Chapter 153: The 153rd day of being popular
...Passing by?
The people standing in front of him glanced at each other in confusion, looked around, and then cautiously took half a step back, confirming that Mo Yougan was indeed speaking to them.
"Thank you."
Mo Yougan nodded slightly in gratitude towards them and then calmly walked past them towards the adjacent side door.
His assistant immediately took a couple of steps forward and held the door open for him.
As the side door creaked open, everyone finally noticed that it led directly to the elevator lobby on the fifth floor. Taking the No. 5 elevator would conveniently reach the hotel rooms upstairs. It was the shortest route among all options.
Usually, when there was a banquet in the side hall, most people would choose to take a slightly longer route and go to the elevator lobby next to it.
However, if a guest insisted on taking this route, the hotel didn't explicitly prohibit it.
Everyone: "..."
Lou Yanchen silently sat back on the sofa. This act of standing up and sitting back down made him feel a bit foolish.
So, did Mo Yougan come here just to take a shortcut and ride the elevator?
Is this person out of his mind!
*****
The assistant followed Mo Yougan, keeping his head down like a quail.
He knew that their president hadn't been in a good mood recently.
Two of their company's artists had become popular and made a lot of money. It would be strange if the president were in a good mood.
The assistant still remembered when their president calmly declared in front of his father that he would bankrupt the company and asked his father not to have any expectations of him.
He also knew that the president had stated his lifelong dream was to be a quiet salted fish, not a corporate slave who had to work every day.
However, times had changed.
The past promises still echoed in his ears, but the president's wealth grew increasingly, and the company expanded.
Now, it had reached an irreversible stage.
So, when he heard the discussion about the female celebrity who had fallen out of popularity, he didn't miss the hint of envy in the president's eyes.
"They were discussing an artist named Yao Bianliang, right?" Mo Yougan asked his assistant as the elevator ascended slowly.
The assistant silently confirmed his suspicion and nodded, saying, "That's right."
Mo Yougan nodded slightly, feeling a bit more melancholic inside.
That name sounded pleasant and seemed to be auspicious.
Why were the other artists able to easily fall out of popularity, but the artists in his company, no matter how they were managed, became even more popular?
In fact, over the years, he had tried to find solutions.
As soon as an artist became famous, he would immediately terminate their contract and let them go, replacing them with other D-list artists. However, even these seemingly unremarkable D-list artists would follow in the footsteps of their predecessors and gradually gain popularity.
This cycle repeated, and now his company became an artist training center.
When they entered the company, everyone was an unknown artist. When they left the company, they were all highly sought-after, with a bright future ahead!
Later on, he didn't know who spread the rumors, saying that Kuaiqian Entertainment was a feng shui treasure. If one could enter the company, their future would be limitless.
This led to many high-quality artists clamoring to join the company, creating a vicious cycle.
Mo Yougan felt a tinge of regret. He wondered why he didn't recruit Yao Bianliang into his company back then and missed out on an opportunity.
But now that he knew, it wasn't too late.
Mo Yougan became more intrigued and said, "What do you think if I invite her to act in the new drama being prepared by the company?"
The assistant was taken aback and asked, "You mean Director Hua's drama?"
Mo Yougan nodded.
After hearing about Yao Bianliang's achievements, he felt that this outstanding female celebrity would perfectly fit his vision.
No marketing, no hype. How wonderful would that be? And most importantly, she had already successfully fallen out of popularity.
What Mo Yougan lacked the most now was experience in falling out of popularity.
Perhaps he could learn a lot about how to become less popular from her and even gain other inspirations.
"Have someone contact her later to ask if she...," Mo Yougan paused for a moment, then changed his mind, "No, I'll personally contact her later."
The assistant could infer about 70-80% of the CEO's intentions from Mo Yougan's appearance.
Was he trying to seek advice from Yao Bianliang?
Yao Bianliang was dedicated to her work, not interested in fame and fortune, and unafraid of powerful figures. How could she be compared to someone who just wanted to live a laid-back life like a salted fish?
The assistant couldn't help but inwardly mock. Of course, he would never dare to utter such rebellious words.
With a light "ding," the elevator finally reached the top floor, and the doors slowly opened.
As they left the elevator, Mo Yougan touched his chin as if he had thought of something and suddenly said, "By the way, remember to report Lou Yanchen later."
The assistant was taken aback and asked, "Huh?"
Report Lou Yanchen from the Lushi Group?
This topic shifted quite abruptly, and he was stunned for a moment before he reacted.
Could it be that the CEO had finally had enough and decided to get rid of this scumbag who liked to bully others, manipulate power, and had no bottom line!
But... they didn't have much evidence in their hands.
