Chapter 147

  After a noisy winter and entering spring, after the willow trees sprout and the small lotus flowers bloom, it is already the intersection of spring and summer.

  The streets are crowded with people every day, but today there are even more. Before noon, the roads on both sides were already filled with cars. At 11:30, eighteen firecrackers suddenly went off on the street. Following the sound, it turned out that the newly renovated Sichuan restaurant had just opened.

  On the opening day of this ordinary Sichuan restaurant, even if customers came in droves, it wouldn't be anything special. However, this Sichuan restaurant's entrance attracted countless media outlets with cameras at the ready. After 18 firecrackers were set off, a closer look revealed that standing at the entrance was a row of handsome men and beautiful women, each one a familiar face from TV.

  Onlookers murmured: This family is so extravagant, just opening a Sichuan restaurant and they've invited celebrities to attend.

  It's not that exaggerated, it's just that this store is opened by Li Jin Kai, he has a wide network of connections and good relationships in the industry, so many celebrities came to support his first business venture.

  It was like a small red carpet show, but the stars didn't wear evening dresses and were dressed casually. They smiled sincerely when facing the media, and even stopped to chat with familiar reporters, connecting with each other emotionally.

  Li Jin stood at the door in a deep blue suit, with a smile on his face that was neither too arrogant nor too rude. A photographer who had mistaken him for a star repeatedly pressed the shutter and took countless photos of him.

  The store is moderately sized, and upon entering through the corridor, you'll find yourself in a spacious hall. The interior design features thick green bamboo, giving off a natural ambiance. Originally, there were tables set up in the hall, but due to the grand opening, they've been scattered about, laden with wine, fruit platters, and early arrivals mingling, exchanging business cards, resembling an intimate cocktail party.

  Bei Fuming arrived early and was invited by Li Jin to rest in the hall. As Yi Ge Company grew bigger, Bei Fuming's status in the circle also changed. In the past, his 200-pound obese body would take up space wherever he stood, but now when he appeared, countless small stars and agents flocked around him, not minding his large belly, even flattering him as a "prime minister's belly that can hold a boat", rich and prosperous.

  After being flattered for a long time, Bei Fulong deeply felt that his buttocks were about to swell, and he quickly found an excuse to escape. He would rather stand at the door and accompany Li Jin with a smile than pretend to be polite inside.

  Li Jin didn't dare to call him "Respected Buddha" standing beside him, but Old Bei's condescension had caused many small-time celebrities without much status to not dare approach, instead they stared at him with envy and admiration, one by one, blocking the traffic. Bei Fengming hadn't expected it to be like this inside, and outside was also like this. With a bitter face and at a loss for what to do, he suddenly felt a strong force pulling him aside, he followed the force and looked over, it was Li Jin.

  The two flashed to the side, and Bei Fengming, still in a state of shock, wiped away his sweat, sighing: "Alas, it seems I've become famous, it seems I'm really famous."

  Li Jin Xie gave him a sideways glance, rubbed his stiff facial skin with force and said: "What are you doing out here? Causing trouble!"

  Bei Feng's name stroked his chest weakly: "You said I came out for what?"

  Li Jin thought for a moment and sympathized: "So, as it turns out, Xiao Yun is really smart. She directly gave me a thick red envelope with a brick inside, without even apologizing."

  "My brother's shop is opening, it's a matter of life and death, I have to be there." Bei Fuyu patted his own shoulder, his expression changing from righteous indignation to a cowardly look in an instant. "I say, I'm keeping an eye on the time, why hasn't your family member arrived yet?"

  Li Jin's expression stiffened instantly.

  It took him a good while before he dryly coughed twice and said, "You came and almost couldn't get away, if he came, wouldn't it be even more...".

  He swallowed hard and couldn't go on speaking.

  Bei floated gazed at him with a look of loss, deeply regretting that he shouldn't have spoken too much, his brain quickly turned around and thought of ways to change the subject.

  "This flower basket..." He glanced at the flower basket placed not far away, pointing at the ribbon on it and asked, "Was it sent by Jiang Jing or Luo Fei's dad?"

  Li Jin raised his head, and at the entrance, there were four flower baskets placed in a conspicuous position, all of which were sent by people with status in the city. Among these people, except for Jiang Jing, the others were just acquaintances, but they still sent someone to deliver gifts, what's the intention behind this? It can be seen that Li Jin didn't dare offend them and didn't need to offend them, so he put all of them at the front of the store as a display.

  "Yes, it was sent by Liao Fei's father." Li Jin nodded and admitted.

  Bei Feng's lips trembled twice, wanting to say something, but ultimately didn't make a sound. His hands searched around, looking for cigarettes in his pocket, and had already pinched one out before thinking to ask Li Jin: "Is it okay to smoke here?"

  "What restaurant doesn't allow smoking?" Lí Jǐn smiled and said, "But don't smoke here, it's near the entrance, the smell is big. From here to the inside, turn left at the end, there's a small rest room, you go hide for a while."

  Bei floated a name responded with a sound, pinched the cigarette and walked in. After walking a few steps, he suddenly stopped, turned around and said: "Tomorrow Tim will come to the company to discuss the script, do you know?"

  Li Jin raised an eyebrow.

  "His script is still not good, and he's got a bad temper and refuses to change. If he doesn't change, who will invest in him?" Bei Feng sighed, "I plan to meet with him tomorrow to have a good talk about this, do you want to come along?"

