From humble beginnings to the pinnacle of life

Then, with a self-deprecating smile, he shook his head and said, "Forget it, there's no use dwelling on the past. What's done is done. But this time, I will absolutely not miss the opportunity to work hard with you again."

I chuckled softly, then, remembering someone else, casually asked, "By the way, there's something I've been wanting to ask. I haven't been able to get in touch with Qiqi lately. Do you have her contact information? Do you know anything about her situation?"

Upon hearing Qiqi's name, Anran's brows furrowed slightly.

"Qiqi... I heard she seems to have returned to Star Media."

I was stunned for a moment, my mind filled with surprise: "They went back again?"

Fang Heng was deported abroad by his father, yet Xingyao Media is still operating?

I always thought that with Fang Heng's incident, Xingyao Media, which relied on capital operations, should have gone bankrupt and shut down long ago. I never expected it to still be alive.

An Ran nodded and explained, "I heard it from friends in the industry. The company has a new boss, but I don't know exactly who's behind it."

She paused, then added, "And recently, Qiqi contacted me and urged me to go back to Xingyao with her. She said the company has undergone restructuring, and all the contracts for signed internet celebrities have been rewritten with much fairer terms than before. She also kept telling me that the new boss is a very nice person with a broad vision."

I raised an eyebrow slightly and asked with interest, "Then why didn't you agree to go back? They must have offered you good terms, right?"

An Ran smiled faintly upon hearing this and said crisply, "I already said I would wait for you to come back and join your team. I will definitely keep my promise to you, how could I possibly go back to another company?"

Hearing An Ran's words, I felt a slight stirring in my heart, and a feeling I couldn't quite describe welled up inside me.

Having worked in the online celebrity circle for so many years, Anran knows how to weigh the pros and cons and assess the situation. She is never an impulsive or emotional person.

Her account has been idle for a long time and has poor data; she urgently needs a reliable platform to restart her business.

If Star Media truly has the fair treatment and perfect system described by Qi Qi, it would be an excellent offer that she would find hard to refuse, given her current predicament.

Most people would probably turn back and choose a mature and stable established company.

Rather than a new team that is just starting out and where everything is still unknown.

But she kept the promise she made casually back then, giving up the easy security she could have had, and chose to work with us from scratch.

This pure trust is exceptionally precious, and I will do everything in my power to raise her well, never letting her down for her choice and perseverance.

Looking into her clear and honest eyes, I nodded earnestly and said, "Thank you for trusting me unconditionally. Don't worry, with our team, I will never let you fall into the trap of capital again, and I will never let your perseverance today be in vain."

An Ran revealed a faint, gentle smile, her tone carrying a hint of relief and guilt:

"Brother Lin, I've always felt quite guilty. Back then, you sincerely invited me to go to the no-man's-land with you, but I refused because I had too many concerns and was too timid. For so long, I always thought that after that incident, you probably wouldn't consider it again or want to cooperate with me again."

I slowly shook my head and smiled faintly: "One thing at a time. I couldn't have fully anticipated the dangers of the no-man's-land before I set off. Your cautious hesitation at the time was only natural, and I completely understand."

An Ran smiled openly and relaxed, then said, "Thank you so much for understanding me. To be honest, the entire influencer industry is a mess right now, full of hype and exploitation by capital. Teams like yours that focus on creating solid content and don't resort to underhanded tactics are really rare. I'd rather work alongside you from scratch than go back to that profit-driven environment where we're constantly at each other's throats."

As soon as she finished speaking, she seemed to suddenly remember the topic they had just discussed, and couldn't help but add a couple more sentences in a low voice:

"But to be honest, I always felt that Xingyao's transformation this time was too suspicious and not simple at all."

"Qiqi is too naive and soft-hearted, too inexperienced in the ways of the world, and easily brainwashed by a few kind words. If someone gives her a little preferential treatment or makes an empty promise, she will believe it."

"When I talked to her before, I could clearly tell that she now speaks highly of Xingyao's new boss and feels that she has finally escaped her misery."

"But many veterans in the industry are saying in private that Xingyao has not truly and completely changed hands. To put it bluntly, they have only changed the name and the person in charge in front of the public, and found a new agent to stand in the open to support them. The real boss who controls everything behind the scenes is still Fang Heng."

Upon hearing these words, my heart tightened instantly, and I suddenly felt extremely vigilant.

Upon closer reflection, the whole thing seems eerie, and there's a very high probability that this is indeed the case.

Given Fang Heng's personality, how could he possibly be willing to lose everything and completely give up his domestic businesses?

Even though his family has forced him to go abroad, his roots and connections remain in China, and he will not easily give up the capital empire he has painstakingly built over the years.

This current move is clearly the safest way to lie low.

Shut down the mess of overt wrongdoing, wash away all negative public opinion, and restart with a clean new shell.

Under the guise of reform and opening up, they continue to quietly reap the benefits of online celebrity resources.

What's most frightening is that all outsiders can see now is a completely new company structure and a new boss. No one knows about the capital tentacles still lurking in the shadows, making it impossible to guard against.

The simple-minded Qiqi foolishly plunged back in, completely believing in this elaborate scheme, and became their puppet.

I remained silent for a long time, my thoughts in turmoil, before finally speaking in a low voice, "No wonder I haven't been able to contact her lately. She's most likely under strict control of her schedule and social life by her new company, or she's signed a harsh new non-compete agreement that restricts her from private contact with the outside world."

An Ran nodded emphatically, echoing, "That's what I guessed too. When she first approached me to persuade me to go back, she spoke very cautiously and hesitantly, not daring to say many key things explicitly, only giving vague and general hints. Later, when I tried to chat with her again to inquire about her recent situation, she never replied to me again."

"In the end, I was just too naive." I sighed softly, feeling utterly helpless.

I had a lot of contact with Qiqi before. She was pure of heart and had no guile. She was like a blank sheet of paper and couldn't understand the intricacies of capital at all.

Back then, I was ruthlessly exploited at Xingyao, treated as a mere tool for generating traffic, and suffered countless hardships and grievances. It was only with great difficulty that I finally managed to escape this sea of ​​suffering.

Now, however, they were easily coaxed back by a few empty promises and a little bit of preferential treatment.

She thought she had met a benefactor and been given a new lease on life, but little did she know that she was most likely just jumping into the same cage again.

This time, however, the shackles that bound her became gentler, and harder to break free from.