Shao Yichen reviewed her decision and felt that while it seemed sudden, it was actually a good strategic move.
Although she had decided to honorably outperform Fu Lianghui with superior acting, this didn't mean she was abandoning her plan to lose money on the film.
After all, if a television and film adaptation of the same work were released simultaneously, many viewers would focus on just one version, inherently reducing overall popularity. For Fu Lianghui, this meant lower ratings for the TV drama; for Shao Yichen, it meant lower initial box office revenue from the start.
With the right promotional approach, it might still be possible to lose money.
However, these issues would have to wait until she finished filming the current "Journey to the West on Film"—with about a month left before wrapping up, Shao Yichen needed to see this film through to its final shot, if only to complete the task and avoid the System taking away her last pair of underwear.
Meanwhile, Fu Lianghui had merely announced that he would play the male lead, without setting a filming date. It seemed unlikely that production would begin anytime soon.
Thinking this through, Shao Yichen felt there was no rush. She replied briefly to Manager Qianqian and was about to hang up when Li Qianqian hesitated and said: "President Shao, I've found leads on that agent you asked me to look for, but she seems to have conditions she wants to discuss with you in person."
Shao Yichen: "Stop calling me 'President,' it sounds weird—huh? Agent?"
She thought back and remembered that she had indeed asked Li Qianqian to scout for an agent so she could sign Li Xingyu to her company.
She replied: "We can discuss the requirements, but what about her professional capabilities?"
Whatever happened, she couldn't shortchange her own artist—especially when that artist was Li Xingyu.
"Her professional capabilities are absolutely unquestionable!" Li Qianqian guaranteed. "You know that super popular GG boy band? Not only does each member have a distinctive image and solid skills, but more importantly, they have long-term career development plans. In just three years since their debut, they've already become China's number one boy band! This agent was the primary architect behind GG, handling everything from the band name to their resources!"
Hearing this, even Shao Yichen was momentarily impressed. The fact that even a salty homebody like her who avoided entertainment news knew the name GG was testament to this agent's prowess.
But on second thought, something seemed off.
How could such an impressive agent be available to her small company? Wouldn't other companies have poached her immediately?
Shao Yichen asked Qianqian about this concern, who hesitantly replied: "I heard many companies have approached this agent, but after meeting her, they all abandoned the idea. Apparently there's some issue with her conditions..."
Shao Yichen: ?
Something seemed wrong.
Just how demanding were this person's requirements?
After careful consideration, she felt she couldn't simply pass up a rare competent agent, so she arranged a meeting time with Li Qianqian before hanging up.
After ending the call, Shao Yichen reflected on the boy band's name, feeling that saying it too often might bring bad luck, like losing in games.
Regardless of the agent's capabilities, her naming aesthetic might be questionable.
Still, with Li Qianqian's strong recommendation, it was worth meeting her. After all, as far as Shao Yichen knew, Li Xingyu still hadn't signed with any agency.
Although she kept telling herself not to overthink it, such a prolonged delay in signing was clearly abnormal for an actor on a career upswing—so abnormal that she could only think of one possibility: he was waiting for a contract with her company.
And regardless of whether that was the reason, she couldn't just leave Li Xingyu hanging.
With these thoughts, Shao Yichen dialed Li Xingyu's number.
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The next evening.
Shao Yichen, Li Xingyu, and Li Qianqian sat in a private dining room, facing the rumored agent—Luo Anan.
Unlike what Shao Yichen had imagined, the person before them was quite young, even younger than Shao Yichen herself.
But unlike the laid-back Shao Yichen, despite her young age, she already emanated a leader's aura, with sharp eyes and decisive speech, making Shao Yichen feel inadequate.
To ease her discomfort, she picked up the document outlining Luo Anan's conditions and pretended to review it.
As she read, something seemed amiss.
She looked up from the document: "Are... these really your requirements?"
Luo Anan nodded across from her.
"Completely blacklist GG band member Xiao Yao? Aren't you his agent too?"
"It's not blacklisting," Luo Anan corrected seriously. "It's just ensuring we completely avoid collaborating with him."
"After all, it's not us blacklisting him, it's him blacklisting us," Li Qianqian added for clarification.
Shao Yichen: ...
Isn't that just because Morning Star Media lacks influence?
If Morning Star Media were powerful enough, this would definitely be a blacklisting!
She finally understood why other companies were unwilling to sign this agent—going against a popular celebrity could result in being blacklisted themselves.
But looking at the contract conditions, she felt that apart from blacklisting Xiao Yao, the other terms were actually quite favorable.
Moreover, a good agent was indeed hard to find. If she missed out on Luo Anan, who knew if she could find another agent this capable...
Caught in a dilemma, seeing Li Xingyu beside her with an "whatever you decide" attitude, she decided to ask for his opinion: "What do you think?"
Li Xingyu opened his mouth, but before he could speak, a commotion erupted outside the private room.
Li Qianqian had just stood up but hadn't managed to check what was happening when a young man wearing sunglasses and a mask burst in aggressively.
Ignoring the servers' attempts to stop him, he threw off his sunglasses, removed his mask, and slammed the table with a bang: "Let's see who's signing with Anan! Luo Anan can only be GG boy band's agent—Xingyu?!!"
Shao Yichen looked up—well, look who it was, Xiao Yao in the flesh.
She frowned. She hadn't paid attention to his voice before, but now it sounded somewhat familiar... Had she met him somewhere before?
Before she could figure it out, Li Xingyu beside her stood up, showing a rare expression of surprise.
