Aside from food anchor Gu Xixi and gaming streamer Wei Chao, Ye Zhou successively visited six streamers who had left the livestreaming industry for various reasons.
Most of these streamers had been extremely popular at one point, with over ten million fans. If it weren’t for the incidents, they would have been among the top streamers on any platform.
Fortunately, although some streamers directly rejected Ye Zhou’s invitation, stating that they had changed careers and had no intention of returning to the livestreaming industry, they seemed to be doing fine, albeit not as glamorous as before. Extreme cases like Gu Xixi did not occur again.
It took Ye Zhou more than half a month to persuade three of them. Although they did not directly sign contracts like Wei Chao, they accepted Ye Zhou’s promotional materials, indicating they would consider it carefully.
On December 30th, the last day for registration for the ‘Zhaixing Dream Nurturing Program,’ Ye Zhou personally appeared at the registration site early in the morning. When busy, he did not just sit around. He worked like an ordinary staff member, assisting applicants in filling out registration forms.
So far, over 37,000 people had registered for this ‘Zhaixing Dream Nurturing Program,’ far exceeding the company’s initial expectations.
However, as Ye Zhou had previously worried, although many people registered, 60% of them had never been streamers before and were mostly after the initial 2,000-yuan base salary for the first three months.
Another 30% had streaming experience but were either new or had been streaming for a long time with few viewers, belonging to the bottom of the livestreaming food chain.
Only the remaining 10% were somewhat experienced small streamers with a modest following and the ability to attract their own fans.
As for the million-fan level major streamers that Zhaixing currently needed to prop up the platform, there were only two pitiful ones, and these two were brought back by the company at a high price to maintain appearances.
In the development of a livestreaming platform, having only two streamers of this level could bring in some traffic, but most of it would belong to the individual streamers and be insufficient to drive the overall platform traffic, with little potential for conversion.
During the lunch break at the registration site, when the person in charge of Zhaixing saw Ye Zhou studying the registration data statistics for a long time, he couldn’t help but sigh and tried to sound confident:
“Mr. Ye, although there are currently only two major streamers, the company is negotiating with five more. Two of them are almost finalized, and the contracts should be signed in the next couple of days.”
“It takes time for a new platform to develop. Every livestreaming platform has gone through this. Our current situation and resources at Zhaixing are already much better than many platforms when they first started.”
However, the person in charge was also aware that with the current intense competition in the livestreaming industry, there was only a small window of survival for a new platform. Every minute and second was precious for a new platform. If it could not rapidly grow and develop within a certain period, the only path awaiting this platform was death.
However, in front of Ye Zhou, the boss, the person in charge dared not speak the truth and could only try to put it as politely as possible.
Upon hearing this, Ye Zhou’s hand holding the statistics paused, and his gaze slowly moved from the table to the person in charge’s face.
The person in charge broke out in a cold sweat under Ye Zhou’s stare. He smiled awkwardly, swallowed the praise he wanted to give, sat quietly like a chicken, and no longer dared to speak carelessly.
“What time is it?”
The assistant beside him immediately checked his phone and replied, “One-thirty.”
“Almost time.”
The assistant became puzzled by Ye Zhou’s words. After some thought, he cautiously asked, “You mean?”
Almost as soon as the assistant finished speaking, there was a sudden knock on the registration room door from outside, loud and clear, immediately drawing the attention of many staff members present.
One staff member sitting near the door put down his chopsticks, thinking it was someone coming to register, and loudly said, “It’s break time now. Registration starts at two-thirty in the afternoon, so come back then.”
It was quiet outside the door for a moment before a somewhat hesitant voice came through, “Excuse me, is Mr. Ye Zhou here?”
The staff member picked up his chopsticks again, sounding impatient, “We don’t have anyone named Ye…”
Before he could finish, his colleague stepped on his foot under the table. Noticing his colleague’s gaze, he suddenly seemed to remember something, stiffly turning his neck to look in Ye Zhou’s direction and swallowing the rest of his words.
