As the three of them left the elevator, they were silent for a while, looking at each other.
After confirming that the elevator had gone up, Li Zhibai immediately exclaimed, "Zhou Ping'an is so petty, he must be worried that we're secretly hooking up with Sister Zi Yan."
Yan Liang disliked the word "hook up" used by Li Zhibai, but he agreed with what Li Zhibai meant.
"I guess he's thinking about it in his heart."
Everyone has known Zhou Ping'an for a few years and has a good understanding of his personality. They can guess what he is thinking.
Li Zhibai suddenly laughed: "After what happened to Ma Zhiyuan, will he seriously reflect on himself and be nicer to us in the future? Otherwise, if he pushes us to the limit, he will resort to violence."
"Forget it. What's the point of learning Ma Zhiyuan's method of killing one thousand enemies and losing eight hundred of his own?" Lu Yanhe was really worried that Li Zhibai would be inspired by Ma Zhiyuan and attack Zhou Ping'an impulsively. The consequences would be serious.
Yan Liang also nodded.
As the three were talking, Qu Yousong came towards them.
In the long and narrow corridor, two people met on a narrow road.
"Hey!" Li Zhibai's eyebrows lit up instantly when he saw someone. "Don't you usually go out in pairs with Ma Zhiyuan and Wei Zhuoran? Why are you alone today? Oh, right, Wei Zhuoran stopped working, Ma Zhiyuan got into a fight, and you're the only one left."
He spoke in a sarcastic tone and laughed sarcastically.
"Good brothers have to share hardships. Ma Zhiyuan and Lin Suyang were fighting, why didn't you go up and stop them?"
Qu Yousong's face darkened. "None of your business."
"Of course this is my business," Li Zhi said confidently. "I've been waiting to see you make a fool of yourself. Now I'm almost there, right? Hahahahahaha."
Lu Yanhe looked at Li Zhibai helplessly.
Only Li Zhibai dares to say anything and show any expression.
"What did you say to him? Let's go." Yan Liang didn't want to see Li Zhibai provoking Qu Yousong. Qu Yousong was a man with many thoughts and was dirty. He was more cautious than Ma Zhiyuan and Wei Zhuoran. If he was provoked too much, who knew what bad things he would be thinking in his heart.
Li Zhibai finally stopped talking.
Qu Yousong's face was as dark as water and he clenched his fists.
MX is a popular boy band that is at the peak of its popularity, but now it is facing internal and external troubles.
In a short period of time, conflicts arose between agents and artists, and also between artists.
It is still unknown how the issue between Lin Suyang and Ma Zhiyuan will be resolved.
-
"sit."
As soon as Zhou Ping'an came in, Vice President Ma asked him to sit down.
Zhou Pingan smiled and asked, "Boss Ma, what can I do for you?"
Vice President Ma sighed, "I want to talk to you. You should have heard about what happened between Ma Zhiyuan and Lin Suyang, right?"
"The news has spread throughout the company. How could we not have heard about it? My colleagues in the public relations department must be having a headache now. It's very difficult to keep the news secret," said Zhou Pingan.
"I came to you to ask how you think this matter should be handled appropriately," Vice President Ma said. "While Ma Zhiyuan went too far and deserves a lesson, we can't let him get dragged into a scandal involving assault. He has so many endorsements and a lot of business ahead of him. If he gets caught up in a scandal, the subsequent handling will be troublesome."
Zhou Pingan: "The key to this matter depends on the company's attitude towards Lin Suyang, President Ma."
"Um?"
"Lin Suyang is the manager. Logically, regardless of who's right or wrong in this matter, the best approach would be for Lin Suyang to immediately explain it to the public, claiming it was a misunderstanding, or to find a random excuse to change the nature of the matter. But after the incident, although he didn't fight back against Ma Zhiyuan, he cursed him harshly. Many people outside the rehearsal room heard it, and I don't know if anyone recorded it." Zhou Ping'an clicked his tongue twice. "Of course, this isn't Xiao Lin's fault. He's young, and this is his first time as a manager. He happened to be working with a boy band like MX that's quickly becoming popular. It's normal for him to lack experience."
"He's definitely inexperienced and impulsive," Vice President Ma said. "He's furious and can't think rationally. We can't let this go on like this. What do you think we should do?"
