Chapter 23

But after thinking long and hard, Fei Yue had turned down all those scattered little offers.

Cashing in on their popularity as much as possible in the short term by taking these fleeting opportunities to milk fans would indeed make money, but it would also be an invisible drain on both their popularity and the artists themselves.

And he wanted Color4 to go further.

So Fei Yue found an opportunity to call a meeting with all of Color4.

The four of them were dragged out of the practice room, drenched in sweat, and slumped over the table in the small meeting room, none of them able to muster much energy.

Only Sheng Chi looked reasonably composed. "What is it, Brother Fei?"

Fei Yue turned on his computer and projected a PowerPoint presentation. "I've spent the past few days revising the plan for Color4's new direction. Take a look, and if you have any questions, just ask."

Gu Zhijing took off his headband and fiddled with it as he sprawled across the table, reading the presentation aloud and adding his own comments. "The group variety show and training are regular activities... Well, of course we have to keep those up."

"Produce and release our first album within a month..."

He sat bolt upright and blinked. "Our first album is coming out that soon?"

Xu Linyuan sighed. "It's not really that soon. We can only hold on to fans with our old content and the group variety show for so long. Idols still have to prove themselves onstage."

Jiang Yu chimed in, "True. We can't keep performing our debut song over and over, can we? We'd be living off one trick forever."

Fei Yue nodded. "That's one reason, but the more important reason is this."

"We've received an invitation from Starlight Show."

Gu Zhijing stopped playing with his headband and sat up, curious. "What's that? A new music show?"

"It's a show that hasn't started yet. They're currently looking for sponsors and drawing up a list of people to invite."

"As for the content, it's-"

Fei Yue chuckled and looked at the four youngsters in front of him. "An idol group stage competition."

As he had expected, the four who had been slumped over immediately sat up straight.

Jiang Yu was passionate by nature, and the mention of a competition got him excited. "Is it a battle? Is it!?"

Sheng Chi nodded too. "Sounds interesting."

Fei Yue ignored them and went on. "Their invitation list probably includes all kinds of idol groups in the Chinese entertainment industry, big and small. I haven't asked about the specific rules yet. All I know is that the group that takes first place gets an exclusive music show stage."

"But the show itself is a chance to promote your music in all but name, so make sure you make the most of it."

"Filming probably won't start for another month and a half. Just wait for the notice when the time comes. So we need to have the first album ready before then. We can't go onstage and compete with other groups with just two songs, can we?"

This was the best opportunity Fei Yue had been able to secure in the past few days.

A show like this had its own audience, and if it took off, it would be another chance to break out.

Given how the members of Color4 lived for the stage, no variety show could have been better suited to them.

Sure enough, Jiang Yu was already looking forward to Color4 taking first place.

The pragmatic Gu Zhijing, meanwhile, scrolled through his phone and quietly asked Sheng Chi, "How many groups are there in the Chinese entertainment industry, anyway? Does this competition only allow groups that are still active? What about groups that have disbanded? And what about the ones whose members have gone solo but haven't disbanded?"

Sheng Chi: "..."

Gu Zhijing counted on his fingers and decided that even if he excluded those groups, their chances of winning were still extremely slim.

First place would most likely be decided primarily by audience votes.

Although Color4 was on a slight upward trend, their overall fan count still couldn't compare with their seniors'.

He couldn't help sighing.

Sheng Chi watched him for a moment without speaking, then rubbed his head in consolation.

Fei Yue continued, "Color4's overall trajectory is looking very good right now. When necessary, you can post more on Weibo, put up more short videos, and interact with fans more. Holding on to your fans is what really matters."

Gu Zhijing couldn't help adding silently, Promoting a CP is what really matters.

But he didn't dare say it.

Never mind whether his teammates would think he'd lost his mind; Fei Yue's straight-guy brain would never agree.

"And from now on, I'll also arrange better conditions for you."

Fei Yue said, "What happened at the airport last time won't happen again."

Remembering how uncomfortable he had felt at the airport, Gu Zhijing frowned slightly.

The crowded throng, the piercing clamor.

Along with enormous attention

would inevitably come corresponding drawbacks.

Jiang Yu, however, hadn't thought of that. He was so moved he was practically in tears. "Does that mean we can finally stay in a five-star hotel on our next business trip?"

Fei Yue: "..."

Sheng Chi: "..."

Gu Zhijing: "..."

"Coming up, you have your first album, the group variety show, the other show, and the occasional other shoot. You may face even more intense pressure from work."

Fei Yue's tone abruptly turned serious. "As idols, you have to withstand it."

The four of them immediately sat up straight, their expressions tightening.

"Sometimes you'll hear what fans have to say and what passersby think. Some of it will be good, some of it bad. You don't have to listen to all of it, but you can't ignore all of it either."

"The quagmire of the entertainment industry you have to face really is complicated. You'll encounter a great many things."

"But remember, no matter when-"

He suddenly smiled again. "Trust Brother Fei. Brother Fei will always stand with you."

The atmosphere abruptly relaxed again.

Jiang Yu laughed. "You should've said so earlier, Brother Fei. We're close, aren't we?"

Gu Zhijing and Xu Linyuan couldn't help laughing too.

Sheng Chi glanced at his teammates, then suddenly smiled as well.

Just like that day, when they encountered a partner who didn't respect them,

Fei Yue had refused them on principle.

And when Fei Yue came back, they would say to him:

Let's go home.

This was a mutual understanding.

The relationship between them wasn't just that of boss and employees.

They were also family and friends.

As production began on Color's first album, everything returned to the normal early stages.

Color4 was exceptionally busy during this period.

The first album had six songs, including two title tracks, for which they had to rehearse new performances.

