Who Needs a CEO? I Choose Stardom

”Bingbing! Have you... have you heard any dirt on that Han Feifan?”

”Huh?”

Hearing her aunt’s question, Ni Bingyan immediately understood her aunt and uncle’s brilliant plan.

Having failed to reason with her, they were now planning to solve the problem at its source by making her cousin experience the full, devastating collapse of her idol’s image!

When you’re that deep into a fandom, a collapse like that would definitely make you not just quit, but turn on the idol completely. She’d probably never be able to stan another idol again in her life.

’What a vicious plan...!’

But considering what her cousin had done, it didn’t seem so unacceptable.

Given her aunt and uncle’s current state, if it weren’t illegal to tear a person limb from limb, they would have done it long ago.

It’s just...

”I don’t know that Han Feifan... and I don’t know any dirt on him...”

She and the male idol weren’t competitors at all. And with the cautionary tale of Hu Zhenning as a precedent, it was absolutely impossible for her to work with another A-list male celebrity. She’d never get to know him.

’I can’t just hire someone to dig up dirt on him for my cousin’s sake, or make up scandals to smear him, can I?’

Han Feifan himself might not be much of a threat, but these A-list idols always have powerful investors backing them. If she acted rashly and cut off his source of income, she’d be hated for life.

That was an offense on par with murdering someone’s parents.

”Just help your aunt ask around. We’re not saying he has to be perfect. As long as he’s a decent person, your uncle and I can live with it. But if he’s a scoundrel, a cancer on society, then it doesn’t matter how far we go. We’d practically be doing a public service! You don’t need to have any psychological burden.”

Seeing her hesitation, her uncle took the phone and sighed.

”I know this puts you in a tough spot. After all, you all work in the same industry. If people found out you were doing something like this, they’d be wary of you...”

Outsiders would be lost, but for an insider, it was much easier to make a move. However, if people found out she was targeting a colleague, she would be heavily criticized.

Ni Bingyan understood his concern at once and quickly cut him off.

”Uncle, say no more. People smearing each other is standard practice in this industry. There’s no psychological burden, so don’t overthink it. Besides, you’re just asking me to find some dirt on him, not make things up. I’m only worried I won’t do a good job and I’ll disappoint you, not that I don’t want to do it. Wait for news from me. I’ll think of a way, how about that?”

”Okay! Your cousin has to start preparing for her final exams soon. We can use the time she’s busy to get this done.”

Seeing her aunt snatch the phone again, Ni Bingyan said helplessly, ”Auntie, I haven’t even accomplished anything yet. Don’t get too excited, and don’t let on to my cousin, otherwise she’ll end up hating me.”

”Why would she hate you? Like you said, we’re not making up scandals to smear him. If he’s the one who couldn’t keep his own nose clean, who can she blame?”

After the call ended, Ni Bingyan hung up, scooped two spoonfuls of beef sauce to mix with her noodles, and started eating while sending a private message to her cousin, Lu Yao.

[Wishing you wealth and good fortune!]

No one could refuse that.

Start a chat by sending a red packet, and everyone would love to talk to you.

Besides, her younger cousin had always been close with her.

After quickly claiming the red packet, her cousin immediately fired back a string of sticker emojis:

StarryEyes.JPG

Wiggle.JPG

ShootingHearts.JPG

...

[Sis, love you, love you, love you! Why the sudden red packet?]

Ni Bingyan smiled slightly. [Just missed you! How’ve you been lately? You should come visit me during your school break!]

The young Lu Yao, completely oblivious to the world’s treachery, was very tempted by her cousin’s enthusiastic invitation, but... reality wouldn’t allow it!

[Sis! Let me tell you something, but don’t tell my parents, okay? I found a part-time job for the winter break, and I’m planning to take it! Hehe.]

[A part-time job? What kind? How much a month? Where is it located? Are you signing a contract?]

The young woman was a bit stunned, clearly having never suffered the harsh blows of the real world.

[We haven’t talked about those things yet, but the person who recommended me is a senior from my major, and she’s a graphic designer at Brother Feifan’s studio. Everyone said the photos I retouched for him before were great! My senior showed my picture to Sister Amy, and Sister Amy thought I had a great look too. She said I could start with a trial run this year, and if I do well, I can work at Brother Feifan’s studio full-time after I graduate! StarryEyes.JPG]

’What idol doesn’t have an army of highly-paid photo editors?’ Her cousin had a useful skill, so it was normal for her to be noticed.

