Who Needs a CEO? I Choose Stardom

Thanks to a reading salon, Ni Bingyan met a group of new friends, all of whom were not only accomplished in their respective fields but also genuinely good people.

After having a wonderful time for half the night, she returned to her hotel, immediately opened her laptop, and wrote a thank-you letter to Mr. Victor.

In the letter, she thanked him for the invitation to the salon and apologized for inadvertently stealing the spotlight.

Then, she wrote a sincere thank-you letter to Alan.

She thanked him for introducing her to his friends and for coming to her aid at the show.

[...Your kindness and gentlemanly conduct have given me an even better impression of France. I will continue to work hard and hope to one day stand on the awards stage at Cannes. When that time comes, you must accept my invitation to have dinner with me.

Your sincere friend, Ni Bingyan.]

Ni Bingyan’s fingers flew across the keyboard, typing up a storm of lavish compliments guaranteed to leave the recipient feeling utterly delighted.

Once she was done, she remembered the new friends she’d just made. ’I can’t neglect them, either,’ she thought.

First up was the warm and generous fashion designer from the Netherlands.

[Dear Sylvia, Hearing you speak of the beautiful scenery in the Netherlands today made me long to visit. If I ever get the chance to travel there, I’ll be sure to send you some photos. Also, your work is truly captivating. I’m especially looking forward to tomorrow’s show. It was a great pleasure to meet you. May everything go smoothly for you, and may all your wishes come true.

Your most sincere friend, Ni Bingyan.]

Next was the German photographer, who had found a brush, ink, paper, and an inkstone, and had stubbornly insisted she paint something on the spot.

[Dear Lucas, It was a real pleasure to meet you today. Your photography skills and your ultimate pursuit of beauty left me in awe! I look forward to our next meeting.

Your new friend from the East, Ni Bingyan.]

...

Based on her personal impressions, Ni Bingyan wrote and sent out over a dozen emails, one after another.

After finishing her correspondence, she checked the time. Then, she contacted Starlight Publishing House back home, asking them to send a few sets of her art books over to Victor. It was worth a shot to see if they could break into the overseas market.

It was business hours at Starlight Publishing House, and the editor-in-chief was delighted to receive the news.

They were in the process of expanding into the overseas market, but unfortunately, they hadn’t made much progress. If they could establish contact and cooperate with an overseas publisher, nothing could be better.

Logistics were so advanced these days that sending a few sets of art books wouldn’t cost much.

Of course, Ni Bingyan wasn’t one to take advantage of this, but when she offered to pay, the publishing house refused, no matter what she said.

For a high-quality client who was so famous, loved to write and paint, and was genuinely talented, the publishing house certainly knew how to maintain a good relationship.

After taking care of everything, Ni Bingyan took a fragrant bath, then leaned back against the headboard, turned on her reading lamp, and took out the short story collection Mr. Victor had given her.

Compared to filming back home, coming out to see the fashion shows felt just like a vacation to her.

’Just think about it,’ she mused. ’During the day, I get to watch beautiful models in beautiful clothes. Afterward, I go out with friends for good food and good times. And at night, I can curl up with a good book and read to my heart’s content.’

’Life is truly wonderful.’

While she was quietly reading, a storm was brewing online. Over a dozen industry bigwigs had simultaneously posted photos with her on social media, their captions filled with glowing praise. The news of her low-key gathering with these influential figures quickly sparked a heated discussion.

Foreigners tended to be effusive with their praise, and they nearly lauded Ni Bingyan to the heavens.

She felt embarrassed reading it herself, but in the eyes of her countrymen, it brought them immense pride!

It was just after ten in New York, which meant it was just before lunchtime back home. A huge number of people were on their phones, so naturally, the flood of positive comments was overwhelming.

Comparisons are odious, and this was a prime example:

[Look at her! She brings so much honor to us Chinese. The moment she goes abroad, she befriends a bunch of big shots and even promotes our traditional culture. Unlike some people who nearly beat each other’s brains out over a seat, making a complete spectacle of themselves for everyone to see. It really takes all kinds, tsk tsk~]

[I’m so full of regret! I can’t believe I ignored someone like Ni Bingyan to stan that brain-dead idiot! I’m so mad I could spit blood! My youth was completely wasted! Thankfully, it’s not too late to fix my mistake. I hereby declare that from this day forward, I’m an Ice Pop too!]

[Am I the only one who noticed? As the one whose seat was stolen, Bingbing showed so much class. She didn’t even go over to curse them out; she just found another seat and sat down.]

When Ni Bingyan’s fans saw this, they immediately sat up straight, their fingers flying across their keyboards:

[Our Bingbing is magnanimous and always sees the bigger picture. Most importantly, she’s clear-headed. Why would she bother starting a fight with them? It’s totally beneath her! She’d rather use that time and energy to meet a few capable new friends!]

