She ate, washed up, and took a nap. By the time she woke up, dusk had fallen and the city lights were beginning to twinkle on.
The living room was bustling with activity, and the kitchen was a flurry of motion. The entire house seemed to have come alive.
Her dad had many apprentices, and he was on great terms with all of them. They often had get-togethers at the house to try new dishes or celebrate happy occasions, so she was long used to the lively atmosphere.
She walked around, greeting everyone.
In addition to her dad's senior apprentices and their families, whom she knew well, there were many faces she didn't recognize. When she asked, she learned they were her dad's livestreaming team, which he had assembled over the past two years.
An internet celebrity with tens of millions of fans has a packed schedule, so having an established team made things much easier.
The livestream in the kitchen was already halfway done. The equipment was even simpler than what you'd find on a film set. Not particularly curious, she took one look and went to play with the kids.
The kids were all a generation younger than her. The oldest was Zhou Jin, her dad's eldest apprentice's son. He was seventeen and had just finished his college entrance exams. The youngest was the youngest apprentice's daughter, only eight months old. She would giggle at the slightest provocation and was incredibly friendly.
The second apprentice's daughter, born in May two years ago, was now being taught by her mother to call her "Little Auntie."
She couldn't speak very clearly yet, though, and kept calling her "Li'l Tummy." It was absolutely adorable and endearing. Delighted, Ni Bingyan held her and kept teasing her, looking as if she wouldn't let the girl go until she learned to say "Little Auntie."
Kids are always hungry for snacks and have short attention spans. Even though her "Little Auntie" was pretty and had a nice voice, it wasn't long before the little girl got bored. She wriggled out of her arms, hopped to the floor, and ran off to chase her older siblings for treats.
Bored, Ni Bingyan noticed Zhou Jin in a corner, staring at his phone with a goofy, fond smile. She tiptoed over to sneak a peek.
'Seventeen-year-old boys always have their sweet little secrets.'
The age gap between them wasn't that large, and they had often played together as kids. After integrating her memories, seeing him didn't feel strange at all.
She had approached him with mischievous intentions, but to her surprise, when Zhou Jin saw her, he generously moved his phone between them. He wasn't annoyed by her sheepish grin and simply pointed at the screen for her to see.
"Everyone in the livestream chat heard you were back, and now they're all clamoring to see you, haha! Some are saying you must be super ugly, and that's why Grandmaster won't let anyone see you. Others have their betrothal gifts ready and are already calling him 'Father-in-law.' Grandmaster is so mad he's about to explode!"
Zhou Jin had a baby face and a tall frame, and he loved to laugh. With the elders out of earshot, his laughter was even more unrestrained.
In his memory, his Grandmaster was a very serious person.
Even after his dad had completed his apprenticeship and opened his own restaurant, he would still ask their Grandmaster to taste-test any new dish he developed. Only after getting the Grandmaster's nod of approval would the new item be added to the menu.
That waiting process was like a grade-schooler waiting for a teacher to grade their homework. Not only did his dad not dare to breathe too loudly, but even Zhou Jin, who was just there on the side, would get nervous.
He never expected his Grandmaster to become so entertaining after he started livestreaming.
Ni Bingyan didn't mind Zhou Jin's mischievous glee, because even she found this side of her father incredibly amusing.
Watching rows of "Liar! Liar! Liar!" scroll across the livestream chat, Ni Bingyan's brow furrowed.
From her experience, something was clearly wrong.
Every industry is only so big. When one person rises, someone else gets pushed down. There were always resentful people who couldn't stand to see others succeed but never reflected on their own shortcomings. They just watched others all day, waiting for the slightest misstep to jump out and stir up trouble.
Her dad's rise over the past two years had been meteoric, so he must have made plenty of enemies. Just as Ni Bingyan was growing anxious watching the tide of public opinion turn in the chat, she saw a different narrative being pushed.
"Uncle Ni is a food streamer! Can't you pervs control yourselves and just watch him cook? Why are you all so obsessed with his daughter?"
'Looks like the team her dad hired isn't just for show.'
The battle for public opinion, hidden behind a veneer of playful banter, went back and forth for several rounds in a short time. Ultimately, the audience's curiosity won out, and the team's attempts to steer the conversation became increasingly ineffective.
Ni Bingyan's brow furrowed tighter.
She was a public figure and wasn't afraid of the camera. Now that she was well-rested and feeling good, she wouldn't even mind appearing on screen without any makeup.
But her dad had been so insistent on keeping her off-camera. 'He probably has his reasons. If I just jump in, will it affect his career as an influencer?'
"I'm going to go check on him," she said. "My dad has lived an honest life. It's not right for people to keep making malicious assumptions about him."
Sometimes, netizens were just spamming comments for fun, but people with ulterior motives could easily exploit the situation.
"I'll come too."
Ever since his college entrance exams ended, Zhou Jin had been taking it easy and was eager to get in on any excitement.
Ni Bingyan paid him no mind and went to the kitchen. "Dad, need a hand?" she asked.
Her pleasant voice carried into the livestream, and the viewers immediately forgot about stirring up trouble. The chat filled with a chorus of "Let's see the daughter! Bring her on!"
The troublemakers were stunned. 'Weren't these people just spamming 'Liar' a second ago? How did they switch sides in the blink of an eye?'
Seeing this, Ni Bingyan couldn't help but smile.
'With my looks,' she thought, 'even if someone isn't a fan of my particular 'type,' they couldn't honestly say I'm not beautiful.'