Zhou Pingan smiled and said, "What we need to do is simple. It's not difficult to find a pretext for the fight. The difficult part is whether the two parties involved will come out and slap us in the face after we do it. If we finally manage to whitewash the situation and they come out and expose it, then the company will also be embarrassed."
Vice President Ma understood what Zhou Ping'an meant.
"I'll talk to Lin Suyang, and you go talk to Ma Zhiyuan," Vice President Ma said. "We can't just let them lose their temper like this. They're adults, why are they acting like children? Once this is over, we'll definitely teach them a lesson!"
-
downstairs.
Lu Yanhe and the other two came to the company without anything to do, they just came to watch the show, but the show was already over.
"Then where are we going now?" Li Zhibai asked.
Yan Liang said, "There's nothing to watch anymore. Let's go back."
Li Zhibai: "We're already out, why are you going back so soon? Why don't we go see a movie?"
"That's fine." Yan Liang nodded.
Lu Yanhe is quick to follow advice.
Just as I was thinking this, Zhou Ping'an suddenly walked towards me from the front.
"You are still here. It's just right. I have something to talk to you about. Come here." Zhou Ping'an said to Li Zhibai and Yan Liang.
Li Zhibai frowned when he heard this and said, "We were planning to go to the movies. What's going on? It won't take us long, will it?"
Zhou Pingan glanced at them and said, "This vacation I'm giving you won't force you to do any work. It's something else, and it will be done soon."
Li Zhibai looked at Lu Yanhe and said, "Then we'll go over there first. Please wait for us."
"Okay." Lu Yanhe nodded.
Li Zhibai and Yan Liang followed Zhou Ping'an away.
Lu Yanhe was bored, so he went to the public area, found a chair to sit down, took out his cell phone, and prepared to check Weibo.
His Weibo has been very active these past two days, and his followers have increased very quickly. His account, which originally had only tens of thousands of followers, now has 230,000 followers in the past two days, all of whom are fans who came because they saw Lu Yanhe's college entrance examination score.
Whether it's the comment section or private messages, they are all expressions of admiration and worship.
Many people also asked him whether he was planning to go to Zhenhua or Yuming.
Lu Yanhe has thought about it seriously for a long time these two days. In fact, for him, either Zhenhua or Yuming is fine.
Both universities are top universities in the country.
Lu Yanhe was thinking about one thing, that is, whether he would pursue an academic career in the future?
After thinking for a long time, he felt that he should not leave.
Liberal arts are different from science and engineering. He'd researched this the last time he chose a university and major. Science and engineering have more quantitative market and academic requirements, while the liberal arts are more abstract. Liberal arts majors often pursue academic careers. After earning a doctorate in their late twenties, they'll either do a postdoc or go straight to teaching. They typically start as lecturers, with low salaries and a difficult path to advancement. Compared to science and engineering, the industry influence of liberal arts majors is more closely tied to their qualifications.
Without pursuing an academic career path, career options for liberal arts graduates are broader than those for science and engineering, but also more limited. The job market changes annually, but the liberal arts' niche remains. With the exception of a few disciplines with clear ties to specific fields, like law and finance, most humanities graduates don't find a direct, industry-specific path like science and engineering graduates do.
Choosing a major in college is a major event in one's life.
Many people choose careers that are different from their majors after graduation, but that does not mean that professional knowledge has no influence or effect on their lives.
Few people dare to say this.
Lu Yanhe was thinking about what university meant to him.
He will definitely become an artist in the future. No matter what major he studies, he cannot avoid this line. So it doesn't make much sense for him to study a major that is very relevant and professional.
The significance of university seems to be to consider the following points:
1. Leave a way out for your future. If an artist fails, you can still have a skill.
This point can only be ignored. It is difficult for liberal arts majors to accumulate such a skill. Even if you study law and become a lawyer, if you don't work in this industry for four or five years, you will not have any accumulation and no one will hire you.
2. It has been of great help to my acting career.
This needs to be considered seriously, just like when Chen Ziyan hired an acting teacher for him, she not only hired a very practical teacher like He Shuyi, but also a theoretical teacher like Zhang Ming, in order to improve his understanding and establish a higher level of acting knowledge.
