Chapter Twenty-One: Is There Really No Shame?

After leaving Manager Zhao’s office, Chen Qi sent a text message to the young mother, informing her that the commercial would likely air a few minutes before noon. He only mentioned this; as for the company wanting to sign her son, he didn’t say a word. That was out of his jurisdiction—let them work it out themselves.

Soon after, he received a reply from her.

“Okay, thank you.”

She’d added a smiley face.

Chen Qi smiled, pocketed his phone, and headed back toward the office.

As he walked, he could feel people’s curious glances again—he even overheard many trying to guess the content of the commercial. Having it reviewed yesterday and aired today, as seasoned professionals, they all knew what that meant.

It was no exaggeration to say that, on this day, no one in the company was truly focused on their work. Their curiosity had been piqued by Chen Qi’s advertisement, and all were waiting for lunchtime. Because this wasn’t just any commercial; it was a matter of the company’s reputation, and their standing in the industry.

So they were all itching to see just how astonishing a commercial created by a newcomer could be.

Under this impatient anticipation, noon finally arrived.

By 11:50, every department had already switched on their office TVs and tuned in to Channel One of the national broadcaster, waiting with high expectations.

As an advertising company, TVs were standard office equipment.

Time ticked slowly by. Two minutes before noon, the commercial appeared.

“A little duck swims and swims, and comes ashore…”

The warm music and visuals immediately seized everyone’s attention.

The moment that scene appeared, almost everyone in the company instinctively glanced at the lower right corner. As expected, there was the company’s name—a line of semi-transparent text, unobtrusive, leaving the image untouched, something ordinary viewers wouldn’t even notice.

Seeing their company’s name, everyone smiled knowingly, a sense of pride swelling inside. This was the commercial—no doubt about it.

The commercial continued: a mother washing the grandmother’s feet, the little boy peeking in, then running off.

By this point, not just industry professionals—even regular viewers could probably guess how the story would unfold.

Yet, when the shot appeared of the little boy carrying water, accompanied by that profound, heartrending music, everyone was left gaping in astonishment at the sheer emotional impact.

In that instant, nearly everyone’s eyes widened in disbelief at the screen, amazement and incredulity flooding their gaze.

Was this really Chen Qi’s solo work?

How had he managed it?

…

At that very moment, at Hongxing Advertising.

The leadership, having received inside information, was also gathered around the TV, their expressions somewhat grave.

Blueprint Advertising had always been the rival they wanted to surpass, and with their recent aggressive strategies, they’d been seeing hope. But just last night, their boss received word from the national broadcaster: Blueprint had produced an outstanding new public service commercial, and it had been green-lit by top executives for immediate broadcast.

Given Blueprint’s already formidable reputation—and with such praise coming from the broadcaster—the pressure was immense.

After a few anxious minutes, they saw the commercial.

“In truth, parents are a child’s best teachers.”

The content and copy struck straight at the heart. The executives looked at one another, unable to hide their shock.

There was a long silence. Even though they’d braced themselves for something excellent, they hadn’t expected Blueprint to launch an entirely new series.

After a while, the general manager finally spoke. “Find out who made this commercial.”

He wanted to know, once and for all.

Blueprint had been plagued by setbacks lately—how could they have mustered the finesse to create something like this? There hadn’t even been the slightest hint beforehand!

…

In an office building elsewhere.

The young mother slipped into a quiet corner before the end of the workday, opened her phone, and found the live channel for CCTV-1.

Perhaps because she’d never experienced seeing herself on TV, she felt a little anticipation. But with that anticipation came anxiety—she didn’t know how the final commercial would turn out.

A few minutes later, she saw it.

Even though she already knew every frame by heart, when she saw her son carrying the water, when she heard that deep, moving background music, she couldn’t help but tear up.

Then she smiled—broadly, happily, with deep contentment.

…

Back in the Creative Department office.

The atmosphere was anything but harmonious.

Aside from Chen Qi, everyone else in the department sat in a daze.

Like statues, they stared at Chen Qi in disbelief, just as Manager Zhao had earlier—their hearts roiling with emotion.

At this moment, only one question echoed in their minds: How had he done it in so little time?

If, before, they’d felt a twinge of envy or resistance, now all that was left was awe and admiration.

The commercial that had just aired was, from any angle, a masterpiece.

If they hadn’t seen it themselves, they would never have believed a newcomer could produce something like this in just a week.

It was almost unbelievable.

To be honest, the speed and quality nearly upended their understanding of the advertising world.

After finally regaining some composure, the five of them exchanged glances, then, in silent agreement, stood up and approached Chen Qi.

Chen Qi, who was watching the news, suddenly felt a murderous aura behind him.

He spun around and saw five expressionless faces.

“Whoa!” Chen Qi jumped in fright, springing to his feet.

What was this—a horror movie in broad daylight?

But in the next second, those five faces shifted, their expressions turning fawning.

“Brother Chen, take us with you next time, won’t you? Don’t go it alone!”

“What?” Chen Qi stared in disbelief. “What did you just call me?”

“If you don’t like ‘brother,’ we can call you something else. Just promise to include us when there’s something good!” All five smiled at him ingratiatingly.

Chen Qi was dumbfounded.

What on earth was happening?

Were they really this shameless?