Chapter 35
Cheng Xuyuan woke up groggily, answering the phone with a hint of morning grumpiness, "Who is it?"
Hearing a slightly hoarse voice, Xiang Boyan was taken aback but then said on the phone, "It's me. Last night's incident with An Ye was very abrupt, we need to convene an emergency meeting immediately."
Cheng Xuyuan sat up on his soft bed, removed his sleep cap, and looked displeased. Why did they have to have a meeting so early in the morning, especially on a weekend?
"The main focus of the meeting will be to re-establish An Ye's persona and outline his development plan for the next quarter," Xiang Boyan continued on the phone.
The evils of capitalism. Cheng Xuyuan quickly came to the conclusion in his mind that his boss was making him work overtime just to benefit his own lover.
"Fine," Cheng Xuyuan pouted, his heart full of reluctance. "I'll be at the company shortly."
Zhou Yuanzhe was considered the ideal catch by the female employees of the company. He lived in a luxurious duplex in the bustling city center with a dedicated housekeeper and led an exquisite lifestyle.
However, ever since Cheng Xuyuan arrived in this world, he sent the housekeeper back to her hometown and took care of his daily needs by himself. Sometimes, when he didn't feel like cooking, he would order takeout or even have instant noodles for late-night snacks. As for clothing, he chose simple and comfortable outfits, gradually filling the cold apartment with a hint of warmth and liveliness.
It took Cheng Xuyuan half an hour to finish the eggs he fried himself and changed into a minimalist light-colored wool sweater and dark casual pants. His whole appearance looked radiant, and his handsome face gained an indescribable charm.
The system kindly reminded him, "Are you going to work at the company dressed like this?"
"Watch your words," Cheng Xuyuan rolled his eyes mentally at the system. "This is cruel overtime work, not regular work."
Before his death, Cheng Xuyuan was a coder who never cared about his attire and hated the constraints of formal wear. Consequently, he adamantly refused to wear formal clothes on non-working days.
In this casual outfit, Zhou Yuanzhe drove to Xiang Star Entertainment.
Actually, as an agent, he shouldn't have any days off. Fortunately, An Ye's current workload was light, but once he became popular, Cheng Xuyuan would likely be swamped with work.
There were quite a few people working overtime at Xiang Star Entertainment. After what happened with An Ye last night, many staff members were called back to the company to handle follow-up matters.
Cheng Xuyuan went straight to the conference room on the fifth floor. When he arrived, there was already a circle of people gathered around the table.
Xiang Boyan looked up at the doorway and froze for a second.
Having changed his clothes, Zhou Yuanzhe looked even younger, like the unattainable campus idol. His usually aloof face also seemed less indifferent.
Clearly, everyone's attention was drawn to Zhou Yuanzhe's casual ensemble.
"Oh my god, Brother Yuan is so handsome..."
"Which one looks better, formally dressed Brother Yuan or casual Brother Yuan?"
"Only kids have to choose..."
While everyone was buzzing, An Ye also arrived. His gaze met with his agent, and he was obviously taken aback for a few seconds. Then, without missing a beat, he naturally sat next to Zhou Yuanzhe.
"An Ye and Brother Yuan are so pleasing to the eyes."
"They really look perfect together..."
"Do you think the rumors in the company are true?"
As soon as An Ye sat down, the surrounding conversations started up again.
"Silence." Xiang Boyan looked at everyone emotionlessly, "Let's start the meeting now. Linda, turn on the projector."
Linda turned on the projector behind the president, and a PowerPoint presentation made overnight appeared on the screen. Xiang Boyan shifted his gaze to An Ye and said calmly: "As an artist under Xiang Star, An Ye was a phenomenon two years ago. From this PPT, you can see that An Ye's topic degree has been declining."
An Ye looked solemnly at the screen.
"As everyone knows about the Yao Yao incident, I won't say much," said Xiang Boyan, glancing at Zhou Yuanzhe. "Last night, Ji Yunlang was exposed. The incident happened suddenly, but An Ye handled it very wisely, successfully salvaging his image that had been collapsing for over a month."
An Ye smiled, put his hand on Zhou Yuanzhe's shoulder, and told everyone, "All credit goes to Brother Yuan."
