Just then, the car Xiao Bai called arrived. She stuffed the umbrella into the man’s hand: “Be careful going home.” Then she waved and got into the car.
Back at the hotel and having changed clothes, Lin Xiaoman received a call from Xiao Bai: “Xiaoman, the company has got you an advertisement!”
Xiao Bai was her agent at Starry Sky Entertainment, who had initially signed her. Now that she was the champion of “Create Idol” with a contract with New He, she was still managed by Starry Sky’s agent, so her schedule was always arranged by Xiao Bai.
“What advertisement?”
“A very simple ad,” Xiao Bai said vaguely. “It’s tomorrow. My car is coming soon, get ready to come down.”
Lin Xiaoman frowned: “I have a signing event tomorrow.”
“It’s fine. I’ve already explained the situation to Agent Qiao.”
Lin Xiaoman couldn’t accept this answer: “Why wasn’t this mentioned in advance?”
“We’re all adults. We need to be flexible,” Xiao Bai explained. “Can’t you tell what’s more important?”
Lin Xiaoman ignored his talk of priorities and asked directly: “What about the fans?”
“They can come another day,” Xiao Bai urged. “Don’t worry, I’ll announce it on the official blog. Come down quickly.”
“No,” Lin Xiaoman firmly refused.
“No advertisement notifies the artist just a day in advance. My schedule is already arranged. Have the advertisement team change the time.”
“Xiaoman, are you joking? The venue staff are already prepared. You want them to change the time? Do you know how much additional cost that would incur?”
“My fans have come from other cities. If they change the time, how much additional cost would that incur?” Lin Xiaoman’s tone was displeased.
“Can they be compared?”
“Aren’t they all our bread and butter?”
“Xiaoman, you need to have a broader perspective,” Xiao Bai said earnestly. “The advertisement fee is enough to buy hundreds of thousands of fans. Losing one or two now isn’t important.”
“Fans without passion are soulless fans.”
Lin Xiaoman heard a long sigh from the other end of the phone: “Xiaoman, you don’t understand. Managing fans is like doing business. The more people in your store, the more people will come, even if they have to queue for hours. If your store is empty, even without waiting, people won’t want to enter. When you have more fans, naturally people will notice you, and your fan base will grow.”
“You seem to understand quite well,” Lin Xiaoman’s voice turned cold.
Xiao Bai, as if not hearing her sarcasm, said proudly: “I’m an old hand in this circle, having been around for three years. Just listen to me—”
Xiao Bai suddenly cut off, and Lin Xiaoman heard him say: “I have a call here, get ready quickly.”
The call ended.
Lin Xiaoman looked out the window, where the torrential rain covered the glass with thick water vapor, and besides the street’s neon lights, nothing else was visible. She thought about the young girls who came to the signing event in the pouring rain, some having sat on a train all night to get here, others having taken time off. No matter how difficult their journey, they all smiled brilliantly when they saw her.
How could she bear to disappoint them?
Lin Xiaoman decided not to leave. However, she was just a minor celebrity, without the ability to resist the talent agency. The signed advertisement could not be refused.
Lin Xiaoman thought for a moment and sent Xiao Bai a WeChat message: “Send me a copy of tomorrow’s schedule.”
After a while, Xiao Bai sent a document showing a train after eleven at night, arriving in City C the next afternoon, with a shoot at three in the afternoon. It was a night sleeper train, Lin Xiaoman guessed.
Since Lin Xiaoman arrived, she hadn’t interacted much with him, but she had heard from company people that Xiao Bai was particularly stingy and would withhold payment from artists. Many artists he had previously managed had fallen out with him for various reasons, but because he was the nephew of a senior executive, things were always suppressed. This made him act with impunity.
For example, a place that could be reached by plane in just one or two hours, he would choose the cheaper train to save money.
Lin Xiaoman saw through Xiao Bai’s intentions, but she didn’t want to call and argue with him. Instead, she blocked his phone and booked a flight from City A to City C at noon. Afterward, Lin Xiaoman contacted Qiao An, informed her of her arrangements, and apologized in advance on Weibo and fan groups: due to scheduling issues, she would end the signing event early in the morning and expressed her apologies.
That night, Lin Xiaoman slept well. The next day, arriving at the signing hall, she saw Xiao Bai with bloodshot eyes, looking particularly haggard.
Lin Xiaoman ignored him completely and walked straight ahead.
Xiao Bai, full of anger, rushed in front of her and questioned her furiously: “What are you doing?! Why couldn’t I reach you all night?! Didn’t we say there’s a schedule today? Are you going to violate the contract?!”
When Xiao Bai returned to the hotel, he found he couldn’t contact Lin Xiaoman. Not realizing he was blocked, he went to her room only to find she had checked out.
He hadn’t figured out what happened, thinking they had missed each other, and searched the lobby for a long time without finding her.
Only then did he realize Lin Xiaoman was probably deliberately avoiding him.
He immediately contacted Qiao An and learned that Lin Xiaoman was still attending the next day’s signing event. His heart sank, knowing something was wrong.
Unable to find Lin Xiaoman and unable to go to City C alone, he canceled his train ticket and waited most of the night at the W fast food restaurant next to the signing hall.
At dawn, he waited at the signing event entrance. Finally seeing Lin Xiaoman, she didn’t offer any explanation and seemed unwilling to engage with him.
With a night’s worth of anger built up, Xiao Bai finally erupted, grabbing Lin Xiaoman and demanding: “Don’t you hear me talking?”
“Let go!”
Lin Xiaoman stopped, coldly looking at him and softly uttering two words.
Her gaze revealed a chilling intensity that momentarily stunned Xiao Bai, leaving him blank-minded and obediently releasing her. When he came to his senses, he became embarrassed and angry: “You—”
“I’m just doing what I should do.”
“What you should do is violate the contract?!”
“Serve my fans well,” Lin Xiaoman said slowly.
“And you’re not going to care about the advertisers?”
“Since you accepted the advertisement behind my back,” Lin Xiaoman said word by word, “then solve it behind my back.”
“Don’t be ungrateful!” Xiao Bai became even angrier.
Although he noticed Lin Xiaoman was different, he didn’t expect her to be so uncooperative. “Am I wrong for getting you an advertisement? Don’t you know how many people want one and can’t? And you’re blaming me?”
“Did you ask my opinion before accepting the advertisement?”
“The right to accept advertisements is fully managed by the company, it’s in black and white. Are you trying to renege?” Xiao Bai was furious. “Don’t think you can be arrogant just because you won a championship. Your contract is in my hands!”
Lin Xiaoman searched the original owner’s memories, knowing she had signed the contract quickly in her eagerness to escape her family, not realizing the loopholes existed.
Seeing her silence, Xiao Bai thought she was scared and softened his tone: “Do you know how much the breach of contract fee is? It’s not something you can afford, so just be obedient.”
Even with the initiative in his hands, Lin Xiaoman didn’t retreat: “If I’m implicated, what benefit would you get?”
Xiao Bai, hit in his weak spot, immediately changed his tone and tried to persuade her: “Xiaoman, we’re in the same boat here. Arguing doesn’t help anyone. Why don’t we think of a way to solve the advertisement issue first?”
“No, it won’t.
