Starting a new chapter in life

Jingyan didn't know if the casting for Zhizhi went smoothly, but the daily lunch deliveries had increased from only An'an to also include Zhizhi. Most of the company's employees were unaware that He Jin'an and He Anzhi were related.

After all, the two didn't interact face-to-face much at the company. When they met, one called him "Director He," and the other called him "President He." If He Zhijun hadn't brought them lunch, their relationship probably wouldn't have been exposed.

The employees who realized what was happening were shocked. This family is something else! The brother owns a media company, the sister is a director, and now that they're in the industry, Director He will be considered a capitalist.

A few days later, an industry gala was held. Zhizhi was too lazy to buy a dress, so she went to Xiaoxiao's house and took a dress that Xiaoxiao no longer wore. She then had the company's stylist do her hair and makeup and attended the event as He Jin'an's date.

Two years ago, He Jin'an wasn't qualified to attend such a banquet, and no one would have invited him. Now, he has a fairly popular TV series, so he's finally qualified to attend.

Although this wasn't He Jin'an's first time attending such a banquet, it was indeed his first time bringing a female companion. Furthermore, he was quite young; the other young faces at the banquet were either from wealthy families or powerful families.

He is one of the very few who managed to qualify for the competition before the age of thirty through his own efforts, and naturally attracts attention.

Because of her profession, Zhizhi was watched by even more people on set, so she had developed a strong heart. Even when so many people were staring at her, whether obviously or subtly, she didn't show much reaction. She wore a fake smile, linked arms with He Jin'an, and whispered to him:

"Are you here to network or to act like a peacock? Why are so many people staring at you?"

He Jin'an... "I don't want to be a peacock either, but your brother seems to be the youngest here, so isn't it normal to be the center of attention?"

"Have you no shame? Your media company, to put it nicely, is a company, but to put it bluntly, it's just a studio. I have no confidence in you participating in such a high-end event."

Despite her calm demeanor, He Anzhi was actually quite nervous inside. She lacked confidence in herself, as she had no notable works to show for herself. When others asked her, she had little to say. She sighed and realized she still needed to work harder.

The brother and sister entered the venue together. He Jin'an actually saw someone she had some dealings with and led He Anzhi over to talk to him. Otherwise, the two of them standing there would be too isolated. They needed to find a group to join them, even if they were just standing there.

Unfortunately, He Jin'an's plan was interrupted before it could even begin. A man in his forties, dressed in an expensive custom-made suit, approached with a glass of champagne and said enthusiastically, "You must be Mr. He from Ping An Media? You're young and promising."

He Jin'an didn't recognize him, but the man looked successful. He reacted quickly, grabbing a glass of champagne and lightly clinking it against the newcomer's glass, offering a few words of flattery, and taking a small sip before waiting for the visitor to continue. Not knowing the visitor's purpose, he could only proceed cautiously, careful not to offend him.

Fortunately, the visitor didn't have any ulterior motives. He just wanted to greet the rising star. When he met other people, He Jin'an became much more composed. He became more relaxed as he chatted and laughed, which made the old hands nod in approval of his adaptability and resourcefulness.

He Anzhi didn't want to stay by his brother's side forever. After a while, seeing that his brother was chatting well with others, he decided to have some free time. While he was feeling bored, a woman in a bright red dress walked over with a graceful demeanor.

She smiled at Zhizhi and nodded in He Jin'an's direction: "Is that your boyfriend? You two look quite well-matched."

Zhizhi smiled back: "He's my brother, my biological brother, the kind with the same parents. He said he needed to bring a female companion to the banquet tonight, so he dragged me along to fill in."

The woman smiled knowingly, extended her hand, and introduced herself: "My name is Fu Qiusheng, and I am the acting president of Hongyu Group."

Zhizhi reached out and shook hands with him: "Hello, my name is He Anzhi. I'm a rookie director right now, and I don't have any representative works. Sister, can I call you sister? You look about my age, and you're already a president. You're amazing. I've heard of Hongyu Group. I heard it's a very large company."

Fu Qiusheng smiled gently: "Okay, you must be very happy to have such a lively younger sister like you."

Zhizhi smiled a little shyly, "I'll call you Sister Shengsheng, but you can call me Zhizhi. That's what my family calls me. I'm twenty-six years old this year. And Sister Shengsheng?"

