"I can’t believe the news is spreading this fast!" Despite his age, Director Kong was a master of online marketing. Seeing how things were developing, he immediately came up with a plan. "Hurry up the poster department. Tell them they absolutely must get this batch of promotional posters out today. Also, leak the news that we’re planning to hold auditions in Hollywood for *Panda Hero*’s voice actors. Let’s fan these flames and make them burn even hotter."
"Okay, I’ll call them right now." The assistant’s face was flushed with excitement. *Panda Hero* hadn’t even officially started its promotional campaign, yet it was already capturing worldwide attention. It was bound to be a massive hit, which meant the crew members would be getting bonuses. Director Kong was known for being very generous with his staff.
"That’s a wrap for today! Everyone, pack it up, go home, and get some rest. We’ll continue shooting tomorrow." The priority now was to ride this wave of popularity and ramp up the promotion. Since they had pretty much completed the day’s filming schedule anyway, Director Kong decided to let everyone leave early.
Everyone was, of course, thrilled to hear this and clamored noisily onto the bus. Meanwhile, Charlotte, Lunfei’Er, Famite, and Narcissus hurried over to Hah’Er. Using the excuse that they needed to "constantly monitor the Panda’s status," they squeezed into the minivan. The four of them couldn’t wait to spend every second with Hah’Er; they had long forgotten their responsibilities as supervisors.
"Mr. Bin, does Hah’Er like desserts? My tiramisu is pretty good, you know?" To curry favor with the panda, Famite was practically willing to go up against a Le Cordon Bleu pastry chef.
"I can sear a steak... oh, or lamb chops, too," Narcissus added, raising her hand. She recalled that pandas seemed to prefer lamb. Lunfei’Er and Charlotte were crestfallen; neither of them had any cooking skills to speak of.
"No need to trouble yourselves, I’m responsible for Hah’Er’s dinner." The hotel chefs were also taking great care of Hah’Er. Not only did they whip up their signature dishes for him, but they also generously allowed Shen Yibin into the kitchen to cook. Of course, Shen Yibin’s culinary skills had earned their unanimous praise. Had it been anyone else with such talent, the head chef would have probably offered them a handsome salary to stay, but Shen Yibin’s unique position made them abandon that notion. Still, they all enjoyed exchanging cooking techniques with one another and felt that they had all gained a great deal.
Famite and Narcissus were instantly dejected, but Lunfei’Er seemed to spot an opening. "Well then, while we wait for dinner, allow me to give Mr. Hah’er a full-body massage to help him relax. Hah’Er had such a hard day today!"
"Hm?" Hah’Er tilted his head, looking over. ’A hard day? I think I spent most of my time lounging comfortably in a recliner, eating ice pops and getting a massage. Life here is even better than back at the shop. At the shop, I have to look after Maphario, feed the other pets, and take them out for walks and playtime.’
"That sounds great. I’ll leave Hah’Er to you for a while, then." Seeing no harm in letting Hah’Er relax a bit, Shen Yibin immediately accepted Lunfei’Er’s offer. Lunfei’Er was so happy he could have jumped for joy. As for the other three, their faces were green with envy as they wracked their brains, trying to think of any useful skills they possessed.
Back at the hotel, Hah’Er comfortably enjoyed a massage from Lunfei’Er, then savored a gourmet meal prepared by Shen Yibin and the top-tier chefs, and finally, happily retired to his room to drink a beer.
Director Kong, meanwhile, seized on the internet craze to release the posters for *Panda Hero*. Hah’Er, clad in the Golden Chain Armor with the Phoenix Wing Purple Gold Crown perched askew on his head, had netizens roaring with laughter. Hollywood celebrities also started declaring their interest in auditioning for voice roles in *Panda Hero*, pushing the wave of online hype to an even greater peak.
Seeing the rapidly soaring metrics for engagement and search volume, Director Kong and the investors were grinning from ear to ear. The film hadn’t even been released, but they were already urging Director Kong to start preparations for a sequel. This time, they were even considering bringing in one or two A-list Hollywood celebrities to propel *Panda Hero* to even greater heights.
As for Shen Yibin, he was being driven half-mad by all the commotion. Countless film company executives, celebrities, celebrity agents, entertainment reporters, and all sorts of other people were contacting him through every channel imaginable. Some were trying to invite Hah’Er to star in new films, offering exorbitant fees. Others were hoping to collaborate with Hah’Er to boost their own status in the industry. Still others wanted to interview Shen Yibin and Hah’Er to rake in massive click-through rates. The constant pestering was more than Shen Yibin could stand.
At this moment, he missed Cheeky dearly. ’If Cheeky were here, it would handle these pests with ease, wouldn’t it?’ Things wouldn’t have gotten this bad. In the end, Shen Yibin simply shut off his phone before he could finally fall asleep.
Meanwhile, the animal protection organization that Lunfei’Er and his group were part of received their application. A meeting of the relevant personnel was immediately convened to decide who to send to China to help them monitor Hah’Er’s health.
"I think it’ll be hard to find anyone willing to go. You have to understand, China is without a doubt the world’s number one authority in this field," the head of the animal protection organization said, a headache coming on. "No scientist wants to be torn apart by the top experts; it could damage their future prospects. If this were about any other animal, it’d be fine; we could absolutely find a world-class specialist. But when it comes to panda research, we really don’t have anyone of note."
"But Lunfei’Er’s group already sent in the application. We have to send *someone*, no matter what," the assistant replied, feeling the headache as well. "Besides, those scientists aren’t our employees; we just have a cooperative relationship with them. We can’t just give them a direct order, so calling for volunteers is our only option."
"Let’s go. We’ll head to the conference room and see. Hopefully, someone will have the guts," the director said with a shrug, heading toward the small conference room with his assistant. Halfway there, however, a secretary came rushing up and stopped him. "Sir, you don’t need to go to the small conference room anymore!"
"Don’t tell me no one came?" The director’s face went pale. With all the buzz around *Panda Hero* online, this was a golden opportunity to promote their organization. Were they really going to miss out just because they couldn’t find a suitable candidate?
"N-no, that’s not it!" The secretary had evidently been rushing and was out of breath. He struggled to compose himself under the director’s murderous gaze. "There were too many people! The small conference room wasn’t big enough, so I had to change the venue at the last minute."
"You should hurry, sir! People are practically about to start a brawl over the chance to go to China!" ’Hm? What in the world is going on?’ The director rushed toward the main conference room.