No, maybe there was evidence. Several entertainment companies under the Lushi Group had long been notorious and unsightly. If they really wanted to investigate, it shouldn't be difficult.
Perhaps the CEO had already collected enough evidence to uproot the Lushi Group and wipe them out.
The assistant's heart surged with excitement and he cautiously asked, "Sir, how do you plan to report the Lushi Group? Shouldn't we discuss it privately first, considering the magnitude of this action?"
Mo Yougan turned his head and gave him a strange and indescribable look for a while.
He paused and finally said, "What I meant was to call the Epidemic Prevention Office."
Assistant: ??
Mo Yougan pointed in the direction downstairs and said calmly, "During the epidemic, gatherings are not allowed."
Assistant: "..."
The assistant fell silent for a moment and awkwardly replied, "Understood."
He had overthought it. The CEO was willing to pass by Lou Yanchen's banquet scene just to avoid walking a few extra steps. How could such a laid-back person take the initiative to eliminate others?
*****
On the other side,
In a hot spring park,
Yao Bianliang was currently enjoying a relaxing soak in the hot spring with Yu Yiqing.
Yu Yiqing was in the pool, closing her eyes in comfort and asking, "Sister Liang, have you received any new drama invitations recently?"
"It seems not." Yao Bianliang shook her head.
Yu Yiqing was concerned, "Could it be because those people are suppressing you? With your talent and popularity, even if the final work has low viewership, you should still receive script invitations."
Indeed, even supporting actors in the drama crew had received new scripts, but Yao Bianliang had no such luck.
Yao Bianliang didn't believe that no one was sabotaging her.
However, she didn't care.
After all, she was already prepared to retire. Did it matter if those people were suppressing her? It had no impact at all.
Yu Yiqing suggested, "Why don't you find a manager as soon as possible? Having a manager might improve the situation."
Although Assistant Chen was capable, he wasn't a professional manager and couldn't handle the job of a manager.
Yu Yiqing's concern made sense, but Yao Bianliang just shrugged, "We'll see later. I'm not in a hurry to hire someone now."
Yao Bianliang's intention was that she would retire soon and didn't need to hire a manager.
However, Yu Yiqing obviously misunderstood her meaning.
She suddenly realized, "Right, it's currently the period of the epidemic, so it's difficult to hire people."
Speaking of this, Yu Yiqing couldn't help but feel worried, "Sigh, it's been a week already, and who knows when this epidemic will be over."
"I saw in the news yesterday that many medical personnel have already set off collectively and headed to City H for assistance."
"The situation this time is really severe. I hope it improves soon."
Yao Bianliang nodded and sighed as well, "Yes, I really hope this epidemic can be over soon."
Due to the epidemic, people across the country didn't have a good New Year celebration.
Yao Bianliang also hoped that order would be restored as soon as possible.
She shifted into another position and continued soaking while picking up a strawberry from the fruit plate and putting it into her mouth.
The sweet juice spread and Yao Bianliang stared at the ceiling silently for a while. Suddenly, a thought quickly flashed through her mind.
Wait, there seems to be something off about what Yu Yiqing said...
The thought passed too quickly, not clear enough for Yao Bianliang to figure out what was wrong.
She sat straight, turned her head towards Yu Yiqing beside her, and asked, "Yiqing, what did you just say?"
"Huh?" Yu Yiqing paused for a moment, "I said, I hope the epidemic can be over soon?"
Yao Bianliang frowned and shook her head slowly, "Not that sentence."
Yu Yiqing tried to recall, "I also said that the situation this time is quite severe."
"No, not that sentence either."
Yu Yiqing looked a bit puzzled and stared at Yao Bianliang, "Um... I also mentioned that many medical personnel have collectively set off to assist City H?"
Upon hearing that sentence, Yao Bianliang fell silent for a moment, and her expression slowly changed.
Hmm, medical personnel collectively setting off to assist...
This plot is too familiar, isn't it similar to the content of her short drama!!
Yao Bianliang: "..."
Yao Bianliang squeezed the strawberry in her hand, deforming it directly, leaving Yu Yiqing next to her stunned.
"Sister Liang, you... calm down. What's happening?" Yu Yiqing scratched her head and asked.
Yao Bianliang had some existential doubts and finally leaned against the pool's edge, staring blankly at the ceiling.
Yes, how could she overlook such an important factor?
The epidemic had arrived, and it undoubtedly meant that medical personnel would need to shoulder heavy responsibilities. This also meant that films and TV shows with medical personnel themes would easily attract attention.
And she, after going through countless choices, happened to select such a theme.
Yao Bianliang: "..."
What kind of world suffering is this?