Chapter 55: Lucky Baby

Chapter 55: The Little Fortune

On Sunday afternoon, Song Tan had half a day to spend with them.

The couple took their child to the paper-cutting workshop they hadn’t visited the day before. Song Chuqing was having too much fun to think about going home.

They had to return to the capital by the 7 p.m. train. Ji Fuxi spent a long time comforting her, but Song Chuqing remained upset, her voice tinged with sadness. "Daddy, why do we have to be apart from Mommy?"

The man paused.

"Can’t we stay with Mommy forever?"

Ji Fuxi lifted her onto his lap, wanting to say something, but his throat tightened.

After a long moment, he finally spoke. "Because Mommy is her own person first. She has a career she loves, and she needs to stay there to fulfill her dreams. We have to support her."

"Xiao Chu has her own life too—going to kindergarten, making friends, and later attending elementary and middle school. You’ll grow up, fall in love, get married, and maybe even have your own baby one day."

His voice was gentle. "But Mommy will never leave us. This separation won't last forever. We’ll see her again next week."

Song Chuqing still didn’t understand. All she knew was that she was sad now and missed her mother terribly. Her eyes reddened. "But I don’t want to grow up. I just want to be with Mommy now."

Ji Fuxi fell silent, pulling the little girl close and patting her small shoulders. His eyes grew distant before he finally murmured, "I know, sweetheart."

A week passed. On Friday morning, Song Chuqing eagerly packed her little backpack, ready to leave. However, Ji Fuxi still had work that evening, so Zhong Chen accompanied her first.

Song Tan no longer stayed in hotels. She had Tao Tao find a small, private guesthouse near the film set—three bedrooms and two living areas, with a master bedroom, a guest room, and a study for work.

The front yard was a small garden, while the backyard had vegetable beds cultivated by the owner. Song Chuqing could plant vegetables there during summer vacation, and Aqi could run around freely.

Song Chuqing arrived on Friday night.

Ji Fuxi came on Saturday.

That Saturday evening, Song Tan didn’t work overtime. After getting the child to sleep, she returned to the master bedroom and turned the lock.

Their physical longing for each other over the past half-month poured out in their intimacy. Some pleasures, once known, could never be forgotten. They were both honest about their desires.

Kisses.

Their bodies moved together in rhythm until release.

Were it not for the next day’s shoot, Song Tan felt she might have "died" in that bed.

After the peak of pleasure came endless exhaustion.

Half-asleep, Ji Fuxi cleaned her up and dressed her. Half an hour later, she was enveloped in his familiar, fresh scent.

The routine she knew so well always helped her sleep soundly.

In early July, Song Chuqing officially started her vacation. Father and daughter moved into the guesthouse with a lot of luggage.

When Song Tan returned from work and saw several large suitcases in the living room, she stopped in her tracks. She went to the backyard and found the pair planting vegetables, along with a little dog already covered in mud from rolling in the soil. "Did you bring everything but the kitchen sink?"

Song Chuqing held a watering can and called out sweetly, "Mommy!"

Ji Fuxi replied, "Just enough for two months. Not much."

Song Tan was surprised again. "You’re staying for two months too?"

"I can’t stay the whole time, but it's too much back-and-forth. I’ll return if something comes up."

Alright then.

The vegetable seeds planted two weeks earlier had sprouted into seedlings after half a month. Song Chuqing treasured her rows of spinach, bok choy, and water spinach, tending to them first thing every morning. She even talked about watering them in her dreams.

Now, she exclaimed, "Mommy, take a picture for me! I want to show Ke Ke and Pei Qiu!"

The spinach, bok choy, and water spinach were thriving—fresh and green. They’d probably be ready to harvest in another half-month.

Song Tan took the photo and sent it to her kid's smartwatch. The little girl navigated the screen with practiced fingers and forwarded the picture to her friends.

For the next two months, the family of three lived an ordinary life.

Song Tan had only one day off a week at most. When filming night shoots, she might not return home at all. But whenever she did, there was always a little one waiting for her.

Ji Fuxi was also busy with work, spending three or four days here and the rest in the capital. If things got hectic at the company, he might not come for a week or two.

Song Chuqing truly enjoyed her summer vacation—wandering around the house, running everywhere with Aqi, tending to the vegetable garden, watering and fertilizing, and documenting the growth of her greens day by day.

