Starlet Taotie Chapter 12
Chapter 12 Come to Terms
Tang Haisheng was Tang Yuxia’s father. For the sake of his one precious daughter, he had practically worried himself sick.
After coming of age, Tang Yuxia wanted to make it on her own instead of relying on her father’s fame and connections, so she entered the entertainment industry under a hidden identity. Many people knew she came from a wealthy family, but very few knew about her relationship with Tang Haisheng.
This time, when she had nearly been hit by a wild boar, Tang Haisheng had been so frightened that he rushed straight over from his film set.
As for Jiang Tao, who had saved his daughter, his heart was naturally filled with gratitude.
Coincidentally, the movie he was currently filming, ‘Divine Chef’, still had an undecided role for a food critic, so he directly contacted Jiang Tao’s company.
Not only that, he also invited Jiang Tao to lunch the next day to formally thank her.
After Sun Jianxian learned all of this, his regret was so intense his intestines practically turned green, but there was nothing he could do about it now.
The company officially appointed Tong Tong as Jiang Tao’s manager.
Tong Tong could hardly contain her excitement. “Jie! This is Tang Haisheng we’re talking about!”
“Even if it’s just a supporting role this time, it’s still an incredible addition to your résumé!”
Jiang Tao was just as excited. “Right?! I heard the place he’s treating us at has a state banquet chef cooking there!”
(TLN: A state banquet chef (国宴大厨掌勺) is an elite executive chef responsible for designing, preparing, and executing highly precise, large-scale dinners for heads of state, royalty, and international delegates.)
Tong Tong: “...”
Forget it. She should’ve come to terms with this long ago.
As for ambition and career drive… her jie simply didn’t have such a thing.
…
Velaris Sky was a clubhouse founded by a major figure in Beijing’s cultural circle. It operated on a membership system, and money alone wasn’t enough to get in. You also needed status and reputation. Because of that, everyone who could enter was a prominent figure in Beijing’s literary and artistic world.
The fact that Tang Haisheng had chosen this place for the meal showed just how seriously he regarded Jiang Tao.
Just looking at the clubhouse’s understated yet luxurious entrance was enough to make Tong Tong suck in a sharp breath of envy. “This place is way too impressive. If only I could become a member of Velaris Sky someday!”
But very quickly, she laughed at her own wishful thinking.
Membership at Velaris Sky was nowhere near that easy to obtain. Being able to tag along and enter once was already incredibly lucky for her.
At that moment, a handsome waiter stepped forward to greet them.
“May I ask if you are Miss Jiang Tao?”
“Director Tang and his family haven’t arrived yet. Please allow me to escort the two of you to the reception lounge to rest for a while first.”
His manner was exceptionally considerate and polished.
Velaris Sky covered an enormous area, so the two of them followed the waiter onto a golf buggy, leisurely making their way toward the reception lounge.
Along the way, the waiter also introduced the scenery by the roadside to them.
As they happened to pass the stables, the waiter noticed Jiang Tao staring at the riding grounds and assumed she was interested. Smiling, he explained, “Our stables have quite a few gentle horses. If Miss Jiang is interested, after the meal I can take you around for a ride.”
“Really?” Jiang Tao asked.
“Of course.” The waiter pointed toward a white horse. “That horse is Anna. She’s famous around our stables for her gentle temper…”
Jiang Tao followed the direction of his finger and looked over.
It was an exceptionally beautiful little horse.
Its muscles were sleek and well-defined, its mane smooth and glossy, while a riding instructor slowly led it across the grass.
Jiang Tao unconsciously licked her lips.
I wonder if horse meat tasted good…
Anna: !!!
In an instant, the previously gentle Anna suddenly went completely berserk, breaking free from the riding instructor and charging toward the center of the field.
Not just her. The other horses also seemed to have been startled by something, and before long, the entire stable was filled with the sound of frantic neighing.
The waiter froze, then awkwardly explained, “Uh… perhaps something today disturbed the horses…”
The true culprit calmly withdrew her gaze.
