After the divorce, I started to transfer

Clearly, Zhang Yuxi was quite dissatisfied with Hu Rui, otherwise she wouldn't have directly complained to Chen Feng about her.

However, Chen Feng did not completely believe Zhang Yuxi's words. In the absence of conclusive evidence, he naturally could not hastily convict Hu Rui based solely on Zhang Yuxi's one-sided account.

However, starting last year, Chen Feng became somewhat dissatisfied with Hu Rui.

If her company were still the same small company with only twenty or thirty people and very few signed artists, then Hu Rui would still be competent as the manager of the artist department.

However, as the company continued to expand and the number of signed artists increased day by day, even though the artist department also expanded its staff accordingly, Hu Rui began to struggle in both personal management and specific brokerage affairs, and gradually could not keep up with the company's development pace.

Most importantly, Hu Rui showed a certain degree of laxity in her work. Perhaps it was because her position was already the head of the department, with no room for promotion, and coupled with her generous annual salary and performance bonuses, her annual income was close to one million yuan, which made her somewhat lazy.

Another connection is that she was introduced to Yang Ziying by Hao Xiaolian, who was Yang Ziying's agent. Hu Rui was originally an assistant to Hao Xiaolian, so she was also acquainted with Yang Ziying.

Chen Feng even secretly speculated that Hu Rui might have known about his private relationship with Yang Ziying all along. Coupled with her seniority as a company veteran, this gave rise to a "retirement" mentality, assuming that her position was rock solid and that there was no risk of being fired.

When Liu Ying first joined Fengmang Film & Television, she privately complained to Chen Feng about Hu Rui's work ability, saying that she only had a superficial understanding of the agency business and was even worse at interpersonal skills. She did not handle the relationships with the company's contracted artists very well and was completely incapable of being the manager of the artist department.

Liu Ying's complaints at the time were certainly partly driven by personal motives, because in her secret rivalry with Wu Mengting, Hu Rui had clearly sided with Wu Mengting.

However, it cannot be said that Liu Ying's words were completely unfounded or baseless.

Therefore, Chen Feng had already considered replacing her.

However, Hu Rui had not made any major mistakes in her daily work, and she held the title of a company veteran. In addition, there were the faces of Hao Xiaolian and Yang Ziying involved. Replacing her so rashly would obviously be inappropriate and would make him, the boss, seem mean-spirited and heartless.

But now, Zhang Yuxi's complaint has provided a ready-made reason. If everything Zhang Yuxi says is true, then Hu Rui, the manager of the artist department, has made a serious mistake.

The two major brands initially favored Zhang Yuxi, who was also a legitimately signed artist with their companies. However, Hu Rui, as the manager of the artist department, secretly recommended Zhang Jingwen, also from the same company, to the brands. This act was tantamount to inciting internal strife, causing the two to fight each other, ultimately allowing the brands to use them to drive down prices. This not only severely damaged the company's interests but also greatly undermined internal stability and unity.

Now that things have come to this point, Zhang Yuxi is not only Chen Feng's woman, but also a contracted artist of his company. For both personal and professional reasons, Chen Feng absolutely cannot sit idly by.

After all, she had already complained to him face to face. If he didn't make a clear statement or took a conciliatory approach and didn't stand up for her, it might really break her heart and create a rift between them.

"Don't worry, if everything you said is true, I will definitely give you a satisfactory explanation."

Chen Feng's face darkened. He looked at Zhang Yuxi seriously and immediately made his promise.

Zhang Yuxi was overjoyed upon hearing this and quickly added, "Everything I said is true! It was people from those two major brands who personally revealed it to Sister Hua in their conversation. Later, Hu Rui tried to argue that they were lying and deliberately trying to sow discord and frame her. Sister Hua didn't believe it and personally called the representatives of those two brands to verify. They both insisted on their version of events and admitted that Hu Rui had proactively recommended Zhang Jingwen to them, even saying things like 'Zhang Jingwen is more suitable to be a brand ambassador than me.'"

Upon hearing this, Chen Feng frowned and said, "In that case, wouldn't it become a situation where both sides have their own version of the truth, and neither side has conclusive evidence?"

