Hey! My baby

Shao Ke hadn't eaten much, but none of the heart-shaped foie gras on his plate remained.

After paying, neither of them went anywhere else. There was still a master at home waiting to be walked, so they took the car straight back.

Lars was an energetic dog with a pure pedigree and good looks, but he was a bit exhausting to handle.

He absolutely refused to go home until he'd run wild for a full hour every day. Following a video, Yan Ningke had put together a little cart that he could sit on while Lars pulled him along at a run.

That way, neither of them got tired. Two birds with one stone.

But even a Show-Grade Husky couldn't escape the nature in his bones-stupidity.

He never walked in a straight line and wanted to circle every tree he passed a couple of times. By the time Yan Ningke reacted, Lars had already tied him to a tree.

One man and one dog stared at each other.

"..."

With the leash in his left hand and the little cart in his right, Yan Ningke cursed the whole way back.

Lars listened to the scolding with his tail drooping.

His clear, innocent eyes were full of grievance.

He hadn't wanted this either, but what could he do? He was a male dog. Passing those things without claiming some territory would have been an affront to his dignity.

Bickering was bickering and squabbling was squabbling, but their bond as comrades couldn't be broken so easily. Yan Ningke washed his paws, topped up his water, and put out some treats, and they happily left each other alone.

He went back to his room and took a shower, then received a call from Yu Ping before bed.

It was the first call Yu Ping had made to him since Yan Ningke had gained a little attention beyond his usual audience.

To be honest, it wasn't that Yu Ping hadn't wanted to contact Yan Ningke. The company's senior management had suddenly undergone a major reshuffle, and he'd been busy asking around for information, leaving him no time for Yan Ningke.

It was only a call someone made to him that reminded him of his duties.

After agreeing to meet at the company at ten the next morning, Yan Ningke hung up.

Ever since he'd fallen ill last time, the housekeeper had stayed on. She didn't live with them, but came every morning and left in the afternoon.

She took care of all three meals and the housework.

Sitting in the dining room eating a ready-made breakfast, Yan Ningke was ridiculously pleased. Life felt like it was giving him more and more to look forward to.

Across from him, Shao Ke watched him bob his head as he ate. He could relish even an ordinary bowl of beef congee so much that it made anyone watching feel a little hungrier.

When he arrived at the company, Yu Ping wasn't in his office. Holding a cup of coffee, Yan Ningke looked through the blinds at the office area outside.

Unlike the lax atmosphere last time, from the moment he'd entered the company, he'd noticed that everyone coming and going looked solemn and anxious, busily working with serious expressions.

Could the company be in trouble? Was it going under?

The coffee in Yan Ningke's hand suddenly didn't taste bitter at all.

He couldn't be blamed for harboring such ill will. The sooner a lousy company like this went under, the sooner everyone would be free!

They sweet-talked clueless innocents into signing contracts, slapped together some preparations, and sent them into the entertainment industry. If they made a splash, the company exploited them to rake in money. If they had no prospects, the company forced them to terminate their contracts and pocketed the hefty termination fees.

Capitalists all had black hearts!

Remembering that he was one of those victims himself, Yan Ningke immediately set down his cup and pressed his palms together facing east.

Go under soon, go bankrupt soon, and make those black-hearted bastards lose every last penny!

The capitalist surnamed Shao who had just taken over the company: "..."

What a blessing you are to me.

Yu Ping was a slightly chubby boy at heart, 170 centimeters tall and eighty-five kilograms in weight. His looks were ordinary, but his eyes were full of shrewdness.

He entered the office drenched in sweat and wasn't particularly warm when he saw Yan Ningke. Undoing the tight button on his suit jacket, he picked up a document from the desk and handed it to him.

"Take a look."

Yan Ningke opened it and was surprised. It was actually a variety show contract.

He looked up at Yu Ping, who was sitting opposite him. "What's this?"

Yu Ping tapped a few times on his laptop and turned the screen toward him. "'Hey! My baby' is a pet variety show. The previous season featured cats and got a great response, so the production team followed up on its success with a second season featuring dogs."

Yan Ningke browsed the information on the computer.

Yu Ping took a sip of tea and continued, "Unlike other shows, this one is livestreamed. Not only does that give lots of viewers a sense of participation through real-time interaction, but it also offers the novelty of virtually raising a dog."

"The second season is already halfway through. The production team contacted me yesterday, hoping you could appear as a guest for one episode."

Yan Ningke pointed at himself in confusion. "Me?"

Was there some mistake? This was an explosively popular variety show that even plenty of top celebrities couldn't get onto, and they were coming to a nobody like him?

He'd just read about it, too. In particular, the show wasn't merely light entertainment; it also took on the responsibility of helping stray cats and dogs. The production team had established the Pet Foundation, and all gifts received during livestreams would be donated to it to help those little stray angels.

It was easy to imagine how many celebrities, influencers, and philanthropists would fight tooth and nail just to show their faces on it.

Yu Ping found it unbelievable too. He'd confirmed it repeatedly over the phone before daring to believe it was real.

After hanging up, his first thought had been that windfalls really did fall from the sky.

Yan Ningke might just be that lucky favorite.

Yu Ping's expression was more serious than ever. "Although I don't know why they chose you either, now that the opportunity's here, Yan Ningke, you have to seize it. As long as you get through this smoothly, you'll have a place in the entertainment industry!"

Although it was only one short episode, from what the other party had said, if he performed well and the audience response was good, there would be room to discuss further appearances.

If they hadn't sent over the contract, which he'd carefully checked and verified as genuine, Yu Ping would have suspected they were scammers.

Yu Ping looked at the bewildered person across from him with a complicated expression and sighed deeply inwardly. Yan Ningke, just which big shot's eye had you caught?

Yan Ningke hadn't figured it out either. For the next half hour, Yu Ping walked him through the information and taught him some tips for appearing on the show.

Toward the end, he suddenly remembered something. "Wait, Brother Yu, does the show assign you a dog?"

Yu Ping said, "What are you thinking? Of course you bring your own!"

Yan Ningke looked innocent. "But I don't have a dog."

"Bullshit! Didn't you post a photo of a dog on Weibo last time?!"

Yu Ping started having doubts again. Could someone this scatterbrained really become popular?

Yan Ningke fell silent for a few seconds. "Have you considered... that it wasn't my dog?"

In the end, Yan Ningke was chased out, with Yu Ping's furious roar still ringing behind him.

"I don't care how you do it! In three days, I want to see you at the production team's place with a dog!!!"

Everyone in the office area looked over. Yan Ningke picked at his ear.

With a voice like that, there was nothing wrong with his health.

By the sound of it, he could live even longer.

He hadn't been out long today, and the car had been waiting downstairs the whole time.

On the way back, Yan Ningke caught sight of something out of the corner of his eye and suddenly asked the driver to stop. "Uncle Zhang, wait here for me a minute."

He ran briskly into a shopping mall by the road and plunged straight in.

Ten minutes later, he strode proudly out through the entrance with a small paper bag in his hand.

"Let's set off! Home!"