3. His own interests.
After studying hard for so many years and preparing for the college entrance examination twice, this time he can finally go to a good university. He knows what he wants to learn, what he wants to understand, and what kind of knowledge he wants to gain.
Lu Yanhe thought for a long time and came up with several alternative answers.
Art, literature, or history.
These are all majors that seem a bit out of touch with society and a bit pretentious.
But it is a profession that can help him settle down and accumulate knowledge.
As for his own interests and hobbies... Lu Yanhe thought for a long time and decided that whatever he wanted to learn, whatever he wanted to know, had nothing to do with the liberal arts. His understanding of the liberal arts was entirely based on exam preparation. As for liking or loving something... Lu Yanhe felt he still preferred math; it was more interesting.
-
Li Zhibai and Yan Liang followed Zhou Ping'an into his office.
Zhou Ping'an sat down on the chair and looked at them for several seconds without saying anything, which made the two of them feel inexplicably pressured.
Li Zhibai coughed lightly and said, "Brother Ping'an, what do you want from us?"
"Lu Yanhe still lives with you?" Zhou Pingan asked.
"Yes, they have been together for several years. You won't let him move out at this time, right?" Li Zhibai asked.
"Why ask him to move out now? If he doesn't move out now, he'll have to go to school in two months." Zhou Pingan looked at them helplessly. "I wanted him to leave the company before because of special reasons. Now that he's no longer under my command, I have no prejudice against him. You don't need to look at me like a ferocious enemy."
Li Zhibai immediately asked, "What's the special reason?"
"This has nothing to do with you. In short, all you need to know is that he's no longer under my management and has nothing to do with me. I don't really have any prejudice against him, so don't worry about me cheating him." Zhou Ping'an sighed. "Speaking of which, you should also be more careful. After all, you're not artists managed by the same agent, and you're about the same age. You'll be competitors in the future. I know you have a good relationship now and treat each other like brothers, but in this world of fame and fortune, it's common for brothers to turn against each other."
Li Zhibai rolled his eyes at Zhou Ping'an.
"Brother Ping'an, why are you still thinking about doing something like this to sow discord? We have known Lao Lu since we were fifteen years old. Even if we become enemies one day, that will be in the future. Right now, we are getting along very well. Saying this will not only not alienate us, but will make us unite to face the outside world, and that outside world is you."
Zhou Pingan: "..."
Among the artists he manages, the only one who dares to speak to him like this is Li Zhibai.
But he has always been like this, and there is nothing he can say.
"I'm not trying to create a rift between you two. I'm trying to warn you. Lu Yanhe might not be trying to harm you, but if there's competition, Chen Ziyan won't take advantage of him, right?" Zhou Ping'an said. "Even Ma Zhiyuan didn't get the upper hand against Lu Yanhe this time. Think about it, is that normal?"
Li Zhibai snorted, "That's just Old Lu being awesome. He scored 657 on the college entrance exam. There are popular artists every year, but is there another artist who can score 657 on the college entrance exam?"
Zhou Pingan: "...Then don't you think that having someone like this around you wouldn't make you look inferior to others?"
"I'm not as good as him to begin with," Li Zhibai admitted generously. "So if I'm not as good at studying as him, why do I have to stay around him to show off? Forget it. In the entertainment industry, it's not about competing for grades. Why bother with that?"
"If it weren't for him, Yan Liang's admission to the Beijing Academy of Fine Arts would have been the biggest news for our Star Entertainment this year. But now most of the publicity resources have been diverted to Lu Yanhe by Chen Ziyan," Zhou Ping'an said. "Originally, I planned to let Yan Liang take advantage of this favorable situation to carry out some publicity."
"Just do it, there is no conflict. One is a big shot in the cultural exam, and the other is a big shot in the art exam. No one will hinder the other." Li Zhibai instructed Zhou Pingan without any hesitation.
Zhou Ping'an was so angry that he almost laughed.
"You have so many ideas, why don't you be the agent?"
Zhou Ping'an's original intention was to squeeze Li Zhibai, to make him know his position and stop talking nonsense. However, he forgot one thing, that is, Li Zhibai's face was as thick as the nine heavens.
Li Zhibai replied without hesitation, "Actually, I also think I'm quite suitable to be a manager. If I don't become an artist anymore, I'll switch to being a manager."