Zhang Yuxi seemed to have made up her mind. She gritted her teeth and said, "I can have Sister Hua come forward and try to get the statements of those two people involved in the brand as evidence."

Chen Feng pondered for a moment, then shook his head and said, "It would be difficult to handle things with Sister Hua unless we could get the two people who contacted Hu Rui to come forward and confront her. Otherwise, this matter will remain a mess. Besides, if it really comes to that, it would be like airing our dirty laundry in public, making us a laughingstock, which is not the best course of action."

"Then what do you suggest we do?" Zhang Yuxi asked, somewhat frustrated. "Don't you believe what I'm saying?"

“It’s no use if I’m the only one who believes in you. You have to understand, Hu Rui is one of the veterans of our company, and she’s Meng Ting’s person. She’s always had a good relationship with Meng Ting. Besides, I was the one who asked Hao Xiaolian to help introduce people so that we could hire her. She was originally Hao Xiaolian’s assistant and also worked with Yang Ziying for a while.”

"She was Hao Xiaolian's assistant?" Upon hearing this, Zhang Yuxi's expression changed slightly.

Zhang Yuxi knew that Hu Rui and Wu Mengting had a good relationship, but she never expected that Hu Rui would also have such a deep connection with Hao Xiaolian, a top agent in the industry, and Yang Ziying, a top star.

These two are undoubtedly people she absolutely cannot afford to offend at this stage.

On the contrary, she was not too worried about Wu Mengting, because she and Wu Mengting had a very good personal relationship, and it could even be said that she was promoted by Wu Mengting.

Seeing this, Chen Feng comforted her, "She only worked under Hao Xiaolian for less than a year, so their relationship couldn't be considered very close. At most, it was just a little bit of a familial bond. Otherwise, when my company was just starting out and urgently needed manpower, she wouldn't have been so generous in introducing Hu Rui to us. At that time, my company was just starting out and didn't have many people. If I hadn't offered her a high enough salary to make her a department manager right away, Hu Rui might not have even considered it."

Although Chen Feng explained it this way, Zhang Yuxi's worries did not lessen much.

Having spent several years in the entertainment industry, she knew that Hao Xiaolian was one of the top agents in the field. This was not only because she had single-handedly launched Yang Ziying into a phenomenal top star, but also because she managed several other top-tier domestic artists. In addition, she was currently a minor shareholder of Tianyi Entertainment, Yang Ziying's former agency.

Such a top agent wields immense influence in the industry. If you truly anger her, even if she doesn't openly blacklist you, just occasionally tripping you up behind your back will be enough to cause you a lot of trouble.

Not to mention Yang Ziying, her idol, whose influence in the industry is now equally significant.

"Maybe...maybe we should just let it go." Zhang Yuxi's tone softened. "For President Wu's sake, as long as she doesn't deliberately target me anymore, I'll be magnanimous and not hold it against her. But...we've completely broken ties with her now, and she's in charge of talent management at the company. If she deliberately delays or doesn't recommend any good, lucrative gigs to me, not only will I personally lose a lot of income, but the company will also suffer. Don't you think so?"

Although Chen Feng could understand her concerns, he couldn't help but feel a little contemptuous. She was far too timid.

Even though she has her boss backing her up, she still thinks about backing down at the last minute.

With Zhang Yuxi backing down, Chen Feng became somewhat unwilling to give up.

He already had some reservations about Hu Rui, and he also basically believed that what Zhang Yuxi had just said was true. Hu Rui's actions were not only extremely unethical, but also directly damaged the company's interests, which was undoubtedly a major taboo for him as the boss.

If the boss is unaware of this matter, that's one thing; but if he knows and remains indifferent, allowing Hu Rui to continue her reckless behavior in the future, then it's foreseeable that the company will suffer even more tangible and intangible losses as a result.

"You and your agent have already offended Hu Rui to the core. Do you really think she'll treat you the same way in your future management affairs?" Chen Feng's words were direct, but they hit the nail on the head.

