A grand feast for the Chinese entertainment industry

Chapter 109 Reaching the Pinnacle
Tidy up the house, even though it's clean.

Zuo Xiaoqian must have been coming over to tidy up all along. The house hadn't been lived in for a long time, and there wasn't even a hint of something wrong with it—this girl is really good, sensible, and considerate.

So it's just a matter of wiping and smoothing the edges and corners.

I had a quick and easy lunch after landing, and I wasn't going to skimp on dinner. I tidied up a bit, dug out an old thick coat that was pretty clean, put it on, and went out to buy groceries.

When I got back, I treated myself to a proper meal.

Oh my, that's satisfying.

After finishing my meal, I tidied up, wiping and cleaning, then collected the trash bags and went downstairs to throw out the garbage. Just as I stepped out the door, I bumped into a series of light footsteps. I closed the door and was about to go downstairs when a familiar face appeared around the corner. The person looked up and exclaimed, "Hey... Brother Lu?"

Li Xiaoran.

Lin Jianlu was stunned for half a second. "How did you end up here?"

Many people knew that Lin Jianlu had rented a place to live here, but that probably didn't include the group of dance girls he supported—she pointed and said, "I live upstairs! It's a newly rented place!"

"Oh! You're rich now, haha!"

This girl had never had a harmonious relationship with her family. She didn't want to live at home and preferred to live in the dormitory assigned to her by the dance troupe, which was said to be a four-person room. She didn't get along well with her other three roommates.

Because Lin Jianlu's backup dancer team also includes another dancer from their troupe.

They didn't even get along.

I don't know how to describe this girl. She's very pretty, but she's rather dull. I don't mean stupid. Stupid means she learns things slowly and thinks slowly. Dull means she doesn't realize she's dull and often thinks she's very smart, so she disdains to learn things she considers mediocre. Dull is dull, but she also speaks in a rather harsh way.

It's perfectly normal to be unpopular.

She smiled a little shyly, "Yes! The money was given out after I got back."

One hundred thousand yuan!

Let alone now, even ten years from now, an annual salary of 100,000 yuan would definitely be considered high. Even twenty years from now, in 2016, 100,000 yuan a year would still be a decent salary for an average white-collar worker. But these girls, who had only been with the company for a month or so, were taken out to earn money by Lin Jianlu. Not to mention going to five-star hotels and glamorous stages, in less than a month, each of them received 100,000 yuan—mainly because Lin Jianlu felt that such generous salaries were necessary to retain them. Otherwise, they would have said during the recruitment process that they would receive a 100 yuan bonus per performance!

Moreover, when they were in Hong Kong, he gave each of these girls an extra HK$20,000!

It is said that only a few people spent all that money, while the vast majority of others spent only a few thousand Hong Kong dollars to buy some good things that are not easy to buy in mainland China, and then stopped.

Like Liu Xiaoli, who reportedly only bought a toy for her daughter.

Lin Jianlu wouldn't take the rest of the money back anyway, so he could exchange it before crossing the border. Alternatively, if there was a way to bring it back to China, it would be in cash, which would have a higher exchange value—ten or twenty thousand yuan, a huge sum of money!
In Lin Jianlu's view, these girls were the normal ones. In 1996, China was not thirty years later. The boys and girls of this era were born in the 1970s and grew up in the 1980s and 1990s. Being frugal, saving money, spending money in a planned way, and accumulating wealth were the behaviors that a normal person should exhibit.

But the woman in front of me was one of only two—she spent all 20,000 Hong Kong dollars! Apparently, she bought a ton of stuff! Clothes, cosmetics, and so on.

It is said that later, Gu Jianfen once commented on her disciple Na Ying, saying that she had a good voice but a dog's brain. If Lin Jianlu were to comment on Li Xiaoran, he would probably say that this girl's body is worth 100 million, but if you add her brain, it becomes a negative number.

"Be careful with the money, it's a huge sum. When you have some free time, go out and look around. If you find a suitable place, even if it's small or out of the way, you can borrow some money. Buying a house is the only way to settle down! Okay... go upstairs, I'm taking out the trash!"

"Hey……"

Passed by by mistake.

After returning home, Lin Jianlu packed a few things she had bought in Hong Kong and was about to go downstairs to visit her beloved elderly parents in the courtyard.

Before I could even leave the house, Li Xiaoran actually knocked on the door.

I opened the door and saw a bag full of apples.

She was a little embarrassed. It seemed that ever since she met Lin Jianlu when she came to shoot his music video earlier this year, this girl had always been very timid and hesitant in front of him. "Um... Brother Lu, I bought you some fruit."

Lin Jianlu was stunned for a moment, then burst into laughter.

"come in!"

Has this girl finally figured it out? She actually knows to bring something over? — Lin Jianlu wouldn't be surprised if this happened to anyone. Jiang Qinqin, Zuo Xiaoqian, and others are even smarter than this. They wouldn't bring you fruit; instead, they would come to your house to eat. If they want something and see that you don't have it, they would remind you, "Brother Lu, shouldn't you buy some of that?"