“I’m three years older than you, I’m twenty-nine.” Fu Qiusheng made no attempt to hide his age.

"Is Sister Sheng Sheng married? Or does she already have a boyfriend? Sister Sheng Sheng is beautiful, capable, has a great figure, and a gentle personality. She definitely won't have trouble finding a husband. However, she can take her time to choose the most outstanding young talent." Zhi Zhi said sincerely.

Fu Qiusheng didn't reply to Zhizhi's words. Instead, he stared at her intently for a while, which puzzled Zhizhi. She asked, "Sister Shengsheng, why are you staring at me? Is my makeup ruined?" As she finished speaking, she tried to touch her face.

Fu Qiusheng took her hand and shook his head: "Your makeup is fine, but the feeling you described doesn't quite seem like me. In our circle, I'm the kind of person who has a hard time getting married, so... I don't have a boyfriend yet."

Zhizhi was shocked: "You're so outstanding, and you're so young to be able to manage a group. How can someone like you have such a hard time getting married? Your circle must have really high standards." Zhizhi was genuinely surprised.

Fu Qiusheng was amused by her. "It seems you've been well protected by your family. To put it bluntly, the capital circle has no feelings; it's all about interests. Even marriage is just an exchange to solidify interests. And I don't have any of the interests they want." There was a hint of self-deprecation in her tone.

Zhizhi shook her head seriously: "That shouldn't be the case. My mother said that money is important in marriage, after all, poverty makes life miserable for couples. But if you only talk about money, then you can't have a marriage. After all, feelings are also very important in relationships."

"A marriage may lack passionate love, but it absolutely needs the warmth of a peaceful family bond. Otherwise, it won't last. That's why, even though my brother and I are not young anymore, my mother has never pressured us to get married. She believes that a marriage without love is worse than being single."

“Your mother’s ideas are different from many people’s. You and your siblings are very lucky.” Fu Qiusheng said this sincerely.

Zhizhi nodded happily. As the two were talking, He Jin'an came over. Seeing Zhizhi, he habitually raised his hand and flicked her forehead: "I told you, play by yourself, but don't wander too far off the beaten path."

"I've been looking for you for ages! If you're lost or something happened to you, Dad will beat me to death when I get home. You're not my sweetheart, you're some kind of reincarnated debt collector!"

Zhizhi punched him back in dissatisfaction: "Why do you always flick my forehead? If you make me stupid, Mom will scold you."

He Jin'an smiled and rubbed her forehead, explaining, "I was holding back. You're so delicate, you get red from just a little pressure. Hurry up and rub it, or Mom will see when we get home, or I'll definitely get scolded."

Zhizhi stopped joking with him and turned to introduce him: "Brother, this is Sister Shengsheng. She's amazing. She's so young and already the acting president of Hongyu Group. She's much better than you."

He Jin'an looked at Fu Qiusheng with surprise, smiled politely, and nodded in greeting: "Hello, He Jin'an, Zhizhi's brother. President Fu is truly young and promising. I am ashamed of my inferiority."

Fu Qiusheng looked at He Jin'an very seriously, then suddenly smiled, "Fu Qiusheng, do you two have time to chat?"

He Jin'an wasn't sure what she was laughing at, but he still nodded politely: "Shall we talk here or somewhere else?" After all, there were too many important people at this banquet, and the two siblings really felt quite... out of place here.

Fu Qiusheng also disliked these kinds of banquets. He was only there because he was invited, and it wouldn't be right not to come. Besides, he could also take this opportunity to see what projects were worthwhile. After all, even businesses need to expand their business channels, and businessmen won't let any opportunity slip by.

Therefore, upon hearing He Jin'an's question, he replied without hesitation, "If you don't mind, let's go somewhere else. Although there's plenty of food at this banquet, no one will really be full. Let's find a restaurant to eat and chat at the same time?"

Zhizhi liked what she heard, and the three of them reached an agreement and left the venue together.

Upon arriving at the parking lot, Fu Qiusheng glanced at the brother and sister and said, "Why don't you take my car to eat first? I'll drive you back after we've finished talking, okay?"

He Jin'an had no objection, and the two got into Fu Qiusheng's Audi. Men may have a natural love for cars. Although An'an tried his best to suppress his nature, Zhizhi knew him well, so she asked, "Brother, Sister Sheng's car seems more comfortable than your Santana."