By late July, the vegetables were ready for harvest. Song Tan scheduled a picking time with her, letting the little girl properly enjoy the fruits of her labor.

On a bright afternoon, Song Chuqing squatted by the vegetable beds with a small basket, carefully plucking the greens one by one, shaking off the soil, and placing them gently inside. She murmured happily to herself, "This is spinach. Pei Qiu loves spinach."

"I’ll plant vegetables with Great-Grandpa when I go home too. Lots and lots of them."

"Huh? Why didn’t this one grow? Did it not eat its food?"

Midway through, she spotted a bug on a leaf and shrieked, dropping the vegetable and scrambling away in panic. "Eek! Mommy! There’s a bug!"

Song Tan couldn’t help laughing. "If there’s a bug, it means it likes Xiao Chu’s vegetables too."

I guess that's true... Song Chuqing worked up her nerve and crouched down to observe the wriggling green bug. After a while, she turned back cheerfully. "Mommy, the bug is eating my vegetables!"

Song Tan humored her. "Wow, Mommy can’t wait to taste Xiao Chu’s vegetables too."

The little girl frowned briefly before her face lit up, her eyes sparkling. "Then I’ll try some too!"

Song Tan had originally encouraged her to plant vegetables just to keep her occupied. She hadn’t expected such a delightful bonus.

At the dinner table, Song Chuqing willingly picked up the greens—without being asked. After eating, she announced proudly, "Mommy, even though vegetables still stink, these are the ones I grew. I’ll eat them."

She ended up finishing over half the plate.

Two days later, when Ji Fuxi arrived from the capital, he was reluctantly drafted into the vegetable-eating duty. The little girl earnestly told him, "Daddy, you have to eat the vegetables. Xiao Chu grew them, and they’re really tasty!"

She added, "Teacher Xiao Qing says, 'Every single grain is the fruit of hard labor.' We can’t waste food!"

Ji Fuxi looked on in resignation at the spinach, bok choy, and water spinach on the table.

That night, as they lay in bed, Song Tan teased him, curled up against him. "Don’t want to come anymore?"

To her surprise, the man actually considered it seriously. She playfully swatted him in fake outrage.

With three full rows of vegetables, the family couldn’t finish them all. They harvested half and shared them with others, while the rest were savored over time. They planted new seeds, and Song Chuqing, the budding gardener, began her next gardening project.

Besides gardening, Song Chuqing’s summer vacation was packed with fun.

Three days a week, Zhong Chen would take her to experience local paper-cutting and shadow puppetry.

She loved it and could now cut beautiful flowers on her own, as well as perform a simple shadow puppet show with lively narration.

The shadow puppet master wanted to take her as an apprentice. The master was a well-known local inheritor of this intangible cultural heritage. Seeing how much the little girl enjoyed it, Song Tan seriously considered the idea—it was doable.

Then, one day, she formally arranged for her to become the master’s disciple.

From then on, the master never had to worry about running low on vegetables.

The rest of the time, Song Chuqing would go to the set with her mom, wandering around every room and corner, touching this and that. The makeup artists would do her makeup and teach her how to apply makeup, the photographers would snap pictures of her and teach her photography, and the action choreographer even taught her self-defense moves.

The Song Chuqing of today was no longer the same as before—she had become a jack-of-all-trades!

On the day of the vegetable garden’s bountiful harvest, she deliberately packed a big bag of greens and brought them to the set, handing out handfuls to everyone she met—spinach, Chinese cabbage, or water spinach, whatever was available.

Having picked up the habit from someone, she’d sweetly say lucky phrases like, “Wishing you prosperity, big brother!” or “Wishing you prosperity, big sister!”—leaving the entire crew grinning from ear to ear.

Later, when Zhao Geyun stopped by and saw the little girl dozing off in her own comfy little chair, she teased her about truly becoming the crew’s baby.

And indeed she was—the crew’s baby, quietly watching her mom film on set.

“I heard Xiao Chu’s been handing out veggies on set?”

Song Tan couldn’t help but laugh at the memory. “Yeah, everyone got to ‘prosper.’”

Zhao Geyun sighed regretfully. “Ah, the good luck charm. I should’ve come sooner.”

