Huayu 2005: Chat groups are full of real celebrities

She paused, as if afraid the introduction wasn't substantial enough, and then added another blow:

"He's basically in charge of the recent endorsements, the new song, and the upcoming collaborations."

After he finished speaking, the living room fell silent for half a second.

Jiangbei was completely stunned.

Partner?

Endorsements, new songs, collaborations... he basically handles everything?

This is hardly an introduction.

This is clearly an attempt to shift blame.

And this isn't just a simple attempt to shift blame.

Fearing the firepower wouldn't be concentrated enough, they personally packed him up and, pot and all, delivered him to the center of the judge's bench, even attaching a label along with it:

—That's him.

Jiang Bei's lips were almost twitching.

He really wanted to turn around and ask:

Yahuazi, you betrayed your teammates so smoothly, isn't that a bit too much?

Before he could even finish his internal monologue, the reactions of the other three people in the living room had already changed.

Liu Xiaoli paused slightly in the hand holding the teacup.

Chen Jingfei, who had been sitting rather casually, gradually straightened up, and for the first time, his gaze fell seriously on Jiang Bei's face, as if he were reassessing the young man.

Even Liu Yonghui gently lowered his crossed legs, tapped his knees with his fingers, and his eyes held a more professional scrutiny.

The feeling was like the judge, jury, and prosecution representative confirming the defendant's identity at the same time.

And Jiangbei—

He is the prime suspect identified by Liu Yifei herself.

"Oh, it's Xiao Jiang."

Liu Xiaoli smiled appropriately and gestured towards the sofa.

"Sit down, don't be shy."

As she spoke, she even picked up the teapot herself and poured Jiang Bei a cup of tea. Her movements were composed, and her tone was very gentle, as if she were entertaining a junior who had come to visit.

But the more this happened, the more tense Jiang Bei became.

He knew very well that none of these people in front of him were easy to fool.

Liu Xiaoli is Liu Yifei's biological mother and the person who has been in charge of her career all along;

Chen Jingfei is a capital tycoon with connections and resources;

Needless to say, Liu Yonghui is the vice president of Asia Entertainment, a legitimate figure in the entertainment industry.

Don't be fooled by the fragrant tea aroma and the peaceful atmosphere in the living room, which makes it seem like we're having a casual chat.

But if even one word is misspoken, this partnership, which has just been rejected, could be overturned on the spot.

With his current resources, he is far from being able to compete head-on with these individuals.

When it's time to lower your stance, you have to.

"Thank you, Auntie."

Jiang Bei took the teacup with both hands, and unconsciously straightened his posture a bit.

Liu Xiaoli looked at him, smiled first, and then slowly spoke:

"I've listened to all the songs you wrote for Sisi."

"Everything is fine."

She paused, as if considering her words.

"It's not just a polite 'not bad,' it's genuinely good."

"The melody, lyrics, emotional expression, and even the direction of song selection far surpass most of the so-called popular works on the market at this stage."

"To be honest, I was quite surprised."

"It's not easy for someone so young to write something like this."

This evaluation carries considerable weight.

Neither Chen Jingfei nor Liu Yonghui interrupted, which clearly reflected their consensus.

Jiangbei, however, did not seize the opportunity to take credit; instead, he immediately shifted half of the credit to the side.

"You flatter me, Auntie."

"No matter how well a song is written, someone has to sing it."

"In the end, it's because Yifei has a good voice and expressive ability; otherwise, no matter how much I write, it would be in vain."

Upon hearing this, Liu Yifei subconsciously glanced at Jiang Bei.

The curve of Liu Xiaoli's lips also softened noticeably.

No parent dislikes hearing others praise their child, especially when the praise is not forced, not cheesy, and the balance is just right.

But the next second, Liu Xiaoli sighed softly.

"pity."

She raised her eyes and looked towards Jiangbei.

"You guys released these songs at the worst possible time."

The atmosphere in the living room froze almost instantly.

Jiang Bei's heart skipped a beat; he knew the real issue was about to begin.

Liu Xiaoli placed the teacup back on the table, her tone still calm, even gentle, yet each word seemed to fall lightly, striking precisely where it mattered:

"You should know what's been going on with Sisi lately."

"The messy news, scandals, and smears outside are just one wave after another."

"At times like this, what she needs most is not exposure, but to lie low."

"But you just had to push her back into the spotlight at this crucial moment."

"As soon as the song was released, the hype started, and everyone who was originally eyeing her immediately flocked to her."

Liu Xiaoli looked at Jiangbei, her tone still calm and unhurried.

"So I wanted to ask you."

"What were you thinking at the time?"

This isn't just a warning; it's practically an open questioning.

Before Jiang Bei could even speak, Liu Yifei, sitting next to him, was already getting restless and subconsciously leaned forward.

"Mom, actually—"

"Sissi".

Liu Xiaoli called her name only once.

There was no raising of the voice, nor a single harsh word.

But Liu Yifei's next words were abruptly cut off.

She opened her mouth, but in the end she didn't dare to say anything more. She could only purse her lips with a hint of grievance and sit back down.

Jiang Bei was secretly delighted.

She was threatening him fiercely outside, but as soon as they got home, she was immediately silenced by a simple "XiXi".

This is the purest form of bloodline suppression.