Zhou Ping'an almost vomited blood.
He stared speechlessly at the shameless little bastard in front of him and said speechlessly, "When will you have some self-awareness? If someone as lazy as you works as a manager, the artist will never become famous in eight hundred years."
"It's okay. My family is rich. I will spend money to put him on the hot search every day. I don't believe he won't become popular." Li Zhibai said bluntly.
Zhou Pingan: "..."
Hold on, hold on.
Zhou Ping'an took a deep breath and decided not to discuss this topic with Li Zhibai anymore.
There's no point in getting entangled with him.
This person is stubborn and has a different way of thinking than ordinary people. He also has "money skills".
"Whatever you want to do is fine. I won't say any more." Zhou Ping'an waved his hand and forced a change of subject. "I asked you to come here for the show 'Young Days'. Li Zhibai, you've already recorded a regular show in the first half of the year, and the feedback was pretty good. If you record this show in the second half of the year, then I won't let you take on other regular shows. I plan to let both of you develop in various fields. Acting, singing, recording shows, live broadcasts, all of these will be arranged. The core is one thing, to increase your visibility, increase your popularity, and gain a firm foothold. The next few years will be the years when idol artists will explode. You've been in the industry for almost four years, and you can't stand still, otherwise you will be eliminated."
Yan Liang nodded seriously.
Zhou Pingan added, "Besides, you've all seen that MX is having all sorts of internal problems right now. Things like managers fighting with artists have even surfaced. Their popularity won't last long. The day they start to decline, that's when you can divide the pie. By then, the company will definitely have to promote new idol artists."
"There will be new people by then, right?" Li Zhibai said.
"You're stupid," Zhou Pingan said. "So what if there are newcomers? A few newcomers can become overnight sensations like MX. That's why I tell you to start increasing your exposure now, so more people can get to know you and develop more idol qualities."
"But no matter how hard idol artists try, they only have those fans. They can never be liked by people of all ages like actors and singers, and their popularity cannot increase." Li Zhibai is very clear-headed.
"So what? As long as you can reach the top level among idol artists, your fan appeal will be no less than that of any superstar." Zhou Ping'an said, "Otherwise, why do you think companies are vigorously developing idol artists? It's because China has a very mature training system for singers and actors, and there are a group of people who have already established themselves. But look at idol artists, do you have such dominance and status? Whether in Europe and the United States, the Korean Wave, the Japanese Wave, and even in places like Thailand and India, idol artists are getting bigger and bigger, and their pop culture influence is expanding to a world-class level. China is weak in this area, and there is huge room for development. Why don't you fight for this piece of the pie?"
After Zhou Ping'an said this, Li Zhibai rarely argued with him.
"There's no shortage of opportunities for idol artists in China these days. Online variety shows and music festivals are all good opportunities," Zhou Ping'an said. "I'll help you take on all types of work, but your core focus should still be idols. Don't be influenced by others, and don't think about transitioning too quickly. You're still young and have plenty of time to transform, but at your age, the only way to compete for king status is as an idol."
-
Lu Yanhe was searching for information on various majors on his mobile phone, wanting to know more, when Li Zhibai suddenly called.
"We're done, where are you?"
"I'm... I can't explain clearly. Let's meet in the parking lot." Lu Yanhe said.
There is a large public area nearby, and Lu Yanhe doesn't know how to describe it.
He also doesn't have that much understanding of the company's layout.
"OK."
Lu Yanhe walked towards the nearby elevator.
The three met in the parking lot.
After getting in the car, Lu Yanhe looked at the expressions of the two men, and they seemed to be thinking deeply.
"What are you thinking about? Did Zhou Ping'an say anything to you?"
"He said a lot of random things, but the core idea was to make it clear to us that the focus of our future career is to become an idol artist. He painted a huge pie for us and asked us to work hard." Li Zhibai said directly.
Lu Yanhe couldn't help but ponder for a moment, then nodded, "Our company is indeed one of the few agencies in China that invests so heavily in idol artists."
This is mainly because there is no mature industrial chain for idol artists, which leads to the output and income not being necessarily proportional.
Many companies are unwilling to do it.
In the past two years, the market for idol artists has gradually grown, and companies have begun to make efforts.