After consulting Ye Zhou, the staff member no longer cared about eating and forgot to put down his chopsticks as he hurriedly opened the door.
Although the person outside was wearing a peaked cap and a thick scarf covering half of her face, obscuring her features, someone seemed to recognize her as a particularly famous entertainment streamer.
It wasn’t because her disguise was inadequate, but rather because she had been so famous that even those unfamiliar with the entertainment scene or livestreaming would find her familiar. Needless to say, everyone present worked in the livestreaming industry.
“Qi Si…” someone couldn’t help exclaiming her name in surprise.
The girl outside immediately made an anxious shushing gesture, leaning her head to peek inside. Upon seeing Ye Zhou, her eyes lit up, and she waved at him, “Mr. Ye, I’m here.”
Ye Zhou waved back, motioning for her to enter while instructing a staff member, “Get a registration form.” Then, turning to the somewhat dazed person in charge, he said, “Also, bring the contract I asked you to prepare.”
Being addressed, the person in charge finally snapped out of his daze, looking uncharacteristically flustered as he rummaged through a box under the desk for a file. After briefly checking the contents to confirm it was correct, he respectfully handed it to Ye Zhou.
Ye Zhou thanked him and asked the girl, who had taken a seat in front of him, “Do you want to register first or sign the contract?”
The girl giggled, “I won’t participate in the event. It wouldn’t be fair to the other streamers. Let’s just sign the contract.”
“The event has no restrictions. If you’re willing, you can certainly participate.” Hearing her concern, Ye Zhou smiled wryly and persuaded her, “Today is the last day for registration. If you miss this opportunity, there won’t be another chance. The prize pool is fifty million, you should think it over carefully.”
But the girl shook her head, “No need. I’m already grateful that you’re giving me a chance to start over. I won’t trouble you further.”
Ye Zhou could only helplessly remove the registration form from the contract and push the contract towards her.
The girl wasted no time, taking only two minutes from receiving the contract to signing it and stamping her fingerprint. She merely glanced through the thick stack of papers before unhesitatingly signing.
Seeing her decisiveness, Ye Zhou couldn’t help but feel amused and teased, “So straightforward. This contract concerns your development for the next five years. You’re quite bold, not afraid I might have tampered with it?”
The girl laughed cheerfully, her eyes crinkling, “You trusted me enough to take such a big risk and give me this opportunity. I trust in your integrity. Even if there were any tricks in the contract, I’d accept it.”
“Previously, I have lived too cautiously, afraid of this and that, which led me to my current state. Now that I have a chance to start over, let me be willful for once.”
Ye Zhou also chuckled after hearing her words. Handing her the freshly signed contract, he said, “Getting you at this price is already a bargain for me. You should still have a lawyer look over the contract. If you want to back out within a week, this contract will be automatically void.”
As he spoke, the person in charge of Zhaixing was standing beside him, practically wanting to stuff Ye Zhou’s mouth shut.
That contract was personally prepared by him under Ye Zhou’s instructions, so he was very clear about the terms and conditions. He assumed it was meant for moderately popular streamers but never expected it to be for Qi Si… a former super-popular streamer.
In the end, Qi Si didn’t take the contract. After bidding farewell to Ye Zhou, she covered half her face with the scarf again, put on her cap, and left coolly.
After confirming she had left, the person in charge could no longer contain himself and excitedly asked, “Mr. Ye, was that really Qi Si? Did we really sign her for forty million?”
Ye Zhou took a leisurely sip of water and calmly asked back, “Didn’t you prepare the contract?”
The person in charge was dumbfounded. Of course, he knew he had prepared the contract himself, which was precisely why it seemed so surreal. This was Qi Si, the former queen of the livestreaming world, the one Yellow Peach Live had offered a staggering one hundred million signing bonus to poach.