Of course, while he was amused, he knew this wasn't the time to gloat, so he quickly picked up the conversation:

"Auntie, I admit I didn't think this through enough."

"It was my oversight not to inform you and the team in advance."

Instead of passing the ball back to Liu Yifei, he gritted his teeth and took the blame.

After all, now is not the time for him and Ya Huazi to divide the responsibility.

The key is figuring out how to deal with these people in front of us.

Sure enough, as soon as those words were spoken...

First, Liu Yifei quietly gave her a grateful look.

Then Liu Xiaoli's eyes lit up slightly.

Then, even Liu Yonghui, who was standing next to him, raised his eyes, clearly not expecting Jiang Bei to recognize him so readily.

Jiang Bei picked up his teacup, took a small sip, and continued:

"At the time, China Mobile was pushing us very hard, and the window period was extremely tight."

"My original idea was to finish the song first, finalize the collaboration, and then formally communicate with you after things were settled."

To put it bluntly, I made the decision on my own.

"That was my fault."

He adopted a very humble attitude and readily admitted his mistakes.

After admitting his mistake, he didn't continue to dwell on "I was wrong," but instead naturally took a step forward.

"but--"

Jiang Bei raised his head, his tone still calm.

"If you called me here today just to ask about this, then I apologize, and I accept your criticism."

"But if what you're really worried about is the increasingly intense negative public opinion..."

He paused, his gaze slowly sweeping from Liu Xiaoli over Chen Jingfei and Liu Yonghui.

"Then I think the problem probably isn't with releasing the song itself."

The living room fell silent for a moment.

Liu Xiaoli was slightly taken aback.

I asked you to come over?

When did I come to you?

Liu Yonghui frowned first.

"you mean?"

Jiang Bei put down his teacup and leaned forward slightly.

"What I mean is, releasing a song at most just gives others an opportunity to make a fuss about it."

"But what really made things big was never the song."

"But rather, it's the hand that's pulling the strings behind the scenes."

Liu Xiaoli's gaze sharpened.

Chen Jingfei also abandoned his previous nonchalance, leaned back, and began to re-examine the young man.

Liu Yonghui then took over the conversation directly, his tone noticeably more serious:

"But the problem now is that trouble has started outside."

"Brands, media, and partners are all watching Sisi's public image."

"At this critical juncture, our first priority is to cool things down, stop the losses, and minimize the negative impact."

"Instead of continuing to increase her exposure and create new topics of discussion."

These words finally brought out Liu Yonghui's true "vice president" aura.

He wasn't talking about emotions or complaints, but rather the most realistic trading logic.

But Jiang Bei just smiled after hearing that.

"Mr. Liu, I understand what you mean."

"But I think your line of thinking is wrong from the very beginning."

A single sentence was uttered.

In the living room, even the air seemed to stand still for a moment.

Liu Yifei's eyes widened slightly, clearly not expecting Jiang Bei to dare to say Liu Yonghui's judgment was wrong in front of these people.

Chen Jingfei also raised an eyebrow.

Liu Xiaoli remained silent, simply watching Jiang Bei quietly, as if waiting for him to continue.

Jiang Bei remained expressionless and continued:

"I'm not saying that stop-loss is unimportant."

"But the premise is—you have to figure out how the fire started in the first place."

"If it's just ordinary gossip, then suppressing it and letting it go is fine."

"But this is clearly not the case now."

"The sheer volume of those smear articles, the timing, and the density of revelations is something that normal public opinion fermentation could not achieve."

"Someone is pushing from behind."

"Moreover, it's being promoted in an organized and purposeful manner."

"I even wanted to stomp Yifei to death!"

Liu Yonghui's gaze darkened slightly:

"so what?"

"so--"

Jiang Bei looked at them and said, word by word:

"Before figuring out how to bet, I want to understand one thing first."

"Who exactly is smearing Yifei behind her back?"

As soon as those words were spoken, the large living room fell silent.

The atmosphere of "parental accountability" that had just been there seemed to have been suddenly torn open.

The nature of the matter has changed as a result.

If the previous discussion focused on the "inappropriate timing of the song release," Jiangbei has now directly shifted the issue to a completely different topic—

Someone is setting this up.

Liu Xiaoli didn't speak, but exchanged a glance with Chen Jingfei.

Liu Yonghui was silent for two seconds, as if trying to figure out whether Jiang Bei's words were just a pretense of profundity or if he had truly seen something.

After a moment, he slowly spoke:

"If we're not mistaken..."

"It should be Tang Ren's side."

"To be more precise, it's Cai Yinong."

Jiang Bei's eyes flickered slightly.

really.

Seeing that he didn't seem surprised, Liu Yonghui continued speaking:

"Tang Ren had been trying to sign Xixi for a long time, and they had discussed the terms many times."

"But we didn't agree."

"The timing of this song release, endorsement deal, and public opinion surge is too close together. If someone is really pushing this behind the scenes, they are the prime suspects."

Upon hearing this, Chen Jingfei's expression visibly darkened.

"You call that a condition?"

"A ten-year contract with high commission rates, ensuring control over film, business, and publicity."

To put it bluntly—

"What's the difference between that and a contract of servitude?"

Chen Jingfei sneered and tapped his fingers on the coffee table.

"Do you really think I, Chen Jingfei, am made of clay?"