"Lezi?"
Xiao Yao looked at Li Xingyu, then at Luo Anan, his expression extremely complicated: "Xingyu, you should have said it was you signing. If I'd known it was you, would I have needed to pretend I was drunk and make a scene..."
"I didn't know you were Xiao Yao," Li Xingyu said bluntly.
"Brother, I'm this famous, don't you ever look up when watching TV?" Xiao Yao was exasperated.
Li Xingyu was about to reply when the silent Luo Anan finally exploded.
"All of you, sit down!" She slammed the table, pointing at Xiao Yao. "Especially you! Haven't you embarrassed yourself enough? If it weren't for your behavior, would I want to leave? How many times have I said idols can't date—"
She choked momentarily, then continued stubbornly: "Not even with me!"
Xiao Yao immediately apologized sincerely: "Anan, I was wrong."
Shao Yichen, nibbling on sunflower seeds watching the drama unfold, figured she had guessed what was happening—a couple having a spat, making a scene here.
Whatever, as long as they were happy. After all, scientific research showed that separating couples effectively solved the problem of being lovesick.
But that apologetic voice sounded increasingly familiar...
She pondered until she suddenly realized.
Why did this voice sound so similar to the landlord from when they were filming "The Last Wish"!
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After the commotion, Xiao Yao shamelessly took a seat beside Luo Anan, facing Shao Yichen's group with a silly smile completely different from his television persona.
"Misunderstanding, it's all a misunderstanding," he explained. "Let's pretend nothing happened and reintroduce ourselves. Stage name Xiao Yao, real name Le Ziyao, as long as you don't call me Lezi, you can call me anything."
"Brother Lezi," Shao Yichen went straight for the jugular.
Le Ziyao: ...whatever.
The former mysterious landlord Le Ziyao silently asked Li Xingyu who this mysterious person was.
Li Xingyu received Le Ziyao's SOS signal and introduced simply: "Director Shao Yichen."
Le Ziyao had a moment of realization, standing up to enthusiastically shake hands: "Oh! So you're the girlfri—"
Halfway through saying "friend," his leg received a vicious kick under the table, causing his voice to change pitch instantly.
Shao Yichen sent a strange look from across the table: "Sorry, I didn't catch that..."
Le Ziyao grimaced, looking at Li Xingyu who maintained a calm demeanor as if he wasn't the perpetrator who had just kicked him under the table.
Damn it, this reserved schemer.
Under duress, he reluctantly changed his words: "So you're the great Director Shao, I've long admired you, please forgive my rudeness."
Shao Yichen felt that this popular celebrity had originally intended to say something else, giving him a suspicious look before ultimately abandoning her inquiry.
Le Ziyao sighed in relief, returning to his seat and continuing his eye communication with Li Xingyu.
Le Ziyao raised an eyebrow: Don't tell me you still haven't confessed?
Li Xingyu frowned: I never said I liked her.
Le Ziyao shook his head slightly: Don't joke with me. Nine out of ten sentences you say to me are just "mm," and the remaining one is about her. You think I can't tell?
Li Xingyu's eyes wandered: ...Even so, I need to resolve the company issues before considering romance.
Le Ziyao made exaggerated facial expressions: Brother! Someone like Director Shao won't lack suitors! If you don't pursue her soon, it'll be too late!!
While the two of them were engaged in lively exchange, Luo Anan and Li Qianqian had nearly finished negotiating their contract.
Though Luo Anan appeared to have left GG boy band in anger, she actually just wanted a new challenge. After all, GG was doing fine without her now, and she was stretched too thin managing four superstars simultaneously—better to withdraw early.
By the end of the meal, the agent matter was basically settled. Luo Anan found a new challenge, Le Ziyao eliminated a potential love rival, Shao Yichen found an agent for Li Xingyu—everyone was happy.
When leaving, Le Ziyao deliberately lagged behind a step to walk beside Li Xingyu.
Li Xingyu, seeing that the people ahead weren't paying attention to them, asked softly: "How's the share situation?"
Le Ziyao replied concisely: "Still missing five percent."
After saying this, he analyzed further: "You have ten percent, my family has ten percent, and if we can secure your mother's twenty percent, which isn't impossible, plus purchasing shares elsewhere could gather another five percent."
"But that's only forty-five percent," Li Xingyu stared straight ahead. "Just as I expected."
Le Ziyao sighed: "Right, where do we get the remaining five percent? Wasn't Li Qiaoqiao desperately trying to get on your good side before? What was she after?"
"She doesn't represent her company, and she's retreated behind the scenes now," Li Xingyu said, though he didn't seem anxious. "But I am indeed eyeing the shares in her hands."
Le Ziyao perked up: "What's your plan?"
Li Xingyu just slowly shook his head: "Let's wait for Morning Star Media to go public."
Le Ziyao: "...Go public? That's too uncertain. In the best case, it could be listed in half a year; in the worst case, it might not happen even after ten years. Do you have that much confidence in her?"
Li Xingyu looked at Shao Yichen's figure ahead of him and said softly: "She's never disappointed me."
Author's Note: Le Ziyao: Psh, you're lovesick too.
Li Xingyu: I just trust Director Shao.
Today's update~
Thanks to the little angels who gave me Overlord Tickets or Nutrition Solution between 2020-09-16 12:17:54 and 2020-09-17 12:50:43~
Thanks to the little angels who gave Nutrition Solution: Dream Purple Stream 1 bottle;
Thank you very much for your support, I will continue to work hard!