Huayu Entertainment: The Birth of a Succubus Top Star

"IU unnie..."

Upon seeing that their artist was really going to follow Gu Zhiyan's car, the assistant couldn't help but remind her.

"You guys wait a bit, I'm going with Brother Xiaoyan first. Don't worry, with Brother Xiaoyan here, everything will be fine."

Lee Ji-eun waved her hand, and before her assistant could say anything more, she turned around and got into the car.

The assistant watched helplessly as Li Zhi'en got into Gu Zhiyan's car, and couldn't help but sigh: "IU's acting skills are getting better and better. No wonder she was nominated for Best Actress in the TV category at the Baeksang Arts Awards."

Sitting in the driver's seat, Xiuxiu watched Li Zhi'en get into the car and exclaimed: "Xiaoyan is really amazing. He managed to bring home a national-level female celebrity from South Korea after just one trip abroad."

Gu Zhiyan: ...

It was all a misunderstanding, just a chance encounter!

Unfortunately, neither netizens nor acquaintances believed this, which is what reputation is all about!

It really has a good reputation, but it's also a bad one!

As soon as Li Zhi'en got in the car, she sat down right next to Gu Zhiyan.

This distance has exceeded the normal social distance between ordinary friends.

"Brother Yan, you speak Korean too?"

Li Zhi'en had watched the scene of Gu Zhiyan and Lin Yun'er chatting during the League of Legends World Championship countless times.

I was so envious, jealous, and resentful!

Rivals are common among competitors, especially when Lee Ji-eun and Lim Yoon-ah are on such similar tracks.

Both of them started as idols; one debuted in 2007 as a member of the girl group Girls' Generation, and the other debuted in 2008 as a singer-songwriter.

As a top member of Girls' Generation, one of South Korea's three major idol groups, Lim Yoon-ah is considered a "national goddess" by South Koreans.

IU (Lee Ji-eun) rose to fame with her rendition of "Good Day," hitting three high notes and instantly becoming known as the "Nation's Little Sister."

Both of them have very high popularity and have started to transition into acting, so competition is inevitable.

"Yeah, I studied it when I had some free time."

Gu Zhiyan said this in Korean.

For native Chinese speakers, Korean is one of the easiest foreign languages ​​to learn in the world.

A popular internet meme perfectly illustrates this point:

Korean: Korean is very difficult.

Chinese: Isn't that just a dialect?

"Wow, Xiaoyan, you're amazing! Your pronunciation is so accurate!" Li Zhi'en exclaimed in amazement. "My Chinese isn't very good. Xiaoyan, could you teach me sometime?"

Gu Zhiyan: ...

Here comes another Korean girl who loves learning Chinese.

Gu Zhiyan couldn't help but recall the time when Lin Yun'er was learning Chinese with him; she was so earnest and hardworking, her sweat pouring down her face.

Looking at the sweet and lovely Korean girl in front of him, Gu Zhiyan nodded: "Okay."

Lee Ji-eun immediately asked some questions about the problems she encountered in learning Chinese.

Before long, they arrived at Li Zhi'en's destination for the day.

"Brother Xiaoyan, thank you so much for today. I'll treat you to a meal when I'm done with my work these next couple of days," Li Zhi'en said with a hint of reluctance before getting out of the car.

Why is the journey so short?

Why is the car going so fast?

Xiuxiu: Is it my fault?

"Okay, just contact me when the time comes," Gu Zhiyan nodded. "Alright, I'm leaving now, goodbye."

Goodbye, Brother Xiaoyan.

Li Zhi'en waved her hand, watched Gu Zhiyan's car drive away, and then turned and left.

……

"Brother Xiaoyan, recently quite a few Korean brands have wanted to invite you to be the spokesperson for their products."

After Li Zhi'en got out of the car, Xiuxiu started to get down to business.

"What brands are they?"

Gu Zhiyan wasn't too surprised by this.

This trip to South Korea likely made many South Korean companies realize his influence in the country.

"They're mostly beauty products," Xiuxiu paused before continuing, "Uh...and some cosmetic surgery clinics want you to be their spokesperson."

Gu Zhiyan: ...

This really pinpointed his fan base in South Korea.

But why are cosmetic surgery clinics getting involved?

Do you think those female fans can get plastic surgery to look like him?

Moreover, these cosmetic surgery clinics are too risky.

"Forget about plastic surgery clinics," Gu Zhiyan shook her head. "Makeup services are an option, but the price should be at least what their top local celebrities charge."

In recent years, male celebrities endorsing beauty and skincare brands has become commonplace globally, representing a significant marketing trend, especially in the Asian market.

As for why Gu Zhiyan specifically mentioned the issue of endorsement fees, it's because there are significant differences between South Korea and China in this regard.

The annual endorsement fees for South Korean national treasure-level actors/top stars are generally in the range of 80 billion to 100 billion won (RMB 4,200 million to 5,300 million).

Popular actors/top-tier actors typically earn between 1600 million and 4200 million RMB annually for endorsements.

Other top Asian celebrities with high recognition in South Korea command annual endorsement fees ranging from approximately 530 million to 2,600 million RMB, depending on their popularity in South Korea.

The endorsement fees charged by top stars from other countries differ significantly from those of top stars in South Korea.

At this price, Gu Zhiyan could easily get any brand endorsement in China, so why would he need to endorse a Korean brand?

If you want to secure his endorsement contract, you have to meet the standards of a top Korean star.

If the other party is willing to accept, then let's talk; if they're not, then forget it.

It would be great to make money from Koreans, but it doesn't matter if I can't.

Korean celebrities riding on his head is absolutely unacceptable!

Having finalized the negotiation strategy, Gu Zhiyan left everything to Xiuxiu and planned to visit Tang Yan and Liu Shishi.

I made a phone call, and to my surprise, these two older sisters were still together.

Well, at least it saves him the trouble of running back and forth.

Seeing Tang Yan and Liu Shishi getting along harmoniously, Gu Zhiyan felt relieved.

Gu Zhiyan stayed with her two older sisters for three days before leaving.

My mother has always wanted to bring her pregnant daughter-in-law to our home to take care of her, but the predicament of not knowing who to bring should no longer exist.

We can take care of both of them together.

However, another problem has arisen.

That means the house isn't big enough!

Gu Zhiyan has never bought any property; her family still lives in an old three-bedroom, one-living-room house.

The most urgent thing now is to buy a big house.

Yeah, the really big kind.

Ideally, it should have twenty rooms—no, the bigger the better.

There has to be room for everyone, right?