Entertainment: 1990

Chapter 135 Nostalgia
The night is dark.

Listening to Wang Luyao's even breathing beside her, Chen Hong tossed and turned, unable to fall asleep.

After listening to Wang Luyao's heartfelt words, she suddenly realized that the simplest strategy for controlling her had always been right beside her.

Chen Hong was very hesitant about whether or not to do it.

Although she had previously tacitly approved of Zhang Yan's philandering, tacit approval and active encouragement are not the same thing. If this step is taken, it will probably be even harder to stop him in the future.

After much deliberation, Chen Hong couldn't make up her mind, so she simply got up, put on her coat, grabbed Wang Luyao's mobile phone, quietly left the house, and dialed Zhang Yan's office number.

"Hello~"

The call was answered quickly, and Zhang Yan's tired voice came through.

"I knew you weren't asleep yet."

Chen Hong complained, "No matter what, you have to take care of your health. It's fine now that you're young, but what about when you get old..."

"I'll have to rely on you when I get old."

Zhang Yan stretched and chuckled on the other end of the phone, "Look at the people strolling on the street, it's mostly old ladies helping old men, there are very few exceptions."

"Humph~"

Chen Hong snorted and said, "I just talked to Wang Luyao. She still hopes the company can give her a future guarantee—she's asleep now, so I'm calling you from outside using her cell phone."

"How can I give this to you?"

Knowing that Wang Luyao wasn't around, Zhang Yan bluntly said, "Her voice really isn't captivating. She just happened to have this opportunity to create hype, but she can't keep using her chest to create hype in the future, can she? It's okay once or twice, but the audience will definitely get tired of it after a while."

"Are you acting?"

"Her acting skills are just average, and the mainland TV drama industry is not open enough yet. Her type is obviously more suitable for playing villainous roles or mistresses."

"So you're planning to give up on her in the future?"

"That's not necessarily true. This incident is enough for her to live on for a year or two. After she makes money, she can take some time to reflect, or continue her studies as a singer or actress, or even move behind the scenes."

"But isn't this just coming full circle? Further education takes time. How can the company assure her that it will continue to wholeheartedly help her after she pursues further education or changes careers?"

"Hey~"

Zhang Yan said helplessly, "This was originally impossible. It would be best if she believed us, but if she didn't, there's nothing anyone can do. Let's not talk about this anymore. I have some good news for you: we've received Tian Zhen's song."

"Really? Then Han Lei must be even more anxious."

"Why do you have to bring up something you shouldn't say..."

After chatting on the phone for half an hour, Chen Hong finally returned to her room with her hot cell phone.

Looking at Wang Luyao, who was still fast asleep on the bed, Chen Hong sighed softly.

Zhang Yan was always full of confidence in the future, so he didn't take Wang Luyao's matter too seriously. But Chen Hong didn't want to see her husband's cash cow, which he had personally nurtured, snatched away by someone else with some kind of long-term guarantee contract.

Even if the hype only lasts for a year, let alone two years, it's still a net income of millions!

If we also include advertising and record sales...

Chen Hong's gaze shifted to Wang Luyao's chest, and she felt that it wasn't made of flesh, but rather two gold mines waiting to be tapped.

…………

The next morning.

When Wang Luyao woke up, she found herself alone in the room. She put on her clothes and looked around, but couldn't find Chen Hong. However, she found two clear footprints on the door.

These must be a woman's footprints.

It looks like it was kicked quite hard; the paint on the door panel is all wrinkled. I wonder who did it.

"What are you looking at?"

Wang Luyao curiously observed the footprints when Chen Hong's voice came from behind her.

Looking back, I saw Chen Hong wearing sunglasses and carrying soy milk and fried dough sticks, clearly having gone out to buy food.

"Sister Hong, why... I should have gone."

"It's not far at all."

Chen Hong laughed and said, "Don't complain about how simple it is—I've heard that you're eating fish, meat, bird's nest, and shark fin every day now." "It's precisely because I've eaten so much of that that I crave something simpler," Wang Luyao said, taking the soy milk and fried dough sticks from Chen Hong's hand and turning to go inside to rummage for bowls and chopsticks.

As Chen Hong passed by the door, she glanced at the footprints on it. She didn't know who left them, nor did she really care to find out.

Hey~
To be the woman behind a successful man, perhaps the most important thing is to know when to play dumb.

