Boss, He Is Chasing Stars Again Chapter 10

Chapter 10

After leaving the training room, Yue Lin quickly asked Shi Xingze, “What’s going on? Why are you suddenly going to film an embedded advertisement?”

Shi Xingze glanced around to confirm they were alone, then lowered his voice and explained to Yue Lin, “Actually, I did that on purpose just now. I just can’t stand Zhao Xian using others as pawns while he hides behind the scenes to reap the benefits.”

Shi Xingze briefly explained the embedded advertisement situation to Yue Lin. Strictly speaking, he wasn’t the only one filming; the top vote-getter from each fan-voted category would participate, making it four people in total. Furthermore, Brother Long had told him it was only for one episode, and they would rotate based on future fan voting results.

At the same time, Brother Long also informed Shi Xingze that Chengtian Group was investing in the Starlight Training Camp and had offered an enticing condition: the contestant with the highest popularity by the final episode would receive a one-year mobile phone endorsement deal. It was said that Director Qi’s face was practically beaming with joy.

“So, this is the only time I’ve been lucky enough to film an ad. I don’t know if the rankings will be adjusted again later,” Shi Xingze said, shrugging helplessly.

He didn’t even know where these fans came from, and it was unlikely they would vote for him this heavily every time. He simply didn’t have that confidence.

Yue Lin frowned after hearing the explanation. “Embedded ads are usually inserted into the main program during its broadcast. Since Zhao Xian is already this jealous of you, you need to be careful of him.”

“I know, and I don’t plan on getting too close to him. If he insists on provoking me, I won’t spare his feelings either.” Shi Xingze had a plan in mind. At this moment, he smiled playfully at Yue Lin, his eyes sparkling like stars. “You aren’t angry, are you, about me filming the embedded ad?”

Shi Xingze hadn’t detected any jealousy in Yue Lin’s attitude, which was why he dared to tease him.

Yue Lin chuckled and shook his head. “You saw that my dancing is average. I actually prefer singing. It’s just that the record market is sluggish right now, so I have no choice but to try and gain some exposure first.”

He put it mildly. Given the current state of the record market, if Yue Lin were a singer relying purely on album sales, he would have starved long ago.

Shi Xingze hadn’t expected many people to share his thoughts, so he felt like he had found a kindred spirit. “Me too! I prefer acting, but I’m still a university student, and even getting an extra role requires connections these days.”

The two exchanged a look and sighed in unison.

However, one thing struck Yue Lin as odd. “You just said Chengtian Group invested in this show? But I recall that the artists signed by Chengtian’s mobile phone brand in the past were quite high-profile. Do you remember Tan Bin? He had just signed on as an endorser for that brand before his incident. I don’t know why they suddenly chose this program.”

For an enterprise the size of Chengtian, even an embedded ad would have many people fighting tooth and nail for the endorsement, let alone the one-year endorsement contract offered to the most popular contestant. It was practically a huge pie falling from the sky. Once the contestants found out, the competition would likely become even fiercer.

“Tan Bin’s incident was huge; it was all over the news, so of course I know.” Shi Xingze wasn’t sure either, so he could only answer Yue Lin, “Maybe it’s to mitigate the impact? After all, what Tan Bin did probably damaged Chengtian’s reputation, and our show does have a lot of traffic.”

Yue Lin nodded in agreement, then pushed Shi Xingze toward the makeup room. “Hurry up and get your hair and makeup done. You’ll miss the shoot otherwise. Make sure you look good—the kind that makes Zhao Xian die of jealousy the moment he sees you.”

“Alright, alright, I’m going now. Before I get back, don’t listen to them if they suggest any changes. Wait for me to return before making a decision,” Shi Xingze instructed Yue Lin worriedly before leaving, afraid that Zhao Xian would try to dictate things to Yue Lin in his absence.

Yue Lin nodded dismissively. “I debuted earlier than you; I know what I’m doing. Go quickly.”

Inside the practice room, Zhao Xian and the other contestants looked at each other, staring at the manuscripts belonging to Shi Xingze and Yue Lin on the floor, seemingly waiting for someone else to speak first and take the lead.

Sun Yi was straightforward and guileless, which was why he had impulsively challenged Shi Xingze earlier. Now, he spoke directly to Zhao Xian: “You just said you were worried they might tamper with the arrangement. Now they’ve left. What do we do about the rest of the arrangement?”

Zhao Xian struggled to suppress the surging anger and resentment in his heart. He forced a smile and said, “I merely said that as the arrangers, they would be more familiar with the piece. Did I say anything else?”

Sun Yi choked. When he thought back carefully, he realized that Zhao Xian truly hadn’t voiced any suspicion toward Shi Xingze and Yue Lin. On the contrary, it was he who had rushed forward to question the two after hearing Zhao Xian’s words.

Seeing Sun Yi speechless, a flicker of satisfaction crossed Zhao Xian’s mind. He picked up Shi Xingze and Yue Lin’s manuscripts and looked at them. He then addressed the other contestants, “We are a team now. We stay together, or we go together. Otherwise, the first public performance will be our end. I suggest everyone look at these two manuscripts first. If you have any suggestions, bring them up so we can discuss them.”