Even though an incident caused Qi Si to lose some popularity and she hadn’t streamed for a long time, her legendary status remained in the industry. Despite being out of the spotlight for so long and her influence was not as good as before, forty million was still unthinkable. It was like haggling at a vegetable market, casually slashing the price in half.
After a three-year hiatus, her return alone would cause a bloodbath in the entire circle. Which platform wouldn’t go crazy upon learning of her comeback? They would likely fight tooth and nail, offering astronomical fees.
Forty million to sign Qi Si was simply a dream.
Seeing his dazed expression, Ye Zhou took pity and clarified, “Do you think she’s short on money? More than money, what she wants is a brand new future, completely different from her past.”
“Only Zhaixing can give her that future.”
He spoke with absolute certainty. Although the person in charge couldn’t yet comprehend why only Zhaixing could provide Qi Si’s desired future, he was nevertheless convinced by Ye Zhou’s words.
The person in charge tried to digest what had just happened, unaware that even more astounding events were yet to come.
Within a mere hour after Qi Si’s arrival, he watched in disbelief as one big streamer came knocking on their door in quick succession after another.
Although the livestreaming industry had been booming in recent years, there were only a handful of major broadcasters who could truly uphold the reputation of livestreaming platforms.
Zhaixing waved banknotes and spent a long time recruiting just two top streamers at a high price. However, within just an hour, four streamers approached Zhaixing and directly signed contracts, four of them!
These four were no ordinary people. Each of them had been prominent figures in the industry. Now, they had flocked to join Zhaixing’s ranks. Not only did they approach Zhaixing themselves, but their prices were also remarkably low, which was simply astonishing.
Ye Zhou was slightly surprised by this because initially, he had only approached seven streamers, with only Wei Chao giving a definite positive response, and two others expressing strong interest, although they didn’t agree immediately.
The remaining four either outright refused or showed little interest, so Ye Zhou thought it would be good if two of them signed contracts today. However, he never expected that four of them would come.
As Ye Zhou was going through the four signed contracts one by one, the room’s door was knocked on again.
This time, the staff was prepared and opened the door directly. Upon seeing the person outside, everyone had already been numbed by the previous series of shocks, and even if someone with an even bigger reputation appeared, they could no longer be surprised.
This time, it was Ye Zhou’s turn to be dumbfounded. He looked at the woman standing at the door, who had a slightly sickly pale complexion but wore exquisite makeup and a well-dressed casual suit. He almost couldn’t connect her with the unkempt and somewhat disheveled girl he had seen previously.
“Miss… Gu?” Ye Zhou called her name uncertainly.
Gu Xixi raised her head, and upon seeing Ye Zhou, she quickly walked towards him. Standing before him, she opened her mouth but felt a bit embarrassed, so she first bowed to Ye Zhou.
“I’m sorry for how I treated you before. Can I… sign with Zhaixing?” she asked.
Ye Zhou was momentarily stunned but quickly recovered. He stood up, helped her up, and said warmly, “Of course, as long as you’re willing, Zhaixing’s doors are always open to you.”
Upon hearing these words, Gu Xixi’s eyes glistened with moisture. She rapidly blinked, trying to hold back her tears, and nodded vigorously, “Thank you, really, thank you.”
On January 1st, registration for Zhaixing’s “Zhaixing Dream Nurturing Program” ended. After a ten-day review period, on January 9th at midnight, the app and PC versions would be officially launched, opening registration for streamers and users. At that time, the event would officially begin.
After registration ended, Ye Zhou finally relaxed the nerves that had been tense for a long time. He sprawled at home like a salted fish for three days to recover his energy and catch up on sleep.
Ye Zhou had a habit since his previous life. If he had been overworking for an extended period, once the work was finished, he would lock himself at home and sleep for days. How many days exactly? It depended on the intensity of the workload.