The cheerful An Ye, sitting next to the emotionless iceberg, seemed surprisingly harmonious.
With a poker face, Xiang Boyan glanced at An Ye's hand and continued to say, "In any case, this incident is beneficial to Xiang Star Entertainment as a whole. We want to use this opportunity to re-establish An Ye's persona."
At this point, An Ye's former agent Chen Rong said, "An Ye's previous persona was always a youthful and sunny idol."
"That persona might have suited the old An Ye, but now it needs to change. Zhou Yuanzhe, what is your opinion?"
Xiang Boyan's eyes were fixed on Zhou Yuanzhe.
Caught off guard by the sudden question, Cheng Xuyuan was actually daydreaming about what to have for lunch. Seeing Xiang Boyan staring at him, he reluctantly said, "I think... An Ye's future persona should develop towards strength."
An Ye nodded in agreement, very pleased with Zhou Yuanzhe's affirmation of his prowess.
Xiang Boyan cast a noncommittal glance at An Ye, seeking the opinions of others.
After the group discussion, everyone agreed that An Ye has outstanding looks, so the youthful idol market should not be ignored. In addition, according to the X brand's advertisement, many people acknowledged An Ye's improved acting skills, so developing towards an acting-oriented persona is also a good choice.
Therefore, everyone agreed that An Ye could adopt the persona of an "actor with both looks and skill", which would be the most advantageous persona for his future career development.
Finally, Xiang Boyan nodded, his tone devoid of emotion: "So it's settled. Our future promotional materials shall mainly highlight An Ye's appearance and acting skills."
"If this is the case..." An Ye's former agent Chen Rong said, "Then we can totally arrange for An Ye to participate in some high-difficulty movies, leading him to the big screen. His popularity has been on the rise recently, and I believe many directors would like to cast him."
Xiang Boyan raised his eyes to look at Zhou Yuanzhe, seemingly seeking his opinion.
Just when everyone thought this was a great idea, Zhou Yuanzhe said, "No need for this in the short term. I plan to arrange a variety show slot for An Ye. He won't be taking any film roles in the next few months."
"A variety show?!" Chen Rong exclaimed in surprise, "How could he do a variety show? He needs a channel for upward momentum now..."
"Do you have any idea how much An Ye's popularity has declined this year?" Zhou Yuanzhe looked up, staring coldly at Chen Rong. "The idol dramas he participated have been failing one after another. Who can guarantee the box office of his films?"
Chen Rong was shocked and then his face turned red. He felt a sharp sting as his professional abilities were critically questioned.
"The most pressing matter at hand is to stabilize An Ye's recovering popularity," Zhou Yuanzhe said in a deep voice. "Movies and TV dramas will take months to show results, while variety shows can greatly increase his popularity in a short period of time."
The room fell silent.
In the silence, Xiang Boyan slowly nodded, his voice affirming, "You make a good point. We will follow your plan for An Ye's work arrangement in the next quarter."
Still unconvinced, Chen Rong continued, "But variety shows are ultimately like fast food..."
Xiang Boyan cast him a cold glance, scaring him into immediate silence. In fact, Xiang Boyan was very dissatisfied with Chen Rong. When the news of An Ye and Yao Yao's relationship was exposed earlier, Chen Rong's response was very passive, leading to an embarrassing situation.
By comparison, Xiang Boyan felt that Zhou Yuanzhe, sitting across from him, was like a money tree - and a very good-looking one at that.
An Ye smiled at Zhou Yuanzhe and said gently, "I'll listen to Brother Yuan."
The affection in his words seemed deliberate.
Xiang Boyan stood up without changing his expression, his voice low and cold, "Meeting adjourned."
As he walked past Zhou Yuanzhe, his gaze lingered on the two for less than a second, but the chilly glance felt like a cold winter wind, sending shivers down Cheng Xuyuan's spine.
"Keep a distance between us," Cheng Xuyuan said distantly to An Ye after standing up, "and pay attention to maintaining your image at all times."
An Ye looked at him pitifully and muttered, "It's not like my persona is for you to judge..."
