Chapter Two

Xu Jia took the phone that Lin Xiangshen threw to him and said ingratiatingly, "Brother Shen, why waste your time talking nonsense with those people online? Just give the order, and I'll handle everything. I guarantee I'll take care of it all."

Lin Xiangshen tapped Xu Jia on the head with annoyance and said, "You're really arrogant. Anyone who didn't know better would think you were a gangster. What's there to deal with? Do you think your brother is that petty? It's stupid to make such a fuss over something like this."

"It's good that you, Brother Shen, are personally involved in the online world. Besides, I find chatting with people online quite fun."

Even after being tapped on the head, Xu Jia wasn't angry. Instead, he gave a silly smile and nodded obediently, saying, "I know, Brother Shen. You were right to teach me a lesson. I still have a lot to learn from you. By the way, Brother Shen, please sit down. I just learned massage from the masseur you praised last time. Let me give you a massage and see how I do it."

Lin Xiangshen gave Xu Jia a meaningful look and said, "What are you up to now? Tell me, what is it? If you want me to do it, I don't need you to give me a massage. You usually do a very good job, and I will definitely help you with anything. You don't need to do this kind of thing to please me."

Besides, we've been friends since childhood, for so many years. I've long considered you a brother. If there's anything I can do to help, I'll definitely do it without hesitation.

Xu Jia shook his head and denied it, saying, "No, really no. I just saw Brother Shen enjoying being massaged by the masseur that day. I didn't know how to massage back then, so I could only stand by and watch."

Since Brother Shen likes it, of course I should do my part. So I took the time to learn how to massage him. This way it's convenient; I can massage Brother Shen anytime. And it's safe too; I guarantee there won't be any problems when I massage Brother Shen. With other people, if someone is careless, that would be bad.”

Lin Xiangshen sat down. "Oh, you're so capable? And you say there won't be any problems? In this world, nothing is absolute; anything can happen."

Besides, you do so many things for me all the time. Why would I need your help for such a small massage? If I really want a massage, I can just go find a massage therapist, right?

Or I could just hire a massage therapist to come to my place and give me a massage. I'd just have to pay a little more and enjoy a little extra pleasure. It's a small thing that money can solve; there's no need to learn it specifically, it's too time-consuming and energy-draining.

Xu Jia shook his head and said, "I'm not the same as a massage therapist. Although my massage skills may not be as good as those of a senior massage therapist, I have a good relationship with Brother Shen. When I massage Brother Shen, he feels more at ease."

Since they were all unfamiliar strangers, I was still a little uncomfortable with physical contact, and I didn't want Shen Ge to force himself.

Besides, I enjoy giving massages to Brother Shen, and I really appreciate serving him. Please, Brother Shen, give me more opportunities.”

Xu Jia's words sounded grand and dignified, but in reality, it was just jealousy. Seeing the massage therapist and Lin Xiangshen having close physical contact multiple times, he was extremely jealous, to the point that dark thoughts began to surface in his mind. In the end, he even considered killing the massage therapist, but in a society governed by law, he didn't actually do it.

Besides, he knew that the massage therapist hadn't actually done anything wrong; the one who was wrong was him. He just couldn't control his thoughts, but in reality, he was still very restrained and wouldn't lay a hand on an innocent person.

Lin Xiangshen's eyes showed some relief, and he said with great emotion, "You, you, you're always so kind to me. It's so good. I still remember when we were in kindergarten, there was a fat boy in our class who deliberately stole my candy. It was you who picked up a small round stool and hit that fat boy to get my candy back."

Of course, it wasn't that I couldn't beat that fat guy, it's just that I had a cold that day, I was dizzy and didn't have much energy, and that candy was a birthday gift that my mom brought back from abroad for me.

Thanks to you, otherwise the candy would have been gone. There are many other things like this, and they were all resolved smoothly because you were by my side. You're so kind.

I believe we will be brothers for life; our friendship will never change.

A fleeting sadness and melancholy crossed Xu Jia's eyes. He nodded and smiled in agreement, "Yes, our friendship will never change. Alright, Brother Shen, come and lie down here quickly, I'm going to give you a massage. This is a custom-made blue recliner that I bought especially for you. Blue is your favorite color, and it's so that it's convenient to give you a massage and I can better serve you."

Lin Xiangshen laughed heartily, strode towards Xu Jia, and sat down. "Since you're so eager to serve me, of course I'll oblige. Come on, give me a massage."

Xu Jia was overjoyed to see Lin Xiangshen lying down resting with his eyes closed. He felt that this was Lin Xiangshen's trust in him. "Okay, Brother Shen, I'll give you a massage right away."

Looking at the four Xu Jia assistants in the same room from a distance, he felt that he was completely superfluous and couldn't fit into the atmosphere between the two of them at all.

Yes, it's not Lin Xiangshen's assistant, but Xu Jia's assistant. Xu Jia pays the salary, because Lin Xiangshen only has one assistant, agent, and partner, and that is Xu Jia.