Zhao Geyun was there on business. After the small talk, she got straight to it: “Promotions for *The Great Dream* start in September. How’s your progress here?”

*Hear Her Voice* was scheduled for a three-month shoot, and everything was proceeding smoothly as planned.

The only hiccup was the increasing number of fans showing up on set during the later stages of filming. Many scenes were shot on location in the town, requiring extra effort to maintain order.

Overall, though, it had been smooth sailing. Song Tan nodded. “We’ll wrap up before September.”

Zhao Geyun: “I’ll send you the promotion plan later. Take a good look and familiarize yourself with it.”

“Okay.”

“Also, some scripts have already come your way. Want to take a look?”

Song Tan refused outright. “No, I don’t plan on acting again.”

“Not asking you to act—” Zhao Geyun chuckled. “Wait, no, I *am* asking you to act—but as Director Song.”

Song Tan was surprised.

“That’s just how this industry is. Everyone wants to get ahead of the game.”

“This film isn’t even finished yet. What if it bombs after release?”

Zhao Geyun shrugged. “Who cares about that?”

Song Tan smiled wryly. “They’re after my status, huh?”

Zhao Geyun didn’t elaborate. “So, want to look or not?”

“Send them over.”

“Great. Last thing—still not taking endorsements?”

“Not for now.”

“Okay.”

After work talk, Zhao Geyun hurried off to find the crew’s prosperity baby. “Xiao Chu~”

Song Chuqing was sound asleep but woke at the sound, rubbing her eyes awake. Spotting Zhao Geyun, she greeted sweetly, “Auntie Ge Yun.”

“Hey there.” Zhao Geyun picked her up. “Come on, take Auntie to see your veggies. Auntie wants to prosper too.”

At this, Song Chuqing lit up, eyes sparkling. “The veggies from before are all gone now. The new ones are still growing!”

Gone? Zhao Geyun was shocked. “Who ate them? You?”

“Yep! Me, Daddy, and Mommy ate them. The extra ones were given to uncles and aunties.”

Oh well. Zhao Geyun didn’t press further, following the little one home—where she helped herself to some still-growing greens.

…

Late August—wrap day.

The wrap-up ceremony was held on set, attended by the entire crew.

No livestream this time, but the actors had to film a wrap-up video.

Afterward, Song Tan gave flowers to each of the main creators, thanking each one sincerely for their hard work.

The past three months had seen plenty of challenges. As a rookie director, she’d inevitably overlooked things, but everyone had worked together to overcome them without complaint. The smooth wrap-up was thanks to each person’s effort.

That evening, they all had dinner together—the only whole crew get-together.

Outside the set, many fans had gathered upon hearing the news. Song Tan accepted a bouquet and encouraged everyone to stay tuned for the film.

The crew booked the town’s largest hotel, filling over a dozen tables.

The atmosphere was relaxed, and everyone spoke freely.

Lead actor Zhu Fan started: “Three months passed quickly. Looking back now, it feels unbelievable. At first, Director Fang told me to audition for a role, and I went in with a ‘nothing-to-lose’ attitude. Never thought Sister Tan would actually pick me.”

“Honestly, a lot of people didn’t have high hopes for this film. I kept my own expectations low too. Sister Tan, don’t scold me for saying this, but at first, I thought just getting it released would be a success.”

“But these three months changed my mind. I’m sure it’ll be a hit. I’m just waiting for the release to become a leading actor.”

Everyone laughed, wishing him an early ascent to leading actor status.

Cen Zishu raised her hand next. “I’ve got something to say too!”

The girl looked at Song Tan earnestly. “I’m not exactly new to this industry—I’ve taken on all kinds of roles big and small. But this crew has been the most comfortable I’ve ever worked with.”

“No forced networking you can’t refuse, no dinners with directors, producers, or bosses. Everyone here communicates directly—no scheming or blame-shifting. For the first time, I realized ‘actor’ is just a job. All I needed to do was focus on my work.”

Cen Zishu spoke from the heart. Before joining, she’d assumed the industry was just like that—seniority and capital ruled, and those without connections were doomed to be stuck being extras.

She knew Song Tan’s backing might have been a factor, but Song Tan hadn’t exploited it for personal gain. Instead, she’d used that influence to build a positive set environment.

