After returning to the capital, Yu Shuman didn't get a break. She was busy with her graduation thesis, and Qin Ran often saw her at school, carrying her thesis around to consult with her advisor.
On her way to see her advisor, Yu Shuman would often be stopped by junior students asking for her autograph or a photo. As a professional and dedicated artist, she found it hard to refuse her juniors and usually took the time to accommodate their requests. However, when she was running late for a meeting with her advisor, she couldn't afford the time to socialize. Qin Ran had caught her twice, hands pressed together in an apologetic gesture, as she hurriedly excused herself from the group of juniors.
Just as Qin Ran always seemed to spot Yu Shuman, Yu Shuman also noticed Qin Ran amidst the crowd. She would give her a playful wink or a flirty look, which would lead to excited squeals from the female juniors shouting, "Sister Manman!"
One had to admit, the junior girls at school were prime candidates to become Yu Shuman's fans. It would be even better if they could ship Qin Ran and Manman together.
—That's exactly what Qin Ran hoped for.
Besides bumping into each other at school, they mostly saw each other at home. Qin Ran had just finished cooking dinner when Yu Shuman came back. She changed her shoes and immediately collapsed onto the sofa. Qin Ran brought the dishes to the table, took off her apron, and went over to check on her.
Yu Shuman was sprawled on the sofa, her face buried in the cushions. Hearing Qin Ran approach, she finally lifted her head slightly and called out weakly, "Xiao Ran."
"Mhm…" Qin Ran sat near Yu Shuman's head and poked at the crown of her head with a finger. Yu Shuman let out a small whimper, clearly exhausted. "I'm dying…" she muttered. Qin Ran chuckled, "That tired, huh?"
"Yeah." Yu Shuman struggled to sit up and crossed her legs on the sofa. She began ticking off her tasks on her fingers, "I have to finish my thesis, shoot the commercial, do brand endorsements, give interviews, and Sister Li wants to get me on another variety show…" She counted each task one by one for Qin Ran.
"That does sound busy. If it's too much, you could drop something. Do you want to do the variety show?" Qin Ran asked.
Yu Shuman thought for a moment and decisively shook her head, "I don't like variety shows. I'd rather take on another acting role."
"Haha, but you need to finish your thesis before taking on more roles," Qin Ran teased. She didn't really want Yu Shuman to go off and film right after returning. She was still longing to spend more time with her, and the idea of her leaving again so soon was unsettling.
Yu Shuman nodded in agreement; the graduation thesis was indeed important. After lounging on the sofa for a bit, she said, "Xiao Ran, have you finished cooking? I'm starving. Let's eat."
Qin Ran agreed, taking Yu Shuman to the dining table. During dinner, Yu Shuman casually mentioned, "Xiao Ran, did you help my roommate find a job? I ran into her at school today, and she bought me a milk tea to thank me."
Her roommate had brought Yu Shuman a strawberry milk tea from the shop near the school entrance, run by a couple. It wasn't a chain store, so the drinks were affordable. Occasionally, when there was a discount, strawberry milk tea was one of the few things Yu Shuman could afford back then. Her roommate assumed she liked it, hence why she got it for her.
Yu Shuman had no clue why, sipping the milk tea as she asked what was up.
If this were back in her freshman year, Yu Shuman would have politely declined the milk tea. Accepting drinks from others usually came with an obligation to reciprocate, and after a while, it could strain friendships if not reciprocated. Knowing Yu Shuman's situation, her roommate never put her in such a position.
Now, Yu Shuman had the means to accept the treat without worry since she could pay back the favor.
Her roommate then told her about how Qin Ran had helped her find a job.
"I thought I'd have to go back to my hometown because I couldn't make it in the capital. Thanks to Xiao Ran, I got this great job here. I wanted to invite her for a meal to thank her, but I was too embarrassed to say it. Xiao Ran is a big boss and seems busy; she doesn't chat much in the group either, so I didn't know how to properly express my gratitude."
"You and Xiao Ran are so close, can you thank her for me? If she has the time, I'd like to treat her to a meal to show my appreciation."
After returning home, Yu Shuman relayed the conversation to Qin Ran, who politely declined the invitation. She still remembered how she was overwhelmed by the enthusiasm of Yu Shuman's senior during a meal when she was on that talent show.
Yu Shuman didn't insist that Qin Ran accept the invitation and simply nodded. But she noticed something odd: "But Xiao Ran, don't you usually chat in the group? You told me you do."
Not only did Qin Ran often talk about things happening in the fan group, but Yu Shuman would also sometimes catch her chatting away in it on her phone.