One contestant picked up Shi Xingze’s manuscript. The handwriting was neat but somewhat messy, yet it was still possible to discern that Shi Xingze had designed each section of the lyrics as they had agreed upon. The corresponding plot, however, was not yet complete.

When the contestants, including Zhao Xian, looked at the other manuscript, the one belonging to Yue Lin, they couldn’t help but frown.

The reason was simple: Yue Lin’s manuscript, unlike his quiet exterior, had handwriting and musical notation as chaotic as a doctor’s prescription—wild and unrestrained. He had scribbled wherever inspiration struck. Even the music students among the contestants fell silent after seeing it; only Yue Lin himself could likely understand it.

They could barely discuss Shi Xingze’s work, but Yue Lin’s was completely incomprehensible.

As time ticked by and Shi Xingze still hadn’t returned from filming the ad, continuing the standoff was pointless, especially since Zhao Xian genuinely didn’t want to be eliminated in the first round.

The other contestants weren’t fools. Facing the subtle glances directed his way, Zhao Xian secretly clenched his fist, wanting to make Shi Xingze pay, but the smile and apology on his face became increasingly genuine. “It was my fault for being inconsiderate. One sentence caused everyone to be unhappy. How about this: time is running out. When they return, I will talk to them properly, and we’ll stick to the original plan. After all, our priority right now is to stay in the competition.”

After discussing for a while, Shi Xingze finally returned with Yue Lin.

Shi Xingze looked at the manuscripts in their hands and Zhao Xian’s frustrated expression, raising an eyebrow slightly. “Have you all decided? If you have any suggestions for changes, you should say them now, or we’ll run out of time. I don’t mind, but I assume you don’t want to be eliminated in the first round?”

The expressions of the other contestants immediately changed. Zhao Xian couldn’t worry about anything else. He stood up and said to Shi Xingze and Yue Lin, “I was thoughtless earlier. I wasn’t doubting you, but the competition is brutal, and we were worried that if we didn’t perform well, we would all be eliminated. I apologize for making you angry.”

Shi Xingze’s expression remained unchanged. Seeing this, Zhao Xian took a breath and continued, “We have no objections to these two manuscripts. We can proceed with the arrangement as previously agreed. We apologize for the trouble, teachers.”

Zhao Xian’s use of the term “teachers” was reluctant, but Shi Xingze hadn’t planned on completely abandoning the work, especially since Yue Lin was still in this group. So, Shi Xingze also smiled and said to the other contestants, “Then it’s settled. We’ll have the finished product tomorrow morning, and then we’ll discuss our respective parts and start rehearsing.”

Jian Xingzhi was unaware of the happenings at the Starlight Training Camp, but he knew one thing was about to become troublesome.

The recruitment for the Starlight Training Camp began at the start of the year. By the time they reached the layered selection process and the first public performance, it was already June.

In other words, Jian Lezhi was about to start her summer vacation.

Jian Lezhi had less than a month until her final exams. Recently, she had been studying diligently to achieve good grades so she could claim credit and unlock her account and allowance. Several times when he went in to deliver fruit and late-night snacks, he saw that Jian Lezhi wasn’t even watching Shi Xingze’s videos anymore.

Her willpower was as strong as someone who had quit smoking.

Jian Xingzhi was relieved but also a little worried. When Jian Lezhi finally got her phone back, would she discover his secret pursuit of a celebrity? Especially since the profile picture he was using on his microblog was borrowed from her. The more Jian Xingzhi thought about it, the guiltier he felt, which even dampened his enthusiasm for attending the first public performance live.

Assistant Yu arrived to report on work and saw Jian Xingzhi deep in thought. Judging by his look, he might be troubled by company matters.

Assistant Yu was about to speak when she heard Jian Xingzhi ask her, “If I want to support him without others knowing, but also don’t want the person to stand out too much and be targeted, do you have any good ideas?”

Support?

Chengtian’s business involved large projects. The “support” Jian Xingzhi mentioned might be a favored project or company. Assistant Yu immediately became serious. After careful consideration, she replied solemnly, “Mr. Jian, if you want to support an enterprise but don’t want to attract targeting from other companies, you can approach it from multiple angles. For example, you could invest in several similar enterprises to cover your tracks.”

Assistant Yu’s answer made Jian Xingzhi’s eyes light up.

He had been trapped in the misconception of a fan’s mindset, considering things only from a fan’s perspective. Following Assistant Yu’s suggestion, he could completely invest a small amount in other contestants as well, just less than what he invested in Shi Xingze, right?

By casting a wide net like this, and then changing his microblog profile picture, who would know which minor celebrity he was actually following?

Jian Xingzhi nodded in satisfaction. After listening to Assistant Yu’s work report, he told her, “Excellent. Your end-of-month bonus will be doubled.”

Joy flashed in Assistant Yu’s eyes. Before leaving, she quietly closed the office door, feeling a sense of respect for Jian Xingzhi. As expected of their CEO Jian, he made a decision in a short amount of time and was generous with his rewards!

With Jian Xingzhi’s words, Assistant Yu quickly hurried off in her heels to inform Administration and Finance about the bonus, becoming increasingly certain that applying to Chengtian had been the correct choice.