Don't call me a singing god, I just want to go back to doing scientific research.

Inside a black van across the street from the company.

A paparazzo lying in wait suddenly woke up his companion, his voice extremely low, as if they were making some shady deal.

"Wake up! Look, isn't that Gu Yang, the guy who's recently become popular on 'Changba'?"

The person next to him rubbed their eyes sleepily and mumbled indistinctly, "It seems so..."

"What? It looks like him! It's him! Quick, take a picture!" The paparazzo, known as the boss, grabbed a telephoto camera and started snapping away at the entrance of Star Entertainment.

The shutter clicked rapidly, and he clicked his tongue, saying, "It was worth it. It wasn't for nothing that the two of us fed mosquitoes here for a whole day and night."

The paparazzi, who had just woken up, instantly became alert and fawned over him: "Boss, you're brilliant! This kid's hot right now, anything you photograph will fetch a good price."

"Boss, who's that guy next to him? I've never seen him before, but he's way too good-looking!"

"Who cares who he is, just take the picture! Better to kill the innocent than let the guilty go free!" The boss stared intently through the viewfinder. "These days, anything related to trending topics is news! A handsome ordinary guy? The headline will be something like, 'Gu Yang accompanied by a mysterious handsome man to and from an entertainment company, suspected of being a newly signed artist or something else entirely!'"

As Gu Yang walked into the building, he suddenly shivered. He subconsciously rubbed his nose and continued to ramble on as he introduced the internal layout of Xingchen Entertainment to Ling Luo.

"The first floor is the reception hall, and upstairs there are the composition department, the artist department, the recording studio... In addition to these, there is also a gym, a lounge, and a restaurant. It can definitely be ranked among the top three in the country."

"Yes, it's quite big." Ling Luo looked around, listening attentively.

To be able to own an entire building independently in such a prime location as Beijing, the capital behind Star Entertainment is indeed not to be underestimated.

The elevator ascended smoothly, and Gu Yang pointed to the floor buttons and said, "The Artists Department is on the eighteenth floor."

  

Upon hearing this, Ling Luo's lips curved into a slight smile, and she made a rare joke.

"Once you enter the entertainment industry, it's like falling into a deep sea, with eighteen levels—that number is quite apt."

Gu Yang was stunned for a moment, then realized what was happening. He grinned, showing his big teeth, but looked at Ling Luo with unusual seriousness in his eyes: "It's okay. With you here, even hell can pull me out of it."

As they were talking, the elevator doors opened with a "ding".

The two had just arrived at the artist department, and Gu Yang's current status was not high enough to have a private office. He didn't care, since he didn't come here often anyway.

Manager Li, however, strode over quickly in her high-top shoes. Upon seeing Ling Luo, her shrewd eyes lit up.

"You've finally arrived! I was just about to call you. Come on, let's go to the office and talk."

Gu Yang scratched the back of his head, somewhat surprised: "Brother Li, I haven't seen you all night, and you already have an office?"

"Thanks to you!" Manager Li grinned from ear to ear, patting Gu Yang on the shoulder. "We just separated this morning. Come on, you got one too, it's right next door. Let's go take a look."

The two offices were indeed next to each other.

Agent Li first opened the room in Guyang's room, which was empty except for a desk and a computer.

Gu Yang peeked inside and blurted out, "So poor, the house is bare."

Upon hearing this, the corner of Li's mouth twitched involuntarily.

This kid is really not polite.

"Having a private office is already a sign that the company sees your value! This is something I managed to get from higher-ups with great effort, based on your achievements and... Mr. Ling's reputation."

He cleared his throat to hide his unease. "If you need anything, you can get it yourself. You can also go to the logistics department and see if there's any left over."

As he spoke, Agent Li opened his own door.

The office wasn't large, only a dozen square meters. After placing the sofa and desk, there wasn't much space left. But judging from Agent Li's expression, he was clearly extremely satisfied.

"Don't let the small size of this place fool you," Manager Li said, gesturing for the two to sit down, a hint of pride in his voice. "This is where Shao Hui, the company's top agent, used to work. It's just a pity that he resigned later, apparently for some reason."

Ling Luo nodded thoughtfully, while Gu Yang looked around nervously, as if he had needles stuck in his bottom, clearly uninterested in these things.

Ling Luo cut to the chase: "Let's talk about the contract first."

"Okay." Agent Li immediately got to work, picked up the documents from the table and handed them over. "The contract is ready, take a look."

Ling Luo quickly assessed the situation; the sincerity was commendable, and it was the cooperation model he wanted, but…

He tapped lightly on a certain page with his fingertip.

The company provides the necessary facilities and equipment, as well as subsequent promotion and production, but takes 40% of the profits.

If the collaborator is an artist from the company, the company's share can be reduced to 35%.

"I have no objection to the cooperation method," Ling Luo put down the contract, "but the profit sharing is too high. I can only offer a maximum of 30%."

Agent Li was taken aback.

Thirty percent? That's a privilege reserved for top-tier creators.

What are the standards for a gold medal creator?

Three or more representative works have entered the top list of the industry, or the cumulative number of views has exceeded 100 million; the number of fans on a single platform starts from one million; and the work has won national awards.

The Ling Luo before me doesn't fit any of these criteria.

Manager Li had a bit of a headache, but patiently advised, "Thirty percent isn't realistic. The later music arrangement, recording, stage production, and promotion all require huge costs. Besides, you see, if you use artists from our company, the revenue share can be reduced even further, which is already a pretty good deal for you."

"Brother Li," Ling Luo calmly shook his head, "were those six trending topics last night orchestrated by your company?"

Li's agent was speechless for a moment.

Ling Luo leaned forward slightly, looking at him calmly: "Your company didn't invest any promotional resources, yet my song still trended on social media, and it stayed there all night, with five still on the list. I think your company can see my abilities."

He paused, then delivered the final blow.

"Thirty percent, I believe the other three companies should be able to come up with that as well."

Agent Li felt a chill run down his spine.

That's true. If Ling Luo's future songs can maintain this "self-generated trending" quality, the company can indeed save a lot of money on promotion and distribution.

He pinched the bridge of his nose; this was a gamble he had to take.

"Wait a minute, let me go ask the higher-ups first. This share is too low, I can't make the decision."

"Okay." Ling Luo nodded, and added as he stood up, "By the way, Brother Li, could you please add another clause to the contract? If I collaborate with an artist from your company, the specific profit-sharing method will be decided jointly by me and the collaborating artist, and your company has no right to interfere."

"hiss……"

Agent Li gasped and stopped in her tracks.

He turned around and looked Ling Luo up and down again, feeling a burning pain in his face.

Yesterday, he confidently assured Manager Wu that this Mr. Ling was exceptionally talented, aloof, and regarded money as dirt.

The results of it?

Every sentence revolves around money, every word is about profit; he's more shrewd than anyone else.

This isn't just about treating money like dirt; this is clearly the reincarnation of a Pixiu!