He thought things would improve in this life, but apparently, they didn’t. In fact, under Boss Jiang’s care, it had become even more excessive. Previously, he would at least order takeout himself, but now…
This time, although he didn’t have the physical exhaustion of filming and running around, his efforts in investigating and persuading those major streamers to join Zhaixing, as well as researching how to best clarify the situation for them afterward, had caused his brain cells to die off in droves.
While his body wasn’t particularly tired, the mental fatigue was something he had never experienced, even after completing an entire movie.
To put it simply, for these three days, Ye Zhou’s activity route was fixed between the bed, bathroom, and dining room. Not only did he not leave the house, but he also didn’t even want to step out of his room.
At first, he could still go to the dining room to eat, but later, he became too lethargic to even care about food, missing every mealtime.
Boss Jiang eventually couldn’t bear to watch anymore. After having a doctor examine Ye Zhou and confirming there was no issue, he grew concerned that Ye Zhou would starve himself to death if this continued, so he started coming to his room at fixed times to feed him.
If this had been in the past, it would have been something Ye Zhou wouldn’t have even dared to imagine. Anyone who knew Boss Jiang would know that he was an extremely disciplined person with mild obsessive-compulsive tendencies, having specific requirements for where and how he ate.
Bringing food to the room to eat was simply something that could never have happened to Boss Jiang.
Yet, it did happen.
When Jiang Tingyuan knocked on the door with a bowl of porridge, he found that although it was already bright outside, the person inside was still sleeping soundly, showing no signs of waking up.
He placed the porridge on the bedside table, walked over to Ye Zhou’s side, and sat down on the edge of the bed. Gazing at Ye Zhou’s defenseless sleeping face, he let out an imperceptible sigh and gently nudged him.
Two nudges, three, four.
While Ye Zhou had various flaws, one remarkable trait of his was his exceptional sleep quality. As soon as his head hit the pillow, although he wouldn’t fall asleep instantly, he could easily drift off within minutes. And apart from specific phone ringtones, it was challenging for external noises to wake him up.
No matter how many times Jiang Tingyuan called out to him, he failed to wake Ye Zhou up. Boss Jiang, who could strategize and maneuver in the business world, found himself feeling helpless and at a loss when faced with the soundly sleeping Ye Zhou.
Boss Jiang stared at him for a moment, then suddenly reached out and gently pinched Ye Zhou’s nose, thinking this would surely wake him up. However, he didn’t expect…
Ye Zhou, who originally breathed through his nose, switched to mouth breathing in seconds without even frowning when his nose was pinched.
Boss Jiang: …
Jiang Tingyuan poked his head, intending to cover his mouth next, but halfway through, he suddenly paused and changed his mind.
He pulled his hand back, looked at Ye Zhou’s face, leaned slightly forward, bent down, and in Ye Zhou’s oblivion, their lips met as his slightly cool lips with a faint citrus scent covered Ye Zhou’s defenseless warm lips.
The distance between them was so close that Jiang Tingyuan could clearly hear the steady, powerful beating of Ye Zhou’s heart in his chest.
What was Ye Zhou dreaming about when Boss Jiang kissed him?
Ye Zhou was dreaming that he went to the zoo and was chosen as a lucky audience member to interact with the dolphins performing at the aquarium. This dolphin seemed to really like him. Ever since he went on stage, it kept leaping out of the water to nudge and rub against him. He also quite liked this dolphin, so he bent down to feed it some fish treats. Just as he leaned down, the dolphin suddenly leaped up and kissed him.
That kiss left him breathless. As the kiss continued, the dolphin’s face gradually transformed into Boss Jiang’s appearance, nearly scaring Ye Zhou’s soul away. He abruptly opened his eyes, his consciousness gradually returning, realizing that the shocking scene was just a dream.
Before Ye Zhou could catch his breath, he was stunned to find… Boss Jiang’s face magnified countless times, right before his eyes less than two centimeters away. Ye Zhou started to panic. Looking down, he panicked even more because their lips were still tightly pressed together.