Her cousin’s tone was extremely excited!

Obviously, for a fan, this was the ultimate honor.

Forget asking about working hours, location, or salary—she’d probably do it even if she had to pay out of her own pocket!

But as soon as Ni Bingyan heard this, her vision went dark!

No celebrity’s team would ever hire a fan as an employee, and a male idol’s team would *absolutely* never hire a female fan!

’And I’ve never heard of a graphic designer getting a job based on their looks. Either there was something wrong with that senior, or there was something wrong with Han Feifan—there was no other possibility!’

Ni Bingyan took a deep breath, her noodles forgotten. She steadied herself and began to fish for more information.

[Hey, cuz, when did you get into being a fan? How come you never mentioned it? If you’d told me, I might have been able to get you an autograph or a photo.]

Lu Yao sent back a smug-looking sticker.

[I was too embarrassed to tell you at first! But then I became a fan leader, and it got super easy to get photos and autographs, so I didn’t need to ask you for help!]

’My cousin is a low-key actress, and her career path is totally different from Brother Fei Fan’s. They don’t have any opportunities to work together on a daily basis. It’s better to rely on myself than ask her for help!’

Lu Yao felt she had thought it all through very carefully.

Besides, the more well-behaved a kid is, the less likely they are to talk about it when they do something rebellious, especially not to friends and family.

If her cousin hadn’t started the chat with a red packet and led the conversation to this point, she absolutely would not have said a word.

’My feelings for Brother should be kept secretly in my heart~’

At this thought, Lu Yao immediately cut the conversation short, pretending she had to go to class to end the chat.

Ni Bingyan could easily imagine it. Her cousin had spent several hundred thousand yuan on him in just six months. Faced with such a cash cow, who could resist cashing in? It was only natural she’d receive special treatment.

She was about to ask more, but seeing that Lu Yao no longer wanted to talk, Ni Bingyan, afraid of tipping her hand, could only send back a [/bye] sticker.

Putting down her phone, Ni Bingyan completely lost her appetite.

’This guy has got to go!’

’I have to make his career implode before my cousin starts working at his studio!’

Thinking of this, Ni Bingyan immediately picked up her phone and called Wei Shuojie.

The call connected, but no one picked up. Ni Bingyan opened WeChat, typed out a detailed explanation of the situation, and then began to wait patiently.

After waiting for over ten minutes with no reply, Ni Bingyan grew restless and decided to go for a walk around her residential complex.

The afternoon sun was perfect. She could use a ”baptism of righteous energy.” Otherwise, she’d keep running into all sorts of ghouls and goblins. What terrible luck!

She hadn’t taken more than a few steps out the door when she saw Aunt Shui walking along the path, holding her white, blue-eyed cat.

It was rare to see a cat that enjoyed walks in such cold weather.

Ni Bingyan knew Sang Yuan was a filial son, and his mother loved hearing people praise him for it. Since they had run into each other, it was only right to offer a few compliments.

After all, this was the mother of her ”Treasure Basin.” She had already invested ten million yuan; she didn’t mind saying a few nice things to keep the woman happy.

”Aunt Shui! Good afternoon! Xuehua’er is looking very spirited today!”

Normally, Shui Sulan would have picked up the thread, praising her son for being so thoughtful, and Ni Bingyan would have followed up with a line like, ”You’re so fortunate, Aunt Shui.” But today, when Shui Sulan turned to see her, her brow was furrowed with worry.

”Alas~”

There were probably few women in the entire world who lived a happier life than she did, so it was rare to catch her sighing. Ni Bingyan naturally had to ask with concern, ”What’s wrong, Aunt Shui? Did you run into some trouble?”

’If acting talent were a scale of one to ten, Little Sang would be a twelve, while his mom would be a negative two.’

Shui Sulan’s acting was as terrible as ever. The moment Ni Bingyan asked, she put on an expression that screamed, ’I’ve been waiting here for you,’ and kept shooting furtive glances at her.

”It’s not my problem, it’s my son’s! He’s run into a bit of trouble he can’t solve, and he’s been at home all day yelling at people on the phone!”

Oh?

Now that was even rarer!

Even though she sensed something was off, Ni Bingyan took the bait. ”What kind of trouble? I wonder if there’s anything I can do to help?”