—She did chat often, but using her rich lady's alternate account, not her official one.
But there was no way she could reveal that her rich lady's account was actually her own. She clearly remembered how Yu Shuman advocated for rational spending among her fans on her official account and then immediately did a giveaway on her behalf. She was sure that Yu Shuman wouldn't want to see her or any other fans wasting money recklessly.
Thinking fast, Qin Ran tried to find an excuse: "Maybe I just haven't matched up with her chatting times." She quickly diverted the topic: "Speaking of meals, didn't Zeng Qian invite us before? Has she spoken to you about it recently?"
"She did mention it, but we've all been too busy. If you're free, we could go this weekend," Yu Shuman suggested.
As long as her rich lady's alternate account wasn't exposed, Qin Ran was up for anything. She immediately grinned, "I'm definitely free. Let's go this weekend for some seafood porridge."
Yu Shuman sensed something was off with Qin Ran but couldn't figure out what it was. Hearing her suggestion, she nodded, "Alright, I'll tell Zeng Qian in a bit." After dinner, Yu Shuman sat in the living room, working on her thesis while Qin Ran returned to her study.
She couldn't help but pat her chest, relieved she narrowly avoided being exposed for her rich lady's alternate account. At that moment, she understood the fear those "masters of multiple identities" felt when their secrets were nearly uncovered.
That was close, way too close!
Calming down, Qin Ran remembered Yu Shuman mentioning Zeng Qian. She decided to proceed with the plan she thought of before returning to the capital. She was determined to recruit Zeng Qian and send her off to work somewhere she couldn't come into contact with Yu Shuman!
Qin Ran pulled Wu Assistant and Sister Li into a group chat, initiating a video conference to discuss the possibility of recruiting Zeng Qian.
"Let's not discuss how feasible this is just yet—does Zeng Qian even want to come over?" Sister Li asked directly. Without having asked Zeng Qian, Qin Ran nodded with conviction, "She definitely wants to. She's always admired 99 Entertainment."
—That's true.
Sister Li mused. Despite the bad online reputation of 99 Entertainment, it was the white moonlight in the hearts of the industry's artists. Joining 99 Entertainment was akin to securing a stable job. Whenever Sister Li took artists around, she would have other artists sidling up to her, whispering, "Sister Li, how do you think I am?"
Sister Li could only laugh it off, saying 99 Entertainment was currently full and not recruiting. The other party would look disappointed, asking Sister Li to remember them if there were openings in the future.
Such scenarios were endless, making Sister Li feel joining 99 Entertainment was a good decision.
"Then it's not much of an issue. What about her manager? Should we bring them along as well?"
Qin Ran recalled the incident during Zeng Qian's birthday party. The man who ended up in jail recently was invited by Zeng Qian's manager. Qin Ran shook her head, "I don't have a good impression of her. Let's not. Find a company manager with some availability and assign them to her."
All their managers were quite busy, mainly because they had so many resources to manage now. Before, managers had to run around everywhere, begging and pleading to get their artists some work. Now that resources were plentiful, how to distribute them among the artists required careful thought.
Moreover, more work meant busier schedules for the artists. In the past, a manager might only have one or two artists needing major attention, while others just filled up the roster. Some managers only managed one or two artists. But now, things were different. With so many artists and so few managers, managing long-term development for each artist was exhausting.
It was inevitable. In the industry, good managers were even scarcer than artists—a rare resource. Sister Li was picky about them, demanding they have strong personal qualities and professionalism, as well as being able to keep their wits about them, not getting swayed by artists looking for shortcuts.
But since the boss had instructed her to find someone directly, she started thinking about who might have relatively fewer artists under their care. Besides, Zeng Qian wasn't a newcomer and wouldn't be too hard to manage. It would be easy to get started.
Sister Li agreed, "Alright, got it. I'll handle it."
Qin Ran then discussed Zeng Qian's original agency with Wu Assistant, as they didn't know the terms of Zeng Qian's contract and could only speculate. Although it was her first time hearing of Qin Ran's plan to recruit Zeng Qian, Wu Assistant had gathered a lot of information during their discussion.
Wu Assistant presented cases of Zeng Qian's current agency's past contract disputes with other artists and began analyzing, "Given Zeng Qian's current status and the revenue she brings to the company, I estimate the breach of contract penalty to be between 25 million and 35 million yuan. If it goes to court, it could take a long time, but the price might be pressed down to less than five million."
Qin Ran, however, stated, "We won't need to spend that much. We might not have to spend a penny."