Chen Hong sighed, then put on a bright smile after entering the room, and said to Wang Luyao, "If I hadn't heard you say it yourself yesterday, I really wouldn't have known that you had such feelings for our CEO Zhang."

Wang Luyao's hand trembled, and she almost spilled the soy milk on the table. She composed herself and said awkwardly, "Sister Hong, I was just talking nonsense when I was drunk yesterday. Please don't take it seriously."

"Why should I take this seriously?"

Chen Hong reached out and patted her chest, laughing, "It's normal for you to have feelings for him, just don't let me catch you red-handed."

Then she said seriously, "Actually, you don't need to worry at all. Our boss Zhang has always been very sentimental—do you know why the female lead of 'Tianjin Wei' is named Zhou Nan?"

After hearing Chen Hong embellish Zhang's first love story, Wang Luyao was surprised and somewhat regretful that she had taken on the role in "The Flying Fox of Snowy Mountain," otherwise she might have had a chance...

But she was his first love, his ideal woman, so we shouldn't compare her to other artists in the company, right?

Seemingly having heard Wang Luyao's thoughts, Chen Hong added, "It's not just Zhou Nan, but also that little girl from the synchronized swimming team when we were filming 'Tian Xing Jian'—the one who filmed the instant noodle commercial."

Because she clicked with him, he helped her apply to the Central Academy of Drama and the Beijing Film Academy, and even got her to shoot commercials to earn a living. They're still entangled now..."

Halfway through her sentence, Chen Hong realized she had misspoke and abruptly changed the subject, saying, "Hurry up and eat, Liu Weidong should be here to pick you up soon."

"Oh~"

Wang Luyao nodded, but her mind was not on eating at all.

She vaguely remembered the girl who filmed the instant noodle commercial. She was no match for Chen Hong, but she was still quite pretty and had a great figure, unlike ordinary girls.

Judging from what Sister Hong said, it seemed that Mr. Zhang and that girl...

In addition, there's Zhou Nan's situation.

This isn't just being nostalgic; it's clearly being sentimental about the past!

But why did Sister Hong say these words to me? Was she trying to test whether I would cross the line?
But it doesn't quite feel like it...

Seeing Wang Luyao's thoughtful expression, Chen Hong didn't say anything more. She couldn't possibly explain things clearly, otherwise she would have less leverage over Wang Luyao in the future.

Let her figure it out herself.

Wait until you finish eating.

Liu Weidong was already waiting downstairs in his Mercedes-Benz W14.

Chen Hong gave him a few special instructions, demanding that what happened last night must not happen again—even if there is a situation where drinking is necessary, it must be done in moderation, and artists must never be allowed to act alone.

Dream Records is a legitimate company. Those things outside the stage should be handled by the agent or security guard. Otherwise, why should the company and the agent get such a high commission?

"By the way, I've recruited a group of veterans to form our company's own security team. When we take them out for commercial performances, you and Jinghua must communicate with the security captain in advance, and when negotiating with businesses, representatives from the security team must also be present to listen in."

Hearing this, Liu Weidong was very reluctant. After all, besides the agent's commission, negotiating performance times with the clients was also an important source of extra income for him leading the team to perform.

If a security captain suddenly interferes, wouldn't that cut off his source of income?
But he didn't dare to question it to his face.

During his return to Beijing, he fully experienced what it meant to return home in glory. Whether it was the gangsters he knew before or the singers he couldn't reach before, they all called him "Sixth Brother" whenever they saw him.

Even some small business owners of bars and nightclubs treat Wang Luyao with utmost respect in order to get her to sing for them.

Liu Weidong knew very well who had brought about this change.

Therefore, he would never offend the boss's wife for some extra money—not to mention, the management of the agency has now fallen into Chen Hong's hands.

Faced with Liu Weidong's subservience, Chen Hong felt a little smug.

Although Zhang Yan was a womanizer, he trusted her quite a bit. He not only entrusted her with the full management of his agency, but also gave her control of the finances.

After taking office, Chen Hong immediately used her family connections to recruit a group of veterans at high salaries. This not only filled the gap in supervision and security risks, but also allowed her to make a small appearance in front of her grandmother.

As state-owned enterprises gradually become bloated and decay, it has become increasingly difficult to resettle veterans. Although Chen Hong's approach cannot solve the major problem, in the old lady's eyes it is at least a sign of 'not forgetting one's roots'.

This is also why Chen Hong attaches great importance to cash cows – without enough money, how can she support so many veterans?

(End of this chapter)