As for the makeup artist, they were always hired on short notice. Xu Jia's assistant did mostly work related to Lin Xiangshen, but didn't receive any official recognition.

Xu Jia felt they weren't good enough for each other. Brother Shen belonged to him alone, and Brother Shen's assistant could only be him, not anyone else.

Lin Xiangshen completely accepted Xu Jia's behavior of paying to work, since in his opinion it was all small change and wouldn't cost much. After all, he and Xu Jia were both top-tier rich kids with more money than they knew what to do with.

Since Xu Jia wanted to stay by his side as his assistant, he naturally had to give Xu Jia some appropriate authority. Even if it cost money, as long as he enjoyed spending it, it couldn't be considered a loss.

He has never lacked money, so he has never valued it much. Therefore, he always accepts money from others readily.

He wouldn't have any thoughts of taking advantage of others. In his view, anything that can be solved with money is a trivial matter that doesn't need to be taken seriously or worried about.

What is high-end? It's every word he says, the time he spends with others, and his feelings, etc.

Lin Mu, wearing 15cm red high heels, strode into the conference room with her head held high. She threw down her car keys and proudly announced, "Comrades, I have some fantastic news to tell you. Our company will no longer only have employees who do live streaming; we are about to officially enter the entertainment industry."

The entertainment industry is the easiest and fastest place to make money, much better than live streaming. After all, celebrities in the entertainment industry, whether famous or not, will always have one or two die-hard fans as long as they are even slightly active.

Unlike live streaming, viewers of live streams are not as loyal as die-hard fans. They are easily swayed and will not unconditionally defend the streamer.

It's not easy for streamers to please their audience. After all, they have to stream for such a long time every day, and it's difficult to come up with something new every day. People have limited energy, so many streams become monotonous and mechanical. As a result, viewers will leave, and eventually, no one will watch the stream anymore.

However, things are completely different in the entertainment industry. Both variety shows and acting have scripts, and there are countless staff members behind the scenes. It is a work that countless people have spent a lot of time and effort to create. However, when the final work is presented, fans often attribute the credit to the stars they love, while selectively ignoring the contributions of the staff behind the scenes who did not leave their names.

For example, cinematographers and directors do cinematography-related work, but often only the director's name is known in a TV series, while countless people who do the cinematography work don't deserve to be called.

We are just a small live streaming entertainment company. We don't have many so-called behind-the-scenes staff. We only have you guys who are responsible for most of the work as streamers. You have to come up with most of the content for each live stream on your own. Only a small portion of the time will I come up with a plan and let you be responsible for its execution.

Fortunately, through my efforts, one of our company's employees has had the opportunity to enter the entertainment industry. As I've said before, although I am your boss, I am not only your boss, but also your friend.

You are my employees and also shareholders of the company. We jointly started this company, and you are entitled to receive dividends from the company's shares at the end of each year.

We also agreed that once you choose the company, you can never betray it. If you choose to leave the company, you will voluntarily give up your shares and pay a penalty for breach of contract.

The only slight regret this time is that only one person can go, not everyone can. It seems like a bad thing for those who can't go, since they missed out.

But I didn't choose her; it was the assistant director of the show, Director Li, who made the selection. I showed Director Li all of your information, and in the end, Director Li chose Weiwei.

Weiwei, you're very lucky this time, you were chosen. Those of you who weren't chosen, don't be too disappointed. Even though you don't have the opportunity to go, you still get paid.

You don't have to work and you still get paid. When you think about it, wouldn't you be happy? Weiwei, our company's rule is that every employee has to give three-tenths of their earnings to the company. I think you can accept that, right?

Oh right, after saying so much, I haven't even mentioned what the specific job is. It's nothing much, it's very easy to do, it's just recording a variety show.

We don't create any personas or carefully crafted personas. After all, we're not celebrities in the entertainment industry yet; we're just internet celebrities, and we don't have much fame yet. So, we need to know our place and understand ourselves.

Even if you participate in a variety show, you'll still be an ordinary person; just be your most authentic self. Of course, there's a saying circulating online that all variety shows have scripts, and those scripts certainly exist, but you don't. After all, you're just lucky enough to get an opportunity to participate in the recording; no one is going to bother designing a script for you.

Those who have scripts are the ones the production team wants to promote. You're just a background character. Being able to get a decent appearance fee and have the opportunity to participate in the recording is already lucky enough. You can't ask for more.

However, don't be too direct in showing yourself. Sometimes, it's better to be a little observant and not act like a fool.

After all, some of the guests participating in the recording are high-profile celebrities with a huge fan base. If you accidentally do something wrong, you might get attacked by these fans.

We don't engage in the "black and red" phenomenon; it's meaningless. If someone insults you, it won't benefit you; on the contrary, it will cause significant losses. After all, when you start a live stream, viewers hope to see a positive atmosphere in the room, and after watching for a while, they might send you some gifts or something.