Li Zhibai nodded. "Zhou Ping'an said the same thing. He said that MX will be eliminated sooner or later, and that we should be prepared to take over from them."
"Ah?" This was unexpected for Lu Yanhe.
Taking over MX's deal? Why did Zhou Pingan think this group was going to be eliminated?
-
As many people expected, the news of Ma Zhiyuan's fight with his agent Lin Suyang was anonymously exposed on the Internet despite the company's strict prevention measures.
With Ma Zhiyuan's personality, he usually offends many people in the circle. Once something happens, there are many people who want to watch the fun and add fuel to the fire.
In particular, some media outlets that disliked Ma Zhiyuan immediately followed up on the incident and made very negative reports after learning about it.
No matter what the reason, it is a negative thing for an idol artist to fight with his agent.
Especially the mainstream media, they have higher requirements and are more sensitive to idol artists, because in the social consensus, the fans of idol artists are basically teenagers, who can easily imitate the words and deeds of idol artists.
As soon as the incident was exposed, within less than half an hour, three mainstream media outlets came out to comment on the negative social impact of this incident.
Different from the mainstream media, the entertainment media focused more on the "past and present" of the young artist Ma Zhiyuan. Various "clues" from the past were dug out to form a manifesto that "had long-standing signs."
Ma Zhiyuan suddenly felt like he was being pushed down by the crowd.
-
Within MX, except for Ma Zhiyuan, several other people were also shocked by this situation.
How could it cause such a big public opinion?
Qu Yousong and Wei Zhuoran both sat in silence, neither of them looked up to speak, until Ma Zhiyuan suddenly angrily threw his cell phone against the sofa, and the phone bounced off the sofa and fell to the ground.
At this time, neither Qu Yousong nor Wei Zhuoran spoke, trying to comfort Ma Zhiyuan.
In the house across the street on the same floor, Jiang Bai finished reading the message on his phone, curled his lips slightly, put the phone aside, and stood up to pour some water.
At this moment, Chen Jing didn't know how to describe his feelings.
This is Ma Zhiyuan's usual style. He is self-righteous and self-centered. If anyone offends him, he will not let them off easily.
Chen Jing was banned from performing on the same stage with Ma Zhiyuan several times because Ma Zhiyuan was jealous of her better dancing skills.
This unreasonable request was agreed to because he was the most popular person in the team, even though it made no sense.
Chen Jing had long hoped that Ma Zhiyuan would learn the lesson he deserved. Now Ma Zhiyuan had learned his lesson, but it seemed that MX had also been stepped on.
-
"MX is indeed one of the hottest boy bands right now, and as their leader, Ma Zhiyuan is also one of the hottest idols. However, that's no reason for him to hit anyone," said columnist Mao Yu, who was a guest on a live entertainment news program. "In fact, according to feedback from my friends in the entertainment industry, Ma Zhiyuan's personality has long revealed this problem: he's irritable, arrogant, and self-righteous. He once participated in a program produced by a friend of mine, and at his request, the rehearsal time was changed from 4 pm to 3 am. He wanted everyone in the production team to accompany him, and then at 3 am, he said he couldn't come to rehearsal. This kind of behavior is common, but because he is so famous, no one has exposed it. I'm not surprised that he dared to hit his own agent this time."
"It's not just that. I also heard that he suppressed other MX members." Another guest immediately followed up, "Just because someone performed better than him, he forced the production team and the agent to not allow that person to appear on the show."
"Oh my god, is this true? This is too much!"
"It happened not long ago. If you search the news, you'll know who I'm talking about."
…
When Lu Yanhe was live-streaming himself reading, someone in his live-streaming room immediately posted a link to the live entertainment news commentary program.
Because Lu Yanhe is an artist of Star Entertainment Agency and they are all idol artists, many people were discussing this matter in his live broadcast room today, and many people asked Lu Yanhe to express his views on this matter.
Lu Yanhe saw everyone's speeches, but of course he chose not to see them.
How could he get involved in such a matter and get himself into trouble?
But he did not expect that this incident would attract so much attention and discussion.
It seems to have become a social news.