Zhang Yuxi wasn't stupid; she immediately understood the underlying meaning in Chen Feng's words, but still wore a bitter expression and said, "Then what do you suggest I do? Do you expect me to beg you, the big boss, to make a tough decision and fire her directly? She has so many connections behind her, and she's a veteran of the company. As the boss, you can't completely ignore all of that, can you?"

Upon hearing this, Chen Feng couldn't help but chuckle: "You've turned the tables on me."

"I'm just telling the truth. I can't think of any other way to deal with her except by asking you, the boss, to come in person."

Chen Feng did intend to deal with Hu Rui, but he couldn't be too certain at the moment, so he pondered and said, "Personally, I'm willing to believe everything you just said. However, I still need to do some further investigation. If what you said is true, as her boss, I certainly can't sit idly by and watch her do things that harm the company's interests, much less tolerate her disrupting the unity among colleagues. I will definitely deal with her, just you wait and see."

"Thank you, boss, for standing up for me. I really didn't want to bother you with this matter; I've been holding back, but seeing you today and having the chance to speak my mind, I couldn't help myself." "You don't need to suffer in silence over something so obviously unfair to you. In the future, if you encounter anything that makes you feel wronged, just tell me directly. After all, I'm your boss and your benefactor."

"Okay, I understand. With you, my big boss and big financial backer, I definitely won't wrong myself anymore."

"So how do you plan to thank me?"

"I'll thank you however you want, I'll do whatever you say."

Chen Feng immediately leaned close to her ear and whispered a few words. Zhang Yuxi's pretty face immediately turned bright red with embarrassment, but she still obediently nodded and agreed.

……

More than an hour later, Chen Feng emerged from Zhang Yuxi's residence, feeling refreshed.

After getting downstairs and into his car, Chen Feng didn't start the engine immediately. Instead, he took out his phone, thought for a moment, and then called Zhang Jingwen.

The call was answered almost instantly, and Zhang Jingwen's voice, slightly surprised, came through: "Why did you suddenly call me? Is something wrong?"

Chen Feng cut to the chase and asked, "Is it convenient for you to talk over there now?"

Zhang Jingwen quickly replied, "Yes, yes, I just finished my work and got back to the hotel. I'm all alone in the room right now."

"Alright, let me ask you, were Zhang Yuxi the initial target for those two advertising endorsements for xxx shampoo and xx lipstick?" Chen Feng asked directly without any preamble.

Upon hearing this, Zhang Jingwen immediately became alert, her eyebrows furrowing as she asked, "Did Zhang Yuxi complain to you?"

"Never mind who complained, just tell me if this really happened? I want to hear the truth." Chen Feng's tone was stern and left no room for argument.

"I did take on these two advertising endorsements some time ago, but I definitely didn't snatch them from Zhang Yuxi. It's true that those two brands contacted her first, but they didn't immediately decide to make her their spokesperson. Later, they also approached me. At most, it was fair competition between us, and in the end, I was just more skilled and won."

"Was it Hu Rui who recommended you to these two brands? Tell the truth." Chen Feng's tone remained stern.

Zhang Jingwen hesitated for a long time on the other end of the phone before finally saying somewhat reluctantly, "Yes... she contacted Sister E and brought up this matter, but it can't be entirely said that she recommended me to the brand. Because the brand only contacted and reached out to Zhang Yuxi first, and didn't ultimately decide that she was the spokesperson. Manager Hu contacted Sister E out of a sense of public duty, wanting to keep these two endorsements within our company as much as possible. Otherwise, if they don't like Zhang Yuxi in the end and go to other companies to find other celebrities, wouldn't our company get nothing?"

It must be said that her explanation, at first glance, seems to make some sense. According to Zhang Jingwen's statement, Hu Rui not only did nothing wrong, but also became a good manager who was selfless and far-sighted.

However, there is a huge logical flaw in this: when Ren Ziyu confronted Hu Rui, why did Hu Rui insist that she had never recommended Zhang Jingwen to the brands? She even turned around and accused the people from the two major brands of sowing discord and framing her.

