After clearing his throat twice, Gao Zuo said humbly, "Brother Tao, I recommended Ye Chen to Starlight Entertainment out of the goodness of my heart, but that ungrateful guy turned me down and even blocked me. You and Ye Chen are close friends. Talk some sense into him so he doesn't miss this great opportunity."
"Starlight Entertainment? You're always looking down on Ye Chen. Since when did you get so generous?" Zhou Tao asked, stunned.
Although Zhou Tao didn't believe Gao Zuo was being generous, Starlight Entertainment was indeed a pretty decent company.
"That was back when I was in school. I was young and didn't know any better. Ye Chen's family may be poor, but I think he's got a lot of potential. We were classmates, after all, so naturally I want to give him a hand if I can." Gao Zuo was shamelessly taking credit for his own kindness.
Zhou Tao asked warily, "What are the terms? There's no catch, is there?"
"Of course not. Would I do something like that? Starlight Entertainment is a big company, and everything's in the contract, in black and white. They're offering Ye Chen an annual salary of five hundred thousand right from the start. When I first joined, I only got a hundred thousand a year." Gao Zuo's voice was sour with envy.
Zhou Tao thought it over. An annual salary of five hundred thousand was pretty good for a newcomer, though it ultimately depended on what Ye Chen wanted.
"All right, I'll ask him. But Ye Chen has his own ideas. I can't force him," Zhou Tao replied.
Gao Zuo immediately thanked him excitedly. "Thanks, Brother Tao. If it works out, I'll treat you to dinner."
"Forget dinner. If Ye Chen really joins Starlight Entertainment, just look out for him."
After hanging up with Gao Zuo, Zhou Tao called Ye Chen.
Seeing that Zhou Tao was calling, Ye Chen picked up.
"President Zhou, you're such a busy man. What brings you to call me today?" Ye Chen answered with a laugh.
Zhou Tao replied with a bitter smile, "What do you mean, 'what brings me'? My dad's making me start at the bottom. Right now I'm helping my coworkers photocopy files. I have to do every kind of job. I'm exhausted."
"Haha, starting at the bottom means you'll have an easier time taking over for your dad later. At least he didn't send you down into a mine," Ye Chen joked.
"Who says he didn't? I only got transferred from the mine to the office last week. You have no idea how much I've suffered."
"Enough suffering. Once I have some free time, I'll treat you guys to dinner and drinks."
"Then I'll make sure to eat plenty. By the way, that little Japanese guy called me. He said he wanted to recommend you to Starlight Entertainment. Why didn't you go? If you're worried you wouldn't be able to get established there, I can ask my dad to buy them a couple of ads."
"It's not because of that."
"Then you don't want to work at the same company as that little Japanese guy?"
"No."
"Then what company do you want to join? I watched those two videos you posted, and they were pretty good. I promised my dad I'd stop pursuing music, but if there's a company you want to join, I can ask him to spend a little money and help get you in."
"Thanks, but I've already signed with a company."
"You signed with a company? Which one?"
"Star Shine Media."
"Holy crap! Star Shine Media? That's incredible! No wonder you weren't interested in Starlight Entertainment. This is such huge news—you can't get away with treating me to just one meal. You owe me at least three. Let's celebrate tonight!" Zhou Tao exclaimed excitedly.
After all, Star Shine Media had produced top male and female singers. Getting signed by them was an incredible honor.
Ye Chen replied, "Tonight might not work."
"Then when? Tomorrow? The day after?"
Zhou Tao was even more excited and happy than if he'd joined Star Shine Media himself. He was thinking that Ye Chen had finally made it and that his hard times were behind him.
Ye Chen answered with a laugh, "I probably won't be free for a while. I have to stay home and look after my wife and kids."
"What? What did you say you had to look after?"
"My wife and kids."
"When did you get a wife and kids? Is that some character setting Star Shine Media came up with for a script?"
"What character setting? I really do have a wife and kids."
"Oh my god! You actually have a wife and kids? You kept it so well hidden that we've never even met your girlfriend, and now you've got a child! When did this happen? Is it a boy or a girl? As their uncle, I have to give them a big red envelope."
Ye Chen explained, "Triplets—one boy and two girls. My wife's still recovering after giving birth, so we can't make it public yet. I was planning to tell you guys after she's finished her confinement."
"Triplets? One boy and two girls? You've got it so good! You're living the dream. I'm so jealous. Who's your wife? Have I met her?" Zhou Tao's voice rose higher and higher over the phone. He sounded both surprised and envious.
"Su Ningwei."
Over the phone, Zhou Tao's face twisted with envy as he let out a shriek like a groundhog. "What? Σ(っ °Д °;)っ It's Su Ningwei? Ah~~~ You slept with my goddess! My youth is over... No wonder you got into Star Shine Media. Did you save Su Ningwei's life or something? She actually agreed to have three kids with you..."
"You really did guess right. Don't be too jealous... I earned all of this. Remember to keep it secret until we announce it officially," Ye Chen said with a laugh.
Zhou Tao was stunned. "Got it. As expected of my Brother Chen—even Su Ningwei, the goddess, fell for you... I'm so jealous...(ಥ_ಥ) I'm hanging up. I'm going to wander around the streets and see if I can play the hero and find myself a wife."
"Haha... Go on, then. Once I have some free time, I'll invite you all out for dinner." Ye Chen laughed and hung up.
After Zhou Tao hung up, he immediately called Gao Zuo back.
He told Gao Zuo that Ye Chen had already signed with Star Shine Media and that there was no need for Gao Zuo to go to any trouble.
Gao Zuo hadn't expected Ye Chen to actually sign with Star Shine Media. He was furious and jealous.
The boy band's C position had been within his grasp, but Ye Chen had snatched it away.
"Just you wait, Ye Chen. I'll make sure you regret this. You think you can get into Star Shine Media? Dream on!" Gao Zuo said through gritted teeth, his eyes red with rage.
As he spoke, Gao Zuo turned on his computer, registered an alternate account, and wrote a sensationalized caption for the video before posting it across multiple platforms.
The video was a collection of highlights Gao Zuo had carefully edited after accidentally recording them.
It had been filmed at night.
Under the dim yellow lights.
Several low tables at a roadside stall had been knocked over.
Fried noodles, fried rice, fried rice... were scattered all over the ground.
The scene looked chaotic.
Ye Chen raised his fist angrily and punched a middle-aged man, who was missing the pinky finger on his left hand, in the left eye. Then he kicked the man in the stomach, climbed on top of him, and pinned him firmly to the ground.
The caption read: "Singing Orange has a violent streak! He beat up a roadside-stall owner in public. This is utterly deranged and morally bankrupt."
Gao Zuo watched the video with satisfaction and even tagged Singing Orange.
After dragging Ye Chen's name through the mud,
Gao Zuo was still fuming, so he invited a hot model who worked the fringes of the industry out to blow off some steam.
By then, Ye Chen's singing video had climbed into the top three trending searches.
Curious netizens were searching for more information about "Singing Orange." They wanted to hear the full song and learn more about Ye Chen.
The video Gao Zuo had posted went viral in an instant.
It shot straight into the top three on the trending list, right next to Ye Chen's singing video.