He Jin'an pinched her cheek: "This is a joint venture car, of course it's more upscale than ours, and the price is better too. My current car is also pretty good. What, Zhizhi, are you looking down on your brother's car because it's not high-end enough?"

Zhizhi shook her head: "I don't know anything about cars. Why don't you get one of these cars too, brother? It'll make you look good. You're a boss now, so we should keep up with the standards. If you don't have enough money, I have some on hand that I can help you with."

An'an shook her head: "Keep your money. I don't plan to change it. My car is only worth about 100,000 yuan, but this one will cost at least 600,000 yuan. We're just a small company; there's no need to go bankrupt to save face."

"If I had that money, I'd rather buy two or three more RVs. Our artists, especially on set, would find it much more convenient to have RVs. Right now, only two of our agents have RVs provided for their artists, so I still need to work harder."

“Only two celebrities have RVs, and Xiaoxiao is one of them, right?” Zhizhi asked with certainty.

He Jin'an nodded: "Yes, Xiaoxiao is currently the best performing member of our company. Some time ago, many agencies tried to poach her, but fortunately, she grew up with you and has a good relationship with you, so she didn't waver. If she had been poached, our resources would have been affected for a long time."

Ultimately, it comes down to our weak foundation; in this competitive world of fame and fortune, we lack competitiveness. However, Xiaoxiao's resources aren't great either. Her appearance limits her acting roles; investors always focus on superficial aspects.

"Or maybe you just want to take advantage of her. My original intention in starting this company was to prevent you two from being subjected to unspoken rules just to survive. How could I let her suffer? So..."

At this point, An An shook his head helplessly. If you want to live in seclusion, you will definitely be suppressed and ostracized. If he and Teacher Shen hadn't bought several scripts back then, the situation of the artists in the company would be even more difficult now.

Fu Qiusheng listened to the siblings' conversation while driving, without interrupting, but her impression of them improved even more. She had heard of Ping An Media a couple of times, but in the evaluations she had heard,

Mr. He is a simpleton who doesn't know his own brain. For the sake of the company's so-called reputation, he ignores a lot of resources and focuses on protecting the company's artists. He doesn't bring the artists to drinking parties or allow them to attend any business events other than drama promotions. He's not afraid that the company will go out of business.

She had a good impression of the company from the start; otherwise, she wouldn't have sought out Zhizhi today to chat with her, trying to avoid those who tried to pick her up. She wanted to see if they were truly as morally upright as rumored, and so far, they certainly seemed good.

He wasn't swayed by her better or more expensive car, but focused solely on improving the artist's treatment and conditions. Such a boss must be a responsible person. If he were a husband, even without feelings, he could still be loyal to his family out of a sense of responsibility. Would such a person be the partner she needs?

The car pulled into a decent-sized restaurant. Fu Qiusheng, familiar with the place, led the group upstairs to a private room. After they sat down, she smiled and said, "This is a restaurant I frequent. The food is quite good. You can try it."

The waiter came in and brought the menu. Fu Qiusheng ordered two dishes and then handed them to Zhizhi: "You guys should also order some dishes you like."

After ordering two more dishes, Zhizhi returned the menu to the waiter, but Fu Qiusheng quickly stopped her, saying, "President He hasn't ordered yet."

He Jin'an waved his hand: "It's fine if Zhizhi orders. We have similar tastes, so we'll just go with her order. There are only three of us, so four dishes are enough. Any more would be a waste."

Fu Qiusheng nodded to the waiter, who then took the menu and left, closing the door to the private room behind him.

He Jin'an looked at Fu Qiusheng and said calmly, "President Fu, what is it you wanted to talk to us siblings about? Shall we start now?"

Fu Qiusheng leaned back in his chair, placed his hands folded on his crossed legs, and said, "Actually, I've heard some rumors about Ping An Media before, saying that you're very strict about protecting your company's artists, and your bodyguards seem to be quite skilled."

I thought that a boss who would go to great lengths to protect his artists and refuse to compromise his principles must be a person of principle. Today, it seems he's quite good; at least he has a clear conscience and doesn't fawn over those in power. Therefore, I have two suggestions to discuss with Mr. He. Of course, please forgive me if I offend anyone during the discussion.”