Hey, there's a sense of closeness about him; he's completely informal and doesn't stand on ceremony with you. Would Lin Jianlu really lack that little bit of stuff or money?
So in fact, he has always doted on Jiang Qinqin and Zuo Xiaoqian. To say they are lovers would be an understatement. If Lin Jianlu wanted to sleep with them, they probably wouldn't object. But in reality, Lin Jianlu never touched them. Instead, he constantly took them out to meet people and gave them opportunities to flatter and elevate them.

Aside from not being able to be Lin Jianlu's girlfriend, which sounds like a sweet but somewhat awkward situation, their relationship has always been very harmonious and intimate.

We all met while filming a music video, but a few months later, our relationship has become so completely different.

She couldn't even compare to Li Bingbing, let alone Shen Aojun—at least when she went to Shanghai, Lin Jianlu remembered Shen Aojun, and later, because she liked her personality, she even spontaneously offered to help her out.

"Sit down! Sit down!"

It's already mid-November, and the heating will be turned on in a few days. It's actually quite cold now, but I ran into this girl on the stairs just now, and she was still wearing a skirt. She looked quite stylish, maybe she bought it in Hong Kong.

The most amazing thing is that as soon as she sat down, I could see that the girl wasn't wearing any thermal underwear or leggings under her skirt—people who love beauty are truly the most resistant to the cold!
Those two exposed lower legs were fair and beautiful.

"Here, I don't have anything fancy to offer you, but have a glass of water!"

The girl quickly stood up, "Thank you, Brother Lu!"

"Sit! Sit!"

The water was a little hot, and the girl picked it up to take a symbolic sip, but she put it down as soon as she did, her hands awkwardly unsure of what to do. After a while, she finally gathered her thoughts, looked around the room, and exclaimed, "I never expected you to live here, Brother Lu! You're so rich, why don't you buy a bigger house?"

Lin Jianlu crossed his legs and said, "Hey, it's just me, and I'm rarely home. If I really built a big house, wouldn't it take me a whole day just to clean it every time I come back?"

"Hiring a nanny! Hiring a nanny is so popular now!"

"Hey! Even if I hire a nanny, I'll be away from home all the time. Do I have to buy a house for the nanny to live in?"

"Uh...that makes sense."

"How have you been lately? Have you been enjoying your time here with me?"

The girl smiled, a genuine smile. "Of course I'm happy! When we were chatting with Liu Dan and Sister Liu, we were saying that we never expected you to give us so much money. We agreed on a 100 yuan bonus per performance, but you've given us enough for 1000 performances this time! You even gave each of us 20,000 Hong Kong dollars! ... We all said that we'd be happy to work for a boss like you for life!"

Oh my... alright! It's not like you can't talk!

"Alright! Then as long as I have food here, you can stay and eat with me!"

"Yes! I'm definitely willing!"

Lin Jianlu burst into laughter.

His smile seemed to instantly relax the girl. "Brother Lu, yesterday President Xue came over to tell us that he'll be going on a trip soon? He said it'll be to Southeast Asia?"

"Yes, we need to run six races! One race each on Saturday and Sunday! Three races in total."

There was no other way but to go – after the Taipei show, quite a few fans already had complaints. The complaints weren't major, considering the star-studded lineup from Rolling Stone Records, and Lin Jianlu, the brightest star, gave it his all from beginning to end. After all, people came to hear him sing live. However, some fans did express regret in interviews about not seeing Lin Jianlu's "luxurious dance troupe" perform. There was some dissatisfaction.

After the performance in Kaohsiung, this same theory emerged.

Even media reports specifically mentioned that the dance troupe that Lin Jianlu used to bring with him when he performed around the world did not appear, which was the biggest regret of this Rolling Stone Superstar Tour.

Every year, Lao Duan organizes a joint concert series, which is a considerable source of income. It's a business where you can make money as long as you don't miss out, since the entire event is handled by a performance company. He's naturally afraid of ruining his reputation, so he made an urgent contact. For the next six shows, the company will give him an extra $10,000 per show, covering airfare and accommodation. "Call the girls over!"
People are just sitting there idly, and someone is willing to pay for it, so there's no reason for them to disagree.

So, starting this Saturday, the long, white legs will be on the move again.

Lin Jianlu waved her hand, "This time it won't be as tiring as last time, and it won't be as rushed. I'll fly there on Friday night and fly back on Monday morning. Each performance only consists of three songs, and after that I can go back to the hotel to rest, so it's more relaxed."

The girl readily agreed, "Okay!"

Lin Jianlu smiled and said, "Drink some water!" Then, after the girl took a sip, he was about to shoo her away, but he couldn't help himself. He pointed to the girl's calves and asked, "Have you always been this fair-skinned?"

The girl looked down and nodded, "Yes, I've always been fair-skinned."

Lin Jianlu slapped her thigh and exclaimed, "If fair skin is a gift, you've truly reached the pinnacle!"

***
First update!
(End of this chapter)