The sweetest in the entertainment industry

Chapter 300, Part 4: Gu Lanxi's Speech at University A
Despite the joking and laughter, when it comes to serious matters, the vast majority of people sitting in the audience are rational.

Five questions—we can't just use them all to gossip and follow celebrities.

Compared to Lu Nanting, Gu Lanxi, a senior student with considerable achievements in the industry and an exceptionally bizarre background, was the one they were more interested in.

The second person to ask a question was a round-faced girl with rosy cheeks, wearing a simple high ponytail and a thick corduroy cotton-padded jacket. She stood up and introduced herself first:
"Senior, my name is Zhou Yanqiu. I come from a small village on the banks of the Yellow River in Lanzhou, Gansu. I am a third-year student in the Department of Probability and Statistics at the School of Mathematical Sciences. I am currently struggling with my future career path and would like to ask for your guidance."

"Hello, could you be a little more specific?"

To keep them a little longer, the school staff were very clever and brought up chairs.

The two exchanged a glance and had no choice but to sit down.

"I've been thinking lately about whether to study hard for the postgraduate entrance exam next year or go back to my hometown to take the civil service exam. I want to ask my senior, how much difference is there in the job market between undergraduate and master's graduates in my major?"

Zhou Yanqiu speaks clearly and logically; she is not the kind of girl who lacks her own opinions.

Gu Lanxi stroked her chin, organizing her thoughts before answering:
"Being a civil servant is stable and respectable, and you can take care of your family nearby, which is indeed very attractive to people who seek stability. Pursuing a master's degree may bring better career development, which is equally attractive. If it were me, to reduce the risk, I would prepare for both exams at the same time, since the two exams do not conflict. If I don't pass either, there's nothing to worry about. If I pass one, there's no need to worry. If I pass both, then it's not too late to worry. But by then, there are options, and the choice will definitely not be so difficult."

This statement is very niche; to the average person, it sounds exactly like Versailles.

But Zhou Yanqiu was able to fight his way out of a small village and still sit here, speaking to her neither humbly nor arrogantly. He must be very smart and have a strong mental core. Preparing for two exams in just over a year is easy for him.

"As for the difference in employment environment between undergraduate and master's students in your major, I think you'll trust the data more than my personal opinion. So I'll tell you some data now for your reference."

Gu Lanxi had only seen this data in some reports and had never organized it specifically, so she pondered for a moment to think it through before answering:
“I own shares in a recruitment company, and internal statistics show that in Beijing alone, the starting salary for probability and statistics graduates is 42% higher than that for undergraduates.”

"Data from this year's fall recruitment shows that 87% of the management trainee positions in the financial and technology industries require a master's degree."

"According to data registered with the Securities Association of China, our alumni account for more than 18% of the industry's talent pool in the field of quantitative investment. If you can continue your studies, you will have many advantages when you enter the workforce because you are from University A."

Gu Lanxi actually preferred to advise her to pursue graduate studies, but as a public figure, it was not appropriate to interfere in other people's lives like that.

She paused, lowered her eyes, and said expressionlessly, "In addition, in your hometown's provincial and municipal government departments, the percentage of civil servants with master's degrees or above is 82%, in prefecture-level cities it's 45%, and in county-level cities it's 23%. When it comes to promotion and rank, a master's degree holder is a fourth-level chief clerk, and a bachelor's degree holder is a first-level clerk. In the early stages of your career, because you are a graduate of University A, you can usually shorten the promotion time by 1 to 2 years compared to ordinary people. However, this influence will become smaller and smaller over time."

Gu Lanxi rattled off a series of data points, leaving everyone speechless.

Someone immediately took out their phone to check, and apart from internal data, everything matched!

Is this the power of photographic memory?
Zhou Yanqiu didn't press further, thanked her, and sat down.

Gu Lanxi's meaning was already quite clear.

When a third person asked her for work experience, Gu Lanxi, who had never been an employee but only a boss, thought for a moment and answered:
"What you learn from books is never enough; you must put it into practice to truly understand. If you want to gain work experience, first of all, you need to work. Since you haven't graduated yet, you can ask me to write you a letter of recommendation if you want to intern at a company in the industry."

In fact, University A has a very strong reputation, and it's very easy for its students to find internships. She was just doing her a favor. The fourth person, a third-year graduate student, was in the early stages of starting a business and was struggling to secure investment, so he wanted to try his luck with her.

Gu Lanxi took his business plan, handed him a business card, and left the message "I'll get back to you in three days," before calling the last person:
"Sixth row, fourth from the left, the boy in the orange down jacket."

This person had been actively raising his hand from the very beginning, and this was the last question. If Gu Lanxi didn't call on him, her conscience would be bothering her.

The boy stood up and, as usual, stated his college, major, and year of study before asking his questions:

“My family of origin was terrible, and I often suffer because of it. As far as I know, my senior sister's situation is similar. I want to ask her, how did you learn to reconcile with the past?”

This question was a bit sharp and involved personal privacy. Gu Lanxi was reluctant to answer, but seeing the person looking at her so sincerely, like a lost lamb, she couldn't help but soften her heart.

Gu Lanxi wasn't very good at expressing herself on topics related to emotions. After a moment of silence, she finally organized her thoughts:

"The reason you feel pain is because you still expect love from your family."

"People often have a misplaced confidence in parental love, believing that based on blood ties, their parents will definitely care about them. This idea itself is wrong."

"Some people love their children dearly, while others don't."

"Just like a problem, there is a correct answer and there is also a wrong solution."

"People's energy and emotions are limited. They may have things they care about more, or people they care about more, or they may just be too busy with work to pay attention to you, or they may even be naturally dull and not very emotional... Whatever the reason, not being cared for is an objective fact. You have to admit that."

"Compared to the love from my family, loving myself is more important to me."

“I study hard every day, work hard, try to love the people I want to love, and try to do the things I like. When I get busy, I realize that I haven’t thought about those things for many years.”

"Compared to self-improvement, the pain caused by one's family of origin is not that important."

"As for reconciling with the past? That's probably a misunderstanding. I'm not as good as you think. I'm not a saint; on the contrary, I hold grudges. I can never forget those I hate."

"Whenever I feel lazy, I take those painful memories to heart, give myself a good prick, and motivate myself."

"Life is short. If you don't want to live a miserable life, write yourself a satisfying story."

"When one day I live better than my enemies, and they don't even deserve to sit at the same table with me when we go out to eat; when one day I achieve outstanding results in my professional field, and my enemies pull out all their hair but still can't publish their papers; when one day those who once stabbed me in the back without any mercy come begging to my door like lapdogs..."

"I would tell myself, 'Look, every drop of sweat I shed in the past is like a diamond, sparkling and shining. Life was worth it!'"

The applause from the audience was thunderous, for her frankness and for her ambition.

Before she could ask any more questions, Gu Lanxi had already put down the microphone, taken Lu Nanting's hand, and walked offstage.