If the moment you enter a live stream, it's filled with your haters and the chat is full of insults directed at you, then those potential future gift-givers will likely leave immediately. After all, they can go to other live streams besides yours; there's no need for them to linger here.

Our company's employees mainly rely on tips to make a living. Being famous or infamous is something celebrities do; we can't do that.

So, Weiwei, you need to use your brain and be quick-witted during this recording. It's best not to make any mistakes. Of course, if you accidentally do make a mistake, don't be afraid. Although our company hasn't done public relations before, I believe that the truth will come out eventually.

You're so wonderful, I believe anyone with eyes will like you. If they don't like you, then they're blind; it's their problem, not yours.

Show some energy! To succeed at anything, you have to put in all your effort. Nobody likes someone who's lethargic and listless.

Weiwei, I believe in you! You can definitely do it! Don't be nervous, there's nothing to be nervous about. So what if it's your first time recording? Everyone faces many firsts. It's just a small matter. You can do it, you absolutely can!

When Lin Mu said the last sentence, he was holding Xu Weiwei's hand. Xu Weiwei felt her hand trembling as Lin Mu spoke, and she quickly rolled her eyes. "I'm really not nervous. I'm very calm now. Obviously, the one who's nervous isn't me, it's you."

However, as a professional employee who has been in the workplace for a long time, it is impossible to do something as foolish as exposing the boss. After all, if you treat the boss well, the boss will treat you well in return, and you can earn more money. Of course, you should be careful about what you say and do when it comes to things that are related to money.

Xu Weiwei nodded excitedly, her eyes filled with gratitude, and said, "Sister Lin, I knew you were the best. I was really too nervous just now. After all, I've only done live broadcasts before, and I've never recorded a variety show."

This is my first time participating in a variety show, and just thinking about it makes me incredibly nervous. I've never been a very brave person, and all these years of doing live streaming haven't really built up my courage. When I'm live streaming, I communicate and interact with the viewers in my live stream online, but I've never interacted with people face-to-face.

The thought of recording a variety show and meeting hugely popular celebrities with massive fan bases, coupled with the gap between myself and these stars, makes me increasingly nervous. I don't even know what to do with my hands and feet.

Lin Mu said seriously, "It's okay. There is a gap, but you're not bad either. Every time you do a live stream, you receive a lot of gifts. Even if those who send you gifts aren't as die-hard fans who defend their idols, they still like you. If they see your entertainment news, they're very likely to speak up for you. It's just that they won't fight for you."

But that's good too. It shows that you're not completely alone; there are still many people standing behind you supporting you.

If you perform well and create a good show effect when you record this variety show, then more variety shows will come knocking on your door, asking you to record them.

Once you've done a lot of recordings, you'll be almost like a celebrity in the entertainment industry, a star yourself. Then I'll be able to live a life of luxury with you.

Weiwei, you absolutely have to do your best this time! I believe in your abilities; you can definitely do it. Of course, don't put too much pressure on yourself. These are just my hopes for the future. If you don't perform well, I won't blame you.

Even though I did attend many dinners, drink a lot of alcohol, and say a lot of nice things in order to give you the opportunity to record this variety show, it's okay. These are all things I should do as your boss.

I really won't blame you for not performing well. It's not a big deal. I've had countless dinner parties where I spent money, drank with people, and said nice things, but nothing ever came of it. This time, I was lucky, and it worked out.

But this is your first time participating in a variety show, how can I expect you to perform well? The production team didn't even create a script specifically for you, nor did they intend to promote you, so how can I ask for too much?

"It's nothing, really nothing. I don't like drinking, yet I've drunk a lot; I don't like banquets, yet I've actively participated in many; I don't like flattering others, yet I've willingly bowed down. It's really nothing serious. How can a person spend their whole life only doing what they like? Aren't we all forced to do many things we don't like?"

Xu Weiwei felt her back was about to be soaked with sweat. Her tone clearly showed that she didn't care at all! The repeated emphasis and words clearly indicated that she cared a lot.

Good grief, don't try to apply your "hope your son becomes a dragon" mentality to me! We're just boss and employee! Oh right, I suddenly remembered that bosses sometimes set very high KPIs for their employees. Hmm, never mind, it's understandable for bosses to have high expectations of their employees. But whether the employees can actually meet those expectations is another matter entirely.

Xu Weiwei withdrew her hand, pretended to tidy her hair, smiled awkwardly, and said, "Sister Lin, don't worry, I will definitely perform well in this variety show recording and strive to fulfill your expectations."

"It's all or nothing. When I participate in the recording, I will definitely watch, listen, and learn as much as possible, keeping my eyes and ears open, and giving it my all to ensure I have no regrets."

Lin Mu smiled with relief and said, "Seeing how motivated you are makes me feel much more at ease. Weiwei, I believe in you, and I'm sure you'll do a great job this time!"