If we follow Zhang Jingwen's statement, this should clearly be a great achievement, so why does Hu Rui deny it so vehemently?
Thinking of this, the two points of doubt that Chen Feng still had about Zhang Yuxi instantly dwindled to just one.

"Okay, I understand. That's all for now."

After getting the answer he wanted from Zhang Jingwen, Chen Feng didn't bother arguing with her anymore. Ultimately, she had snatched Zhang Yuxi's endorsement deal but stubbornly refused to admit it. Chen Feng was also too lazy to listen to her continue her explanations.

After hanging up the phone, Chen Feng did not hesitate at all and immediately dialed the company's general manager, Ren Ziyu.

"Wow, that's strange. Why did you suddenly decide to call me today?"

As soon as the call connected, Ren Ziyu teased her with a rather surprised tone.

"I have something to ask you. Do you remember that incident where Zhang Jingwen and Zhang Yuxi were fighting over an advertising endorsement?"

Upon hearing that it was serious business, Ren Ziyu's attitude immediately became serious: "Of course I remember, it was about a month ago. Two brands first contacted Zhang Yuxi to discuss endorsements, but not long after, they contacted Zhang Jingwen. Then they started to undercut each other, and after about a month of this back and forth, Zhang Jingwen's popularity suddenly skyrocketed a few days ago because of the sexual harassment incident, and her commercial value also increased rapidly. In the end, the two major brands chose her as their spokesperson. The endorsement fee was quite considerable, with both brands signing three-year contracts, totaling about 60 million, paid annually."

This endorsement fee is indeed quite high, averaging ten million a year, so it's no wonder Zhang Yuxi is so indignant.

Of course, he also knew that if Zhang Yuxi had been the one negotiating, she might not have been able to get such a high endorsement fee.

After all, times have changed, and Zhang Jingwen is now far superior to her in terms of both popularity and commercial value.

"Zhang Yuxi said that the two major brands had already chosen her as their spokesperson and contacted Hu Rui, but Hu Rui turned around and recommended Zhang Jingwen instead. Did her agent, Sister Hua, complain to you about this?"

"Yes, that's true. I even asked Hu Rui in person later, but she firmly denied it, saying that there was no such thing at all. She said that the brand contacted Zhang Jingwen on its own initiative and that the brand was sowing discord and deliberately framing her."

"Okay, I understand. I called you to confirm this with you again."

"Wait a minute," Ren Ziyu on the other end of the phone reacted quickly, "Have you already found out that it was Hu Rui who recommended Zhang Jingwen to the brand?"

Ren Ziyu, as expected of the company's general manager, was quick-witted and immediately guessed the key point.

Chen Feng didn't intend to deliberately hide it from her, and admitted, "Based on the testimonies of Zhang Yuxi, Zhang Jingwen, and you, it can be basically concluded that Hu Rui lied to you. She did indeed intentionally recommend Zhang Jingwen to the brand."

“I could tell at the time that she was probably lying, but there was no concrete evidence, so there was nothing I could do about it. But then again, if the brand hadn’t immediately decided on Zhang Yuxi, it would have been reasonable for her to recommend another artist from our company as a backup.”

"The problem is that, as far as I know, the brand was very keen on Zhang Yuxi at the time, and that was only the first contact. They hadn't even had formal contact with Zhang Yuxi's side yet when Hu Rui jumped out and said that Zhang Jingwen was more suitable. This was clearly because she had a personal grudge against Zhang Yuxi. More importantly, her actions directly caused disharmony within the company and led to vicious competition between the two of them, which directly damaged the company's interests."

"So what do you plan to do? Just fire her? She's your girlfriend's woman."

"I'll discuss the specifics with Mengting. For now, just pretend you don't know anything about this."

"OK, I'm tight-lipped and won't say anything."

"Okay, that's it."

After finishing his sentence, Chen Feng hung up the phone without hesitation, as always, without even saying goodbye.

Although this wasn't the first time, Ren Ziyu on the other end of the phone still found his calling style somewhat unsettling, and couldn't help but mutter a few complaints under her breath as the call ended. (End of Chapter)