  "I'd rather not," said Lijin. "After all, apart from work, we're still friends, so it's better to get involved as little as possible."

  Bei Feng raised two fingers in a "V" shape, indicating that he understood, and then walked towards the end of the corridor.

  Today, so many people have come, and it's inevitable to say a few words of gratitude formally. With only ten minutes left before the banquet starts, Li Jin planned to take a stroll around the entrance and then go prepare. Unexpectedly, just as he walked to the entrance, he saw Xiao Pu rushing in hastily.

  "Brother Lei!" Little Pu rarely wore a suit and tie, his baby face looked even more childish in contrast. "Sorry sorry, I'm late!"

  "Not late," said Li Jin as he welcomed him, "it's good you're here."

  Xiao Pu ran over, panting, with one hand supporting Li Jin and the other handing him two boxes: "Brother Li, a gift. Wishing you great success in your new venture!"

  "So polite, and you're also giving gifts?" Lei Jin teased him, "What did you give?"

  He opened the box on top and found a men's Omega watch. Li Jin was familiar with such things, and at a glance, he knew that this was one of the latest mechanical watches with intricate craftsmanship in spring, which was not cheap.

  Is this really worth buying for such a high price?

  Li Jin's heart tightened slightly, and he quietly took another look at Xiao Pu.

  Since the beginning of the year, after the Xiao Su incident, Xiao Pu seemed to have suddenly enlightened and handled many things without needing guidance, doing them perfectly. He cooperated with Luo Fei seamlessly, and in this short half-year, not only did he complete all the tasks listed on the schedule by Li Jin, but also helped Luo Fei secure two more advertising endorsements. Sometimes, Bei Feng couldn't help but sigh, Xiao Pu was a child who wasn't meant to be a pioneer, but he still had some ability to defend his own territory.

  No wonder then, with Lu Fei's numerous endorsement deals, Xiao Pu's income also rose sharply.

  Li Jin smiled faintly.

  "Thank you very much, I really like this watch." Li Jin took the box below, "What's this?"

  Xiao Pu took a deep breath and ventured: "Inside... is Luo Fei's congratulatory gift."

  The hand opening the box froze for an instant.

  Xiao Pu swallowed his saliva, blocking Li Jin's action of opening the box. He furrowed his brow, as if he had made a huge decision, and slowly said: "Li Ge, I...I think it's better for you to be Luo Fei's agent."

  Li Jin nodded silently with an "uh-huh".

  "Luo Fei has been doing very well these past few months, being very proactive and cooperative at work. Even when things didn't go as planned, he endured it." Xiao Pu carefully chose his words while observing Lei Jin's expression, "I can tell, he wants to make up for his mistakes."

  Li Jin didn't respond, but simply swapped the positions of the two boxes and held them in his arms.

  Luo Fei's performance is clear to Li Jin, as the chief broker. More than half a year has passed since the draft ended, and even Qi Yichen, who was supported by Li Jin, had a decline in popularity, but Luo Fei's popularity continued to rise. Especially during the period when Shu Mu fell from the altar and many new kings rushed to take his place, Luo Fei remained humble and worked hard with extraordinary effort and perseverance to create an unbreakable kingdom for himself, earning him the media's praise as the male artist most likely to recreate Shu Mu's legend.

  It's impossible for Lijin to believe that all this is due to Xiaopu's efforts. Others may not know about Xiaopu's abilities, but he himself is very clear about them. The reason why Lu Fei is still so popular is actually more because of his own efforts.

  Luó Fēi is going all out.

  "Brother Li, everyone in the company says I've made great progress and that people are looking at me with new eyes. But it's all exaggerated. Take those two endorsement deals for example. One of them was when Lu Fei didn't sleep for a night and took over 300 photos in the studio for the client, earning their trust. The other one was when Lu Fei drank with someone at a banquet, downing over a kilogram of liquor. To be honest, I didn't put in much effort for these two endorsement deals." Xiao Pu looked dejected, but now that he's opened up, his mental burden has been lifted. "I'm not capable enough. I might get lucky once or twice with this kind of thing, but three or four times is impossible. Brother Li, you've also said before that Lu Fei is our company's most promising artist. Can you please take him under your wing again and not let me waste his talent?"

  Take him again?

  Li Jin's gaze froze.

  Will you ride the flying horse again?

  He wasn't without thoughts on this issue, but every time it popped up, he would immediately shoot it down.

  At first, they did things so absolutely, without leaving any room for the other party to turn around. Now, saying that they want to bring this kind of talk back again, don't you think it's a bit ridiculous?

  Suddenly, the box in his hand became heavy. Li Jin coughed and asked, "Was it Luo Fei who told you to tell me these things?"

  Xiao Pu shook his head: "No, it's what I've been thinking myself." After finishing speaking, he raised his face, as if afraid that Li Jin wouldn't believe him, and stared at Li Jin's eyes with an extremely sincere gaze, "Really, I've thought so for a long time, all from my own heart."

  Li Jing let out a soft sigh.

  "It's getting late, let's go in." He put his arm around Xiao Pu's shoulder and walked into the hall.

  "So you're saying, Brother Lei, you agree?" Xiao Pu saw that Lei Jin didn't refuse and quickly followed up.

  Li Jin looked at him for a moment:

  "Never mind."