Chapter 20: The Film Emperor Dad Who Was Sacrificed in the Entertainment Industry…

Shen Yijing instinctively moved back. Jiujiu flapped his wings, landed on his shoulder, and rubbed his head against his dad’s neck.

“Mommy~”

“I’m not your mommy. Wait, how can you talk?”

Jiujiu sensed his dad’s resistance, so he sat on his dad’s shoulder and started to make things up.

“Because I’m your baby, but the fortune teller said you don’t want to get married in this life, so I can only be a little chick.”

Shen Yijing was silent for a long time after hearing this. He gently stroked Jiujiu’s head with his index finger. Seeing the little chick’s blissful expression, he finally asked:

“Do you… think I’m an idiot?”

Except for the part about him not wanting to get married in this life, not a single word of the rest was believable.

“Wuwu, Mommy doesn’t believe in baby.”

Jiujiu slid off Shen Yijing’s shoulder and started rolling around on the soft sofa cushion, feeling like he was the most miserable baby in the world.

Shen Yijing had a headache from his crying and increasingly suspected that he was either too tired and hallucinating, or simply dreaming.

“Alright, alright, just call me Dad. I’m going to sleep.”

“How can Dad not sleep with baby!”

Under the little yellow chick’s condemnation, Shen Yijing extended his hand. Jiujiu immediately hopped into his dad’s palm and sat down, flapping his wings at his dad as a thank you.

After Shen Yijing entered the bedroom, he took his pajamas into the bathroom. When he came out after a hot shower, the little yellow chick was sprawled out on his pillow.

From its sleeping posture, it looked quite comfortable, with its claws fully stretched out.

Shen Yijing reached out and pushed it aside. The little yellow chick, snoring with its eyes closed, wasn’t woken by his action, but when he withdrew his hand, it very naturally rolled back to where it had been.

After repeating this twice, Shen Yijing was too lazy to move it again and didn’t want to use that pillow anymore. He even found the bed somewhat unacceptable.

Before entering the entertainment industry, he was quite normal. But after gaining some popularity in the industry, he was pursued by extreme fanatics, and some even hid in dressing rooms or hotel rooms when staff weren’t paying attention.

The frequent occurrences forced Shen Yijing, a normal person, to develop mysophobia.

(T/N Mysophobia is the fear of germs or contamination, often leading to excessive cleaning or avoiding contact with things perceived as dirty.)

Shen Yijing picked up his phone and checked the time. It was too late now, and he was currently filming, so changing rooms was definitely not an option.

So, he could only try to stay as far away from the little yellow chick as possible. He lay down, pulled up the covers, and forced himself to sleep.

The next morning, Shen Yijing was woken by the alarm he had set before bed. Before he could even turn off the alarm, he felt a heavy weight on his chest.

Jiujiu was lying in his dad’s arms, propping his head up with his wings, waiting for his dad to wake up.

“Good morning, Daddy. Jiujiu wants bread, and Daddy needs to cut it for Jiujiu. Jiujiu also wants strawberries, and a glass of juice.”

After speaking, Jiujiu stood up, shook his feathers, placed one wing on his chest, and bowed to his dad with his round body as a thank you.

Shen Yijing shook his head, confirming that this was truly not a dream.

A chick that should have known nothing seemed quite polite.

“I’m in a hurry to eat at the set. No bread, strawberries will have to wait until the morning, and I can’t drink juice.”

After explaining, Shen Yijing himself was momentarily stunned. He had psychologically accepted this strange and absurd situation, and even started to arrange what it would eat.

“Why can you talk? Should I send you to a research institute? Dissecting you might contribute to science.”

Jiujiu, who was about to roll around and demand those things, was stunned by these words.

What’s wrong with him talking? His feathers can even turn into gold. In his previous life, Dad never sent him for dissection.

Just thinking about it, Jiujiu found it bloody and cruel.

He had originally thought that he would come back after his dad grew up, so his dad wouldn’t have to carry him, a little burden. He didn’t expect his grown-up dad to send him for dissection!

Shen Yijing saw his shocked expression, pulled his wing, and shook hands with him.

“Can others hear you talk?”

“No, only Dad can hear.”

Jiujiu drooped his head and answered with a tearful voice. He felt that Dad had changed and didn’t love his baby at all.

Sure enough, what those TV shows in the last world said was true: men’s hearts are easily changed.

“Let’s go, to the set.”

Shen Yijing, who had thrown off the covers and gotten out of bed to wash up, waited, but only saw the little fat chick struggling to burrow into the covers. He bent down and reached out, grabbing its claw.

Considering it had just hatched, he didn’t dare use too much force, and reminded it:

“I have to go to work.”

“Jiujiu’s not going. You want to send Jiujiu for dissection, you bad dad.”

Jiujiu struggled hard but couldn’t pull his claw free. He could only huffily think that once he returned to the Heavenly Realm, he would be a good bird again.

Even though it was just an ordinary little chick, seeing it cry so miserably, even Shen Yijing himself wasn’t sure why he suddenly felt a pang of sympathy.

“I won’t send you for dissection, but you have to promise not to cause me trouble.”

Shen Yijing compromised and let go. Because of the force used to pull its claw, Jiujiu fell and rolled twice on the bed.