Meanwhile, at the entrance of Velaris Sky, Tang Haisheng stepped out of the car together with his wife and daughter, only to spot a familiar figure ahead of them.
The man was tall with long legs, his skin pale like cold jade. His eyes were deep-set, and his single eyelids gave him an aloof, noble air tinged with indifference. Yet the tiny red beauty mark at the corner of his eye added an unexpected touch of passion.
Film Emperor Shen Zhiyan had been a guarantee of box office success and awards ever since his debut. He had practically collected trophies by the armful; before even turning thirty, he had already been awarded Best Actor three times and became one of the members of the ‘hundred-billion box office’ club.
Tang Haisheng had worked with him on a movie three years ago, and the two had remained close in private ever since. Recently, Shen Zhiyan had gone abroad to attend a film festival, and Weibo had been flooded with constant updates about it, so Tang Haisheng had assumed he was still overseas.
“Zhiyan, when did you get back?”
“Director Tang.” Shen Zhiyan walked over with a faint smile on his lips. “I just got off the plane last night. I came by to see Silvia.”
Silvia was a little horse he boarded at the stables. Every so often, he would come by to visit and ride a few laps with her.
But something seemed to have gone wrong at the stables today.
The riding instructors were anxiously trying to calm the horses, yet uneasy neighing continued to echo throughout the grounds.
Knowing Shen Zhiyan had arrived, the person in charge of the stables hurried over and apologized, “Mr. Shen, I’m terribly sorry. The horses were startled by something today, and none of them are in a stable mood right now. For safety reasons, I’m afraid riding won’t be possible today.”
Shen Zhiyan frowned slightly.
Seeing this, Tang Haisheng said, “Since that’s the case, Zhiyan, why don’t you join me for a simple meal?”
Shen Zhiyan hesitated briefly before agreeing readily. “Since Director Tang is inviting me, it would be rude to refuse. It’s just that I’ve never had much of an appetite. I’m afraid I might affect everyone else’s enjoyment of the meal later.”
Tang Haisheng laughed. “Perfect timing, then. The child I invited supposedly has an excellent appetite. The two of you should balance each other out nicely.”
…
By the time Tang Haisheng and the others arrived, Jiang Tao had already nearly finished all the snacks in the reception lounge.
The moment Tang Yuxia saw her, she excitedly ran over. “Jiang Jiang, sorry we’re late!”
Jiang Tao replied, “It’s fine. The cookies here are really good.”
Tang Yuxia linked arms with her and dragged her off to the side to whisper about who-knew-what together.
Tang Haisheng shook his head helplessly before explaining to Shen Zhiyan. “It’s all thanks to Xiao Jiang. Otherwise, our Xia Xia definitely would’ve been injured.”
After hearing Tang Haisheng explain what had happened, Shen Zhiyan looked at Jiang Tao in astonishment.
Those slender, delicate arms and that frail-looking figure that seemed as though a gust of wind could blow her over no matter how he looked at it, she simply didn’t resemble the kind of warrior capable of carrying a wild boar!
Jiang Tao, meanwhile, looked at Shen Zhiyan with vigilance.
She hadn’t expected there to be yet another rival competing for food!
Tang Haisheng hadn’t expected Jiang Tao to be so indifferent toward Shen Zhiyan.
This was also the first time Shen Zhiyan had encountered such treatment.
And he could tell that Jiang Tao wasn’t pretending to be uninterested. She genuinely had no interest in him at all. The way she looked at him wasn’t even as passionate as the way she looked at one of the dishes on the table.
Tong Tong was so anxious she practically wanted to stomp her feet.
Shen Zhiyan held an extremely high status within the industry. If jie could gain his support, even if it was just a single word from him, her situation would improve tremendously.
Yet not only was her jie completely unmotivated, she even seemed to harbor a trace of hostility toward him. What was going on here?!
Tang Haisheng coughed lightly, breaking the awkward atmosphere at the table.
