day have her acting skills scrutinized with contempt. An actor with only a pretty face would at most be called a vase.

"But..." Fan Baobao hesitated, seeming to want to say something but stopping.

"Isn't it just about money? Don't worry, I'll find a way." Zhao Fusheng said to Fan Baobao.

"You, you don't have any ulterior motives towards me, do you?"

Looking at Zhao Fusheng suspiciously, Fan Baobao said cautiously.

Rolling his eyes, Zhao Fusheng was too lazy to comment on her wild imagination. To be honest, his reaction just now was purely subconscious, without any other thoughts. At this moment, hearing Fan Baobao's words, he also realized something was off. Blinking, he said: "Don't worry, I have no interest in you. This is what I call an investment."

Investment?

Fan Baobao blinked, looking at Zhao Fusheng blankly.

Zhao Fusheng laughed: "Look, the money I spend on you now, when you become a big star later, won't you repay our family a hundred or ten times over?"

Fan Baobao glared at him: "Do I even need to say that? I'll never forget Uncle and Auntie's kindness."

"There you go. Just think, you'll take good care of them in the future." Zhao Fusheng waved his hand and said to Fan Baobao.

Fan Baobao's face flushed slightly, and she nodded gently, feeling much more grateful to Zhao Fusheng. It seemed she should bully him a little less in the future.

With that thought, Fan Baobao stood up, first poured Zhao Fusheng a cup of hot water, then thought for a moment, went to the fridge to get an ice pop, and asked Zhao Fusheng: "Which one do you want?"

Looking at the two items before him, Zhao Fusheng blinked: "An ice pop and hot water? Are you trying to make me experience the ice and fire ninefold heaven?"

Ice and fire ninefold heaven!

Fan Baobao blinked, feeling something was off but couldn't say what. She shot Zhao Fusheng a glare: "You, where do you get so much nonsense? Which one do you want?"

"Hmm, who drinks hot water in the middle of summer? Give me the ice pop." Zhao Fusheng chuckled.

That's the good thing about being an old hand; no need to worry about being caught driving. Fan Baobao at this time probably didn't understand the meaning behind his words.

If she remembered ten years later, he would never admit it even if it killed him.

Fan Baobao looked at Zhao Fusheng's strange smile, feeling something was off but unable to pinpoint it. She glared at him fiercely: "What are you plotting?"

"Nothing, absolutely nothing." Zhao Fusheng said innocently.

"Fine, I'll trust you this time." Fan Baobao handed the ice pop to Zhao Fusheng and turned back to sit on the sofa watching the idol drama.

Zhao Fusheng didn't dare to say anything more. He sat there slurping the ice pop. In the northern August, it was undoubtedly quite hot. Eating an ice pop while leaning on the sofa watching TV was a very enjoyable thing.

People often say life is like sailing against the current; if you don't advance, you retreat. Zhao Fusheng wasn't entirely sure about that, because many times he felt that being content with small gains or roaming the mountains and fields were both good choices.

But the burden on his shoulders was heavy. After thinking it over, he felt he should work harder.

The content of the TV drama was actually quite boring. It was just about the male and female leads being college classmates, going through countless hardships to be together, but in the end, the man falls for another woman. What can be clearly explained is love; what cannot be explained is fate—deep love but shallow fate. This kind of emotional drama made Zhao Fusheng extremely uncomfortable, but Fan Baobao beside him was quite serious, occasionally gritting her teeth, sometimes beaming with joy, completely led by the plot.

"Hey, if, I mean if, we got married and I cheated like the male lead in the drama, would you forgive me?" Bored, Zhao Fusheng said to Fan Baobao.

"You, married to me, and then cheated?" Fan Baobao was startled, then looked at Zhao Fusheng and repeated.

"Yeah, that's right." Zhao Fusheng asked the question purely to tease her.

"Of course I would. Even if you made such a mistake, I would stand firmly behind you and support you." Fan Baobao thought for a moment, smiled at Zhao Fusheng, and said.

"Really? You're that good?" Zhao Fusheng felt he must have misheard; Fan Baobao wasn't that kind of person.

Fan Baobao smiled slightly: "Don't worry, I can push a wheelchair."

At that moment, Zhao Fusheng felt a flock of crows flying over his head.