The two looked at each other, the atmosphere suddenly awkward.
Boss Jiang expressionlessly withdrew, his thin lips leaving Ye Zhou’s. His demeanor was calm and unruffled, showing not a hint of guilt at being caught. He even casually said to Ye Zhou, “You’re awake. Have breakfast and come with me afterward. The talent show you invested in is officially airing live on Orange TV today. I’ll take you to watch.”
Ye Zhou nodded, suppressing his surprise and feigning composure. “Alright, wait for me, Jiang-ge, I’ll be ready soon.”
With that, Ye Zhou directly picked up the porridge and started drinking it quickly. After finishing, seeing Boss Jiang hadn’t left, he cautiously probed, “I may need ten more minutes. Why don’t you… wait for me in the living room?”
Jiang Tingyuan naturally understood the implication and nodded without saying anything more, turning to leave with the empty bowl.
Just as his figure was about to disappear from Ye Zhou’s sight, an inexplicable urge made Ye Zhou call out Jiang’s name in a soft voice, “Jiang-ge!”
As Jiang Tingyuan turned back, Ye Zhou closed his eyes, and flashes of scenes appeared in his mind—the unexpected kiss in the courtyard the night got drunk long ago, the lingering kiss in the hospital room when he was hospitalized, and…the kiss that left him flustered when he woke up just now.
Frame by frame, scene by scene, so vivid that they don’t seem to be fake.
All the signs indicated…
Ye Zhou pondered and held back, but eventually couldn’t resist any longer. As Boss Jiang turned back, he mustered his courage and asked, “Jiang-ge, what were you doing just now?”
Jiang Tingyuan remained silent for a long time. Just as Ye Zhou thought he would leave, Boss Jiang suddenly turned around and stepped towards him. Looming over Ye Zhou, his usually calm eyes now surged with an intensity Ye Zhou couldn’t decipher, as if about to consume everything in the next moment.
“What do you think?” Jiang Tingyuan asked back.
Unnerved by Jiang’s gaze, Ye Zhou faltered, and the words changed at the last moment, his voice shifting as he replaced “Were you kissing me?” with—
“Were you… giving me mouth-to-mouth resuscitation?”
Jiang Tingyuan: ……
Without a word, Jiang Tingyuan leaned down and covered Ye Zhou’s lips again, not only stuffing back the words he was about to say but also deftly parting his lips with his tongue in an aggressive invasion of his mouth.
Citrus and pine, along with an onslaught as fierce as a raging storm.
That was all Ye Zhou could perceive from this kiss at the moment.
The kiss lasted a long time, and when Ye Zhou was almost dizzy due to lack of oxygen, Jiang Tingyuan finally pulled away.
His distinct fingers pinched together, grazing Ye Zhou’s lip corner to wipe away the slight moisture left behind from the kiss.
Jiang Tingyuan moved his hand to Ye Zhou’s shoulder, looking directly into his slightly dazed eyes, and let out a light chuckle that disappeared as quickly as it came.
His low voice with a hint of huskiness sounded next to Ye Zhou’s ear, “Do you know what I was doing just now?”
Ye Zhou gave an awkward laugh, covering his lips that had reddened slightly from the earlier kiss, and obediently nodded, “…I know.”
“Good.” Jiang Tingyuan seemed satisfied as he ruffled Ye Zhou’s hair, a tinge of regret in his voice, “If you still didn’t understand, I could repeat it again.”
Ye Zhou: “??No, no need.”
……
Half an hour later, Ye Zhou and Jiang Tingyuan finally went out.
As the driver opened the door for them, he was somewhat surprised to find…
The usually outgoing Mr. Ye was uncharacteristically quiet today. After they got in the car, he could vaguely see in the rearview mirror that Mr. Ye’s face and ear tips seemed flushed red today.
Upon closer inspection, the corners of his eyes were also slightly reddened, and his beautiful eyes carried a lingering hint of moisture.
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