In a father's eyes, his own child can do no wrong. He called his daughter a celestial beauty, and as long as she wasn't obviously ugly, no one would bother arguing the point with him.
Netizens loved to cause a stir. The whole commotion was simply because they wanted to see what she looked like.
It was a problem that could be solved just by showing her face, so there was no need to make it a bigger deal.
Ni Guangli did have his own reasons.
His daughter had always been low-key, a firm believer in letting her work speak for itself rather than chasing clout.
As she put it, reputable productions still held auditions. If high follower counts were all it took to conquer the industry, what would be the point of auditioning?
"You might as well just compare Weibo followers. You have thirty million and they have fifty million? Then let the one with fifty million get the part!"
That made no sense.
That was why he had been so evasive.
But now that she was willing, he didn't hesitate.
"Bingbing, come serve the dish!"
Ni Guangli beckoned with a smile. Ni Bingyan understood instantly, tied on an apron, and walked over.
When she appeared, the livestream chat immediately fell silent. Everyone was waiting quietly for the "celestial beauty."
They were all prepared. If she looked average, they would call Uncle Ni shameless. If she was ugly, they would unfollow. But if she was truly as beautiful as a flower, then what were they waiting for?
"Brothers, get ready to spam 'Father-in-law' in the chat!"
Unlike the cookie-cutter, surgically-enhanced faces, Ni Bingyan's beauty was distinctive. She also lacked the awkwardness of a non-celebrity facing a camera. As she walked gracefully into the frame, the chat immediately exploded with "HOLY SHIT!" and "I'VE BEEN BLINDED!"
Clearly, many people recognized her instantly!
For a female celebrity who had been in the industry for five years, focused solely on acting, only did the bare minimum of promotional work, never got involved in scandals, didn't craft a public persona, and didn't even have a Weibo account—to still have a group of diehard fans spoke volumes about how stunning she really was.
Ni Guangli was already sixty-six years old, with a wrinkled and unremarkable face, so the viewers' expectations had been quite low. Her appearance, whether they recognized her or not, left everyone pleasantly stunned!
#UncleNiNiBingyan#
#BingbingComeServeTheDish#
#HowGoodCanYouLookWithoutMakeup#
#LivestreamScreenshot#
#Bingbing#
...
It was a normal Saturday night. You casually open a food stream to watch while you eat, and you never expect to see your favorite actress, wearing an apron and serving food!
And you even find out from her dad himself that her nickname is Bingbing!
What a massive surprise!
The fans went wild! They all rushed to Weibo to share their excitement and celebrate with fellow fans.
Before they knew it, the topic started trending.
Seeing her walk out of the kitchen with a dish, Zhou Jin immediately ran over and pulled up her fan community page.
"Little Auntie, your fans are going nuts! Look, it's like a festival in here! Wow! You're trending! You're trending!"
The phone's original owner didn't even have the Weibo app installed. Other than occasionally logging in to post a life update, Bingyan wasn't a fan of casually scrolling through it.
She had never even looked at this "fan community" thing before.
She didn't need her fans to boost her online stats, so seeing that people were just posting screenshots from the livestream didn't bother her.
Compared to all that, she was far more interested in the food that had just come out of the kitchen.
Her dad was in a great mood today—he'd actually made Bamboo Pith and Chicken Douhua! He usually only made that dish for the New Year!
"Let them do what they want. Are you hungry? If you are, grab a bowl and get ready to eat. Hurry, hurry, the Chicken Douhua is ready!"
Food is the most important thing in the world! She had woken up hungry again, so it was the perfect time to eat!
Zhou Jin craned his neck for a look, and his eyes lit up when he saw the Bamboo Pith and Chicken Douhua!
Kids from a family of chefs like theirs had tried all sorts of delicacies, but some dishes were unforgettable, no matter how many times you'd had them.
His own father, and even his other master-uncles, were always a little off with their timing when making this dish. An ordinary person might not notice, but those who had tasted the best could naturally tell the difference.
He instantly forgot all about Weibo. As juicy as online gossip was, could it ever be as satisfying as a real meal?
Ni Bingyan didn't pay the online buzz any mind, and Ni Guangli had no intention of using his daughter for clout. After she served that one dish, he didn't have her appear on camera again.
Once the livestream ended, the whole group began to eat amidst a lively buzz of conversation.
Both of them chose to ignore the unexpected trending topic. When the fans didn't get a response but were still buzzing with excitement, someone started making memes.
"Bingbing, come serve the dish!" paired with all sorts of hilarious images, suddenly became a meme on par with "Cuihua, bring out the sauerkraut!"
[So it turns out celebrities get bossed around by their dads at home, too.]
The discovery was on par with finding out that "even celestial beauties have to fart."
After dinner was cleaned up, everyone sat on the sofa to chat. Zhou Jin saw the meme and, once again, sidled up to show her.
Ni Bingyan rolled her eyes. "Why don't you tell them celestial beauties also have to take a shit? That should be even more disillusioning."
"HAHAHAHA!"
Zhou Jin craned his neck and honked with laughter like a goose. His dad, who was trying to talk to someone nearby, couldn't hear over the noise and gave him a casual slap on the back of the head.
Now it was Ni Bingyan's turn to burst out laughing.
She loved cheerful days like this.
Relaxed and carefree, surrounded by kind friends and family, with delicious food to enjoy—she felt like a little bird without a single worry, free to fly as high as her heart desired.