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

The next day, Ling Luo returned home and was stunned when she opened the door.

The place was a mess, yet it exuded an eerie sense of order. Takeout boxes were neatly stacked into pyramids, dirty clothes were divided into two piles according to their shades, and even Coke cans were arranged into a smiley face.

This ability to maintain order amidst chaos is truly remarkable.

Ling Luo sighed helplessly and resignedly began to pack. After putting all the "works of art" back in their places and dragging her suitcase upstairs, she finally had a moment to call Gu Yang.

The phone rang for a long time, so long that Ling Luo thought he wouldn't answer, before it finally connected.

"Ling Luo? Are you done with your work?" Gu Yang's voice sounded a little ethereal, with jarring music and the noise of the crowd mixed in the background.

"Just got home, where are you?"

"I..." Gu Yang paused for a moment, as if they had moved to a quieter place where the noise was less. "I'm doing a promotional event, a commercial performance."

Ling Luo frowned: "Commercial performances? I remember Brother Li turned them all down for you, didn't he?"

"I declined, but it's not for entertainment variety shows."

Yang hesitated to speak, and a guess suddenly occurred to Lingluo.

That's unlikely, since Gu Yang is at least a third-tier celebrity now.

Where are you? I'm coming to find you.

Gu Yang was startled and quickly said a few words, but under Ling Luo's persistent questioning, he simply gave up and said, "Oh well, the contract is already signed. If I breach it, I'll have to pay out of my own pocket. Anyway, I'm just killing time, so I might as well earn some extra money. I'll go back as soon as I'm done."

He'll have to be careful with his money now; Ling Luo seems to be short of cash, so he needs to save some for him.

As Ling Luo listened to Gu Yang's feignedly relaxed tone on the other end of the phone, her eyes gradually turned cold.

Star Entertainment, well done!

"Okay, you can go ahead with your work." Ling Luo hung up the phone calmly.

  

He immediately called his agent, Li.

"Hey, Brother Li, this is Ling Luo."

From the other end of the phone came Brother Li's slightly exaggerated voice of surprise: "Oh, Ling Luo! Hello, hello, what's up?"

"It's nothing serious." Ling Luo's voice was flat, revealing no emotion whatsoever. "I just wanted to ask if your company has re-planned Gu Yang's career?"

"This..." Brother Li's voice was clearly hesitant, and he stammered, "Ling Luo, let me tell you the truth. You know, Gu Yang's contract still has three years left. Now that you're backing him up, the higher-ups feel he's a bit... difficult to manage, so..."

Ling Luo cut him off abruptly: "So, you plan to squeeze every last drop of value out of him in his last three years?"

"You can't say that!" Manager Li chuckled dryly, her voice lacking confidence. "Which artist hasn't gone through this? They need to get more exposure, otherwise the audience will quickly forget them. Don't you agree?"

The threat in his words was made without any attempt to conceal it.

Ling Luo suddenly chuckled softly, a sound so gentle it sent a chill down Li Ge's spine on the other end of the phone.

"Understood." Ling Luo paused, then spoke slowly and deliberately, "In that case, please have Manager Li tell your company's higher-ups that we should just give up on the five singers who participated in the 'New Voice Creative Camp' with me. After all, your company's artists are all so busy, they probably won't have the time to participate."

"What? What spot?" Manager Li's mind went blank, and she almost dropped her phone. "You're going to the 'New Voice Songwriting Camp'?"

"Yeah, Gu Yang didn't mention it to you guys?" Ling Luo chuckled, a hint of mockery in her voice. "That's right, his schedule has been so packed lately, he's been working non-stop until he's practically going crazy, so he probably didn't have time to tell you. Brother Li, you're so busy, you should understand, right?"

Before Brother Li could react, Ling Luo's tone suddenly became sharper: "Besides, I've already asked Teacher Zhuo to help submit the application and recommendation. This is a small matter, so Manager Li doesn't need to worry about it."

Instead of protecting their own artists, they're helping the company manipulate Gu Yang.