“Let’s have the dishes served.”
The cuisine at Velaris Sky was also highly renowned. They had specially invited state banquet master chef Shi Wenqing to oversee the kitchen.
Shi Wenqing rarely cooked personally these days, but Tang Haisheng had been lucky this time and happened to catch him making an appearance himself.
Shi Wenqing’s most famous dish was steamed pork with rice flour in lotus leaf.
Crisp, tender, fragrant, and melt-in-the-mouth soft. The lean meat was delicate, the fatty meat silky and rich, the rice flour fragrant without being greasy, while the fresh scent of lotus leaves tied everything together. The aroma alone was enough to whet anyone’s appetite.
While the dishes were being served, Jiang Tao had already swallowed her saliva more than a couple of times.
Tang Yuxia was dieting, so after eating a few slices of vegetables, she put down her chopsticks and focused entirely on feeding Jiang Tao instead.
Tang Haisheng was getting older and couldn’t handle overly rich food anymore. After a couple perfunctory bites, he began chatting with Shen Zhiyan.
As they talked, Shen Zhiyan’s gaze gradually began drifting uncontrollably toward Jiang Tao.
She bit lightly into the glossy baby bok choy with her pearly teeth, releasing its juices, only for her tongue to curl out and sweep them away.
The plump, trembling piece of steamed pork coated in rice flour disappeared into her mouth in a single bite, leaving only a faint sheen of oil at the corner of her lips.
Who knew what kind of magic happened when the soft, fragrant meat touched her tongue, but it made her narrow her eyes in bliss.
No matter what kind of food it was, once it entered Jiang Tao’s mouth, it somehow looked exceptionally delicious.
The longer Shen Zhiyan watched, the more a rare spark of appetite stirred within him. He even reached out and picked up a piece of steamed pork for himself.
Jiang Tao: “!!!”
Her pork!!!
Jiang Tao was so heartbroken she nearly lunged across the table, pried Shen Zhiyan’s mouth open, and snatched the piece of pork back out.
To stop Shen Zhiyan from stealing more of her food, she could only speed up her eating.
As for Shen Zhiyan… he ended up eating even more enthusiastically!
He even used the advantage of his long arms to snatch away the very last piece of sweet-and-sour fish!!
Never had Jiang Tao endured such an insult. She leaped up, hands poised to crash down on the table, ready to let this clueless mortal behold her genuine powers!
Who would’ve thought that after finishing the sweet-and-sour fish, Shen Zhiyan would smile and call over a waiter. “This sweet-and-sour fish is excellent. Please bring another serving.”
Jiang Tao: “...”
She slowly sat back down again.
At least this human knew what was good for him!
Shen Zhiyan was practically going crazy from holding back laughter.
For the first time, he felt that eating wasn’t a painful thing at all.
Under Jiang Tao's influence, not only had he consumed a piece of steamed pork and a slice of sweet-and-sour fish, but also a significant quantity of vegetables. He had even nearly completed half a bowl of rice.
Tang Haisheng was utterly stunned!
He knew Shen Zhiyan suffered from a severe eating disorder. Back when they were filming together, there had once been a time when Shen Zhiyan had practically gone three days without eating, surviving on nothing but water, until he eventually fainted and had to be sent to the hospital for nutrient infusions.
To get this man to eat even a single extra bite, everyone in his studio had exhausted every possible method.
Exotic delicacies, premium seafood, shark fin, abalone—no matter how obscure the ingredient or how difficult the chef was to hire, as long as Shen Zhiyan was willing to take one bite, they would go to great lengths to get it for him.
This wasn’t even Shen Zhiyan’s first time eating Shi Wenqing’s cooking, yet Tang Haisheng had never seen him enjoy it this much before.
The only variable here was Jiang Tao.
Jiang Tao, meanwhile, had no idea she had accomplished something so difficult. She only knew that Shen Zhiyan had finally put down his chopsticks, meaning no one was competing with her for food anymore.
She ate with great seriousness and appreciation.