He couldn't help but wonder, how will the company resolve this matter in the end? -
At eleven o'clock in the evening, Lu Yanhe ended the live broadcast and prepared to wash his face and go to bed. While he was still washing his face, he heard Li Zhibai scream loudly.
"What's wrong?" Yan Liang's voice rang out.
Li Zhibai said: "The company has issued a statement saying that the fight between Ma Zhiyuan and Lin Suyang was a misunderstanding. The real situation was that Lin Suyang was rehearsing an audition segment with Ma Zhiyuan in the rehearsal room. The rumors online were taken out of context and are fabricated."
"ah?"
Lu Yanhe washed his face and walked out.
"Does anyone believe this explanation?" Lu Yanhe was a little surprised.
Li Zhibai shrugged and said, "Anyway, both Lin Suyang and Ma Zhiyuan forwarded the statement and explained it. It seems they've made peace. Ma Zhiyuan even posted a photo of him and Lin Suyang having a barbecue together."
Lu Yanhe went to Ma Zhiyuan's social media homepage and saw that the latest update was the photo that Li Zhibai mentioned.
Ma Zhiyuan and Lin Suyang stood close to each other, still looking very close, with bright smiles, as if there was no grudge between them.
"It wasn't easy to take this photo," Yan Liang sighed. "It seems the company didn't issue a statement right away because they were trying to clean up the mess and sort out their two statements before issuing a joint response."
"Whether others believe it or not, there's no evidence to support the claim that they fought. Now that several parties involved have clarified the matter, you have to believe it even if you don't believe it."
"How boring! I thought Ma Zhiyuan was going to learn a lesson this time."
Lu Yanhe looked at the two people in the photo smiling brightly, and felt a little complicated inside.
This is the entertainment industry. What is presented on social media is always edited and processed.
Smiles, sadness, truth, misunderstanding, everything can be disguised.
Many people know the truth, but no one will step forward to expose these hypocritical lies.
The truth of the matter itself is not important.
Lu Yanhe was still thinking about these things when Yan Liang suddenly said, "Someone in the company said that Lin Suyang and Ma Zhiyuan are going their separate ways."
"Huh?" Li Zhibai said, "They just said they had a good relationship and it was just a misunderstanding. Why did they suddenly go their separate ways?"
"I don't know, it's just a rumor, but it also mentioned something." Yan Liang looked at Li Zhibai seriously, "It said that Ma Zhiyuan will leave MX and perform solo activities, and his personal management affairs will be handled by Zhou Ping'an."
Li Zhibai and Lu Yanhe both showed an expression of disbelief.
"Zhou Ping'an?"
"Yes." Yan Liang nodded. "It's just a rumor, but I think there's no smoke without fire. Plus what Zhou Ping'an said to us this afternoon, I think it's quite possible."
"Ma Zhiyuan is going to be led by Zhou Pingan? Are you kidding me?!" Li Zhibai's face changed instantly. "What is my relationship with Ma Zhiyuan? Zhou Pingan wants to lead him? Where does he put me?"
If they don’t even want to appear on the same show together, how could they be willing to work under the same agent?
"If Zhou Ping'an accepts Ma Zhiyuan, I will leave immediately." Li Zhibai was watching the fun and gloating before, but now he suddenly found that the matter was related to him. He could not stay out of it and immediately exploded.
Lu Yanhe asked, "Does Zhou Ping'an know that you and Ma Zhiyuan are so at odds?"
"What doesn't he know?" Li Zhibai said angrily, "No, I'm going to ask Zhou Ping'an tomorrow to see if this is true. If it is, I'll say goodbye as soon as possible."
The matter that originally had nothing to do with them had an impact on them in the end, which was what Li Zhibai had never expected.
He even felt that Ma Zhiyuan and he were really incompatible, and this matter could eventually be blamed on Zhou Pingan.
However, Zhou Ping'an would definitely be very willing to take him.
How could Zhou Ping'an be unwilling as he is an ace idol artist?
For the first time, Li Zhibai felt a sense of crisis under Zhou Ping'an.
He thought seriously for a long time and said, "Why don't I go find Lin Suyang and ask him to be my agent."
Lu Yanhe and Yan Liang were overwhelmed when they heard Li Zhibai's words and immediately spoke out to stop him, "Don't make a stupid move just because you're provoked. Calm down first!"