The spots he has are so coveted that even if given to the other three giants, or even to small studios outside, they would be fought over.

There was a deathly silence on the other end of the phone.

After a moment, Brother Li's voice came through: "Excuse me, Mr. Ling, please wait a moment. I... I'll report to General Manager Hou right away!"

Ling Luo hung up the phone calmly.

A real opportunist!

Gu Yang, that silly boy, probably thinks he's a very competent agent.

Less than half an hour later, Gu Yang called, his voice so excited it sounded like it was about to jump out of the phone.

"Lingluo, Lingluo! Guess what? Brother Li just called and told me to go back first!"

"The cast for all the subsequent announcements has been changed! Hehe!"

Ling Luo's lips curled into a barely perceptible smile: "Aren't you afraid of not making money?"

Gu Yang curled his lip upon hearing this: "I don't need that little bit of money. Those kinds of degrading announcements don't help me at all. They're just making me work like a slave for the company."

Today at a wedding celebration, he was almost surrounded by a group of drunkards. If he hadn't brought two bodyguards, it's questionable whether he would have even made it out unscathed.

It's best not to tell Ling Luo about such unpleasant things, lest he worry.

Gu Yang quickly changed the subject: "By the way, did you go to the company to see Brother Feng? He's still practicing hard in the practice room."

"Not yet. Since you're alright now, come back first, and we'll go over together in a bit."

"Okay! Wait for me, I'll be home soon!"

"Tell the driver to slow down, there's no rush."

"OK OK!"

……

Although it was said to be soon, it took Gu Yang almost two hours to get home.

Before she even stepped inside, a boisterous voice rang out: "Ling Luo, I'm back!"

Judging from his tired face and the dark circles under his eyes, he was probably dragged out early in the morning.

"Come here, have some warm water." Ling Luo handed him a glass of water, sighing inwardly.

Despite coming from such a privileged background, she doesn't know how to protect herself at all; she's such a fool.

If he had such a family background in his previous life, I'm afraid... no, if he had such a family background, he would never have stepped into the entertainment industry in the first place.

"Lingluo, what are you thinking about? Why are you spacing out?" Gu Yang held his water glass and looked at him curiously.

Ling Luo snapped out of her daze, shook her head with a laugh, and found her unrealistic fantasy amusing.

"Nothing much, what would you like to eat?"

"Oh, we're out of vegetables at home, let's have noodles."

"Okay," Ling Luo replied, turning and entering the kitchen.

Gu Yang leaned against the kitchen doorframe, watching Ling Luo's noticeably thinner back, and couldn't help but ask, "Ling Luo, have you been very tired these past few days?"

"It's alright." Ling Luo put the noodles and vegetables into the pot, turned around, and reached out to ruffle Gu Yang's fluffy hair. "Why didn't you say anything if you were wronged?"

Gu Yang was stunned, forgetting to resist, and asked blankly, "Huh? I wasn't wronged."

"Not yet?" Ling Luo raised an eyebrow. "The gig you took today is a street performance, right?"

"Uh..." Gu Yang's expression froze instantly. He hadn't expected that Gu Yang could guess this. He muttered softly, "I hid it quite well..."

Ling Luo didn't speak, she just looked at him quietly.

He himself had experienced it. When he first started out, the company forced him to stand up for the opening of some random real estate projects and he was forced to drink alcohol by some fat and bloated bosses.

The embarrassment, helplessness, and grievance I felt are still vivid in my mind, even after all this time.

Gu Yang felt guilty under his gaze and scratched his head: "It's just singing a song, it's not tiring. It's just... it's just that the scene was a bit chaotic."

Ling Luo withdrew her hand, turned around to scoop up the noodles, and said in a calm voice.

"It's okay, it won't happen again."

"Yeah, but there are a few good ones too. Yesterday I went to film a shampoo brand, the one you always use, and it's pretty good."

"If you like it, will you change it next time?"

"Hehe, I'll just use yours."