She couldn’t even bear to waste the little bit of sauce left at the bottom of the plates, using steamed mantou buns to wipe them completely clean.
So when the waiters came to clear the table and serve tea, the spotless plates covering the table were so clean and shiny that they almost thought they had forgotten to serve the dishes in the first place.
The head waiter smiled warmly. “Did our honored guests enjoy the meal? May I ask whether you were satisfied with today’s dishes?”
Naturally, Tang Haisheng and the others all answered that they were satisfied. Only Jiang Tao shook her head.
“The Longjing Prawns,” Jiang Tao said, pointing at one of the empty plates, “the prawns were overcooked by about two degrees of timing. Because of that, the chef rushed a little when finishing the dish, so it didn’t reach its best possible state. Kind of a pity.”
The head waiter froze.
He had only asked out of courtesy and never expected Jiang Tao to take it seriously, much less actually point out flaws in Master Shi’s cooking.
Tang Haisheng and Shen Zhiyan both looked at Jiang Tao worriedly.
Shi Wenqing had an explosive temper and an eccentric personality. As he grew older, he had become even more hardheaded, and he absolutely could not tolerate others saying his dishes weren’t good.
At that moment, a booming voice rang out behind them. “Who said my cooking wasn’t good?”
An elderly man with graying hair and a vigorous spirit strode into the room. It was none other than Shi Wenqing, the head chef of Velaris Sky.
Several disciples wearing special-grade chef uniforms followed behind him.
Shi Wenqing sized Jiang Tao up from head to toe, his sharp eyes like hawks. “Were you the one who said my prawns were overcooked?”
TL Note: Okay, I’m sure you’re read the synopsis, Shen Zhiyan is the male lead, yes, but what I want to mention here is the author using 厌食症 as his sickness. 厌食症 translates to anorexia, but anorexia is for people who don't eat because they have a distorted perception of their body and are obsessed over being thin—it isn't the case here. You have to know 厌食 means to ‘loathe food’, and the author uses its most literal meaning. So in this case, ‘loathing food disorder’ =/= anorexia; it's just someone who doesn't want to eat. And because there isn't a great term for this in english, I'll be leaving 厌食症 as just a general 'eating disorder'.
Also, someone had complained in my other translations about how they prefer pictures over videos on the food mentioned because youtube took too long to load. Yeah, happy now? I did both. Could’ve just look at the thumbnail of the videos if you don’t have good internet 🙄 no one asked you to watch it. But yeah, I don't think I would do this again. It’s too tedious, I don’t get paid enough for this lmao. To my other lovely readers tho, please enjoy!
Foods:
Steamed pork with rice flour in lotus leaf (荷叶粉蒸肉) - I've had 粉蒸肉, just missing the lotus leaf part. My MOL makes it once in a while but I wonder if the flavor changes just so slightly with the added leaf. The color is also different from what I’m used to, so I’m assuming it's a regional thing. Regardless, it's very soft, melt in your mouth taste. The meat is soooooo soft and the flavor is kinda mellow but really delicious. The rice flour really adds a different texture, so it's not just mush.
Sweet-and-sour fish (糖醋鱼) - I'm a sucker for sweet and sour foods. So this is my favorite from this chapter. I usually picture this dish to be a whole fried fish topped with the sauce, but from the wording, it seemed more like each individual piece, so I included a video reflecting that.
Mantou (馒头) - Mantou, often referred to as a Chinese steamed bun, is a white and soft type of steamed bread or bun popular in northern China. It’s usually plain, white, and very soft. Sometimes milky in flavor, but that's not the traditional taste. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NsZJECwH564
Longjing Prawns (龙井虾仁) - This one gets mentioned quite often in novels, I’ve noticed. Anyways, it’s a Hangzhou specialty made with tender river prawns quickly fried, then stir-fried with Longjing tea, tea leaves, and Shaoxing wine. The dish is known for its elegant white-and-green appearance and light, fragrant flavor, and is said to have originated during the Qing dynasty.
