Chinese Entertainment: Becoming a Superstar After a Breakup

Chapter 98 Returning Home

"Hello, everyone. Oh, the big star is back." Around 8 p.m., Shen Ze pulled his luggage into his family's hot pot restaurant. Shen Yan, who was at the front desk, was about to greet him when she saw that it was Shen Ze and started to say "oh".

Shen Ze didn't care about this. You expect your family to act surprised when they see you, just like your fans? In this situation, it's like acquaintances watching you show off, and teasing is the most normal thing to do.

"What's going on? There are quite a few people here." Shen Ze looked at the hall and saw that it was half full. Is business that good? This location isn't very good.

"It's all because of you. Your Zhang Xianzong became famous, and everyone wants to come to the celebrity's shop to try his food," Shen Yan said.

"That's not right, I didn't promote it." Shen Ze didn't post on Weibo. It wasn't that he thought it wasn't worth it, but it was part of his plan. The hot pot restaurants he was running weren't normal hot pot restaurants; they were just doing business while waiting for demolition. He only planned to promote it when it officially opened next year.

"You don't know us here. There's no need for publicity. Someone spread the word that you're a celebrity, and everyone came to join in the fun. Many people don't know Zhang Xianzong; they just came for the sake of it."

"I reckon if everyone knew you were back, this place would definitely be packed," Shen Yan said.

"Oh, I see. Where's Mom?" Shen Ze asked.

"She's chopping vegetables in the back. Business has been good lately, which has made Mom so happy. We're sure we won't lose money this month, and we might even make a profit. Look, I'm not even in the shop anymore; I still have to come and help out every day," Shen Yan said.

"Your business isn't doing well again. What's wrong? Am I angry? You're my sister, and your business hasn't improved?" Shen Ze asked.

"Have some shame. Nobody claims to be famous. I can't say for sure. If all else fails, I'll have to do low-price group tours."

"

Shen Yan said.

"In a small place like ours, incomes are already low and there aren't many tourists. You're still offering premium tours. For the same place, other tours cost 599 yuan, while yours costs 1999 yuan. If I had to choose, I'd join someone else's tour group," Shen Ze said with a smile.

Shen Yan opened her own shop in the second half of last year. She had high hopes for it, but reality is harsh. Starting a business is very difficult.

"Then go ahead, but it'll be like completing a mission every day. They won't even let you sleep on the way. You have to stand in front of shops for hours every day, and if you don't buy anything, they'll attack you personally. Is this a vacation or torture?" Shen Yan said.

"That's because you feel it's not worth it in this industry. But many people either go on group tours and only care about the price, or they think the attractions are about the same and they'd rather suffer a little than suffer themselves. Even when their parents go on a trip, they'll think twice when they see your prices. You have to consider our income," Shen Ze said.

In her previous life, Shen Yan managed to hold on until next year. She started working with senior citizen groups in May or June and managed to keep it going for a year. The pay was low and the workload was heavy, so she closed the shop and took the civil service exam.

This time there was a slight change, but it was because the hot pot restaurant was opening, and she had to come and help. She couldn't let Lin Fengxia manage the store alone, which would cause delays.

"Troublesome," Shen Yan said.

"I'll go help in the back, you keep an eye on things." Shen Ze put down his luggage and went to the kitchen to wash vegetables. He wasn't here to be a king. Although his parents didn't ask him to do chores and he didn't like doing them, there were some things he had to do.

"Shen Ze is back." In addition to Lin Fengxia, there were two women from the village in the kitchen. Originally, there wasn't much business, and the two of them could manage. Now that there are more people, they have temporarily hired two more people.

Lin Fengxia was very happy to see Shen Ze return. Her son's profession is sometimes hard to talk about. You might say he's an actor, but you can't see him on TV.

Furthermore, the nature of this profession is hard to define. In places like theirs, only a secure job counts as a job; anything else is considered undesirable.

But things are different now. His son has hundreds of thousands of followers, which is quite astonishing. He's frequently seen online, and you can find him by searching for his son. That's what celebrities are like; they're different.

"Where's my dad?" Shen Ze asked Lin Fengxia after greeting everyone. Shen Chun often came to help out as well. It was already dinnertime, and the coal mine should be closed by now.

"You called to say you were going to a security meeting and then went back. Why didn't you tell me you were coming back beforehand?" Lin Fengxia said.

"I just confirmed that I'm free today. I told you in advance that I wouldn't be able to come back, and you guys were unhappy," Shen Ze said.

"Alright, stop washing it. This meat is for table number ten." Under his direction, Shen Ze became the waiter.

Their mini hot pot is the kind where you can eat all the vegetables for 19.9 yuan, but the meat is priced separately and prepared separately.

"Your mutton."

"You, you are Zhang Xianzong." Shen Ze didn't expect to be recognized as soon as he delivered the first table of dishes. Well, this restaurant wasn't special to begin with, and the location wasn't very good either. The chances of anyone who came here recognizing him were too high.

"Yes, be careful, hot pot." Shen Ze said, not to get too excited. As he left, he could still hear Zhen Shuai's quiet praise.

"Boss, a plate of mutton."

"Boss, a plate of beef."

All I can say is that celebrities are selling themselves. People might be too shy to ask for a photo directly, but if you're delivering food, then yes, you'll want to see the real person.

"Business will definitely be much better with you here," Lin Fengxia said.

However, when someone tentatively asked if he could sign autographs, Shen Ze readily agreed, saying he could sign for anyone, since there were only about thirty people.

Shen Chun returned before closing the shop. He had to pick people up. He had bought a second-hand Wuling van specifically for the shop, which could be used to buy groceries and transport people back and forth. The family still lived in the village. Originally, the family didn't have a car and it was useless. Shen Chun worked at the village's coal mine, while Lin Fengxia was unemployed.

"We sold forty-two portions of this meat. Since Shen Ze came back, our store's revenue has increased by fifty percent year-on-year," Shen Yan said.

"Speak plainly, where did you learn that percentage from? The turnover is only a little over two thousand yuan," Shen Ze said. It seems like a lot, and if you're making money, that would be great. The problem is that after deducting the cost of ingredients and various utilities, it's a good thing there's no rent. If there were rent, it's hard to say whether you'd make a profit or a loss.

Of course, there are special reasons for this. The location here is what it is. If Shen Ze hadn't filmed Zhang Xianzong, the turnover would only be a few hundred yuan, even worse, and they would just be waiting to go bankrupt.

"Doesn't this seem like too much?"

"That's great. If there were this many jobs every day, this work would be very manageable." Lin Fengxia seemed quite happy.

"It will definitely get better in the future. Once this place is rebuilt, it will be the center of our county town, and there will definitely be more people there," Shen Yan said.

"By the way, it's been decided now, so it's definitely going to be demolished, right?" Shen Ze asked, as he had been following this matter closely.

"At the beginning of the month, there were just rumors, and everyone thought they were fake. But recently, someone came to buy a house at a high price. Right here, someone offered 700,000. That's terrifying. And this one isn't even the biggest one. I guess it's real. They came with money. Didn't you say you wouldn't let us sell?" The "big one" refers to Dilraba's house.

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