So it showed what people could do. If people in charge led by example, then things would work much better.

She quietly nurtured a dream in her heart, hoping that one day she would become strong enough to be a rule-maker.

Cen Zishu smiled and said, "Of course, most importantly, Director Song and the assistant director are both very professional. I’ve truly learned so much—so much that I can even proudly say I can now act."

"And to all the makeup artists, costume designers, and everyone on set, you’ve all been wonderful. Thank you."

Cup in hand, she stood up. "Sister Tan said no drinking or toasting today, but I still want to express my gratitude. So, I’ll raise a cup of tea in place of wine to everyone."

Everyone drank together.

After sitting down, someone brought up, "Did we all forget? There’s someone else we should thank—Director Song. Where’s Little Chu?"

"Right, right! Where’s Little Chu?"

"Where’s our lucky charm?"

"Just thinking about not being able to see Little Chu in the future makes me sad."

The chatter quickly lifted the atmosphere to its peak.

Meanwhile, the lucky charm everyone was missing was out buying flowers with her dad.

"Dad, Mom likes white."

"Then we’ll buy white ones."

The tiny florist had little selection. Ji Fuxi picked white roses and moth orchids, and the shop assistant helped them choose filler flowers.

With some time left before the wrap party ended, they decided to arrange the flowers themselves.

Under the shop assistant’s patient guidance, the father and daughter spent an hour successfully assembling the bouquet before heading to the crew's dinner hotel.

Song Tan texted they'd be done in half an hour, so the two waited in the car instead of going inside.

Half an hour later, Song Tan, along with Cen Zishu and a few others who tagged along, came out through the back door.

Everyone wanted to smother our lucky charm with hugs, but they hesitated when they saw the man standing beside her.

Song Chuqing gave Mom the flowers first, saying sweetly, "For finishing your movie, Mommy~"

Song Tan took the bouquet, bent down, and kissed her cheek. "Thank you, baby."

Ji Fuxi stepped forward and hugged her. "Congrats on wrapping."

"Thank you," Song Tan returned the embrace, feeling completely content in that moment, like life was perfect.

The trio prepared to leave, with Song Chuqing waving goodbye. "Bye, Zishu-jie! Bye, Brother Zhu Fan! Bye, everyone~"

Everyone waved back reluctantly. "Bye, Little Chu! See you next time!"

"Okay~"

...

That night, the production's official accounts across all platforms posted the wrap-up video. Song Tan reposted it, and by 9 p.m., "Hear Her Voice Wraps Up" hit number one on the trending list, with "Song Tan" taking second place.

Zhao Geyun sent her a screenshot while she was tucking Chuqing in.

After scanning through the comments under the trending topics—filled with congratulations, celebrations, and anticipation from fans—she found nothing unusual.

Ten minutes later, Zhao Geyun called directly.

Her tone was deceptively calm. "Tantan, the top trending topic has changed."

Song Tan laughed. "So what? That’s not strange."

Zhao Geyun: "Mm, not strange. It’s just been replaced by 'Ji Fuxi and Song Tan,' with three times hotter than the wrap-up topic."

Song Tan: "..."

She hung up and went online.

Sure enough, the top trend now read: "Ji Fuxi Song Tan."

The timeline exploded with photos from the hotel’s back entrance that night—pictures of their embrace, the family of three holding hands while getting into the car. Ji Fuxi’s face was clearly visible, while Song Chuqing’s was blurred.

Whether it was leaked by fans or paparazzi, clueless netizens and fans were in an uproar:

"So the father is Yuanhe Group's chairman?"

"So those five years, Song Tan was bearing a tycoon's child?"

"Oh my god, our queen married serious money!"

"Whether she married into wealth is still uncertain. There’s been no news all these years—maybe the Ji family doesn’t accept her?"

"True. Either way, Song Tan’s impressive. Whether they accept her or not, she’s made for life."

Some industry insider chimed in: "Everyone's known in the industry. She’s already part of the Ji household."

Seeing these "public" secrets, Song Tan felt mixed.

Song Chuqing, still awake, looked up. "Mommy, what’s wrong?"

Song Tan put down her phone, tweaked her cheek, and smiled. "Daddy's famous now."