It had to be said, her fans truly did understand her.

Ni Bingyan never paid any mind to the chaos online.

Right now, she was diligently writing a book review.

Her favorite author had released a new book. As a die-hard fan, getting her hands on it made her feel just like a reader of a serialized novel when a new Chapter drops. After finishing, she was so stirred with emotion that she felt compelled to write something.

In the past, whenever she finished a novel and wrote a review, she would email it but never get a reply from the author. She could only keep her thoughts to herself to savor.

But things were different now. She knew the author and even had his personal email address. ’Maybe if he sees my message, Mr. Modiano will actually reply?’

Thrilled, Ni Bingyan stayed up writing several new book reviews. She then took photos of the old reviews from her notebook, attached them to the email, and scheduled it to send the next morning. Only then did she feel satisfied.

Before bed, she called her boyfriend to tell him about her day, said goodnight, and drifted off to a peaceful sleep.

While she slept soundly, fulfilled and happy with her accomplishments, the women who had stolen her seat earlier couldn’t sleep a wink.

Li Lu’s eyes were swollen from crying. ”I just sat in her seat. Is that any reason for everyone to curse me out like this?”

’She doesn’t even know you,’ the manager thought. ’You two have no personal connection. You didn’t even bother to say hello before you took her seat. And now that you’re getting flamed for it, you have the audacity to blame her.’

”To be frank, she didn’t say a single word of blame to your face. The people online are tearing you apart, and you deserve it, so just take it! You thought she was an easy target, didn’t you? This is nothing but self-inflicted humiliation! You bit off more than you could chew, and you deserve it!”

’If only I’d been able to get an invitation, I would have gone in with her. Letting Li Lu handle things on her own... my brain must’ve been slammed in a door!’

Li Lu had become famous at a young age, came from a wealthy family, and had a smooth-sailing life growing up. As a result, she had a very willful streak in her personality.

’Being her manager is sheer torture!’

After this incident, the manager finally made up his mind. As soon as they returned home, he would ask the company to let him manage a different artist.

He’d rather put in the extra effort to find someone with proper values—someone down-to-earth and hardworking. Even if their rise to fame was slower, it would be infinitely better than dealing with an artist hell-bent on self-destruction.

No amount of hard work could offset the damage from one of her brilliant, self-sabotaging moves.

Li Lu just kept crying.

’Today was utterly humiliating!’ she thought.

She didn’t even know how things had ended up in such a mess.

’I just didn’t want to lose to those little bitches! What’s so wrong with that?’

The others involved were in a similar predicament to Li Lu, but we won’t dwell on that for now.

The next day, Ni Bingyan stuck to her schedule. She got all dolled up and went out, first for a street photoshoot, then to a fashion show. After the show, she accepted Sylvia’s invitation to attend a clothing exhibition with her.

If she saw something she liked, she bought it. The feeling was fantastic!

For the next few days, her life was a whirlwind of exhibitions and fashion shows—looking beautiful and shopping ’til she dropped.

If she received an invitation, she would attend small parties and banquets.

After every event, her network expanded significantly.

Even as she was making new friends abroad, she didn’t forget her old ones.

Before returning home, she spent half a day shopping in New York. She bought a pile of gifts and had them sent to her friends and family back home, as well as to the various producers, directors, and actors she had worked with in the past.

After getting all that done, Ni Bingyan returned to her hotel and started going over her finances. She was shocked to discover that she had spent several million over the course of Fashion Week!

A sudden sense of urgency gripped her.

’I need to make money! I have to make money!’

Seeing her furiously tapping away on a calculator, only to then stare at him without blinking, Wei Shuojie, who was sipping coffee nearby, couldn’t help but laugh.

”I think you should take that variety show,” he said. ”The pay isn’t much, but your fans are generous. They want to sign a revenue-sharing agreement with you. No matter how much it earns, you’ll get a thirty percent cut.”

Ni Bingyan bit her lip, hesitating for a moment before nodding. ”I have no problem accepting. But... isn’t thirty percent a bit much? I think ten percent would be more than enough.”

”We can negotiate that. If you decide to take the offer, we’ll have the legal team start the process. At the same time, we need to get your Iron Triangle fan club to put together a complete event proposal ASAP. I’ll follow up on all the details to make sure this variety show is a success.”

”Deal!”

Ni Bingyan nodded, then asked sheepishly, ”By the way, are there any new endorsement deals? I think I can take on two more this year.”

Wei Shuojie smiled.

’Just two?’

If she wanted, she could sign twenty deals at once, and they would all be for major, respectable brands.

This trip to Fashion Week had definitely been the right move.