After leaving the company, Cheng Xuyuan suddenly recalled something — it seemed that Xiang Boyan had not mentioned anything about An Ye and Chen Mengyan being hyped as a couple?
In the following days, Xiang Boyan still didn't touch upon this matter as if he knew nothing about it, which made Cheng Xuyuan feel overly suspicious.
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Two weeks later, it was time to record An Ye's new variety show "Youth Adventure."
"Youth Adventure" is a large-scale variety show broadcasted simultaneously on satellite TV and online. It gathers several young artists to complete a challenging task in each episode. The show has been in preparation for a long time, and An Ye was not on the original guest list. He was included only because Zhou Yuanzhe used his personal connections.
With An Ye's popularity skyrocketing at this time, the organizers seized the opportunity to favor him.
On the eve of the recording, Zhou Yuanzhe and several assistants brought An Ye to the recording city of the first episode, a charming seaside metropolis.
"Pay attention to your image on the show, and think before you act," Zhou Yuanzhe advised patiently while helping An Ye choose clothes. "You've looked over the script for the variety show. You're the one with the skills. So, you have to work even harder to complete the task..."
Sitting on the sofa, An Ye obediently watched Zhou Yuanzhe choose clothes for him and nodded his head, saying, "Thank you for your heartfelt advice, Brother Yuan."
Zhou Yuanzhe eventually chose a brightly colored outfit for him and said, "This outfit will look good at the seaside, wear this one tomorrow."
The stylist assistant standing by nodded in agreement.
"Yes, it looks good," An Ye said, mentally adding, 'whatever Brother Yuan picks always looks good'.
Recording a variety show is an extremely energy-consuming event, especially for programs that require a lot of physical activities. In the first episode, the director arranged for the artists to complete a series of tasks at the seaside to obtain bicycles, and then to ride around the island to reach their final destination.
The next morning, the carefully dressed An Ye looked exceptionally handsome and eye-catching, his tear mole in the corner of his eye particularly noticeable in the crowd. At the filming site, there were also many fans cheering for him.
After Cheng Xuyuan dropped him off at the site, he left to return to a nearby hotel to continue his other work.
The recording lasted for an entire day. By nightfall, when An Ye returned to the hotel, he was so tired that he didn't want to utter a single word.
"Must be tired, aren't you?" an assistant continually massaged An Ye's shoulders and legs. "Recording a variety show is far from being as relaxed as filming a movie. Celebrities have to stay in their most interesting state at all times. Any slack off can be criticized as boring."
An Ye nodded and took a good rest on the sofa in his room. Suddenly, he asked, "Where is Brother Yuan?"
The assistant smiled and replied, "Brother Yuan is also tired today. He's been discussing endorsement contracts with a company, and several directors have given him scripts for you to act in. He does all of this himself."
"Where is he now?" An Ye raised an eyebrow.
"I think... he's in the café downstairs," the assistant recollected and then replied.
An Ye quickly got up and headed straight for the café. Fatigue seemed to vanish from his face, replaced by anticipation.
When he arrived at the café, there were hardly any people inside. Zhou Yuanzhe was sitting by the window with several planning proposals and an untouched cup of coffee on the table in front of him. He himself, surprisingly, was asleep in the chair.
"The weather is still cold, not afraid to freeze..." An Ye muttered as he took off his windbreaker, walked over to Zhou Yuanzhe, and covered him with it.
The sleeping Zhou Yuanzhe had pale lips, making him look extremely detached. His eyelashes were long, and even in sleep, his brow was slightly furrowed. Seems like he was still pondering work matters, which was a pitiful sight to see.
Led by some unknown urge, An Ye slowly stretched out his hand and touched Zhou Yuanzhe's forehead with his fingertips, gently smoothing his furrowed brow.
Then, his slender fingers traced the icy beauty's cheek and playfully pinched a little bit of flesh from his cheek.
"The touch is good," An Ye held his laughter. He thought to himself: 'It turns out Brother Yuan just looks thin, but his face is still a bit chubby.'
Immersed in his mischief, An Ye didn't notice that in the corner of the café, a camera accurately captured this scene.
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Author's Note:
This world is destined to be a shura-field (covering face). Thank you to the angels who have cast the vote or provided nutrition for me~
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