But the filming schedule for the group variety show was tight too, and they also had to post on Weibo to hold on to fans and so on. Color4 was utterly exhausted in body and mind.

But the fans couldn't see what they were doing and only wondered: Was Color4 sitting at home doing nothing again? Couldn't that useless company get them better opportunities?

Faced with such criticism,

Fei Yue felt aggrieved but couldn't say anything.

Yet even under such pressure, Color4 did surprisingly well.

Although they usually joked that they were future big stars in the making, they knew in their hearts that they had all worked their way up from being trainees, and the stage was still what mattered most.

One day, when practice finally ended, Gu Zhijing glanced at his phone.

He had received a package notification.

Gu Zhijing blinked in confusion. "I haven't bought anything recently, have I? Who sent me something?"

The delivery location was also strange.

When they bought things, they usually had them sent straight to the company's address.

But this package had been left in a locker in a residential area several hundred meters from the company.

Jiang Yu was lying on the floor cooling off. Hearing him, he said, "Didn't Singles' Day just pass a few days ago? Did you snap something up and forget about it?"

Gu Zhijing shook his head, his heart suddenly sinking.

Could it have been sent by the Gu Family?

Instinctively, he didn't want to pick it up.

But considering that leaving it there would cause trouble for the courier, he decided to collect it and open it. If it was something bad, he would throw it away or send it back home.

Gu Zhijing took off his headband and wristbands, changed his clothes, and went out.

It was already late autumn, and the weather was cool even during the day. Gu Zhijing breathed on his fingertips and jogged all the way to the parcel locker several hundred meters away.

He entered the pickup code.

The locker opened.

The package was rectangular and not very heavy, but when he looked closely, he saw that the sender's name was one he had never heard before.

Gu Zhijing's fingertips gripped the box. He immediately sensed that something was wrong.

It wasn't something the Gu Family had sent him.

If the Gu Family wanted to send him something, they had no need to do it this way, much less make up a name he'd never heard.

He held the package and weighed it in his hand.

...It can't be a bomb, can it?

I'll go back and open it with my teammates, then see.

But after only a few steps, Gu Zhijing noticed another problem.

Someone was following him.

Gu Zhijing immediately sensed trouble and deliberately took a secluded alley.

The footsteps behind him continued.

Leap Entertainment was located in a fairly remote area, and there were hardly ever any people around here.

Who was the person following him?

Gu Zhijing was in a panic. After walking a few steps, he turned down another alley, preparing to use the complicated layout of the residential area to shake off the person behind him. At the next corner, he turned and suddenly ran into someone, then was pulled aside.

For a moment, Gu Zhijing's heart stopped.

Only when he looked up and met a pair of familiar eyes did he pause and say quietly, "Brother Chi?"

"Keep your voice down."

Sheng Chi partly covered his mouth and said in a near whisper, "A sasaeng is following you."

"A, a sasaeng?"

Gu Zhijing had heard the term before. He knew sasaengs were extreme fans who tried to harass and interfere with their idols' private lives through stalking, spying, and other means. He felt a chill run down his spine.

"I thought something was wrong when you came out."

Sheng Chi led Gu Zhijing in the other direction. "Brother Fei told me a few days ago that strange girls kept appearing near the company. He suspected they were sasaengs."

"They've tried chasing them away, but it didn't do much good. The girls wouldn't admit it, and they couldn't just lay hands on them. They were afraid people would use it against them. If word got out that Leap Entertainment's security guards had hit people, it would damage the company's image."

Gu Zhijing nodded, then looked bewildered. "But we're so unknown. How can we have sasaengs?!"

Sheng Chi's tone was a little cold. "Sasaengs are everywhere. No matter how unknown you are, you can have them."

"And at our level, they probably think we're just right. It makes it easier for them to contact us privately and climb the ladder."

He glanced at Gu Zhijing, whose downcast peach blossom eyes made him look as though he thought he'd done something wrong. His cold tone softened, and he rubbed Gu Zhijing's head. "Next time, have an assistant pick this sort of thing up. Don't come out yourself."

Gu Zhijing nodded obediently. A moment later, his phone suddenly vibrated.

He glanced at the messages, and a chill ran down his back.

[Gege, where are you?]

[I know you're nearby. Will you come out? We won't hurt you.]

[We just want to talk to you. We like you best.]

Gu Zhijing's fingertips went cold. "How did they get my phone number...?"

Sheng Chi instinctively put a protective arm around his shoulders and drew him forward. "From the day we became artists, we had no privacy to speak of."

"Hurry."

"Whatever you do, don't pay attention to them, and don't reply to their messages."

"They aren't normal fans. Don't believe them when they say they like you. They're a bunch of extreme lunatics. The more they're scolded, the crazier and more excited they get."

Rustling footsteps sounded nearby, along with girls talking.

Sheng Chi slowed slightly.

He was thinking about which way to run and whether to make a dash for it when Gu Zhijing grabbed his sleeve and tugged. The two of them squeezed into a gap between a corner and the wall beside it.

The gap was almost invisible from outside. Gu Zhijing had discovered it by chance before. Its only drawback was that there was barely enough room for one person.

With both of them squeezed inside, it was extremely cramped.

Gu Zhijing's mind went blank.

He had barely thought about it just now. The moment he heard those voices, he had instinctively pulled Sheng Chi in with him.

Only now did he feel that something was off.

They were far too close.

Sheng Chi's breath brushed against the edge of his ear, as though it passed through the texture of his skin and reached his heart, tickling it bit by bit until he couldn't help feeling itchy.

Gu Zhijing was certain his ears were very red right now.

His eyelashes trembled, and...