Shaking its slightly dizzy head, it cautiously asked:

“Really?”

The little chick’s beady eyes still held the dampness from its earlier distress, but now they were filled with joy, like a star suddenly lighting up in a completely dark night sky.

“Mm.”

Jiujiu confirmed that Dad really didn’t mean it, then flew onto Dad’s shoulder and sat down, gently pecking him with its beak.

“Then it’s a deal, let’s link wings.”

Shen Yijing held the little yellow chick’s wing, which felt nice to the touch. When he went to the bathroom to wash up, Jiujiu poked its head in front of him, signaling for him to wash its face too when he washed his own with facial cleanser.

“No, you just hatched. Wait until you’re a bit older.”

“Jiujiu’s fine.”

No matter how much Jiujiu insisted, Shen Yijing showed no sign of wavering. Only when he was about to leave, he perfunctorily wiped it with a hot towel.

On the way to the set, he asked his assistant to buy him a box of strawberries. Jiujiu chirped beside him, emphasizing that they should be big and sweet.

Hearing the clear, tiny voice, Shen Yijing subconsciously glanced at his assistant.

“Brother Shen, what’s wrong?”

“Didn’t you hear anything just now?”

“I heard this chicken’s call, it’s quite pleasant.”

In the last world, he would get angry if anyone called him a chicken, but in this world, Jiujiu had adapted well. Hearing someone praise his pleasant call, he chirped twice more.

“When you buy strawberries, remember to pick the big, sweet ones.”

“Okay, Brother Shen.”

After arriving at the set, Shen Yijing changed into his costume for filming. While he was getting his makeup done in the dressing room, the staff member who had given him the egg yesterday walked in.

“Brother Shen, this chicken really hatched? I was wondering what to do if it didn’t hatch.”

“I heard that chickens, like birds, develop a fondness for the first thing they see after hatching. Is that true, Brother Shen?”

Shen Yijing didn’t know about other chickens, but the one in front of him was certainly like that, even intimately so. Last night, it insisted on sleeping on his pillow.

Jiujiu, who was sitting on the dressing table waiting for his dad, instantly stood up when he heard this. He flapped his wings, then suddenly remembered that in the last world, Dad said he couldn’t fly in front of others.

He chirped twice, reminding his dad to pick him up. After Shen Yijing extended his hand, Jiujiu hopped onto it, rubbing his head hard against his dad’s thumb.

“Brother Shen, it seems this effect is quite good. Is this little chick treating you like its mom?”

Shen Yijing noncommittally hummed in response, but in his heart, he silently retorted, it should be ‘dad’ instead.

Before filming began, the director came over to take a look at the little chick, confirmed it matched the script, and told Shen Yijing to try it out today.

The Emperor in the script was moody and unpredictable. At first, he doted on the Female Lead excessively, but then almost strangled the Female Lead when she startled his chicken.

Rather than doting, it was more like a plaything he didn’t care much about.

The crew had set up the scene early. Shen Yijing, dressed in a dark robe, sat behind a desk. After reviewing a memorial, he casually picked up some rice grains and sprinkled them in front of the little chick.

Jiujiu cooperatively lowered his head to peck, but what he was thinking about was how this stuff wasn’t tasty, and he’d have to demand three boxes of strawberries from his dad when they got back.

Shen Yijing placed his hand on the little chick’s body, his thumb gently stroking the chick’s face.

The script didn’t specify the little chick’s reactions; the screenwriter’s idea was just for the chick to be eating. But Jiujiu, out of habit, instinctively rubbed against his dad’s hand when he was being stroked.

Shen Yijing suddenly stiffened at this action. He didn’t hear the director call “cut.” To cover up the momentary awkwardness, a subtle curve appeared on his lips, and he gently tapped the chick’s head, with a hint of doting in his manner.

Earlier, when the director was giving his dad acting instructions, Jiujiu had been listening nearby. When the Female Lead, dressed in a pink palace gown, walked in, he pretended to be startled, gave a hop, and slipped on the smooth surface.

“Chirp!”

In the script, the Emperor was feathersious because his pet chick was startled. Now, Shen Yijing was also a bit angry after seeing him fall. Following what was written in the script, he picked up a memorial next to him and threw it at the Female Lead, scolding:

“How dare you!”

The Female Lead covered her head, which had been hit by the memorial, and knelt to beg for forgiveness. But Shen Yijing had already gone over to check if the little talking chick had hurt itself from the fall.

“Cut! That’s a take!”

The director’s voice rang out. He watched Shen Yijing cup the little chick in his palm, walked over, picked up some rice grains, and offered them to Jiujiu.

“The little chick’s acting is good too. Here are a few more grains as a reward.”

Jiujiu disdainfully buried his head in his dad’s palm, leaving his backside facing the director, clearly showing his contempt.

Hmph~ Could Lord Jiujiu possibly care for those few grains of rice?!

Filming ended very late that day, almost ten o’clock. By the time Shen Yijing had removed his makeup and was ready to go back, it was already 11:30. Su Ru from the crew, holding a script, walked towards him.

“Teacher Shen, I have many things I don’t understand here. May I ask for your guidance?”